Divergent

I have been waiting for this movie since I first read the book and found out they were doing a movie, and now I wish they hadn't released it. It's not fully finished. It's really just a garble of scenes that played together make no sense and completely ruin the source material.

Divergent has been on shaky ground with me since I finished the last book, those of you who have read the last book will understand why, but I was still looking forward to the film version. Unfortunately, I found the film version completely and utterly flawed. I know the age old saying, "books are always better than the film" but you can still have a good film adaptation in the right hands. Divergent was in the wrong hands. My view may be biased, having just taught the novel to my 9th graders but the amount of changes done to the film adaptation make it a poor representation of the novel.

Some scenes and quotes are present - "have you never seen a hamburger before" "Be brave" - but the story gets all tangled up and the meaning behind events are lost in translation. The aptitude test is all wonky - the choice should have been between cheese or a knife not a slab of meat. What was the reasoning behind that change? Little changes like that build up into a snowball and ruin the remainder of the film. The stages of initiation are chaotic and there are too many people involved. Tris doesn't get to beat up Molly after having her towel taken from her which is a crucial scene in her character development. Peter doesn't stab Edward in the eye with a butter knife - which would have been a wicked scene. Al's death means nothing because the relationship he wants with Tris isn't present in the movie and her rejection of him isn't present. Visiting Day doesn't make an appearance which sets the way for the second and third books, and instead Tris sees her mom in a rushed scene. Divergent is something everyone knows about, which isn't true in the novel. And don't even get me started on the absent Uriah.

I understand that films can never be the book, but Divergent loses its charm. There is no character development. The only character who I felt fit the novel version was Four, of course I think he was written horribly and so fit the stunted version of himself in the film.

I think part of the trouble was trying to do too much too quick. Although maybe quick isn't such a good term because this film dragged on and on. The sign of a good film is one leaving you wanting more and unaware of the time passing or your surroundings. I was aware. They complicated the story much more than they had to. If they had stuck to the story as written I think it would have gone smoother instead of trying to fit in a scene here and there and then try to weave it all together.

From the very beginning of the film I was on edge when it opened on a deserted ship. They go through all the trouble of creating a CGI abandoned ship which does nothing to further the plot or help tell the story. Likewise what was with that fence? It's suppose to be locked from the inside, again foreshadowing events to follow. Overall it felt like a cafeteria movie, picking bits and pieces of the book to form some semblance of a meal.

The only redeeming factor was Theo James as Four giving the audience something pretty to listen to and look at for the otherwise wasteful two-and-a-half hours. 

New Girl Season One

 

The first season of New Girl was a huge surprise for me, finally an American network show that was laugh out loud funny.I would argue the show is even better than Friends which seems to be the standard of American comedy. New Girl feels fresh and new and most importantly, funny. Three guys, one girl all approaching thirty and all unlucky in love share a loft together, there is definitely the right ingredients for a comedy and the writing and performances make it all come together. 

Schmidt is my favorite, everything he does is just hilarious and I think one of the best episodes is the Thanksgiving episode where Schmidt cooks.

Nanny McPhee Returns

Nanny McPhee was such a great success the first time around but I found the second one lacking. In Nanny McPhee Returns, Nanny McPhee comes to the aid of a woman with three children and two visiting cousins. Her husband is off fighting the war and her brother-in-law is trying to sell the family farm out from under them. The unruly children have to learn how to cooperate and understand one another and their respective circumstances. 

What was so great about the first one was the children. The adult characters were more in supportive roles. For Nanny McPhee Returns the children lose the focus and the amount of big British names, even in cameo appearances pull the attention away from the children. Even Asa Butterfield can't hold onto the spotlight because the rest of the children are unnoteworthy. When you have Maggie Gyllenhaal (American), Maggie Smith, Emma Thompson, Ralph Fiennes, Ewan McGregor, Rhys Ifans, Daniel Mays and Bill Bailey parading across the screen it makes the ridiculousness of Nanny McPhee too ridiculous. The adult characters are not ridiculous like they were in the first one so the magic feels out of place and overdone. 

The sequel lost its charm. The five lessons the children need to learn are learned too fast and the audience is left wondering if the lesson was actually learned. Unlike the first one there isn't a real push from the children to get rid of Nanny McPhee which I think is the problem. The children just accept her and go about their business. 

Also the film tries to tackle some big issues of the war - children's relationships with their parents, divorce and its effect on children and the real possibility that not everyone comes back from the war but these issues are just thrown in and not taken full advantage of in the plotting of the film. The few moments that were in the film were done well but I would have liked to have seen more of those. 

The film did make me cry though. Once when they get the forged telegram about the husband being killed in action and the revelation of the Maggie Smith's character at the end. The ending made up for the rest of the film by tying the first film to the second. As it turns out, Maggie Smith plays a grown up Aggy Brown and still has the baby rattle. It was a shinning moment in an otherwise lackluster film.

