Catfish

I saw the trailer for this a while back when i went see The Other Guys in New York, and ever since then i've been dying to see this film. The suspense in the trailer is what intensifies the suspense you feel when watching the film, which i thought was very clever. But it was no trick. Regardless of whether you've seen the trailer or not the film is extremely tense. It's a documentary made by three friends, two film makers and a photographer. The photographer has started up a facebook relationship with a mother and her two daughters and the two film makers are documenting it all. The relationship with the eldest daughter elevates  and he is eager to meet her incase a relationship were to blossom in doing so.
I wish i could say more than all of this but it really is brilliant film making. Emotional, tense, funny; it truly is a great film and worth the wait. Why anybody would question it's reality i will never know. 5 stars.

Somewhere

Somewhere captures the loneliness of an over-indulgent life very well in the character Johnny Marco (Stephen Dorff). The first twenty minutes or so captures it particularly well, not only because nobody really talks enough to classify anything as conversation, but also because his days are repetitive. Alcohol, Strippers, his ferrari and sex are what make up Johnny Marco's days, along with hanging around his funny mate Sammy (Chris Pontius). Johnny lives at the Chateau Marmont Hotel on Sunset Boulevard, which was enough to make me go and see the film because it's my favourite place to stay fullstop. His daughter Cleo (Ellie Fanning) from his ex-wife visits him and her presence highlights Johnny's flaws. She cooks and cleans and is generally much more grown up than her father, and when her mother calls Johnny to ask if he can look after her for a few weeks his journey to becoming a normally functioning person begins.

The performances aren't really outstanding but Stephen Dorff does pretty well in being emotionally isolated, and in a weird way i couldn't stop thinking he showed some similarities with the young Mickey Rourke. I don't know if that's just me. I'm not saying he was powerful in any way like Mickey Rourke, it was just the quiet way Dorff carried himself, it sort of reminded me of his character in Rumble Fish. I think perhaps Sofia Coppola could have had us connect with Johnny Marco a little more as a character, as his transformation seemed all a bit to sudden. However, it is a great film and very artistic. 4 stars.

Black Swan

Ballet is not exactly something I get too excited about, especially if there's a film about it. If it weren't for the fact that Vincent Cassel stars in it I wouldn't have thought about watching this film at all. However, I would be lying if I said the trailer didn't interest me, but how many trailers have advertised a film falsely? A lot. So I wasn't going to risk having to sit through a chick flick ballet film that had been disguised as some sort of dark emotional journey that the main character Nina Sayers (Natalie Portman) goes through to fit into the role of the white and black swans of swan lake. Vincent Cassel plays Thomas Leroy, the head of the Ballet institution and Nina's teacher of some sorts. He puts in a very good performance as the manipulative mentor, as he uses sex as a tool to draw out Nina's Black Swan. She already personifies all the qualities of the White Swan, and as she makes progress toward finding her dark side, problems arise. She initially has a disorder where she scratches herself obsessively and on top of that she has some sort of eating disorder, and as she makes progress in the role of Swan Queen these disorders spiral out of control and she starts to hallucinate. The arrival of Lily (Mila Kunis) doesn't help either, as her style of dancing is just what Nina needs to emulate if she is to dance the Black Swan; and the hate that her dance role model Beth MacIntyre (Winona Ryder) starts to feel for Nina for pushing her to retirement by taking the limelight puts her under extreme pressure.
Brilliantly dark film-making by Darren Aronofsky. I enjoyed it thoroughly due to it's intensity and... I don't know...fucked up-ness? Fantastic film. 4 and a half stars.

