Weekly Review Round-Up 16/2/2013

(My movie Pick of the week
West of Memphis ★★★★★
Opens in Australia: 14^th February 2013

Other Countries: Release Information
Perth West Australians:  See at Luna Palace Cinemas

OUR THOUGHTS

This is a riveting and shocking film. It is like a John Grisham book times ten. You couldn’t invent the twists and turns in this case, nor the travesty of justice that occurred. For most documentaries I would say wait and see on DVD but this one deserves your full attention on the big screen. You are immediately sucked into the story and spat out at the other end, bewildered and angry, and shaking your head. As a parent, I think some of the images will haunt me for a long time to come.

STUDIO BLURB

From director Amy Berg, in collaboration with first time Producers Damien Echols and Lorri Davis along with filmmakers Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh comes West of Memphis, a powerful examination of a catastrophic failure of justice in Arkansas. The documentary tells the hitherto unknown story behind an extraordinary and desperate fight to bring the truth to light. Told and made by those who lived it, Berg's unprecedented access to the inner workings of the defense, allows the film to show the investigation, research and appeals process in a way that has never been seen before; revealing shocking and disturbing new information about a case that still haunts the American South.-- (C) Official Site

Safe Haven ★
Opens in Australia: 14^th February 2013
Other Countries: Release Information

OUR THOUGHTS

I haven’t seen a film as bad as this since, well, since the last Nicholas Sparks adaptation last year, The Lucky One. It’s so poorly scripted, directed and acted, it is hard to believe professional film-makers were involved.  Surely the books aren’t as bad as the films?  Was Lasse Hallström, the director (who has created such fine films as Chocolat, What's Eating Gilbert Grape and even the enjoyable Salmon Fishing in the Yemen) even on the set?  Seriously, rent out NOTTING HILL and re-watch.  Next time, above the posters please read, “From the author of The Notebook, another cliché”.  It received its one star rating because it really made me laugh watching Josh Duhamel fall off a roof and just walk away.

P.S.  Don’t believe the studio blurb below about it. It is neither affirming nor suspenseful.  However, I will now repeat the following affirmation, “I will never see a Nicholas Sparks adaptation again.”STUDIO BLURB

An affirming and suspenseful story about a young woman's struggle to love again, Safe Haven is based on the novel from Nicholas Sparks, the best-selling author behind the hit films The Notebook and Dear John. When a mysterious young woman arrives in a small North Carolina town, her reluctance to join the tight knit community raises questions about her past. Slowly, she begins putting down roots, and gains the courage to start a relationship with Alex, a widowed store owner with two young children. But dark secrets intrude on her new life with such terror that she is forced to rediscover the meaning of sacrifice and rely on the power of love in this deeply moving romantic thriller.

Anna Karenina ★★★★

Opens in Australia: 14th February 2013
Other Countries: Release Information

OUR THOUGHTS

Once you adjust to the strange framing of this story (it’s as if it’s a play and then morphs into a standard movie and then back again, often), this adaptation of Tolstoy’s tome Anna Karenina is very enjoyable. It’s sumptuous and dramatic on the big screen and I liked Keira Knightley’s portrayal.  Although I wish she would get her teeth fixed. You won't recognise Jude Law. (He's in a lot of films lately isn't he?)  If you love these grand historic films, this is definitely for you.

STUDIO BLURB

The third collaboration of Academy Award nominee Keira Knightley with acclaimed director Joe Wright, following the award-winning box office successes Pride & Prejudice and Atonement, is a bold, theatrical new vision of the epic story of love, adapted from Leo Tolstoy's timeless novel by Academy Award winner Tom Stoppard. The story powerfully explores the capacity for love that surges through the human heart. As Anna (Ms. Knightley) questions her happiness and marriage, change comes to all around her. -- (C) Focus

What have you seen this week? Did you find our comments helpful or do you disagree? Share your thoughts with us.

 

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Weekly Review Round Up 10/2/2013

THIS WEEK'S PREVIEWS

What should you spend your precious dollars on when visiting the cinema? What needs popcorn to enjoy?  And what needs waiting until DVD?

If you have seen any of these or want to see them and have a comment please feel free to share. We love hearing from our readers.

 (My movie Pick of the week)

Lincoln ★★★★^½
Opens in Australia: 7^th February 2013
Other Countries: Release Information

 OUR THOUGHTS

Steven Spielberg paints a wonderful portrait of Lincoln as a real man.  In a lesser Director’s hands this film would have dragged (some reviewers thought it did).  He manages to infuse, what could have been dry, political rhetoric with a humorous playfulness that balances the seriousness of the events.   I found this movie fascinating and moving and beautifully made. Even though I already had the greatest admiration for Lincoln through his wonderful speeches and thoughts, I now truly understand his greatness and why the American people still love him so much.  If Daniel Day-Lewis doesn’t win the Oscar, something is rotten in the state of Denmark. 