Twilight Breaking Dawn Part 2

The Twilight Saga has finally come to an end and I'm not ashamed to admit that I've enjoyed every one. I'm still on the fence on whether or not the last film needed to be made in two parts. On the one hand it was nice because things were then spread out and the filmmakers could take their time with the story but on the other hand the part 2 wasn't able to carry itself as well as part 1. 

Breaking Dawn part 2. Bella has been transformed into a vampire, her child is growing like crazy, Jacob has imprinted on Bella's daughter and now the evil vampires from Italy are coming after The Cullens. Preparation for the final battle has begun. 

The film still had its comedic moments which have been there since the beginning, thankfully the screen play was written by the same person for all five films. I particularly liked the part where Jacob takes off his clothes and becomes a wolf in front of Charlie. Charlie has remained one of those great characters throughout the series that keeps the audience rooted in reality. And his "put your clothes back on" line is brilliant. Of course I don't think anything can top Bella's "You've nicknamed my daughter after the Lock Ness Monster!" More sexual innuendos almost all exclusively from Emmet whose only role in the film seem to be to make sex jokes and to show Bella's new strength as a newborn. 

I had two problems with the final film. First it didn't seem to have enough substance to last for 2 hours. There wasn't a lot of action that happened before the battle. Most of the film was waiting for witnesses to show up and explain to them the situation. It was nice to see a 'global' presence as far as the vampires went but didn't make compelling viewing. 

Lee Pace though was amazing! His new disheveled look grew on me the more I saw him and I loved his attitude. Kind of Han Solo-esque. I knew he was going to be in Twilight and I was really excited when I saw part 1 but when he didn't show up then I was disappointed so I'm glad I finally got to see him. I loved the relationship between him and Kate. "If we live through this, I'll follow you anywhere woman." There's a story to be had there. Getting ready for the battle had some good moments which picked up the pace. Bella finding out she's a shield and learning how to use showed good interaction between Edward and Emmet. Overall though the film was just waiting for the battle to happen which brings me to my second problem of the film.

Now it's been a while since I've read the books so I'm not sure what happened in the books but having the final battle pay out showing the deaths of Carlise and Jasper but then have it only be Alice's vision was kind of a cheat. I mean I'm glad it was a vision because no one died in the book but as an audience you felt cheated. The major action sequence of the film didn't even happen in the reality of the Twilight world. The vision made you aware of the film as a film. You were disconnect from the narrative because your mind is telling you this isn't how it's suppose to be (this isn't Harry Potter) and so you spend your time trying to figure out how it's happening. Is this Zafrina creating a visual for everyone? How is this happening which takes away from the joy of the film and in a way breaks the fourth wall. 

I know they talked about changing the end so I'll have to read the books again to see but they did my favorite scene where Bella is able to show Edward her thoughts so I was happy. I also liked how they ended the film by using the book pages to land on the final page and highlight the word forever. Again it broke the narrative and called attention to itself but it was nice touch although I can see how it would be annoying. It may have been better had Bella just said the final words in a voiceover ending the film how it started, but I can live with it. The one thing that they did change was the hair color of some of the Cullens which disrupted the continuity of the films.

I particularly liked the end credits where it gave credit to everyone who was in the films since the very beginning. I especially like the acknowledgement of Rachelle Lefevre who played Victoria in the first two films before being replaced by Bryce Dallas Howard in Eclipse. 

All in all Breaking Dawn part 2 felt like an ending. 

Friends With Benefits

My local news station does a question of the day everyday where they ask the public a survey question and a few weeks ago the question of the day was which celebrity do people want to stop acting and return to music? The answer was Justin Timberlake which I think is unfortunate. I happen to really enjoy Timberlake films and in fact I haven't seen one I didn't like. He's come a long way since NSYNC. 

Friends With Benefits came out at the same time as No Strings Attached and both movies have similar plot lines, two friends have meaningless sex but they realize later the love they were trying to avoid inevitably crops up. I enjoyed both films but I think Friends With Benefits is truer to life. It made sex funny and awkward. The friendship was there and believable and the surrounding characters worked to highlight the main relationship rather than pulling focus. And there was an emotional element present in the main characters caused by their parents' absence emotionally as well as physically.  

Mila Kunis and Justin Timberlake had good chemistry on screen but they also had good comedic timing together which really worked to sell their relationship. I haven't been a huge fan of Kunis but she made me want to watch more of her stuff with this film. Woody Harrleson was fun in his non-typical role and helped get the comedy across when Timberlake was unable to. It was also a delight to see Jenna Elfman in a film again (I haven't seen her since EdTV with Harrleson). Patricia Clarkson was a bit of a letdown for me but it might have just been her character that I wasn't too fond of (she reminded me too much of my own mother in a bad way). I think her character was good to push Kunis towards Timberlake. I very much enjoyed the cameos of Emma Stone, Andy Samberg, Shaun White, Jason Segal and Masi Oka. They all made the most of the cameos but again didn't take away from the plot. They added a little something extra to the film that made it less flat than it could have been given the overused romantic comedy plot. 

