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Showing all reviews beginning with Bo
The Bourne Supremacy
The second in the series starring Matt Damon as CIA agent turned fugitive Jason Bourne. When Bourne is framed for the murder of a CIA agent in Berlin even although he was in India at the time, he is forced out of hiding to clear his name and discover more of his past.
The Bourne Identity was a reasonable film, but not amazing, The Bourne Supremacy is definitely better and as a film in it's own right is pretty good. The plot is really good and the acting reasonable, although Matt Damon isn't exactly the best actor in the world. As a sequel, Supremacy has the advantage that since it is based on a series of novels (albiet this is more the second half of the first book), it was always written as a sequel and isn't just a contrived bolt on to make a bit more money out of the first film.
Overall, the Bourne Supremacy is definately better than the Bourne Identity and any fans of the first should go see it. This is how sequels should be.
3-4x 10月 (Boiling Point)
Takeshi Kitano aka Beat Takeshi nevers fails to dissapoint, known for writing, directing and starring in many a film, Boiling Point was the first film which he wrote and directed himself.
The story tells of a young Gas Attendant named Masaki when he gets into trouble with the Yakuza, his baseball coach Iguchi an ex-Yakuza goes to see them to try and sort the matter, but ends up making it worse and getting himself seriously injured. Masaki and a friend travel to Okinawa to get a gun, here the meet up with another Yakuza, Uehara (Kitano).
The film has a very surreal comedy element to it in places and is shot with no background music, and in a lot of scenes only minamal dialogue. As with many of his other movies, Kitano's character says very little, the main character Masaki is also a shy retiring type who hasn't much to say.
Beautifully bizarre in places, action filled in others but captivating throughout, Boiling Point shows that Kitano's skill as a film-maker has been there from the start. Anyone who has seen and enjoyed any of Kitano's other films will enjoy Boiling Point and if you aren't familiar with Kitano's work then this film is as good a place as any to start.
Born to Fight
When Deaw, a Thai Police officer (the action movie kind that is allowed to shoot loads of people) loses his partner when a drug bust goes wrong he decides to tag along on a charity trip to a small village near the Thai border that his sister is making with the Thai National Sports Team. Deaw and the team run into trouble when the village is taken hostage by terrorists intent on releasing a drugs baron from jail and destroying Bangkok with a nuclear missile.
While the plot is as ridiculous as it sounds, Born to Fight makes up for this with non-stop action. 10 minutes in there is a huge set piece involving stuntmen jumping between and rolling off two moving trucks before they are consumed in a massive explosion. Throughout the rest of the movie there is a vast number of gunfights, hand to hand combats and a lot more stunt falls which look impossible.
Born to Fight is similar to Ong-Bak in many ways, from the realism of it's stunts to the brutal violence, although is not quite as good as while the stunts are impressive, they don't have the same level of brilliance as Tony Jaa's in Ong-Bak.
Overall, Born to Fight offers very little in terms of plot but if you want to see mindless action by the bucketload, you're in for a treat.
The Bodyguard
Petchtai Wongkamlao who starred in Ong-Bak as Tony Jaa's sidekick returns with a main role in the Thai Action/Comedy The Bodyguard.
Wong Kom (Wongkamlao) is the bodyguard of a wealthy businessman, but despite his best efforts his boss is assassinated. His boss' son Chaichol inherits his father's companies and blames Wong Kom for his father's death and shuns his help. He soon finds himself in trouble and on the run as a he is tracked down by his father's assassins. He finds refuge with a dysfunctional family in the slums where he finds there is more to life than his wealth.
The Bodyguard has some great action set pieces; the opening gun-fight is pretty well done and a car chase ensues which ends with the simultaneous mid-air crashing of 4 no less than 4 cars. The action is backed up with a range of comedy situations, including a naked chase through the streets and a Dance off between the Bodyguard and a Wu-Shu warrior.
Tony Jaa makes a small cameo with the screenplay fitting in a little gag about his role in Ong-Bak.
Overall, The Bodyguard is a reasonably funny action/comedy with some good action scenes.
Borat
Sacha Baron Cohen, creator of Ali G returns to the big screen with another comic creation of his, the bumbling Kazakh news report Borat whose knowledge of the Western world is limited. The movie builds of the loose premise that Borat has been sent to America by the Government of Kazakhstan to make a movie about who America can help the struggling Kazakh ecomony.
What follows is a series of linked sketches in which the American people meet the completely un-PC Borat. While some of the bigger stunts are obviously staged, the smaller ones seem to be real American's reactions as Borat tries to make friends in America.
