Cast: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Banks, Lenny Kravitz, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Stanley Tucci, Donald Sutherland, Jeffrey Wright
Director: Francis Lawrence
Running time: 2 hour and 26 minutes
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire is the second installment of The Hunger Games movies. Katniss and Peeta are back after winning the 74th annual Hunger Games and about to leave for their victory tour. During the tour both, Katniss and Peeta, realize that a revolution is starting and Katniss is in the center of it all. But there are more in store for them. After they come back from the tour it is announced that in this year's annual Hunger Games the tributes will be selected from the existing pool of victors. So, once again, they are off to try and win in this deadly game.And this year President Snow has made sure there can only be one winner.
I LOVE this movie. I really loved the first one but it doesn't even compare to this one. First of all we get to learn more about the characters,especially Peeta and Gale,from whom we saw almost nothing in the first film.
Here we see a stronger,more determined but still funny, charming and kind Peeta. There was more personality to him while in the first one i felt he was just a clueless victim. He understands now that everything about the love affair between him and Katniss were for the cameras and he accepts it but he still tries to establish at least a friendship with her. He is now a protagonist of the movie along with Katniss while in the first hunger games that wasn't the case.
We, also, get to know a little bit about Gale and get to see his relationship with Katniss. We see that he cares for her and that she cares for him too but we experience him beyond that. We learn more about his thoughts on the Capitol and the revolution, which he mentioned in the first movie but only briefly, and see him taking action against the authorities in order to save others.
Katniss is tough, caring and a survivor. We got to know quite a bit of her in the first movie but here she shows how much she cares about people and we understand why everyone sees a leader in her since she is caring but has, also, the strength to fight for those who can't.
One thing i really enjoyed was how clear it is that Katniss has feelings for Peeta. In the first Hunger Games movie you get the impression that she starts to feel something for him but it is obvious that for the most part she is lying in order to survive. In the second Hunger Games movie there is a bond that forms between them during their time together that is very strong due to fact that they experienced a lot with each other while trying to survive their first time in the games but, also, because they know that they will have to go through that again and this time only one of them will survive.
Moreover, i really liked watching Woody Harrelson as Haymitch. We got a lot more of him this time around and i really enjoyed it. I am very happy that we will see even more from him in the third movie in a different way because of the information we got from the second movie. The same goes for Effie (Elizabeth Banks) i had fun watching her and she showed us a more sensitive side to her and i can't wait to see how she will be incorporated in the third Hunger Games movie.
And finally, one of the biggest things that bothered me (i really hate it) was the fact that have the movie was shot in a very-shaky-camera way. But thankfully that was not the case for the second movie. The camera work was pretty steady for the most part and that allowed the audience to really focus on what was happening rather than getting distracted every five minutes.
There were a couple of things that i didn't like about The Hunger Games. The first one was that even though Peeta was portrayed as a kind but strong person in general during the games he was shown as a very weak competitor. I feel that he would be a stronger contender based on the first movie. In the original Hunger Games we saw that he was very good at lifting heavy weights and camouflaging himself in order to blend into the background but in Catching Fire he doesn't take advantage of his strengths at all.
Furthermore, SPOILER ALERT!! the big reveal at the end was that Finnick and Johanna and some other tributes where part of a group hoping to start a revolution and they were trying to save Katniss so that she would be the leader. And that would be a great surprise and ending if it wasn't for some unnecessary comments made by Johanna, mostly, that made it obvious what was the plan. I saw the twist coming and it took all the fun out of the ending. I wish it was more unexpected.
In conclusion, i love The Hunger Games trilogy and this is my favourite so far. Worth more than just one watch. And to give a hint on how much a liked it i will say it was 2 and a half hours and i didn't want it to end.
Score: 95%
And remember, the odds are never in our favor.
m.
Courtesy
Lionsgate
Cast: Michael Fassbender, Penelope Cruz, Javier Bardem, Cameron Diaz, Brad Pitt
Director: Ridley Scott
Running time: 1 hour and 57 minutes
The Counselor is a movie about a lawyer who decides to get in business with the wrong side of the law. He decides to get into the drug scene (although I'm still not sure what he would be doing exactly). But things don't go the way they were supposed to and now the Counselor is left trying to figure out how to get himself out of the, very serious, trouble he is in.
