Mini Reviews
Monsters (out Nov 25) is a love story disguised as a science fiction movie. An interesting experiment. The style and storyline is reminiscent of District 9. Two people try to travel from Mexico to the United States through an area "contaminated" by an alien species. A few plot developments felt contrived but the performances are good and I liked the film as a whole. Grade: B+.
Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (out now) was a let down. I wouldn't say I was bored but there wasn't enough action. That said, I felt the same way when I read the book. It was mostly "filler" until the final few chapters. I think the second part will offer much more. It's just a shame they made the decision to split it into 2 films (which looks like an obvious money grab). Grade: B-.
Fair Game (out Nov 25) is the true story of a top CIA-agent who became an outcast after her husband publically criticised the U.S. Government. The performances from Sean Penn and Naomi Watts are superb but the film didn't dig deep enough for me. We see their kids, their parents and their friends but how did these events affect them? Grade: B.
Red Hill (out Nov 25) is an Australian drama/horror film about a dangerous criminal who escapes from prison and returns to a small country town to extract revenge on those who put him there. I've seen this film twice and it has many impressive features. It's a great first up effort from director Patrick Hughes. It gets a little far-fetched in the second half but still worth a look. Grade: B+.
Machete (out now) is pure entertainment. Ridiculously over-the-top action with a great sense of humour. It's the tale of an ex-Federale who is falsely accused of shooting a U.S. senator. He's out to find those responsible and yes, there will be a very high body count. Grade: A-.
Gainsbourg (out Nov 18) looks at the up-and-down life of French singer Serge Gainsbourg. I didn't know a lot about the guy beforehand and this film did little to increase my interest. It's nicely shot but we've seen this kind of story many times before. Grade: B-.
Skyline (out now) wasn't previewed for critics and I now know why. It's your standard alien invasion movie except (1) the characters are stupid, (2) the aliens are boring, and (3) the ending is laughable. Grade: C.
Jackass 3D (out now) isn't anything new. We saw similar stunts and jokes in the first two movies. I still had fun though. Grade: B.
Winter's Bone (out Nov 18) is a simple story told very effectively. A teenage girl from a poor community must track down her father after he skipped bail. Why? Because their house was offered as security and they've been threatened with eviction. The characters are excellent in this drama and the emotion of the situation comes through strongly. Grade: A-.
GasLand (out Nov 18) is an eye-opening documentary about the process whereby natural gas is extracted from the ground in the United States. Do we really know the risks? Should we be alarmed by the fact that residents can set their tap water on fire? There's plenty to think about here and it's sure to generate discussion (particularly in political circles). Grade: A-.
Wild Target (out now) is second "hitman" film being released this week (The American is the other). This one is a comedy however. Our protagonist, Bill Nighy, falls in love with his target, Emily Blunt, and can't go through with it. It's funny for a while but it doesn't take many chances in the second half. Ending is somewhat of a fizzer. I love Nighy though so won't be too harsh. Grade: B.