The character is so out of touch with what is acceptable in society, that the entire film is one big cringe fest as he says terrible things and gets himself into situations where you just know someone is likely to punch him or worse.
In places, the movie is hilariously funny, with the humour coming from Borats un-PC attitude and the responses he gets to this from the general public.
Bombon: El Perro
An Argentinian mechanic who loses his job at a petrol station is forced to move in with his daughter and her family. With strains at home he struggles to find another job until he helps out a woman on the side of the road with car troubles and is rewarded with a pedigree dog in return. He is introduced to the world of dog shows by an Accountant who informs him of how special the dog is.
A story which starts off sad moves on towards a heart-felt happy ending. Juan Villegas who plays the character of the mechanic goes through the movie with a faint smile on his face, looking bemused most of the time. He's just a nice guy trying to make a living to support himself. The dog of the title is also excellent on screen, giving a cute look here and there as it is driven about the barren countryside of Patagonia.
Bombon is a nice movie which makes for interesting viewing and leaves you with a warm feeling inside.
Boris
Japanese metal act Boris aren't a band I'm hugely familiar with, but I headed along to see them with Neil anyway. Hugely versatile, they are famous for their hour long drone metal epics as well as some shorter, much faster paced and incredibly heavy tracks.
Opening up for Boris was one man "electro doom" outfit, Loss Leader although equipment troubles meant he cut is set short, what I heard was pretty interesting. The Boris crowd have to be one of the most supporting I've ever seen to a support act, encouraging him to go on regardless, but after 3 songs he left the stage.
Boris came on after a while and played a mix of songs, some incredibly heavy and fast paced and other slower consisting of more soundscapes produced by the two guitarists and drummer. Featuring a huge gong and a double necked guitar they were a sight to behold. Unfortunately due to the pathetic Scottish public transport system we had to leave at what I assume was almost the end of a song which had gone on for at least twenty minutes and for the past ten seemed to consist entirely of the end of songs. Usually you don't have a gong crescendo in the middle of the song, but what do I know about that.
Overall, extremely loud, extremely heavy and at times extremely beautiful.
The Bourne Identity
When Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) awakes to find himself on a fishing boat 60 miles off the coast of Southern France, he has no memory of who he is or how he gets there. With nothing more than a laser pointer showing the number of a safety deposit box to go on, he travels to Switzerland to find out more. He soon learns that he has knowledge and skills which everyday people don't have, an inbuilt instinct for fighting and a master of multiple European languages. The safety deposit box throws up more questions when he finds a number of passports all with his face, a gun and a large sum of cash.
It soon transpires that someone from his past life is looking for him and isn't too happy that he isn't dead; Bourne begins a mission to find out his past and find out who is after him. While the plot is pretty straightforward, most of the film builds up the characters for the rest of the trilogy. The actions scenes provide enough entertainment to make the simple plot worth watching.
Overall, the Bourne Identity is well made and exciting to a point, but on a second watching even a number of years later I found myself less drawn in and entertained than I thought I would have been.
The Bourne Ultimatum
Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) is back and the CIA are still after him. Following on from where the last film left off, we rejoin Jason on his quest to find his hidden identity.
As with the previous two movies, the plot is pretty much "Bourne gets some information about something to do with his identity and goes on a mission to find out more". This loose completely forgettable plot is punctuated with a number of high octane action sequences which make for exciting viewing while you're there but little to think about, or even really remember afterwards.
There's a great car chase sequence, some fighting and a chase across the rooftops of Tangier all shot in Greengrass' annoying shaking camera with hundreds of quick cuts.
Aside from the MTV style camera work, the film is pretty good overall and a good end to a trilogy which has managed to keep momentum throughout rather than waning towards the end.
Boredoms
Support was handled by Michael Gira, one man in his early 50's with only an acoustic guitar. The first track seemed a little strange considering he was supporting Boredoms but as his set progressed his style of dark/depressing lyrics on top of a heavy and raw guitar track came across as extremely powerful despite being quite stripped down.
I hadn't heard much Boredoms material previous to the concert and so didn't really know what to expect, although what actually happened was way off anything I would have guessed. Front man Yamantaka Eye appeared on stage with two lights in each hand and accompanied by a very distorted track of thundering bass noises and almost white noise he dances around the stage waving the lights. It was never clear if his movements were triggering the sound or if he was simply moving in time to the backing track, but the effect was pretty good none the less.
Then the really unexpected nature of the set was revealed as not 1, not 2 but 3 drummers took their places on stage at the 3 drum kits set up. And all 3 of them launched into a track of synchronised drumming backed by a pre-programmed track handled by Eye as well as accompianment from Eye on an instrument which appeared to be made of 8 large planks each stringed with 6 strings and pickups which he hit with drumsticks and each tuned to a different note. The effect was amazing, ridiculously loud and stunningly well performed.
