Step Up

I really enjoy watching dance films and I wish they made more of them. But just like any film they still have to be good. Step Up is.

The story won't exactly blow you away and is pretty average. The dancing on the other hand is pretty good. It mixes street dancing with more disaplined dance styles, including ballet. A lot of the dancing is just small snippets apart from the end routine which is very good. The daning in the fim doesn't measure up to the likes of "The Cell Block Tango" from Chicago, or "Le Tango De Roxanne" from Moulin Rouge, but then it is a different style of dancing to those films. If it did want to measure up then I think that it would need to have been shot slightly differently. It wasn't shot badly, it just didn't have that "umf" that Chicago and Moulin Rouge had. Nevertheless, Step Up is still worth watching if you are into your dance movies. But if you're not then I wouldn't worry about catching this one.

7/10

About Last Night

Made in 1986 this film is still very watchable. A great little romantic comedy and a great little story. A story that gets better with age.

7/10

Troy

The first time I watched this I quite enjoyed it. The second time I still enjoyed it but found many problems with the film.

First off the visual effects are starting to date a bit. But hey that's not the films fault. The editing is on the other hand. There are over a dosen scenes throughout the film, where if there are just two people talking to each other then it just cuts back and forth between two shots. A bit of variety would be nice, as when it lasts for like a minute it just become uncomfortable.

Brad Pitt. He's a very good actor, but in this movie he is just alright. His accent is just weird though. I can't work out whether or not he is trying to do an English accent or not, because everyone else in the film has one. The English accent ain't one of Brad's strong points though as whilst he didn't have a heavy American accent like he normally does, he didn't sound English either. Most of the rest of the acting is very good though and the film does have a very good cast.

The music works very well also, especially considering it was composed in about 3 weeks.

Even though the film did have it's bad points I still found it quite enjoyable.

7/10

Where The Wild Things Are

Technically this film is amazing and is really well made. However, I didn't find the story or the characters all the great.

Obviously the film is based on a book which many people will be fans of, and if you're one of them then you'll probably love the film because you'll love the story and characters.

However, for me, it just didn't do it. When the film took a slight dark twist towards the end I really started to like it, but then it went good again and it lost me again.

I found the film too moral, it's about a rebellious kid who runs away and stumbles upon this place with the strange creatures on it. The kid becomes great friends with the creatures until one of the creatures goes out of control in the same way that he was out of control. He then sees his behaviour from his mums point of view and so becomes a good little boy.

Probably one for the kids, but the story was too flat for it to offer me anything.

A Serious Man

To put it simply, I didn't like this film. But then I'm not a fan of the Coen brothers. The only other full film of theirs that I've seen is Burn After Reading which I didn't like. Other than that I've only seen clips from some of their other films (e.g. No Country For Old Men) and not really liked what I've seen.

But A Serious Man is just very strange, I thought I understood what was going on through most of it, and then it just went really weird and I was suddenly majorly confused and didn't know what the hell was going on. It wasn't weird, Lynch weird, it was just weird, weird weird.

And I was actually in denial when the credits came up because I thought it was some kind of weird thing where they have the credits halfway through the film. Turned out it wasn't and that it actually was the end of the film.

Overall I just didn't get it or like it in any way, shape or form.

The Twilight Saga: New Moon

First off you've got to have seen the first film in order to see this film. I found Twilight to be pretty average, it wasn't amazingly good, and it wasn't amazingly bad. With The Twilight Saga: New Moon I found it averagely better than Twilight.

It did feel a little too long, but if you loved Twilight then you'll love this. If you didn't then you won't.

As a film it is much better than Twilight and I actually really liked the way some of the scenes were filmed. However, for me the best bit was the beginning of the end credits, when Alexandre Desplat's score just beautifully took the stage for me. Desplat has done some amazing scores so I might have to check his score for The Twilight Saga: New Moon out. But as for the film, I won't be getting the DVD.

The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring

The first part in an epic trilogy. The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring is a stunning piece of film making that is sure to entertain. A great cast with great costumes, amazing visual effects, camera work, lighting, music, directing, etc. It would be hard not to get pulled into the world Peter Jackson has realised.

8/10

Pulse

I've seen enough shitty 'teen' horrors, so it was nice to watch a horror that actually takes itself seriously. It was a little slow throughout, but it definitely had a bit of the scare element which is kind of what makes a horror a horror.

I find some horrors are funnier than they are scary, Pulse manages to do it the right way round and I didn't laugh once. Was I scared? Maybe just a little!

6/10

Corpse Bride

Like The Nightmare Before Christmas this film is stop-motion animated. However, the animation and character design don't compare to the standards of The Nightmare Before Christmas, and neither do the songs.

This film contains five songs written by Danny Elfman. Whilst not as good as those from The Nightmare Before Christmas they are still very good and it's worth buying the soundtrack if you're a fan of Elfman.

Corpse Bride is more of a kids film really. Although if you're not a kid but are still a fan of Tim Burton then I'd still recommend watching it as I quite enjoyed it. The story is very original and the music is beautiful.

However, if you've not seen The Nightmare Before Christmas then I'd watch that instead.

7/10

Jennifer's Body

From looking at the trailer, Jennifer's Body looked like a sexy horror with some comic elements. Now I don't like to just slag off films, but as it happens, this film was shit at all of those things.

The trailer was more sexy than the actual film was. For some reason I just didn't find Megan Fox hot in this film, where as in the trailer she was smoking. Weird!

As for the horror, it really was quite awful. There were a couple of good moments but that was about it.

And the comedy only came from awkward moments, it seemed like there was a joke written in there somewhere, but that wasn't was everyone was laughing at. It was funny in a spoof kind of way, which I don't think it was trying to do. In fact, I reckon the whole movie would have worked much better if it were a spoof, because it really was a joke.

I've not seen the film Juno, but I've heard nothing but good things about it. Now if this film is supposed to be from the writer of Juno, then they must have had a car accident since, because the film had horror scenes and comedy scenes that were inter cut. This worked for no one. People were just laughing at the horror and thinking, "what the?" during the comedy.

And if all wanted to see was Jennifer's Body (if you know what I mean) then it's all in the restricted trailer, and that's it.

Altogether a film I would recommend people don't watch.

Oh, and it has the worst end credits sequence I've ever seen.

