Another installment not just from Marvel studios, but from the Avengers franchise.
After the success of Marvel Avengers Assemble, people are now looking for what events will occur between now and the next Avengers extravaganza.
Earlier in the year, we had Iron Man 3 and now Thor returns from Asgard with a new enemy to face.
The start to me felt a bit too satisfactory, but thankfully that is the worst part of the film. It gradually moves up a gear every so often. There is one part of the film about half way through, where it got me properly hooked and I knew I was watching another enjoyable film from Marvel. With everything slowly cranking up, we are now ready for the final section of the film. It is a CGI fest that will amaze you. Full of action and laughs that will leave you with a smile on your face when leaving the cinema after the bonus scene during the credits which regularly comes from Marvel films.
A lot of performances are as you expected. Chris Hemsworth is as good as he has been as Thor. Natalie Portman, Stellan Skarsgard and Kat Dennings are pretty much as you expect who plays the three mortals who have a friendship with Thor. Christopher Eccleston plays the villain very well. I am huge fan of Eccleston, but he never does as many roles as I feel he should. Anthony Hopkins, is basically being Anthony Hopkins, and Idris Elba is as solid as ever as Heimdall. But the star of the show is Tom Hiddleston as Loki. His witty style of acting works every time for me and he does the best performance out of everyone by far.
Overall, it may not have been anything exceptional, but it still entertained me throughout. If I had to rank it among other Marvel films, I would put it in the middle of the pack. There is still that humor that made all of the Marvel films so successful. There are many twists that might shock you, but if you do look at the small hints throughout, then you will expect the twists which you can impress your friends with. It has the always amusing Stan Lee cameo, and to warn any cinema-goers, it does contain the usual bonus scene during the credits. Unlike the Iron Man 3 one, this one is very important and it might send us into a whole new world of Marvel.
When seeing the trailer for this, I was instantly intrigued by it. Mainly due to the fact that it had Asa Butterfield, Harrison Ford and Hailee Steinfeld. Also, it looked very nice and it was sci-fi.
Despite that, I wasn't overcome with joy, I was just thinking "I'll probably thinks it's decent, but nothing more."
What I got, was an ideas driven sci-fi that really struck me. Director Gavin Hood, who is for the great South African drama Tsotsi, has managed to break-through into the genre. The impact reminded me when I saw Moon, but obviously not as good.
My main attractions managed to never fail. Asa Butterfield holds his own brilliantly as Ender. He didn't manage to completely do it for me compared with The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas and Hugo, but it is still a memorable performance. Harrison Ford was a big aid for Butterfield and did a solid performance. But I do feel he is slowly going to leave our screens as he is definitely the presence he once was, which is a shame.
Hailee Steinfeld was a great lead actress. I have not managed to see her performance in True Grit, which is apparently is as good as Kim Darby's in the original. So after her in Ender's Game, this might entice me even more to watch True Grit even more.
The visual effects were top-notch and I will not be surprised if it might sneak into the Oscar nominations. But what won me over was the ideas around this troubled future. Some of the set-pieces were very interesting and made me respect the director even more, because it did not feel simplified to spoon-feed the audience. Hood seems to respect his audience's intelligence and I hope he remains with this franchise, if there is confirmation of a sequel.
My final positive is the overall performance by the kids. Their screen presence manages to hold the film well. It wasn't perfect, but it was paid off gamble for Hood and it seemed they were having a good time making this.
One big negative was Ben Kingsley. His appearance is not a long one, and it doesn't seem well acted in relation to the character he is playing. It is a shame, because he has done some great performances in the past. But this is definitely not one them.
In the end, I was fascinated throughout by the ideas of the movie. It made me want to know more about the books. But I doubt I will read any as it might ruin any possible sequels, which there is likely to be one.
It was a lot more interesting then I expected. There were still flaws, but I still thoroughly enjoyed and I will definitely be waiting for the trailer for any possible sequel.
From Indiana Jones, to Hans Solo, to Deckard, they were all played by Harrison Ford. Despite amazingly not having a single Oscar to his name, Ford has been part of some of films most popular franchises of all-time. For almost 50 years, he has been been involved in some of the most memorable films in the action, adventure and sci-fi genres.
There is hardly a bad film if he is in the cast, so it was always going to be tough to make a top 10 list. I have sadly had to not count his role in Apocalypse Now. You only see him in one scene and that was not enough for me to be seen as one of his films. I am also not counting his small role in 'Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues'. He is one of many cameos and is not playing a big enough role to consider it being an integral role to the film.
