Love Actually (2003)
DIRECTOR: Richard Curtis
CAST:
Hugh Grant, Liam Neeson, Alan Rickman, Emma Thompson, Colin Firth, Laura Linney,Bill Nighy, Keira Knightley, Kris Marshall, Heike Makatsch, Martin Freeman, Joanna Page,Chiwetel Ejiofor, Andrew Lincoln, Martine McCutcheon, Thomas Sangster, Lúcia Moniz, Rodrigo Santoro, Rowan Atkinson, Billy Bob Thornton
REVIEW:
Love Actually is taglined as ‘the ultimate romantic comedy’, and while I wouldn’t go that far, it might be the most ambitious. Continue reading
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002)
DIRECTOR: Chris Columbus
CAST:
Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Sir Richard Harris, Robbie Coltrane, Maggie Smith, Alan Rickman, Kenneth Branagh, Jason Isaacs, Tom Felton, Miriam Margoyles, Richard Griffiths, Warwick Davis, Fiona Shaw, John Cleese, Christian Coulson, Toby Jones (voice of Dobby), Julian Glover (voice of Eragog)
REVIEW:
It’s easy to see how Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets might be an enthralling fantasy adventure for kids- there is comedy, danger, magic, some nice special effects, and a few legitimately exciting scenes- but like its predecessor, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone , what it has to offer for adults is a mixed bag, and the movie doesn’t work as well as it could have. Continue reading
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001)
DIRECTOR: Chris Columbus
CAST: Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Sir Richard Harris, Robbie Coltrane, Maggie Smith, Alan Rickman, Ian Hart, Warwick Davis, Zoe Wanamaker, Richard Griffiths, Fiona Shaw, Tom Felton, John Hurt, John Cleese
REVIEW:
J.K. Rowling’s seven-book Harry Potter series is unquestionably the most popular fantasy series of its time, and beyond its genre it is a cultural phenomenon approaching the level of the Star Wars saga. And while some dismiss (in my opinion, underestimate) it as kids’ stuff, its appeal transcends age. Continue reading
Quigley Down Under (1990)
DIRECTOR: Simon Wincer
CAST: Tom Selleck, Laura San Giacomo, Alan Rickman
REVIEW:
Westerns are a hard sell these days, and few and far between apart from 1985’s Silverado. Director Simon Wincer and screenwriter John Hill offer a somewhat unconventional entry that’s a Western set a bit farther west than usual, namely in Australia. Continue reading
Die Hard (1988)
DIRECTOR: John McTiernan
CAST:
Bruce Willis, Alan Rickman, Bonnie Bedelia, Reginald VelJohnson, Alexander Godunov, Hart Bochner, William Atherton, Paul Gleason, Robert Davi, Grand L. Bush, De’voreaux White, Clarence Gilyard Jr., James Shigeta
REVIEW:
While the two movies’ tones are markedly different, Die Hard is in the same class as Raiders of the Lost Ark as action-adventure that shows the other innumerable wannabe action movies how it’s done. Both also share another asset: an everyman hero who’s not superhumanly buff, gets beaten up, and (almost) seems like a real person we can identify with. Continue reading