City Island: DVD Review

City Island: DVD Review

City Island
Released by Madman
Rating: M

City Island sees the welcome return of Andy Garcia to the big screen.

He's Vincent Rizzo, a corrections officer and the head of the Rizzo family who live in City Island just over from New York's Bronx district.

Married to his beautiful wife Joyce (ER's Margulies) and with two kids, the Rizzos are dysfunctional in the extreme.

One day at work, Vince finds out one of the inmates is his son Tony from a previous relationship - and upon learning of Tony's mother's death, and without telling him why, Vince brings Tony back to the Rizzo home.

But this generous action serves only as a catalyst to bring the carefully spun web of lies crashing down.

City Island is a delightful treat - primarily because of Garcia. He's so solid in everything he does that when he gets a chance to lead a film you almost forget what a wonderful character actor he is. As the head of the household, he personifies charm and despite the melodramatic nature of the plot, he keeps it all together.

Along with Julianna Margulies, this film has a wonderful cast - including Alan Arkin as Vince's acting class teacher - and a script which is grounded in a degree of reality. It's also a lot funnier than expected.

Extras: Commentary, mini featurette and deleted scenes - a reasonable offering

Rating: 7/10 

Sanctum 3D: Movie Review

Sanctum 3D: Movie Review

Sanctum 3D
Rating: 3/10
Cast: Richard Roxburgh, Ioan Gruffudd, Rhys Wakefield
Director: Alister Grierson
Inspired by a true story, Sanctum 3D is the tale of a group of explorers in Papua New Guinea who are checking out one of the biggest caves in the world.
They've been at it for a while - and are determined to find out how the water in the Esa-Ala cave system makes its way to the sea.
But a group of five of them - a playboy millionaire and his girlfriend, a father and son (who have a strained relationship) and a former diver who doesn't dive anymore - are in deep water when a cyclone unexpectedly blows in, trapping them below ground.
With no other option but to find a way out, the gang find tempers fraying and obstacles in their path as they try to make it out alive....
Firstly, let's get this out of the way - the film comes emblazoned with the words James Cameron and 3D, giving you a sense of expectation before you go in.
My advice - forget that - because Cameron only executive produced the flick and helped with some of the technology.
This thriller may have some good tense moments here and there - but with cheesy, clunky dialogue such as: "This cave's not gonna beat me" and "Life's not a dress rehearsal", you know you're clearly in C list disaster movie territory.
Richard Roxburgh is suitably gruff as Frank, the leader of the expedition whose failed relationship with his son Josh (Rhys Wakefield) doesn't quite provide some of the requisite tension throughout. It's far too obvious what's going to happen between them and there's little to leave you rooting for their survival.
Perhaps worse though is over the top Ioan Gruffudd who seems to spend most of the film simply SHOUTING his dialogue to try and convey frustration and emotion - goodness knows what they were thinking on that front.
Coupled with characters who don't listen to the experts (and is therefore marked for death early on), the script really needed an overhaul before it went into commission.
I will concede though that the underwater sequences are beautifully shot, with the 3D bringing to life the aquatic habitat - and early on, there's a certain amount of nervy claustrophobic moments as the mainly inexperienced divers go deeper.

The problem is that Sanctum becomes as much of an ordeal for the audience as it does for the characters - and with a lack of compassion or sympathy for any of them, you're really denied the chance to care about whether they survive or not.

Going The Distance: DVD Review

Going The Distance: DVD Review

Going The Distance
Released by Warner Home Video
Rating: R16
So here it is - another rom com tale of boy meets girl, boy and girl fall in love and obstacle in their way.

In Going The Distance, Justin Long is Garrett, who's just split up with his girlfriend on her birthday - heading out with his mates Box and Dan (a very funny duo who bring the comedy), Garrett meets up with Drew Barrymore's Erin, an intern who's only in town for six weeks.

Despite that, the pair start seeing each other and fall in love - however, when it comes time for Erin to move back to the other side of the States, they decide they'll continue the relationship in spite of the distance.

Fresh, funny and grounded in reality, Going The Distance is a welcome addition to the rom com genre, one which has become synonymous with light fluff which is mawkish and sentimental.

With a witty script delivered by two very amiable leads who have great chemistry, all of the characters in this - including Erin's uptight and anally retentive sister (played by Christina Applegate) feel real and grounded in truth. Sure there's a hint of more adult material in the script but it's that kind of banter and humour which gives the script its sparkle and helps it retain its sense of reality.

Going the Distance is a welcome tonic to the romcom genre - and one which will be enjoyed by both male and female.
Extras: Only a few additional scenes. Disappointing.

Rating: 7/10

The Other Guys: DVD Review

The Other Guys: DVD Review

The Other Guys

Rating: M
Released by Sony

Will Ferrell reteams with director Adam McKay (who made Ferrell famous in Anchorman, Talladega nights and Step Brothers) for this buddy cop comedy.

Ferrell plays Detective Allen Gamble, a mild mannered desk bound cop whose partner Terry Hoitz (Mark Wahlberg) is an uptight ready for action, desperate to impress cop.

The pair suddenly find themselves thrust into the limelight and into a major job when their department hot shots (excellently played by Samuel L Jackson and Dwayne Johnson) are taken off an investigation (to say why would spoil one of the film's best gags).

But when these "other guys" are given the chance to step up and impress the department captain (played with great comic chops by Michael Keaton) by looking into the case of billionaire David Ershon (Coogan), not everything goes to plan.