I do have to give one honorable mention that sadly misses out on my top 10, and that's Witness. One of Ford's most dramatic roles, and the one that got him his only Oscar nomination. Ford plays a policeman forced to live in Amish county to protect a child that witnessed a crime.
With that in mind, out of his 54 films, I have seen only 33 of them. I will rank all the films that I have seen, and give a short review for each of my top 10:
33) Paranoia
32) The Expendables 3 31) Cowboys & Aliens 30) Hollywood Homicide
29) Random Hearts
28) The Call Of The Wild
27) Force 10 From Navarone
26) Air Force One
25) Working Girl
24) Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny
23) Ender's Game
22) Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull
21) Patriot Games 20) Clear And Present Danger
19) Six Days Seven Nights
18) Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues
17) Regarding Henry 16) K-19: The Widowmaker
15) Morning Glory
14) What Lies Beneath
13) Star Wars: The Force Awakens
12) The Fugitive
11) Witness
10) American Graffiti - Only recently saw this beautifully shot 1970's cult favorite. A story of a bunch high school grads on their final night before leaving for college.
It contains a lot of cruising in big cars and a few drag races where Ford's arrogant character challenges the best drag racer in the town.
9) The Conversation - A surprisingly thrilling mystery from the 1970's where a surveillance expert tracks a couple that he believes are going to be murdered.
Lead by Gene Hackman, Ford has to be a minor character in this one. But nevertheless, it is gripping extravaganza.
8) Star Wars: Episode VI - The Return Of The Jedi - The final chapter of the first Star Wars trilogy where the Rebel Alliance and the Empire gear up for their final battle, as well as Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader.
7) Blade Runner 2049 - A sequel that many including me was unsure would work. But getting the right director helped a lot in seeing this futuristic world back on the big screen in the most epic way.
Ford's character of Deckard may be taking a back seat in this one. But his contribution in the final act gives this film a strong send-off.
6) Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade - The final installment of the greatest adventure franchise of all-time, where Ford returns as Indiana Jones.
His latest adventure consists of the Holy Grail, the Nazis and his Dad.
5) Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom - My personal favorite of the Indiana Jones trilogy.
Where Dr. Jones ends up in India where a mysterious palace, thought to have been abandoned, is slowly coming back into power.
4) Raiders Of The Lost Ark - The greatest adventure film and the birth of the most famous archaeologist ever.
Directed by Steven Spielberg, this epic search for the Lost Ark brought back the swashbuckling style of action film-making.
3) Blade Runner - An absolutely ground-breaking sci-fi thriller. Directed by Ridley Scott, this visionary experience will amaze me you for years.
Ford plays a detective where his final assignment is to find a group of 'replicants' roaming around Earth trying to find their maker.
Set in a gloomy looking future, it contains some of the greatest cinematography and music in film history. Definitely heaven for the eyes.
2) Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back - George Lucas's second installment of the greatest sci-fi saga has all of your favorite characters back including Ford's Hans Solo.
After exploding the Empire's most dangerous weapon, the Rebel Alliance continue to be on the run from their arch nemesis. Where we meet new characters that are not what they seem to be.
1) Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope - My favorite film from my childhood, and I'm sure many others as well.
This sci-fi swashbuckling adventure changed the face of how space films should be done. Despite not being in the lead role, Ford's character of Hans Solo will have you intrigued throughout.
I remember the first time I heard about this being filmed, it never appealed to me. Even with Tom Hanks leading the way. But as soon as I heard Paul Greengrass was going to direct it, it got me doing a second-take. With the recent success of United 93, this dramatic true story of an American cargo ship being hijacked by Somali pirates just had me psyched.
After seeing all of his other previous material such as Bloody Sunday, The Bourne Supremacy, United 93 and The Bourne Ultimatum, I know this would be another intense thrill-ride full of action. The only other Greengrass film I have seen is Green Zone. I thought it was o.k. but nothing extraordinary. So I was hoping this would not be a Green Zone.
Thankfully, it wasn't. Hours after seeing it, my heart was still pumping so much you could probably see it trying to burst out of my chest.
Everything about it was full-on Greengrass tension. It felt like United 93 has landed and is now gone out to sea. As the film goes on, it has you understanding the peril Captain Phillips and his crew are in, and by the end of it you will have had a series of close heart-attacks and be in tears during the incredible final scene. I will not ruin the final scene for anyone, but it struck my very core as it reminded me of an unfortunate situation that happened to me a few years ago, as the emotions I had at the time mirrored the ones I was seeing on screen.