I enjoyed the film overall. The actors were fun to watch, the plot moved forward without too many holes and it was funny. It hit all the marks of a romantic comedy. 

This Means War

The sign of a good film is that you would watch it again and again. With This Means War I wanted to watch it immediately after I had finished it, much like my favorite book. I couldn't stop going through some of the scenes in my mind. It was funny, entertaining with enough action and a great storyline.

Chris Pine (whom I love and haven't seen anything of his that I hate) and Tom Hardy (new kid on the block for me but discovered he played the bad guy in Star Trek Nemesis which is awesome) are two spies who unknowingly date the same girl but when they find out they pull out all the stops, using the full resources of the CIA, in order to come out on top. Reese Witherspoon (can't go wrong with her either) plays a woman tired of running into her ex who is now getting married without someone of her own. Her friend puts her on a dating website where she meets Hardy and then runs into Pine immediately after that in the video store. Who will she choose?

Pine is just plain adorable, as always playing the suave confirmed bachelor but he does it well. He flirts with Witherspoon just as much as the camera but he still has enough vulnerability to make him likeable. Hardy plays the British more reserved and chivalrous guy. He's safe which translates to boring for Witherspoon but he also has a soft spot. He's the one who wants to settle down, he has a kid. Hardy is playing Callum Bleu's role in Princess Diaries: A Royal Engagement where Pine played the same type of character. Hardy is also very likable but Pine has the edge. Witherspoon  is great in this role and somewhat makes a stand for women dating "like men" but she struggles with it falling back into the more traditional role of a romantic comedy heroine. She had great chemistry with both Pine and Hardy. I loved her harebrained attitude. 

The choice between Pine and Hardy is left to the very last moment and it played out beautiful. It isn't awkward and doesn't feel cheesy. Witherspoon is about to be flattened by the oncoming car and has to choose who to run to, Hardy or Pine who are on opposite sides of the unfinished freeway (what is it with LA and unfinished freeways?). The camera cuts from Witherspoon stuck between the two to an overhead shot of the scene covered in smoke. You have to wait for the smoke to clear before you see the choice she's made. With the romantic relationships tied together nicely, the film ends where it should, on a nice bromance scene with Pine and Hardy. I want to see more of these two.

The film brings together the best of action and romantic comedies with just a touch of bromance into one film. The film has lots of laughs and it's just a joy to watch. It's entertaining but has a good story to back up it up. Everyone gets their happy ending and the viewer is left satisfied. This is definitely a film I need to own.

Sherlock Holmes

 

Perhaps if I had seen Robert Downy Jr's version of Sherlock Holmes before seeing Benedict Cumberbatch's version I may have like this film more. This is not to say that the film was bad it just wasn't nearly as good as BBC's Sherlock. The film hinged on the title character which for the film fell flat. Downy Jr's interpretation of the characters didn't feel like Holmes. He was more sexually inclined and didn't seem as smart as he should. More than anything I perceived him as a pest rather than a consulting detective. I could see somethings working but overall it wasn't engaging. Jude Law as Watson I think pulled it off although he was boring as well as he was trying to pull away from Holmes. I liked the overall look of him, although there was a moment in which he looked Russian and I could see why he was cast in Anna Karenina. The relationship aspect of the film took away from the crux of the show, and here I may be comparing the film to Sherlock which has a great comradery between Sherlock and Watson, but the Holmes and Watson of Sherlock Holmes seemed like squabbling children. However, I did enjoy Downy Jr and Law together I just think the roles weren't right. 

Mark Strong is a great bad guy although his character was more laughable than sinister and Rachel McAdams as Irene Adler was a disappointment (here again I am comparing to Sherlock). 

The plot of the film is too supernatural, even though Holmes debunks all the magic in the end there isn't any inkling in the beginning that the magic is not real. As the audience you expect it not to be real because this is Sherlock Holmes after all but it begins to trick you into think it might be true until the very end. Part of the problem is that more time is spent on capturing cool special effects and slowing the camera down to really delve into the plot and characters. The camera work is partly why I never finished the film the first time I tried to watch it because it totally distracts from the film.  

Seeing a Victorian London was a good use of special effects. I especially enjoyed seeing the half completed Tower Bridge (not London Bridge), that added a nice element. You get the industrial feel of the city through the steampunk aesthetic.   

Even after all the plot problems it was still fun and light entertainment but not for those who found Sherlock first.

