How I Live Now, the film adaption from the novel with the same name, was the type of film we both thought we would either really love or really dislike as a 'try too hard' indie film. I can happily say it wasn't the latter. Set in what looked like the near future (the year is never disclosed), this film observes young American Daisy on her refuge with her cousins in the south of the UK, during what seemed to be a world wide crisis/war. The film jumped into the action straight away, but i think there was definitely time at the beginning to show how the country had become this war zone; nothing was ever mentioned on why these terrorists had come to the UK, who were killing everyone they came in contact with, bombing cities, and polluting the countries water supply. At times the film was very frightening and suspenseful, which I think it really needed to be to have some real strength and purpose. The love story between Daisy and her cousin (or step cousin or something which wasn't made clear) Eddie was very strange but very empowering. After getting split up during the bombing of their home, the film mainly follows Daisy and her younger cousin on her quest to get back home to Eddie. They encounter piles of bodies, extreme thirst and hunger, and the fearsome terrorists in the middle of the woods. The character of Daisy herself was at first very annoying - the typical american teenage brat, but her character grew during the harsh realities she had to face, and so grew our love and our will for her to get home to her family again.
This film acts as a frightening glimpse into what could easily be the countries future, and is really worth a watch.
UPDATES -
We recently saw the incredible Dallas Buyers Club which will be getting a review soon by either myself or Ollie. We also had a day of films last weekend which will feature in a post.
The amount of films being watched has been a little lacking since February what with Ollie's birthday last month and both of us visiting Universities or doing something amazing at weekends. We also spent a Friday night at a very exciting village quiz in which we came 9th!!
27 films later is very slowly getting completed, especially by Ollie who has hardly watched any (!), but we will be finishing it SOON.
We are also regularly going to our towns brill film club, where we have seen so far 'Like father, Like Son' - a brilliant Japanese drama, and also 'Blancanieves' - a Spanish silent film loosely based on the story of Snow White.
BY ROSIE
Friday, 14 March 2014
Friday, 21 February 2014
'The past is just a story we tell ourselves'
A review of Spike Jonze's 'Her'.
On Wednesday night, on the way to the cinema to see 'Her', which is nominated for 5 Oscars and has been much anticipated by Rosie and I, we commented that although we were looking forward to the film, we were both tired and that the McDonalds beforehand would be the highlight of the night. For some reason we both felt like we were going to be disappointed by the film. I'm glad to say, neither of us were.
If I had to describe the film, it's a complex exploration of love, and even though set in the future (I'd say around 2050), it's still extremely relevant to love today. Beautifully and experimentally shot, the film sees the lead character Theo, who has recently split from his wife, fall in love with his new OS (operating system), Samantha. I can see why some people won't like this film, it's had its fair share of critical reviews already, and it has been called stupid by some. However I feel that you should look at the film not quite literally, but look at what it's trying to tell us as viewers. That's how I felt the beauty of the film. The script is beautiful, many times I felt like bursting into tears because of what was being said. However the film also has a darker side, which is what I was expecting to be explored more - linking love, our most desired emotion, with our growing dependence on technology.
All the cast were brilliant, however small it was. Joaquin Phoenix was amazing and in my opinion, the best cast member was Scarlett Johansson, who played Samantha. However we never see her, she brought Samantha to life, and just through her voice you could feel the emotions she was feelings and almost visualise her. An original idea, a brilliant romance, with just enough comedy to not make it overly depressing but not take away the core of the film, loss and love.
10/10
Ollie
On Wednesday night, on the way to the cinema to see 'Her', which is nominated for 5 Oscars and has been much anticipated by Rosie and I, we commented that although we were looking forward to the film, we were both tired and that the McDonalds beforehand would be the highlight of the night. For some reason we both felt like we were going to be disappointed by the film. I'm glad to say, neither of us were.
