Erik the Viking

And now for more Alphabetical Movie Project reviews .  .  .

Erik the Viking was the next E movie and it's one of John's. Now, while I can remember the movie generally I don't remember enough to write a proper synopsis, so please forgive what I'm about to do. Namely, give you the blurb from the back of the DVD case;

In this Pythonesque staire of Viking life, Erik the Viking is a considerate man in a violent time. Erik doesn't enjoy killing and raping like his fellow men, so when he returns from another campaighn of rape and pillage, he wants to change his life. Erik the Viking gathers warriors from his village and sets out on a dangerous journey to Valhalla, to end the Age of Ragnarok, and bring peace and sunlight to the kingdom. To get there he has to lead a pathetic group of seasick sailors through the Gates of the World. But all threatens to fail when the local blacksmith plots to sabotage the excursion to protect his lucrative weapons business.

Tim Robbins stars as the naive and yet sweet Erik the Viking, leading his men to Valhalla. Eartha Kitt and John Cleese star as well as Terry Jones as King Arnulf. Mickey Rooney has a cameo as Erik's grandfather.

I always get a little bit nervous about John's movies. He loves his horrors, thrillers, gruesome movies as well as 'older' movies. But I'm often a little to harsh and found this 1989 comedy about vikings rather amusing. Funny even. It was worth all it's chuckles and humorous piss taking of era.

I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would and it was fun to see something that didn't take itself too seriously. If you like comedies then you should give this a try. It's typical of the time, not a lot of music but filled with lots of jokes and stupidty. Give it a go. Why not?

Next up is Erin Brokovich, Escape to New York and Ever After.

Ella Enchanted & Enchanted

After a little refreshing of my memory I see that it's been almost a year since my last 'Alphabetical Movie Project' movie review. And it's probably been about that long since John and I actually watched a movie in project too. We finished the F's and then the project stalled. We needed a wee break I guess and we haven't started up again. Perhaps we will over the winter. In the meantime here are the rest of the reviews for the movies that we did watch.

Ella Enchanted is the Cinderella story with a little humourous spin. As a baby Ella was cursed by her fairy godmother with the gift of obedience. As a teenager she has had enough of the 'gift' and no longer wants to do what she's told, especially when her new step sisters discover that she has to do exactly what she's told. She goes in search of her fairy godmother to break the curse. To guide her she takes her other fairy godmothers boyfriend (who's been accidently cursed into a talking book). She bumps into the handsome prince that she's been picketing against and who her step sister is trying to marry, but she is less than impressed with his presence. Along the way she meets a dwarf that wants to be a lawyer, visits a giant village and gets rescued from ogres by the prince. She falls in love with him and before she can accept his marriage proposal his uncle discovers her obediance curse so he tells her she has to kill him at midnight. Will she be able to overcome her gift? Will she get the curse lifted in time?

Eric Idle narrates this fairytale, set in a magical realm with modern day music and fun. Anne Hathaway stars as the cursed Ella, alongside Hugh Dancy as the handsome prince. Joanna Lumley makes an appearance as the evil stepmother and Minnie Driver plays the fairy godmother (the good one, not the one that curses her).

I'm a big fan of Anne Hathaway, I'm not entirely sure why, but it might be because when I imagine the movie of my life I picture Anne Hathaway playing either myself or at least one of my friends. Weird? Sure. Anyway, I like Anne Hathaway and her acting work. She is particularly fun and joyous in this lighthearted movie and who knew she could sing! And not only sing, it was 'Someone to Love' by Queen, not the easiest song in the world to sing.

I enjoy the magic and fun of the movie. The singing dwarfs, the giants, the curse and of course that the prince falls in love with her. Yes it's a children's movie, but it's fun and I'm all for fun, lighthearted movies.

You won't miss anything by not watching it, but if you enjoy a musical, magical, children's movie, then this is the movie for you.

The next movie in the list was in the same vain and even the same name as the one above. Enchanted is also a fairytale and aimed generally at children or tweenagers.

Princess Giselle is your typical fairytale, cartoon princess. The movie starts out in cartoon form with the Princess very quickly falling in love with Prince Charming as he rides by. On her way to the wedding she is pushed into a very, very deep well by the evil Queen and falls through to modern day, real life Manhattan. Giselle is very lost and confused, but is rescued by Robert and his young daughter Morgan. Giselle tries to find her way home, while Prince Charming falls through the well followed by several other cartoon characters. Eventually Robert realises that he's falling in love with Giselle despite being in a relationship with Nancy. He must decide if the beautiful and quirky Giselle is for him, or if he should send her back to her cartoon world.

Amy Adams stars as the beautiful but naive Giselle and Patrick Dempsey stars as the worldly Robert. James Marsden is Prince Charming and Indina Menzel is Nancy. Amy Adams has the childlike, innocent look about her that plays very well as the naive cartoon come to life. While Patrick Dempsey is gorgeous and a great actor, I can't help but always see him as Dr McDreamy from Greys Anatomy. Meanwhile Indina Menzel is fabulous as Nancy. She's just fabulous in general, beautiful and an amazing singer (not that she sang in this movie, but I've seen her sing and she's great.) She made her start as a broadway actress and has moved into TV and movies. Susan Sarandon also cameo's as the real world evil Queen and of course she's great, when is she not?!

This movie could be any fairytale retold, but what makes it stand out is that it starts as a cartoon and the characters come to life in the real world. Without giving away the ending, one real life character falls the other way and ends up staying in the cartoon world. Rather quirky for a Hollywood movie with some big stars. But, it is of course a children's movie and has the obligatory enchanting animals and birds, singing princesses, a child that can see the 'real' beauty and awe of the fairytale, a prince that loves her and another man that doesn't love her but fallens in love with her in the end. Is that typical? Apparently so in fairytale land.

Once again, this isn't a must see by any means. And honestly you won't enjoy it if you don't like children's movies or a sickly sweet Amy Adams. But if you have a child or need something that is completely predicatable, mindless and sweet then give this a go.

Next up for review is Erik the Viking, Erin Brokovich, Escape from New York and Ever After. Then it's the F's. And there's a lot more of them than you'd think.

EDtv & Elizabethtown

I've been looking forward to this one, mainly because it stars one of John's most hated actors that I know he'll squirm having to watch and that was just going to be hilarious to watch for me.

It's the reality show TV boom and the local network is looking for an average joe bloggs to follow around 24/7. Ed Pekurny is that average bloke, he live alone, hangs out at the local pub and works at the video store. Almost overnight Ed becomes a hit as he is thrown in to the spotlight. But, with a love interest and family that want their privacy he wonders if being a celebrity is really all it's cracked up to be.

Matthew McConaughey (or Matthew Mahoganey as John calls him) stars as the 'average' baffoon Ed. Jenna Elfman (from 'Dharma and Greg' fame) stars as his very shy love interest, Woody Harrelson is his brother and Elizabeth Hurley makes a cameo as the woman sent in to 'spice up his love life'. But best of all Ellen Degeneres stars as the shows producer.

Matthew McConaughey has made a living staring as the idiot or baffoon of comedy movies or the suave, sexy man from romantic comedies. I can't think of a dramatic role he's done? I don't think he's brilliant, but hes pretty good at sticking to his genre. He know he can pull the ladies with these type of movies, so he does. And why not. He's definetly slapstick, ridiculous and not someone you'd really take that seriously, so he fits in nicely to this role as the average, boring, iditoric Ed.

The supporting cast do a great job at holding the movie together. His Dad alone is worth watching this movie for. One of my favourite comedians and celebrities in general is Ellen Degeneres. In Edtv she stars as the producer of the reality tv show. She does a fantastic job at being the sympathetic, yet comical producer. You can't help but love her character because of the way she plays it.

This movie is pure fluff. It's a comedy movie with no real purpose to it other than to make you laugh. And that's what you should remember when you watch it. I don't think there is any hidden meaning, except perhaps that the grass is always greener on the other side? Whatever it is or isn't trying to say, it's funny. Ther are so many jokes and slapstick moments, you can't help but giggle.

Should you watch it? If you're looking for something to make you laugh or something where you won't have to think to much, then you've found the right movie. But, you won't be missing much if you don't.

