The Hunger Games: Catching Fire Review 

Since Gary Ross brought to life this franchise The Hunger Games has been a great fondness of mine, it is among one of my favourite series. 

I loved the first film and was saddened when Gary Ross choose not to return for the follow up but Francis Lawrence bring the series to an emotional resonance in this follow up. 

I'm going to get this over with and start with the bad parts, cause they are few. My one major complaint would have to be about Prim's cat. In Hunger Games the cat is black and white, and in Catching Fire, the cat lit fire and became all orange (and bigger) you know how I know this is supposed to be the same cat, cause its the only cat and is the one who always hisses at Katniss. And come to think of it, where the hell are all the animals (excluding the ones seen in the games) In Hunger games there was the deer, and a few pigeons. Number 2, we get turkeys, that's it. I wonder where all the animal wildlife is and if this would be explained in next year's two part starter to the finale.

As that is really my only complaint for the movie, here's what I loved about it. 

There is way more emotion here. While Gary did shoot the first film in a very realistic style, Francis is able to steady the camera and give his audience that chance to look into these characters and feel their fear, their anguish, their desperation. Francis really does a fantastic job with the material here. This is a director who I thought would just up and disappear, thank the lord I was wrong. Francis does such a terrific job with this adaptation. And he has a fantastic crew to help him out. The script was written by Simon Beaufoy (Slumdog Millionaire, 127 Hours) and Michael Arndt (Toy Story 3, Little Miss Sunshine). They all capture the essence of what the first film captured in the first book. The reality of such a dire situation, the mental issues that come from killing someone. In all honesty these guys worked everything out so that it would seem plausible. The visual effects crew and costume designers also do a terrific job with the costumes. This time round everything seems tighter, more put together. And with a bigger budget more of an effort can be seen in making everything look bigger than it did in the first film. As Effie puts it, they've got new housing and new training facilities. 

Now complements must be commended to the amazing ensemble cast put together for this one. We got all the greats back from the first film, Elizabeth Banks, Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Donald Sutherland, Stanley Tucci, Lenny Kravitz, Woody Harrelson, Willow Shields, Paula Malcomson, Toby Jones and even a little cameo by one of the dead victors (Jack Quaid as Marvel). New comers Philip Seymor Hoffman, Sam Claflin, Jena Malone, Lynn Cohen, Amanda Plummer and Jeffery Wright all gave me the excitement factor, each actor brought their own strong qualities to their roles. Philip is golden and mysterious and is just a thrill to watch, he brings the freaking talent here folks. Sam was pretty good as Finnick, his American accent worked for the role (I do wish however that he kept his British accent) Amanda and Jeffery work so well off each other and they are both fabulous, Amanda especially, giving a very special performance. Jena is the shooting star in the new roster, she nails all her scenes and truly captures who this girl is, someone who is annoyed and unhappy to be back in the games. The cast in this film was so beyond anything I could have hoped for. And with Julianne Moore now added to the roster of new cast additions I can't wait for part 3. 

And on one final note, the score and the soundtrack.

The soundtrack is simply put, golden. I loved the soundtrack to this film, I would even list it higher than the soundtrack for the first film. I mean with contributors like Coldplay, Christina Aguilera, Ellie Goulding, Imagine Dragons, Sia, Of Monsters and Men, Santigold its a sure thing this soundtrack will also be getting some close eyed attention. 

James Newton Howard returns to score, and he is still just as terrific here. The music is more thrilling and still has that nature tone to it, but not as much as in the first film. James Newton Howard is a favourite composer of mine, I loved his score for this film and I enjoyed the fact that a musical cue omitted from the first film was used in this one. 

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire is the sequel that could truly outshine its predecessor. This franchise is looking more and more, to me, like the harry potter franchise. I am anticipating a huge epic two part finale on par with Deathly Hollows. I love the deeper dive into the themes of government control and the effects of human murder. 

Hunger Games: Catching Fire is a solid 5 out of 5, and man is Jennifer on fire!!! 

Must See (revisited)

I have this film now and will plan to watch it this weekend. I know it has been so long since I saw the trailer for this, better get on it pronto.

So I forgot to watch this movie this past weekend, I will try and watch it sometime soon. - Tue. 26th 2013 : 8:50pm 

The Hunger Games (2012)

Book adaptations have become the norm, now the latest film, The Hunger Games, has spawned a movie franchise, with future instalments coming (Catching Fire comes out Friday).

