Film Review: Hangover 2

Hangover 2


6.5/10

I loved the first Hangover.  Loved it.  One of my favourite comedies of recent years.  The intricate plotting of how they got from A to C (drunkenly via B) is marvellous.  And full of zingy one-liners.

So I was hopeful for the sequel.  However, when you watch it, you just realise that all they've done is basically clone the first film.  Sorry, but when you don't even try to top the film before then you're already on to a loser, in my opinion.

Yes there were some genuine laugh out loud moments, and I was grinning throughout a lot of the film but it was very much a case of deja vu.

The biggest compliment I could possibly give the film is that if it wasn't for the fact there was a first Hangover film, then this would have been hilarious.  As it was, it felt like buying a DVD of a comedian, laughing hard, then when you see the comedian live on stage, telling the same jokes, it's somehow not as funny, yet you can't help feeling it SHOULD be.

A shame and a missed opportunity.

The 30-Day Song Challenge Part 3

(Link to Part 2)

Day 21 - A Song That You Listen to When You’re Happy

Pure 80s electropop cheese. Never fails to give me a good mood.

 

Day 22 - A Song That You Listen to When You’re Sad

My favourite Groban song and one that's guaranteed to bring a lump to the throat. Anyone that's lost a loved one will relate to the lyrics and Groban's powerful, yet soothing voice just adds to the emotion. Love it

 

Day 23 - A Song That You Want to Play at Your Wedding

Two birds with one stone. One of my favourite love songs AND it gives me an 80s fix. Always loved this song, always will...

 

Day 24 - A Song That You Want to Play at Your Funeral

The best instrumental I've ever heard bar none and despite the lack of lyrics, one of the most emotional songs too. I will genuinely put in my will that I want this song at my funeral. Because, yes, I will return...

 

Day 25 - A Song That Makes You Laugh

Gotta love Monty Python, and this song is hilarious. And all the diseases are real...

 

Day 26 - A Song That You Can Play on an Instrument

Well, I'm not proud of this. I really don't like Michael Jackson and never will but when I was much younger, I used to be able to play this one on a keyboard. Tomorrow's song will be better, promise!

 

Day 27 - A Song That You Wish You Could Play

My favourite instrument is the saxophone and so of course, I'd love to learn to play it, and is this the most famous Sax solo in pop music? It is to me...

 

Day 28 - A Song That Makes You Feel Guilty

OK, so no song makes me feel guilty, but this song is the closest you'll find.... Hahah.

 

Day 29 - A Song From Your Childhood

One of the first music videos I remember seeing, as I remember being quite traumatised at the women being trapped in those tubes, with the kids looking on...

 

Day 30 - Your Favourite Song at This Time Last Year

Damn I really hate 99% of what passes for 'music' nowadays, but this little tune, well, I still listen to it now. I love it.

Well, that's mine.  What's yours?

The 30-Day Song Challenge Part 2

(Link to Part 1)

Day 11 - A Song From Your Favourite Band

One of the BEST songs of the 80s and arguably their best song ever. Never ever gets old. Further evidence that nobody does 'cover' songs like the Pet Shop Boys.

 

Day 12 - A Song From a Band You Hate

Can't bring myself to listen to more than 5 seconds of this utter bilge. Was sorely spoilt for choice in this category, with all the rancid heavy metal crap that exists, but I chose these guys because in a fair fight, I KNOW I could kick the shit out of all of them.

 

Day 13 - A Song That is a Guilty Pleasure

I fully admit that G4 were/are my all time favourite X-Factor performers and I loved the hybrid pop/opera music they did. This song is my favourite of theirs...

 

Day 14 - A Song That No-one Would Expect You to Love

I don't know WHAT it is about the Sugababes (in their first few incarnations anyway) but they've consistently released good music and that's strange to me as I've never been a girl/boy-band fan. This song is just awesome sauce!

 

Day 15 - A Song That Describes You

Ever felt like like all the good things in life happen to other people and that as hard as you try, you always end up second best? Yes, me too. And that's why I chose this song.

 

Day 16 - A Song That You Used To Love But Now Hate

Now, I have to say there's no song I 'hate', that I used to love, if I hate a song, I always did. But I chose this song purely for the fact it's on EVERY bloody 80's compilation and it's become a bit 'meh' to me now.

 

Day 17 - A Song That You Hear Often on the Radio

Hear often? How about every poxy time I turn on Heart FM? If it's not being played when I switch it on, it'll be in two or three songs time. Gah! Enough now, plzkthx.

 

Day 18 - A Song That You Wish You Heard on the Radio

Oh I've waited for this!! Can you imagine a song like this being released nowadays? To think this was a top ten song in the eighties. And yes, I wish I had heard it on the radio. Would have been great to see how people react.

 

Day 19 - A Song From Your Favourite Album

My favourite album of all time is 'Very' by Pet Shop Boys and this is my fave song from the album. Enjoy!

