DVD Reviews9: September 3

Get Shorty - John Travolta, Danny DeVito, Gene Hackman, Rene Russo, Barry Sonnenfeld [D]
Comedy - A clever script of double crosses and deal making in the movie producing business. A terrific cast that also includes Delroy Lindo, Dennis Farina and James Gandolfini(The Sopranos), the adventure builds slowly and never quite sprints - but it suits this style laden film and Travolta's strut. 3 stars

Be Cool - John Travolta, Uma Thurman
Terrible Sequel - Trying to be bigger and better than the original, doubling the number of charachters leads to half the substance or less. Terrible B-grade ridden casting: The Rock (as gay cowboy bodyguard!), Vince Vaughn (American's find him funny? as street-talking wanna be pimp music producer sidekick...yeah), Andre 3000/Benjamin (from Outkast and can't act), Christina Milian (also can't act) and Cedric the Entertainer (wtf?). Harvey Keitel does his best, but surrounded by trash he looks like a garbo. James Woods also appears momentarily. Reminds me of Oceans 12, so much hype, so little substance. 1 star

The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy - Martin Freeman, Mos Def, Garth Jennings [D]
Comedy - First time music video director Jennings creates a visually sumptuous film. Good casting, although Mos Def I found to be without adequate charachter direction, includes Sam Rockwell superb as Zaphod Beeblebrox, John Malkovich, Bill Nighy, Alan Rickman as Marvin the depressed robot's voice and Zooey Deschanel as Trillian (last seen by me in Elf). Direction while I thought most inadequate in getting the ball rolling, and the tributory opening sequence to the BBC version looked out of place to the later action, the film builds spectacularly culminating in wonderous breathtakingly imaginative effects sequences. The brilliant CG in this film cannot be understated. Interesting fact: Douglas Adams finished the screenplay for this new version only to die in 2001 before production. 4 stars

The Sea Inside (Mar Adentro) - Javier Bardem, Alejandro Amenbar [D]
Drama - The true story of a spanish quadraplegic's fight for euthanasia and to end his own life. Amazing performance by Bardem with subtle and beautiful direction. Winner of the 2004 Best Foreign Film Academy Award, and nominated for makeup. 4 stars

The Astronaut's Wife - Charlize Theron, Johnny Depp
Thriller - Written and directed by Rand Ravich, his thriller/horror flick is a very coherent effort. However the film builds slowly and feels slightly rushed in the final third. Very capable performance by both leads although Depp is not called on often. 2.5 stars

Young Adam - Ewan McGregor, David Mackenzie [D]
Drama - Excellently directed with clever use of lighting to set the mood, and the metaphoric contrasting of elements in scene's. Very good and even performances from the cast. The film has a lot of nudity, but is dealt with very naturally and shouldn't offend, although I don't consider all of it necessary. An interesting story that reveals it self slowly and surreptitiously. 3.5 stars

Brother Bear - Disney
Disney - Short (80 mins), lame but not unbearable songs (omg pun lol!!). Cute baby bear, stupid mooses eh? yah eh? totally eh! 2 Stars

Bublegum Crisis 2040 - Anime Series
Anime - 26 episodes, 6 DVD's. Pretty groovy. 3 hot chicks in uber mecha suits gotta save Tokyo from crazy robots. Not completely brainless fare, as the story becomes darker and more violent by the apocalyptic end. 2.5 stars

Thus ends my DVD reviews for a lil while as my 3 month subscription has finally ended and I really ought to study and shiznat... :'(

More people should go to Academy

Academy is coo. On sat they were playing recognisable dance tracks and some crazy remix's of 2000's pop. That's the dance music I like, something with lyrics, in English, and doesn't go for 15 mins without changing beats and rythym frequently.
Plus only $5 cover, massiv dance space fo lots of room to moove, ample bar, loads of seating, wickid lighting and design - tis too coo. I lik I lik.

Pres night and Vj's b'day were prettey coo. I had no appetite all weekend which was a bit odd, so I might go see a doctor today and check out wassup in mah bodey. Too bad all the coaches are not comin back next year, the coaching community at ANUWSC was pretty tight this year and that was great for advice and sharing players for coaches, and good for players in being able to field full teams each week and having clear channels for oppurtunity in other teams.

