My pick is a family film from Dreamworks. Parents have no fear you
will enjoy How To Train Your Dragon 2. Who doesn’t love dragons? A clever drama arrives, Locke,
with the most incredible performance from Tom Hardy. The Two Faces of January and
Yves Saint Laurent, both limited releases, and both only for the diehard
cinephiles. Go see the dragons. Really, I mean it.
And if you enjoy my reviews, as many lovely people keep telling me they do, please do share on your fave social media platform. That would make me a happy, little film critic. And as everyone knows, its good to keep the film critics happy.
(My movie Pick of the week)
How To Train Your Dragon 2 ✪✪✪✪½
Opens in Australia: 19TH
June 2014
USA: 13th
June 2014 UK:
1th July 2014
Other Countries: Release Information
OUR THOUGHTS
What a
truly gorgeous animated film. It has everything: a wonderful resonant story,
glorious animation, and never a dull moment. It’s not just for the children;
parents you will love it, too. Dreamworks surely have another hit on their
hands. I do believe this is even better than the first. I adore the different
breeds of dragons, too (someone at Dreamworks has some amazing imagination).
Now where’s the collector’s cards for this? I want to collect me some dragons.
STUDIO BLURB
DreamWorks
Animation returns to the world of dragons and Vikings in this sequel to their
successful 2010 outing How to Train Your Dragon. The original film followed the
exploits of a Viking chief's son, who must capture a dragon in order to mark
his passage into manhood and prove his worthiness to the tribe. ~ Jeremy
Wheeler, Rovi
Locke ✪✪✪✪
Showing at the Revelation Film Festival 3rd – 13th July Perth
Opens in Australia: 19th June 2014
USA: 25th April UK: 8th April 2014
Other Countries: Release Information
Perth: Luna Palace Cinemas
OUR THOUGHTS
I saw this as part of the launch of the Perth Revelation Film Festival 2014 which runs from 3rd - 13th July. (Great pick, guys.) I take my beanie off (it’s cold in Perth at the moment) to filmmakers and scriptwriters who can create such a dramatic piece filmed entirely in the cabin of a car with one lead actor behind the wheel and nothing else. He only interacts with the cast via his phone. Tom Hardy plays Ivan Locke, a man whose life spins out of control during a two-hour drive to London.
How can the filmmakers make such a great cinematic experience with such a constrained focus and minimal budget and filming time? The script, my friends, the script. Plus a top notch actor and a fine director. Hundreds of millions they spend on these rubbish sci-fi flicks we’ve endured this last year (all except Edge of Tomorrow, my fave) and all they needed was a good script. Producers of Transcendence and After Earth, go see Locke and learn. Please learn.
STUDIO BLURB
Ivan Locke (Hardy) has worked diligently to craft the life he has envisioned, dedicating himself to the job that he loves and the family he adores. On the eve of the biggest challenge of his career, Ivan receives a phone call that sets in motion a series of events that will unravel his family, job, and soul. All taking place over the course of one absolutely riveting car ride, LOCKE is an exploration of how one decision can lead to the complete collapse of a life. Directed by acclaimed filmmaker Steven Knight (EASTERN PROMISES, DIRTY PRETTY THINGS) and driven by an unforgettable performance by Tom Hardy, LOCKE is a thrillingly unique cinematic experience of a man fighting to salvage all that is important to him.(C) a24
22 Jump Street ✪✪✪
Opens in Australia: 19th June 2014
USA: 13th
June 14 UK: 6th June2014
Other Countries: Release Information
OUR THOUGHTS
There’s an
over-abundance of jokes in this about sequels never being as good as the
original. Funny that it should occur to the scriptwriters that sequels are usually below par to the point that they
include it so often, but it did not spur them on to write a decent, funny script. I
don’t know why they went back. Jonah Hill is his usual charismatic self, but
Channing Tatum is losing his shine. It’s not dreadful; it’s just that, after
the very good and very fresh 21 Jump Street, we do have high hopes, don't we? The joke end
credit sequence showing posters and set-ups of the supposed follow-up sequels
23 Jump Street, 24 Jump Street, and so on to some ridiculous number, is the
funniest part of the movie. The F-bomb is out of control in this, too. Why don't they do a normal version for old-fashioned people like me and an X-version?
STUDIO BLURB
After
making their way through high school (twice), big changes are in store for
officers Schmidt (Jonah Hill) and Jenko (Channing Tatum) when they go deep
undercover at a local college. But when Jenko meets a kindred spirit on the
football team, and Schmidt infiltrates the bohemian art major scene, they begin
to question their partnership. Now they don't have to just crack the case -
they have to figure out if they can have a mature relationship. If these two
overgrown adolescents can grow from freshmen into real men, college might be
the best thing that ever happened to them. (c) Sony
The Two Faces of Eve ✪✪✪
Opens in Australia: 19th June 2014
USA: 28th
August 2014 UK:
16th May 2014
Other Countries: Release Information
Perth: Luna
Palace Cinemas
OUR THOUGHTS
Too noir for my taste. It just felt
like a very slow Agatha Christie and a poor man’s Hitchcock. And Kirstin Dunst
is just ordinary. However, I wasn’t a fan of The Talented Mr. Ripley and this
is based on a book by the same author. The hubby didn’t mind it, and if you like this type of film you will probably enjoy. One look at the poster or the trailer shows you what to expect. I just thought
it was trying to be all too intriguing and, in the end, I wasn't intrigued.
STUDIO BLURB
The
Two Faces of January is an international thriller, which marks the directorial
debut of Drive screenwriter Hossein Amini and is based on a book from the
writer of The Talented Mr. Ripley. The film centers on an American con artist
and his wife who strike up a relationship with a stranger in 1960s Athens.
Viggo Mortensen and Kirsten Dunst star as the couple, while Oscar Isaac(Inside
Llewyn Davis) is onboard as the stranger.
Confident
American tourist Chester and his glamorous younger wife Colette are holidaying
in Athens during 1962. Encountering Greek-speaking American Rydal while
sightseeing, the group decide to tour the city together. However, Chester is
not who he seems and Rydal quickly becomes entangled in a plan to evade
authorities and Chester's troubled past. A Hitchcockian thriller of uncommon
sophistication and rather intriguing premise that’s reminiscent of The Talented
Mr. Ripley , Oscar nominee Amini's feature directorial debut makes him a
filmmaker to watch.
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