Snow White and the Huntsman.

Looking evil never looked so good...Charlize Theron..Snow White and the Huntsman.

Its the same question of wither Daniel Radcliffe could step out of the 'Harry Potter' typecast and enter a new form of serious acting, its pretty safe to say The Woman In Black kept him safe. But now it's Kristen Stewart's turn - will she step away from the 'Bella Swan' role. The answer I think is yes. With a faux English accent that you don't really notice, she takes on the fairytale role of Snow White. She isn't quite the Disney pretty princess and she certainly isn't Lily Collins' 'Mirror Mirror' character either. Stewart makes the Brothers Grimm creation her own. She's very good, but still emotionless as usual. This is all quickly upstaged by Charlize Theron's evil queen performance. She's evil, sexy, cunning and magical. Throughout the film, Theron wears a serious of glamorous dresses and  crowns, all symbolizing evil. Her character is Queen Ravenna, a captive of an army that the Snow White's father defeats, after quickly killing a few people and imprisoning Snow White for no apparent reason, she gets herself to be queen and the land and many people die. It's a dark time, and in the light, shines 'Snow White' - the only person that can rid the evil from the land. Just like the fairytale, she escapes to the forest where she is pursued by a huntsman called Eric (though I don't remember him every being called that in the film), he's played by Thor's Chris Hemsworth, who is horribly miscast. Finally after at least half an hour of running around from the queen, we get the 'seven dwarves,'    (Ian McShane, Johnny Harris, Bob Hoskins, Toby Jones, Eddie Marsan, Brian Gleeson, Ray Winstone and Nick Frost), seven very unfunny and often annoying minor (get it!) characters. They fall very thinly into the plot at the end. The effects are good and Charlize Theron's casting is perfect, but its a bit of a mess.


3/5

Men In Black 3.

At long last leave...Tommy Lee Jones..Will Smith..Men In Black 3

There is a very stretched and tired feeling that I get from this film. This third outing into the world of MIB seems forced, as if Barry Sonnenfeld is squeezing the life-juice out of this franchise. The first obvious sign is Tommy Lee Jones. In the fifteen minutes that we see him, he looks worn-out and not looking particularly fit to do stunts. I'm not being ageist it just seems that they could have avoided this film completely avoided, although I change my mind later in this review. The plot is shabby with a lot of time-travel that messes with the audiences' heads. Flight of the Conchords member, Jemaine Clements plays a disgusting looking alien villain named Boris, that is intent on Agent K's (Tommy Lee Jones) demise. Will Smith is back and doing some decent acting as Agent J. But Smith's acting is undermined by the introduction of a younger K, played by Josh Brolin, doing a very good impression of Jones', copying his voice and everything. Agent J has to go back in time to stop Boris from killing a younger K. Emma Thompson plays the very unflattering role as Agent O, Agent Zed's (previously played by Rip Torn who declined to return to the role) successor and Alice Eve gives at least two sentences in the script as a younger O. There are a few little jokes, for instance stating that Andy Warhol was actually an MIB agent undercover and that Lady Gaga is an alien. It keeps the audience entertained for its acceptable running time, which means it's a success, doesn't it?

3.5/5

Moonrise Kingdom

Imaginatively amazing...Kara Hayward...Jared Gilman..Moonrise Kingdom.

Wes Anderson's latest film is a bizarre mixture of normality and the absurd. He defies all walls in film-making and just goes for it. The result is great. It's set in the mid-60's on the fictional island of New Penzance. Teenage newcomers, Kara Hayward and Jared Gilman play Suzy and Sam. Sam is a Khaki Scout, and an orphan living in a home along with lots of other boys, Suzy is a disturbed child that spies on her parents, (Bill Murray and Frances McDormand.) They are going through a troubled marriage - sleeping in single beds and calling each other, "counsellor." Sam and Suzy decide to run away together and a search party goes off to find them, headed by the police chief, Captain Sharp (played by Bruce Willis.) Sam's weedy Scout Master (Edward Norton) also enlists his bitchy troop to help search for the pair. It's sweet and innocent, and keeps the audience entertained. Wes Anderson has created his own outlandish world that I wish to see more of in the future.




4/5

The Dictator.

Ridiculous ruler....Sacha Baron Cohen as Admiral General Hafez Aladeen,

It's hard to know what to expect when you go and see a Sacha Baron Cohen movie. You know it will be funny and offensive and that's exactly what The Dictator is - funny and offensive. It's a little less disrespectful than Borat but still as crude. Baron Cohen's latest bane is Admiral General Hafez Aladeen, a dumb and anti-Western dictator who rules the fictional state of Wadiya. He's stupid and similar to the late Colonel Gaddafi, in some ways and he works on nuclear weapons. The jokes are hilarious, with culture clashes and some great one-liners, my favourite scene is when Aladeen and Nadal, a 'friend' of his (Jason Mantzoukas) are playing 'tourists' in a helicopter. Within the first five seconds of the film appearing on the screen the audience are laughing. The words: in loving memory of Kim Jong-il appear on screen. 


The plot is very wobbly and is just a vehicle for the jokes. Aladeen is building nuclear weapons and if he doesn't appear at the United Nations in New York then the UN will take military action on the Admiral General. So naturally he travels on a state visit to America. Unfortunately, his traitorous uncle, Tamir (played by an uncomfortable-looking Ben Kingsley)  has an assassin to take care of him. The Admiral General escapes and seeks sanctum at a vegetarian grocery store, run by a very unattractive Anna Faris. It's crude, rude, a bit more fictional than Borat but will have the audience laughing all the same.




4/5

Dark Shadows.

The Addams Family...Johnny Depp and Michelle Pfeiffer as Barnabas and Elizabeth Collins.

Tim Burton's new gothic comedy drama is something new that he hasn't done before. His last film, the ridiculous overdone Alice In Wonderland wasn't his best moment - in fairness Dark Shadows isn't his best either but it still raises the bar higher than Alice In Wonderland could. Burton brings back one of his regular lead actors, Johnny Depp to play Barnabas Collins, a moody, out of date, greasy haired 18th-century vampire. Depp suits the role I think, I thought since he's constantly working with Depp, he may have just hired him because he's his friend but Johnny Depp brings a lot of character in Barnabas. The prologue of the film sees a young Barnabas journey to America with his parents to set up a town - Collinsport, a pleasant costal fishing village. After not falling for the charm of sexy witch, Angelique (Eva Green) she converts him into a vampire and locks him in a coffin for two hundred years. Barnabas then awakens in 1972 to find his once magnificent manor-home, Collinwood in ruin. The current occupiers are his descendants, strong-willed matriarch, Elizabeth (Pfeiffer), moody teen, Carolyn (Chloë Grace Moretz), Elizabeth's sleazy brother Roger, (Jonny Lee Miller), David, Roger's precocious son, (Gulliver McGrath) and manor caretaker, Willie (Jackie Earle Haley.) One other member of the household is Doctor Julia Hoffman, (played splendidly by Helena Bonham Carter), she's smart but lazy and spends 50% of the movie sitting around drinking dark colored alcohol from tumblers not doing any work. She was hired by Elizabeth to examine David after his mother's death. 


The film is a bit raunchy for it's "12A" certificate. In a scene where Dr. Hoffman examines Barnabas, she asks him if he knows what "doctor-patient confidentiality is" and he replies "no, enlighten me." Hoffman proceeds to move her head down his body to Barnabas' horror. Another scene is also sexually explicit but if I told you about it, it'd spoil the film. This is Burton on top form, one of his best since Corpse Bride or Sweeney Todd.




4/5