Spaceygirl Reviews

Pain & Gain (2013)

Who knew The Rock could act?

[8/10 · 22 August 2013]

: The Rock in a good movie? Who knew it could happen? Well, it just did. Pain and Gain" is one of the funniest movies of the year.

Headlining The Rock, a beefed up Mark Wahlberg and a very, very funny Anthony Mackie and Tony Shalhoub from TV's "Monk" in top form, this is pure entertainment. I said somewhere before that I think Duane Johnson has taken acting lessons from somewhere and it's no more evident than when he's squaring off against Mark Wahlberg in this. Ed Harris also enjoys his role and he's one of the highlights in an already stellar cast.

I admit I was dubious when I saw it was directed by action-helmer Michael Bay but it's thankfully not all shootin' and runnin' and blowin' stuff up. There is actual dialogue from an actual script and this script is absolutely hilarious.

Be warned though, this is humour at it's darkest. Not for children or for the easily offended but if you're looking for a belly-laugh, you really can't go wrong with this one. 8/10

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)

Vintage Le Carre brilliantly told!

[10/10 · 29 May 2013]

No-one does a Spy thriller better than the British and "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy" ranks as one of the best. This is vintage Le Carre (A fantastic novel that I waded through in the late 80's) and its themes of class, corruption, moral uncertainty remain intelligently intact. On the other hand, you may struggle to fathom what the bloody hell's going on. This is a film that assumes it's audience has a brain, in fact it almost insists on it. Concentrate and you will be richly rewarded. The script is flawless, the direction faultless, the cinematography is stunning, evoking a murky 1970's London. The cast is absolutely magnificent. Gary Oldman, John Hurt, Colin Firth, Ciarian Hinds, Mark Strong (playing against type), Toby Jones, the delicious Benedict Cumberbatch, Kathy Burke and the gorgeous Tom Hardy. One of the best movies of the decade. 10/10

The Traveler (I) (2010)

Icky nonsense

[1/10 · 12 May 2012]

: "The Traveler" is one of those films that starts very well and draws the audience to know more of the story. But as it progresses, about 40 minutes into the movie, the film begs you to be open-minded and to suck in all the stupidity it delivers. delivers. If you hate illogical horror, you better not see this film, especially since it delivers obscure moral lessons. It's also very (very, VERY!!) icky and violent....and the acting is AWFUL! (I told you Val Kilmer was dodgy Bronwyn!) It also suffers horribly from repetition, making it boring...and really Val Kilmer needs to give up acting now because he's embarrassing himself and WASTING OUR MONEY!! 1/10

RED (2010)

A great time had by all!

[8/10 · 18 April 2011]

'Red' is great fun. It's one of those movies, like the Oceans trilogy, where the cast has such a great time filming that it translates onto the screen and you can' t help having a good time with them. That's not to say they have a great time without actually working. The acting is outstanding, even Bruce Willis excels in this one. (Mainly because he's bald… I have a theory on this) Helen Mirren, John Malkovich, Morgan Freeman, Brian Cox and Mary Stuart Masterson (who steals all the scenes she's in) are all uniformly excellent (Well, they would be, woudn't they?) and the supporting cast is magnificent, including Rebecca Pigeon, Karl Urban, Julian McMahon, Ernest Borgnine (He must be in his eighties by now, surely?) and an hilarious Richard Drefyss. Really, you can't go wrong with this one. There's a love story for the romantics, lots of action for the boys and funny without veering into silliness

Paranormal Activity 2 (2010)

SO not scary

[1/10 · 18 April 2011]

Puh-lease. 'Paranormal Activity 2' is pathetic. While the first one, though not exactly a classic, did have some jump-out-of-your-seat moments, the second one is completely devoid of any chills whatsoever. It's silly and clichéd and the acting…oh, my word..they managed to assemble the most talentless bunch of people for this piece of rubbish. It's boring and without action till the last five minutes, which I had to rewind THREE times to work out who and how. Pathetic. The script is silly, having the characters act completely implausibly, ie the parents, knowing their house is full of strange happenings, go out and leave their teenage daughter alone in charge of her baby brother. The teenager, who has already has cleverly (!) worked out her house is haunted, invites her bf over to play with a Ouija board. She also, in her 'research' makes a huge leap from mere haunting to Demon possession in about five minutes. PATHETIC. What a complete waste of celluloid.

