Avatar - We are across the uncanny valey

I just got back from seeing Avatar, and wow... just wow. If you have been living under a rock, Avatar is a 15-year-in-the-making epic directed by the apparently mad James Cameron (of Titanic fame, no other). It is amazing.


Sure, the story is fairly standard, the character development is predictable and some of the dialogue is weak. However, that somewhat fades in to insignificance in the beautiful backdrop that is Pandora.

Cameron gets what makes a good film, it is more than just a good plot- that's a play. It is more than interesting characters, that's a book, it is about the imagery. It's about affecting the viewer through the visual elements. I could explain to you just how AMAZING this film looks, because it is breathtaking, but it is the way that Cameron uses the stunning technology that makes this film what it is; what separates it from the equally technically impressive Transformers 2.

The world that is created in this film is so believable that when you see a strange creature, your initial reaction is "that cannot be real", like when you watch BBC documentaries of wonderful creatures, instead of accepting it as blatant CGI. The world that Cameron has so masterfully created is both bizarre and believable; technology and imagination working in tandem.

Through this world Cameron is able to hang a basically average story and make you care. You find yourself hating the humans attacking this world where there is still so much to find out. It makes you sympathise with the indigenous people, juxtaposing the cold, technology dependant environment of the humans with the self sufficient, natural world of the Navi.


The story is so completely inseparable from the presentation that, while I can say if you wrote a book with the same plot it would fail, I think to say that the film fails because of the story and hence the film is merely a technology demo is to miss what a film is - the combination of story and camera shots. Avatar is something that you have to experience on the big screen, loud and in 3D. It is the first time in a long time where I have walked away from the cinema feeling that the £10 price was justified. A must see for all.

Cloverfield and 28 Weeks Later

I went to go see Cloverfield at the weekend and wow, what a film it is. This film is amazing. As a testimony to this, when I went in, before the film started, it was quite a boisterous audience, however, when I left, when there is normally chat about the film, it was deadly silent. Cloverfield leads you into a false sense of security by showing a gentle humour 10 minute introduction about a party before throwing you in to the deep end. The deep end, as I will refer to it as, is amazing. The film takes elements out of so many great films and combines them perfectly. Obviously, the Hand-Cam comes from The Blair Witch Project, but "the Deep End" takes inspiration from films like Alien, 28 Days Later, King Kong and Godzilla among others. My only criticism is that the ending well, lacks ending. There was a place where I thought it was going to end, however, it didn't and the remaining 5 minutes of the film actually detracted from the entire film. However, considering there presence, I thought there was going to be something such as a mock CNN report on it "Ten Years On" to offer an explanation; which there wasn't. Despite that, I still highly recommend going to see it, although do suspend disbelief, because the camera they are using is amazing, the sound quality, picture quality and battery lift are absolutly outstanding!

Also last month, I managed to see 28 Weeks Later, a film I have wanted to see for quite some time. Is it any good, well, my comment for this film is much the same as it was to 28 Days Later. It starts fantastically, but then gradually degrades to senseless violence. Once again, the shots of an empty London are both creepy and effective, as are the panning shots showing people running away from "the Infected". The story is a little predictable. A highlight in the film for me was when you see an overgrown football pitch as it really adds to the sense of desertion. If you enjoyed 28 Days Later you should enjoy this, if you didn't you won't and if you haven't seen 28 Days Later, do so first as it is better.

Bonus Review!!!
No purchase necessary

I finished watching Green Wing for free on Virgin Media on demand; a fantastic service without a doubt. If you have VM, you can watch all of S1+2 of Green Wing on demand for free (under TV Choice>Comedy>G) If you can, do. It is probably my favourite comedy, out ranking even the Peep Show, and the ending so simply poetic and beautiful you could almost forget it is a bizarre comedy. If after watching the first episode you just thought it was weird, watch another one, because yes, it is weird, but you will get in to it. I would recommend this to anyone who isn't offended by a little nudity.

Spiderman is an Emo!

Today, I went to see the new Spider Man film. It was nothing short of fantastic. The plot was gripping, the fight scenes were cool and whole film felt well polished.

