Review - Gulliver's Travels

Gulliver's Travels - When travel writer extrodnier Lemuel Gulliver, takes an assignment to Bermuda, he unexpectedly ends up in the Kingdom of Lilliput, where he towers over its tiny citizens, like a big hairy beast.


















Hello Film Fans, and welcome to my newest film review, which is the 2010 version of Gulliver's Travels. based off the travels of the real Lumuel Gulliver in a novel by Anglo-Irish writer and clergyman Jonathan Swift, it is Swift's best known full-length work, and a classic of English literature.

SPOILER ALERT:  As I talk about the film, there will be a few spoilers. so if your one of those people who doesn't like films to spoiled before you see them, I suggest you watch the film as soon as possible and then read this review afterwards.

This film was released in the USA on the 25th of December 2010 and released in the UK on the 26th of December 2010.

This film is about a normal slow working guy called Lemuel Gulliver (Jack Black) who lives in New York, and has been working in the mail room of the New York daily newspaper for the past ten years.

He doesn't have a lot of confidence in himself to go and put himself out there, he considers himself to be at the bottom of the heap and just thinks it is ok to stay there. Though One day, after becoming fed up with his normal lifestyle, he decides to confront himself to the girl he's had a crush on all his time he's been working in the mail room Darcy Silverman. (Amanda Peet)

Darcey is the newspaper's travel editor, and rather than chicken out at the last minute, Gulliver instead tells her that he'd like to try his hand out in writing a column. Darcy accepts and sends him on an assignment to the Bermuda Triangle. There, Gulliver gets caught up in a whirlpool and becomes shipwrecked and ends up on the island of Lilliput, where he is twelve taller than the tallest man. And for the first time in his life, it is there that Gulliver has people looking up to him, literally.

He becomes immensely popular with the King (Billy Connolly) his wife the Queen (Catherine Tate) and their daughter the Princess Mary (Emily Blunt) and all of the townsfolk, he also makes 1 friend there, Horatio (Jason Segel) however there is one person in Lilliput who can see through Gulliver like clean glass and that is General Edward (Chris O'Dowd) and Edward will stop at nothing to prove that Gulliver is nothing but a fraud.



It is then Edward is rejected by his Lilliputian brethren, and forms an alliance with the enemy forces of Perfusia and Edward manages to expose Gulliver for what he is in front of everyone who belived in him. Gulliver is banished to 'the island where we dare not go' and Lilliput is invaded by the Perfuison forces and Lilliput becomes New Perfusia.

Ashamed of being found out, Gulliver hides out in his new habitat, whilst Darcey who has come to complete the assignment herself after Gulliver goes missing is captured by Edward and his forces. Gulliver is forced to return to Lilliput by Horatio, and Gulliver gains the trust of his beloved little friends and gains the respect of Darcey.

Gulliver then challenges Edward to another duel and wins, winning back the title of Lilliput to the Kingdom.
Gulliver then returns to New York with Darcey and they live happily ever after. Its a simple cliche fairy tale ending.



I think that this film, is a fun packed family adventure that anyone can enjoy, children to the age of 5 - Grandma's of the age of 85. Gulliver's Travels is jam packed with awsome guest stars, which is partly what makes it such an enjoyable film to watch. It is is a light, enjoyable comedy but is jam packed with thrill and adventure.

I thought that Jack Black was inspired casting, and don't misjudge the way he acts for the real Lumuel Gulliver in the Swift novel. I liked how Jack's Gulliver and the Gulliver in the novel where two different people. I thought that it worked well, and Jack Black dilivered to the best of his ablities, but then again Jack Black always dilvers a role in an essecentric way. because that's how he is.

I thought the rest of the guest cast were splendid, it was great to see people like Billy Connolly, Catherine Tate, Emily Blunt, James Cordon, Chris O'Dowd and Jason Segal all acting in a film together, it just made it a bit more special for me.

I also approved of Chris O'Dowd being a baddie, though one can judge the performance as being a pantomime performance, it is a family adventure after all. he can't be overly devious and threatening, you have to be able to belive in the role he is playing with not a lot of seriousness, because if you take Chris O'Dowd too seriously that just defeats the purpose of what he is trying to do.



Rob Latterman's direction was very well comminicated, through his marvoulous effects and green screening and to the way things were done, so I liked the effects and the direction a lot, it was very well done.

Overall this film was great. I loved it, it's a fun packed familt adventure which allows the family to let their imaginations run freely. 

