Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 1 is the 7th film in the Potter franchise, with the very last one due to be released in July. It follows Harry, Ron and Hermione as they try and track down and destroy Lord Voldemort's horcruxes. If you don't know what any of that means, then shame on you. I can't possibly explain it all here.

It's a wonderfully dark film, and is very different to the previous films in the series. No Hogwarts for instance and there is a large chunk of the movie which just follows the trio as they move from one secluded place to another and not much else happens. I think this really helps the viewer to understand the isolation, uneasiness and loneliness that the characters feel.

There are some great comedic moments too, my favourite being in the Ministry of Magic when the trio have to pretend to be ministry staff. Look out for a brilliant animated sequence too.

The soundtrack is wonderful, the acting is great and it's just a wonderful film that everyone can enjoy. Yes, even you people that haven't read the books. Just make sure you've watched the previous Potter movies though, as you won't have a bloody clue what's going on.

10/10

The Dark Knight

I originally planned to see The Dark Knight when it was released at the cinema last year, but for some reason I just never got round to it.

So when I finally saw it on Blu Ray, I was quite looking forward to it. I tried to forget about all the hype when I was watching it, and I wasn't disappointed.

I've never really been a huge fan of "superhero" movies, so I wasn't really sure what to expect from The Dark Knight. The cast is very impressive, and I was really interested to see how the late Heath Ledger was as the Joker.

Let's just say that this was definitely one of the best films I've seen in years. It didn't really feel like I was watching a Batman movie. The story was great, acting was good and the action sequences were brilliant. Heath Ledger was both funny and terrifying as the Joker. I was very impressed with him and was very pleased when he won the Oscar for the role :)

Super super film, with a terrific soundtrack. Even if you're not a big fan of action and superhero movies (like me generally), I'd definitely say that you should still give this film a go.

Extremely enjoyable.

10/10

Cloverfield

Seen as a cross between Godzilla and The Blair Witch Project, Cloverfield is a film about an unknown monster that stampedes through New York City. The story is told as though it is actual camera footage and follows a small group of New Yorkers as they try and escape the city.

I like the idea that the whole film is uncovered film footage, as it makes it seem a bit more realistic. The actors are all virtually unknowns, which I think was a good idea. It just wouldn't have had the same effect if all the stars were A list actors.

It's a very exciting film, and you genuinely do get caught up in the chaos and thrills as the camera sweeps around, following the people as they run for their lives. It's not really a film for people who get motion sickness easily. The handheld camera view does move around very quickly and it's quite easy to see why some people were throwing up in the cinema aisles! :P

It's a very exciting, gripping, tense, genuinely scary film that is definitely worth a watch.

10/10

The Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King

The last of the LOTR trilogy, "The Return Of The King" is definitely the best and most emotional of the three films.

I love the story. I love all the scenes that are set in Minas Tirith and Osgiliath. Denethor, the father of Faramir and Boromir is one of the only new characters in this film. (He does make a very short appearance in the extended version of The Two Towers though). John Noble, who plays Denethor, is brilliant at bringing out the cold heartedness of the character, yet you do eventually start to feel a bit sorry for him. I just adore the scene between him and Pippin.

It's brilliant to see the hobbits really come into their own in this film. For the first time, Merry and Pippin are seperated. Pippin is taken by Gandalf to Gondor, and Merry stays behind in Rohan and grows close to Eowyn. When they are reunited after the battle of the Pelennor Fields, it truly is a lovely moment.

There are plenty of moving moments in the film. A few that stand out for me are when Eowyn sits next to the dying Theoden, Sam and Frodo talking about Hobbiton whilst sitting on the edge of Mount Doom, and Aragorn's "You bow to no one". All amazing scenes that never fail to get me all teary.

It's a beautiful film, with excellent acting and a superb soundtrack. Probably one of the best films I have ever seen (and will ever see). A must see.

10/10

The Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers

The second film in the Lord of the Rings trilogy is "The Two Towers". It leaves on from where the first movie ended and follows the Fellowship as they embark on their seperate journeys: Frodo and Sam are travelling to Mordor, Merry and Pippin stumble into Fangorn Forest and meet an Ent, and Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli (with the help of the reincarnated Gandalf) travel to Edoras to meet with King Theoden.

I think the seperate storylines really make this film work. Personally, I love the Aragorn/Gandalf/Theoden one best, as they take part in the battle of Helm's Deep... probably one of the best battle scenes ever seen on film. That's not to say that I don't enjoy the others. Merry and Pippin provide the comedy value (although their plot is probably the weakest as I'm not a huge fan of Treebeard.. he just seems to be a bit of a pointless character in my opinion), and Frodo and Sam's storyline introduces Gollum.

