I have here… the most exclusive bit of footage… so exlcusive that you must visit a wallmart site in order to watch it… strange?

well as you may have guessed from the title.. it is the latest installment of transformers and a look at the first day of filming.. Judging from the footage it seems that the cast have returned and there are additions to the autobots.. an audi car.. and some bikes… and explosions (obviously typical michael bay)

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This is the supposed plot:

The battle for Earth has ended but the battle for the universe has just begun. After returning to Cybertron, Starscream assumes command of the Decepticons, and has decided to return to Earth with force. The Autobots believing that peace was possible finds out that Megatron’s dead body has been stolen from the US Military by Skorpinox and revives him using his own spark. Now Megatron is back seeking revenge and with Starscream and more Decepticon reinforcements on the way, the Autobots with reinforcements of their own, may have more to deal with then meets the eye.IMDB

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Cute, Cuddly and now with the added bonus of talking like Jack Black! The latest installment by Dreamworks pictures is a lively and highly entertaining animated comedy featuring some of the most well-known actors assembled in a film of this genre. 

Computer generated movies seem to be appearing almost every week in cinemas. With hand drawn films seemingly obsolete many directors and animators alike think its an excellent idea to just simply create something in the third dimension and hope it appeals to its audience. Children are young but they aren’t idiots when it comes to a good movie so its a great effort that Kung-Fu Panda has great detail not only in its visuals but its characterization and its action.

Po, a fat panda, played by Jack Black, constantly dreams of becomming a kung-fu master and a member of the legendary Furious Five. This is a team of the compiled of the various martial art styles which include; Tiger (Angelina Jolie), Viper (Lucy Liu), Crane (David Cross), Mantis (Seth Rogen) and Monkey (Jackie Chan). Apart from the obvious setbacks of Po’s weight, he must work for his father in the family noodle store. When the crowning of the next dragon warrior hits the small town Po attempts everything to reach this event. He succeeds with flying colours (literally). Unbeknownst to Po and the other members of the Furious Five the reverred Master Ogway selects the panda as the chosen one. He must be trained by Master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman) who, for obvious reasons, initially despises the loaf of the fur but persists as the foretold prophecy cannot be questioned. The warriors know the impending danger of the great Tai Lung will soon be upon them as the prophecy told his escape from prison is imminent. 

This is a candy-like animation film which lures the audience with its sweet appearance. There is no denying this movie is filled with oodles of charm. The characters are superbly created with every one of them likable. The supporting cast are very much underused though which is a major detriment to the film,  considering many of them are extremely entertaining, with a standout being Po’s father… a duck. The Furious Five were shadows in comparison to Po, who manages to get into every shot taken and not because of his size. It is a large disappointment because it was interesting to cast such large stars such as Angelina Jolie, Lucy Liu and Jackie Chan, only to allow them a combined total of 1 minute of dialogue. It seems as though the directors opted for large names rather than better voices. There are some positives though in the voice-acting department with Jack Black blending into a fat panda with no effort. Dustin Hoffman is excellent as Shifu as well the distinctive voices of Michael Clarke Duncan, playing a caricature of himself as a Rhino prison commander.

An animation feature cannot be properly reviewed without analysing the visuals. Thankfully for Kung-Fu Panda, this is the major drawing card for the audience with amazingly rendered characters that have an abundance of life. The designs are superb with a great chinese personality shining through. One aspect of this movie that sets it apart from many of its genre is the action sequences. Whilst not that many, the prison scene is enough for your children to be excited and inspired to run up walls for at least… a week. 

With so many positive qualities about this movie its odd that its not entirely satisfactory. From a children’s perspective the movie is stunning and definitely charismatic but from an adults opinion its hard to judge a movie that rushes through the story and leaves with not much power. A fan of animation would definatelty enjoy this movie and so will hords of screaming children but for an outsider its just another short animation that doesnt seem to push any real boundaries in its genre. 

