Firewall

 

"You just lost twenty million. Now you know what it feels like to lose what you love."

Firewall is about a Banker (Harrison Ford) whose family is held hostage by thieves who force Ford into stealing the banks number in which he created the system. 

The film isn't one of Harrison's best but it is a good film. It is the usual hostage movie so the plot is unoriginal. however, the performances are done well & i really enjoyed the movie. 

I found it deeply unsettling the way the robbers were treating the family but Harrison eventually gets revenge at the end of the film. His acting is done well, i mean, it's Harrison Ford, one of the best. The other cast members did a convincing job, expecially Paul Bettany, who i thought was really good performing as a true criminal. 

The ending was unexpected as i thought it would end with Paul Bettany's chgaracter gettinf caught by police. Several deaths occur & plenty of fight scenes & violence make this film more for adults. It got a 12 here in the UK but i think is was a bit rough to be a 12. Either way, i wouldn't reccomend for kids as they find it distressing to watch or may get bored as this is a really complex fim. 

In Conclusion. Harrison Ford gives a satisfactory performance as well as Bettany. The film is a good thriller & definately something to watch for an adrenaline rush.

★★★☆☆

War Horse

 

"Please sir. He's my horse."

Watching War Horse was a fantastic experience. The movie looked great & was presented as an epic film all about a horse. 

The film, based on the Michael Morpurgo book, is about a horse raised on a farm sold for use in World War 1 and goes on a journey of new land, owners & experiences, all to reunite with the young biy who raised him on the english farm. 

The horse looked beautiful on screen and did a splendid job. Fascinating creature. The acting was done well, if a little exaggerated. The scenery looked fantastic, both the farmland and the warzone. Steven Spielberg did a fantastc directing job. It isn't his best but I would rank it up alongside E.T. & Duel. 

The story is an emotional drama all the way and it really connects the audience with the poeple & the horse. I'll admit I got a little emotional when the horse reunites with its owner. Not often does that happen & it further shows how powerful this movie is. 

There are some great sequences as this is also a war film. The scene of No Man's Land remindeed me of the opening scene of Saving Private Ryan. The scene of the horse running through NML was also an awesome sight. also when an English soldier & German soldier worked together to rescue the horse from barbed-wire wasreally powerful as two enemies put their differences aside in the midst of a war. 

War Horse is a really powerful & moving film which is a pleasure to watch. Not only does Spielberg manage to surpass himself in creating a fantastic movie about a horse but I'm further surprised that Spielberg wasn't nominated the Oscar for Best Director. This is one of the best films I've ever seen for its epicness, great scenery, score, scenes & of course, the horse!

★★★★☆

The Next Three Days

"No prison in the world is airtight."

The Next Three Days is a slow building thriller about college teacher Russell Crowe planning out an escape plan to break his wife out of prison after she was arrested for a murder Crowe believes she has been wrongfully accused for. 

At first viewing, i thought the film was satisfactory but i watched it again recently and on second veiwing, i enjoyed it more. That usually happens, i enjoy movies when i watch it a second time. 

Paul Haggis, director of Academy Award winning Crash, does a good job conveying the life Crowe's character goes through planning a way to take his wife to a new life. He manages to make this film very grim, very dull as though Crowe's has virtually no chance of 'saving' his wife and resuming normal life with their young son. 

Russell Crowe, my favourite actor, does a commendable job. Not his best performance but at least he keeps you locked into the film to see what he does to ensure he can live his life with the people he loves together. Elizabeth Banks plays the wife, who suffers from the fact that she will never see her son grow up. Banks plays distressed and emotional wreck very well in her character. The chemistry between Crowe & Banks conveys the relationship the two have. 

Another important character is Liam Neeson's character, an escapee who Crowe interrogates to learn how to carry out his escape plan. I loved the one scene between the two, it was done very well and Neeson did a great cameo performance. 

As i previously described, the story starts slow and i think it moves at a good pace so it doesn't overload the veiwers with too much. We are constantly reminded about Crowe's devotion to rescuing his wife from injustice. After finalising the plan, Crowe carries out with interesting techniques and dangerous intentions, going where he would never have thought he would go, just to save his wife. 

Because of the story & what's at stake, the emotions are running high within the characters. Crowe takes dangerous risks with severe consequences to save his wife as does Banks who goes through aperiod of whether wanting to live or die. 

The final 40 minutes is what makes this film enjoyable, which is when Crowe finally carries out his escape plan. It is a thrilling, rivetting, fast paced chase at the end, escaping prison and escaping the authoroties, which I really enjoyed. One of the best on-foot chase scenes. 

More thrilling and more emotional than you think, The Next Three Days features good performances, a tense story with a rivetting conclusion, this is one film any Russell Crowe fan needs to see.

★★★★☆

Ned Kelly

 

"I don't know why I took his watch. It was somethin' to do with his not needin' it."

The story of Ned Kelly, the famous outlaw, is a powerful, emotional, thrilling tale about about a man who after being forming a gang and commiting robberies, which leads to three cops murdred, becomes an outlaw and become one of Australia's notable figures in history. 

Heath Ledger portrays Ned Kelly and i think he's really good. Orlando Bloom, Naomi Watts & Geoffrey Rush are also very good in their roles. The depth of Ned Kelly's life i've heard isn't enough to truely capture who the man really was but i felt this film did a satisfactory job. 

