Review - Cinema Voyage

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Well I am not exactly sure what I was expecting from Inglourious Basterds - but what I saw wasn't what I was expecting in the least. In fact it was so much better than I had anticipated. Quentin Tarantino is an imaginative and quirky film maker and while this film will not appeal to everyone, it certainly appealed to my warped sense of humour. And who else has the audacity to rewrite history focussing on Hitler and his downfall and create their very own revenge fantasy film?

The movie is set in Nazi-occupied France and focusses on Col Hans Landa (Christoph Waltz) who is responsible for sniffing out hidden Jews and killing them wherever they lie. His reputation precedes him and few ever survive if they come into close contact with Landa. One such survivor is Shosanna (Melanie Laurent) who manages to escape his clutches, although unfortunately for the rest of her family they met with a cruel and unnecessary death.

The title of the film itself refers to the "Basterds" a set of American guerilla soldiers led by gung-ho Lt. Aldo Raine (Brad Pitt) who sets out on their own mission which is basically to "be cruel to the Germans". As he himself says", You probably heard we ain't in the prisoner-takin' business; we in the killin' Nazi business. And cousin, Business is a-boomin'."

As the story progresses, the fate of the Basterds, Landa and Shosanna all meet up during an inaugural film opening at Shosanna's cinema. All the high powered Nazis including Hitler are due to congregate to honour the movie starring war hero Pvt Fredrick Zoller (Daniel Brühl) who also happens to be the star of the film. The Basterds have their own agenda to bring the cinema down and destroy the Germans, as does Shoshanna who is planning to seek revenge for the annihilation of her family. Diane Kruger appears in the movie as Bridget von Hammersmark, an actress and spy who is a key player to the Basterds ruthless plot.

Well by all accounts nothing goes according to plan and the plot leaves way for a multitude of possibilities and eventualities. Despite the unapologetic violence, there is humour in abundance and well as a beautiful cinematic quality to many of the scenes. A great way to while away a couple of hours.

"Monsieur LaPadite, to both your family and your cows I say: Bravo."

Voyage Review: 4/5

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Posted By: Michelle Sweeney - Category: Comedy

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Review - Traitor

December 14th 2009 09:33

Terrorist bombings, FBI agents - not a story you would expect to come from the pen of Steve Martin. But ever since I saw his play Picasso at the Lapin Agile and read Shopgirl, it is clear that he is a man who refuses to be pigeonholed.

Traitor opens in Sudan 1978 and then cuts to Yemen in present day, where we are introduced to Samir Horn (Don Cheadle) and subsequently taken on a journey across the globe to locations including England, Spain, Canada and France. Supported by an excellent cast including Guy Pearce, Said Taghmaoui and Jeff Daniels, the script by writer/director Jeffrey Nachmanoff is in competent hands.

Samir Horn is caught selling explosive devices in Yemen to known terrorists and finds himself hauled off to a desert prison. Enter FBI Agent Roy Clayton (Guy Pearce) and Max Archer (Neal McDonough) - typical good cop/bad cop - who are heading up an international terrorist investigation and offer Samir a deal, which he subsequently refuses to take. He is a devout Muslim and states early on that "life and death is for God to decide" making it clear that religion is his life and his motivation.

In prison he is taken under the wing of Omar and is advised of a plan to break out of prison. He is given a choice - he can go his own way or join Omar and his team of fundamentalists who are undertaking a mission of their own. He chooses to follow Omar and join their fight with agents Clayton and Archer continuously trying to hunt him down.

Seemingly realistic in plot and location, the film manages to capture the complexities of religion and terrorists. I especially liked the scenes involving the young fundamentalists and the portrayal of their unerring belief.

This film won't appeal to everyone and there are quite a few holes in the plot that are left uncovered. Don Cheadle carries the lead well in a riveting performance and the tagline of the film "the truth is complicated" captures the essence of the film well.

Voyage Review: 3/5

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Posted By: Michelle Sweeney - Category: Drama

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Review - Away We Go

December 3rd 2009 21:28

Verona De Tessant (Maya Rudolph) and Burt Farlander (John Krasinski) are two thirty-somethings adjusting to an unexpected pregnancy. In terms of their lifestyle, they have not quite matured from the casual lifestyle of their student days. Now with the impending birth of their baby in a couple of months they realise that it is now time to make the leap from just surviving in a house to truly making a home for themselves and their family. Knowing that raising a child is a big responsibility they venture out on a road trip in search of a perfect place to raise their child.

Not wanting to be isolated from their family or friends, they logically seek out locations in order that they can be near to them so their family will have an opportunity to bond with someone that they already know.

