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Reviews
Full Metal Jousting (2012)
Excellent
This is full on competitive jousting with proper medieval chivalric rules. Donning Tony Stark-esque Iron Man suits, the competitors spend the first part of the show going through training exercises and familiarising themselves with the intricate techniques required for accurate jousting. This competition certainly pulls no punches and the 8 run competition at the end is exhilarating to watch, as their mighty horses thunder down the course and lances are lowered.
Points are scored for a hit on the scoring plate located on the right shoulder, a broken lance and the satisfying unseating.
It is truly authentic and great to watch.
Luther (2010)
Wooden, wooden and clichéd...oh, and a dollop of ham too.
I've put off watching this since seeing the first two episodes of series 1 and I must say, I am still astounded. It is one of the most ridiculous, clichéd programmes I have seen in a long while. I still can't fathom which is more wooden, the dialogue, the acting or the story lines. How this has received awards and glowing reviews is truly beyond me. It is just plain bad, on so many levels.
It truly saddens me that the writer of this has garnered so much praise, for what is, basically, a poorly written, clichéd riddled, ridiculous excuse for a detective series.
I've given it one star, as that is classed as 'awful', although three stars is my usual benchmark for 'awful'.
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
LOTR Deja Vu
Lord of the Rings part 1 The Directors Remix, would be a more apt title. If you value the wrapping over the present, then this film will satisfy you, or if you like repeats. Peter Jackson has decided to ignore the main concepts of The Hobbit and made LOTR all over again. Certainly not aimed at Mr Tolkein's target audience, evident by the 166min and 3 annual films runtime.
As usual the 3D aspect is great...for the first 10 minutes and very few people were ducking the first out-of-the-screen-debris shot, never mind the 8th. And the 48fps visuals are quite impressive, giving the viewer a real feel for being right there in the middle of it all....at the studio as they filmed it. The high definition begins to feel like a live TV recording after a while and occasionally the action looks a bit fast forwarded. Having also watched it with a Tolkein admirer I've been reliably informed that it misses on nearly level in relation to the book, including creatures and battles that just aren't in the original, the wrong overall tone of both the storyline and the characters (Jackson excusing himself with a 'foot in each camp' defence) and surprisingly too little character development!
Overall a flawed, overstretched, patchy repeat hiding behind a glossy exterior. No doubt it will be showered with fawning awards and fans will love it.
Full English (2012)
Unfunny
First impressions are that it is clichéd and derivative. Being self-admittedly ''rude, puerile and silly'' sounds more like an excuse for bad writing and a lack of any actual humour. The characters are either lazy copies or one dimensional, with at least one who could become quite annoying very quickly. It tries to emulate the styles of Family Guy et al and fails miserably with unoriginality and little sense.
It might be worth watching to see how badly it continues to be written for those interested in comedy writing, as its flaws are legion. But how this got past anyone to be commissioned is truly worrying.
Moon (2009)
Emperors new clothes
Well produced.....that's about it really. A tedious Frankenstein of a film, using a hash of ideas gleaned from far better examples of the genre. Sam Rockwell isn't sure whether to play it for laughs or not, leaving us with a performance that Simon Pegg would have been annoyed to not to have been considered for.
I was left confused over why most of the events and actions occurred due to the complete illogicality of Rockwells' behaviour and ridiculous premise. Although not as perplexing as the high rating this film has garnered.
Despite all the misguided and gushing raves this film has received, it seems to have achieved the box office returns it deserved.
Adulthood (2008)
Well crafted and engaging film
Having just seen this film at a BAFTA preview, I felt that it deserves a favourable review. Noel Clarke has realised a well written, captivating film. Melodrama and action is finely balanced, moving the storyline smoothly along whilst capturing all the relevant aspects of the protagonists journey. There were one or two contrivances that were a little beyond expected reality, but they weren't totally unreasonable and only served to highlight the overall realism of the storyline. It is after all a drama and some concessions need to made to keep the suspense. The characters are all extremely believable and the cast all contribute with superb performances, bar none. Noel Clarke's own performance is outstanding, and is the bedrock of the film. Having only been aware of him from his appearances in Dr.Who, I was pleasantly surprised at the depth of character he manages to portray. The dialogue seems to be authentic in style and avoids making the actors seem like caricatures, as can so easily be done in films of a similar theme. Brian Tufano's cinematography was well measured and help to maintain a good balance between some nice editing, great soundtrack and solid direction.
I think Noel Clarke should be justly proud of his achievement in writing , starring and directing this genuinely entertaining film. If I seem to be lauding too much praise, it is because this film didn't fail to deliver where so many other low budget films do. It is a film with honesty, heart, action and integrity without preaching or patronising the viewer.
I liked it and I'm a cynical sod, so if anyone sees Noel Clarke, tell him he done alright.
Darcus (not Howe)