It's Friday Again

Once again, it's the start of the weekend which, of course, means more new releases at the cinema.
Summer is winding to a close, with the last of the real big blockbusters released today. The Bourne Ultimatum concludes the amnesiac-spy trilogy based on Robert Ludlum's bestselling books. Once again starring Matt Damon as Jason Bourne, it's been highly praised, receiving mainly 4 and 5 star reviews. It's today's biggest release, just above the Bratz: The Movie. I widely consider the "movie" franchise [Scary Movie, Date Movie, Epic Movie] to be the absolute scum of the movie world. In my mind, Bratz is set to join them. Just the trailer on the TV was enough to make me reach for the nearest copy of Little Miss Sunshine and tell myself that it was all going to be OK. Frankly, it looks dire, and unless you're a five year old girl [or the parent of a five year old girl] there is no reason [at all] to see this movie, unless it is as a form of punishment.

Other releases today are New Zealand indie flick Eagle Vs. Shark, children's fantasty Mee-Shee: The Water Giant, and the re-release of Scorsese's Raging Bull.

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

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.

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