If I had to describe the film, it's a complex exploration of love, and even though set in the future (I'd say around 2050), it's still extremely relevant to love today. Beautifully and experimentally shot, the film sees the lead character Theo, who has recently split from his wife, fall in love with his new OS (operating system), Samantha. I can see why some people won't like this film, it's had its fair share of critical reviews already, and it has been called stupid by some. However I feel that you should look at the film not quite literally, but look at what it's trying to tell us as viewers. That's how I felt the beauty of the film. The script is beautiful, many times I felt like bursting into tears because of what was being said. However the film also has a darker side, which is what I was expecting to be explored more - linking love, our most desired emotion, with our growing dependence on technology.
All the cast were brilliant, however small it was. Joaquin Phoenix was amazing and in my opinion, the best cast member was Scarlett Johansson, who played Samantha. However we never see her, she brought Samantha to life, and just through her voice you could feel the emotions she was feelings and almost visualise her. An original idea, a brilliant romance, with just enough comedy to not make it overly depressing but not take away the core of the film, loss and love.
10/10
Ollie
Wednesday, 12 February 2014
In Memory of Philip Seymour Hoffman
After hearing the very sad news of Philip Seymour Hoffman's death on the 2nd February Ollie and I decided straight away to hold a special film night dedicated to him, watching three of his best/most talked about films. I feel like Philip appeared in so many brilliant films, but his talent was never really recognised, until Capote that is when he received the best actor Oscar. And that is the film we start with..
Capote
Philip in this film is simply sublime. I think it was his best role, and having seen it when it first came out I was eager to make sure it made the cut for our Philip special. PSH plays writer Truman Capote in this biographical feature and follows the events surrounding the writing of Capote's book, In Cold Blood. As well as the film being compelling and interesting, PSH is astoundingly good in his role of Capote; his voice completely different, and his acting very true. If you only want to watch one film from this list, make it this one.
Doubt
Another critically acclaimed film starring PSH, Meryl Streep and Amy Adams; all three are brilliant. The film looks into a Catholic school and questions the very uncatholic things which may be going on inside of it; a priest (played by PSH) is suspected of an ambiguous relationship with a troubled young alter boy. I have to say Meryl Streep makes this movie, she is so good at playing hardened school principle that shes actually scary. Myself and Ollie compared the film to Matilda; Meryl being Mrs Trunchbull and the very innocent Amy Adams (playing a teaching nun) being Miss Honey. This film was quite slow, and it didn't come to a resolution at the end, which was quite nice.
Boogie Nights
After a long night of films I wasn't really looking forward to this but I'm very glad we watched it. It reminded me ALOT of The Wolf of Wall Street which Ollie and I recently watched, the only big difference being Boogie Nights is about the porn industry, which made some very awkward watching with my dad. I really enjoyed this film, and even though PSH was a very small role, he was the star of the show, and Ollie and I couldn't help but find his character so cute. Mark Wahlberg was very good in this; it was nice to see him in something that isn't an action shooter, and so was Julianne Moore. The film is funny but does have a very dark undertone, which is explored more in the second half of the film. A good watch.
Post By Rosie.
Sunday, 2 February 2014
TV Reviews: House of Cards and The Bridge
For those of you who have been living under a rock for the past few months The Bridge has become one of the most loved Swedish crime series to ever grace TV (and Netflix - which is the medium I watched it on). And House of Cards (the Netflix original series) stars the brilliant Kevin Spacey and won an emmy for best directing. In this post I shall be reviewing both for your reading pleasure.
The end of Breaking Bad left my very sad heart with a major gap to fill. What am I going to do with those spare hours in my day where I would drool over Jesse and be utterly flabbergasted by Walter White. There was only one way to get over this major loss, find another amazing TV series to watch. After trying Dexter and not really liking it (it was very overly stereo-typically American) I thought I would give House of Cards a try. I knew pretty much nothing about American politics and at throughout the series there were times when I had no idea what congressman Frank Underwood (played marvelously by Kevin Spacey) was talking about. This also isn't the type of series you fall in love with either. There are no characters which really connect with the audience; Frank and his wife are both very harsh people and will do anything to get where they want to be. But I suppose this is just a true representation of American politics. The story does en-capture the viewer however; I couldn't help but watch more and more of House of Cards. And with a new series coming on February 14th, I won't have to wait much longer to see more.