Bridesmaids

Bridesmaids is not a typical type of film I watch but it ended up being not what I expected. It was marketed as sort of a woman's answer to The Hangover (full disclosure: I have not seen The Hangover) but it didn't seem as raunchy as I was expecting. It was quite tame and dealt more with relationships and emotions.  The film was trying to be groundbreaking for woman's comedy but was still tethered to the idea of what women can and cannot do on film. They didn't push the envelop enough. It started out really really slow and dry and I was left wondering why it was such a big hit and the scene at the bridal shop happened. Finally I got some real laugh out loud funny moments.

Everything was going wrong for Kristen Wiig's character and at times it was a little hard to watch but I could identify with some of it. This was clearly the female version of loser male character we've been seeing recently in comedy and especially in Judd Apatow films. She wasn't perfect and I loved the juxtaposition of her against Helen. The focus on the loss of the childhood friend was core to the film but at times caused the film to feel more like a drama than a comedy. Her loss of job, her own place away from her mother and boyfriend all helped to create a character easy to relate to. There were too many times that the film relied on conventions of the romantic comedy to make a statement for something new. Not that I didn't like it but I guess I was hoping for a little more.

Although I'm not familiar with Kristen Wiig's work and familiar with just a little bit of Maya Rudolph's work it was a pleasure to see two British comedians I am familiar with. Matt Lucas I'm not a huge fan of and I found his scenes with Rebel Wilson were kind of tacked on. They could have found a better way to incorporate them or a better way to show Wiig's fall from disgrace. Chris O'Dowd on the other hand was amazing and it was so good to see him out of the IT Department. I can see him as a leading man and I hope he continues to pop up in other films.

The Help

The Help was a pretty good film. It had some really good laughs and Bryce Dallas Howard stole the show. Emma Stone was good but was swallowed up by her blonde hair and southern accent. She acted more as the vehicle of the maids than anything else which worked for the film but didn't add anything to her own character. Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer were marvelous. They seemed the most real of all the characters and you felt for them which was the film was trying to do.

What I liked about it was that it was a film about civil rights which showed both sides. The extreme racism of the white characters, especially Howard, made them seem almost like parodies but there were people like that. However, not all white characters were portrayed like that and you see the struggle of being an upstanding racist white citizen. When Alison Janney recounts how she dismissed her maid you see that struggle which is more powerful than the racism of Howard. You can laugh at Howard's character for her extreme take but Janney's character makes you feel the deep rooted racism that's hard to escape and it becomes more real for the audience. "I'm not racist, but..." is what I see in Janney's character which translates well for a modern audience.

The maid's predicament is well played out by not overdoing it and making them seem real. A modern audience would react in the same way which is the strength of this film dealing with this period of time. The pie section is perhaps a little extreme but something you would want to do and maybe talk about doing.  And Davis and Spencer give great performances. Their emotions control you as you watch and you feel what they feel. Octavia Spencer definitely deserved the Academy Award.

Not Going Out Series 6

There was definitely something missing from Not Going Out this time around and that something is named Tim Vine. As much as I love Lee Mack and Katy Wix they couldn't make up for the loss of Vine and the comedy was forced. Sally Bretton doesn't have the comedic timing that the other two have and Wix's wacky Daisy isn't as effective without Tim. Without Tim, Lee has to result to talking to Daisy at the pub which just further calls attention to the fact that Lee is now in a female dominated world and it isn't working for him. This series played on the will-they-won't-they relationship between Lee and Lucy but because you know it's never going to work it's played out. I was tired of the constant push and pull I felt as an audience member watching their relationship. They would raise my hopes and then dash them just as quickly. I found myself wanting the American Kate from the first series back who had better comedic timing and was a better match for Lee.

What was really funny was the short they did for Children in Need.

United

It was great to see David Tennant in a good film. As much as I love him as The Doctor it's been harder following his film work but United was worth watching. It made me cry which is always the sign of a good film in my book to elicit an emotional response like that. United follows the before and after events of the 1958 crash in Munich which killed eight Manchester United players. The story, based on true events, was done beautifully although I know the film has been criticized for its accuracy by surviving family members. It was a bit slow in the beginning, a common occurrence of British film, but had some beautiful shots and when the news came down that the crash had happened it allows the actors to act rather then relying on special effects or fancy editing. What happens instead is that the actor is framed on one side of the frame with just empty space filling most of the frame. It sets a tone.