2012

I really like Roland Emmerich's films. Stargate, Independence Day, Godzilla, The Day After Tomorrow, 10,000 B.C. are all great films in my opinion. However, I can't say I really like 2012.

It was the story. It just didn't do it for me. The first half was just really uninteresting. The second half was much more interesting, but still wasn't amazing. The first half was just the set up, them running away from chaos, people dying and lots of CGI. The second half was more about people and choices, which made it much more interesting and I found that I actually cared.

It seemed like the destruction of everything was just too big, so therefore it just couldn't get any bigger. It was cool at first, but then it just went on, and on, and on, and was just as big as it was when it started like 90 minutes ago. Which is why I loved it when the story became about choice in the end, because we were no longer dealing with massive cities sliding into the water, instead we were dealing with one man's life, and this made it so much better.

It's a very long movie so I wouldn't really recommend it to anyone unless you're a CGI junkie, because the amount of good versus the amount of not so good ends in a not so good result.

Harry Brown

Everything about this film is absolutely amazing.

The acting in this film particularly stands out and I'm not just talking about Michael Caine, who is excellent as always, I'm talking about the rest of the cast. The performances where BAFTA worthy. I particularly was impressed with Jack O'Connell (who you might better know for playing Cook in Skins).

The way the film is shot is just beautiful. The opening of the film is shot hand held, as opposed to the rest of the film which is quite smooth. However, there are a few moments during the film when the shots take on a more hand held quality, but nothing as extreme as the opening. Each different camera style is used incredibly well, and fits the subject perfectly.

The sound design is mind blowing. Every time Michael Caine shot someone it made me jump. Even you see him pointing the gun at the person and you know that he is going to shoot them, I still jumped. And every time someone got shot I would remain in shock for about 10 seconds.

The only flaw I found in the film was the opening credits which I didn't particularly like, but what do they matter when the film itself is so mind blowing.

The film reminded me of Get Carter and This Is England, which are both excellent films. Although Harry Brown is a thousand times better than either film. An 18 certificate was perfect for this film. A must watch.

The Men Who Stare At Goats

I found this film quite average. However, I think that could be just due to my tastes in comedy. Whilst I found a few moments funny, I didn't really find it that funny overall.

If you like the Coen Brothers movies then you'll probably like this. It reminded me of Burn After Reading, which I didn't like, but that some of my friends loved. So if that's your type of film then this probably is too. Although even though I didn't like Burn After Reading, I still liked The Men Who Stare At Goats. However, I wouldn't watch it again.

Michael Jackson's This Is It

Watching this just shows you how amazing Michael Jackson's come back tour was going to be. And I'm glad that this film got released for the fans after his tragic death.

I found the beginning a little slow mostly because I didn't really know the songs that well. However, once it got going and into the more famous songs then it was amazing.

A definite must see for anyone who is any sort of a Michael Jackson fan.

The Fourth Kind

This is one of the best films ever made. Which is why I'm never going to watch it again.

I came out with my mind confused as to what to believe. I thought, I don't believe in aliens, but the evidence in this film suggests they do exist. There is stock footage (which is shown in the trailer) where I guy seems to get possessed and floats off his bed. This freaked me the hell out, and there are worse bits.

I found myself in disbelief. It's physically impossible for someone to levitate (without "magic", and there was no magic involved), and yet the evidence is there. The thought that the footage was fake never crossed my mind because of the way the film is presented, and that it says it isn't fake.

However, aliens (visiting Earth) and levitation are two things I don't believe in. And human levitation is something science doesn't believe in. Plus if there were really aliens that were visiting Earth, I would have thought NASA would have discovered them.

But then I read this (spoiler warnings) and it all became clear to me, and suddenly I was no longer afraid or confused. I'm still probably never going to watch the film again, but that's because it will just remind me how I felt before I discovered the truth.

I wouldn't have recommended it to anyone before I read the article above, but now I suggest everyone sees it. It's the best film I've seen since the beginning of September. This film actually blew my mind.

9

If you want to get a feel for this film then watch the original short film (below). However, I found that I enjoyed the short much more than the feature. The feature had a rather slow start which once got going was quite good. But I probably won't be watching this one again.

If you do go and watch the film, then make sure you watch the short again afterwards, because you'll notice how there are exact scenes/shots from the short in the feature.

This is the Nine I'm most looking forward to:

Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen (Score)

Steve Jablonsky's score to Transformers was in my opinion one of the best of 2007. However, his score to Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen isn't really in the same league.

I really wanted the score to be even better than the first, but unfortunately I didn't find it so. It's definitely not a bad score and is a pretty good listen. However, compared to the score for the first film, it is pretty average.

Some of the same themes are back, but they're either exactly the same, or less than they were. I was expecting epic new themes and the old themes to be bigger and better. Instead on first listen I was utterly disappointed. But perhaps this score is more of a grower, because I don't think it's quite as bad as when I first heard it. Although it will never grow past the original.

Catch Up

Here's a quick list of the films I've seen in the last couple of months with a quick mini review.

Adventureland - This is NOT a comedy which it seems to be advertised as in the trailer. I thought it was okay, but I wouldn't watch it again. (5/10)

The Final Destination - If this film wasn't in 3D then it would be one of the worst films ever made. The 3D was the only good thing about this film, and they just abused the shit out of it. I will never watch this film again, not even by accident. (2/10)

(500) Days Of Summer - I went not expecting to like this but was pleasantly surprised when I did. This film seemed to make me smile all the way through, which I don't think ever happens. I wouldn't watch it again in a rush, but I certainly wouldn't mind watching it again. (7/10)

Dorian Gray - The first film in the list I actually wanted to see. This film is beautifully shot and is just so creepy. I love it. Plus it has a great score. I'll definitely be buying the DVD. (8/10)

Surrogates - I really like the concept of this film and thought it was really good. But for some reason it just felt a little boring, and I don't know why, because I really wanted to love it. Wouldn't mind giving it a second chance though when it comes out on DVD. (6/10)

The Soloist - It wasn't what I expected. I don't mind listening to classical music, but the classical sections went on a little too long for me. I wouldn't watch it again. (5/10)

Gamer - Similar concept to Surrogates, although done in a completely different style. Had it's nice moments, but overall it was a little lame. (6/10)