I watched this movie only once before buying it and not since. I definetley didn't see it at the movies and I couldn't tell  you when I watched it the first time. I do remember that I felt a sense of calm in watching it. It's fairly forgetable in the grand scheme of things, but it's sweet and 'calm' (I can't think of a better word than that right now).

Drew Baylor (the gorgeous Orlando Bloom) has been fired from his job as a shoe designer and must travel home to Elizabethtown to collect his fathers ashes. On the trip he meets the quirky Claire (the beautiful Kirsten Dunst) who helps him find his way home, both literally and spiritually, whether he knows he needs her not.

I haven't seen much of Orlando Blooms acting. He's drop dead gorgeous and not a bad actor either. There is something endearing about him. You just can't help but be captivated by him. Kirsten Dunst is an actress that I like. I think she's pretty good and stepping into the character that she's playing. She does tend to play them with the same sickly sweet smile and giggle, but she tends to make it work in her favour. In this movie you totally buy her as the sweet, slightly out-there girl that's looking for someone to love.

This movie is about a young man trying to find himself again after his father dies. But, it becomes less about that and more about him finding his path again. Like I said above, this movie is very calming. It's serene, and sweet. We follow along as he discovers what life has to offer and we learn that sometimes we need to take the time to find ourselves again and find our way back to where we left ourselves along the way. I love the inclusion of Claire, the sweet, self aware girl that isn't afraid to tell a stranger the truth and be ok with whatever he has to say. She barely knows him and helps him in such a significant way. I wish I was as strong and as carefree as she is.

I think you should watch this, both boys and girls alike. For the boys, there's a lot of soul searching, don't let that turn you off. For the girls, it shows you what it can be to just be. That sounded a bit la-de-da, but I think you know what I mean. It's probably not a movie that you'll watch more than once, or over and over again, but you should watch it once.

Coming up next is Ella Enchanted and Enchanted, followed by the rest of the E's. There aren't as many as there have been C's or D's. Phew!

Double Jeopardy, Dragonfly, Drop Dead Fred & Dune

Double Jeopardy is one of the very first movies I owned on DVD. Back in the days where I only bough movies if I really really liked them (these days I buy almost anything I've watched, enjoyed and may wish to watch again one day).

Libby Parsons thinks she has the perfect life - a rich, sucessful husband and a sweet wee son. When her husband goes missing, presumed dead she is arrested and convicted of his murder. But when she calls to talk to her son, she hears her husbands voice and she knows she's been wrongly convicted. She learns about 'double jeopardy' the clause in the legal system stating that you can't be convicted for the same crime twice. Once she's out of prison, she's going to get her son back, kill her husband and there's nothing the legal system can do to stop her.

Ashley Judd stars as Libby Parsons. I like her, but she doesn't really do to many blockbuster movies. At the time the movie was made (1999) she seemed to be an up and coming star. I couldnt' tell you what she's done lately. I think she does a good job with this role, totally convincing as the sweet, innocent, but tough-because-she-has-too character. Supporting her are Bruce Greenward as the not-so-dead husband and Tommy Lee Jones as the parole officer chasing her down. Tommy Lee Jones is brilliant, he really gets right in to the character and almost steals the show from under Ashley Judd.

I have no idea if the 'double jeopardy' clause even exists in American (or NZ) law, but it makes sense and that's what makes the movie plausible. So often in movies, the story is good, but it's not plausible and you spend the whole movie thinking "this is so ridiculous, that would never happen", but not with this movie. You want to believe that it's plausible, and you so badly want her to catch her scumbag husband so she can finally get the revenge that she deserves.

The movie is fastpaced and action packed. It swings from many locations, ending in the beautiful New Orleans (I really want to go there one day!). There are chase scenes through cemetries, cars diving off boats and prison bunk scenes. Like I said, it's action packed.

It's definetly worth a watch if you're looking for an unscary thriller. I know, I know, thrillers don't seem like typical 'heather-type-movies'. But I do like good pyschological thrillers. As long as there isn't lots of blood, guts and jumping out to scare me scenes, I'm good with the thrillers.

Speaking of psychological thrillers, the next movie project is another psychological thriller. I don't remember when I watched this the first time, but I remember being surprised that I really enjoyed it. I think this was when I realised that pyschological thrillers are totally different to 'thrillers'.

Dr Joe Darrow is devestated by his wife Emilys tragic death while on a work trip to the South American jungle. As he grieves for her, he becomes increasingly obsessed with what he believes is his wife trying to contact him with a message to find her again. He must try to convince those that love him that he's not depressed and delusional, but in fact right, Emily is trying to reach him.

Kevin Costner stars as Dr Joe Darrow, the handsome and loving husband. He does a great job and slowly falling in to a depressive and obsessive, grieving widower. He portrays the character with just the right level of sympathy and craziness. You really want him to find what he thinks is waiting for him, even though you're fairly sure he needs psychological help.

Meanwhile he is supported by the always brilliant Kathy Bates as the friendly next door neighbour and unknown Susanna Thompson as his wife. She's gorgeous and very aloof, but I guess that's what playing a deceased character trying to contact your living husband is all about.

Dragonfly is a very simple story, focusing on the grief and downward spiral someone can fall into when they loose a loved one tragically. The movie has a surprising twist at the end that I didn't see coming (that's probably why I like it so much) and while I know that's not how it really happens in real life, it makes the movie the what it is. And probably much more sellable to audiences.

I really enjoy this movie for the same reasons I really enjoy Double Jeopardy - it's a thriller, without the scary stuff. Although, Dragonfly definetly has more jump-out-and-scare you stuff than Double Jeopardy. It's worth a watch, but I'll be honest and say you won't be missing much if you don't. Plus, the man in your life might not be to impressed that there isn't any real action in the movie. Perhaps it's best left as a thriller for the girls.

I own this movie for nostaligic reasons. It was a movie that was a favourite of my childhood friend Camille. We would watch it together all the time. I didn't find it as funny as she did, but I liked it nonetheless. I don't have Camille in my life anymore, but I do have Drop Dead Fred. Not an even trade I know, but it's what I've got.

Lizzie is in her 30's, her husband has left her for another woman and she's moved back in with her overbearing mother. She recreates her childhood imaginery friend Fred who always got Lizzie in to a lot of trouble in the past. Now, Fred is not pleased that Lizzie has grown up and will do anything to stop Lizzie from finally being an adult and getting rid of him for good.

Phoebe Cates stars as the very dowdy and irritatingly childish Lizzie. I know it was made in 1991 and the fashion is very 'early 90s' but that doesn't excuse the very, very dowdy and totally ridiculous clothes that she wears. She also looks very young and this actually ruins the movie slightly for me. She looks way to young to be dating, let alone trying to save a marriage. I think it was the director/producer trying to make her character seem young and vulnerable, which they did, just a little to well unfortunetly.

Rik Mayall stars as Drop Dead Fred and he's brilliant. He is such a crazy actor that over exagerates everthing, lending him fantastically to this very eccentric character. He throws himself around, he pulls crazy faces and he laughs like a child. In fact, it's all very child like which is exactly what his character is.

When I watched this movie as a teenager, it was funny. When I bought it several years ago I didn't like it, I thought it was ridiculous and childish. And when I watched it this time I laughed. It was childish sure, but I could see the humour in it again. I think this probably says more about me and my state of mind than it does about the movie. Yes it's dated and yes it's ridiculous, but it's not the movie that changes, but I do.

Drop Dead Fred is disgusting and childish and for all teens to enjoy. I say teens, because there is adult issues (divorce etc) that kids would be bored with, but teens can comprehend. It's worth a giggle, but be prepared for the profanity and vulgar nature of the movie. If you are, then you'll enjoy it.

The last D movie is Dune. You can probably guess just from the dvd cover that it's one of John's movies, not mine. I'd never heard of this movie before, or watched it. I wasn't sure whether it was a science fiction movie, a horror or what it was. John gave me a quick rundown of the story and I was ok with watching it. How very wrong I was.

"The saga of intergalactical warrior Paul Atreides and his messianic rise to lead his people and their struggle for survival. The young hero leads his people against an evil baron and tries to destroy a galaxy-wide trade in spice, a mind-altering drug produced on the desert planet."