The Town

Who would've thought that Ben Affleck would make a good director? We all know he can write through his contributions to 'Good Will Hunting' and the brilliant 'Gone Baby Gone', which he directed also, but still it's Ben Affleck. Joking aside, 'The Town' is a top draw film that I enjoyed very much. Oscar winner Ben Affleck delivers in all departments: the script is great, the directing also, and his performance as the main character is flawless. It would be pushing it to say that he could win the Oscar for best actor for it, but best director or screenplay? You never know. One person who could get an Oscar out of this is 'The Hurt Locker' star and Oscar nominee, Jeremy Renner. His portrayal of the psychotic Jim is extremely tense, as he shifts emotion effortlessly throughout.
I'm not sure if it's only me, but I look forward to seeing what Ben Affleck comes up with next. In a way he's similar to Shane Meadows, except his films are made on a much big bigger scale. Some of you reading might be thinking, 'What are you on about you mug, that's a ridiculous comparison!' Well, Affleck, like Meadows, keeps his stories very close to home, even though he never lived directly in Boston. What I mean is that his subject matters are gritty and realistic, and relate to the places they're set in. He's original in this sense and that's why I look forward to seeing his next projects. 4 stars for this one.

The Proposition

Released in 2005, 'The Proposition' boasts a talented batch of actors and a talented writer in Nick Cave, so for me there was never really any doubt that i'd enjoy it. It starts off with lawman, Captain Stanley (Ray Winstone), capturing brothers Mike Burns (Richard Wilson) and Charles Burns (Guy Pearce) for their supposed involvement in a horrific crime. Captain Stanley tells Charles that his borther Mike will be hung on Christmas unless he kill his older brother, Arthur Burns (Danny Huston), the real suspect for this crime. Guy Pearce puts on a flawless performance and does very well with the Irish accent. Ray Winstone also puts on a great performance as the Captain desperate to achieve great things for Australia, it's not often he has to play a weak character and he does so extremely well. Nick Cave's script is flawless also, so to is the music as it fits in well with the stunning photography and cinematography of the film. 5 stars, no doubt about it. Lets hope Nick Cave can team up with Ray Winstone again in The Death Of Of Bunny Munro.

Eastbound and Down: Season 2

 Kenny powers has got to be one of the best comic characters ever created. His self-centredness and general 'fuck you' attitude to everything but himself would never have been considered traits that relate to comedy, until the arrival of Kenny Powers (Danny McBride). Normally we'd want a person like Kenny Powers' face to break our fists, but Danny McBride and his co-creators of this unique and amazing series manage to make Kenny Powers a person we love. Malice was once something we looked at with disgust, then Kenny Powers arrived, and now it is one of the funniest things to watch. This is only one reason that 'Eastbound and Down' is so clever. It pushes the boundaries of comedy today. Kenny is a horrible person in every way, yet we shout in his favour. It's very clever. There's no silliness at all involved in the comedy and this is what makes it unique to America's idea of what is seen to be funny these days.
 This second series sees Kenny Powers in Mexico after abandoning his one true love April (Katy Mixon) at a gas station in North Carolina. He has become an outlaw making his money through gambling. Kenny has two sidekicks, one of which is played by Gurdeep Roy who does very well to be absolutely hilarious. The story is brilliant and does well to follow on from the first series. Nobody can watch 'Eastbound and Down' with a straight face, and I'm not surprised with Will Ferrell as Producer, and Danny McBride as the leading man. Do whatever you can to watch both series if you haven't already watched the first. You will not regret it, it truly is an instant classic. Five Stars

Kid Cudi - Man on The Moon II: The Legend of Mr.Rager

Cudi is back and thank fuck he hasn't lost one ounce of talent. His intelligent lyrics and flawless flow from the first album have been directly transferred to his second to create a masterpiece once again. Producer Emile plays a large part in this album once again and, once again, he delivers. His dark, ominous beats compliment Cudi's individual style in such a way that anybody listening can't help but go absolutely oriental. The album also features producer No I.D. who is a regular producer of Drake's music. If only Drake had featured on this album. I have considered Kid Cudi and Drake to be the biggest and most talented artists around at the moment for a while now. Both are flawless in my view. I guess I'll have to wait longer now for their collaboration. The album undoubtedly gets a five star rating. The best tracks for me are  'Scott Mescudi Vs. The World' featuring Cee-Lo, 'Don't Play This Song' featuring Mary J.Blige, 'Ashin Kusher', 'Mr.Rager' and 'Trapped In My Mind'. Just bloody buy it.

