Because Everybody Else Has One

I definitely couldn't let this one go without at least a quick - or not so quick - look in.  The first thing that's worth mentioning about this not particularly eagerly anticipated remake of the classic 1995 anime is that it's really nowhere near as bad as it could have been. The second is that, as someone who liked the original anime but is far from a diehard fan of it, my opinion might not matter all that much to those who greeted the news of this remake with the most trepidation. I also haven't read the original manga and my only experience of the ever-widening world of Ghost in the Shell (there was a new animated film released as recently as 2015) beyond the original anime is catching an episode of the Stand Alone Complex TV shows back when they were shown quite regularly as part of an anime block on one of South Africa's long-defunct Sattelite channels. I know enough, however, to know that a different take on Masamune Shirow's original manga is prett...

No octopuses were harmed in the making of this movie... This review is also up at Channel 24 What it's about An amoral advertising executive is kidnapped and held in captivity for twenty years. When he is finally unceremoniously and unexpectedly released, he embarks on a trail of violence and vengeance to find out who kidnapped him and why. What we thought The original Oldboy, released way back in 2003, is a South Korean cult classic that took the psychological thriller in a bold and unprecedented demented new direction that made its American contemporaries look almost immediately tired and uninspired by comparison. Like the best cult movies, it isn't perfect and it alienated anyone who wasn't ready for anything quite so full on, but it was a smart, stylish and viscerally engrossing piece of work that may have been based on an already existing manga (Asian comic book) but always felt entirely fresh and original. It was also, quite easily, one of the decade'...

This was a pretty big week for movies. Some are great, some are terrible and some fall right in between. Ladies and gentlemen... Kevin Hart's 568th film this year! And it's only March! This review is also up at Channel 24 What it's about A remake of the 1980s film of the same name, which was itself based on the David Mamet play Sexual Perversity in Chicago, About Last Night follows the ups and downs of the relationships between two couples as we follow them from their first introductions in a bar to their sexual dalliances that soon turn into long-term committed relationships. What we thought Despite initial appearances to the contrary, the interesting thing about About Last Night is that it is not merely a pointless remake that exists purely as some sort of politically correct stunt where it tells the same story but with black characters in place of the uber-Caucasian Brat Pack cast of the original. Or, at the very least, if political correctness was actually ...

Sorry for the lack of updates this week but I should have a bunch of new content coming soon. Lets start off with this week's biggest and worst film. No wait, sorry, I'm not reviewing the latest Tyler Perry film because I haven't seen it, nor the new Tinker Bell movie for the same reasons, but I'm sure they're masterpieces. Still, this is definitely the worst of the next crop of films that I will be reviewing. This review is also up  in more spacious form (my editor likes paragraphs more than I do) at Channel 24 .    What it's about Douglas Quaid (Colin Farrell) thinks he's an ordinary guy, with a boring job and a beautiful, loving wife but when his strong desire to travel to Mars leads him to Rekall, a company that fulfils its clients wildest dreams by implanting fake memories, he soon finds out that his whole life is a lie. What we thought Back when it was originally announced, we were promised that this new version of Total Recall would...

So, it's been a while since I have updated the blog (apparently it's really easy to get lazy when on holiday by the sea - who knew?) so here are some quick, no frills reviews of a bunch of films that came out over the past few weeks.  Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows If you enjoyed Guy Ritchie's first crack at Sherlock Holmes then you'll probably like this. It sags significantly in the middle as the old Ritchie self-indulgence takes centre-stage with just one too many explosive set pieces but the witty character interplay between Holmes and Watson is as fun as ever and Jared Hess' Moriarty makes for a perfect villainous counterpoint to Holmes' genius detective. And having a bit of Stephen Fry comic relief never hurts either. (7/10)  

Originally posted at Channel24 , here's my review of a very, very befuddling remake. What it's about: A remake of the 1970s cult-classic, Straw Dogs tells the story about a young screenwriter and his wife (played by James Marsden and Kate Bosworth) who relocate to the small southern town where she grew up. What was intended as a quiet getaway for him to work soon becomes something far more sinister as the couple are harassed with increasing intensity by the town's locals. What we thought: Before so much as broaching the subject of the film's worth – or lack thereof – based on its own merits, one first has to deal with that great white elephant in the room: Why on God's green earth would anyone want to remake Straw Dogs in the first place?

My second review from Channel24 this week of a film that I really, really like. Also, I will be starting to use a far less clunky star-rating graphic, which should hopefully make the ratings themselves far clearer. Hopefully, I will get round to bringing all my old reviews in line as well. These new graphics come courtesy of my good friend Chaim Ehrlich so you have him to thank for making this blog just that much more user friendly. Thanks again, Chaim! What it's about:   A remake of the 1985 horror-comedy cult classic in which a teenager tries to convince his friends and family that his next door neighbour is actually a vampire. What we thought: Fright Night may be yet another in a long line of cynical attempts to cash in on beloved horror films from other countries ( The Ring , Let The Right One In ) or Hollywood's own past (take your pick) but this is one remake that actually equals or surpasses the original in every way. Every way, that is, except for...

Starting off the weekend with a review of what was a very pleasant surprise... From Channel24 What it's about: Taking the old franchise back to its origins, Rise of the Planet of the Apes tells the story of how a potential miracle cure for Alzheimers disease ends up giving the apes on whom it is tested, human-levels of intelligence - setting up a chain of events that would forever alter mankind's supremacy as earth's dominant species. What we thought: It was hard not to walk into Rise of the Planet of the Apes without at least some trepidation. The previous attempt to revive the franchise was 2001's dire Tim Burton "re-imagining", which still rates as the worst thing he has ever done and ensured that no further attempts would be made throughout the rest of the decade. Here we are, though, ten years later and rather than remaking the series, they're doing something even more dubious: they're giving us the backstory that led to th...