STUDIO BLURB

Steven Spielberg directs Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln, a revealing drama that focuses on the 16th President's tumultuous final months in office. In a nation divided by war and the strong winds of change, Lincoln pursues a course of action designed to end the war, unite the country and abolish slavery. With the moral courage and fierce determination to succeed, his choices during this critical moment will change the fate of generations to come.

Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters ★★

Opens in Australia: 7th February 2013

Other Countries: Release Information

OUR THOUGHTS

You know what to expect, surely, from the trailers and the posters, so don’t blame me if you see it and are not happy. On the other hand, I did have a load of fun watching the witches get beaten up in so many different ways.  And I’ve never seen so many bodies, including our heroes, thrown through the air, through walls, through windows, down stairs, through trees, into carts, into barrels…well, you get the picture.   It has as many (plot) holes as a dozen packets of life-savers but if you love those slash-and-dash films like Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Slayer, Resident Evil,  and Underworld here is another one especially for you.

STUDIO BLURB

After getting a taste for blood as children, Hansel (Jeremy Renner) and Gretel (Gemma Arterton) have become the ultimate vigilantes, hell bent on retribution. Now, unbeknownst to them, Hansel and Gretel have become the hunted, and must face an evil far greater than witches...their past. -- (C) Paramount 

Guilt Trip ★★★

Opens in Australia: 24^th January 2013
Other Countries: Release Information

 OUR THOUGHTS

This is not an altogether fail as a film. It’s not hugely funny but towards the end, that was a tear that rolled down my cheek.  And, err, no, that wasn’t me squirming in my seat at the beginning as we were introduced to the over-bearing Mother Barbara Streistand played.  In any case, I love Barbara Streisand (yep I’ve seen every movie she’s made—many twice) and Seth Rogan is a great foil for her. 

Don’t go expecting anything hugely funny but do go looking for a lovely film that will remind you of the bonds between Mother’s and sons (and daughters) and how valuable they are if you take the time to look.

STUDIO BLURB

Andy Brewster is about to embark on the road trip of a lifetime, and who better to accompany him than his overbearing mother Joyce. After deciding to start his adventure with a quick visit at mom’s, Andy is guilted into bringing her along for the ride. Across 3,000 miles of ever-changing landscape, he is constantly aggravated by her antics, but over time he comes to realize that their lives have more in common than he originally thought. His mother’s advice might end up being exactly what he needs. 
 

What have you seen this week? Did you find our comments helpful or do you disagree? Share your thoughts with us.

 

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Hansel and Gretel Witch Hunters Competition

Australian Residents

Win

 one of five

  Admit 2 Season Passes to
 

Hansel & Gretel

   Witch Hunters 3D
 

starring

 

Jeremy Renner Gemma Arterton

In Cinemas 7th February 2013 

THE STORY

After getting a taste for blood as children, Hansel (Jeremy Renner) and Gretel (Gemma Arterton) have become the ultimate vigilantes, hell bent on retribution.

Now, unbeknownst to them, Hansel and Gretel have become the hunted, and must face an evil far greater than witches...their past.

www.HanselandGretelMovie.com.au

Hansel & Gretel Witchhunters on Facebook

Twitter - #HanselandGretel;

HOW TO ENTER

Simply retweet the following and ensure you are following @myshoppinglisto to be in the draw. Competition closes midnight West Australian time Wednesday 6th February 2013.  Winners announced on twitter 7th Febuary 2013.

TWEET THIS:

Australians: Win Admit 2 pass to #HanselandGretel Opens 7/2. Retweet & follow @myshoppinglisto 2 enter. Visit http://buff.ly/X5szsM 4 deets.

 

 Good Luck!

 

 

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Weekly Review Round Up 2nd February 2013

THIS WEEK'S PREVIEWS

What should you spend your precious dollars on when visiting the cinema? What needs popcorn to enjoy?  And what needs waiting until DVD?

If you have seen any of these or want to see them and have a comment please feel free to share. We love hearing from our readers.

