currently on at the 'pictures':

[ISPYSHHHGUY]

KICK-ASS: The off-putting title to this put me off going to see it, but this ain't as bad as I feared. Basically, the Superhero pastiche genre has been done to death, so what we have here is a comedy laced with heavy [comic-book] violence, much shootings and beatings, and the ante is upped by throwing in enless profanities [WOSS' wife co-scwipted the scweenplay, and he would have woved the use of the c-word twotted out here].

This certainly isn't boring by any means, though there is not a lot new on offer [a difficult task regarding this subject, I know] with jarring music on the soundtrack remimiscent of 'KILL BILL'.

Some lame CGI doesn't exactly help matters, but I did enjoy the brief 'animated zoom' where the camera roams around still comic-frames.

If you are 15, you might like this, but I'm not holding my breath for the sequel that seems promised at the end. [3/5].



THE BLIND SIDE: Gents of my vintage usually enjoy the sight of Sandra Bullock, but other than that, this sport-themed drama about a big coloured guy with social misfit problems but potential on the playing field just dragged on a bit too long for my liking. [2/5].


SHANK: This low-budget pre-Apocalyptic dystopia [set in London 2015] paints a bleak picture of lawlessness, gang warfare and a bleak future just around the corner. Nothing wrong with low-budget movies when handled properly, but there are too many similar characters and over-straining for effect in this one. The post-'modern' Techno soundtrack will date badly before long, I reckon. Some punters walked out of this screening, and I understand why. [2/5].

[ISPYSHHHGUY]

CLASH of the TITANS: This remake of the 1981 Ray Harryhausen 'animated model' swansong retains much of the familiar elements of the original, though the timeline of events are rearranged somewhat. The start is a bit slow, with no 'whammy' to sock the audience square between the eyes [in this respect, it resembles older movies] and with no monsters on show for a fair while......the setting up of the story and overall ambience of the Greek Mythology theme is well-handled, however, with much stagey brutality and macho-posturing between the battling characters.


Once the Special Effects kick in, we are in for a treat, with large-scale Giant Scorpions delivering alien menace in a thrilling sequence that easily tops the lacklustre Harryhausen equivalent.

Some good dynamic flying scenes with Pegasus [though that horse is black rather than the usual white here] and a very effective sequence with Medusa [the snake-headed gorgon who can turn spectators to stone] filled with eerie drama and mayhem; this Medusa has a more attractive fizzog than we usually see. The final battle is a tour-de-force recreating the uprising from the sea from the KRAKEN seamonster who does his stuff in the closing reels: the CGI offers up a greter sense of mass than was possible in stop-motion days, however some other SPFX shots are too glossy and sterile-looking in this particular context.


Overall, good stuff though, and worth a look if you dig this sort of thing......man. The 3-D effects are fine, to boot. [4/5].

[colcool007]

KICK-ASS: The off-putting title to this put me off going to see it, but this ain't as bad as I feared. Basically, the Superhero pastiche genre has been done to death, so what we have here is a comedy laced with heavy [comic-book] violence, much shootings and beatings, and the ante is upped by throwing in enless profanities [WOSS' wife co-scwipted the scweenplay, and he would have woved the use of the c-word twotted out here].

This certainly isn't boring by any means, though there is not a lot new on offer [a difficult task regarding this subject, I know] with jarring music on the soundtrack remimiscent of 'KILL BILL'.

Some lame CGI doesn't exactly help matters, but I did enjoy the brief 'animated zoom' where the camera roams around still comic-frames.

If you are 15, you might like this, but I'm not holding my breath for the sequel that seems promised at the end. [3/5].

Personally, just been to see this and while the language is pretty foul, it was for me a great movie. For the first time in a long time, I have seen a comic made into a movie that doesn't make me cringe. I laughed, cheered and ooh-ed. Doesn't make me the best person to sit beside when you want to go to the cinema but I want to participate fully and I do.

I certainly had no trouble in dealing with the blood-thirsty kid (I have two like that at home) and a guy with no special powers wanting to be a hero, well I think I can empathise with that as well.