The shot of David Tennant, playing team manager Jimmy Murphy, crying in the stairwell packs a punch. The camera view from the back shows the crumpled form of Tennant and tells you all you need to know. The plane crash is done in a tasteful way but makes the audience wonder why they ever got back on the plane. The anxiety of the players is potent as they get on the plane for the last time. Laughter is replaced with grim expressions and players move to the back of the plane in fear. The film stops short of showing the actual crash and skips to the aftermath. This left me a little confused as to how the plane actually crashed and left so many people dead after failing to take off. The film opens with the aftermath panning along the snow covered ground littered with debris, stopping at the sight of Jack O'Connell, playing new footballer Bobby Charlton, strapped into his detached chair. It works to prepare you for when the scene eventually comes.The room full of coffins is another scene that grabs you.

I found I had a hard time remembering each of the players so when Charlton was grieving over Duncan I didn't know who Duncan was besides a ManU player. I wasn't able to connect with him before the crash so I lost some of the emotional payoff, however, O'Connell did an excellent job and a long way from Skins. Thomas Howes, who played Mark Strong another fallen player was memorable for his pipe smoking but also because I found it a bit ironic that the actor gets roles where he dies tragically (He played William in Downton Abbey). Dougray Scott did what I thought was a good job as Matt Busby, his surviving family members would think otherwise, but you kinda found yourself loving to hate him. Why did he push the team so far? I suppose the worse punishment is surviving and the film made the argument that he was responsible. In the film the character even wants to claim responsibility by Murphy won't let him. It's an odd moment because Busby was portrayed in the beginning of the film as a hard gangster type who's going to do what he likes and not worry about what the football league says. Pushing his agenda means his players die and as an audience member you want to blame him but he then becomes so remorseful that you can't. David Tennant was the joy to see for me with his Welsh accent. He was the center of the film and he set the pace beautifully. His emotional scenes were played well. Dean Andrews also needs a mention here. It was nice to see him in something else, besides Life on Mars/Ashes to Ashes.

Overall it was a great film that made me cry and want to root for Manchester United.

Red lights

I am falling in love with Cillian Murphy.

I suppose it was bound to happen, a skinny dark hair guy with beautiful cheekbones and eyes, not to mention phenomenal performances. After I had finished In Time I really wanted to see more of him because that role really brought the attention to him for me. Obviously I've seen his work before but I was paying attention to him per se. I find it's always nice when I go back to view an actor's work after I've fallen in love, and Red Lights gave the opportunity for more than just Cillian Murphy.

Burn Gorman and Craig Roberts from Torchwood and Being Human respectfully made for a great showing of British television and Toby Jones rounded out the British cast. Strange perhaps for a Spanish directed film but it made a joy to watch. Gorman especially because he played an American and it took me a while to recognize him. When they make you work for it like that it brings so much more of a reward once you recognize them - or at least it does for me. Roberts, likewise did an excellent job and was able to seem older in his role than he looks. Rounding out the cast are American powerhouses Sigourney Weaver and Robert De Niro. Now I'm not a huge fan of either of them, I like them alright but their not the draw for me, espeically De Niro however in this film De Niro was amazing. The skill he has on giving the performance he did without the use of his eyes as they were covered up with dark glasses made me speechless. In particular once scene when he's meeting Murphy's character during the scientific testing. He's all smiles when he's meeting Murphy but with Murphy's cold demeanor his face falls flat. It's a brilliant moment. Just by watching his mouth you can feel all of his emotions. Finally you have Elizabeth Olsen who I think did a good job more so towards the end when she's looking at the tape because she's directly in the action. I feel like they could have done more with her character, given her more because I feel she could have handle it.

The story itself is interesting with scientist debunking psychics only to come up against the most celebrated psychic of them all. The film starts out slow and some of the scenes are a bit awkward but even in their awkwardness they still work. I'm talking specifically about the scenes where Murphy asks Weaver about Olsen and then Weaver asks Olsen about Murphy. It's a fun way to set up their relationship even if it never gets fully developed. They could have done more with that but then again it would have taken away from the hunt for silver.

The film is all about finding paranormal happenings out as frauds and we see several cases of Weaver and Murphy going around investigating before we're brought into their classroom. It's interesting that the debunkers get less funding then the paranormal seekers. Again here is another one of my favorite scenes, maybe because Murphy is so effortless at it or because the focus is on his hands which are so graceful but while Weaver is talking about the ways in which the frauds work Murphy demonstrates. You get a little bit of flirting between Murphy and Olsen. The film moves on with competition from Toby Jones' paranormal department at the university and Simon Silver (De Niro) coming out of retirement and Murphy's one track mind to debunk him. I won't ruin the ending here because it is just so great that if you haven't seen it I want you to get the full effect of it.

This film has kept me thinking since I finished it. It may be slow at times but it keeps you engaged throughout the film - even through it's awkward bits. Cillian Murphy is amazing as is the rest of the cast. Red Lights is definitely worth the look.

In Time

The concept behind In Time I think really works well in the world we live in today. Time is money. I thought the premise was original and was explained well in the beginning of the film without being to talkative. The back story was conveyed through the story itself. It might have been a little talkative in the beginning of how the world worked but they pulled back from that as the film progressed and just let the action and story speak for itself.

