Star Wars 3D

13 years ago I was asked by my parents which film I wanted to see in the cinema with them. I don't know why I replied 'Star Wars' but I did. From the end of the film my addiction for the franchise had been triggered and my pocket money from that weekend onwards was spent on the latest action figures and lightsabers. 13 years later and Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace is my second to last favourite film of the franchise, with The Empire Strikes Back being my number 1. At the time of The Phantom Menace's release I did not know of the anger around the film from previous fanboys. But now I can see why. But don't get me wrong, it's not a terrible film.

Going to see Star Wars Episode 1 in the cinema yesterday brought back many childhood memories. 3D or not, I was going to see this film if they ever re-released it in the cinema. As soon the credits started rolling up the screen I felt like a 5 year old boy again. The first 15 minutes of the film are promising, with some great action from super cool jedi Qui Gon Ginn and his padawan Obi Wan Kenobi. Unfortunately being the keepers of peace the two jedi's go on to save the annoying Gungan's life. the Gungan being Jar Jar Binks.

When I was younger I thought Jar Jar Binks was hilarious. Now I see that he is not. This is where the film suddenly becomes a disaster as Jar Jar Binks is an out of place character in the Star Wars universe. There were many moments throughout the film that me and my friends had been wishing that the 3D version had been re-edited to kill off this annoying character. Unfortunately not.

Without Jar Jar Binks I think the film would have been better recieved when first released. Don't get me wrong the young Anakin Skywalker can be a tad annoying also with his high pitched 'yipee!' making me want force choke him. Could you ever imagine Darth Vader saying 'yippee!'?

Some of the acting is a bit blank but the film does hold some great set pieces. The pod race is one. The visual effects are great and still hold up today, unfortunately not as good in 3D as I was hoping. Even with George Lucas adding litte extra snippets of footage for 3D only. How he got this footage I don't know?

The other great scene is the three way lightsaber fight between the two jedi and Darth Maul. The choreography is incredible and as soon as the sith takes down his hood and the music starts getting louder you know you are in for a treat!

I also no longer have nightmares over the creepy younger Yoda puppet they originally used as it has been replaced by it's digital counterpart. Actually come to think of it, a lot of character were digital in the film, some okay (Sebulba) some not so much (Jabba The Hutt).

Overall the 3D was okay but I would have paid to see this film anyway. The feeling and emotions it brought back made me feel like a kid again. It's not as bad a film as the fanboys make it out to be but could do with some re-editing. The film allows the franchise to be seen by a new generation of Star Wars fans which is only a good thing. If this goes well, there could be a new 3D Star Wars film every year, I cannot wait to see the original films in the cinema, especially The Empire Strikes Back as that really would be incredible!

Excuse me as I go get my Star Wars action figures out of the loft. May the force be with you!

Some Kick Ass News!

You may have read the title of this blog thinking that the news I am about to give you is really good, which it is, but it is also about the sequel to one of my favourite films, Kick Ass!

Kick Ass 2 has been thrown around a lot since the release of the first film in 2010. Many people saying it is happening and many more saying the opposite. But writer of the comics and film Mark Millar has confirmed that it has been green lighted and may even start filming this summer! Which I guess would lead to a 2013 release date.

I loved the first film and would love to see a sequel, hopefully all the actors will stay on, including Chloe Grace Mortez who played everyones favourite sweary young superhero, Hit Girl. Though it is not likely that Mathew Vaugn will return in the director chair but Mark Millar hinted at a possible producer role. Although it is unfortunate but lets hope that whoever takes control of the next one that they they maintain the same style of the first one throughout and not add it too the list of awful sequels that have been made in the past! I hope the statements made by Mark Millar are true!

In other sequel news, I am Legend 2 has also been given the green light. I really liked the first film but cannot see the point in a sequel or how they would do one, considering a certain character being killed off in the first! But apparently it could be a prequel or they may continue after an alternative ending which sees this character survive. Either way I preferred it as a stand alone film but we will see what happens next!

More kick ass news, this time not so literal! The Amazing Spider-Man viral site MarkOfTheSpider.com has released a 50 second clip that sees Peter Parker face up against  that intimidating doorman we heard of in the trailer, quite a cool clip that shows off Andrew Garfield's boyish charm and that teenage awkwardness that we were all hoping for from the latest film. Give it a watch here!

And finally, my blog is now available on kindle! So please subscribe if you have one. Here is the link; http://www.amazon.co.uk/Alexs-Essential-Movie-Blog/dp/B007B1A1SW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1329939444&sr=8-1

Thanks for reading!

Some Films You Should Watch!

