A semi-busy movie week as I checked out 5 2012 movies, The first Expendables and a highly rated film in Heat.
Of the 2012 releases, two were documentaries in Indie Game: The Movie and Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey. I also caught up on The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel as well as seeing Expendables 2. Finally, I reviewed Aussie film Kath & Kimderella. Read on for my thoughts on each.
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The Expendables (2010) – As I had heard some good things about Expendables 2, I decided it was a good idea to catch the first. It was quite average, with some cool action scenes but no plot and ultimately boring me towards the final third. A great cast though and it had it’s moments. C+
Kath & Kimderella (2012) <<< Click here for my review. Fans of the TV show should have a good time with this one. B-
The Expendables 2 (2012) – Much better then the original, the new Expendables has an even bigger cast and even more guns, explosions and action! It was quite brutal at times really and managed to engage me for the majority of the film. I really liked how the actors (Schwarzenegger, Willis, Stallone etc) could poke fun at themselves. Van Damme was great as the villain and there were lots of cheers for Chuck Norris when he was on. Statham was also awesome. B
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2012) – A movie I had been meaning to catch up on but wasn’t really interested in, it basically lived up to it’s low expectations in my view. More for an older demographic, I simply found it boring at times and often predicatble. It had some nice messages throughout though. C+
Heat (1995) – One of 115 movies on my watchlist, Al Pacino and Robert Deniro star in this crime movie that’s highly regarded universally. I enjoyed Val Kilmer too and the 170 minute runtime really flies by. Some highly memorable scenes, especially the action/chase ones. Definitely a must see. A-
Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey (2011) – One of the most moving and inspirational documentaries I have seen in a while, I loved the story of Kevin Clash and how he became one of the most lovable children’s characters in the world. The story is told maginficentally, switching between past and present at a perfect pace and encorporating a lot of real footage. A-
Indie Game: The Movie (2012) – Another documentary, this is a must see for hardcore gamers but even casual ones as well. I grew up with video games and related to the guys in the film a decent amount. It’s amazing to see how much hard work, dedication, sacrifice and stress goes into their work, but it also taught me a lot about the gaming industry and more particularly Individual (Indie) games. B
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The Toronto Film Festival starts this week and I’m extremely jealous of those going! I will be relaxing this week and catching up on some 2012 films and hopefully some older ones too. Would love to hear any of your thoughts on these films above or if you are lucky enough to be headed to TIFF!
So glad you liked Heat, Deniro and especially Pacino are sensational in this one and the ending is great, when you think about it it’s logical for the movie to end the way it did, but the first time I was watching it, I was on the edge of my seat.
Hey Alex, looks like another good week. I caught up with Elmo last night which I liked a fair bit, but not quite as much as others it would seem. I ended up feeling quite sad for his daughter in the end who certainly seemed to have come second in his life to Elmo. What format did you watch Indie Game on as thats another one I am interested to try and catch up on? Glad you liked Heat, its in my top ten films of all time. I remember when it came out, as it the first time that De Niro and Pacino were on the screen at the same time. There is a great frame of the two of them at the coffee shop which became a real iconic shot. The two had both been in the Godfather II but were never on screen at the same time. Classic stuff.
I did feel a bit bad for his daughter, but she seemed happy at the 16th Birthday. Indie Game is available to download / rent off iTunes. Heat was awesome, I didn’t realise it was the first time they were together on screen! Definitely worthy of a top 10 pick.