As for the performances, Hanks is stellar as usual. He managed to find the right amount of rawness of Captain Phillips, and with him being known for his dedication to his characters, you could see how much Hanks wanted this to be a success. Even with an on-screen presence such as Hanks, the ones that stole the show, were the Somali's. With no acting experience, everything you see on screen just amazed me and if there is not one single award nomination for either Barkhad Abdi, Barkhad Abdihrahman, Faysal Ahmed or Mahat M. Ali for their performances, then it will be another snub by the major awards committees.
In terms of other awards, I can see it being nominated for Best Film, Best Director and possibly Best Adapted Screenplay. I am also unsure about Hanks getting a nomination for Best Actor, but let us wait and see what else we have in store before the awards season.
With all the recent stories saying half of the crew are suing the film-makers, I do not think that really matters if that effects your views on this film or not. Despite all that, it is a fantastic film directed by a man who knows how to suck in his audience. Greengrass in my opinion is the greatest director of the moment, and I cannot wait for more creations. It is currently my film of 2013, so you can see we are definitely in awards season mode, so watch out for amazing viewing experiences such as this.
When I hear that a film stars Tom Hanks, I have to watch to it. From the early 80's to now, Hanks has created quite a following and has attempted several different genres and succeeding every time. Not only have I not seen a bad film with him in it (well maybe The Da Vince Code and Angels & Demons), he is my favorite actor of all-time.
He has the most appearances (6) in my top 100 films of all-time, so this is already going to be a well accomplished list.
I could give a whole bunch of honorable mentions. But if I had to go for one, it would be Saving Mr. Banks which just misses out on my top 10. In what was quite an over-looked film in the major awards in 2013, Hanks plays Walt Disney himself. It tells the story about how Mary Poppins was made and the battle between Disney and Poppins author P.L Travers, who was brilliantly played by Email Thompson.
Out of the 60 feature films he has currently starred in, I have seen 44 of them. Here is my ranking of all the Hanks films that I have seen with a short review of each of my top 10, and it is quite an impressive one:
44) Every Time We Say Goodbye 43) Pinocchio
42) Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
41) Inferno
40) Angels & Demons
39) The Money Pit 38) Here
37) Dragnet
36) Turner & Hooch
35) The 'Burbs 34) Splash 33) The Ladykillers
32) Finch
31) You've Got Mail
30) News Of The World 29) Sleepless In Seattle
28) Sully: Miracle On The Hudson
27) The Da Vinci Code
26) A Man Called Otto
25) Greyhound
24) The Post
23) A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood
22) The Polar Express
21) That Thing You Do! 20) Bridge Of Spies
19) A League Of Their Own
18) Road To Perdition
17) Cast Away
16) Toy Story 2
15) Big
14) Apollo 13
13) Captain Phillips 12) Elvis
11) Saving Mr. Banks
10) The Terminal - Everything about it is under-rated. One of Steven Spielbergs most surprising directorial roles and one of Hanks most forgotten performances.
A story about a man whilst on a plane his country of origin manages to cease to exist and is stuck in a airport terminal.
This film surprises me on all levels, and it is incredible viewing.
9) Philadelphia - Quite an emotional tale about a lawyer being fired after getting AIDS fights for his rights after suing the company that fired him.
Hiring a lawyer played by Denzel Washington, this partnership of two acting titans is great to watch and pushes the movie along at a pace that messes with all of your emotions.
8) Saving Private Ryan - Probably the greatest modern war pic and Spielbergs partnership with Hanks reaches new heights.
Seen as many as the film that should have won Best Picture at The Oscars in 1999, Saving Private Ryan consists of an impressive cast led by Hanks.
Everytime I watch this, the detail involved is ridiculous.
7) Toy Story 4 - Just when you think the franchise should not do anymore, Pixar come back when another highly emotional story that could be the most 'toy story' of all the Toy Story films.
Hanks is back as Woody and it sees the gang encounter a new toy to the group. While on a road trip, it is up to Woody to show how important the life of a toy is to someone.
6) The Green Mile - Directed by Frank Darabont, who did The Shawshank Redemption, this emotional tale on death row has Hanks playing a warden that experiences something that is quite simply, a miracle.
Obviously won't spoil it for you if you have not seen it. It is quite incredible what you see in the end.
5) Toy Story 3 - The third story in the Toy Story franchise that manages to exceed everyone's expectations.
