Review: The Spectacular Now (2013)

Recently it feels like I’ve watched nothing but blockbusters, and so over the weekend I was after a change. After being woken up far too early on Saturday morning by my delightful, hungry cats, I curled up on the sofa with a cup of tea and hunted down something light to watch. I suddenly remembered a romcom-type film I’d actually mentioned to Jenna a while ago, which I hadn’t gotten round to watching yet, so I put on The Spectacular Now.

The Spectacular Now is a coming of age type film that leans more towards being a drama than a comedy (in my opinion at least). Our main character, Sutter (Miles Teller) is a popular, fun loving guy who lives in the moment and doesn’t plan for the future. His whirlwind romance with Cassidy (Brie Larson) sadly comes to an end but when Sutter meets Aimee (Shailene Woodley) his outlook on life starts to change.

Hopefully I’ve summed that plot up okay without butchering it! This is what I thought was a twist on the classic ‘Jock goes out with Nerd as a dare and ends up falling in love’ plot but ended up having much more depth than that. Sutter is one of the popular kids, sure, but he’s also a huge alcoholic with problems at home with his Mum. Aimee reads anime books and draws her favourite characters for fun, but she’s far from a loser.

I wouldn’t say there were twists in this film, but there were certain events I was expecting to happen, which didn’t. For example, I expected Sutter to change his mind about prom. There was one moment towards the end of the film which took me by total surprise, and my cats were glad my cup of tea was almost empty by that point as they’d have been soaked!

The Spectacular Now was a beautiful and painful story, and I would recommend it to anyone who’s a fan of ‘coming of age’ films. 

Now Jenna, I think it’s time to bring up the scoring system again. This was far better than a 7 for me, but I don’t think it’s 8 material. It’s a 7.5 for goodness sakes! For the sake of peace, I’ll stick with my Letterboxd score (which also doesn’t allow halves - are you one of the founders Jenna?) Yes, yes I am, didn't I tell you ;-) They kicked me out though for being adamant half scores are useless on a 1-10 scale!!

Review: Insurgent (2015)

I knew at some point I was going to have to watch this after reading all three books and watching the first film but I have been putting it off for as long as possible (mostly after seeing Shailene Woodley's atrocious wig in the posters!) but finally had to succumb last weekend....

Insurgent follows on from Divergent with Tris (Shailene Woodley) and Four (Theo James) on the run and being hunted while trying to find allies in their fight against Jeanine (Kate Winslet).  Desperate to save the people she loves Tris must find out what her parents Faction sacrificed themselves to protect and why Erudite want to stop them.

I'm not going to lie, I had to good a synopsis to remind myself what happened in this film and it was only a few days ago that I watched it.  I would understand this confusion if I hadn't read the book but I have and I still couldn't work out what was going on and why.  The whole film is so choppy and rushed that you have no idea who, what or why at any point.

The supporting cast (Winslet excluded) are boring and dry and of little interest throughout and I'm sure (but can't remember details) that we were introduced to more members of the Amity clan and the Factionless in the book but the meetings with both of these felt rushed and pushed along to get to the 'dramatic' scenes.  I love seeing Kate Winslet in a bad guy role and she took it on really well with her creepy calmness (until the end that is) and sharp suits - she upped her game this time and it paid off!

I don't like Shailene Woodley, I did love her in The Fault in our Stars and I thought that may be a turning point for me, but it wasn't.  Maybe its my weird obsession with Jennifer Lawrence hindering my opinion but I just can't get on board with Woodley.  I think her acting skills in this are shocking compared to her previous work (or maybe its the script she has been fed to work with), honestly, I just found her irritating and awkward throughout.

I didn't have high expectations for this and luckily I didn't, it was disappointing as it was the better of the books for me.  Unfortunately, I read the final book a long time after the second one and didn't enjoy it because I had lost the flow of the story - meaning I don't have much hope for the next one either!!

