Movember

It’s Movember! Yep, it’s that time of the year when many a top lip grows its winter coat. Of course, I’m taking part and will be sprouting a most outstanding moustache as soon as possible. These days it’s a global event with over £6million already raised this year! That’s a fantastic amount of money and certainly is a worthwhile cause, but I feel it’s about time someone set the record straight on where exactly Movember comes from. It’s commonly believed that it started in 2003 with a group of 30 men from Australia. This is, unfortunately, wrong. The origins of Movember go a lot further back. Back to 89BC in fact and the ancient Aztecs. It was a ritual started by Oahu, a wise and respected witch doctor of the Aztec civilization. The Aztecs were a wise and cultured civilization who believed in a number of different Gods. There was the Mextli the god of war and storms, Xilonen the god of maize and the one that Oahu followed the god Sel Ak, the god of the moustache. Every year during the Aztec equivalent of November a young warrior would worship at the altar of Sel Ak in order to prove his worth as a man and a true Aztec warrior. For the first 2-3 weeks he would go unshaven, then, when his beard was fully grown, would practice the ritual of Hig Ginz . This would involve the warriors gathering in a circle around the altar, known as the Ma, while the witch Doctor Oahu would stand in the middle with the chosen young warrior. He would hold in his hand a bowl filled with a potion known as the Ga, and a small sharpened stone knife called the Numm. Then, the surrounding Aztecs would begin a chanting the names of these sacred artifacts. During which the witch doctor would place the youngwarrior on to the Alter, the Ma, cover his face in the magic potion, the Ga and scrape it off his face with the knife, the Numm shaving his face into affine outstanding moustache. Throughout the Aztec jungle the chant of Ma Ga Numm would be heard. This was certainly a proud moment for the young warrior. And if he was really lucky and it was decided that his moustache was truly worthy of it he would receive a Hawaiian shirt and a red Ferrari! The ritual was only practised between 89-80BC when the Aztecs ran out of Ferraris. So, gentlemen you see it really is your duty to embrace the power of the ‘tache and take part in Movember this year! Cya later,


Joe

Machine Gun Preacher

So today I got a chance to see a preview of Machine Gun Preacher, the new movie starring Gerard Butler. It’s based on the life of Sam Childers. Sam is a former drug –dealing biker tough guy who finds religion. He ends up volunteering to help a missionary in Sudan and it changes his life forever. NO WAIT! KEEP READING! I know how it sounds. It sounds like one of those cheesy hallmark movies that your wife drags you along to. You know the type, bad guy finds God and now he’s Mother Theresa! This film could so easily have been like that, but trust me it’s not. This is an emotional story that doesn’t hold its punches. It doesn’t go out of its way to paint Sam as a good guy. It leaves you to make your own mind up about that. Its shows the good things he’s done but also shows the mistakes he’s made along the way. He’s definitely not Mother Theresa with an Uzi! What it does show is how he learns from those mistakes and the difference they make to him and those around him.

Gerard Butler has made some good movies, 300 for instance, and some right stonking rubbish *cough*Phantom of the Opera*cough*. Luckily this one is a good one. I reckon he plays it well managing to hit the emotional scenes well without turning them into “NOOOOO! GOD, WHY!”  This is certainly, one of his better movies. The movie isn’t without its faults though. For instance, none of the rest of the cast particularly stand out. It’s a decent enough supporting cast. Michelle Monaghan as his wife Lynne for instance, but it doesn’t really give much screen time to their story to give them a chance to develop well and they are pretty much just there to support. Mind you, its already over two hours long so any more and its heading to Peter Jackson territory! It also lives up to the Preacher part of the title at times. Yes, it needs the church scenes in the movie but sometimes it just lays it down a little too thick and that could put some people off it. Having said that though, I enjoyed this film and would recommend you go and see it and decide for yourself. Marks out of ten? I’d say an easy 7.

Random thoughts

So my film blogs pretty much stopped. I'm still watching films but too many to catch up with now. So what to talk about? The film is nearly done. Tomorrow is going to be tough. It's the last shoot until July. Some important shots to get and I'm relying on the weather being ok to film in again. Its not looking good but I've got to try. It's only chance to get the shots. After that it's editing all the way. That's going to be rough. I enjoy editing but there's just so much riding on this particular film. There hasn't been a lot of money spent on it but it's cost me a lot. I've made some new friends through it, but pretty sure I've lost a good friend through it too and that's hard to take. Guess I need to wait and see if it's been worth it. Got to put it all together and make the best movie I can with it.
Returning to an old hobby tonight. Online RPGs. Steam were offering star trek online for just under three quid! I had to get that! Ice played the demo and enjoyed it so thirty days or so will be fun. Not sure I can keep subscribing but we'll see how things are after the thirty days are up. Only thing is it's taking ages to download! And of course it needs to patch as well so that's taking even longer! I could edit while it's downloading but if would affect the speed of the pc which would just make editing hell. Anyway, that's enough for now. Cya later!