Overall, one of the most original and surprising acts I've seen in a while.
Böse Zellen
This Austrian drama is entirely driven by its large web of interweaving characters. The story starts by following a young woman who survives a plane crash coming back to Austria for Brazil. Six years later she is killed in a car crash and it is then the film starts to pick up pace, following amongst others her widowed husband, best friend, brother and sister as well as the teenagers involved in the crash.
The plot is pretty much non-existant and instead we jump between the multitude of different characters each connected to a number of the others in many ways. This is all displayed through the changing seasons in a town in the midst of a frenzy to win house which is being given away in a lottery.
The direction, photography and acting is excellent and the distinct lack of any music on the soundtrack apart from any music which is happening on film provides an experience which seems real this is coupled with believable characters.
Overall, an interesting and captivating film from Austria which is worth watching.
The Boat That Rocked
In the 1960's with little popular music being played on mainstream British radio, pirate radio stations run from boats sitting in the North sea were common place and large number of Britons tuned in to listen to their range of rock and roll.
The Boat That Rocked follows the DJs on the Radio Rock boat, we are introduced to their world via the arrival of the young Carl who has been sent there by his mother to stay with his god father Quentin (Bill Nighy). Once aboard the boat, he soons becomes friends with the group of disfunctional men (and one lesbian) as they live the rock and roll lifestyle and generally lark around. When their fun is threatened by the UK Government who are keen to put a stop to their broadcasts he becomes one of them as they fight for what they believe in.
The Boat That Rocked has a great setting and a cast which are genuinely funny, there are some great gags and actors such as Philip Seymour Hoffman, Nick Frost and Rhys Ifans makes for great watching. Add to that, the underdog sticking it to the man plotline and you have a film which is great fun and has you rooting for the main characters.
All in all, funny and entertaining.
The Bourne Supremacy
Ludlum's second Jason Bourne book has a plot which is not only vastly different to the film's but so opposed that it could never become a film in its own right, which is a shame because it's pretty good.
The book follows Jason Bourne, now settled with his wife Marie and living under his real name of David Webb. When his wife is kidnapped and taken to Hong Kong, Bourne follows her out there to try and rescue her. Once in the far east, he is thrown into a world of plots and secrets which go much higher than the kidnap of his wife and threaten to blow the whole region apart.
I have to admit I have a soft spot for the east, so setting the book in Hong Kong was always going to be a winner for me. The films didn't really explore Bourne's beginnings in Vietnam, but they are important in the novels, so returning Bourne back to where it all started make for an interesting read. Full of action, intrigue and some interesting snippets of information and set in a pre-British hand over Hong-Kong, The Bourne Supremacy is an excellent read.
Overall, a tremendous book, better than the first but I would recommend reading Ludlum's own take on The Bourne Identity before diving into this as the plot is very different from the films.
Bonnie and Clyde
This 1967 outing chronicles the criminal careers of two American outlaws in the 1930's tells the story of Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow. When Bonnie meets the young Clyde fresh out of prison she tags along with him and the pair start robbing banks, teaming up with a young mechanic and Clyde's brother Buck Barrow they go by the name of the Barrow gang and are chased around the South by law enforcement.
Based on a true story, the film has a plot which is interesting and some great action sequences. The realisation of 1930's America seems pretty good and the production quality is top notch. The film has a sympathetic take on the pair of criminals, portraying "bad" guys you can root for which makes their subsequent demise seem all the more unfair.
Overall, a well made film which is worth watching.
Das Boot
Das Boot follows the crew of a World War II German submarine, we follow the crew of mainly young men from the evening before they begin their mission. It's clear almost from the start that these men are in the main, young, scared and fighting because they have to rather than for any desire to follow the Nazi-party ideology.
With the majority of the film set inside the confines of their submarine, Wolfgang Peterson creates an immense amount of tension and claustrophobia. It's easy to identify with the men as the go about their day to day lives aboard their ship. With some immensely powerful scenes of their boat coming under attack from Allied destroyers, Das Boot is an amazing movie which can truly be considered an epic.
All in all, a great piece of cinema which any film buff should see.
Boyz 'N the Hood
Boyz n the Hood follows three friends growing up in L.A.'s South Central neighbourhood. The trio is comprised of brothers Ricky and Doughboy (Ice Cube) and their friend Tre (Cuba Gooding Jr.). Ricky has dreams of playing professional football, Tre is the smart one heading for college and Doughboy is happy to hang out on the streets with his friends. But growing up in such a rough district is not easy as the 3 find out.