Review: The Fault in our Stars (2014)

Hey, yeah, so, funny story.  It seems that I LOVE The Fault in our Stars sooo much that I appear to have reviewed it TWICE!! The italics below are mine and Allie's way of communicating through the blog even though we send daily e-mails, facebook messages, whatsapp messages, normal messages and Twitter - what could one more medium hurt!!

Anyway, we decided between us that I might be funny to post this again (I get the feeling its a laugh at me type situation!) with our messages included - happy reading, again!

You know we've already review this, right? http://flick-chicks.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/review-fault-in-our-stars-2014.html 

FFS - I keep searching to check we haven't already done them and this one I was adamant we hadn't so I didn't check - DAMN IT!!!!!!! I'm not adding pictures this time!

Second review attempt of The Fault in our Stars

I read this book in a day, thats how much I enjoyed it.  I couldn't put it down and ended up sitting on an airport (cold) marble floor, so that I could plug my Kindle in so I could continue reading when my battery died. I think at this point, we all understand how much you loved it!

Hazel Grace (Shailene Woodley) is forced to go to a cancer support group, where she meets Gus (Ansel Elgort) who not only makes the whole experience less rubbish but who she actually falls in love with.  Hazel's lung cancer measn she has to carry an oxygen tank everywhere she goes and Gus shows the pitfalls of surviving cancer with his prosthetic leg. I have such a strange case of deja vu right now...

I knew what was going to happen in this film, obviously having read the book but that didn't take away from it at all.  The characters really came to life from the book and Woodley and Elgort were the perfect choices for these star-crossed teenagers, I don't think anyone could have brought John Green's characters to life so well.  They manage to make it quirky over cringy and heartwarming instead of soppy, which is quite a feat with this subject.

It was pretty emotional to watch, particularly when you know the ending in advance but that doesn't tip my interest, in fact as you well know by now I love a good tear-jerker.  The supporting cast we're great as well, Hazel's parents played by Laura Dern and Sam Trammell, although completely outshone by their younger co-stars, did a great job as the 'grown-ups' trying to convince Hazel and Gus that they will only get hurt in the long run.

It doesn't show the gritty realism of the subject, the way 'My Sisters Keeper' type films have done in the past but sometimes its not all bad to sugar-coat some things.

You know, I'm just glad a second viewing (and reviewing!) hasn't changed your opinion. Do I need to rate this again too?!

Review: The Fault in Our Stars (2014)

I'm not normally into romance films. I need a nice side of comedy to keep me entertained. However, The Fault in Our Stars is a book I've been meaning to read for ages due to the hype, and when I realised it was being released as a film, I knew I needed to see it. Sadly, none of my friends would be up for it, but I managed to tag along with Jenna and her friend Lou last Sunday.

 

As the poster states, The Fault in Our Stars is based on a novel by John Green. It tells the tragic love story between Hazel Grace (Shailene Woodley) and Gus (Ansel Elgort), who met at a cancer support group.

I still hadn't read the book, and I had never seen the leading actors in anything before either so I went into the cinema completely open minded, and I was really impressed. The story dealt with such a sensitive and upsetting issue without getting over dramatic, and I was pleasantly surprised to find many moments of comic relief to lighten the mood. I was kept gripped from beginning to end, and although in my mind I thought I knew how it would end, I was wrong. I think I benefitted greatly from not having read the book yet.  I however read the book before hand (in 3 hours on a flight) and I was completely engrossed, I couldn't have put it down even if I wanted to. (Lucky this was the flight I mentioned in our NSFP post and I had a small child sat next to me so I was limited on film choices anyway!).  Having read the book I was so excited about the film and I have to say as adaptations go they have done a really good job.  Much of it played out exactly as I imagined in my head which is rare from book to screen.

Hazel Grace and Gus were inspiring characters to watch, and although I was a little cold towards Gus at first, I very quickly warmed to him due to his confidence and charm. Another highlight for me was the little effects when text messages were sent, it was a creative addition and I thought it really tied in well with the teenage theme. Some of the lines were a little cheesy of course, but my understanding is that they're direct quotes from the book.  Yes there were lots of direct quotes from the book which I noticed and I thought they (although a little cheesy) a great way to ensure the film was true to the book.