With the adaptation of Suzanne Collins first book director Gary Ross brings the story surging to the screen. What I loved most about this adaptation was the added background that Katniss did not bare witness to, like a scene at the start of the film were the game maker is being interviewed about what the games mean to him. The film offers up some excellent action entertainment and it's just exhilarating how Gary shot this. I loved how Paul Greengrass shot the last two bourne movies with his shaky cam, I felt it gave the film (and this one) a sense of realism. Besides, David Yates used the same technic in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows and no one batted an eyelash. 

However, the visual effects here and some of the production designs are lacking some. The creatures seen at the end of the games are by far the cheesiest effects ever, not to mention the train they ride in looks very noticeable like CG. The capitol is by far the best visual effect in the film. Gary and his visual effects team is able to capture the elegance and splendour of the capitol, using a mix of rome and greek (maybe a little egyptian architecture in there) and some visual references to Washington state. 

The best thing about the Hunger Games is its cast. Jennifer Lawrence (a relative unknown) nails the role of Katniss. Yes, she is not starving looking but who would be or should be. This is a movie folks, why don't you try filming a story about people who are starving and then have to fight, see how that goes. Jennifer adds such a strong feminine attitude to the character that you really route for her in this.

The cast is filled out very nicely, Liam Hemsworth and Josh Hutcherson play boys Gale and Peta (Yes, it's Peta not Peter, and no it does not stand for People for Ethical Treatment of Animals) but it could really mean that. Peta is a baker's boy who has a mean swing, seriously he can throw a huge anvil and not even break a sweat. Who is this boy? Hercules? Josh does a good job at giving portraying Peta as one who is in love and fighting for a chance to show her (Katniss) how much she means to him. Liam's role is short but for the length he is on screen, he's good as the character and really chews on his scenes. 

Isabelle (The Orphan) gives her best creepy scene

The cast is rounded out by Donald Sutherland (who plays the President), Elizabeth Banks (who plays the bizarrely charismatic Effie Trinket), Woody Harrelson (Katnis's coach), Stanley Tucci, Wes Bentley. Isabelle Fuhrman of The Orphan is so terrific in this. She just kicks ass (she was originally up for the role of Katniss) but her role in this is still just as good. She is fabulous along with everyone of the cast, Donald is cold as ice, Banks is so unrecognizable, Woody is also so impressive, Wes is solid, Stanley is such a laugh riot. Also Lenny Kravtiz (the singer) plays the part of Katniss's costume
designer, he is surprisingly awesome and perfect for the part! Tobey Jones makes an excellent appearance as Stanley's right hand man. 

James Newton Howard provides the score. He is such a great composer and he crafts such a unique score that feels very set in the film's time zone and sounds very naturalistic based. I loved it. The music also for the film is very country but it works for the movie and is also enjoyable. Safe and Sound by Taylor Swift and Abraham's Daughter are my favourites.

With the sequel coming this friday I am truly excited about it. Sadly, Gary Ross jumped ship on the follow-up so they replaced him with I am Legend director Francis Lawrence. The shooting of the film will be different. I know that Gary had a reason for shooting the way he shot and Francis I think is going for more of a slicker look, sadly. I have seen trailers and it does look like he has kept the look the same. I do believe that the shaky cam is gone. But while Gary Ross added that aspect to make the film realistic and not a product of Hollywood, audience members seem to hate this camera style. So yes, to all you haters the shaky cam is gone. 

Bottom Line: Jennifer Lawrence makes the movie, and she's one of the reasons this film is so good. Why did the twilight movies suck so much, cause the lead was weak (sorry Kirsten). 

The Hunger Games is a solid 5 out of 5 from me. 

You Hungry?

In just one week, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire will be released. For those of you who have not seen the first film or read the books, by Susan Collins, the story is about a girl named Katniss who after volunteering to take her sister's place in a kill for all olympic games she defies the government, lorded over by President Snow (Donald Sutherland). The second film takes place after Katniss has won the first games, 74th in the story's timeline.

I'm planning on re-watching the first Hunger Games in preparation for the sequel. I may post a soundtrack review as well.

Well, as it's said in this franchise.


Happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favour!

The God of Thunder Returns

To start things off I saw Thor 2 in 3D and got a sneak preview at the new captain america movie. It was awesome/spoilery. I won't tell you the details but its the scene where cap faces off with a bunch of guys in an elevator, its pretty damn cool. One of the guys in the elevator does have a close working relationship with him. Shocked that he would turn on him. Then we get some new footage from the movie, especially of Sebastian Stan as the Winter Solider and a quick cameo of Emily VanCamp (Revenge) as the grand daughter of Roger's love, Carter.

