Tag: film

Posted on

Review: Brooklyn

A beautiful story of love and loss, Saoirse Ronan’s acting stands out boldly in the role of Eilis as an Irish immigrant looking for work in America to support her family. Through tragic ends and new beginnings, Eilis goes from a young, innocent daughter to a New York woman.

 

As Eilis is forced to find work in America in the early 50s, she struggles to leave behind her home in Ireland. Eilis struggles living in the big city of New York and suffers terribly with homesickness. As she slowly but surely settles into American dream, Eilis meets an Italian/American man who she soon marries and is ready to settle down with. Everything seems to be falling into place, along with her successful job, up until a tragic event forces her to return to her hometown in Ireland. Eilis is suddenly reminded of the comforts of home as she returns. Once again everything seems to fall into place back at home as she is given a job and is welcomed back with open arms by old friends and family.

 

Eilis has to choose between her home and everything she has missed for so long, or her new blossoming life in the big city of New York. A whole new perspective on a coming of age film.

Posted on

Review: Star Wars ‘The Last Jedi’

Going from the greatness and awe of ‘The Force Awakens’ to the latest film of the Star Wars trilogy ‘The Last Jedi’ was a massive let-down. With predictable turns and a lack of plot, the new generation of Star Wars series have taken a turn for the worse.

I was looking forward to seeing ‘The Last Jedi’ after the excitement of the previous movie in the trilogy, however I was disappointed by the predictable plot and how the characters were clearly used as plot devices with little character development. I did enjoy the strong female lead of ‘Rey’ who did develop during the action of the film. The special effects were spectacular, however despite what 21st century technology can contribute to the Star Wars trilogy, the writing and directing of the movie did not balance it out.

There was a vast amount of diversity in the film which I really liked. However, the use of characters as plot devices was what really disappointed me about the movie. Luke was clearly used as a replacement for Han Solo in order for Kylo Ren to have someone to be angry at throughout the film, driving him to want to destroy the Resistance. Two characters that outshone the rest in ‘The Force Awakens’ were Poe and Finn, however I feel they had less importance and a lack of character development in ‘The Last Jedi’ which was extremely disappointing. There were also subtle hints of unnecessary romances developing between characters, which I disliked.

Overall, I think the plot was predictable, characters were clearly dismissed and badly written however the music and cinematography were beautiful and those who love a good movie soundtrack will not be disappointed.

Posted on

Review: Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle

Jumanji - Welcome to the Jungle

 

I loved the original Jumanji movie however I didn’t think it needed a sequel but when I saw the video game transformation of the original movie I was in awe with the action, comedy and cinematography.

 

Four teens that would normally never talk are forced to hang out with each other in detention when they find a video game, and get trapped inside the video game version of Jumanji as the avatars they selected. Two friends who have drifted apart are brought back together and a romance is formed between the ‘nerd’ and the ‘introverted’ girl played by Dwayne Johnson and Karen Gillan. Kevin Hart’s portrayal of ‘Moose Finbar’ his avatar character of the zoologist was hilarious as he goes from a tall teenager to the small zoologist and his best friend goes from the smaller geeky friend to the tall and muscular ‘Dr Smolder Bravestone’ and of course the ‘self-obsessed’ popular girl choses the character of ‘Professor Shelly Oberon’ is amazingly portrayed by Jack Black who’s one liners are guaranteed to make you laugh out loud throughout the whole film.

 

The group struggle to get along at first but soon discover they have to work together in order to get back to their normal lives. Jack Black’s character helps guide Karen Gillan’s character through the basics of flirting to distract the guards so that the team can escape, this was my personal favourite scene when ‘Ruby Roundhouse’ uses one of her character’s skills of dance fighting to take out the guards. This movie is the perfect combination of action and comedy, and is completed with great character development where friendships are reborn and romances are formed.

Posted on

Review: Justice League

Justice League

 

Going to see Justice League with two fellow superhero fanatics, I did not have any expectations and had only seen a couple of short trailers for the film. I have never been the biggest fan of the DC movies; Justice League did not convince me to become a fan.

 

In the film, Batman has to form a team of superheroes (in a very similar style to The Avengers) to which some obviously refuse and then turn up “unexpectedly” mid-battle in order to be more dramatic. Of course Ezra Miller and Gal Gadot’s acting outshines the rest of the film and their characters individually are very charismatic in comparison to Ben Affleck’s portrayal of Batman. I am not implying that his acting was bad but I think that the writing did not reveal anything about his character as he spent half the film being sad and angry that Superman was dead and barely contributed to the plot. There was no character development for Batman at all in Justice League

 

The overall plot was predictable and had no originality or plot twists in comparison to other movies of the same genre. The villain ‘Steppenwolf’ had the very predictable plan of taking over earth with unearthly power without any empathy towards human life. The team soon realizes they do not have enough power alone to defeat the villain and have to resurrect Superman by using the dangerous power that the villain needs to take over earth. I think that this moment was the highlight of the movie as Superman added more character to the team.

