Change Your Image
Duirmuid
Reviews
Hellbent (2004)
cute guys get hacked to death...
this film isn't going to change your life. it's fun and camp in a butch kinda was. these guys can act and they look good too.
the plot is simple and that is it's greatest flaw. there is almost a porn feel to it (or it could be that i've seen too much porn) and i'm getting confused.
I wouldn't sell this an seminal gay movie but it's good to see something which is like a mainstream movie in which instead of a girl in a bra running away from the killer you get to see a cute guy scream and run away like a girl, *smile*. I actually seem this with a room full of straight men (well the vast majority) and it got a round of applause.
keep 'em coming.......
The Dark (2005)
it's so bad.....
I have to say that the two lead actors are very good with what they were given. but this is just so bad. when a film has to relay on loud music and flashy imagery to scare people then the film isn't scary. it also took too long to end and, i feel, had more endings than return of the king. the story didn't make sense and the mythology, being part welsh myself, didn't have much of a role except to provide a poor plot hook a poor story.
the placing of the film on the isle of man and not in wales itself also didn't make sense to me as i don't see why they made this choice.
I couldn't wait for this to end. i'm thankful for the passage of time to get me to the end and i'm glad that i can now put it behind me forever.
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005)
this is a personal opinion.
The fact that I have given this a five, don't let that put you off. If you have seen the mini series and read (and reread) the book then there is going to be nothing new in this for you.
If you haven't see the series or read the book then you are going to love the film.
The only thing that I had a problem with was the love "triangle". But its different and all that. No problem.
looks very good though.
Marven is cool.
The Heart of Gold is very cool.
i think that this is the 11th line.
Kingdom of Heaven (2005)
Irish Preview, the Savoy Cinema, Dublin 27 April
This morning as I was getting up for work, my boyfriend called me and said that some friends of ours had tickets to "kingdom of Heaven". I thought ..o.k it's free and said yes.
I have never been bored so badly that I wished that I has stayed at home.
The characters were good, all that you had to do was look at the cast of actors. I must admit that I did have my reservations about Orlando Bloom, but he did a good job of it. My hat's off to you. But in saying that you never felt that they were actually interacting with each other. They didn't seem to have any affect on each other. it's strange but they managed to pull it off.
The direction was good, it wasn't brilliant, it was just good. But the best direction was the battle scenes.
The script was minimalist.
The Muslims were portrayed well, as they should be. They were the superpower of that time. I'm not versed in the fall of Jerusalem but it seems historically accurate; but I am open to correction.
What was the most disappointing thing was the length of the film. It was far too long. The setup of Balian (Orlando Bloom) is done twice and it just waists time and you loose interest. The father/son relationship between Godfrey (Liam Neeson)/Balian (Orlando Bloom) is none existent and the fact that they have just met and Godfrey raped his mother isn't explored at all. Balian kills a priest and of we go to Jerusalem. I'm just impressed that he knew where Italy was (was till you see it, you understand). The relationship of Balian and Sibylla is build over a cup of water and has only one scene to advanced it. Nothing that is discussed in that scene if followed through, but they still end up in bed.
Relationships are setup and then forgotten. People seem to react to nothing, King Baldwin (Edward Norton), who is a leper and is dying, - I didn't know it was him till now - doesn't kill Guy de Lusigan (Marton Csokas)on the word of Balian (Orlando Bloome) even though they all know that when Guy becomes King, because he's married to the Kings sister Sibylla (Eva Green), the fist thing that he is going to do is attack the Muslim and destroy Christian Jerusalem. The templers are the only ones that have any kind of motivation, crude and simple as it my be.
There was one unintentional comic moment. Balian (Orlando Bloom) is talking with Sibylla (Eva Green) about why she married Guy de Lusignan (Marton Csokas) who is the bad guy, so Balian asks "..was Guy forced upon her", The thing is that Guy is pronounced Gee and in Ireland Gee is slang for....well....a woman's genitals. All of the Irish at the film started laughing. that was the nail in the coffin of this movie for me.
I think that if you want to see this movie wait till it comes out on DVD and then see it. Not as good as Gladiator. Better luck next time.
25th Hour (2002)
Wounded New Yorker
This is a good film, but it's not a great film. The acting is very good and Edward Norton is just amazing, as usual, the supporting cast is very well put together, full and rounded characters.
But the problem I have with this film is that the script is groaning under the weight of metaphor. There is a metaphor for everything and they are repeated ad nauseum just in case you didn't get it the first 100 times. I can be told something once and remember it.
Another problem I had was the score. It was ever present and denied you the natural emotional responses that the acting should bring. I found myself whipped along at several points and feeling emotions which didn't correspond with what was acted out on screen, this is all due to the music and the repeated chorus of the "Wounded New Yorker".
If this film had a lot less music and metaphor it would be a much better film.
Hable con ella (2002)
I like this man too much.....
Amadovar has this savage way of moving the characters along; It is very deceptive. I am always surprised by him and as I sit down to watch one of his movies, I am fearful that this is going to be the one to disappoint me, but always I walk away happy. No other director does this to me.
His use of the long tracking shot and the quirky way that he places the cameras just brings you into the world of his characters in a way that words cannot; the use of silence and humour, which is always black, snaps you back to his reality, it's pure magic.
"Talk to her" isn't without, what I would feel, errors. Sometimes the music was overused. The silences are a little too long in the beginning, but once you get to the end you are left with a sense of "unfinished climax". Good film for a rainy day after a night out.
Spellbound (2002)
hemmm......hello America
Okay, I've just finished watching this movie and the one thing that I am most conscious of is my spelling. It a weird movie, it's voyeuristic; but I guess that is what it is meant to be. Also coming from a culture which does not have this kind of competition, it seems unduly harsh to impose this kind of pressure upon them. But in saying that, I don't think that any of the kids were forced into it.
I'm conflicted about this movie. I think that I'll have to watch it again, I think that the voyeur in me isn't satisfied.
Well worth a look.
And keep checking you're spelling.
Sahara (2005)
Can I have my life back?
My boyfriend picked this one for our Friday night at the movies, simple because he thought that as he is still learning English and is having problems with accents, he would be able to watch and not have to concentrate too hard on the story. He is now learnt an important lesson; you need a story to keep you interested and you need to have good acting to keep you entertained.
It was only the fact that we were seated in the middle of the row that we would have left, as it was i couldn't get comfortable and he fell asleep.
the only good thing was that Steve Zahn is so cute and had some great lines. that's why it's not zero out of ten.