Now, with Thor: The Dark World I loved the prologue. Odin tells of how the universe was born, how the dark elves tried to take over and how his father had defeated them. Its a very grand sequence, bettering the one done in the first Thor movie. We are then treated to Loki's imprisonment. I love these actors, Tom, Reene, and Anthony. They fit their characters well. There is also a huge improvement in environments in this one. The sets are bigger, the visuals are better. Hell, even the casts are larger.

Since The Avengers film was made and released I love the fact that the studio has went and turned the new films in there solo series into different styles. Both Thor 2 and Iron Man 3 were grittier takes on the material, and worked better for it.

Thor : The Dark World is a darker movie but it works. The first film really felt like a fantasy comic book movie, while this film feels more like a real fantasy film along the lines of Lord of the Rings or Game of thrones. Dark World is just as good as Peter Jackson's return to Middle Earth, this movie is no Clash of the titans.

The cast is so amazing. I loved the cameo roles of my favourite funny man Roy..I mean Chris O'Dowd (The It Crowd, Brides Maids) and my favourite character actress Alice Krige (Silent Hill). The action scenes are a huge lift up from Thor. I just love the choice in director here. Alan Taylor gives life to this franchise and creates a well crafted fantasy epic. The human elements (those based on planet earth) don't feel lame or unintentionally funny, they felt real. One big thing about the film is it is not small. Everything has expanded, and thats the best thing this film offers, a huge expansion on the Thor mythology.

There is also a lot more character development given to the human characters. I loved all of Darcy's scenes, played by Kat Dennings (2 Broke Girls). Her character got a huge uplift from the first film. She even gets her own intern in this. I thought from the trailers that her intern was her boyfriend, I was eventually right. Kat just nails each scene she's in. When the movie opens and Jane (Natalie Portman) is on a nerve raking date with Chris O'Dowd, she comes in and breaks the tension. And when the shit hits the fan, I love her reactions. Her first witness to Thor's power "Holy Shit!". I really found her character great and loved that they gave her a bigger role in this. Her role is expanded due to Jane being taken to Asgard to undo what had been done to her, Jane accidentally entered an alternate dimension and came into contact with a dangerous artifact.

 Since the events in Avengers all the characters in these movies have gone though a lot of changes, especially Eric Selvig. He's much crazier here, running around stone henge naked, working with his pants off, and jumping for joy when a certain someone has died. I loved how the characters are affected by the events of that movie, it now makes the films feel more real.

Now, on a final note there are some scenes that procure before and after the main credits. I believe I know why Alan became annoyed by the studio with one of these scenes. The scene that plays at the end credits is more of a continuation of the actual film while the one before the credits is a scene that will excite those eager to see anything on the upcoming film Guardians of the Galaxy. The scene after the credits I do not know who, if anyone, stayed for it. I hate to say but I am glad I did not and that's probably why Alan got annoyed with the studio over these scenes. Maybe the scene after the credits was meant to be cut, I don't know. If not, he probably would have liked it before the credits, cause believe me, it just finishes the movie off, it doesn't give reference to future films.

As far as cameos go there are a couple funny/good ones. I character from the first Thor movie makes a reappearance and gets stuck on earth and Loki actually impersonates Steve Rogers at one point, its quiet funny.

A great Marvel movie that stands perfectly along side Iron Man 3. It renews Thor's world with a more realistic feel. Its both funny and dark, visually astounding and the action scenes are intense and perfectly choreographed. The villain, Malekith was pretty creepy with his dark elf army as well as his
wiliness to sacrifice his own, which comes to an ironic point when Odin (Anthony Hopkins) seeks to do the same when battling his enemy.

Thor: The Dark World takes its characters on a well put journey, its funny, epic, dark and emotional. I loved every minute of it.

It gets a 4 1/2 out of 5.

A Tragedy

Tom Clancy (the creator of Jack Ryan) has passed away at the age of 66. It is a great loss and he will be truly missed.

The World's End Review

One movie that had caught my eye was Shaun of the Dead. The first movie I heard of that used my name as the main character's name. Eventually I saw it, and it was something, a comedy of sorts I had never seen before. The credit has to go to Edgar Wright, the directer.

After Shaun I went on to see Hot Fuzz, which came out in 2006-07. Another comedy on buddy action flicks. It was an excellent film, and in many ways a continuation. It had a brilliant story and a pitch perfect cast.

Now, the duo of Edgar, Simon and Nick have returned to bring us The World's End.