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Venting

In a god awful mood today. Not a bad mood, just feeling kinda low. I should be happy. You know that's a really stupid phrase. I should be happy. Why? Why should I be. What's wrong with feeling a bit down occasionally. Yes, I have a new job and so far it's going great. Their really happy with my progress and I've made a lot or new friends. Yet somehow I keep thinking it's all going to end. I think I've lost my confidence in myself and I'm not sure how to get it back. The film isn't helping. I went into this batch of filming saying it wouldn't be the same as before but no matter what I do it just doesn't seem to be enough. Why can't people just do what they say they'll do. I spend ages phoning, texting, emailing people trying to organise a shoot but someone always let's me down. And when I finally get onto set all I get is attitude about how it's my fault. Back chat and catty comments about how cheesy the script is. I don't care. I wrote this script. It's the longest piece of writing I've done. I like it. They simply don't get how complicated it is to arrange these shoots. We are so close to finishing. It's nearly done and I know that no matter how hard I work on the edit if it doesn't look like some Hollywood epic then it won't be good enough. The fact is this film was made cheaply, and it will look like it's been made cheaply. I'm not saying it won't be good, I think it will be but it won't be good enough for some people. I don't know why the hell I'm writing this and posting it. It's probably going to come back and bite me on the ass one day but frankly I don't care. All the digs, the comments, the looks of total contempt, all of them are hard to take. I'm doing this on my own now. There's no one to help or support. It's just me and sometimes it's just too much to take. I get sick of it too. I hate having to spend my lunch rearranging things because someone's cancelled or the location isn't available. I'm tired of trying to find out just when everyone will be available. I'm fed up of emailing and getting no reply. It doesn't help that I'm not feeling well either. I'm tired all the time, I'm throwing up in the mornings, and I can't sleep. I need a break from it all. Just to get away for a while and be on my own. It's won't happen though but it would be nice. I'd settle for someone just to say "thanks" or " good job" but that won't happen either. I'm on my own with this one. I think I've dug a deep enough hole for now so, cya later!

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Truth

The phrase goes "truth hurts". Everyone knows that. Sometimes hearing the truth can be painful. The truth that your not as good at your job as you thought you were. The truth that your big idea for the future just isn't going to happen. But the worst is when someone you thought you knew, someone you trusted, isn't the person you thought they were. That really hurts. It's a strange one though. It's not just the realisation that you've been lied to that hurts it's also the feeling of why didn't you notice before. What was it that made you so blind to the person they really were? Why did you think they were different? It's simple really, you trusted them. You had faith in them and the things they did. You believed what they told you. Why do people do that though? Why do they lie? I don't think its always a deliberate choice to not tell the truth I think that sometimes it's because they believe it themselves. They have spent so long telling the lies that they can't tell the fiction from the truth. They don't realise what they are doing or why. It's just become a part of who they are. They are lying to themselves. The saddest part though is, and I think this is a new phrase, truth is a hunter. Not just any hunter it's the best hunter. No matter how long if takes the truth will catch you sooner or later and it's then, when it's finally caught up to them that they will see just how lonely life can be. Because when the truth catches up to you and you turn to look for help, there will be no one there. All the people you lied to, the people you betrayed, they will be gone. It's then that your only hope is that someone will still care enough to help. But even if they do,you'll still lie to them too.
Your probably wondering who or what I'm talking about. No one in particular, just a small rant. Normal business will resume shortly. Until then, cya later

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More random thoughts

I probably should start this with the most commonly used phrase on my blog "It's been a while since I updated this blog so here goes"

Well I've finally handed my notice in to my work and start a new job in a couple of weeks. Its a strange feeling at the moment. It still doesn't seem like I'm leaving. don't think I'll really believe it until that last day and i hand my pass back in. I'm not so sure about the place I'm moving to either at the moment. It just seems too good to be true.I'm not honestly sure if its were i fit but I suppose I'll find that out for myself soon enough. The people there all seem nice and i know quite a few folk who are either going ther or are already there. Maybe thats the problem. Maybe it would be better to be going somewhere that no one knows me and i can start fresh. who knows. I'm sure it'll work out in the end.
We started filming again this week and so far we've got the shots I wanted but there has been a few monstrous cock ups. mostly by me. I just seem to be doing so much on this at the moment its hard to keep track of everything and make sure its running smoothly so occasionally things slip through. Its good to see the cast again but it seems different this time around. not sure why or what it is but it just seems different. Not sure if its a good thing or a bad thing, guess I'll need to wait and see how it pans out. When I'm not filming or planning the schedule or emailing the actors and crew, or perhaps even organizing the make up girls, or contacting the local police to let them know we're filming, I'm editing.  the edit is going well I think but there are a couple of things that are bothering me about it. First is that no one else has seen it yet. I like to have a second opinion on it. I love the way some of the scenes are looking and I also know where the faults and gaps are, but i think I've been looking at it for so long that I might be missing some things. I need a second pair of eyes to look over it for me but don't know who would have the time or the notion to do it. The first person I'd normally ask would be Joan but she doesn't want to see any of it until its finished and done. She wants to be able to sit down and watch it as a complete film the same as everyone else. The next person I'd normally ask is Mandy but she's so busy with things at the moment she wouldn't have time. I don't know who else to ask. Guess I'll keep at it and hope it works out OK.  The other thing is the sound quality. Because we shot on two different cameras the sound quality tends to vary. it's not always noticeable but sometimes there's a lot of fiddling about to get it sounding just right. not great but good enough. i wish we had had a separate sound engineer for this. ah well too late now.
I'm tired. Constantly. I can't sleep though. but i need to try. time to head off to bed to close my eyes and hope i fall asleep for at least a couple of hours. Before I go I want to leave you with a really cheesy phrase I heard but that seems right to me. "Good friends are like the stars, you don't need to see them to know their there"
Cya later

