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Their Finest Trailer


It's the early 1940s and World War II is in full swing. Bombs are raining down on London in the Blitzkrieg threatening to tear the country in two, but the British are made of sturdier stuff. Catrin Cole is a writer who comes to realise that the absence of ambitious young men in the workplace due to recruitment into the army has opened a door for her. She is appointed by the film division of the Ministry of Information to write the supplementary women's dialogue of a new propaganda film about Dunkirk, however she is told that she'll get no screen credit and won't be paid as much as her male counterparts. She goes one step further and writes the whole script, impressing all involved if leaving them a little indignant. Plus, she finds an unlikely ally in an aging film star named Ambrose Hilliard, who longs for the days he had major roles.

Continue: Their Finest Trailer

Pride Reviews


Bill Nighy Imelda Staunton

After taking Cannes by storm and picking up a few awards in the process, the true comedy-drama Pride has already joined the ranks of beloved British crowd-pleasers, even though it's only opening in UK cinemas this weekend. In addition to the accolades it has already won, the film has a rare 100 percent positive rating from Rotten Tomatoes critics.

Pride

Pride joins a long history of British feel-good hits like Billy Elliot, The Full Monty, Brassed Off, Calendar Girls, Bend it Like Beckham and Kinky Boots. Plus of course the rousing movies that stormed the Oscars and walked off with Best Picture in the process: Chariots of Fire, Shakespeare in Love, Slumdog Millionaire and The King's Speech.

More: read our full review of 'Pride'

Continue reading: Pride Reviews

Pride Trailer


During the UK miners strike between 1984 and 1985, working families are in desperate need of support. They're feeling victimised and abandoned by society as threats over their livelihood remain imminent. But they're not the only ones feeling ostracised in their own country and that's how the Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners campaign was born. Homophobia is rife in the UK, with the National Union of Mineworkers even refusing help from the LGSM campaigners for fear of how people may see them. Instead, they take their support to a small town in Wales where the majority of workers there are miners. In an extraordinary show of acceptance in an unlikely era, the town allows their new supporters to raise funds for their village. The townspeople may be humorously ignorant about life as a homosexual, but they're judging no longer.

Continue: Pride Trailer

'I, Frankenstein' Fails To Raise Critics' Pulses


Aaron Eckhart Frankenstein Bill Nighy Yvonne Strahovski Miranda Otto Aden Young Caitlin Stasey

I, Frankenstein, the latest adaptation of Mary Shelley's classic novel, has been crushed by critics and no electrical cables or extra body parts seem likely to rebuild its reputation.

Aaron Eckhart
Aaron Eckhart stars as Adam, Frankenstein's monster.

The creators of the Underworld saga have contributed to this supernatural monstrosity, which is hardly surprising considering the standards of the latter movies in that particular franchise. The film is based on the graphic novel of the same name by Kevin Grevioux which places Frankenstein's monster in an alternative present day where gargoyles and demons struggle for dominance. 

Continue reading: 'I, Frankenstein' Fails To Raise Critics' Pulses

Trailer Released For 'I, Frankenstein': Prepare Yourself For A Modern Day Twist On Thrilling Legend [Trailer + Pictures]


Bill Nighy

It's easy to tell that upcoming action movie I, Frankenstein has been made by the same producers as Underworld. Even from the dark trailer we get the same sense of foreboding gloom and supernatural horror.

I Frankenstein
I, Frankenstein Evokes The Darkness Of The Underworld Movies.

The movie, released in early 2014, sees Aaron Eckert as the titular ageless creature who finds himself plonked into the middle of modern society after hiding out in the North Pole for the nearly the last 200 years, mourning the death of his creator, Dr. Frankenstein.

Continue reading: Trailer Released For 'I, Frankenstein': Prepare Yourself For A Modern Day Twist On Thrilling Legend [Trailer + Pictures]

I, Frankenstein Trailer


Adam is the original creature created by Dr. Frankenstein 200 years ago and has taken on his maker's surname having been mourning his death for so long. He now returns to society having been hidden away in the North Pole for the last two centuries and finds that he is stronger than any other lifeform on the planet. However, he soon finds himself embroiled in a deadly battle between two different immortal forces of the world that are determined to take over the planet. Adam wants to save the human race that he was born into and that once showed him mercy, but how can he when he's one guy against so many unstoppable beings who are determined to destroy him no matter what?