I am going to give this film a 6/10.

1 Gold Star to Jack Black
1 Gold Star to Chris O'Dowd

My next reviews over the next couple of days this week will be 'The Hangover Trilogy' starting with Hangover 1, and that review will be posted on Wednesday the 29th of May 2013.

Review - The Social Network

The Social Network - The story of how Mark Zuckerberg, the youngest billionaire in the world created the social networking website Facebook. After his website becomes a giant success, he is later sued by two brothers who claimed he stole their idea. and the co-founder who was later pushed out of a job.

















Hello everyone and welcome to the newest of film reviews by Dr Film. In today's review I will be looking at 'The Social Network' a film all about the social networking site, Facebook. and the story of it's creator Mark Zuckerberg.

SPOILER ALERT: As I do with all my reviews, I am going to reveal a few spoilers so if you haven't seen 'The Social Network' and you don't want it to be spoiled. you should probably turn away now.

This film was released in the UK on the 15th of October 2010 and came to the US's attention on the 1st of October 2010.

The Main preemies of the storyline is on an Autem night in 2003, undergrad and computer programming genius Mark Zuckerberg (Jesse Eisenberg) who sits down at his computer and comes up with ideas. what begins in his flat room soon becomes a global social network and a new meaning of communication.

A mere six years and 500 million friends later, Mark Zuckerberg is the youngest billionaire in history to date... but for this entrepreneur, success leads him into big trouble.

The main premises that 'The Social Network' presents is you can't make friends, without making a few enemies. and that message is presented throughout the course of the film.

I don't really have an awful lot to say about 'The Social Network' because I didn't really intake an awful lot from it. I thought the whole 'let's make a film about facebook' thing didn't really arouse my interests, and from what I read about it on the Internet, about what it was about my first thoughts were that this wasn't going to be a good film at all.

In actual fact, I enjoyed it. It wasn't brilliant. but then again it didn't need to be, because I don't 'The Social Network' is a film that many people will remember with such fondness, it's just a film about Facebook and the guy that created it. It's nothing special, having said that I do think that the awareness issues raised in this film, are to be taken into consideration, with that fact that over 500 million people own Facebook today.

I think my favourite bit about the film, was at the end when the information next comes up and you learn what happened to whom, and etc. It just add's lighten fact to situations that are fictional but based on fact.

Performance wise Jesse Eisenberg as Mark Zuckerburg was fantastic, his mannerisms were good, his expressions were believable, they way he chose to play the character of the real Zuckerburg gives viewers an incite as to what those people were about, It's like with Sir Ben Kingsley playing Gandhi, you get an incite as to who the real character was through the good acting of another actor.

Another person I liked was Justin Timberlake, he has a habit with his acting of making his characters interesting, and it's that interest that drives the audience viewers with him, and it's that interest that allows the audience to enjoy watching him on screen, I think Justin Timberlake is a very good actor.

The Techniques used in this filmed lied upon the judgement of David Fincher, a director I am familiar with and like very much he directed other films such as 'Fight Club' and 'Seven' but with this, he applied softer techniques and let things flow according to current which was different. So I thought David Fincher's directing was fine, nothing wrong with that.

I will say that some of the casting was unusual, and I say unusual in a nice way because what I mean by unusual is I was not familiar with the actors chosen, besides Jessie Eisenberg, Justin Timberlake, Rooney Mara and Andrew Garfield I was not familiar with the other members of the cast. so I think I would enjoyed the performances more had I been more familiar with the cast members.

In a nutshell 'The Social Network' is all right, not brilliant. but I would recommend it to those who are interested in seeing it, but I'm warning you it's nothing special so don't expect to be blown away by it, because it's not a film one can look upon with high expectations. 

I'm going to give this film a 5/10

1 Gold Star to Jesse Eisenberg

Thank you for reading this review, the next film that is in for the chop by me is 'Gulliver's Travels' starring Jack Black and whole guest cast of amazing characters. I will post that review on the Bank Holiday Monday the 27th of May 2013.

Enjoy the rest of the weekend, I will see you all again soon :)

Review - Iron Man 3

Iron Man 3 - Tony Stark can't sleep. As the world comes under threat by a formidable terrorist known as 'The Mandarin', Tony starts to rebuild his Iron Man suits, and form a retribution upon the threat of the world.

