JOURNALIST AND MOVIE CRITIC, ANTHONY SHERRATT, SHARES HIS (VERY) HONEST REVIEWS OF THE LATEST MOVIES ON DVD. R EVIEWS About Anthony Anthony Sherratt lectures at university in Journalism, reviews movies and writes for various travel publications, all while caring for twins. He’s finally thankful for his insomnia. Read more of his reviews at superquickreviews.com MOVIES Mood Indigo What’s it about? A surreal love story centred around a woman (Audrey Tatou) who suffers from an unusual illness caused by a flower growing in her lungs. What did we think? Mood Indigo is a surreal but wonderful visual feast that delights the senses but occasionally fails to engage the heart. Definitely worth seeing if you appreciate foreign films but the unrelenting nature of the unfettered imagination will leave you exhausted by the end. Apparently there’s a much longer director’s cut but I have to say that much surrealism may just be too much for the human brain. RED 2 What’s it about? Retired C.I.A. agent Frank Moses (Bruce Willis) reunites his unlikely team of elite operatives for a global quest to … well, does it really matter why? What did we think? There’s always an inherent risk in making a sequel to a quirky surprise movie. Can they sustain the charm without the unexpected character twists of the first film? RED 2 starts off well as a jaunt that doesn’t take itself seriously. The action is fun, the premise of the character development is plausible and the laughs are present. However a flat middle means the movie drags a bit and the ending is bland. But Helen Mirren steals the show whenever she’s onscreen, mitigating the damage somewhat. We’re left with a movie that’s entertaining enough I suppose but it really lacks depth, emotion and re-watchability. Blue Jasmine What’s it about? A New York socialite (Cate Blanchett), deeply troubled and in denial, arrives in San Francisco to impose upon her sister. She looks a million, but isn’t bringing money, peace, or love … What did we think? Blue Jasmine is proof that you can appreciate a movie while simultaneously disliking it. There are very strong performances (despite being mostly unlikeable characters) and the plot is good on paper but it simply doesn’t translate to the screen. There’s very little to relate to and even the ‘twist’ (note air quotes) is predictable and robs you of what little character sympathy you have left at the end of this torturous film. Abrupt endings normally annoy me but this one simply came as a relief. pindaramagazine.com.au Pindara Magazine 99
Pindara Private Hospital Magazine - Issue One
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