'I, Frankenstein' is the thrilling fantasy adventure written and directed by Stuart Beattie ('Tomorrow, When the War Began', 'Australia', '30 Days of Night') and based on the as yet unpublished graphic novel by Kevin Grevioux. It acts as a sequel to the original 1818 gothic novel 'Frankenstein' by Mary Shelley, bringing Frankenstein's monster into a modern society that is under threat by more of his own kind. The film is set to be released in the UK on January 24th 2014.

Click Here To Read - I, Frankenstein Movie Review

About Time Review


Weak

Curtis has said he may stop making movies, and on the basis of this film you can kind of see why: he's clearly in a rut. While this romance attempts a bit of magical whimsy, it's the same collection of sassy comedy, romantic drama and sudsy sentimentality that characterised Love Actually and Notting Hill. More troubling is how it presents that same almost offensively slanted view of British society.

The magical element is time travel, as young Tim (Gleeson) learns from his father (Nighy) that the men in his family can flit back along their timelines at will, reliving past events and fixing things where needed. Tim decides this will come in handy as he looks for a wife, and indeed he uses his skill to circle round and round charming American Mary (McAdams) until they fall in love. And over the next several years, as he figures out how to make their life together as amazing as possible, he learns that there are some limitations to this gift.

As always, Curtis gives his characters a fantasy level of wealth that doesn't really make sense. We never see Tim travel back to win the lottery, but there's no other explanation for how he and Mary are able to buy a house in a posh Maida Vale street. And these characters also live in an imagined pocket of London that has no diversity at all, as we never see anyone who isn't white and straight. But then, Tim's idyllic childhood on the Cornish coast isn't exactly believable either, complete with a quirky earth-adoring sister (Wilson) and always-confused uncle (Cordery).

Continue reading: About Time Review

A Week In Movies: Jennifer Promotes The Millers, Angelina Goes Evil, Coogan Moves Beyond Alan Partridge


Jennifer Aniston Jason Sudeikis Will Poulter Rachel McAdams Bill Nighy Angelina Jolie Steve Coogan Mark Wahlberg Saoirse Ronan Spike Jonze

We're the Millers

We're the Millers had a huge premiere in London this week, and stars Jennifer Aniston, Jason Sudeikis and Will Poulter were all over town promoting the film before walking the blue carpet in Leicester Square. It opened in the US last week, and hits Britain next week. Here's a video of Jennifer Aniston leaving Los Angeles for the London premiere. Here we have pictures of Jennifer Aniston braving rainy London for 'We're The Millers' Premiere.

Also in London, Rachel McAdams attended the world premiere of her new movie About Time, about a guy who travels back in time to find himself a girlfriend. She was accompanied by costars Bill Nighy and Domhnall Gleeson, plus filmmaker Richard Curtis, at Somerset House, where the premiere screening was held outdoors. The film opens next month. Click here for pictures from the premiere and the trailer for Richard Curtis' rom-com 'About Time'.

Continue reading: A Week In Movies: Jennifer Promotes The Millers, Angelina Goes Evil, Coogan Moves Beyond Alan Partridge

Would Bill Nighy Have Made A Better Doctor Who Than Peter Capaldi?


Peter Capaldi Bill Nighy

Bill Nighy, the popular British actor best known for his turns in Love Actually and Harry Potter and the Dealthy Hallows, has revealed that he once turned down the role of Doctor Who because he considered the part to come with "too much baggage."

Quite what the actor regards as baggage in unclear, though he probably means that once you play Doctor Who, you're Doctor Who forever. Something challenged somewhat by the exploits of David Tennant in recent years, but whatever.

"I won't tell you when, because the rule is that you are not allowed to say you turned that job down because it's disrespectful to whoever did it," Nighy told the Daily Express at the premiere of his new movie About Time.

Continue reading: Would Bill Nighy Have Made A Better Doctor Who Than Peter Capaldi?

'About Time' Premieres In London: Did Critics Enjoy Richard Curtis' Swansong?


