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paul-richmond
Reviews
Breaking Infinity (2023)
Great movie - really inventive
Just saw the premier at Curzon Soho, Shaftesbury Avenue and really enjoyed it. Inventive and original, great performances in particular by both Neil Bishop and Zoe Cunningham. The premise of the film is interesting and I would recommend this to anyone who likes intelligent and thought provoking science fiction. The film is delivered on a limited budget but all the lead actors make the most of their roles and ensure the film delivers. They are convincing in their characters and they hold the film together by the strength of their performances.
Congratulations to cast and crew for a great production.
High-Rise (2015)
Missed the whole point
As a massive fan of JG Ballard, I sought out this title. Unfortunately it misses the whole point. The screenplay is a mess and it makes you wonder if the director / screenplay writer failed to grasp the underlying point of the book. This should be about how a building / society can drive people's behaviour, and how quickly it can unravel.
I like Tom Hiddleston, but he's horribly miscast. Far too sophisticated / polished for Dr Laing.
Gutted, I appreciate Ballard is hard to adapt to the screen, but this was a disappointment. Not even sure why? It would have been easier to stay true to the novel rather than try to reimagine high rise
Vantage Point (2008)
Rashamon my A$$
I saw this last night and am currently deciding whether to write to the production company / individual actors to ask for my money back!!!
The only redeeming features of this movie include an initially interesting plot and an American movie that's actually prepared to accept anti-US sentiment, not just from evil regimes, but also other leading Western nations.
However, please do not expect any Rashamon inspired storytelling. It has everything in common with an episode of 24 rather than one of the greatest films of all time. Yes, Vantage Point relies on multiple perspective storytelling but that DOES NOT = Rashamon! Rashamon did something that Vantage Point completely overlooked, and that was exploring character's motives and reason for the different accounts, rather than just showing eight different camera angles!!!
The best guide I can give you is the audience's reaction from last night..
- There were increasingly audible groans and sighs during the irritating 'rewind' sequences
- There were people laughing AT the movie during the last 20 minutes as the action took on a hilarious rather than exciting quality
- The dialogue, particularly in the final few scenes, raised further guffaws. It is so cheesy you will find yourself chewing your fist in embarrassment.
Were we really meant to take this seriously???
Then again, this is a great movie for fans of 'spotting continuity errors' and Service agents with unlimited pistol ammo!
Taxidermia (2006)
I want a stuffed animal
Taxidermia will shock, upset, disturb and make nauseous all but the most sturdy and unflappable cinema viewer. However, it will also make you laugh, smirk, and smile. It does the whole spectrum of emotions as you are taken from through three generations of a family with varying degrees of humanity and all with a similar obsessions over flesh (be it sexual, personal, that of others, etc).
I cannot vouch that it will be a revelation to all, and some will see it as very base cinema, but I think you need to look beyond the excess, and take it with a pinch of salt.
It is superb production, it is at the very height of tastefulness and tastelessness, but pulled together so effortlessly and seamlessly.
More please!!!
The Matrix Revolutions (2003)
what a waste of time and money
i thought matrix reloaded was a massive disappointment, but revolutions SOMEHOW!!??!!! managed to sink even lower.
The original matrix was great due to its innovation and stunning action sequences, but neither were present in this movie. You could write a book on how much has been stolen from Aliens / Blade Runner / Terminator and Star Wars!
The strongest characters were relegated to bit part characters (smith and morpheus) and replaced by paper thin cut-outs nicked straight from the corridors of hollywood cheese (see Armageddon, Pearl Harbour, Independence Day). There were so many pointless and ill-thought relationships such as the captain and the skinhead wannabe soldier, Link and his girlfriend, morpheus and his love interest??!!!
there was nothing but CGI in this movie, and there was nothing original or stylistically exciting.
the only thing missing from this movie was keanu (i'm so deep and meaningful) driving an american flag through agent smith at the end!
this lasts 2 hours, in which time you could absorb something a lot more meaningful like Voltaire's Candide, Camus's Outsider or Sartre's Nausea. This is shallow, forgettable and a hugue let down. But the most annoying thing is that it will still make the people involved very very rich :(