Change Your Image
rainbowclimbinghigh
Ratings
Most Recently Rated
Lists
An error has ocurred. Please try againReviews
Just Ask for Diamond (1988)
Not bad, but not brilliant
The basic plot of this movie is two brothers (the world's worst private detective and his wisecracking younger brother) are given a package to look after, but just about every major criminal in London is also after it.
This film is really a mixed bag. The story (based on The Falcon's Malteser, which is essentially a send-up of classic movies such as Casablanca and, of course, The Maltese Falcon) is great as it sticks pretty close to the book, unsurprisingly as the script was written by Anthony Horowitz, the author of the The Falcon's Malteser. Most of the actors/actresses are good especially the late Dursley McLinden, who plays Tim Diamond (real name Herbert Timothy Simple), Patricia Hodge (who plays Brenda von Falkenberg), Peter Eyre and Nickolas Grace (who play Gott and Himmel respectively), but unfortunately Colin Dale, who plays Nick Diamond (real name Nick Simple), and who is the main character, is hopelessly miscast.
Also, I'm not sure that Anthony Horowitz is that good at writing a script for a full length feature film (he has proved he is more than capable of scripting an episode of a TV show, as he has written for, amongst others, Midsomer Murders, Foyle's War and Agatha Christie's Poirot), but it may just be that The Diamond Brothers books (The Falcon's Malteser, Public Enemy Number Two, South by South East, The French Confection, The Blurred Man, I know what you did last Wednesday and The Greek who stole Christmas) just don't make for good adaptations, as a lot of the humour in the books is text based (one example from SbSE: "I can't say I'm a big fan of fun fairs. I can't afford the fares so I never have any fun").
I would recommend this movie, however, even to people who have never read the book, as it does not rely upon people having read the book to be able to understand it. It is entertaining, just don't expect it to be brilliant.
Takeshi's Castle (2002)
This is, quite simply, the funniest game show ever made!
This is basically a Japanese game show in which 100 contestants, led by General Lee (played by the handsome Hayato Tani) have to get through several EXTREMELY tough (but, more often than not, hilarious) challenges, and then attempt to storm the castle.
I only came across this gem a few months ago, but I am now hooked, as it is absolutely hilarious, especially when a contestant fails at a challenge.
There are a number of challenges, so not all of them will be in every single half-hour episode of the show. These include:-
Skipping stones (my personal favorite), High Rollers, Bridge Ball, The Gauntlet, Knock Knock, Slipped disks, Avalanche Karaoke, Quake, Wipeout, amongst many many others.
Then comes the Final Showdown i.e. the storming of the castle. Don't expect there to be many winners - there are usually just a handful of people who get through to this stage, and the Emerald Guards are extremely good at defending the castle. I think I've been watching the show for about six months, and I have seen two people win.
Junior (1994)
An OK movie
Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito play two scientists who are experimenting with a new fertility drug, when their project gets shut down. However, they decide to carry on experimenting, so Alex (played by Arnold Schwarzenegger) implants a fertilised embryo (which belongs to a scientist who falls for Alex) into his own body, and then carries the baby to term.
I saw this movie advertised on TV, and when I heard that it was about a man who becomes pregnant, I had to watch it, just to see how a man would cope.
It may not be the funniest movie I've ever seen (the funniest thing in the entire movie is seeing Arnold Schwarzenegger in a dress, looking and acting like a cross between Mrs Doubtfire and Camilla Fritton - played by Rupert Everett in "St. Trinians"), but the plot is very original.
Well worth a look.
The Phantom of the Opera (2004)
10 stars is too few! This movie is worth so many more!
This movie is, in a word, AMAZING!! I cannot compare it to the stage show, as I have only seen the movie, but I am more than happy watching this movie.
Gerard Butler, who plays The Phantom, does a great job. OK, he's not the best singer, but he is a good singer, and his voice sounds so natural, as it has a raw quality to it that Michael Crawford's voice does not have (I may not have seen the stage show, but I have purchased the CD of the stage show, so, while I may not know how well Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman played their roles, I do know how well they sing the songs - "Music of the Night" is my personal favourite.), which works to his advantage. Also, he manages to convey so much passion, especially after he has heard Christine and Raoul singing "All I ask of you", which shows how well he can act.
On the subject of "Who would you choose - Raoul or The Phantom?" I would absolutely choose The Phantom.
The Woman in Black (1989)
One word: TERRIFYING!!!!!!! (especially if you are 14..............
...........as I was when I saw this movie) I will never watch this movie again, not because it is a bad movie, but because it scared me so much! As I said, I was 14 when my English teacher decided to show it to us; the reason for this is that we had read an extract from the book.
All the girls in my class were TERRIFIED when the Woman in Black comes through the window and floats over Kidd's bed, although, just before that there is something that also frightened us, which was when Kidd finds the toy soldier underneath his pillow, and he hears a child's voice say "It's for you". That scene still haunts me to this day, nearly 7 YEARS after I saw the film.
If you are easily scared, AVOID THIS FILM!!!!!!!!