 

Day 20 - A Song That You Listen To When You’re Angry

Oh yes. The perfect song to scream at the idiots that annoy you (and they know who they are).

 

Next up, Days 21 to 30. 

The 30-Day Song Challenge

Back in March/April I participated in a rather fun little 'game' on Facebook, where 30 days were devoted to 30 songs, each one with a particular meaning to you.

I thought at the time I should probably record my answers for posterity and to see if my mind changes as time goes on.

So I've gone through my Facebook history and pulled out all 30 songs and will list them here for your viewing pleasure.  And mine too.

Day 01 - Your Favourite Song

Well, it had to be.  Loved this song since forever and even now still gives me goosebumps.  Just brilliant.

 

Day 02 - Your Least Favourite Song

Ghastly, turgid, awful. The main reason I never go to a karaoke and hand in a 'blank slip' as I just KNOW this is the song I'll be given. 

 

Day 03 - A Song That Makes You Happy

Can't help but forget how crummy life is when I hear this song...

 

Day 04 - A Song That Makes You Sad

Real tearjerker of a song, about broken relationships, and let's be honest, we've all been there...

 

Day 05 - A Song That Reminds You Of Someone

Well, it's Dad, of course. Had this song at his funeral and the song is so appropriate for him because it's completely INappropriate. Miss you Pops. x

 

Day 06 - A Song That Reminds You of Somewhere

Everytime I hear this song, I'm instantly reminded of the few months in 2000 when I was working in Bristol and Cardiff and this song was ALWAYS on Radio 1 when I was driving around...

 

Day 07 - A Song that Reminds You of a Certain Event

This song always reminds me of being at a school concert watching Chris Green and Chris Bob-Amara doing a dance routine. Great memories...

 

Day 08 - A Song that You Know All The Words To

Decided not to use this for Day 15. Heheh.

 

Day 09 - A Song That You Can Dance To

HAHAHAHAHA. Just because it's a song I *CAN* dance to, doesn't mean I will... Oh and if the girl in the blue top and trousers with long dark hair is watching, call me. :-)

 

Day 10 - A Song That Makes You Fall Asleep

Beautiful, haunting, perfect for chilling out. Was torn between this and Vangelis, but I chose this because, well, to be fair, it won the coin toss. :)

 

Next up, Days 11 to 20. 

Lost: Explained

I miss Lost.  I really do.  It was PROPER event television, with anticipation building to fever pitch before every new season.  Oh, and their cliffhangers. 

But alas, it ended.  And in the eyes of many, it left so many dangling plotlines, that the six series worth of build up was wasted.

However, I disagree.  I think all (if not, 99%) of all plotlines were explained, even if it meant you (the viewer) had to think about it.  And I LOVE that.  I love watching something and being made to think.  If I wanted everything to be explained to me, I'd go to nursery.  Equally, I don't like shows/films that explain nothing.  Annoying.   Starting to digress now...

But with Lost, I feel it ended perfected.  And while perusing some Lost forums, I found a post by a guy claiming to be one of the writers on the show.  While anyone can claim this, I think his views have a LOT of merit, and I'm willing to subscribe to his views.  I'll copy the post below:

The Island:

It was real. Everything that happened on the island that we saw
throughout the 6 seasons was real.  They really crashed. They really survived. They
really discovered Dharma and the Others. The Island keeps the balance of
good and evil in the world. It always has and always will perform that
role. And the Island will always need a "Protector". Jacob wasn't the
first, Hurley won't be the last. However, Jacob had to deal with a
malevolent force (MIB) that his mother, nor Hurley had to deal with. He
created the devil and had to find a way to kill him -- even though the
rules prevented him from actually doing so.

Thus began Jacob's plan to bring candidates to the Island to do the one
thing he couldn't do. Kill the MIB. He had a huge list of candidates
that spanned generations. Yet everytime he brought people there, the MIB
corrupted them and caused them to kill one another. That was until
Richard came along and helped Jacob understand that if he didn't take a
more active role, then his plan would never work.

Enter Dharma -- which I'm not sure why John is having such a hard time
grasping. Dharma, like the countless scores of people that were brought
to the island before, were brought there by Jacob as part of his plan to
kill the MIB. However, the MIB was aware of this plan and interferred by
"corrupting" Ben. Making Ben believe he was doing the work of Jacob when
in reality he was doing the work of the MIB. This carried over into all
of Ben's "off-island" activities. He was the leader. He spoke for Jacob
as far as they were concerned. So the "Others" killed Dharma and later
were actively trying to kill Jack, Kate, Sawyer, Hurley and all the
candidates because that's what the MIB wanted. And what he couldn't do
for himself.