Vj's bash was coo although I had to leave early only to get to pres night and find them eating... oh whoopdee doo. Pres night I personally foudn to be pretty dull and the most exciting thing was my own and Chris' fully spic get-ups. Then ICBM was too crowded in the spot we chose to dance (depsite the front of the club being almost empty). No one was in North, and despite telling people I would visit them fo sur I bailed from the line for Moose and headed to Academy which was sweet and grooved there all nite till 4. VJ showed another facet of his ever changing 'drunk beast of lanka' impression and became a hyper active tool bangin foo! exasperating, but with robbi dragged him back before he got to the casino when he went awol and through him in a cab (i fink). Then an hour in the taxi line to crash at stpech and cecilas and nesses.

Next day went to donnas thing which was coo but felt hung over all day. Hit the sack and slept and sweated all day. Watched a bit of telly and a dvd then slept some more. Me knee isnt sore, just really really tired i think. It got a much longer work out than the last few times ive been out dancing. Gonna have to get serious about the muscle building if i wanna play next year :(

MOVIE: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Very decent retelling but not quite the real deal. Bizzare confluence of wierd songs, some wonderfully inventive visuals, and a solid cast is certainly entertaining fare. Lovers of the original film translation may miss their favorite scenes or the sickly sweet (excuse the pun) goody goody atmosphere charachterised by Gene Wilder.

Burton's Factory as expected is in his dark fairy-tale style. Depp's charachter is flawed and shallow, and it Wonka's original storyline that marks the greatest departure from the previous film and the novel.

Fantastic set pieces are complemented by seamless computer effect transitions, and bring a modern vivacity to the feature. The casting is very good, especially Freddie Highmore in the role of Charlie Bucket (suggested by Depp after their collaboration on Finding Neverland). The new song's and the oompa loompa dances are a hit or miss depending on the audience. The older you are, the more likely a miss.

MOVIE: Wallace and Gromit: TheCurse of the Were-Rabbit

I've been meaning to get around to writing my review for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory but I had uni crap to wade through first. And now that it's done at 4.47am I can tell you how truly AWESOME, Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit is!

BEST MOVIE OF THE YEAR! Even surpassing Batman Begins. Obviously they are different movies, but Wallace and Gromit is a perfect animated film.

Technically the animation is far superior to the short film forerunners, and of the previous Aardman feature, Chicken Run. How you 'advance' clay animation I am uncertain, but the finished article is fantastic! Smatterings of computer cleanup and effects no doubt played their part.

Helena Bonham-Carter and Ralph Fiennes are wonderful in their exuberant and colourful voices, and the familiar voice of Wallace is thankfully intact.

But where this movie is great, is its wonderful story, rich charachters and copious jokes! There are hidden visual gags in almost every scene, if not many at once, and the story never holds still for a moment, ever entertaining, humouring, thrilling, exciting and romancing. Far better than Chicken Run and the previous Wallace and Gromit shorts - never a dull moment!

Don't wait, see it now! Then pre-order the dvd and build up a collection of stuffed toy charachters (for surely they exist somewhere in every shape and size, else the marketing people at Dreamworks ought to be sacked and flogged). It will be a real pity, and unfortunately amost a certainty, that this film will miss out on all the major Academy awards - but count on the Bafta's to reward their own, and maybe even scoop up some technical Oscars too!

Runners-Up, but Not Second Best

Perfect weather. Nat changed her plans to stay and play.
O'Connor had learnt to respect us after their defeat to us, and showed their quality without their indiscipline. A match well worthy of a grand final, and with our team were cheered on by a deserved crowd.
An incredibly even event ensued. Starting 4-5-1, changed to 3-5-2 and 3-4-3 in the search for that elusive goal. But it never came. Our wing play and set piece delivery was confident and consistent, but failed to yield. O'Connor picked up at least 1 caution, and our girls were unblemished.
Extra time came and went. The first 10 mins were all O'Connor and Wendy stood up to the constent barrage with distinction. The second 10 mins was all ours, but we couldn't breakthrough.
Penalties are exciting for the neutral, but unfortunately arbitrary, and the flip of the coin went against us.

While I was downcast that our girl's deserved better, they earned their Silver nobody will deny.
Another season gone, and now I will turn my attentions to picking up the many loose strands of my life I have let fall by the wayside in the hunt for glory. This is what it feels like 'To Lose in the Right Way'.