What i will say about this movie is that it is "interesting". And what i mean by that is that because it is so extremely over the top it generated a certain fascination in me to see what's next. Every scene is more ridiculous than the previous and that kept me at the edge of my seat. I was never bored and the movie is almost two hours (so that should say something).I, also, have to say that i found the movie pretty hilarious and i don't know if i should put this on the pros or the cons column because it's not supposed to be funny. The dialogue between almost anyone in the movie is so random and tries to be so serious at the same time that it becomes comedic. It was so weird that i couldn't help but think "what the hell are they saying??". One of my favourite examples of this kind of conversation was when The Counselor was talking on the phone with Jefe, a high-ranking cartel member, and he would answer every question The Counselor asked with a very "deep"-sounding nonsense. It was so great.Furthermore, I actually did really like one of the characters. Westray (Brad Pitt) was an interesting addition to the film even though his appearances were limited.
The Counselor is very flawed in my opinion. First of all it's a big mess, to be honest. It has a very basic structure. The audience can definitely follow the events but the story is limited and interrupted by crazy and random scenes that are only there to shock the viewer (like the car thing or the snuff film thing). It is all over the place. The movie tries to tell a story but it ends up just showing you scenes in a chaotic way. It really bothered me and took me out of the whole thing. You don't see substance, you don't get to know anyone (not even The Counselor or his motives) and you don't care about anyone's fate in the end. It didn't feel like a real movie to me but rather a big pile of aimless moments. Moreover,even though non of the characters is worthwhile Penelope Cruz's character is even worse. She has no purpose until the end. She is just a plot device .
In conclusion, funny but intentionally, messy and with a great cast that can't save the movie from being what it is. If you are really bored watch it for the ridiculousness of it.
Score: 32%
m.
Courtesy
20th Century FOX
Cast: Adam Brody, Jennifer Morrison, Mia Maestro, Emily Watson, Zoe Kazan, Kristen Bell
Director: Daisy von Scherler Mayer
Running time: 1 hour and 30 minutes
The movie starts off with Adam Brody,who is never named through the film and is credited as man, in a hotel room waiting for Sam (Jrnnifer Morrison) his ex-girlfriend. And after that he waits in a hotel room for Tyler (Mia Maestro). And then Lindsay (Emily Watson). And Reggie (Zoe Kazan). And Bobbi (Kristen Bell). Adam Brody is on a "tour" to find and talk to his ex-girlfriends before he gets married. And he does. And many things happen.
Fun little fact: the movie is based on a play by Neil LaBute that ran in both London and New York City. And the screenplay for the movie was, also, written by Neil LaBute.
SAM (Seattle). Sam is the high school sweetheart. The girl from school that Brody's character broke up with before leaving for college.He didn't want to stay in his hometown and have a mediocre life. And he knew that was what Sam would end up having.
Sam's story is greatly relatable for many people and that is what i loved about it. It is something out of real life and that makes it all the more genuine and realistic. I, also, feel that it was the best one to start off with. It was the most simple one of all of them and a great way to ease us into the whole movie.
Sam's reaction was spot on. Not too dramatic but not apathetic either. It was the perfect way for an everyday, girl-next-door woman to react. It was the perfect way for someone like Sam to react.
TYLER (Chicago). Tyler is the adventurous girl. She is the girl with whom Brody experimented and got more in touch with his wild side. However, as Adam Brody discovers throughout their talk in the hotel room, she isn't really one of the girls he "wronged". He just thought she was because of the pain he felt while he was with her. But that pain was, in reality, for the girl he broke up with to be with Tyler. That pain was for a girl that comes up later in the list.
What i really enjoyed about this story is that it is a very suitable continuance from the previous story. After having relationships with sweet yet somewhat ordinary girls, Brody was attracted to the adventurous and unfamiliar wild-girl. It seems natural that Brody chose to get involved with Tyler at the point in his life where he was experiencing his life in a new light, after leaving home.
And like Sam, i thought that Tyler's reaction was perfect. It was obvious that even though Brody's character had made an impression, he wasn't someone she would stay very long with. But she was still hurt, even though you could tell she was tough, when he told her that she wasn't that important to him after all. That she was a "second" choice.
LINDSAY (Boston). Lindsay is the older woman who is, also, married. She got together with Brody's character when he started working at the school she was a teacher at and they started having an affair. They were eventually caught and she stayed and faced the consequences while Brody ran away and left her alone.
Lindsay blames Brody not only for leaving her when the times got tough but, also, for the affair they were in.
On the other side, Brody's character regrets abandoning her but doesn't feel that the affair was something to be guilty about.
My opinion about Lindsay's story and her reaction, which i won't spoil but it was a little bit extreme, is that Lindsay was not forced into the affair by anyone and she was the only one involved with someone else at the time. So she only has to blame herself. However it was understandable that she blamed Brody too, especially after the way he treated her.
So i feel that Lindsay's story was the one that was the most educational. She did something she regretted afterwards and she managed seeing Brody again in a human way but she, also, taught him a lesson and tried to make him understand that his actions affect others.