Dharma was originally brought in to be good. But was turned bad by MIB's
corruption and eventually destroyed by his pawn Ben. Now, was Dharma
only brought there to help Jack and the other Canditates on their
overall quest to kill Smokey? Or did Jacob have another list of
Canidates from the Dharma group that we were never aware of? That's a
question that is purposley not answered because whatever answer the
writers came up with would be worse than the one you come up with for
yourself. Still ... Dharma's purpose is not "pointless" or even vague.
Hell, it's pretty blantent.

Still, despite his grand plan, Jacob wanted to give his "candidates"
(our Lostaways) the one thing he, nor his brother, were ever afforded:
free will. Hence him bringing a host of "candidates" through the decades
and letting them "choose" which one would actually do the job in the
end. Maybe he knew Jack would be the one to kill Flocke and that Hurley
would be the protector in the end. Maybe he didn't. But that was always
the key question of the show: Fate vs Free-will. Science vs Faith.
Personally I think Jacob knew from the beginning what was going to
happen and that everyone played a part over 6 seasons in helping Jack
get to the point where he needed to be to kill Smokey and make Hurley
the protector -- I know that's how a lot of the writers viewed it. But
again, they won't answer that (nor should they) because that ruins the fun.

In the end, Jack got to do what he always wanted to do from the very
first episode of the show: Save his fellow Lostaways. He got Kate and
Sawyer off the island and he gave Hurley the purpose in life he'd always
been missing. And, in Sideways world (which we'll get to next) he in
fact saved everyone by helping them all move on ...

Now...

Sideways World:

Sideways world is where it gets really cool in terms of theology and
metaphysical discussion (for me at least -- because I love
history/religion theories and loved all the talks in the writer's room
about it). Basically what the show is proposing is that we're all linked
to certain people during our lives. Call them soulmates (though it's not
exactly the best word). But these people we're linked to are with us
duing "the most important moments of our lives" as Christian said. These
are the people we move through the universe with from lifetime to
lifetime. It's loosely based in Hinduisim with large doses of western
religion thrown into the mix.

The conceit that the writers created, basing it off these religious
philosophies, was that as a group, the Lostaways subconsciously created
this "sideways" world where they exist in purgatory until they are
"awakened" and find one another. Once they all find one another, they
can then move on and move forward. In essence, this is the show's
concept of the afterlife. According to the show, everyone creates their
own "Sideways" purgatory with their "soulmates" throughout their lives
and exist there until they all move on together. That's a beautiful
notion. Even if you aren't religious or even spirtual, the idea that we
live AND die together is deeply profound and moving.

It's a really cool and spirtual concept that fits the whole tone and
subtext the show has had from the beginning. These people were SUPPOSED
to be together on that plane. They were supposed to live through these
events -- not JUST because of Jacob. But because that's what the
universe or God (depending on how religious you wish to get) wanted to
happen. The show was always about science vs faith -- and it ultimately
came down on the side of faith. It answered THE core question of the
series. The one question that has been at the root of every island
mystery, every character backstory, every plot twist. That, by itself,
is quite an accomplishment.

How much you want to extrapolate from that is up to you as the viewer.
Think about season 1 when we first found the Hatch. Everyone thought
that's THE answer! Whatever is down there is the answer! Then, as we
discovered it was just one station of many. One link in a very long
chain that kept revealing more, and more of a larger mosiac.

But the writer's took it even further this season by contrasting this
Sideways "purgatory" with the Island itself. Remember when Michael
appeared to Hurley, he said he was not allowed to leave the Island. Just
like the MIB. He wasn't allowed into this sideways world and thus, was
not afforded the opportunity to move on. Why? Because he had proven
himself to be unworthy with his actions on the Island. He failed the
test. The others, passed. They made it into Sideways world when they
died -- some before Jack, some years later. In Hurley's case, maybe
centuries later. They exist in this sideways world until they are
"awakened" and they can only move on TOGETHER because they are linked.
They are destined to be together for eternity. That was their destiny.

They were NOT linked to Anna Lucia, Daniel, Roussou, Alex, Miles,
Lupidis, (and all the rest who weren't in the chuch -- basically
everyone who wasn't in season 1). Yet those people exist in Sideways
world. Why? Well again, here's where they leave it up to you to decide.
The way I like to think about it, is that those people who were left
behind in Sideways world have to find their own soulmates before they
can wake up. It's possible that those links aren't people from the
island but from their other life (Anna's parnter, the guy she shot ---
Roussou's husband, etc etc).

A lot of people have been talking about Ben and why he didn't go into
the Church. And if you think of Sideways world in this way, then it
gives you the answer to that very question. Ben can't move on yet
because he hasn't connected with the people he needs to. It's going to
be his job to awaken Roussou, Alex, Anna Lucia (maybe), Ethan,
Goodspeed, his father and the rest. He has to attone for his sins more
than he did by being Hurley's number two. He has to do what Hurley and
Desmond did for our Lostaways with his own people. He has to help them
connect. And he can only move on when all the links in his chain are
ready to. Same can be said for Faraday, Charlotte, Whidmore, Hawkins
etc. It's really a neat, and cool concept. At least to me.