THE GOOD

• Incredibly charismatic
• Characters are extremely likeable
• Voices often fit perfectly into the character
• Some very epic and memorable scenes
• Best opening scene for a animation

8 / 10  CHILDREN

6.5 / 10 ADULTS

To see this cudly panda in action check out the session times at The Sun Theatre

Why is it happening? What is happening? Will this review actually be happening? Well… The latest installment by the master of modern day suspense, M. Night Shyamalan, is a disappointing tale of what could have been happening for this movie.

Mark Wahlberg plays Elliot Moore, a school science teacher. He is teaching when an incident occurs which affects New York City. This escalates into a supposed terrorist attack and results in something quite bizarre (even for a horror movie) A chemical virus is being released into the air by nature and it is targetting all groups of human life. Elliot and his wife (Zooey Deschanel) must flee the city before they too are infected. The virus affects the nervous system which causes its victims to; cease movement, then repeat a word or phrase and finally, it causes the subject to kill themself in any way possible.

Just to be clear.. The premise of this movie is suicide, so its definitely not for the faint hearted. It begins with some truly disturbing scenes. From a woman piercing her own neck, to men jumping off buildings to their deaths. Shyamalan has the ability to make any scene and any object creepy. Many of his fans, and any fan of horror, will find the first 45 minutes very haunting and confronting. The movie does suffer from a suicide of its own, coming in the form of the halfway point. The suspense seems to dwindle and its pretty uneventful. Wahlberg is excellent throughout the movie and whilst the other cast do little he seems to attract attention and entertain the audience through the dull moments. 

The major dissappointment of this movie is the realization of its antagonist. Whilst most virus/horror movies opt for a disease or plague or even a deadly insect as its villain, this director/writer/producer creates something which some may think is unique and many will think is downright stupid. The villain is FLORA: grass, trees, plants, flowers.. etc!. Before you laugh, Shyamalan does a surprinsingly great job of making grass and trees look menacing. Personally, I haven’t been comfortable when walking through an empty street at night and a tree or bush sways through the breeze. The movie also lacks from a signature ‘twist’ from a director famed from endings such the one in The Sixth Sense. 

There are some major faults in this movie on a creative aspect but the cinematography and tight camera angles do create wanted stress and tension that you cannot experience by simply looking at trees in real life. The acting is above par and Wahlberg only increases his value in Hollywood as a believable and funny protagonist. The scenes in which self mutilation occurs, especially the lawnmower death, will be remembered.. if not scar you for life. Yet there are too many questions left unanswered in this movie. It’s frustrating walking out of a film that has had so much potential in the beginning only to see it trail off into nothing. There are some interesting areas within this movie which some may notice. Humans do not hurt each other, they simply hurt themselves. The enemies arent really seen as such, and the hero isn’t exactly heroic. These techniques are very unique and demonstrate to the creativity of Shyamalan who does deserve some credit. It is not the best work by any means of M Night .Many fans will be impressed but all will know that this movie could have been so much better. With more terrors and less errors this movie could have really been ‘happening’.

THE GOOD

• Some scenes may give you nightmares… or at least goosebumps
• Wahlberg is likable and has some funny scenes
• Cinematography enhances the tension
• Humans killing themselves is fairly unique
• Could change your perspective on swaying trees

6 / 10

For more ways in one this movie lives up to its name. Its incredible that only a few years ago Eric Bana created a movie on the same character.. and yet this is no sequel. It is even more incredible that the director has ignored the previous films and opted to produce a new vision of the story. For skeptics, the problems of the first movie were easily rectified in less than half an hour into the new Hulk. There is plenty of action throughout this new story and plenty of seeing the character develop and more importantly… transform. Edward Norton, whilst needing little effort in his role, does a great job and the ruthless Tim Rothis a great cast as the villain ‘Abomination’. Liv Tyler is cruising through her role with her face and any decent looking girl could have played it. The story is simple. The army wants Bruce Banner as a weapon…. and he resists. The director opted for simple solutions and effectually quells all negative slander towards this release. A great superhero action movie needs plenty of action… and on this count it delivers. The battle sequences are well constructed with some great moments. The menacing Roths relentless determination outshines the timid nature of Norton and his beatings in the earlier scenes seemed to be the movies highlights. Whilst the movie feels relatively short there it completes its task of completely eradicating our memories from the horror that was the previous movie.

