The Next Three Days (2010)

One Of The Films Of 2010 - 5/5

So I saw this film yesterday called The Next Three Days. You may have seen this on your DVD shelves recently but if you haven't basically it follows a desperate father attempting to break his innocent wife out of jail. Russell Crowe plays John Brennan, a school teacher left on his own when his wife (Elizabeth Banks) is put away for a murder that she didn't commit (by the way this isn't supposed to be a spoiler, it's just as much as you'll see on the back of the DVD). Now John Brennan provides Crowe with the opportunity to display a side to his acting that we rarely see. At the beginning we see his loving, playful side as he enjoys his time with his wife and his young son, played by Ty Simpkins. He actually plays the father figure extremely well and it felt good to see Crowe excelling outside of his comfort zone. Sure, later on in the film we see glimpses of the types of characters we normally see him playing, but I thought he was magnificent when he wasn't killing people.

Elizabeth Banks also stepped out of her comfort zone for her role as wife Lara Brennan. We don't really see that much from her but what we do see is her decent into suicidal tendencies after being in jail for so many years. She may play 'chick-flick' types characters often but she is certainly capable of giving a solid performance.

Back to the story, and what I liked about Crowe's character was that he was easy to relate to. Normally we see him as gun-toting action heroes but here Crowe was an ordinary dad living an ordinary life. I think the fact that he was so ordinary made the desperation in his performance so potent and effective. We see his journey

Liam Neeson Cut Out Of 'The Hangover Part 2'

Liam Neeson previously shot a cameo scene as a Bangkok tattoo artist for the upcoming comedy sequel 'The Hangover Part II', a part which was original envisaged to be for Mel Gibson, revealed Coming Soon. However, after some scene changes his cameo role had to be cut to keep the plot line coherent. Director Todd Phillips promised this was the only reason for the cut and contacted Neeson to re-shoot the scene but found him to be too busy filming the sequel to 'Clash Of The Titans'. Nick Cassavetes now plays the role we will see on screen. He revealed that "We were in a complete time crunch so I called up Nick and asked if he would do the part. He came in and crushed it and that is the scene that you will ultimately see in the film.".

In case you haven't been keeping up with the progress of the film, it is due for release on May 26th. 'The Hangover Part II' will follow the same characters as the first film but instead will be released upon Bangkok in a film that looks as if it will be a carbon copy of the first. I think this film will leave fans disappointed and annoyed as it seems a way to make a quick buck from the success of 'The Hangover'. 


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Bill Nighy on board for 'Clash Of The Titans' sequel

The as yet untitled sequel of 'Clash Of The Titans' has gained a huge name in the form of Bill Nighy, who will play Hephaestus according to Empire. He joins names such as Liam Neeson and Ralph Fiennes who were of course in the first film. The film will reportedly move us forward 10 years from the first film with Sam Worthington as Perseus trying to get away from his heroic image. He finds however that he cannot escape his past and is brought back into the fight for good.

Now, while the addition of Bill Nighy is an excellent one, I am fairly certain the film will be as forgettable as the first. I reviewed the first film fairly recently (check it out after this) and I had major criticisms of the storyline and the acting. I very much doubt that adding Nighy will enable this film to escape the poor reputation of the first. It would take something very special to do that. What are your views, will this film be able to better the first?

Clash of the Titans (2010)

Lifeless - 3/5

So I saw this film today called 'Clash of the Titans'. I'd seen the trailer on TV and though that it looked ok but I felt it was not worth seeing in the cinema. Well at least that is some money saved because I would have been very disappointed had I gone. The main thing the trailer seemed to put out was the special effects in the film. Well where were they? I seem to remember a giant scorpion bursting through some sand in the trailer? Maybe I missed it but I don't recall that shot even being used. The scenes in Olympus, well they were terribly done. Why was everything so brightly lit and distorted. Furthermore, what was director Louis Leterrier doing trying to make parts of the film funny? Why even add those two weird hunter guys? And why send a force of ten men to go and defeat Hades?There was a distinct lack of any soldiers in that city, did anyone else notice this?
The ending was shocking! All the way through I was thinking, well at least there will be a battle of epic proportions between Hades and Perseus. When did that happen?!? He managed to banish him with a fair amount of ease I thought. You know what really grinds my gears about this film? The inclusion of Nicholas Hoult. Why on earth was he cast. He is about as far away as you can get from a warrior and his acting left much to be desired.
As did the acting of the rest of the cast. Was there any stand out performances? No. You might expect something from Fiennes or Neeson, but they were equally as bad as the main man Sam Worthington. I'm trying to think of something good to say about this film. Hmmmmmmmmmmm....... the giant scorpions were slightly cool. That is literally all that comes to mind.
Would I recommend it? No, I'm very glad I didn't pay to see this film. And delete off the planner.