Table for Three February 7, 2010

Genre: Comedy
Australian release date: 23rd June, 2009 (Straight to DVD)
Rating: MA15+
Length: 93 mins
Starring: Brandon Routh, Sophia Bush, Jennifer Morrison & Jesse Bradford
Directed By: Michael Samonek

“Scott is suddenly single and alone after his girlfriend dumps him during his marriage proposal and his room mate moves thousands of miles away.  To try and get his life back on track he invites a super-nice couple, Ryan and Mary, to share his apartment.  They soon begin to intrude on every aspect of his life including his new relationship with the girl of his dreams.  Is Scott just being paranoid or does this seemingly ‘perfect couple’ need a third wheel to keep them rolling?”

When I saw this DVD at the shop, the only thing that intrigued me was the picture of Sophia Bush on the front.  I mean, who can resist that Brooke Davis-esque charm?  It was sure to be a regular kind of movie right?  Wrong!

Not that it was terrible or anything, it just left a bit to be desired.  I’m not sure if I’d categorise this as a comedy, or  a psychological disaster!  By the end I felt violated and had a strong urge to lock my windows and doors and never socialise again!  Sophia Bush plays the perfect part as a crazed, self obsessed lunatic, along with her on screen boyfriend who seems almost as deranged.

Probably not a film I’d watch more than once, it reminded me too much of past obsessive relationships I’d rather forget!

-nome5tar

The Ugly Truth August 9, 2009

Genre: Romantic Comedy

Australian Release Date: 6th August, 2009
Rating: MA15+
Length: 96 mins
Starring: Katherine Heigl, Gerard Butler, Cheryl Hines, Bree Turner, Eric Winter & Kevin Connolly
Directed By: Robert Luketic
Soundtrack: Aaron Zigman

The material used to promote this film and the MA15+ rating had me expecting the comedy of the year out of this film. It seems I should have payed more attention to the fact that it’s classified as a ‘romantic comedy’ before I went to see it, because that’s exactly what it was, and not much more. The first half of this film had me searching the walls of the cinema for something even remotely interesting, however I must say it did improve as it went on.

The story line is predictable from the word go, and Katherine Heigl’s performance is nothing in comparison to what we’ve seen of her in the past. The $38 million budget must have been spent on something, i’m just not sure what. But enough of the criticisms, there were some highlights! One being a restaurant-orgasm scene to rival Meg Ryan’s in When Harry Met Sally. Perhaps if this film was marketed differently I would have enjoyed it more, it was just so far from what I was expecting! I’m tempted to recommend it as a chick flick, however I know for a fact that the guys enjoyed it, possibly more than the girls did!

-nome5tar

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince July 15, 2009

Genre: Fantasy/Adventure
Australian Release Date: 15th July, 2009
Rating: M
Length: 153 mins
Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Michael Gambon, Jim Broadbent, Alan Rickman, Tom Felton & Helen McCrory
Directed By: David Yates
Soundtrack: Nicholas Hooper & John Williams

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the sixth film in the Harry Potter franchise is everything it is supposed to be and more. At least as far as it goes as a film on it’s own. For me to compare it to the book, I would have to either go back in time five years to when it was first released, at which time I devoured it in less than two days, or read it again, which somehow now seems like a chore i’d rather not undertake. There’s only so much time for reading after all, and there are way too many vampire novels waiting anxiously for me to read them! In saying it’s great as a film on it’s own however, I do mean as a group of films, as I was told by my dutiful boyfriend who saw the film with me, it made absolutely no sense to someone who hasn’t seen the first five films, or read any of the novels.

The first two hours of the two and a half hour film seem to be focused more around teenage hormones than any real story line or action sequence, however I had no problem with this at all except for the fact that I now wish desperately to go back to school and my teenage years and feel those feelings again myself! The sexual tension between the characters is overwhelming, however in true Harry Potter style (even though there is an M rating) we only get to see little bouts of “snogging” and sexual innuendo that’s at least laughable, leaving you feeling as uncomfortable about the situation as the characters themselves.