Boyz n the Hood is a drama of life on the streets, a strong anti-violence message runs through with a good plot and performances from the lead players. The film also stars Laurence Fishbourne as Tre's father who puts in a good performance as a man wanting the best for his son.
Overall, a powerful and emotional drama which is both thought provoking and entertaining.
Born on the Fourth of July
This Vietnam drama stars a young Tom Cruise in the role of Ron Kovic. Based on Kovic's own book, it follows Ron as he enlists in the U.S. Marine Core in order to serve the country he loves. After 2 tours of duty in Vietnam, he is wounded and paralysed from the waist down. Upon his return to the U.S., he finds a world different from the one he left where he is left to rot by a population becoming increasingly against the war. Kovic himself goes on to become a vocal voice against the war himself.
Director Oliver Stone is himself a Vietnam veteran and having first brought the war to our screens via Platoon, he goes on to show the effects that the war has on the lives of those injured in battle. Cruise is pretty good in his role as the angry, wheelchair bound Ron Kovic and the film is full of memorable, touching scenes.
Overall, less of a war movie and more of a drama, this is a film which is heartfelt and interesting.
The Bourne Ultimatum
Ludlum's third novel in the trilogy bears very little resemblance to the film, but this is a good thing. The basic plot follows assassin Jason Bourne brought out of retirement to face his arch nemesis The Jackal. He finds himself back in familiar territory when he travels to Paris to face his adversary, but his wife and children are threatened back at home.
The Bourne Ultimatum follows on from the previous 2 novels well, althoough it begins to get a bit repetitive at the end as Bourne nearly catches his target and he slips away multiple times.
Overall, a must read if you've read and enjoyed the first two, but not really a good place to start if your only previous exposure to Bourne is on the big screen.
Boy
This 1984 set comedy from the director of Eagle vs. Shark follows a young New Zealander known to his friends and family as "Boy". He lives under the watchful eye of his Grandmother with his brother and cousins after his mother died giving birth to his brother. When his Grandmother leaves him in charge of the house to attend a funeral, his father returns from prison looking for some ill gotten gains he stashed on the family property.
Boy is a quirky, touching comedy. The father, Alamein, is a man-child who loves E.T. and is the leader of his own gang, complete with two sidekicks. His character alone is comic gold, but there are so many other great gags as well. Underneath the humour is a heartfelt story of a boy who has a lot of responsibility and who really wants to get to know his father.
As a comedy, Boy works very well, but it also works very well on other levels.
Young and Dangerous 6: Born to be King
This, the 6th Young and Dangerous movie, could potentially have been the plot for any of the sequels so far. Ho Nam (Ekin Cheng) and Chicken expand their empire as Chicken marries the daughter of a Japanese Yakuza.
This leads to ties between Hong Kong's Hung Hing triads, the Japanese Yakuza and also the triads in Taiwan. In true Young and Dangerous fashion, it's not long before the double crossing starts and Chicken is soon set up as the fall guy.
Born to be King is familiar territory for those who have seen the other Young and Dangerous films (in fact, it's probably familiar territory for anyone who's seen more than a couple of Triad films). The plot is ok, the action is standard for the series and so it's enjoyable enough even if it doesn't really do anything to advance the characters or overall plot of the series.
OK, if you like triad films, but not a must see movie by any standard.
The Bourne Supremacy
Director:
Paul Greengrass
Year: 2004
Language: English
Country: America
The second in the series starring Matt Damon as CIA agent turned fugitive Jason Bourne. When Bourne is framed for the murder of a CIA agent in Berlin even although he was in India at the time, he is forced out of hiding to clear his name and discover more of his past.
The Bourne Identity was a reasonable film, but not amazing, The Bourne Supremacy is definitely better and as a film in it's own right is pretty good. The plot is really good and the acting reasonable, although Matt Damon isn't exactly the best actor in the world. As a sequel, Supremacy has the advantage that since it is based on a series of novels (albiet this is more the second half of the first book), it was always written as a sequel and isn't just a contrived bolt on to make a bit more money out of the first film.
Overall, the Bourne Supremacy is definately better than the Bourne Identity and any fans of the first should go see it. This is how sequels should be.
Dave W - 20th September, 2004 - 19:09
Director:
Takeshi Kitano
Year: 1990
Language: 日本語 (Japanese) (English Sub)
Country: 日本 (Japan)
Takeshi Kitano aka Beat Takeshi nevers fails to dissapoint, known for writing, directing and starring in many a film, Boiling Point was the first film which he wrote and directed himself.