I enjoyed Justin Timberlake and I'm a fan of his acting even thought I was squarely on the Backstreet Boys side of boy bands. In this film Timberlake was perhaps a little too ghetto. He made you aware of his acting. It didn't come natural and was a bit stilted. Amanda Seyfried was an interesting choice for the role and she seemed way too young. I don't know if was the baby doll dresses and hair but she looked like a teenager and I didn't see any real chemistry between her and Timberlake. It was a bit disappointing. Olivia Wilde did a great job for the small amount of time she was in the film. Her death was so sad (even though I kept thinking of Doctor Who when The Doctor sees Rose in the fourth series). Wilde brought true emotion to the role. She seemed to have more chemistry with Timberlake though so it was weird when he referred to her as his mom but it was believable when she said it was her 50th birthday.

Timberlake's best scene was when he's arm wrestling with the goon, something which you knew was going to happen after he explained it to Seyfried earlier in the film. It wasn't so much the arm wrestle going down the exact way he said it would but him taking the fun and shooting the others. It was a nice pop of excitement on a predictable scene. 

The standout performance for me is that of Cillian Murphy as the timekeeper. I just wanted to watch him and I'm not really a huge fan of his but this was the best role I've seen him in and he looked the most masculine. I could have watched him run in that black coat for 2 hours. I wanted him to be redeemed so bad, especially after Timberlake gave him some time and I think he was redeemed a little bit at the end. The revelation about his character coming from Dayton made sense and made you want him to succeed even more. If he wouldn't just taken the time from the car he would have been okay but no, he has to run out of time. The most anticlimactic moment of the film.

The ending of the film mirror the beginning scene between Timberlake and Wilde and even though I didn't feel the chemistry between Timberlake and Seyfried I was still on the edge of my seat wondering if he could save her when he couldn't save his mother. It almost makes up from Murphy's death, almost.

Hart of Dixie

Hart of Dixie was a show I was aware of because I love the CW network so I had seen commercials for it and I loved Rachel Bilson in The O.C. but I hadn't gotten around to watching it. Until I started talking to one of my co-workers about guilty pleasures and this show was hers. Luckily the first season was on netflix and I blew through it. I loved the concept, loved the characters and loved the setting.

The CW seems to like shows set in the south (Hellcats was in Memphis, Vampire Diaries is in Virginia, The Originals is in New Orleans and Hart of Dixie is in Alabama). There's more you can do with the history of the town and the rituals of the south, not to say that they don't have them elsewhere but I don't see founder's day in Portland. Really its about community which is understandable given the network - formerly WB and UPN.

The cast was great with a majority of unknowns, another common occurrence on the CW, but it was nice to see Tim Matheson in another role (I know him from The West Wing). As an audience you really get to know and love these characters and I think that's what makes the show so enjoyable. The show is really an ensemble and all the major characters work well together.

The major premise behind the show is the love triangle of first Zoe - George - Lemon which quickly dissolves into George - Zoe - Wade and I have to say I much prefer Wade over George. George is just so boring! I was really glad to see Zoe and Wade make a go of it. Wade's one of those characters who puts on an air of "I-don't-care" but he really does and although he makes mistakes he can be really sensitive. The last episode of the first season had so much drama with Zoe ending up with Wade and George breaking things off with Lemon to be with Zoe.

In the second season Zoe and Wade progressed their relationship but of course no one can be happy on television and Wade does something stupid. The show lost me a bit at the end because they repeated what had happened in the first season. Wade and Zoe break up, she goes after George who is in a relationship, who then breaks up with his girlfriend and goes to Zoe only to find her in bed with Wade. It was like they couldn't figure out what they wanted to do so just recycled an old storyline. It made it a but soap opera-y.

Having said that I am looking forward to the third season. I really think Zoe and Wade having something going even though he cheated on her and denied it. I loved his romantic gesture at the end of the last episode. Thankfully they have brought in someone new, Jonah the doctor to tempt Zoe while she's in New York. Now I say thankfully only because they needed new blood because the George-Zoe-Wade triangle has gotten old and frankly I'm not a huge fan of George.

The other stand out character for me is Annabeth who I adore (although Bert Reynolds is pretty good). She's so cute and peppy but still a little sassy. She gets a little crazy when she's with Lemon but I was happy things worked out between her and the mayor even though it would have been nice to see the mayor with Lemon. It'll be interesting next season to see what happens with Lemon who is now a co-owner of the Rammer Jammer with Wade. Will there be romantic feelings there? I really hope not but it is a possibility.

I think the CW hit on a good show with this one that really makes you enjoy your 45 minutes with them. It feels like family.

