Attila

Posts tagged with "reviews"

The Candidate ~ Kandidaten

Sunday, 21. September 2008, 05:23:06

I went to see another Danish movie yesterday, a thriller.

The talented defence lawyer Jonas is working hard to achieve his goals. His dad died under mysterious circumstances, and that bothers him, but now he is aiming to get his job at the big advokat office. Everything goes wrong at the job interview though. The boss, who is also Jonas' godfather, discovers his obsession of his dad's unsolved case, and rejects to give him the job.

Frustrated and disillusioned he takes a wild night out, drinking his brains out and ends up in bed with a girl he doesn't know. When he wakes up he finds himself in a rented hotel room, and the girl is laying dead on the bathroom floor. Brutally murdered.

He doesn't remember anything of what happened the night before, and soon he is charged for a murder he didn't commit. Or did he? His best friend and his girlfriend begin to doubt, and he has to flee alone. He is being dragged deeper and deeper into a criminal underworld, where nothing is what it seems to be.

I liked this movie, it was a good thriller, with a surprising plot. It had some great actors too!

The Danish critics didn't like it much, and it caused a lot of publicity in the media when one critic gave both the murderer and the plot away in his review. Idiot.

out of 6.

19 comments

Taming of the Shrew

Sunday, 14. September 2008, 06:24:50

theater, reviews

I went to the theater yesterday to see a play called The Taming of the Shrew. It is a play by William Shakepeare about a courtship between two strong-willed people. About how a scoundrel marries an outspoken, intelligent, and bad-tempered shrew, only to tame her to get her money.

The actors played fantastic. But I didn't like the play at all. In fact, the play left me in a very bad mood.

No stars.

Fuck you, Shakespeare!

25 comments

Blue Men ~ Blå Mænd

Monday, 1. September 2008, 04:59:59

Movies, reviews

In the movie "Blue Men", Jesper is a successful salesman that doesn't take a no for a no.

He is in the top of the company he works in, he has a beautiful girlfriend and his life seems just perfect. One mistake changes it all: He looses his licence through drink-driving.

Jesper is sentenced to community service in the local rubbish dump. Here he gets two new colleagues, Lotte and Dion, who are weirdos to put it mildly.

The dump's leader is cantankerous Theodor. Jesper is now forced to conform to rules like never before, and work with people that he has always looked down at. When he loosens up he figures that he has a lot to learn from their simple and plain way to deal with life.

I liked this comedy. The story was simple, and the lines were hilarious. I laughed through the entire movie!

And the blue men aren't blue, but orange.

out of 6.

13 comments

Kung Fu Panda

Sunday, 24. August 2008, 04:58:47

Movies, reviews

Feel the paws of fury!!!

The story is about Po, an overweight panda who is the son of a (duck) noodle maker, who dreams of Po following in his footsteps. But Po longs to be a kung fu fighter. Po is a Sweet but clumsy, bear who hears the news the ancient and long awaited dragon warrior will be named, so he runs (as good as he can) to hear who will be named at the celebration.

Without giving too much away, when an "accident" seems to name Po as the dragon warrior; much to the horror of Master Shifu and the disappointment of Furious Five: Tigress, Viper, Mantis, Crane and Monkey. Shifu must find a way to train Po. One hilarious moment after another continues until Shifu recognizes Po's true driving force. This is just in time as the villain Tai Lung, a snow leopard has returned as he believe is the true Dragon Warrior.

Let the battle begin...

Everybody was kung fu fighting
Those cats were fast as lightning
In fact it was a little bit frightning
But they fought with expert timing

The animations were great, the fighting scenes were fantastic, and the makers of the film have really been capable to create the atmosphere of ancient China with the music and the backgrounds.
I loved this film!

out of 6.

24 comments

Det Som Ingen Ved ~ What Nobody Knows

Friday, 8. August 2008, 04:57:54

Movies, reviews

As I mentioned in my previous post, I went to the cinema yesterday. I went to see a Danish movie this time. The story is about Thomas (played by Anders W. Berthelsen, an actor I really like), who is an entertainer for kids. His sister tells him that she has something to tell him about their father, who worked in the military intelligence service. They agree to meet in Sweden the day after, but when he arrives she has drowned under mysterious circumstances.

He goes through her appartment and finds some papers with explosive information about their late father's past. As Thomas digs deeper into the case his family is brought into sudden danger.

This is a political thriller about what can happen when patriotism turn into obsession. About hiding the truth when it becomes too inconvenient. About the surveillance that is everywhere in our society these days. Is it really ok that big brother is watching us?

This movie has some big Danish actors in it, and they played marvellously! The plot was kind of weak though.

out of 6.

17 comments

The Dark Knight

Thursday, 31. July 2008, 04:03:11

Movies, reviews

A new villain is in town and he's a homicidal clown known as The Joker. Batman must do everything in his power to stop him, while Harvey Dent takes the lime light as the new face of good.

"The Dark Knight" is not so much a superhero movie as it is an exploration of the nature of human morality. On the one hand, there is Batman, a hero for the causes of good who will never be seen as heroic because he is, in the end, a masked vigilante whose primary weapon against crime is fear. Bruce Wayne seeks the day when Gotham City will no longer need Batman, when a true knight-in-shining-armor will rise, somebody as incorruptible as Batman but also highly visible and inspirational. Batman stands for good, but he's no role model.

Wayne sees such a role model in Gotham City's new district attorney, Harvey Dent. Like Batman, Dent is a force for good. But, because he is on the correct side of the law, he can not only do good but also inspire others to do good.

