Bride Wars [PG]

Emma and Liv have been best friends since childhood and have been there for each other through good times and bad. Both girls share a dream: to have June weddings at the Plaza. Within hours of each other, the two get engaged and the girls plan their perfect weddings together. But then, a critical error occurs in setting the dates with their perfect days being double booked, and this pits the girls against each other in a scrap that soon turns into a all-out war to ruin the other one’s special day. 

This movie came out after the success of 27 Dresses, when it seemed that marriage-themed comedies would become all the rage. I have to say though that this really is a sad and trying film that harbours little or no moments of comedy gold and the only thing that really kept it afloat was the performances and chemistry between the two leading ladies. Otherwise, Bride Wars was a mild and almost pointless film that I am fine to have seen once and once alone. 

Emma and Liv have been best friends since childhood and have been there for each other through good times and bad. Both girls share a dream: to have June weddings at the Plaza, the ultimate bridal venue. Within hours of each other, the two get engaged and the girls plan their perfect weddings together. But then, a critical error occurs in the date-setting, with their perfect days being double booked, and this pits the friends against each other in a scrap that soon escalates into an all-out war to ruin the other one’s special day. 

As I mentioned before, there is little to rave about in this film. The story is pretty mundane and predictable, the conflicts were neither funny nor dramatic, and the ending, although somewhat nice and warming, was really just fluff. It is possible to have too much sugar in your tea you know. The only thing that kept this movie afloat was the performances from the film’s heroines. 

Kate Hudson was really good at playing the aggressive, bitchy, and vane Liv, and watching her continuously nibbling on various eccentric treats was actually kind of funny. 

Anne Hathaway who played Emma was a little more reserved and, I think, struggled a little bit. I love Anne Hathaway, she has a natural flare that cannot be ignored and in this film she had to be more of a plain Jane, which is just not her. She played the part well enough and I still love her, but the character just wasn’t the best one for her. 

Starring Bryan Greenberg, Chris Pratt, Steve Howey, Kristen Johnston, Michael Arden, and Candice Bergen, Bride Wars was a trying film that was filled with catfights, nasty pranks, romance, sweets, and friendship. I’ll say that it’s worth watching, if you want an afternoon of mindless fluff, but it’s not a film that I would recommend or add to the collection. 

Strangers On a Train [M]

Guy Haines, famous tennis player, meets an innocuous stranger named Bruno Anthony, on a train ride to his hometown. Both men have a person in their lives that they would rather be without: Guy, his trampy wife, and Bruno, his domineering father. As the two idly chat, Bruno puts forward the idea to commit the perfect murder, by simply swapping victims. Guy brushes off this crazy idea, but soon after, his wife is murdered and Bruno begins blackmailing him into fulfilling his side of the bargain. 

Another classic from possibly the cleverest filmmaker in cinematic history: Alfred Hitchcock. Strangers On a Train is a wonderfully chilling film that’s packed with suspense, murder, blackmail, and all things that make you shiver. It’s bloody brilliant. 

Guy Haines, a famous tennis player, meets an innocuous stranger named Bruno Anthony, on a train ride to his hometown. Both men have a person in their lives that they would rather be without: Guy, his trampy, conniving wife, and Bruno, his domineering father. As the two idly chat, Bruno puts forward the idea of committing the perfect murder: by simply swapping victims. Guy brushes this notion off as a crazy idea, but soon after that, his wife is murdered and Bruno begins blackmailing him into fulfilling his part of the bargain. 

What makes Hitchcock such a great filmmaker? He uses things very simply and leaves the audience to their own devices. Case in point, one of the most spine-tinglingly spooky scenes in this film is one in which Guy is on the sidelines of a tennis game and Bruno catches his eye. The camera just focuses on that section of the crowd, all moving their heads in unison to follow the game; all except Bruno who remains stock still, staring at Guy. One of the simplest scenes in the entire film and yet it’s the most powerful. 

There are three key elements that Hitchcock seems to favour in many of his films: a good, solid story filled with intrigue and some comedy, a group of good, solid, but subtly colourful actors, and finally, a haunting and dramatic soundtrack that accurately creates the feeling of certain tension and suspense. Strangers On a Train had them all. 

It has to be said at this point that the show did belong to Robert Walker, who played Bruno. He was just such a good baddy. On the surface, he was charming and there was a subtle magnetism about him, but then, as you talk to him more and more, you begin to see this dark and deranged side of him. It really was like a snake hiding in the rose bush. Absolutely brilliant. 

Starring Farley Granger, Ruth Roman, Leo G. Carroll, Patricia Hitchcock, Kasey Rogers, Marion Lorne, Jonathan Hale, Howard St. John, John Brown, Norma Varden, and Robert Gist, Strangers On a Train was another classic Hitchcock film that has earned its place in The Book. Filled with action, suspense, romance, dark comedy, and one of the most intriguingly elegant murder scenes in cinematic history, it’s a real killer. 

The Time Machine [M]

Teacher and scientist, Alexander Hartdegen is easily distracted when it comes to new gadgets and mechanical treats. But then he meets Emma, and decides to propose. However, on the night of his proposal, a tragic accident occurs and poor Alexander finds himself asking that timeless, plaguing question: what if? So he builds a time machine to go back and change the past, but in doing so he discovers a few things that will both shock and enlighten him in his quest for an answer. 

Based on the novel by H. G. Wells, The Time Machine is one of the more noble and inspiring time travel stories to grace our screens. Filled with action, adventure, romance, and a few truths, it’s both a rollicking and thought-provoking look at what happens when we try to control the uncontrollable. 

Teacher and scientist, Alexander Hartdegen is easily distracted when it comes to new gadgets and mechanical treats. But then he meets Emma, falls in love, and decides to propose. However, on the night of his proposal, a tragic accident occurs and poor Alexander finds himself asking that timeless and plaguing question: what it? So he builds a time machine to travel back and change the past, but in doing so he discovers a few things that will both shock and enlighten him on his quest to find an answer. 

Unlike Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and Back to the Future, which both use time travel to create great sequences of comedy as well as demonstrate the gravitas and danger of taking control of our own destinies, The Time Machine was a much more noble, dramatic, and more thought-provoking insight into what potentially can happen when heroes meddle with time. What begins as a simple goal to change one event in the past, quickly escalates into a desperate attempt to save what can be saved of the future. 

The dazzling special effects that are used to bring to life a technically advanced stage of human evolution and then a more primitive one, greatly depict the central message of how mankind will eventually become too drunk on our own sense of intelligence and power, and end up destroying ourselves. It’s been said time and time again for years and years and it’s only with cool special effects, created by our own genius, that can set our minds whirring to start processing the message. Go figure. 

Starring Guy Pearce, who was irresistible in that dapper period of history, Samantha Mumba, Mark Addy, Sienna Guillory, Phyllida Law, Omero Mumba, Orlando Jones, and Jeremy Irons, The Time Machine was a both a rollicking and a thought-provoking sci-fi flick that’s packed with action, adventure, gadgets, amazing special effects, romance, and truth. It’s definitely a film that’s worth watching, even just once, because it visually pleases you as well as causes your mind to really think. 