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010)

Epically entertaining!

[8/10 · 17 April 2011]

Alternative, witty and hip, "Scott Pilgrim vs the world" is HUGELY entertaining. I snapped it up after reading the blurb on the front, 'From the makers of Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead'. While not quite in the league of the two British comedy classics, Scott Pilgrim has a charm all of it's own. While the too-cool-for school comic effects grate after a while and the Tarantino references become a bit wilted the charm lies in the cast and the acting. Indie darling Michael Cera is a hit in the title role with a fantastic supporting cast including the more talented Culkin sibling Kieran as the gay best-friend. He has some of the best lines in the movie and is absolutely hilarious. The female roles are well fleshed out for this type of movie and the girls kick butt in some of the funniest fight scenes ever. Some well-known faces makes an appearance too, such as Chris Evans (Fantastic Four, Cellular) in a hilarious role as a skate-boarding movie star and Brandon Routh (Superman, Chuck) as a Vegan with super-powers and Clifton Collins jnr (Crank) and Thomas Jane (The Punisher) in one of the films funniest scenes.

"Scott Pilgrim vs the World" is one of my favourite rom-coms ever, right up there with "Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind"…oddly the leading lady in both of these films have an unusual hair-dye. ;)

Paris, I Love You (2006)

Tres Magnifique!

[8/10 · 27 January 2011]

One of the most inventive pieces of film-making you'll ever see. Spanning some 120 minutes of celluloid, over 18 directors and goodness knows how many actors, it shows nearly 20 vignettes of Parisian life ranging between three and twenty minutes in length. Starring such luminaries as Steve Buscemi, Bob Hoskins, Rufus Sewell, Emily Mortimer, Marianne Faithful, Elijah Wood, Gena Rowlands, Ben Gazzara, Natalie Portman and the always luminous Fanny Ardant it is always interesting. The cinematography is stunning, taking in the city of light in all it's glory. Some segments work better than others. Wes Craven directs a sweet little ghost-story with none other than Rufus Sewell and Emily Mortimer, who work well together. A well directed, well acted segment involves immigrants from Lagos, another the always good Fanny Ardant and Bob Hoskins play off each other in La Pigalle, a rather risqué area of Paris. Some don't work nearly as well, Elijah Wood as a vampire in a silent segment is criminally underused while Natalie Portman does her usual over-rated over-acting in a boring little piece that I can thankfully skip next time I watch. My personal favourite (predictably) is the contribution by the Coen brothers, who employ the marvelous Steve Buscemi in 'Tuileries'. Mr Buscemi manages to make one laugh without even saying a word. Brilliant stuff! Some-one give the man an Oscar already!  "Paris J'Taime" is highly recommended for film and Paris buffs alike.

Salt (2010)

Great fun!

[8/10 · 27 December 2010]

Regardless of all the negative reviews, I absolutely LOVED this movie! Yes, it's mindless fun but it's a movie for goodness sake! It's supposed to be ENTERTAINING! Angelina excels in her kick-ass role, beating up and killing a ton of people without staining her pristine white shirt. Liev Schrieber, the man with the sexiest voice in Hollywood, is his usual excellent self and one of my favourite men to watch, Chiwetel Egiofor, is also good. The script is bog-standard for this type of fare and won't be winning awards any time soon. Salt is worth watching on a lazy afternoon when you can just check your brain at the door and enjoy it with a good bowl of popcorn. Hugely enjoyable.