Hey Everyone, welcome to the newest Dr Film review. In today's review I shall be looking at the action packed conclusion to the Iron Man trilogy, starring Robert Downey Jr in the leading role of 'Tony Stark'.

I'm not a huge Iron Man fan, I have seen the first 'Iron Man' film and 'The Avengers' and judging by the trailer and all the publicity advertisisng for Iron Man 3, It looked to me, like it was going to be a good film.

SPOILER ALERT: As I talk about the film, there are going to be a few spoilers so If you haven't got round to seeing 'Iron Man 3' yet, and you don't want it to be spoiled, you should probably turn away now. however if you don't mind or have seen the film, then please continue reading, you may agree with my opinion or end up disagreeing completely.

This film was released in the USA on the 3rd of May 2013, and released in the UK on the 26th of April 2013.

I'm not in what cases put a 'Marvel' comic fan, I'm more of a 'DC' person. having said that Iron Man 3 was fantastic, it was visually spectacular especially in 3D. The story was strong, very well shot and a great watch all together, It really felt like a comic strip action adventure on the big screen, which to me made it believable, and with all the heavy action taking place, you end up being dragged along with the plot and just going with it and enjoying it for what it is - a good story.

The Storyline in tails Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr) having trouble sleeping and keeping his relationship together with his girlfriend Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) and matters take a turn for the worst, when an anonymous terrorist known as 'The Mandarin' in the form of 'Sir Ben Kingsly' starts attacking the economy. Aggravated and Antagonised by the attacks Tony threatens to kill the Mandarin live on televisison, he gives him his home address and that results in his home being ambushed and destroyed, by hostile forces, luckily Tony, Pepper and Maya manage to escape from the blast, and Tony becomes a cast out, with no Iron suits or ammunition to defend himself with.

And it is mainly about the journey, at every turn, that tests Tony and his limits. with his back up against the wall, Stark then knows he has to protect those closest to him. As he fights his way back, Stark discovers the answer to the question that has secretly haunted him since the day he became Iron Man : does the man make the suit? or does the suit make the man?. and at the end of the film, which raps everything up the audience is left with the answer of 'Tony Stark is Iron Man'.



I thought Robert Downey Jr, was electrifying to watch. those of you may know Robert Downey Jr from other films such as 'Sherlock Holmes' and 'Due Dare';  he with no doubt in my mind, out shone the rest of the cast by a clear mile. I thought Sir Ben Kingsley as The Mandarin was really good, Sir Ben Kingsley is best known for his portrayal of 'Gandhi' and the twist at the end when you find out he's not a feared terrorist he's actually just a twit - a stage actor. It made things comedic and balanced things out, and I thought it was clever the way they did that.

I also really liked Gwyenth Paltrow and Guy Pearce, they were both fantastic as well. particularly Guy Pearce as the main villain, who the leader of these 'Fire people' who I call 'The Invincibles' because they are invincible, you try to kill them and they re heal themselves, so killing them isn't an easy job. It was clear to me that Iron Man had met his match with 'The Invisibles'. Guy Pearce himself, very charming yet very fierce and quite disconcerting as well, so overall I was pleased with Guy Pearce, he took me by surprise as being a baddie.

 

The Visual effects and Shane Blacks directing I thought was precise and cleverly put together, It gave me as a viewer a great incite as to how technology has progressed and is progressing, so it taught me a few lessons which I didn't expect and I think it just goes to show that the one way one can truly learn is by observing, as they intake information they never thought they were going to.

I wasn't all that familiar with Shane Black as a director, but that didn't put me off from enjoying the film, he was quite a precise director and was very clear in his shot particularly in his action sequences, he knew what he wanted and delivered that. so I was impressed. 

In a nutshell, Iron Man 3 is absolutely fantastic, in terms of acting, in terms of visual effects, in terms of story telling, in terms of rounding things up. I was very impressed with the story. I left the cinema speechless.

I'm going to award 1 Gold Star to Robert Downey Jr , 1 Gold Star to Sir Ben Kingsley, 1 Gold Star to Gwyenth Paltrow, 1 Gold Star to Guy Pearce, 1 Gold Star to Rebecca Hall and 1 Gold Star to Don Cheadle

1 Platinum Star to Shane Black

I'm going to give 'Iron Man 3' an 8/10.

Thank you for reading this review, My next review is going to be 'The Social Network' - The Facebook film starring Jesse Eisenberg, Justin Timberlake and Bryan Barter and directed by David Fincher, I will post that review on Saturday the 25th of May 2013.

