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Reviews
Bill Bailey: Dandelion Mind (2010)
Amazingly funny show!!!!!
At this stage of his career, there is simply no doubt that Bill Bailey is indeed a stand up legend. Combining his hilarious observational humour with his inspired songs, he is a truly unique comedian, and to some extent could even be called a rock star. In this tour that stretched all over the world, from Dublin to Sydney, Bill Bailey touches on such things as famous Artworks to how Manchester United's Wayne Rooney's face looks like a cabbage. His sublime brand of comedy is possibly best showcased in this show. Once you are in his engaging grasp you can't let go until this pee-in-your-pants funny show is finished. Every minute is just as funny as the last. If you haven't yet discovered Bill's wonderful talents this is perfect for you.
10/10
Wall Street (1987)
A continually relevant portrait of the effects of greed and money
Wall Street is a brilliant film, and almost represents the 80s in just two hours while it's effect being just as strong as if it was released today. We enter Bud Fox (a great performance by Charlie Sheen, more familiar to audiences as the womaniser Charlie Harper from the hit TV show "Two and a half Men") a relatively insignificant broker on wall street, who dreams of getting to the top. His idol, Gordon Gekko (the Academy Award winning, best acted and most famous role of Michael Douglas), seems to be his way to his goals and when given the chance from Gekko to prove himself, he strives. As Bud becomes richer and more powerful the schemes begin as does the guilt with his father (Charlie's real life dad Martin Sheen) when Gekko's plans become more deadly... Oliver Stone hit gold with the academy award winning "platoon", also starring Charlie Sheen, and people had doubts whether he could follow up his success with "Wall Street." All doubts were soon demolished. The performances are brilliant, obviously Douglas' character is the one that comes to mind, but also is the underrated and arguably the best performance by Charlie Sheen who really proves his acting chops with this challenging role. The message of this film is extremely important and will be as long as mankind will live for. An archetypal 80s film, and an amazing one at that. 9/10
Gekko: "Greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed in all of its forms -- greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge -- has marked the upward surge of mankind and greed, you mark my words, will not only save teldar paper, but that other malfunctioning corporation called the USA."
The Man with Two Brains (1983)
Ridiculous and silly fun
The man with two brains isn't a great comedy. Indeed it does make you laugh at times, is definitely a step up from the spoofs of these days, and is extremely quirky, with some strange scenes such as Steve Martin's character licking his palms so he is able to stick to the side of the building and Merv Griffiths being an "elvator killer" who injects people with window cleaner. But quirky is sometimes a good thing. Although this typical weird 80s comedy is strange it is entertaining. Whether or not it's genius or a completely shite movie is beyond my level of thinking. You can decide for yourself. Fans of such films as "Dr Detroit" or "neighbours", i recommend it to you. 6/10
Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008)
Completely lives up to it's predecessor, if not excels it
Hellboy 2 is a high quality action film from Guillermo Del Toro, the mastermind behind the fantasy/horror Oscar winner Pan's Labyrinth. It begins right where the original film lets off. Hellboy, Liz and Abraham are still working for the bureau of paranormal research and defence. A new case awakens and the team are soon on the trail to stop a new villain, Prince Nuada, from awakening the mythical golden army and taking over the world. Although it may sound silly, Hellboy 2 is in short one hell of a good time (excuse the pun), the guns even bigger (watch out for the "big baby" gun) the bad guys even creepier, the cigars even better, the monsters freakier and the one liners a-plenty. If you have experienced and enjoyed the first one you'll love the sequel. If you're watching the hellboy series for the first time, brace yourself for a wild ride unlike anything you've ever seen before.
8/10
Due Date (2010)
Pretty good, but it ain't the hangover
Due Date follows a simple story. Peter Highman is a man who has to get to LA to see the birth of his child. In a misunderstanding to the cause off a bearded man, Peter is put on the "no fly" list along with the bearded man. Peter unfortunately could not get his luggage of the plane which along with it had his wallet, complete with all credit cards, money etc. that was essential to getting Peter to LA. His only way to see the birth of his child is to travel with the bearded man, Ethan Tremblay by car to LA. What follows is a road trip movie full of ups and downs (mostly downs) which involve their car flipping off a bridge in result of Ethan falling asleep at the wheel, drinking coffee made with Ethan's father's remains, Peter breaking an arm and Peter getting shot in the leg just to name a few. Due date has a bit of everything but the one thing it lacks is the ability to make you laugh hysterically, unlike the Hangover.