Rachel McAdams Domhnall Gleeson Richard Curtis Bill Nighy

When Richard Curtis announced that he was stepping away from filmmaking after three decades of movies, fans of his sweet and touching rom-coms looked forward to the final piece from the romantic comedy maestro who helped bring us Love Actually, both Bridget Jones films, Notting Hill and Four Weddings & A Funeral.

Domhnall Gleeson Rachel McAdams Richard Curtis
Domhnall Gleeson, Rachel McAdams & Richard Curtis At Last Night's Premiere.

About Time's premise is straightforward yet intriguing. A young man named Tim (Domhnall Gleeson) finds out from his father (Bill Nighy) that the men in their family have the ability to time travel. Just head somewhere quiet, focus on a dark memory then...pop! Rather than use the skill for earthly good Tim decides his first mission will be to get a girlfriend. The object of his affection, in true Four Weddings/Notting Hill Curtis style is the smiling, confident American to contrast with Tim's bumbling ways (à la Hugh Grant).

Continue reading: 'About Time' Premieres In London: Did Critics Enjoy Richard Curtis' Swansong?

Richard Curtis, Director Of Bridget Jones, Notting Hill To Retire From Filmmaking


Richard Curtis Domhnall Gleeson Rachel McAdams Bill Nighy

Richard Curtis, king of the romantic comedy genre, has decided that the soon-to-be-released About Time will most likely be his last. The Oscar-nominated filmmaker, best known for his screenwriting skills for The Boat That Rocked, Love Actually, Notting Hill, and both Bridget Jones films, has told Empire magazine (reported by The Independent) that "[About Time] probably will be the last film I will direct."

Pressed for a reason he's taking a step back, the 56 year-old filmmaker admitted he himself wasn't sure: "I don't know. Just a feeling...just a feeling. It feels like a summing-up to me. We'll see how things turn out."

Richard Curtis
Rom-com Director Richard Curtis Is Stepping Away From His Directing Career.

Continue reading: Richard Curtis, Director Of Bridget Jones, Notting Hill To Retire From Filmmaking

British Stalwart Richard Curtis To Put Down Camera And Quit Directing


Richard Curtis Rachel McAdams Bill Nighy Domhnall Gleeson Tom Hollander

Undoubtedly the king of British rom-com, Richard Curtis has enjoyed a long and successful career, writing or helming some of the country’s most-loved films.

In addition to his Oscars and Bafta nominations/wins, he can probably add a ‘films played most at Christmas’ award to his illustrious list.

But the time has come, according to Curtis at least, to down tools and enjoy retirement. There will be no more writing/directing for this guy. "I waited a while in order to write About Time.

Continue reading: British Stalwart Richard Curtis To Put Down Camera And Quit Directing

Richard Curtis Returns With Latest Rom-Com 'About Time' [Trailer]


Richard Curtis Domhnall Gleeson Rachel McAdams Charlie Brooker Bill Nighy

Oscar-nominated filmmaker Richard Curtis, the man behind British romantic-comedy behemoths Notting Hill, Love Actually and Bridget Jones's Diary, is back with his latest foray into the best-loved movie genre. 'About Time' stars Domhnall Gleeson as Tim Lake, a 21-year-old who struggles with the opposite sex - that is, until his father (Bill Nighy) introduces him to an incredible time warp that will allows him a second chance on first impressions.

Watch The 'About Time' Trailer Below!

Tim - who appears to be playing a character not a million miles from the one he played in Charlie Brooker's Black Mirror- soon meets a beautiful girl named Mary (Rachel McAdams) whom he begins to date. However, Tim slips up during one of his time warps, discovering that Mary has never met him before and that several months of romance have simply vanished. He must try and win her back for a second time, though his special power comes with dangerous consequences.

Continue reading: Richard Curtis Returns With Latest Rom-Com 'About Time' [Trailer]

Jack The Giant Slayer Review


Very Good

We may sigh heavily at the thought of yet another fairy tale blockbuster, but the filmmakers and cast here demand a bit more attention. And sure enough, it's refreshingly smarter and funnier than we expect. There are still the problems of unnecessary 3D and far too many digital characters, but the restless pace and the witty performances make it a lot of fun to watch.

