Similar to another film ‘Sideways’ the story has a unique storytelling perspective – the male perspective!  The story has a lot of humour that covers the sobering and often destructive behaviours.  This film covers a lot of adult material and unsuitable for young people.  The film is based in Wellington, New Zealand and the cinematography is stunning.

This film will deeply affect you 1) as the male perspective is so refreshing and because 2) nothing hurts more than betrayal and lost love.  It may not be a movie that you will love, but it will stir a lot of thought, respect and appreciation for your current loved one.

Steph’s rating: 8/10

This movie promised so much, Johnny Depp, fast cars, 1930′s style and gangster action.  While the cinematography was beautiful, the story and pace of the film were surprisingly weak.  This movie did not make an impact on me as I had hoped.  Throughout the film you are willing John Dillinger to outsmart the cops, as the FBI just wreaks of bad guy tactics.  But the speed of the film never generates that build up of adrenaline that a good gangster movie should.

Definitely a snoozer.

Steph’s rating: 6/10

However I was pleasantly surprised, it was as good as a sequel could be.

While the first was rated pretty highly by both guys and girls, this part 2 is most definitely for the guys and as there’s plenty of Action, Girls and CGI to boot.  We’ve already heard that Critics hate it, but stuff the critics – this if fun watching.  Enjoy.

Steph’s rating: 7.5/10

Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms (The Office) and Zach Galifianakis (The bearded on) are fresh and very funny.  For a random comedy you are soon drawn to the characters and will love watching the night (that they can’t remember) unfold.  It’s a 00′s version of ‘Dude Where’s my Car?”, but a zillion time better.

Steph’s rating: 8/10

J.J. Abrams has made Star Trek sexy and cool again.  This movie will not disappoint.  J.J. Abrams takes us back to the beginning and we meet the characters as young, passionate, hopeful and inexperienced.

There is a lot to like about these characters.  They’ve got the actors right, the pace is fast (no boring bits).  The CGI and the gadgets are beyond cool at ‘lust’ phase.

Even if you’ve hated the old Star Trek, you’ll love this new edition because its so fresh.  Like many of you who will go and enjoy, I’m excited and looking forward to more adventures with this young and hot cast.  The new James T Kirk, Chris Pine does the role proud and so does Zachary Quinto as Spock.  Simon Pegg adds zest as ‘Scotty’ while NZ’er Karl Urban does us proud as ‘Bones’.   This film is a big thumbs up!

Steph’s rating: 9.9/10

I was hoping for another “The Incredibles”, but this film although funny in parts was pretty average.  B.O.B is the standout character and is the only ray of light in this average animated film.  Its so disappointing as the trailer indicated that it might have more substance.

Steph’s review: 6/10

We Love Movies – Video recommendation of the Week:
by FranksFilms

I’m breaking my own rule – twice.

Firstly, since this is a ‘video recommendation’ segment, I shouldn’t recommending a movie that’s not yet been released on video ………..but I am. If it helps, you can think of it as a video that you have to go over to your “friend’s house” to watch. You know that friend who’s house is that big building in the center of town, with the big marquee,  and he always has lots of your neighbors over, and treats you with enormous buckets of popcorn and soda ……except that you have to pay him.

Secondly, I usually try to stay away from recommending the highly publicized big budget films – but I occassionally make an exception. I figure that, by now you’ve all heard about WATCHMEN, and if you’ve not read the novel, are trying to decide what the hell this is all about. The question you need to answer is “Will I like this movie?”  The answer is, although it helps, you don’t necessarily have to be a comic book geek like me.  But if you are, and are a fan of the novel, well it’s, as my friend Amanda puts it, “…an all out nerd-gasm in awesome town.”

The novel was written and the story takes place in 1985.  The material was considered very ’subversive for the time, ……mostly because it dealt with the cold war and nuclear war politics and stuff.  Some critics of the film (idiot bastards!) claim that times have changed and the material is not as subversive today and has lost some of it’s edge.  These people just don’t understand what the story is about.  The movie is called WATCHMEN for goodness sake, not COLD WAR.

The reason why this film is subversive, why it’s unlike any other super hero movie, can be summed up in one sentence:  Batman will never, ever kill The Joker!

Batman will never kill The Joker, not in 60 years of the comic books, not in the next million years.  He won’t, even though not doing so will lead to the death of many many innocent people, and also to several of the main characters.  Why can’t he do it?  It’s the code – the damn superhero code!  Batman is the hero.  He’s the good guy.  He can’t behave like the bad guys or he loses his identity.  Batman may operate outside the law, but he does obey it, and so he won’t kill The Joker, Spiderman won’t kill Venom, and Superman won’t kill Lex Luthor – even when he knows he’ll always come back and cause great destruction and cost many lives.  They’re heroes and refrain from going down that dark path where killing your enemies gets easier and easier, and soon your enemies are anyone that riles you just a little.