The Invention Of Lying - I don't like Ricky Gervais, and can't stand him as an actor. However, in this film I found him okay, and didn't find him quite so annoying and shit (although he did still have his moments). Still not a fan though. (4/10)

Up - Another great film from Pixar. However, I must say that I'm getting a little annoyed with the whole 3D glasses thing as I wear glasses anyway and putting the 3D ones on top of my normal ones is so fucking ridiculous. I spent half the time trying to adjust them and make them more comfortable to wear. (6/10)

Zombieland - Best Zombie film I've ever seen. Great script and creativity with the filming or it. (7/10)

The Imaginarium Of Doctor Parnassus - Completely not what I expected. I would still say that it is worth watching because it is quite good. However, it's much more weird than I thought. Not one I'd watch again and again. (6/10)

Saw VI - Stay clear of this film if you've not seen the other Saw films. I thought it was okay. However, I preferred the fifth one, because it had Julie Benz in it. Although I must say, closure at last! (5/10)

Heroes (Score)

If you're a fan of the score to Heroes then this is the soundtrack for you. There is already a soundtrack release for Heroes, however, it only features a couple of tracks by the shows composers Wendy Melvoin & Lisa Coleman, with the rest being songs by various artists, making it more of a "music from and inspired by" soundtrack.

This however, is the score album and I've been waiting for this since the first episode of the show. The album is arranged so that the tracks are named after the major characters in the show, which are suites of that characters themes. It features all the major themes from the show and many more.

I would have preferred each theme to have it's own track as I find that some characters have a couple of good themes and a less good ones. And unfortunately if you want to listen to the good ones then usually you have to listen to the whole track.

However, saying this, I still really enjoyed this soundtrack and am very glad that it got a release. A must buy for any fan of the Heroes music.

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles Season 2 Soundtrack Petition

There is currently an online petition for a season 2 soundtrack release of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. If you wish to sign the petition, follow the link below.

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles Season 2 Soundtrack Petition

Halo: The Cole Protocol

This book takes place somewhere between the years of 2534 and 2536, which if I am correct in thinking is after the events of Halo Wars but before the events in Halo: The Fall Of Reach (which is the prequel novel to Halo: Combat Evolved, and finishes in the year 2552, whilst starting in the year 2525).

I found it a very exciting read and whilst it doesn't follow the story of the prophets that heavily, by the end it reveals a lot more about them and their corrupt way of thinking.

The story tends to switch between the story of Captain Keyes (who is not yet a Captain), Ignatio Delgado (a resident of The Rubble, which is where the story takes place), Spartan Grey team and Thel 'Vadam (better known as the Arbiter from Halo 2 and Halo 3).

I thought that following this many characters would get quite confusing, however, it is very clever how all their stories intertwine and come together at the end.

I've read all of the Halo books and this is definitely right up there with the rest.

The Guild - Season 1 - Episode 10: Boss Fight

Angels & Demons (Soundtrack)

The DaVinci Code had a pretty awesome soundtrack, however for Angels & Demons Hans Zimmer pretty much started again. A few of the original themes are still there, but the majority is brand new stuff. And that's what we like.

"160 BPM" is my favourite of all the cues but the entire soundtrack is made up of great cues. The soundtrack almost reminds me of John Powell's Bourne scores. However, crossed with the sound of The DaVinci Code it takes it to another level.

The opening of "God Particle" is the cue used in the trailer and just sounds even better in the film. The rest of the cue is okay, but after such a strong opening it makes the rest of it sound a bit weak.

I found all the tracks have parts I love. And if you loved the soundtrack for The DaVinici Code or are any sort of a Hans Zimmer fan then you simply must buy this.

The Guild - Season 1 - Episode 9: Owning Bladezz

Terminator: Infinity

This Terminator comic takes place after the events in Terminator 3: Rise Of The Machines. However, it does not tie in with Terminator Salvation and actually follows an alternate time line. But considering Terminator has no official cannon you can choose whether or not you prefer Terminator: Infinity or Terminator Salvation.

I think they both have strengths and weaknesses and if you're a Terminator fan then it's worth reading the comic as well as watching the movie. The comic reads as if it were a movie and really feels like part of the Terminator universe.

However, if you read this and like it then you must also buy Terminator: Revolution as this is the sequel comic to Terminator: Infinity.

The only thing I find slightly annoying with the Terminator franchise is all the references to the first film. For example, "Come with me if you want to live." It seems like there are about five lines from the first movie that have to be worked into every Terminator story or film.

Never the less I really enjoyed reading Terminator: Infinity and am about to move onto the sequel.

The Guild - Season 1 - Episode 8: Tipping Point

District 9

I've kind of mixed feelings on this film. The first half an hour (ish) is filmed in a documentary style, similar to The Blair Witch Project and Cloverfield. Now I hate this type of film, and I particularly hated it in District 9. In fact after I saw the style in the trailer I was kind of on the fence about whether or not I wanted to see the film. But one of my friends wanted to go and see it, so I went too.

After about half an hour the film just abandons the documentary style of film and switches to the normal style. Once it did this, I loved the film. But it was also when it switched style that the films story seemed to switch. It started out as basically being about racism, but when it switched it turned into a fugitive film, full of awesome guns and technology as well as exploding people.

But it wasn't just all about the exploding people or the guns because the story was great as well. The ending though I thought was a little disappointing as the film builds up and up and then delivers something else. I wouldn't say the ending was bad at all I just would have preferred it to have ended a different way, as the one it did end with kind of does the whole sequel set up.

They could definitely make a sequel, but in a way I kind of hope that they don't, because the film does work on it's own.

I still don't know whether I'm going to watch this film again, just because I really did dislike the beginning. I think the film didn't know what type of film it was, or what style it wanted to be shot in, because it's kind of all over the place when it comes to both. Blomkamp is definitely a good film maker, although unfortunately just not of the kind of film I love watching.

No Internet :(

Apologies but I currently have no Internet due to recently moving house, so there won't be any posts this week. Although hopefully I will be back online by next week when they'll resume as normal.

The Guild - Season 1 - Episode 7: Home Invasion

The International (Soundtrack)

Another soundtrack from the trio that is Tom Tkywer, Johnny Klimek and Reinhold Heil. This soundtrack whilst perhaps not there best is still very good and has a few nice themes.

