Tag Archive: 2012


Flight

Flight (2013)

Directed by Robert Zemeckis

Starring Denzel Washington, Don Cheadle, John Goodman, Kelly Reilly and Nadine Velazquez

Flight-poster

 

After an Airplane suffers a mechanical failure, Captain William ‘Whip’ Whitaker successfully lands the plane with only a few casualties and is suddenly at the centre of hero/villain story where he has to live up to the serious fact that he has problems in his life that need to be dealt with.

 

This is a serious film with some very strong issues that need to be worked out by Washington while he tries to understand how his life has taken such a fall. Drink and Drugs play a major role in the film and go to show the effects they can have on someone’s life, even if you did just become a hero. His relationships with women, his son and work colleagues differ throughout the film showing his downfall as they try to either help or disown him.

John Goodman adds the comedy to the film playing Washington’s brother and drug dealer and helps him out/makes it worse when he needs it although he isn’t seen much in the film. The actually plane crash is amazing and filmed excellently. It is not a quick flash in the pan crash; it takes you through the whole scenario.

A note that the film does start with full nudity from My Name is Earl Actress Nadine Velazquez who looks stunning.

 

Recommend

I enjoyed the film even though it was a lot more serious than I thought it was going to be. Denzel was brilliant and thoroughly deserves his Oscar nomination for Actor in a Leading Role and the crash scene was dealt with brilliantly. The film does clock in at a long 2 hours and 18 mins and tackles some serious issues however I do think people should see this film.

TheFriedGold rating – 7/10 – Denzel reaches for the sky

 

Film Fact

Denzel Washington’s first Oscar-nominated role in over 10 years. His last Oscar-nominated role was for Training Day.   

The Grey

The Grey (2012)

Directed by Joe Carnahan

Starring Liam Neeson, Frank Grillo, and Dermot Mulroney

 

the-grey-poster

 

In the middle of the Alaska, John Ralph Ottway works at an Oil drilling plant as a protector of the workers from the wild wolves that roam the area. Acting as a sniper he takes down any that get close. Not in a good place personally Ottway doesn’t know what to do with his life but all this changes when the plane home crashes and he, along with several other survivors, must survive the freezing conditions and the wild wolves.

 

The film is a lot more serious and real than I expected and deals with Neeson’s character trying to get through his life. You see flashes to his home life and you know he has some personal issues that he has not dealt with properly. When the plane goes down he jumps right into survival mode knowing that the wolves that he is trained to take out will soon be after them.

Some of the CG on the wolves looks a bit dodgy and they have covered it up well with close up shots that are mostly in the dark of the night. There is a reveal of Ottway’s personal life towards the end which makes earlier points understandable and gives the character real depth.

 

Recommend

This was a very serious film with some gruesome deaths. It was an enjoyable film and went against the Hollywood way of thinking but was not up there with the best and there was less action than I was expecting. Still worth a watch.

TheFriedGold rating – 6/10 – Neeson dances with wolves

 

Film Fact

Bradley Cooper was cast as a much-younger lead character in the lead role, but he was eventually replaced by Neeson.

My Top Films of 2012 review

Everyone does a review of the best films of the year that has just ended and I am not going to be the exception.

I probably went to the cinema more times in 2012 than I had in any previous years. There were some very good films out and also some very bad ones. I try to see as many as possible as I like to get a nice range of different genres.

I have thought long and hard about narrowing the films down to a top 5 of 2012 which means I have had to cut some good films out including Moonrise Kingdom, The Amazing Spiderman and, probably the closest to making my top 5, Argo.

So here is goes (note: this is not in any order) with the first 3 probably being very obvious and the last 2 being a little bit out there.

 

 

 

The Dark Knight Risesthe-dark-knight-rises-fire

What a perfect way to end the Dark Knight Trilogy. On 1st viewing I did think there were too many long 1 on 1 talking scenes and not enough action however on a second viewing I realised that they weren’t really that long and they really added to the closing of the story. Anything with Joseph Gordon Levitt in is great in my eyes and Tom Hardy is slowly turning into one of my favourite actors. The added little Easter eggs in the film are great for the fans of Batman. This has been added to my Bluray collection.

 

 

 

 

 

Avengers Assemblemarvel_avengers_assemble_uk_poster

This was the film that has been wanted and has been built up to for a number of years by all the previous Marvel films. Seeing all the top Marvel characters (minus Spiderman and the X-men) join forces to take on some big bad just couldn’t stop that huge smile across my face. Robert Downey Jr. is the stand out performer as the playboy billionaire Tony Stark/Ironman although Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner/Hulk was probably the best take on the character in recent years. The action set pieces in the film were huge with the heroes not only taking on the bad guys but also taking on each other. Most memorable part of the film has to be Hulk punching Thor, classic.

