The Cold Light of Day

I knew that it was Henry Cavill who was the main character, but I always look forward to a film starring Bruce Willis. However, his part was much smaller than I thought it was, which was quite a surprise.
Released earlier this year, it was a film I missed at the cinema. The plot is basic, Cavill's character has his family taken hostage and he has to try and save them in time...I was going to write more about the plot, but I realised I wrapped it up in one sentence!
The scenery is good, being set in Spain, so a lot of great European architecture. I have to give credit to an american film that isn't set in New York, actually I don't even think it was even mentioned! A rare occurrence for Hollywood.
Though the story is a basic one and I had no worries that the main character's were going to die, I did actually enjoy it to some extent. Cavill's acting was nothing to write home about, but he was solid. Sigourney Weaver was enjoyable throughout. She's a highly trained and experienced government agent, so quite rightly she would get rather pissed at a civilian like Cavill who she couldn't dispose of. But The Cold Light of Day does what so many action films do, which is making a normal untrained person with no fighting skills take down highly trained bad guys.
The Cold Light of Day is a decent action film. It has all the basic viewer needs to enjoy a generic action flick and there's even a random cameo from Colm Meaney. But this is not necessarily one to go rushing out to watch.

For fans of action films, Bruce Willis and sticking up for the little guy.

Stars **

Splice

Released in 2009 Splice is a sci-fi/horror film, starring Adrian Brody. This wasn't one of Brody's best. The idea was interesting, Brody's character Clive and his partner Elsa are genetic engineers and want to achieve fame in creating new life. They attempt this by splicing together DNA of different animals to create some sort of hybrid that can be used for medical use. What they do achieve is a human hybrid that's life span is compressed into a matter of weeks or months...I failed to pay enough attention to hear how long...

Elsa treats their creation like a child whilst in the lab, unlike Clive who realises their creation, Dren, is becoming a worrying issue. This leads to Clive and Elsa taking precautions by taking Dren to their home and letting her live in the barn. I failed to take Dren seriously, as I felt Delphine Chaneac played the role too much like a curious chimp, with almost cartoon like expressions. Though the spike on the end of her tail created some cool, if not gruesome moments.

I felt that Brody was half hearted throughout. Almost like he was running his acting skills at only 50%, so his abilities weren't wasted on a mediocre film. I don't mind that I missed this at the cinema and can see why it only lasted about a week before disappearing from the big screen.

For fans of something a little bit sci-fi and a little bit weird.

Stars **

Ruby Sparks

Original stories are becoming a rarity these days. When something different does come along it's usually a spin on an existing idea rather than something original. I think that Ruby Sparks does it's best at finding that story that Hollywood has yet to think up.
Paul Deno appears in his second film of the month, also starring in Looper. He doesn't suffer such a horrid fate in Ruby as he did in Looper though, where he was gruesomely butchered, but that's not surprising as Ruby Sparks is a very different film. It is basically a love story, a 'Rom Com' though I hasten to use that term as I see it as insulting, or something involving Jennifer Aniston.
Paul Deno fits into his role as quirky and lonely Calvin with ease. As a young genius, publishing a bestselling novel at only the age of 19 he retreats into the shadows for the next decade, struggling to socialise or write that difficult second novel, until he dreams of Ruby and that's all he can think and write about. He begins to write a new novel about Ruby and she becomes real, in that whatever he writes about Ruby becomes true, much to the joy of him and his brother Harry. Chris Messina, as Harry adds a nice touch to Calvin's character, helping with the humour and reality of the situation. However, Deno and Messina look so different I'd have to question their mother to see if they both actually shared the same dad...
It is a good mix of humour and emotion, as although Ruby may have been created by Calvin, she is very much a real person with her own feelings, even if Calvin can make her do or be anything he wants just by typing it on his typewriter.
Inevitably their relationship begins to fall apart once the aches and pains of life wear them down. Calvin's attempts to salvage their relationship leads to comical scenes in which Ruby's personality goes through a variety of changes from painfully clingy to ridiculously joyful.
Ruby Sparks is a film of solid acting, good humour and the realities of love and relationships. There are also some enjoyable appearances from Antonio Banderas, Steve Coogan and Elliot Gould.

For fans of love stories and films with a different spin on things.

Stars ***

Diary of a Football Nobody

Diary of a Football Nobody is actually a play rather than a film, however, as a Notts County fan through and through I felt that I had to review it. Every time I go to the theatre I enjoy it and always say to myself that I should go to the theatre more often, several years later I'll go to see my next play and say the exact same thing.