Another Year

Mike Leigh is back with a new film and I must say after watching it that I don't think he will ever lose his touch. The way the characters are presented and developed throughout is absolutely amazing. We can learn so much about Mike Leigh's characters just through their mannerisms and this is owed to the actors of course but mostly I think to how Mike Leigh creates them. What I love about a lot of Mike Leigh's films is that nothing can happen, but everything can happen at the same time. Though there is not much of a beginning middle and end in terms of actions, we are led through the lives of many different people, some growing old and being able to adapt to that part of life, others who are struggling to come to terms with growing old and being alone in the process. Another thing I love most about Mike Leigh's films is how real his characters really are. Every time I watch one of his films, whether it's 'Meantime', 'Life is Sweet' or 'Another Year', I can't help but relate his characters to somebody i know, friend or relative. The way in which he captures real life and satirizes it is a classic example of why he is one of the greatest film makers around, for me. I give 'Another Year' 4 stars, purely because my only criticism is that the film may be better understood by people that are older than I am. Regardless of this point I enjoyed it very much. Great performances all round, from Leigh's regulars to those who are new to his films and it is a great film to add to Mike Leigh's collection of masterpieces.

Jackass 3D

I've seen a lot of ratings for this film, like the one star it got from 'Culture' and the three it got from 'Empire', and i've been trying to remember what the last two Jackass films were given. Failing to remember, I started to contemplate on whether i should go and see the film or not because if I had gone and the film was shit then it would have been upsetting for the Jackass team to have (apparently) ended on a low. However, I took that risk and left the cinema in a great mood.
The ratings that the film received from 'Culture' and 'Empire' completely underplay it. Yes, it has no structure; yes it has no story, but so what. It's Jackass after all. It's not meant to be anything serious. All it is meant to be is a bit of a giggle, and this is achieved completely. Personally, I love the Jackass team and the stunts they do, and they just keep getting better and better and the 3D was used to hilarious effect. But fair enough, it's not a film one could give full ratings for a magazine like 'Empire', so in that sense three stars is spot on. But for me it was Jackass at their very best, and because the film kept me laughing my head off throughout, i'd give it 5 stars. Remember though, only go to watch it if your in the mood for a laugh.

Cee Lo Green - The Lady Killer

First album review and what better artist to choose for it. The super talented singer of hit single 'Fuck You' (no, not 'forget you' the syllables are all fucking wrong so don't sing that shite) Cee-Lo Green is back with his new solo album 'The Lady Killer' and what an album it is. For those who have only just heard of him it would be worth looking at his previous works. Way back in the 90s he was part of Goodie Mob(with Outkast) who are, some say, the creators of Dirty South, as a term and a genre. He moved on to do a couple of solo efforts and then formed a two man group with DJ Danger Mouse called Gnarls Barkley. You may remember their hit single 'Crazy'. Yes this is the big bloke from Gnarls Barkley with the most amazing voice.

'The Lady Killer' is absolute quality for the most obvious of reasons: It is completely different to anything else out at the moment and shits on those artists who make music suitable to be played in Mcdonald's and on X-factor. I wasn't going to name names, but absolute muppets like JLS or traitors to their original genre like Chipmunk or Tinchy Stryder; these are the people who need to study this shit hard and rediscover their talent (not JLS, talent alongside their name is a complete oxymoron). If i were to compare 'The Lady killer' to a former album to emphasise how different and revolutionary it is, i'd say Amy Whinehouse's 'Back To Black'. Though they are two very different albums, they do go back to the soulful roots of music and completely disregard the mainstream. The soulfulness of Cee-Lo's album is really brought out in tracks such as 'Bodies', a song in which he really shows off his vocal skills; and 'Fool For You' with it's slow pace is a perfect song to just cruise to. Every track on this album is top drawer stuff, my only criticism would be that i wish it had come out in the summer. Even though his album gets five stars from me, listening to this in the summer would have been absolute perfection. 