REGGIE (Seattle...again). Reggie is Brody's best friend's sister. She is the young girl that had a crush on him. But, at the same time, she is the girl with whom things went too far. The girl that was the most affected by Brody's behavior without him even realising it.
Reggie is, also, the girl that, in my opinion, got the most out of Brody's visit. In all the visits you could tell that Brody's reasons for the "tour" down memory lane were selfish. It was obvious that by the end of these conversations the person that was most benefited was Brody. However, in Reggie's case she was the one that walked out another person. A free person that was no longer carrying baggage from her past.
Reggie's story was the point where you understood how serious the movie really is. That it isn't just another movie about love but a movie about human behavior and human interactions.
BOBBI (Los Angeles). We have arrived. We are at the last stop of the exes train. We are at Bobbi's story. Remember the girl that Brody left in order to be with Tyler?? Well that girl is Bobbi.
Bobbi's story is the most crucial in the whole movie, hence it's the last one. SPOILER ALERT!! For me the most important thing in Bobbi's storyline (more important than the mike itself) is that Bobbi saw Brody's true nature from the start. She called him out on his bullshit before she even discovered the truth.She was a badass.
As far as the microphone goes, i really didn't see it coming (and maybe i should have). I knew his reasons for all of this were self centered but i didn't realise how much. And, frankly i loved it. I didn't see it coming but i did believe it in a second.
Which brings me to another major point. Brody's character was an asshole. BUT you didn't realise it right away. The script is so good that as the movie progresses the more you start to understand what kind of person Brody really is. You can't tell right from the begging but as you move forward in the story pieces start to click and his character starts to reveal himself. It's pretty great to watch.
Now back to Bobbi, as expected Brody comes to the conclusion (genuine or not) that she is the one for him. But she still leaves him realising that he is still the same person and that he will never change.
And that is what makes the ending so great (both; the one with Bobbi and the very end of the movie). You see that even with all the things that happened throughout his journey he learned nothing and he didn't grow at all from the experience. You understand that not everyone can change and it's fascinating to watch.
In conclusion, a great movie in my opinion. A real dive into the human soul and a testament to human behavior and its consequences. A must-watch.
Score: 92%
m.
Courtesy
Leeden Media
Cast: Domhnall Gleeson, Rachel McAdams, Bill Nighy
Director: Richard Curtis
Running time: 2 hours and 3 minutes
About Time is a movie about a young man who learns from his father that he has the power to go back in time and change any situation. We watch him use his power for his benefit and for others and we go along as his life changes with the help of his extraordinaire abilities.
The whole movie is charming and lovely and that is mostly because of the very likable leading man. Domhnall Gleeson has an awkwardness that is very appealing. He is not the model-actor that is a usual choice in many movies but he is not the complete opposite either. He is just the cute guy next door. One of the things i really enjoyed about the film was that it wasn't focused on how Gleeson was going to get the girl, McAdams, using his powers and that would be the end of it. It wasn't a love story but rather a life story. There was more to it. It had more aspects. From his parents, sister, best friend.... to his wife and kids. It covers all the layers of his life from the point that he learns about his powers and on. Moreover, i found unusual and very interesting his relationship with his sister, Wilson. It was sweet and their love was pure and unique. The movie , also, has a solid lesson to be learned which is always a good thing. Lastly, i though it was great how the movie portrayed Gleeson's character through the years. You could see the subtle change in his maturity and thought process as he was getting older. And as he was growing up so did the way he used his powers.
There was one thing i didn't really understand. SPOILER ALERT!!!! Why couldn't Tim go back to see his father after having a third child? If he did everything the same way theoretically it would be possible to go back and then return to the same present, especially since he had done it once before; so that he would have the daughter he had before instead of a son. And i know what i am saying is confusing for anyone who hasn't seen the movie yet but i was very curious.
The thing that i found a little bit unrealistic was the character of the sister, Lydia Wilson. She was depicted as a girl who lived in her own world but that was only for some of the time; other times she would act in a more usual way. So i thought the movie had to either go all out and make her really weird, in the alternative-indie movie kind of way, or make her really damaged which would mean another backstory for her because here she seemed to have a pretty great childhood which wouldn't explain the damaged part. And finally what i found to be another negative about this movie was that it was too perfect. Perfect next-to-the-sea mansion and down town apartment, perfect family, perfect girl... It was a bit too much perfection.
In conclusion, i really liked this movie, even though it wasn't perfect. Very enjoyable and i recommend it without a doubt.
Score: 82%
m.
Courtesy
Universal Pictures
Hey guys! Today's fact comes a little early,but who wants to wait until Friday. So here it is:
The glamorous and extravagant mansion in the movie The Great Gatsby was actually, as told by the movie's director Baz Luhrmann, his old high school in Australia as well as some computer graphics.
