Watchmen - Review

In an alternate universe's 1985, during the threat of a nuclear war happening at any given time, a superhero is killed leading Rorschach (Jackie Earle Haley) to conduct his own investigation and find out who is responsible. His reasoning is that an attack on one hero is an attack on them all, however when his investigation gets started, he soon realises that there is a lot more to this murder than first meets the eye.

This film has a lot of characters who are central to the main plot of the film, there are seven main superheroes who all have their own backgrounds and stories to tell, one of the things I was most weary about before watching the film was how Zack Snyder was going to fit all of the back stories and subplots in the film without making them too brief yet not overriding the importance of the main plot with the introduction of these multiple characters. Snyder triumphs over this worry I had, beautifully capturing the majority of character's history, family and reasoning for their actions in the present, flashbacks are frequent and add a certain depth to the characters the film itself.

The acting in this film is phenomenal, be it Matthew Goode's portrayal as the handsome and smart Adrian Veidt, Malin Akerman's performance as a daughter living out her mother's dreams or Billy Crudup combined with a whole lot of CGI as the god-like Mr. Manhattan. Every single performance is captivating and believable, which is interesting when we are talking about a superhero film. The acting is a key aspect of how well flowing and easy to watch a film such as Watchmen, with such a complexly structured plot, is able to be.

The majority of this films scenes are in darkness, lighting is limited and it seems almost an experiment on just how much lighting can affect a picture's mood. The constant gloominess surrounding the characters and story is representative of the bigger picture, the constant threat of a nuclear war, the ticking of the doomsday clock and at some points, the superheroes inability to uncover the truth behind the murder. Zack Snyder made this film so highly stylised as a nod back to the character and stories roots as a comic book and his directing is filled with excitement, tension and drama, as is any comic book.

The brilliance of this film is so much more than any words can explain, capturing your attention from the opening scene to the closing one, this is definitely a film in the higher end of the superhero film category. Snyder is proving himself again and again to be one of the most visionary directors still working at the moment and Watchmen is a classic example of this statement coming true. With everything an outstanding film needs and more, Watchmen should be required viewing for anyone who claims to be a film fanatic.

Frankenweenie - Review

In Tim Burton's 2012 adaptation of Mary Shelley's classic novel, Frankenstein, Frankenweenie tells of a young boy, Victor, who, after his dog dies, finds a way to bring him back to life, when his classmates find out of his endeavours, they plan to discover how he did it, steal his idea and win the science fair. All does not go to plan and chaos is let loose on the town of New Holland, it's up to Victor and his dog, Sparky, to save the day.

German expressionism is a clear influence for a lot of the scenes in this film, being highly stylised and released in black and white, the film incorporates features of the 1920s movement so effortlessly giving it a dated feel although it is 3D stop motion animation which uses highly advanced technology. The constant use of shadows for dramatic effect and characters looking extremely pale with dark eyes portrays beautifully the gothic roots of the story, with Shelley being one of the most prominent authors of gothic literature, and also cements it stylistically as a 'Tim Burton film', with dark visuals and peculiar creatures becoming common features of the auteur's work.

The characters of this animated feature are brought to life with as much realism as any non-animated feature achieves, the movement of the animals in particular is something which struck me as masterfully done. The characterisation is brilliant meaning that the ending is emotionally engaging, for a moment we forget we are watching a digitally created image and connect with the story and characters of this fictional town, even when we are looking at stitched up dogs, cats combined with bats and giant sea monkeys, the film never strikes you as something false, instead it instantly makes use of the your imagination, suspending your disbelief almost without you realising it. The visuals and narrative combined make for a whimsical nightmare that you don't want to wake up from.

Tim Burton's extensive knowledge on film is shown in many subtle references throughout Frankenweenie, be it the creation of a giant lizard destroying the town reminding us of Godzilla, Sparky's love interest poodle donning the hairstyle of Valerie Hobson in The Bride of Frankenstein or even a direct reconstruction of Nosferatu's shadow climbing up the stairs. The references add an element of fun to a crazy plot, allowing audience members a moment to appreciate the influences that these iconic films have on modern cinema.
Frankenweenie is dark, dangerous and decadent, Tim Burton shows his experience in the animation field and lets his competition know he isn't about to step down any time soon. Frankenweenie contains everything you could want in an animated film, the excitement never stops. With quirky characters and an idea that only Tim Burton could write, this Oscar nominated feature is truly wonderful.

Reviewing Recent Trailers

Every so often I like to make a post about upcoming films, sharing interesting trailers and discussing my opinion on how I think the film will be. This is one of those posts.