The story tells of a young Gas Attendant named Masaki when he gets into trouble with the Yakuza, his baseball coach Iguchi an ex-Yakuza goes to see them to try and sort the matter, but ends up making it worse and getting himself seriously injured. Masaki and a friend travel to Okinawa to get a gun, here the meet up with another Yakuza, Uehara (Kitano).
The film has a very surreal comedy element to it in places and is shot with no background music, and in a lot of scenes only minamal dialogue. As with many of his other movies, Kitano's character says very little, the main character Masaki is also a shy retiring type who hasn't much to say.
Beautifully bizarre in places, action filled in others but captivating throughout, Boiling Point shows that Kitano's skill as a film-maker has been there from the start. Anyone who has seen and enjoyed any of Kitano's other films will enjoy Boiling Point and if you aren't familiar with Kitano's work then this film is as good a place as any to start.
Dave W - 9th January, 2005 - 15:32
Director:
Panna Rittikrai
Year: 2004
Language: Thai (English Subs)
Country: Thailand
When Deaw, a Thai Police officer (the action movie kind that is allowed to shoot loads of people) loses his partner when a drug bust goes wrong he decides to tag along on a charity trip to a small village near the Thai border that his sister is making with the Thai National Sports Team. Deaw and the team run into trouble when the village is taken hostage by terrorists intent on releasing a drugs baron from jail and destroying Bangkok with a nuclear missile.
While the plot is as ridiculous as it sounds, Born to Fight makes up for this with non-stop action. 10 minutes in there is a huge set piece involving stuntmen jumping between and rolling off two moving trucks before they are consumed in a massive explosion. Throughout the rest of the movie there is a vast number of gunfights, hand to hand combats and a lot more stunt falls which look impossible.
Born to Fight is similar to Ong-Bak in many ways, from the realism of it's stunts to the brutal violence, although is not quite as good as while the stunts are impressive, they don't have the same level of brilliance as Tony Jaa's in Ong-Bak.
Overall, Born to Fight offers very little in terms of plot but if you want to see mindless action by the bucketload, you're in for a treat.
Dave W - 3rd June, 2006 - 16:14
Director:
Panna Rittikrai
Petchtai Wongkamlao
Year: 2004
Language: Thai (English Subs)
Country: Thailand
Petchtai Wongkamlao who starred in Ong-Bak as Tony Jaa's sidekick returns with a main role in the Thai Action/Comedy The Bodyguard.
Wong Kom (Wongkamlao) is the bodyguard of a wealthy businessman, but despite his best efforts his boss is assassinated. His boss' son Chaichol inherits his father's companies and blames Wong Kom for his father's death and shuns his help. He soon finds himself in trouble and on the run as a he is tracked down by his father's assassins. He finds refuge with a dysfunctional family in the slums where he finds there is more to life than his wealth.
The Bodyguard has some great action set pieces; the opening gun-fight is pretty well done and a car chase ensues which ends with the simultaneous mid-air crashing of 4 no less than 4 cars. The action is backed up with a range of comedy situations, including a naked chase through the streets and a Dance off between the Bodyguard and a Wu-Shu warrior.
Tony Jaa makes a small cameo with the screenplay fitting in a little gag about his role in Ong-Bak.
Overall, The Bodyguard is a reasonably funny action/comedy with some good action scenes.
Dave W - 14th June, 2006 - 21:09
Director:
Larry Charles
Year: 2006
Language: English
Country: America
Sacha Baron Cohen, creator of Ali G returns to the big screen with another comic creation of his, the bumbling Kazakh news report Borat whose knowledge of the Western world is limited. The movie builds of the loose premise that Borat has been sent to America by the Government of Kazakhstan to make a movie about who America can help the struggling Kazakh ecomony.
What follows is a series of linked sketches in which the American people meet the completely un-PC Borat. While some of the bigger stunts are obviously staged, the smaller ones seem to be real American's reactions as Borat tries to make friends in America.
The character is so out of touch with what is acceptable in society, that the entire film is one big cringe fest as he says terrible things and gets himself into situations where you just know someone is likely to punch him or worse.
In places, the movie is hilariously funny, with the humour coming from Borats un-PC attitude and the responses he gets to this from the general public.
Dave W - 10th November, 2006 - 12:57
Director:
Carlos Sorin
Year: 2004
Language: Spanish (English Sub)
Country: Argentina
An Argentinian mechanic who loses his job at a petrol station is forced to move in with his daughter and her family. With strains at home he struggles to find another job until he helps out a woman on the side of the road with car troubles and is rewarded with a pedigree dog in return. He is introduced to the world of dog shows by an Accountant who informs him of how special the dog is.
