Author: BRWC

The Fellows Hip (2013) Film Review

The Fellows Hip (2013) dir. Ron Newcomb

The first warning that I shall give in regards to this film is that if you have not watched “The Lord of The Rings” trilogy recently or a number of times this is not the film for you. “The Fellows Hip” tells the story of four friends who are geeks and love video games, bullied at school and by his older brother Randall Dooley (Justin Moe) sets off on a ‘quest’ with his friends to prove himself at a massive Lord of The Rings Online gaming tournament to ‘defeat’ his tormentor.

The film itself is very well shot and shows good direction from new directing talent Ron Newcomb and the parodies of the well loved books/films are superbly written, however what lets this film down is the acting. There are a number of moments during the film where the delivery of lines and humour are just awkward to watch, and they feel completely un-natural. These moments are dotted throughout the film but are thankfully saved in part by some fantastically funny moments. My highlight of the film is the character Baba Melvin Schnabel played by Wolf Sherrill. This hippie Gandalf style character is superbly played and adds much needed light relief to the later part of the film.

Throughout the film I was impressed with the music by Dale Clay which is so close to Howard Shore’s original soundtracks it does border on a lawsuit, however gave that added authenticity to the film.

The film itself is not a bad one, it is a well written story and is well directed, however it is plauged with awkward acting and such a niche story it will alienate most audiences, however if you love “Lord of The Rings” as I do, I would employe you to give it a go.

2.5/5

9th January 2014
Day Of The Flowers: Review

The feature film return of John Roberts, who we last saw on the big screen 15 years ago with a personal childhood favourite, Paulie, is Day of the Flowers. Don’t be excepting parrots with linguistic skills to the point of self-awareness here.

When their father dies, left-winger Rosa (Eva Birthistle) and her sister material girl Ailie (Charity Wakefield) that she is going to take his ashes to Cuba where Rosa believes he has sent her Mother’s remains. There is one thing that she doesn’t count on, Ailie tagging along. To be able to reunite their parents, they must first survive a new culture, old secrets and themselves.

The backbone of Day of the Flowers is the sibling dynamic, and Birthistle and Wakefield both deliver the goods, bringing a chemistry equal parts bickering and loving. Having said this, the stand out performance is Carlos Acosta as the love interest Tomas who brings his balletic talent of physicality to the most mundane of motions, making him infinitely watchable.

Some moments do have a tendency towards the melodramatic, but what’s wrong with that? This isn’t a film that needs to be weighed down with gritty realism. It’s highly enjoyable as it is; The Puffy Chair if it were made by Dougals Sirk. Also, the melodrama opens it up for levity, allowing the comedy to roll by without much interruption to the dramatic elements and vice versa. This shouldn’t be much of a surprise as it’s written by Eirene Houston who’s previous writing credits include soap opera EastEnders and drama Monarch of the Glen.

The problem is that the strength for the melodrama is the largest weakness for the political parts of the film. It’s held in the same throwaway regard in favour of clichéd three act structure romantic plot points. Sure, expectations of a socialist paradise are confounded when confronted with the crime and poverty and the wealth of a few old revolutionaries, but I wanted to see this take the wheel and steer the plot. Instead it was tied up in the boot smacking on the back seat. The romance kicks in and that’s that, which, again, is fair enough for a romantic drama. The target audience probably won’t be as bothered by all this as me.

A warming, romantic film with the solid plot to carry it and great central and supporting performances. If the melodrama won’t be to your taste, the dips into cliché territory certainly won’t be. Shame about all the unbalanced politics-to-romance ratio. One for a night in in the pyjamas.

2nd January 2014
The Top Five Secret Christmas Movies

The Christmas movie has been a staple of our screens at this time of the year almost since cinema came into being. Our TVs are scheduled up to the eyeballs with various renditions of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol and the myriad faces of Santa Claus, all to keep us occupied and sane during this family-orientated fortnight.

But what do you do when there’s only so much festive filmmaking you can endure? When you can’t tell if Time Allen was the Santa in a courtroom with Matilda, or if Dudley Moore was the one who fell in love with Zooey Deschanel? Where do you turn when you’re literally seeing nothing but red?