Indeed it does have its moments, i mean have you ever seen a movie with a masturbating dog? Don't get me wrong, Due date is definitely worth the ticket and the two leads, Downey Jr. and Galifianakis especially create great comedy. But a fact always nagged me through the whole movie. Has anyone reading this seen a little film with Steve Martin and John Candy called Planes Trains and Austomobiles. As much as I liked Due Date at the end it felt like a raunchier version of the John Hughes classic. The similarities are endless. Anyhoo, it's still a good movie, but don't expect the hangover. And it does deliver the laughs quite well.
Don't try to compare this to the hangover also, just go in thinking nothing of it and you'll think it's a better movie.
For any fans of the hangover who are reading this the sequel comes out in May 2011!!! How awesome is that!!!!!!!!
8/10
Taken (2008)
A truly kick ass action move
Taken is, without a doubt, one of the coolest and most fast paced action thriller of all time. Enter Bryan Mills (played terrifically by Liam Neeson) an ex-government spy, and a man who's job costed him his family. He lives alone seeking to make up lost time for his 17 year old daughter, Kim (Maggie Grace) When Kim is granted with an opportunity to visit Paris with a friend, and needs Bryan's permission. A reluctant Bryan eventually agrees. A day later he discovers that his daughter and her friend were taken by Albanian human trafficking crime lords. He has 96 hours to get her back, or he will most likely never find his daughter's whereabouts. This is a fine example of how a simple idea can form into an thrilling film. Neeson truly kicks some f***ing ass as the truly ruthless and undeniably so damn cool role of the ex spy. This is a fine debut by French director Pierre Morrel (although the success doesn't continue, see (or don't see) "FROM Paris WITH LOVE" and you'll see what I mean.) The screenplay is by veteran Luc Besson (Leon, La femme Nikita) and is filled with one liners to remember. A ruthless action movie with awesome action sequences
Quote: Bryan: "I don't know who you are. I don't know what you want. If you are looking for a ransom I can tell you, I don't have money. But what I do have is a very particular set of skills. Skills I have acquired over a very long career. Skills that make me a nightmare for people like you. Now if you let my daughter go, that'll be the end of it. I will not look for you. I will not pursue you. But if you don't, I will look for you. I will find you And I will kill you" ... ... ... ... Marko: "Good Luck"
*Phone hangs up*
Arj Barker: Balls (2008)
genius, absolutely genius
ARJ BARKER'S SHOW BALLS IS ONE OF THE FUNNIEST STAND UP SHOWS I HAVE EVER SEEN IN MY LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Arj Barker is genius, his jokes are completely original all the time. His timing is perfect, his jokes are pee in your pants hilarious and he is undoubtedly completely underrated.
Although Barker is American, he does most of his shows in Australia. Unfortunately, the DVD can only be bought in Australia, so attempt to see this if you are Australian or even if you're not!
ABSOLUTELY FRIGGIN' HILARIOUS
10/10
The Social Network (2010)
Unexpectedly a very powerful film, sure to be a major contender at the 2011 Oscars.
The social network is a masterpiece in many ways.
It opens with one of the best written scenes in history, the break up of Mark Zuckerberg, the soon to be creator of a 25 billion dollar website (Jesse Eisenberg from Zombieland), who is perfectly cast) with Erika. This leads to a long night of laptop use for Zuckerberg, and in this night, he creates "Facemash", a website that received somewhat 20,000 hits in 2 hours.
It is then where Zuckerberg finds his talent and works on an idea that today is facebook. With his best friend Eduardo (a thrilling and empathic debut performance from newcomer Andrew Garfield) financing, Facebook is born.
As the site becomes more popular and wealthy, and when Sean Parker (Justin Timberlake, don't judge him from his singing career, he's a good actor) joins the team the stakes become higher and betrayal, success and billions of dollars are what is to follow.
Brilliant performances from Eisenberg, Garfield and Timberlake, David Fincher (The Curious case of Benjamin Button)'s masterfully simplistic direction and Aaron Sorkin (creator and screenwriter of TV's The West Wing)'s amazing screenplay make The Social Network truly a film for our times, relevant for many reasons, the biggest being Facebook is probably one of the top 10 words you would use to describe this decade.
It seems that the end of the decade has brought the best films. Just this year we have been privileged with Inception, The ghost writer and this reviewed title just to name a few. I strongly suspect, no, I KNOW that The Social Network will be a huge contender at 2011's Academy Awards.
Also, do not judge this film as garbage simply because it's about facebook. The central points are what wealth and fame can do to people and betrayal of friendship to achieve these goals.
A very good drama.
9/10
The X Files (1993)
one of my favourite shows
The X files is the greatest science fiction show of all time, to put it in a nutshell.