There are some drawbacks to this movie. It doesn’t really stand out amongst the recent hero movies and there is no particular reason to see this movie unless; you hated the first one with all your heart that you cannot bear to live life seen only a ‘bad’ hulk movie, or there is no action movie better at the time. Problem is that this movie comes not long after IRON MAN, which if you have seen it, is possibly the best hero movie to come out in recent years. Its not a terrible film but its a fad film which will be easily dissolved amongst the others of its genre. With many criticisms surrounding the film it somehow seems to rise above it all and ‘smash’ (pun maybe intended) its predecessor. There are some really satisfying moments in this film and norton has successfully managed to turn a dweeb into a hulk of a man.

THE GOOD

• More of Hulk
• More action
• Better story and faster paced
• Riveting fight scenes
• Excellent Villain in the form of Tim Roth

7.5 / 10

When the word ‘Speed’ comes to mind… some people think of fast cars… others think of the drug. It is very clear from the beginning of the credits that the Wachowski brothers (directors) actually thought it would be an excellent idea to combine the two. Your first impression of this movie will be a lasting impression. Visually the only word that be used to describe it is… epileptic. The colours are strong and vibrant and often too vibrant to the point of painful. Yet somehow through the convoluted  imagery there seems to be a pretty interesting and surprisingly deep story.

The story begins with a tale of a young boy named Speed whos interests lie with anything that relates to his name. He idolizes his older brother Rex, a race car driver, and wishes one day to emulate his feats. This dream is shattered when his older brother is killed whilst racing. His death only spurs Speed into becoming the greatest driver that ever lived. His skill is unsurpassed, and managed by his family team it seems as though the world is his oyster. His success attracts the riches of the Royalton Industries, a powerhouse in the racing world. They offer him a proposal that he cannot refuse. Yet he does. With the help of the ‘mysterious’ and somewhat lame.. Racer X. Speed must take on the megalomaniacs of Royalton in an impossible challenge and protect the family he holds dear. 

Whilst the cast do their job (with the exception of the youngest). The story seems too deep for children to understand yet the animations seem too ridiculous for any adults watching this film. Which leaves a small demographic of people that can sit through two hours of psychedelic colour schemes…. hippes and drug runners. The movie isnt horrible by any means, and with less child like sequences and a shorter running it would have been great, yet it imposes on your mind. You either begin to lose interest or you just vommit in your popcorn bag. 

THE GOOD

• captivating visuals and special effects
• distinctive characters
• the overall design of the movie is very unique
• the last race is worth waiting for

SUMMARY

Narnia, a place where humans, narnians and other wildlife could live harmoniously. Not anymore . Welcome the new Narnia. A cold dark land where a human civilization known as the telemarines rule. Narnians are believed to be extinct. Prince Caspian is heir to the throne. There is a plot to assassinate the prince from his uncle and in turn Caspian escapes and blows a horn to summon the lost kings and queens of narnia…. kids. These four are unexpectedly back in the world they once ruled yet things have changed somewhat dramatically and narnians all live in fear of this great human rule. The children must reunite with Caspian to form an army with surviving narnians. They will battle over numerous terrains with the help of every surviving creature in Narnia. These Narnians are not all decent and some may still be loyal to the ancient white witch, yet they help the children in there latest journey in recapturing the world they once conquered… except this time… no aslan.

THE GOOD

• more narnians.
• more scenery.
• more action.
• bad guys are now good guys.
• spanish are the villians.
• children are not as annoying.
• you get straight into the world of narnia

THE BAD

• aslan still looks like rubbish in comparison to the other computer animations
• unnecessary violence and some odd fighting characters which seem out of place (small mice)
• A whole army gets beaten by kids is abit ridiculous
• The final in battle comes from the stranges form

IN SHORT

Narnia is like wine… the older the better

7.5 out of 10