It's another case of check your brain at the door and get ready for some silly chuckles with The Other Guys. If you do that, you'll be guaranteed a great time in the company of the hilariously deadpan Will Ferrell.

If you want to just laugh stupidly for reasons that you don't always know why, then The Other Guys is another good solid addition to Ferrell's comic contribution.

Extras: An extended cut.

Rating: 6/10

Eat Pray Love: DVD Review

Eat Pray Love: DVD Review

Eat Pray Love
Rating: M
Released by Sony Home Entertainment

From the incredibly popular book by Elizabeth Gilbert and from the director who brought us Nip/Tuck and Glee, Ryan Murphy, comes this cinematic version of Eat, Pray, Love.

Julia Roberts stars as magazine writer Liz Gilbert, who's quite frankly restless in her married life and decides to split from hubby and head around the world for a year to find herself again.
Stopping off in Italy, India and Bali, Gilbert seeks nourishment of the physical and spiritual kind - as well as emotional healing too.

Julia Roberts is good as Liz but she can't carry the film which towards the end begins to sag and feel quite long and drawn out.

But for a film which should be about soul, there's sadly too much of this lacking and not enough passion on display.

It's a shame because Roberts does the gamut of emotions well - but the film takes too long to get to its resolution - and particularly more so in an extended cut found on this release.

Extras: Directors Cut and Theatrical version.

Rating: 4/10 

No Strings Attached: Movie Review

No Strings Attached: Movie Review

No Strings Attached
Rating: 7/10
Cast: Natalie Portman, Ashton Kutcher, Kevin Kline
Director: Ivan Reitman
Following on from the drama of Black Swan, Natalie Portman heads into lighter territory with this sex buddy romcom.
She stars as Emma, a girl who's known Kutcher's Adam for several years. Adam has always liked her but the pair never quite got together.
But years later, the pair meet up again and decide to embark on a "friends with benefits" relationship.
However, the inevitable rears its head and Adam wants more but Emma is happier in her no strings attached lifestyle....are they destined to never be a couple?
No Strings Attached isn't half bad - given you already know the ending - and most of it is due to the humour and performance of Portman.
With occasionally crude moments, but plenty of laughs and a script which sparkles with one liners throughout, there's certainly enough to get you engaged - and keep you there.
Portman is great dealing with what was that inevitable twist at end but she shows a great light touch for laughs (no doubt after all her work on us comedy Saturday Night Live) and really brings life to the emotionally repressed medic who puts everything ahead of her own lifestyle and heart.
For once, Kutcher isn't bad either giving a bit of depth to Adam and a vulnerability which sees him finally playing someone you can sympathise with.
The rest of the supporting cast - including Kevin Kline as a monstrous showbiz father, give the film a well rounded feel.



Perfectly titled, No Strings Attached is a light romcom which, you too can have a friends with benefits relationship with too - just perfect in time for Valentine's Day.

127 Hours: Movie Review

127 Hours: Movie Review

127 Hours
Rating: 8/10
Cast: James Franco, Kate Mara, Amber Tamblyn
Director: Danny Boyle
So another Oscar contender heads for the big screen.
This time, James Franco gives an Oscar-nominated performance as Aron Ralston, an American climber whose trip into the wild in 2003 changed his life forever when he became trapped down a canyon, with his arm crushed against a wall with a boulder.
Ralston heads out to the canyons on a Friday night in April 2003, not telling family or friends where he's going but simply out on the quest for adrenaline.
He meets two girls (Mara and Tamblyn) before his life changes when he falls down a Utah canyon and is trapped by a boulder.
Over five days, his mental and physical health take their toll as Ralston reflects back on his life and faces the ultimate look at his own mortality.
127 Hours is claustrophobic, uncomfortable viewing in the extreme - thanks to one scene (more on that later).
But it's also terrific, with an undeniable energy and a mesmerising performance from Franco as Ralston.
Given Franco's on screen for most of the film solo, he really needed to pull out all the stops to chart the mental decline, hallucinations, guilt, and memories that Ralston goes through, and he delivers in spades in this total sensory experience of a film.
Every moment, as the camera tracks his wearying expressions, you can't tear your eyes away from Franco; partially that's because of the inevitability of knowing (slight spoiler ahead) he hacks off his own arm with a blunt knife to escape.
Yet it's also a career best for Franco, who has presence aplenty and makes Ralston a multi-faceted character who you care about - despite the guy's fallacies, arrogance and cockiness. If Franco's great, the other star is director Danny Boyle; his visual touches, the simply brilliant soundtrack, the use of flashbacks and memories (as well as premonitions) just means you really can't stop watching what's unfolding in front of you. It's a mightily impressive look into the mind of someone who's falling apart and facing an horrific future.
So to that scene - the one which this film will become known for; the removal of Ralston's arm at his own hand.
It's uncomfortable viewing but it's compelling too - I don't remember the last time I sat in a cinema seat squirming and with nowhere to go, but it's so well done (thanks to bone-crunching sound effects) that it delivers the shock it needs and gives you the emotional and physical release you need after 80 minutes' worth of waiting.
The only real criticism is the jarring final shot of the real Ralston sat on a couch with his wife - it's a real clunker and is becoming this year's fad for true stories. It's really disappointing because it's almost as if the director's saying: "Look we told you this was a true story - and here's the proof." It's narratively flawed and really detracts from what Franco's delivered over the past 90 minutes.

Despite this one flaw, 127 Hours is gut-wrenchingly good, a compelling watch and an unbelievable performance from Franco.