 

This film wasn’t all bad, it definitely had good moments and introduced two new characters well; Aquaman and The Flash, however I think it lacked plot and a climactic ending and was instead very predictable and clichéd.

Posted on

Review: Me, Earl and the Dying Girl

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

 

Another iconic and beautiful indie film, the small and simple moments in Me, Earl and the Dying Girl make the audience feel closer to the characters, which I think is a huge factor that many films miss out on, when they don’t let the audience build a relationship with the characters.

 

Greg, an awkward teen with one friend, Earl, whom he calls a ‘coworker’ is forced to befriend a girl with leukemia (Rachel) and they form an unlikely friendship over Greg and Earl’s film projects they’ve made together. Greg narrates the story through the movie, his self-doubt gets the best of him as he feels he doesn’t fit into any group in high school and is hesitant to apply to college. Rachel convinces him to apply to college and although the storyline sounds like a cliché high school romance movie, it is anything but cliché. There are witty captions, an 80’s themed colour pallet and no hint of romance between Greg and Rachel.

 

Throughout the movie we see Greg categorizing the school into groups, isolating himself from others and even refusing to acknowledge anyone as his friend. We see his character development as he begins to build a friendship with Rachel and despite setbacks from school and college deferrals, the audience sees him descend into maturity as he learns from life’s tough lessons. Rachel helps Greg overcome his self-doubt and fear of applying to college because of people not liking him.

 

With a beautiful soundtrack, dry humour and amazing camerawork, this is a real heartwarming tragedy.

Posted on

Review: Thor Rangnarok

Thor: Ragnarok

 

Director Taika Waititi takes on a whole new approach to the Marvel cinematic universe. With hilarious one-liners and references to previous movies, ‘Thor Ragnarok’ definitely tops the previous ‘Thor’ movies.

 

I love a good superhero movie but the witty comedy; amazing soundtrack, incredible special effects and enthralling action scenes really topped other Marvel films for me. Despite previous conflict between brothers Thor and Loki, the two work together in order to save Asgard from their rival and sister portrayed by Cate Blanchett. Loki continues to scheme against his brother despite agreeing to help him multiple times, their sibling rivalry is increasingly funny throughout the film.

 

I really enjoy how the Marvel films allow different directors to take a new approach to each movie, as it is incredibly interesting to see the different director’s approaches to each film. The first two films in the Marvel series of ‘Thor’ were deeply revolved around action and there was much less character development. I thought Thor had far better character development in ‘Thor Ragnarok’ in comparison to the previous movies as he deals with far more complex issues and is far less of an arrogant superior god, but instead a warrior and a leader.

Posted on

Review: Submarine

Submarine

 

‘Submarine’ directed by Richard Ayoade is a beautiful coming of age film about a socially awkward boy and his love interest a mysterious girl. This indie film gives off a Wes Anderson vibe with the incredible soundtrack performed by Alex Turner.

 

‘Submarine’ explored the awkward stage in-between adolescence and adulthood as two teenagers fall in love with each other as they are still trying to figure out who they are themselves. The witty dry humour of the film adds to the alternative genre of film making it immediately likable. The character of Oliver Tate hopelessly pines after the mysterious Jordana Bevan, and as their romance blossoms the film becomes increasingly intriguing. Jordana’s coolness contrasts with Oliver’s awkwardness and stunned facial expression but this makes their characters even more likable as if there is something hidden and secretive about both of them. Their wild contrast adds to the quirky lightheartedness of the film.

 

Tension is built well as Oliver’s relationship with Jordana starts to fall apart and he tries hopelessly to stop it from doing so. At the same time he is anxious that his parent’s marriage is also falling apart. Oliver’s way of speaking with far more knowledge than a 15-year-old boy makes the film more humorous. The use of dark humour adds more depth to the story. This new genre of British film is definitely something I would love to see more of.

Posted on

Review: Moonrise Kingdom

Moonrise Kingdom

 

‘Moonrise Kingdom’ directed by Wes Anderson has to be one of my favourite movies. The wide shot scenes and vibrant colours are just one of the many amazing things about this film.

 

Two troubled teenagers run away from home, away from their complicated lives and people who don’t understand their need to run away and find their own land to live. Of course they inevitably fall in love. Wes Anderson creates more quirky and immediately likeable characters. Suzy, the eldest child of four, isn’t of the same mind as her family and feels like an outcast among them. Sam is an orphan who runs away from his group of scouts to be with Suzy.

 

The simplicity and romance of every scene makes this film more lovable through its characteristic style. Wes Anderson clearly shows that this was set in the 60’s through the exaggerated use of retro colours and the use of costume that brings the characters to life. Anderson has a way of communicating themes through his own style that is so beautiful and unique, which in itself is an art form.

