jds1040 Reviews

The Orphanage (2007)

Intelligent, scary, thrilling. moving

[9/10 · 28 August 2007]

Attended the first commercial screening of The Orphanage (El Orfanato) last night at FrightFest, London.

Juan Antonio Bayona and writer Sergio G. Sanchez have delivered something really special for their first feature.

I have never jumped out of my seat like I did last night, nor my partner, nor most of the audience it seemed. Apart from the terrific scares, there are solid performances from the whole cast, stunning cinematography, and the editing is flawless. If I had to criticise one element, it is that the music swells just a little too much a couple of times, but it is a good score nonetheless.

See this one at the cinema.

Casino Royale (2006)

Are there no writers out there who can do better than this?

[5/10 · 15 November 2006]

I have no idea how much Paul Haggis contributed to the final product, but it is clear that since Messrs Wade and Purvis started providing the 'scripts' for the Bond films, something has gone awry. Daniel Craig is excellent, Martin Campbell shows a real flair in his second Bond outing, and the (mainly Czech) crew have done a tremendous job, But the script is simply DIRE. (I paraphrase) - example - the line '...they are demanding your head on a plate' - the next line ought to be '..I might just give it to them' - but instead is transformed into '..I might just feed you to them (sic). The screenplay is filled with squandered opportunities for witty exchange, finally degenerating into outright vulgarity (the scene in the hospital gardens for example). The pacing is completely off - the film is front-loaded with two length action sequences - then nearly an hour of very little. Worst of all - there is no climax to the story - 'twists' (such that there are are) revealed well before the end, and the obvious attempts to pull off a Batman Begins with the closing scene fell completely flat at the screening I attended at the Odeon Leicester Square this afternoon. I am genuinely surprised at some of the critics' high praise for this one - I enjoyed Die Another Day more than this - and my favourites are Goldfinger and OHMSS.

Superman Returns (2006)

just awful

[5/10 · 5 July 2006]

I am just at a loss at the positive reviews for this dull, pointless adoption drama masquerading as a Superman movie. From the shocking opening (a potentially exciting opening sequence explaining Superman's five year absence expunged and replaced by static white text on a black background), through the shoddy editing, the uncomfortable shoe- horning of John Williams' themes at every opportunity, to the witless script - this is a failure on every level except for the big fx sequences. The Daily Planet is now a soulless, humourless place to work, Clark Kent no longer has anything remotely funny to say, and there is zero banter between Supes and Luthor, who share one nasty little scene together. As noted by many others - Luthor's plan makes absolutely no sense, Parker Posey's arc consists of hating Luthor at the start, to hating him at the end, Kate Bosworth has clearly never smoked a cigarette in her life - it just goes on and on....