Original Review by Jonathan Broxton
Following the controversial (and, in my opinion, wholly inexcusable) rejection of Gabriel Yared’s score for Troy last year, and his subsequent public spat with Warner Brothers, many people wondered whether he would ever work in the Hollywood mainstream again. Although the idea of him being given a complete cold-shoulder by the major studio executives is unlikely, it’s not unsurprising to learn that his first post-Troy feature assignments are all predominantly European films: the German drama Das Leben Der Anderen, English director Anthony Minghella’s Breaking and Entering, and this film: the French drama L’Avion. Read more…
Original Review by Jonathan Broxton
One thing you can say about Tim Burton, he isn’t afraid of taking risks. Having already re-made one of cinema’s all-time classic science fiction films in the shape of Planet of the Apes, he has again subjected himself to the wrath of fans by revisiting another well-loved classic: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, a remake of the 1971 Gene Wilder classic, which was itself based on a famous novel by Roald Dahl. Along for the ride for the tenth time is Danny Elfman, whose collaborations with Burton have resulted in some of the finest movie music heard in the last 20 years. Interestingly, on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Elfman was given the opportunity to write a number of original songs to complement his score, something he has not attempted for over a decade. It was worth the wait. Read more…
Original Review by Jonathan Broxton
One of 2005’s more effective summer comedies, Wedding Crashers is the latest vehicle for comedy duo Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn, who seem to be making something of a habit of appearing in movies together. This time round they play best friends John Beckwith and Jeremy Grey, good-natured womanisers who spend each summer crashing society weddings, spinning tall tales about their lives and histories, with the express purpose of ‘having their way’ with the bridesmaids. However, then the pair crash a wedding hosted by powerful US Senator Cleary (Christopher Walken), things change: John (Wilson) meets unexpectedly falls in love with Cleary’s middle daughter Claire (Rachel McAdams), while Jeremy (Vaughn) finds himself pursued by Cleary’s slightly insane youngest daughter Gloria (Isla Fisher). Before they realise what has happened, the happy-go-lucky conmen have been invited up to the Senator’s lavish summer home in the country, where they meet the rest of the family, including Cleary’s sex crazed wife Kathleen (Jane Seymour) and Claire’s jock boyfriend Sack (Bradley Cooper). Unfortunately, John and Jeremy must continue with their charade in order for true love to blossom… Read more…
Original Review by Jonathan Broxton
All of a sudden, it seems, Hollywood is full of super-heroes. The comic book, once the exclusive domain of spotty teenagers and their escapist fantasies, is now the deepest well of cinematic inspiration for the movie making machine, having recently sprung forth with new versions of Superman, Batman, Spider-Man, X-Men, Hulk, Daredevil, Elektra, Blade, The Punisher, Hellboy, Sin City, and a multitude of others. In many ways, the Fantastic Four can lay legitimate claim to being the grand-daddy of them all, having first appeared in print way back in 1961. The quartet first appeared on film in 1994 in a movie which was made with the intent of it never seeing the light of day, purely as an exercise so that the production company could hold on to the publication rights. That debacle aside, director Tim Story’s 2005 summer blockbuster marks the first time the four have “properly” appeared on the big screen. Read more…
Original Review by Jonathan Broxton
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