A Nutshell Review by daface

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: The Box

The trailer goes nowhere near and only scratches the surface of the film and rightly so too, not because it has that obligation to keep its real narrative under wraps, but because what actually transpires, will provoke entirely different lines of questioning, some of which are frustratingly not answered in the film, leaving you to your own devices to interpret the series of events. Which of course means plenty of material for an after-show discussion.

Continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com/2010/01/box…

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: Everybody’s Fine

Based upon the 1990 Italian film Stanno Tutti Bene, Kirk Jones’ Everybody’s Fine follows up the very fine contemporary films that had gone past which dealt with the aged and their families, such as Last Chance Harvey starring Dustin Hoffman, and Away from Her starring Gordon Pinsent. Everybody’s Fine would work fine as a Thanksgiving or Christmas movie given its theme on the family, but I suppose having a release right about now would be apt as well given the upcoming festive period of the Lunar New Year which has the reunion dinner component, to take stock once again of the ties that bind.

Continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com/2010/01/eve…

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

If you’re well aware of Terry Gilliam’s movies, then you’d know what to expect from his own Imaginarium of stories that get translated to film, stopping short of saying that they’re fairy tale fantasies for adults. No doubt the main draw of the film would be that it’s Heath Ledger’s last working film before he passed away, and with a clever rewrite of portions coupled with Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell all stepping up to the plate to take over (and bring along their own legion of fans), I’d dare say this film had benefited from its own near death of being shut down, and probably exposed writer-director Gilliam to a wider audience.

Continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com/2010/01/ima…

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: Paintball

I’m still waiting for the day that I’ll break my duck and participate in a paintball game, especially if going back for in-camp training every year isn’t enough that I’ll want to wield a rifle with paint ammunition, and go around fragging peers or strangers in the opposite team. Best played with a big group of friends (or against people you dislike), this sport is picking up momentum, and specialized shops selling paintball gear have been sprouting up, giving indication of its popularity.

Continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com/2010/02/pai…

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: Kisses

Written and directed by Lance Daly, Kisses is one of those little enjoyable gems that had its main leads breathe life to a fairly simple plot of a road movie of sorts, set around Christmas in the streets of Dublin, following the adventures of two children Dylan (Shane Curry) and Kylie (Kelly O’Neill), neighbours who decide to run away from their dreadful family members, and spiteful peers with whom they cannot clique.

Continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com/2010/02/kis…

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: 72 Tenants of Prosperity

You know there’s magic in the air when Shaw and TVB come together to create comical mayhem to usher in the Lunar New Year through cinema, and the opening shot would put any Hong Kong cinephile to cloud nine with its extremely nostalgic take on one of Hong Kong’s most successful comedy film, House of 72 Tenants, from which this updated version took its titular moniker from.

Continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com/2010/02/72-...

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: The Tournament

It’s Mortal Kombat meets Battle Royale meets The Condemned, and just about any other film that has its premise put together a bunch of strangers who have to kill one another, or die. Fueled by high net worth individuals who have too much time on their hands and lusting after a blood sport spectacle, they pool their money together in a huge gamble, while paying off ten million dollars to the victor amongst assassins who enter The Tournament, a death match Royal Rumble of a competition where it’s all man (or woman) for themselves, each assigned a random weapon to take to the streets of a chosen city of battle.

Continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com/2010/02/tou…

daface SG

A Nutshell Review: I Hate Valentine’s Day

I haven’t seen My Big Fat Greek Wedding from start to end, but from what I gathered from scenes, Nia Vardalos is quite the force to be reckoned with, although it took her quite a while to come up with yet another cinematic romantic comedy, and wearing triple hats of responsibility in writing, directing and starring as the lead in I Hate Valentine’s Day, a title which I thought was quite the misnomer for a film about a would be couple who has to learn that the games people play have to be thrown out of the window should they find that perfect chemistry between themselves, but felt constraint by artificial, social rules that worse of all, got made by and illogically adhered to themselves.

Continues at http://anutshellreview.blogspot.com/2010/02/i-h…

« Previous Page