But, from a more "behind the scenes" note: the reason Ben's not in the
church, and the reason no one is in the church but for Season 1 people
is because they wrote the ending to the show after writing the pilot.
And never changed it. The writers always said (and many didn't believe
them) that they knew their ending from the very first episode. I applaud
them for that. It's pretty fantastic. Originally Ben was supposed to
have a 3 episode arc and be done. But he became a big part of the show.
They could have easily changed their ending and put him in the church --
but instead they problem solved it. Gave him a BRILLIANT moment with
Locke outside the church ... and then that was it. I loved that. For
those that wonder -- the original ending started the moment Jack walked
into the church and touches the casket to Jack closing his eyes as the
other plane flies away. That was always JJ's ending. And they kept it.

For me the ending of this show means a lot. Not only because I worked on
it, but because as a writer it inspired me in a way the medium had never
done before. I've been inspired to write by great films. Maybe too many
to count. And there have been amazing TV shows that I've loved (X-Files,
24, Sopranos, countless 1/2 hour shows). But none did what LOST did for
me. None showed me that you could take huge risks (writing a show about
faith for network TV) and stick to your creative guns and STILL please
the audience. I learned a lot from the show as a writer. I learned even
more from being around the incredible writers, producers, PAs, interns
and everyone else who slaved on the show for 6 years.

In the end, for me, LOST was a touchstone show that dealt with faith,
the afterlife, and all these big, spirtual questions that most shows
don't touch. And to me, they never once waivered from their core story
-- even with all the sci-fi elements they mixed in. To walk that long
and daunting of a creative tightrope and survive is simply astounding.

Just awesome.  And really, if you think about it, it makes SO much sense.


I will miss Jack, Sawyer, Locke, Kate, Ben, Sayid and most of all, Hurley.   Thanks guys, and the rest of you.  You may be gone from our screens, but you left a gap that may never be filled.

And you'll always live on, in DVD form.

Film Review: X-Men First Class

X-Men First Class

9/10

OK, I'll admit it. Until about 2 weeks ago, I was content to let this one pass me by and catch it on DVD.  Having watched endured Wolverine and accidentally watching X3 with my brain engaged, I wasn't totally 'into' another X-Men film.  A step too far, I thought.

Even the trailer, as promising as it was, couldn't completely tempt me.  The cast seemed fine, yes. And the premise (the Cuban Missile Crisis) was intriguing.  But I wasn't 'grabbed'.


Then, something totally weird happen.  I paid attention to the reviews.  And they were all pretty much unanimously positive.  Not just positive; gushing!  Had I judged too harshly?  I don't tend to pay attention to reviews, until AFTER I've watched a film (more to see how/if the critics agreed with me) but now I got the hook.  So I decided to go and see it.

And I'm SO glad I did.

The acting was top-notch throughout (McAvoy and Fassbender were outstanding - other than the latter's Irish brogue coming to the fore at the denouement) with the only exception being January Jones as Emma Frost/White Queen.  But I think she was there more as eye-candy than for her acting prowess and in that regard, she was fine.

The other mild negative (and it's more nit-picking than anything) was Beast.  Nicholas Hoult was more than adequate as Henry McCoy but once he'd mutated, the make up seemed a little 'off'.  If he'd had the same make up as Kelsey Grammar from X3, it would have been a LOT better.

Other than those minor points, it's all thumbs up.  The effects, the action sequences, Rose Byrne in her underwear, Michael Ironside and the best cameo imaginable ("Go fuck yourselves" - haha)...

So that's two Marvel films so far in 2011.  Both have been 9/10.  Does this bode well for Captain America - or will it avoid the hat-trick?  July will tell....

Film Review: Downfall

Der Untergang (aka Downfall)

8.5/10

Powerful, compelling and oddly moving film about the final ten days of Adolf Hitler.

I'm sure many of you are familiar with the Hitler Meme where his tantrum in the bunker is used to portray his disapproval of various modern incidents and people (Ronaldo leaving Man Utd or hearing 'Friday' by Rebecca Black are two of my favourites) and I'll admit that was the first time I'd heard of this film.

I thought it was brilliantly acted (especially by Bruno Ganz, with special mentions to Ulrich Matthes and the GORGEOUS Alexandra Maria Lara) and it felt strange to be experiencing the horrors of WW2, through the eyes of the Germans. You do tend to forget that they suffered at the hand of Hitler too. This film reminds us.

I would recommend it to anyone interested in War films, but it might be a bit of a slog, considering it's just over 2 and a half hours long and (obviously) all in subtitles. But if you're prepared for that, I think you'll enjoy it.