Movies

The Simpsons Movie

Matt Groening's famous yellow family comes to the big screen. Homer pushes the town of Springfield towards an ecological disaster. Can He put behind his selfish thoughtlessness long enough to save the town and regain the respect of his family.

All your favorite characters are with some memorable gags but the focus here is mainly on the family Simpson. The laughs come thick and fast in the first 20 to 25 minutes and then make way somewhat for the plot and drama, experiencing a bit of slowing down in pace from there. The writing here is a good as it was in the shows heyday, no doubt because many of the early writers being back on board. The musical direction is also wonderfully and very clever in places.

I wouldn't go a far as calling at an elongated episode of the show but thanks to pacing issues mostly it lack slightly as a movie. Despite this, it is the best Simpsons I've seen in years and very enjoyable viewing experience.

Transformers

Teenager Sam Witwicky finally gets his first car but it is more than meets the eye, it's alive. He is soon entangled in centuries old struggle between two factions of alien robots who can disguise themselves at will. They on the search for an incredible power source and the fate of our world hangs in the balance.

Shia LeBeouf holds the non action sequences on his shoulders with a great acting talent coupled with perfect comic timing and charm. John Turturro is as ever highly entertaining as the eccentric leader of secret government agency, Sector 7. Stellar work also here from voice artist, Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime who gives the character strength, nobility and kindness.

Michael Bay directs some brilliant action especially in car chase scenes even if his quick cutting at times can make it hard to catch everything. The CGI is incredible with the robots are completely believable as part of their environment. While some of the internal logic of the movie is very lacking, the movie does not take itself that seriously.

Whilst plot wise its fairly silly, Transformers is a fun action packed and at times very funny movie.

Molière

17th Century playwright and actor Molière and his troupe are back in Paris after plying their wares all over France. He longs to write and play a tradegy and be done comedies yet he is hampered by the whims of his king and lack of inspiration. It is then he is summoned to a dying lady's bedside and this brings back to him the events of over a decade ago. A time when his debts lead him into a situation as comical, tragic and romantic as one of his famous plays.

Romain Duris was both incredibly intense and comical when the part called for it and I hope to see more of him. Fabrice Lucini is great character actor who portrays M. Jourdian as a rich dilettante buffoon and then shows his hidden strength in the final act. Edouard Baer was also great as the greedy lying Dorante.

While a little long and not entirely deep, the movie keeps a great pace and slips effortlessly between the comedic and tragic. The comedy here ranges from the slapstick pratfall to literary wit. The French mansions and other locations are wonderfully shot.

Whilst this movie is a little light, it is the template of a good romantic comedy. Very funny, romantic and tragic at the same time so no one can predict a happy ending.

Die Hard 4.0

NYPD Detective John McClane is sent on what he thinks is a routine collection of a young hacker by the feds, when they're attacked by mercenaries. The city is losing control of it's infrastructure via computer systems and McClane is about to have one of his famous bad days.

There's no mistaking this movie lies squarely on the shoulders of Willis, his McClane is cinema's most likable bad ass. Even his advanced years are a plus like some old cowboy's final battle in a world where he no longer fits in. Justin Long's hacker is great as the viewers point of view, exposition and comedy relief in one likeable package. Olyphant as uber-hacking terrorist Thomas Gabriel is serious and menacing yet maybe not as OTT as the rest of the movie (and series) dictates.

Len Wiseman creates some wonderful creative action scenes (thankfully without a lot of quick cutting and fancy camera angles) and keeps the plot and set pieces rolling along at a breakneck pace. There are also plenty of nods to the previous movies and the stunts are top notch.

Whilst not being the most intelligent or at some points logical movie, it is the very essence of summer action fun. Yippie Ki Yay!