I didn't find there were really any outstanding tracks but what was there was very listenable. I'd be happy to just put this CD on in the background, but I'd also be happy to just listen to it on it's own and there are some definite tracks I would go back and listen to.

If you've heard any other music by Johnny Klimek and Reinhold Heil then it is similar to their usual stuff. I found this album as a whole was very strong compared to their other work, however, as for individual tracks, some of their other albums have some better tracks that stand out, such as with Run Lola Run and One Hour Photo.

The Guild - Season 1 - Episode 6: Total Wipe

Buffy The Vampire Slayer: The Origin

If you've seen the original 1992 Buffy The Vampire Slayer film then this comic pretty much retells that story. However, the film version was altered from Joss Whedon's original script.

Now the television series carries on from Joss Whedon's original script and not the final altered film version. This comic book tells the story according to Joss' original script and therefore is slightly different to the movie.

If you're a fan of Buffy The Vampire Slayer the television series then this is the official prequel. As a result this comic is viewed as canon whilst I believe the film is not.

Having seen the film quite a while ago I didn't really notice that much difference in the comic, other than the look of the characters. However, I still found it a good read and would definitely recommend it to any hard core Buffy fans.

The Guild - Season 1 - Episode 5: Rather Be Raiding

Watchmen (Score)

If you're a fan of Tyler Bates then you'll probably like this too as it is in his usual style. However, I got this after watching the film and really liking the score in it. If you're after the songs then you want the soundtrack CD not the score CD.

However, after listening to the score away from the film I didn't really think that it work that well and other than the opening cue "Rescue Mission" I found the rest of it pretty average.

The theatrical cut of the film is a massive 162 minutes long, however the score CD is only 45 minutes long. As a result you can imagine that a lot of the score is missing from the CD. Unfortunately for me the music I really liked in the film isn't on the score CD.

Not Bates' best score by far, there is a little too much minimalistic/ambient stuff for my tastes.

The Guild - Season 1 - Episode 4: Cheesybeards

Avatar Day

Yesterday was Avatar Day and the trailer for James Cameron's Avatar was released across the web.

Avatar Teaser Trailer

Now that we've seen some footage from the film here is the full video of the Avatar panel at the San Diego Comic-Con earlier this year.

Avatar Panel Video

The game trailer is also available to watch here.

The Guild - Season 1 - Episode 3: The Macro Problem

G.I. Joe: The Rise Of Cobra

Now until I saw this film I knew nothing about who or what G.I. Joe was. Apparently it was the American version of Action Man. But it's not. G.I. Joe is way way cooler and instead of being just one person, it is a team of elite soldiers with some super cool gear.

I actually don't really know how to describe this film other than it was awesome. It kept me thoroughly entertained throughout and was literally action scene after action scene. But it didn't bombard you with pointless action scenes like James Bond: Quantum Of Solace (which was just confusing) it had a pretty simple plot that was easy to follow. Basically bad guys want to destroy the world, good guys have to stop them. Although it also was filled with lots of little plot twists to keep the story interesting.

One major fault with the story though was that the President of the United States Of America was played by Jonathan Pryce who is British, and talks with British accent. Now this would not be allowed as the President of the USA has to be born in America. Although this was the only major problem I had with the film. Otherwise it was great.

The technology of the guns, etc. was amazing and if they don't make a game of this film I will be surprised as it would be awesome to shoot one of those things, or to have a go in an accelerator suit.

I'm not sure this film is for everyone, but if you're a guy, then it's definitely for you. I'd love to see a sequel and I'm pretty certain there will be one because there is a whole subplot which basically sets up a sequel, and as long as Stephen Sommers returns, I'm in.

The Guild - Season 1 - Episode 2: Zaboo'd

Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince

This is by far the best Harry Potter film in terms of film making style, and it makes the film 100 times better than it actually is. Unfortunately this film is a very talky one and there isn't really a lot of action in it. If it weren't for a couple of extra scenes that were added into the film (which weren't in the book) then it would have been quite dull. However, thankfully these scenes helped to but a bit more action in the film, which it still could have done with more of, but then the film is obviously restricted by the book.

There was a slight problem I had with the script and that was the way the film revealed who the Half-Blood Prince was. It seemed as though it was just an after thought, as though they'd reached 145 minutes into the film and realised they hadn't a lot of time left. Nevertheless, this is me just nit picking and I thoroughly enjoyed the film.

If you go and see this one then I would recommend watching at least Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix before hand because this film almost carries straight on from it, and it helps to introduce some of the characters which you might not know if you haven't seen them in Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix.

The acting in this film is much better than the previous films, and those who said Daniel Radcliffe couldn't act, have to admit that he has improved a lot. He might not be the greatest actor in the world, but he was a lot better in this than Christian Bale was in Terminator Salvation. I think he did quite a good job.

The visual effects aren't even worth mentioning, because they're so good.

The music was amazing and really took the film to another level. I can see why David Yates brought Nicholas Hooper with him when he signed on to directed Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix.

I think it is safe to say that the next two Harry Potter films are in safe hands. David Yates has more style in this film than Tarantino himself.

The Guild - Season 1 - Episode 1: Wake-Up Call

San Diego Comic-Con News

As you may know Comic-Con was last weekend (23rd - 26th July), and so I've rounded up some of the interesting bits of news and written them up here. Enjoy.

Halo: Legends is a collection of seven short anime films (much like The Animatrix) made by about 5 different studios, including STUDIO 4 C which is making a two-part 30 minute film titled "Origins", which gives an overview of the 100,000 years of Halo history. For more info on the different films, click here. A DVD release is expected to be available in Spring 2010.

In other Halo news, Neill Blomkamp denies that his upcoming film, District 9, is a showcase for how he could handle a Halo film, and confirms that he is no longer involved. "The rumours are completely wrong... The answer is, I probably wouldn't do it if it was offered to me. But creatively, I would like to do it. It's kind of like I'd be sad to not work on it, but I would still say no." Elaborating he stated "I worked on it for five months... I put a lot of sort of sweat and blood into it. Creatively it's very compelling. I love it. But, when you work that long on something and you have it bottom out and collapse... I mean, I got out of it, I think I'm probably better off because it's more a personal film. But yeah, I love the world of Halo. I don't think I would go back there."

