The Three Musketeers (2011)

This was recently released on DVD and I have been waiting to watch it since it was release in the cinema (I had no money to go and see it). I knew that lots of people didn't want to go and see it because they loved previous Musketeer films. This just made my expectations extremely high. Personally, I love 'The Man In The Iron Mask' and I couldn't really imagine anyone else playing the legendary characters.
The film features many big name stars, making my expectations go through the roof. I actually liked their portrayal of the Musketeers. They were witty, drunkards that would do anything for France. They also offered light relief in some seriously tense scenes, especially Porthos (Ray Stevenson). Matthew Macfadyen's portrayal of Athos was particularly my favourite because he was serious and funny at time. Orlando Bloom played the Duke of Buckingham and I think he may be typecast  to sail ships on the sea, under it and now in the clouds. It was a nice change to see him playing someone you're supposed to hate.
Although it wasn't my favourite film of all time, I still enjoyed it. The costumes and sets were amazing. A lot of detail was put into creating them. I applaud the costumes department for the amazingly, elaborate costumes that popped out of the screen.
The most surprising part of the film is the flying ships. Some people love them, others don't. They certainly annoyed my Dad. I personally thought they looked beautiful and I love the idea of them. However, I feel that the CGI let them down a bit in the long shots. They weren't as believable as you'd imagine with the technology we have today.
You're personal opinions will be varied in terms of The Three Musketeers, but I think you will all find a part of the film that you love, be it the flying ships, the costumes or the characters. It is really worth watching, even if you just want to moan about it not being as good as previous Musketeer films. I would happily watch it again and would welcome a sequel (Especially if Logan Leerman is i it).

It's Happening!

In 1984 audiences were introduced to the world of The Terminator. Set in 2029, humans are at war with a computer system (yes, a computer system) called Skynet. In this world they battle cyborgs and other computer based 'beings'. In 1984 and even now, audiences sit back and relax, believing this would never be their fate or their loved ones fates. Well, I'm here to show you otherwise.
This both amazes and scares me...
In order to create the huge battle scenes in the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, Peter Jackson (director) and WETA Digital built a computer programme. This programme, MASSIVE can create entire CGI (Computer Generated Imagery) armies and each CGI soldier can 'think' and 'fight' independently of the other soldiers. The software taught the soldiers how to fight. This is called Artificial Intelligence and it had to be repeatedly dumbed down because the soldiers were determined to run away from the battles in order to survive. This suggests that a machine is just as clever as a human is, when it comes to survival. For me, the worst part of MASSIVE is that the controllers (us) only have to input a few lines of data and it does the rest on it's own. It thinks for itself (more than your average computer).
Through FICTION films like The Terminator we create a future that we don't want to believe will happen. But, we create programmes increasingly like that of Skynet to make these films. Filmmakers are subconsciously predicting and creating our future and it's not looking great.
MASSIVE has a long way to go before it becomes Skynet, but it's closer than you expect. All we need is a decent robot and we're on our way to the world of The Terminator.

Black Death (2010)

I know this isn't a new film, but I feel it's worth mentioning. Very few people have heard of this film and I'm not surprised. There was very little, major marketing campaign. Only a few trailers/posters here and there. I only discovered it because I was surfing the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) and happened to stumble across it. I then only watched the film because Sean Bean stars in it. I've loved him ever since Lord of the Rings. At this point I wasn't expecting much from the movie.
The story is of a young monk (Eddie Redmayne) who chose to lead a Knight (Sean Bean(A Pious Boromir!)) and his mercenaries to a village to learn the truth about the reports of people being brought back to life and their lack of faith in Christianity. Expect some true questioning of the Christian religion within the film.
When I came to watch it, I found it surprisingly good. I'm not a major fan of the horror adventure genre, but I enjoyed this. The historical content made the horror more believable. I especially enjoyed the ending as it was misleading. Director, Christopher Smith created an unexpected, but believable ending. He leads you to think one thing and does the complete opposite. Genius.
The title Black Death obviously suggests there is a lot of dying, but the majority of death isn't from the plague. If you are squeamish or don't like to see limbs flying about the place, then this isn't your film. There had to be some horror.
I would happily recommend this film to anyone. I would also recommend watching it in a dark room because some scenes are hard to see.
A truly surprising film.

Stupid Ratings

Imagine you're 12 years old again and you really want to go an see a film you've been dying to see for months. The rating is 'To Be Confirmed' and you still hold the hope that it will be rated 12A, just so you can go and see it. But, alas your hopes is dashed when it is given a 15 rating. This repeatedly happened to me, but I never realised how lenient the British Board of Film Classification's (BBFC) rating system was.
A PG film that is supposed to be suitable for children aged 8 and older can contain sex and drugs references. It can also contain moderate violence, but it has to be justified by the content (e.g. fantasy). A 12 film can contain discreet sexual activity. 15 films are allowed to contain hard drugs and; 18 films can contain real sex and strong violence.
There is also an R18 rating. I didn't even know the UK had this rating. Films with these ratings can only be shown in ADULT cinemas.
What annoys me is how do you decide what is moderate and what is mild? That means something different to everyone. It depends where you've grown up and how you've been raised. No two people have the exact same view of what is moderate and mild. For this reason I'd be scared to have the responsibility of deciding because of all those parents complaining as the PG they took their children is too violent or the language was too strong. I commend those that do, I wouldn't want to fight off all those parents.
Personally, I've been watching 18 films at home since I was about 12. My parents didn't mind because they knew that I'd have to watch them at some point as film was my career choice.The fact I've seen them hasn't badly affected my personality, but I can understand why they have to rate films. It could probably affect someone badly; teaching children swear words. I was just grateful for the 12A rating.

Hello Bloggers!

Well I'm literally here to talk about my one true love, films. I hope that you enjoy reading this blog because I'll enjoy writing it (I hope :P). I'm currently an A level Film Studies student and hope to study it at University. So, I thought I'd start my critical career early. I will review films, probably not new releases (I can't afford to go to the cinema). Most of the films I have had to watch recently are pre-2000 and I hope to bring new kinds of films into your world. I will also write about the technology used in films and maybe ask you some questions about my coursework (expect extensive moaning about 3D). I hope you enjoy and read on.