Andy Serkis is just superb as Gollum. It's quite amazing how they have created the character. The facial expressions and movements just fit perfectly with Serkis' voice. Wonderful.

Overall, I think The Two Towers is probably the weakest of the trilogy, but that's not to say it's a bad film, because it's anything but. It truly is a wonderful piece of filmmaking. Definitely up there as one of the greatest ever made. If one tree is all I have to complain about with this film, then I'd say that's pretty good going.

10/10

The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring

The Lord of the Rings surely has to go down as one of the best movie trilogies of all time. I've seen all three numerous times and they never fail to impress me.

The first film in the trilogy is The Fellowship of the Ring. This is such a wonderfully made film. The story is superb, the acting is brilliant, the scenery is spectacular... I personally find it hard to find anything major to complain about with this film.

I adore the first half an hour or so of the film. It's so lovely to watch the hobbits just being hobbits.. eating, drinking, having a good time. I love the scenes at Bilbo's birthday party.

The four hobbits in the film (Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Billy Boyd and Dominic Monaghan) have excellent chemistry together and the scenes that they share together are a joy to watch.

There are plenty of really funny parts in the film.. mostly thanks to hobbits Merry and Pippin and a few from Gimli the dwarf ("Not the beard!!"). Plenty of touching moments too.. one in particular which always gets to me is Boromir's death scene at the end of the movie. Very moving indeed, with excellent acting from Viggo Mortensen and Sean Bean.

This is definitely a film that everyone has to have seen at least once. Truly magnificent.

10/10

The 40 Year Old Virgin

I always thought of The 40 Year Old Virgin as just one of those really daft comedies that aren't particularly worth watching, so I was quite surprised at how much I enjoyed this film.

I decided to watch it after seeing Knocked Up (which I love) and finding out they were both written and directed by Judd Apatow.

The plot is fairly obvious. Steve Carell plays Andy, who is.. yep, you've guessed it.. a 40 year old virgin. The film follows Andy as he tries to lose his virginity and falls for a single mother.

I found it hilarious. In almost every scene there is something to laugh or giggle at. Steve Carell is just brilliant.. he brings a real awkwardness to the character of Andy, yet he's very endearing. Look out for the excellent scene where Andy gets his chest waxed.. Carell chose to actually get his own chest waxed so that the reactions were genuine. Just super. :)

What I like most about this film, is that it isn't just sex gag after sex gag and it's actually a really nice story. Touching in parts and the ending is just brilliant.

Definitely worth seeing if you enjoy pissing yourself laughing. :P

10/10

The Simpsons Movie

I am an absotutely HUGE fan of the Simpsons, so I have to admit, I was a bit wary about seeing a movie version of the show. I wasn't sure if it would work, if it would ruin the magic of the series, etc etc.

It didn't. I loved every second of the movie. It looked incredible. So crisp and clear, and the colours were just magnificent.

I liked the plot too... simple, easy to follow, yet it didn't feel dumbed down. There were plenty of jokes that both kids and adults could enjoy on different levels. Although the part where Bart skateboards naked to Krusty Burger did have me a bit shocked... but not too shocked because I giggled at it too :P

It wasn't too long, so it didn't feel drawn out. The dialogue was great, the voice actors were (as they always are) just superb. I absolutely loved the part where Homer watches the video that Marge has filmed for him. Julie Kavner (the voice of Marge) was excellent at that part. You could really feel the disappointment in Marge's voice.. it was quite touching.

If you're a fan of The Simpsons, then you must see this movie... although, even non-fans can probably still really enjoy it.

10/10

Sex and the City Movie

I'd been looking forward to this film for quite a while now. I only recently finished watching the series and I loved it. The film didn't disappoint.

It is set four years after the series ended and focuses on the girls lives and how they have to deal with wedding problems, monogamy, infidelity and so on.

As with the TV series, the four main actresses are wonderful un their roles. I especially liked Charlotte in the movie, as she has plenty of really amusing moments. And her and Harry's daughter, Lily, is just so adorable and cute in the movie.

The fashion is just as important as the plot and acting. The scenes in which Carrie does a photoshoot in different wedding dresses is just stunning.

There are many touching scenes too, one in particular which got to me was between Steve and Miranda. It gave me a lump in my throat. I really liked the ending, but I won't say any more. :P

I wasn't disappointed. It's a film that shows that you shouldn't give up on love, no matter how hard things get. I think that's a good thing to promote. :)

10/10

The Wrong Trousers

"The Wrong Trousers" is the second Wallace and Gromit adventure from animator Nick Park.

