Review: The Nice Guys (2016)

Have you ever seen a movie trailer for the first time and get the feeling that you know it’s going to be brilliant? Like, no fear of disappointment or anything because you know you’re going to love it? That’s what happened to me and my husband in January this year. We were at the cinema to see Spotlight, and after having a bit of a movie/blog hiatus over Christmas all of the trailers were a surprise to me. Cue a 70’s looking Ryan Gosling wrapping fabric around his knuckles, punching through a window, and then gripping his wrist, bleeding everywhere, followed by Russell Crowe accepting $30 to beat up a little girl’s friend, and I was practically dancing in my seat.

Of course, like every other movie I’ve been looking forward to this year, it got released in the cinemas during my wedding/honeymoon weeks, which meant I missed it. 

There was a game I used to play on the Xbox 360 called L.A. Noire, it’s possibly still one of my favourites games of all time. You play as an LAPD Officer called Phelps, trailing Los Angeles for clues and interviewing witnesses to solve cases. That’s just what The Nice Guys is like, only it’s side-splittingly hilarious at the same time. In The Nice Guys, Holland March (Ryan Gosling) has been hired by a worried mother whose daughter, a porn star by the name of Misty Mountains, has been missing for days. She was last sighted 2 days ago by her mother herself. The only issue here? Misty died in a car accident 4 days ago…

Holland’s search puts him in the line of fire of Jackson Healy (Russell Crowe), who has been paid to stop Holland from nosing around. And so our pair meet, which as you can probably tell from the movie poster, ends badly (and painfully) for Holland. If I had any doubts about the chemistry these guys might share on screen, they were fizzled out by their performance at the Oscars earlier this year. They bounce off each other so well! 

I’ve been so used to watching Ryan Gosling play a tough guy (Drive, The Place Beyond The Pines, Only God Forgives) that this completely threw me off balance. I’m really not joking when I say he screams like a girl, and it didn’t matter how many times it happened, I laughed till I cried. He’s just a bit of a doofus, but a very good detective at the same time, which means when he does slip up and does something stupid, it comes without warning. His character Holland also has a young teenage daughter, Holly (Angourie Rice) who is constantly trying to help. Characters like Holly normally get in the way and get annoying, but in some cases, she actually saves the day, and she’s a delight to watch. 

It was just so much fun to watch, and I’ll be watching it again and again over the years, I’m sure. If there were only one movie this year that deserves a sequel, it’s this, because I could watch Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe work together solving cases for hours on end. In fact, I don’t even know why I’m scoring this a 9/10, I can’t think of a fault to pick at, but I hate giving out full marks!

Looking Forward to Seeing in the Cinema: June 2016

Ok - before we get into this whole looking forward malarkey,  I have a confession to make! Prior to last months post, Allie text me to ask me if X-Men was going to be my looking forward film, obviously I said yes so she kindly went with Warcraft!!  However, it turns out I have the memory of a sieve, because when it came to writing my post, I did a whole blurb on Captain America!! Even when I looked up the release date and found it was April not May, I still didn't realise what I had done.  It took the post going up for Allie to read it and text me saying, why the heck did you write about Captain America instead of X-Men!!!  Because i'm a numpty, that's why!  So in short, we both potentially wanted to pick X-Men and yet we didn't actually write about it! Can I use it for this one?!

Also, I have to note that we wrote this post well before it was published, so when you guys finally read this Miss Hawkins will be Mrs Adkins - all kinds of happy for my bestest and her beau.  Love you lots <3

Hello, summer! Is it just me or does it feel like it should be blockbuster season already? This year they seem to have been spread out throughout the year...which I'm fine with, because I normally only catch about 50% of the big releases in summer anyway! This month is a tricky one to pick, but I think I've made up my mind.

I saw the trailer for The Nice Guys right before seeing Spotlight in early January, and it completely took me by surprise. It looks hilarious! From what I can tell, it's set in the 1970's and follows Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe investigating the death of a porn star.

