Cirque du Soleil: Worlds Away 3D
What’s it about?
A misfit searches through seven fantasy worlds for the aerialist she’s fallen for. Who are we kidding? It’s Cirque du Soleil’s Greatest Hits.
What did we think?
Stephen Scott says: when asked to describe a traveling Cirque du Soleil show, I said “it’s something you have to experience for yourself”. The same can be said for this mish-mash of the company’s seven Las Vegas live shows.
How does it compare to a live show?
- Nowhere near as good: when you see it live you are immersed in the breathtaking experience. This is more like a Whitman’s Sampler – with so many amazing bits, and the flimsiest of plots, it gets surprisingly dull.
- Just as good: HOW DO THEY DO THAT? Wow. What an astonishing display of human ability.
- Even better than the real thing: you get to see all the minute details, plus some things you’ll never see live.
Beautiful Creatures
What’s it about?
A coming-of-age teenage romance between a witch and a mortal in America’s Bible Belt.
What did we think?
Stephen says: This is not a spellbound angsty Twilight or a Deep South Harry Potter, rather Beautiful Creatures is a forbidden romance tale where the girl happens to be a witch (sorry – a “Caster”).
Imagine if teenagers made a PG version of True Blood, with the witchcraft of Bewitched, and performed it lovingly in the over-the-top accents of SNL’s Colonel Angus sketch (Jeremy Irons is the worst offender – although you can tell that Emma Thompson had a ball). Even when it stumbles or becomes a little too predictable, I’m calling this thoroughly enjoyable flick my guilty pleasure of 2013.
Safe Haven
What’s it about?
A woman on the run from a detective, lands in Southport, North Carolina, where she meets a handsome widower and his kids, and must ultimately confront her past.
What did we think?
Hilary says: The marketing of this film trumpets its connection to much-loved films The Notebook (same writer) and Cider House Rules (same director). Sadly, this makes the Save Haven seem even worse than it already is, simply by comparison. Sound performances by Josh Duhamel and Julianne Hough are marred by dull dialogue, a painful pace and a score that flips jarringly from overly dramatic pieces to cheesy country, making the film feel disjointed. A twist in the middle helps ramp up the momentum, but the second twist at the end is odd and unnecessary. All this, combined with laughable over-acting by David Lyons as the detective, leaves Safe Haven in midday-movie territory. Not even Duhamel taking his shirt off can save this. Do your relationship a favour, ladies, and do not drag your boyfriend to this movie.
Sightseers
What’s it about?
Tina is a simple lass who is looking forward to going on a caravan holiday with her new boyfriend Chris (an “erotic caravanning holiday” as he puts it), where they will see the majestic sights of the Crich Tramway Museum, and the Keswick Pencil Museum – with a few brutal murders thrown in for good luck.
What do we think?
Stephen says: not a black comedy, an über-black comedy. No light penetrates the darkness even though people have reported it’s hilariously laugh-out-loud funny. I laughed. Three times. But the humour here is more creepy and uncomfortable. The type where you cringe as you guffaw. “Oh look, he smashed that man’s head into pulp – literally pulp (giggle).”
It’s beautifully acted, but slow paced, and when it comes down to it, a one trick pony that just doesn’t go anywhere.
WIN A DOUBLE PASS to I Give It A Year
Starting where other romantic comedies finish, I GIVE IT A YEAR stars Rose Byrne and Rafe Spall as Nat and Josh, a mismatched couple navigating their first year of marriage. Their wedding is a dream come true, but family and friends think it won’t last. When Josh’s ex-girlfriend Chloe (Anna Faris) and Nat’s handsome new client Guy (Simon Baker) come into the picture, the situation gets a little more complicated. Neither wants to be the first to give up, but will they make it?
From the producers of Notting Hill, Bridget Jones’s Diary and Love Actually, I GIVE IT A YEAR is a modern and smart romantic comedy with huge laughs.
Release date: Feb 2
Trailer: http://www.hopscotchfilms.com.
TO WIN A DOUBLE PASS email us at comps@superquickreviews.com and tell us about a short-lived relationship of yours. We have in-season passes for you and your special someone so don’t dawdle!
Movie 43
What’s it about?
A mind-boggling list of Hollywood will-bes, currently-ares and has-beens star in a series of loosely connected shorts joined together by “The Pitch”, in which Dennis Quaid “plays” an unpredictable lunatic aggressively trying to sell his awful script to embattled studio exec Greg Kinnear (easily the most relatable character in the film).
