The Good Dinosaur: Review

As a huge Pixar fan I was very excited for this film as the idea was unique and the concept art looked beautiful. I was not disappointed by the trailer with the long awaited introduction of  dinosaur Arlo and his human side-kick Spot.

Arlo is unlike the rest of his dinosaur family - he is nervous and scared of most things. When he falls into a river and carried far away from home, Arlo must confront everything that he is scared of to find his way to his family. With the help of his new human friend Spot, they must learn the true meaning of family and facing your fears. 

As beautiful as the animation is (even the small details can't go unnoticed here, truly breathtaking), Pixar's latest film The Good Dinosaur unfortunately doesn't deliver the same emotional punch as their previous films.

Don't get me wrong, there are some tear-jerking moments here, but the opportunity for an exciting and terrifying adventure seems to have been lost. The Good Dinosaur was supposedly plagued by production problems, with the story going through some serious rewrites and original director Bob Peterson removed from the film just last summer. 

I can't help but feel that The Good Dinosaur falls short on the most fundamental part of storytelling - the story. Yes the characters are endearing and the animation is its usual Pixar perfection, but the story seems rather bare. The characters however are as memorable as ever,  with Arlo, Butch the T-rex and Arlo's Poppa Henry stealing the show. Perhaps with a few more interesting plot points The Good Dinosaur would have really hit the mark, because the animation is some of the best they've ever done. I dare you to watch this film and not be moved by the animation with the atmospheric score.

My rating: 6/10

The Good Dinosaur is directed by Peter Sohn and stars Raymond Ochoa, Frances McDormand, Jeffrey Wright and Sam Elliott. 

The Good Dinosaur is in cinemas now!

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The Visit: Review

 From the looks of the trailer, I wasn't expecting too much from M.Night Shyamalan's latest outing 'The Visit'...wow, was I wrong! This film surpassed every and any expectation I had in the best ways possible. 

M.Night Shyamalan is back and there's no doubting this man's talent for creating intelligent horror (Signs, Sixth Sense, The Village), and The Visit serves as a bold reminder- M.Night Shyamalan means business. 

Not only did he bring a refreshing take on the found footage trend, but interspersed deeply disturbing moments with hilarious one-liners - in particular from the younger brother Tyler (Ed Oxenbould).

'The Visit' is a horror seen through the eyes of fifteen year old aspiring filmmaker Rebecca (Olivia DeJonge). Rebecca and her brother Tyler are going to stay for a week with their grandparents Nana(Deanna Dunagan) and Pop Pop (Peter McRobbie) whom they've never met before, at their isolated farmhouse. The children decide to make a documentary during their stay, in an effort to mend bridges between their grandparents and mother (Kathryn Hahn), who haven't spoken in 15 years. 

Rebecca only knows that her mother eloped with a teacher (their father who has since left), resulting in a fight that left her a single mother and estranged from her parents, but refuses to tell Rebecca much more.

It's not long before the film gets straight to the creepy, and the atmosphere this film creates is marvellous.What strikes me most is how normal everyday occurrences were twisted into believable terrifying situations. The children are told there is a strict bedtime rule - no leaving their bedroom after 9.30pm. This results in a mutual groan between the siblings, but they agree, until Rebecca goes downstairs one evening past her curfew to get something to eat. 

I won't give away too many scary moments - because they truly are some of the best eerie on-the-edge-of-your-seat moments I've seen. Let's just say, lots of things start to go bump in the night, and it would seem that Nana and Pop Pop aren't as sweet and gentle as they appeared to be. 

Rebecca and Tyler are believable and endearing narrators, and with the found footage scenario allows the audience to really experience the horror fully immersed. The scares come fast and thick throughout. 

The trailer does not do the scares justice, there's a particular scene near the end when the siblings become separated including an incontinence pad and something under the bed... I have to admit, M.Night Shyamalan is fantastic on playing on a normal fear - when loved ones start to seem peculiar or perhaps suffering from dementia or an illness where they no longer seem recognisable.

The Visit however, takes this to a whole other  level. I can't encourage you enough to give this a try. This is not the film for you if you're looking for blood and gore, this is a far more sinister, dark and thrilling cinematic venture. 

