Hi everyone! I’ve had a few requests to upload some pictures from my recent trip to Iceland and, never one to let down my fans (ahem), I am happy to oblige.
I wasn’t there for as long as I would have liked (when isn’t that the case?), but in my time I came to fall in love with this beautifully rugged and magical country; full of kind and generous people and sights that nowhere else on Earth can offer.
My trip was made even more special by having witnessed the Northern Lights in their full resplendent glory – a stroke of luck bearing in mind how fickle they can be, but the show I witnessed will stay with me for the rest of my life. I also got to see a humpback whale barely 10 metres from the edge of the boat I was on; again a rare sight and one that I will remember with a smile for years to come.
Here are a few pictures of my trip. I’ll be back with the usual film review stuff imminently. Thanks as always for your support of my blog; it means a lot.
The Northern Lights in all their splendour
Pingvellir National Park
Prettttty cold
Gullfoss waterfall
As geysers go, Strokkur isn’t half bad
Me!
It’s a humpback. Promise…
The Lebowski Bar! The dude abides in Reykjavik!
We also found the Chuck Norris Grill with these wise words
You may have noticed I have been somewhat quiet of late when it comes to blogging, whether that be posting reviews or commenting on the splendid work of my fellow bloggers.
I’ve not disappeared rest assured, but have spent the past week or so moving house and will be travelling to chilly Iceland next week for a few days of sub-zero sight-seeing.
I’ve also been unable to get access to Wi-Fi whilst the house move has been ongoing, which has meant I’ve not been able to get online very much.
Excuses aside, I aim to be back online in a week or so, but in the meantime I wanted to wish everyone a belated Happy New Year. See you soon blogging community!
Following the tantrum-inducing menace of George Lucas’ Darth Vader: The Younger Years trilogy of car wrecks, the most beloved film saga of them all strikes back in glorious fashion.
With The Force Awakens, we’re indeed home. Thank you J.J. Abrams; thank you
Anyone nervous that Episode VII might fail to live up to the enormous weight of expectation unfairly heaped upon its shoulders can rest easy; The Force Awakens is about as far removed from The Phantom Menace in terms of sheer, unadulterated grin-inducing entertainment as Jar Jar Binks is from, well, pretty much any other character committed to film.
Watching The Force Awakens, it becomes clear very quickly exactly why J.J. Abrams was brought on board to direct (and co-write). His Star Trek (2009) skilfully managed to walk the tightrope of reminding us of why we cared about the franchise in the first place, while at the same time flipping the switch to offer us something completely new.
Rey (Daisy Ridley), Finn (John Boyega) and BB-8 in Star Wars Episode VII – The Force Awakens
In the case of Star Wars, Abrams and co-writer Lawrence Kasdan consign midichlorians and trade blockades into the sarlacc pitt and instead return to what made film fans fall in love with the saga in the first place; namely a simple story about disparate characters coming together to stop a seemingly insurmountable enemy.
Criticisms that The Force Awakens too readily retreads old ground, particularly A New Hope, are missing the point. Abrams, just like in Star Trek, gives us something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue (does the lightsaber count?).
Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and Chewbacca (Peter Mayhem) back on the Falcon in Star Wars Episode VII – The Force Awakens
The story picks up 30 years after the events of Return Of The Jedi, with both the Resistance and the evil First Order in search of Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), the last known Jedi Knight. Droid BB-8 seemingly holds the key to Skywalker’s whereabouts and into the fray steps scavenger Ren (Daisy Ridley) and Finn (John Boyega), a stormtrooper who has deserted the First Order.
Having emerged from the ashes of the Empire, the First Order employ similarly fascistic tendencies (not least of which a penchant for Nuremberg-esque rallies) and are led by the Kool Aid-guzzling General Hux (Domhnall Gleeson), unpredictable Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and a mysterious dark lord (I won’t spoil it).
Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) has anger issues in Star Wars Episode VII – The Force Awakens
It’s often said that bad guys are the most interesting characters in cinema and that’s certainly the case with Ren, a figure beset by bouts of petulant rage who is both terrifying and childishly vulnerable at the same time. Performing behind a mask for much of the running time, the fantastic Driver gives Ren a unnervingly measured tone that threatens to crack at any moment.
Boyega too is excellent; at first tortured by the horrors he is expected to participate in before growing into the hero we rejoice in cheering on. Ridley also impresses in what is perhaps the most underdeveloped character, but the journey she goes on will no doubt pay off in spades beyond The Force Awakens.