 

I was lucky enough to be able to go to a screening of ‘Moonrise Kingdom’ at the Glasgow Youth Film Festival which was held at the Mackintosh Church, this was an amazing way to be able to watch this amazing film especially as one of the final climactic scenes of the film is set in a church. This added to Anderson’s ability to make the audience feel like they were in the film. The openness of the church made the music more ambient.

 

This is definitely one of my favourite movies with its quirky characters and amazing soundtrack; Anderson makes the audience feel as if they are in another world in his movies.

Posted on

Review: La La Land

La La Land

Film Review

 

I didn’t know what to expect when I went to see ‘La La Land’ for the first time as I presumed it would be an average musical, maybe a clichéd love story, but I left the cinema feeling inspired and knowing that was by far my favourite musical.

 

As someone who is a musical fanatic, I obviously wanted to see La La Land and had listened to the soundtrack on repeat before I saw the film. As soon as I watched the opening scene with the song ‘Another Day Of Sun’ I immediately knew I was going to love this movie, as a queue of traffic waits impatiently for the cars to start moving then suddenly burst into song in true musical style.

 

Sebastian and Mia start off with a hate/love relationship as we are first introduced to their stories as struggling artists then they finally have a brief encounter in which Sebastian ignores Mia after he s fired from his job, they continue to meet and eventually have an almost romantic moment in the famous scene in the romantic setting as the sun rises. Their relationship develops as they go from refusing to have feelings for one another in ‘A Lovely Night’ to opening the opportunity to a potential romance in ‘City Of Stars’. The characters go through ups and downs.

 

The songs flow perfectly with the beautiful storyline as Sebastian and Mia’s romance blossoms; there is undeniable chemistry between Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling’s characters as they struggle to see eye to eye about their passions and eventually falling in love. Simple details in the film made me fall in love with it, for example Ryan Gosling’s solo of ‘City Of Stars’ depicts him wondering ‘is this the start of something wonderful’ and Mia and Sebastian’s duet is played in a more upbeat pace and the question of their connection being something wonderful is answered as their duet shows that they have both found love.

 

Although both characters got a happy ending, they had to sacrifice their relationship for their dreams. What could have been their futures together is shown in a heartbreaking but beautiful scene at the end of the film as Mia sees Sebastian in his club ‘Seb’s’ their whole future as it would have been in an ideal world is shown in a montage of almost every scene in the film and combines every song. What moved me the most was how at the start of the montage, Sebastian is playing the same notes on the piano as he is after the montage, reminding the audience that this is a sudden flash back to reality.

 

Damien Chazelle’s ability to capture an audience in an incredible musical masterpiece and make them so emotionally invested in the characters is truly amazing.

Posted on

Review: Frances Ha

Frances Ha

In 2012, I went to the Filmhouse to see ‘Frances Ha’ as a naive twelve year old, and from that day, my interest in indie films became a passion. A strong one.

 

The struggles of a young woman in New York are presented so realistically and in a non-romanticized way – that is what makes the movie so interesting. The use of minimalistic scenes and stand-out intimate moments are what make the movie truly beautiful. The way it portrays two friends becoming distant over time because of relationships and work and then eventually coming back together in the final scene, when the future is still slightly unclear but Frances’ life and relationships with her friends seem to fall into place, is truly astounding. I have never seen a movie that shows such developed characters as well, and not overdramatizing their complex relationships. The movie is so modern and enhancing that you completely forget the movie is in black and white.

 

One of my favourite things about this film is that it isn’t based on a romance or a partner that the main character is trying to get over, which is such a cliché, but it is solely based on friendship and the pursuit of happiness while struggling to find a job and earn a living. The movie depicts a realistic portrayal of living in New York; Frances struggles with work, relationships and accomplishing her dreams. The final scene brings everything together with a hint of uncertainty for the future. Frances’ bad luck and misfortunes are shown so effortlessly in a way the audience can relate to the character. The whole movie being in black and white adds to the nostalgia of being lost or confused at some point in your life. Even the way the cameras are positioned give you a clear perspective from Frances’ point of view, letting the audience relate to the character. Small nostalgic moments really stand out on this film, making it more personal.

 

‘Frances Ha’ gives a beautiful and personal insight into the struggles of growing up and trying to find yourself in a world of competitors and even growing distant from old friends and accepting adulthood. The movie shows the powerful character development and how unresolved friendships and unemployment turns into new opportunities and stability despite the crashes along the way. Throughout the movie, Frances never fails to laugh at her pain as life beats her up. It’s the perfect Indie movie minus any over romanticized nostalgia or unnecessary love interests, as it only focuses on the reality of life whilst making it an insightful cinematic masterpiece with its simplicity and wonderful, upbeat soundtrack.

 

‘Frances Ha’ is a perfect portrayal of a woman struggling to live in New York City while developing her complicated relationships with other characters and struggling to become a dance choreographer and eventually achieving what she wants to achieve. It’s real, it’s credible, and it’s beautiful.