At it's time the X files was something that had never been done before, and it has been a phenomenon in television. It was fresh, different and offered the talents of two young stars, David Duchovny as Fox Mulder and Gillian Anderson as Dana Scully.
Every single episode was equally intriguing and compelling, and audiences began to look forward to every episode. With 10 seasons and two successful feature films, The X files is a show not soon to be forgotten.
A brilliant show that deserves to be admired by everyone, even if it makes you feel a bit squeamish.
RED (2010)
the best time i've had at the cinemas in ages!
One word to describe this film.
FUN.
Very very fun.
With thrilling action sequences containing some truly awesome fight scenes and slow motion bullet firing, a great cast of oldies that have shown they've still got it and very funny jokes, RED is a truly fun ride to enjoy.
It follows Frank Moses (Bruce Willis) who is a retired CIA agent. At night a group of armed man break into his house and attempt to kill him. He escapes, taking along a clueless woman (Mary Louise Parker from TV's Weeds.) He soon discovers him and his former CIA associates have been targeted for assassination.
Basically it's Willis, Helen Mirren (with a machine gun), Morgan Freeman and John Malkovich (in a hilarious performance) kicking some serious ass and showing that their age has nothing to do with their ability as CIA agents.
If you love action/comedies, you'll love this.
9/10
National Security (2003)
a Funny action comedy
National Security is directed by American comedy regular Dennis Dugan, and this was before he directed some truly @#%#ing crap movies ("I now pronounce you Chuck and Larry" and "The Benchwarmers" were two latter comedies he should undoubtedly regret making.) The result is his funniest film I've seen, and Martin Lawrence always makes me laugh anyway.
The story begins with a cop, Hank (played by Steve Zahn, from Sahara) who is sent to jail for half a year, rid of his job and girlfriend while still under stress from the death of his partner because of Earl (Martin Lawrence from Big Momma's House)'s annoying attitude leading to a confusion of Hank beating Earl with a baton. Half a year later their paths cross again as security guards, and both must work together to bring down the people who killed Hank's former partner. What follows is shootouts, explosions and rapid fire gags as the two try not to kill each other. Of course, you could never call National Security a great film, but it's not trying to be. What the film is attempting to do is deliver hilarious gags and a good time. And it succeeds in both areas.
It's a fun film to watch, and I recommend it to anyone looking for a good laugh. As the trailer foretells, it's a buddy comedy, without the buddies.
Also look out for Eric Roberts (The Dark Knight) with blond hair, a strange sight to see!
7/10
Fanboys (2009)
Heartwarming and hilarious comedy to be loved by star wars fans and even trekkies
Fanboys is a comedy to be treasured and, although it was a complete flop at the Australian box office, it deserved a lot better, and was grievously underrated. The (relatively unknown) main stars are perfectly cast, and the plot is a fun and hilarious road trip. The story follows 5 die hard star wars fans in 1998, who have been waiting since they were children to see star wars episode 1 (the phantom menace). One of the 5, Linus, is due to die in the next few months, and it has been his lifelong dream to see star wars episode 1. So the 5 create a plan to travel to George Lucas's film studio in Texas, Skywalker ranch, and steal a rough cut of episode 1 from the editing room. What results is one of the best and funniest road trip movies of the past 10 years, and one even trekkies will enjoy! Also look out for cameos by Danny Trejo, Seth Rogen, William Shatner, Kevin Smith and Danny MacBride
8/10
Billy Connolly: Live 2002 (2002)
A good first impression
Billy Connolly without question is probably the most famous stand up comedian, and if not, then definitely in the top 10 or so. This show is undeniably hilarious, but not consistently. It seems, and it isn't the first time with stand up, bad jokes are replaced with (a hugely phenomenal amount) of swearing. It is also a bit too long, which is horrible when it is a stand up act that isn't fantastic. Connolly fans will still enjoy, others not as much but still is worth the watch. Still as i said before, undeniably hilarious. With genuine frigging hilarious moments.
7/10
The Ghost Writer (2010)
best thriller in ages!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The ghost writer is a masterpiece, to put it in a nutshell, and the best thriller of 2010 in my opinion. I have also read the novel of which the book is based on ("the ghost" by Robert Harris, recommended reading material) and not in ages has a film lived up and even excelled to the book, as well as being faithful and true to Harris' political thriller. Ewan McGregor delivers everything he has got to make the protagonist believable, and it is my hope that Ewan McGregor collects his deserved and belated academy award (I stress hope, it will never happen, to my dismay) Roman Polanski has, again, masterfully crafted this thriller Just absolutely f***ing pro. See it.