Christian Bale is Batman in this movie. Not the best choice, if you ask me. And I hated the voice they gave him when he was in his Batman suit. It was annoying and it distracted me!
There has been a lot of talking and writing about Heath Ledger as The Joker. He played good, but I am not sure he would have gotten that much press if he was still alive. I am not meaning to offend anyone, it's just my opinion! You don't have to have the same opinion as me.

Aaron Eckhart plays wonderfully as Harvey Dent.

The effects were well made, convincing and many.

I like the following quote from the movie. One of Bruce Wayne's employees demands money in return for not disclosing Bruce's identity as Batman. The answer is:
"Let me get this straight. You think that your employer, one of the wealthiest, most powerful men in the world, is spending his nights running around the city beating criminals to a pulp with his bare hands. <pause> And your plan is to blackmail this person?"

I'll give this movie

out of 6.

41 comments

Hancock

Sunday, 27. July 2008, 03:13:30

Movies, reviews

John Hancock is a homeless bum who has a seriously bad attitude along with a horrible drinking problem. But he also is different: He is a super hero. The problem about that? He causes a lot of damage when he "saves the day" and doesn't care what people think. But when a failing advertiser, Ray Embroy, is saved by John, Ray offers John a chance to look good and be the ultimate super hero. Ray's wife, Mary, isn't so excited about it but Ray is determined and will make sure that Hancock is a great super hero for the whole city.

It's an action movie, and I liked the effects in it. Sure there were scenes I could have lived without - long fighting scenes gets boring so fast!

During the last half hour the movie took a twist I didn't see coming, and I didn't really like that twist. It made the comedy not-so-funny anymore.

I am in a good mood. I'll give it

out of 6.

47 comments

Narnia - Prince Caspian

Saturday, 12. July 2008, 05:07:44

Movies, reviews

I went to see the second one of the Narnia-films yesterday, "Prince Caspian". I saw the first one when it was shown in the movie theaters three years ago, so I must admit that it took me a little while to get back into the Narnia-universe again.

The story begins with Prince Caspian, nephew of Miraz, the leader of the "Telmarines," the human population that is now the dominant race in Narnia, fleeing for his life when Miraz's wife gives birth to a son. Miraz stole the throne from the rightful King, Caspian's father, and now that he has an heir of his own, he wants Caspian out of the way for good.

Meanwhile, back in London, the four siblings are trying to adjust to life in the real world. But in less time than it takes to board the London underground, the Pevensie's are once again transported back to the magical kingdom - only it is not the place they left. Over a thousand years have passed, and the castle of Cair Paravel lies in ruins.

As the children struggle to find out what has happened, they stumble upon a Dwarf named Trumpkin, who is being taken prisoner by Telmarine soldiers. They rescue Trumpkin from his captors, and the surly old dwarf (whom they nickname "The DLF", or "Dear Little Friend,") explains that all is not well in Narnia. It seems that Narnia has been plunged into a dark age, and the Telmarines have ruled for hundreds of years with an iron fist. The days of the many creatures living in harmony together, have long since passed, and no one has seen or heard of the great lion Aslan in centuries. And what's more, the trees are no longer friends to the Narnians - they are just normal, everyday trees.

It doesn't take long before the children meet up with Caspain, and soon they join forces to reclaim Narnia for the Narnians, and place Caspian, the rightful heir, on the throne.

I was a little bit disappointed the first 15-20 minutes of the film. But suddenly I was sucked back into the Narnia universe as the movie moved along at a steady, exciting pace, with skillfully staged action. The level of action and violence is quite a bit stronger than in the first film, and the film has a darker tone. I liked it!

out of 6.

19 comments

Crash of the Titans

Thursday, 26. June 2008, 04:20:32

favourite, Games, reviews

Do you know Crash? If not, let me introduce you to him. Crash is a game character made for the PlayStation console. He was in his first game, Crash Bandicoot in 1996. 10 years later it was also emulated on the PlayStation Network, through which it can be played on the PlayStation Portable and, as of Operating System update 1.70, on the PlayStation 3. I have also seen Crash of the Titans for both Wii and X-box.

Crash has gone through a lot since 1996. Crash Bandicoot 1, 2 and 3, "Crash Nitro Cart" and "Crash Mind over Mutants" are a few I remember.

I just bought "Crash of the Titans" for my PSP. It's been a while since I gamed, the last games I played was "Sims Busting Out" and "Tekken 5", both for PSP. So I thought I wanted something new, and since Crash has always appealed to me, I decided for this one.

I started playing it a few days ago, and I am already bitten by it. In Crash of the Titans, Crash is able to beat his enemies and hijack them so he can gain control of their huge and various powers.

One of the reasons that I like Crash is that he is both cute, adventorous, and sure knows how to kick ass!

It's so cool. I already love the game!

There are only two minuses so far:
- Some of the levels are a bit long, and you can't save in between levels. So sometimes I have to play for a longer period of time than I intended.
- I get sore thumbs.

33 comments

The Happening

Sunday, 15. June 2008, 05:13:44

reviews, Movies

Sometimes you see a trailer that leaves so many questions that you just got to go in an watch the movie. The Happening had such a trailer.

The film sees some sort of mysterious ecological event leading to people committing mass suicide, the phenomenon spreading first from large cities then to smaller towns until it is clear a huge chunk of the East Coast is affected. At first, it is assumed to be a terrorist attack but, as more and more people are spontaneously killing themselves, it is clear the cause may be something else entirely.

The acting is unwatchable. No one in this film gives a good performance. The acting, similar to the screenplay is devoid of emotion. No one is reacting like a real person. Each character seems to be emotionally empty. They don't seem nervous that millions of people are dying, they're not hysterical or even realistic. They at no time in the film seem desperate with the desire and hope to live. At times they try to appear upset, but it is so shallow that the viewer is left flat.

The Happening asks a lot of questions. It doesn't come up with any answers.