Hope you enjoyed today's fact and come back for more movie facts, reviews and more.
Have a great day.
m.
Courtesy
Warner Bros. Pictures
Cast: Nicole Kidman, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Jack Black, John Turturro, Zane Pais
Director: Noah Baumbach
Running time: 1 hour and 33 minutes
"Margot at the wedding" is literally about Margot who went at a wedding. No, I'm kidding, it's much more than that. The movie picks up with Margot (Nicole Kidman) and her son on the train going to visit Margot's sister that is getting married. During the movie we explore Margot's relationship with her sister, her son, her husband and how Margot reacts and thinks in general.
I have to say i really liked it. It was a little wacky and weird but, also, felt realistic and genuine. The main theme of the movie was the relationship between the sisters (Nicole Kidman and Jennifer Jason Leigh). They talked about one another behind the other's back but they felt like real sisters (there is a specific scene where they talked about the past and laughed about it when you could see how comfortable they felt with each other). And even though the one criticized the life choices of the other you could see the love they had despite their estrangement. Moreover, another element of the movie i really liked was how troubled Margot was and how that was portrayed in really settle ways during the movie. There were not any big, yell-y and dramatic scenes but you could see from the way she would talk to her son or her sister or how she would react to situations that Margot wasn't just a regular person but that she had issues. Finally, there were, surprisingly, some funny scenes and what i liked the most about them was that the movie was not a comedy but the scenes were funny in a way they would be in real life. Not in a big way but in an everyday kind of way.
One thing that would really annoy me in any other movie but felt right for this one is that there are many things happening but non of them is explained further. For example there are the neighbors that want to cut down the tree or Becky, who is the third sister, or their mother or almost anything really. However i felt that the movie didn't have to explore any of those things. I viewed it as more of a film that showed us Margot at a given moment and how she handled a certain situation rather than a film that showed us Margot and her life in general. In the same spirit i thought the ending was perfect. Even though i was taken aback with surprise at first, the more i thought about it the more i realised that as i said before the movie was about Margot at the wedding (pretty spot on title) and it didn't have to end with a big finale. It, instead, ended in a realistic way that showed that, ultimately, nothing changed and everything stayed the same.
As a bad thing i really can't find anything to say. The movie felt realistic and it had a artfulness to it so if you are not into more artsy movies maybe you won't like it but i am and i enjoyed every minute of it.
In conclusion, a realistic movie that says a story in its own way. Definitely worth a watch in my opinion.
Score: 83%
m.
Courtesy
Paramount Vantage
Cast: Greg Kinnear, Jennifer Connelly, Lily Collins, Nat Wolff, Liana Liberato, Kristen Bell
Director: Josh Boone
Running time: 1 hour and 37 minutes
Stuck in Love features the lives of a father, his son and his daughter and how they each experience love.
The movie has a lightness and youthfulness that i really enjoyed. It's all about love, has a pretty great cast (i love Greg Kinnear and Jennifer Conneli and i am really getting into Lily Collins) and feels like a fairytale to be honest. Also, a small thing that i would like to point out is how much i like movies that end in quotes. I don't know why but every time a movie starts and/or ends with a really great famous quote i get excited and that was the case with this movie. Moreover, i thought the relationship between the father and his kids was the relationship that i would like to have with my kids, someday.Kinnear's character treated his children with respect and viewed them as his equals and not like little kids. He talked to them as he would talk to grown ups.On that note, i really enjoyed the relationship between the siblings. They obviously care about each other but not like in other movies where they either don't love each other at all or they are inseparable,have only nice things to say about each other and never fight. Finally, i found the realism of the story about the younger son and his girlfriend really refreshing. We see in the movie the period of time when they are in love but we, also, see how Liana Liberato's character had many problems that couldn't be solved by Nat Wolff's character but how he still had the illusion and desire that she would come back to him and how she didn't.
However, i had much trouble with this movie. My main problem was that any of the stories, and i am not only talking about the love stories, was not properly analysed and shown in depth. Not the relationship between Lerman's and Collins' characters,not Wolff's and Liberato's, not her drug and alcohol problems, not Connelly's and the-guy-that-i-don't-even-know-his-name relationship,not Kristen Bell's and Greg Kinnear's relationship, barely Kinnear's and Connelly's relationship and break up and not Lerman's mother's death. We never saw under the surface about any of the stories, so ultimately i couldn't really care about the characters and their fates. The relationships were unrealistic, how Collins got together with Lerman after she avoided him so much for example, and too many to cover in one movie, frankly.
In conclusion, i enjoyed it as a light,with not much substance love story. Not nearly a masterpiece but not in the top 10 worst films of the year.
Score: 54%
m.
Courtesy
Millennium Entertainment
.jpg)