A story which starts off sad moves on towards a heart-felt happy ending. Juan Villegas who plays the character of the mechanic goes through the movie with a faint smile on his face, looking bemused most of the time. He's just a nice guy trying to make a living to support himself. The dog of the title is also excellent on screen, giving a cute look here and there as it is driven about the barren countryside of Patagonia.
Bombon is a nice movie which makes for interesting viewing and leaves you with a warm feeling inside.
Dave W - 22nd March, 2007 - 12:55
Headline:
BORIS
Venue: Nice n Sleazy
Gig Date: 27th June, 2007
Support:
Loss Leader
Japanese metal act Boris aren't a band I'm hugely familiar with, but I headed along to see them with Neil anyway. Hugely versatile, they are famous for their hour long drone metal epics as well as some shorter, much faster paced and incredibly heavy tracks.
Opening up for Boris was one man "electro doom" outfit, Loss Leader although equipment troubles meant he cut is set short, what I heard was pretty interesting. The Boris crowd have to be one of the most supporting I've ever seen to a support act, encouraging him to go on regardless, but after 3 songs he left the stage.
Boris came on after a while and played a mix of songs, some incredibly heavy and fast paced and other slower consisting of more soundscapes produced by the two guitarists and drummer. Featuring a huge gong and a double necked guitar they were a sight to behold. Unfortunately due to the pathetic Scottish public transport system we had to leave at what I assume was almost the end of a song which had gone on for at least twenty minutes and for the past ten seemed to consist entirely of the end of songs. Usually you don't have a gong crescendo in the middle of the song, but what do I know about that.
Overall, extremely loud, extremely heavy and at times extremely beautiful.
Dave W - 28th June, 2007 - 12:52
Director:
Doug Liman
Year: 2002
Language: English
Country: America
When Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) awakes to find himself on a fishing boat 60 miles off the coast of Southern France, he has no memory of who he is or how he gets there. With nothing more than a laser pointer showing the number of a safety deposit box to go on, he travels to Switzerland to find out more. He soon learns that he has knowledge and skills which everyday people don't have, an inbuilt instinct for fighting and a master of multiple European languages. The safety deposit box throws up more questions when he finds a number of passports all with his face, a gun and a large sum of cash.
It soon transpires that someone from his past life is looking for him and isn't too happy that he isn't dead; Bourne begins a mission to find out his past and find out who is after him. While the plot is pretty straightforward, most of the film builds up the characters for the rest of the trilogy. The actions scenes provide enough entertainment to make the simple plot worth watching.
Overall, the Bourne Identity is well made and exciting to a point, but on a second watching even a number of years later I found myself less drawn in and entertained than I thought I would have been.
Dave W - 2nd August, 2007 - 12:35
Director:
Paul Greengrass
Year: 2007
Language: English
Country: America
Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) is back and the CIA are still after him. Following on from where the last film left off, we rejoin Jason on his quest to find his hidden identity.
As with the previous two movies, the plot is pretty much "Bourne gets some information about something to do with his identity and goes on a mission to find out more". This loose completely forgettable plot is punctuated with a number of high octane action sequences which make for exciting viewing while you're there but little to think about, or even really remember afterwards.
There's a great car chase sequence, some fighting and a chase across the rooftops of Tangier all shot in Greengrass' annoying shaking camera with hundreds of quick cuts.
Aside from the MTV style camera work, the film is pretty good overall and a good end to a trilogy which has managed to keep momentum throughout rather than waning towards the end.
Dave W - 13th September, 2007 - 12:44
Headline:
Boredoms
Venue: The Arches
Gig Date: 23rd October, 2007
Support:
Michael Gira
Support was handled by Michael Gira, one man in his early 50's with only an acoustic guitar. The first track seemed a little strange considering he was supporting Boredoms but as his set progressed his style of dark/depressing lyrics on top of a heavy and raw guitar track came across as extremely powerful despite being quite stripped down.
I hadn't heard much Boredoms material previous to the concert and so didn't really know what to expect, although what actually happened was way off anything I would have guessed. Front man Yamantaka Eye appeared on stage with two lights in each hand and accompanied by a very distorted track of thundering bass noises and almost white noise he dances around the stage waving the lights. It was never clear if his movements were triggering the sound or if he was simply moving in time to the backing track, but the effect was pretty good none the less.