To watch the panel talk with Peter Jackson and Neill Blomkamp about how the Halo movie became District 9 click here.

Wil Wheaton joins the cast of The Guild for season 3 which premieres on August 25th across the Microsoft Network (Xbox, MSN and Zune). All of season 1 is available to watch on YouTube, and season 2 episodes are being uploaded on a weekly basis. I will be using my Wednesday post to post episodes here. Also you can check out Felicia Day's blog where she has posted a few pictures and a video interview with herself, just click here.

Dark Horse will be releasing a one-shot Dr Horrible comic book featuring an all knew story, which will be released in November.

Watch a video interview (below) with Joss Whedon as he talks about Dollhouse, Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Dr Horrible and more.

Battlestar Galactica: The Plan will not be the last Battlestar Galactica movie, according to Edward James Olmos. Battlestar Galactica: The Plan is set to come to DVD on 27 October 2009.

If you're a Heroes fan you can watch the entire panel video here.

The Prisoner is a 6 part series starring Sir Ian McKellan and James Caviezel. It will air in the UK on ITV1 in the winter. It has to have the longest trailer I've ever seen, but it is also one of the best.

Trailer

Panel Highlights Video

On 21st August the trailer for James Cameron's first feature film since Titanic in 1997, called Avatar will be released. As will the trailer for the Avatar: The Game.

Here is a little none comic-con new, Ridley Scott is to direct a prequel film to Alien. For more info, click here.

The Transporter

Whilst watching this I realised that I've never seen a film written by Luc Besson that didn't have a car chase in it. Oh no wait. There is one I've watched, Arthur And The Invisibles. But otherwise, The Fifth Element, Taxi, Taxi 2, The Transporter, all have car chases in them. As a result, I've come to the conclusion that Luc Besson must love car chases.

I don't think the chases in this film though are as good as the ones in the Taxi films or The Fifth Element, but they're not bad though.

With Jason Statham in the film you can kind of tell what sort of film it's going to be. However, this definitely isn't his best performance. His American accent is pretty bad and keeps fading in and out. He probably would have been better sticking with his regular accent.

His fight scenes however are excellent. Not quite as good as Jackie Chan, but definitely coming close. Some very well choreographed stuff, with a bit of humour too.

The fight scenes are the best bits probably and the story isn't as good as Besson's other stuff. It seems a bit 2 dimensional. I've only seen the film twice, and the second time I found it a little boring.

6/10

Comic-Con

As some of you may know. San Diego Comic-Con started on Thursday and finishes tomorrow. Therefore, next week I'm going to try and collect some of the interesting bits into one big saturday post. Thought I'd wait until next week so that it gives time for panel videos to appear online.

Casanova

Heath Ledger takes the lead character and joins a great cast in this amazingly clever little romantic comedy. I'm not sure if romantic comedy is really the right term to use because it's not really like other romantic comedies.

The plot is very clever and whilst you can probably guess some of the twists and turns, you would be disappointed if they didn't happen, because you want the characters to live happily ever after.

However, most of the twists and turns do surprise you and it is not until the middle that I started to think I know what's going to happen now. But I think that fact that you know what is going to happen makes the film better, in this case, because you sort get this clever little shock when you work out what it is that's going to happen.

All though that said, the film only really lets you guess a few and right up until the end it just kept on churning out surprise after surprise.

A great little film that you can just sit back and enjoy. Plus it's got some excellent music.

8/10

Brüno

If you've seen Borat and disliked it then your going to hate this so stay clear of it. However, if you loved Borat then you're going to find this hilarious too. If you've not seen Borat then... well... good luck watching Brüno, you'll be in for a shock! (Although even if you have seen Borat you're still going to be in for a shock.)

If you thought Borat was wrong, then you've seen nothing yet. This film goes way beyond Borat in terms of it's wrongness (I think that is a word). Homophobics be warned, this is not the movie for you. There is some explicit nudity and some even more explicit invisible nudity (you'll know what I mean by invisible nudity when you see it). There are moments of this film which would actually border on being porn if it weren't for the black square or circle covering those areas! And trust me when I say, thank God for those black squares and circles.

But don't let the nudity put you off, because this film is fucking hilarious. If you've seen the trailer than that's just the tip of the iceberg.

I have to say that I'm probably not going to watch this film again, but I think I'm right in saying that I'm glad I watched it. Just be warned, the film will leave you feeling pretty uncomfortable from the opening credits, right up until the end credits. But the laughter you get in return is so worth it. I haven't met anyone, yet, that didn't think the film was hilariously funny.

Taxi 2

I should first point out that if you haven't seen the first film (which doesn't matter, but is a definite bonus) than this is a French film and is therefore in subtitles. However, don't let that stop you from watching it, as it is still a great film.

Taxi introduced the characters and their relationships, because of this I think Taxi 2 is better than Taxi. It just gets straight into the action/comedy of the story right from the start and keeps on going until the very end. Another great movie from writer/producer Luc Besson.

7/10

Ice Age: Dawn Of The Dinosaurs

It seems hollywood is just churning out the 3D movies lately, and most of the seem to be animated. Ice Age 3: Dawn Of The Dinosaurs is one of them. If you're new to the Ice Age films then it helps if you've at least seen Ice Age 2: The Meltdown. And ideally you want to have seen the first Ice Age as well, otherwise you might not get the character of Scratte.

I didn't think this was the best film of the three, because I kind of tired of the character Ellie. But then perhaps I like this film less also because I'm older now and probably out grown these kind of films, because there wasn't really a lot in it to please adults. It is definitely a kids movie.

Saying that, the film was still very good. In the previous films I found the character of Scratte a bit boring, however, in this film he was the best character and had the best story. I also loved the aeroplane noises that came with the flying dinosaurs.

As for the 3D, I'm neither a big fan, or a disliker of 3D. Some films it works, others it doesn't. I'm not sold on it yet. In this film the 3D definitely made the film look nicer. I've only seen 3 movies in 3D, this being the 3rd, and whilst I'm glad I saw it in 3D, I didn't exactly find it mind blowing. But then it could just be me, as the litte kids sat in the row in front of me were practically standing on their chairs trying to touch film.

Unless your a kid, or taking your kids to see this film the I wouldn't worry too much if you don't catch this one.