Primeval: New World (An Update)

 
I have finally come to the end of Primeval: New World and I'm sad its the end end since the show was cancelled. I feel the show struggled to find a voice of its own apart from the UK version but some of that could have been me longing for the UK version. The last few episodes though really helped the show start to emerge on its own, I guess it was just a little too late.

The show had some problems from the beginning because it try to be from the same universe at the UK one but with everything that happened on the season finale of the UK one its hard to imagine the Canadians are just finding out about it now. I liked the team, especially as the series progressed but there still wasn't a lot holding Evan and Dylan together and I feel like they could have pushed that relationship. I got really tired of Angelika especially when she started working for the bad guys. The show tried to have that romantic relationship for Evan but it just didn't work.

In the last few episodes there were two guest stars that I just loved. One was Colin Ferguson from Eureka and the other was Andrew Lee-Potts reprising his role as Connor Temple from the UK show. It was nice to see Ferguson and Matter back together and Ferguson was great as a crazy scientist plus it was nice to see him playing someone smart for a change.

The show ended with a two part episode which involved Connor Temple meeting up with Dylan and Evan in the distant past. The quip Connor makes about being stuck in the Cretaceous period for a year was a good inside joke. It was really too bad that it took 12/13 episodes to get this far in the series because it really began to pick up. The mystery around Mac finally surfaced and the consequences of messing with space and time rears its ugly head.

Talk about a way to end the series, running for an anomaly - did they make it? I guess we'll never know but it sure would have been nice had they renewed the show for a second season. I think with a second series it would have really taken off.

Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic

Another Saif Ali Khan (don't worry I'm running out of his films) and Rani Mukerji film! Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic is a play on The Sound of Music/Marry Poppins/Nanny McPhee but brings enough to the table to make it its own. The concept of the plot is a strange but they make it work. Ranbeer gets in a car accident killing a husband and wife and then is sentenced to provide for the four children they left behind. Not the best judgement considering you're asking four children to go and live with the person who killed your parents and the judge stipulated that they couldn't be sent to boarding school and they had to travel with him. The children at first want to do everything possible to make Ranbeer's life a living hell so in order to save the situation after all involved cry out to God we see God himself in the form of Rishi Kapoor and his naughty angel Geeta. The song we're treated to is fun to the point that you don't even mind the bad graphics.

Of course the whole point of the film is to have them all, the children, Ranbeer and Geeta become a family which is what happens by the end. Ranbeer is able to get to each of the kids in small ways and only has the eldest to contend with. I loved the scene where Ranbeer is complaining about his girlfriend and asks one of the children if she would be his girlfriend. It was cute. Once the girlfriend is gone through a whole lot of manipulation and naughty children Ranbeer is of course free to find love with Geeta. The only problem is that Geeta is an angel without feelings or at least being able to show those feelings. Ranbeer and the kid's love for Geeta persuades God to make her human.

I enjoyed the film a lot. It was fun and although a bit of a rehash of other films it managed to stand alone.

Tashan

Tashan, another Hindi action film. It wasn't that great and it didn't help that it has my least favorite Bollywood actress, Kareena Kapoor in it. It did have a few things going for it, Saif Ali Khan to begin with but also it had Akshay Kumar in a comedic Hindustani role he's so good at. Anil Kapoor was the same as ever but still someone more enjoyable than Kareena. I find Kareena's characters weak and except for one scene Tashan was no exception.

But I suppose it's best to start at the beginning which brings me back to Saif Ali Khan's character Jimmy who narrates the film while underwater after the car he's in drives off the cliff. I admit it was a pretty cool way to open a film, it had a good hook. Jimmy isn't one to really like at the beginning but as the film goes on you begin to like him. The first half of the film is all about Jimmy falling for Kareena's character Pooja but then a shocking twist! She's totally just playing him in order to steal money from Anil Kapoor. In comes Akshay Kumar who is always a joy to see in this type of role but I was kind of wishing Katrina Kaif had been cast in this role instead of Kareena because that pairing is so good.

We return to the beginning of the film and see the car once again sail over the edge only now we know why the music kept changing. This takes up into the interval which then flips the film. Now Jimmy and Pooja are in cahoots and the audience suffers an awkward scene where Jimmy 'rapes' Pooja. Sometimes it seems like Bollywood is too loose with the issue of rape or being gay making it hard to watch, not that American films are any better.

After some pretty bad English lessons from Jimmy it turns out Akshay and Pooja fall in love for real having already known each other and Pooja's true past comes to light. Everything leads up to the show down between our heroes and Anil and his goons. It was a bit lengthy but had a good end with Pooja stabbing Anil in the chest with a large sword and moving it around. It made her character seem strong for one of the only points in the film.

The film ends with everyone happy, well except Anil. The lengthy fight scenes and Kareen ruined the film for me plus the really bad English. 

