Senna - 9.5/10: Amazing documentary about a Formula 1 race car driver named Ayrton Senna. I know nothing about racing (I actually find car racing pretty damn boring actually) so knew nothing about this going in, but damn, it was awesome. Tonnes of great footage and great drama throughout. Definitely worth seeing and honestly it's probably even better if you do not know much going in.
50/50 - 9/10 - Saw this a couple of weeks ago now, so it's not as fresh in my mind, but it was surprisingly awesome. I was not sure what to expect from a "cancer comedy" but this delivered in both the comedic and emotional pieces. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is fantastic as the lead character and Seth Rogen (I still like the guy, no matter what other people say) and Anna Kendricks both give great supporting turns. We both laughed a lot during this and the girl I was with bawled her eyes out, so it seemingly works for everyone. I was very surprised by how much I liked this one. Very funny but with a lot of heart.
The Devil's Double - 7/10: The story of the man who was the double for Uday Hussein (Saddam's crazy, sadistic son) based upon the books written by that same man (Latif). The main strength of this film is Dominic Cooper who played both Uday and Latif and did it phenomenally. While the characters obviously were meant to look the same, they were very distinct personalities and Cooper pulled that off perfectly. It's dark, with some rough violence, and while it gives you a fascinating look at the psychopath that is Uday, it left a little to be desired from the female love interest, who was only average and honestly did not have her story all that well examined in my opinion, particularly for an integral character like she was. Some of the ending was a bit off as well, but worth watching for Cooper if nothing else.
The Conversation - 9/10: I've always wanted to see this and Slayer mentioning it the other day forced me into it and of course, the film did not disappoint. Great story and just a spectacular performance from Gene Hackman as the secretive, reclusive "security expert". I was constantly guessing as to what was happening throughout the film and damn, that final sequence just blew me away. Great movie!
Limbo - 5.5/10: No idea how I even heard of this one, but it mainly follows a troubled former fisherman in small town Alaska and his interactions with the various characters around him, including a budding relationship with a woman and her daughter. Not a bad little drama, but it took a very strange turn about 2/3 of the way through which felt a bit strained to me. It also had a few cheesy parts on the relationship side of things. It did have a very cool ending, but overall it was a bit muddled.
The Hit - 8.5/10: 1984 film about a gangster (Terence Stamp) who rats out his cohorts, goes into hiding in Spain, then gets captured and is taken on a road trip back to the guy that wants him. First off Stamp is freaking awesome as Willie Parker; he's smart, witty, and brings an awesome attitude to the film, but it also has a great performance from John Hurt and it also has Tim Roth's feature debut (one of my favourite actors; he looks like a kid in this). There is very little to dislike in this film; my only real complaint is something that happens near the end that seemed unbelievable and left me a bit annoyed, but otherwise it was very good with three very strong performances.
Hookers on Davie - 7.5/10: A 1984 documentary about prostitutes on Davie street (which is about 3 blocks from my house). Nobody else here will want to see this, but I'm just writing it down so I have it on record. I found it pretty fascinating, since it showed a world that essentially does not exist on that part of Downtown any longer (not just the hookers, but all of the buildings too). Anyway, very interesting for a Vancouverite, but probably for many others.
The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (Extended Editions) - 9.5/10: I'd never seen the EEs, so I finally decided to crack my Blu-ray set and watch the whole trilogy and hot damn, these are some amazing movies that are only mnade better by being on Blu and by having the additional hour per movie, or whatever it is. added to the presentations. It was slow in a couple of parts (mainly stuff surrounding the Elves to be honest as I found them relatively boring aside from Legolas) and the multiple endings of course still drag in the final film, but it's a pretty amazing trilogy overall and even though I watched all 12+ hours of the thing this weekend, I can definitely see myself re-watching it again in the future.
KT
Facebook
Twitter