Hannibal Rising

This is the fifth film about the character of Hannibal Lecter. The original, Manhunter, was followed five years later by The Silence Of The Lambs, which was then followed by Hannibal. Then in 2002, one year after Hannibal, Manhunter was remade as Red Dragon. And now there is Hannibal Rising, where the story truly begins.

Hannibal Rising is about the origin of Hannibal Lecter and why he went down the path he did. Now the only other Hannibal film I've seen is Ridley Scott's Hannibal, and in my opinion this one is better. It is beautifully shot, has a beautiful score, and isn't afraid to show how dark Hannibal Lecter really is.

At first I wasn't that blown away by Gaspard Ulliel's (who plays Hannibal Lecter) performance. However, once the true colours of Hannibal Lecter started to show, he was truely phenomenal. As for the other actors, they were just as good.

The scenes where Hannibal kills his victims were incredible. They were so good they were almost beautiful. These were the moments when Gaspard Ulliel really shined. He actually was evil.

This film simply is a master piece of film making.

8/10

Battlestar Galactica Live In London

If you wish to see Bear McCreary and his amazing music from Battlestar Galactica performed live in London then visit the website below and let them know. I know I want to.

http://www.battlestarlondon.com/

Groundhog Day

Not what I'd call a laugh out loud comedy, more of a romantic comedy, but nevertheless still a great film. It follows the character of Phil who ends up living the same day over and over again, Groundhog Day. A very clever film that is definitely worth watching.

7/10

Bolt (Soundtrack)

The soundtracks starts with a couple of songs. The first is a song performed by Miley Cyrus and John Travolta, titled "I Thought I'd Lost You", the second is performed by Jenny Lewis and titled "Barking At The Moon". Both songs are pretty catchy and fit into the country music genre. Only the second song though actually appears in the film. The first song is probably played over the end credits.

The rest of the soundtrack features the score by John Powell. I really enjoyed listening to this soundtrack and couldn't pick out a bad track. There were some really good outstanding tracks as well, and Bolt sits comfortably amongst Powell's great animated scores, such as Ice Age: The Meltdown.

There are a number of action cues on the soundtrack, but this just fits with the film which did have a lot of action scenes. Some are better than others, and there are a couple of outstanding ones, but there definitely aren't any bad ones.

As for the other tracks, they're great too. They're mostly light hearted tracks that are real fun to listen too. There aren't too many emotional cues on the soundtrack, but the ones that there are, are very good. "Where Were You On St Rhino's Day?" is one of the emotional ones. Whilst it doesn't start off that great it does build up and makes quite a beautiful listen by the end.

Some of my favourite cues include, "Bolt Transforms", "The RV Park", "A Fast Train", "Saving Mittens", "House On Wheels", "Rescuing Penny", "Unbelievable TV", and "Home At Last / Barking At The Moon (Reprise)".

This is a must buy for any Powell fan and for anyone who has listened to one of his animated scores and loved it. Or if you fit into neither of those categories then simply buy this if you like listening to fun soundtracks.

Can't wait for Powell's score to Ice Age 3: Dawn Of The Dinosaurs now.

Wrong Turn 2: Dead End

Normally I don't watch B-Movies or horror movies, but I bought this one because of the music, which is composed by Bear McCreary, of whom I am a massive fan. I came into the story not knowing anything, as I haven't not seen the first Wrong Turn.

However, that didn't matter as the story is pretty simple to follow. It's your average teen horror when it comes down to the basics. But unlike films such as Cabin Fever it actually does a good job of telling it.

It's not what I'd call a scary horror, more of a light horror. It doesn't take itself too seriously and the film maintains a sense of humour about itself. In terms of the horror elements I found the emphasis on the gore and not the frights. I also thought it was shot very well.

This film definitely sets a new standard for B-Movies and even some cinema released films (A-Movies) as this was a lot better than horrors such as Hostel: Part 1, Hostel: Part 2 and Teeth. Definitely worth watching if horror is your thing.

7/10

Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen

I'm not a major Transformers fan, but I am a major Michael Bay fan. I loved the first movie and even bought the prequel comic. The other movie tie in comics/books are on my "to buy" list, as I'd quite like to know what happens in the two years between this film and the first.

Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen has a very different tone to the first movie. For a start all the transformers talk a lot more, and not just the autobots, we see the decepticons talking and planing too. But don't let this make you think this isn't an action film, because it is.

There are also a lot more new characters in terms of the autobots an decepticons. I did find some of the transformers a little annoying, either because of the way they talked or the way they behaved. However, I was able to look past this.

Overall the film has more comedy in it than the first, and a lot of it was very funny. However, I think it possibly needed less comedy, as it seemed even during the serious action scenes when lives were in danger that there was some kind of joke going on. This kind of made the film a little more of a comedy that I thought it should have been, as in my eyes Transformers is an action film with comedy, not a comedy with action.

I didn't think the music in this film was as good as it was in the first film either. There were a few new themes, but none of them really came close to the epicness of the original themes from the first film.

The visual effects were incredible. I think however, that the visual effects in the first film are marginally better.

Overall this is a great film. However, I didn't find it quite as good as the first film. Still a definite watch for any Michael Bay fan. The amount of times he references his own films in this one will make you laugh. What a legend.

When Harry Met Sally

For a film made in 1989 it really hasn't dated. Normally I hate old films, but this didn't look old at all. A nice little romantic comedy. Plus there is this part where there are two phone conversations going on at once, it has possibly the best dialogue ever written. A must see for any screenwriter. 7/10

Terminator Salvation

The Terminator universe is a very complicated one. Not because John Connor's father is actually his friend from the future, but because after Terminator 2: Judgement Day there are just so many different time lines. There is Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles which goes on an alternate timeline to Terminator 3: Rise Of The Machines. Then the timeline slits again with the comic Terminator: Infinity, which takes an alternate timeline to Terminator Salvation. As a James Cameron fan, and a Terminator fan I find these many alternate time lines slightly annoying. Nevertheless, on to Terminator Salvation.

The Terminator, Terminator 2: Judgement Day and Terminator 3: Rise Of The Machines are films about Sarah and John Connor. Terminator Salvation is much less so. It focuses more on the character of Marcus Wright, played by Sam Worthington. What's up with that?

