wrenster

What a pity. I was really looking forward to seeing this movie since it was advertised last Christmas. To say that i was disappointed was an understatement.

Okay, let me say first that I didn't think it was terrible. The production values are extremely high and the performances are fine although there isn't much for the main leads to do except occasionally sing. Jamie Foxx plays it cool throughout and isn't stretched at all, while Beyonce, who is, without doubt a stunning lady, is left with virtually nothing to do except wear a variety of costumes and is even only given one solo song, Listen.

So it is left to Eddie Murphy, who is perfect as the cocky, arrogant showman who believes that he invented everything in the music industry. He gets to sing, he gets to strut and he finally gets to act. For so long now he has been left in the wilderness with crappy family comedies that are not funny, so it's nice to see him getting another chance. Just don't blow it this time.

The film, however, belongs to Jennifer Hudson. This newcomer, who came fifth in American Idol, puts everybody around her to shame. She is polished, alive and lights up the screen every time she appears. And when she sings the show stopping I Am Telling You I'm Not Going, I was reduced to tears. That girl can sing.

And that's where the problem lies. Once you have been engulfed by that musical masterpiece, there's nowhere else for the film to go. So instead it drags its feet, and we have another 40 minutes to bare where, frankly, nothing much happens.

We have seen these bands rise to stardom movies so often that it doesn't introduce anything new. We know that it will all end up okay. We know that Jamie Foxx's character will end up being the loser. We've been here so many times before. The other problem is there are far too many songs. This isn't suppose to be a rock opera, this is a musical, and yet we get snippets of songs that have do nothing to help progress the slim plot. Songs are suppose to help the plot along, not place in there for the sake of it, which some of the numbers feel like.

The final act reads like a by-the-book soap opera, with various personal problems arising that will eventually end with a feel-good finale and the come-uppance of the Foxx character (not giving anything away there).

If you do decide to see this, go for Jennifer Hudson and that amazing song. Otherwise, my advice is wait for the DVD or TV screenings. You won't feel as cheated then.

The lights went down on the early 10am screening this morning. One advert advising viewers to switch off their phones (bring back the stars trying to sell dodgy scripts) and we were off. A black and white MGM and Columbia logo and I held my breath. But where was the Bond theme? The walking into shot, turn and shoot? The one thing that signals a brand new adventure of the world's greatest action hero. But this is a very different Bond altogether. This is definitely Bond Begins. And I'm happy to say it works.

So it does miss that sense of familiarity. Instead we get a black and white sequence in which Daniel Craig shows that this isn't the cool, sophisticated Bond we have all grown up and loved for so long. This is a more ruthless, clumsy creature. Once we get to see his two kills allowing him to become a double-O, we start entering a more familiar area. An impressive title sequence (with an air of sixties kitch and a not-too-memorable theme tune) and we get to see Bond running, jumping and fighting in a building site in Africa. And what a sequence. Just what any Bond fan wants. A heart-stopping sequence that goes on forever and yet keeps the tension going throughout. And we see that Craig is a very athletic Bond indeed (apart from the odd moment when you can see the join between him and stuntman), we are no longer in CGI territory here. We have real men risking their necks in the cause of spectacle. This is the start of the complex plot.

Within the first hour we have action sequence number two, set in an airport. Again, breathtaking stuff (I won't spoil it), and then the plot really kicks in as hour two begins. This is what really makes this a newly defined Bond movie. There is very little action at all. The occasional flash of violent fight scenes but a lot of dialogue. We finally get to know more about the man. What makes him tick. How he feels. And how emotions towards another could put him in peril. Bond has finally become a human being. He bleeds like we all do. He hurts like we all do, both physically and emotionally. This is a man who still has all the elements that us men want: he's tough, rough and cool as ice, but he also has a heart that could be his downfall.

We then head towards the home straight. A fairly cringing torture scene (with cuts!) and an amazing ending, with the final bow including what we have longed for throughout. That music and that line.

When Craig was announced as the replacement of Mr Brosnan, I have to admit I was a little unsure, but I can forget those early days. He is terrific. He has made Bond a person, no longer an entity. He acts the role, and doesn't just walk through it. His feelings towards Vesper (the stunningly beautiful Eva Green) is very reminiscent of On Her Majesty's Secret Service and Bond relationship with Tanya (the only difference is that Craig can act, whereas Lazenby...) Sure it has the girls, the locations, the car (and a lack of gadgets, but that's not such a bad thing). But what it does have is heart. It's violent, but no longer in a comic book way. The one liners are there, but not thrown into every situation. And they have managed to make a game of Texas Hold 'Em Poker seem exciting and glamorous.

It may not be every Bond fans cup of tea, and it might be accused of being too deep (probably from the Roger Moore fans) but I loved every minute of it. Bond has been re-invented and Daniel Craig is the new King. Long Live The King!

This film should come with a health warning. I have now got the worse headache in ages from laughing at this movie.

Sure it's crude, rude and offensively funny.(The wrestling scene was so painfully funny, I thought Iwas going to explode) but I haven't laughed so hard and so much at a movie since, I guess, Airplane!

Having not been a great fan of Ali G, I guess I wasn't expecting much from this, but it delivers in huge amounts, from the embarrassing subway scenes, where Baron Cohen must have been playing with death, to the dinner party scene (which was brilliantly handled). Relentlessly funny from start to finish, if you are easily offended, or shallow-minded, then avoid. If not, run to see it. A better time you will not find anywhere else.

And now I am going to have to lie down in a darken room. Sheer genius!