Change Your Image
grahamchalk2008
Reviews
Mr. Jones (2019)
Slow? Compared to what, exactly?
The evil hasn't ended and it's not done. Back in the 80s ( not the 1880s) I went to college with a guy who couldn't accept a word of criticism about Russia/ Soviet Union. This is about how he, and millions of others were conned. This film is well acted, well directed and not boring unless you're expecting Captain America to show up. I imagine Vladimir Putin hates it.
Battle: Los Angeles (2011)
is it me?
I've started to watch this again. That must be around ten times. There are movies which I can watch and rewatch- not because they are the best at anything, but simply because they are comfort food for the soul.It seems to have taken root on Netflix now. I would imagine it'll stay there for a very long time
People complain that the aliens "aren't given any depth"? But that's supposed to be the thing. Was the alien in Cloverfield given any depth? Its about war with an unknown enemy. You're not supposed to know what they had for breakfast or what their favourite colour is.
The acting is fine, not just the leads but the supporting characters. The music is great. The action sequences are well done. I have no idea what the problem is with this movie.
I only know that I have no problem with this movie
The Island of Dr. Moreau (1977)
don't watch when sober
If I could give this 11/10 I would
Its a bizarre time capsule of a movie starring Richard Basehart-Commander Nelson from Voyage to the bottom of the sea, with excellent Rick Baker(?) make up, Burt Lancaster (Birdman of Alcatraz) and others. They can act. so can Nigel Davenport and Simon York (Oscar worthy scenery chewing)
Ever wondered how they did animal stunts before the humane society and actors unions got involved?
Easy- just throw real tigers, hyenas, bears and lions at people.
Seriously. It's from a place in time that has gone (thank God). Jump in your time machine and give it a watch.
Pity about the - er- saccharine ending, otherwise I'd be really sold on all this oddness
Them! (1954)
Did you hear that?
Am just re-watched this last night
The reason this works, despite the papier mache ants, and the reason that Jurassic Park 16 with all the cutting edge CGI doesn't is because of things like:
Acting
Script
Direction
Incidental stuff that makes the characters believable-all of the characters-even the woman scientist-(they resisted the effort to turn this into a romance) are believable .
Two observations though- the only person of colour is the shoe shine boy
EVERYONE smokes. All the time. Apart from the scientists, who probably knew better.
I wouldn't have been shocked of one of the ants was smoking.
Maybe it was sponsorship
6 Days (2017)
Remarkable
(I'll take off one point for Abbie Cornishe's bizarre portrayal of Kate Adie.) This is how it's done.
If you want to see a cartoon watch "London has Fallen."
Reality is complicated and bad guys are three dimensional. Sometimes real-life operations don't involve constant gunplay. Well, not if you want the good guys to actually survive. Good movie for grown- ups.
The Purge (2013)
what would you do?
Firstly: It isn't a bit like Assault on Precinct 13 (the real one) apart from a few wimpy mutterings, there was never a serious move to surrender the hostage in "Assault" Here we have something a little deeper: how bad would things have to get to turn you into the sort of person you'd rather not be? It didn't explain the circumstances that led to the purge and the historical background? Who cares. It's not a documentary. I think it's on a couple of levels. A straight out thriller and an allegory. Do you protect some guy who has no connection with you if society says he should die? You have a comfortable life. Why should his problem be your problem? Ah, the moral dilemma. I just paused the movie to write this. It's about 10 minutes before the I end. I thought there was a siren on the soundtrack, but the siren kept going when the movie stopped.
Maybe the Purge is over for another year.
White House Down (2013)
did someone just play back a video game?
Liked some of the Directors other work- hell, who could dislike Independence Day- but this was, for us, unwatchable. Brucie did this stuff MUCH better in Die Hard (1&2)and just by putting your lead actor on the DVD box wearing a vest, you ain't getting the magic back. Saw "Olympus Has Fallen" covering the same premise and thought that, though flawed, was MUCH better than this. I know I'm British, but I really didn't want to be rooting for the bad guys
Nobody gets to bag a bad guy. Except the hero. All the good guys (extras) fall down and die instantly when shot. Nobody shoots back when wounded. And that kid! How annoying is that kid playing "Where's Wally" and peeking behind curtains at the bad men who can't spot her.
What a waste of talent.
Jimmy Woods? Hang your head in shame.
Django Unchained (2012)
Mr Tarantino continues his tumble down the rabbit hole
There's something about celebrity. When people say you're a star there's nobody left to tell you to get a grip. They're all too busy telling you you're a genius. Reservoir Dogs was great. Pulp Fiction was even greater, then we kind of lost our way until we came to Django via Inglorious Basterds. Was "Unchained" supposed to be some sort of comedy? "Carry On Slavery", perhaps? Was this all supposed to be "ironic"? Did everyone else see some other film to the one I watched and the one my companion left early from? I'll skip the next "incendiary masterpiece" from Quentin. I hear it's a musical comedy set in Rwanda.
Duel at Diablo (1966)
before its time
in an age when black actors were confined to black roles, this film shows Poitier in a role that could easily have been played by a white actor-plus he's the coolest dude in the movie.
Bill Travers doesn't have to do an American accent.
this was from a time that people believed that there could be major characters with foreign accents in the USA who weren't villains.
Of course the USA at this time, and at any time, had plenty of odd accents. Except in movies.
The credits are waaaay more imaginative that you'd normally expect.
The music is highly "different" The camera-work is very strange- all those overhead shots.
I love this movie, and is a film I can watch again and again. It's very stylised-the lines are delivered like they were from a comic book.
You know-the sort of thing Quentin T "discovered"
Prometheus (2012)
spoilers
Disappointing. after the hype I was expecting better, I REALLY wanted to like this but I just got "more expensive, more CGI, more effects".
I don't know what all that guff was about "keep it real if you can and holding back on the CGI". I mean the technical credits at the end of the movie were still rolling when I got up the next day.And the day after that....
I liked all the Alien franchise, and have a very soft spot for "Aliens" but.... I did wonder why it was, when there were helmet cams to keep everyone tracked, that two characters were bumped off and nobody noticed.
Unless they were all shagging at the time.
I did wonder at how well a person can abseil and perform gymnastics after having her body held together with a few surgical staples.
I'm not sure where in the alien life cycle we've noticed that it takes over a human body and turns it into some sort of homicidal zombie.
I really didn't think this bunch of losers would be trusted to get a can of beans from the local store never mind rediscover a new civilisation.
I'll stop there. Love the Alien movies. This one had more lose ends than a bucket of meal worms and more holes than a string vest. Lazy. Try harder. With a better script, plot and less CGI.