It was obvious that this was a movie made by comic fans who wanted a movie that they would want to watch again and again. The fact that it is so watchable for mainstream audiences is a bonus. And the soundtrack was spot on. Not a duff note was played (pun intended) with a great new version of the Banana Splits song. On that note I am just away to find it on Youtube. 5/5 for me.

[ISPYSHHHGUY]

Glad you liked it, col: we all have different tastes: the opening gag atop the skyscaper was funny, I thought!


CEMETERY JUNCTION: a low-budget look at British life in the sour-edged early 1970s, with low-key cavortings centred around a dull-as-dishwater small UK community, detailng the aims of some of the trapped characters to escape from this small-town 'slow death'.


Dubious gags dressed up in the guise of 'satire' and more of the c-word [which appears to be a hallmark of 'street-cred' in many modern films]: this is all very well using this term, but where do we go from here?!

Remarkable chiefly for the appearence of the ATTAK TWINS [pin-up material for gullible teen gals, circa 1978] reduced to the status of middle-aged cabaret duffers in a sequence set in a doom-laden civic event]; I never recognized these pair, but fair play to them for sending themselves up like this.

Overall, this is worth a look, and not quite deserving of the critical panning it is getting. [3/5].



HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON: I am not a great fan of CGI animation: any novelty value it had has long gone, but kids seem to love this stuff, and I was presently surprized by this film, which is set in ancient VIKING times......many of the characters look like computerized versions of characters out of HAGAR----and the longships in particular are inspired by the daily comic-strip.

The design of the dragon in question is original and appealing; sort of like a large bat, with a black jelly-baby sheen. Some excellent visual setpieces including much mid-air heroics: not bad at all, this one's a Dreamworks effort.


[4/5].

[Raven]

Remarkable chiefly for the appearence of the ATTAK TWINS [pin-up material for gullible teen gals, circa 1978] reduced to the status of middle-aged cabaret duffers in a sequence set in a doom-laden civic event]; I never recognized these pair, but fair play to them for sending themselves up like this.

That'll be Keith and Tim Atack from late 70s band Child? Did you just notice the names in the credits - presumably there's no reference to them being ex-pin-up boyband types in the film?

Did you realise that Tim Atack wrote the original score for Cemetery Junction?

[ISPYSHHHGUY]

Well spotted, there, Raven; the name Tim Atack came up during the opening credits: it's such a unique name, I knew it must have been the selfsame member of CHILD responsible for the musical score in this.

Late in the film, a cabaret 'rock' band of middle-aged musicians form part of a visual gag, and both Attack twins' name come up in the credits as members of the onstage group as the credits rolled......I never would have recognized them, but CHILD was a very long time ago now.

[ISPYSHHHGUY]

IRON MAN 2;


The first film had a lot of scenes set out in desert territory, but this one features events in US cities only. Robert Downey's character has all but abolished war thanks to his advanced discoveries, however a Russkie criminal-genius [Mickey Rourke] has unleashed similar technology, which threatens World peace again.




Much US-style razamatazz and glib dialogue amongst the many admittedly breathaking action sequences, which great robot-design [I loved this character as a kid: he certainly captured my imagination]. Cool scenes of utter mayhem with war-robots rocket-gliding over New York at night, with typically Marvel-style comic-book mayhem successfully coming to the fore. The usual Stan Lee quick cameo is always fun to look out for [is he about 80 now?] and typically bad rock music on the soundtrack [by AC/DC here] as the final credits roll.


Very watchable, but will it stand up to repeated viewing? [3/5].

[colcool007]

Having recently discovered that Vue cinemas run a special every Saturday and Sunday morning, my kids are getting to see most of the movies, albeit slightly after their release date, aimed at their age group. It's called Lego AM and means that every child gets in for 95 pence (yes, less than the price of a comic!) and each adult accompanying them, up to the number of children in the family, gets in for the same price. So from the younger end of the market, we saw Up! last week, a surprisingly adult script heavily disguised as a kids movie. And this week, it was Percy Jackson and The Olympians: The Lightning Thief, a remake of Greek legends lightly disguised as a teen movie.

Of the two, I would certainly prefer to go and see Up! again as it was a good example of a family film, when the film is designed to work on several levels at once. Alas, Lightning Thief was more routine. The actors did well and it was nice to see some of the guest cameos, but it never felt as if it really got going. And at a shade under 2 hrs, it is definitely a tad too long. And I would have been annoyed to have paid full price for Lightning Thief if I had seen it when it first came out.