It's Jack and the Beanstalk with added action mayhem, as orphaned farmboy Jack (Hoult) sells his horse for a bag of supposedly magic beans. When one inadvertently gets wet, a massive beanstalk manages to propel Princess Isabelle (Tomlinson) into the realm of the giants, reawakening a legend that had died off centuries ago. So the King (McShane) enlists Jack to join a rescue team of guards (including McGregor, Marsan and Bremner) and Isabelle's intended, the shifty Roderick (Tucci). Up above the clouds, they encounter two-headed giant Fallon (Nighy) and his nasty horde. But rescuing Isabelle is only the first problem they face.

The freewheeling plot zips along without pausing for breath, encompassing massive set pieces and more gritty battles as well as small moments of drama and romance. Meanwhile, Jack and Isabelle cast lusty glances at each other, even when they're in physical peril. Director Singer brings out the energy of the characters to keep us involved, playing on the vertiginous angles of the settings while playfully deploying fairy tale imagery in the sets, costumes and landscapes. it's understandably why he decided to digitally create the giants rather than have actors play them, but this leaves a hole where the monsters should be. Aside from Nighy's more obviously performance-captured face, all of them look like dead-eyed cartoons, which essentially turns the film into a medieval Transformers movie.

Continue reading: Jack The Giant Slayer Review

Total Recall Review


OK
Audiences weren't exactly clamouring for a remake of that 1990 sci-fi hit starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sharon Stone, but here we are. The filmmakers promised to return more closely to Philip K. Dick's original story, but instead they merely lift visual references from a series of much more involving movies. And with only one decently realised character on the screen, the only other thing to hold our interest is the way it looks.

That one good character is Doug, played with real depth by Farrell. After a chemical war has left just two inhabitable spots on earth (Britain and Australia), Doug is working as a robotics engineer and living a quiet life with his wife Lori (Beckinsale). But he keeps dreaming about running for his life with another woman (Biel), so he heads to a Rekall memory-implant centre to clear his mind. Of course he instead opens a can of worms, discovering that he's not who he thinks he is. But what's the truth? And who's side he really working for - the totalitarian chancellor (Cranston) or the violent rebel leader (Nighy)?

Continue reading: Total Recall Review

Total Recall Trailer


It is an uneasy period in human history, with the nation states of Euromerica and New Shanghai vying for supremacy a factory worker, Douglas Quaid, begins to question this new world order. With the questions mounting in his head it seems that the only thing that can clear his head is a decent vacation and Rekall looks to be the company to help him out with this desire.

Continue: Total Recall Trailer

Wrath Of The Titans Review


Good

While this sequel is just as loud and chaotic as 2010's Clash of the Titans remake, it's also considerably more fun due to some exhilarating action and a refreshing sense of humour. It also looks amazing in 3D on an Imax screen.

Years later, the now-widowed hero Perseus (Worthington) is trying to live as an anonymous fisherman with his pre-teen son Helius (Bell). Then he hears about stirrings of a coming calamity. Indeed, his father Zeus (Neeson) has been kidnapped by Hades (Fiennes) and Ares (Ramirez) as pat of a plan to release Zeus and Hades' evil father Kronos from the underworld. So Perseus teams up with Queen Andromeda (Pike) and rogue demigod Agenor (Kebbell), son of Poseidon (Huston), to rescue his father and stop his brother, uncle and grandfather.

Yes, this is one seriously dysfunctional family, as four generations of men set out to either destroy the world or save it. To be honest, it's never clear why Hades and Ares are so hellbent, as it were, on cataclysmic destruction, but at least this also allows for changing alliances as the story progresses. Not that there's much story, really, as the plot essentially just links a series of action set-pieces.

Fortunately, most of these sequences are entertaining enough to keep us gripped. Highlights include a rather fabulous dragon attack and a desperate, full-on fight with cyclops-giants in a forest. Less convincing are a convoluted underworld rescue-battle and the climactic assault on the volcano-sized Kronos, who rains down fire and destruction rather selectively. (There's also the problem of how the filmmakers can top Kronos in the probable sequel.)

Along the way, there are some refreshing moments of deranged humour, mainly in Kebbell's snarky dialog, Pike's sharp glances and a particularly colourful turn by Nighy (as super-spear smelter Hephaestus). But as the story progresses, there's more than a whiff of Lord of the Rings (the fires of Mount Doom, plus some pointless two-torsoed Orc-a-likes), Harry Potter (the three-pronged Deathly Hallows) and even Star Wars (all that father-son angst). But filmmaker Liebesman keeps things moving briskly, wowing us with so much eye-candy that we just sit back and enjoy the rickety ride for what it is.

