Even More Friday Releases

The big mainstream releases this week includes yet another second sequel in Shrek The Third. Reviews have been a lot less positive than those for the other Shrek films, and it appears that the franchise is starting to run out of steam. Things don't bode well for the next two sequels which have already been announced. Also released today is Eli Roth's torture porn sequel Hostel: Part II. The first one was a load of tat - incredibly shallow, boring, and just plain awful, and this one doesn't look much better.

Other Releases:
The Flying Scotsman
Shutter

Yippie Ki-Yay...

Good news for Die Hard fans - Die Hard 4.0 has been given a 15, as, according to the BBFC, it contains "one use of strong language". Yes - this means that Bruce Willis WILL be saying "Yippie Ki-Yay Motherf*cker!". Thank god for that... I had my money on it being a disappointingly weedy 12A...

Transformers has been given 12A [expected] and Evan Almighty [poorly reviewed in the US] has been given a PG [also expected].
More news as I hear it...

A Bit Late, But...

Yes, Friday has been and gone, but I've been busy. There aren't many releases this weekend, with only two on general release. Captivity is the latest in the "gorno" genre, and looks suitably horrifying [in both senses of the word]. Lucky You is a poker drama, which frankly looks a bit boring and stale. In the foreign corner, La Vie En Rose is a French Biopic of singer Edith Piaf, and has been very well reviewed generally, and PTU is a thriller set on the streets of Hong Kong.

So, not much this week. However, next Friday sees the release of Shrek The Third, with previews at selected cinemas showing at various times this week.

On Release Today

Yes, it's time for more Friday releases. Pictures on main release this week are:

• Fantastic Four: Rise Of The Silver Surfer

I'm confused about this movie. The first trailer was great, and it looked very promising. But someway between there and now I lost all confidence for this film - I don't know why; it just didn't look very good. Suddenly I'm a bit more interested. It seems kinda cool to have a superhero movie with no dark undertones or political themes. Just a simple bash-em' up with super powers. It's probably going to break all scientific laws with its logic, but no-one can deny that the Silver Surfer himself looks incredible. All screen shots of him are just mind-blowing. I'll review when [or if] I see it...

• Vacancy

I kinda like this movie's premise - couple in a motel, watch horror videos, realise they arein the room in which movies are set etc. It sounds like a pretty good B-Movie story, but with pretty much every teen horror/thriller, no matter what the story is like, they are never any good. I probably won't be going to see this at the cinema as it feels like it'd be a waste of time and money - if you've seen one, you've seen 'em all.

• Grow Your Own

I don't know too much about this, apart from it's a British comedy set in the world of gardening. Reviews haven't been fantastic, but might be worth a watch if you're into brit-coms.

• Tell No-One

I also don't really know much about this either. It's a French thriller which has been very well reviewed, and received a fantastic reception in France earlier in the year.

Those are the main releases this week. For more, visit more movie sites - there's loads of links on the right of the page.

The "Definitely Not Fantastic, But Better Than The First" Four...

Friday sees the release of Fantastic Four: Rise Of The Silver Surfer, which I'm sure we're all hoping will be much better than the first. With character introductions firmly out of the way, now it's time for some ACTION. Some reviews are out now - Empire Online, Total Film and BBC Movies all have them up - and the reactions are reasonbly positive. 3 star ratings seem to sum up the film, which promises fans the Silver Surfer and planet-munching Galactus.

In other news, gore fans will be happy that some of the most hyped horror/thrillers of the year have been rated as 18. Hostel: Part Two surely can't be much worse than the first, which was a pointless exercise in providing gore, dark "humour" and unjustified amounts of T'n'A. Face it - there was no story, and it wasn't the "sick f*cked up movie" that Roth claimed it would be. Tarantino's Death Proof has also been [unsurprisingly] given an 18 certificate. It seems that the only positive for Grindhouse being split [grrrrr...] is that Death Proof has been extended - everyone has said that they think it's a better film for it. Finally, Captivity, who have had posters banned in America for being so disturbing has also been given an 18 for "strong violence, torture and grisly images". Sounds lovely.

That's today's update - keep coming back for more!

A Quick [Stop] Update

Kevin Smith fans are currently awaiting horror movie Red State, his next project, but here's a little update about his project for after that. Titled "Zack and Miri Make A Porno", Smith's returning to comedy, and he says it's "dirty, with nudity". He's hoping to cast Rosario Dawson in the lead part, but she hasn't read the script yet...