Review - Step Brothers

Step Brothers : A comedy about two aimless middle-aged men still living at home are forced against their will to become roommates and more motivated when their parents get married.



Hello Film fans, and welcome to the newest Dr Film review, today I am reviewing the comedy 'Step Brothers' starring Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly and directed by Adam McKay

SPOILER ALERT : As with all my reviews there will be spoilers so if you don't want things to be spoiled, you may want to read this review later.

This film was released in the USA on the 25th of July 2008, and was released in the UK on the 29th of August 2008.

The Story line is that of Brennan Huff (Will Ferrell) and Dale Doback (John C.Reilly) who are both about 40 years old. and when Brennan's mum and Dale's dad get married. The two sons who still live with the parents are forced  without choice to share a room. The household's peace is disturbed and the parents struggle in their relationship. 

It is then that Dad is forced to lay down the rules; both the slackers have a week to be motivated and find a job. Out of the job search and their passion of music comes a pact that leads and forms into a friendship but more domestic disarray is compounded by the boys' sleepwalking. 

Also in the picture are Brennan's highly successful brother and his lonely wife: his brother is eager to help sell his step-father's house, the wife wants Dale's attention, and the newlyweds want to pursue their dream and retire to sail the seven seas. Unfortunately Brennan and Dale's fun get in the way, and the dream is trashed. 

It is after the parents decide to break up and get divorced, that causes dispair with Brennan and Dale. Brennan and Dale then decide to grow up and get jobs, and it is getting jobs, that allows Brennan and Dale to conform an event to come together again at an event they set up to try and get the parents back together.

When disaster strikes Brennan and Dale step in and perform their music talents to save the event from being a total disaster.



In a nutshell, I found this film a really great laugh, very fun to watch, and was very enjoyable.

I thought that it was very precisely directed, with the challenges of comedy arisen to the best of it's abilities, certain techniques of Adam McKay's directing were different and daring which I liked, so I do think that Adam McKay's directing was very well achieved and worked as well as it could of done.

Will Ferrell and John C.Reilly I thought worked very well together, that brothers relationship was very believable and they way they approached the roles was great, they were silly they acted like 10 year olds, but in reality were 40 year olds. their relationships and the way they acted showed the value and responsibilities that a person must have in order to succeed in life. so I got the messages that this film, was trying to get across and approved of the ideas presented.



The Jokes were great, some jokes actually succeed well, and were very funny. the dialogue was very precise as well and current so the humour mixed in well with the dialogue in order to make the film flow to best way it could.

I liked 'Step Brothers' a very good watch and was very enjoyable and was a pleasure to see Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly in a film together.

1 Platinum Star to Adam McKay

I'm going to rate 'Step Brothers' 7/10

Thank you for reading this review, my next film review is going to be 'Iron Man 3' starring Robert Downey Jr, Gwyneth Paltrow and Sir Ben Kingsley and directed by Shane Black. I will post that review on Saturday the 24th of May 2013.

Review - Les Miserables

Les Miserables - The time is 19th-century France. Jean Valjean, a convict is been hunted by the ruthless police chief Javert after he breaks parole. It is after he finds his spiritual belief in god, he agrees to care for factory worker Fantine's daughter, Cosette. The fateful decision changes their lives forever.




 Hello Film fans, In today's review I  shall be reviewing the musical motion picture of 'Les Miserables'.


Adapted for screenplay by director Tom Hooper, who's work I praised for 'The Kings Speech'.



SPOILER ALERT: As ever, there will be spoilers as I talk about this film. so If you don't want 'Les Mis' to be spoiled, you may want to turn away now.

This film was released in the US on the 25th of December 2012, and was released in the UK on the 11th of January 2013. It is now available to purchase on DVD,Blu Ray and on I Tunes.


This film has absolutely no dialogue what so ever, every character in the film communicates through music, and all the characters sing everything. Which is true to the original musical it adapts, however this story is not like any normal musical. Plus as a fault characters often sing about things that could be just as easily done, by just talking normally.

The Story which those of you who have seen the film of the stage show will know, is that of Jean Valjean (Hugh Jackman), known as Prisoner 24601, is released from prison and breaks parole to create a new life for himself while evading the grip of the persistent Inspector Javert (Russell Crowe).