Scooby Doo 2 Monsters Unleashed [PG]

Over the years, Mystery Inc has solved all manner of mysteries, saving town after town from ghoulish fates. But now they face their most challenging mystery yet as one of their former foes steals the costumes the gang has donated to a local museum and uses them to make the monsters for real. With real monsters terrorising them left, right, and centre, and the press out to turn the town against them, Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy, and Scooby are in for their most creepiest and toughest battle ever. 

This movie is just as much fun as the first one, if not more so. With more monsters, more comedy, and more familiar faces, Scooby Doo 2 Monsters Unleashed is wicked fun the family. 

Over the years, Mystery Inc has solved all manner of mysteries, saving town after town from ghoulish and grim fates. But now they face their most challenging mystery yet as one of their former foes steals the costumes the gang has donated to a local museum and uses them to make the monsters for real. With real monsters terrorising them left, right, and centre, and the press out to turn the town against them, Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy, and Scooby are in for their most creepiest and toughest adventure yet. 

All the guys are back reprising their roles from the first movie and, without a doubt, the film still belongs to Matthew Lillard. 

What I think was a bit better about this film was that the personal dramas and internal struggles of the gang members were a little more pronounced. That and that the basic story was a little more in keeping with the original mysteries of the cartoon series. Although the bad guy uses a combination of both magic and science, in the end it was much more like the cartoon series than the first movie, which had random monsters that were real and had no explanation as to what they were or why they were even in existence. 

There is a lot more comedy packed into this film, some of which got a little more mature than that of the first film, which makes this movie all the more enjoyable as a family film. 

Starring Freddie Prinze Jr. Sarah Michelle Gellar, Matthew Lillard, Linda Cardellini, Seth Green, Peter Boyle, Tim Blake Nelson, and Alicia Silverstone, Scooby Doo 2 Monsters Unleashed is a fun movie packed with adventure, action, monsters, romance, and heaps of comedy. Love it. 

The Little Rascals [G]

Spanky and his best friend Alfalfa are the leading rascals in a boys club called the He-Man Woman Haters. For five years the group has played tricks on girls and basked in the glory on winning the annual go-cart derby every year. But this peaceful life of woman-hating takes a downward turn when Alfalfa falls in love with Darla, the boys’ clubhouse is destroyed, and their prized go-cart is stolen by neighbourhood bullies. How can they rebuild all that they’ve lost and win the race? To make matters worse, Alfalfa’s manhood is threatened when new-boy-in-town, Waldo begins wooing Darla. 

I used to love this movie as a child and I still love it today, though for a different reason. It’s one of those films that really appeals to two types of audiences because one group only sees the physical comedy and the other group sees the cleverness and truthfulness of the entire thing. It’s just great. 

Spanky and his best friend Alfalfa are the leading rascals in a boys club called the He-Man Woman Haters. For five years the group has played tricks on girls and basked in the glory of winning the annual go-cart derby every year. But Spanky and Alfalfa’s peaceful life of friendship and woman-hating is severely shaken when Alfalfa falls in love with Darla, the boys’ clubhouse is destroyed, and their prized go-cart is stolen by neighbourhood bullies. How can the boys rebuild all that’s been broken and win the race? And to make matters worse, Alfalfa’s manhood is threatened when the rich new-boy-in-town, Waldo begins wooing Darla. 

Based on an old television series, which I’ve never actually seen an episode of, The Little Rascals appeals to two audiences, as I mentioned before. On the junior side of the table, it’s really a kids’ movie as all the heroes and heroines are under ten years old, making their way in the big world, and adults have minimal roles and influence, which is probably why there were a few surprising adult cameos in this film. Kids love the fact that they can relate to the heroes and they love the physical comedy of the film; slapstick, schadenfreude, and just general funny visual gags. 

Adults, or at least tragic adults like me, enjoy this movie solely for the fact that it’s a delightful look at that age of childhood innocence, when they can say absolutely anything, even if they don’t really know what they mean, and make it sound both convincing and very funny. The script was very funny as you hear all these kids, each of which are very memorable characters, say the darndest things and the innocence behind it is so cute and powerful that you cannot help but smile and give a little chuckle. 

Starring Travis Tedford, Kevin James Woods, Jordan Warkol, Zachary Mabry, Ross Elliot Bagley, Courtland Mead, Sam Saletta, Blake Jeremy Collins, Blake McIver Ewing, Brittany Ashton Holmes, Bug Hall, and featuring great cameos from Mel Brookes, Whoopi Goldberg, Daryl Hannah, Reba McEntire, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Raven Symone, Lea Thompson, Donald Trump, and George Wendt, The Little Rascals is a great little movie filled with friendship, mischief, romance, comedy, and thrills. It’s childish, but it’s still remarkably enjoyable. 

Just Go With It [M]

Upon backing out on the night of his own wedding, Danny Maccabee discovers the ultimate way to meet women: keep the ring on and pretend to be in a dysfunctional marriage. And this all works fine until he meets the girl of his dreams and his little marriage lie backfires. Desperate to keep this girl, Danny enlists the help of his office assistant Katherine who has to pretend to be his soon-to-be-ex-wife. But more lies backfire and before he knows it, Danny is off to Hawaii with the girl of his dreams as well as Katherine and her children for a strenuous weekend that will test the limits of how far he’ll go for love. 

To be honest, I was expecting absolutely nothing from this movie when I rented it out. I’m not the biggest fan of Adam Sandler, I think he’s all right but in small doses, and Jennifer Aniston isn’t my kind of girl either, but I have to say that I was actually rather surprised by how romantically nice and funny this film was. It just goes to show that first impressions are not always correct, you should never judge a book by its cover, and any other clichéd first impressionistic morals that you can think of. 

Upon backing out on the night of his own wedding, Danny Maccabee discovers the ultimate way to meet woman: keep the ring on and pretend you’re in a dysfunctional marriage. And this all works fine until he meets the girl of his dreams and his little marriage lie backfires. Desperate to keep this girl, Danny enlists the help of his office assistant Katherine, who has to pretend to be his soon-to-be-ex-wife. But more lies backfire and before he knows it, Danny is off to Hawaii with the girl of his dreams, Katherine and her two children for a strenuous weekend that will test the limits of how far he’ll go love. 

The story is classic comedy right from the off, that whole truth about how a little white lie can grow bigger and bigger and eventually come back and bite you in the arse instantly gets a laugh. There are heaps of great moments of schadenfreude in this film that both causes the audience to laugh, but at the same time squirm with empathy, as we go “oh no”. 

Although the two names Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston dominate the DVD cover, the real stars of the show were the two children, played brilliantly by Bailee Madison and Griffin Gluck. Both kids gave star performances that were both memorable and wonderfully funny. The other person who deserves some recognition is Nick Swardson who played Eddie. You may remember Nick as Hector the psychofan from Blades of Glory and in Just Go With It, he delivers another hilarious and admirably memorable performance. 

Also starring Brooklyn Decker, Dave Matthews, Kevin Nealon, Allen Covert, Rachel Dratch, and Nicole Kidman (which really surprised me), Just Go With It was a surprisingly good movie that was filled with lies, awkwardness, memorable characters, romance, and all types of comedy. What more can I say? I was really surprised by it. 