Ryan Gosling has been away from the big screen far too long for my liking, but his chemistry with Russell Crowe on Oscars night has really got me excited for The Nice Guys! I think it's a case of it either being a huge hit or a real disaster, with the only funny moments being shown in the trailer, but that's always the risk with comedy. I've got my fingers crossed! There was a gun through a window in the trailer which made me laugh hysterically! (it doesn't take much!).  Has anyone else seen the trailer for this which is Ryan and Russell in therapy in real life before the film's release, that really made me laugh.

The Nice Guys will be released in UK cinemas on 3rd June, 2016.

Oh my god, how long have I been waiting for this film, ever since I read the book way back when and then I reignited my love for JoJo Moyes this Spring reading the the sequel.  Now it's finally here.....

Based on the book by JoJo Moyes, Me before you is about Louisa Clark (Emilia Clarke) who takes a job looking after quadriplegic, William Traynor who having lead an adventurous lifestyle before his accident s struggling to come to terms with his new life.

I love Emillia Clarke and I love Sam Claflin so what is not to love....

Me before you will be released in UK cinemas on 3rd June, 2016.

Review: The Big Short (2016)

Surprise night out with one of my friends ended up in the cinema watching The Big Short, she tried to convince me she had planned it because she knew  I liked all the actors in it but i know the real reason.  She is currently working through her first year towards her MSc in Finance so I suspect she had an ulterior motive.

The Big Short follows three groups of people who all predicted the US housing crisis and set about betting against the housing market.  Michael Burry (Christian Bale) is the first to spot the blip and sets himself up to basically bet his entire hedge fund on the outcome.  Two further groups catch on Mark Baum (Steve Carrell) and his team of misfits and newbies Jamie (Finn Wittrock) and Charlie (John Magaro) who recruit seasoned trader, Ben Rickert (Brad Pitt) to help them jump on the band wagon.

Admitted that is probably the worst synopsis of a film...EVER.  Yeah, way to make a comedy sound boring Jenna! Also, it is fair to say it sounds like the most boring film and when it started and they used all this financial and banking lingo (Shola sat next to me looking all smug because she knows what they are talking about). I have a blank look on my face when all of a sudden a definition pops up on the screen to help me along, then Margot Robbie, in a bath tub appears and starts explaining something or other.  Basically, it's like the film takes mini breaks to explain things and clarify whats going on.  The first few times it happened it threw me off the story and it actually annoyed me but as it went on it actually helped understand what was going on and added humour to the proceedings.

I was feeling so lost and out of my depth until Margot Robbie in a bubble bath explained it all to me. Why couldn't my Finance Unit of my HNC in Business have been presented that way? I might have listened! I loved how different The Big Short is to anything else I've seen, it had that almost 'The Office' style to it but it broke the 4th wall constantly which cracked me up. 

Between the crazy way this film is presented and the comedy that runs through it I was really entertained and, contrary to my very boring synopsis, I wasn't bored at all (and I actually feel like I might have learnt something about the cause of the global recession). Even though I knew they outcome, that all the main characters were right about what was going to happen, I still spent the last half an hour on the edge of my seat while their companies floundered waiting for the inevitable.  The final piece of the puzzle for me was the emotion that was run through the latter half of the film, particularly with Steve Carrells character, obviously they wanted to succeed and make their investors money but if they did the global economy would collapse.  It was really a no win situation for all these guys and Carell really highlighted that struggle between the rock and the hard place.

Oh I agree! Steve Carrell just shone brighter and brighter as the movie went on. I thought Christian Bale was superb though too, he definitely deserves that Oscar nomination.

I just feel that despite how much I enjoyed the movie, I didn't have a clue what was going on. It did a better job at explaining the situation to idiots like me than The Wolf of Wall Street did, but about half way through I gave up trying to understand the financial lingo and just enjoyed it for what it was.

