The Informant

The Informant! is a 2009 political dark comedy film directed by Stephen Soderbergh. It depicts Mark Whitacre's involvement as a whistle blower in the lysine price fixing conspiracy of the mid-1990s, as described in the 2000 non fiction book, The Informant, by journalist Kurt Eichenwald The script was written by Scott Z. Burns and the film stars Matt Damon, Richard Steven Horvitz, Scott Bakula, Joel Mchale and Melanie Lynskey.

I tried to enjoy this movie but just couldn't get into it. I guess it's just not my kind of humour. The monologues from Damon are well thought out and funny but I think the story itself wasn't funny enough. I think Damon acted really well and it was a good idea for a movie but, for me, it didn't work. I came away from the film without any stong feelings about the story. It was just something I watched when I was bored and probably because he was in it. I wouldn't recommend it to anybody looking for a real sidesplitter feel good movie. It's an acquired taste and not really for the masses.

By Gerry.

Battle Royale

Battle Royale is a 2000 Japanese film based on the novel of the same name and directed by Kinji Fukasaku, and stars Takeshi Kitanu and Tatsuya Fujuwara.

This film tells the story of a secondary school class that is being kidnapped and left on an island.
If that isn't horrible enough, they're also forced to fight each other to the death because there can only be one "winner" who will be allowed to get off the island and go home. Each student is given a survival pack along with a weapon (knives, guns, swords etc). To make sure they can't escape the island they have to wear electronic collars that can track them wherever they go. These collars are not removable!
We see the class mates fight for their lives, not sure who to trust and whether to team up with people or go alone. who will survive?

Vinny.

The Orphanage

Well this week I managed to watch many Films due to the flu one I happened to stumble across was The Orphanage (2007) Directed by Juan Antonio Bayona
Produced by Guillermo del Toro
This is a Spanish film starring Belen Rueda as Laura and Fernando Cayo as Carlos neither of these actors I have come across before.

Laura returns to an Orphanage she grew up in with her husband Carlos and adopted son Simon who is HIV positive. At the start there are some flashbacks of Laura in Orphanage playing a game. The Orphanage is being renovated into their home and also a retreat for special needs children.Simon has imaginary friend and Laura thinks having some real children will help him to get rid of the imaginary ones. Out playing on the beach Simon finds a new imaginary friend whom he brings home.A very sinister social worker also turns up at the house.Simon goes missing after he fights with Laura she cannot move on believing he is still alive. A very creepy boy in a sack bag mask haunts Laura which is nearly comical at times.

Laura begins to search for her son finding it hard to to believe what is in her imagination and what is real.A lot of the crawling camera work is similar to Del Toros Pans Labyrinth although unfortunately this film is not a patch on Pan's Labyrinth. As Laura unravels deep secrets in the house she regresses back into childhood pushing her husband further and further away.When a medium comes to the house more creepy and seat gripping moments occur but this is not long lived as the film drags out and I found myself nearly screaming at the TV to get to the point. Like Laura I found my my mind was beginning to play tricks on me. In 2008 this film was nominated for a foreign language Oscar.

Although the storey line was nothing new to all the other horrors it had the occasional scary moment thanks to the actors.The only slight letdown is a false ending, which proves to be much more in keeping with the rest of the action’s tension and tone than the one that actually wraps up the film. Where Laura finds out that she herself has killed her son by locking him accidentally in the basement ( explaining the banging noises).She then commits suicide placing here with her son again and all the other children that had died in the Orphanage. All in all if you like foreign films and have the patience to endure all the subtle spookiness I'd recommend it.
Til Next time Dawn :)

The Bucket List

"The Bucket List" is a 2007 film written by Justin Zackham, directed by Rob Reiner and starring Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson. It tells the story of 2 men with cancer who make friends with each other in hospital and head to an adventure in which they do the things they have wanted to do before they die, written down as "the bucket list".

This movie entertains the viewers as the men go to an around-the-world vacation. They ride motorcycles, go skidiving and get tattoos, among other things.

One of the men reunites with his daughter and meets his granddaughter for the first time, after things get more sad with the death of the other, as a result of the cancer getting worse.

I recommend this movie!

Mattias

Dan In Real Life

Drama/comedy film starring Steve Carell and Juliette Binoche. Steve Carell takes a step away from his usual comedy film acting and delivers a moving drama, with of course the occasional laughs.

In this film we follow the story of Dan, a newspaper journalist. Every year during the holiday season he visits his parents in the country, along with all the extended family that are invited there as well. After the death of his wife he his left with 3 young girls to raise and this takes its toll on Dan's social life and mental health and he is not too happy with himself. During the family get together he decides to take off and go down to the village to clear his head. In a random little bookstore he is approached by Marie (Juliette Binoche) who mistakes him as an employee. After making some small talk they agree to get some breakfast together. Marie tells Dan she has a boyfriend. Dan happily returns to the family home to announce that he has met someone new only to find Marie standing there with Dan's brother Mitch.

From here on we see the love between Dan and Marie develop and the situation gets tenser as Marie cannot leave Mitch for Dan because she is afraid of hurting Mitch. Can they work it out?

I recommend this film for anyone who'd like to see Steve Carell play one of his best roles to date. And just anyone who wants to see a good film :)

peace!

Vinny.

The Warriors

A 1979 movie about New York Gang warfare.
Well kinda.

-Dane

Night Train 2009

Night Train is a 2009 action/thriller film produced by Rifkin-Eberts Productions and stars LeeLee Sobieski, Steve Zahn, and Danny Glover.

Two Passengers and the conductor discover that a person has passed away on their Night Train cabin. They come across valuable diamonds on his person, that they wish to keep for themselves. So, to make it look like the man never boarded the train, they conspire to dump his body in a river that the train passes. Their scheme to get rid of the corpse escalates to the point where they have to chop up his body just to fit him into a small trunk. They then become paranoid, as they might turn on each other.

Surprisingly this was a very gripping film and quite enjoyable to watch. They actors are all very good and the story is well written. This is a much better film than the highly publicized 'The Box", which I didn't enjoy at all. I won't give away too much about the plot but basically there is a massive twist which I really didn't see coming about the diamonds.

This would be a great rental choice and there is something in this movie for everyone. It's clever and entertaining and a lot better than most things in cinemas at the moment.

Check it out!

by Gerry.