Change Your Image
dave_wright87
Reviews
I Am Legend (2007)
Speechless, a real wasted effort.
This film starts as a classic. Its got amazing visuals, New York empty and foreboding, and Will Smith is terrific, holding the audiences' attention on his own. His dog is also great (the best animal acting since the Nazi Monkey in Raiders). The atmosphere is tense and the social interaction between Smith and the selection of dolls and animals he has anthropomorphised is simply wonderful. The range of emotion is stunning. However when the sun sets the film turns around completely, becoming a simple action film complete with awful CG monsters. The CG is so bad you wonder why it was chosen - as special effects make up would have been effective (similar to the brilliant Descent) - and who did it, because it certainly wasn't ILM! From here on clichés are abound and the film deteriorates into mediocrity. This is made all the more disappointing by the start. A few moments bring the level back (the Shrek scene in particular) to its brilliant heights at the start but for not long enough. As the title says I was speechless after seeing this film, it really could have been one of the best films ever made, but squandered it pandering to the popular audience. I can only hope that the next time this premise is remade it FINALLY succeeds. Because of the brilliant 10* start but the appalling 1* end my score could only really be a middle 5. Watch this film, just for the potential shown at the start.
Stardust (2007)
The most fantastical adventure of the year!
I went into this film with modest hopes, the director had pedigree, I had seen Charlie Cox in Casanova and was impressed, and literally EVERYONE had been raving about it. As the story started to unfold I was introduced to Victorian England on one side of a mysterious Wall, and on the other a magical land, Stormhold. The actual plot weaves together many strands and I don't want to ruin the surprises for anyone, but at the barest it is the simple tale of a young man (Charlie Cox) in love with the village beauty (Sienna Miller). To win her love he tells her he will fetch back a fallen star from the other side of the Wall. Howver when he arrives at the star he finds not a lump of astral metal as he expected but a beautiful woman (Claire Danes). As the two journey back to the wall they find themselves in the adventure of a lifetime. The visuals are brilliant, England looks stunning, in a similar fashion to New Zealand in LOTR, and it s full of wonderful little flourishes, such as the way that the star shines when she is happy, a very simple effect, but one that looks radiant. As well as this the acting good, especially from the leads and Robert DeNiro, whose turn as the captain of an airship is incredibly memorable. This film is THE perfect date movie, it is romantic without being a "chick flick", funny and full of wonderful action pieces that will satisfy any action film fan. All in all it is a truly magical experience from beginning to end, and I now Im raving about it to EVERYONE!