Sort by
Listing Movies
Display Movies
Diary of a Wimpy Kid (2010)
It's not a diary, it's a movie.
Filmmaker(s): Thor Freudenthal

Greg Heffley is headed for big things, but first he has to survive the scariest, most humiliating experience of any kid’s life – middle school! That won’t be easy, considering he’s surrounded by hairy-freckled morons, wedgie-loving bullies and a moldy slice of cheese with nuclear cooties!

Painful suppose the science behind this content is solid, for this and the sequels. Many of our films — primarily romantic comedies — deliberately give us a surrogate with whom to identify. And then they set the situation to be similar to those we’d experience,...


Published May 20, 2022
| Categorised as New Comments, Ones |
Tagged: , ,
Despicable Me (2010)
Some call him bad. They call him dad.

Villainous Gru lives up to his reputation as a despicable, deplorable and downright unlikable guy when he hatches a plan to steal the moon from the sky. But he has a tough time staying on task after three orphans land in his care.

Foreground/Background see that I did not write a comment on this when it came out. I have since had kids and rewatched it recently, and am impressed by a couple key decisions. The first is the quality of the animation and choices made in the story....


Published July 7, 2024
| Categorised as New Comments, Threes |
Tagged: , ,
The Co(te)lette Film (2010)
Filmmaker(s): Mike Figgis

A cinematographic adaptation of the dance performance by Ann Van den Broek.

Savage Worlds was just reminded of ‘Pina’ which I saw when new. And my partner has just acquired ‘Play’ (Alexander Ekman) so I am back thinking about film and dance. This follows a relatively recent period of brainstorming with a local dance company about how...


Published February 26, 2025
| Categorised as New Comments, Twos |
Tagged: , ,
3 Idiots (2009)
Aal Izz Well!
Filmmaker(s): Rajkumar Hirani

Rascal. Joker. Dreamer. Genius... You've never met a college student quite like "Rancho." From the moment he arrives at India's most prestigious university, Rancho's outlandish schemes turn the campus upside down—along with the lives of his two newfound best friends. Together, they make life miserable for "Virus," the school’s uptight and heartless dean. But when Rancho catches the eye of the dean's daughter, Virus sets his sights on flunking out the "3 idiots" once and for all.

Five Lives and a Funeral structure is a compelling nesting. We have the linear story of two school chums plus one who search for a lost third buddy. There are a number of twists in this that make it more than just a framing device....


Published March 12, 2023
| Categorised as New Comments, Threes |
Tagged: , ,
Unmistakable Child (2008)
In search of a lifetime
Filmmaker(s): Nati Baratz

In Nepal, a venerable monk, Geshe Lama Konchog, dies and one of his disciples, a youthful monk named Tenzin Zopa, searches for his master's reincarnation. The film follows his search to the Tsum Valley where he finds a young boy of the right age who uncannily responds to Konchog's possessions. Is this the reincarnation of the master? After the boy passes several tests, Tenzin takes him to meet the Dali Lama. Will the parents agree to let the boy go to the monastery, and, if so, how will the child respond? Central to the film is the relationship the child develops with Tenzin.

Unputdownable Tulku you have not seen this, it documents from the cremation of a senior Buddhist monk to the certification of his reincarnation by the hierarchy though to the Dalai Lama, and subsequent installation in a monastery at about three. We follow the quest by...


Published May 13, 2022
| Categorised as New Comments, Threes |
Tagged: , ,
Sparkling Cyanide (2003)
Filmmaker(s): Tristram Powell

Based on the novel by Agatha Christie In this TV movie, a classic mystery is updated and relocated to a glamorous world of London socialites and secret agents, introducing two unique and compelling investigators and taking us through to the highest corridors of power.

Useless Cushions could have put up with the silly detectives and their dated witticisms. The similarly dated use of technology… I could have overlooked the cheapness throughout, if they had only preserved the core element of a Christie mystery: we have to be surprised in...


Published September 11, 2022
| Categorised as New Comments, Ones |
Tagged: , ,
X-Men (2000)
Trust a few. Fear the rest.
Filmmaker(s): Bryan Singer

Two mutants, Rogue and Wolverine, come to a private academy for their kind whose resident superhero team, the X-Men, must oppose a terrorist organization with similar powers.

Missed a Chance nice thing about this is the casting of McKellan and Stewart. Despite the latter's adventures with the stupid StarTrek, he is an intelligent actor, as is McKellan. They tower over the amateurs in this film as their characters should. About bad acting,...


Published September 30, 2024
| Categorised as New Comments, Twos |
Tagged: , , ,
Zero Effect (1998)
The world's most private detective.
Filmmaker(s): Jake Kasdan

Daryl Zero is a private investigator and—along with his assistant, Steve Arlo—he solves impossible crimes and puzzles. Although Daryl's a master investigator, he doesn't know what to do with himself when he's not working; he has no social skills, writes bad music and drives Steve crazy.

Son of What are only a few ways into a story. One of these is to embrace the narrator and carry the viewer through their eyes and the engagement of the world that gives us love. Here, Kasdan does this while referencing Holmes, where this...


Published September 19, 2022
| Categorised as New Comments, Threes |
Tagged: , ,
Liar Liar (1997)
Trust me.
Filmmaker(s): Tom Shadyac

Fletcher Reede is a fast-talking attorney and habitual liar. When his son Max blows out the candles on his fifth birthday he has just one wish - that his dad will stop lying for 24 hours. When Max's wish comes true, Fletcher discovers that his mouth has suddenly become his biggest liability.

Anti Vax a film is just a wrapper for a broken person, who when unconstrained amuses us. Robin Williams, Peter Sellers, Jerry Lewis are examples. These are souls we accept because we find an endearing core around which the outrageous behaviour orbits. So far as...


Published July 2, 2023
| Categorised as New Comments, Ones |
Tagged: , ,
Art Deco Detective (1994)
Filmmaker(s): Philippe Mora

While investigating the murder of a movie star, a detective finds that he himself is being set up for the crime.

<strong>Scrambled Egg Dialog likely will have already been warned off this amazingly bad production. So many beginner mistakes and production drags will kill your experience. But I have to say that there are two script ideas that are promising. The first is simply that our...


Published October 9, 2022
| Categorised as New Comments, Ones |
Tagged: , ,