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Reviews
A Serial Killer's Guide to Life (2019)
Let's not forget those sandwiches!
Very bizarre, very British, very funny, very good! Quintessentially British filmmaking with a heart. Beautiful shot scenery and a star making performance from Poppy Roe. May be too 'odd' for some but still highly recommended
Million Dollar Baby (2004)
A retrospective review
Million Dollar Baby beat off strong competition from The Aviator to claim the Best Picture of the Year award at the Academy Awards and it's not hard to see why.
Back in the director's chair, Clint Eastwood pulls no punches in this adaptation of a short story by former pugilist F.X Toole. As well as calling the shots behind the camera, Clint himself plays a starring role in the film.
Eastwood plays Frankie Dunn, a world-weary boxing trainer who is in the wake of a painful estrangement from his daughter. Frankie lives by two rules, number one, "protect yourself" and number two, "I don't train female fighters." Maggie Fitzgerald, played by Hilary Swank, wants to be a prize-winning boxer and she's willing to do whatever it takes to get there. Frankie soon finds her training uninvited in his gym, demanding that he teach her how to reach the top.
After several refusals to help, it soon becomes clear that Maggie isn't going to leave unless he agrees to take her on. Thus beginning the first of many battles of will that these two fiery characters will face together.
Nominated for seven Academy Awards, viewers who like their films traditionally slow paced will find great reward here. There are no gimmicks on show, just plain old storytelling. This marks a refreshing change from the staccato direction usually on show in the latest Hollywood blockbuster. However, it isn't without its flaws. At times it does become a little emotionally manipulative, occasionally demanding a visceral response from the audience instead of inducing emotion, as its message gets rammed home a little too much as the film reaches its climax.
Overall though, with great performances from the leading actors and reliably fine support from the eminently impressive and Oscar winning Morgan Freeman, Million Dollar Baby is an enjoyable watch.
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Firefly (2002)
Firefly - 3 Years On...
Firefly wasn't just a Sci-Fi show for geeks who like space programmes. You could argue that the space setting of the show served merely as a backdrop for Firefly's main selling point, the relationships the ships crew have with each other and the character arc of each person, albeit only through 14 episodes.
The scriptwriters on the show wrote what could best be described as a drama comedy, with every serious plot point intertwined with laugh out loud gags and visual jokes. The casting was also perfect with each actor looking as though they had been playing their respective roles for years. Nathan Fillion is mesmerising as the Han Solo like captain, Ron Glass perfect as the wise yet secretive Preacher and perhaps the standout performance was from Morena Baccarin, playing the part of a 'Companion'. Every character in the show seems as though they belong, giving the programme multiple plot strands to weave as the series progresses.
Unfortunately the show's makers Fox chose to pull the plug after only one series, but hope was given to its many fans when its film sequel 'Serenity' was released earlier this year. Unfortunately that also flopped, leaving fans praying for the rumoured mini-series to begin production. This will hopefully tie up the loose ends with all the character's stories.
Until then cherish Firely for what it is and I urge Sci-Fi fans or lovers of great TV, whoever they may be, to embrace Firefly on DVD.
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Lucky Number Slevin (2006)
Lucky Number Slevin
After his recent flops, Wicker Park and The Reckoning, Brit director Paul Mcguigan returns to Gangster No.1 territory with this clever gangster flick, and boy is it clever...
Starting off as a story of mistaken identity, the film takes a perhaps obvious twist three quarters of the way through and becomes something entirely different, but you'll have to watch it to find out what, no spoilers here! Josh Hartnett plays Slevin, an innocent man in the wrong place at the wrong time who gets caught up in a bitter gang feud between The Boss (Freeman) and Schlomo (Kingsley). He is told that he owes each gang leader a large sum of money and must do each side a favor to cancel the debt.
The film plays out like a pulp fiction novel with a British flair and comparisons with Guy Ritchie's Revolver can be easily made, though this film is far superior in every department. While Revolver had some clever dialogue, a lot of what was spoken seemed forced and trying too hard to be clever. Lucky Number Slevin never comes across like that, the dialogue is sharp and witty and has some of the best lines found at the cinema this year.
The acting is also top notch, while the jury is still out on Hartnett, he puts in a solid performance here that matches his excellent but brief role in Sin City. Freeman plays against type and plays the villain, but imbues him with his natural charm to create the impression of a mob boss that becomes far more dangerous the more you warm to him. Kingsley is also good and Bruce Willis has a fantastic screen presence as a mostly silent assassin.
This is the film Revolver tried and failed to be. A sharply written, superbly directed American gangster flick with a British influence, Lucky Number Slevin is a film that shows that talented director Paul McGuigan is back to his very best, highly recommended.
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Hurlyburly (1998)
HurlyBurly - 8 years on...
HurlyBurly arrived in cinemas in late 1998 and took less than 2 million dollars at the US box office, but HurlyBurly was never intended to be the next Hollywood blockbuster.
Adapted from a David Rabe play by Rabe himself, the film stays faithful to the play by using few locations and much interplay between the main performers.Telling the story of several fictional actors trying to make their way in 80's Hollywood, HurlyBurly gives an insight into the desperation and fragility of the life of an actor.
Penn, Spacey and Palminteri play the part of Eddie, Mickey and Phil respectively, and all deliver performances that make us believe in their characters. The problem with this film though is not the acting which is top notch throughout, its in the pace of the film. Long monologues and conversations are the cornerstone of a good play, but its difficult to hold the movie viewers attention with just interplay for two hours. Admittedly it can be done, just see Glengarry Glen Ross for a perfect example of this, but while the acting in HurlyBurly is almost up there with Glengarry, the script simply isn't.
HurlyBurly can only really be recommended to those who enjoy plays, as the script simply isn't good enough to hold most movie-goers attention.
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