The two leads are well suited and it is easy to see why these two are together. They are a normal couple seemingly surrounded by quirky characters who eventually assist in helping the pair make the decision about where to finally settle. Despite the unprepared pregnancy this couple are willing to make the relationship and their family work whatever it may take.

The cast is well supported by Catherine O'Hara and Jeff Daniels as parents to Burt and caring grandparents to their unborn grandchild. Melanie Lynskey, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Allison Janney all give wonderful supporting roles as friends of the couple with one or more issues that seems to clash with the ideas of Burt and Verona. One thing you find out when you are pregnant is that everyone seems to be an expert on all pregnancy related issues however Burt and Verona have enough sense to realise that do not need any outside assistance in order to raise their child.

Overall this is a refreshingly funny and honest film about two people entering the unknown world of parenthood. Directed by Sam Mendes, he once again shows that he knows his craft, especially when it comes to movies focusing directly on relationships.

Voyage Review: 3.5/5

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Posted By: Michelle Sweeney - Category: Drama

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Review - 500 Days Of Summer

November 30th 2009 16:01

"This is a story of boy meets girl. The boy, Tom Hansen of Margate, New Jersey, grew up believing that he'd never truly be happy until the day he met the one... The girl, Summer Finn of Shinnecock, Michigan, did not share this belief...This is a story of boy meets girl, but you should know upfront, this is not a love story

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Posted By: Michelle Sweeney - Category: Comedy

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Review - Drag Me To Hell

November 22nd 2009 14:53

I was very keen to see Drag Me To Hell as I am a huge fan of the horror genre and had heard some pretty good feedback overall about the film. Starring Justin Long, Alison Lohman and David Paymer, Drag Me To Hell is surprisingly rated a PG-13 in the States, although seemed to warrant a MA 15 in Australia. Still for me, the movie worked and I had a fun time sitting back and watching Sam Raimi do his stuff.

Opening in 1969 and then moving to the current day, Christine Brown seems to be luckier than most. Having been raised in the country, she has managed to reinvent herself as a big city girl, owns a gorgeous house, has a successful Psychology Professor boyfriend and a steady job as a Loans Officer. She has her eye on a promotion to Assistant Manager although Stu Rubin (Reggie Lee) is also keen on the position and will do anything to enable himself to get the job

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Posted By: Michelle Sweeney - Category: Horror

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Review - My Sister's Keeper

November 15th 2009 14:47

There is no doubt that this is a sentimental piece directed by Nick Cassavetes, director of the similarly sentimental movie The Notebook. But somehow you cannot fail to be charmed by the actors particularly the performances of leukemia-stricken Kate, played by Sofia Vassilieva and Anna, the engineered daughter to provide parts for Kate, played by Abigail Breslin.

Based on the bestselling novel by Jodi Picoult, many readers of the book may be disappointed by the change in the ending, although I will refrain from giving away any spoilers. The movie is based around the Fitzgerald family. Cameron Diaz is Sara, who has given up a successful career as a lawyer to care for her sick daughter. Her husband, Brian (Jason Patric), a LA based firefighter has been unintentionally relegated to second place and seems to somehow play a lesser role in the family

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Posted By: Michelle Sweeney - Category: Drama

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Review - And When Did You Last See Your Father?

November 9th 2009 03:24

And When Did You Last See Your Father? is a well constructed emotional film highlighting the relationship between a father and son. Based on poet and author Blake Morrison's real life relationship with his dad, it represents the complexities, I am sure, of many relationships between that of father and son worldwide.

Forever striving for your father's affection and somehow failing to consistently reach it. Trying to prove yourself to a young girl only to have your father embarrass you out of the room. Matthew Beard as teenage Blake experiences this and more. However the relationship with his father Arthur (Jim Broadbent) becomes even more complicated when Blake suspects his father is having an affair with Aunt Beaty (Sarah Lancashire). He desperately wants to understand more about his father but his questions remain unanswered driving Blake and Arthur further apart as they grow older

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Posted By: Michelle Sweeney - Category: Drama

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Review - Mary and Max

November 7th 2009 16:12

This little gem of a clay-mation movie missed me when it did it's original rounds and I am glad that I finally got to view the film. Written, directed and created by Australian born Adam Elliot, he has painstakingly created a wonderful story about a young girl growing up in Australia who befriends a 44 year old New Yorker via the postal system.

Max and Mary captures a unique friendship between two unlikely characters - namely Mary Daisy Dinkle and Max Jerry Horovitz. Mary is voiced by Bethany Whitmore and Toni Collette during her childhood and grown up stages respectively and Max Jerry Horovitz is wonderfully captured by Philip Seymour Hoffman. Firstly I loved the fact that a film captured the excitement of writing and waiting for a letter. I think it is such a shame that children will do most of their communication by email as it manages to take away all the charm and essence of our personalities. I recall fondly writing to penpals abroad and waiting to see what goodies and sweets they would send me from their home countries. And as both Max and Mary have a sweet tooth they take the same enjoyment in writing and sending chocolates to one another.

