Review: Birdman (2014)

Birdman is one of the most highly praised films to come along in recent months. I had been very keen to see this. I did sit in wonder at the technical achievement of making this film look like it is all done in one take, but, I did not fall in love with the movie itself.

Keaton plays a former major star that is now mounting a Broadway play. He's on a comeback of sorts, and feels the need to ensure he's still somebody. He was the star of a hugely popular series of films - Birdman. I did like that Keaton played this role, it was almost like he was poking fun at himself (he was Batman), whilst the film seems to satirise or poke fun at everything else from actors, directors, producers, critics and the whole merry go round of that world. It is classed as a dark comedy. 

Keaton plays his role well, as do the mega support cast. We've got Emma Stone, Edward Norton, Naomi Watts, Zach Galifianakis and Andrea Riseborough all contributing with some great performances. The cinematography, as mentioned before, is very well handled. My mate was getting a bit sea sick at the start with all the camera movement and seemingly no cuts to shots, but, I had no issues with it. I sat there trying pick where the cuts were, as many have and will do. 

As a whole, I found the film interesting, but never really fell in love with what I was watching. I enjoyed the interactions Keaton has with each character, particularly his confrontations with Norton's character. In the end, my mate and I both looked at each other and were like "ok". I honestly didn't know what to think, and in some ways, I still don't. It is a bizarre film. A true arty farty type pic, with lots of potential analysis and discussion to be had. I may revisit on dvd sometime down the track, when all the hype has died down. For now though, I can appreciate the fuss, but it's not for me. 

Rating:

3 out of 5.

Review: Kingsman: The Secret Service (2015)

I found out the night before seeing this film that I had won tickets to a premiere screening. What a delight that was, as this is definitely a film I was wanting to check out upon release. Was I disappointed? Hell no.

Colin Firth stars as a member of a secret society of spies, known as the Kingsman. These guys report to no one, so have the added benefit of no political angle. They're secret peacekeepers. They get no glory, just the satisfaction of having done good. After the loss of one of their own, they have to recruit another. Firth's candidate is a young and brash, almost hoodlum type. He's not had the best of lives, but, for reasons you will see, Firth owes it to him to help out.

The recruits are in training, whilst technology genius Samuel L Jackson is plotting an evil plan to 'help' the world. It's simple plotting, but the execution is great. Director Matthew Vaughn (Kick Ass, X-Men: First Class) has constructed an intelligent, witty, funny, balls-to-the-wall action-spy-comedy that will knock your socks off. It is hell violent, and is definitely not for the stuck up types. You got to have a sense of humour with this one, otherwise you're not going to enjoy it. 

If you've seen Kick-Ass, then you know what to expect. He's taken the violence and comedy of that and melded it with some of the style and class of X-Men: First Class to create a truly enjoyable film. Firth is just amazing. He's perfecto as the super spy that is cool and suave, and violent when necessary. The young recruit of his is newcomer Taron Egerton. He does a great job of matching it with Firth, and shows some good promise as an actor. Mark Strong and Michael Caine play support roles, and both are as you would expect - excellent. Jackson as a super villain - great stuff.

I sat in giddy wonder as the events unfolded on screen. I think the ending was perhaps a bit overboard, but it is a minor complaint. I enjoyed the nods to the James Bond series. This is not trying to emulate it or even make too much fun of it, but it merely wants to join the party as a great spy series. It certainly has the makings, and there is always room for cool spy flicks.

Rating:

4 out of 5.

Review: Big Hero 6 (2014)

Got to the cinema complex with seeing The Imitation Game as the reason for being there. A massive queue awaited us, and it was sold out. So, the only other film I was reasonably keen for (it was a toss up between Imitation and this) was Big Hero 6. I'd heard good things on social media. 

And well, it was like fate. I absolutely loved Big Hero 6. It was funny, fun, superbly animated and just had plenty of heart to it. You may have gathered, if you've read many of my reviews, I'm about the emotion sometimes. This just gave me the warm fuzzies, with a bit of a tear too. 

I had no idea what this film was about. I had seen a couple of short trailers a few months ago, so I knew it was about a kid and his marshmallow like robot. I thought, yeah, that looks cool. Our kid is Hiro, and he is a genius. A genius that is squandering his talent until his brother convinces him to try out for the same nerd school he attends. Right from the get go though, I was drawn in. Hiro plays around in the underground world of bot fighting. These early scenes of a futuristic city and cool toys had me glued. 

Hiro comes into contact with Baymax, his brother's invention. The two bond, sort of, and adventure ensues. Now, I'm glazing over major plots points, but, add in a bad guy to the mix, and this turns into a superhero adventure. This, I did not expect, so I was pleasantly surprised. 

The elements that make up the story all seem familar. There's probably nothing really original here, with influences from other similar genre pictures apparent. But, that didn't really bother me. I was really caught up in Hiro's journey, mainly because of his partnership with Baymax. Baymax is just the coolest robot we've ever seen (well, one of at least). He's the sidekick we'd all love to have. Cute, lovable and just damn neat. If he doesn't warm your heart, then you're a cold son of a bitch. 

Although you could complain about originality, you just got to let go and have fun with it. I really enjoyed myself watching this film. It's got plenty of heart to it (there I go again) and is excellent entertainment for all ages. 

Rating:

4.5 out of 5.

Review: The Water Diviner (2014)

Russell Crowe stars in and directs this Australian historical drama. Set after the events of WW1, Crowe plays the father to 3 sons, killed in the war. As a promise to his wife, he goes to Gallipoli in Turkey to bring their bodies home.

Crowe has assembled a stellar cast, and shot this film in quite authentic locales. I occasionally had a mini series or telemovie feel about this, but that doesn't take away from the heart of the story. The film itself is very good, and engaging. It serves as a suitable dedication to Australian history, and shows that both the Turkish and ANZACS suffered greatly. The leaders of the armies from Turkey are by no means shown to be heartless, in fact, they probably had more heart than our allies.

Unfortunately, I didn't feel any sort of greatness when watching the film. There is a subplot with a hotel owner (played by Kurylenko) that is occasionally weird. I see what Crowe was trying to do here, but, it came off as a bit ho hum for me. Overall, a very good feature debut as Director for Crowe.

Rating:

3.5 out of 5.

Top Films for 2014

Well 2014 was a bumper year with 302 films watched, although it was only the first year I have been tracking number of films. So, who knows, I could have done more in previous years. Out of the 302, I have selected 31 (shown below) of the 2014 Australian release date films that I rated 4 stars or more out of 5. Of the list below, the top 6 are: Her, Begin Again, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Blue is the Warmest Colour and The Normal Heart. These 6 films are ones I gave at least 4.5 out of 5 to. The others, well, I could spend all day trying to sort them in order of preference, but, I won't. Not all of these films are critical darlings either (notice the inclusion of Transformers: Age of Extinction).

If you're interested to see my full list of films watched in 2014, here is a complete list.