In the car on the way home, my fiance and I worked out between us what a Synthetic CDO was, but what I still can't get my head around is what these swaps are in the first place. How can you bet against the housing market? When the average Joe can't pay his mortgage, where is this money coming from?

This is me the day after watching The Big Short, reading up on CDO's!

I have really fluffed this review, anybody that reads it is probably not going to want to bother with the film but do watch it, you have to decide for yourself and I enjoyed it much more that my review suggests.

How true was that final statement on screen right before the credits rolled? I can't remember what the term was for it, but it basically said that this is all starting again, as of last year. Where can I buy some swaps?

Looking Forward to Seeing in the Cinema this Month...January 2016

You don’t understand how hard it is to pick just one movie for this post, guys. Here in the UK we’re normally at least a week behind the US, meaning a lot of the big winter releases fall into 2016 for us. I’m somehow meant to pick from Joy, The Revenant, The Hateful Eight...the list goes on.

I haven’t yet had the chance to look into all of the January releases, but there’s one that’s been on my mind for a while now, The Big Short. I know little about the plot or the housing market collapse that it focuses on, but I’m a sucker for a big cast, and well, this one sounds promising.

Starring Christian Bale, Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling, Brad Pitt (and Schmidt from New Girl!) I’m not sure where this movie can go wrong. Don’t let me down, guys! Here’s the trailer if you haven’t seen it yet. In fact, I’m watching it myself right now because it’s been at least a month since I saw it!

The Big Short will be released in UK cinemas on 22nd January, 2016.

I have been away from the blog for a short while over Christmas but I have been well into my movies, between DVD's, TV and the Cinema I have watched countless movies over the festive period and watched a lot of trailers...

Of all the trailers I have seen for movies this is the one that really got my attention, the one that may finally get Leo his well deserved Oscar nod!!

The Revenant is inspired by the true events of Hugh Glass and his story of survival and revenge and although it looks pretty dark in places I am really eager to see how it plays out. In case you haven't seen it, here is the dark trailer...

The Revenant will be released in UK cinemas on 7th January, 2016.

Thursday Movie Picks: Mother-Son Relationships (Biologically Related)

This week’s theme has been surprisingly difficult, and I had to break the rules a little too. If you’re not familiar with the Thursday Movie Picks, it’s an amazing thing hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. Each week brings a new theme, and all you need to do is pick 3 movies that fit the bill to discuss. This week is one of many 'All in the Family Editions', this time featuring Mother-Son relationships.

Only God Forgives is probably the anti-choice for this week’s themes, as I can’t imagine the mother has a ‘Best Mum Ever’ mug at home for her actions. Ryan Gosling’s character’s brother is murdered and his crime lord mother compels him to hunt down his killer and cause trouble. Still, I’d like to think it shows how much he loves his mother to go and do this at her command, but maybe he’s equally afraid of her? This movie made little sense at the best of times!

How to Train your Dragon 2 introduced us to a character we thought was long gone, Hiccup’s mother! (Not a spoiler - much to my disappointment this was all over the trailers). Getting to see Hiccup reunite with his mother after all those years and to see the similarities in the two of them was heart warming and a real highlight of the whole film. If only it could have been kept as a surprise.

Here are my three:

Who doesn't love Shaun's mum in Shaun of the Dead and who wasn't completely heartbroken when he realised she had been bitten.  As well as the awkward everyone threatening to stab each other stand off while there is a gun pointed at his mum!   It was one of the really emotionally moments in this zom-com that made us all fall in love with the Cornetto trilogy.

At the beginning of this movie, Trevor's mom, Arlene (Helen Hunt) is a bit of a waster, she keeps letting her alcoholic, abusive ex (and Trevor's father) back into their lives while apparently skipping on much of her parental duties.  However, as the film moves forward you learn more about Arlene and what she has been through and she also realises what her son actually needs from her.  Its great to watch Trevor (Haley Joel Osment) be the parent in there relationship and to see the tables turn as the story progresses.

