By Marty Mulrooney
The vampire genre has admittedly been done to death as of late, although recent hits such as HBO’s True Blood and the Twilight films have done plenty to reinvigorate its appeal with mainstream audiences. Which might go some way towards explaining why the somewhat obscure 2002 film Demon Under Glass was re-released on DVD last month, this time simply titled Vampire.
By Joseph Viney
Once every so often a film hits cinemas and changes the landscape forever. Whether it is through the use of special effects, star power, scripting or acting, some films are immediately lifted to the pantheon of greats and set a new precedent. The Matrix set the tone for post-millennial Hollywood with its dizzying mix of computer graphics, story and mythology building – at least until those two awful sequels surfaced. This past year may have witnessed two such landmark events. December 2009 saw the release of Avatar, the special effects spectacle that broke box-office records. Summer 2010 has Inception.
Filed under Film
By Marty Mulrooney
After languishing in development hell for nearly ten years, Toy Story 3 has finally arrived. Disney’s own Circle 7 Animation tried to do a third sequel without Pixar’s involvement in 2004, but when relationships were patched up in 2006 (Disney actually bought Pixar in January of that year for $7.4 billion) production was halted and the project transferred back to Pixar where it belonged. Four years later, the toys are back in town for one final adventure, this time in Disney Digital 3D.
Filed under Film
By Marty Mulrooney
I finally went to see Christopher Nolan’s Inception last night and it blew my mind. I thought it was phenomenal: a big budget science fiction film that deftly manages to grip the minds of a mainstream audience. It is a big film with even bigger ideas. Leonardo DiCaprio is fast becoming one of the finest actors of our generation. Following Shutter Island, it is hard to argue against the fact that he has dominated the silver screen in 2010, mixing natural charisma with genuine humanity. Yet after Inception finished, I knew the one thing on people’s minds and lips as they left the cinema would undoubtedly be the ending… (Warning: Spoilers!)
Filed under Alternative Musings, Film
Martin Mulrooney
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