I had to quote the synopsis from the back of the dvd, because honestly, I couldn't follow the movie at all. At all! I tried, I really did. I asked questions, even though I know John hates it when I do that. I really tried to follow along, but the story is screwed up. It jumps from scene to scene with no explanation and the special effects don't enhance the movie, but just make it even more bizaree. Yes it was made in 1984 and special effects have come along way since then, but even so, this is just strange.

The dialogue has got to be the strangest of all the aspects. My favourite was "the spice is you, you are the spice." For crying out loud! That's not a good line no matter how you dress it up.

Kyle McLaughlin (of Sex and the City and Desperate Housewives) is the young star and the only actor that I recognised. He was alright and definetly grew with the character, but thats about all I can really say positively for this movie.

I just didn't get it, but I did enjoy mocking the ridiculousness of it once I decided I was going to stop trying too. I probably really annoyed John by doing so, but if you're going to make me watch something like this than you better be prepared for some jibes.

You should watch this if you're a movie buff, if you like sci-fi, or if you've read the book. Otherwise don't do it. You might want to check out John's review before making up your mind. He'll be much more openminded and favourable I'm sure. But don't say I didn't warn you!

This ends the D's. Phew! Next we move on to the E movies. There aren't that many of them in comparison to other letters, but I'm rather behing as we're about half way through viewing the F's at the moment. I hope to catch up sooner rather than later. That being said, I think I'll call it a day and end this review session here. It seems a natural stoping place.

The Devil Wears Prada, Dog Soldiers & Dogma

The Devil Wears Prada is fast becoming a classic of the 'naughties' decade. Not only is the movie great, but the book it's based on is a great read. Author Lauren Weisberger has written several other great books and has become one of my favourite autheors. She does a modern day chick lit with both humour and grace.

Andy Sachs is a wannabe journalist in New York city, but the only job she can get is as the PA to Miranda Priestly, editor of Runway Magazine, a job hundreds of girls would kill to get. Andy has to learn to survive a job with the boss from hell if she wants to get anywhere in her career.

Anne Hathaway stars as the spirited, yet somewhat naive Andy. Meryl Streep pulls out all the stops as the hellish Miranda Priestly. Together they are a powerful duo. They are supported by the wonderful Stanley Tucci as Miranda's long suffering 2IC, one of my personal favourites Adrian Gernier (in fact I think he's number 1 on my 'to do' list) as Andy's non-understanding boyfriend and Emily Blunt debuts in the role that launched her career, as Emily the number one PA for Miranda.

This story is perhaps not the most original movie out there and it's definetly a coming-of-age story for the main character and even for most of the secondary characters as well. Perhaps that's it's mass appeal. That or the actors are all brilliant in their performances. Perhaps it's that we all want a wee bit of that glamourous life that Andy finds herself in or that we all dream of getting past that horrible boss for the life and career we so badly want. Whatever the reason, there is something in this story for everyone to enjoy.

While the guys might not be that keen, I think you might be surprised, and if not then you'll at least earn some brownie points for watching it. Girls, you'll love it. Even if it's just for the Adrian Grenier factor.

Yes I've now watched Dog Soldiers. I was told that this one was more funny than it is scary. Being told this before I watch it makes me nervous straight away. How scary is it if I need pre-warning that it's not really scary?! If it's not really scary, then surely I don't need the warning!

A team of British Soldiers are sent on a training excersise in the Scottish Highlands. The routine excersie is disrupted when they come across the leader of a special operations team leader seriously injured and alone after his entire team have been destroyed by a mysterious force. Local farmgirl Megan comes to their rescue, but the team soon realise that the house they are taking refuge in is home to a family of super werewolves. Now all they need to do is survive until morning.

The only actor I recognise from this horror film is Kevin McKidd of Grey's Anatomy fame. Here he uses his real Scottish accent and he's much sexier than using a fake American one on TV. Other stars include Liam Cunningham, Sean Pertwee, Emma Cleasby and Thomas Lockyear. If you know who any of those people are then you are a more intuned with British film than I am.

Yes this was scary. And, Yes this was funny. At times the movie pushes the line between scary and just ridiculous, therefore being funny. Though I must concide that while the line is pushed, it's not often crossed. There's a lot of blood and guts, hence my requirement for the lights in the room to remain on, but somehow it's not to much. With all the death (and I don't think that's giving to much away seeing as it is a horror movie and horror movies tend to be filled with death and horror. . . ) you do slowly become accustomed to it by the end, perhaps lessening the horror and increasing the humour. Or maybe that's just me?!

Anyway, it wasn't as bad or as scary as I thought it was going to be, although I don't feel any need to watch this again any time soon. Girls, you'll earn the brownie points for watching this movie this time round. Boys, unless you're not a horror lover (and I'm yet to meet a bloke that's not), you'll enjoy it.


Dogma is a movie that's either loved or hated by those that watch it. Personally I love it. It's completely ridiculous and it mocks religion, so yes I love it.

Two fallen angels are attempting to get back into heaven through a loophole in church dogma, but if they do all hell will break loose and life will cease to exist as we know it if they do. It's up to a human, an apostle, an angel, a muse and two proliphic prophets to stop them, all with the backing of a missing God.

Dogma stars some great actors - Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Salma Hayek, Chris Rock, Alan Rickman, Linda Fiorentino, Jason Lee, the popular Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith (Jay and Silent Bob) and cameos from Janeane Garofalo and Alanis Morissette. Matt Damon and Ben Affleck are a great acting team and alway compliment each other so well, which they do here again. Salma Hayek is passionate and Chris Rock is the filthy mouthed, comedic actor we know and love. Alan Rickman adds some fantastic acting, as only he can. But it's Jay and Silent Bob doing what they always do, that make us laugh so much.

For me, I love the controversy that this movie stirred up. I love that they didn't try to be PC, but the complete opposite. They take a religion and mock the bollocks out of it. As a non-religious person this amuses me, but for many others it wasn't so funny. I can apperciate that, but it's just a movie and should be taken for the light heartened, good natured ribbing that was intended.

This movie is defiently not for everyone. As I said earlier, people either love it or hate it. If you're a religious person, then perhaps you best not annoy yourself by watching this, but if you're not, or if you can appreciate a good laugh when one is presented then go for it. Don't say that I didn't warn you tho!

Despicable Me

Despicable Me is another awesome children's film that's fun for the young and the young at heart. I like to think I fit in to both those categories! I haven't yet met a person that honestly doesn't like children's movies. Like most movies, the style, story and technology of the 'cartoon' have a lot to do with what type of children's movies you do and don't like. But like I say, everyone (and I say that tentatively even though I think it's true) likes children's movies. Perhaps deep down and perhaps some won't admit it but you know it's true. We loved them when we were young and we love them now.

Gru is a villian, secretly living in surburbia with his hundreds of happy, yellow minions doing his bidding deep down in the basement. He wants to steal the moon and become the greatest villian ever. But, standing his way is a lack of funding, a new super villian on the scene and three orphaned girls trying to sell cookies that want to make him their new Dad.

Despicable Me is Dreamworks 2010 offering to children world wide. Comedian Steve Carell voices the main character Gru, with support from Russell Brand, Julie Andrews and Jason Segel. Along with a cameo from New Zealands own Jermaine Clement as one of the minions. With a cast of currently 'hot' comedians and stars this movie could date very quickly. But this is a 'cartoon' afterall and I'm sure the 'celebrity' of the cast will wear off and leave behind the fun movie for all to enjoy.

The storyline is different, it's not your typical super hero versus super villian with the hero winning, but instead, the villian is the 'hero' and we're all routing for him to succeed in his villianous endeavours. The charming orphaned girls add a smack of schmaltz to the movie that I can conceed was a good edition, but I'm not really convinced that it was overly necessary.

My favourite thing of the whole movie has to be the minions. The minions are small, yellow, squeeking people. Although they are more like 'people-like-beans' really. Each minion has a different outfit, facial expressions and jobs. We are also convinced that there is one in the movie that makes a face exactly like John when he's slightly annoyed, but we tried to locate it once and couldn't. I'm sure he's in there somewhere.