This is where I am technically cheating because the reason I chose this film was because of the relationship between Leigh Anne (Sandra Bullock) and Michael (Quinton Aaron), hence the cheating as they are not biologically related.  However, the more I thought about it the more I considered her relationship with her biological son SJ (Jae Head).  He has been raised with all the luxuries in life and has never wanted for anything and yet he is willing to share his whole life with Michael because of the way he has been raised.  My all time favourite scene in this movie is after the boys are in a car crash while Michael was driving, Leigh Anne is running down the street shouting 'My kids, they are my kids...' such a heart-warming moment.

Happy Birthday Ryan Gosling...

...In honour of Mr Gosling's 34th Birthday, I thought I would cover my Top 5 Ryan movies.  However, in looking for these I realised he has not actually done that many films.  I reckon I can see all of these pretty sharpish therefore I would have justification to write the Ryan Gosling Best/Worst post.

I know this film had a huge twist but everytime I go a year without watching it I forget the end so I can watch it again with fresh eyes.  I can't decide whether this is a good or bad thing but I enjoy the film and Anthony Hopkins is brilliant as sociopath Ted Crawford tormenting Detective Beachum (Ryan Gosling) at every turn.

Gosling is brilliant as the strong silent type in this action packed thriller, he barely speaks and yet you know what he's thinking (to a certain extent) and he steals every scene he's in (which is most of them).  It is gory in parts, but that's not something that has ever bothered me and I think in this particular story it's relevant rather than pointless (such as in Hostel).

We've already done a review on this, if you haven't seen it you can here but this was one that really surprised me.  I wasn't expecting to enjoy this at all but Ryan Gosling saved the day with his incredible performance as the lonely Lars who falls in love with a  sex doll.  He does such a great job that you actually start seeing Bianca as an actual character.

Need I say more.....

Anyone who knows me would have guessed that this was my number 1 as it is one of my favourite movies.  I love Gosling and McAdam's  chemistry in this and the brilliant similarities between Gosling and Garner's versions of Noah.  For me, his best yet.

10 Things I Love About The Notebook

This is one of my all time favourite films (and I think I might have mentioned The Goonies too much already) so I decided to blog about the 10 top things I LOVE about The Notebook.

1.  Chemistry
The chemistry between Ryan Gosling's Noah and Rachel McAdam's Allie was amazing, they work so well together.  As much as I love both of these actors, I've not seen them have the same chemistry with anyone else in other film (except maybe with Bianca in Lars and the Real Girl?!).  You really believe they are in love (they actually started dating in real life not long after this film was released)

2. Nicholas Sparks
I love Nicholas Sparks and his writing, I have read all his books to date and I am always excited to see a new one coming out or a film adaptation in the works.  His books have a fantasy element about them, I just get lost in the story and usually finish his books within a day or two.  In my personal opinion, this is the best adaptation of one of his books and by far the closest any of the films have come to being what my imagination decided it would be when I read the book.

3. Soundtrack
I love the soundtrack to this film, especially Billie Holiday's I'll be seeing you that becomes Noah and Allie's song.  The soundtrack provides the perfect background for this story from the slow romantic main title score by Aaron Zigman to the upbeat jazz number that backs Allie and Noah's love montage - I love it all!!

4. The heartbreak *SPOILER ALERT*
No matter how many times I watch this film, my heart breaks every time.  Alzheimer's is a horrific disease that traumatises both the patient and their loved ones.  To realise that the children and grandchildren are Allie's but she has no idea has me an emotional wreck everytime.  She is learning about her life as if it's someone else's and Noah does nothing but try to help her remember that it's her.  Assume fetal position. Try not to cry. Cry a lot!