 

 

 

 

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journeyhobbit-poster

The Lord of the Rings trilogy is an absolute favourite of mine and when news first broke that The Hobbit was going to be made the excitement started building and then we find out that it is turning into another trilogy, yes. The only downside is that we have to wait until 2015 for the final part. The film may have been similar to The Fellowship of the Ring following same plot points but it didn’t stop the film being any less enjoyable. The beginning of the film was a nice way to tie it in with LOTR and the whole Gollum/Bilbo scene was very funny. Having been to New Zealand and some of the LOTR locations I always feel happy when I see the country again and brings back lots of memories. I loved the film and cannot wait for the other 2 parts to come out.

 

 

 

 

The Cabin in the Woodscabin-in-the-woods-poster-hi-res

 

A film that was made in 2009 and due to studio differences took until 2012 to be released however it was well worth the wait. This was not your straight forward teen/slasher movie. Yes it had the typical characters that you would expect in these types of films and introduced them in the obvious and I’ve seen this all before. However the comedy and Sci-fi elements that were thrown in were brilliant and not fully expected. A film to watch over and over and now belongs in my Bluray collection.

 

 

 

 

 

Killer Joekiller-joe-poster

This was my stand out film of the year and was so beautiful and disgusting that it was fantastic. McConaughey stepped away from his usual rom-com character and played what can be described as a cool prick dirty cop. This film might be too much for some people and you will probably never look at fried chicken in the same way ever again. If you haven’t seen this I highly recommend it but just be warned.

 

 

 

 

emma-stone-gwen-staceyTo finish off here are a couple of side awards;

Considering Joss Whedon had a hand in 2 of these films makes him my Director/Writer of the year.

Emma Stone as Gwen Stacey in The Amazing Spiderman was my hottie of the year.

Least enjoyable/Worst Film of the year was both Taken 2 and Total Recall as I couldn’t decide between the two which I enjoyed least.

 

 

So what do you think of my Top 5 films of 2012?

What about my side awards? What was the least enjoyable film you saw?

 

 

Brave

Brave (2012)

Directed by Mark Andrews, Brenda Chapman and Steve Purcell

Starring Kelly McDonald, Billy Connelly, Emma Thompson, Julie Walters, Robbie Coltrane

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Princess Merida, railing against the traditions imposed upon her by her family and clan, runs away. Upon meeting a witch, Merida has one wish granted, with consequences she could not have foreseen but only she can resolve.

Disney by way of Pixar. Brave is a fairy tale more associated with the house of mouse, but told with the fresh approach of Pixar. Brave is a well-told, powerful story that focuses on family relationships rather than love, as Disney classics tend to do. Merida and Elinor (Merida’s mother) are the strongest characters, women who are not defined by the male characters, as traditional Disney princesses seem to and this approach makes for a new angle on an old story. The voice cast is excellent – as you would expect from Pixar – and it looks sumptuous, all vivid colours and vistas.

Recommend

I love Pixar and Brave didn’t disappoint. If you like classic Disney, you’ll like this modern take on a fairy tale. If you like strong female characters, a funny and engaging story or just want to see a good film then Brave is for you. You might not love it like I do, but Brave is too good to not like at all.

The FriedGold rating – 9/10 – fortune favours Brave

If you like this then you might like:

The Princess and the Frog – Disney’s return to classic animation, with another strong female princess, is definitely worth a watch

The Five-Year Engagement

The Five-Year Engagement (2012)

Directed by Nicholas Stoller

Starring Jason Segel, Emily Blunt, Rhys Ifans, Alison Brie

5yr_color

A year after meeting, Tom proposes to Violet. As they plan their wedding their lives place obstacles in their way, pushing them further apart while they watch their goofy friends make a success of their unplanned marriage.

The Five-Year Engagement has elements of romance and moments of comedy but however it may be packaged, it is not your standard rom-com. It is a well-realised drama focusing on the sacrifices that are made by couples. Segel plays Tom brilliantly, restraining his comedic talents and together with Blunt portray a couple that you know are in love and you just want them to be happy. While the story itself isn’t revolutionary, the approach is. The slow decay of the central relationship evokes a degree of pathos you don’t get in anything starring Jennifer Lopez, as you find yourself caring. It becomes uncomfortable in places where Tom and Violet make choices you wish they wouldn’t make but that you know they must. A film about the journey; a journey we will all make at some point in our lives.

Recommend

The Five-Year Engagement offers a more heartfelt reflection on love than most films about relationships and I really enjoyed it. I wouldn’t say this is a good date night film – it tugs on the heart strings but there are few large laughs – but it is definitely worth watching with Segel and Blunt both excellent.

The FriedGold rating – 8/10 – a whole lotta love

If you like this then you might like:

The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind – equally engaging but alternative look at the nature of relationships