Dorian Gray (2009)

Not for the purist

[7/10 · 27 December 2010]

Okay, so if you've read the book or if you're a die-hard Oscar Wilde fan, give this a miss. It's NOTHING like the book, well, except for the title and the general plot-line. That's not to say it's not good. It IS. Very. I enjoyed it thoroughly. The cast has a great time with a, well, an adequate script. Colin Firth has great fun with his role as the corrupted Lord, Ben Chaplin is his usual beautiful mournful self as the love-lorn artist and Ben Barnes is simply gorgeous in the title role, not really stretching his acting wings but he puts in a good performance. He is very well cast as the eternally youthful and good-looking Dorian Gray. The female leads suffer, only Rebecca Hall is given decent material to work with and tries ably with her role as the love-interest and Dorian Gray's saviour. The cinematography is stunning, evoking Victorian London beautifully. All in all, Dorian Gray is a beautiful Gothic Horror. Well worth seeing.

Shrink (2009)

Underrated and brilliant!

[8/10 · 27 December 2010]

In a word - Brilliant. 'Shrink' is one of those movies with a huge cast and lots of different characters that leave you feeling quite disorientated till you work out who's who and how everyone fits together. An outstanding cast that includes Robert Loggia, Robin Williams (playing against type) Keke Williams, Saffron Burrows and Dallas Roberts led by the incomparable Kevin Spacey, who is his usual brilliant self. (Biased? ME?) The script sparkles and the characters are very engaging. A bit on the kooky side but hey, this IS Hollywood! Very funny and very scathing, Jonas Pate has turned in a winner with this one. I just can't understand why it's been overlooked in the awards department. Very highly recommended!

The Gates of Hell (2008)

Just TERRIBLE!

[1/10 · 27 December 2010]

Am I the only person who has seen this turgid mess? Or just the first person brave enough to review it? Oh well, I saw it so you don't have to. Really, you should be thanking me right now. It's the biggest load of tosh I've ever seen. Acting? Forget about it. The rather beautiful Samantha Noble, daughter of John (He of Fringe fame) tries very hard but fails miserably with what little material she's given to work with. The rest of the cast are just awful, for some obscure reason affecting American accents and failing badly. The plot, such as it is, has five (Four? Six? Who cares?) students making a movie on a deserted property. Why has it been deserted? Who deserted it? Do we know? Do we care? It seems the script-writers forgot about a reason for mindless violence...and boy is it violent!! Look, I'm not against gratuitous violence..so long as the rest of the movie makes some kind of sense, or there's some-one with a six-pack to look at but this movie has neither. It's a bad (read: TERRIBLE) rip-off of every schlock-horror you've ever seen. Don't bother. I'm beginning to think the term Ozploitation is code for Crap.

Legion (2010)

Better than I expected!

[8/10 · 20 November 2010]

First off, Jude Law and Paul Bettany must share a personal trainer because Mr Bettany is as ripped in this as Jude is in Repomen. Omigod! Those abs, those arms!

Nevertheless, to the film itself. Look, it's just a movie and a fun one at that! Paul Bettany has a grand old time, at the end sporting the best set of wings I've seen this side of Hallowe'en. He and fellow Brit Kevin Durand as the arch angel Gabriel are easily the best thing about the movie. Dennis Quaid, Charles Dutton and Tyrese Gibson give able support but Kate Walsh grates in her role and personally I was happy when her character was killed off. All in all, Legion is hugely entertaining, some scenes having serious WTF? moments and the end leaves it nicely open for a sequel.

Knowing (2009)

Overblown and silly

[2/10 · 14 November 2010]

"Knowing" gets off to a promising start but deteriorates into silliness at the end. Alex Proyas, who directed the masterful and vastly superior "I, Robot" gets all ham-fisted with this one. The child actors are like stepford-children, the little girl in particular, one scene not even allowing her to grieve her mothers' death. The adult cast fare no better. Nicholas Cage approaches his role with his usual intensity, which is a pity. He seems to have lost the ability to enjoy himself in a role, especially seeing it's a disaster flick. Where' s John Cusack when you need him? Rose Byrne, of TV's " Damages", comes off as whiney and shrill. The script is silly, is full of plot-holes and descends into schmaltz and a thinly veiled attempt at Christian propaganda. It is also far too long and may have been improved with tighter editing. May have...but I doubt it.