So I'm back from my holiday now and I thought I would give you some reviews on the films I have watched over the short period. Overall the class of films I watched was surprisingly high and some even stayed with me for days with their superb story lines. Here are the films I watched and a brief review of each:

The Ides Of March
The first film I watched on my holiday and one of the best also. I heard mixed reviews of this film but was pleasantly surprised by the talent on and off screen. This is the first film I have watched that has been directed by George Clooney and I was taken away by his style. On screen the acting was incredible from the ever brilliant Ryan Gosling and side roles from acting greats like Paul Giamatti and Phillip Seymour Hoffman. Overall a great political thriller that isn't afraid to show the dark side of American politics, a must see for anyone interested in the topic.

Bronson
After watching Drive I had to watch the previous film from director Nicolas Winding Refn. Like his latest film it was great! Tom Hardy plays Michael Peterson who is a criminal who becomes famous for starting fights within prison as his stage name Charles Bronson. This film really shows off Tom Hardy's acting talent and you can see why he was picked to play Bane in The Dark Knight Rises. The film was surprisingly funny and had great style. The second half of the film is personally not as great as the first but still manages to entertain on all levels!

Kill List
This film was loved by the critics and I was wondering why by the end of the first act. Thankfully it picks up a becomes a great, but possibly not as good as the critics have hyped it up to be. In the end though it was a great film. Who doesn't want to see hit men kicking the crap out of paedophiles! The end was great but a bit confusing and I would have liked it if they explained it a bit more. Though still a good film that was surprisingly scary in places!

Son Of Rambo
A nice Brit film that looked at two children making a Rambo film together. For a childrens film the morals were a bit over the place and the plot was slightly confusing. A lot of the sub plots could have been taken out but overall the film was good. It had a nice style and is great for fans of the Rambo films.

Unknown
If you like cheesy action thrillers then this is the film for you! Watched this with the family and they were all happy with the outcome of the film, if not a little confused to the mind bending storyline, which goes like this; A man awakens from a coma, only to discover that someone has taken on his identity and that no one, (not even his wife), believes him. With the help of a young woman, he sets out to prove who he is. The ending I guess is ok but the morals of Liam Neesons character seem all over the place. The film trys a little too hard be the next Taken yet fails but still an enjoyable film.

Perfect Sense
This film has also had mixed reviews from critics and I watched it thinking I wasn't going to like it but I finished with my opinion the complete opposite. I loved it! The plot goes like this; A chef and a scientist fall in love as an epidemic begins to rob people of their sensory perceptions. The film is beautifully shot though there are a few bumpy camera moments, you will know them when you see them. Ewan McGregor and Eva Green act really well together although I am confused with Eva Green's accent, what accent was it? Their relationship is portrayed brilliantly throughout the epidemic even if they are naked half the time! the end of the film really hit me hard emotionally and the result had me thinking for days!

The Truman Show
I saw this film a couple years ago and loved it! The second time I loved it also. Introduced it to my brother over the holiday and he also loved it! A great film that is scarily close to what could happen in the future in regard to reality television. A one to watch if you are a media student or just someone who enjoys good thought provoking movies. Even though it is 14 years old it still stands today, possibly even more so then it did back in its day. A great film for the family also, everyone loves a bit of Jim Carrey!

Fish Tank
The final film I watched and another great! The acting and directing style was superb. The plot goes like this; Everything changes for 15-year-old Mia when her mum brings home a new boyfriend. The film is quite hard hitting and you should be warned this isn't a nice film to watch with your parents. Hard hitting and edgy but overall a very good film. Another great performance from Michael Fassbender who is proving to be a force to be reckoned with in Hollywood.

Everybody would gives these films watch as they are all great. The filming for my short film Snow Dream also took place over the holiday. I got some good footage but not as much as I would have liked due to weather conditions but I will be editing it together soon and will post it online as soon as i have finished.

I have finally hit over 1000 views on this blog so I would like to thank everyone for reading it! More posts will be coming soon!

Thanks for reading!

While I'm Away...

So over the next week I won't be able to blog as I am going to be off skiing! But whilst I am doing that I will be able to film the shots for my short film 'Snow Dream'. You can read about my project here http://alexmovieblog.blogspot.com/2011/12/some-of-my-film-work.html

But if you are now thinking 'what am I going to do without a new blog post for a week!' which you probably are not, why don't you check out this blog that is made by my good friend Jamie Pullan http://jpullanreviewsandrants.blogspot.com/ if you want to read some great post and settle the fight over Vampires Vs Wizards I definitely recommend it!

Or if your more into gaming I recommend another blog from my other good friend Ryan Mills http://ryanmillsvideogameblog.blogspot.com/ if you want to read greatly written blogs on all the latest gaming news I again recommend it!

I have also been lucky enough to have my '3D Or Not To Be' blog post be featured on the site Opinion Panel, Opinion Panel is the independent market research agency dedicated to understanding students before, during and after their time at university. If you want to see the post click this link; http://www.opinionpanel.co.uk/panellists/2012/02/08/3d-cinema-a-cheap-gimmick/ I would like to say thanks to the people behind putting the post online, you should check it out if you think you have something worth blogging!