As always, the visual effects are amazing. The use of dark, monotonous tones and sombre music are a constant reminder that in Harry’s World all is not well, and there is a consistent feeling of impending doom throughout. I can’t wait for the next two films, due for release in 2010 and 2011, although I must say, given that we all know what happens, I am a little bit scared and reluctant to let go of so many characters that we’ve grown to love. I fear the impact of seeing the emotions played out by the actors will be far greater than it was reading it in the book.

Don’t take little kids to see this film. There were parts where even I had to restrain myself from screaming!

-nome5tar

Hannah Montana: The Movie July 15, 2009

Genre: Kids/Disney

Australian Release Date: 8th July, 2009

Rating: G

Length: 102 mins

Starring: Miley Cyrus, Emily Osment, Mitchel Musso, Jason Earles, Billy Ray Cyrus & Moises Arias

Directed By: Peter Chelsom

Soundtrack: John Debney

To be perfectly honest, I wasn’t especially looking forward to seeing this film. Somehow i’d let the media hype around Miss Cyrus and her drama queen ways get to me, and I was expecting a product just as superficial as her TV show of the same name.

There were three distinct groups lined up to see this movie, the tweenies, teens, and the mums, and to be completely honest, it was hard to tell which group enjoyed it the most. While the film started out just as i’d suspected…a tacky, glamourised version of the TV show, it soon developed into something much more. I’m still not sure whether we got to see a rare insight into the real Miley, or whether she’s just a really really good actress. I think either option is just as possible as the other. What developed was a story about love, life and happiness, and in typical Disney style, it came along with it’s own built in moral and lesson to be learned although, come to think of it, I was so distracted by the drama and the sing-a-long/dance-a-long theatrics that i’m yet to determine exactly what that lesson was…

Don’t watch this film if you’re suseptible to having songs stuck in your head for days on end, it’s highly contagious!

-nome5tar

Hamlet 2 July 13, 2009

Genre: Comedy
Australian Release Date: 27th August, 2008
Rating: MA15+
Length: 92 mins
Starring: Steve Coogan, Catherine Keener, Amy Poehler, David Arquette & Elisabeth Shue
Directed By: Andrew Fleming
Soundtrack: Ralph Sall & Steve Brown

With credentials such as being written by the co-writers of South Park and Team America, I settled down for what I was hoping would be a hillarious spoof-like parody of a teenage drama class alla Summer Heights High. Instead, Hamlet 2 turned out to be a mildly funny look at the life of a depressed low life, and his somewhat politically incorrect treatment of the youth entrusted to him as his drama students. Early promises that the film would follow the path of films such as Dangerous Minds (as was directly quoted in the film) were soon forgotten as it became obvious the film was anything but.

The funniest part of the film involved a particular character receiving various blows to the head at various stages during the movie, and that’s saying something. The dull story line leads up to what should have been a grand finale, but is instead a drawn out scene of musical confusion. Songs with lyrics such as “rock me, rock me, rock me sexy Jesus” and “it felt like I was getting raped in the face” could have been funny if they had been put in any particular context. Their randomness didn’t work in their favour in this instance.

Overall, I felt that the plot had a great story behind it, that had the potential to be greatly emotional. Instead, the film came across as generally dull with a few funny moments, and even less relevant ones. David Arquette’s performance was the only thing that made Hamlet 2 watchable. I’m glad I only had to pay 95 cents to hire this one out.

-nome5tar

Caramel July 13, 2009

Genre: Foreign-Subtitled (Lebanese)
Australian Release Date: 18th September, 2008
Rating: M
Length: 96 mins
Starring: Nadine Labaki, Yasmine Al Masri, Joanna Moukarzel & Gisèle Aouad
Directed By: Nadine Labaki
Soundtrack: Khaled Mouzanar

Upon hearing of this film from a relative of a relative, I was intrigued to find out what this Cannes Film Festival entry had to offer. What I found was a surprisingly raw and refreshingly honest look at the lives of five Lebanese women, and the ways in which they deal with universal issues such as forbidden love, cultural traditions, repressed sexuality, and the role of women in society. Within these universal issues are some uniquely Lebanese character traits, which I found extremely funny as well as enabling me to gain a better understanding of my own Lebanese roots.