The Social Network

I have just come back from watching 'The Social Network' at the cinema and it's the first time in a small while that i've not come out of the cinema thinking 'how the fuck can the people making this film truly believe  that they've made something even remotely good'. The last time i haven't had to react in such a way was when i went to see the animated masterpiece that is 'The Illisionist'; and the last time i did have to react that way i had watched the ridiculous 'Scott Pilgrim vs. The World'...unbelievable how incredibly shite that film was. But moving on, 'The Social Network' for me is a hit. Why? Well, It's got Jesse Eisenburg's trademark wit mixed in with the true story behind facebook, and some great performances, not only from Eisenberg himself, as expected. I haven't seen Andrew Garfield in anything else but this film but after his performance as Eduardo Saverin, co-founder of facebook, i'm sure we'll be seeing his face a lot more. Obviously, I don't know Eduardo Saverin so I can't really judge on whether it's a good portrayal of the geezer or not, but Garfield is convincing and proves to be a very 3-dimensional character in terms of the emotions he can unleash. Even JT puts in a good performance Sean Parker, entrepreneur and founder of Napster. I liked how the film was structured in terms of moving back and forth in time, it meant that the story never dragged on and i felt they did well to keep the story together so that it was understandable throughout. Though the film is not perfect it is still 100% enjoyable. Four to four and a half stars for this one.

Mary & Max

Why this did not cause any fuss at the cinema i do not know. There isn't anyone in their right mind who can watch 'Mary & Max' and simply come out with "was alright.." If anybody ever did say that then they've got no fucking clue.
Mary & Max is an instant classic for me. It's a touching story of how a young girl from Australia decides that she wants to make a friend and so sends a letter to a middle-aged man in America asking where baby's come from in the States. A friendship builds between them and gets stronger as they grow older. It is definitely a weird film. It pushes the boundaries like no other animated film i have seen. Yet it still maintains itself to be a thing of real beauty. Also, just because it's an animation with childish type ideas like chocolate hot-dogs and baby's coming from something other than sex, this is very much a film for adults. The issues in both Mary and Max's life are those that only adults can really understand. For example, Max is diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome and Mary's mother is a raging alcoholic. Max is voiced by academy award winner Philip Seymour-Hoffman and the film boasts a number of other stars including Eric Bana (Chopper) and Toni Collette (Muriel's Wedding). It really is a triumph and a masterpiece and an absolute joy to watch. I Couldn't be more sure that this film deserves a five star rating.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZ3vlMO-Z-I&feature=related

Boardwalk Empire

I'd been looking forward to seeing this very much, not just because some of the filming was done in my favourite barbershop in New York, but also for the fact that it's Scorsese's first attempt at a television series. Firstly, for those who are unaware of Martin Scorsese's new HBO series 'Boardwalk Empire' here's a quick overview:
It is a factual based series set in the 1920's at the very start of the prohibition in the United states. Most of the series is set in Atlantic city, where Nucky Thompson (Steve Buscemi), the town's treasurer, juggles his political life with being a gangster. Nucky plans to keep Atlantic City 'wet as a mermaid's twat' (Nucky's words not mine)and so he and his brother (Shea Wigham), the town's sheriff, along with local thugs and other corrupt politicians, set out to make Nucky Thomspson the man to go to for illegal liquor in Atlantic City. He does business with the big shots like Arnold Rothstein (Michael Stuhlbarg) and with those who are just starting to branch off like Al Capone (Our very own Stephen Graham). On hearing that name however, we all know who he is and that he won't stay small for long. 
If that overview is not enough to persuade you to go ahead and watch this series then hopefully my review will do the trick. But those who weren't persuaded...what the fuck?... Anyway, i watched the first three episodes yesterday and so far it is looking very promising. It is just what i expected from a collaboration between one the world's most prestigious directors and the writer of The Sopranos.
For me, a television series has a few targets it has to hit in order for it to be successful, like The Sopranos or The Wire. In particular it has to have memorable characters with certain traits throughout, and obviously great performances from the actors playing these characters. Boardwalk Empire is not short of great character performances at all. Steve Buscemi's portrayal of the corrupt treasurer, Nucky Thompson, is particularly worthy of mention, and so to are Steven Graham's attempt at the infamous Al Capone, and Michael Stuhlberg's chillingly calm performance as Arnold Rothstein. Buscemi manages to juggle between two traits very well indeed: One being a man of the community and the other being a more dark, corrupt and sinister figure; Yet he still has that comic edge to his performance that you'll find in Fargo, for example. Furthermore, Steven Graham's performance as Al Capone is another highlight of the series so far. He's psychotic, unpredictable and heartless, which makes him all the more memorable as a character.
Another factor that adds to the experience involved in watching Boardwalk Empire is the set and the props.  The Suits are amazing and so to are the haircuts, and they are successful in convincing the viewer that it is 1920's America. One thing that caught my eye especially was the blue Rolls Royce which Jimmy Darmody (Michael Pitt) drives Nucky around in. It truly is a beautiful car, and a nice touch to the overall attempt at making the series as real as possible. Five Stars so far.

