Articles + Quotes on Film & TV

A French film, subtitled. Apparently the two main actors are stage actors, but the parts they play here are portrayed quite simply and understated. Angele is a recently paroled woman, who we find out is trying to reconnect with her nine year son, who has been living with his paternal grandparents for the past two years, and are, understandably, a bit nervous about letting him be near their daughter in law. Tony is a fisherman, living with his mother and runs his business. He's not a wealthy man, but lives relatively comfortably. He advertises a personal ad in a newspaper and Angele is the one to answer it. Angele is looking for a man, so she can have custody of Yohan, her son. The situation slowly improves for both, and the reconciliation does happen, but you have to be patient. The music is like the story, sweet, sad and quiet.

There are two main categories for action films. The clever and the silly. The A Team falls into both. And seems to balance both qualities quite nicely. This is a funny film and provides much laughter to every second scene. The action sequences are big and over the top, which is just the way I like it. A fair warning. Those hung up on detail and realism, will not enjoy this film. Or those looking for excellent acting by well known actors. Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper, Patrick Wilson, Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson, Sharlto Copley and Jessica Biel, all have their fun with this movie, and it shows. My only complaint would be how on some scenes, the camera was a little too close to the people fighting. Other than that, loved this movie, and would most definitely watch it again.

4 Seasons, 38 episodes in total, that describes the most event filled years of King Henry VIII's reign in rich and exciting detail. What makes this historical drama/thriller/comedy/horror so excellent, aside from everything else, is the way that all the opposing sides are allowed to put their two cents in, and give the audience credible reason to support them, even though to the other people on the other sides of the story, they are the "bad guys". (The main reason I list horror as one of the genre, is because of the episode that is centred on the plague. There are parts where the King is truly frightened and has nightmares about the horrible ordeal.) There are a few historical inaccuracies, but this isn't a documentary. Its a TV show, and as such, they are not there to inform, they are there entertain. For example, they may change around a few dates and time lines, but there is no mistaking the script and acting in each scene, as being of the highest quality. J

I am writing after mere moments after hearing of the loss of one of the greatest and well known Australian actors,   Bill Hunter. It comes as a great shock to me, as it will to the many others who remember him in Muriel's Wedding, Strictly Ballroom, Crackerjack, Priscilla - Queen of the Desert, Gallipoli, Finding Nemo, The Square and Australia. He also made many TV appearances in various shows, including SeaChange. I grew up watching the film Priscilla, and later on saw him in most of the others listed above as well. Actors like these, are thought of as legends, but are also considered part of the family and friends circle. They stick in your mind for quite some time, long after the credits are done. The characters they create on screen, doubly so. Farewell, Mr Hunter, you shall be greatly missed by us all.

Yeah, so a fifties style community is going along nicely, the main character, Lem, has the job he wants and is working up the courage to ask the girl of his dreams if she'll go out with him. Voiced by Justin Long, he's your normal guy, with his friend who believes that aliens will come to their planet and invade and turn everyone into zombies. If this sounds boringly familiar, then wait for the next part. The alien who invades, looks like your average astronaut, and is somewhat shocked to find that the planet he lands on to have an "alien" population. Which creates a bit of confusion when the astronaut, voiced by Dwayne The Rock Johnson, claims that Lem is the alien, not him. The other recognisable voices include John Cleese, Jessica Biel and Gary Oldman. Directed by Jorge Blanco and co directed by Javier Abad and Marcos Martinez, this animated film is a refreshing take, that turns the Alien genre upside down, literally. And manages to sneak in a few reference

Due to the negative publicity of this film's main actor and one of the producers, the critics seemed to be overly negative about this film too. Which is considerably unjust to not just the film, but also the people who worked on it. Not just Russell Crowe. What I loved about this film, among pretty much everything else, was the fact that the writers, director and producers pared the legend back, to show the real guy, scars and all. They did their research and found some real people to outline and give scope to. And the result is a historical thriller, complete with battles, with very real consequences to each one. The detailing is magnificent and it shows in your overall enjoyment. I found myself struggling to think of another historical thriller with almost as much effort and results gained, clearly shown in this one. I'm sorry to say, that there was only one I could think of, which was King Arthur, which starred Clive Owen, Ioan Gruffudd, Ray Winstone, Keira Knightle

