Reviews in a nutshell
There’s no surprise at the anticipation surrounding the screen adaptation of Cassandra Clare’s bestselling novel, directed by Harold Zwart (2010’s The Karate Kid). With a gap in fantasy adventure market left by the globally successful Harry Potter and Twilight sagas, studio bosses are hungry to find the next best thing. It needs the right mix …
Continue reading “The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones ***”
If the idea of indulging one of the corporate giants accused of alleged ‘tax dodging’ seems abhorrent, then Date Night director Shawn Levy’s ode to Google and its Internet domination in the form of comedy The Internship may be a little too much to swallow. More so, trying to get past the colourful vision of …
Nothing quite stirs the emotions than a love triangle, and a period love triangle at that, set at the turn of the 19th Century where reserved nature and stuffy social standing all but marred many burning fledgling romances. The frustrations felt fuel the desire to see love served correctly and make for engaging cinematic material. …
You can imagine that a literary adaptation set in the self-indulgent Roaring Twenties about a fateful love story that’s given the Baz Luhrmann touch would be as extravagant as ever. Think Moulin Rouge. Indeed the flamboyant director does not hold back with his version of The Great Gatsby and even tries to shoehorn in a …
The adaptation of Salman Rushdie’s novel and Booker Prize winner Midnight’s Children by the author himself was obviously a labour of love, what with the author providing the eloquent narration, as well as an exciting prospect for fans. But Midnight’s Children proves a valuable point that sometimes the originator is not necessarily the best person …
Four Weddings and a Funeral director Mike Newell’s take on the Charles Dickens’ classic Great Expectations is a safe, play-by-numbers affair that neither excites nor bores but simply picks off key moments and retells the tale with some of the cream of British acting crop, plus some extravagant set design that you would expect from …
Director Joe Wright’s take on Tolstoy’s tragic love story, Anna Karenina, is bound to divide opinion, particularly after watching the initially distracting theatrical element of a film set within theatre set changes. Those who favour classic Russian epics, like the days of Doctor Zhivago, may well have envisaged this in grander, more realistic settings. Admittedly, …
Michelle Williams always brings fresh intrigue and a subsequent realistic and nuanced performance to her roles, blossoming more in indie/art-house films where her character is given the space to explore than any other actress of her generation. Therefore, a film about adultery effects on a marriage starring Williams from actress-turned-writer/director Sarah Polley – who brought …
General consensus is Marc Webb (of 500 Days of Summer fame) has delivered a reboot of the original Spider-Man (2002). That much is true. However, he has taken a lot of the wit and sensitivity of his hit rom-com and added it to the superhero genre, effectively making a superhero reboot should appeal to a …