Something Borrowed [M]

Rachel is a talented attorney, an exceedingly generous and loyal friend, and unhappily single, as her engaged, best friend Darcy is constantly reminding her. But after one too many drinks at her 30^th birthday celebration, she wakes up the next morning in bed with a guy named Dex, whom she has had a crush on since law school and, unfortunately, is Darcy’s fiancé. Now Rachel is fighting a conflicting battle as her loyalty and love for Darcy collides with true love, and it’s a battle that will unearth some unexpected truths and a few romantic revelations. 

Like How Do You Know?, this movie is a classic example of “all good things come to those who wait”. I was in the mood for sentimental and just general fluff so I rented this film out not expecting all that much from it, mainly because it has Kate Hudson in it. Don’t misunderstand me, I think that she can act and I thought she did well in Almost Famous and Nine, but ultimately it just boils down to the fact that I don’t like actresses. There are literally only a handful of women that I will go and see a film for, that’s just the type of person I am. Moving back to the film, Something Borrowed came as something of a surprise as it crept along at a very boring and predictable pace and then suddenly exploded into a frenzy of emotional and romantic epiphanies. Halfway through, you’re thinking “why am I watching this” and then by the end you’re thinking “that actually was really nice and gave me something to think about.” 

Rachel is a talented attorney, an exceedingly generous friend, and unhappily single, as her engaged, best fried Darcy is constantly reminding her. But after one too many drinks at her 30^th birthday celebration, she wakes up the next morning in bed with a guy named Dex, whom she has had a crush on since law school and, unfortunately happens to be Darcy’s fiancé. Now Rachel is fighting a conflicting battle as her loyalty and love for Darcy collides with true love, and it’s a battle that will unearth some unexpected truths and a few romantic revelations. 

Admittedly, I watched this film with a huge gap in between. I started it this morning and then left for work thinking that it was a stupid and boring romance that was succeeding in being very real, but unable to hold the attention of the audience because the story was not that engaging and there were no highly memorable characters or performances to keep the plot moving. 

Having come home to have a glass of wine and finish the film, I have changed my mind, after seeing all the romantic and emotional revelations and performances, and think that this film really does make you think: no one likes to feel guilt, and no one likes to hear unpleasant truths about themselves, but this film crosses those lines of discomfort and that, mixed with the fact that the events of the film could happen in real life, causes you to stop and think. Yeah, think about that. 

Starring Kate Hudson, Ginnifer Goodwin, John Krasinski, Colin Egglesfield, and Steve Howey, Something Borrowed as a slow, but real film that was filled with friendship, drama, comedy, and romance. Good things come to those who wait and the climatic romantic explosion at the end of this flick is worth waiting for. 

Water For Elephants [M]

With the untimely death of his parents, young Jacob Jankowski finds himself orphaned and adrift with no plan but to go to the city to try to find work. Upon the way, he jumps aboard a passing train and finds himself running away with a second-rate circus struggling to survive the Great Depression. As a veterinary student, Jacob is put in charge of caring for the circus animals and, here, he meets Marlena, the star attraction and beautiful wife of August, the charismatic and twisted animal trainer. Jacob also meets Rosie, a beautiful elephant who seems untrainable, until Jacob discovers a surprising way to reach her. 

Aww this is a very lovely tale of forbidden romance and understanding. I even found myself tearing up at more than one point. Water For Elephants was a really lovely film that was filled with hardship, romance, and belonging. 

With the untimely death of his parents, young Jacob Jankowski finds himself orphaned and adrift with no plan but to go to the city to try and find work. Upon the way, he jumps aboard a passing train and finds himself running away with a second-rate circus struggling to survive the Great Depression. As a veterinary student, Jacob is put in charge of caring for the circus animals and, here, he meets Marlena, the star attraction and beautiful wife of the August, the charismatic but twisted animal trainer. Jacob also meets Rosie, a beautiful elephant who seems untrainable, until Jacob discovers a surprising way to reach her. 

I don’t know what it is, but there is something undeniably romantic about the circus. Maybe it’s the familial inclusion of all shapes and sizes or maybe it’s the lights and theatrical atmosphere of the whole thing, I don’t know. But it worked for the romance in Big Fish and it certainly works for this. 

Without a doubt, the real star of the show was the elephant. She was just so absolutely beautiful and you really have to applaud the animal trainers who work with her night and day to get to perform as brilliantly as she does. Kudos. 

A mix between Titanic and Big Fish, Water For Elephants was a beautiful romance story that used the clever technique of storytelling and reflection. It had every element that you could want in a romance story; betrayal, denial, lust, secrets, and violence. All this set against the glittering and grandiose backdrop of a classic big top. It was wonderful. 

Starring Robert Pattinson, Reese Witherspoon, Christopher Waltz (who was brilliant as the villain that you can’t really hate), Paul Schneider, Jim Norton, Hal Holbrook, and Mark Povinelli, Water For Elephants is a dazzling drama that was filled with glitter, romance, betrayal, violence, animals, and the occasional bit of comedy. It really was a lovely film.  

Scooby Doo [G]

Two years ago, the team of Mystery Inc. split up due a clash of egos and now, they find themselves individually summoned to a hot tourist attraction called Spooky Island to solve a mystery: supernatural forces are changing the students that are on Spring Break and the team must overcome their personal battles if they are to save the students and the world. 

I remember watching the original cartoons of Scooby Doo with my brother. We used to love Scooby Doo. This live action movie holds the same comedy and loveable characters, although the story was a bit of a step away from the traditional structure of the cartoon series. Nevertheless, Scooby Doo gets me laughing every time. 

Two years ago, the team of Mystery Inc. split up due to a clash of egos and now, they find themselves individually summoned to a hot tourist attraction called Spooky Island to solve a most sinister mystery: supernatural forces are changing the students they are on the island for Spring Break and the team must put aside their differences and overcome their personal battles in order to save the students and the world. 

I think the one thing that really annoyed me with this movie was the fact that Mystery Inc. really were dealing with supernatural phenomena and not just some mad or jealous person in a costume and mask. Making the mystery real is not really what I felt Scooby Doo was all about: taking some of the scariness away from ghosts and monsters and stuff by showing young children that they are really just people in disguises and there is nothing to be afraid of. Although the use of slapstick comedy and funny verbal outbursts do lighten the atmosphere and make it less sinister, the basic story just was not in keeping with the original cartoons and that annoyed me a bit, an annoyance not dissimilar to that which I felt during Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. 

The central cast gave memorable performances with that of Matthew Lillard, who plays Shaggy, leading the parade. He is hysterical and exactly like the Shaggy from the cartoon. Love him. 

Starring Freddie Prinze Jr., Sarah Michelle Gellar, Matthew Lillard, Linda Cardellini, Isla Fisher, Miguel A. Nunez Jr., Steven Grives, and Rowan Atkinson, Scooby Doo is a fun family movie packed with nifty special effects, action, adventure, suspense, monsters, romance, food, and heaps of comedy. It may not be very adult of me to love this film, but seriously, it just makes me laugh every time. 