You know the routine, a trailer that blasts out the major (and more famous names) with the prefix of directed by, produced by, written by and the suffix, i.e. who also did such and such. So when Boardwalk Empire was shown in such a way, with all the big names mentioned, I was wary, but as I already knew that Steve Buscemi and Kelly McDonald had been rightfully nominated for a Golden Globe Award, and Steve Buscemi had won there, I was also excited. I was not in any way disappointed, and after six episodes, I am eagerly awaiting the seventh. First off, the characters. The way its written and acted out, makes you care and wonder about each of the characters, and where they might be taken to next, in the following episode, or the next one. The characters are not one sided either. No one is completely good, or bad. The Prohibition Agent, Van Alden, appears at first to be the dogged agent to bring those who break the laws to justice. What separates him from the usual, is his at times s

I discovered this movie through the usual channel, the website Imdb.com. And today I saw it at the cinemas. I was already aware of the basic plot line, that a young guy, living in America at the time of the depression, about to take his final exam that would qualify him as a vet, is told that his parents have died and he runs for the city, but joins the circus instead. This film is another that was based on a book, the novel written by Sara Gruen. I have not yet read the book, but I probably will, thanks to my enjoyment of this film. I know full well, that there are many others, who think Robert Pattinson's acting ability is either non existent, or barely developed. This is not true. Keanu Reeves, whose lack of facial expressions and non existent ability to change the tone of his voice, is, despite all this, is a successful actor, and has been in many popular films, regardless. They (though I am not sure exactly who) say the eyes are the window to the soul. I am not really

These includes films that are filmed here by American or whoever else producers/directors in Australia. Sanctum pops to mind. But there are others, some that barely get a limited release in cinemas, or even on dvd. I am quite passionate about all Australian films, and mention them myself, when the usual channels ignore or give them a bad review, even if they haven't seen them themselves. Because funding is sometimes limited, a lot of films have to go through a long line of checking and proofing by whoever is producing the work, which means the ones that do make it to this stage, are of the highest quality, before the actors and directors have their chance to put their two cents worth in. Of course, its not just the films that are given the run around. Actors and Actresses from Australia, who's talent far outstrips others of their kind, who's publicity is just better financed, are either in leading roles and excelling in every way possible and not noticed, or in supp

There are a lot of these, probably more than you would think. Legally Blonde, is based on a book. And I found that out, only today! But there is usually a problem, when books are made into movies, especially for the hard core readers (of whom I am one) who look forward to the film's release and their first viewing with feverish excitement, which at times, creates a veneer, helped along plenty by the hype, the trailers, interviews, set pictures etc. Or the person's passion for the book, or the author. So when, during the first viewing, when the film might dip in the quality, this same veneer protects the viewer and gives them some rose coloured glasses, to make things easier, and lets them enjoy their first viewing in peace. On subsequent viewings, this veneer can start to crack and the dips in quality that I spoke of earlier, are more visible with each new viewing. And I can speak from experience on this one. For example. The Twilight series. The veneer was especiall

This quote is from an old favourite of mine, and it starts off the moment when the characters realise that all is not lost, they can still win the day. The music, also helps you realise that there is still hope. And the line is spoken by the character who is blind. This film, Sneakers, with its cast that includes Robert Redford, David Strathairn James Earl Jones, River Phoenix, Dan Akroyd and Sir Ben Kingsley, is one of my favourites, because it is funny, clever and a thriller, all at the same time. Robert Redford is the unofficial leader of his group, each of the members have certain skills that make them indispensable and unstoppable force, but each have witty one liners that stop this film from being too serious. I would highly recommend this film to anyone, I was first introduced to it at a young age, and I still find it entertaining as anything, almost fourteen years on.