However, real heroes aren’t like that.  Real heroes are imperfect.   Real heroes also take the responsibility of making the hard decisions.   Imagine real people putting on costumes to fight crime (they’re called ‘policemen’) – some with morals, and some without.  Imagine a Batman who decides that it’s his responsibility to make sure the Joker never kills again.  It would be so easy to do it ….if you decided that ridding the world of a dangerous menace was worth a run-in with the law.  Now, imagine Superman, a guy with actual super powers – he’s all-powerful and indestructible.  How is it possible for him to actually relate empathically to humans.  It’s not that hard to imagine that after a while he becomes detached to the point that he no longer cares for humanity (humans, animals, insects – they’re all the same to Him) – or worse, that He should rule the Earth and woe to anyone who defies Him.  If you can imagine all this, then you might be prepared for WATCHMEN.

One of the best sequences occurs near the beginning of the film which shows a montage of historical images.  Most of these images are recognizable because they have become iconic, but all are slightly different because of the existence of costumed superheroes.  This lets the viewer “get up to speed” on the history of superheroes in America.  Oh, and by the way, they’re not really super.  They all, except one, don’t have powers – they’re just ordinary Joe’s ,dressed up in a costumes, that know how to fight and sometimes carry a gun (You know ………like policemen.).

A couple of facts.  Most people consider a graphic novel just an over-sized comic book.  Nevertheless,  the graphic novel on which this movie is based, appears on Time Magazine’s list of the 100 best books of all time.  Similarly, it is the only graphic novel to appear in the BBC’s “Big Read”, an equivalent list of 100 all time best books.

So, my recommendation:  SEE IT!  ….but before you rush out to the theater, heed the following warnings!

1. Not for the squeamish!  ….or the Amish!
2. It’s a visually breath-taking film.  Take extra oxygen when you go to the theater.  Concession stand oxygen is highway robbery!
3. It’s big, it’s blue.  If it bothers you ……hahahahahahaha……that rhymes.
4. If you have a chance to see it in IMAX, spend the extra few dollars.  It’ll be well worth it.  It’s bigger in IMAX.
5. It’s very very violent.  Then again, so are Saturday morning cartoons.
6. There are no pirates!   …………ARRRRRRGGGGG!
7. The movie is long, almost three hours.  Who’s going to feed your cat while you’re out?
8. There’s nudity.  Yeah ………super hero nudity is the BEST nudity.
9. Why are there no pirates???!!!!
10. The original graphic novel did NOT carry the Comics Book Code approval.  My God!!  what manner of gruesome depravity are we talking about here?

I just found out that the pirates are getting their own short film, to be released soon on DVD, called Tales of the Black Freighter …………..and you thought I was kidding about the pirates.

Who watches the Watchmen?  It should be you.

Enjoy.

watch trailer

I just enjoyed every moment of the fashion voyeurism in this romantic comedy.  Isla Fisha plays Rebecca Bloomfield an extremely likable person who has an expensive addiction to shopping.  With her job ending suddenly she branches out to a new career where she finds success as a money adviser/ journalist.  Ironic! is how her friend and flatmate describes this development.

This movie is pure joy, just inhale the experience of shopping vicariously through her and soak in the laughs and the light romance.  My friends described the romance as cheesy, but who doesn’t love cheese!

Steph’s rating: 9.5/10

John Grogan (Wilson) is a newspaper columnist who takes the advise of a friend (Dane) and buys his wife a dog to distract her from those ‘baby urges’.

The Labrador certainly steals the show – it really is something  quite adorable.  Whilst amused by the puppies antics we discover John and Jenny and watch them grow as a family.  It’s really a wonderful, humorous film.  I’m heard reviews say that Owen Wilson just plods along in this flick, but I disagree, he captures the essence of the character and I thought this watch was better than the trailer eludes too.

Enjoy!

Steph’s rating: 7.5/10

Having enjoyed so many movies where the women changes and wins the man ‘Grease, She’s all that’, I guess women-hood are at some level wanting to be told who they need to look like or be in order to meet ‘Prince Charming’ and find happiness.   Thankfully the message of this movie (if there ever was one) is that its just you baby.

Gigi (Goodwin) is adorable at representing the majority of women-kind and how they perceive love.  We watch her and her friend circle through various life situations.

Watching this kind of movie always makes me relieved that I’m no longer single and that I’ve found my soul mate (even if I haven’t figured him out yet) as  I can’t stand the dating games and the second guessing.  This is certainly not the best of the click flick genre as most of the best bits are in the trailer, however don’t let knowing that stop you from seeing this film.  It’s still a pleasant interlude into relationships that will either make you feel better or worst.

OK there are lots of well known actors in this film, but sometimes even that can’t invigorate just an average storyline – dispite how much we love them.  Still looking for the best chick watch of 2009.  This film unfortunately won’t even be in the running, but thankfully there were 3 chick flick previews – coming soon – so hope prevails.

Steph’s rating: 6.5/10