What did we think?
Mitch says: A class of illiterate orphans with four broken pencils, three sheets of paper and a reference copy of Das Kapital could write a funnier movie than this, and there would probably be fewer dick jokes. If you ever feel like your life has no purpose, now you know it does: to go and punch Peter Farrelly right in his stupid face.
What’s Popular
Tomorrowland
What’s it about?
A headstrong teenage science enthusiast (Britt Robertson) teams up with a bitter inventor (George Clooney) to re-enter a trans-dimensional utopia and save the world from destruction.
What did we think?
Director Brad Bird has made dazzlingly fun movies such as The Incredibles and Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, and while Tomorrowland isn’t as good as his past work, it’s definitely in the same spirit. The visuals are very creative, and the main characters are endearing, with Robertson being an especially lively presence. The plot (co-written with Lost and Prometheus writer Damon Lindelof) is a bit hard to follow and sort of unsatisfying, but it’s still charming enough to be worth the ride.
War Machine Movie Review
Add-in an optional excerpt to describe your review. Lorem Ipsum is the standard dummy text.
Woman in Gold
What’s it about?
An Austrian woman born into privilege has her life overturned by a political revolt that targets the bourgeois but then rapidly spins into the systematic destruction of entire creeds. In an attempt to reconnect with those she has lost in the past she commits to reclaiming an important and valuable painting that was stolen from her family.
What did we think?
Dan says: This is a film that tries to stand on the emotional shoulders of the horrific acts of World War 2. If you have a strong connection to the tale this may well be enough to ignore the haphazard story-telling and scattershot tonal shifts.
Helen Mirren and Ryan Reynolds spend over two hours telling of the emotional weight and not enough time showing it. If you’re going to tell a true story that’s important, find the important parts of it to tell.
Poltergeist
What’s it about?
When a little girl is stolen away by malevolent spirits, her family must band together to rescue her.
What did we think?
Dominic Barlow says: This remake of the 1982 film has all the modern bells and whistles you’d expect, with computer-generated effects and new technology being used to try to ramp up the spook factor. The cast, including Sam Rockwell as the little girl’s father and Jared Harris as a grizzled paranormal investigator, deliver solidly amusing performances. But amusing isn’t really what horror is going for. On the whole, however, this flick is written and shot too blandly to be especially frightening or fun. Why remake a film if you can’t improve on the original?
Editor's Choice
Tomorrowland
What’s it about?
A headstrong teenage science enthusiast (Britt Robertson) teams up with a bitter inventor (George Clooney) to re-enter a trans-dimensional utopia and save the world from destruction.
What did we think?
Director Brad Bird has made dazzlingly fun movies such as The Incredibles and Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, and while Tomorrowland isn’t as good as his past work, it’s definitely in the same spirit. The visuals are very creative, and the main characters are endearing, with Robertson being an especially lively presence. The plot (co-written with Lost and Prometheus writer Damon Lindelof) is a bit hard to follow and sort of unsatisfying, but it’s still charming enough to be worth the ride.
War Machine Movie Review
Add-in an optional excerpt to describe your review. Lorem Ipsum is the standard dummy text.
Woman in Gold
What’s it about?
An Austrian woman born into privilege has her life overturned by a political revolt that targets the bourgeois but then rapidly spins into the systematic destruction of entire creeds. In an attempt to reconnect with those she has lost in the past she commits to reclaiming an important and valuable painting that was stolen from her family.
What did we think?
Dan says: This is a film that tries to stand on the emotional shoulders of the horrific acts of World War 2. If you have a strong connection to the tale this may well be enough to ignore the haphazard story-telling and scattershot tonal shifts.
Helen Mirren and Ryan Reynolds spend over two hours telling of the emotional weight and not enough time showing it. If you’re going to tell a true story that’s important, find the important parts of it to tell.
Poltergeist
What’s it about?
When a little girl is stolen away by malevolent spirits, her family must band together to rescue her.
What did we think?
Dominic Barlow says: This remake of the 1982 film has all the modern bells and whistles you’d expect, with computer-generated effects and new technology being used to try to ramp up the spook factor. The cast, including Sam Rockwell as the little girl’s father and Jared Harris as a grizzled paranormal investigator, deliver solidly amusing performances. But amusing isn’t really what horror is going for. On the whole, however, this flick is written and shot too blandly to be especially frightening or fun. Why remake a film if you can’t improve on the original?