The plot sees Wallace, voiced by Peter Sallis, being used by an evil penguin to steal a diamond from a museum using mechanical trousers. Yes, that's right. It sounds totally ridiculous, but it's probably one of the best examples of animation and claymation ever.

It's a mark of the animators skill that the whole story can basically by told through the looks on the characters faces. Wallace is the only character that talks, and even he doesn't say loads. Gromit the dog is adorable throughout, always looking out for his master. The part where he hides in the cardboard box and has to cut out eyeholes is genius.

But the best part of the 30 minute film is probably the train chase at the end. How they managed to make that, I'll never know. It's so funny aswell.

It's entertaining, something that all ages can enjoy and laugh at. I defy anyone to watch it and not enjoy it.

10/10

Pride & Prejudice

I've never read the novel or seen the 1995 TV adapation with Colin Firth, but this 2005 version of Pride & Prejudice is wonderful.

First off, it's a beautiful film. The scenery is gorgeous.. it was all filmed on location around the UK, some of the places I've actually visited. I especially like the wide shots of Lizzie walking. They last quite a while and are just gorgeous. And the scene of Lizzie in Pemberley looking at the sculptures is really lovely. The cinematography is excellent. It's just such a wonderful film to watch.

The acting is very good too. I especially like Brenda Blethyn as the very excitable Mrs Bennet. There's some good comedic moments with her. Same with Mr Collins. Amusing to watch.

The soundtrack, by Dario Marianelli, is superb. It fits the film perfectly. One of the most enjoyable soundtracks I've heard. Add this to the excellent acting, scenery and overall story, and you've got a wonderful film that you can watch over and over.

And if only people still dressed like that.

10/10

Sex And The City

I've gradually been working my way through my sister's DVD boxsets of Sex And The City and have just finished watching the whole series today.

SATC follows the lives of four New York women: Carrie, Miranda, Samantha and Charlotte. Carrie is the main character and the title of the show is the name of the column that she writes for a newspaper. She narrates all the episodes.

Basically, the programme is about the relationships between men and women, how sometimes they work, sometimes they don't. Some people might say the characters are a bit unrealistic in how they live (eg: Carrie being able to afford hundreds of pairs of shoes and being able to rent a cool apartment just from writing a newspaper column), but the problems that they encounter with relationships are something that a lot of women might be able to relate to.

It's a really fantastic programme that has a good balance of funny and serious moments, that women (and men!) can really enjoy.

10/10

"Wires" by Athlete

Another one of my favourite songs/music videos.



"Wires" by Athlete was released in January 2005, just before my sister and I went to see them live. The first time I heard the song, I had tears in my eyes. The song was written by the lead singer, Joel Pott, about his daughter who was born prematurely and had a lot of health problems. Once you know what the song is about, the lyrics just fall into place and make complete sense. Thankfully, his daughter is now healthy. :)

The video is simple, which I think is good as it doesn't take anything away from the song.

Video - 7/10
Song - 10/10

The Lives Of Others

"The Lives Of Others" (or to use it's German title - "Das Leben Der Anderen") was a film I've had sitting on my DVD shelf for a few months that I never got round to watching.

Until now! This film is fantastic. Set in East Germany in the 1980's, the film follows a playwright who is under surveillance by the Stasi (State Security), in particular one man, played by Ulrich Muhe.

The plotline is brilliant, and I was gripped from beginning to end. There's no action in the film, but instead most of the scenes are tense and quiet, which I'm sure keep the viewer enthralled throughout.

The acting is super. Especially from Ulrich Muhe, who plays Stasi Captain Wiesler. Such a shame he passed away in 2007, he is an extremely good actor.

I also have to mention Sebastian Koch as playwright Dreyman. I've seen one of his films before (Black Book) and was very impressed with him. He's super in this. And I have what my sister would call "an old guy crush" on him.

If you don't mind subtitles, then you MUST see this film. The best film I have seen for a long time.

10/10

"Coffee & TV" by Blur

This is one of my favourite songs at the moment. I really love the majority of Blur's songs, but this one really stands out for me. It's simple, and it never fails to get my feet tapping.

But I especially love the video. It's regularly in lists of Top Music Videos of All Time, and I can see why. Anything with walking milk cartons is excellent. It's such a simple concept for a music video and it really works well with the music.

Song - 9/10
Video - 10/10