Dead and Buried

I feel silly it has taken me so long to finally watch this movie. I claim to be a horror fan, yet I have never watched this until now. It a different interpreation of the zombie movie, its not a game changer but you think you know what's its all about and then the end comes. I can honestly say that it surprised me again and again and then there a double twist at the end. It's now in the top 10 of my favourite horror movies. I would like to describe it more but it would spoil it's charm,just watch it, I've done you a favour.

The Road to Bali

Two years ago I got an amazing book for Christmas called Dressed: A Century of Hollywood Costume Design by Deborah Nadoolman Landis, president of the Hollywood Costume Designers Guild. Its an amazing book with beautiful pictures of the stars dressed in their costumes and background information.
One of the pages in the book features Deborah Lamour costumes in The Road to Bali.
While visiting the local poundshop I found this title, and thought I should take a chance. The quality of the film isn't good, so none of the elaborate detail of the Princess costumes can be seen and its a turkey of movie! The slapstick is way over the top, the plot laughable.

Wolfman

A while I go I went to see the wolfman, you now the film with Antonio Bandraes with a Spanish accent, whose character was supposed to have been brought up in England.
It also stars Emily Blunt, as the unbelievable love interest. It started off with Good intentions, lost older brother returns home after the death of his younger brother. Meets his fiancee, tries to find out who murdered him, is bitten by werewolf who turns out to be his father. He turns wolfy, kills people then is committed, all this sounds good story wise, until you realise that Pappa loyal servant know he is the only werewolf in town and attacked his son and killed people, has some silver bullets locked in a case just in case he needs to put old wolfy down but doesn't use them, not until the son is committed. I believe this is the film that Tim Burton should of lend his hand to rather then the car crash that is Alice in Wonderland, which half the people are only going to see because its 3D
Anyway visually it was the picture postcode version of old England but with no heart, I didnt care about the characters, I cared that it wasnt made overly long.
Next film I want to see is Legion.

New Moon

I should probably make this a culture blog, but I am not terribly cultured and going down to London regularly is expensive.
However I thought it was about time that I watched the latest film in the Twilight Saga.
I must admit, the direction wasn't as good as the first film, you could tell the director was different. The vampires looked healthier, gone was the white sheen, the character Bella looked less oppressive, and I am happy to report that the lip biting she does no matter the emotion was reduced, however the acting ability had dipped, a lot of the lines seemed forced. While watching the film I became bored, and when bored I dreamed, I started day dreaming about an imaginary vampire movie called "Itzi the Vampire". This film would be about a woman with mental health issues that dressed like a Manga vampire, and is embroiled in a strange murder, being investigated by an American Asian, set in Tokyo.
I felt the movie did improve once the character Edward was gone and the wolves appeared, even in the books their love is obsessive, its an unhealthy kind of love to promote to teenagers, in real life a man such as him probably would be beating her in 8 months time, because she disobeyed his orders,she would no longer have time to see her friends and always had some sort of injury.

Sherlock Holmes

Where I live the local cinema has a cheap day Tuesday where you can visit the cinema before 5pm and pay only £4.95 they also give out vouchers discounting the price of the next ticket which you can use on Tuesday too so for £2.95 I went to the cinema.
I was tempted to go and see New Moon as I went to see Twilight, but to be honest I found the first film very funny in like the wrong way, and I really don't like the character Bella shes as unlikable in the books as she is in the film, of course I know that's the point I'm meant to imagine that I'm Bella, but that's too much hard work. I was really skeptical about seeing Sherlock Holmes in all the trailers I had seen it looked like a bad comedy, and Avator didn't appeal to me, it may be the first of its kind but it doesn't mean its actually any good. But I will have to say I was pleasantly surprised by Sherlock Holmes, I thought all the actors cast were appropriate for the characters, and its was good to see Jude Law in a good role.

