Review 4: Stage Door

Now I know not everyone goes for the whole black and white film thing, but if you're a film nut and you appreciate the pure talent of Ginger Rogers and Katharine Hepburn, Stage Door is definitely for you.

The quick-witted one liners between the girls provide endless amounts of hilarity and fun, and the pure brilliance of the writing really shows up the shoddy films of today. You connect with the characters, you enjoy spending time with them and getting to know them, and when one is suddenly killed off, you mourn because you had no idea it was going to happen. The unpredictability of it allowed me to get sucked in and watch without any distractions, as I didn't want to miss a single minute. As it's a 1930s film, you have the generic 'lets just show the actor's face' camera angles that have normally been overdone (mentioning no names, Young at Heart), but you don't seem to register them as much, purely because the scenes are so active. At times it was manic, like the beginning where Jean is arguing with another girl and the housekeeper picks up the phone and talks at the same time, but all in all, it was thoroughly enjoyable. Gregory La Cava did a fantastic job directing it all and I can definitely see myself watching more films directed by him.

I enjoyed Ginger Roger's character of Jean because she was, as some would say, sassy. She wasn't afraid to speak her mind and yet not in the annoying way. The casting was spot on, and her ability to bounce off other actors is truly fantastic. Although the writers did a truly excellent job, she made the lines come alive. In fact, all the actors did. I would especially like to mention Eve Arden (who you'll all know as the Principal in Grease and Grease 2!) as she does a particularly brilliant job, and I guess other people felt the same way at the time since it was the part that gained her success in her acting career. 

Although Katherine Hepburn does a fabulous job, her character wasn't really likeable so I didn't really feel able to connect as well as with Jean, but nonetheless she fitted the character perfectly and pulled off a suave debonair performance.

My IMDb rating was 10 stars out of 10 since I enjoyed it so much! I will definitely be watching more Ginger Rogers films in the future! 

Review 1: Total Recall

So, here we are. The first film review, and I don't know about you, but I am quite excited. I decided to go with a film I had seen fairly recently to kick start the process, and what better than Total Recall?

Upon seeing the advert for this film, my initial impression was that it was going to be very similar to the Matrix. Douglas Quaid (Colin Farrell) is a man whose life is being controlled by some higher power, who then finds out he is some important figure. How does he find out, you ask? By being drawn to one word, ReKall. - seeing similarities yet? But as I got into the film after some er.. interesting facts about planet Earth, I started to realise it was just on the cusp of individuality. It has impactful music, great graphics and brilliant stunts, allowing for some edge-of-your-seat moments. Although it has elements of romance, it seems to be more of a male's choice.

Kate Beckinsale, who plays Lori Quaid, managed to pull off a brilliant change in accent, and played both her parts of loving wife and superspy bad girl with such ease. I had no idea that she could ever have been betraying him, giving the element of surprise.

The character of Melina (Jessica Biel) was the character that just turned up without any real purpose. Her dialogue doesn't really explain anything, and after a while you seem to wonder what she was even doing there. No offence to her, she played it well and looked good in the process, but all she does is put him in her car, and then take him on a train to meet Matthias (Bill Nighy). After her getting captured a couple of times you realise that she doesn't really seem to have as big a part as you first thought, which I suppose allows the film to concentrate on the action rather than the romance.The film involves a lot of chases, fight scenes and new age technology, which surprisingly wasn't as in-your-face as you would think. It has a subtle tone to it, allowing you to be sucked into the story and the characters. And of course I have to mention the legend that is Bill Nighy, who once again gets into his character brilliantly, producing a believable and noteworthy performance.

The only thing that would possibly put a dampener on things was the dialogue. Yes, it worked with the film. No, it wasn't as engaging as it could have been, but that's reality. My overall IMDb rating was 7 stars out of 10, meaning a solid, if not slightly hesitant, thumbs up from me.