Finding Dory

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I was more keen to see BFG if I’m honest, but mostly because I thought Finding Nemo was so good that ‘Finding Dory’ was just going to be a cash-in. But due to a particularly over-excited boyfriend, we ended up seeing Finding Dory. Sharing a small cinema with about 50 people – some of them peculiar, some of them creepy, and only a couple of them under the age of 13 – we unabashedly cracked open a couple of ciders and the movie began. And I was pleasantly surprised… Continue reading →

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Is This New Zealand’s Jenna Marbles..?

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How to get a boyfriend on Tinder. “How to get a boyfriend on Tinder… You don’t get boyfriends on Tinder. To get a boyfriend on Tinder, you need to uninstall Tinder.”

This is a hilarious reality check to all those singles out there expecting to find true love on the dating app with the worst reputation… Continue reading →

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Courting Chaos

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Once a clown, now a director, Alan Clay is a successful homegrown indie filmmaker who has made this film Courting Chaos.

The film is about a girl, Ginger (Rachelle DiMaria), who falls in love with a street clown, Chaos (Alastair Bayardo). But in order for the relationship to work, she has to change. Continue reading →

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Pokey LaFarge Comes Back to Town

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It seems I didn’t scare them off!

You may remember my hypo blog post this time last year… Here’s another:

Pokey LaFarge returns to Auckland! It was grand. This time, promoting their brand new album Something In the Water, which was released in New Zealand on the night – well before the official April 7 release date.

A lot has changed with their sound, still keeping their fantastic ragtime/blues genre and tempo, but with an extra player added to the team… Continue reading →

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Into the Wild

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Based on a true story, Into the Wild is about a privileged young man, Christopher McCandless (Emile Hirsch), who graduates from university. He has the world in his hands, from the outside he has a top-class education, and wealthy, supportive parents.

But his deepest desire is to distance himself from the material world of money and ‘things’. So he sets off on a journey in search of adventures in the Alaskan wilderness… Continue reading →

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Wild

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Based on a true story, Cheryl Strayed (Reese Witherspoon) battles the ghosts of her past: heroin addiction, divorce, the death of her mother and the abandonment of her father. As a way to start fresh, she goes on a 1000-mile journey along the Pacific Crest Trail.

To be frank, the flashbacks made me feel really uncomfortable. But… I guess the world of heroin addicts shouldn’t exactly be attractive.

A classic ‘runaway movie’, although I’m not entirely sure if this is actually a sub-genre. Nevertheless, Wild fits into this category along with Into the Wild, Thelma and Louise, and to some extent: Eat Pray Love, Gone Girl and The Secret Life of Walter Mitty… Continue reading →

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American Graffiti

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This movie nearly didn’t get made. Boy, am I glad it was. This is in my top five movies – at least!

American Graffiti is the colourful account of the final night of high school for a group of students who go out cruising, attend ‘the hop’ and hang at the drive-in dina.

It’s not only an incredibly entertaining film, it’s also the most accurate documentation of what the sixties were all about.

This movie makes me upset because it makes me mourn the spectacular sixties. As mentioned in Midnight in Paris, it’s “Golden Age Thinking” – the thought that I’d be happier in another time. And boy does American Graffiti do that; it hits me right in the feels… Continue reading →

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Broken Record – Short Film

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A great 11 minute film about two men finding a suitcase full of old records which they reckon will bring them thousands of pounds.

I enjoyed this film, it is simple and very well produced. The lighting is great, the camera work is steady, the sound is even, and the acting is natural. It’s come together very well indeed.

The storyline has a couple of plot-holes, like the context of the first scene, I’m not sure if they are painters painting a house or clearing out a deceased relative’s home. Not that it would have contributed hugely to the story anyway.

I’m not sure what the men decided to do regarding getting rid of the third guy who wanted some of the profits either, it wasn’t entirely clear.

The continuity was actually very impressive… Continue reading →

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Top 4: Feel-Good Film Trailers

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I love getting to the cinema early to watch the trailers! But if I’m not watching movies, I’m sifting through film trailers on YouTube.

My attention has been drawn to the skill of making compelling and intriguing trailers, there is such an art to it.

Of course, the idea of a trailer is to get as many people to buy a ticket to the movies as possible; trailers are an advertisement.

Recently, I’ve realised the most compelling trailers have no dialogue. It’s the music that sets the mood.

Such as the first trailer released for the movie… Continue reading →

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Beer & Seed (Indie film)

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Making a feature-length long film is not easy. The amount of organisation, preparation and dedication put into this independent film, Beer & Seed, does not go unnoticed.

