Doom (2005)

Posted on April 2, 2007 by badblokebob

2007 #25
Andrzej Bartkowiak | 113 mins | DVD | 15 / R

Doom is quite flawed in many ways. I don’t say this because I inherently dislike mindless action films (while I am perfectly aware they are not usually Great Films, I enjoy them as entertainment); I say this because Doom doesn’t really succeed at being one. It takes too long to get anywhere — I think someone thought it was building suspense, when really it’s just nothing happening.

When it does kick off it’s brief and only vaguely entertaining. And the much-discussed first-person sequence is far too much like watching someone play a video game.

United 93 (2006)

Posted on March 21, 2007 by badblokebob

2007 #22
Paul Greengrass | 107 mins | DVD | 15 / R

It’s very hard to find what to say about this film. It’s a shame the Oscars were too cowardly to nominate it for much; Greengrass probably deserved Best Director for this more than Scorsese did for The Departed (he is, all round, a talented and excellent director). At least the BAFTAs were brave enough to give it to him (cos British is best ‘n’ all).

But the film itself: it is above all affecting; it feels real and true; it is hard to imagine a more competent and respectful film being made about 9/11; it is impossible to imagine one being made about flight 93. This is filmmaking of the highest order. Perhaps most importantly of all, the families want you to see it.

Absolutely essential.

United 93 placed 1st on my list of The Ten Best Films I Saw For the First Time in 2007, which can be read in full here.

Johnny English (2003)

Posted on March 3, 2007 by badblokebob

2007 #21
Peter Howitt | 84 mins | DVD | PG / PG

Almost the flip-side of Hot Fuzz’s coin. Johnny English doesn’t quite manage the action sequence thing (though the car chase is quite good), and the humour is a lot gentler. Every joke is sign-posted at least a good few seconds in advance, sometimes several minutes, yet that’s half the fun — you know what’s about to go wrong and that nothing can stop English doing it anyway.

Not brilliant, then, but an entertaining enough bit of nothing.

Hot Fuzz (2007)

Posted on March 3, 2007 by badblokebob

2007 #20
Edgar Wright | 121 mins | cinema | 15 / R

Here come the fuzz!

I wasn’t hyped enough about this film to pay £10 to see it a week before release, and instead paid just £3.75 to see it in a big screen with just myself and a friend. Now that’s entertainment.

The brilliance of the situation aside, this is a damn good film. Most of its running time is devoted to high-quality comedy, and then it kicks into a full-blown action movie! Fantastic! I unreservedly recommend this to everyone, and especially to fans of action films and British comedies — do not miss this.

Hot Fuzz placed 2nd on my list of The Ten Best Films I Saw For the First Time in 2007, which can be read in full here.

UPDATE (16/9/2012)

Having had a rant about current cinema prices on twitter the other day, the fact this review mentions how much I paid back in 2007 led me to look up the current cost of tickets at the same cinema (a branch of a well-known chain).

It’s five-and-a-half years on, so of course prices will have gone up, but nonetheless I have two observations:

1) The cost of a regular (peak time) adult ticket is now £9.
2) The cost of the equivalent ticket to the one I bought is £5.40. That’s a 44% increase. An inflation calculator tells me that my 2007 ticket would today be exactly 20% more expensive.

Make of that what you will.

Blood Diamond (2006)

Posted on March 3, 2007 by badblokebob

2007 #19
Edward Zwick | 143 mins | cinema | 15 / R

In some respects this also suffered from hype, though only to a small degree — Jonathan Ross loved it, which is usually a very good recommendation to me; I ‘merely’ thought it was very good.

Its most impressive achievement is mixing important real-life information with a compelling narrative in a way that does not feel preachy. It also doesn’t compromise on its moral messages for the sake of a twist, and has some great action sequences to boot. There are almost as many endings as Lord of the Rings mind.

Blood Diamond placed 10th on my list of The Ten Best Films I Saw For the First Time in 2007, which can be read in full here.

Notes on a Scandal (2006)

Posted on March 3, 2007 by badblokebob

2007 #17
Richard Eyre | 92 mins | cinema | 15 / R

I hear that this is displeasing as an adaptation. But I haven’t read the novel, so that doesn’t cloud my judgement.

Judi Dench is brilliant as ever in a rare villainous role (the Oscar would’ve been hers were it not for Helen Mirren’s equally brilliant but more obvious turn in The Queen), Cate Blanchett gets to spar with her as the flawed ‘hero’, and the rest of the principal cast are very good also.

It lacks something towards the end, perhaps because it functions better as a character piece than as a thriller, but is still worth a watch.

The Prestige (2006)

Posted on February 28, 2007 by badblokebob

2007 #14
Christopher Nolan | 130 mins | cinema | 12A / PG-13

The latest effort from the director of Memento and Batman Begins is an intriguing one.

A well-handled complex narrative (it again jumps about in time, but never to the audience’s confusion), even if the twists are relatively easy to guess. A credit, then, that the film doesn’t totally rely on them.

I’m a big fan of Nolan’s work and definitely continue to be; this may gain that missing point on re-viewing. See it.

The Prestige placed 4th on my list of The Ten Best Films I Saw For the First Time in 2007, which can be read in full here.

Romance & Cigarettes (2005)

Posted on February 28, 2007 by badblokebob

2007 #13
John Turturro | 102 mins | DVD | 15 / R

I was attracted to this because it was billed as a modern musical, with an impressive cast. Tsk.

Some people are put off by the musical tag — well, don’t be. The characters occasionally sing along to some popular songs (and sometimes to ones you’ve never heard in your life), and sometimes do fun dance routines. This sits at odds with the gritty-ish melodrama of the plot, but that’s the fun.

It’s worth a punt, but expect to dislike it.

The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)

Posted on February 28, 2007 by badblokebob

2007 #11
Gabriele Muccino | 117 mins | cinema | 12A / PG-13

Will Smith gives up the comedy act and blockbuster action for the sort of true story that you thought only happened in movies.

His relationship with his screen-son is impressive acting, ’til you realise it’s his real-life son too, but even that does little to undermine things. It manages to avoid the sugary sentimentality that you might expect and in the process makes for a fair tale of the underdog succeeding.

Cute kid too.

Ong-Bak (2003)

Posted on February 28, 2007 by badblokebob

2007 #8
Prachya Pinkaew | 108 mins | DVD | 18 / R

This is a tricky film to rate. The plot is pretty inconsequential and drags things out a bit toward the end, but that’s not what you come to a film like Ong-Bak for — it’s here for the action.

When it comes (the pointless plot machinations hold it off for a while), it delivers pretty well indeed, with some impressive work from star Tony Jaa.

I err on the side of generosity with my score.

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Category Archives: 2000s

Doom (2005)

United 93 (2006)

Johnny English (2003)

Hot Fuzz (2007)

Blood Diamond (2006)

Notes on a Scandal (2006)

The Prestige (2006)

Romance & Cigarettes (2005)

The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)

Ong-Bak (2003)