The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1

The Twilight Saga is back with its fourth installment of the final novel in the series, Breaking Dawn. The film has split the action up into two and the first part has just hit cinemas while audiences will have to wait twelve months to see the last. 
The story jumps straight into the wedding preparation leading quickly onto the the wedding itself where we finally see Bella (Kristen Stewart) and Edward (Robert Pattinson) tie the knot. Werewolf Jacob (Taylor Lautner) turns up and seems to have finally come to turns with Bella's fate: of becoming a vampire. Then Bella and Edward shoot off to their honeymoon to finally consummate their marriage in a very PG/M rated, yet satisfying sex scene.
Of course when dealing with vampire and human sex, who worries about protection? Well our two leads don't and soon Bella is vomiting from morning sickness. The cross vamp/human baby inside of Bella appears to grow at an alarmingly fast rate and drains the life out of the mother. But Bella wants to keep the baby, even if it kills her.
Jacob learns of the child and the werewolf pack in fear of the unknown decide to kill the unborn child and in turn kill Bella. However Jacob pulls apart from the pact and joins forces with the Cullen Vamps to protect Bella at any cost.
This film is exactly what we have come to expect from the series, a shamelessly romantic/borderline melodramatic cinema experience. There are some beautiful moments in the film and because it has been split into two it doesn't have to rush through the developments and explain everything with dialogue, but instead it contains some more action driven scenes. The wedding reception speeches are genuinely funny and had the entire audience laughing, while the film also wasn't afraid to poke fun at itself when talking about possible baby names.  There are some intense moments as well and are handled well from the director (Bill Condon) and cast. Kristen Stewart looks amazingly disgusting during the pregnancy and is skinner than any bulimic runway model. The eventual child birth itself is also one of the emotional highlights of the film. But for me, I absolutely loved how they brought to life a certain transformation scene. (There was of course the amazing forest wedding-but with a very awkward cameo).
The screenplay closely follows the original source, which unfortunately is its downfall. The novels rely so much on sense of smell and reading people's minds, among other powers, however this is something that the film series has never been good at conveying (though in this film they attempt to). So unfortunately the film still has a lot of exposition and cheesy dialogue to make sense of what is happening. The final climax builds up wonderfully (though the lighting is terrible) but is destroyed by exposition.
Thankfully the film does have Kristen Stewart to help ground the dialogue meanwhile the on/off screen romance with RPatz results in an electrifying chemistry between the pair. It is however Tay Tay that can't seem to pull off the melodrama, that and he pulled the short straw for fluffy dialogue. 
The film is actually better than I thought it would be and at the end of the day (night) I thoroughly enjoyed myself, which is something I can't say for most of the other garbage Hollywood has released this year.

PS. Stay for the credits.

Contagion

Contagion is the latest film to explore the world spread epidemic of a deadly contagious disease. This film unlike many before it, handles the themes incredibly realistic and successfully uses correct scientific terms without having to dumb things down for the audience.
The film begins on 'Day 2' of the epidemic with Beth (Gwyneth Paltrow) arriving home to Minneapolis after a business trip to Hong Kong. She arrives home with a fever and a bad cough. She soon seizures and dies. Beth's husband Mitch (Matt Damon) is completely shocked but unwilling to allow any futher damage happen to his family.
Meanwhile The Untied States Centre for Disease Control led by Dr. Ellis Cheever (Laurence Fishburne), with the aid of Dr. Erin Mears (Kate Winslet) and research scientist Dr Ally Hoxtall (Jennifer Ehle), work together to identify the disease in hope of controlling it.
World Health Organisation Officer Dr. Leonora Orantes (Marion Cotillard) travels to Hong Kong to uncover the truth behind Beth's initial contact with the disease.
There is also blogger and wannabee journalist Alan, (Jude Law) who is determined to undermine the US governments handling of the epidemic.
Contagion is a multi-protagonist 'mosaic' film and handles the characterisation of its several protagonists beautifully. The film seamlessly crosses between intelligent science and the related human emotions of such an international epidemic.
The performance of the ensemble cast is perfect and further lifts the films verisimilitude. The film presents the topic in a chilling truth while never delving into melodramatics. Director Steven Soderbergh, is successful in creating an ultra realistic intelligent medical thriller. This is easily one of the best Hollywood films of the year.

The Three Musketeers

New re-imagining of a very classic tale, The Three Musketeers once again lights up our screens.