Accomplishing all these things on a budget only makes it more difficult; the cast and crew deserve immense credit.

Beer & Seed is well shot, well lit and well framed. However, the acting is sometimes wooden which lets down the feel of the film somewhat.

Many of the characters are… Continue reading →

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The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

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What a total disappointment!

The first movie was INCREDIBLE! A breath of fresh air. A new and exciting concept – different to the usual slog. Themes of anti-corporation, anti-government and shining a light on the absurdity of focussing on reality television rather than the actual reality.

But the second movie barely mentioned these themes. And if they did, it was literally one line of dialogue which summed the whole idea up, causing an originally important theme to become meaningless and redundant. It is pretty much leaving the best parts for the third movie. Catching Fire is just a set-up for Mockingjay.

“Yes” I have read… Continue reading →

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The Jane Austen Book Club

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This film is up there with Bridget Jones’ Diary, I reckon.

I got this DVD because there was a ‘buy two, get one free’ deal on. Since the choice was limited, I thought I’d give this a whirl.

I was concerned because I had no interest in any of Jane Austen’s romance novels and had little knowledge of the stories and characters. So I wondered if a film about people discussing these books would be confusing…

Not the case, surprisingly!

The first time I watched it, I was just like ‘meh’, better than a chick flick… But kind of average. So it gathered dust on my shelf until one day, boredom and exhaustion from watching my DVD collection five times over resulted in me indulging in The Jane Austen Book Club once again.

I have to say, I really love this film now. The six main characters are empowering and strong, they all… Continue reading →

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Now You See Me

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Um. Yeeeeaaaah. So the reviews I had been reading before I went to see Now You See Me, basically stated that it was over-complicated and so layered that one would need to watch it more than once.

This is quite simply, not the case.

It is so clichéd, so typical, so obvious, that the ending could be guessed half way through the film.

The ‘twist’ is… Barely even a twist. It wasn’t shocking or unforeseen at all. My reaction was more like, “oh yeah. Hmm. I’m not surprised”… Continue reading →

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World War Z

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I love zombie films! They are probably my favourite kind of horror.

World War Z was an awesome, classic zombie film with big frights. It was not nearly as gruesome or cringe-worthy as many other zombie films like Dawn of the Dead or its sequel, which I think, although mildly disappointing, was an interesting change for the genre.

I won’t give away the unique trait of these zombies, but it is certainly a cool adjustment to the classic zombies you’ve seen in other films.

I can assure you, you will be intrigued with the altered storyline in this film. It’s not quite a cookie cutter zombie movie.

There was no mucking around at the beginning! There was like a five minute intro, then BANG! You’re in a world-wide zombie apocalypse.

There were heaps of moments where… Continue reading →

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The Great Gatsby

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Visually, this film was MIND BLOWING! This is Moulin Rouge on steroids.

The party scenes are phenomenal! The lights, the atmosphere, colours, fashion and music… It is ground breaking. Just beautiful sets, like we’re being sent to another world.

The sets and feel of the movie are very similar to the likes of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Edward Scissorhands (the garden scenes) and of course, Luhrmann’s Moulin Rouge and Romeo & Juliet. I think it’s because all of those movies are fantastical and unbelievable.

The actors were very convincing, Leonardo DiCaprio gave another ground breaking performance. Although his accent was a little confusing on occasion, his dialogue was incredible! I feel like speaking formally, like an upper class person from the 1920s now.

Come on, old sport!

I wasn’t expecting much from Toby Maguire, and for a while believed that Ewan McGregor could have done a better job, until it was mentioned to me that his “pluckiness” was what made his character convincing. Which I thought was a good point.

I’ve never been a huge fan… Continue reading →

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The Wanting Comes In Waves/Repaid – The Decemberists

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This band was recently recommended to me. :)

I had never even heard of them before, but I have loved every song of theirs so far.

This one stood out. The Wanting Comes In Waves/Repaid. It is like two songs alternated, as though two people are talking to each other. It is a really powerful and theatrical song, unlike some of their other songs, which are a little more folk-sounding. Continue reading →

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Iron Man 3

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Holy crapolah. This movie… Guys… Just..

Wow.

This is a huge step away from the typical and clichéd superhero movies. This one was very funny with a switch up of roles among the characters. Like, it is an action-comedy with an underlying deep and meaningful storyline.

Throughout the movie, Tony Stark kept having anxiety attacks. Although I think it could have been more effective and emotional by having flashbacks, it was still pretty intense.