Se7en (1995)

Dark and chillingly brilliant

[10/10 · 14 November 2010]

Se7en takes the tired and clichéd serial-killer genre and twists it on it's head. Literally. Andrew Kevin Walker wrote a doozy of a script and the acting by a stellar cast is superb. Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt match each other scene for scene and Kevin Spacey's performance is nothing short of outstanding. He is chillingly believable as the morally ambiguous serial killer. The only one who disappoints is Gwyneth Paltrow, her character not given much time to develop due to not receiving much screen time. The final scene between the three male leads is electrifying. The cinematography is bleak, raining in almost every scene except the last. The denouement is shattering and leaves one feeling very unsettled. Despite there being little to no violence on- screen, it is extremely dark and chilling. This is a movie that will leave you questioning the morals of the world around you. David Fincher directed a movie that is nothing short of a masterpiece. One that demands multiple viewings.

Deadline (I) (2009)

Plodding and predictable

[1/10 · 13 November 2010]

Some-one has written a review for "Deadline", taking the time to explain point-for-point the erm, plot line of this movie as well as calling people stupid for not understanding it. Well, this movie was made for people like him. Pseudo-intellectuals who are of the opinion that the more obscure a movie is, how inexplicable it is somehow defines how GOOD it is. They are so wrong. " Deadline" is just a very badly written, badly directed and very badly acted movie. It's implausibilities are stretched even by horror movie standards. The scary scenes are clichéd and the dialogue is stilted. This is one to avoid.

What Lies Beneath (2000)

Enjoyably scary

[8/10 · 12 November 2010]

"What lies beneath" is as enjoyable now as it was ten years ago. With a mounting tension that makes the movie as it allows both Michelle Pfeiffer and Harrison Ford to flesh out their characters making them believable...until the final few scenes. The acting is good, Michelle Pfeiffer conveying genuine fear and rising panic and even Mr Wooden, Harrison Ford, relishes his role, one of his few as a villain. James Remar and the luminous Miranda Otto provide a Hitchcockian subplot worthy of the master himself. Robert Zemeckir was on top form with this one. Masterful direction, tight editing and a stellar cast provide for a wonderfully entertaining hour and a half.

Jennifer's Body (2009)

Why did I bother?

[1/10 · 12 November 2010]

I stopped watching "What lies beneath", an above- average chiller to watch this. What was I thinking? "Jennifer's Body" is shallow and crude, with not a single redeeming feature. I was curious as to why it was so bad so I googled it. Written by Diablo Cody. Ah, that explains it then. The same person who wrote the insipid and vapid and yet vastly overrated "Juno". It doesn't help that it is a star vehicle for Megan Fox, Amanda Seyfried and Adam Brody who have to be the most untalented trio in Hollywood. Megan Fox in particular is truly awful. The premise is the most basic and there are several badly judged scenes. It's just so bad.

From Paris with Love (2010)

Fun and over-the-top

[7/10 · 17 July 2010]

Wildly inventive and a whole lot of fun, 'From Paris with Love' is a roller-coaster ride from start to end-credits. The delectable (and boy, is he delicious?) Jonathan Rhys Myers plays straight man to John Travolta's manic, off-the-wall character. The script is funny and has some great throwaway lines ('Wax on, Wax off', 'Ka-fucking-BOOM!') , including a sly reference to Pulp Fiction that movie-buffs will love! John Travolta and Jonathan Rhys myers have so much fun with their respective roles that the plot is actually irrelevant to the running, shooting and exploderising that is going on. Don' t think about it, just sit back and enjoy!

The Blind Side (2009)

Boring and offensive

[3/10 · 17 July 2010]

Simplistic, naive, offensive and overlong. The Blind Side offends on so many levels. It's supposed to be about Big Mike Oher who drags himself out of the ghetto and goes on to be a star football player but instead it's about the benevolent White Christian Republican family who takes him in and makes it all happen. Wow. Good on the christians and good on the republicans. Not. The Christian aspect is rammed home at every opportunity and after an hour, begins to grate. The script is peppered with clichés and some of the scenes badly judged. The film is so manipulative and what Sandra Bullock won the Academy Award for, I'll never know. She plays basically the same part she has in previous films. What was the Academy thinking?