Warm Bodies

Ever since I saw Nicholas Hoult in skins I have been intrigued so I was really happy when he started making it in Hollywood and when I saw the trailer for Warm Bodies I knew I had to see it. Unfortunately I missed its theater run but was able to pick it up on DVD.

It was perhaps a bit slow but I liked it. Hoult is just so amazing I can't think of a word to properly describe him. His grunts and gait made his character seem believable. The decision to have voice over as to what R was thinking was smart because it really held the film together. The funny moments like 'don't be creepy, don't be creepy' or 'say something human...nailed it' where some of the best moments because it was down played a bit. This somewhat disembodied voice allowed the comedy to shine through without taking away from what you were seeing on screen.

On a deeper level the film has something to say about what it means to be human and what we are really doing with our lives - the scene that stands out is when R is talking about wanting to connect and how good it must have been before everyone was dead, onscreen we see everyone on cell phones and ipods in a flashback. Something that could be looked into in a lengthier review.

The concept, taken a little from Romeo and Juliet albeit without the tragic ending, something I was beginning to worry about towards the end, but I still think it's original. A cure for zombies, why not? In recent years we've seen cures for vampires and werewolves so why not zombies. The plot was good, it made sense. I could have gotten more from Teresa Palmer because the whole time she reminded me of Kristen Stewart. Hoult was the one who really pulled this film through to the end, with a little bit of help from his friends (Rob Corddry. For Nicholas Hoult, I'm hoping this is just the first of many great films to come. He's one that I'll be watching out for.

Race and Race 2

 Race and Race 2 two more Saif Ali Khan films in my epic marathon. I had seen Race before but wanted to refresh my memory before watching this years Race 2. The main problem with both films is that there are too many twists and turns in the plot that anything could happen next. Logic is almost thrown out of the window. The big theme of the series is BETRAYAL!

In Race, Saif Ali Khan plays Ranvir Singh the elder step-brother to Rajeev Signh. The younger brother plots out to kill the elder brother by using everyone around him but he's no match for Ranvir. RD the police investigator was strange but then again Anil Kapoor pulls off strange very well. Rajeev is killed off pretty early on in the film and the audience is left wondering what the rest of the film is going to be and missing Rajeev. Everything is explained by the end in a way reminiscent of the Oceans' films and you leave happy knowing the 'good guys' get to ride off into the sunset.

In Race 2, the story line becomes even more convoluted. You're never quite sure what is happening and who knows what. It was nice to see John Abraham as a villain again but the women in this film were lacking. I'm not a huge fan of Bipasha Basu but the film suffered without her. It didn't really know why Ranvir was going after Armaan until the very end and even then it wasn't clear as to Armaan's motives. The fact that something so tragic had to happen in order to get this movie made made it a bit less enjoyable. I kept thinking Sonia was going to pop up at any moment. The tie between everything was weak at best. They were smart by only killing of Ranvir for a shorter time this time around. You expected him to come back and he didn't delay, always coming at the right moment to save his girl. Their final fight when Ranvir was wearing a three piece suit was pretty funny. The sexual jokes between Anil Kapoor and his new assistant where too much in my way of thinking for a Bollywood film.

John Abraham looked for any and all opportunities to take off his shirt and showcase his body. I'm not complaining I just found it a little too obvious. Saif Ali Khan has definitely bulked up in the past few years and the facial hair really does something for him. His style in both these films really works. 

The song and dance numbers where amazing! I loved every one, from both films. However, the singer for Saif Ali Khan's parts in Race 2 was a horrible match and I almost had to turn it off if I didn't like his dancing so much. The songs and dance numbers themselves were highly stylized with lots of glitz and glam and water...it really worked to add the Bollywood essence into the thriller genre the film was going for.

Ek Tha Tiger

I have a bit of a personal history with this film. I just happened to be at Trinity College in Dublin to see the sights when I saw a film crew in the area surrounding by Indian fans so obviously I was interested and when got up close enough I was able to see Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif! I was pretty excited and stayed to watch longer than I had intended not bothered by the fact that I was limiting my time in Dublin I was seeing a Bollywood film being made. What were the chances?

Two years later I finally got around to seeing the film which was an action film a recent trend in Bollywood ti seems. Salman Khan plays a secret agent of sorts of the Indian government while Katrina Kaif is one for the Pakistani government. It's a bit of a Mr. and Mrs. Smith remake but the cultural significance of the history between the two countries adds something to the film.

The fight scenes are pretty hilarious because most of what you see on screen is impossible to do in real life. It treads on the heels of Hidden Dragon Crouching Tiger. There are lots of explosions and world travel - none of which really makes sense. There really isn't a reason for the film to take place in Dublin. To add onto the ridiculous fight scenes were the dance numbers. Even with all the explosions, chases and gun fights Salman Khan always found the time to dance.