The story was pretty decent, although I have to say that the villain, Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce) was… Continue reading →

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What Would I Give – Lisa Crawley

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This is a fun, uplifting song by a kiwi singer, Lisa Crawley. I really enjoy the choppy sound of the piano.

Enjoy! Continue reading →

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Jack the Giant Slayer

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What an exciting cast! Bill Nighy, Stanley Tucci and Ewan McGregor! *drool*

I first saw the advert on the back of the bus, and quite frankly I thought it looked a little.. Lame.

I mean starting from Tim Burton’s Alice In Wonderland, we have had remake after remake of these fairytales and fables; Beauty and Beast, The Wizard of Oz, Mirror, Mirror, Snow White and the Huntsman… So to see Jack and the Beanstalk being remade was not a surprise, and I expected it to have similar disappointments with all of the other remakes.

Namely the fact that the violence has to be toned down so that it can be suitable for the younger audience. Despite the storyline being 100 times better if it went the full hog and making it an M.

I was right. But it didn’t stop the story being enjoyable.

I do think the writers… Continue reading →

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I’m still alive! Reviews are coming…

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Hey guys!

So I am swamped with uni studies at the moment and I am afraid my conscience won’t allow me to watch movies as it makes me feel too guilty, when I know I should be writing 2000 word essays on pointless crap.

However! I thought I should write a post to remind you that I am still in existence – I bet you’re relieved – and tell you the list of films I am going to review in about a week’s time…

1. Jack and the Giant Slayer
2. Once
3. The Devil Wears Prada
4. The Cove
5. Express my anger on recent government decisions in NZ…

Please comment to this post if you wish to put something on the list :)

I have been using my twitter account @NZFilmFreak a little more often since getting an iPhone! Ah! Scandal. What a techno person I am; all up to date and shizz. So feel free to follow!

It’s great to have so many fans of my blog…

*crickets chirp*

…and I am pretty sure that people will begin to recognise me in the street and congratulate me on my talents of blogging and pay me to write about films in the near future… Continue reading →

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The Perks of Being a Wallflower

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Okay, it was NOTHING like I thought it would be like.

This is not a happy-go-lucky, up beat and freeing movie like the trailer makes it out to be. In fact, it has a lot of very serious themes, making this high school drama rather dark, and not at all light hearted.

Despite the totally unexpected storyline, I still thoroughly enjoyed it. It is a very emotional journey – you laugh just as hard as you cry in some parts. So it evens out into a humbling story.

The main character, Charlie (Logan Lerman) and both of his friends Sam (Emma Watson) and Patrick (Ezra Miller), each go through massive emotional roller coasters. Huge changes to their lives that are developed incredibly well. Feelings and emotions are messy, unexplainable and complicated, and The Perks of Being a Wallflower accurately represent them this way… Continue reading →

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Morning Glory

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I love this movie. This is my happy movie.

Rachel McAdams plays Becky Fuller, a workaholic who is made redundant. She eventually gets hired by a breakfast show that’s going down the pan. The story follows her struggles to rebuild herself, and the show.

There are some fantastic lines! Harrison Ford is so dry with his delivery. It’s so perfect!… Continue reading →

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Lydia – Fur Patrol

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I had no idea this rock band was from New Zealand (Wellington)! So crazy.

I love this song. I remember hearing a lot growing up and recently stumbled across it again. A song about letting go of somebody who has moved on to somebody else.

Am I surprised to see you here with Lydia,
She’s oh so nice and easier to love than I Continue reading →

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Dead Poets Society

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Imagine Good Will Hunting + Scent of a Woman… and with a touch of The Ron Clark Story. That pretty much gives you Dead Poet’s Society.

It is a great story about breaking the mould. Not being what your father wants you to be, not giving into the black and white versions of education, but finding the creativity in it and allowing your imagination to run riot.

Robin Williams plays John Keating who is an English teacher with unorthodox teaching methods in a private all boys school. The tradition and formality… Continue reading →

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The Butterfly Effect

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Soooo creepy! But in an awesome way. I have never seen anything like this film before.

Of course I was weary about Ashton Kutcher being in a serious thriller, but he was fantastic! Like, seriously convincing.

The Butterfly Effect is where a seemingly innocuous act can have a domino effect and create chaos.

It has been said that something as small as the flutter of a butterfly’s wing can ultimately cause a typhoon halfway around the world.

This film plays on this theory where Ashton’s character, Evan, has the ability or curse to travel back to predetermined points in his life. But every time he tries to make it better, something else goes terribly wrong… Continue reading →

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