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Thor Ragnarok – Movie Review of Thor Ragnarok

by | Nov 13, 2017 | Film and TV, Reviews

Having seen the last Thor movie I wasn’t sure what to expect from Thor Ragnarok. The reviews were all positive and I went in hoping that it would be as good as the hype.

Starring Chris Hemsworth as Thor, this instance is much more humourous and has a very tongue in cheek attitude. It’s almost like the quirky, cheeky comic books we grew up reading.

The movie is directed by Taika Waititi who also directed Hunt for the Wilderpeople (which is a great movie in itself)

The film has a very funny sequence near the start with Thor and a devil type character called Surtur. After an encounter with Surtur, Thor has a shock to the system with his hammer being destroyed by his banished sister who returns to rise and destroy those who oppose her. Hela played by Cate Blanchett’s looks down her nose of her weak father who once ruled the universe but then became a peaceful ruler.

Thor also has other major losses (no spoilers) and this almost becomes a crisis of confidence for Thor.

There are lots of cameos and subtle nods to other films. After landing on another planet he and his semi-evil brother Loki (played by Tom Hiddleston) plus the Hulk/Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) and a hilarious but effective hero with a drink problem Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson) try to save Thor’s home Asgard from destruction.

Before they can do that Thor and Hulk must escape from the Hunger Games style contest where they are pitched against each other. This is all under the watchful eye of game keeper “Grandmaster” played by the amazing Jeff Goldblum.

After leading a revolt now the race is on to save Asgard. Can Thor win the battle without his trusty hammer?

Overall this was a highly entertaining film with lots of humour and a decent enough story. Chris Hemsworth was brilliant and had some great lines as was Jeff Goldblum. (Someone did say that Jeff Goldblum was just asked to do his Best Jeff Goldblum impression.). Another standout, was Tessa Thompson who played Valkerie. I had not seen her in anything before but she has starred in over 45 other productions. Maybe we have not yet seen the last of Valkerie.

Conclusion, if you want a film where you will leave smiling and with a sense of money well spent them Thor Ragnorok is the one to see. The soundtrack is also excellent – some of the music in the movie is very 1980 synth, one was very reminiscent of the Street Hawk theme by Le Park. Thor Ragnorok is not a classic or an Oscar nominee but certainly a highly entertaining movie. Enjoy!

This is the last Marvel film of 2017 and next on the list is Avengers: Infinity War.

American Made – Movie Review

American Made – Movie Review

by | Sep 13, 2017 | Film and TV, Reviews

American Made starts way back in 1978. Barry Seal, played by Tom Cruise, a is a young and very bored TWA pilot. Barry plays fast and loose with his job as a pilot – something we have seen Tom Cruise do before in other movies. Barry has a little sideline in smuggling contraband cigars. This does not go unnoticed and a member of the CIA, played by Domhnall Gleeson, approaches him with a proposal.

At one point Barry asks Domhnall Gleeson’s CIA character, “All this is legal?” … “If you’re doing it for the good guys,” was the response. This sets the tone for the film and it’s hard to know who the good guys sometimes. The CIA job is more of an ultimatum than a proposal and he is asked by the CIA to take reconnaissance photos of Soviet-backed insurgents, the contras, in South and Central America. Before he knows it, after only a few years Barry Seal starts drug smuggling for some of the most famous drug lords in Central America.

The thing which makes all this a bit more appealing – American Made is all based on true events.

As the film progresses Barry Seal takes on more and more risks. If caught he could be killed by the contras, a drug lord or imprisoned by any one of the many law enforcement groups he annoys. At one point I thought his wife was going to kill him, as Barry has a growing family to raise. The family gets a lot bigger as Barry becomes more successful. His wife’s brother comes and works for Barry which causes its own issues. The scenario and Barry’s life becomes more and more complex. I’m not going to spoil the final act but all in all, this is a great movie with a great 70/80s soundtrack.

All Action – Tom Cruise

American Made is very Tom Cruise. Since Top Gun, we all know Tom loves fast cars, bikes and planes. Some of the aircraft sequences are very well done. At one point Tom or Barry (hard to know sometimes) adjusts the aircraft pitch trim in order to keep the aircraft flying level. At this point, he goes back into the small plane to release the drugs he was carrying. This is not a stuntman, he was most probably Tom Cruise. In reality, though Barry Seal was built like a wrestler was not as trim as Tom Cruise. The one thing I did notice was that the aircraft scenes and procedures seemed to be well researched, Tom was probably all over this detail.

The filming is very retro in parts, especially the opening and ending credits which I loved. I thought the credits, graphics, filming and music added a great air of vintage authenticness to the film.

American Made is not a deep or gritty drama. It has the wide cheeky grin of Tom Cruise at the start but you know it will be full of action and will be entertaining. There are a few reviews of the American Made movie who focus on it being cheesy but it is more than that. I think it was highly enjoyable, entertaining and would actually love to see it again.

Official Trailer – American Made

American Made – Overall Movie Rating

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American Made Movie Rating

Passengers – Movie Review / Film Review

Passengers – Movie Review / Film Review

by | Jan 9, 2017 | Film and TV, Reviews

Jim Preston is one of 5,000 passengers on board the spaceship, Starship Avalon. The ship is on a 120-year voyage to a distant colony planet “Homestead 2”. After a malfunction in Jim Preston’s hibernation pod, Jim (played by Chris Pratt) is the only one awake. Now he is stranded on the spaceship, still 90 years from his destination.