Then the really unexpected nature of the set was revealed as not 1, not 2 but 3 drummers took their places on stage at the 3 drum kits set up. And all 3 of them launched into a track of synchronised drumming backed by a pre-programmed track handled by Eye as well as accompianment from Eye on an instrument which appeared to be made of 8 large planks each stringed with 6 strings and pickups which he hit with drumsticks and each tuned to a different note. The effect was amazing, ridiculously loud and stunningly well performed.
Overall, one of the most original and surprising acts I've seen in a while.
Dave W - 27th October, 2007 - 16:28
Director:
Barbara Albert
Year: 2003
Language: German (English Sub)
Country: Austria
This Austrian drama is entirely driven by its large web of interweaving characters. The story starts by following a young woman who survives a plane crash coming back to Austria for Brazil. Six years later she is killed in a car crash and it is then the film starts to pick up pace, following amongst others her widowed husband, best friend, brother and sister as well as the teenagers involved in the crash.
The plot is pretty much non-existant and instead we jump between the multitude of different characters each connected to a number of the others in many ways. This is all displayed through the changing seasons in a town in the midst of a frenzy to win house which is being given away in a lottery.
The direction, photography and acting is excellent and the distinct lack of any music on the soundtrack apart from any music which is happening on film provides an experience which seems real this is coupled with believable characters.
Overall, an interesting and captivating film from Austria which is worth watching.
Dave W - 10th December, 2007 - 21:29
Director:
Richard Curtis
Year: 2009
Language: English
Country: United Kingdom
In the 1960's with little popular music being played on mainstream British radio, pirate radio stations run from boats sitting in the North sea were common place and large number of Britons tuned in to listen to their range of rock and roll.
The Boat That Rocked follows the DJs on the Radio Rock boat, we are introduced to their world via the arrival of the young Carl who has been sent there by his mother to stay with his god father Quentin (Bill Nighy). Once aboard the boat, he soons becomes friends with the group of disfunctional men (and one lesbian) as they live the rock and roll lifestyle and generally lark around. When their fun is threatened by the UK Government who are keen to put a stop to their broadcasts he becomes one of them as they fight for what they believe in.
The Boat That Rocked has a great setting and a cast which are genuinely funny, there are some great gags and actors such as Philip Seymour Hoffman, Nick Frost and Rhys Ifans makes for great watching. Add to that, the underdog sticking it to the man plotline and you have a film which is great fun and has you rooting for the main characters.
All in all, funny and entertaining.
Dave W - 19th April, 2009 - 15:24
Author:
Robert Ludlum
Year: 1986
Ludlum's second Jason Bourne book has a plot which is not only vastly different to the film's but so opposed that it could never become a film in its own right, which is a shame because it's pretty good.
The book follows Jason Bourne, now settled with his wife Marie and living under his real name of David Webb. When his wife is kidnapped and taken to Hong Kong, Bourne follows her out there to try and rescue her. Once in the far east, he is thrown into a world of plots and secrets which go much higher than the kidnap of his wife and threaten to blow the whole region apart.
I have to admit I have a soft spot for the east, so setting the book in Hong Kong was always going to be a winner for me. The films didn't really explore Bourne's beginnings in Vietnam, but they are important in the novels, so returning Bourne back to where it all started make for an interesting read. Full of action, intrigue and some interesting snippets of information and set in a pre-British hand over Hong-Kong, The Bourne Supremacy is an excellent read.
Overall, a tremendous book, better than the first but I would recommend reading Ludlum's own take on The Bourne Identity before diving into this as the plot is very different from the films.
Dave W - 29th September, 2009 - 20:04
Director:
Arthur Penn
Year: 1967
Language: English
Country: America
This 1967 outing chronicles the criminal careers of two American outlaws in the 1930's tells the story of Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow. When Bonnie meets the young Clyde fresh out of prison she tags along with him and the pair start robbing banks, teaming up with a young mechanic and Clyde's brother Buck Barrow they go by the name of the Barrow gang and are chased around the South by law enforcement.
Based on a true story, the film has a plot which is interesting and some great action sequences. The realisation of 1930's America seems pretty good and the production quality is top notch. The film has a sympathetic take on the pair of criminals, portraying "bad" guys you can root for which makes their subsequent demise seem all the more unfair.
Overall, a well made film which is worth watching.
Dave W - 9th November, 2009 - 21:29
Director:
Wolfgang Petersen
Year: 1981
Language: German (English Sub)
Country: Germany
Das Boot follows the crew of a World War II German submarine, we follow the crew of mainly young men from the evening before they begin their mission. It's clear almost from the start that these men are in the main, young, scared and fighting because they have to rather than for any desire to follow the Nazi-party ideology.