As we the audience follow Valjean's story, we meet other characters like Fantine 'Anne Hathaway' who is a factory worker who is fired after bringing an incriminating letter to work, she is a character of desperation and symbolises the poverty rates at the time of the 18th century. After loosing her job Fantine is forced to prostitute herself, as the only way to supply money for her daughter,In grief of her situation Valjean takes her to a doctor's care, where he promises to care for her daughter for her, Fantine then grows very weak and dies from sickness.

We are then introduced to Cossette, Fantines precocious child who is scared of the dark and lives with these two traders who own an Inn just outside of Paris. They're not very likable characters, not that interesting, considered to be humours characters. Valjean then takes Cosette into his own care and raises her as if she was his child.

It is then we are introduced to the June rebellion, more historical incites and graphic CGI crain shots to add emphasis of dramatic effect. we meet Marius (Eddie Redmyne) and Eponine (Samantha Barks) it is at this point forms of Love is communicated in the story. 'Strong Love' and 'Unrequintid Love' both portrayed brilliantly I thought it did what it needed.

Marius has his eyes on Cosette, but Eponine feels alone as she has feelings for Marius, feelings she knows she is never going to get back from him.

Valjean then hears word, that Javert is looking for him and flees with Cosette. Cosette of course knows nothing of Valjean's past and is eager to find out that information. But as battle rages out in blazing glory, casualties are made along the way, a lot of death and remorse is shown.

Valjean then hears trouble at the barricade, and goes to help, he saves Marius from being killed by the emotionless soldiers, and Marius and Cosette are reunited and married, soon after Valjean meets peace and dies. The Film closes dramatically with a powerful, emotional  Epilogue, which I approved of.



I'll be honest, I had high expectations for this film adaptation, as I hadn't seen the stage show and knew nothing about the story, so this film was my opportunity to gain knowledge and gain interest in the story.

In a nutshell it didn't do anything special for me. I don't wish my opinion to discredit the film in any way because the story is a musical masterpiece. I just felt let down. I struggled to understand basic outlines in the story, they're were a lot of plot holes, and above all that it was boring. I had no interest in the plot, by the time it got to the end of the film, I was just like 'what did I gain from watching that? - nothing'

I thought Hugh Jackman was wooden, and his singing was so irritating, very floored and over rated performance.

Russell Crowe, I liked. I absolutely fail to understand what Russell Crowe did wrong, he showed a man who has a true belief in what is right. he showed true emotion in his expressions and exhailed that in his singing.

Anne Hathaway was incredible, what frustrates me is the fact she didn't do a lot. because Anne Hathaway can sing. and she can show true emotion as well, so its a real shame she was killed off quite early in the story.

Eddie Redmayne was good, I liked him. he didn't get on my nerves which was something of an average performance.

Samantha Barks was good, but again she didn't do a lot, she had very little screen time.

Amanda Seyfried was odd, I didn't quite know what to think of here, considering she has strange qualities in her singing voice, it's was communicated to me as being beautiful to something quite strange.

Helena Bohnam Carter and Sacha Bahran Cohan were over used, they're characters were so overtly comedic that they just weren't funny, and they failed to convince me of a good performance, which I don't like when you have good actors you shouldn't waste them, you should bring out their talents not drown them in humour and have them wear stupid costumes and silly make-up.



The directing was a little below par, 2 and half hours of CGI crain shots and extreme close ups were a bit floored to say the least, I just had no care, wasn't something that great.


Overall 'Les Mis' let me down, it was a terrible shame, especially for me because I went in with high expectations.

I'm going to give this film a 6/10

1 Gold Star to Anne Hathaway
1 Silver star to Russell Crowe
1 Bronze Star to Samantha Barks

Thank you  for reading this review.  my next review will be 'Step Brothers' starring Will Ferrell and John C.Reilly I will post that review on Wednesday the 22nd of May 2013.

Review - The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby - Writer 'Nick Carraway' tells the story, of how he was once drawn to the past, and lifestyle of his millionaire neighbour. who to most people is the mysterious 'Mr Gatsby'.

 

Hello everyone, welcome to the next instalment of my film reviews. which is Baz Lurhmann's newest film on the market; starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey McGuire and Carey Mulligan in the leading roles. 'The Great Gatsby'.

SPOILER ALERT: I will be revealing a few spoilers, as I talk about the film. and I always respect the people who are not a fan of spoilers privacy, and recommend that those of you who don't want 'Gatsby' to be spoiled before you see it, to go off and see the film before reading this blog.