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel Review


Very Good
Colourful and engaging, this lively comedy-drama gives a handful of mature actors terrific roles to play within a bustling international setting. It feels a bit cute and tame, but it's still entertaining.

Seven retirees meet at the airport as they move to Rajasthan to retire in a newly restored hotel. Evelyn (Dench) is financially strapped due to her late husband's debts. Muriel (Smith) is getting a faster, cheaper hip replacement.

Douglas and Jean (Nighy and Wilton) can't afford to retire in Britain. Graham (Wilkinson) has unfinished business in India. And Norman and Madge (Pickup and Imrie) are both single and looking for love. But manager Sonny (Patel) has slightly exaggerated the hotel's facilities.

Continue reading: The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel Review

Wrath Of The Titans Trailer


It's been ten years since Perseus triumphantly defeated the gargantuan Kraken that roamed the shores of a fishing village. Now, though, he is content to scrape a living as a fisherman, while raising his ten year old son, Helius, alone.

Continue: Wrath Of The Titans Trailer

Jack The Giant Slayer Trailer


Jack is a young farmhand working for the King. One day, he comes across small bean-like objects, which are described as 'holy relics' from a faraway land. The relics, however, are full of dark magic and could change the world if placed in the wrong hands. Jack is entrusted with them, on the condition that he doesn't lose them or get them wet. Jack is puzzled but accepts the relics anyway.

That night, a terrible storm rages. Jack has left the bean shaped objects on a surface in his hut, where rain falls on them through a hole in the ceiling. At first, nothing happens; then Jack looks on in horror as a beanstalk grows from the ground under his hut. The beanstalk connects the human world to a world where giants roam.

Jack lands himself in trouble when a giant kidnaps the beautiful Princess Isabelle. The King sends some of his best men up the beanstalk with Jack to rescue Isabelle. Their rescue attempts are nearly in vain, though, when the giants wage war on the humans. It is up to Jack to save Isabelle and his kingdom.

Jack The Giant Killer is directed and produced by Bryan Singer, who is well known for directing the films The Usual Suspects; Superman Returns and the X-Men films. The film is based on the British fairy tale; the screenplay for the film was written by Christopher McQuarrie and Dan Studney.

Starring: Nicholas Hoult, Ewan McGregor, Stanley Tucci, Warwick Davis, Bill Nighy, Eddie Marsan, Ian McShane, Ewen Bremner, John Kassir, Eleanor Tomlinson, Ralph Brown, Ben Daniels, Daniel Lapaine and David Frost

Director: Bryan Singer
Release Date: 15TH June 2012
Certificate: TBC
Running Time: TBC

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel Trailer


Muriel, Evelyn and Jean are just a few of a group of British retirees who decide to travel to India to stay at The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. After viewing the hotel's website, they are won over by how luxurious the hotel is and are soon on the first flight out of the UK.

Continue: The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel Trailer

Arthur Christmas Review


Very Good

This lively holiday romp has a steady stream of sharp verbal and visual gags that hold our interest. Even when the plot stalls in the middle, it's difficult to stop chuckling at the filmmakers' deranged sense of humour.

At the North Pole, Santa (Broadbent) is a bit complacent after 70 years on the job, letting his heir-apparent son Steve (Laurie) convert Christmas Eve into a high-tech black-ops style mission executed with military precision. To Steve, missing one child is an insignificant statistic. But Steve's younger brother Arthur (McAvoy) disagrees, and teams up with his feisty Grandsanta (Nighy) to make sure the last gift is delivered the old fashioned way.

Yes, the film is a riot of clashes between tradition and progress, the wisdom of the years and youthful vigour. Fortunately, the serious themes are subverted, hilariously playing with our expectations and never turning into a nostalgic paean to the olden days. That said, this British production does feel eerily co-opted by Hollywood, from the use of the American "Santa Claus" (no one ever calls him "Father Christmas", which might have made sense of the film's odd title) to the somewhat feeble attempts to ramp up the action and suspense. Not to mention a massive wave of sentimentality at the end.

