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AllyBear
Reviews
A Serious Man (2009)
Absolutely Rubbish
Well that's roughly an hour and 40 minutes of my life i'll never get back ! I've been a big fan of the Coen Brothers with Raising Arizona and The Big Lebowski being two of my all time favourite films. I wasn't impressed with No Country for Old Men but on my way to the cinema i had convinced myself they would be back on track with their latest "comedy". I didn't really know what to expect as i try and avoid most of the tabloid reviews. All i knew was that it was a "sadistic comedy". Anyway by the time it was nearly over i found myself trying to hide behind my hands as being up the back row of the cinema wasn't enough. I also had thoughts that my girlfriend would be dumping me after choosing such an excruciatingly god awful movie. I guess you must have to be Jewish to enjoy this film because even today thinking back i can think of nothing remotely funny, interesting or worth talking about. It was even less funny than "The Men That Stare at Goats" which is saying something. Even if it was supposed to be a "black comedy" it just didn't have it. I couldn't even allow myself to be bored i was that embarrassed by the whole thing. So just to clarify i thought it was complete pap, not one bit funny, not interesting in the slightest and a complete non event.
This Is Personal: The Hunt for the Yorkshire Ripper (2000)
Excellent Docu Drama
The whole point of why the Police are made to look clueless is because I'm afraid that is exactly what happened. If you did not know about the case you would think the same way as Boba Fett, in that its that ridiculous it cannot be true. Unfortunately all the major incidents and mistakes made by the Police portrayed in this 2 part series actually did happen. We should not forget that if the Ripper was to have practised his evil ways the year 2000 he would have been caught extremely quickly with all the advances in modern technology.
This is the late 1970s. No DNA testing, No Super Computers, No CCTV to name but a few.
Alan Armstrong gives an absolutely first class performance of George Oldfield and steals the show.
We are shown how much pressure the West Yorkshire Police force were under and how they were unable to deal with an investigation of such evil magnitude.
In hindsight it is very easy to criticise the Police however the programme takes great detail in explaining how they were sidetracked by the hoax letters and tapes which allowed Sutcliffe to continue for another 3 years and how in the end he was caught not by their great detective work but by pure chance.
If you read in detail about the Ripper case and the Police enquiry into it, some of the mishandling by The Police was astounding. If you don't know a little about the case it's easy to imagine its all fiction.
I think this programme is excellent viewing for anyone who is unaware of the case and offers an insight into the difficulties they had in the late 1970s.
A bit more detail could have went into the numerous alibis given for her husband by Sonia Sutcliffe as in my opinion this was the other reason, along with the tape, for him eluding capture for so long.
Dawn of the Dead (2004)
Rollercoaster ride
I think some of the contributors are a little pretentious to say the least. The original film is one of my all time favourites and after reading the Director's/Cast's comments i have to agree that the new "Dawn" cannot be compared to the 1978 classic as it is a new take on the storyline. The original is a great film because of its low budget and therefore much of the two hours 30 minutes running time time is spent on character development rather than action scenes.This also helps as more time was spent shooting empty mall scenes which gives the viewer a sense of isolation. And after all where the original grabs the imagination is that everyone would like to have an empty shopping mall to help themselves to whatever they liked from the shops therein. At one hours less running time the new "Dawn" is a very good thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat.It is one of the best movies i have seen in a while and unless original "Dawn" fans take it in its own right then i am afraid they will be critical. The opening 30 minutes of society breaking down , including excellent ariel shots of the mayhem below are excellent and set the tone. It is a must see and the only critiscism i can have is it seems a bit crammed. Better editing and maybe an extra 30 minutes running time could have made it even better.
Where Eagles Dare (1968)
Class
Nothing better than a cold winters night to sit in and imagine its you hiding from Nazi's in the high alpine pastures. Ok so over 35 years on its a bit dated in parts, but its still one of the few films that can be enjoyed time and time again. Obviously as a "boys own adventure" it wont appeal as much to the female sex but it's still great stuff