We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story [G]

Captain New Eyes has discovered that what children wish for in the middle future is to see real dinosaurs. So he travels back in time and feeds a group of dinosaurs some Brain Grain cereal, which makes them smarter and non-violent. Armed with this new kind and civilised attitude, the dinosaurs are sent to the middle future to make children’s wishes come true at the Museum of Natural History. But when they arrive, they make friends with a runaway boy named Louie and a neglected girl named Cecelia and they get sidetracked when their new friends run into the evil Professor Screw Eyes who has other, more sinister plans for the dinosaurs. 

Another film that I was brought up on as a child, We’re Back is an interesting film from Steven Spielberg, that’s packed with music, comedy, memorable characters, and romance. 

Captain New Eyes has discovered that what children in the middle future wish for is to see real dinosaurs. So he travels back in time and feeds a group of dinosaurs some Brain Grain cereal, which makes them smarter and non-violent. Armed with this new kind and civilised attitude, the dinosaurs are sent to the middle future to make children’s wishes come true at the Museum of Natural History. But when they arrive, they make friends with a runaway boy named Louie and a neglected girl named Cecelia, and they get sidetracked when their new friends run into the evil Professor Screw Eyes, the brother of Captain New Eyes, who has other, more sinister plans for the dinosaurs. 

Admittedly, watching this film as an adult, I cannot see what I saw in this film as a child. It must have been the fact that the main characters are animated dinosaurs which are both friendly and provide great moment of physical comedy. 

The film is very clever in that it both increases and decreases the junior audience’s fear of monsters: first decreasing it by showing the more sedate and friendly creatures under the influence of Brain Grain, and then decreasing it by showing what the dinosaurs were like in nature under the influence of Professor Screw Eyes’ Brain Drain. It’s an interesting mix to be sure. 

The animation is great and, without a doubt, the musical number in the middle is the real star of the show. Watching that as an adult, that song Roll Back the Rock (to the Dawn of Time) still puts a smile on my face. I love it. 

Featuring the voice talents of John Goodman, Rene Le Vant, Felicity Kendal, Charles Fleischer, Joey Shea, Yeardley Smith, Kenneth Mars, Walter Cronkite, Martin Short, and Julia Child, We’re Back!: A Dinosaur’s Story is a great family film packed with adventure, romance, a great random musical number, and comedy. It’s no Disney or Don Bluth production, and it tends to move forward very abruptly, but it’s not bad. 

Roll back the rock. Turn back the clock. Roll back the rock to the dawn of time and sing this song with me.

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer [PG]

The Fantastic Four’s publicity is proving to be more than they bargained for as Reed and Sue attempt to have a fourth wedding without a global emergency interrupting it. But this time it’s gotten ridiculous, as a strange universal outsider begins creating these great craters in the Earth and threatens to destroy the entire planet. 

Even though it’s twice as action-packed and the special effects are more of a knockout than the first one, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer is just not as good as the first one, in fact the disappointment is not dissimilar to that of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest: its not bad, but it’s just not as good as its predecessor. 

The Fantastic Four’s publicity is proving to be more than they bargained for as Reed and Sue attempt to have a fourth wedding without a global emergency or the general media interrupting it. This time, it has gotten irritatingly serious as a strange universal outsider begins creating these large craters in the Earth and threatens to destroy the entire planet. That, combined with the unwelcome reappearance of an old nemesis, causes more problems than the Four seem to be able to handle. 

As tends to happen with most sequels, Rise of the Silver Surfer tried to outshine its predecessor, which, in turn, became obvious to the audience and caused the film to not be as good. The funny dysfunction and light-hearted banter that was a dominant feature in the original Fantastic Four was lost to the four winds in this film and replaced with a more dramatic and complicated vibe that was just not as effective. We see internal struggles, particularly in the character of Johnny, who provided most of the comic relief in the first movie and his character just becomes a little more dramatic and loses that original hot-head attitude that made us fall in with him in the first one. 

Having said this though, the special effects were a real knockout, particularly the effects that were used to create the Silver Surfer. I tell you, these effects created the same feeling in me as the effects in Terminator 2: Judgement Day did. Awesome. Just awesome. 

Starring Ioan Gruffudd, Jessica Alba, Chris Evans, Michael Chiklis, Kerry Washington, Doug Jones (who provided us with two memorable characters in Pan's Labyrinth), Andre Braugher, Julian McMahon and featuring the voice talents of Lawrence Fishburne, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer was a good film, but just not as good as the first one. Filled with action, gadgets, great special effects, comedy, and romance, it’s still a great film to watch, but just doesn’t give off the same vibe that the first one did. 

X-Men [M]

Born into a world of prejudice are children who possess incredible abilities and powers, which are the unique result of genetic mutations. Under the tutelage of Charles Xavier, otherwise known as Professor X, these children learn to develop and control their powers for the good of mankind. As a war draws nearer, these mutants must protect mankind as a powerful mutant named Magneto, who believes that humans and mutants can never co-exist, unveils a sinister plan to change the DNA of humans and end their rein. 

You’vegot to love the X-Men! This is a great sci-fi action film that’s filled with practically everything from epic battles to subtle romance. I love this movie. 

Born into a world of prejudice are children who possess incredible abilities and powers, which are the result of genetic mutations. Under the tutelage of Charles Xavier, otherwise known as Professor X, these children learn to develop and control their powers for the good of mankind. Now, as a war draws nearer, these mutants must protect mankind as a powerful mutant named Magneto, who believes that humans and mutants will never co-exist peacefully, unveils a sinister plan to change the DNA of humans and end their rein. 

Admittedly not as light or fun as The Fantastic Four or Transformers, X-Men is still a great movie for a family night in, not dissimilar to The Terminator; filled with loads of action and the occasional bit of light-hearted comedy. 

Without a doubt, the real star of the show were the special effects, as tends to be the case with any superhero movie. The effects here were complete knockouts. Between the mind-blowing battles between the mutants and the general powers that they have, you cannot help but be completely captivated with your eyes glued to the screen. 

The film is relatively balanced as well, which is nice. I mean, there is more action than there is comedy, but the occasional bit of light banter appears and its rather refreshing; case in point, the relationship between Wolverine and Cyclops. Keep an eye out for that. 

Featuring brilliant performances from Hugh Jackman, Anna Paquin, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, James Marsden, Halle Berry, Famke Janssen, Rebeca Romijin, Bruce Davison, Tyler Mane, and Ray Park, X-Men is a classic film that’s filled with action, science fiction, battles, comedy, and memorable characters. You can’t go past it. I LOVE this movie!

Flashdance [M]

By day, Alex Owens is welder, but by night, she’s a vivacious and amazing dancer at a local bar. One day, Alex dreams of finding independence, love, and dance at the Pittsburgh Conservatory of Dance, but her courage wavers and it’s going to take a few wake-up calls in order for her to muster the strength to take the leap and realise her dream. 

I love 80s movies and I love dance movies, but Flashdance did absolutely nothing for me and I have to say that I found it to be one of the most dull and pointless dance films that I’ve sat through. 