But even this is undermined by Baynham (Borat) and director Smith's script, which maintains a dry British sense of humour and gives the strong vocal cast plenty of snappy material to play with. While most of the characters are a bit unmemorable, Nighy gets the best lines: Grandsanta as an old coot full of surprises, including some terrific rude jokes and an amusingly animated hound-style old reindeer sidekick. Staunton also has some terrific dialog as the underestimated Mrs Santa.

Visually the film is brightly colourful, amusingly designed with small sight gags and continual Christmas imagery. While the characters look a little plasticky, the settings are gorgeously rendered, and the flying sleigh sequences almost make it worth seeing in 3D. The problem is that the film feels stretched out by random antics and underdeveloped plot-threads along the way that add nothing to the overall story. So we get tired of the bumbling chaos, mainly because we know exactly where it's got to end up.

Arthur Christmas Trailer


Arthur Christmas is the clumsy youngest son of the famous Santa Claus. Together with his family, including his father, his cool older brother Steve, Santa's father Grandsanta and Santa's wife, Mrs. Santa, they run a top secret, highly state of the art operation beneath the North Pole, which helps Santa deliver every single Christmas present in one night around the globe and which cannot be seen by anyone else. It is a lengthy process, which sees Santa's team of elves - including a 'Gift Wrapping Battalion' who carry scissors and tape guns - training in the isolated Arctic during the summer by performing drills and practising their wrapping skills on unsuspecting polar bears. There is also a 'mission control' in which Santa and his team can see exactly how many days there are until Christmas and how many presents have been wrapped.

Continue: Arthur Christmas Trailer

Chalet Girl Trailer


Working as a Chalet girl isn't as easy as some people might think. Kim is a nineteen year old girl who's just been given a big break and offered the chance to work in the Alps as a chalet girl, Cooking, cleaning and basically attending to her employer's families every need are just some of her daily chores.

With absolutely no experience Kim might be out of her depth but stumbles through the first couple of days looking after businessman Richard Masden and his family, however she finally finds her feet. There might be hard work to do but there's also a whole load of fun to be had, suddenly propelled into a world of money and parties Kim quickly becomes accustomed to her new way of life and also finds herself falling for the bosses son Jonny, just two problems stand in her way; his mother and his girlfriend!


Certification: TBC
Running time: 92 mins

Starring: Felicity Jones, Ed Westwick, Tamsin Egerton, Ken Duken, Sophia Bush, Bill Bailey, Brooke Shields, Bill Nighy, Georgia King, Tom Goodman-Hill, Nicholas Braun and Abbie Dunn


Directed by Phil Traill

Rango Trailer


Rango is a chameleon who isn't particularly content living the life of the general chameleon, he sees himself as more of a hero figure, striving to protect those who need him; but when he finds himself in a western town called Dirt, Rango must start playing the role he's always dreamt of fulfilling, but once he's faced by bandits will he be able to keep up the charade?

Continue: Rango Trailer

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Part 1) Trailer


The final instalment of the Harry Potter series is almost upon us! Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows will bring the much loved set of films to a close.

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Astroboy Trailer


Watch the trailer for Astroboy

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Glorious 39 Review


Excellent
Telling a story from a rarely examined period of British history, this pre-war drama is a bundle of suspense, mystery and personal emotion that's beautifully filmed and sharply played by a first-rate cast.

Anne (Garai) is the adopted eldest daughter of powerful politician Alexander Keyes (Nighy) and his wife (Agutter), who went on to have two of their own children (Redmayne and Temple). It's the glorious summer of 1939, when Britain felt like it had averted conflict with Hitler, so when Anne stumbles on hints of a government conspiracy, she turns to a fellow actor (Bonneville) and her boyfriend (Cox) for help. But the mystery only deepens, compounded by a sinister Home Office official (Northam) and the distracting presence of her Aunt Elizabeth (Christie).

Continue reading: Glorious 39 Review

G-Force Trailer


Watch the trailer for G-Force

Continue: G-Force Trailer

The Boat That Rocked Trailer


Legal radio stations in 1960's Britain weren't exactly what you'd call interesting to listen to if you were part of the hip young generation. 2 hours of rock was their weekly limit. 