I saw a bit of myself in each of the characters, and was moved by their individual journeys, as well as their growing relationships with each other. This film manages to overlook current turbulance in the Middle East, as well as barriers such as religious beliefs, and somewhat refreshingly portrays the Lebanese people as they truely are, just the same as everybody else.

According to my own source, the translation from the Arabic/French dialogue to English is somewhat vague, and I was told that it is much funnier in Arabic than what the subtitles allowed. This being said, I still found the subtitles immensly rich and humerous. The music used in the film, although in Arabic sounded somewhat westernised as opposed to the music generally associated with the Middle East. I felt that this helped to reinforce the fact that this story is in fact universal and not just a film concerning women of Lebanese descent.

I will definitely be watching this film again, and highly recommend it to Mothers to watch with their daughters and vice versa. Caramel is a film with one of the best portrayals of female empowerment and independence I have seen so far.

-nome5tar

Love Actually – Very Romantic. Very Comedy. July 12, 2009

Genre: Romantic Comedy

Australian Release Date: 6th November, 2003

Rating: M15+

Length: 129 mins

Starring: Hugh Grant, Liam Neeson, Colin Firth, Laura Linney, Emma Thompson, Alan Rickman, Keira Knightley, Martine McCutcheon, Bill Nighy & Rowan Atkinson

Directed By: Richard Curtis

Soundtrack: Craig Armstrong

Love Actually is a 2003, multi-award winning British comedy from the makers of Four Weddings, Bridget Jones and Notting Hill, that, lets face it, you more than likely have already seen for yourself! If you haven’t seen it or at least heard of it, you’ve either been living under a rock, or consider yourself too macho to watch a romantic comedy, or anything with Hugh Grant in the lead cast for that matter.

Watching this film for the upteenth time, I fell in love all over again. I’m not sure if it had anything to do with my current infatuation with British comedy, or my pre-existing infatuation with Colin Firth, but either way this film lives up to all the hype it received at the time of its release. The story is one that will forever remain relevant to the lives of all who watch it, a story about love, relationships and the human condition, Love Actually takes us on a turbulent journey through the ups and downs we all face on a daily basis.

The all star cast do a fabulous job and you are guaranteed to find yourself laughing and crying in the one breath as the relationships between the characters are slowly revealed. An honourable mention must go to Martine McCutcheon for her portrayal of rough around the edges Natalie. I personally hadn’t heard of or seen the singer/actress before this film, however her performance stood out to me amoungst that of the rest of the stellar cast as particularly entertaining. I am surprise not to have heard more from her in the years that followed.

The soundtrack to this film, compiled by Craig Armstrong was fantastic! Trying to set the scene for a Christmas film it was reasonable to allow a few Christmas carols here and there, but a mix of these, modern songs and some retro classics, such as The Pointers Sisters “Jump” helped to transform this film into one of my favourite feel-good comedies of all time.

-nome5tar

The Proposal – Here Comes the Bribe… July 9, 2009

Genre: Romantic Comedy
Australian Release Date: 18th June, 2009
Rating: PG
Length: 107 mins
Starring: Sandra Bullock & Ryan Reynolds
Directed By: Anne Fletcher
Soundtrack: Aaron Zigman

The main thing that attracted me to this film was the fact that it stared Sandra Bullock, an actress who never fails to impress me with her kooky portrayal of the endless variety of characters she plays. Her character Margaret was no exception. I was equally impressed by the performance of Ryan Reynolds in this film, my perception of him as an actor as been forever changed.

While the film may seem to fall into the generic romantic comedy stereotype, I found that it was anything but. Numerous appearances by Oscar Nuñez had me physically restraining myself from falling off my chair with laughter as did a rendition of Get Low.

This film has something for everyone, young and old, male and female. It’s definitely one of my favourite feel good movies of this year.