 (My movie Pick of the week)

Zero Dark Thirty ★★★★★

Opens in Australia: 31st January 2013

Other Countries: Release Information

Read my full review here: A Picture Tells an Amazing Story

 OUR THOUGHTS

One of the most gripping films you will see.  Yes, it has torture scenes.  Yes, they are hard to watch. Yes, it depicts reality. But, as Director Katherine Bigelow says, we must bear witness to this.  This is how they caught a man who orchestrated such devastation in the lives of so many and forever turned an ordinary September date into a delineation of normal before and a new, strange world afterwards.  Go see it on the big screen. It will lose far too much on the tiny box.  And you pirate watchers: you really miss out on a lot to save a few lousy bucks.  See this one at the cinema.  And please hand Jessica Chastain her Oscar. She is head and shoulders above the rest of the nominees (who are all still brilliant).

STUDIO BLURB

For a decade, an elite team of intelligence and military operatives, working in secret across the globe, devoted themselves to a single goal: to find and eliminate Osama bin Laden. Zero Dark Thirty reunites the Oscar winning team of director-producer Kathryn Bigelow and writer-producer Mark Boal (The Hurt Locker) for the story of history's greatest manhunt for the world's most dangerous man. -- (C) Official Site.

Silver Linings Playbook★★
Opens in Australia: 24^th January 2013
Other Countries: Release Information

OUR THOUGHTS

The general consensus is that most audiences really liked this supposed comedy-romance.  I found it unfunny and not very romantic.  It could be all the accolades and nominations it has received that had my expectations set too high.  However, I found Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence had no chemistry whatsoever and acted more like brother and sister than two people falling in love.  Bradley Cooper is a real dish though, so my 2 stars is purely for him.  Jennifer Lawrence’s performance was wooden and I am starting to feel that perhaps she is a one-note actress.  Her performances seem to blend from one film to another even though she is playing vastly different characters. For me, this one had no silver lining, although you may have to go see for yourself for I am in the minority.

STUDIO BLURB

Life doesn't always go according to plan. Pat Solatano (Bradley Cooper) has lost everything -- his house, his job, and his wife. He now finds himself living back with his mother (Jacki Weaver) and father (Robert DeNiro) after spending eight months is a state institution on a plea bargain. Pat is determined to rebuild his life, remain positive and reunite with his wife, despite the challenging circumstances of their separation. All Pat's parents want is for him to get back on his feet-and to share their family's obsession with the Philadelphia Eagles football team. When Pat meets Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence), a mysterious girl with problems of her own, things get complicated. Tiffany offers to help Pat reconnect with his wife, but only if he'll do something very important for her in return. As their deal plays out, an unexpected bond begins to form between them, and silver linings appear in both of their lives. -- (C) Weinstein

The Impossible ★★★^½

Opens in Australia: 31st January 2013
Other Countries: Release Information

Read the full review  A Wave of Emotion

 OUR THOUGHTS

Nobody could be unmoved by the horrors that occurred on the Boxing Day Tsunami. Can it really be eight years ago now?  This film takes us behind the headline so to speak and we experience one family’s story which is so incredible that the film’s makers repeated, “This is a true story” twice at the beginning. Although it is a fascinating film, my criticism is of the direction of the film.  The acting was overdone and some of the shots so clichéd.  Still I don’t think anyone will come away unsympathetic to the story told.  I just wish a better director had told it.

STUDIO BLURB

Maria (Naomi Watts), Henry (Ewan McGregor) and their three sons begin their winter vacation in Thailand, looking forward to a few days in tropical paradise. But on the morning of December 26th, as the family relaxes around the pool after their Christmas festivities the night before, a terrifying roar rises up from the center of the earth. As Maria freezes in fear, a huge wall of black water races across the hotel grounds toward her.

Based on a true story, The Impossible is the unforgettable account of a family caught, with tens of thousands of strangers, in the mayhem of one of the worst natural catastrophes of our time. But the true-life terror is tempered by the unexpected displays of compassion, courage and simple kindness that Maria and her family encounter during the darkest hours of their lives. Both epic and intimate, devastating and uplifting, The Impossible is a journey to the core of the human heart.  

What have you seen this week? Did you find our comments helpful or do you disagree? Share your thoughts with us.

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Zero Dark Thirty ★★★★★

A PICTURE TELLS A REMARKABLE STORY

 

 

Australia: 31st January 2013; USA 11thJanuary UK 25th January

Other Countries: Release Information

 

 

Zero Dark Thirty is the story behind ‘that’ news photo.  You know the one with Obama, his advisors, Vice President Biden and Hillary Clinton, sitting in a room staring at live feed of the Osama bin Laden capture mission.  Hillary’s hand covers her mouth in what looks like shock. 
           Their looks haunted me—what were they seeing?  Thanks to Oscar®-winning creative duo Director Kathryn Bigelow and producer and screenwriter Mark Boal we now know.  They were watching the culmination of a hell of a pursuit and capture mission spanning almost ten years; a mission that was mostly only successful thanks to a small team of CIA operatives.
 

