smileykate Reviews

Modern Life Is Rubbish (2017)

Rubbish

[1 February 2019]

My original rating for this film, was a 6. On further reflection I've come to the decision that that was too kind. One of the main problems I had with this film was that I found myself not really caring about their relationship. We all know that Nat is better off without Liam, who is incredibly annoying throughout the film. Liam, who is obsessed with Radiohead, becomes offended when a potential love interest calls them "pretentious and depressing". I thought that this was a perfect way to describe Liam himself, whose disdane for 'modern life' becomes repetitive and makes you want to bang your head against a wall. The main highlight of this film, for sure, has to be the the performance of Ian Hart. Although his part is small and under appreciated, his portrayal of Curve brings the humour so desperately needed to retain your interest. Nat finally leaves Liam after he embarrasses her in front of her boss and potential clients. After much moping on Liam's behalf, he at last comes to the realisation that he's been unfair to Nat and should have tried harder to make things work. Turns out that all he needed was a haircut. I will say that the relationship is more believable when the two are apart, looking back over their relationship, than they are together. As a hopeless romantic, I will say that the little scrapbook Liam makes for Nat is sweet and thoughtful, finally showing how much she means to him. Liam's character development, although rushed at times, helps the film find its happy ending. Overall, a forgettable romantic drama that takes more than it gives.

Robin Hood (2018)

I feel like I've been robbed

[1 February 2019]

After seeing the negative reviews for this new attempt at a classic, I was not particularly surprised. I really wanted it to be good, as someone with a love of the medieval period and its many legends. I thought it might be have been like last years King Arthur: Legend of the Sword. Hated by the critics but actually really enjoyable. This was not the case. I didn't start off by hating this film, in the first scenes where Robin is off fighting in the crusades, I found the fight scenes exciting, Taron Edgerton portrays the titular characters bravery and humanity very believably, when he tries to save Little Johns son. After this, Robin is injured and quickly shipped home, unbeknownst to him, with John stowing away in the bottom of his ship. He later mentions that this was a three month journey. I'm very curious about how he survived so long with no food or water, although I suppose they don't want you look too much into it. After these three months, Robin rides straight home to Nottingham. The film shows the docks where Robins boat arrives as actually being in Nottingham. This is strange, considering that Nottingham is in the middle of England, no where near the sea. Anyway, moving on. Robin is devastated to learn that the love of his life, Marian, now lives with her new beau, Will Scarlett, traditionally one of Robins Merry Men. In this adaptation, however, he's not a big fan of Robin. Heartbroken Robin is recruited by an angry John, who believes Robin is the man to lead the people against tyranny. John begins to train him to become an even better archer than he already is. This scene included a fancy montage of him shooting three arrows at once while being shouted at by John. Here, the film really started to go down hill. Robin practises archery, mopes about Marian and commits petty theft. He then beings to play the part of the arrogant Lord to gain information from the Sheriff. I felt that this was not something that Robin Hood would ever do. He wouldn't stoop that low or create a fake persona. He's a man of principles, who wouldn't have chosen that path. Speaking of the Sheriff, Ben Mendelson, once again, is a convincing villain. However I thought it was out of character for him to be so gullible; to believe that Robin was on his side, that he didn't resent him for shipping him off to the Crusades and basically ruining his life. I think they also missed at trick of not developing the relationship between Guy of Gisbourne and the Sheriff, as this would have been interesting to see. Now Robin has moved on to larger crimes, such as raiding the city's vault, unsuccessfully I might add. Any money that Robin has managed to obtain, seems to end up on Marian's doorstep. Nothing says 'I love you' more than a bag of cash. The whole city has how heard of the infamous 'Hood' stealing from the rich to give to the poor. The people are a big fan, so much so that they all start pinning up hoods all over the city to show support for the hooded rebel. Doesn't seem like a very practical thing to do, considering how much it rains in England, but hey ho, the rebellion comes first. As I become more bored with the mediocre story and its lacklustre characters, I begin to notice how much the set looked like a terrible medieval theme park. This raises questions about how well the films large budget was spent. Other cracks in the film start to appear, including the special effects, which are especially bad in close up scenes featuring a high speed chase. By the time they'd started to develop the actual storyline about how the Sheriff and the Cardinal are stealing the money from the taxes for their own gain, I'd lost all interest in the film and couldn't wait for it to end. Never before have I wanted to take my phone out at the cinema before. The end of the film suggests a possible sequel or sequels, although I for one, certainly won't be going to see them.

Molly's Game (2017)

Aaron Sorkin's 'Molly's Game' was definitely worth the gamble.

[4 January 2018]

As a huge Jessica Chastain fan, this film about a strong women who persevered through failure to run high stake poker games, appealed to me very much. When it first started, I wasn't sure that I was going to enjoy it. I thought that it would just be nearly 2 hours of explaining poker whilst we saw how easy it was to fail when you have everything to lose. Luckily this was not the case. What we got instead was the story of an extraordinary women who defined odds to build a poker empire that was entirely her own creation. Chastain was the perfect actress to cast in this role, as she has no trouble at all in portraying the confident and unyielding Molly, who could be compared to other characters she has played in the past. I also think she brings some of herself into the character as well; her intelligence and her urge to be taken seriously in a profession where women are not seen as equal. What I especially loved was the chemistry between Chastian and Idris Elba. Their scenes show us Sorkin's true talent for words and this allowed them to really be at the top of their games. Elba's supporting role is the icing on the cake really, as he shows us in a amazing scene where he performs a speech for the opposing counsel.Here he shows us not only his talent for stealing a scene but also showing us how well he can develop a character so that we really see their human side and how seeing the truth can change how we perceive things. Both stars deserve to be nominated for their performances this award season, not just Jessica Chastain, but we all know how unfair these things can be. On a final note, I would like to say that this is probably Kevin Costner's best film of recent years, maybe he should stick to supporting roles in the future.

Inception (2010)

A film like no other.

[29 June 2017]

For me, this has to be one of the greatest films ever made. Christopher Nolan is a master storyteller who really outdoes himself with Inception. A story so complex that you have to watch it several times before you can really get your head around whats happened. Rarely I come across a film that is amazing in every single way. From the superb acting from the likes of Leo DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and a memorable break out role for the one and only Tom Hardy. The script allows us to clearly see the personality of each character; allowing us at the same time to create our own opinion on them.All in all a masterpiece that was robbed of so many of the main awards at the Oscars that year. Some say Inception is overrated, they clearly haven't seen it enough times.