Film: Parkland

Directed by: Peter Landesman

UK release date: 8th November

Being Landesman directorial debut, Parkland looks like it could be one of the less hyped films to look out for in Hollywood this year. Based on the shooting of JFK, the film follows in the footsteps of some of the most talked about films of 2012, ones based on real life events, with films such as Argo, Zero Dark Thirty & Lincoln all basing their narratives on real events, and all getting Best Picture nominations at the Oscars, Parkland seems to be an interesting look at the effects of the shooting on a variety of people including a photographer and a doctor.

Film: Pompeii

Directed by: Paul W.S. Anderson

UK release date: 28th February (2014)

Although the film is released a while away, the hype for it is huge. The trailer for this historical action film doesn't really give much away, but it tells of a young man's journey to save his lover and his friend in the days leading up to Mt. Vesuvius' eruption. With the eruption of the volcano being evident simply in the film's title, I think that Pompeii has the capacity for a huge build up of tension and excitement throughout, and with a lot of fans of Kit Harington due to his success on Game of Thrones already on board with the film, the film should see a lot of sell out cinemas over the opening weekend.

Film: The Book Thief

Directed by: Brian Percival

UK release date: 31st January (2014)

Based on a massively popular historical fiction novel, The Book Thief has amassed thousands upon thousands of fans over the years of it's publication, with it set to hit the big screen in a few months time, the adaption will be highly anticipated by many, and as all adaptations are, highly criticised by many. The trailer looks interesting and without giving too much of the story away, possibly to encourage book sales until the movie's release, looks like it is set to be a poignant and heartbreaking story of a young girl caught up in the destructiveness of World War 2 Germany. 

Film: Her

Directed by: Spike Jonze

UK release date: 31st January (2014)

Genuinely looking to be one of the most interesting films to come out in a long time, the trailer for Her is so capturing that I feel it is needed on this list. The plot looks to intriguing and saddening, the cast is filled with some of the most terrific actors and actresses around at the moment and the style seems so delicate and pure. If you go and see one film a year, go and see this film, I have really, really high hopes and I know that it will be brilliant.

Ghost World Review

Enid (Thora Birch) and Rebecca (Scarlett Johannson), two recent high school graduates, are bored with their summer after finishing high school. Enid is forced to take a remedial art class in order to graduate whilst Rebecca works in a coffee shop, earning money for the apartment that the two girls have always said they would get after school. All is normal until the girls find a posting in the newspaper from Seymour (Steve Buscemi) and decide to play a prank on him, after the prank, Enid becomes interested in Seymour and wants to find out more. The film shows Enid and Rebecca's friendship drift apart whilst hers and Seymour's strengthens.

If you have been on websites such as Tumblr or Twitter, you have most likely seen pictures of, or quotes by the character of Enid. Having being propelled into a cult icon due to her quirky personality which is matched in her sense of dress and her hilarious misanthropist personality, it very quickly feels like this film should have been called The Enid Show or something along those lines, with Rebecca being a fairly bland character who I never really felt any interest in. Although it can seem a little bit too try-hard at times, the character of Enid is a fun one who is relatable in a sense and exaggerates all of the teen angst we all once felt, or feel now, or are to feel in the future.

The film is an adaptation of a comic book of the same name by Daniel Clowes, which is obvious in the general style of the film. The colours used in this film are bright, mostly coming from Enid's adventurous hair and clothing, however the settings are also extremely playful and interesting to watch, with Enid's bedroom and the diner being the two most memorable locations. A lot of the characters are two dimensional, perhaps because of their stems from a comic book or perhaps because of director Terry Zwigoff's adaptations of them, I have not read the graphic novel and therefore cannot comment on the reasons why they appear to be shallow and have no real qualities, all I can say is that they do. Rebecca is a shell of a human, with the only thing we really see her do being working and being a shadow to Enid, who is pretty much the opposite of her. Seymour, who I know is not featured as a major character in the graphic novel, is a character who Enid is obsessed with, however this interest is not mirrored in the audience, with his character just being there and not provoking any real response from viewers.

I just felt while watching the film that it was missing something. Perhaps I will read the graphic novel and then be able to make more sense of the director's intentions in making this film, however in a stand alone film, I don't think this should be necessary in order to fully enjoy the feature. The plot is stagnant, the only thing interesting is Enid and her failing relationships, and the films attempt at a thought provoking ending fails quite miserably. The film was interesting in regards to the style, however it doesn't go much further than that, I'm afraid.