 

The quest to tell the story of Zero Dark Thirty would eventually lead Bigelow and Boal into their own labyrinthine encounter with secretiveness and intense production challenges during their six years of sourcing and reporting the story for accuracy.

 

“This thing is pretty handmade,” says Boal, “and it’s gone through two iterations. It began six years ago as a movie about the failure to capture bin Laden in Tora Bora. I spent a few years on that, researching and writing, and we were in pre-production of that film by 2011, with scouts in Romania. Then, more or less out of the blue, bin Laden was killed, and that film became ancient history. So I had to start again.”

Along with the audience, the central character of the story, Maya (Jessica Chastain), is parachuted into the hunt for bin Laden with the unsettling experience of an “enhanced interrogation” session of an Al Qaeda detainee. Maya mirrors the audience’s mixed emotions on these interrogations. They are tough to watch. 

 

When it came to shooting these sequences, Bigelow took a leap far outside her comfort zone. “As a human being I wanted to cover my eyes, but as a filmmaker, I felt a responsibility to document and bear witness,” she says. “I felt I had to overcome my discomfort for the sake of telling the story.”

Maya begins to believe that one man, Abu Ahmed, a shadowy figure mentioned by many of the interrogated captives, is the key to bin Ladin’s location.  However, after so many false leads over the years, Maya is the only person who still firmly believes in her theory. 

The story follows a small group of agents through the years and peeks behind the terrorist news headlines as al-Qaeda strikes at the US and even the team attempting to track him. It is a dangerous and dirty game.  The last quarter of the film is a unique visceral experience; taut and horrific in its authenticity, as the SEAL team breaches the bin Laden compound accomplishing the historic conclusion.
 

The film has garnered great controversy and criticism over its torture scenes but Boal responds. “Putting it mildly, this is an extremely controversial subject.  I wanted to try to capture the complexity of the situation, morally and psychologically. It’s not an aesthetic goal of the film to settle scores, or end the debate about torture’s efficacy. But it was part of the story and we needed to include it.  The goal was to portray the events vividly and to make them real for the audience.”

“On the other hand,” he says, “towards the end of the film, we see that, ultimately, bin Laden’s compound was found not through any of these techniques, but through a combination of bribery, traditional spy work and electronic surveillance.

In case you’re wondering, Zero Dark Thirty is military jargon for the dark of night, as well as the moment—12:30 a.m.—when the Navy SEALs first stepped foot on the Osama compound.  It's a moment captured in 'that' photo that will leave history to dictate the true ramifications.  And it sure makes a remarkable movie.

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The Impossible ★★★½

A WAVE OF EMOTION

Australia: 24th January 2013; USA 4th January UK 1st January 2013
Other Countries: Release Dates

Hug your loved ones. That’s what you think whilst watching THE IMPOSSIBLE. The intimacy of film allows us to enter a true-life experience we normally can only watch on the news; though it isn’t hard to imagine the terror of those poor souls who found themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time in the 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami.  It left staggering figures in its wake, 1.69 million displaced and 230,000 estimated dead.

So with great trepidation we came to view THE IMPOSSIBLE. You watch knowing what is to come, as we've seen it replayed countless times on our televisions. We’ve even seen Oprah interview survivors. This news story as implausible as you will think it is, as it unfolds in THE IMPOSSIBLE, is very true. Even the filmmakers don’t think you will believe it, so they repeat, ‘This is a true story’ twice at the beginning.

It is the story of an English family’s experience (the real family was Spanish) in the 2004 Tsunami whilst holidaying in Phuket. The family of five, Maria (Naomi Watts), Henry (Ewan McGregor) and children, Lucas (Tom Holland), Thomas (Samuel Joslin) and Simon Oaklee Pendergast), are staying at a luxury resort and relaxing by the pool when the Tsunami hits.

Lucas and his Mother surface and, within half an hour, find each other amidst the turbulent flow of the surge but they have been separated from Henry and the other children. They believe them dead. Maria has been badly injured and the story follows her and Lucas as they make their way through the disaster's aftermath and end up at a local hospital. The film switches to Henry’s relentless search for his wife and son. Along the way, we experience close up the devastation of the tragedy (although much has been made of the fact that the film is peculiarly absent of Thai victims).
 

 

Whilst the movie has a few plotting issues and occasionally becomes a little too preoccupied with assuring us how deserving this family was of salvation, it is still a film that does a good job of reminding us of the randomness of tragedy and good fortune; and, of course, how often you must hug your loved ones.

