Review: Dolphin Tale (2011)

I was so tired the other night and I wanted to watch something that didn't require too much effort or thinking on my part (as that would just put me to sleep!) and I came across this.  It looked like it had a Free Willy vibe which is one of my favourite childhood films so I thought I would give it a go.

Sawyer Nelson (Nathan Gamble) is a shy and introvert child, who reverts further inside of himself when his cousin (and possibly only friend) joins the Army and leaves to serve in Afghanistan.  That is until he finds Winter, the dolphin who is caught in a crab trap on the beach.  After visiting her at the marine hospital to check she is OK, he forms a bond and proceeds to skip summer school to visit Winter and help her recover after losing her tail.

This is a typical family movie, with the usual fixtures.  The bond with the injured animal, the young love interest, the mom who just doesn't understand and the alternative parental figure who does.  Add in Morgan Freeman as Dr Cameron McCarthy with his witty comments and sharp humour, steals every scene and it makes for pretty enjoyable watching. However, I was surprised to find out it wasn't as predictable as I was expecting.  More than once, I assumed one thing was going to happen and they went a different way completely.

Boy its been years since I saw Free Willy. If I'm honest Dolphin Tale isn't really my kind of thing but it sounds like a great family movie. Funnily enough, I'd never heard of this film till I saw Jenna's review, and in the same day I heard that a sequel is coming out later this year!

The special effects used for Winter's tail (or lack of tail!) is done really well and Sawyer is really good in his role as Winter's best friend.  It is very reminiscent of Jesse and Willy's bond in Free Willy.

All in all, this is a fun family film and doesn't take much effort to watch or enjoy.

Review: Divergent (2014)

I read the book this film is based on a long time ago, in fact I read it straight after the first Hunger Games book as it was recommended as similar to that.  The book is very complicated and in some places hard to follow but still a fantastic read and cracking story. 

The story starts after the suggestion of some sort of war in America and Chicago is now surrounded by a wall and the residents are split into five factions, Abnegation, Amity, Erudite, Candor and Dauntless.  Tris is Abnegation but chooses Dauntless as a way to find herself after being testing and found as Divergent, a person who can't be identified as one of the five factions. (see what I mean about complicated!)

The film was simplified somewhat to help the viewer follow it but didn't take away from the story and actually in some cases it was easier to understand because you could see what was happening rather than trying to visualise it.  Also, each faction wears their own colours, which in the book really means nothing but in the film is helpful to remember which faction is everyone is from :-)

I had never even heard of the book until the trailers for this first came out. I don't think I'll get a chance to see it before it goes from cinemas, but knowing that it's simplified from the book makes me think that I'll wait for the DVD release, watch it, and then read the book!  Nooooooo always read the book first!!!!

I saw Shailene Woodley in a horrendous American series called The Secret Life of the American Teenager and really didn't hold much hope for Theo James after he small part in The Inbetweeners.  I have to be honest, I wasn't impressed with their CV's so was quite disappointed when I heard they were the leads.  Fortunately, I was proven wrong, I loved these two throughout the film, although they may have been lacking the chemistry of other partnerships, Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone for example.  Some of the supporting actors/actresses were great to, Jai Courtney's Eric was suitably evil and steals every scene he is in.  It was interesting to see Kate Winslet in a 'bad guy' role (could have hidden her pregnancy better though!!)

I'm glad you said that! I really wasn't impressed with the line up and that's probably why I haven't seen it yet, but now I might actually give it a try.

With the film set 150 years in the future, it was interesting to see what they would make the world look like and they nailed it.  They made it exactly how I imagined it when I read the book and some of the dauntless zip lining scenes captured the visuals of the city perfectly.

All in all, very entertaining and I was gripped from beginning to end (even knowing what was going to happen).  Some scenes became cheesy and awkward to watch but that aside it was really good and I would watch it again.  However, I would definitely recommend reading the book first. Ohh, after I just said I'd do it the other way, haha!