Daybreakers

If you haven't heard of it, its a film starring Ethan Hawke about vampires.
Short story is that a bat bite mutilated to a virus that is passed on through a bite, those who aren't affected are given a choose to to turn or became food. Ten years on the human blood supply is almost exhausted and people are hungry and the starving turing into humanised bats (subhuman).
It started out okay until their was a silly shot of Mr Hawke not being seen in the car mirror because hes a vampire, very lame. A long story short he trying to find a blood substitute, hates being a vampire, meets a few humans who need his help to create a cure. Meets a former vampire, (William Defoe) who became human he becomes human himself most of the surviving humans are caught by a company who farm their blood, theirs now no blood left. Mr Hawke's character has a brother who rounds up humans for the company, bites Mr Defoe character and then becomes human. A bloody showdown happens at the company, when the company director is turned human, then ripped apart by his starving soldiers, the brother is bitten to death by the soldiers who then turn human and then are ripped apart by the others. Basically it ends with Hawke, Defoe and his lady friend surviving, the company have found a blood substitute but by then everyones starving and it ends with a crappy line "we have a cure," but you still have the virus, but your heart will beat.
Just about a 3 star.

While watching the trailers for this film, it seems that 2010 in the film world is the year of Armageddon, now not through nature now its man made. Im however are looking forward to see the The Wolfman, but for some reason I imagine Penelope Cruz to be in it not Emily Blunt.

Deep Red

There's something about the way Dario Argento directs. He sees the whole picture, the interiors, the lighting the music, they help to create the horror.
This is my second favourite film, 1st is Suspira, which I recommend you should watch even if you don't like horror, it horror of a different kind. Beautiful shut and conceived, the only other films that I can think of describing in the same terms are the Lord of the Rings Trilogy and the Wizard of Oz, both films are also enhanced by the fact they came out at the right time, the viewers had been waiting for a film like that.
My favourite parts of this movie is the little details, he does this in other films, but its used to a better effect here, the zooming of the blood trail, the eye that flashes in the cupboard the zipping up of leather gloves. And the interiors a mix of art deco and whatever was popular in the 70s.
Who would of thought for 0.99p that my Saturday night viewing could be sorted.

Kamikaze Girls

Im watching Kamikaze Girls on Film 4 its part of their Asian week, its a fast paced movie about two very different girls who form a friendship. Sometimes I find Japanese films alittle crazy, they have a thing for fast paced action, and cultural references that you would only get if you were from that part of the world.
But this is fun and easy to follow!

Fur - The Imaginary Bio of Diane Arbus

Last night I watched Fur The Imaginary Bio of Diane Arbus. In the trailers I was drawn to the deep visual colours and imagery. What I did enjoy about the movie was the scenes I loved the fact that the characters costumes seemed to blended into the scenery environment, almost pointing out the blandness of their imagination and the safeness of their lives. It would of been better if Nicole Kidman wasn't in it, she again does her annoy breathless voice, that she does in every film, and the rigid demeanour, was at first suited to the role but as the film progressed and she revealed more about the inner workings of her mind, at not one point in the film did I actual believe that this was a woman who was discovering a new view of life, freeing herself from her glass chrysalis. Sure see spoke dirtier, but I guess I was looking for something more obvious, you know a glow about the character a spring in her step, a change to the wardrobe, the things that women do when they feel happier.
In the end I switched off and decided to see Arbus work for myself, the background behind those images alone would of made a better film. I understand little about Diane Arbus, through the film, but through her work, I see a woman who wanted to be something more, something different, something exciting!



"There’s a quality of legend about freaks. Like a person in a fairy tale who stops you and demands that you answer a riddle. Most people go through life dreading they’ll have a traumatic experience. Freaks were born with their trauma. They’ve already passed their test in life. They’re aristocrats."
quote by Diane Arbus

How to Marry A Millonaire

This is one of my hapy films, three women out to snare a millonaire, not at any point are these women catergoised as gold diggers, their just women who want to better themselves. Their is no talk of feminism and women having their own career's. It says exactly on the tin, enjoy.

The Dolly Sisters

This is one of Dita Von Teese's favourite films and based on that I wanted to buy it and you can see why its total fantasy, the set the clothes, the hair! She modelled one of her stage performances on one of the scenes. Her next show should be about eyes, Im convinced it would be a success, you know all eyes on Dita! After all she's already done the lipstick, made rodeo to give it a kick and the powder compact.