By day, 18 year-old Alex Owens is a welder, but by night she’s a vivacious and amazing dancer at a local bar. One day, Alex dreams of finding independence, love, and dancing at the Pittsburgh Conservatory of Dance, but her courage wavers and it’s going to take a few wake-up calls and personal dramas for her to finally muster the strength to take the leap and realise her dreams. 

Although Flashdance harbours a few iconic scenes that everyone recognises e.g. her first dance routine where she is doused in water whilst lying seductively in a chair, the film really does not have that much going for it. 

The basic story is rather mundane and unoriginal and that might have slipped the audience’s notice if the characters were a little more memorable. But unfortunately, the characters were not dramatic, or hugely funny, or particularly memorable in any way, which is a real blow because, aside from the dance routines and the soundtrack, which includes classic tracks such as Irene Cara’s What a Feeling and Michael Sambello’s She’s a Maniac, this movie really struggled to hold my attention. If I’m brutally honest, the only time I was really intrigued was when the girls were dancing and watching the way they’re way their figures move and where their curves are situated. Sadly, Flashdance just wasn’t all that flash. 

Starring Jennifer Beals, Michael Nouri, Lilia Skala, Sunny Johnson, Kyle T. Heffner, and Belinda Bauer, Flashdance was a pointless and unengaging film that was armed with a dull and basic story, the occasional bit of drama and breakdowns, cool dance sequences, a good soundtrack, and a rather subtle and uninspiring romance. No, unfortunately Flashdance just didn’t do it for me. 

The Fantastic Four [PG]

When four astronauts take a trip into space to research DNA, they are exposed to a radioactive storm cloud that fundamentally alters their DNA, giving them dangerous, but amazing abilities. Unfortunately, the mission’s sponsor was also zapped by the cloud and transforms into a powerful and lethal super villain, and so begins a great confrontation between Dr Doom and the Fantastic Four. 

This, right here, is your perfect action-packed family movie! Like Men In Black or Back to the Future, it’s a perfectly balanced film that is equally enjoyable for both kids and adults. I love it! 

When four astronauts take a trip into space to research DNA, they are exposed to a radioactive storm cloud that fundamentally alters their DNA, giving them dangerous but amazing abilities. Unfortunately, the mission’s sponsor was also zapped by the cloud and transformed into a very powerful and lethal super villain, and so begins a great confrontation between Dr. Doom and the Fantastic Four. 

Let me just take a little minute here to tell you something personal; through high school, I was rather good at standard English. I say this because,

 if you haven’t already picked it up, you’re soon about to see why standard English was “my bag baby.” What I particularly like about this movie is that the powers that the heroes get are reflective of their personalities and own internal struggles. You’ve got Reed Richards, also known as Mr. Fantastic, who can stretch and shape his body into amazing contortions. This power is reflective of Reed’s work attitude, “always reaching for the stars with the weight of the world on your back”. Susan Storm, aka the Invisible Girl can, obviously, go invisible and can create powerful shields. This is reflective of her being overlooked by her former flame, Reed, and having to protect herself. Johnny, or the Human Torch, gets the ability to burst into flames and fly, reflective of his arrogant personality; “you know Johnny, he’s always been a hot head”. And finally there is Ben, also known as the Thing, who was transformed into a huge rock-man, internal organs and all. This is reflective of the fact that, whilst working with Reed, he was basically the bodyguard. The same can be said for Victor Von Doom who gets transformed into an impervious metal man who can conduct and store electricity; “I’ve always wanted power, now I have an unlimited supply.” See, analysing underlying meanings of the text was something that I was good at in school. 

Mushy and emotive meanings aside, the movie is perfect as a family film, mainly because there is a lot of light-hearted comedy and banter between the members of the dysfunctional super group. The violence is kept to a minimum, the characters are awesome, and there is also a little romance story running along the sidelines. Not to mention its great script. It’s just perfect. 

Starring Ioan Gruffudd, Jessica Alba, Chris Evans, Michael Chiklis, and Julian McMahon, The Fantastic Four is a great film packed with action, comedy, awesome powers, memorable characters, great jokes, and romance. It’s just a great flick and I’m glad to have it in my collection. 

Now picture that...but everywhere. It was... everywhere... WHAT?!

X-Men: First Class [M]

Before they were Professor X and Magneto, they were Charles and Erik, two friends who, along with other mutants, worked with the CIA to prevent World War Three from being perpetrated by another, extremely powerful mutant. But in the process of saving the world, a rift formed between the two friends, causing them to become archenemies, and so began the age-old battle between Magneto’s Brotherhood and Professor X’s X-Men. 

This movie is hells awesome! The story, the special effects, the recognisable characters, as well as a few new ones, makes X-Men First Class a great film that is equally as thrilling and rollicking as Indiana Jones, Star Wars, or Transformers. 

Before they were Professor X and Magneto, they were Charles and Erik, two friends who, along with a group of other mutants, worked with the CIA to prevent World War Three from being perpetrated by an extremely powerful mutant named Sebastian Shaw. But in the process of saving the world, a rift formed between the two friends, causing them to become archenemies, and so began the age-long battle between Magneto’s Brotherhood and Professor X’s X-Men. 

I think that the first thing that needs to be said about this movie is that there is no real need to watch the originals beforehand. A bit like Star Wars (the original ones from the 70s for those who are unaware of the saga’s unique chronology), the first three X-Men movies focused on the battle between Professor X and Magneto, as well as simultaneously focusing on the battle of humans and mutants. With this film, we go back to how it all began and, even though I don’t think these films are being made as some sort of continuing saga like Star Wars, it’s still interesting to note that we begin the X-Men journey in the middle rather than at the beginning. 

All the performances were brilliant, particularly those of James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender who play the film’s shared protagonists, but without a doubt the movie belonged to the special effects department. The various mutations and powers of the heroes and villains as well as the brilliant display of wreckage after a classic action-drenched climactic battle, were wondrous to behold and it’s amazing to think that we, as a pretty egocentric and arrogant species, have managed to come this far by way of creating these amazing illusions. Creating illusions, that’s something that humans can do really, really well. 

Starring James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Kevin Bacon, Rose Byrne, Jennifer Lawrence, Oliver Platt, Jason Flemyng, Zoe Kravitz, January Jones, Nicholas Hoult, and featuring a surprise appearance from Hugh Jackman (watch out for that), X-Men First Class is a great rollicking film that’s perfect for a night in. Filled with action, memorable characters, war, comedy, drama, violence, and awesome abilities, I am literally going to go down to my local Blockbuster and buy myself a copy as soon as I publish this. It’s awesome!

Forgetting Sarah Marshall [MA]

Struggling composer Peter Bretter has one thing right: his five-year relationship with his celebrity girlfriend Sarah Marshall. But poor Peter’s world is turned upside down and inside out when Sarah dumps him. After a bout of unsuccessful womanising and breakdowns, Peter decides to take a breather and go to Hawaii to get his head straight. But in a bizarre twist of fate, he finds himself staying in the same hotel as Sarah and her new boyfriend; the overly cool and sexually threatening rock star Aldous Snow. 