With the majority of the film set inside the confines of their submarine, Wolfgang Peterson creates an immense amount of tension and claustrophobia. It's easy to identify with the men as the go about their day to day lives aboard their ship. With some immensely powerful scenes of their boat coming under attack from Allied destroyers, Das Boot is an amazing movie which can truly be considered an epic.
All in all, a great piece of cinema which any film buff should see.
Dave W - 20th December, 2009 - 12:31
Director:
John Singleton
Year: 1991
Language: English
Country: America
Boyz n the Hood follows three friends growing up in L.A.'s South Central neighbourhood. The trio is comprised of brothers Ricky and Doughboy (Ice Cube) and their friend Tre (Cuba Gooding Jr.). Ricky has dreams of playing professional football, Tre is the smart one heading for college and Doughboy is happy to hang out on the streets with his friends. But growing up in such a rough district is not easy as the 3 find out.
Boyz n the Hood is a drama of life on the streets, a strong anti-violence message runs through with a good plot and performances from the lead players. The film also stars Laurence Fishbourne as Tre's father who puts in a good performance as a man wanting the best for his son.
Overall, a powerful and emotional drama which is both thought provoking and entertaining.
Dave W - 17th January, 2010 - 14:27
Director:
Oliver Stone
Year: 1989
Language: English
Country: America
This Vietnam drama stars a young Tom Cruise in the role of Ron Kovic. Based on Kovic's own book, it follows Ron as he enlists in the U.S. Marine Core in order to serve the country he loves. After 2 tours of duty in Vietnam, he is wounded and paralysed from the waist down. Upon his return to the U.S., he finds a world different from the one he left where he is left to rot by a population becoming increasingly against the war. Kovic himself goes on to become a vocal voice against the war himself.
Director Oliver Stone is himself a Vietnam veteran and having first brought the war to our screens via Platoon, he goes on to show the effects that the war has on the lives of those injured in battle. Cruise is pretty good in his role as the angry, wheelchair bound Ron Kovic and the film is full of memorable, touching scenes.
Overall, less of a war movie and more of a drama, this is a film which is heartfelt and interesting.
Dave W - 20th February, 2010 - 12:43
Author:
Robert Ludlum
Year: 1990
Ludlum's third novel in the trilogy bears very little resemblance to the film, but this is a good thing. The basic plot follows assassin Jason Bourne brought out of retirement to face his arch nemesis The Jackal. He finds himself back in familiar territory when he travels to Paris to face his adversary, but his wife and children are threatened back at home.
The Bourne Ultimatum follows on from the previous 2 novels well, althoough it begins to get a bit repetitive at the end as Bourne nearly catches his target and he slips away multiple times.
Overall, a must read if you've read and enjoyed the first two, but not really a good place to start if your only previous exposure to Bourne is on the big screen.
Dave W - 16th June, 2010 - 18:10
Director:
Taika Waititi
Year: 2010
Language: English
Country: New Zealand
This 1984 set comedy from the director of Eagle vs. Shark follows a young New Zealander known to his friends and family as "Boy". He lives under the watchful eye of his Grandmother with his brother and cousins after his mother died giving birth to his brother. When his Grandmother leaves him in charge of the house to attend a funeral, his father returns from prison looking for some ill gotten gains he stashed on the family property.
Boy is a quirky, touching comedy. The father, Alamein, is a man-child who loves E.T. and is the leader of his own gang, complete with two sidekicks. His character alone is comic gold, but there are so many other great gags as well. Underneath the humour is a heartfelt story of a boy who has a lot of responsibility and who really wants to get to know his father.
As a comedy, Boy works very well, but it also works very well on other levels.
Dave W - 20th June, 2010 - 10:22
Director:
Wai Keung Lau
Year: 2000
Language: Cantonese/Japanese/Mandarin (English Sub)
Country: Hong-Kong
This, the 6th Young and Dangerous movie, could potentially have been the plot for any of the sequels so far. Ho Nam (Ekin Cheng) and Chicken expand their empire as Chicken marries the daughter of a Japanese Yakuza.
This leads to ties between Hong Kong's Hung Hing triads, the Japanese Yakuza and also the triads in Taiwan. In true Young and Dangerous fashion, it's not long before the double crossing starts and Chicken is soon set up as the fall guy.
Born to be King is familiar territory for those who have seen the other Young and Dangerous films (in fact, it's probably familiar territory for anyone who's seen more than a couple of Triad films). The plot is ok, the action is standard for the series and so it's enjoyable enough even if it doesn't really do anything to advance the characters or overall plot of the series.
OK, if you like triad films, but not a must see movie by any standard.
Dave W - 20th June, 2010 - 11:04
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