If for no other reason, watch Despicable Me for the minions. The villian 'hero' is not overly explored and therefore another good reason to watch this movie over some other previous offerings. If you're looking for a laugh and a no-brainer then you can't go wrong, plus the kids will love it. Win-Win.

Deep Impact, Definitely, Maybe & Deja Vu

Time for a bit of a catch up on movie reviews seeing as we're almost at the end of watching the E movies we own, and I'm at home with a nasty cold that has taken over my ability to do anything except sit on the couch and watch DVD's. I'm having a little trouble staying still and coping with my forced time off. I've moved from the bedroom to the lounge for a change of scenery and I'm bored!! I wanna go back to work already because I worry about what I might be missing and what I'm going to have to catch up on once I do. That and I don't have much leave left. Anyway, I digress. . . Time for a catch up on movie reviews . . .

Deep Impact is one of those movies that you wouldn't really expect to find in my DVD collection. But something about the disaster movie appeals to me. I'm not sure what it is, but I really enjoy them. Perhaps it's the high drama of the scenario or the fact that no matter what happens in my ordinary life at least there's not impending natural disaster about to dessimate the world (fingers crossed anyway!)

There's mountain sized comet on a collision path with earth. With a very lengthy lead in time the world has time to prepare for the impending doom. One lucky reporter breaks the story and gets the privelage of leading the story on the nightly news. While the president builds bunkers in the middle of the mountains he sends a team to place bombs on the comet in an attempt to blow it up. Meanwhile the young star gazer that discovered the comet tries to find a way to take his girlfriend with him to the bunkers when his family are chosen to go and hers are not.

Made in 1998 the movie has started to date. The biggest teller is the fashions, but also it's star. Tea Leoni stars as the reporter. When was the last time you saw Tea Leoni star in a major movie?! I think she's an ok actress, probably not my first pick for a lead actress though. She squints all the time, I don't really understand why, but it's distracting. She is supported by a strong group of big names - Elijah Wood is the teenager that discovered the comet, Robert Duvall is the experienced astronaut that goes to save the planet and Morgan Freeman is the calm and collected president.

This movie plays on the fear that the world could be the victim of a natural force that none of us can predict or prevent. While that's pretty scary, one thing about these movies is that they are always set in America or Europe. Never little old New Zealand. It would seem that living on a little rock at the bottom of the world is a safe place to be. At least in the land of the movies.

Theres a slow beginning, a fast middle and an explosive end. It's not the best constructed movie I've ever seen, but something about it appealed to me all those years ago. Now a days I find that it's not as appealing as when I first saw it. Perhaps with all the disaster movies out these days the novelty has worn off.

Is it worth watching? Well, you probably aren't going to miss much if you don't, but then again, you might like it. If nothing else you'll have a night in in front of the telly laughing at the late 90's fashion.

Definitly, Maybe has fast become one of my faveourite movies. The stars are one reason and the way in which the story is told is the other.

Will Hayes sets out to tell his 11yr old daughter about the three loves of his life. But he tells her he's changing the details and she has to guess which one is her mother. The story starts in the mid '90s during the Clinton campaign and with his college girlfriend. He has a strong friendship with his workmate and a passionate relationship with a writer. Is his daughters mother the love of his life? And will he finally let her know that she really is his greatest love?

Ryan Reynolds stars as Will Hayes and Abigail Breslin is his persistent daughter Maya. Elizabeth Banks plays the sweet Emily, Rachel Wiesz is the firey Summer and Isla Fisher stars as the quirky April. Each of these actresses play the different roles with sincerity and passion. They are all so different, and yet you want each of them to be 'the one' that Will chooses in the end.

The movie jumps from the present day relationship between Will and Maya, to the relationships of Wills past. It runs pretty smoothly and you definetly don't get lost. There is the sub story involving the politics behind the Clinton campaign for governor, or whatever it was (I'm really not that clued up on American politics).

The music featured is uplifting and fits perfectly with the storyline and feel of the movie. They've done a fantastic job of marrying the right songs with movie. I'm not usually that impressed or that focused on the music of movies, but here they did a great job, so great that I actually noticed!

Definitely, Maybe is a Romantic Comedy of course, and it follows the Rom Com formula. It's the storytelling and direction that allows it to stand out above the others. If you're a Romantic Comedy fan then you definitly have to watch this one. It's fun, it's romantic and it has Ryan Reynolds, what's not to love?!

Deja Vu is one of my faves, one that I can watch over and over again. It's main theme is time travel which I always find fascinating and enjoy.

It's Mardi Gras in New Orleans and a ferry filled with revellers and sailors sets sail, only to be blown up. ATF agent Doug Carlin is brought in to assist in the investigation to catch the bomber and finds himself working with a highly secretive group that has spacefolding technology allowing them to see 4 days in the past. Focusing the search on the woman murdered for her truck prior to the bombing, Doug finds himself falling in love with her and then wondering if he can use this new technology to save her.

 Denzel Washington stars as Agent Doug Carlin. There is just something about Denzel Washington that I find endearing. I find him very believable in any role he plays. He plays the intellegent agent with a slight naivety about the fact that time travel is possible, making you believe that maybe it really is possible. If he's naive about it and comes around then what's to say that it's not really out there and we just don't know about it?!

Jim Caviezel stars as the psychotic bomber - another great actor that I think is highly underutilised. He's calm and creepy at the same time. Paula Patton plays the completely ignorant victim Clare Kuchever.

New Orleans is a beautiful setting for this movie and was filmed there just months after Hurricane Katrina in 2006. I've always wanted to go to New Orleans for a long time, it's the culture and music and art that draws me in. The beautiful jazz music at funerals is a perfect example - in fact it's that music that Dad wants played at his own funeral.

This movie is action packed as Doug Carlin tries to catch the killer and save the girl. It's definetly worth a watch if you like this type of movie. If you find time travel difficult to wrap your head around or to believe in then this movie might just irritate you. You definetly need to be able to suspend your sense of disbelief and enjoy it for what it is - a good movie.

Death At A Funeral

I watched Death At A Funeral because Dad wanted too and it was his turn to pick. I wasn't that fussed on it, but from the opening credits I was sure it was going to be much better than originally thought. And after it ended I knew I was going to have to get it on DVD. It's such a brilliant british comedy.

Daniel and Roberts father dies, bringing everyone in their dysfunctional family and group of friends together for his funeral at the family home. What should be a quiet and somber occasion is turned into complete chaos when one of the guests unkowningly takes some heavy duty drugs and a stranger turns up to extort money from the sons or he'll share secrets the family won't want to hear.

Matthew MacFadyen stars as the oldest brother trying to hold it all together. Alan Tudyk is Simon, the hallucinating brother-in-law and he's absolutely brilliant! He is such a fantastic actor, he steals the spotlight of every scene he's in. He's both hysterical and charasmatic, a winning combination. If the rest of the movie was poor I'd still watch it for Alan Tudyk alone, but lucky for me there's more great talent on show. Namely Andy Nyman as the nutty friend, Ewen Bremner as the creepy guy trying to get in to his ex-girlfriends pants, Rupert Graves as the younger brother, along with Daisy Donovan and Keeley Hawes as the long suffering woman of this crazy family. And we can't forget Peter Dinklage, the guy that is behind most of the chaos.

Death At A Funeral is hilarious. It's british comedy at it's best. It's subtle humour rather than slapstick one liners that Americans are so good at it. It's much smarter than that. The whole movie is set over one afternoon and in one location. That being said the director has done a great job of moving the action all over the house at such a fast pace that you don't get bored in one place. They have done a great job of keeping us all on our toes and laughing that you almost forget that it's supposed to be a somber occasion. You just can't help but laugh at all the hijinx.

This movie did so well and was so well loved that the Americans copied it. Yep, just last year they released their own version. I haven't watched it, but you should check out the trailers for both movies and see what you think. While I love both American and British comedies I think there's something inheritantly wrong with someone copying someone elses work. The humour doesn't often correlate and it doesn't this time either. I'm definetly all for the British version, they did it first and they do it best. Why would anyone else try and do it again. It's been done. And you'll notice, that it's the same actor playing the little dude that comes to bribe the family. Somehow that just makes it worse. This is the original 2007 British version http://matttrailer.com/death_at_a_funeral_2007 and this is the remake 2010 Amercian version http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi1688273945/. You decide which version you watch, but please don't pick the American.