Crazy, Stupid, Love

The most recent rom-com to hit cinemas is Crazy, Stupid, Love - a film that is actually better than most recent films found in the genre. The film starts with married couple Cal (Steve Carell) and Emily (Julianne Moore) on a date, where Emily abruptly announces that she wants a divorce. Taken completely by shock Cal goes into depression seeking refuge at a local trendy bar where he drowns his sorrows with alcohol.
The mysterious, smokin' hot, charismatic, womaniser Jacob (Ryan Gosling) often visits the same bar to pick up women. One particular visit he invites Cal to talk to him. Jacob feels sorry for this sad excuse of a man and decides to teach Cal how to be more like him. Cal transforms into a well groomed, charming and slightly more confident man willing to now take control of his life.
Meanwhile Jacob continues to sleep with women after women, but takes a special interest in Hannah (Emma Stone) as she is unwilling to fall for Jacob's fake charms.
The real heart of this story however is Cal and Emily's son, Robbie (Jonah Bobo) who has fallen in love with his babysitter, Jessica (Analeigh Tipton). Robbie is only thirteen years old, yet has more idea about true love and the concept of soul mates then any other character in the film.
The film has some genuinely funny moments and although it is filled with many coincidences, they are not too forced and the talented cast pull these moments off perfectly. Steve Carrell is an amazing actor bringing his great sense of comic timing to the role, as well as delivering a touching and three dimensional performance. Ryan Gosling has never been more charismatic or toned for that matter, bringing an insightful depth to a character that could seem underdeveloped. Julianne Moore is as radiant as ever and Emma Stone while at first may seem underused, plays a surprising role in the film. Kevin Bacon and Marisa Tomei bring their talents as the supporting cast. But it is Jonah Bobo who plays the son that is the true highlight of the film with his touching story of a boy in love.
The major problem for this film is the lengthy duration. The film runs just over two hours which is long for any rom-com and the film could have definitely been shorter.
It hits some major highs but runs too long for a film that doesn't contain enough emotive drama.  It's crazy at times, it can seem plain stupid but it is definitely love.

Abduction

Nathan (Twilight's Taylor Lautner) is in his last year of high school. He is a kid dealing with ongoing rage issues while also being in love with fellow student Karen (Lily Collins) who is literally the girl that lives next door. This particular plot development is only the beginning of many more cliches. Taylor, I'm sorry, NATHAN - is paired up with Karen for a school project studying missing persons. When researching the assignment together, Karen discovers a missing person website with a photo of three year old Nathan, said to be missing since 1995. Not being able to forget about this revelation, Nathan tries to find answers. However when Nathan confronts the people who have been pretending to be his parents for all this time, the house is ambushed and destroyed. Nathan flees the crime scene with Karen now being hunted down by the badies in the form of Russian Terrorists as well as being chased by the CIA who apparently want to protect Nathan. And so the journey beings to uncover the truth of who Nathan really is.
The premise definitely does seem intriguing and it had potential to be an entertaining popcorn flick. There are however numerous problems with the film, but it all comes down to the fact that the film must have gone into production on the first draft. That or screenwriter Shawn Christensen has never taken a screenwriting course. I understand that this is his first feature but seriously, there is some fucking atrocious dialogue, not to mention the fact that most plot developments are never set up: for example a ticking bomb suddenly appearing in the oven? From the trailer my guess of genre is understandably action, after watching the film I can't help to think that it's more of a romantic comedy. This is particularly obvious at the end of the film, which was one of the highlights, not because of the actual film but because the entire audience laughed AT the film. Never a good sign.
The cheesy dialogue and the shit plot development can at least be hilarious to watch - "HOW NOT TO WRITE A FILM." But the thing that actually annoyed me the most was the terrible cinematography. Cameras should not have a zoom function, this film clearly demonstrates why. Abduction looked like a family video with its constant zooming and god awful framing. Sitting in the cinema, I had my hands up towards the screen wishing I could move the frame, a little more to the left or the right and sometimes even down, ANY which way and it would have been an improvement.  
It was embarressing to watch some amazing actors up on the screen in this film. I walked into the cinema excited to see Sigourney Weaver and I left wondering what dirt the producers had on her to blackmail Weaver into appearing on screen. Other actors who also must have been blackmailed include Jason Isaacs, Michael Nyqvist, Maria Bello and Alfred Molina. If not even Sigourney Fucking Weaver can save the terrible script, then pretty much no one can. Taylor Lautner struggled as the lead man, but it's hard to say whether this is because of his acting abilities or because of the terrible script and direction. My finger is on the latter, meaning he still has hope. Then again...
I looked into the producers of this film, and who do I find: Mr Dan Lautner, Taylor's father. I'm left wondering how much blame do we leave on the Lautner family for the exsitanece of this film. My guess: A LOT.
0.5/5