 

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Weekly Review Round Up 20th Jan 2013

THIS WEEK'S PREVIEWS

What should you spend your precious dollars on when visiting the cinema? What needs popcorn to enjoy?  And what needs waiting until DVD?

If you have seen any of these or want to see them and have a comment please feel free to share. We love hearing from our readers.

(My movie Pick of the week)

Django Unchained ★★★★^½

Opens in Australia: 24^th January 2013

Other Countries: Release Information

OUR THOUGHTS 

It’s on the Oscar Best Film list and I agree it deserves to be there.  However, Jamie Foxx should also be there for Best Actor.  He is superb.  Proof the Academy has gone bonkers this year. If you love Tarantino, then this one will not disappoint. It has all the wry humour and the bodies and the blood. In fact, I enjoyed it so much I am seeing it again this week and skipping another film I haven't seen.  Heard on the grapevine most other reviewers are doing the same.  Read my full review here.

Full Django Unchained Review: 'There Will Be Blood'

STUDIO BLURB

Set in the South two years before the Civil War, DJANGO UNCHAINED stars Academy Award®-winner Jamie Foxx as Django, a slave whose brutal history with his former owners lands him face-to-face with German-born bounty hunter Dr. King Schultz (Academy Award®-winner Christoph Waltz).  Schultz is on the trail of the murderous Brittle brothers, and only Django can lead him to his bounty.  The unorthodox Schultz acquires Django with a promise to free him upon the capture of the Brittles – dead or alive. 

Success leads Schultz to free Django, though the two men choose not to go their separate ways.  Instead, Schultz seeks out the South’s most wanted criminals with Django by his side.  Honing vital hunting skills, Django remains focused on one goal: finding and rescuing Broomhilda (Kerry Washington), the wife he lost to the slave trade long ago.    

Django and Schultz’s search ultimately leads them to Calvin Candie (Academy Award®-nominee Leonardo DiCaprio), the proprietor of “Candyland,” an infamous plantation.  Exploring the compound under false pretenses, Django and Schultz arouse the suspicion of Stephen (Academy Award®-nominee Samuel L. Jackson), Candie’s trusted house slave.  Their moves are marked, and a treacherous organization closes in on them.  If Django and Schultz are to escape with Broomhilda, they must choose between independence and solidarity, between sacrifice and survival.

This is 40 ★★★^½

Opens in Australia: 17^th January 2013

Other Countries: Release Information

OUR THOUGHTS

Absolutely laugh out loud hilarious in parts.  If you have children between eight and eighteen you will really get this. I kept whispering to the hubby, ‘It’s us’.  Judd Apatow does have a habit of over-staying his welcome though. And this would have benefited from a twenty-minute shortening.  However, it’s the best of these relationship movies I’ve seen in a while.  And MAKE SURE YOU STAY whilst the credits roll. There is an outtake with Melissa McCarthy that had tears rolling down my cheeks it was so funny. In fact, I’m going to see it again just for THAT scene. 

STUDIO BLURB

Writer/director/producer Judd Apatow (The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Funny People) brings audiences This Is 40, an original comedy that expands upon the story of Pete (Paul Rudd) and Debbie (Leslie Mann) from the blockbuster hit Knocked Up as we see first-hand how they are dealing with their current state of life. -- (C) Universal

Safety Not Guaranteed ★★★^½

Showing: SHOWING IN PERTH at Lotterywest Festival Film Season

Somerville 14–20 January, 8pm Joondalup Pines22–27 January, 8pm

OUR THOUGHTS

First let me tell you that if you are in Perth, Western Australia you need to attend one of the  Lotterywest Festival filmsat Somerville or Joondalup Pines. It is simply stunning sitting there amongst the pine trees. 

‘Safety Not Guaranteed’ is one of those quirky indie love stories.  It’s sweet and quite funny.  Surprisingly, my husband enjoyed it more than me.  The geek in me was hoping for more sci-fi, which there is but not as much as I was expecting.  Still it’s a lovely night out and certainly an enjoyable film.  Treat yourselves and enjoy this glorious outdoor weather.

STUDIO BLURB

An unusual classified ad seeking time-travelling companions piques the interest of three magazine writers, who set off to find the author. Safety Not Guaranteed is an endearing and humorous muse on regret, reconciliation and the risk of falling in love. Loaded with universal appeal, this romantic comedy sci-fi road trip celebrates misfits, lost souls and kindred spirits.

Madeline Bates sat down with Mark Duplass to discuss the film. Read her interview here.Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award, Sundance Film Festival 2012

What have you seen this week? Did you find our comments helpful or do you disagree? Share your thoughts with us.

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