Journal
I went to see The Golden Compass last week - the film of the book with the same name (although sometimes called Northern Lights). I mentioned the trailer before, and though tit looked great, but wasn’t sure what to expect of the movie itself.
I read the book some time ago so remember the story in broad sweeps but don’t remember the specifics - thankfully the film was laid out in a similar fashion. A quick discussion with my friends afterwards (who have re-read the books recently) tells me that basically they took the story and abbreviated things considerably. From my own memory I am sure the time in Bolvangar took place over several days (weeks? months?) where in the film it’s squashed into about ten minutes.
Of course edits and abbreviations are necessary for pretty much all book to film translations. Thankfully The Golden Compass is more Lord of …
When it comes to movies I’m a huge fan of fantasy and mythology.
When it comes to myths you can’t get any more classic than the epic poem, Beowulf.
When I found out that Beowulf was going to come to the Imax, in ‘proper’ 3d (glasses and all), I knew I had to go and see it.
Directed by Robert Zemeckis (Polar Express, and Back to the Future) and starring a proper Londoner - Ray Winstone - along with a bunch of other well known actors, Beowulf is a big budget movie using some pretty unique technology.
Like it’s technological predecessor, Polar Express, Beowulf is a 3d animated movie (think Toy Story… then turn up the realism) and uses full body motion capture for 90% of the animation. They used the actors who voiced the characters to perform the physical roles, giving an extra edge to the realism and coherence …
Stardust is a fantastic film about doing what is right and the quest for love (and the fact that you won’t always find love where you expect too).
The story is based upon a Neil Gaiman comic book and was turned into a movie by Jane Goldman (Jonathon Rosses better half). I went to see it with Jo recently and thoroughly enjoyed myself.
The film has a wonderful feeling to it, it’s almost eccentric an has a very English feel to it. It reminds me somewhat of the old fantasy films that I loved from my childhood (Hensons Labyrinth and Dark Crystal for example) however it has technology on it’s side and is much better for it.
The cast list is astonishing - as well as the English actors and comedians (anyone else spot Adam Buxton and David Walliams in there?) there is a whole host of Hollywood actors and actresses, …
Went to see Run, Fat boy, Run at the cinema the other day. It was really good.
I’ve become a bit of a fan of Simon Pegg, Hot Fuzz being one of the big reasons why. Somehow he has made being a geek quite cool, and that can only be a good thing. However if you go into Run Fatboy Run expecting something like Hot Fuzz or Shaun of the Dead then you are likely to be rather disappointed.
Run, Fat boy, Run is a much straighter comedy than either of those, the jokes are more traditional and the story is almost normal, realistic even. That said there are still some classic Simon Pegg moments (the blister) and a handful of cameos from English comedians (”Can you give me something in the shape of a fish?”).
The story is reasonably generic, a man loves a lady but can’t commit - ditching …
I saw the Simpsons movie recently and I must say - I enjoyed it. A lot.
Going in to it I was concerned that it would be like watching three episodes back to back, and I had seen some reviews on tv where they said it was just that, but once the credits started to roll I felt I had watched a fully fledged movie - and an enjoyable one at that.
The basic premise of the story is clearly inspired by the tv series. In short the story is… Homer does something disastrously wrong… then fixes it.
Along the way you bump into all the major (and many minor) characters from the last 20 years of cartoons, and you even get to find out where Springfield is located… kinda.
I liked the way the story started off like a normal episode and then grew to a full fledged narrative of it’s own …
From Wikipedia…
French ratatouille may be served as a meal on its own (accompanied by rice, potatoes, or simple French bread), or as a side dish. Tomatoes are a key ingredient, with garlic, onions, zucchini (courgettes), eggplant (aubergine), bell peppers (capsicum), some herbes de Provence, and sometimes basil. All the ingredients are sautéed in olive oil.
Ratatouille is sometimes used as a filling for savoury crepes.
As well as a tasty food stuff, Ratatouille is a delicious combination of all the treats Pixar can bring to the table. With every film they use all their knowledge and skill to make a wonderful story. It’s becoming a cliche now, someone says it with the release of every film, but Pixar are, first and foremost, story tellers. They use their fantastic technical knowledge to bring to life lovely, beautifully realised characters but the focus is always the story.
Ratatouille has an unusual premise …
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