'The Visit' is in cinemas now.

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DVD REVIEW: 'Avengers: Age of Ultron' Blu-ray

The Blu-ray edition of 'Avengers:Age of Ultron' has been released and it's got some great extras included:

From Inside Out - A 20 minute featurette about the making of Avengers: Age of Ultron. A personal highlight was the behind the scenes look at Paul Bettany's transformation into Vision, and James Spader's performance as Ultron in motion capture. 

The Infinite Six - A 7 minute feature giving an in-depth look at the Infinite Stones and the role Thanos will play, a recap on the four stones we are already familiar with. 

Global Adventures - A brief look at the locations seen in the film.
Gag Reel
Director's audio  commentary

The quality of picture and sound is truly stunning and although there aren't as many special features as I had hoped, there's definitely enough to satisfy until the next Marvel outing! Although it might not be better than the first film, Age of Ultron is certainly on par! It's particularly exciting with the addition of Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, and the exploration of Hawkeye's backstory was interesting. James Spader is on top form as the villainous Ultron with some hilarious one liners!

Avengers: Age of Ultron is available now on DVD, Blu-ray, 3D Blu-ray and iTunes.

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DVD Review: 'The Woman in Gold'

I have to admit, at first glance I wasn't entirely sold on this film. It looked okay but didn't seem like my kind of thing, something perhaps an 'older' audience would favour...I was seriously mistaken!

The premise of 'The Woman in Gold' is based on the true story of Maria Altmann (Helen Mirren) and the legal campaign she embarks on to retrieve what is rightfully hers - the Gustav Klimt painting of her aunt. 

The painting was stolen by the Nazis during the Second World War, and now happens to be one of the most famous paintings in Austria, known as The Woman in Gold. There are several flashbacks to Nazi  Austria which serve as a cold and important reminder to the audience of why Maria must be persistent in her pursuit. 

Ryan Reynolds and Helen Mirren have fantastic chemistry as the mismatched partnership of Maria Altmann and her lawyer Randy Schoenberg. The emotional damage is evident in Maria's refusal to ever set foot in Austria again, since the harrowing events she witnessed as a young woman . The audience really feels for her in those agonising moments, when she realises to be reunited with her aunt's portrait she has to overcome some demons of her own.

'The Woman in Gold' directed by Simon Curtis, was a heart-warming and charming retelling of Maria's story - and yes, at times a bit of a tearjerker. 

My rating: 8/10

The Woman in Gold is available on dvd now.

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LEGEND: REVIEW

Tom Hardy delivers a stellar performance in 'Legend', portraying notorious gangsters, identical twins Ronnie and Reggie Kray. London in the 1960's proves to be as violent as it is seductive through the eyes of the Kray twins. 

It's not hard to believe Hardy as both brothers, his distinction between the two is impressive. Reggie straddles a fine line between the underworld and trying to live 'straight' with his girlfriend Frances (Emily Browning). This of course proves much near impossible, not helped in part by his psychotic brother Ron and his boyfriend Teddy Smith. 

The Kray twins own one of the most popular nightclubs in London, where the rich and famous mingle with criminals and the twins are titled 'Gangster Princes' within their own right. It becomes clear that Ron has other plans for his brother than going 'straight'. 

Ron as terrifying as he is, is much more than just a paranoid psychopath, often breaking the tension with some witty one liners.  Hardy convincingly pulls off the complex relationship between the twins, the love and frustration they share for one another. A highlight of the film is the fight scene between the brothers, a feat somehow made possible with only one actor. The violence in this film is short but frequent, with enough impact to keep the audience engaged and not shy away from the brutality on screen.

Browning's portrayal of Frances is brilliant, and not resigned to role of just Reggie's girlfriend. She proves to be the heart and soul of the film, narrated mostly from her point of view. We engage and empathise with her as she grows from starstruck girlfriend to a woman who can hold her own. 

Christopher Eccleston is also worth noting in his role of Police Detective Nipper Read, the Kray's adversary and ultimately the man who eventually brought their reign to an end. 

Legend was a thrilling and surprisingly humorous snapshot of gangland London. A cinematic gem of 2015!

My rating: 9/10

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