You want to watch this movie (the British version of course). If you have a sense of humour and you can appreciate poking fun a funeral, then you should watch this one. This one is a great one to watch with friends for a good old giggle.

Dark City, The Dark Crystal & The Day After Tomorrow

Dark City is a movie of John's that I really enjoyed. Once again I was pleasantly surpirsed. Either John's taste in movies isn't so bad after all or I'm becoming a little more open in my own tastes.

John Murdoch wakes up in a bathtub in a motel room with no memory of who he is or why he's there. He quickly learns that there a men coming for him, he's been accused of murder and he even has a wife he doesn't remember. The men after him are the creators of the city that has no sun, and appears to change with every day. He must work out who he is and what this nightmare is really about.

Rufus Sewell stars as John Murdoch. He isn't as popular as he should be. Who can resist such a dark, sexy, smouldering man?! And he's talented to boot. He's supported by a great cast of strong actors - Kiefer Sutherland as the strange Dr caught in between the hero and weird city creators, Jennifer Connelly as the calm, innocent wife and William Hurt as the police detective hunting down John Murdoch.

Unlike lots of movies that spend so long on the beginning of the story, only to rush through the middle and end, this movie tells a great job of setting up the story, playing it through and giving you a decent ride at the end. It confirms or denys your susupicions, it shows you how it did it and you leave it feeling that you were told a good story with a decent ending. I like a good movie that shows you what they had been building up to the whole time. It definetly makes for worthy movie in my book.

This movie is dark and twisty and very strange I'll give you that. I always love a story about the future or what the world could be like, so this one was a good one for me. I do like a movie that has a bit more colour and light, but I guess I can't have everything!

I'd definetly recommend this one to those of you that enjoy a good mystrey. It's not a story you've seen hundreds of times before, so you'll be like me - pleasantly surprised.

The Dark Crystal is a Jim Henson movie. Jim Henson was a talented puppeter, he was the artist behind the Muppets, a staple of my childhood. Unfortunetly while I adore the Muppets, I can't say the same for much else of his work.

Years ago the Dark Crystal was shattered, forming two factions - The evil Skeksis and the peaceful Mystics. Jen is the last Gelfing and it is up to him to return the last shard of the crystal before the three suns eclipse. Of course his journey is not at all easy and he makes some new friends along the way.

The most amazing thing about this movie, and the thing that had me in awe the entire time, even when the story did not, was that the entire movie is filmed with puppets. None of this CGI bolloxs we see so often nowadays, but real puppets. Of course it dates itself by doing so - made in 1982. Even so, the puppetry is outstanding and very impressive, stilted slightly, but they are puppets!

I found the story to be a little boring, I wasn't really that interested in some strange being saving weird looking beings by placing a piece of glass with other glass. It just wasn't my cup of tea at all. Had I been slightly younger I could have enjoyed this. Even as I type that I know it's not really true. I guess this is just one of those movies that appeals to a particular type of audience rather than trying to go for the mainstream viewers. And good on it for doing so, I'm just not one of them. If you're a fan of Jim Henson, puppets, or weird 80's childrens movies then check this one out. If not, I don't think you'll be missing anything by not watching it.

The Day After Tomorrow is one of my favourtie movies ever. It's from the same director as Independence Day, another favourite.

Climatologist Jack Hall predicts a cataclysmic weather shift that will see the next ice age brought upon the world. In about a thousand years that is, until some major polar shifts bring the timeframe forward dramatically. Tornadoes wipe out LA, devastaing Earthquakes and Volcanoes wipe out islands and storms are forming all over the globe. Meanwhile Jack's son Sam is in New York for a school competition. When the tsunami hits he manages to convince a few followers to stay in the New York Library and wait out the storm. Jack briefs the government on what to do before heading to New York in a bid to rescue his son from the deadly storm.

This movie stars the fabulous Dennis Quaid as the heroic Jack Hall and the gorgeous Jake Gyllenhaal as his son Sam. Emmy Rossum is the delightfull Laura and Sela Ward stars as Sams Mum Dr Lucy Hall. Also putting in appearances are Jay Saunders and Dash Mihok, not actors that I really know at all, but both are a good fit with Dennis Quaid as the team that would walk from Philadelphia to New York in a life threatening blizzard.

I enjoy the dramatics of this movie even if they can be a little farfetched. I'm talking about the tsunami that's racing towards the kids, but they still manage to run back, grab a handbag from a taxi, get slightly stuck and then run in to the library. I'm "sure" it's really a slow tsunami?! Or what about the wolves that escape the zoo, manage to survive the tsunami and the blizard and then attack the kids on the ship. Oh yes, the ship that managed to turn all those corners of New York, only to get stuck on a bus convienently in front of the library. Like I said, not overly believable, but we are watching a movie about a weather system that's destroying the world, so I guess there's a little room for the suspension of disbelief.

I love the dramatics of it all. When Jack tells the president to evacuate everyone below the line he's drawn on the map, and his offsider tells them that his son is above the line. Or when Sam and his mates are racing along the library halls to get back to the fire as the library is freezing. Ok, so that one should probably go on the category above, you see what I mean?! It's all very dramatic and sensationalist.

You should watch it if you can get over the theatricality of it. It's a good watch and very entertaining. You start to wonder if this could really happen?! It probably could at some point, but not any time soon (I hope). It's a rollercoaster ride, a great watch. You'll enjoy it. Probably. Maybe. I did anyway.

I was going to do more reviews, but I've been summoned to watch our last D movie - Dune. It's a long one apparently, so better get started soon. Coming up I have reviews for Death at a Funeral, DeJaVu and Deep Impact, along with the rest of the D's.

The Da Vinci Code

The Da Vinci Code is based on the popular Dan Brown novel. But, while I own and enjoy the dvd, I've never read the book. Which admittedly is rather unusal for me. I tend to believe that the books are always better than the movies, but I enjoyed this movie, and had heard bad things about the book, so I decided not to ruin a movie I liked by reading the book.

Robert Langdon is called to the Louvre to offer advice on a brutal murder and the symbols left behind. There he meets Sophie Neveu and together they follow the clues to unravel an ancient secret that could change religious history.

Tom Hanks stars as Robert Langdon and the beautiful Audrey Tautou stars as Sophie Neveu. If you think this sounds slightly familiar you're not wrong, we saw Robert Langdon earlier in the project in Angels and Demons, the prequel to The Da Vinci Code.
I've said it before and I'll say it again, Tom Hanks is super talented. He's one of those actors that is just so believeable in everything he does. Somehow I just always buy any character he plays. He has made Robert Langdon an everyday bloke with a fascinating talent for symbols. He's not pretentious or irritating at all.

Meanwhile he has the sweet Audrey Tautou has great chemistry with Tom and play her character with strength and innocense at the same time. And before I forget, I have to tell you that my one of my top 5 men on my To Do list also stars - Paul Bettany. Unfortunetly he plays Silas, the albino monk that self harms and is completely psycho which doesn't do much for his 'hotness' factor, but he's in it and that gives him brownie points. Also making appearances are Sir Ian McKellan and Jean Reno, both stong actors.

I enjoyed the mystrey of The Da Vinci Code. While I'm not a religious person by any means, I find the history of religion interesting. Of course I know that it wasn't exactly factual, but the possibilities of what could have been is interesting enough in itself. The movie explores what the Holy Grail is or could be and puts forward a good argument for it's conclusion. The theatricals just add to the mystrey of it all.

Over all, definetly a movie worth watching if you aren't deeply religious and you're ok with taking a detour of the accuracy of history path. And you haven't read the book. Those are a lot of if's, but I enjoyed it, so you might too. Don't forget - it has Tom Hanks, so it can't be all bad.

