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It Follows (2014)
A refreshing take on the horror genre
There was a considerable amount of hype surrounding this movie after its limited releases, which gradually snared my attention. There was only one problem...I couldn't find it anywhere! Screenings of this film were few and far between so my excitement for it started to build and build. When I finally saw it, I was not let down, but then again, it was nothing more than I expected. The film is good fun with an interesting premise, a skilled bunch of actors, and a few intense, creepy, and creative scenes. The main cast was picked well and delivered believable performances, at least for a modern horror film. Horror films these days seem to contain mainly cardboard cut- out characters with an uninteresting story and generic jump scares. It Follows' scares are few and far between but are used well and timed just right. The style of the film is very noticeably 70's/80's horror, which is a nice throwback, what, with the long, uninterrupted shots and screeching, haunting soundtrack. One of my favourite things about the film is the main antagonist itself. The follower. Thanks to great make-up and disturbing presentation, each variation of the follower is just as startling and frightening as the last. Overall, It Follows succeeds to be a unique, unsettling, and entertaining film which was worth the wait for me.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)
A treat in many aspects
When set pictures of the characters from The Amazing Spider-Man 2 made their way online in early 2013, I was very excited to see what these characters were going to do to contribute to the movie's plot. But as the trailers started to roll out, I felt a lot of footage was being given away. I felt as if I had seen most of the film's major plot points. Thankfully, as I walked out of the theater after seeing this film, I was pleasantly surprised as The Amazing Spider-Man 2 not only has edge-of-your-seat moments and a surprisingly unique soundtrack, but it managed to give me a few surprises even with much of the footage released. The cast of this film are well-picked. Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone reprise their roles as Peter Parker/Spider-Man and Gwen Stacy. The chemistry between the two is extremely well done and very believable, which is understandable considering the two actors are real-life couples. Andrew Garfield is the perfect Spider-Man to me. He is much funnier and relatable than any other iterations of Spider-Man that I have seen. The villain roles in this movie are given to Jamie Foxx and Dane DeHaan. Foxx plays Max Dillon, a lonely, self-proclaimed "nobody" who idolizes Spider-Man after bumping into him. But after a wiring accident, he turns into Electro, a being with the ability to control electricity. Although Foxx slightly disappoints in this role due to lack of development for the Max Dillon character, he still manages to pull of a sinister performance without making the character dull or uninteresting. DeHaan plays Harry Osborn, a childhood friend of Peter's who is looking for Spider-Man. DeHaan shines throughout the entire film. Not one moment did he seem uncomfortable with the role. He has a creepy edge to his performance that keeps you hooked on him every time he appears in a scene. The CGI in this film is also very credible and was one of the big highlights of the movie for me, especially considering that I saw it in 3D. There's a mid-film Time Square fight which is beautiful to watch. Colours and electricity seem to leap off the screen but at the same time, are not too distracting. As I mentioned earlier, the soundtrack for this movie is unique and impressive, thanks to the combined efforts of Hans Zimmer, Pharrell Williams and a handful of other composers. Some segments of the soundtrack are bright and cheerful, like Spider-Man's heroic theme, and some segments are dark and demonic, like Electro's theme, a fast-paced whispering voice which relays the thoughts going on in Electro's head. It is timed perfectly and makes up for the lack of character development. Overall, what do I think of The Amazing Spider-Man 2? It's a marvelous entry into the Amazing Spider-Man series even if it does feel slightly rushed. With likable characters, heart-pounding moments, stunning special effects and a great soundtrack, that's more than enough for me to give this film a well-deserved 8 out of 10.
Half-Life 2 (2004)
Why did Half-Life 2 change my view on video games?
Back in August 2012 I was on my brother's Steam account when I saw Half- Life 2 sitting in the library. Out of curiosity I played the game, and I do not regret it. Half-Life 2 is one of the most unique video-games I have ever played. I may be a little late to the party but I'm one of the masses of people who love this game. Many things about it are perfect e.g. the mechanics, the game-play, the characters, the voice-acting, I could go on and on. Half-Life 2 changed my view on video-games because it uses it's outstanding game engine to it's advantage, adding puzzles which use physics. The sound design is very impressive too, right down to the music. I love the voice-acting too, from Jim French's crazy rants as Father Grigori to Mike Shapiro's creepy and unnatural speech pattern as the G-Man which is, by the way, my favourite voice performance in a video-game. What else can I say that hasn't already been said? The game's nearly 10 years old and yet it's still going strong.
9 out of 10.
127 Hours (2010)
Probably the best film I've ever seen.
127 Hours is an inspirational, emotional true story about a mountain climber named Aron Ralston. While hiking through Blue John Canyon, Utah, a rock rolls onto Aron's arm, pinning it against a wall of the canyon. After six days of hell, Aron finally sums up the courage to cut his arm off. Aron Ralston is a hero to many and I'm sure he likes this film. And James Franco does an amazing job as Aron. The music composed by A.R. Rahman is amazing and emotional and Danny Boyle, a tremendous director, did a fantastic job. No wonder this film got nominated for 6 Academy Awards. Although there are some mistakes(like 2010 styled Pepsi in a 2003 based film)this film is enjoyable and is definitely worth watching.
Slaughter High (1986)
Slaughter High Review
This is a largely unknown slasher film but if you are a true slasher geek you probably would've heard of this one. The plot is that Marty Rantzen, a high school nerd, gets picked on by a group of jocks and girls. One of their pranks go wrong resulting with nitric acid burning Marty's face. 5 years later all the bullies are invited to a school reunion at their old school. When they get inside the school the bullies are killed off one by one by Marty, who sent the invitations and is out for revenge. Now some of the acting is pretty bad and most of the actors in this film have had very little film roles (Except for Caroline Munro). The music is also a bit repetitive but enjoyable. However, Simon Scuddamore's role as Marty is great and he looked like he had a lot of fun with his role. Sadly, this was Simon's only film role as he committed suicide right after the film was made. But overall Slaughter High is a pretty good horror movie and it is worth watching.