V/H/S: Video home system? Or very horrible stories? Horror flick V/H/S showcases stories just as shaky as its camerawork

V/H/S does have some pretty cool scares and a couple solid shorts, but it really falls apart because the good is far outnumbered by the bad

If its red band trailer was any indication, the found footage/anthology film V/H/S should have been a horrifying, sweat-inducing, thrill ride. But the only ride this horror movie had me on was the fastest one to the bathroom. Two words: motion sickness. Although a popular, and at times, successful way to create a scary movie, the found footage style filming in V/H/S was far too shaky and amateurish - even for a handheld style film - and did little to add to the picture's style. Instead V/H/S achieves little success and creates a nauseating and frustrating cinema experience. 


Maybe the biggest reason for the film's lack of cohesion is the fact that it has six directors; Adam Wingard, David Bruckner, Ti West, Glenn McQuaid, Joe Swanberg and Radio Silence (a group of four directors) who all directed their own short films. It may be safe to say that with so many creative minds, artistic decisions were hard to come by and it showed through its messy and completely different story styles. This anthology type film had five short films which centered around one main story arc. The main story arc being a group of hooligan guys, who are paid to break into a man's house to search for a mysterious VHS tape. As the group searches for the specific video tape, they end up watching five home videos, all containing extremely disturbing footage. These five videos end up being the short films that make up the horror flick, but quite frankly, only two of them are pretty entertaining. 


At nearly two hours in length, V/H/S could have easily eliminated one of the weaker shorts to create a smoother flowing, less "draggy" film, which in turn would have amplified the gruesomeness, scariness and impressiveness of the two stronger shorts. Although the majority lacked any real depth or even story for that matter, the two strong shorts (titled "Amateur Night" and "10/31/98") really did an awesome job at creating an original story, with pretty impressive special effects, genuinely frightening sequences, and edge-of-your-seat suspense. 


Unfortunately, the shining moments of this horror flick are few and far between and aren't enough to propel it to entertaining status. The camerawork is way, and I mean way too shaky, the video quality is far too poor (even for a found footage film - especially in this day and age) and most important of all, the majority of the shorts were simply not scary, and the main story arc lacked any real.. well.. story, and stumbled pretty hard towards the finish line. All that, and I had to keep myself from hurling on the gentleman who sat in front of me. V/H/S did have some genuine scares, it's just too bad my biggest fear was not being able to keep my dinner down.

I wished they never 'closed the loop' on this one. Rian Johnson's "Looper" travels back and forth from awesome to inventive

Rian Johnson and Joseph Gordon-Levitt team up once again to create a highly original, highly stylized and highly action-packed sci-fi film

If time travel were actually possible, I would not hesitate for a second and send myself back into the past to watch this absolute gem of a film again. Rian Johnson's Looper has just a tinge of "The Terminator," but that's where all the similarities to other movies end in what proves to be an incredibly original, inventive and mind-blowing story.


In a futuristic world where time travel has been illegally developed for criminal activities, Young Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) finds himself in the middle of it as a Looper; an assasin hired by the mob to kill threats, sent back from the future. In a strange twist of fate, Joe's past - or should I say, future - catches up to him when the mob sends him his future-self to kill. An extremely stylized and violent film, Looper really hits on all cylinders with amazing visual cinematography and a completely original sci-fi-action story.


The highlight of this film is 100% its story. Instead of relying heavily on SFX and design like many other modern sci-fi flicks, writer/director, Rian Johnson created a story so thought-provoking and so smart that fancy CGI visuals didn't need to dominate the movie. Now, with that being said, visually, Looper looks fantastic. Johnson stapled his third feature film with so much style, it almost stood out as the shining star of the film. The violence, the gore and the beautifully trippy cinematography, coupled with the impressive lighting - both natural and "a la lens flare" - really pack a huge punch of entertaining style to the movie. Oh, and there are a few scenes with awesome SFX.


One major aspect to the film that had many people on edge was the intense reinvention of Joseph Gordon-Levitt's face, but makeup artist, Kazu Tsuji did an incredible job at making JGL look like a young Bruce Willis. Basically wearing a mask, Joseph Gordon-Levitt shows the world his acting isn't solely based on the pretty-boy charm that emits from his face, but rather on his talents. JGL ripped audio of Bruce Willis' dialogue from Sin City and put it onto his iPod in preparation for this role, and it proved to be a great tactic. Everything from his mannerisms to his throaty voice screamed Bruce Willis, so for that I completely commend his performance. Bruce Willis was entertaining and played his trademark, gun-slinging action star, Jeff Daniels was hilarious as a certain mobster, and Emily Blunt was super sexy in her role as a protective mother (you'll see how that comes into play).


At times, the explanation and the rules of time travel may be a little difficult to follow, but it all makes sense in the end, comes to an incredibly tense and nail-biting climax and wraps up into what looks like one of the best films of the fall/winter. The clock is ticking, go check this film before time runs out.