The Cup and Curious George

Can you believe it's been a YEAR since John and I started The Alphabetical Movie Project?! A YEAR!! While I'm only up to reviewing "The Cup", we're actually half way through the D's in viewing. Before you say "You're only up to the D's"?! Keep in mind that we owned 28 C's and have between 5 and 15 of every letter in the alphabet. We also don't watch a movie every night, or every week for that matter. Often going several weeks before finding the time to sit down together. But then we do watch a few in a row, so I guess it evens out in the wash. After a quick count I can tell you that we've watched 77 of 282 movies so far. Not a bad effort - that's 1.5 movies a week or 6.4 movies a month. Now to catch up on the reviews. . . 

The Cup is one of Johns' DVD's that I had never really given much thought too. But I was very pleasantly surprised by its innocence and the beauty of it. Granted, it's not my typical type of movie. It has subtitles which I don't have much time for and it's about monks and soccor. But trust me, it's worth watching!

At a Tibetian monastery exiled in India new refugees have arrived. They are befriended by a couple of students and are quickly embroiled in the new friends obsession with the Football World Cup. The youngest student does everything he can to get permision for a TV to be brought in to the monastery on the night of the final.

The Cup is subtitled, but it was so sweet and funny that I didn't mind. (I'm not a subtitle fan if you hadn't already noticed.) Geko is such a dedicated wee guy to football, and like his friends on screen, I couldn't help but get so caught up in the world cup final excitement. You can see how passionate he is about it, even though he knows he shouldn't be. He is so genuine that you just know he's not trying to disrespect the faith  or those that guide him, but just be part of all the football excitement. I was rooting for him to win his request with the lamas to get a TV to watch the final and I was positvely rooting for them to get ready in time to watch it!

I could tell you who stars in it, but trust me when I say that you wouldn't recognise anyone. The wee boy was fantastic in his role, a real acting talent, with a very good cast of supporting actors.

I'd recommend this one for the feel good factor. There's no great moral to the story or terrifying propoganda, which is exactly why you should watch it. It's great for all the family.

Curious George is mine. Of course it is - I love childrens movies. It was originally a children's book that was made into a TV show in the 1980s and then this beautifully adapted movie in 2006. And I have read that they are making another Curious George movie to be released in 2013.

To save the museum he works at, Ted heads to the jungle in search of a large shrine for an exhibit. He encounters a cheeky monkey that loves his yellow hat. The monkey follows Ted back to New York where they quickly become good friends. George manages to create all sorts of trouble, just by being his adorable, inquisetive self while Ted tries to stop him and not get in too much trouble himself.

Drew Barrymore, Will Farrell and Dick van Dyke star as the voices of Ted, Mr Bloomsberry and Maggie. They are all such fabulous and strong actors that they can bring such talent to voiceovers.

The artistic quality of the cartoon has come along way since Curious George was a TV show in the 80's. The colour is fantastic - very bright and colourful which I love. It's also very detailed considering it's all drawn, plus the special effects that can be achieved these days is amazing.

But the thing that makes this movie memorable for me is the music. All the songs are written and performed by Jack Johnson. All the music is soulful and sweet and very fitting with the movie. It really added an extra element to the movie that hightens the movie to another level.

This movie is great for families to watch. It's not so much for an adult audience. Lots of children's movies these days have adult jokes and references for all those Mum's and Dad's that take the children to see the movie, however Curious George is not really one that has done this. However, if you're a kid at heart you'll still enjoy this one. Just take it for what it is - a very sweet and innocent movie aimed at making kids smile. And what could be better than that? :)

And that ladies and gentlemen is the end of the C's. 28 C's done and dusted. Wahoo. C is still our highest number movies. Next up is 15 D's. So far we've watched 10 of them. So over the Easter break look out for reviews for: The Da Vinci Code, Dark City, The Dark Crystal, The Day After Tomorrow, Death At A Funeral, DeJaVU, Deep Impact, Definetly, Maybe, Despicable Me, The Devil Wears Prada and Dog Soldiers.

Crimson Rivers: Angels of the Apocalypse

After watching The Craft I got very tired of watching movie after movie, so we took a little breather.  And then once we did start up again I was so busy with the Wedding and holidays that I haven't had time to sit down and to the reviews. But I'm home now and finally find myself with a wee bit of time on my hands. So review time it is.

I wasn't to thrilled at the prospect of watching a French subtitled thriller as the first movie back on the project so I avoided it for awhile.

Crimson Rivers Angels of the Apocalypse is the second movie in the franchise. Good thing it wasn't a sequel or really wouldn't have had any idea what was going on. John let us watch the English dubbed version (bless him) so that I didn't have to try reading the subtitles while trying to follow the story. I think this is the first time that I've ever watched a foreign film dubbed in to English and it wasn't bad. They'd done a fantastic job of the dubbing and it was barely noticeable. I thought it would be like those tv shows and movies you see where the timing of the audio is off slightly, that always annoys me. But it wasn't.

Chief Niemans is investigating a series of ritual murders where the victims are crucified. He teams up with young officer Reda, who gets embroiled after a man dressed as a monk tries to kill a confused guy Reda picked up on the street. Together with a specialist on christian mythology they uncover a mysterious group called "Angels of the Apocalypse".

This movie wasn't my cup of tea. I couldnt' really keep up with the storyline and I found it to be very dark and mysterious. I'm definetly one that likes my movies funny and light over dark and twisty (for the most part anyway). Personally I wouldn't recommend watching it, not because it was bad, but just because I didn't love it and it didn't leave much of a lasting impression on me.

Coyote Ugly & The Craft

Coyote Ugly is a long time personal faveourite and I've been looking forward to watching this one since we started the project. I knew John hadn't watched and it and was fairly confident that he would once he got in to it. I guess we'll have to wait until he gets around to his reviews to find out for sure but I'm fairly sure he enjoyed it in the end.

Coyote Ugly is one of my long time fave movies. It's musical, it's fun and romantic - the girly tri-fecta.

Violet Sanford leaves her life as a waitress in New Jersey to move to New York to make her dreams of becoming a songwriter come true. But it doesn't go according to plan and she has to find a job to help pay the bills. She gets a job at the Coyote Ugly bar which is run by a take-no-prisoners woman and her bar dancing bartenders. Violet starts to come out of her shell on the bar while she trys to get her music heard by anyone who will listen. Mike O'Donnell accidently hears her demo and is smitten. But can she have both worlds and the man too?!

Piper Perabo is a relative unknown actress, but she does a lot of movies that I love. She does a great "small town girl moves to the big city" character in this movie, really holding her own against bigger name stars - Tyra Banks, Maria Bello, Melanie Lynskey and John Goodman. And, she can sing! While Leann Rimes is featured as the singer that eventually sings her songs, Piper can hold her own with the singing for most of the movie. Australian actor Adam Garcia is one hottie that we should see more of. He too can sing and dance (although I now that from another movie, not this one). He's a great match for Piper Perabo as they have great chemistry together.

I enjoy the singing, the dancing and the high pace of the bar. I wonder if deep down I'd like to have enough guts to get up on a bar and dance in front of that many drunk men - probably not, but I wish I did. The bar scenes are offset by the romantic interludes and all are balanced well.

This is another one of those movies that I find hard to explain why it's so good - it just is. I like movies that make me smile, laugh, sing along and don't disappoint in the end. You should watch it - go on, you know you want to!!

The Craft is not a movie that you'd normally find in my collection. When it was released at the movies it had an R16 rating and my girlfriends and I were 15. Tracy was 16 so we sent her to buy the tickets but they wouldn't sell them to her without seeing everyone's ID's. I don't remember what we ended up seeing, but I clearly remember trying to come up with ways to get us all in. Funny to think that was almost 14 years ago now.

I bet you're just dying to know what the story is all about. . . Sarah is new in town and without friends. Everyone tells her to avoid the three outcasts, but Sarah finds herself drawn to them. They are into witchcraft, spells and all things supernatural, and Sarah is a natural. Together they make up a coven of powerful witches, inflicting revenge on thier peers and making life better for themselves. That is until they go to far and Sarah will do anything to get away from the girls.

Robin Tunney stars as Sarah alongside Neve Campbell (of Party of Five fame), Fairuza Balk and Rachel True (yep, I don't know anything else she's done either). You may recognise Christine Taylor as the snooty cheerleader, Breckin Meyer and the gorgeous Skeet Ulrich.

