WeatherGirl’s Station

Disappointing. I was so looking forward to this movie. The advertising really whetted my appetite and I went into the cinema with great expectations. Sadly I discovered that the music just wasn’t up to the job. There are about two decent songs in the production and the rest just sounds like one long moan of sameness. The visuals reinforced this monotony thought there were moments that were quite stunning but certainly not enough to effectively engage my interest for more than momentary pleasure. The threat of falling asleep was ever present. I think Tim needs to look at finding some new line of exploration as this is merely more of the same and adding nothing new to things he’s already said.

Current temperature: here 5C/41F, there 5F/-15C

Stunning. This, right here, is why Phi and I go to the movies so often. So we can come out of the cinema and spend the entire walk home discussing what we just saw. There are so many parallels with Fargo here. An amazing landscape that the film makers seem to be in tune with. A slow steady pace that lets you cogitate on what happens but doesn’t go so slow it gets tedious. Dark, dark humour. A seriously cool lawman.

The presence of evil is soaked right through this movie, its effects and the the exercise there of, and I sort of got to thinking of the bad guy as the devil. May be that was not the intention of those involved but it was an easy leap for me to make. Also they didn’t pull any punches which led to some shocking scenes. Any other outcome would have completely trashed the endeavour.

The sight and sound of West Texas was pitch perfect. And as for Josh Brolin? He seems to be aging into a career.

Go, see, watch, think. Holy cow it’s good.

Current temperature: here 3C/37F, there -11F/-24C

Heartbreaking. Superficially about the disappearance of a soldier who has just returned from Iraq, this film delves into the effects of a war like that being fought in Iraq on human beings. The performances are superb. Plus there are some very subtle comments on certain male behaviour that made me want to hug someone. There’s no triumphant ending, no platitudes, and a great deal of human suffering along the way, but a number of characters are changed by the experience and that always gives one hope.

Current temperature: here 3C/37F, there -11F/-24C

Creepy. This was very tense for much of its length though became less so as we were allowed to see more of the de-evolved humans. Less is usually better than more. There’s a little to much of Will Smith on his own. He’s not quite good enough an actor to hold your attention completely on his own for as long as this requires. I loved his relationship with Sam and the character’s ‘dedication to working the problem’ though. The end piece was a mite trite and ‘pretty’ given what had occurred just before.

Current temperature: here 8C/46F, there 16F/-9

Quirky. While not high art, I laughed and cried numerous times during this movie, so it gets a tick in the win column from me. It’s a love story told backwards demonstrating a young woman discovering her own life as an independent person. I’m still not convinced that Gerald Butler has what it takes to be a romantic leading man. Manly, half naked, warrior king - yes, but not romcom lead. As for Hillary Swank, hmmm? She’s not a traditional beauty but her comic timing kicks butt and she can do a prat fall with the best of them. Less romance and more physical comedy might be a big win for her. Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s appearance, on the other hand, was worth the price of admission all on it’s lonesome. He has a very lovely backside!

A number of 30/40 year old male movie critics clearly have no clue when discussing romcoms. Take anything they say about this film with a pinch of salt.

Current temperature: here 8C/46F, there 28F/-2C

Epic. Ridley Scott has to be one of my all time favourite film makers. It is so wonderful to watch a film where you know thought has been given to every element of the experience. Not everything will always work but there is a brain behind the scenes ensuring the ride will be worth taking.

This is a great movie and by the end I was tied up in knots worrying about how everything was going to work out when the final bust went down. I appreciated that certain elements were not beautified or glorified yet their appeal was clear. There was one very significant moment when I seriously flinched and it takes something to do that to me these days. There was plenty of averting my eyes with the drug taking scenes but that was to be expected with my aversion to sharp pointy objects and Phi was able to tell me when it was ’safe’ to watch again. (Frankly, I could have dome with a little bit less of that but then shooting up on heroin is not a pretty thing.)

Current temperature: here 9C/48F, there: 16F/-9C

So The Assassination of Jesse James… arrived in Colchester just as things went completely pear shaped, what with our trip to London and then our attempt to head north for the Christmas break. So, silly us, we assumed we could travel to my mum’s part of the world and watch it there. No such luck. It’s not even a case of, it’s been and gone, they just aren’t going to show it at all. Drat. Double drat. And language much worse than that. I was really looking forward to watching this one.

Current temperature: here 9C/48F, there 14F/-10C

Beautiful. A much better film than the critics seem to think IMHO. Visually interesting and beautiful to watch, it moved with enough pace to keep your interest and didn’t botch the book. Yes, it’s not as good as the book (and I would highly recommend the three novels, they are excellent) but I think that was to be expected with a book that is inherently about ideas rather than plot. The armoured bears were spectacular and worth the price of admission on their own.

Current temperature: here 9C/48F, there 14F/-10C

Trash. Oh, wow, that was bad. Was the script writer asleep at his desk? Whole stretches were so underwritten it was scary. Also, the production was so cheap they used footage from the TV show Dark Angel to fill in the back story. Then there was the huge honking plot hole of having a hitman, dressed dapperly, with a bald head that shows off his tat bar code id, wandering around in full view of all unsundry. Way to keep a low profile!

Current temperature: here 9C/48F, there 0F/-18C

Blah. I fell asleep watching this movie. The script was the same old same old and I just didn’t give a rip about anything they had to say. This was oh so Disney and not so much Pixar.

Current temperature: here 8C/46F, there 23F/-5C