The film came out in America  on the 10th of May 2013, and was brought out in the UK on the 16th of May 2013.

Baz Lurhmann works his magic on 'The Great Gatsby' he directed it and also adapted the book for screenplay. Baz Lurhmann of course is best known for work he's done previously on 'Moulin Rouge' and 'Romeo and Juliet', so he's used to telling hard hitting love stories with a passion. there's always a meaning behind what he does, so he is a great storyteller.

I will start off this review by saying, the costumes and the music are flawless, no doubt about that. Lurhmann convinces the audience, that they are, where they are. 1922. he communicates this through make up, hair, accessories, dresses, suits, colour and perseverance in detail in the settings. the choice of locations were fantastic. which seems fitting because this film was filmed back in 2011 in Australia.

The Music was current to the 1920's but also had an upbeat hit to it so there was some identification of the music we have today and that was true to the setting and assisted in telling the story brilliantly. so I really liked the Music and the soundtrack, I thought they were both amazing.

This Film is an adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's Long Island-set novel, where Midwesterner Nick Carraway (Tobey McGuire) is lured into the lavish world of his neighbour, Jay Gatsby (Leonardo DiCaprio). A mysterious man who is a billionaire who runs elaborate and eccentric parties on weekends to attract the attention of a young woman he has loved for five years, and it soon enough, that Carraway sees through the cracks of Gatsby's life. where obsession, madness, and tragedy await.

The basic outline of the story is of two people, boy meets girl, who meet and fall deeply in love with each other and are separated apart due to some untimed happenstance, the girl is departed from her lover when she is stuck in the marriage of another man, and has no confidence to break out of it. when she is reunited with her lover she experiences that electrifying love she once had with him again, and gets the confidence to tell her husband she wants to leave him to be with the one she has always loved, but tragedy strikes when this happens and Gatsby suffers the consequences, those consequences of course are loosing the girl he always loved again.

The story is told through Tobey McGuire's character, those of you may know Tobey McGuire from 'The Spider man Trilogy' where he played 'Peter Parker'. I liked Tobey McGuire's performance, I didn't think he did a bad job. but I can't help but think another actor could have done a better job. if you take someone like 'James Franco' for example, he would of been great in the role of Carraway. However with that being said I can't discredit Tobey McGuire for a second, because to say his performance wasn't confident would be untrue. when is character was happy, he was happy. when his character was angry, he showed it. so he did very well in communicating the emotions needed, as his character was very much involved in the film and in the last aspects of Gatsby's life.

I thought that Leonardo DiCaprio could of been better; again he wasn't so bad, but I can pick out several performances he's done in the past which are so much better : 'Django Unchained' and 'Titanic' are two examples. Having said that like Leonardo DiCaprio a lot he was great at communicating emotions : facial expressions, his Body language, his posture, his frame of status (sometimes it would be 10 sometimes it would be 6) so I had clear identification with him, thought he was very bold in his performance and did everything current.

To me the best performance goes to Carey Mulligan. she not only is a pretty face, but her character of  Daisy Buchanan is quite a complicated character to come by because she's a woman of mixed emotions, and very few good actress can portray complex feeling in their performances. and when they do seize the challenge and rise to it, you believe in their that character, and you carry on believing until the end of the film, so to me she wasn't just 'Carey Mulligan' in the film. she was 'Daisy Buchanan'. A girl of mixed emotion who loves the thrill of adventure, but then again is a fragile young woman, who just wants to settle down and be protected. but then again what makes her character complex is when you struggle to understand how she feels, when she is feeling adventurous and when she is feeling stable.

Now the next thing, I have to talk about is the ending, and I can't talk about the ending without revealing the biggest spoiler of the film. It's the ending that raps everything up, and makes the viewer understand what happened earlier in the film. It took me a while to understand the ending, and I wasn't too sure of what to think of it having seen it.

Now I've had the chance to examine the ending with an open mind, and actually it makes the film, make sense. Gatsby is killed by some misunderstanding and he is the one who suffers the consequences at the end of the film. after he dies no one could care less and no one except Tobey McGuire's character attends the funeral. it is then you understand his disgust and you feel his anger at the start of the film, and all the loose ends are tied up.