random thoughts and other stuff

Its been a while since I did a blog update that didn't involve me reviewing a film so thought it was about time I did. Mainly because I'm bored and fed up tonight but also because I need to get things off my chest and this seems like as good a place to do it as any.
I started keeping a journal. I should actually say I started keeping a Journal again. I found my old one with one actual entry and simply picked it up from where I left off. its a good thing to do. It helps to write your thoughts down and get them out of your head for a while. The only problem is its became a lot more personal than I meant it to be so now I need to be careful who reads it :/ ah what the hell, who cares. Every thing's changing anyway at the moment.Some big changes coming. Some real life changing moments and to be honest its kind of scary not knowing what the future holds for me.  I've always told myself that my work is just a job to me, its something I do so I can do my hobby, which I was always fine with but lately, I'm not so sure. I think it all stems from a call I had a few weeks back. The woman on the phone was an elderly woman, in her late sixties and she had been diagnosed with terminal cancer. She had said she was just phoning to give a meter reading to update her bill but I soon realised she had phoned for more than that. She needed someone to talk to. Her husband had passed away 5 years ago and she had no kids, no relations to talk to. I was the first person she had spoken to honestly about how she felt about dying. She didn't want to die. She had a lot of regrets about her life, a lot of things she had wanted to do but kept putting them off to another time and now she had run out of that. I talked to her for about half an hour or so. It was the strangest call. She spoke about how she regretted spending so much time worrying about the little things in life. she was honest and said that she hadn't always been nice to people. she had driven a lot of good friends away by saying or doing nasty things to them, things she now regretted but felt it was too late to do anything about.She had lost touch with people she took for granted, thinking they would always be there if she needed them, and now that she did, they didn't want to know. It really got me thinking about my life and what I've done with it. I have regrets, everyone does, but you cant let them get the better of you. you have to put them aside and get on with it. you cant make other people like you or want to stay in touch, you have to let them make that decision for themselves, and if they decide not to then you have to accept that and let them go no matter how much it hurts.  OK this is beginning to sound like a Jerry Springer final thought. Think its time I stepped away from the keyboard and headed off to bed. I promise business as usual tomorrow with a slightly more cheery update on "True Grit" by the Coen Brothers. Until then, cya later!

even bigger film update!!

I need to get stuck in! There are loads of things I need to do and need to do now and none of which I'm getting paid for! all for pleasure believe it or not. So what do I need to do? well here's the list:-
1.edit the film. It's being done but not as quickly as I'd like :/ it does need to be finished as soon as possible. So what am I doing about it? Well at the moment I'm blogging about it :P MY thinking is if i get this blog up to date then it's going to be easier to maintain and give me more time to do the editing. I know that lame but its my blog, so there!
2. do some work on my writing. I really need to start getting the novel done. I know its probably never going to be published or even read by anyone other than me but it's one of those things that I want to be able to say I've done. It would feel good to say "I've written a Novel" as long as I don't add at the end of it "it's shit!" :/
3. Write a few short film scripts. I want to really go for the virgin media shorts this year with as many entries as i can get done in the time! that of course means having scripts to film! I've done one, a bit of a dram called "Black" though I'll probably change the name to something else
4. get the film blog up to date! which leads nicely into...


18. Hereafter
watched on: cineworld Falkirk

There are only a few people I go to the cinema with these days and it tends to depend on what kind of film it is. If its an action film then I'll go with Joan, my wife. If its a romantic comedy, a chick flick or a drama then I'll go with Mary, my sister. If its sci fi or gore then it's Mandy, my buddy, though to be fair she's usually busy these days so I tend to go on my own. Anything else I'll go by myself mostly. for this one, it was Mary, my sister. We had actually planned on going to see "the Kings Speech", but when we got there it was sold out. The only film available to see was "Hereafter", She knew Matt Damon was in it and I, I'm sad to say, knew nothing about it. so there I was going to see a Matt Damon film I knew nothing about it. So what is it about?

The film is about death. Not a cheery subject usually. To be more precise it is about death and the effect it has on three different people. First is Marie a French news reporter, played by Cecile de France, who is on holiday when she has a near death experience that changes her life. Second is George a blue collar working American, played by Matt Damon, who has a "special" connection to the afterlife. Thirdly is Marcus and Jason, played by newcomers Frankie and George McLaren, identical twins who's lives change forever due to a tragic accident.

