Now then, down to regular business. Three brand-new reviews were published this week, and they were...
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2012)
“Old fogies go to India” is the setup of this frothy comedy-drama... But when said fogies are played by Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Tom Wilkinson, Bill Nighy, Ronald Pickup, Celia Imrie and Penelope Wilton, it will surprise no one to learn there’s something here for us all.Read more here.
The Debt (2011)
a team of Mossad agents are hailed as heroes following a high-value mission, only to face serious repercussions decades later. A cast led by Oscar winner Helen Mirren and nominees Jessica Chastain and Tom Wilkinson help affirm this as serious-minded Cold War dramaRead more here.
Tintin and the Mystery of the Golden Fleece (1961)
the first of two live-action Tintin movies made by the French in the ’60s. It seems quite a low-budget affair, but that might just be applying modern tastes to an era of more simple means. For all the flat direction and pound-store costumes, there’s still a globetrotting plot involving sunken ships, numerous chases, helicopters, and that kind of thing.Read more here.
And there were loads new to the new blog (four today alone), as follows...
Angels & Demons (2009)
It still concerns itself with Hanks’ Langdon dashing about trying to solve insanely cryptic clues in a limited timeframe, surrounded by irritating policeman, suspicious friendly characters, and a girl who is almost pointless. However, it’s a lot less talkyRead more here.
Angels & Demons: Extended Version (2009)
the extended cut is basically the same as the theatrical version. If you enjoyed that then you might want to seek this out for your next viewing, just because why not? If you weren’t impressed before, however, there’s no special incentive to try again.Read more here.
Cameraman: The Life & Work of Jack Cardiff (2010)
It’s a biography of Cardiff’s work, moving chronologically through his major contributions to cinema. The insights are numerous thanks to the number of films covered and a lot of footage from an interview with Cardiff himself.Read more here.
Glory (1989)
it would be easy to slide into Issue of the Week melodrama in handling such a tale, but Zwick manages it without undue sentiment — there’s an appropriate realisation of the importance of events, perhaps even occasional reverence, but time is taken to show doubts and prejudices.Read more here.
Hercules (1997)
the tale is told with surprising faithfulness. There’s still a healthy dose of anachronistic content to liven up the humour though. In fact, the sequences with Hercules’ adoring fans and merchandising empire ring even more true in this Twilight-obsessed world than they did 13 years ago.Read more here.
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)
The first half hour is great fun, but then it gets weird, adds in hefty doses of over-complex plotting, and drags along fairly slowly until it finds an exciting climax a little late on.Read more here.
Vantage Point (2008)
I don’t imagine you’ve missed the endless comparisons [to Rashomon] But, in fact, it’s nothing like it... There are no lies and no real misdirection; none of the characters interpret what they see, we’re just shown it from where they were standing.Read more here.
More next Sunday.
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