The whole twist behind the film is also revealed in the 3rd trailer. Now that is just bad advertising. The film builds up to the twist with a few little details. Except when you already know what the twist is these details are just lost on you. You notice them, but they have no impact on you. I suppose you could say that it is just like that when you watch the film for the second time. However, watching a film for a second time is completely different. When you watch a film the second time you do it to almost relive the feelings the film gave you the first time. However, when you watch it for the first time and already know what happens, you haven't experienced those feelings yet and so it just isn't the same. You aren't reliving, it's almost like your reading a book on someone else's experience of it. It just doesn't compare to the real thing.

Acting. Christian Bale definitely isn't at his best. In the opening part of the movie I couldn't work out whether it was his acting or the script that was bad. Now I've had time to ponder on the matter I've come to the conclusion that it is both. John Connor is not referred to as John Connor, he is simply called Connor. In one scene that lasted a couple of minutes the name Connor must have been said at least 5 times by every single character in the room, and there were at least 5 of them in the room. That just isn't natural speech. That isn't the only time in the film when the dialogue (or lack of) turns shit either.

As for Christian Bale's "bad" acting. It was only bad in moments. Although a few too many moments there were. Either way I don't blame Christian, instead I blame McG. He obviously isn't an actors director and is more of a visual guy. Visually the film is stunning and the visual effects are outstanding. However, it is like McG is afraid of Christian Bale, which is just reinforced with the way he dealt with Bales on set tantrum. He just whimpered in the back and said he didn't see anything.

Luckily Sam Worthington's acting was very good, which would be why James Cameron recommended him to McG in the first place.

As a stand alone film, overall it's pretty good. However, as a Terminator film, I don't find it worthy. And to think they are going to make another two. I only hope Hollywood fucking thinks about the script, and keeps it in keeping with James Cameron's Terminator, finds a new director, and recasts it. And people say Terminator 3: Rise Of The Machines was bad. Think again people. This is one time line I would like to forget.

The Passion Of The Christ

If you don't know the story of the bible then you are screwed. The beginning of the film gives no introduction to the character of Jesus or where in his life we are. In particularly there was no introduction to the rest of the characters, I actually had to guess who they were. I only realised that the film was about the last 12 hours of his life because I read the back of the DVD. Perhaps I'm over exaggerating it slightly, but still I wouldn't have known what the first part of the film was about unless I'd read the back of the DVD.

I found the make up effects didn't look all that convincing. Some of the time it looked like a drop of blood had simply landed on his skin, instead of him bleeding from a cut. I found this a little annoying as Jesus spent most of the film covered in blood.

Unfortunately I also found it quite a slow film. Nothing seemed to happen for a while and then when it did, it just lasted way too long. The Jews taking him to get sacrificed took too long, the whipping of him took too long, him carrying the cross took too long and him getting crucified took too long. It felt like these four things took an hour and a half of the film. I'm fine with dragging them out a bit in order to show how horrific they are, but you have to know where the boundary is in going from just the right length to too long. Unfortunately I think they had all over stepped the boundary and needed shortening.

I felt the film would have benefited much better with these parts being shortened and would have allowed for something else to be added to the film, because it just felt like it was missing a lot.

I wasn't that keen on the way the slow motion was used either. There were parts where it worked really well, but like everything else it just seemed to drag on.

Nevertheless, it's not all bad. I thought that the character of the devil was absolutely amazing. The casting, costume and make up, were spot on. All the devil scenes were shot beautifully, the lighting was incredible and the score was amazing. I think they should make a spin-off film about this devil because I cannot get over how stunning the scenes were.

I think if your a fan of Mel Gibson's other directorial works then you'll probably like this film. However, in my opinion Apocalypto is his best work.

6/10

Night At The Museum 2: Battle Of The Smithsonian

Now I'm not a Ben Stiller fan but after seeing the first film and quite liking it I thought I'd give the second a go. Whilst it didn't get started all that well, once the film got going it was very good.

I thought it was much better than the first movie. The acting was incredible and made the film so much funnier. The visual effects were also really amazing, as was the music.

If you love watching fun entertaining films then go and see this, you won't be disappointed.

Old And New

I've been keeping this blog going for just over a year now with weekly posts. Some of these posts have been reviews of the new films at the cinema. Since the blogs been going well for a whole year, I thought I'd start making 2 posts each week. There will be the usual Saturday post, but I'll also be posting my reviews of some older films that are no longer on at the cinema but are still very good (or very bad) in a Wednesday post.

Hopefully I'll be able to keep the Wednesday post going as another weekly post for another year. We'll just have to see how things go.

Angels & Demons

When I saw The DaVinci Code I quite liked it, but then I hadn't read the book. After I'd read the book I saw why a lot of fans of the book didn't really like it. However, since I saw the film first I still liked even after I'd read the book.

With Angels & Demons I read the book before seeing the film. I think this is perhaps why I preferred The DaVinci Code out of the two films. Out of the books though, I prefer Angels & Demons. Strange huh?

Saying that, if I detach myself from the book then Angels & Demons is probably the better of the two films. However, having read the book I felt like I knew what was coming. This is going to happen anyway with any book to film adaptation that you've read, but with other adaptations, even if you've read the book and you know what is going to happen next, you forget and become immersed in the film. Whilst I did feel immersed, I didn't forget, even with the changes, I knew what was coming.

Nevertheless, the film is still very good, and I'd probably give it 7 or 8 out of 10. The action scenes where all very good, and the story was told very well.

My favourite bit about the film though was the music. Oh my God. Hans Zimmer does not just manage to improve on his score for The DaVinci Code but takes it in a whole different direction with Angels & Demons. The action cues have a certain Jason Bourne feel to them. However, even as a John Powell fan I think when Hans Zimmer doesn't it, he reinvents it. The music of this film is almost in a league of its own. It is so intense and powerful it made my spine tingle several times throughout the film. This why Zimmer is one of my all time favourite film composers.

If you're a Zimmer fan then this film is definitely worth seeing. If you're not, then I still think it's worth seeing. I enjoyed it.

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (Soundtrack)

This is the eighth soundtrack release to come from Bear McCreary and he just keeps getting better and better. Okay so it's not quite his best, but it definitely is one of them.

The opening track "Samson And Delilah" performed by Shirley Manson, I didn't really like at first. However, it has really grown on me and I particularly love the ending of it.