Fear not weary watcher, we have the perfect gift for you; the Battle Royale With Cheese Top Five Secret Christmas Movies

5 – Gremlins

A great place to start. Christmassy enough that you’re family don’t think you’ve gone totally off the reservation but quickly changing course for a fantastic festive frolic. When young Billy gets a truly unique gift from his Dad for Christmas, a tiny Mogwai named Gizmo, no one knows how right the old Chinese guy was when he said a Mogwai is not just for Christmas.

There’s a wreath in the background, what more do you want?

4 – Lethal Weapon

Now we’re pulling away from the theme a bit more. A heck of a lot more, really (qualifying factor is it ends on Christmas Day). But who cares when you’ve got one of the most genre-defining buddy-cop movies of all time? As Murtaugh and Riggs investigate the depths of a heroin-smuggling operation and take down a swarm of henchmen, you’ll look around you at the seemingly endless swarm of extended family and children and be thankful for this escape. You’re definitely getting too old for this shit.

Nothing says Christmas than playing Santa Claus with the family.

3 – Rocky IV

Once you’ve taken down your first serving of Christmas dinner and your eyeing up that juicy turkey breast, figuring out if you’ve got room for seconds (or thirds, or fourths) you’ll definitely appreciate the inspirational tale of Rocky Balboa fighting for his friend’s memory against the mountain of a Russian, Drago, on Christmas Day. Just remember, today is not about winning, it’s about going the distance.

You know what they say, go big or go home.

2 – Batman Returns

You’ve had your presents, you’ve had your dinner (and seconds) and now you’re trapped in a food coma that seems to defy the laws of physics. Fear not, the caped crusader will save you! Light the Bat Signal and watch classic Tim Burton Batman foil the machinations of the Penguin as he uses the Christmas cheer of Gotham’s citizens to pull the wool over their eyes and the rug from under their feet. Just remember to save your remaining lives for the inevitable Baileys that’s coming up.

Nothing says Christmas like…

1 – Die Hard

The piece-de-resistance of all Christmas movies. John McClane is the everyman, and you are him. You’re tired after the hell of Christmas travel, you’re in an unfamiliar place with, probably, some unfamiliar people, and you’ve got no shoes. Nothing else is qualified to end your Christmas other than the epic duel of McClane and Grüber and then you remember, they were right, you did get together and have a few laughs.

23rd December 2013
George’s Top 3 Of 2013 & Most Anticipated Of 2014

2013

Prisoners

Prisoners gives audiences another opportunity to be manipulated, in the way that they clearly love. It’s an incredibly thrilling thriller. Hugh Jackman plays the father role well, Jake Gyllenhaal a great work obsessed detective all topped off with the a forever creepy Paul Dano.

World War Z

Being a sucker for zombies/infected and having recently completed The Last Of Us on PS3 World War Z gave the opportunity to once again experience the same clicking, twitching croaking zombies that deserve a place alongside ‘leg dragging’ zombies in horror history.

Gravity

The idea of spending an extended amount of time trapped in space alone with Sandra Bullock combined with an incredible amount of hype set this film up to fall short. The reality however was a visual masterpiece. Eery stillness, documentary style views of Earth and strong acting from Sandra Bullock.

2014

The Hobbit: There And Back Again

I’m fine with the drawn out adventure that is The Hobbit because you can’t beat the escapism of Hobbits, Dwarves and Elves.

How To Train Your Dragon 2

If it’s anywhere near as good as the first one then we’re in for a treat.

Godzilla

Even though the 1998 version of Godzilla wasn’t particularly impressive, the fact that I was six years old and liked dinosaurs when it came out perhaps has a slight bearing on my being excited as to what the year 2014 has in store for Godzilla. Bryan Cranston is in it.

A Million Ways To Die In The West

Because it’s a Comedy/Western directed by Seth MacFarlane…

Interstellar

Knowing very little about a film is often a great way to experience it. I’m happy to sit back and see where Christopher Nolan takes us.

18th December 2013
Callum Mount’s Top 3 Of 2013 & 5 Most Anticipated Of 2014

By Callum Mount.

