ergins Reviews

Asphalt Burning (2020)

Brilliant

[9/10 · 9 January 2021]

Did not expect much from this but it a great bad movie. The plot is silly, acting sub par, cgi is ok but nothing to write home about. But it is charming and laugh out loud funny in places where it shouldn't be.

I have given this a 9/10 because everyone in the film takes everything so seriously and the production team looked like they wanted to make a Norwegian Fast and Furious movie with passion. Those are the best bad movies because they are made with conviction.

I laughed more at this movie than some so called comedies out of Hollywood and it was probably a fraction of the cost.

Take this movie for a spin if you get the chance, you won't regret it.

Attacking the Devil: Harold Evans and the Last Nazi War Crime (2014)

A very emotional film that tells the true story of this tragedy.

[10/10 · 20 February 2017]

A very emotional film about a human tragedy that is not as well known as it should be. The victims (parent, siblings and the people themselves) of this deserve dignity and respect for having to suffer what they have for all these years. I as born around the same time as these babies were and I could have easily been a victim of this.

The thing that stands out for me was the tenacity of the editor who just wouldn't let this go until justice was served; he went as far as putting his own freedom at risk to tell the story. Not only did the story finally get out but he changed the law in the United Kingdom (via the European Courts) so that the press had more freedom to report of stories like this in the future.

The take away from this is that a free and vibrant press brought this to light and ensured that the victims were recognised and compensated. Suppressing journalism and the press is the thin end of the wedge to a totalitarian state where freedom is just an illusion.

The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)

Not up to my expectations

[2/10 · 6 September 2014]

I am probably in a minority when I say that I didn't enjoy this movie, I wanted to like it, the idea seemed sound and the cast is a cavalcade of top notch actors.

I am still trying to work out what it was that made me dislike the film, maybe it was the simple fact that there was no plot to speak of, a tenuous vehicle to give the actors a chance to show their stuff. Admittedly the sets were grand (as the name implies), the production company went all out to create this world; and the acting was excellent but there is a problem here too.

The problem I found with the acting was that each member the ensemble cast didn't get a fair crack of the whip when it came to showing their stuff. Most of the actors/characters got just a few minutes of time (apart from the leads of course), I wanted more interplay between these actors, surely there was time for that rather than long rambling scenes of inane dialogue.

When the film ended I was left with a feeling of "so what", I didn't care about the outcome of any of the characters. I am sure that some people will enjoy this but I didn't.

Derek (2012–2014)

Not what I expected but what I wanted ...

[9/10 · 1 May 2014]

I have been a fan of Ricky Gervais and Karl Pilkington from back when they were doing the radio shows and the pod-casts (then the Office and Extras) so I had a preconceived idea of what I was going to get; boy was I wrong!

The premise for this show is somewhat strange and the pilot (for me) was a bit weird and nearly made me bypass this entirely. My view on the program changed when I saw the second episode and I was hooked at that point.

The whole show is a rich character study inter dispersed with some crazy and sometimes awkwardly cringing comedy that makes you laugh and question your own morals at times. The supporting cast (Karl's character in particular) are wonderful, remember that they include the people in the old folks home who are great sports in doing the questionable things that Ricky asks them to do as a director.

As you get further into the series you understand that Ricky is not making fun of the people (particularly his character) but of the situations that find themselves in. Some of them are very funny indeed and some of them make you angry, you will go through the whole gamut of emotions as you watch this.

All I can do now is praise everyone involved in the show and wait with anticipation for the second series to come on Netflix and hope that a third series is in the works.

Ricky and co have come up with something that you have never seen before and will be hard to emulate. Well done!

Beautiful Creatures (2013)

Slow with no sense of direction

[4/10 · 10 March 2013]

I was suckered into going to this by the trailer which promised an interesting story, good special effects and some A listed actors. What I got was a long and boring second rate love story between 2 people who did not have much personality or character.

Jeremy Irons and Emma Thomson were wasted in this production, sure there were scenes in the movie that they just stole and I know that they were not the main characters but they were so incidental to the film that anyone could have played those parts.

The 2 main characters did an OK job but the character development was OK at best, you didn't get any idea of who these people were and what drove them to do what they did. The special effects were OK, they are what you expected for a movie such as this, however, don't expect this to be an effects driven movie.

The movie starts well giving you an insight into the characters and the location but it then just meanders along with no direction, no real character development, no explanation of the mythology behind what is going on. In fact you can get all of this from the original trailer, not very good.