Usually, I am not one to go for these sorts of comedies. I mean, I thought nothing of The 40 Year-Old Virgin and Knocked Up so to watch another comedy from the guys that brought us those flicks, wasn’t exactly my highest priority. Having said that, Forgetting Sarah Marshall wasn’t actually that bad. 

Struggling composer Peter Brett has one thing right: his five-year relationship with his celebrity girlfriend Sarah Marshall. But poor Peter’s world is turned upside and down and inside out when Sarah dumps him. After a bout of unsuccessful womanising and emotional breakdowns, Peter decides to take a breather and go for a short holiday to Hawaii just to clear his head. But in a bizarre twist of fate, upon arriving on the island, Peter discovers that he is staying at the same hotel as Sarah and her new boyfriend; the overly cool and sexually intimidating rock star, Aldous Snow. 

I think what makes these breakup comedies so appealing to audiences is the fact that they are possibly the greatest example of schadenfreude on the planet. When you really think about it, people hate, really hate, to feel awkward: having the power to steer a conversation or control certain events up to a point and then have winds change suddenly halfway through and not knowing which new direction to head in. Forgetting Sarah Marshall was a classic example of this as the protagonist battles with a slew of awkward moments; the most dominant being how should he act when he sees either Sarah or her new man. And all the while we’re watching him struggle and are so glad it’s not us. 

The film’s central comedy is fed by that whole making-things-worse or digging-a-rut type thing, but the movie does have a nicer romantic story running alongside it as Peter and Rachel at the front desk spark up a relationship. 

One thing that I realised in this movie was that Get Him to the Greek is actually something of a follow-on for Russell Brand’s character, Aldous Snow, which is why there is a subtle reference to Forgetting Sarah Marshall in Get Him to the Greek. It’s a small world after all. 

Starring Jason Segal, Kristen Bell, Mila Kunis, Russell Brand, Jonah Hill, Bill Hader, Jason Bateman, Paul Rudd, and Jack McBrayer, Forgetting Sarah Marshall was actually rather an entertaining comedy about getting dumped and taking it like a man. Filled with awkwardness, comedy, romance, sex, colourful characters, and more awkwardness, it’s worth watching and harbours a few surprising moments of comic originality. 

From Prada to Nada [PG]

Two spoiled, rich, sisters, the street smart and career driven Nora, and the fun-loving and fashionable Mary, are left penniless by the sudden death of their father. To add insult to injury, the two are then kicked out of their own house by their newly-discovered brother and his wife, and forced to live with their estranged aunt in East LA, a place where the population is largely Mexican, speak little English, and there are no Prada stores within a hundred miles. 

Basically a modern adaptation with a Latina twist on Jane Austen’s classic romantic comedy Sense and Sensibility, From Prada To Nada is your basic riches to rags story with a few romantic endeavours thrown into the general story of the girls adapting to a life that they are not accustomed to. If I’m honest, it was a nice idea, but a fairly ordinary film that cannot really be expected to deliver that much. 

Two spoiled, rich sisters, the street smart and career-driven Nora, and the fun-loving and fashionable Mary, are left penniless by the sudden death of their father. To add insult to injury, the girls are kicked out of their own house by their newly-discovered brother and his wife, and are forced to live with their estranged aunt in East LA, a place where the population is largely Mexican, speaks little English, and there is no sign of anything Prada for a hundred miles. 

I can give the film some credit for being the only modern adaptation of Sense and Sensibility that I’ve ever seen, after all there is something really interesting about seeing filmmakers adapt and reinvent these timeless tales of romance for the modern audience; look at Bridget Jones’ Diary and Clueless, modern adaptations of Pride and Prejudice and Emma But From Prada to Nada just wasn’t as clever or as emotively powerful as either of those. 

In short, the romances were pretty much spontaneously sparked and rather haphazardly shattered and thrown back together again in the fashion of Austen’s original tale, the performances were nothing outstanding, and I think the only reason I kept my eyes on the screen was for Nora’s amazingly nice, but prominent facial features, and Mary’s overly tanned face with those frosted pink lips… I don’t understand some of the fashions that are supposed to be “all the rage” these days. 

Starring Camilla Belle, Alexa Vega, Wilmer Valderrama, Alexis Ayala, April Bowbly, and Nicholas D’Agosto, From Prada to Nada was an interesting take on one of my favourite romances, but ultimately it was nothing special. Filled with glitz, work, drama, comedy, and romance, it’s not exactly a bad movie, just rather ordinary. 

Chicago [M]

Roxie Hart dreams of being famous and it seems that her shot at stardom lies with an acquaintance of hers whom she begins an affair with, Fred. But things take a downward turn when Roxie discovers that Fred has lied to her just to get into bed with her and she kills him out of rage. Whilst in the slammer, Roxie engages in a cat’s war with former jazz star and murderess Velma Kelly, and the two find themselves sharing the silver-tongued lawyer, Billy Flynn, who turns defendants into legends. But in Chicago, there is only room in the papers for one legend. 

Come on babe, why don’t we paint the town. And all that jazz. I’m gonna rouge my knees and roll my stockings down. And all that jazz. Start the car, I know a whoopee spot where the gin is cold and the piano’s hot. It’s just a noisy all where there’s a nightly brawl and all that jazz. 

Winner of six Academy Awards including Best Picture, Chicago is a visually stunning and seductive musical that’s filled with amazing outfits, glamour, amazing dance sequences, and an amazing soundtrack. Practically all the major characters in this film were nominated for Academy Awards, with Catherine Zeta-Jones winning the Award for Best Supporting Actress. 

Roxie Hart dreams of being famous and it seems that her shot at stardom lies with an acquaintance of hers whom she begins an affair with, Fred. But things take a downward turn when Roxie discovers that Fred has lied to her just to get her into bed and she kills him out of rage. Whilst in the slammer, Roxie finds herself engaged in a cat’s war with former jazz star and murderess Velma Kelly and both divas find themselves begrudgingly sharing the silver-tongued lawyer, Billy Flynn, who turns his defendants into legends. But in Chicago, there is only room in the papers for one legend. 

Aside from its story, which is engaging from the start, what makes Chicago so dazzling is the glamorous and visually stunning musical sequences that run parallel with the dramas of the characters. The use of the jazz music, vaudeville style, and general wild vibe of the Roaring 20s or Jazz Age, was not only effective in setting the general atmosphere of the film, but in bringing a much needed lightness and somewhat sense of relief to alleviate some of the grimness that a few scenes harbour, e.g. the execution of one of Roxie’s jail mates. 

The editing in this film was brilliant because the musical sequences and segments of cabaret were seamlessly interspersed through the more dramatic scenes as well as some introductory ones and it keeps the audience in their seats from start to finish. Seriously, the Cell Block Tango sequence for example, AMAZING! 

Starring Renee Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Richard Gere, Queen Latifah, Lucy Liu, John C. Riley, Taye Diggs, and Christine Baranski, Chicago is an amazing and visually stunning film that’s packed with jazz, liquor, sex, drama, murder, comedy, and razzle dazzle. I love this film, it’s ABSOLUTELY AMAZING! 