. . . . excuse me for a moment, I just read on the http://www.imdb.com/ that they've made 'Scream 4' and I'm a little bit taken back . . . . anyway. . . .

The Craft appeals to me because magic, sorcery and the supernatural appeals to me. I'm fascinated by movies that involve magic and witchcraft. I'm a big fan of the TV series 'Charmed' too. In the movie the main characters play with spells and various supernatural phenomenon. I'm ok with it all until the snakes and spiders appear at the end of the movie - I don't do well with snakes and spiders. Euw.

Fairuza Balk freaks me out a little. I'm not sure if she's just a very good actress or if she's actually a bit scary looking. Perhaps it's both. Either way, she does a great job coming across as a terrifying and seriously disturbed teenager messing with things way beyond her realm of her understanding. Teenagers! Sheesh!

The movies has dated - 14yrs to be exact, but what movie doesn't right?! The underlying themes of teenagers being on the oust and just wanting to fit in are still fitting with todays world. That will never change. I just hope that most teenagers don't also try to summon the creator of all magic at the same time.

Should you watch it?! Hmmm, very good question. For me it reminds me of my teenage years (because it's from that time, not because I used to practice the dark arts) and it's magical. For you, it could fall flat. I don't think you'll be missing anything if you choose not to. If you do, just take it for what it is - a movie aimed a teens.

Reviews to come: Crimson Rivers, The Cup, Curious George and the first D - The Da Vinci Code.
Next up for viewing - The Dark City and The Dark Crystle.

The Constant Gardener, Corpse Bride and The Corpse Vanishes

Holy bottoms, it's been nearly three months since I did my last Alphabetical Movie Project post. That's kinda indicitive of how the projects been going recently. While we've had the Christmas and New Year holidays to delay us I've also gotten a little tired of watching so many movies one after the other. Plus, there are just soooooooOOOoooo many C's to watch! I think once we get past the C's we'll have gotten over the 'hump' and be back in to it again. At this point we have only two more C's to watch and I'm hoping that we might get to them tomorrow (if it's as wet and rainy as it has been today it will be perfect movie watching weather).

In the meantime I have six reviews to catch up on, so let's get started. . .

The Constant Gardener is from John's collection. I've watched it several times now and while I think it's very well done and very poignant, I just can't bring myself to really like it. I'm not entirely sure why.

Ralph Fiennes stars as a British diplomat living in Africa who's wife (the talented Rachel Wiesz) has been murdered. He attempts to figure out what she was working on and what she'd discovered that had turned her into a target. He finds himself following in her footsteps - trying to save millions of people, before they can get to him too.

The movie is thrilling and fast paced with never a dull moment. Even the slower and more somber scenes are laced with intensity. The scene where he is in their English backyard sobbing for his wife is spine chilling. It's a scene that is testament to the brilliant performance of Ralph Fiennes, but also to the wonderful cinematography.

Rachel Weisz shows how talented she is with her performance. She plays the investigating, hard questioning character with such intesity that it's the reason I loose a little bit of sympathy for her. She is almost to calculating to deserve the wonderful husband she has and from the very beginning you wonder if she's with him because she loves him or if she just wants to get to Africa. A question that I never really feel is answered. Meanwhile her husband show great loyalty and love for her that you can't help but wish you had a husband that dedicated yourself.

Like I said before, I'm not sure why I'm not more fond of this movie. It might have something to do with how sad I find it. I'm not very good with sad movies - generally not being able to watch them more than once because of how sad the make me feel. If it wasn't so sad I'd probably love it. Should you watch it? Yep, absolutely, especially if you aren't so vulnerable to the sad movies.


Next up was The Corpse Bride. An animated Tim Buton movie.

Victor and Victoria are getting married, but before they can do so Victor practices his wedding vows and accidently marries Emily, the corpse bride. Now he's stuck in the underworld, married to a woman he doesn't love, with no way back to Victoria.

As you can imagine, this Tim Burton film is both quirky and different from what you may expect. Of no surprise however is that the main characters are voiced by Johnny Depp (a long time Tim Burton movie starr) and Helena Bonham Carter (Tim Burton's wife). Both do a beautiful job of voicing these characters, giving them life (or the afterlife as the case may be) and feeling.

In this animation life above ground is dark, gloomy, mono-chrome and dull. It's very boring and dreary, making you wonder why anyone would possibly want to try and life a happy life there. Meanwhile the afterlife 'down below' is colourful, vibrant and musical. Everyone seems so happy and excited to be enjoying the next phase. You are really drawn the the afterlife world, giving you hopes that Victor might decide to stay there forever with the corpse bride.

While it is an animation it is aimed at the more adult among us, rather than the little kiddies. It's pretty dark and sinister for an animation, but it's to be expected for a Tim Burton movie. If you're a Tim Burton fan than this will not disappoint. I highly recommend it to all. It's a good one to watch on halloween if you're not a fan of horrors or scary movies - with this one you'll save face :)

The Corpse Vanishes is one of three Bella Lugosi films that John owns. While he's a fan, I must admit I'd never heard of him before. I'm not much a fan of the 'old school' films. I had been dreading this one - as you've probably guessed by now I am not a fan of scary movies and this one's about corpses! How pleased was I when I realised that this 'old school' film was a short one at just 64 minutes.

Virgin brides are being kidnapped from their weddings so that the crazy scientist can steal their bodily fluids. With the help of his assistant he uses the fluids to inject his ancient wife to keep her young and alive.

Filmed in 1942 in black and white (of course), it's a very simple story to follow. It doesn't skimp on the blood and guts, it's definetly a horror. The black and white works in my favor as it 'dulls' down the horror of it all somewhat. Thanks goodness, as I'm definetly not made to watch these types of movies!

From what I'm gathering Bela Lugosi was in his heyday when filming this movie. I don't recognise any of the other stars, but you might - Luana Walters, Tristrim Coffin and Elizabeth Russell.

If you're a fan of old time movies, than this is a great one for you to watch. If you like horrors and are looking for a classic then you should watch it. Personally it's not one that I will be watching again and not one that I would have watched were it not for this project. But I don't feel like I wasted my time either.

More reviews to come for Coyote Ugly, The Craft and Crimson Rivers Angels of the Apocalypse.
Movies coming up for viewing The Cup and Curious George.
And then the C's (the largest volume - at 28 - of any letter we own) are over!

Confessions of a Shopaholic and Confetti

Confessions of a Shopaholic is recent addition to my collection. It's the film adaption of a very popular book series by Sophie Kinsella. I've read a couple of them, but not all, and I've read a couple of her other books too. She writes very easy-to-read chic-lit books. The kind that you sit down and read in one sitting (in fact I did that once when we were staying in Foxton for NYE). The movie version was made last year and like most movie versions it strays from the storyline in the book.

Becky Bloomwood is a writer, trying to climb her way to the top of the magazine world, but she finds herself taking a job at finance magazine in the process. Not to worry, she uses her obsession of shopping to help her find her feet in this world. To help her find her way out from all her financial-shopping-induced problems is her best friend and the fear of the IRS agent chasing her.

Isla Fisher is the star of this movie. She's a stunning, short, firey redhead that has come along way from her days on Australian soap 'Home and Away'. She does a fantastic job of playing the bimboish Becky that always seems to get by by the skin of her teeth. Isla is supported by a legends Joan Cusack and John Goodman as her parents, along with Hugh Dancy as her boss/love interest and Krysten Ritter as her best friend. All these supporting actors help to pull the weak script together into an enjoyable movie.

As with most movie adaptions of books I find that the book is much better. I couldn't help but feel that this movie lacked a bit of substance and that's not just from knowing the book series. The stray from the book storyline can be forgiven - only because it's that's what happens with most movie adaptions these days and it becomes the 'norm'. But even so, this movie missed the point somewhere along the line.

Nevertheless it was one of those movies that is easy to watch and probably for the most part rather enjoyable. Don't make your fella watch it unless you have some good brownie points built up from watching Conan. He won't be happy as it's your typical chick flick with shopping a total no-go zone for him. Meanwhile, gather the girls around, a big tub of popcorn and enjoy it with those that will appreciate it!

