Mini Film Reviews
Mar 30
Work and other distractions has made me a little slack on the blog front of late. But rather than have the experiences drift into oblivion, some tiny potted reviews of recent films I have seen follow:
Hot Fuzz A lot of fun from the boys who made Shaun of the Dead, complete with action-movie cliches galore; endless jumpy editing and over-the-top sound effects. And the de rigeur early Peter Jackson-style violence. Not a bad plot either! Four montages out of five.
Notes on a Scandal Wonderful to see Blanchett and Dench crackle together on screen. The young Andrew Simpson isn’t bad either. An excellent film only spoiled by a lazy ending. Only Bill Nighy doesn’t feel right, but perhaps that’s because he’s been doing so much comedy lately. Four art classes out of five.
The Illusionist Slightly made-for-TV looking nineteenth-century magician tale. Fails to deliver anywhere near as much atmosphere and interest as the similarly-themed The Prestige. Edward Norton lacks charisma, Paul Giamatti is unconvincing and Jessica Biel is just plain wrong. The celebrated twist in the tale reminds me of the kind of lame stuff M. Night Shyamalan haas been churning out lately. Two rabbits out of five.
Mar 31, 2007 @ 18:03:31
I din’t think The Illusionist was that bad. It certainly lives in the shadow of The Prestige, but it had some nice things (I loved Edward Norton’s entrance)
I disagree about Paul Giametti too – I think he was great in the part and made his portrayal of a character caught in the midst of an intractable situation very convincing.
You also forgot to mention Rufus Sewell, who was for once pretty good I thought.
Sure, the plot is a bit hokey, and the switch is pretty obvious, but I don’t think they played it for a surprise really.
And you’ve got to admit that it’s MUCH better than a lot of the dross that hits the screens, so your two rabbits seem pretty measly…
I’d be more inclined to give it 3 and a half Magical Orange Trees out of 5.