And all that jazz.

Fantasia 2000 [G]

Become immersed in the wondrous spectacle that is Fantasia 2000. See the majestic flight of the whales, the humdrum life of the common New Yorker, the heroic tale of the steadfast tin soldier, a flamingo with a yoyo, and the perilous journey of Noah and his ark. 

It occurred to me the other day that my Disney education is incomplete, as a) until early this year, I had never seen the original Fantasia all the way through, and b) I had never ever seen Fantasia 2000. To be the committer of such heinous crimes makes it blasphemous for me to call myself a Disney fan, but tonight I have righted the wrongs and stabilised by status as a Disney fan. 

Become immersed in the wondrous spectacle that is Fantasia 2000. See the majestic flight of the whales, the humdrum life of the common New Yorker, the heroic tale of the steadfast tin soldier, what happens when a flamingo becomes in possession of a yoyo, a magical flight of Spring, and the perilous journey of Noah and his ark. 

Although the basic structure of the movie is identical to the original Fantasia of the 40s, Fantasia 2000 is very different from its predecessor. The major difference is that, instead of the classic, original, and these days, primitive animation that made Fantasia so wondrous, Fantasia 2000 features an array of many different types of animation, some of which are very realistic, almost Pixar-like, like the flight of the whales in the first segment. We then see an intriguing sample of cartoonist animation in the second segment, which incidentally is the first and only segment to use a combination of orchestral and jazz music, and finally we see the evolution of the hand-drawn animation that put Disney films in a league of their own. 

Most of the film is new stories set against the classical music that missed out in the original, but the film does feature a segment from the original gem. It would not be right to celebrate the magic of Fantasia years later without including that memorable piece starring Mickey Mouse as the Sorcerer’s Apprentice. A piece of real magic and history that is. 

Featuring special appearances by Steve Martin, James Earl Jones, Bette Midler, Quincy Jones, and Angela Lansbury, Fantasia 2000 is a stunning visual treat that’s filled with magic, colour, animals, comedy, drama, and classic music. It’s just stunning.  

Friends With Benefits [MA]

Dylan and Jamie are both unlucky in love. For them, relationships just suck. Upon being dumped at the same time, their paths cross when Jamie headhunts Dylan and brings him to New York for a job. The two then spark up a friendship and decide to have a purely physical relationship, free of any emotional complications. It starts out just great, but how long can it be before they start feeling something more? 

It seems that the whole no-strings-attached scenario is the most popular choice for romantic comedies at the moment. And I think I’ve worked out what sparked it: Love & Other Drugs. Anne Hathaway and Jake Gyllenhaal’s strictly sexual relationship in that film is really what made the film intriguing and refreshing, but it wasn’t what the whole film was about. We then have Ashton Kutcher and Natalie Portman in No Strings Attached and now Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis join the ranks of strictly sexual romantic comedy enforcers. Although the story was predictable and not all that awe-inspiring to begin with, Friends With Benefits was actually a cute and enjoyable little film. I mean, it’s not the greatest romantic achievement in cinematic history, but it was still a nice little movie that eats up time better spent. 

Dylan and Jamie are both unlucky in love. For them, relationships just suck. Upon being dumped at the same time, their paths cross when Jamie headhunts Dylan and brings him to New York for a job. The two then spark up a friendship and then decide to turn that great friendship into a purely physical relationship, free of emotional complications. It starts out just great, but how long can it be before they start to feel something more? 

A film about essentially nothing but a strictly sexual relationship is not really the strongest base for a good film, but Friends With Benefits, armed with its witty script, biting attitude, and great performances made for nice, light, and refreshing entertainment. 

Justin Timberlake stars as Dylan and he delivered a performance that was cynical, charming, and a tad adorkable. He didn’t really do anything chivalrous, aside from the climactic gesture of love, and it was nice to see a character like that, one who was down to earth and easy to relate to. 

Mila Kunis stars as Jamie and she’s gorgous. Mila is another actress who really dominates a screen for me. She’s sexy and elegant, but at the same time, she’s the girl who would prefer to spend the night in with a friend watching a movie and drinking beer. There is something almost masculine about her and it’s a brilliant characteristic to see on screen. Don’t lose that Mila! In this film she gave a performance that was bubbly, aggressive, agile, and a tad psychotic. I loved her. 

Starring Emma Stone, Patricia Clarkson, Jenna Elfman, Bryan Greenberg, Richard Jenkins, and Woody Harrelson, Friends With Benefits was a nice little film that was filled with witty dialogue, memorable characters, sex, comedy, the odd bit of drama, and romance. It’s a good one if you’re feeling like a night in and can’t really be bothered to focus too much. 

Zookeeper [PG]

Five years ago, zookeeper, Griffin, was dumped by the girl he wanted to marry, and he’s never gotten over that. Now, she’s back and interested in getting him back, but poor Griffin just becomes a bumbling mess whenever around her. But never fear, his animal friends at the zoo, who have actually been able to talk forever, are out to help Griffin be the alpha male and get the girl. 

Let’s not beat about the bush, this film was POINTLESS and RIDICULOUS. Practically everything about it was half-hearted and it harboured maybe one or one and a half seconds of comedy bronze. Like The Dilemma, this movie was based on a somewhat interesting idea, but ultimately served no real purpose. 

Five years ago, zookeeper, Griffin, was dumped by the girl he wanted to marry and he’s never gotten over that. Now, she’s back and interested in getting back, but poor Griffin just becomes a bumbling mess whenever he’s around her. But never fear, his animal friends at the zoo, who have been able to talk as well as humans since forever, are out to help Griffin be the alpha male and get the girl. 

All right, let’s take a look at what this film was: basically just a guy trying to get back his girl with the absurd and irrelevant advice from an assortment of zoo animals. I think what I disliked most about this movie was the fact that there is hardly any explanation in it at all and that everything happened really quickly. The film’s one slightly redeeming feature was the warm and nice friendship that bloomed between Griffin and Bernie, the zoo’s misunderstood and falsely accused gorilla. Their relastionship was sparked as quickly as anything and then shattered completely and then suddenly rebuilt before you could blink. Relationships take time, and there is nothing, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING heart-warming about a friendship that is suddenly sparked and then shattered and then rebuilt in the space of half an hour. 

In so many words, the general feel of the movie was very haphazard: it seemed like a story with potential but then, after everything had been organised and bought and paid for, the filmmakers realised the error of their ways. “Let’s get it over with” seems to be the attitude that both the people working on the film and the audience share with this movie. 

Starring Kevin James, Rosario Dawson, Leslie Bibb, Ken Jeong, Donnie Wahlberg, Joe Rogan, Nat Faxon, and featuring the voice talents of Nick Nolte, Adam Sandler, Sylvester Stallone, Judd Apatow, Jon Favreau, Faizon Love, Bas Rutten, Maya Rudolph, and Cher, Zookeeper was a film that seemed like a good idea at the time, but then was thought better of a quarter of the way through. Filled with talking animals, romance, awkwardness, lessons, and friendship, it’s not a film that I will be watching again within the next hundred years. 

