The News...

So now that we have got into the full swing of things some news for some of the upcoming movies that we should be looking forward to.

47 Ronin-

Starring Keanu Reeves, to be shot in 3D and will be out by 2012. The film focuses on the true story of the 47 Ronin who upon their masters murder, pledge to avenge him. The film is set in feudal Japan around the 1700's, focusing on the Samurai (one of my all time favourite cultures). For those movie aficionado's out there, you will remember the story being briefly told in the 1998 action thriller Ronin (no relation to this film) starring Robert De Niro.

Goliath

Finally we get a classic bible tale remade. It is remarkable how many great stories there are in the bible which could be adapted for the big screen. And this is one of them. Goliath will focus on the the title character more than David, however it will ultimately build up to the legendary showdown. No cast announcements yet but watch this space. Truly a tale of Biblical proportions.

Spiderman

The new re-booted version will hit theatres summer 2012, with up and coming British actor Andrew Garfield playing the title charter. Garfield has recently been seen in The Social Network opposite Jesse Eisenberg... with Spiderman under his belt he is destined for super-stardom come 2012.

Check out the first image of Garfield as Spidey on the right.


more news soon...

Thou shalt have the knowledge...

Tali

Heat Review

Very few movie directors can boast having worked with two of the greatest screen actors of their generation but Michael Mann can certainly make that claim and make it with a sense of triumph. Robert De Niro and Al Pacino star in Heat an action packed faced pace thriller with a brain.

Michael Mann has for years now been an A list director, commanding a cast of only the finest actors and being able to promote his own vision how he sees fit. No other Mann film however has been such an epic of modern movie making than Heat, which firmly sits as the jewel in Michael Mann’s creative crown.

Heat is in essence a simple tale of “good guy catching bad guy” or a “cat and mouse” thriller, however through complex direction and in depth character exploration this does more than what it says on the tin. Pacino plays a hard boiled cop who has seen it all in his line of work, as he refers to himself in the movie “I am only what I’m going after”, which more or less sums up his determination to catch his target. De Niro on the other hand plays an ex-con who, in a not so clichéd way, “never wants to go back”. De Niro’s character is an accomplished thief who takes high risk jobs with big rewards and again mirroring Pacino’s character will do what it takes to get what he’s taking so to speak.

The film is an underlying story of two men on opposite ends of the law who are very similar and out of this a mutual respect for each other develops, portrayed in one of cinemas finest confrontations between two titans of the acting world. Both characters as stubborn as the other and will not quit until one is the victor which accumulates to an epic climax.

De Niro leads a band of professional thieves who he has done time with and trusts above all other people, including De Niro’s right hand man and gambling junkie Val Kilmer who has never been better, as well as Tom Sizemore in a well acted role. On the other side of the coin Pacino commands a police squad who work as a tight team and these types of mirrored images are shown throughout the whole movie, from restaurant scenes with families and wives to getting together to discuss their next targets.

There is a romance element to the movie with Pacino onto his third wife sharing a passionate but volatile relationship and having to deal with a depressed step daughter, played by a young Natalie Portman. De Niro starts and affair with a shy bookstore worker who he finds himself falling for but this goes against his every discipline and self teaching. This is where the film gains its title, in reference to the “heat around the corner” and being able to detach yourself from anything at the drop of a hat if necessary.

The direction is very typical of Mann’s recent films, with almost an eerie blue feel to it and an alternative feel to the Los Angeles we have come to imagine. The concrete landscapes and glittering lights provide great atmosphere and a sense of tension. As usual Mann’s use of music is fantastic and adds tremendously to the movie. Artists such as Joy Division and Moby lend their talents to the film and the music is used perfectly to compliment the scenes, in particular the closing sequence.

Overall Michael Mann has conjured up a neon masterpiece and has got all of the criteria right in this film. It is an excellent take on an old formula and re-aligned to match his vision. A classic.

10/10 on the Movie Richter

Tron: Legacy

So the first official review I give is of Tron: Legacy, the long awaited sequal to the original 1982 ground-breaking Sci-fi movie.



28 years after the first film left off we are introduced to Sam Flynn (Garret Hedlund), the Son of Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges). Sam Flynn is introduced as James Dean type rebel "with" a cause, donning a leather jacket and motorbike and getting up to all sorts of Hi-tech ASBO behaviour.

The movie swiftly throws Sam into "the grid", which for those who have not seen the original, is the computer generated world in which "users", i.e. you and me, can immerse themselves in and play games as well as tap into all sorts of computer code etc.

Bridges is the original User and created this world, however, he has been trapped in it by his own creation, the movies main antagonist- C.L.U. Who is a computer generated younger version of Bridges who is intent on creating the perfect code and ridding the world of any human spam!

Queue, fantastic light cycle sequences and disc wars, which are played in a gladiatorial-Esq way, to rid the system of any viruses- who said running the old Nortons anti-virus through your hard drive had to be boring ehy?

The computer world looks stunning, consisting of a colour scheme that easily allows you to separate the baddies form the goodies and the 3D is spectacular and does not become the residing force whilst watching the movie (IMAX is recommended). The movie has a perfect mix of characters, from allies like Quorra (played by Olivia Wilde) and a decent, if not odd, appearance by Martin Sheen, who seems to be a night club owning David Bowie style piece of code- a defect from iTunes maybe?

The most noteworthy part of the movie for me was and is the soundtrack. Created from scratch by electro-pop, seminal dance act Daft punk. Having acquired the services of an 85 piece orchestra they have created a mammoth album full of epic tunes. Who else is there so perfectly matched to create the soundtrack for this digital world? They were rightfully ordained to commission this. Tracks such as "the game has changed", with its epic drums and Hans Zimmer style horns, to the mind-fizzlingly electronic madness of "Derezzed" with have your feet pounding the sticky unwashed floor of the cinema. A masterpiece.

so to sum up Tron Registers as a modern classic, faithful to the original with fantastic set pieces and a decent story....

The game really has changed..

8.0/10 on the Movie Richter


Tali

The Essentials...

Hi

This Blog is specifically created for those of us who:

love movies,
Want to get into movies,
Want to know what movies are "essential views",
Or just those that we missed on our radars and are highly recommended.

I will review all movies that are a must-see in my humble opinion, as well as all movies which come out that are worth going to the old pic's for.

we can also talk about any upcoming movies that we think may actually be good!!

This is a blog for anyone to take part in and any views, opinions and any offerings are most welcome. so let me know!

So, this is the first blip on the movie Richter scale...

Standing by...

Tali