All in all this was a disappointment, it is the first movie in a long time that I actually looked at my watch to see how much time was left. My theory is that if a movie seems to be long then it is not that good, a long movie (such as Django) flies past quickly because it has you attention, this did not.

There are some comments from people hoping for another movie based on the next book (or 2), I think this is a pipe dream. The movie is playing in our local cinema, one showing at 9:45pm, not a prime time slot, and the theater had barely 20 people there last (Saturday) night. Personally I would not go to another one of these unless it got at least an 8 on IMDb.

The Darwin Awards (2006)

Not a bad attempt

[5/10 · 20 April 2009]

I saw this appear on Showtime and it looked like it was going to be interesting. I liked the way that the film paid homage to the web site and even showed it so that others not in the know could enjoy the delights of the site.

I was a bit disappointed in the star billing of David Arquette, I expected him to have a bigger role. I know that he did take part in one of the more major "Darwin" stories but he wasn't really even close to being the main character.

As far as the "awards" went, I would have liked to see more of them, maybe not as long as some of the big ones, little snippets like the one that starts the movie, I feel that this is the main reason people will want to watch the movie.

The interpersonal relationship between the two main characters was somewhat interesting but I felt that it went a bit too far. Concerning the "documentary" film maker, that was just annoying and did not add much to the plot or the pace of the film; it was more of a distraction than anything else.

Overall I gave this a 5 because I felt that it could have delivered much much more than it did but there is enough there to spend an hour and a half with.

Finally the inclusion of the dudes from Muthbusters was great, they played it somewhat tongue in cheek which made it even funnier.

Standoff (2006–2007)

I wanted to see more ,,,

[9/10 · 13 March 2009]

I liked this show, it was clever and interesting and did not treat the viewer like an idiot.

The sexual tension between the main characters added an extra dimension (although predictable at times) to the show.

The situations that are presented were thought provoking and allows the user to get into the world of the criminal and the police in a way that makes you think.

In addition to the mind games the addition of the swat team helped give a balance to the program (action is good in places).

I would have liked to see the characters grow and develop through another series but was disappointed when the show was canceled.

It seems like the suits are not prepared to cater for a more intelligent audience but would rather pander to the whims of a wider (less educated) demographic.

Crush on U (2007 Video)

Very bad movie

[1/10 · 26 June 2007]

The DVD cover and menus look good and gives you the impression that this is a real movie. However, this pretext soon disappears when the movie starts. The acting is horrible, most of the movie is taken up with crappy music videos. The main character spends most of the time talking to herself or at the camera, and those are the good bits, HOW SAD. Even my kid thought that this was the worst movie that he had ever seen and he has seen more movies than most people. It's supposed to be a comedy but it is more like a horror movie if you're talking about the acting. I cannot think of anything good about the movie except that the video store made a couple of buck out of me.

Corpse Bride (2005)

Another gem!

[9/10 · 5 December 2005]

I saw this recently at the local $3 cinema with my son of 12. We had a great time with the script and the visuals. Tim Burton really knows how to tell a story and get you involved with the characters. Some of the lines were very British and I wonder how many people in the US got some of the jokes.

Some of the scenes would be a bit scary for younger audiences but that should not stop you from renting the DVD (which I put down as a must buy). Younger children will also enjoy some of the musical numbers which break up the movie quite well.

The other interesting thing was that the voices of the characters were supplied by a cavalcade British actors who are not really that well known in the States, refreshing for an ex-pat.

The Transporter (2002)

Cool

[9/10 · 7 March 2005]

I would have given this a 10 but for the worse line in movie history that appears right at the end of the movie; more on that later.

Statham does a great job as the hard man with a heart, playing it cool, driving around France like a maniac and kicking good old fashioned butt.

I watched this at the movies with a couple of friends and throughly enjoyed it; then (as mentioned before) that "line". At the end of the movie the female lead shoots her dad and utters the line "He was a b#$%^&d but he was my father". At this point we cracked and were howling with laughter, what a wonderful end to the perfect movie :) It is just a great escape movie, we all wanted to be Statham driving on the way home :))

Ali G Indahouse (2002)

Good clean fun :)

[9/10 · 29 December 2002]

We have been fans of Ali-G for ages and couldn't wait for the film.

We liked the way the film made fun of all those things that are held in high regard in society and the way it made fun of itself, no holds barred here!

The production is high quality, the scenes set in the USA were good because they used real gangsters.

The cast was held up with Michael Gambon and Charles Dance, two highly regarded (and talented) British actors who took the whole thing in their stride and with a pinch salt.

If you want to laugh (and cringe) then this is worth a look.

//*Eggbox