This was a great film! Probably made more exciting because I didn't know what to expect from it. Its what I call a stories film. There's probably a proper term for it but that's the one i use. It means a film with a number of different seemingly unconnected stories that in the end all link together. "Magnolia" is a classic example of this, brilliant film interesting stories. "Babel" is a bad example of this. dull uninteresting and boring. "Hereafter" works well though. each story develops the characters well. you relate and care about each of them. Brilliant film and definitely worth seeing. Oh and it's directed by Clint Eastwood!

4 out of 5 (  I really should make this out of ten its makes the scoring a lot easier! Bugger it I'll update all the scores tomorrow! )

19. Sherlock Holmes
watched on:- DVD
DVD's are so cheap these days. So cheap that its actually cheaper to BUY a dvd than it is to rent one. Ok, its not going to be a current new release, but it's probably only been out for a couple of months and its yours to keep once you've watched it. This was one of those "there's nothing on the TV so let's watch a movie" purchases.

This is Guy Ritchie's take on Sherlock Holmes. Robert Downey Jr, plays Sherlock Holmes with Jude Law playing Dr Watson and Rachel McAdams playing Sherlock's love interest Irene Adler. It's a new story that calls on characters from the original Conan Doyle stories.
I probably should have hated this film. Let me explain. I am a huge Sherlock Holmes fan. Always have been. There were two books I read over and over while growing up, one was Douglas Adams' "Hitch hikers Guide to the Galaxy" and the other was "The complete Sherlock Holmes" by Arthur Conan Doyle. I love the Basil Rathbone Sherlock Holmes films and the Jeremy Brett TV Series. So I'm a fan for sure. So should I not despise the Hollywood modernisation of my Beloved Sherlock Holmes? Probably, but I don't. I liked it. Yes, its not the same Sherlock from the books, but there's still enough of the character there to make it work. Its Sherlock with a twist I suppose. Yes its not perfect and there are some real cringe worthy moments in it but its a decent enough film worth watching. Robert Downey Jr adds just the right amount of crazy to the character. There is a sequel being made which will include Moriarty in the mix so that could be interesting.

3 out of 5

20.West is West
watched on:- showcase cinema ( special preview with showfilmsfirst.com )

This is the sequel to East is East. Set in the mid eighties it's the story of a Pakistani boy growing up in working class England. He has no respect for his Father or his culture so he is sent back to Pakistan to live with his family there.
This was an ok film. I haven't seen the first one but I don't think it makes any difference. I thought it was kind of predictable with no real surprises in it. It worked ok but its not a stand out film by any means. Decent enough but not one I'd run out to buy on DVD when its released.

2 and a bit out of 5 ( see this is were out of ten would be easier! definite 5 out of 10)

21. The Kings Speech
Watched on :- Cineworld

If you don't already know what this film is about then where the hell have you been hiding for the past couple of months! It's Colin Firth playing King George VI, Geofrey Rush playing Lionel Logue and Helen Bonham Carter playing Queen Elizabeth. In short, King George has a speech impediment, Lionel Logue helps him with it.
I could go on for a long time about this film, but there's been so much written about it already that there's no point. All I can say is I loved it, I think it did deserve the Oscar though I think Geoffrey Rush was better in it than Colin Firth.

5 out of 5

Ok, that's all for now. there is one more film to write about and I'll put that one up later. Its the Coen Brothers take on the John Wayne Classic "True Grit" and it deserves a post all to itself! Cya later

Big film update!!

ok, yep, I've been kind of bad at keeping this up to date. Itstarted well but it's drifted off a bit lately so, in a bid ot get things back on track here is a HUUUGE update of the films I've been watching. Hope you enjoy, and I promise I'll be better at updating from now on....honest!

15.Sister Act
Watched on:- film4 (look I know there's a lot of these films are on Film 4 but its the only decent movie channel i get on my lower than low virgin media TV package!)


I think most people know the plot to sister act but for those that don't here is a quick summary. Whoopi Goldberg is a singing nun! Too short? not enough? OK here's a slightly longer version. Whoopi Goldberg plays Deloris Van Cartier a cabaret singer. she witnesses her gangster boyfriend played by Harvey Keitel murder someone. she runs to the police who decide to hide her where he wont find her. An inner city nunnery!

This is one of my guilty pleasures. I do like this film. yeah its cheesy with a bunch of singing nuns but its light hearted fun! Besides, singing nuns are happy nuns and there's nothing wrong with being happy! I've got to say though it is kind of dated a bit now but still worth a watch.

3 out of 5

16. The Fantastic Mr Fox
Watched on: DVD ( through the home projector. My niece Ailith was up and she loves watching a movie through the projector. Who am I to argue with that!)

