Film Review - War of the Worlds

Steven Spielberg has of course made a lot of great summer movies over the years. Duel, Jaws, ET, Raiders of the Lost Ark and Jurassic Park are among my all time favourites.

War of the Worlds is not.

I can't quite put my finger on why this film didn't do it for me. The special effects were awesome, there were some tense moments, and Tom Cruise was fine. At the end of the day I guess there were just too many things that grated;

1. the kids were annoying and unsympathetic. The son was badly written and illogical, and the daughter veered between hysterical and serene without reason

2. The aliens weren't at all scary. They came up out of their craters much too quickly - it worked a lot better in the book with the slow build up.

3. The Tim Robbins character was a bit of a cliché and wasn't believable

4. The plot didn't have any layers of complexity to it - aliens arrive, people got killed, aliens die. There wasn't enough to engage the brain.

5. There were too many bits that didn't make sense - eg how come Tom Cruise could run to his house quicker than 100ft aliens? And would people under alien attack really have the time to construct 9/11 style missing posters?

6. The film was of course hampered by the book's very un-cinematic ending......"Is that it?"

Maybe I'm being too harsh. Maybe I expect something more from Mr Spielberg. The wife thought it was excellent.

I give it 3 stars.

Do you disagree? Why not leave a comment and let me know what you think?

Film Review : Batman Begins

I took this photo while ice-hiking on the Vatnajokul glacier in Iceland. If you've seen Batman Begins you may recognise it, as the glacier was used to film the Siberian section of the film. Although we visited Iceland a few months after filming there was a lot of debris left on the glacier by the film crew - our mountain guide wasn't very impressed!

Anyway, onto the review. As you no doubt know, this is a re-launch of the Batman film franchise that went seriously off track in the 90s. It tells the story of how Bruce Wayne went from privileged billionaire's son to Dark Knight, and does the job pretty well. The scenes of Bruce as a child are very good, and his motivation for taking the path he has chosen is well explained. Christian Bale is excellent in the lead role, deliverying just the right level of menace.

The film isn't perfect though. The final act, where the film kicks into action mode, is far less interesting than the build up that precedes it. And Katie Holmes, despite being drop dead gorgeous, is much too lightweight for the role of a District Attorney.

All in all though it was a good film, and I'd give it 4 stars

Film Review : Sin City

I've never read the comics on which this film was based so went in without any idea of what I was going to watch, other than that the film was in black and white and was supposed to be pretty violent. I came out with a broad smile across my face - this was a great movie.

The film tells a trio of loosely connected tales of three men - honourable cop Bruce Willis, monster with a heart Mickey Rourke, and chisel-jawed hero Clive Owen - all fighting to protect, or avenge, the women they love. The film takes place in the fictional Sin City, a den of iniquity and corruption that makes Gotham City look like Disneyland.

The film is extraordinary to look at. It makes great use of black and white (blood is snow white, for example), and is a beauty to behold. The characters, although thinly drawn, are all engaging, and the Pulp Fiction-like interweaving storylines work well. The acting is spot on throughout

The film is indeed very violent, but the comic-book style lessens its impact and I personally didn’t have a problem with it. I was swept along from start to finish, and would heartily recommend you go see it.

I give it 5 stars!

Film Review : Kingdom of Heaven

Like most bloggers, I started with a flourish but haven’t posted anything for more than a month now. So to make amends here's a review of Kingdom of Heaven. I saw this in May, so you'll have to forgive me if my memory isn't perfect.

The film is set during the Crusades, and follows Orlando Bloom as Balian, a French blacksmith who is miraculously transformed into a great leader of men. When he's not busy leading an army in the fight to defend Jerusalem he also finds time to teach the residents of the parched Holy Lands how to dig wells and use irrigation to water their crops - however did they survive before he came along?!

The film is high on spectacle, and definitely looks good. There are some great set pieces and some good acting, and it’s a relief that the Muslims aren’t portrayed as the bad guys. But somehow the film didn't quite work. Ultimately I think Orlando Bloom is just too young and too good looking to be taken seriously as a great leader and hero. Director Ridley Scott is obviously trying to replicate the success of Gladiator, but this film falls well short. Orlando Bloom is no Russell Crowe, and the film doesn't pack the same emotional punch.

I give it 3.5 stars.