This Is England 86

(Spoiler alert)
Yes, i know, it's pretty late to be going on about Shane Meadows' mesmerizing four part series, This Is England 86, but I thought, 'It was so bloody good i've just got to do it justice.' So, here i am, first review of the blog, and I'm proud to make this series my first topic.
Episode one seemed to cause a bit of upset in that people felt it did not live up to the standards of the dark and mind blowing film. But, because I'm patient, and because i have faith in Meadows, i loved it. So what if it wasn't dark , it was a good introduction into the present lives of the charcters. Once episode 2 was shown, only then could i know whether me shutting up critics with a 'stop being a bunch of moaning bastards and wait' was right or not.
What do you know? I was right. Though it still wasn't quite as dark as the film, there were issues that gradually arose throughout which had potential to cause This Is England 86 to be a masterpiece, something that todays shitty telly needs. Lol, gorgeous as ever, and Milky (former geezer, sudden twat) having an affair behind Woody's (Legend) back, Harvey being subject to abuse at home, the return of Lol's suspect father in what proves to be a crucial scene, and Shaun's outburst at finding his mother in bed with his employer. Depression is what i look for with Shane Meadows' work, and i was well on the way.
 Episodes 3 and 4 were arguably the best in terms of what everyone expects from a Shane Meadows drama.  The moments of comedy are almost non-existent, apart from the fight between Shaun's lot and the moped muppets, and Gadgets little fling with Trudy. Even Woody managed to show a moment of true emotion in what was a great scene between he and Milky, where most of us viewing were undecided as to whether we wanted Milky to tell Woody all about the affair. He didn't, and I'm guessing its because he was as surprised as we were that Woody was opening up the way he did. The real performance came from Lol's father. The climatic scene between he and Trev is sickening and just awful to watch. In other words it's just why I defended Shane Meadows in the first place. And what a performance by Lol's father, 'wow' is all i can come up with as to how i felt after that episode, and the lines 'this can either be the best fuck of your life or the worst' just sum up the horror of that scene.
 Episode 4, even though he returned at the end of Episode 3, saw Combo come back. Arguably this was the most anticipated issue to arise for all who watched the film previously, and he didn't fail in his performances to give us what we all wanted from him. Episode 4 also saw what was another equally depressing but more chaotic scene, this time between Lol and her father rather than her friend. Powerful performances and a tense air due to the scenes improvisation gave it a real edge, and if it weren't for my dad screaming it i would've been shouting ' fuckin' 'it 'im!!' at the moment Lol reaches for the hammer. Then Combo appears, and Combo as we all knew him from the film was gone.  He seemed apologetic and ashamed, and not just in this scene but the previous scenes he shows up in at Shaun's gaff and at his recently deceased mother's flat. But despite what we have seen him do in the film, in the end we love him. I was particularly struck by the connection he and Shaun still had, he was almost like a father figure and i found that quite sad but quite significant in the context of role models and how they effect a child's future. Furthermore, Combo is still very much psychotic but we love him for what he does and says. ' Let me do something good.' he says repeatedly to a shocked and hysterical Lol, whilst offering to take the wrap for the murder of her psychotic father. Powerful Scene. Amazing is a word that sums up all aspects of this series. Top quality performances, a brilliant soundtrack, and Ludovico Einaudi once again delivering with the piano riffs to support the depressing scenes thorughout. Five stars.