Confetti is a quirky little British movie that I found - I'm not sure that it was ever out at the movies?! I may be wrong. It's one of those movies that looks kinda dumb by the cover and blurb on the back, but it's so funny to watch and a little bit different from the movies being made today that you enjoy it that much more.

Confetti Magazine is a popular wedding magazine that is holding a competition for the most Unique Wedding of the year. Three couples are chosen - the Tennis couple, the Musicals couple and the Nudist couple. They are given the help of two fabulously camp wedding planners and strict guidelines by the magazine to organise their wedding.

This movie is done in the style of a mockumentry which is what makes it so fresh and fun to watch. We follow along with all the characters as well as catch some of the 'behind the scenes' action. It's a fantastic way to tie all the various characters and action together to form a cohesive movie.

Confetti is British and has some good, currently popular British stars; Comedian Jimmy Carr and Martin Freeman (most famous for playing Tim in The Office, but also star of the Hitchikers Guide to the Galaxy, Hot Fuzz, Shaun of the Dead and Love Actually, and recently named to star as Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit). Jessica Hynes (starred as 'Jessica Stevenson', and also known for her roles in Son of Rambow and Shaun of the Dead) also stars as well as actors I'm not familiar with - Stephen Mangan, Meredith MacNiell, Robert Webb, Olivia Colman, Jason Watkins and Vincent Franklin.

Each of the couples is hilarious in their own right. The Tennis couple are hungry to win and will stop at nothing to get the top prize. But what's with the enourmous nostrils she has?! The Musical couple are sweet but don't have a musical bone in their body. The Nudist couple are, well, nude. Yes, there are willies and boobs flying all over the place. And they want to be naked at their wedding which everyone agrees with, except the magazine. Eek. But the best part of this movie is the very camp and delightful wedding planners. They are so sweet and get caught up in the middle of all the couples and the magazine. They really steal the whole show.

This movie was one that my movie project partner JP wasn't really to overly interested in watching, but then really enjoyed it when we did (except perhaps the willies being out). It may not be everyone's cup of tea, but don't dismiss it without giving it a shot. It's funny - promise. Watch it!

Cocktail, Con Air, Conan the Barbarian and Conan the Destroyer

"Cocktail" is a movie that I watched over and over again as a teenager. It wasn't that I was a big Tom Cruise fan but that I really enjoyed the drinking and the drama! hahaha. . . and I now I enjoy the drinking and the drama in real life too. hahaha!

Brian Flannagan has just left the army and now needs a job. He tries to find a financial job, but finds himself working at the local bar with Doug Coughlan. Doug teaches Brian flare and together they become popular bartenders in New York. Until they argue and Brian head to Jamaica to work the bar there. He meets the girl of his dreams - Jordan, a US tourist. After a slight mishap with another lady he must head home to the US to fight for Jordan and reconnect with his old friend Doug.

"Cocktail" was made in 1988 and it smacks of 80's fashion and music, and not to mention the big hair!

Tom Cruise stars as Brian Flannagan. Australian Bryan Brown stars as Doug Coughlan and Elisabeth Shue plays the lovely Jordan. All three actors are very good and play well off of each other.

The fourth star of this movie is the cocktails themselves. Flare is the art of cocktail spinning, dancing, whatever you want to call it, and it's pretty impressive. hmmmmm. . . what else to say . . .  ummmmm.

"Cocktail" is one of those movies that is funny and dramafilled. It doesn't take a lot of thinking - the movie does all the thinking for you. For me it's rather nostalgic to watch and fun. Plus I like that he gets the girl in the end (sorry for the spoiler there, but I haven't go much else to day about it.)

Watch it, go on. You'll enjoy it and have a good time. But if you choose not to then you won't have missed to much either.

"Con Air" is another movie that I've owned for a really long time - it's one of those movies that I loved and watched over and over again when I was younger.

Cameron Poe is a recently paroled convict heading home to meet his wife and daughter. To get there he hitches a ride on the convict airplane, but rather than going home, he finds himself caught up in the middle of a giant air heist by the countries worst convicts. Rather than ditching as soon as he can, he stays to help the agent on the ground to bring the plane and the convicts down.

Nicholas Cage stars as Cameron Poe. I'm not a big Nicholas Cage fan, I think it's his voice and his squinty eyes. But he is a pretty good actor and I generally like the movies that he does - he does pick pretty good movies to work on. He plays a very convincing good guy with a very odd southern accent.

Con Air has some very good actors to support Nicholas Cage - John Cusack as the government agent on the ground, John Malkovich - the leasd convict on the plane and Steve Buscemi as the most prolific convict that even the other convicts are wary of him. Together they pull off a very good ensemble cast that keeps the action going throughout the whole movie.

This movie is lots of fun and fast paced. Unfortunetly it looses pace a little bit at the end. You know when you get to a point and you think that it's a good place to end and it keeps going? Well, this movie is like that. It keeps going and going and going. After the plan crashes and takes off and crashes again and then they steal a fire truck. . . you start to get a little weary. The fire truck was completely unnecessary.

It can be a little cliche at times - mainly with one liners from Cameron Poe. But if you can overlook that (and it doesn't take much) you get a really fun, fast paced movie. Con Air is like Cocktail - fun to watch but you wouldn't be missing to much if you decided not to watch it. But you may get some good brownie points with the boyfriend.

Conan the Barbarian and Conan the Destroyer were the next movies on the list. Good thing the sequel is also second in the alphabet too, otherwise I'd perhaps be a little confused. As it was, I had to ask a lot of questions just to keep up.  .  .

When he was a small child Conan watched his family and village be killed by a warlord and his men. He is taken in to slavery and works until he is the only child left at age 18. He is groomed into being a fighter and is flaunted all over the land, until he manages to escape. Together with a slave and a thief that he befriends on the way, he sets out to take revenge on the warlord that killed his family when he was young. He finds himself falling in love with the beautiful Valeria and doing everything he can to save her from the warlord.

Conan the Barbarian was made in 1982 and stars a young and very buff Arnold Schwarzengger. It took me a long time to get used to the idea of a young and oh-so-smooth Arnie. He's so .... buff! All I can think of when I watch him is 'True Lies', 'Terminator' and that he's now the governer of California. Meanwhile, the only other actor I recognise is James Earl Jones - again, a much younger version than I'm used too.

This movie is a real boys movie - lots of blood, guts and sex. Definetly a R16 movie and not for the faint of heart.

Overall, it wasn't too bad and not the most terrible couple of hours I had thought I'd be watching. That is of course until I realised that I still had Conan the Destroyer to watch after this. Could I possibly watch more of a young Arnie, how could I cope without the beautiful Valeria to break the macho men cycle?!

From what I gather Conan was a character in a comic that they turned into a movie character, which then spawned multiple movies, comics, books, action heroes etc. So chances are that the men in your life have at least heard of him.

Should you watch it?! - You can get some mega brownie points from your boyfriend and enjoy a few hours of buff Arnie watching. Then if you must (because you've started an alphabetical movie project with your mate) you can watch the sequel - Conan the Destroyer.

So of course, next on the list was Conan the Destoyer. Arnold Schwarzenegger is back as the buff Conan. This time he's out for revenge on the same warlord that killed both his family and his girlfriend. Only this time he's got a new band of ragtag misfits and is a lot PGer than before.

Grace Jones stars as the slightly crazy Zulu - a slave he helps to rescue on his journey. And once again, theres only one other actor that I recognise.

This sequel is a lot tamer and child-friendly than the original. In fact I believe my counterpart, JP, saw this at the movies before he saw the original, and I can understand why. There's no blood, there's no guts and there's no sex. Almost a bit boring by comparison. There's even an evil queen and a princess - it's heading in to fairytale territory, completely missing the mark of what the original set up. A shame really, because if they'd done it correctly the franchisee could have gone on to great heights. Oh well.

Should you watch it - nah, don't bother. Unless you're trying to impress the boyfriend, and even then I don't think he'd be impressed, but at least greatful that he had a cool enough girlfriend to sit and watch this with him.