This is based on the Roald Dahl story of the same name. The book is basically the story of a fox who is really good at robbing the local farmers. Being a Roald Dahl story the farmers are obviously evil and everything gets out of hand.
This isn't exactly your first choice when it comes to converting a Roald Dahl book into a movie but then all the ones you would choose are already done! Charlie and the chocolate Factory, James and the giant Peach, the BFG etc I'm a fan of Roald Dahl books and have been since i was a kid so I was intrigued to see how they were going to do this one. I got to say though, they did a brilliant job with it! George Clooney plays the voice of Mr Fox with Meryl Streep playing Mrs Fox. Its a quirky film. Animated the old fashion stop motion way rather than the computer graphics of most kids films. The humour is off beat enough to give it a special little character and it works really well with this story.I loved it and just for the record so did Ailith!

4 out of 5

17. The Fighter
Watched on: Cineworld Renfrew street Preview ( special preview from seefilmsfirst.com Great site for seeing films for free before they are released! )

This is one of those based on a true story films. This is the story of Mickey Ward, played by Mark Wahlberg, and his relationships with his Brother Dicky, played by Christian Bale,  his mother Alice, played by Melissa Leo and his new girlfriend Charlene, played by Amy Adams. None of these relationships are easy for Mickey who wants to become a pro boxer. His brother is a failed pro boxer himself who is now a drug addict, his mother,who helps manage his career, sees him as second to his brother and doesn't want to recognise his brothers failings, and his girlfriend Charlene is causing a whole load of problems with his family. Its so easy for his family to say, when things start going wrong, "It's all that tart Charlene's fault!"
I didn't know what to expect from this film. I hadn't heard a lot about it and only watched the trailer when the tickets came through.  I'm not a boxing fan but I do like boxing movies. This one is spot on. loved it! I've heard that Christian Bale has been accused of over acting in it but I think that's unfair. its the type of character he is playing that has to be done that way to get it across. Dickey dominates his brother, he takes over a situation as soon as he arrives and usually leaves it in a car wreck when he's done! The relationship between Mickey and Dickey is built up brilliantly in  this film and I thoroughly enjoyed it.  Amy Adams is worth mentioning as well. She is fast becoming a favourite of mine. She hasn't done that many films so far, "catch me if you can" and "enchanted" being the only real big ones but each of the roles in these films is different from the other and with this she is really showing what she can do. With a clutch of Oscar nominations for this I can see at least one Oscar, if not more, for this one!

5 out of 5

OK so that's it for now. Later this week will be "Hereafter" and, providing its not sold out again, hopefully "The Kings Speech". Might even try and squeeze in "the Green Hornet" before it stops showing. Cya later

Films

Well it's been a while since I updated so here are a couple of the films I've watched lately.

13. The spiderwick chronicles
Watched on: film 4

A kids fantasy adventure movie. A family move out of new York into the country home of their aunt. Their aunt has been moved into a home after being declared, well, nuts! She claims her father was kidnapped by fairies... Fruitcake! When the kids stumble across a book called " the guide to the fantastical world" they soon discover she's not as nuts as they thought! The house gets attacked an goblins and other fantasy creatures and only their great great uncle can help them save the day.
It's a decent enough film. Not on par with the worlds of narnia or middle earth with it being based more on this World and the crossovers but not bad. Some of it is pretty cool and worth watching.

3 out of 5

14. X files: I want to believe
Watched on: channel 4

I want to believe..... But I don't! Big pile of steaming pointless waste of time nonsense. Didn't even make it to the end because I decided I'd have more fun sticking needles in my eyes and removing my toe nails with a pair of pliers. Didn't have any needles and couldn't find the pliers so I banged mg head against the wall trying to forget I'd ever seem this movie. It didn't work!

1 out of 5

That's it for today. Tomorrow, it's George Clooney as a fox, Mel Gibson in tights and Christian Bale on crack! Cya later :)

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Come up with your own witty title!

It's been a strange couple of days. I'm back and work.....it sucks! Totally lost all motivation to do anything. Writing, editing, filming, at the moment can't do any of them. All I've done is waste my time watching old episodes of Scrubs on E4 and playing stupid games on Facebook. I have, however, managed to squeeze in a movie. Here's number twelve!

12. Wall-E
Watched on :- BBC 1 HD

Wall-E is an animated movie from Pixar. It's set in the future where mankind has abandoned earth mainly due to the vast amounts of rubbish we've created clogging everything up. So onto the spaceships we go and head out into space leaving the robots to clean it all up. Problem is they have all broken down over the past seven hundred years and only one little robot is left. Wall-E spends his days doing just what he was programmed to do, cleaning up. He's also started collecting little bits and bobs. Then one day Eva arrives on earth and Wall-E's life is turned upside down! ( typical! A woman turns up and changes everything!)

