New Releases

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1

Who’s in it? Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson

 What’s it about? The first part of the last instalment of the Harry Potter series. After 10 years we come to the beginning of the end. Harry, Ron and Hermione take on more dark and dangerous tasks hunting down the remaining pieces of Voldemort’s soul in the hope to finally defeat the dark wizard. With the death of Dumbledore they are more alone than ever as the wizarding world slowly falls into darkness.

What’s it like? This seventh film is the closest adaptation so far to the original book by J.K. Rowling. Fans of the book should be very happy that the film runs so true to the book. It is accessible for both fans who have read the books and those who have not. It manages to keep the events true to the book and includes a similar humour and sense of darkness and fear. With the last book of the series being split into 2 films, it has given director David Yates more space to fully outline all key plots and make sure the series finale is all tied up. The young actors have matured with the films to portray a satisfying representation of the struggles each character faces. The supporting cast, although rarely seen, are utterly spell-binding. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows leave us with enough anticipation and build up for Part 2.

Verdict: Magical.

By Gemma Hockey

London Boulevard

Who’s in it? Colin Farrell, Keira Knightley, Ray Winstone , David Thewlis, Ben Chaplin

What’s it about? Mitchell was a respected criminal and he’s trying to stay clear of his old life which got him in prison.  Mitchell doesn’t have many friends that aren’t associated with crime apart from aBig Issue seller.  Mitchell finds a job protecting Charlotte (Knightley),  Charlotte and Mitchell then become romantically involved.

 What’s it like? This film is stylish and well deserved of praise. The characters are well developed.  Farrell’s character, Mitchell is a modest, respectable type but there are moments when the situation starts to get intense and his character really starts to shine through. Charlotte has experience in artsy French films and has problems with the press as they constantly pester her. Farrell takes a job to protect her from the paparazzi but he’s more of an assistant to her.  The dialogue of the film is enjoyable and has funny moments, the conversation is fluid and enjoyable to listen too. It is a tense film that keeps you on the edge of your seat, you grow to care for some of the characters and hope to see it ends well for them. The only criticisms with the film is that it can be a bit long winded. Don’t go and watch this if you’re expecting a full out action gangster film. Watch this film if you want to watch a stylish gangster film with a unique take on the genre.

Verdict: Criminally good

By Conor Jones

Machete

Who’s In It? Danny Trejo, Jessica Alba, Michelle Rodriguez, Robert De Niro, Lindsay Lohan.

What’s It About?Double-crossed and left for dead, ex-Federale ‘Machete’ launches a campaign of vicious revenge against those who wronged him.

What’s It Like?He knows the score. Check. He gets the women. Check. He kills the bad guys. Double check. Machete delivers everything promised by the 2007 faux Grindhouse trailer, and then some. Paying homage to exploitation films of the 1970s, director Robert Rodriguez’s tale of delirious hyper-violence, frequent sexual encounters and gun-toting Mexican priests is actually quite slick.  Trejo is fantastic as embittered renegade Machete, using the right dose of savagery and violent nonchalance to pull the character into the realm of ridiculousness. Everyone else can be categorised into either eye candy (Alba, Rodriguez and Lohan), or meat for the titular character to carve. Therein, lies the beauty of Machete; the shallowness, the superficiality - is what, surprisingly, makes it so entertaining.This is not to say that the 105 minute running time is just dissimilar blood and boobs - at times Rodriguez offers some truly inspired moments; a particularly memorable sequence involves Machete using a victim’s intestines to rappel down from a hospital window. Provided you don’t take it too seriously, or get bogged down in the underlying politics, Machete is strangely charming.

Verdict: Mexcellent.

By Steffan Morgan

Megamind

Who’s in it? Will Ferrell, Brad Pitt, Tina Fey, Jonah Hill

What’s it about? Megamind (Will Ferrell) is sent to earth after his home planet is destroyed by a giant black hole.  There he discovers that he is very gifted at causing trouble, after killing his super hero arch nemesis metro man (Brad Pitt), Megamind then proceeds to attempt to create a new super hero using metro man’s DNA.

What it like? Megamind is a hilarious animated family film from the same studio that brought you Shrek. The film boasts a very talented cast and crew that give some hilarious performances. The films storyline centre’s on Megamind, an alien mastermind living on earth who has become depressed that he no longer has an arch nemesis in his life due to him killing his super hero counterpart, ‘Metro Man’.  When a lowly cameraman Hal Stewart (Jonah Hill) is accidentally injected with Megamind’s superhero syrum hilarity ensues, as Hal takes on the identity of Tighten and decides to become a supervillian rather than the hero that Megamind was hoping for.  Will Ferrell does an excellent job as Megamind and creates some hilarious moments in the film.  Megamind features amazing CGI animation and side splittingly funny performances from an exceptional cast.  This film shows a return to form for DreamWorks animation, creating one their best films in years.

Verdict: Super fun

By Rhys Williams