Continue: The Boat That Rocked Trailer

Valkyrie Trailer


This amazing true story is based around the life of Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, a German officer who, along with a group of high ranking officers decide something must be done about Hitler before all of Germany is destroyed by war. 

Continue: Valkyrie Trailer

Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World's End Review


Good
An honest-to-God, brawling, hooting, big ball of popcorn spectacle of a movie, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End fully embraces its ludicrous sense of summer season overkill without succumbing to the bloated tedium that afflicted its disappointing predecessor Dead Man's Chest. Clocking in at just under three hours, it's definitely longer than necessary, but given the number of unresolved plot strands that the last film left strewn about like so much tangled rigging, it's actually amazing the filmmakers are able to tie everything up quite as nicely as they do.

Starting with its unlikely origin as an amusement park ride, the Pirates series quickly mushroomed into a sort of meta-pirate film, a vast and whirligig universe unto itself that drew in every possible nautical cliché and legend possible. Thus the first film concentrated on yo-ho-ho-ing, rum-drinking, and general pirate-y scalawaggery. The second roped in Davy Jones and The Flying Dutchman -- not to mention an excess of secondary characters and familial drama. For the third (but not necessarily last, given the teaser it ends with) entry, the bursting-at-the-seams script tosses in a raging maelstrom, an actual trip to Davy Jones' Locker, and even the sea goddess Calypso. Dead Man's Chest showed that more is not always better, with excess just leading to more excess and a general sense of lethargy -- they were just setting us up for the conclusion and marking time until then. At World's End, however, shows that Hollywood excess, when combined with the right combination of actors and an occasionally smart script, can work out quite nicely, thank you very much.

Continue reading: Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World's End Review

Flushed Away Review


Good
As nice as it can be to see movies at press screenings -- nestled in big comfy chairs, away from the masses and ticket prices -- there were benefits to watching Flushed Away in a big ol' auditorium filled to the brim with the 10-and-under crowd. It validated that my finding the movie bland and inspiring didn't just mean I'm outside key demographics. Those kids? They weren't laughing a whole lot either.

Flushed Away is a prototypical anthropomorphic-fish-out-of-water tale, about a pampered pet rat named Roddy St. James (voiced by Hugh Jackman) who gets accidentally flushed down the toilet of his owners' posh Kensington flat and ends up out of his element in a rat-sized version of London down in the sewers. His attempts to make his way back up top get him mixed up with a sassy lass, Rita (Kate Winslet), who is on the run from a local crime boss and his thugs. Of course, because this is an animated family film, the boss is an ill-tempered toad and one of the henchmen is an albino former lab rat, but the ideas are universal.

Continue reading: Flushed Away Review

Acting Legend Bill Nighy Talks About The Pronunciation Of His Name


Bill Nighy

British acting legend Bill Nighy is very used to people mispronouncing his surname, with his father supposedly absolutely hating the mistake. The star of 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy' and 'Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest' has often stated that his name is pronounced 'nye' yet he often smiles sweetly whenever someone mispronounces his name and shrugs it off. 

Related: Bill Nighy Turned Down Doctor Who Role - But When?

In an interview with Nighy, he talked about it saying: "My father used to squirm on the sofa when everybody would say Ni-ey. It used to drive him insane. I gave up. I get Nigey, Nigley, Nigee, Nigby. The first time I was ever in the newspaper I was Nigby. I'm sure everybody gets a weird name. I don't mind. You can call me nearly anything you like."

Underworld: Evolution Review


Weak
If current cinema is to be believed, everywhere we humans are not looking, vampires, werewolves, advanced machines, and other nightcrawlers are living in alternative societies. Underworld brought such a society to the fore, shining a torch (and some flattering designer light) on a leather-clad group of vampires embroiled in a feud with an ancient race of werewolves known as Lycans. In Russia just last year, Night Watch took us into the gloaming to witness similar shenanigans. Perhaps fearing that six months is too long between gothic, O-negative drinks, the makers of Underworld have offered us its unnecessary, unanticipated, and unexpectedly OK sequel, Underworld: Evolution.