Playing the voice of Woody, Hanks returns to make a film that I did not have faith in succeeding.
It was as near perfect as it could have been. Could well be the best film franchise of all-time.
4) Catch Me If You Can - Another Spielberg with Hanks involved. This time, it is a supporting role to the then newcomer, Leonardo DiCaprio.
Another Spielberg film that surprised me that tells a tale about Americas most famous con-man.
Hanks plays the detective chasing him around the world.
We see an unlikely friendship appear during this incredible true-story.
3) Cloud Atlas - Heading a star-studded line-up in the most expensive independent film ever and my film of 2012.
Seen as an un-film-able novel, the Wachowski's manage to pull it off beautifully.
A genre-breaking movie that will become more popular in years to come and become the new cult classic.
2) Toy Story - A ground-breaking film as Tom Hanks begins one of the greatest franchises in film history.
This was my first film to see in a cinema and I'm glad it has a legacy to be proud of growing up to.
1) Forrest Gump - Probably the most inspiring movie I've ever seen.
Hanks plays his more recognisable role as Forrest Gump, a man who manages to get caught up in several world events in a span of about 20 years.
It's quite a story that I'm amazed someone decided to make it, but it is a guaranteed 'must-watch'.
With the BBC's recent 'Sound Of Cinema' season coming to a climax with their top 20 film soundtracks of all-time, I have decided to do my own and see what it is like compared with the BBC's.
Music in films these days are almost second nature. But when they introduced to the mainstream audience in the 1930's, it became an integral part of the film. Between then and now, certain film soundtracks have made movies more dramatic and memorable. Film music has gained many different forms. From a full orchestra to one man and a synthesizer, there have been many different genres of film music for everyone to enjoy.
Whenever I am bored or need to get some work done, having film music on in the background really does help. It reminds how great that certain film and it generally makes me feel happy at that moment in time. I have listened to many soundtracks and love plenty.
My top 20 film soundtracks was hard to choose. There were many of my favorites I had to say no to. I also had to enforce a few rules. Any film franchises e.g.(Harry Potter) would be consist of one of the film in this list. This is so I could have 20 different soundtracks, rather basically one soundtracks appearing in more than one film that got into the lost. Also, all the soundtracks are scores rather than songs. So if any Musicals make my top 20, it is solely based on the score, not the songs. Thankfully, even with these rules, I feel this is an impressive list with all of my all-time favorite film composers in it. Here it is:
20) Back To The Future - A pure fun movie where the music excels in. Throughout the entire film, the music is very effective. Composter Alan Silvestri make it slick, flow at a steady pace and just makes you want to drive fast.
All three of it scores are worthy of being in my list, but I chose part one of the trilogy as it just makes you remember witnessing one the great films of the 80's and witnessed all those memorable lines for the first time.
19) Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom - From a terrific opening musical number, to a great mix of classic theme and a bit of India in there. The score of the Temple Of Doom for me is the best of the quadrilogy of the greatest adventurer in film history.
The main theme is there, but composer John Williams gives it something else as we descend into the darkest realms of India.
18) The Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship Of The Ring - Not only did Peter Jackson make Middle Earth jump of J.R.R Tolkien's pages, Howard Shore composed a wonderful soundtrack that makes you find another way into this fantasy world.
All three soundtracks are completely absorbing, but I went for the first one. It introduces you to many fascinating characters and the ending theme by Enya is just glorious when walking out of the cinema to.
17) Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest - Composed by many peoples favorite film music writer of this century, Hans Zimmer, this is just the perfect sound for pirates.
It says everything you want in a pirates movie, swashbuckling action, adventures on ships and searching for treasure.
The music romps along like nobody's business and you just want to challenge someone to do a duel and press play.
What makes Dead Man's Chest different to the others in this franchise, is the beautiful tunes for the villains.
16) Gladiator - My favorite work by Hans Zimmer is the Oscar Best Picture of 2000.
The greatest modern 'sword and sandals' movie must have memorable music, and it easily does.
From the battle scenes in the arena, to the sentimental scenes, all ending with an incredible song in the end credits.
15) Singin' In The Rain - Voted the best musical in my top 10 musical films a few months ago.
Therefore, the music has to be top-notch, and it is. Even though the songs are just genius, this list is all about the score.
It bounces a long so beautifully and makes you want to dance like Gene Kelly, Donald O'Connor or Debbie Reynolds.