The Resistance resists in Star Wars Episode VII – The Force Awakens
It says an awful lot about the strength of the new cast that we don’t rely too heavily on the very welcome reintroduction of Harrison Ford as everyone’s favourite scruffy-looking nerf herder Han Solo, Carrie Fisher as the sadder, more world-weary General Organa, Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew), C-3PO (Anthony Daniels) and R2-D2 among other old guard.
That said, it’s a joy to see them back on the big screen and Abrams and Kasdan give each character plenty of choice dialogue as well as well-woven story arcs.
Ace pilot Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) in Star Wars Episode VII – The Force Awakens
While it’s hard to say whether the original band got back together, it’s nevertheless wonderful to see and hear John Williams is back. Williams’ score promised much in the trailers and truly delivers with a soundtrack that splices well-loved refrains with new material that perfectly complements the action on screen.
Speaking of action, Abrams’ resistance to the CGI-heavy set pieces so beloved on Lucas circa Episodes I-III really delivers, with dogfights that you can follow and care about the outcome of, while a shoot out on a forest planet (the look Han gives Rey when she says “I never knew there could be so much green” is wonderful) is effortlessly staged.
With The Force Awakens, we’re indeed home. Thank you J.J. Abrams; thank you.
Tom Hanks plays the (sort of) spy who came in with a cold in Steven Spielberg’s effortlessly polished and absorbing character drama whose themes, sadly, still resonate as strongly today as they did more than half a century ago.
Bridge Of Spies certainly won’t leave you cold and finds Spielberg, unlike his protagonist, in rude health
While the canvas may not be as broad as some of his blockbuster fare, the dramatic stakes at the heart of Spielberg’s latest are high indeed.
Bridge Of Spies shares more than a passing similarity to the bearded one’s previous feature, Lincoln (2012) – both involve backroom negotiations driven by an idealist where potentially world-changing consequences pivot on their success or failure.
“Would it help?”: James B. Donovan (Tom Hanks) and suspected Soviet spy Rudolf Abel (Mark Rylance) in Bridge Of Spies
In this case, that responsibility falls to insurance lawyer James B. Donovan (Hanks), who takes on the defence of suspected Soviet spy Rudolf Abel (Mark Rylance) against the wishes of his wife Mary (Amy Ryan). Instead of simply going through the motions to facilitate Abel’s guilt, Donovan vigorously defends his client and marks himself out as a troublemaker by the CIA and a Soviet sympathiser by the media and wider public.
His foresight in keeping Abel away from Death Row sees him drafted in to travel to the newly walled off East Berlin in 1961 to negotiate under the radar for the exchange of Francis Gary Powers (Austin Stowell), a U.S pilot whose U-2 reconnaissance mission was dramatically curtailed.
The public take against lawyer James B. Donovan (Tom Hanks) and his wife Mary (Amy Ryan) in Bridge Of Spies
For someone who has revisited World War Two so often throughout his career, it’s perhaps surprising Bridge Of Spies is Spielberg’s first Cold War movie. A desolated post-war Berlin is evocatively captured by the director and cinematographer Janusz Kamiński and the chaos surrounding the erection of a wall that would remain in place for almost 30 years is both unsettling to watch and masterfully handled.
Spielberg employs subtle touches to imply a deeper meaning, such as the use of mirrors to symbolise what is both real and illusion alongside Abel’s skill as a portrait artist to present both himself – and others – in a certain light. Abel’s sniffle at the start of the film is also nicely reflected later on when Donovan develops a cold whilst in sub-zero Berlin.
U-2 spy plane pilot Francis Gary Powers (Austin Stowell) has his day in court in Bridge Of Spies
The film’s themes of tolerance, fairness and what makes Americans American (an adherence to the U.S Constitution as Donovan not unreasonably sees it) draws inevitable parallels to events that continue to unfold in this turbulent century.
Donovan puts his head on the block in seeking to give Abel a fair trial arguing that, whilst his ideology may be anathema to that of most Americans, he remains “a good soldier” who is only doing what he believes to be right. Whether that sort of defence would be accepted by many in today’s society is among the many things that can be taken away from this spirited production.
Hanks, as always, delivers a highly watchable performance in a central role that could so easily have been played by Burt Lancaster or James Stewart had Bridge Of Spies been filmed some decades earlier. Aided by Joel and Ethan Coen’s polish of Matt Charman’s original script, Hanks has a blast in a part that allows him to deliver all-American dialogue with a twinkle in the eye.