Powder Blue (2009)

dismal and boring

[3/10 · 8 May 2010]

I had such high hopes for this movie but was utterly and completely disappointed. The usually good Forrest Whitaker is wasted in this, and almost saves the movie but not quite. Ray Liotta tries manfully with a one-dimensional character, Eddie Redmayne is saddled with a character called 'Querty' who has more issues than a magazine and Jessica Biel, oh my...her 'acting' skills are dubious although her many assets are often on display for those who care to sit through this. The script is messy and painful and the scenes are choppy and disjointed. The added effect of having every scene being blue doesn't help either, rendering the movie a blue tinge which makes it looks like a porno flick. Avoid.

What Doesn't Kill You (2008)

engrossing and well-made

[7/10 · 25 April 2010]

Well-made with engaging performances and a good script, 'What doesn't kill you' makes for an afternoons decent entertainment. Allegedly based on real-life events which is a scary thought that life can be so hard for some people. Comparisons to 'The Departed' are inevitable, although a far superior film, 'The Departed' suffered from a lack of humanity. Mark Ruffallo provides a human heart to this film with an affecting performance that stays with you long after the film has ended. Ethan Hawke suffers with a one-dimensional character and bad editing and Donnie Wahlberg provides able support. All in all, a very competent film well told.

April Showers (2009)

scary and thought-provoking

[6/10 · 18 April 2010]

This is a film about a high school shooting, not so much about the shooting itself as about the survivors. Their emotions, their guilt, anger, grief and finally acceptance. The young actors are brilliant in their respective roles although Indie darling Ileana Douglas is criminally wasted. The script is good, although there are a few plot holes and the scene of the shooting is rushed. It is a small film well told and the weighty subject matter is delicately handled. I am somewhat surprised at the high age-restriction as this is an important film for teens to see showing the devastating destruction that simple bullying can cause.

Zombieland (2009)

trailer-trash version of shaun of the dead

[5/10 · 17 April 2010]

A less intelligent version of Shaun of the Dead, Zombieland is nevertheless mildly entertaining. Woody Harrellson has a great time with his role and Abigail Breslin once again proves that she's the most talented actor of her generation. Where the film fails though is it's gore factor. It's squeamishly violent, unnecesarily so and the scene in a native American shop is offensive and crude. Comparisons to the vastly superior Shaun of the Dead are unavoidable and Zombieland lags in the middle becoming a zombie-road-trip which is boring. Zombieland does have a few laugh-out- loud moments though and Bill Murray an hilarious cameo!

2012 (I) (2009)

a roller-coaster ride of a movie!

[7/10 · 11 April 2010]

2012 is one of the most fun movies I've seen in a long time. My four year old niece adores it, screeching at the screen for the characters to 'GO, GO, GO!' The movie is filled with moments like this, which makes it very exciting and exhilarating. Suspend belief and you will enjoy it. Start thinking and questioning the science behind it and you wont. The acting is standard for a disaster movie, the only stand-outs being John Cusack and Chiwetel Edjiofor, who relish their respective roles and have a great time with them. All in all, highly entertaining with several laugh out moments. Highly recommended for a rainy Sunday afternoon.

Cadillac Records (2008)

fabulous soundtrack!

[8/10 · 10 April 2010]

Cadillac records has a fantastic soundtrack. Having said that, personally I think it would have worked better as a mini-series. There are so many characters that it's difficult to focus on just one. Nevertheless, many actors shine in their roles. Adrien Brody tackles a difficult role with his usual ease. The fabulous Jeffrey Wright is a stand-out, Mos Def is an irrepressible Chuck Berry and Gabrielle Union is quietly impressive in a supporting role. Beyonce, however, in a key role of Etta James is woefully miscast and her acting talents are dubious. The script is good, the set-pieces attractive and the film is beautifully shot.