14) Bedknobs And Broomsticks - When listening to soundtracks, I almost forget how good this soundtrack actually is.
It tries to use everyone sort of instrument possible to get a different sound for each set-piece. From the grand medieval music, to the compilation of world music in the streets of London.
It is a surprising soundtrack for what I think is one of Disney's most under-rated films.
13) The Adventures Of Robin Hood - The film that basically gave birth the full piece orchestra film music. Composed by Eric Wolfgang Korngold, his score was way ahead of its time and he created something amazing which was set in the English countryside.
One of my favorite childhood films, and as I got older, I managed to appreciate the music a lot more and can't believe how good it is for a 1938 film.
12) Mary Poppins - Composed by The Sherman Brothers and Irwin Kostal, this hugely successful 1960's musical lit up many hearts in what was a troubled time for cinema.
Even if you take out the memorable song and dance numbers, the score itself is quite simply, brilliant.
It really messes with your emotions, and the more times you listen to it over time, the more you realise how sophisticated the music really is.
It helps the entire fun element of this timeless musical epic. But weirdly, it is rarely played by orchestras when doing a movie themed session.
11) West Side Story - An absolute tour de force by composer Leonard Bernstein. It raucousness and variety of pace is quite thrilling throughout.
Even the overture and opening scene alone is worth it being this high up in my list.
Every music backing up the song numbers, it is one show-stopper after the next. It is quite incredible that music like this can still be loved this generation, 50+ years after its initial release.
10) Once Upon A Time In The West - The first of three Ennio Morricone score's in my list. With very little dialogue in Sergio Leone's spaghetti westerns, it is therefore up to the music to tell the story, and Morricone does this perfectly.
With an almost operatic feel to it, the entire score sucks into this changing world of the Wild West.
9) For A Few Dollars More - In this second installment of the Dollars trilogy, Morricone continues to contribute Leone's vision of the Wild West.
This epic continued to redefine the western genre and score continues to show how important it is when telling a story.
8) Jaws - Containing what is seen as the most popular movie theme of all-time, composer John Williams created something quite special in what was Steven Spielbergs break-through into becoming the most successful director of all-time.
Outside of the main theme, which still scares many people, it is quite a charming soundtrack.
Many people forget the rest of the soundtrack outside of the main theme, but I would recommend you re-listen to it as it is wrongly forgettable at times.
7) E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial - Probably John Williams' most personal soundtrack and what I believe it to be his personal favorite.
It also contains my favorite finale in terms of film music. It comes to a tremendous crescendo, and completes the story so well.
6) The Good, The Bad And The Ugly - The most successful of Leone's spaghetti westerns that contains one of the most recognisable themes in film history.
It ends the Dollars trilogy better than expected, and the music by Morricone reaches new levels and ends perfectly with the most memorable showdown in the trilogy.
5) Hook - One of Spielberg's most under-rated films that contains such a brilliant swashbuckling soundtrack by John Williams. A lot of people forget how brilliant this film and music really is.
As soon as you hear it, you know you are going to be jetted off to some magical world and have lots of sword fights.
Everything about it shouts Neverland and I will never get bored of hearing it.
4) A Fistful Of Dollars - Morricone's finest work in the film that blew the western genre out of the water. Sergio Leone created the beginning of something special and the score made the film even more ground-breaking.
With the lonely whistling, mysterious guitar music, and unusual combinations of certain instruments, it is now become common in American westerns since then.
3) 2001: A Space Odyssey - Quite a magical soundtrack for such a fascinating film without even really having a composer.
After director Stanley Kubrick hired composer Frank Cordell to create the score, Kubrick decided to go for the classic pieces mainly from the Johan and Richard Strauss.
Despite not having a score for the film, Kubrick choice was a stroke of genius as it gave us a new setting for how we see space.
2) Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope - Another John Williams and the best, my favorite and his most successful and recognisable score.
After years of seeing sci-fi films as a future wasteland, director George Lucas takes us back to swashbuckling action, but in space.
This was the beginning of the most famous saga in film-history and the music gives it that extra edge over any other film franchise.
Every time I hear it, there is a smile on my face and I'm sure many others.
1) Blade Runner - Vangelis has created pure cinema in Ridley Scott's sci-fi epic.
It blew everyone away with its visuals, and the music made it even more spectacular.
With a hint of 1940's film-noir, the wonderful style of film-making needed something new in the music. Vangelis created something I don't think could be even more ground-breaking then Scott expected.
There is nothing like it, and there never will be.