5. Allie's mother's confession
This was the moment in the film where you were supposed to realise that Allie's mother wasn't a bad person she just did what she thought was right.  However, when I saw this scene I fist pumped the air and shouted 'Ah-ha' at the tele.  Feeling very smug that the Mother may have made the wrong decision and that Allie was right all along.  Not sure that's how Sparks wanted it to be viewed but that was my version AND I still don't like Allie's Mother (before you say anything Allie I don't mean your mother!! How rude! She happens to love you!)

6. Sam Shepherd
Who doesn't love Sam Shepherd, he is truly awesome and brings a real charm to this role.  I wanted more of him and that is one place this film didn't deliver for me.

7. Allie's charm
This is a combination of the character written by Sparks and Rachel McAdams who brings her to life.  She is everything I expected from the book including selfish and hot headed which I love about the character, she's not some whingey romantic she gets angry and she does hurt people.  This makes her more real than the other female leads in Nicholas Sparks movies. 

8. The Quotes

9. The follow-up *SPOILER ALERT*

If you read the books you will know what i'm talking about, if you don't wait a few years and i'm sure the film adaptation of The Wedding will be on the horizon.  This is the story of Wilson and his wife Jane who have to admit that the romance is gone from their marriage.  In desperation, Wilson turns to his Father-in-Law for advice, who just happens to be Noah Calhoun.  The Notebook book actually has a different ending to the film, in that Allie passes away and Noah is left alone. In this book, he genuinely believes that Allie's soul is in a swan that swims on the lake, which is romantic in itself but also heart breaking (again!).  Anyway, this book touches on the history of The Notebook while Noah tries to help Wilson become the romantic husband that he wants to be.

10.  Ryan Gosling

No words needed:

Review: Lars and the Real Girl (2007)

I like to be honest in my reviews and I was NOT looking forward to this film.  In fact, I started watching it around five times and had to turn it off after ten minutes because the sight of Ryan Gosling with a terrible moustache and a brown cardigan (plus the cover of the DVD) horrified me!  We tried to watch it at the last Flick Chicks movie night but (happily for me) it wouldn't work!  But we had to face it at some point so last nights Flick Chicks movie night was that time, no excuses!!
Come on, this guy is a total babe in every film he's in, we had to watch this just to balance it out a little!

So after finally watching the (whole) film, we can review it.  The film revolves around Lars, a young-ish man who after the death of his father moves into the garage of the house him and his brother owns.  Lars is a bit of a recluse although does hold down a job, but he doesn't like being touched or spending time with people even his own family.  This all changes when he meets his girlfriend Bianca, a wheelchair bound half Brazilian, half Danish brunette, who happens to be a 'real girl' doll.  The story follows how his family and the locals react to his delusions and how they support him throughout his 'relationship'

So you can see why the prospect of this film scared me, but it turns out I was wrong.  This film was moving and heartfelt and Gosling was incredible as the delusional Lars and his love for Bianca made her into a real character in the film that you felt like you knew by the time the film ending.  There were some cringeworthy moments that I might struggle to watch again but they just added to the good humour of the film and the sympathy for poor Lars and his struggle to deal with human emotion.  This was probably the biggest cringe moment (please excuse the terrible quality of the video):

Aww, but we got to hear him sing again?! What a sweetie...

Overall, this is a love story, regardless of what you think about the situation the film surrounds, this is a man finding love and learning to open up.  It just happens to be that who he finds love with is a doll. 

Without spoiling anything, there's a twist that I didn't really see coming. Knowing that it was an Oscar nominee, I knew it wouldn't be straightforward so I was expecting something.

Trivia:  In order to help Gosling stay in character, the cast and crew treated Bianca (the doll) as a real person, she had her own trailer and was only present on set when she was due to be in a scene. I giggle just thinking about this!

Bonus photo of us looking mega confused/conflicted/horrified:

I really enjoyed this and would definitely recommend it.  Ryan Gosling stole the show (as he does quite regularly) and made you fall in love with Bianca as much as he did his family and friends.

I really enjoyed this too but I just didn't connect with Bianca as much as I would have wanted to, so I struggled slightly. Not that it's the films fault though!