The Bridge is the closest I've come to finding a TV series I loved as much as Breaking Bad. The story was just unbelievably good; a body is found on the bridge which links Denmark and Sweden, meaning both countries police forces have to work together to solve the crimes of one killer which unfold before them at an incredible rate. The leads Saga, played by Sofia Helin and Martin played by Kim Bodnia are perfect in their roles of Swedish and Danish detectives. I've liked crime series in the past, Wallander, Silent Witness and Whitechapel (series 1), but the The Bridge simply outshines these by a mile. Now i'm going to go and hunt down series 2 ->
My ratings:
House of Cards (Series 1): 7/10
The Bridge (Series 1): 9/10
By Rosie.
The end of Breaking Bad left my very sad heart with a major gap to fill. What am I going to do with those spare hours in my day where I would drool over Jesse and be utterly flabbergasted by Walter White. There was only one way to get over this major loss, find another amazing TV series to watch. After trying Dexter and not really liking it (it was very overly stereo-typically American) I thought I would give House of Cards a try. I knew pretty much nothing about American politics and at throughout the series there were times when I had no idea what congressman Frank Underwood (played marvelously by Kevin Spacey) was talking about. This also isn't the type of series you fall in love with either. There are no characters which really connect with the audience; Frank and his wife are both very harsh people and will do anything to get where they want to be. But I suppose this is just a true representation of American politics. The story does en-capture the viewer however; I couldn't help but watch more and more of House of Cards. And with a new series coming on February 14th, I won't have to wait much longer to see more.
The Bridge is the closest I've come to finding a TV series I loved as much as Breaking Bad. The story was just unbelievably good; a body is found on the bridge which links Denmark and Sweden, meaning both countries police forces have to work together to solve the crimes of one killer which unfold before them at an incredible rate. The leads Saga, played by Sofia Helin and Martin played by Kim Bodnia are perfect in their roles of Swedish and Danish detectives. I've liked crime series in the past, Wallander, Silent Witness and Whitechapel (series 1), but the The Bridge simply outshines these by a mile. Now i'm going to go and hunt down series 2 ->
My ratings:
House of Cards (Series 1): 7/10
The Bridge (Series 1): 9/10
By Rosie.
Saturday, 25 January 2014
12 Years A Slave: The new slave epic that will become the modern day ROOTS despite its flaws
If I were to bet on which film is going to win the 2014 Best Picture Oscar, then I would be putting my money on 12 Years a Slave. While it has hot competition from American Hustle, Gravity, Her and The Wolf of Wall Street, this is the personal favourite for most people, so I was very excited to see it last night. A good film? Yes, very. Good acting? Yes, very. Did it live up to the hype? Definitely not. I liked this film, don't get me wrong - the performances from all the main cast were amazing (a scene where Ejiofor breaks the fourth wall and stares the audience out for about 20 seconds was the highlight of the film), and the pacing and directing were brilliant. But there isn't anything really new here. In years to come, I feel this will become THE slave film, however to me it felt like something I'd seen lots of times before. Another thing I liked about this film was how brutally honest it decided to be. Many films, however brutal they have been in the past, have still not captured the horror of slavery, and this I feel 12 Years A Slave did well. There were many moments I felt physically angry towards certain white characters, and so devastated for the African Amercan slaves, especially Eliza, who literally cries for weeks on end when she is split from her two young children when she is sold to Benedict Cumberbatch. A great film, a good length, couldn't have asked for a better cast, the small problem I have with this film is with the story - great as it is, the middle seems to meander around from scene to scene. I would also have enjoyed more closure, or more exploration into the effects that Solomon's kidnapping had on his family. Overall, a very good film, and definitely Oscar worthy, but not Best Picture worthy. Out of the 9 nominees, I have seen 3 - this, The Wolf of Wall Street and Gravity. I'm afraid to say, I prefer the latter two to this.
8/10
8/10
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