*Warning, the following part of the post may contain Spoliers*

I have never seen any of the original Spider Mans, so I was slightly worried that I would understand. Fortunately, I seem to have picked up enough through all the various Spider Man cartoons I have seen. The whole story is centred, obviously around the black suit, but more subtly on his arrogance. The suit enhances this element of his personality, thus worsening the situation. Half the film is about the facts, the other half is about reversing them.

The cast all play their rolls fantastically, and it is genuinely believable. You will jump at points, feel sorry for the characters and want to hit Parker for his arrogance.

For those who are in need of an explanation for the title, when Spider Man puts on his black suit, he suddenly has an Emo fringe, a very nice touch. Also, a special not should be made to the CGI. It is fantastic, and at some points you don't even realise it is CGI. The fights work really well, switching between real and CGI seamlessly.

Throughout the film, Spider Man has to face many new enemies. Starting off with Green Goblin's son, also, what turns out to be the murderer of Spider Mans uncle. Near the end he faces a rival photographer, who he ruins the life of while he is wearing the black suit, gets some of the black suit on him. There are some very nice effects when his uncles murderer turns in to sand. For example, when he got shot, the sand turned in to glass and shattered, very neat.

Despite all the cool action this film features, there is still a strong story running though it. It also contains some very clear themes such as arrogance and how you can be your own worst enemy.
*No spoilers guarantee*

Overall, I really enjoyed the film. It felt really well polished. I also discovered they they are doing a "HD" version with bigger films to create higher quality. Unfortunately, this was all sold out. My only criticism, is this film is very long. Having said this, at no point were you bored. Also, I am now really hyped up about Pirates of Caribbean. It looks really good.

If you have seen this film,or if you are going to, please leave a comment by clicking on the "Leave a remark" link below

28 Weeks Later

28 Days Later is one of my favourite films, it has everything a good film needs and has inspired me to make a survival game based on it. When I was looking through IGN for the new Metroid video (which is very cool) I stumbled on this trailer. Basically, a film, called 28 weeks later, is about when everyone moves back to England. Unfortunately, the disease starts again, the government decide to kill everyone (to be on the safe side) which causes panic. Looks good, but I won't be old enough so I will have to see it when it comes out on DVD. Check out the trailer here (not suitable for younger audiences)

Also, I have basically written my review for Super Mario Bros for the Virtual Console but I am hoping to do a video review. Stay tuned.

Film Reviews: Crash and 300

This weekend, I saw both Crash and 300. Both have cryptic names and both are very good.

Crash

This film is about 6 stories that seem un-related but turn out to be connected. The film starts with the end, at this point it doesn't make any sense. The film has a central theme of racism, which would be quite heavy, but the film has added a touch of humour. The film remains serious and powerful, but easier on the mind. The characters are well developed and they each have something that makes you pity them. All the characters develop well through the film and you are on the edge of your seat to find out what will happen. The story can be quite confusing, keeping track of who's who, but at the end it all makes sense. This film is very good and is definitely worth watching. It is also good enough to see twice because there is plenty you won't have picked up.

300

Saw this in the cinema today. I wasn't sure what to expect with this film as I had heard mixed reviews. After a breif kuffufle getting in, I sat down. The film is about the battle between 300 (hence the name) Spartan and basically every slave in Asia (like 10000000000000 or something). The film was not true to the history at all as some people have got swords for arms. It was an action film. Complete with the heavy metal music, the slow motion and the arrogant sardonic humour. The film had very little story and prehaps 5 scenes in the entire film depicting it. It was basically a huge action scene. But a really good one. It had cool kicks, manic charges, huge elephants and impossible odds. Like I said, the film contained humour. Such as this bit:

Captain: *Killing the barely alive after battle* Sir, the enemy commander wants to meet with you
*Eating apple* Yes, I see, well there is no reason to be un-civil
Captain: No sir, *stabs man lying on floor* no reason at all

Brillant. Even though you know how it is going to end, you find yourself wishing it won't, and the closing scene where the survior brings back 10000 Spartans is very cool. Overall, at fantastic film and deffintly worth going to see. Watch again: Yes, because it is just class fighting.

Thankyou for reading, both of these films are very good and worth seeing.