This is a truly beautiful film both in how it looks and in the storyline. The character of Wall-E is just so cute you can't help care about him and what happens to him. This is something that Pixar excel at. Making characters believable and likeable. Whether it's Woody and Buzz in Toy Story or Mike and Sully in monsters Inc their characters all have that important thing that makes you care what happens to them. I like Pixar movies and this is one of my favourites without a doubt. It's cute, charming, heart warming stuff. Schmaltzy maybe but never overly so. It's so beautifully shot or animated. The space dance scene with Wall-E and Eva is absolutely stunning! If you haven't seen this movie then stop whatever your doing and go find a copy of it now!
Definitely 5/5!
Quick movie trivia, the voice of the computer on the spaceship is done by Sigourney Weaver! wouldn't it have been great if as the autopilot took a hold of Eva the computer said " stay away from her you bitch!"

That's all for now but I'll have two more tomorrow. A Whooping Goldberg film and one from the brothers Coen. Who knows, might even squeeze in an independent film about time travel! Til then, cya later! :)

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God does dry cleaning

First let me get this one out the way

10. The world is not enough
Watched on :- television (itv 2)

Going to rush this one so here goes.
Plot:- James bond saves the world while sleeping with Sophie Marceau and Denise richards though not at the same time. John Cleese is in it too

My thoughts on it :- meh

Rating : 2.5 / 5 ( something new I thought I'd add to this. I'll put up the ratings for the other ones later)

Whenever I get the chance I'll go and see a film at the cinema that I know nothing about. It's always a risk because if I don't know anything about it it's either because it's a hidden indie film gem or something the studios want to bury and forget about. It usually works out ok. One thing I've never done before though is buy a DVD I've never heard of. Until today. I had a couple of spare quod rolling about burning a hole in my pocket so with the prices of DVDs I thought I'd buy something. What I did was I looked for a DVD I'd never heard of, I didn't read the back only looked at the front cover, and then bought one that I fancied! So for the princely sum of two quid here is my next film!

11. Rocket Science

Hal Hefner is a teenage boy growing up in jersey. He's a quiet boy, his parents have just separated and his older brother is a kleptomaniac with an agenda! The only thing that makes him stand out is he has a really bad stammer. So he joins the school debating team! Why does he do this? Simple, he does it for love. "or is it revenge? It's one of those two"

This is a great find. Brilliant little independent film with a relatively unknown cast. The writer and director is Jeffrey Blitz. The back cover, which I've read now that I've watched it, says he directed " Spellbound". Sounds kinda familiar but not too sure I've seen it. I know your thinking this is one of those sugary American teenage love conquers all films but it's not. This is such a well written movie. It stays away from the conventional film of that you'd expect and instead tells a great little story about a boys struggle to basically be himself. The script is brilliant with some really cracking quotable lines. " god is dry cleaning and he's wearing a smock" "There's a cello in your house now" " THROW THE CELLO" yeah I liked this movie. It does have it's flaws but it's a nice watchable movie that only cost me two quid. Money well spent! :)
Rating: 4/5

Cya later :)

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death by man flu!

So I've had a couple of days off work after the new year and, as any sane person would do at this time of year, my good wife and i decided it would be a good idea to go to the beach... its minus two outside and we went to the beach. It seemed to make sense at the time but for the life of me I don't know why! It ended up being a good news bad news situation. Good news i got to fly my new two and a half metre span power kite which was fantastic! Bad news I caught a cold. No not the cold, man flu. the deadly man flu! OK, maybe not deadly but it was bloody awful! so with my nose turning into a one man snot factory, my throat doing its best impression of sandpaper it could do all i could do was sit on the couch and watch a couple of movies! So, here they are:-

7. Omen III: The Final Conflict
Watched on:- Television ( Film 4)

The third and final Omen film. Damian Thorne is now a man and running Thorn industries. He has fully embraced the fact that he is the son of Satan, the Antichrist and has full control over his power. Now he faces the biggest challenge, the second coming of Christ. His plan is simple, find the children born on the specified day and kill them all. It falls to a small group of priests to use the seven daggers ot stop Damian and put an end to his reign on this earth.
Sam Neil plays Damian in this, his first role in a Hollywood film. it would be so easy to go over the top with this kind of character but he manages to keep it just on the right side of madness without pushing it too far. of the three original Omen films I think this is the weakest of them all. It's OK but its not brilliant. It does bring the trilogy to a reasonable conclusion though after three films you'd expect a bit more of a fight at the end! Still, its not bad and doesn't have that freaky scary kid from Omen II in it! (he is EEEVVIIILLL)

So where do you go after watching a serious dram/thriller about the Antichrist....well

8. Lesbian Vampire Killers
watched on: itunes (free download)

Plot ( yes there is one, almost) Centuries ago Baron wolfgang  MacLaren rid the little town of Cragwich of the evil vampire queen Camilla. But, just before he chopped her head off he stopped for a bit and gave her time to place a curse on the village that on their eighteenth birthday every girl born in the village would turn into a Lesbian Vampire. Present day and Fletch (James Corben) and Jimmy (Mathew Horne) are down on their luck. Fletch has lost his job as a clown for punching a kid at a birthday party and Jimmy MacLaren (guess who he's descended from) has been dumped by his girlfriend...again. Bored and skint they decide to go hiking so throw a dart at a map of the UK and head to where it lands. Cragwich.

