Pride
This is number one on the list for a reason, what a fantastic film. I saw it three times, and each time the cinema was full. It is fantastic to finally see a film that centralises what is usually considered fringe communities. Despite being very interested in both politics and history I had no idea that the minors received support from the gay and lesbian community, much like the feminist uncovering of “herstory” in recent years it seems that mainstream reports have marginalised not only the strike but the support it received. This was an incredibly poignant film with a feel good ending and an important message about solidarity and teamwork. In a time when unions are constantly being undermined in favour of the big selfish business this film comes out and reminds us that we are not powerless against the bullying mentality. One of the most powerful endings I have seen in a while. You are made of stone if you don’t watch this and laugh, and cry. I give it FIVE badger stars.
X-Men: Days of Future Past
I do loves me a good comic book film and this X-Men did not disappoint. If you aren’t quite as massive a geek as me, then you will want to refresh yourself on the previous films before you see it or you won’t remember who’s who. Also, what happened at the end of X-Men 3? Didn’t everyone die? Totally confused there. Please do post a comment and fill in the blanks for me if you can. As a stand alone film this is fab. I do enjoy a bit of time travel and alternate realities. I do feel that we could have had a better introduction to the new characters, as a lot of assumptions were made about the viewer’s knowledge of Bishop, for example. Since I have seen the cartoon and played the Facebook game (don’t judge me) I knew who he was, but if you were coming into it having just seen the films I fear you could have been at a bit of a loss. Having said that there was more than enough Wolverine content to please the casual bystander, so no complaints there. I give it a badger FOUR stars.
Guardians of the Galaxy
Did I mention I enjoy a good comic book film? Well, I also enjoyed this one, they had a Raccoon, what’s not to like? I had never heard of the characters before, so I came in fresh. It had an awesome soundtrack which is bound to help. Unfortunately for me there was an annoying teenage girl in the cinema, who had clearly seen the film before, and pre-empted every vaguely comic line with an incredibly loud fake laugh, which meant I was not even vaguely amused by it. I liked the guy who was a tree. He was voiced by Vin Deasel, and had one line (frequently repeated, it was like a proper part), possibly the best performance ever, I hope to see him nominated for some sort of award very soon.
I think perhaps my rating is tainted by the annoying teenage girl, but tough, this one gets a badger THREE stars.
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire Part One
This was absolutely brilliant. Often when films are split into two parts, the first part is all build up and can be a bit dull, but not in this case. There was more action than you can shake a stick at, and once again it was very close to the books, which I really enjoyed reading. The one comment I would make with regard to the film, and I don’t know if this is deliberate, or just the way I viewed it, was that I quite liked the character of President Coin. When reading the book you get a real feeling of distrust for this character, but watching the film I didn’t get that at all, I saw what she was doing and why she was doing it, and I empathised.
Well worth a watch, whether you have read the books or just seen the film, and as such I give it a badger FIVE stars, cos I can.
Paddington
Of course I did, wouldn’t you? I loved the fact that this film provided more of a back story to Aunt Lucy, whilst still being true to the book, it was beautifully modernised without losing any of the charm of the original stories. Of course because it was a film they had to have a proper villain, which Nicole Kidman did incredibly well, and Hugh Bonnerville made a fantastic Mr Brown. It would have been very easy to play the parts tongue in cheek and lose a lot of authenticity, but the film was understated and fabulous, so I give it a badger FIVE stars, hurrah.
And since it’s Christmas, here is a repeat of the film wot I wrote. Also, what better Christmas present than one of my books? Get in touch, I’d even sign it for you!!!
