jusco15

Wow, what a massive, full blown trainwreck. A complete disaster and quite seriously one of the worst films I've seen. Is it that bad? Take it from me, it is. In fact, what was Seth Rogen thinking? I expected at least a half-decent film coming from the comedic mastermind that produced works like Knocked Up, Superbad, Funny People, et cetera, et cetera, but The Green Hornet was a disgrace. Basically, it's a film about playboy-turn-misunderstood-superhero and his Asian butler-turn-martial-arts-trained-partner as they go around fighting crime, at the same time dealing with possible homosexual undertones between the two that lead to constant estrangement over who is better than the other (I was kidding about the homosexual undertones… kind of). Yes, it's lousy as it sounds.

I felt embarrassed for Seth Rogen. He's a great and hilarious actor, but I cringed every time he said something along the lines of "Really?" "Wow!" "That was way awesome!" "You were awesome!" "That's amazing!" "Are you serious?" "No way!" "So cool!" Did you really co-write this with your counterpart Evan Goldberg? You two need to reflect and rethink your thoughts because it needs some serious fixing. In fact, it wasn't just Seth Rogen I was embarrassed for. I was even more embarrassed for Christoph Waltz and Cameron Diaz, less Jay Chou who butchered the film with his horrendous English. Please, I understand your wanting to break out into the Hollywood scene, but this was a pathetic attempt. I ceased any sort of purposeful endeavour to decipher his coded dialogue just ten minutes into the film.

I observed intently both Mr. Waltz and Mrs. Diaz for some form of redeeming factor; after all, they are more than capable of producing something extraordinary, the former with his iconic Nazi in Inglourious Basterds and the latter in films such as There's Something About Mary and Gangs of New York. But I could only sigh in despair when both talents were tasked to play such limited characters and small roles, disallowing them to steal the show or at least distract us from the annoying, unwatchable combination of Rogen and Chou.

Ultimately, the story goes down the only path it can go down, the perturbed dialogue is painful to listen to and the characters are so shallow that the actors have no room to play around. Totally unforgettable and a total waste of my time. Do me a favour… no, do yourself a favour and skip this poor, pitiable film.

David Michôd's solid crime thriller from Australia lives up to all the hype and critical acclaim already lavished upon it. Not only does Animal Kingdom contain astounding performances, it is also perfectly paced with an engaging plot that isn't overdone and stays true to the gritty realism of the ominous film. It begins with teenager 'J' Cody moving in with his grandmother, 'Smurf' Cody, who coincidentally happens to be the matriarch of a family drenched in crime. Her three sons, 'Pope', Craig and Darren, maintain all sorts of dealings, from armed robbery to drugs, and 'J' is naturally swept along into the 'family business' where dangerous repercussions await the entire Cody family.

I won't dwell much on the plot itself so as to not spoil it for you, but be assured, though it may not be as thought-provoking as Memento, it's got enough twists and turns to bewilder. The real treat here is the first-class acting from the entire cast, and out of the entire cast Ben Mendelsohn stole the entire show for me. His character 'Pope', the eldest Cody son, doesn't make an appearance till about fifteen minutes in, but the moment he steps into the picture he chillingly captivates the audience with his foreboding eyes, facial expressions and vocal tone. I was immediately reminded of Anthony Hopkins in The Silence of the Lambs; Ben Mendelsohn was just as terrifying and eerie. I couldn't help but watch in dreaded anticipation at his next move. I'm surprised and disappointed at the lack of nominations for any major awards for his performance; one of the best I've seen in a long while.

Other standouts include Jacki Weaver, rightfully nominated for an Academy Award for playing the mother of all mothers, 'Smurf'. Calm, composed and cool are just three words to describe her character. In fact, we don't even know what's going on in her head except the fact that she's an unbelievably tough yet loving grandmother. Who else has so much power over her tattooed three sons who are drug sniffers and murderers? Yet, they can only comply when she asks them to kiss her; they love her to death. Ironically sweet.

You can probably recognise Guy Pearce in his role as Nathan Leckie, the police officer who wants to help 'J' escape from the clutches of his family after they all find themselves involved in a messy situation. You're made aware of the high quality of the cast when they act on par, or even exceed this veteran's performance. And how about newcomer James Frecheville who plays our main, 'J'? For the majority of the film, he understandably struggles to live up to the standard posed by his co-actors and actresses. His attempt at portraying a teen thrust into a highly unnatural style of living with colourful family members is rather stagnant and lacking proper emotional conveyance. Yet his turning point comes three-quarters of the way in, when he proves himself worthy of the role when he breaks apart in a bathroom with an intimate, solitary crying scene.

Animal Kingdom is a powerful film that examines seemingly strong but unstable family ties when caught in a web of deceit and murder. Every character is unique, their strengths and weaknesses coming into play whether it's for better or worse. The performances and story are supported by the brilliant cinematography and soundtrack. You'll be dumbstruck to the very end by one of the best thrillers you'll stumble across that will completely blow your mind.

Well done, DreamWorks. When you set your mind to it, you can create good animation films, despite being under the gigantic shadow of Pixar most of the time. How to Train Your Dragon is an excellent and enjoyable film with Vikings and Dragons, mixed with good, pure humour, thrilling, jaw-dropping actions scenes and chases – on dragons, of course. Jay Baruchel voices Hiccup, a Viking who is so not a Viking. He's that puny, stick figure in comparison to his disappointed and huge, buff dad, Stoick (voiced by Gerard Butler) who also happens to be the village's chief. Hiccup can't kill dragons to save his life. But what he does instead is accidentally catch the most powerful and deadly dragon in history, a Night Fury, and befriends it. He feeds him fish (no eel), makes a harness and trains him to fly while riding on his back.

It's your typical story, and the dragon flying scenes are almost mirror images of Avatar's grandiose scenes; Hiccup is that weakling and underdog, yet it's just human nature to cheer him on. Along the way we want to see him defy the odds and succeed against everybody's expectations. Quirky and fun, this extremely well-made animation teaches a great lesson for kids: don't be afraid to be yourself and believe that you can achieve great things. Of course, it's just as entertaining for adults, and along with Shrek and Kung Fu Panda, DreamWorks has struck gold with another animated masterpiece.