Lawyer James B. Donovan (Tom Hanks) alongside the newly constructed Berlin Wall in Bridge Of Spies
As good as Hanks is, however, he’s acted off the screen by Rylance, who has been a king of the stage for many years but now appears to be increasingly transitioning to TV and film work (let’s forget his recent cheque-chasing turn in Sean Penn’s geri-action flick The Gunman though). Employing a less-is-so-much-more technique, Rylance’s quietly inquisitively body language and measured demeanour keep you transfixed as you try to work out what’s going on behind those eyes, while his scenes with Hanks are some of the best interplay you’ll see this year.
Special mention must also go to Thomas Newman’s pleasingly restrained score. So often, Spielberg’s films are ill-served by abundant soundtracks, but Newman keeps things relatively low-key and scenes are often allowed to play out without the use of a score.
Bridge Of Spies certainly won’t leave you cold and finds Spielberg, unlike his protagonist, in rude health.
For all the talk of this final instalment of the wildly popular Hunger Games series promising to be an ‘epic’ conclusion to the dystopian drama, very little generates a spark, let alone catches fire.
It’s a real shame a franchise that has given us so many great moments, and in the case of its second movie Catching Fire a genuinely top-drawer slice of blockbuster entertainment, should cross the finish line with such an exhausted stumble.
Those who care about such things will no doubt have an opinion over whether the decision to split the final part of Suzanne Collins’ trilogy into two films was right or wrong from an artistic perspective. However, it’s essentially a moot point as we have to judge Mockingjay – Part 2 on its merits – which are sadly lacking for the most part.
Girl on fire: Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2
The film picks up almost exactly where Part 1 left off, with a brainwashed Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) having tried to murder Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence), who is finding the burden of being the face of the resistance a heavy weight to shoulder.
With the pieces being moved into place, the final assault against the Capital and President Snow (Donald Sutherland) gets underway, but this is a fight fraught with danger, not only from the deadly traps set within the Capital, but also from inside their own ranks as Katniss, Peeta and Gale (Liam Hemsworth) struggle to address their love triangle while trying desperately to survive.
President Coin (Julianne More) and Plutarch (Philip Seymour Hoffman) take command in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2
It almost goes without saying, but Lawrence is once again excellent in the role that has defined her career to date. The shell shock that Katniss has been experiencing since her first, horrific encounter in the Hunger Games has only grown more acute as time has gone on and left her as a husk, whose only motivation is to assassinate Snow.
Lawrence effectively conveys both the terror of being sucked into a violent and unpredictable situation, as well as the dead-eyed resignation of someone desensitized to events around her. In the hands of a lesser actor, Katniss could easily come across as miserable, but Lawrence has continually imbued the character with an intriguing mix of vulnerability and steel.
Dastardly President Snow (Donald Sutherland) in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2
The supporting cast provides suitable back-up, most notably a lively, but under-utilised turn from Jena Malone as the mentally damaged Johanna; a reliably excellent Sutherland as the pitiless Snow; and the late, great Philip Seymour Hoffman in his final screen appearance as puppet master Plutarch Heavensbee (a scene towards the end involving a letter from Heavensbee would have worked so much better had Hoffman appeared in it).
The film finds an extra gear when the assault on the Capital finally begins in earnest and the springing of the traps laid down by Snow’s Gamesmakers recapture some of the magic of the first two movies. Likewise, an extended sewer sequence where Katniss and co must overcome creatures borrowed from The Descent is pulse-quickening stuff and nods heavily in the direction of Alien/Aliens.
Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) and Gale (Liam Hemsworth) lead the resistance in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2
However, just when the film feels like it’s ready to lift off, the foot is taken off the gas as the characters talk themselves into a stupor. As such, the pacing of Mockingjay – Part 2 is all over the place, veering disjointedly from moments of tension to swathes of glacial tedium. A similar issue affected Part 1, although it was saved in part by the subtle commentary on how the media war and actual conflict help to fuel each other.
The final section feels anticlimactic (a symptom of adhering so closely to what is considered the weakest of the books) and underwhelming, while the much-discussed final scene, although earned on Katniss’ part, feels like it belongs in a lesser Young Adult adaptation.
After the mouth-watering treat of the previous three courses, it’s a shame The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 concludes this banquet in such an unsatisfactory way.
three rows back 