Amateur Reviews: Charlize Theron

Showing posts with label Charlize Theron. Show all posts

Dior Advert

Slightly random post for today, but felt inspired to share this beautiful advert with you for two reasons. Firstly, the music is Sunshine (Adagio In D Minor) by John Murphy which feautured in our favourite soundtrack post from a while back. A beautiful peice of music from the Danny Boyle film, Sunshine. Secondly, the advert stars Charlize Theron. Enough said.

Prometheus - Review

PROMETHEUS

2012

Directed by Ridley Scott

Starring Michael Fassbender, Noomi Rapace and Charlize Theron

When scientists Elizabeth Shaw (Rapace) and Charlie Holloway (Marshall-Green) find a star map inviting them to meet their makers, they embark upon a journey into the unknown and may just meet their end. Ridley Scott’s return to Sci-Fi has been highly anticipated and, while not living up to Alien, has created an immersive and visually stunning movie.

From the beginning of the film until the credits roll Prometheus is dramatically striking and is best viewed in 3D to best appreciate the flawless special effects. The breathtaking sequence that opens the film was actually shot in Iceland and showcases Scott’s prowess at capturing staggering vistas. The sets inside the good ship Prometheus feel clinical, expansive and airy in direct contrast in the grittier, grimier land outside the ship. In terms of visuals, you’d be hard pushed to find a better looking movie.

The cast is fine. Although Noomi Rapace makes an unconvincing leading lady with a very odd English accent, her performance is balanced out by other cast members. Charize Theron plays Meredith Vickers, the tough-nut commander of the mission. She’s one of the few actors who managed to bring depth to her enigmatic character however by the end of the film you may still not really understand her. Thank the engineers for David! Michael Fassbender is sterling in his role as the Android butler with devious motives. The actor studied Olympic diver Greg Louganis and drew inspiration for his impressive physicality. Fassbender is a true chameleon however not even his stellar performance could detract from the gaping flaws in the film.

The first act is promising and outlines some intriguing questions which sadly get ignored when the movie becomes preoccupied with killing off every member of the crew. And this is exactly the issue. Prometheus is lacking in a wider plot, as the movie just chronicles gory events and the audience struggle to care about the demise of the characters when they were so poorly written. Unlike Alien, Prometheus lacks a sense of suspense, doom and dread – which is essentially what people want form a Sci-Fi Horror film.

Fingers crossed Prometheus is the only blockbuster that fails to live up to the immense hype surrounding its release this summer. Yet despite the imperfections, Prometheus is still a good movie. It’s entertaining, sickeningly gory and beautifully shot.

Rating: 7

Check out the rest of our coverage on Prometheus from the Premiere to the viral campaign via the links below!

Prometheus World Premiere

Premiere Live

Prometheus Hype

Snow White and The Huntsman - Review

SNOW WHITE AND THE HUNTSMAN

2012

12A

Directed by Rupert Sanders

Starring Kristen Stewart, Charlize Theron and Chris Hemsworth

We’re going to come right out and say it, for a summer blockbuster, Snow White and the Huntsman is an extremely well crafted and entertaining movie. In a twist to this classic fairy tale, a Huntsman (Hemsworth) is ordered to find Snow White (Stewart) and bring her back to the Evil Queen (Theron). Instead of this, the duo joins with the 7 dwarfs in a quest to vanquish the queen and regain the Kingdom to its rightful heir.

For starters, the cast is superb. Kristen Stewart has finally been cast a character with more backbone and substance than Bella Swan, and despite her critics, is perfect as Snow White. Though perhaps not as fair as Charlize Theron, it’s hard to imagine anyone else in her role, leading the knights to war and inspiring battle. Chris Hemsworth essentially plays Thor, only with an axe instead of a hammer! His comedic timing is en pointe and he just about conquered the Scottish accent. A high point of the movie is any of the scenes with the dwarfs. Nick Frost, Ray Winstone and Toby Jones (amongst others) are sadly underwritten but have a very funny British sense of humour. Charlize Theron majorly echoes Tilda Swinton in her icy performance as the powerful queen. Inhumanely beautiful and massively formidable: a lethal combination.

The art direction in this film is breathtakingly dark and strangely beautiful. Twisted forests, gothic castles and expansive beaches seem very Tim Burton-esque and this fairytale is of similar ilk to the remake of Alice in Wonderland. Many scenes seem strangely iconic and some parts feel borrowed from other films, such as The Lord of The Rings, but are heavily stylised. The scenery and tracking shots are absolutely stunning and the film deserves praise for the editing and effects alone. Colleen Atwood’s costume design is unbelievably intricate and beautiful and serves to make the experience even more immersive. This is definitely a movie to be seen in the theatres to full appreciate the outstanding cinematography.

Snow White and The Huntsman is an elegant and inventive take on a classic fairytale which will appeal to all the family – as far as family films go, Snow White is probably your best bet this jubilee holiday. Given the movie is a little over 2 hours it is incredibly well paced, rarely drags and is full of entertaining moments. Snow White and The Huntsman is a definite recommendation!

Rating: 8

Prometheus - World Premiere

As promised, here are some stills and videos from last nights premiere at Leicester Square in London! Prometheus has already broken records for pre sales and it looks likely that it may challenge The Avengers and The Dark Knight in terms of box office success. You can expect our review a week today to coincide with the American release so definitely come back to check it out.