h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

very nearly left the room for that - I was ok with that because he was being Bond and making gobby comments. It was all the girly gooey "you can have what's left of me" guff that put me off.

And usually I'm a sucker for the beaten up hero going into mush mode.

Batman Begins and Cactus Jack (Arnold Schwarzenegger and Kirk Douglas in a live action, road-runner cartoon. Very bizarre)

16 Blocks (OK I know it's dated, but that doesn't seem to matter here - I bought the DVD for less than the price of a cinema ticket). I fell in lurve with Bruce Willis all over again for completely different reasons. Mainly I wanted to see Mos Def, because I'd only seen him in the Hitchhiker film so far. He was absolutely brilliant. The story was tense, the whole film really worked for me. And even a bit of at the end - what more can a girl want?

The Prestige.

4.5/5 - really rather good. More below....







**SPOILERS**














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A MINOR POINT SERIES OF POINTS (Aka: things we would have done better or avoided all together but didn't get in the way of enjoying the movie.)
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It came to our realisation in the post-film discussion, that this is in fact a science fiction film, because it does not take place in our universe.

The film is evidently a story of complete trickery - that is to say twisted reality that nonetheless is always real but takes on the appearance of being something it is not.

Everything from the water box, to the canaries, to the all-time classic: the trapdoor - are really real (sometimes tragically so) except they appear to be something else in order to mislead the audience.

But which audience? For whom is the act intended? Indeed how do you trick a trickster?

And while, if it had left it at that, the film would work perfectly as perfectly good reversal with a twist you didn't see coming ...only it doesn't. It *has* to go that one step further...too far in my opinion.

Namely, it gives up the pretence of the world being really real and the tricks being distorted reality, and leaps into a parallel world, such that might belong on the pages of a comic book or an alternate reality: one where it is possible to be cloned, wholly, instantly - producing a biological and physical double with your thoughts, emotions and reactions - there created in the flash of a electricity.

This no longer history as we know it, because it relies upon Nikola Tesla (inventor of amongst other thing, alternating current) building a device at the request of Hugh Jackman's character that will by means of electricity not merely teleport a subject but by accident clones them also. Tesla is incidentally also perpetually harassed by agents of Thomas Eddison here portrayed off-screen as some sort of renegade electrical luddite, out to ruin Tesla.

This our our world but several steps removed, all at once familiar but uncanny and different.

This is science masquerading as magic, and as mysterious and mistrusted. This is not made a central theme (that belonging to the relationship and rivalry of the two magicians) but having been suggested it then isn't made much use of, which is a shame.

It would also make much more sense, I think, if the murders were kept few rather than many, for therein the movie looses it's coherence.

The final trick could have worked beautifully. It was a classic switch. The trap door opens, and who drowns? Not the magician but his double, the one who's been re-appearing for him all these years. Who is the only witness and the only suspect? None other but the rival, Christian Bale; thus, the rivalry is concluded with Hugh Jackman (who after some deliberation we decided was the good guy, since both Christian Bales are such a utter gits), - it was a trick intended only for Bale to see, one that he could puzzle over all the way to the gallows.

Except it doesn't end that way. Instead it is oh so clever clever, relying on the nightly multiple mass-murder Tesla-created clones to feed the magic, and so the bad guy wins, and we are left to consider the moral ambiguity of the clone murders and not on the satisfactory resolution of the central rivalry which was originated by Bale's ambition and which allows the classic tragic figure of the morally flawed Hugh Jackman down a path he would not originally have taken to gain revenge that is ultimately denied to him.

For all that we've deducted half a point. Because other than that's it's bloody terrific!


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**SPOILERS**






Clive and Amy+

I watched Ocean's 11 last night, and now can't wait to see Ocean's 12!

12 I would skip - it's all style and no substance. 13 will be out in a few weeks, and that surely can't be worse than 12.


Geggs

According to the reviews I read yesterday, 13 is much better - the general opinion seems to be that you can forget 12.