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Looper - Official Trailer [HD]

The struggle between good and bad is not only between Snow White and the Evil Queen in the dark and stylish "Snow White and the Huntsman"

Incredible visuals and an impressive dark style doesn't quite save Snow White and the Huntsman from its iffy flow and stock, trademark characters


First-time director, Rupert Sanders put together a terrifically stunning visual experience but, Snow White and the Huntsman is ultimately bogged down by unsatisfying pacing and a severe lack in character development.


The script doesn't quite come up to snuff either. With many opportunities to delve deeper into Queen Ravenna and The Hunstman's character and past, the script limits these stories which in turn, lead to some holes in the story which could have been easily and brilliantly filled. 


The costumes, sets and overall style is beautiful and Chris Hemsworth and Charlize Theron put together some solid performances. Although not terrible, Kristen Stewart doesn't quite shake off the stigma of her Twilight acting, stumbling through with very little dimension to her performance. 


Snow White and the Huntsman - although incredibly stylish and an original and dark interpretation of the fairytale - doesn't quite live up to epic, action-adventure-film it strove to be.

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Snow White and the Huntsman - Official Trailer [HD]

JUMP CUT!: David Gordon Green should have been babysat while directing "The Sitter"

Jonah Hill's character is lured into babysitting, just like the audience is lured into thinking this is a laugh-out-loud comedy

A David Gordon Green comedy that ranks nowhere near the comedic or storytelling strengths of his Pineapple Express - The Sitter is a dull, jumbled mess of a movie with a few laughs courtesy of Jonah Hill and Sam Rockwell. 

The story is centred around an irresponsible young adult, named Noah (Jonah Hill), who babysits three children by taking them on a wild adventure through New York City. The crazy adventures are not only over the top, ridiculous and at times, funny, but they help Noah learn a lot about himself and helps all three children gain an understanding of who they are as people as well. 

The story does have some creative and entertaining plot twists and does shows off several scenes of (attempted) emotional depth and character development. But in the end, it all falls short because of a poor screenplay and a very messy and rushed denouement.

The Sitter is good for a couple of laughs, but really nothing more.

FUN FACT: This is my first poorly rated film on my blog. I should make some sort of award!

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The Sitter - Official Trailer [HD]

JUMP CUT!: The Hunger Games; May the odds be ever in your favour

Ross brings The Hunger Games to the big-screen and doesn't disappoint, delivering an action-packed thriller in which Jennifer Lawrence shines

All book differences aside,  Ross does an incredible job with the pacing of the film and stays relatively true to the book itself. Some differences had me cringing, but others had me amazed, really understanding the struggles with the authoritarian government. 

Looking at it from an entirely film point of view, the story is intense, the action scenes remarkable and Lawrence as the leading lady is nothing short of spectacular. The screenplay, co-written by the author herself is smartly written and the supporting characters really do immerse you in their roles. Would have loved to see more of the romance portrayed in the book, but perhaps that's all for the balancing act in Catching Fire and Mockingjay. Overall, The Hunger Games is a very impressive beginning to what looks to be a very, very promising trilogy.

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The Hunger Games - Official Trailer [HD]

Better keep your hands at ten-and-two! "Drive" gets your heart racing in this violently, action-packed marvel of cinema

Ryan Gosling shows off his uncanny flexibility as an actor and Nicolas Winding Refn directs a masterful piece of art, proving that countless action sequences and hundreds of millions of dollars aren't necessary to create a pulse-pounding, edge-of-your-seat action movie

The opening dialogue is simple and fresh, yet serious and intimidating.


"You give me a time and a place, I give you a five minute window," are quietly but sternly spoken from Ryan Gosling's mouth, as his character known as Driver, nothing else. The camera pans, calmly moving across his gloomy, dark-lit apartment to a medium shot of Driver on the phone, overlooking the dazzling city lights that engulf the Los Angeles night through his window.


"Anything happens in that five minutes and I'm yours no matter what. Anything happens a minute either side of that and you're on your own... I drive." Driver hangs up the phone and soon after the mood is set. Immediately, you are filled with anxiety, which ultimately and forcefully catches up and clings on to the viewer for dear life as the film progresses.


Adapted from the 2005 novel written by James Sallis, Drive is a 2011, super violent, action-crime-drama film brought to life by Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn. By day, Driver is a Hollywood stunt driver and garage worker and by night, works as a getaway driver in the world of crime. The movie pays homage and adopts it's style from art house films, the most obvious being the neo-noir style, dominantly incorporating dark, violent and non-archetypal type characters. Morally conflicted and emotional anti-heros are usually the premise of neo-noir films and Driver (Ryan Gosling) is just that.