This play, based on the book by David McVay that was first released in 2003, is a collection of exerts from McVay's diary during 1974/75. I did wonder how this was going to be transferred to the stage, but I had no reason to worry as it was achieved with great imagination and good use of the actor's abilities.

Perry Fitzpatrick as McVay was outstanding. It still amazes me every time I go to the theatre how actors manage to remember all their lines. I struggle to remember short jokes, never mind an entire character's lines in a play, or as was the case for the other actors, multiple lines for multiple characters! 

The play, as well as the book, has a great opening to it, they both have a dig at Nottingham Forest, 'the evil slime from across the River Trent' the best way into a Notts' fans heart. 

I enjoyed the use of audio and visual aspects, such as Colin Slater's commentary and the views of Nottingham in the seventies. The play was not only hilarious, but also it hit the right spots emotionally and gave a very real feel to how football used to be. It was a much more honest game where tackles were harder, yet players wouldn't roll around for half an hour trying to get the other player sent off, footballers were paid a reasonable wage and not the ridiculous amounts they are now and they were people who fans could relate to better. 

They weren't mega rich, or super fit, they were people who earned a living doing what they loved and had a lot more respect than present day footballers.

If you haven't seen this already, get down to the Nottingham Playhouse in the next week.

For fans of Notts County, football and good theatre.

The Campaign

I feel that I am faced with the same dilemma every time I watch a film with Will Ferrell in- is what I'm watching really funny or just plain stupid? Blades of Glory and Anchorman - funny. Elf and Old School - stupid. Yet Ferrell has done some different films from his usual genre in Stranger Than Fiction and Melinda and Melinda, that have probably been his best work. Zach Galifianakis is another actor that is hit and miss in his choice of films. So, this film was going to go one way or the other.
The Campaign stumbles along the line of good comedy and ridiculous humour. Though this is a film of constant laughs and failed attempts at humour, the storyline is an exaggerated version of modern day politics in the United States. It's not who is the best candidate, or who has the best policies, but the candidate with the most money pumped into their campaign who will come out the winner, despite their failings as a politician.
I did enjoy the film at a basic level of comedy and to get me in the mood for the up and coming US elections less than a month away, but I wouldn't say this is one to remember.


For fans of the classic Will Ferrell comedy and ridiculous humour.

Stars **

Taken 2

As I only mildly enjoyed the first outing I wasn't expecting to be blown away by the sequel...and I wasn't...Liam Neeson's latest action films from the Taken's to Unknown have been so similar I can't actually remember which is which.
The storyline created for this sequel is a realistic notion that there are actually consequences to killing a lot of bad guys! They all have family and friends who won't be best pleased about their loved ones being killed, even if they did kidnap someones daughter. The premise of the story means there could be another half a dozen in this series, as brothers, cousins- 2nd, 3rd and 4th removed seek revenge.
Neeson plays his usual hard and calculated role as hero, which I found difficult not to enjoy and join in with his cool fighting moves. However, Maggie Grace, who takes up the role of his daughter, Kim, is annoying from the off. Her irritating characteristics which I despised from the first film were back with a vengeance  while her weak acting only aggravated me more.
The film was mildly enjoyable, very much like the first. But the plot was all too obvious, there was nothing original to the script and the only reason the film stayed afloat was because Neeson carried it.


For fans of Liam Neeson and mindless action films this is only worthwhile if you have nothing better to see.

Stars **

Dredd 3D

Dredd had been released for nearly a month before I eventually managed to get round to see it. I hadn't seen the original outing starring Stallone back in the 90's, but I'm sure this remake was a much better installment.
Judge Dredd is a hardened futuristic cop that dispenses judgement by brutally shooting all bad guys that cross his path.

It deserves the 18 certificate, which is a hard prize to claim in the present day film industry, with audiences being harder to shock. However, Dredd 3D manages this with the ultimate slow motion action scenes, as we get to see bad guys gruesomely taking bullets to all parts of the anatomy.
The story is basic, but effective; bad guy (or in this case, bad girl Ma-Ma) does one bad deed too many, which brings Judge Dredd and new recruit Anderson into the vicinity.  A lot of bad guys get killed and Ma-Ma looks to have the upper hand, until Dredd starts to kick ass!

Usually I'm not a fan of 3D, as it's never really improved my viewing experience, but rather hindered it. I found films such as Alice in Wonderland were blurry with the 3D glasses on as well as off. However, after the initial failure with the first action scene where the 3D failed to work at all, which was clearly the fault with the cinema rather than the film's 3D capability, I almost enjoyed the 3D aspects, the ultimate slow motion mimicking Ma-Ma's new altering reality slo-mo drug.

For Fans of action, violence and a bad ass hero, this is a must see.

Stars  ***