But here is where I leave you but don't worry I will blog as soon as I'm back! I am taking several films with me to watch so I expect I will review them in a later post! One film being The Ides Of March which stars a man you have probably heard me raving about, Ryan Gosling and George Clooney, looking forward to that one!

See you soon!

The Amazing Spider-Man Trailer!

So yehh, I just saw the new trailer for my most anticipated movie of 2012, possibly of all time... I'M KIND OF NERDING OUT RIGHT NOW!!! While I calm down you can watch it for yourself:

Did you just see that! Wow Spider-Man is back and looks better then ever. All the haters can shut up as this trailer brings a storyline that looks nothing close to the first one. It's dark it's gloomy and still has great humour, 'Do I look like a cop?'.

Andrew Garfield puts on his Peter Parker mojo brilliantly and really suits the character more then anyone else (Tobey Maguire!). It looks like it's taken advice from Christopher Nolan but not enough to make it look like a rip off. The stunts look cool, you actually believe that is Spider-Man swinging through New York and beating up criminals and taking on a SWAT Team!

Then there is Emma Stone's Gwen Stacy who looks like she could be Peter's best catch yet, she actually looks as if she loves him, though I (spider) sense that they could bring Mary-Jane back for round 2 to form a tricky love triangle for the webslinger. Though they would have to bring in some one good enough to create an on screen romance that betters the one I have just seen, probably helps that they are now a real life couple. Though I am also secretly hoping Gwen Stacy get chucked off a bridge like in the comics, that would create something we have never seen in the case of Peter Parker's personality, especially since he seems a bit more darker in this version.

Then finally there is Rhys Ifans as The Iizard or Dr Conners. Didn't get much chance to see him in all his glory but the glimpses shown did look impressive. Could be quite a strong fella too as in the last part of the trailer we see him taking down a building that we all know is going to look super cool in 3D. I also like how they are hinting at Peter Parker possibly making the formula that creates The Lizard. That would be a lot of 'With Great Power Come Great Responsibility' especially as Peter has daddy issues this time round and Dr Conners looks like the only one who will help him out!

Overall it looks incredible and I cannot wait for this film! I'm going to go and watch that trailer again and again and again!

The Digital Era

With the recent instalment of Netflix in the UK it crossed my mind that more and more entertainment texts are becoming available online. But is this a good thing? I am not just talking about films, I'm talking about newspapers, books, magazines and even music, all now available online and digitalised.

Ever since Internet speeds have sped up, piracy has gone up. It has been a big subject in the news recently especially with the SOPA act that was trying to be put in place. But even they underestimated the power of the Internet nerd!

I can see why sites such as LoveFilm and Netflix have come along now because they have an easy affordable solution to illegal downloading. You can now watch official movies online for a small amount of money. The only bad thing about this is that users are still able to open a new tab and download the same films for free. I also don't think I would like to watch a film on a small pixelated screen that needs to buffer every 10 seconds depending on your connection. I would much rather get the DVD, which is an offer that LoveFilm do where they will send the disc to you, this however costs more.

But it's not just films that are becoming multi-platformed, look at books and comics. Download ibooks on to your iPad and you have millions of cheap books at your disposal wherever you are. When devices such as the Kindle were first created I couldn't see why you would want to read off a screen instead of a book. I now however have come to terms with idea as I can see the reasoning if you are a massive book worm and go through a different book everyday. But still, there are such things as libraries where you can get all these books for free.

But I do love being able to read comics off my iPod! Living in the UK, where it is not as comic book mad as the USA, I have never been able to get down to a comic books store which has all the latest releases. As a child I found myself reading a comic book here and there if it was in the library. With the Marvel Comics app I have been able to buy and read comics as soon as they have been released. It did take a while for them to get this way though. I now buy every issue of The Amazing Spider-Man and have been lucky enough to be able to experience Dan Slott's great writing style in the big Spider Island event  which took my fandom of Spider-Man to new heights!

Music is another thing I buy online which allows for it to be put straight on my iPod. I no longer have to wait until I go into town to get the latest CD, I can now just order it off iTunes. Unfortunately this hasn't been great for the music industry 'apparently' but it's a lot easier for us the music buyers!

So yes I can see the why we are going digital with our entertainment but I personally would rather see a film in the cinema rather then my laptop and if I could buy a comic rather then have it on my iPod I would! But the great advantage of the digital era is that it means the entertainment is now more easily accessible then it ever was and can be seen, read or heard by a larger audience. That's if its legal though.

On another note it's the start of Being Human Series 4 tonight!!! And a new The Amazing Spider-Man trailer should be out on the 9th!

@SuperAlexMan