First, let me start by saying I got this film for free a year ago through the 12 days of christmas app on my wife's iphone and its taken me a year to actually watch it.What can i say about this film.....its shit! Mind you what do you really expect from a film where the writers were challenged to come up with the dumbest yet most commercial title they could think of then write a script based on it! Maybe I'm being a bit harsh, its not completely shit there are some good bits about it like the bit where... nah it's shit!  I think its just trying too hard to be funny and failing. Mind you I'm not a huge fan of James Corben so maybe if you like him you'll like it, but for me I'd rather they just ran the stake through my eyes than made me watch this film again!

9.  Goldeneye
watched on:- Television (ITV2)

When a secret russian base is destroyed from orbit and the key to the weapon stolen, James Bond  teams up with the only survivor a female russian programmer, to get the key back and find out who is behind its theft. Little does he know that the person behind it is a face from his past...

This was Pierce Brosnan's first film as James Bond. There's actually a lot of firsts in this film. The first James Bond film to use CGI for the opening gun shot sequence. The first official James Bond film to not be directed by a British director. The first James Bond film to actually film in Russia.
I love James Bond movies. Always have. I remember watching all of the old ones with Sean Connery and Roger Moore on TV when i was little. loved them! I also had a toy Aston Martin complete with ejector seat and a wee blue man to eject from it! Course I lost the little guy pretty quickly after ejecting him out the window in my bedroom. Still, the car was cool! If only i could get a full size one now. Maybe one day ;)
I liked Pierce Brosnan as Bond. Better than Timothy Dalton i reckon and on par with Roger Moore. Timothy Dalton's Bond was too serious for me. Just didn't seem like a Bond film without the wisecracks etc and that's something they brought back with Pierce Brosnan which is probably why i like this movie so much. It's a cracking theme song as well and a lot more recognisable than some of the dross they've been using lately for Bond films. Can anyone sing the tune from Casino Royale or even remember who sang it? nah, me neither. Little bit of trivia, the Rolling Stones were asked to sing the theme tune to this film but turned it down so Bono and the Edge, who wrote the song, went to their next door neighbour, Tina Turner and played it to her on her piano! I know, useless bit of trivia but I like it.
So, there you go, three films in one day. Do I watch way too many movies? Probably, but I'm back at work tomorrow so it'll probably start slowing down now. Having said that the DVD of my favourite movie arrived today. Had to buy a new copy after I lost the original one I had and I've got another film downloaded that I've never seen before so could be another night of movie watching for me :)
Cya later!

"if they were alive today, they'd be spinning in their graves"

When it comes down to choosing a movie to watch it's usually dictated by the mood I'm in. If I'm feeling down watching a damn good comedy will cheer me up. Thoughtful then it's a drama. But every once in a while fate steps in a chooses for me, like it did today. Whenever a great actor like Pete Postlethwaite passes away I show my respects by watching one of their films.

6. Brassed Off
Watched on :- DVD projector

Brassed Off is the story of the members of Grimley Colliery band and their band leader Danny played by Pete Postlethwaite. As Danny fights to keep the band going the miners are fighting to keep their mine open. Both seem to be fighting a losing battle.
If you've never seen this film them stop reading this and go get a copy of it now! Its simply fantastic. You've heard the expression it'll make you laugh, it'll make you cry loads of times but it really does apply here. One minute your laughing your head off next the drama hits and it's reach for the hanky time. Pete Postlethwaite is at his best in this film. The relationship built between Danny and Phil played by Stephen Tomlinson is spot on. Both are tragic characters. Danny covering up his illness from working down the mines so long, Philip struggling to keep his family together and the loan sharks off his back. Of course there's the romantic interest played by Ewan MacGregor and Tara Fitzgerald ( second film I've seen her in this week). It's a brilliant film which sadly doesn't get the recognition it deserves. It's a fine example of British film making and always worth watching and one I can recommend enough.
Pete Postlethwaite was a fantastic actor. He always seemed to be at home playing what ever part he was given. I reckon you could term him as a character actor with parts ranging from band leader to dinosaur hunter and not forgetting advisor to kaiser soze in usual suspects. He will be missed but he's left behind loads of great films for us to watch and no doubt will pop up in a few of the other movies I'll be watching this year. Rest in peace.

That's all for now so, cya later

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Eeeeeeviiiiiillllll

There are some films that always stick with you no matter what. Film number five of my one hundred is one of those films for me.

5. Omen ll
Watched on:- television (film four)

This is the second in the omen trilogy and for me the scariest of them all. I'm not going to say too much about this film because it scares the shit out of me! Probably because i was only about sixteen when i first saw it. That scene in the lift still makes me cringe today :/ I can watch pretty much anything but there are two films that I find difficult to watch and this is one of them. The other one is Jeepers Creepers. I can tell you now that one won't be in this list! It creeps me out!! I'll be back later with a Pete Postlethwaite classic. He'll be missed. Another great actor gone too soon.
Cya later.
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"how high is our mountain?"