The story for me was done well and ipaced well enough for me to keep myself immersed in the film. There is great drama & action and it is all blended well together. 

I particulary found the final shoot-out very realistically shot & edited & very enjoyable. 

I'm not familiar with Ned Kelly's story but after watching this film, i can say that it is interesting and definately a great watch, even though more detail would have been welcomed. 

This is one of the few films that i really enjoyed thouroughly which i had low expectations for. It's a film which although isn't quite the epic masterpiece we were hoping for, it is still a compelling tale about the life of an outlaw which I would watch again.

★★★☆☆

Lakeview Terrace

 

" I am the police! You *have* to do what I say!"

Lakeview Terrace is the story of an inter-racial couple who move into a great place in Los Angeles. As they try to adapt a new life, they are met by their next door neighbour (Samuel L. Jackson) who welcomes them. But in the days that follow, the couple grow suspicious of Jackson's behaviour to point where they are terrorised by Jackson who is revealed to be a police cop. 

This is an interesting story. I really enjoyed it for the tension growing between the neighbours who started as friends but by the end of the film, they are at each other's throats. The slow build-up is done really well to the point where the final scene is riveting. There are very tense moments, especially when wondering what Samuel L. Jackson is up to next and what situations have happened and whether he is helping the couple or not. 

Samuel L. Jackson is really good in his role. His character is an aging police man who is being forced into retirement. Jacksons character is awesome to watch as he has a presence that he is good & bad in one package. He is funny and creepy and conveys those feelings extremely well. 

Although I cant say much about this film as it doesn?t have the feeling of a big movie, Lakeview Terrace is still a thrilling, action-packed suspense film which shows one of the best performances of Samuel L. Jackson''s career. 

Definitely one to check out.

★★★★☆

The Big Lebowski

"That Rug really tied the room together" 

One of the greatest, funniest and outrageous comedies of all time, The Big Lebowski delivers the comedy, the crime and the drama in this masterpiece from the Coen Brothers. 

Jeff Lebowski aka The Dude (Jeff Bridges) isn't happy about a Chinaman peeing on his rug after a misunderstanding and in trying to solve his problems, gets wound up in a hostage situation with another Jeff Lebowski. Told to rescue Lebowski's wife from Nihilists, Dude has his buddies Walter Sobchak (John Goodman) and Donny (Steve Buscemi) to help him out. 

The first striking image is of Jeff Bridges' legendary character of The Dude, bowler and White Russian drinker concerned about his soiled rug. It's a role in which he fits right into and Jeff Bridges excels his comedic talents in a great role. However, the show-stealer is John Goodman's Vietnam veteran, Jewish bowling partner Walter Sobchak, definitely one of the greatest comedy characters ever! Every quote is memorable and every scene involving him is an instant side-splitter. It is the role John Goodman will forever be remembered for. Steve Buscemi plays Donny, another bowling partner who is constantly told to shut up and John Turturro plays Quintana Jesus in a short but memorable role. The other cast members a pretty good too. 

As is usual with anything the Coen Brothers do, the story is written very well and delivers a lot of unexpected developments. There are several dream sequences that are done really well. The visuals are great and each dream is different and memorable and funny. The dialogue is memorable a hilarious and definitely makes this one of the most quotable films ever. 

Definitely one of my favourite films with incredibly funny and featuring awesome characters, The Big Lebowski deliver hilarious lines, awesome visuals and a great story.

★★★★★

The Dark Knight

"You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain."

True words for one of the many great characters in this, arguably the best superhero movie ever. Christopher Nolan surpasses his brilliant reimagining of the Batman legacy. Batman is now a force in Gotham City, striking fear in the hearts of all criminals, resulting in a drastic drop in crime. That is until a familiar villain begins a campaign of chaos. 

Christian Bale returns as Batman, once again a strong performance. The regular crew of Gary Oldman, Michael Caine & Morgan Freeman are all great too. Maggie Gyllenhaal replaces Katie Holmes as Rachel Dawes and performs well. Aaron Eckhart's interpretation of Two-Face is definitely the best. Gone are the memories of Tommy Lee Jones' poor man's Joker impression from Batman Forever and in comes a dark, vengeful psychopath. Eckhart delivers powerful emotion and is gripping throughout the final act. 

But all acting praise goes to Heath Ledger for his masterful portrayal of the Joker. Ledger brings a new layer of creepiness to the famed Batman villain character. With no goal in life but to cause chaos, Joker in this film is scary but you can't take your eyes off him. He commands all the attention and deservedly so. Every mannerism and movement he does looks all so natural to him. A richly deserved Oscar winning role, Ledger's performance is definitely the highlight of the film. 

The story is really enthralling, thanks to the solid script and excellent acting. The music by Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard is incredible. Every piece of music fits perfectly into every scene it is used in, enhancing the drama, the action, the perils and the characters. The action sequences are shot beautifully and look amazing. I'm pretty sure they would look fantastic on an IMAX screen, as the DVD I own contain several IMAX scenes, including the brilliant car chase. 

Darker, more action-packed and entirely gripping, The Dark Knight is the definitive Batman film for any and all fans of the Caped Crusader.

★★★★★