Taken:
In my opinion, Taken is what Die Hard should have been. 1 movie, stronger action and more comfortable characters. The setting seems to be a lot more original, you would never usually find too many action films set in Paris. Liam Neeson does a better job than Willis as the action hero, purely because he's not as typical as Bruce Willis usually is.
The setting, obviously because it's France it make a fantastic background and I think because it's not as long and droned as most action films, its shorter and more entertaining.
8.1/10
American History X:
I knew before I watched this film that it was highly rated among critics. Most films that touch along the lines of racism, stereotyping and bullying always win the hearts of the audience, and that kind of made me want to dislike this film. The first 10 minutes in and I was beginning to critiscise the film but as it progressed and you begin to learn about Edward Norton's fascinating character, and it all changes from there. The storyline is a lot more powerful and gritty than most films of this genre. The characters grow with you, and you learn more and more about them as the storyline unravels. Most film's I watch get more boring as time goes on, but with American History X I think that you want the film to keep going, it draws me in.
There are minor scenes that I tend to dismiss but all in all, a really fantastic film.
8.7/10
Little Criminals:
I had never heard of this film, so there was no hype or build up. The cast has nobody recognisable and the film is pretty much low budget. The film centres around a mentally disturbed pre-teen with a very poor childhood, no ambition or no influence. Again I thought the storyline was well thought of and I was possibly expecting a 'Stand by me' rip-off. The friendship of two characters though, did seem to be very similar to Stand by me, but it shined a different light on 2 kid's childhoods. I thought this was done pretty well. Some of the film went a little over the top, but the majority of it I thought was well done, acting was amazing considering the age of the people cast in it. I would definately watch this film again, it wasn't perfect but very good.. perhaps a little influenced by Oliver Twist & Stand by Me.
7.3/10
Valkyrie:
This came out in cinema's not so long ago, and I didn't really know what it was about.. so began to dismiss it. Basically for those who don't know, Tom cruise play's a Nazi who hatches an inside plot with many high ranking officers of the Nazi federation to assasinate Hitler. This is another film, that 10 minutes in and I didn't really get any interest from it. I've never really had an interest in war films, and didn't want to start now. Come 20 mins in and I was hooked, I thought Cruise did a fantastic job (especially as a Nazi). I saw suprised how many British name's were in the film too! I thought it was quite the gripping sort of film, at first it's more about dialogue but obviously the action begins to weave in and out of the film about 20 mins in and onwards.
Another fantastic job by cruise.
8.6/10
Hannibal Rising:
Hannibal can only really be described as a masterpiece character. Antony Hopkins formed such a phenomenon, and in my eyes I can only see Antony Hopkins as Hannibal. Nobody else. Thats the only thing that kind of kills this film's rating, aside from a few unrealistic scenes in which the younger Hannibal magically fight's his way out of. I think the setting has been taken too far back for it to feel like a Hannibal film. It's set during and after World War 2, so it really doesn't feel as though it should. The film itself is good if you are looking for some action thriller type entertainment I just don't think it's cut out to be part of the Hannibal franchise.
6/10
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