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The Upper Hand (1990)
An Old Friend
I first saw this as a grumpy teenager many years ago.
We used to tune in as a family to watch this comedy wondering whether Charlie and Caroline will ever get together and the roller-coaster ride of emotions that went through it.
It wasn't until watching re-runs of Who's the Boss did I realise what the show is based on, yet although they're based on the American scripts, they seem to have a uniquely British point of view.
I found that the show has recently been released on to DVD in the UK. I picked up a copy expecting cheesy and corny, fluffy and non-descript schmaltz, perhaps a bit of nostalgia thrown it harking back to a time when Central ITV were actually allowed to make programmes.
Watching The Upper Hand again after many years is like being reunited with a long lost family. Yes, its clean, simple and not smutty, it doesn't challenge you on many levels, it just is what it is - an amazingly catchy comedy that reels you in.
Twenty years on, and Im crying with sorry and howling with laughter.
A brilliant comedy that is much loved.
Where the Wild Things Are (2009)
So Natural it Feels Real
Right from the opening scene, this movie clicked with me. Maybe this movie works on different levels. Maybe we each get something out of it. Maybe Im one of the privileged few who "gets it", or maybe I saw a bit of my childhood in Max.
The opening scene sees Max building an igloo in the snow. You can hear children playing in the background, but you don't see them. His big sister has new friends, and his mom is dating. They've moved on.
This opening scene was just pure magic, blink and you miss it, you fail to grasp how although there are people around, Max is alone and so begins his journey to Where the Wild Things Are.
It isn't often that I walk out of the cinema in amazement, but this was a perfect movie that I could in no way criticise. The pace was never too slow or two fast, the feel of the movie was just right, and everything from the direction to the acting just made the movie feel real. This is one of those rare movies that captures a childhood in Max so accurately and naturally.
This movie doesn't smack you around the head with an obtrusive music score, or wild action, out of place visual effects, sharp cuts, or strange reactionary stares from the actors. Instead Spike Jonze has created a masterpiece that will probably never get the credit it deserves. Every inch of this movie just grabs hold of you gently and pulls you in, it feels real and so it is believable.
Simon and the Witch (1987)
Classic British Kids Show
I forgot all about Simon and the Witch as I was compiling my list of old kids shows I'd love to see again, then I remembered something about a café and a school and remembered found Simon and the Witch.
It's pure Children's TV Gold! It's unbelievable to think that it is 20 years old. I don't know what kids are like now, but it captures an essence of exactly what it was like in junior school at that time.
I find the show to be incredibly appealing even now 20 years later. Perhaps it is a work of genius? Maybe its the acting. The Witch, as played by the then nearly 60 year old Elizabeth Spriggs who we now recognise as the Fat Lady from Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone, put in a sprightly performance with some great physical acting and comedy. The entire supporting adult cast of adults also produce some of the best work I have ever seen for the genre. Timing, expressions, comedy. Perfect.
The young stars are great too. Watching the first episode, with the now never heard of Hugh Pollard putting in an absolutely stellar performance. If it wasn't for his size and voice, you might consider him a classically trained adult actor with a full range and an ability that comes naturally.
It's a shame he has never kept it up, because he was destined for something more.
A great joy to watch, a pleasure to recommend - even 20 years on.
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007)
By Far The Best
I don't think I can even begin to describe what I feel about this movie.
So let me start by asking why the fans of the series can never be happy? It's either too faithful, cuts too much out, cuts out more than a smaller book, doesn't include some irrelevant plot point or another gargantuan helping of eye candy.
Don't get me wrong, this is a school of magic, so it stands to reason there should be quite a bit of magic.
However the story has to be there, there has to be a good plot.
Coming after the Goblet of Fire, the first time a relatively well known director has been at the helm, I was sceptical. This has been the first movie out of the franchise that has not only got a new director (David Yates) but a new screen writer by the name of Michael Goldenberg. I expected great things from Goldenberg, the writer of the 2003 film, Peter Pan, but Yates I was a little hesitant about.
Yet however the vision that these two gentlemen have bought to the screen has been magnificent. They've faithfully understood their source material and carefully crafted and re-worked a version for the silver screen that addresses the main plot points.
So I will say this once, yes, they have dispensed with a lot of the fluff around the edges. But brains in jars aren't important, neither is character development on characters you aren't going to see too much, characters who by all rights are cameos. It's called Harry Potter for a reason.
