Change Your Image
DaleHirst
Reviews
Hairspray (1988)
Actually an excellent black comedy.
And by that I don't mean the colour of someone's skin, but in the manner of The League of Gentlemen etc but rather than using gross or weird out comedy it parodies one of the most disgusting periods of humanity's history, when someone could be looked down on, legally, with the full backing of the law and the public unwillingness to integrate when it was finally legislated against.
This really was a more than decent watch if you let yourself suspend your incredulity a little. The dancing show was a hilarious parody of a 60s show, the performance by the parents and the 3 presenters outside of the show environment especially stand out as works of comedy genius with the children just there as a plot device to move the story on.
7.5/10.
Interview (2007)
It's good but...
It felt like it was half finished. I expect Buscemi was meant to be the villain of the piece but I ended up feeling far more sympathy for his character than I did for Sienna Miller's protagonist.
Maybe that was intentional but it left me feeling less than satisfied with the ending and at a running time of under 80 minutes, it felt like there could have been a lot more to the story. While I can appreciate films which leave you to fill in the blanks as you see fit - such as the otherwise completely dissimilar "The World According to Garp" - this film felt like it could have benefited from another half hour of story. Perhaps redemption of either character or revenge for/reversal of the trick Miller's character pulls on Buscemi's.
That said it was extremely well written and directed and the performances by both leads were pretty exceptional, hence a high score, but for the dissatisfaction I felt with the ending it would have been an 8 or even 9 out of 10 for me.
The Notebook (2004)
Truly moving
Cast, production etc were excellent, it's the story that makes this film though.
I'm a 6'5", 230lbs, Rugby playing 22 year old male brought up on the Internet and generally as cynical as they come. However I can freely admit I cried at the end of this movie. I can only hope that I some day find a woman I love as much as Noah does Allie in this story.
Rachel McAdams is wonderful on screen; a true delight to watch in anything she does but in this film she really shines. James Garner and Gena Rowlands are both exceptional in their roles, limited by screen time but pivotal in their impact. James Marsden produced an adequate performance, though I get the impression that the writers were trying to keep the movie below 3 hours so had to cut some of his part up, you really don't care that much about his character in any way, apart from how he affects the lives of the main two. Ryan Gosling was good; you really want him to get the girl though I suppose that is the minimum for the role he plays in the film. He was better as pre-war Noah than he was as post-war Noah, maybe the beard didn't allow him to express himself as much, maybe it's because the emotions are harder to express, maybe it's because he's playing the part brilliantly by showing an outer shell that appears impervious to emotions. I don't honestly know, you can make a case for all 3 but really it doesn't matter, his performance works.
This film appears to have been overlooked for awards apart from "Teen Choice", and that really is a shame. I've certainly seen worse performances win a best actress academy award than Rachel McAdams' in this film. I guess that the year this would have been in for is the 2004 awards and Hilary Swank was very good as Maggie Fitgerald in Million Dollar Baby, but I can guarantee that very few of the also-rans can compare to her performance. The film is also very well directed, the music suits the movie perfectly and the supporting cast isn't half bad. Why this film has received so very little industry recognition baffles me.
In conclusion, watch this movie. It's not a brain turn off movie by any means, so if you're looking for an easy ride it may be better to look elsewhere, but make a concerted effort to watch this movie, as and when you can.
Take a Chance (2006)
Good movie if you're not looking for anything too extraordinary
With a truly awful ending.
The movie is funny enough, it certainly had me in stitches at several points, but then it tries to do the romance angle, and to be fair to it, didn't do all that bad a job until the last few sections when the previously excellent dialogue becomes corny and stilted. Som much so that even the actors (especially Lara Everly playing Natalie Harris) seem to have some trouble forcing the words out. Her last conversation with Elliot Buddles (the really rather good Corbin Allred) is a particularly shoddy examination of how much salad dressing you can add to some pretty hammy script.
Overall a good movie, nice waste of an hour and a half. If you're not in the mood for something too taxing for the synaptic nerves and just want to switch off, this is definitely recommended. May also make a good choice for you and your girlfriend(s).
Kangaroo Jack (2003)
Fun film and definitely better than the poor rating given by most.
This film is a fun film and I don't believe it tries to be any more than this, think Austin Powers (a rip off of which occurs at the end of the movie) For some reason the average rating given on this site is 3.0 out of 10 at the time of writing, it's definitely worth more; I'd personally give it a 5 or 6, It's not exactly genius but it's above average.
As for the comments on the trailer being nothing like the film, i think the trailer was supposed to show the concept of the film rather than the basis for it. Maybe a mistake, but you really shouldn't judge the movie itself by target audience / trailer / marketing. That's not the actors fault, not the directors fault, not anyones fault other than the marketing executives etc.