pschofield-292-682589 Reviews

Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014)

First Turkey This Christmas

[4/10 · 4 December 2014]

Went to the premier showing last night with great expectations but oh dear, break out the stuffing, chestnut and cranberry sauces ... anything to liven up this turkey ! The CGI may be great, the large scale scenes in 3D are excellent but the real meat , the script is woefully lacking. Don't blink or you will miss the one line Sigourney Weaver utters, and as for Ben Kingsley, well for the very few scenes he is in he plays the calm elderly guy in homespun he normally plays. What a waste of two brilliant actors . However the young actor Isaac Andrews who plays "I Am" is superb. Just a quick word about the music . My wife commented that the score in Gladiator really did enhance the feel of the film , in Exodus the music was weak and added nothing. Sorry to say Ridley's epics are becoming a Christmas dinner of vegetables only with no meat content. So all in all a blockbuster to watch at home ... later next year.

Nightcrawler (2014)

THE Film of the year

[10/10 · 22 October 2014]

This is one of the few films that has held me in my seat from beginning to very end even when half way through I desperately needed to visit the bathroom . The storyline, script, filming and acting combine into the perfect storm of a brilliant film. Jake Gyllenhaal plays a character, on what I can only describe as at the higher end of the autistic spectrum and deserves an Oscar nomination for this role. His character is perfectly matched by Rene Russo playing the role of her career as the success seeking ageing news editor. And a shout too for Riz Ahmed as Rick, Gyllenhaal's assistant. What a contrast to "The Judge" which I saw last week, "Nightcrawler" is superior on every level, go see !

American Hustle (2013)

Oh Dear it really is a hustle

[4/10 · 6 January 2014]

For a number of years we have had a great UK TV series on the BBC called "The Hustle " with good acting and great humorous story lines. I was expecting something similar with American Hustle but what I did get was OK acting and a very poor story line with little humour some of it unintentional. I was really looking forward to this film but sadly it was not to be. Was I expecting too much ? Probably. But I did love the disco dancing sequence although a hip disco in 1978 would not be playing a 1977 release with so many great new tracks being issued weekly! And the costumes really were exaggerated and made the characters look like buffoons at times. Watchable but wait till release on DVD or download .

The Internship (2013)

Not a vintage more a supermarket screw top

[5/10 · 18 June 2013]

Watched it last night at a premiere viewing and found it a pleasant unassuming little number with an OK taste and flavour It's a fairly typical off- the -shelf, unpretentious light and palatable to be consumed now ....certainly not a vintage !!! It's one of those films to see either on an afternoon when nothing else is happening or as a Sunday evening TV film. I would have liked to see more of John Goodman character to counter the sweetness of the rest of the film.

I got a little confused as I thought his character had retired to Florida so when Vince Vaughn left Google to join him to sell mobility scooters and Owen Wilson went after him, he tracked him down in an hour as they were in California ......4000 miles away from John Goodman .....did I miss something along the way? Oh by the way is this THE product placement of the century or what?

Olympus Has Fallen (2013)

Do the film makers know something we don't?

[6/10 · 17 April 2013]

Wow, action from the beginning and some great blood and gore fight scenes all the way through. Suspend reality for a couple of hours and this really is an above average action film.And in light of the current situation in the Korean peninsula very relevant. However when reality kicks in would you really sacrifice the safety of a nation for one man? Well "Acting " President, Morgan Freeman in his now omnipresent role as President/God/Leader of Humanity- (tick the appropriate box) has this decision to make as a terrorist group take over the White House and capture the President in an attempt to get the US to withdraw the 7th Fleet from the Korean Sea, withdraw the US Army from the DMZ in Korea and blow up US IBM's in their silos thus reducing the USA to a wasteland similar to North Korea. And only one man, Mike Banning can stop them which he of course does with great aplomb and pithy humour. An above average film of its genre and I particularly like the put down of the bellicose gung ho General Clegg played wonderfully by the great Robert Forster. There is a great one-liner from Mike Banning (Gerard Butler) to his arch nemesis Kang (Rick Yune) which is "Lets play the game of F*@k Off....You go first" All in all great fun and worth seeing . Oh and in the film North Korea does deny it is responsible for the terrorist attack.

Oblivion (I) (2013)

Not quite to be cast into "oblivion"

[2/10 · 11 April 2013]

As the couple at the side of me left about three quarters through the film I realized I should have joined them too as the ending was so predictable. I am sure the final explosion in the sky was taken from "Independance Day" and this just about sums up the film. Bits and pieces from lots of different sci- fi films pieced together with some good cinematography. I now realise why Tom could'nt explain the film when appearing on the Graham Norton Show last week. It's really just a Cruise vehicle and he just isn't an actor of depth and quality to carry this off. On the other hand what a revelation Andrea Riseborough is, fabulous acting. Morgan Freeman plays his normal President/God/Leader of Humanity- (tick the appropriate box part). But overall only a so- so movie. I bracket it with last year's failure to ignite "Prometheus", as a nice movie to watch on TV.Rates no more than a three stars with me

Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (2011)

Excellent feelgood gentle humour movie

[9/10 · 4 April 2012]

OK I had read the book and did'nt know quite what to expect from the film. It is different great in its own way. Its a very British film with all the gentle humour irony and brilliant acting you would expect. Kristin Scott Thomas steals it for me as the pushy Press Secretary to the Prime Minister and really deserves recognition as supporting actress. The scene where she is getting her kids off to school and her comments to her son are hilarious in street talk. Emily Blunt is delicious and Ewan McGregor plays his most understated but elegant role yet. Loved the scene with his wife Mary in the bedroom with him wearing flannel blue striped pyjamas Great casting, great acting, great script,great photography. What's not to like,oh the salmon were fantastic , don't actually know if any were hurt in the filming, but bet if they were they tasted great! Lovely movie