Next up is the "Opening Title" where Bear McCreary incorporates Brad Fiedel's iconic Terminator drums into a great little cue containing strings and electronics that build up to Brad's theme.

But Bear doesn't just manage to give the opening titles a traditional Terminator feel, he some how does it with the whole score. It stays true to the sound of Terminator and Brad Fiedel's original scores for The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgement Day, and yet he uses all new themes.

There are plenty of stand out cues on this soundtrack which make it a great listen. Unfortunately for me though there are a couple of tracks which I'm not so keen on as well. The first one is "Ain't It Famous" written and performed by Brendan McCreary. I've not seen season 2 yet, so I'm unsure how it fits into the show, but for me it doesn't really belong on the soundtrack, as when I sit down to listen to the whole thing it takes me as far away from Terminator as you can get.

Likewise with the cue "Atomic Al's Merry Melody". This cue was composed for a cartoon that appeared on the television in the background of a scene. It fits right in with the old cartoon stile of music, so congratulations to Bear for that. However, for me, it disrupted my listening experience.

I liked "Ain't It Famous" and "Atomic Al's Merry Melody" at first. However, I quickly grew tired of these tracks, unlike the rest of the soundtrack. I think I would have preferred if these tracks were tagged onto the end of the soundtrack instead of placed a third and two thirds of the way through.

Nevertheless, this has got to be my favourite Terminator soundtrack to date. Although from the sneak peak I've heard of Danny Elfman's score to Terminator Salvation it might not be for long. If your a fan of any Terminator music then this is a must buy, as it is for any fan of Bear McCreary.

Doctor Who [Series 4] (Soundtrack)

I found this soundtrack to be much more fun and exciting than the previous two Doctor Who soundtracks from Murray Gold, as it contains a lot more quirkier cues.

The soundtrack starts of with a slightly revambed Doctor Who theme, although I must admit I prefer the orchestration used for series 1, 2 and 3.

It then jumps straight in with the fun stuff and a cue called "A Noble Girl About Town". The rest of the quirky stuff is scattered throughout, as is the more emotional stuff which the soundtrack isn't without, "Turn Left" is probably my favourite.

Whilst I don't think this soundtrack has as many outstanding cues, like "Doomsday" from the series 1 and 2 soundtrack, it does fair better overall. Definitely worth buying if you've already got the others or if your a fan of Murray Gold.

Star Trek

I never really got into the original Star Trek series or films. Star Trek: The Next Generation, and subsequent films on the other hand, I love. This is why I wasn't all that sure whether or not I would like the film or not. That, and I'm not a huge fan of J. J. Abrams.

However, much to my excitement I did enjoy it. It took me a while as I didn't really like the beginning, but once it got going I found it pretty good.

The acting was very good, as were the visual effects. There were quite a few things I found I didn't like about the film though.

First off is the beginning. It took way too long for the story to actually develop. Most of it was necessary, but there were definite parts which I thought could have been shortened or deleted to cut to the chase a bit faster. The shaky camera work really bugged me at the beginning, as did the fast pans. I felt I couldn't see anything for like the whole of the first scene. It seems everyone is trying to film it Saving Private Ryan/Bourne style these days. It wasn't as bad as Quantum Of Solace, but it was still pretty bad. After the first scene the shaky camera seemed to calm down a bit and the fast pans went altogether.

One thing that didn't go or calm down though was lens flare. Sure lens flare looks real nice when you see it now and then. But it was cropping up every minute in this film and I for one found it very off putting.

Another thing that bugged me to the core was the rock music. Wtf? Pretty much all of the scene where James T. Kirk is being chased in a car when he is a kid is in one of the trailers. In the film it has rock music over it. I thought the trailer music used over that scene in the trailer worked way better. The product placement was a bit too 'in your face' for me as well.

Then there is the rest of the music. The film is scored by Michael Giacchino and sure he does an okay job. But that is about it. The more emotional stuff seemed to work quite well in the film, but other than that it was pretty average. I was expecting (or more like hoping) some kind of Star Trek theme to turn up in the movie. The original Star Trek theme was used in the end credits, but Giacchino's own themes weren't all that impressive. But then maybe I like the Star Trek: The Next Generation theme too much, as I was kind of hoping that it would appear, although really knowing that it wouldn't.

Overall though I thought the film was good and whether you're a Trekkie or not, it is worth seeing.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine

Having watch the other X-Men films and enjoying them all I was quite looking forward to this film. That is until I saw the trailer. The film look way too heavy on visual effects which even in the trailer just looked rubbish. So when I went to the cinema to see this film I was expecting it to be pretty bad.

Whilst it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be it was by no means as good as I was hoping it would be. This is the second film I've been to recently where the visual effects have been rubbish, the other film being Knowing. I thought they were supposed to get better as technology advances. Even X-Men, which was made in 2000 had better visual effects than X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and that was nine years ago.

But the visual effects weren't the only thing that I found bad. I thought the script was pretty rubbish too. My friend said that he really liked the film because it was very accurate in telling the actual origin of Wolverine as told by the comics. However, I haven't read the comics and so I came in knowing nothing about where Wolverine came from, or who he was before he lost his memory. There were just too many plot holes. For instance, one minute Wolverine was being called Jimmy and the next he was being called Logan. There was absolutely no explanation as to why this happened. It just seemed like he had randomly decided to change his name.

Another thing that pissed me off was the opening credit sequence. It has to be one of the worst ones I've ever seen. In some films, during the opening credits or even the end credits there is a freeze frame of a character, and then the name of the actor playing that character appears on screen. This is what X-Men Origins: Wolverine appeared to do, but didn't. Every time a name appeared on screen the image would freeze. However, every time the image froze it was either on Wolverine or Victor. It took me ages to even work this out and just confused the hell out of me before it finally clicked. And by that time I just thought it was stupid.

There were plenty of other things I didn't like about the film, but lets move onto the good. Hmmm...? I can't really remember. There were definitely some good bits, not outstanding, but okay, probably why I can't really put my finger on them.

Back to the bad, the bit that annoyed me the most was when Charles Xavier appeared near the end. I thought, "Oh my God it's a computer generated Patrick Stewart". After checking IMDb to see if Patrick Stewart made an appearance in the film, I found out that he didn't.

Overall I'd say this film was alright/shit. By far the worst X-Men film.