The Great Gatsby (2013)

Director: Baz Luhrman
Starring: Toby Maguire, Leonardo DiCaprio, Carey Mulligan, Joel Edgerton,  Elizabeth Debicki, Isla Fischer
Certificate: 12
Genre: Romance, Drama
Awards: Best Costume, Best Production

Based off of F. Scott Fitzgerald's critically acclaimed novel, The Great Gatsby follows Nick Carraway (Maguire) after he moves to NewYork city and meets a very strange man called Gatsby (DiCaprio). Gatsby lives next door and throws lavish parties for everybody in town. However nobody really knows much about him until Nick comes along. Gatsby opens his life to Nick because he is in love with Nick's cousin and always has been. Unfortunately she is now married with children to another.

Although DiCaprio's performance should be praised, it is Maguire who really shines in this film. We feel what Nick feels and the power of his voiceover (especially at the end where it gets really powerful) is what makes the film.

Visually the film is nice to look at, mixing old fashioned and modern music to make this weird hybrid, and all the characters are done justice. The plot may seem boring to many and that is understandable as not much really happens. There is no world changing conclusion and we end almost the same as when we began. Albeit The Great Gatsby is a good film even if it does not mach up to Luhrman's past achievements.

****Good

Star Trek: Into Darkness (2013)

Director: J.J. Abrams
Starring: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Benedict Cumberbatch, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, Simon Pegg, John Cho, Peter Weller, Alice Eve, Anton Yelchen, Bruce Greenwood.
Certificate: 12
Genre: Sci Fi
Awards: None

After an highly praised return in 2009 and with all the main cast returning, the sequel can bring out the big guns. And boy do they...

The main thing good sequels do is give the series a much more impressive villain. John Harrison (Cumberbatch) is exactly this. He seems like a much bigger threat than Nero with is cold and calculating demeanour.  However he is more than just a villain. He is one of the antagonists who - in his eyes - is doing right. This makes him a lot more relatable.

The rest of the cast all show up with their own unique traits. Some like Scotty (Pegg) are given much bigger roles while it's Chekov (Yelchen)'s turn to have the least screen time. Alice Eve's Carol is a character that was a bit confusing. I wasn't sure if she was the love interest for Kirk or Bones.

Star Trek: Into Darkness is a satisfying sequel. Both the beginning and the end gives the feel of an Indiana Jones film. Perhaps another franchise for you Mr Abrams?

****Good

Star Trek Into Darkness Trailer

Star Trek (2009)

Director: J.J. Abrams
Starring: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, John Cho, Anton Yelchen, Simon Pegg, Leonard Nimoy, Eric Bana, Bruce Greenwood, Winona Ryder
Certificate: 12
Genre: Sci Fi
Awards: Best Make-up

For years the Star Trek franchise was circling the drain. Mainstream audiences had all but forgotten it. Then came the brand new spanking reboot that re-glorified it.  Star Trek is not technically a remake or a reboot. It is in fact an alternative timeline set in course by the death of Kirk's father (a pre-Thor Chris Hemsworth). This gives the writers an almost free-reign over the franchise. They can now tell any story they want.

As this is the first film in the alternative timeline, it is basically the origin story. James T. Kirk (Pine) is recruited into Star fleet and meets his crew to be. I really don't know enough about the original series to tell if any of the characters are terribly different to their original forms, however I don't think there is anything major that fans are angry about.

Some people say that Eric Bana's Nero is a rubbish villain as he is forgettable and is more plot device than actual character, but that is what the film needs. Nobody is interested in a show stealing villain in the origin story. It's the main characters you want to see. Save your Jokers and Gollums for the sequel.

I can't really say much more about the story without giving it away. I can merely say that fans of the originals will be surprised while newbies will be entertained.

****Good

Star Trek Trailer

Unstoppable (2010)

Director: Tony Scott
Starring: Denzel Washington, Chris Pine, Rosario Dawson
Certificate: 12
Genre: Thriller
Awards: None

A train in West Virginia has gone off without a driver and it's heading with speed into a populated city with toxic chemicals that could wipe it out completely. Two railway employees, experienced train driver Frank (Washington) and a first time conductor Will (Pine), have to try and stop it before it reaches there.

Like Speed, this film gives a thrilling sense of time running out as the inevitable approaches. Scott ups the frantic feel with news reports on the situation as it's happening which gives it a much more realistic feel.

The film is focused on it's two main characters and how their relationship turns out. There is nothing wrong with that, but it does seem that all the other characters are quite two-dimensional. They could have been more rounded. For instance, we hear about Will's family and see his wife later on. But she is nothing more than just a prop. The same with Frank's daughters. It would have been interesting to explore more about the people waiting to find out whether or not the person they loved has survived.

Overall Unstoppable does exactly what it sets out to do. It thrills and excites the audience with a problem with a time limit.

****Good.

The Lavender Hill Mob (1951)

Director: Charles Crichton
Starring: Alec Guinness, Stanley Holloway, Sid James, Alfie Bass
Certificate: U
Genre: Comedy, Crime
Awards: Best Screenplay

The Lavender Hill Mob consists of four men. Holland (Guinness), a bank transfer agent; Pendlebury (Holloway),  a man who makes Eiffel Tower souvenirs, and thieves Shorty (Bass) and Lackery (James). Their target is the gold Holland delivers.

TLHM is another Ealing Comedy with wit and a smidgen of slapstick. All four characters feel different and seem to make a good crime team. There is a lucrative scene in the second half involving a spiral staircase which has got to be the eeriest scene out of all the ealing comedies.

****Good