Films of April

Identity Thief ***
Sandy Patterson is a nice businessman who has his identity stolen by an apparently harmless looking woman. He has to travel from Denver to Miami to track the thief down as the Police do not have the jurisdiction.
Jason Bateman plays his usual role as the friendly hard done by funny guy. However, he never fails in making me laugh and his co-star Melissa McCarthy pairs up well with Bateman in making this enjoyable comedy.


 Trance****
Danny Boyle's latest film lives up to the expectation. The story is interesting, exciting and keeps you on the edge of your seat. I'll keep this short, as the film is riddled with twists that turns the film upside down and inside out.

James McAvoy improves in every film he is in and annoyingly I missed his other film 'Welcome to the Punch' which was released in the same week. The great Vincent Cassel adds to the well picked cast.


 Jack The Giant Slayer**
This adaptation on the old children's story is fun and enjoyable, but will not be in the top ten at the end of the year. Ewan McGregor and Stanley Tucci always put in a enjoyable performance, while the young Nicholas Hoult is building up his prestige as a recognisable actor that can be the lead actor in a Hollywood film.


Oblivion***
The ever reliable Tom Cruise stars in this beautifully shot futuristic film, in which the earth is a baron planet after humans won a war against an invading alien force, but sacrificed the planet in doing so. Oblivion is a really good Spring blockbuster, packed full action, suspense and magnificent special effects.
I was only satisfied with the ending, as I feel the easy way out was taken.

The Place Beyond The Pines****
The Place Beyond the Pines is an incredibly well made film and story. Once again I don't want to give away any spoilers so I'll step lightly around this one. This film is like 3 stories in 1, which gives it an unusual feel as you have to adapt to the story as it evolves.

Beyond the Pines is one of the best films of the month and a must see.


Oz:The Great and Powerful**
Set as a prequel to the Wizard of Oz, Oz the Great and Powerful does a respectable job of creating a back story to a well known classic. However, after a promising couple of scenes involving Oz, Finley and the china girl, where there are several laugh out loud moments, the film struggles to reach that level again and slowly trails off.



Olympus Has Fallen**
Olympus Has Fallen is a high action robust film, in which the White House is hijacked by terrorists and it is up to Gerard Butler and his shady American accent to save the day. As I am not a insanely patriotic American I found it best to switch off my common sense and political correctness.

I never had a tense feeling in me about whether the good guys were going to win. I just hoped the ending wasn't to God bless America, but it was rather painful and red, white and blue. Remember to set your nausea level quite high.

Films of March

Broken City ***

Russel Crowe and Mark Wahlberg were strong, gritty and played their roles well in this suspense filled crime drama. However, the storyline was rather predictable, and it appeared to me that it was just a matter of time before Mayor Hostetler (Crowe) was going to be taken down by the good guys.
This is still a film worth seeing, as it has the edge of the seat thrills and spills to keep you entertained throughout.


 Robot and Frank ****

Set in the near future, Frank, played by Frank Langella is an old man who is living by himself and slowly losing his memory. His son decides to give him a robot that will help him in his daily tasks, while trying to improve his condition. The relationship between Robot and Frank is a touching one. Frank doesn't like the robot, but they become friends and the film is an interesting story of what life could be like in the near future.

For once a film set in the future was realistic, unlike most films that over estimate technological advancements in such a short jump to the future.


The Incredible Burt Wonderstone ***

I wouldn't say that this was Carell's best film, but there are still a lot of comical scenes involving Carell, Carrey and Buscemi. Burt Wonderstone (Steve Carell) is a selfish, ignorant magician and like the majority of the films I have watched this month it followed quite a predictable route. However, that wasn't as much of an issue here, with it being a a fun comedy to sit back and enjoy. Olivia Wilde, who seems to pop up in a film every month these days, had some of the laugh out loud moments.

The Incredible Burt Wonderstone is an enjoyable comedy with an inevitable ending.


Side Effects ***

Steven Soderbergh's last film Side Effects is a well made crime drama with a big twist, which wasn't obvious, but also wasn't much of a major shock. Nevertheless it is still a tense, well acted story that keeps your mind running throughout.
This is supposed to be Soderbergh last film. However, he is only 50 and I very much doubt this will be the last we see of him. Soderbergh is not the only one to say they're retired and inevitably return, just look at Liam Neeson. Why Soderbergh hasn't just said he's taking some timeout instead of pretending he's retiring I'm not too sure. Maybe it's to create more hype for his next film.


G.I Joe: Retaliation **

I decided to go see G.I Joe in 3D, as I had seen a 3D trailer and for once the 3D actually seemed good. However, the 3D was the best aspect of the film. It was an all action blockbuster, with a lot of guns and explosions, which is enjoyable but the acting was rudimentary and the enjoyment of this film was up and down, as a comical scene was followed by a corny scene or vice versa. The ending was also painfully corny and patriotic.