Hamlet is one of Shakespeare's most popular plays and as such is ripe for a modern retelling. Hopefully, though, someone will do a better job than this. The concept is initially interesting- Hamlet is a film student and 'Denmark' is now a corporation. Unfortunately this concept soon wears thin, mostly because of the poor performances- surprising given the calibre of actors' involved. Hawke is an adequate Hamlet, though he is one of the poorest I have seen. However Hawke escapes with his reputation intact, which is more than can be said for some of his co-stars: Kyle MacLachlan seems to be fairly average in everything he makes that without David Lynch, but again he is not the worst offender. That 'honour' falls to Julia Stiles who on paper seems well-cast. However she does not seem to understand any of her lines and as such the delivery of said lines is awful. Bill Murray is not much better. I have always found Polonius to be a funny character but as good an actor Murray is, he is not suited to Shakespeare. Luckily, both are saved by Liev Schrieber who managed to 'drag' Stiles through their scenes together. I was never that big a fan of Schrieber before I saw this film, but he was by far the best thing about it. He knew what he was saying and how to say it. Overall, I give this film 5/10. If you want to see Hamlet, there is far better out there.
Reviews
14 Reviews
Highlander
(1986)
A kids movie with an adult rating.
27 July 2006
Warning: Spoilers
I have seen Highlander only twice, the first time was back in the mid nineties when I was about 10-or-so and I loved the film, especially as I was a big Sean Connery fan. Then recently I saw the film again, and now as a 20-something I realised that this was one of the worst action films I've ever seen. The first cause for concern was the opening 'battle', where Connor MacLeod complains that no-one is fighting him and then just lets The Kurgan stab him. At this instant The Kurgan could have quite easily have killed MacLeod but chooses not to, for reasons that seem absurd. So instead MacLeod recovers from his injuries and is hence thrown out of his village by people who don't believe in people who live after getting wounded, then he lives on his own, meets a nice girl and then finds himself under the tutelage of Sean Connery- where-in lies major problem number 2. Connor MacLeod is a Scot with a Swiss/French/American accent, Juan Sanchez Villa-Lobos Ramirez is a Spaniard with a Scottish accent. Ridiculous. Anyway, The Kurgan tracks them down again, kills Ramirez but then leaves before MacLeod gets back- again it might have been the perfect point to kill him. The story carries on with characters seeming immediate willingness to believe that, now MacLeod is living in New York, that he is hundreds of years old. In fact, characters (Brenda in particular) seem to think that it makes perfect sense for someone to be Immortal, and falls in love far too easily. Anyway The Kurgan finally gets to fight MacLeod and loses (predictably) as he gave him 400 years to get better at fighting. MacLeod then becomes 'The One', except that he's not cos there's Highlander 2-4, plus a series. And they are aliens. And Ramierez isn't dead. And then MacLeod dies at the end of the 4th one anyway. What is the point? I am a big fan of the fantasy genre, but this film is rubbish. There are only two action films that I can think of that have a Queen soundtrack, this and Flash Gordon- Flash Gordon is so bad it's fun, this is so bad it's terrible. I have seen worse films though, so this gets an extra point. 2/10
The Da Vinci Code
(2006)
Disappointing...
9 July 2006
I never read the book, and after watching the film I don't want to. That isn't to say that the film is all bad, because it's not- there are some brilliant performances from Ian McKellen and Paul Bettany. Unfortunately the film is let down by the fact that Tom Hanks is unforgivably miscast (remember I haven't read the book) but it is clear that the role isn't right for him. Some of my friends have said that Sophie (Audrey Tatou) is nothing like she is portrayed in the book, but I think she played, what is essentially a very silly part, well. Hanks though is no Harrison Ford/Indiana Jones, whom I believe Robert Langdon to be based on and that combined with some dull direction makes the film suffer. On the plus side, every moment that Ian McKellen is on screen is a joy. Now to the religious aspect of the film. Why anybody got upset is a mystery to me. The final 'twist' in the film was obvious from the moment the film began and the whole 'Da Vinci Code' is ridiculous. This film wants to be 'Indiana Jones & the Last Crusade' but isn't. I have heard that 'Angels and Demons' (the superior predecessor to 'Da Vinci') is to be made. Let's just hope that Howard/Hanks do a better job with that film than they have done with this. 5/10.
Futurama
(1999– )
Great characters, great stories, great animation...
2 August 2004
As others have commented, "Futurama" is a program that you either love or hate. I personally love the show, and I'm saddened that it has now been cancelled. It is full of hilarious characters, the funniest being Bender, Zapp Brannigan and Dr. Zoidberg, and most of the characters have catchphrases- Morbo's "I will destroy you!" being one of the funniest not said by a main character. There are some outstanding episodes too, which can be both hilarious and heart-breakingly sad, especially the Season 4 episode 'Jurassic Bark'. It also integrates some mind-boggling sci-fi storylines, like in the 'Farnswoth Paradox' when a parallel universe is created in a cardboard box. I would recommend this show to anyone who likes their intelligent comedy with a good smattering of stupidity. 10/10
The Beautician and the Beast
(1997)
Better than it sounds...
9 January 2004
I was apprehensive when this film came on TV, but as there was nothing else on and I was bored I decided to give it a go. It began badly as I found Fran Drescher incredibly annoying, mainly due to her piercing New York accent. Timothy Dalton was fantastic in his role, and made me laugh a number of times. Ian McNeice was also quite good in what was essentially just a rehash of his role in Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls. The script wasn't excellent but did the job. The film did begin to lose momentum as Timothy Dalton became less beast-ly and the film is about half an hour too long, but those are really the only bad points. This film isn't a work of art, but it provides nice escapism for two hours. 6/10.