I don't expect a lot from them, so I wasn't disappointed by 12 - the trick with Julia Roberts playing Julia Roberts was sooo over the top it was good! And Eddie Izzard was in it!

However, the amounts of to be expected in 13 will make it worth every penny!

and - it comes out in Germany a day earlier than in the UK!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0496806/releaseinfo

"A Scanner Darkly", screenplay by director Linklater based on a Philip K. Dick novel. It worked for me, even though I was expecting to have trouble with the animated "graphic novel" visual format. Overall, I think it was a plus, allowing some director games that worked for this drug laced, twisting sci-fi flick.

Robert Downey Jr. really sells his character Barris, always talking a little faster than he thinks. Rory Cochrane is also good as the drugged out Freck, in the spirit of Rev. Jim on "Taxi" (he says in the "making of" that he's not sure this was a comedy, maybe he did it wrong?). Woody Harrelson as Luckman provides a foil for Barris, and Keanu Reeves and Winona Rider are, well, big name actors.

QUOTE

Barris: Gentlemen, you are about to witness for approximately 61 cents of ordinary household materials, the perfect home-made silencer.
Freck: Barris, the neighbors are gonna hear.
Luckman: Nah. They only call in murders in this neighborhood.
Barris: Plus, freckle-deck, it's a SILENCER. They're not gonna hear anything.
Freck: Well, I'm pretty ******* sure they're illegal.
...
Barris:[Then points gun in the air and shoots. It goes off loudly]
Freck: That sure is some silencer.
Barris: Yes, uh, what it did was augment the sound rather than dampen it. But I almost have it. I believe I have it in principle anyway.
Luckman: Oh well, the good news is that regardless of what you do next time, it'll be a silencer to us because we're now DEAF!

END QUOTE

I really enjoyed 'A Scanner Darkly'. Really worth seeing.

Anyone seen an Irish film called 'Disco Pigs'? It was on the TV a while back at some ungodly hour so I recorded it, but the video wasn't up to much so the quality is terrible. I was thinking of buying it, but reviews aren't great.

I also saw The Prestige the other night.

Good stuff and I'd rate it as Clive although with less deep analysis.

Indeed, talking of less-than-deep analysis. David Bowies as Tesla. Was he really trying to look like Ricky Gervais and sound like Mr Cholmondley-Warner or was that just my imagination.

Cracking film with some comedy relief provided by Bowier.

>>Good stuff and I'd rate it as Clive although with less deep analysis. <<

It's alright, I watched it whilst guzzling so my analysis powers were probably lesser than yours...

Indeed the two-day old hangover apparently reduces ones ability to spell Bowie

..or do smileys correctly...

Jonny Depp in 'The Libertine'

I had assumed (wrongly as it turned out) this was a jolly Restoration romp. Actually it is a profoundly moving movie, if you will pardon the pun.

As is 'Wit' with Emma Thompson which is my favourite sob your heart out movie.

Do documentaries count here?

If so, then I'll be geek of the week and mention, "The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill," a documentary from a couple of years ago that I saw on PBS on Monday.

It dealt with a man who started studying/feeding a wild parrot flock that lives on Telegraph Hill in San Francisco, CA, and all the changes it brought about in their lives, and his. It was really good, and it brought out some issues about animals living in urban areas.

I just watched V For Vendetta, which was not the travesty I thought it would be. I never felt Vendetta was one of Moore´s better works, the story just seemed meaningless in a way. Perhaps because I don´t share Moore´s views on anarchy. But I was under the impression it had been made into a simple action movie which wasn´t the case. It was an alright movie, but it could have been more if they had showed a bit more about what Larkhill really was and show a bit more moral dilemma for Finch.

Just watched The Departed. Wow!!

Fantastic movie - Nicholson plays the paranoid, psychotic mafia boss to perfection. Di Caprio, although overdoing the angry young man bit, was pretty good and Matt Damon rocked.

Stunning Tarantino-type scene near the end.

Indeedy.

I still have not got aorund to watxching Infernal Affairs though....

Go do that, it´s a great movie. The second one is good too, but the third get´s a bit confusing.