NukedaFridge Reviews

Diary of the Dead (2007)

I hate not seeing the end of a film.

[14 April 2008]

I watch a lot of movies. Not that I'm an expert or anything but I have a pre-paid pass that means I can see as many movies I want at the cinema for a year.

And with that pass I watch everything. To the end.

I've seen a lot of terrible movies and a lot of good movies but Diary of the Dead was one of a very few that I have actually walked out on my own decision.

Being a George AR fan naturally I expected good things. Land of the Dead was enjoyable enough, I liked it. Bought it. I own all the others and I consider the original three to be horror masterpieces, but masterpiece this movie is not.

Plagued with dire acting, over-preachy inconsistent plot riddled with cringeworthy clichés, I could honestly find no good qualities watching this. Hated the characters(whiny, emotionless, clichéd, students) who just did not convince me that this was real at all. In fact the camera style, also similarly used in REC and Cloverfield is supposed to install a sense of realism but everything felt incredibly staged, from actors to scenarios and really detached me from the whole experience.

And with little action altogether(Judging from the 60mins I saw) it felt more like a film about a group of students pretty standard psychophysical debate set during a zombie invasion. In reality it should have been students trying to survive during a zombie invasion but with such a lack of emotion from every character it seemed like this was just a pretty average day.

All in all this is definitely one of the worst movies I've seen in recent years and has truly made me believe that George AR isn't just having a bad streak, but may be going completely senile.

However I may watch it if it ever comes my way, some people are giving it good ratings and now I want to see if it changes into a completely different movie after the 60th minute because the pile of pants I watched doesn't even deserve a vote or even a damn entry into IMDb for being such a half-assed, poor excuse for a film.

Starter for 10 (2006)

British and beautiful

[11 September 2006]

I just seen this film at a surprise screening in Glasgow and I would recommend it to all. For one it features the amazing talents of James macavoy who doesn't disappoint in this slightly coming of age, slightly romance, slightly comedy drama which turns the world of relationships inside education upside down from deep crushes to background influences. The main appeal of this film was its ability to assault the viewer with pieces of hilarious wit that seemingly come from nowhere and features an amazing 80's soundtrack including the cure, undertones and new order. Its main downers however is a host of other actors that don't really get the attention they deserve such as the room mates that seemed to be quite interesting characters and even the female lead was given less of a personality and more of a distant "that girl you view from afar who you may or may not get at the end of the movie" and she wasn't necessarily poorly acted I just felt there could have been more development to her. But other than that the film was filled with witty and somewhat realistic situations that you could compare with to some extent which added to that air of authenticity that the good ol' British movie is good for. 8 stars for acting, writing, great soundtrack and well shot. -2 stars for less character development and being somewhat predictable near the climax.

Election (2005)

Great Depth

[23 June 2006]

This film really deserves more recognition than its getting. It really is a stunning and rich portrayal of blood ties, favours and allegiances within the crime world. The film is shot beautifully and delves into all you're classic crime themes such as betrayal and power. This film is a movie goers film, it requires attention and understanding and rewards fully in the end. It is the godfather of hong kong and is a welcome change rather than another wire frame fighting, martial arts epic which seems to be the major contribution to the cinema world from hong kong and china. It features an arrangement of great characters, actors and development although is fair to say I had to watch it twice just to nail what was happening with some of the characters due to their being so many interactions in the film. ALl in all 8/10 Great plot characters but there are characters that don't stand out enough and the music didn't really get me going and at times i felt it didn't sync well with the action(there is action by the way) so it loses some points for that.

Versus (II) (2000)

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[28 May 2006]

A very poor film. Mediocre action, characters and acting. A film that uses slapstick, gore and stereotypical "Slick" bag guys, the composed anti-hero, the poor little innocent girl, a Clouseau type inspector and of course your gullible zombie hordes which march to their deaths in a series of slaughterfests. The film doesn't alter reality it ignores it, from 6 shooter revolvers firing a couple if dozen shots to throwing away your guns for hand to hand combat in the midst of a standoff. Most disappointing was the main characters portrayal as a bad ass but sakaguchis performance was so poor that rather than conveying "not caring" he conveyed "stare straight ahead and don't change that face" The movie gets one star because the yakuza leader really put some effort into his character. In all this blows, some people say that its a movie that a group can relax with a drink and laugh at and enjoy, however thats something that can be easily done with XXX2. Doesn't take much to entertain a couple of drunks and this film isn't very much. Usually when someone criticises eastern cinema by saying says "if that film was made in the west people would say it blows" In these cases I class them then and there as idiots but on this occasion I accept it. This film is just a Japanese cult fad and if it was shot entirely the same with script, plot, level of performance and even the exact same frames, no doubt the public would bomb it. Face it, this blows.

Brick (2005)

Wow

[25 May 2006]

This film is far more than the best film this year but probably the best of last as well. Its written script is truly amazing, it really is poetry in motion. It's not a film where you can sit back and relax with only half a mind it needs concentration but is fully rewarding all the way through. Not only is the script superb but credits go out to directer rian johnson (responsible for script and direction) for effectively convey style and action without loss of effect and to the great cast in particular Joseph gordon-levitt who's only been improving since last years excellent performance in mysterious skin.

Plot - 9 Plot Development - 10 Style - 10 Acting - 10 Music - 9 Action - 9 Average - 9.5 stars

Bangkok Dangerous (2000)

Cool and composed

[25 May 2006]

Bangkok Dangerous I felt was a very stylish, well acted film with themes and, to an extent, a plot that ran along the same lines as alternative assassin flick Leon. Bangkok dangerous forms its protagionist with character interactions but mostly by delving into how he became the cold killer he is through a series of flashbacks which are not integral to the plot or even shown fluently but integral to our understanding of this troubled soul. The camera work in this film is its pro and con, at certain points style, fluidity and technique are all concentrated together to make some memorable scenes whereas occasionally certain shots has failed to impress and look slightly amateurish. The relationships in this film could also have had more focus on them because instead what we have is a series of different characters stories when we should have one large companionship struck by fate, betrayal and love. Warning for anybody watching this soon, the music ranges from OK to terrible and frequently fails to match the action.

In conclusion: Pretty good, if actions you're thing then this is you're thing but you'll probably cry you're guts out anyway. Its still quite moving. Plot - 5 Plot Development - 7 Acting - 8 Style - 7 Music - 3 Action - 10 Average - 6.66 Stars