[stevezodiac]

My mate Mike has been to see I Am Love twice - he said it was superb. Something to do with the beautiful lead actress too. I no longer go to the cinema as it is pot luck whether or not it is an enjoyable experience what with people chatting on mobiles or talking during the film.

[ISPYSHHHGUY]

INCEPTION:


Leonardo DeCaprio stars in this perplexing psychological drama, most of which is set in the world of dreams. If the goodies can't sort out the subconcious problems, they are doomed to be trapped in the dream-world, possibly forever.


Any film that chops and changes between 'reality' and dream-sequences is doomed to confuse the viewer almost from the outset, and this is no exception. I personally am lucky enough to control the events in my dreams about once a year----the premise of this film-----but I still found this confusing and dumbfounding.



Not a terrible film by any means--with some excellent visual setpieces-------and I managed to sit through the entire running time without being bored. I never met anyone who could follow the plot, however. Cold and distancing, but nevertheless intruiging: a movie that actually demands some intelligence on part of the audience [4/5].


TOY STORY 3-D:


PIXAR make the finest CGI-animated 'cartoon' features for my money, and this is a beautifully polished piece from scene one, and it sustains the interest from the opening reel. All the familiar characters are here, with a few new baddie-toy characters thrown in, with some great humorous scenarios, and a thrill-a-minute finale. You actually CARE for these toylike characters: this is where PIXAR excel, and leave other studios at the starting-block.

True, one or two of the visual gags I saw coming, but overall this is excellent, appealing to kids and adults on two different levels. Go see! [5/5].

[philcom55]

Just been to Toy Story 3 myself (though not the 3D version mercifully) and I agree 100%. This is animated storytelling of the very highest order and I've no hesitation in urging people of all ages to go and see it! (Also I think I'm in love with Jessie! )

- Phil Rushton

[ISPYSHHHGUY]

yes, I saw the 2-D version as well, Phil [3-D is fine in small doses, but overkill is infuriating.]

Yes, Jessie is a real thigh-slapping Western gal!

[ISPYSHHHGUY]

SALT:

I had fair-to-middling expectations of this spy-thriller vehicle for Angeline Jolie. This turns out to be a high-octane, comic-book violence [with trimmings of sadism] actioner with plenty of unusual twists-and-turns , the best bits being Russkie spy Jolie getting out of seemingly impossible-to-get-out-of tight spots. One sequence set along a US freeway is very well staged, and Angeline visually resembles a 60s screen ice-maiden in some of the more sedate shots. The open-ended 'conclusion' promises the usual sequel.Well worth a look.

[4/5----one point deducted for the usual 'the human body couldn't take all this punishment' elements than run through this like a stick of Blackpool rock. ]


THE EXPENDABLES: The title of this says it all: the bulk of this picture really is as bad as it sounds, partly written and directed by Sly Stallone. Brawny macho-posturing from Sly [and that bald Brit out of Transporter] alongside tiresome cameos from Mickey Rourke and Arnie Schwatzisname, ensure the testosterone count is high, even if it's intellectual 'blanks' that are getting fired out on all cylinders.



Similar in many ways to the recent A-TEAM, this has the usual mixed bag of misfits out on a suicide mission to despatch the baddies. Nothing very original on offer, but for mindless popcorn thrills, this may satisy the undemanding.


A good sequence aboard a seaplane.




[3/5: it may be mindless, but it sure ain't boring].

[Phoenix]

I went to the cinema last Thursday for the first time in over a year. I took two of Andrew's girlfriend's daughters (17 and 11) to the Southside complex in Wandsworth. As I was treating them to a day out I let them choose the film. Bad decision!! They chose Last Airbender, for which we had to use 3D glasses. The special effects seemed impressive, but then I had nothing to compare them with. As for the rest of it, if you like your films with a good story, an intricate plot and great acting, I'd give this one a miss if I were you as it has none of these things. The girls loved it, of course! What do I know?

[Digifiend]

The film adaptation of Avatar: the Legend of Aang, a Nickelodeon cartoon. Hardly surprising that the girls chose that, it's a very popular franchise.