Unlike previous movies, this instalment is not disjointed and a pleasure to watch.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)
Better With Time
I was never a huge fan of this movie. Everything changed and we feared the loss of Chris Columbus at the helm. With the unheard of director at the time, I feared that we would lose the fantasy element that we had with Chris Columbus, especially when Alfonso Cuaron started talking about "coming of age" rather than pure unadulterated magic.
I am however delighted to say its "stood the test of time" and I think will continue to do so. It is quite an accessible and should be remembered quite fondly.
It's somewhat more professional than the first two films in the franchise and it's good to see the young cast fleshing out their roles a little more - they're not so stiff. Having just read Book Seven, the Deathly Hallows, it's quite intriguing to re-watch this movie and recognise the fore-shadowing.
Despite another tired clichéd and familiar sound track from John Williams, and another linear, disjointed scene-by-scene adaption by Steve Kloves, this is a fine movie.
The Island on Bird Street (1997)
Underrated
This movie is fantastic, one of the best I have ever seen in a long time. I was surprised to see that it is from 1997 because until I turned onto BBC2 today, I had never even heard of it.
Although this is a simple, some say linear story of Nazi Germany vs the Jewish community telling of one boys struggle to survive on his own to wait for his father, it really draws you in.
In the same vein as movies like DARYL, or Finding Neverland, it does not rely cheap gimmicks. Instead we find a gripping a story that draws you in. You become attached to the characters and really feel for them. It stirs up quite a bit of emotion. I was dancing all over the room at one point biting my nails.
This is a fantastic story with some brilliant acting. The main focus is on Alex, played by Jordan Kiziuk. Im surprised he hasn't done anything before or since as he played a brilliant part, even if his accent is a little dodgy.
The director has done a fantastic job in the telling of the story. It is one of those underrated films that you must watch if you ever get a chance.
Eragon (2006)
Adequate
Having never read the book, I thought I might suffice as an impartial observer.
Opening effects, tired, lacklustre and cheap. There is no setting provided by the filmmakers, other than a quick voice over at the beginning. The story is then so fast paced you don't know what's happening. It feels almost like a couple of days go past in a few seconds. One moment it's day, the next it's night. The leading character changes his mind so often with very little explanation or feeling it's frankly confusing.
Performances and voices feel wooden, the only thing that saves it really, are, it's, quite an interesting storyline if a little bland, the main action sequence is good, nothing to complain about (unless I guess if you've read the book), and then of course there's the overwhelming schmaltzy cuteness factor and an animated dragon.
It was later I found out that the six foot bearded men were supposed to be dwarfs, while the main female character was supposed to be Elfish...
Hook (1991)
Cheated by Hook
As a "young" kid, probably of about 16 when I first saw it, I loved this movie.
Then I grew old, and I started to find it embarrassing - "Bang-a-rang" and the whole stupidity of it, the sickly, sweet, brightness of it all. It felt too cheesy, and I couldn't explain why.
I picked up a copy of Peter Pan (2003) the other day after wondering whether it would be too childish, but I found it an absolute delight - fluffy and dark at the same time, complex, full of metaphors, a really intelligent film - something to think about, and I just had to compare the two movies because now I feel cheated by Hook.
On reflection, Hook is very simplistic and mundane, and if that's what Steven Spielberg's films are coming to, simplistic "eye candy" then maybe he's not my favourite director anymore.
First we have to accept the challenges that he is orphaned to an American family though he marries the English grand daughter of Wendy and he forgets who he is. Then has to go to Neverland to rescue his family, where we learn that Smee has his medical records. Peter Pan then forgets who he was as Peter Panning but somehow remembers from some strange romantic rendezvous with Tinkerbell, who should have been long dead by then.
We have to accept the terrible sets, where there is no background to the pirate ship, the lost boys now have some kind of Roller Coaster, and play basketball, and for some bizarre reason, Rufio is wearing tights.
Then we have to accept things that seem like gross over simplifications on the original story. For example, in Hook, it seems that the only reason Peter was afraid to grow up was because everyone who grows up has to die.
We also have the oxymoronic features of the film of political correctness AND stereotypes of fat people being used as rolling bombs to splatter the pirates like bowling pins. Then also the pirates are really rather cute and beautifully choreographed.
Don't get me wrong, this is classic family fayre, its typically "Disney", mundane, sweet, and appealing to the "lowest common denominator" as I've heard it touted. But it's hardly a cinematic masterpiece full of scenery, and emotion, and dialogue full of heart. Also just because it has lines from the original story, doesn't make the film good. They're unnecessary and just serve the film makers to attempt a pathetic demonstration that they have read the book.