The Help

It is the early 1960's Mississippi. African Americans still do not have equal rights. They may not be slaves but they might as well be in small town Jackson. This story follows African American maid Aibileen Clark (Viola Davis) as she cooks, cleans, shops and even raises the children of her white employees.
On the other side of the racial barrier is young aspiring writer Skeeter, (Emma Stone) who decides to write a book detailing the lives of a dozen African American maids.
These two characters begin a secret partnership writing Aibileen's story. Soon more maids join up, including the memorable Minny Jackson (Octavia Spencer).
Skeeter may be the only white female in Jackson that isn't racist, having fond memories of her own maid who she idolises. Skeeter's best friend however, Hilly Holbrock (Bryce Dallas Howard) is the complete opposite. Hilly is oblivious to her blatant discrimination, even treating her own mother like trash.
This is another film documenting the very racially unbalanced and scary era of the 60's, but it explores the topic in a new way. What can be very male dominated and violent films,  The Help differs as it is a female ensemble cast.  This results in the exploration of not only the violence apparent in this era, but also the extreme hurt of gossip, along with the power of the written word.
The female ensemble is amazing. Emma Stone has already proved her worth in Easy A and she shines once again in this film. But it is Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer that contribute the more powerful and emotional performances on screen. Bryce Dallas Howard is fucking scary as Hilly Holbrock, capturing the essence of pure evil in her performance, making it impossible to feel anything but hate for this woman. Sissy Spacek gives a hilarious performance as Hilly's mother, proving that not everyone in the Holbrock family are the spawn of Satan. Allison Janney plays Skeeter's mother and she does her normal wonders in a role that has surprising heart. Finally Jessica Chastain gives a sweet performance as a ditzy wife shunned from the other women in town.
This is an emotional film; one minute you may be crying with a character,  the next laughing with another and then tearing up all over again.  You would have to be a member of the KKK not to be emotional moved by this film. Maybe the film's poster doesn't evoke much official prestige but if Touchstone/Disney plug the movie at Oscar nomination time, there will definitely be acting nominations from this amazing ensemble.

Cowboys and Aliens

Jake (Daniel Craig) wakes up in the middle of the desert thirsty, disorientated and with a strange metal band locked to his wrist. He has no memory of who he is and when he strolls across a nearby town he soon learns that he is a wanted man. Local cattle owner Woodrow Dolarhyde (Harrison Ford) is one man affected by Jake's criminal activities after robbing Dolarhyde a fair amount of gold. Naturally Dolarhyde wants to seek revenge. But before any of these issues can be resolved, flying Alien spaceships come and destroy half the town, stealing most of the townsfolk. The aliens leave as quickly as they appeared but not before Jake subconsciously uses the metal wrist band to shoot and destroy one of the spaceships. Unfortunately Dolarhyde loses his bratty son to the aliens and so sets out on a mission to rescue the stolen people. Jake tags along in hope for answers about who he is. There is also a beautiful woman Ella (Olivia Wilde) thrown in the film, who really wants to help Jake remember, for mysterious reasons of her own.
The plot may seem like a lot to take in - Cowboys, Aliens; in one film? The west meets space? But hey, it's fun! Director Jon Favreau (Iron Man 1 and 2) knows how to make an action film, and Craig, Ford and Wilde look like they are having heaps of fun on screen. But the film can not just survive on the element of fun alone. There are many structural problems with the story. Firstly there are way too many characters, meaning there is not enough time to develop any of them substantially. Even the main characters seem rather hollow to the point that you aren't even emotional involved with their story.  Because of the amount of characters, Jake's back story is rushed and when we finally learn the truth it is rather anticlimactic. Then there is Dolarhyde gallivanting about like a hero rescuing his douche of a son. I was left wondering why Dolarhyde was even bothering, the annoying son is perhaps better left dead. Really all we needed Dolarhyde to say was that his son is the only family he has left or something cliche like that.  Then there is Olivia Wilde, yes she looks amazing, the girl can even act but everyone could see her character twist miles away. Actually the whole film was predictable and ran like most other action films. And don't even get me started on Daniel Craig's over sized hat!! I just wished I could walk up there and lift the damn thing so we could actually see his eyes.
There were elements of the film to be enjoyed. The western setting was beautiful. They included the gore and grittiness so common in the western genre. The aliens reminiscent of the creatures seen in the Alien films were also fun. The CGI was top notch and the comedy helped to lift up the drab characters.
It was fun to see the two genres of Western and Alien films mashed together, but is the world a better place because of this film? Definitely not.