 -nome5tar 

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen July 9, 2009

Genre: SciFi/Action
Australian Release Date: 24th June, 2009
Rating: M

Length: 150 mins
Starring: Shia LaBeouf & Megan Fox
Directed By: Michael Bay
Soundtrack: Steve Jablonsky & Linkin Park

The hype and gossip surrounding this film, from scandulous car accidents involving two of its young stars, to plastic surgery accusations and the questionability of Megan Fox’s ability to think had me worried that not enough emphasis was being placed on the filming of this sequal to Transformers. After tuning in to the premiere of the films trailer on the MTV Movie Awards I still wasn’t convinced, and the emphasis of the stamp “A Michael Bay Film” everywhere I turned, almost had me turned off seeing it all together.

My memories of the first Transformers film however got the better of me, and I found myself at the edge of my seat on opening night anxious to see if it could possibly out do itself this time. Thankfully, I sat through the 150 mins on the edge of my seat, fully immersed in the tacky and somewhat far-fetched story line. Maybe it was the hot actors or use of visual effects that made it so enticing, the action scenes were definitely paramount. I found myself feeling sorry for the “cute” autobots, and was impressed by the amount of comedy the film contained.

I am even more impressed at the way the Transformers brand has managed to break free from the restraints and stereotypes of a comcic book film. It stands rather in a category of its own, though still unlikely to ever occur in reality, it seems somehow more realistic than the notion of a super hero saving the World. Sam Witwicky is the under dog/hero that every guy wishes he could be, and that every girl wants to be with.

The soundtrack to the film was somewhat painful. I don’t understand what Jablonsky’s role actually was. It seemed to me all he did was take the instrumental version of the films title track (Linkin Park’s “New Divide”) and insert it whenever the explosions weren’t enough to satisfy the films requirement for background noise. Don’t get me wrong, i find the concept of keeping a recurring theme throuhout a films soundtrack appealing, this just seemed lazy and somewhat irritating by the theme’s final repeat.

Overall, I enjoyed the film a lot. A cameo appearance by Rainn Wilson was a highlight, and I left the cinema feeling satisfied yet looking forward to the release of Transformer’s 3 in 2012. While this film is being portrayed mainly as a “guys” film, I would recommend it to any girl who appreciates good humour and action packed adventure, this is by no means just a film about cars, and the violence is no where near cringe worthy.

-nome5tar

Brüno – Borat was so 2006 July 8, 2009

Genre: Comedy
Australian release date: 8th July, 2009
Rating: MA15+

Length: 81 mins
Starring: Sacha Baron Cohen & Gustaf Hammarsten
Directed By: Larry Charles
Soundtrack: Erran Baron Cohen

Going into this movie about a gay Austrian fashionista, I was expecting nothing short of sheer brilliance. After Ali G and Borat, it could only get better right? In my opinion, not so much. Don’t get me wrong, this movie is definitely worthy of 5/5, I just think Borat sits more around 6.5/5 and Ali G, well, 10/5 for the Ali G we saw back in 2000…

What can I say about the plot? Baron Cohen doesn’t fail to shock, there’s an abundance of politically incorrect stunts, his portrayal of homosexuality is nothing short of shocking, and there’s plenty of racism thrown in for old times sake. This being said, the film seemed to be missing bits and pieces, and with a length of 80 mins, one wonders whether this may have had something to do with pending law suits involving its initial content? Be prepared to cringe, laugh until your sides hurt, and witness the horror that is the stupidity and ignorance of Baron Cohen’s unsuspecting cast.

I enjoyed the soundtrack (compiled by Baron Cohen’s brother Erran) immensely. Great use of dramatic orchestral mood setters made me sympathetic to Bruno in all the right places, and the inclusion of my all time favourite song Celine Dion’s My Heart Will Go On were highlights.

Definitely do not see this one with your parents! I’m still shocked at the MA15+ rating, at risk of sounding like an old fuddy duddy, this deserved at least an R18+. If you’re easily offended by nudity (think Forgetting Sarah Marshall style) then this one might not be for you. I was quietly amused by the guy sitting behind me who exclaimed afterwards “They were making fun of Hitler! How is that funny?” My guess is he missed out on Borat…

-nome5tar