3000 Miles to Graceland
(2001)
A bit of a let down
15 October 2002
I had read many reviews for 3000 Miles To Graceland, none of them were good. However I thought I'd give it a try. As the film started, I saw what reviewers meant. The opening sequence was a bizarre computer animated sequence which had really nothing to do with the plot, and just seemed out of place from the word go. From there on in the film did not manage to recover, the director deciding to use a heavy nu-metal soundtrack, instead of one that should in theory have included many Elvis songs. This bad judgement ruined a few scenes, especially Costner's final scene. On the whole I found that the acting was quite decent. Courteney Cox was a bit miscasted, but the rest of the cast were good. I did think Kevin Costner was actually the best thing in it. Ulitmately his bad-guy role is not enough to salvage this movie, which is badly written and badly written. It could have been so much better. 4/10.
The Transformers: The Movie
(1986)
A classic...
30 April 2002
When I sat down to watch this film, I wasn't expecting it to be any good, and I didn't have a a clear memory of the series- only that I liked it when I was young. However, once the film started I was pleasantly surprised. There is a definite influence from Star Wars, (the opening sequence with a scrolling blue script moving backwards into 'space', the ship that looks surprisingly like the 'Death Star', and Unicron's deep breaths between some speeches- ie. Darth Vader). The plot is almost non-existent, but this is essentially a kids film, so who needs one. All the Transformers was ever about was Autobots vs. Deceptacons. And this film delivers some fantastic action scenes, many set to a brilliant '80s sound-track. An important character dies in one such spectacular battle, but the shock is soon compensated by yet more action scenes, and some very funny characters. Eric Idle's Wreck-Gar is hilarious, always reciting lines from adverts that he's seen on Earth-TV: "Yes friends, act now, destroy Unicron. Kill the Grand Poobah. Eliminate even the toughest stain!" Big surprises on the cast list are Orson Welles as Unicron, and Leonard Nimoy as Galvatron. If you love Transformers, then you'll love this film. A Classic. 8/10.
'Orrible
(2001)
Not as bad as everybody made out
25 January 2002
I have heard all of the bad press about Johnny Vaughn's debut writing comedy effort "'orrible" and I would have to disagree with the reviews. Although there were a couple of episodes that didn't work at all, for the most part of the series I was laughing out loud. There probably won't be a second series, so I just hope this one is repeated at sometime.
Beech Is Back
(2001)
A spin off from 'The Bill' (minor spoilers included)
8 September 2001
Warning: Spoilers
Corrupt copper, D.S. Don Beech (Billy Murray) was one of the best characters that 'The Bill' ever had. He left on an aeroplane to Australia when D.S. Claire Stanton (Clara Salaman) exposed his corruption to the world after he killed her boyfriend, D.S. John Boulton (Russell Boulter)... This brilliant series sees Beech's return to England, after escaping an assassination attempt by Stanton in Australia, along with new girlfriend Frankie (Miles Paras). They commit a number of crimes, and some people get killed- basically everything that makes a good thriller series. I only hope Beech returns again, it will be great!
The Big Lebowski
(1998)
The funniest film ever...
8 August 2001
This is without a doubt the funniest film ever! If you have ever watched any of the Coen Brothers films before, then you will know their like of black/surreal humour. This film is funnier than O Brother, Where Art Thou?; Fargo; and Raising Arizona. In my opinion 'The Dude' is one of the best characters ever created on film, Jeff Bridges plays him effortlessly, he is brilliant. As ever Steve Buscemi and John Goodman are excellent in their supporting roles, with Goodman in particular. All I can say is see this film, see this film, see this film! (10/10)
Last of the Summer Wine
(1973–2010)
Brilliant
8 August 2001
This comedy series is incerdible, it has been going for almost 30 years. The thing that makes it so good is that is WAS exellent entertainment. However since the departure of Bill Owen and now Kathy Staff I cannot see the series lasting for very much longer, as the element that gripped viewers was the will-they-wont-they storyline between Compo (Bill Owen) and Nora Batty (Kathy Staff). Not to mention Truly (Frank Thornton) is nowhere near as funny as Foggy (Brian Wilde). If you ever get a chance to catch this program on the telly, make sure it's one of the old series, then sit back and enjoy!
The Invisible Man
(1933)
Brilliant Special Effects
30 July 2001
Considering that this film was made in the 30's, the special effects are incredible. However, being from a younger generation I found some of the over dramatics very irritating, to the point that I wished one character, played by Una O'Connor, would become one of The Invisible Man's victims. It was the bad acting that made the film drag along for me. But I do think that the special effects mean that this film should be seen, as well as the ever brilliant Claude Raines. Special Effects: 10/10 (for the period) Claude Raines: 9/10 Other Acting: 4/10
An Alan Smithee Film...The Irony!
30 June 2001
This film is awful, it is one of the only films I have not been able to sit through, and I am very tolerable. The reason I watched this film was that I thought the adverts for it looked hilarious, and I was extremely disappointed. I'd give this film 2/10, and that's being very fair. The acting is atrocious as is the film. However the Sly Stallone "interviews" are quite funny, but they are a small part of the film and nowhere near good enough to redeem it!
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers
(1995)
Better than Turbo: The Power Rangers Movie...
31 October 1999
The first series of Power Rangers was good, then it all went down hill. The movie is better than Turbo: The Power Rangers Movie but still could be ALOT better. It suffers from a very bad script and below average acting. Ivan Ooze is not scary and the special FX are extremely poor. This could have been a good childrens martial arts film but instead it's...not.
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