For a time I thought the movie Paul, starring Nick Frost and Simon Pegg, was meant to be the next film in the series. It was not great compared to the first two films they did together. The comedy and crude factor didn't blend well.

Paul may very well have been the third film if Edgar had directed it. He went on to do the fantastic Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. It made me realize that while Simon and Nick work well together it takes a genius comedic director to mix all the ingredients right.

World's End is, for now, the concluding chapter of a trilogy of sorts, which started with Shaun of the Dead and onto Hot fuzz. The films were never meant to be a trilogy but became one after the realize of Hot Fuzz and the many connections it had to the teams last film, Shaun of the dead. Actors came back in different roles, Nick and Shaun were buddies again and a certain ice cream treat made a reappearance. Which donned the series nickname, The Cornetto Trilogy (hopefully series).

The World's End is thus, a drinking buddy comedy which takes a turn into science fiction territory and turns into an epic finale with robots, explosions and what will be known as the end of the world.

Its quiet the film with a lot of different themes and tones (comedy, action, science fiction, a little horror, apocalyptic scenarios) But Edgar Wright, the director, gets it right. He nails it with every scene. The comedy flows through out the film and never stops. The third act's confrontation between our heroes and the tutorial robotic invaders culminates in one of the funniest movie scenarios ever brought to screen. Edgar got all the ingredients right, blending themes of technological conversion, battered friendships about growing up, isolation, alcoholism, and government control.

 The best thing about this third outing is the amazing cast that is assembled here. We do still have Nick Frost and Simon Pegg as our leads but we also get two other returnees from the previous films. Martin Freeman, who up until this point was very least well known. Now he's starred in the hobbit franchise and as Dr. Watson on Sherlock. He gives a great performance here as one who has submerged himself with technology (ear phone, laser surgery). He's brilliant and works well with the rest of the cast. The other returnee is Paddy Considine. He had a role as a police officer in Hot Fuzz and gets to play it up here as the good guy in love with his friend's sister. He's great here as well and really puts some great heart into the film. I love Paddy. I've seen him in Now is good, where he plays father to a dying girl (Dakota Fanning). And, he also had a small role in the Bourne franchise as a reporter who knew things he should't know.

 David Bradley (Harry Potter) makes a welcome return here. He plays one of the last remaining humans in Newtan Havan. He's humorous as always and plays his character with great strength. A surprise for me was the appearance of Eddie Marsan. Eddie played Inspector Lestrade in the Sherlock Holmes movies and I never thought of him as a funny guy. Yet in this film he brings the laughs. There are some serious moments with his character, a past history of bullying but he was a surprise in the film. Eddie was the final touch to an already brilliant cast.

But, what would have to be an ingenious move on Edgar's part, he has a reunion of sorts on this film. In Hot Fuzz a certain actor was unable/or unwilling to play the part of the villain. The role was taken on by Bond alumni Timothy Dalton (The Living Daylights, License to Kill). This time though the mystery actor took on a mystery role. When he (Pierce Brosnan) first appears in the movie in the film's prologue as the main character's school teacher, we think that is it, his cameo role on an Edgar Wright film. But no, he comes back later on in one of the best reunions to die for. Rosamund Pike stars in this and had starred with Pierce in his last Bond movie (Die Another Day). In that they played villain and hero, here its the opposite. They don't talk to each other in this but to see them eye to eye, seated at a round table with the other actors, it was a very cool scene, one I (as a bond fan) loved.

 What I enjoyed about these movies is the smart way they handled the musical score. Shaun of the dead made many references to musical horror cues from Dawn of the dead. Scores done by artists like Goblins and Fabio Frizzi. Shaun of the Dead having been inspired by the Romero films and horror films in general, a referential musical score was a nice touch. With Hot Fuzz they did one better, hiring Bond alumni composer David Arnold to do the score personally. He was terrific as always brining the action of Bond with him. For World's End, Steven Price was brought on. I know what you are thinking, Steven Price, who's he. Well, if you have not seen Attack the Block, then I feel sorry for you. It's an alien invasion film which stars one of the leads, Nick Frost. Steven Price provided the score for the film. Him scoring World's End adds to the depth the director and crew were going for. With each film the tone and score represented in some way the feeling of the genre it was parodying.

A great cast, Edgar in top form and a blessed score of old 80s music and moving themes The World's End is the first comedy thats not only one of the best buddy comedies but by far the best science fiction film to come along this year. I mean that, I have seen this movie twice now and I love it even more. Critics may criticize it for its sudden tonal shifts from buddy comedy to alien invasion/end of the world. I loved every minute of it.

A solid gold 5 out of 5.