Top 3 of 2013

Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to catch all the films I wanted to see this year, let alone all the ones I should have seen. This being the case I am limited to those films I have actually seen. That rules out Only God Forgives, Blue Is The Warmest Colour, Her…I haven’t seen a lot of films this year, that’s the point, so just remember that this is in NO way definitive.

Stoker

Exhibit B in the case of why there shouldn’t have been an English language remake of Oldboy (Exhibit A being Oldboy), Chan-Wook Park’s first foray into the West has all the hallmarks of what makes his films so special. Park’s sumptuous visuals channeling Wentworth Miller’s screenplay makes for an astonishingly unsettling and refreshingly intelligent film. Long after its end, its imagery and ambiguity nestles, festering under your skin, leading to the inevitable and equally powerful second viewing.

Pacific Rim

With the summer of films we’ve just had, I had to pick one of them, and Pacific Rim was the one film I left the cinema feeling I had seen something that truly embraced and fulfilled every promise it made. As Guillermo Del Toro himself has said, it’s a film made for the child he was, and that film just so happens to have caught my imagination in the same way. Epic, unpretentious and, most importantly, fun, seeing giant robots smash the living daylights out of gargantuan monsters was the cinematic highlight of my summer.

A Field In England

I’ve been a big fan of Ben Wheatley ever since I happened upon a cheap copy of Down Terrace with no clue and loved it. When I first found out about this simultaneous cross platform release, excited didn’t cover it. In the wake of Kill List and Sightseers, A Field in England looked like it should be a marvel, and it delivered, standing out from the majority of films being made of late. It fully displays the talents of its cast (Reece Shearsmith and Micheal Smiley dazzle) made on such a minimal budget and in just 12 days, this is something to be not only celebrated, but praised. A truly original and haunting experience.

5 Most Anticipated of 2014

Godzilla

One of the most iconic franchises of all time, Godzilla has had a notoriously hard time being portrayed by Hollywood, but I firmly believe Gareth Edwards will be the key to this version working. Sci-fi at its best is a balancing act between heart and spectacle. If the film maker doesn’t care, especially when it comes to a fantasy, it really shows. The fantastic visual sensibility and emotional depth Edwards displayed in Monsters has all the makings of what we’ve been waiting for since the 1998…incident. At the very least, this should take us further away from any more GINOs, which is always something to look forward to.

Foxcatcher

Bennett Miller’s follow up to the fantastic Moneyball looks like it could be 2014’s The Fighter; an inspirational sports film with real human drama. While the entire cast looks fantastic, and Mark Ruffalo is always one to go and see do his thing, Channing Tatum is adding more and more strings to his bow, demonstrating himself as more than just the eye candy I had too hastily written him off as (my bad Channing, won’t happen again!). Hopefully, this will be the film to cement him as a truly quality talent where he belongs.

Sin City: A Dame to Kill For

This is a film that I have been waiting for for years. While all of my sense tells me to be cautious of a film that has taken so long to get out, I can’t help but be intoxicated with the possibility of reigniting the feelings I had seeing Sin City for the first time. With a welcome return to first time out favourites and the inclusion of new names, Juno Temple being a personal highlight on the cast list, I’m very keen to see how this one pans out.

Trailer Park Boys: Don’t Legalize It

I just love Trailer Park Boys. That’s simply it. Since my brother brought the series back from Canada, I’ve had a soft spot for the trio’s schemes, always just out of reach of that last big job to retire on and keep them out of jail for good. When they decided to call it a day, I thought I was content with what they had put out. That was until I heard about their third feature film outing and upcoming 8th season. Now I can’t wait to see what’s become of the residents of Sunnyvale since last we met. I’m sure it will be greasy. Gre-he-heasy.

The Raid 2: Berandal

The Raid was one of the best action films released in the last 15 years. Maybe more. Sparking back the feeling I would get watching Jackie Chan films when I was younger, it was brutal, beautiful and tense. The sequel looks as though it’s going to raise the stakes in every sense. Moving out of the tower block to encompass vehicular madness on the Indonesian streets as well as boasting a confident 148 minute running time, this is going to be the action film of next year.

16th December 2013