This film can also be experienced in 3D, now having seen this film in 3D I have had an observant point of view on it. Is this film worth seeing in 3D? I'm going to be honest and say no. the effects don't work very well, the film itself doesn't work well, as much as I love seeing films in 3D, there isn't much of an edge with 'Gatsby' the only 3D effects 'Gatsby' has to offer is the opening and closing title sequence and that's all. so the effects in 3D are very disappointing.

In a nutshell, I liked 'The Great Gatsby' but I didn't love it. 

and it is for that reason, I'm going to give it a 6/10.

1 gold star to Carey Mulligan

1 Platinum star to Baz Lurhamann

Thank You for reading this review. I hope you go on an watch the film, because it is very good.

My next review will be 'Les Miserables - The Musical Picture' starring Hugh Jackman and Anne Hathaway. directed by Tom Hooper, and I will post that review on Monday the 20th of May 2013.

Review - The King's Speech

The King's Speech - A true story, of King George the sixth of Britain. the story of his impromptu ascension to the throne and the speech therapist who helped the unsure monarch become worthy of it.

 

Hello film fans, welcome to my newest film review blog.

Today's Blog is about 'The King's Speech'. A film based of the true story of King George the 6th; directed by British director Tom Hooper.

SPOILER ALERT: In all my reviews that I do. I will reveal a few spoilers, so if your one of those people who isn't a fan of things being spoiled, this blog isn't for you.

This film came to the USA's attention of the 24th of December 2010, and was viewed in Britain from the 7th of January 2011.

The Film tells the story of a man called Bertie who became King George the 6th (Colin Firth). the father of Queen Elizabeth the 2nd. He was named 'George' after his brother abdicates. but was nicknamed 'Bertie' as a family amusement. and he reluctantly assumes the throne.

Plagued by a dreaded stammer and low self esteem, he is considered unfit to speak in public, It is in his wife's interests (Helena Bohnam Carter) that Bertie engages the help of an unorthodox speech therapist named Lionel Logue (Geoffry Rush). Through a set of eccentric and unusual techniques, and as a result of an unexpected friendship, Bertie is able to find his voice, and boldly lead the country through World War 2.

I found this film to be incredibly moving, and inspiring. I think it is a film, that many young teenage viewers can learn from and give a lot more attention.

I thought the friendship at the end between Colin Firth and Geoffry Rush, was true. It's all very well saying it worked well, and they got on like a house on fire. but saying the relationship 'worked well' doesn't describe my point clear enough, I don't think. because for me, it did more than 'work well'. it was true. you believed in it. and it gave the audience a sense of realism, of what the real relationship with the real people, was about at the time the film was set.

I thought Colin Firth was fantastic, I know Colin Firth is regarded as being an over rated actor. but he had a tough challenge, trying act with a stammer. he really embraces the opportunity with both hands, and truly delvers. In facial expressions, his body language, his posture (a little body trapped in a grown man's body) so in every sense of the word, I can not fault Colin Firth's performance, he was perfect.

Geoffry Rush was incredible. but then again he's another over rated and fantastic actor, so one can expect no less. he has lots of talents which he brings out in his performance. I thought it was very serious in the role. but with a twinkle in his eye.

I liked the way things were set and shot it all worked successfully and accessibly. everything was very current to the late 30's / early 40's. the costumes were accurate and believably detailed. the music was carefully composed to communicate emotion through several characters, and when music wasn't needed, silence full filled scenes just as well.

I have to say as well that my favourite scene of the film, is when Lionel and Bertie first meet. and have their first conversation. I think that scene is one of the best scenes between two people I've ever seen in a film to date.

Now a few criticisms I have with this is film, were the fact that the genre wasn't clear. it seemed to me to be this Biographic Historical Drama, rather than just a Drama. I'd would of very much prefer it to be have been categorised as 'a drama' so the film had more of an identification as to what it was.

Another thing I didn't like with this film, is the matter of some scenes being slower than others. which unbalanced things a bit, to the point where I felt that things weren't escalating as well as they could.



Overall I really got the messages, that film wanted to get across. I benefited and approved of the friendship Lionel had with Bertie. and appreciated the fantastic acting from all of the cast.

I'm going to rate 'The King's Speech' - 9/10

1 Gold Star to Colin Firth, Geoffry Rush, Helena Bonham Carter and Tom Hooper
1 Platinum Star to Tom Hooper

Thank you for reading this review my next review is going to be 'The Great Gatsby' starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey McGuire and Carey Mulligan. and directed by Baz Lurhman. I will post that review on Saturday the 18th of May 2013.