Beginning for beginners with a flashback to 1202 A.D. where two siblings - Marcus (Tony Curran), the original vampire, and William (Brian Steele), the first Lycan - are battling each other in a frosty village, the film does much to quickly remind us of its vampirical mythology. Marcus is betrayed by Viktor (Bill Nighy), stored away in the vaults of the family mansion, and William is trapped in a steel coffin for all of eternity. The twins are separated. With this effective piece of prehistory portrayed with some pizzazz and a lot of furrow-browed earnestness, director Len Wiseman treats us then to a series of flashbacks from the original film. Selene (Kate Beckinsale) has killed Viktor and his blood has revived a hybrid Marcus, now with wings. What he wants, and the very nature of his resurrection, are muddily explained in a film whose plot is too convoluted to be enjoyed, but whose occasional sparks of light work hard to make it float.

Continue reading: Underworld: Evolution Review

Love Actually Review


Very Good
I can only presume that the British calendar is so uniquely screwy that it allows for a Christmas movie to open a week after Halloween. Or maybe Love Actually is just in a universe of its own... one in which the prime minister is inaugurated in November and where an adverb can be used to modify a noun.

But a little oddness is forgivable: Directing a movie is a strange place for Richard Curtis, who's written umpteen Brit-friendly movies and TV shows over the years but hasn't directed one, until now.

Continue reading: Love Actually Review

Blow Dry Review


Weak
Hmmm, what's this movie with Josh Hartnett and Rachael Leigh Cook on the cover? Must be some nutty teen comedy, right?

Well, with one cancer diagnosis and one death in the first 15 minutes, Blow Dry is hardly the feel-good romance you'd expect. Strikingly similar to The Big Tease, Blow Dry tells the story of a haircutting competition that descends on a small town in Britain. Celebrities (well, celebrity stylists) from around England arrive to compete, and the local boys get into the act as well. But while the drama unfolds with models and shears, another drama takes place among the locals -- largely involving various romances and a singular cancer victim.

Continue reading: Blow Dry Review

Blow Dry Review


Weak

"Blow Dry" is a leaden British dramedy about an estranged family of hairdressers reconciling when a big coiffeur competition comes to their small town. Like "The Big Tease" -- a similarly themed English mockumentary that came out last year, delaying the release of this one -- its laughs come mostly from tired flamboyancy stereotypes.

Hairdressers with over-styled, out-of-date dos and David Copperfield-like showmanship bite each other's backs to win what is apparently a prestigious award for clever and speedy hair cutting. Meanwhile a sad-sack local barber (Alan Rickman) enters the competition with his son (Josh Hartnett, "The Virgin Suicides") to face down his former salon partner (Bill Nighy), now the nation's star hairdresser and the dirty-tricking front-runner in the contest.

Besides suffering from the same problems "The Big Tease" had -- basically that it's a cliché-riddled underdog sports movie with a dye job and a limp wrist -- "Blow Dry" is also saddled with a maudlin, comedy-antidote subplot about Rickman's estranged lesbian ex-wife (Natasha Richardson), who is bravely dying of cancer 10 years after leaving him for his hair model (a criminally under-used Rachel Griffiths). Brought together again by the competition, everybody gets busy forgiving.

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Underworld Review


Terrible

"Underworld" might have been one bad-ass B-movie, if only its plot about a war between vampires and werewolves had been seen by co-writer/director Len Wiseman as anything more than a token gimmick on which to hang "Matrix"-mimicking action and antiquated genre clichés.

Thick with mold-breaking potential that goes completely unexplored, the picture is populated by cardboard cutouts of aristocratic, clownishly Goth-fashioned bloodsuckers and sunken-eyed, greasy-haired, heavy-metal headbanger-styled lycans (a fancy word for werewolves). The two races exhaust every trite and tired facet of their respective horror folklore in a story that has obviously, and rather clumsily, had elements edited out -- including a romance between warrior vampiress Selene (Kate Beckinsale) and Michael (Scott Speedman), a human with werewolf ancestry.

When Kraven (ravenous scenery glutton Shane Brolly) -- the conniving, devious, temporary leader of the vampires while their sovereign is entombed in hibernation -- orders the human killed because his DNA could change the course of the centuries-old war, Selene risks her life to save the guy for reasons that aren't entirely clear in this final version of the film.

Continue reading: Underworld Review

Bill Nighy

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Bill Nighy

Date of birth

12th December, 1949

Occupation

Actor

Sex

Male

Height

1.88


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