Passengers – Movie Review

If you watch the trailer of Passengers you may get a sense of what is happening. My initial interpretation of the Passengers trailer was different. I thought both were all awoken by mistake. I also thought perhaps there was a conspiracy to sabotage the journey of the starship. I even thought that perhaps these were all AI lifeforms which were being banished from the earth. All of my personal assumptions about the movie were incorrect.

The movie starts with Jim being prematurely woken from his hypersleep. He doesn’t know what is happening and tries everything to gain control of the situation. Jim tried everything from trying to gain access to the bridge, to try to get back into the hypersleep chamber. You get to see how one man lives for over a year without anyone else to talk to. He has an android barman, named Arthur, but he longs for human companionship. Jim tries all the amenities on the ship but nothing makes him feel any better about his predicament. You see him disintegrate into a man who feels that all is lost.

It is at this point he meets Aurora (no spoilers here, so apologies for a key section skipped). Although Aurora is alarmed to have been woken but Jim does his best to reassure her. Aurora and himself get on very well and eventually for a romantic relationship. However, after Arthur, the barman (played by Michael Sheen), tells Aurora some background information she breaks down. All seems lost, but a bigger problem is looming. The ship systems are failing and the ship is on the brink of destruction. The ship will have to be repaired, but how can it be done in time? Can they go back to hypersleep? Are they doomed to live out their lives on a sleeping starship? ….

Overview

Overall Passengers is a really enjoyable movie and is certainly worth seeing on the big screen. There are points in the movie where I felt a small bit bored, as it was a bit like Groundhog Day. However, it is obvious that these scenes are required to convey the monotony of life on your own in such a confined space. I saw this in 2D but I feel you might get more from this in 3D. There are stunning sweeping scenes of nebulae, space walks and transit through space. There are a few small-plot twists in this which add to the drama. The conclusion of the film was very well done and I feel the ending was well written. There are often films which have poor endings but this is not one of them.

Passengers – Official Trailer

Passengers – Overall Review Score

  • Overall Score 87% 87%
Ghostbusters 2016 – Review

Ghostbusters 2016 – Review

by | Jul 14, 2016 | Film and TV, General, Reviews

All Female Cast in Ghostbusters ‘2016

When I first heard the Ghostbusters was to be remade with an all female cast I was dubious. I also thought it would be a flop as I didn’t like the idea of a remake. This for me was a franchise which I grew up with and I didn’t want a remake just for the sake of it. … Having seen it – I was wrong. It is excellent!

The film is rated 12A and from the start, it’s obvious that the ghosts are a bit more malevolent than the 1980s Ghostbusters films. It has a real retro feel and the song remains unchanged which I was delighted with.

The all female cast works well and there are some really funny scenes, especially with their hired secretary, Kevin. The secretary has all the phone skills of Fr. Dougal Maguire.

If you watch closely from the start, there are cameos from all the 1980s Ghostbusters cast members, including Egon, who stars via a bronze bust in the University. Slimer is also back… with a friend.

3D Ghostbusters or is 2D ok?

If you have the opportunity to see it in 3D then do. The 3D effects are excellent with the spectres 3D rendered outside the 2 black lines on top and bottom of the film reel so it looks like they are outside the film. (If you get my meaning)!

Overall Comments

My only problem with the film is that it is as if New York never had the 1980 Ghostbusters team – I went presuming that it was a follow on but it is a total remake/reinvention of the franchise.

There is also no explanation for a hair colour change on 2 cast members near the end of the film?

Overall a wonderful way to spend an evening and I really enjoyed this new reboot of Ghostbusters.
Remember to stay during the credits and also stay until they are over. There is a bit of a reveal in the post-credits scene.

Ghostbusters Official Trailer

Review – Aroi Asian Street Food, Kilkenny

Review – Aroi Asian Street Food, Kilkenny

by | May 18, 2016 | Reviews

Having walked from Bennettsbridge to Kilkenny along the Nore we were looking for something hearty and tasty to eat. I had been to Aroi with a work function and decided to go there.

Aroi Asian Street Food

Aroi Asian Street Food is located on Friary Street Kilkenny and has plenty of space inside while being bright, airy and a tad funky in decor. The service is very good and on a Sunday there is an option to enjoy a main course and Gelato for only 10 euros which is wonderful value.

The service on the day we arrived was friendly yet unusually curt, perhaps they were rushed off their feet but the girl who served us never once smiled, everything was very formal and overly efficient. However, we are here for the food and were not disappointed.

I chose to push the boat out and have a starter, main and ice cream. The fish cakes were the starter, one of the nicer Thai fish cakes I have tried, with a little kick of chilli present. For the main course, I had the Yellow Fish Curry served with brown rice. This curry was full of flavour and full of fish – salmon, cod, smoked cod, mussels, crab, and calamari – as well as being jam-packed with veg.

The meal was thoroughly enjoyable and was rounded off with some very refreshing ice cream. The whole meal for 2 came to under 35 euros and its a spot I will be returning to. If you are looking for a nice Asian meal then Aroi in Kilkenny is right up your street.

 

Location 

Aroi Asian Street Food, Kilkenny

Aroi Asian Street Food, Kilkenny
Aroi Kilkenny

Update October 2021

I visited Ario in October 2021 and had a beautiful meal in the Yellow Fish Curry. It was really delicious and the staff were very attentive as usual. The only thing was that the music was comical. They were playing dance versions of classic songs, basically Now that’s what I can rubbish covers 2021 ; It’s a real pity because we left as soon as we cood because the music was so inane – the low-light being a crapphy version of Careless Whisper with the most rubbish brass section you could imagine. Perhaps some relaxing music might be better.