DVD Reviews8: September2

What's Eating Gilbert Grape? - Johnny Depp, Leo DiCaprio, Lasse Hallstrom [D]
Drama - A beautiful film, with lush and homely sets and locations. Excellent subtle direction keeps the story the focus of attention and the terrific performances from Depp and DiCaprio. Also Johnny Depp is really, really good looking!..wow. 3.5 Stars

Brazil - Terry Gilliam [D]
Black Comedy - Featuring a motley ensemble cast including Robert Deniro, Michael Palin and Bob Hoskins in minor roles, a film that has dated badly. Imaginative sets and costumes furnish a fantasy future where beauracracy has taken over all aspects of life and thus stifled it. 2 stars

The Fisher King - Jeff Bridges, Robin Williams, Terry Gilliam [D]
Drama, Comedy - Continuing my foray into the Gilliam backcatalogue I was again unimpressed. People criticise movies these days, but modern movies are visually spectacular and have ignited peoples imaginations and pushed the bar of expectation to the farthest limits yet. I wasn't a fan of Monty Python however, and that is the cruicible of Gilliam's work. While entertaining to a degree, I wasn't enthralled, and the 'imagination' has been bored with many similarities to the sets of Brazil (pipe, pipes, pipes...). It appears Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and 12 Monkeys were the high water mark... and the reviews for The Brothers Grimm bode poorly. 2 stars

Finding Forrester - Sean Connery, Rob Brown, Gus Van Sant [D]
Drama - Van Sant's most successful movie, Good Will Hunting, was of the same vein - a lower class person's struggle to overcome adversity and build a successful middleclass life. The story by nature is comfortable in its appeal without being overbearing, unrealistic, or offending/challenging to the viewing public. Rob Brown, who also starred in Coach Carter, is very good. The only problem with the movie I found was the sudden launch into their odd couple friendship which I considered too brief and dubious. 2.5 stars

A Midsummer Nights Dream - Stanley Tucci, Kevin Kline, ensemble
Shakespeare - Large ensemble cast with no A-listers but plenty of 2nd and 3rd tier actors including Michelle Pfieffer, Calista Flockhart, Christian Bale and Rupert Everett. Once I was taken with Shakespearean prose, but having watched this movie without knowledge of the text, I don't think it will be my approach. A decent retelling and semi-modernisation with some clever play on new circumstance. Decent costuming, however the almost random style of casting and tv quality sets take away from the final product. 2 stars

Hostage - Bruce Willis, Florent Emilio Siri [D]
Thriller - Kevin Pollack also features in this tightly written thriller based on a novel. Entertaining movie held up by Willis' performance. A return of sorts to dark and violent films, but remains within the frame of the story. 2.5 stars

XXX 2 - Ice Cube, Samuel L. Jackson
Action - Mindless Drivel. Ice Cube is too chubby and cleanfaced to be fearsome. Why did Jackson sign on to this series in the first place? Some questions will never be answered. A product of the American teens who massed to the first and far more entertaining film. Good with a pizza and coke. 2 stars

The Basketball Diaries - Leo DiCaprio
Drama - Based on the autobiographic novel of Jim Carroll (DiCaprio), deals with drug addicted youth in lower class New York. A powerful story with an equally powerful performance from DiCaprio. Mark Wahlberg co-stars too. Direction is suitably filthy, but the ugly film quality sometimes detracts. 3 stars

Confessions of a Dangerous Mind - Sam Rockwell, George Clooney [D + actor]
Drama, Comedy - An ordinary man's American Psycho - suitably ambiguous, but more threateningly realistic with its short documentary interview interludes of real witnesses to the main charachters. Sam Rockwell appears to be one of Clooney's 'go-to' men and expect him to appear in future collaborations. Very entertaining, and also features Julia Roberts and Drew Barrymore. 3.5 stars

Cellular - Chris Evans, William H. Macy, Kim Basinger, Jason Statham, David Ellis [D]
Thriller - A very decent chase film. The cover art is decieves into thinking this might be a gritty and dark indy style film, but is in fact a bright summer season thriller/action flick. David Ellis will probably get even higher profile work following this success however his direction was decidedly indecisive, and the story which promised often to dive into clever situations never does more than test the water. Additionaly the lack of violence, expecially early in the film, in addition to the super crisp and well lit summer exteriors fails to truly generate the tension required for a film of this ilk. Chris Evans, Johnny Storm in Fantastic 4, is too good looking to not be seen again and in ever increasing roles. Jessica Biel also appears but in a minor role. Entertaining. 2.5 stars

About Schmidt - Jack Nicholson, Alexander Payne [D]
Drama - Another work based on a novel, and as usual, these films have very decent story and solid scripts. WARNING: Kathy Bates gets NAKED in this film. This really ought to be on the dvd cover in bold red flashing letters with a loudspeaker. A good film about later life crisis. Payne is on a roll with Election, then this, then last year's American hit Sideways. 2.5 stars

Last Man Standing

2'nds got knocked out 1-0. 4'ths went down valiantly 3-2. I alone of the Women's teams progressed with a 2-1 victory. The sour note was injures to 2 of my starting players who may not be fit in time for our showdown clash with O'Connor come Sunday next.