The Lion King [G]

When he was a carefree cub and future king of the Pride Lands, Simba was framed for his father’s death and exiled by his evil uncle Scar, who sought the throne for himself. Now an adult lion, Simba returns to Pride Rock to face his uncle and his past. 

Nants ingonyama bagithi Baba. Sithi uhhm ingonyama. 

I think that there can be no doubt that this is the most moving and tear-jerking Disney film to ever grace our screens. The mixture of the amazing animation, the dramatic story, the catchy soundtrack, and the occasional bits of comic relief make The Lion King one of the most celebrated and moving Disney classics. 

Simba is a young and carefree lion cub who is also the future king of the Pride Lands. His uncle, Scar, is bitterly jealous because, with Simba around, he misses out of being King. One day, a terrible stampede occurs and Simba is framed for his father’s death and exiled by his evil uncle, Scar. Now an adult lion, Simba decides to return to Pride Rock and, with the help of his friends, faces his uncle and his past. 

AWW I LOVE THE LION KING! It’s such a moving film. I mentioned before that this would have to be Disney’s most moving movie and I firmly believe that it is so. Seriously, if it weren’t for the occasional bits of comic relief so brilliantly provided by Whoopi Goldberg, Cheech Marin, Jim Cummings, Nathan Lane, and Ernie Sabella, we would all demand to be given a box of tissues with each rental or purchase of the film. 

The basic story of the film is actually quite adult: it’s all about the murder of a king and his son has the blame placed upon by a jealous uncle who should have been king. As the cub grows up, he gains wisdom and a sense of responsibility and finally goes back home to challenge his uncle and face his demons. 

The amazing animation, musical numbers, and comic relief is what will really appeal to the kids, but for an adult, The Lion King is the most perfectly balanced animated film that brilliantly combines elements of comedy, drama, action, and musical into 85 minutes of absolute enjoyment and emotion. I cried the first time I watched this, when I was five, and I still cry now at the age of twenty-one. 

Featuring the voice talents of Matthew Broderick, Jim Cummings, James Earl Jones, Nathan Lane, Ernie Sabella, Jeremy Irons, Robert Guillaume, Rowan Atkinson, Moia Kelly, Whoopi Goldberg, Cheech Marin, Madge Sinclair, and Jonathan Taylor Thomas, and featuring a brilliant soundtrack from Elton John and Tim Rice, The Lion King is a wonderful film, earning its place in The Book. Filled with amazing animation, memorable characters, comedy, drama, suspense, and romance, it’s a real Disney classic, one that is a must-have in any film buff’s collection. 

Can you feel the love tonight? The peace the evening brings. The world for once, in perfect harmony with all its living things. 

Oranges and Sunshine [M]

Margaret Humphries is an ordinary social worker, wife, and mother of two. Through a chance meeting with a woman that has grown up not knowing her real mother, Margaret uncovers a most significant government scandal: the deportation of thousands of young children from England to Australia. Almost single-handedly and against overwhelming odds, Margaret sets out to make amends for this outrage and reunites thousands of families, brings thousands of lost identities to light, brings authorities to account, and draws worldwide attention to a most extraordinary miscarriage of justice. 

Based on the absolutely extraordinary true story, Oranges and Sunshine is an amazing film that brought me to tears. It’s powerful, it’s confronting, and it was real! 

Margaret Humphries is an ordinary social worker, wife, and mother of two. Through a chance meeting with a woman who has grown up not knowing her real mother and, therefore, her real self, Margaret uncovers a most significant government scandal: the deportation of thousands of children from England to Australia. Almost single-handedly and against overwhelming odds, Margaret sets out to make amends for this outrage and reunites thousands of families, brings thousands of lost identities to light, brings authorities to account, and draws worldwide attention to a most extraordinary miscarriage of justice. 

So here I am, dabbing my eyes, steadying my breath, and genuinely shaken by what I have just seen. I tell you now, after watching this film, I will never be complaining about the “injustices” of my life ever, ever, ever again. 

The term “less is more” is my favourite term in the whole world because it is an oxymoron and it is also brutally true. It hits the nail on the head in three words. It was the simplicity, the subtle performances, and the genuine, raw power of the story that made this film so unutterably moving. With no special effects, no grandiose, orchestral soundtrack, no violent gestures of love, remorse, or gratitude, and nothing but simple moral backbone, Oranges and Sunshine has to be one of the most powerful dramas that I have seen to date. See? Less is more. 

Emily Watson stars as this amazing woman and she delivered a performance that was subtle, reserved, but at the same time overwhelmingly compassionate and determined. She was beautiful, just beautiful. 

Starring David Wenham, Hugo Weaving, Tara Morice, Richard Dillane, and Lorraine Ashbourne, Oranges and Sunshine was an beautiful film, based on a true story that’s filled with compassion, injustice, morals, love, and undying determination. It was absolutely beautiful. Absolutely beautiful!

Rock-A-Doodle [G]

It has always been the job of the rooster Chanticleer to crow and bring up the sun. But one day, he is tricked by the evil Grand Duke of Owls and forced to leave the farm, taking the sunshine with him. Facing a long time of darkness and rain, the animals of the farm set off for the city to find Chanticleer and get him to come home and bring up the sun. Young Edmund and his family are also facing troubles with the rain so when he crosses paths with the Grand Duke, who turns him from a boy into a cat, he joins forces with the animals in the hope that Chanticleer’s crow will stop the rain for good. 

For some strange reason, this film has been on my brain recently. It’s one of those films that I vaguely remember from my childhood like The Land Before Time, The Pebble and the Penguin, and Thumbelina, nowhere near to scaling the lofty heights that the classic Disney films reach, but enjoyable and sometimes quite clever. 

It has always been the job of the rooster Chanticleer to crow and bring up the sun. But one day, he is tricked by the Grand Duke of Owls and forced to leave the farm, taking the sunshine with him. Facing a long time of darkness and rain, the animals of the farm set off for the city to find Chanticleer and get him to come home and bring the sun up. Young Edmund and his family are also having their troubles with the rain so when he crosses the path of the Grand Duke, who turns him from a boy into a cat, he joins forces with the animals in the hope that Chanticleer’s crow will bring up the sun and end the rain for good. 

Watching this again as an adult, I have to say that I don’t know what I ever really saw in this film. It’s a simple story with no real reason behind it. Sort of an it-seemed-like-a-good-idea-at-the-time type thing. 

I have to say though, that the film’s musical numbers and cute and clever characters are its real strong point. Chanticleer’s character is based on Elvis, singing wonderful and catchy 50s type rock-a-billy songs that will have you bopping along, like it or not. The character of Goldie Pheasant closely resembles that of Marilyn Monroe with her golden hair and wispy voice. I thought this characterisation was kind of cute and clever. 

Featuring the voice talents of Phil Harris, Glen Campbell, Eddie Deezen, Toby Scott Granger, Sandy Duncan, Ellen Greene, and Christopher Plummer, Rock-A-Doodle is a cute little film from my childhood, but ultimately one that can only really be enjoyed by a junior audience. Filled with talking animals, magic, rain, comedy, romance, and rock-a-billy music, it’s cute, but it’s not classic.