Two days into 2011, and now four films down.

4. The Englishman who went up a hill but came down a mountain
Watched on:- television ( film 4)

This is a film about the fictional ffynnon garw mountain in Wales. The film is set in 1917 and is based on the novel of the same name by Christopher Monger.
The of revolves around two englishmen played by Hugh Grant and Ian McNiece who are sent to Wales to measure the height of the mountains for the ordanance survey maps. They start with fynnon garw, which the local village claim is the first mountain in Wales. In order to qualify as a mountain it has to be over one thousand feet so when Anson and Garrad first measure the mountain as nine hundred and eighty four feet its declared a hill! So the local pub owner Morgan, played by Colm Meaney, comes up with a plan to do something about that ;)

I hadn't seen this film in a long time and I really enjoyed it. It's classed as a romantic comedy because of the plot line between Anson ( Hugh Grant) and Betty ( Tara Fitzgerald) but it's more than that. Its really the tale of the whole village. For me Colm Meaney Is the star on the film playing Morgan the Goat with just the right touch of mischief and likability. As it's on film four it's probably going to be repeated so if it is I'd recommend catching it. It's a lovely little film. It's does have another little known claim to fame. It's gives me the only phrase I can say that sounds remotely welsh "how high is our mountain?" ;)

You know doing this makes me realise just how many films I watch. Four is two days? If I keep this up I'll have one hundred done by Mid April! Maybe I should up it a bit. What do you think? Cya later!

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Film 3

You know the best thing about the new year? The amount of films the TV channels put on to fill the schedule. Films that haven't been on TV for ages get dragged out to fill a couple of hours during the holiday time. My V+ box is filling up with movies every day! some favourites, some I've never seen, some I've not seen in a long time. The third movie of my hopeful one hundred falls into the third of those.

3. Private Benjamin
Watched on:- Television ITV3 ( i think! Certainly had those annoying 118 ads at the breaks so must have been one of the ITV channels!)

This film stars Goldie Hawn as Judy Benjamin who, after her husband dies of a heart attack on their wedding night does what every grieving widow does. She joins the army! Course she soon realises its not what she thought it would be.
You know this film was voted one of the 50 greatest comedies by Premier in 2006. Certainly I remember watching it years ago and thinking it was really funny but it just doesn't stand the test of time. It's not funny anymore! Probably because the idea has been done so many times now its just lost its appeal. OK, back in 1980 when it was released there weren't as many of those types of films out, but now its just really dated. I enjoyed watching it but I'm not in a rush to watch it again.  I suppose you cant win them all.

OK I'm off to pick movie number four. Cya later :)

Film 2

Just managed to squeeze another film in before I head to bed. So here it is.

2. Conan the Destroyer
Seen on:- Television itv

So Conan the destroyer is the sequel to Conan the babarian. The plot is pretty simple. An evil queen tells Conan if he takes a young girl off to collect a treasure she'll bring back his dead love. Obviously being an evil queen she's lying and sends her elite guards to follow him and kill him when he's done.
Simple plot, simple film. There's nothing to tax the brain in this one it's a straight forward fantasy action adventure. Made in 1984 to follow on from the success of Conan the barbarian it didn't really do as well as the first film. To be honest there's not really much to say about it. It's alright, not rotten but not fantastic. It's fantasy film by the book. Wizards, sword fights, and monsters. Arnie stars in the lead role again and plays it as arnie does. If it's on and you want to kill a couple of hours then it's worth a watch but I wouldnt rush out to buy it.
So, two film down and another ninety eight to go! See ya later!

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First film...

So as I said on my last post, the goal is to watch one hundred movies over the next year and write about them here. Well it's 1/1/11 and here's film one :)

1. Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull
Watched on : Televison bbc1 HD

The film is the fourth in the Indiana Jones films and once again sees Harrison Ford playing Dr Indiana Jones who this time, along with Mutt, played by Shia LaBeouf, Is off on a quest for the mysterious Crystal Skull.
A lot of people hate this movie, particularly Indy fans. They say Harrison Ford is too old, they don't like Shia LaBeouf, but mainly it's the ending that really gets them building Lucas and speilberg effigies and setting fire to their lucasarts merchandise. They say it's not a proper Indiana jones plot. I disagree. The first three films were set in the thirties and forties and were films of that time. The biggest threat was Nazi Germany so naturally the bad guys were Nazis. But there is no way they could keep the fourth film in that time. It's been twenty years or so since the last one and it would have been stupid to try and make Harrison Ford play Indy at the same age as before. So they make Indy older, bring in a young sidekick and set it in the fifties. Just like the films before it crystal skull is a film of the time it's set in. Russians are the bad guys and aliens are the mystery. It makes sense to me. Look at the culture of that time. Scifi movies, comics, and books were popular. The car chases and action sequences are bang on and fit nicely in the genre. So I like Indiana jones and the crystal skull and Enjoyed watching it. If you didn't like it hopefully you'll like one of the other 99 films I'll be writing about this year ;)

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