The Prestige Saturday, Aug 2 2008 

5 stars and drama and dvd , , , Humaira 8:04 am

The Prestige is about two magicians in the 19th Century who constantly try to out do each other after one of them accidentally kills the others wife in a magic trick gone wrong. Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale are fantastic as their characters and keep you guessing as to who the real villain is throughout. Its the complexness of the story and fantastic cast that initially attracted me. Michael Caine is also fantastic as the ingeniuer, the one who builds the magic tricks.

Overall, a really great film that I would definitely recommend. Scarlett Johanson impresses with her very good British accent and David Bowie was a huge surprise.

A fantastic film with more twists and turns than you can imagine, and well worth it for the shock twist at the end. It’ll leave chills down your spine.

Random fact: The main characters’ initials spell ABRA (Alfred Borden Robert Angier), as in Abracadabra, a common word used by magicians.

5 stars out of 5.

The Prestige [2006]

 

Batman Begins Sunday, Jul 6 2008 

5 stars and action/adventure and dvd , , , , , Humaira 7:35 pm

Batman Begins takes us right back to the beginning of the Batman myth and follows Bruce Wayne’s years before he became Batman and how he became Batman. Along the way he must face the Scarecrow and Ra’s al Ghul – the leader of the mysterious League of Shadows bent on destroying Gotham City.

I really liked this, as it takes time to establish Bruce the man and how he came to have so much anger in him. It also shows us how Bruce’s parents were killed and where his fear of bats came from. I also liked how the costume was very crude at the beginning as well as how the Bat Cave came into being.

Christian Bale is phenomenal in this role and stole my breath away with the masculinity he injects into the character as well as the raw anger that Bruce started with. Michael Caine was fantastic as Alfred the Butler who’s a cockney from London and adds much needed humour to the film. Katie Holmes was good in her role as Rachel Dawes, Bruce’s childhood friend. Liam Neeson stole the show as the baddie as did Cillian Murphy as the psychotic doctor/Scarecrow.

Overall, the story really captured me and time flew by as I was entranced by the beginning of Batman as he came to be over the years. It was good to reboot the fandom in this way and go back to the beginning.

Random fact: Much of Batman’s gear and apparel, including his cape and suit, is based on actual military technology.

5 stars out of 5.

Batman Begins – 2 Disc Edition [2005]

 

Children of Men Sunday, Jun 22 2008 

4 stars and dvd and thriller , , , Humaira 9:24 pm

Imagine a world without children. Without pregnancy. A life of infertility.

A life without hope where the world is collapsing under the crushing weight of infertility, and refugees from all countries are coming to Britain. Yet they are treated in terrible conditions and live in slums.

Theo Farron is abducted by his former wife Julian and asked to transport a young refugee girl to the mythical Human Project which claims to have the answer to the infertility that ravages their world.

After a surprise attack where Julian is killed, Kee – the girl in question, reveals that she is pregnant. It is then up to Theo to transport this fragile but resilient girl through the refugee camps to the boat that houses the Human Project and perhaps save mankind.

Its a slow film to start with as it sets everything up. I thought I’d end up not liking it because I couldn’t identify with a world without children. It just seems like such an alien idea as the world is already overcrowded as it is. But, as the story progresses and the characters revere this pregnant girl with deity like status I started to feel the impact of a world without children.

Theo is a reluctant hero, but he doesn’t shirk his duties when he realises what’s at stake. He seems like a very real and very ordinary man thrust into this unusual situation.

The scene where the baby is crying and everyone, including the army men are stunned into silence is one of the most powerful one yet.

This is a hard film to watch, but its shot in a documentary style which makes it feel like you’re actually there.

Random fact: Kee’s name is a homophone for “chi” (also can be pronounced CHEE) which means the energy or force of life itself.

4 stars out of 5.

Children Of Men (2-disc Special Edition) [2006]