On Release Today

Friday means movie releases, and this week sees the return of the heist-caper franchise with Ocean's Thirteen. The general concencus - much better than the second, not as good as the original, but still very enjoyable. Amongst other releases are the sequel to 2005's family road movie Are We There Yet? - this time with the very original name Are We Done Yet? Frankly, it looks rubbish. Billy Elliot's Jamie Bell is back in The Chumscrubber, an indie drama about troubled teenagers, and John Boorman's satirical The Tiger's Tail is also released. For those who love documentaries, Taking Liberties is being hailed as the British Bowling For Columbine - definitely one to watch. Black Gold is a documentary about the coffee-trade.
Other Releases:

• The City Of Violence (Jjakpae)
• Not Here To Be Loved

STOP MAKING SEQUELS!

This is my first proper rant on the blog, but I'm just getting so fed up. Dreamworks have announced that there will be a fourth Shrek movie released in 2010, and a fifth in 2013. Yes, I did say fifth. This has made me so angry - the first Shrek was brilliantly satirical of Disney, and was perfect for literally all ages. The sequel was very entertaining, very funny, and focused more on general movie spoofs instead of just Disney. The third - in my opinion - looks a bit poor. They've taken a great idea and run with it. But runners can lose steam very easily. It now seems that they're just going through the motions - I can even imagine the boardroom meeting now:

"OK, so Shrek was great - and made a heap of cash. Lets make more!"
"But, how many should we make?"
"Well, families like it... hmmm... 3?"
"3?! Is that it? I was thinking 5..."
"OK, so 5 Shrek movies - whats gonna happen in them?"
" 1 - Shrek meets Fiona"
"So far so good"
"2 - Shrek marries Fiona"
"Yeah, that's the way sequels usually go..."
"3 - Shrek has babies with Fiona"
"So far so HILARIOUS"
"4 - Shrek is a grandad"
"Dude, that's freakin' AWESOME! Nothing could be more hilarious. What about 5?"
"I'm kinda running out of ideas here... I GOT IT. PREQUEL."
"Genius - total genius!"

It makes me so angry that they're cashing in on the success - but, hey that's the way business goes. The thing is, I swear movies were supposed to be mainly for entertainment. Slapping out sequel after sequel means that the magic of the original is lost. Many people this year have complained that all the "part threes" have been big disappointments - what are parts 4, 5 and 6 going to be like?
Sony have announced three more Spider-Man films, they hinted towards a fourth Pirates film at the end of At World's End, and doubtless there'll be Transformers sequels. It's just being taken too far. There's not enough originality in film making anymore. Three cheers for QT and Robert Rodriguez, trying something different with Grindhouse - of course the Americans all went to see other films instead. Well, I hope you're happy. Now the UK won't get to see Grindhouse in its full 3-hour trashy glory. Here's to originality, and the oh-so clever public.

Welcome Arrival

A surprise hit in America at the moment is the new Judd Apatow [40 Year Old Virgin] film Knocked Up - a comedy about a lowly slacker who impregnates a woman out of his league during a drunken one night stand. The film was fantastically reviewed, and on Rotten Tomatoes is currently not only the top rated comedy but the top rated film of the year so far. Knocked Up has been hailed by some critics as an instant comedy classic, and is said to be a lot more laugh-out-loud funny in comparison to the 40 Year Old Virgin's more refined sense of humour.
The film will be *ahem* due for release [terrible pun intended] in the UK on 24th of August. Expect it to be the summer's biggest comedy hit [depending on what Evan Almighty, reportedly the most expensive comedy ever made, is like].

Adding To The BBFC Post...

...the new Harry Potter film [which looks awesome] has been rated 12A - the books definitely get darker and darker, so that seemed kind of inevitable with the last one also being a 12A. Expect Potter-mania to hit the UK in July, with the last book and the new film both released within the same week.

BBFC Ratings

Only a quick update - some of the year's bigger movies have been rated by the BBFC. Ocean's 13 has been given a PG, and Fantastic Four: Rise Of The Silver Surfer has also been given a PG.
Some Ocean's 13 reviews are out now on Empire Online, Total Film and BBC Movies all have reviews. The overall opinion seems to be that this is definitely better than Ocean's 12, and is a good, entertaining flick. However, there are some negative opinions flying around. Currently, Rotten Tomatoes's average is 69%, and IMDB's user rating is 7.2/10

Also, If you're a Kevin Smith fan, it's worth subscribing to his Podcast, which he runs with his producer Scott Mosier, called Smodcast. It can be found on iTunes and on Quick Stop Entertainment. WARNING - This podcast is not for the faint hearted. There is a LOT of strong language, and lots of talk about sex, drugs and stuff. But it is very funny.