Lanyon played well and the goals we scored thrilled me. But the elation of winning in the league over O'Connor won't scratch the surface of how a victory over them in the big one would feel. Such a team makes enemies and deserves to have that come back and bite them.

Either way, that's a medallion in hand for runner-up, but I can't really consider that the first silverware of my managerial career ;)

Finals Approach

My women's semi-final is this weekend. The approach has been pretty good - great weather to train in, and excellent turn out's. The defender's have returned and I am left with a dilemma as to who to play, as the team formation now excludes so many. Also the midfield is depleted slightly this weekend. The obvious option is to change formation to suit the players available, but our training has been based on the existing structure. Finally, rain looms on the horizon and opened up today. Hopefully it will be dry come Sunday, as rain takes the quality out of football, and may work against us.
If I was a praying man, maybe I would.

DVD Reviews7: September

The Interpreter - Nicole Kidman, Sean Penn, Syndey Pollack [D]
Drama, Thriller - Excellent movie with convincing performances from both leads who often disappoint me. Gripping direction keeps the plot teasing the audience and ever heightening the tension in this political thriller. Excellent score, production, visuals and supporting cast bring a tightly written though world unspecific script to life. Film access to the UN Building adds to the realism. 4 stars.

Coach Carter - Samuel L. Jackson
Drama, Sports - Very decent, although lacks the gritty, emotional feel of movies like Friday Night Lights. Will appeal to most. Based on a true story, Jackson's character seems almost too good most of the time. 3 stars.

Treasure Planet - Disney
Disney - An adaptation of the classic. Good animation, entertaining story inherited, no sing along songs. 2.5 Stars.

Thunderbirds - Bill Paxton (minor char), Jonathan Frakes [D]
Children - An entertaining children's movie. The teen romance elements are sickiningly written, and the whole mystical power is left unexplained. But shows what a good director can do with a sordid script and challenging premise. Commander Riker report to the director's chair! 2.5 stars

Atlantis - Disney
Disney - An original story with usual Disney themes, being a good guy, beating the bad guy. Good animation, original concept art, sterotypical sidekick types, no sing along songs. 2.5 Stars

Ring 2 - Naomi Watts, Hideo Nakata [D]
Horror - For a horror film, almost entirely unscary except for 2 exceptional prosthetic masks. Bathtub scene is fantastic in imagination and execution, but not scary. Inferior to its root, and one suspects that where the Ring lost some of its scare in the cultural translation - Ring 2 has lost all of it. Trivia: Ring in Japanese ping-yin is Ringu! 2 stars

5 Children and It - Freddie Highmore, Eddie Izzard
Children - Based on a presumably 'well-loved' children's novel, follows the adventure of 5 children and the naked, ugly, farting monster they encounter. Freddie Highmore is getting plenty of work. The story remains in the period it is set (written?) 1914-18, but failed to excite. 1.5 stars

Edward Scissorhands - Johnny Depp, Wynona Ryder, Tim Burton [D]
Drama - Classic. Must be watched! A perfect movie. 5 stars

Football Double Header Weekend

Drove up to sydney this weekend to catch the Aus v Solomon's Islands World Cup Qualifier home leg. Aus won 7-0, Solomon's had a man sent off (harshly) - but I thought against such obviously inferior opponents Aus really didn't turn the screw, get tested, nor play at a level that will get us over the line in November. I thought the largest notes to take from the game was Guus' first team selections - Neill in the centre of a back 3, and Jason Culina played the whole game in midfield. Viduka had a good run out and scored 2 class goals, the first a spectacular overhead kick.

Then went out that night to see the town with Gabe and Amy - first up a rock club with a colourful crowd (mainly wearing black) and then a dance night club in the cross called Plan B. Then I hurt my knee, and it hurt and was sucky.

Next up was Mariner's v Jet's in Gosford. The rain was heavy all day on the drive in, and probably had a hand in wiping out the walk up crowd - the final occupancy was a measly 5,800 odd - not enough to make the Mariner's a viable outfit, despite them being well worth their 1-1 draw with the Jets (a more fancied team on paper - Ned Zelic, Ante Milicic). Also at the game, I collapsed on my leg for a second time in 2 days - now I am limping again :'( gaaay

A pretty good trip overall, will have to come back during the end of year break and crash at Amy's sweet pad for a week ;)