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Posted By: Michelle Sweeney - Category: Drama

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Review - Where The Wild Things Are

November 4th 2009 15:31

I recall vividly the book written by Maurice Sendak from my childhood and therefore was very keen to see how the movie played out. I actually attended this movie as part of a school excursion in order to supervise my kindergarten aged daughter and I feel that overall I was more impressed than she was.

Max (Max Records), as in the book version, likes to play out his fantasies and dress up as a monster. He is particularly frustrated at home and requires an outlet to let his imagination fly. His mother, a single mum (Catherine Keener), is unable to shower as much attention as she would like due to her job. And when she is taking time off work, she is trying to balance her family and work life in order to spend time with her boyfriend (Mark Ruffalo

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Posted By: Michelle Sweeney - Category: Drama

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Review - Whatever Works

November 1st 2009 03:16

Admittedly this movie won't appeal to all but as an avid Woody Allen fan, I enjoyed the return of the bitter Manhattan based Jew waging a personal war against the world.

Boris Yellnikoff (Larry David) considers himself a genius (he tells us at every opportunity he gets) and lets everyone around him know that he was considered for a Nobel prize in Physics. He suffers from anxieties (a la Woody Allen's numerous characters) and after a failed suicide attempt, prefers to live a simpler life free from all the trappings that only further unhappiness and suffering in people's lives

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Posted By: Michelle Sweeney - Category: Comedy

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Review - Surrogates

October 27th 2009 17:35

The question, "if a movie was made about your life, who would play the starring role" is deemed irrelevant in the world of Surrogates as your surrogate of choice would essentially play yourself. But admittedly it wouldn't be much of a life, as you are wired up in bed, watching your life play out before you. It may be glamourous for a while but in the long term it must get terribly dull not being able to associate with real human beings.

Bruce Willis is suffering from this dilemma. He is policeman Tom Willis who uses a surrogate (complete with a head of hair) to perform his day to day duties protecting his real self from the danger and action his job entails. However Tom is not happy. He is grieving after the death of his son and is hungering for some real life attention from his wife Maggie (Rosamund Pike) who is hooked on the use of surrogacy for all facets of her life. Her and everyone else it seems as we are informed that 98% of the world's population uses a surrogate - yes you will need to suspend your belief to even imagine that this could occur

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Posted By: Michelle Sweeney - Category: Sci-Fi

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Review - Public Enemies

October 23rd 2009 04:09

Gangsters are often romanticised in movies but with Michael Mann's Public Enemies he just tells it like it is. Shot in a stylised manner, it has character but overall I felt the movie lacked depth.

Johnny Depp is the notorious John Dillinger, enemy of the state who robs from the banks although not from the people. This is his story in parallel with the story of his captor Melvin Purvis (Christian Bale), the FBI agent under appointment by J Edgar Hoover to hunt down and kill Dillinger and other criminals like him

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Posted By: Michelle Sweeney - Category: Drama

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Review - Shrink

October 20th 2009 14:20

Kevin Spacey is Henry Carter, a LA based shrink with numerous problems of his own. Trying to overcome his own demons due to the recent death of his wife, he struggles to maintain his own sanity while treating those around him. Ironically he is a celebrity in his own right having recently published a book entitled, "Don't Feel Sad".

The film centres around Henry's relationship with that of his patients, in particular, Jemma (Keke Palmer), a girl who is struggling to come to terms with the death of her mother. Her school has decided that she should visit a shrink due to an "occurrence" in the school washroom and she ends up in the office of Robert Carter (Robert Loggia), Henry's father who also happens to be a shrink. Robert decides that it would be worthwhile for both of them if he sees Henry and thus the relationship which is the crux of the movie begins

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Posted By: Michelle Sweeney - Category: Drama

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Review - The Brothers Bloom

October 16th 2009 04:11

When I initially posted the preview of The Brothers Bloom back in May I stated that I thought it would be a lot of fun. And from the narrated outset of the movie it was. Clever - definitely. However in the end the cleverness wore me out slightly and I had really given up caring about the characters and their future together.

Mark Ruffalo and Adrien Brody are brothers - Stephen and Bloom. Passed from foster home to foster home, they discover that Stephen has a knack for knowing what people will do in a given set of situations and creating complicated cons to worm money and even love from unsuspecting victims. As the movie develops it soon becomes clear that even the audience are part of the victims as it becomes difficult to determine what is a con and what is real

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Posted By: Michelle Sweeney - Category: Comedy

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