Aside from knowing the main character is a criminal, you really don't know much about Driver. His past is a mystery and that mystery follows him for most of the film. Driver is a recluse, keeps to himself and rarely associates with anyone other than with his garage boss, Shannon (Bryan Cranston). All of that changes one day when Driver finds himself attached to a beautiful young woman named Irene (Carey Mulligan) and her son Benicio (Kaden Leos). Suddenly Driver's life has changed and he finds himself falling into unfamiliar territory and starts to care for others. Just as Driver begins to gather new perspectives on himself and others, the world of crime that he is involved with catches up to him and throws himself, Irene and Benicio into a world of extreme danger and intense violence involving the west-coast mob.


One of these mob members was Bernie, portrayed by Albert Brooks, who arguably put together the best performance of the film. Brooks played the head of the west-coast mob and his character exuded a very nice, emotional and at times caring personality for a cold-blooded killing gangster. Brooks was able to create a very likeable "bad guy" character which is completely left field of the types of roles he's usually cast for. Unlike other characters, Brooks had a lot of dialogue to work with to help make his character his own, which definitely added to the depth of his performance. What really made this performance great was that he was a believable gangster. The goal of every actor is to make you believe.


And then of course, there's the ever popular Mr. Gosling and the gorgeous Carey Mulligan. Although Refn opted to have his two main characters have as little dialogue as possible - and there is very little - it completely works in favour of the film and their characters, showing off the immense and growing talent of both the stars. Of course great writing and dialogue can propel any given performance to greatness, but Gosling and Mulligan share such beautiful chemistry together and each pull off great performances. Obviously not through their dialogue delivery, but in their body language and chemistry. The relationship the two shared was not one of words, but rather looks. The looks and actions the two shared wrote their story better than any script could have. Great camera work caught the emotion in both of the stars' eyes as they would gaze at one another.


Gosling however showed more depth in his performance through several incredibly intense and stressful scenes. When Irene and her son were in danger, Gosling's character set out to protect them and in several scenes - including shotguns, bullets, cars and hammers - the "badass" came out to play. Although it wasn't much dialogue, Gosling worked it masterfully. The seriousness and emotion on Gosling's face was visibly obvious and mesmerizing and completely sold his performance. Simple but powerful dialogue and very serious scenes propelled Gosling's performance into near perfection.


Under any other director, the film could have just come across as another hokey Hollywood action, chase, car movie like The Fast and the Furious. But Refn's neo-noir style added a huge punch and specific feel to this movie that specific, niche audiences will fall in love with.


Refn and cinematographer Newton Thomas Sigel did a masterful job at creating amazing shots that really put the audience in the action and made them part of the movie's world. Simple, yet original camera positioning like within the interior of the car, up close and personal during fight scenes, or even just the simple close-ups on Driver's and Irene's faces when together, beautifully framed the story and delivered the visuals very neatly for the audience to digest.


Drive is a great art-film and a great alternative to the cliche, over-the-top Hollywood films produced today. A very simple story was able to create inventive, immersive and completely suspenseful action sequences through impressive cinematography, perfect directing and great acting performances. Although many may find Drive to be too "alternative" for their liking,  Drive is a beautifully shot film with a simple story produced to greatness.

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Drive - Official Trailer [HD]

JUMP CUT!: Impressive storytelling lifts "Super 8" above and beyond other sci-fi flicks

Abrams creates an emotionally deep story to accompany his fun, edge-of-your-seat science-fiction thrill ride


Super 8 is an incredibly fun, thrilling and moving piece of cinema - an ode to the summer sci-fi classics of Steven Spielberg -  that J.J. Abrams has created to near perfection.

Super 8 is unlike many other sci-fi flicks because of many different reasons, most notably, the fact that our heroes are 13-year-old kids. The fresh faces of Joel Courtney (as Joe Lamb) and the incredibly talented Elle Fanning (as Alice Dainard) not only give off impressive performances but instantly sucker you into falling in love with them.

The movie is about a group of young kids, filming a super 8 movie about zombies (which is later shown in its entirety at the end credits). But everything falls apart when a train derails and crashes - not only ruining the kids' shot, but unleashing a terrible danger onto the town, which leads to many mysterious and unsettling happenings.

Abrams wrote and directed a sci-fi movie that boasts not only great effects (a la train derailment), but powerful and heart-warming underlying story lines that truly grasp the audience and makes them care about the story's protagonists. Themes about loss, heartbreak, love and forgiveness all come together to truly create a beautiful and meaningful story.

The intense violence and mayhem is executed well and is not overdone, nor does it try to be overly aggressive. Instead, Abrams understands that all the chaos within the film can only work when the audience cares about the people within it, and the writer/director does that beautifully.

Super 8 is a heart-pounding thrill ride accompanied by honest, emotionally deep themes, sure to get you completely immersed in Abrams storytelling.



Super 8 was one of my favourite films of 2011 so I definitely plan on writing a full-length review on this film in the near future! Stay tuned and keep your eyes peeled for when it's published!

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Super 8 - Official Trailer [HD]