These are my kind of films, I loved My Sisters Keeper and I sob like a child every time but I love getting so engrossed in a film that you actually cry, not shed a little tear here and there but actually cry (including snot, load sobs and many many tears).  Maybe it's a kind of release (as I have a habit of not crying at anything in real life!) or maybe I just like to torture myself with weepy films when I know i'm going to end up a blubbering mess - who knows!!

This was a heart-breaking but beautiful film to watch, and I encourage anyone who has any doubts to give this a try. I'm also looking forward to seeing more of Shailene Woodley, as she was fantastic in this.

Great film, really close to the book which I loved.  Thanks to both sides of the coin being present in our review whether you have read the book or not we would recommend you see it.

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! 

Review: The Amazing Spider-Man 2

I finally went to the cinema to see this last week and I was not disappointed (as I knew I wouldn't be!) I am a huge fan of Andrew Garfield as Spider-Man and he completely lived up to my expectations, building on the character from the first film and making you love Spidey even more!! I had to wait till yesterday but I was seriously looking forward to this, the first one is probably one of my all time favourite comic films.

This sequel focuses mainly on Peter Parker (Garfield) trying to find out what happened to his parents as well as battling various enemies including Electro (Jamie Foxx), Green Goblin (Dane DeHaan) and - all be it briefly - Rhino (Paul Giamatti).  It also continues to build on the relationship between Parker and Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone), which personally is my favourite part, but I'm a sucker for a love story! How can you not be when it's Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone, probably the cutest couple on the planet ever?!

As a big fan of the Amazing Spider-Man film, I had high hopes for this and superficially I wasn't disappointed, the flying scenes were particularly impressive, even without 3D.  The comedy one liners from Spider-Man were there and the love story was there.  However, I did feel like the whole film came across a bit choppy and hard to follow.  One minute it's this bad guy, then it's that one and then this one is back and then oh look another different bad guy.  It almost felt like two different versions had been filmed and then cut and pasted together.  Certain parts of the film felt rushed while other parts dragged on and on.  When I left the cinema, I read the reviews as I do for every film and the Total Film review actually mentioned that MJ was going to be in this film and Shailene Woodley had filmed scenes but they were all cut. 

The comical moments were great, with one exception! Electro in Times Square, cue dramatic music, tens of police officers on standby, guns ready, and what does he say? "It's my Birthday...time to light my candles..." Urghhh... This clip below though? Comedy gold!

I wish I watched this at the IMAX Giant Screen like I did with the first, because some of the action scenes would have been incredible! They were great enough in 2D to be honest. My heart was literally racing throughout the final fight scene, it was incredible. I thought the film was fine to follow, but it all got a bit rushed at the end. There was really no need for Rhino at all, he was only really in it for about 5 minutes anyway.

I personally didn't see the big shock of the film coming, but after it happened I looked back at the whole film and they had been teasing and hinting at it all the way through, dragging it out unnecessarily I think.  I won't put any spoilers in here but it was a shock for me but it was clever as it curves away from what a comic book movie would normally do, if you have seen the film this will make perfect sense, if you haven't - well go and see it and get back to me!

I've read the comics so I knew what was coming, but damn they really didn't try to hide it. I've learnt from this to never like a film's Facebook page until you've seen it, as I saw a lot of people's angry reactions when a screenshot was posted with the caption 'Will Peter have to pay the ultimate price?'.

None of these 'issues' took away from my love of the film though, it held my attention and I was gripped from beginning to end.  I love the actors and the way they play these characters (although never saw Paul Giamatti as Rhino but it worked!!) and I did very much enjoy the story and would happily watch it again and again.

Great filming, great actors and great characters, if only the story had kept up this would have been a 9 for me. I can't give this a 10 because even I will point out some flaws, but I loved it and can't wait to see it again.