TIFF2012: Looper
This was my first ever TIFF movie and it was a great movie to have started off my TIFF experience.
The way they changed Joseph’s face to look like Bruce’s is kinda trippy. But you get used to it really quickly and just get absorbed in the story.
There are scenes of this movie that are very hard to watch, some people did walk out of the theater because it was too much for them. I on the other hand, was very happy to have stayed in the theater. I have often heard people talk about movies that they have to “come down” from. That doesn’t happen to me very often, but this was a movie that I had to come down from.
I’m also very impressed with the amount of social, ethical, philosophical and technological issues that are brought up during this movie. I’m actually waiting for other people I know to see it so that I can discuss the issues brought up with them. This is good as a stand alone action movie or as a movie that leads to deeper discussions.
The Bourne Legacy
I’d watch this again. Probably not in theatres, but I would watch it again.
Going to see this movie I was worried that the writers wouldn’t be able to do the story justice as a sequel, but they wrote an awesome movie.
First of all, they didn’t make this movie a sequel. It happens parallel to Jason Bourne’s story, and there are references to the Bourne trilogy to help you piece together exactly when events are occurring. You can watch this movie without seeing the Bourne movies, there will be details you don’t know but there’s still enough information provided for you to get the jist of the story (Though I do recommend watching the Bourne trilogy before you watch The Bourne Legacy).
In this movie the operative Alex Cross has a different personality than Jason Bourne, and I like that they did that, the fact that each operative has the same skill sets but is still their own person makes the story more realistic. It also helped that they didn’t stay stuck with the same old oh he’s superbly trained and super smart and we need to catch him, but the story writers actually brought the story line into the present day and added advances in genetic mutation into the story. Furthermore, they very skilfully added details to the movie that would allow sequels to me made that either followed Alex Cross’s story or they could go in an entirely different direction that still stayed true the Treadstone and Blackbryre projects that connect all the movies.
Watch Suits
This show is amazing! [At this point I feel it necessary to disclose that I am only half way through the first season]
You’ve got a head honcho reminiscent of Tony Stark, but because this show is ongoing there are more opportunities to add different layers and dimensions to his character.
Then there’s the up and coming young hotshot. I must admit I avoided this series at first because from the commercial I got the impression that Mike Ross would be a rip-off of a combination of Reid from Criminal Minds and Sheldon from the Big Bang Theory; An attractive eidetic memory character with an accidental sense of humour. I didn’t think this was a character that any set of writers could write well. But I was wrong - thankfully. The character Mike Ross, simply put, is real. He’s a guy who is brilliant but made wrong decisions and he’s just trying to work out the kinks and you are always in his corner.
You’ve got a lovable spunky redhead with an acting addiction (Named Donna. I don’t mind the name Donna, I just don’t know what’s up with capable redheads being named Donna in TV Shows, think That 70’s show). Every time this woman comes on the screen I atleast smile if not burst into laughter. The comeback that moulded a place for her in my heart: when told she was beautiful when she was forceful she replied “I know you meant that as a compliment, but I don’t appreciate limitations being placed on my beauty”.
Then there’s Rachel. She’s gorgeous and intelligent. I like her but I don’t have the same love for her that I have for the other characters just yet.
And the final character I am going to mention is Jessica Pearson. I haven’t found the perfect combination of adjectives to describe Pearson just yet but when I do you guys will be the first to hear [read] it. What I can tell you, she is played by the one and only Gina Torres (who a part of my brain will always refer to as Zoe), there is a tumblr dedicated to her fashion statements which I’m hoping will be updated soon because along with her stellar acting she never fails to use the screen as her own personal runway when she’s on, and she is out of everyone’s league in every way. (I wanted to say she can’t be fucked with, but she’s just too classy for that statement)
You NEED to watch this cast work the material that the writers have produced.
The Picture of Dorian Gray
I downloaded this book for free of Google Books and read it online. It was quite nice to be able to highlight passages and make notes as I was reading on my laptop because now I can go back and do quick literary responses to what I read. However, while that is nice, I still prefer the feel of a paper novel.
As you may know this book is considered a classic literary novel. When I started the book that was all I knew, so not being quite sure what to expect, I prepared myself for a novel similar to those written by Jane Austen or Charles Dickens. Now while this novel did have that literary flare, it was a story with more exploration into the supernatural - which I loved not only because I had never read a book from that era that explored the supernatural, but also because it was written in a way that made the twist in the storyline completely unexpected.
It was a quick read but it does have many quotes that get you thinking (which I will comment on more in following posts). I really enjoyed this book and recommend it.
Dark Shadows
I was pretty disappointed with this movie.
Yes there were a lot of big name actors who acted well, and the special effects in the movie was very well done.
Where this movie fell short was the story line. The story jumped around too much, which resulted in some parts of the storyline being underdeveloped. Especially towards the end, if felt like the characters just said plot twists in 2 lines, and the audience was just supposed to accept it and go with it, when it felt like it came out of nowhere.
I don’t plan to watch this movie a second time. Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter were wonderful as always, but Dark Shadows was a disappointment.
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Recently saw this with my Mom and brother the other day, the Avengers popularity clearly hasn’t died down yet because we were the only people in the theatre (which I actually enjoy).
The basic overview of the movie is 7 British elderly decide to go India to enjoy their remaining years - some by choice and some by forced circumstances. Upon arrival to India enters Dev Patel faking an Indian accent while running a surprising standing establishment.
I did enjoy watching the movie. I wouldn’t say that it was completely stellar but it did have really impactful moments that made it worthwhile overall. It did manage to touch on a lot of themes and it touched on them in a way that made you empathize with the characters without ever feeling uncomfortable that these issues were being brought up. It was also surprising how they brought to light that there are these problems that you think only plague the younger generations but the reality is no, older people can have the same problems with suprisingly similar parameters. And come on, Maggie Smith and Judi Dench plus extra talent - you can’t go wrong.
Q10 (The Japanese Drama)
So I just finished the JDrama Q10 after some reluctance to watch it because of the multiple bad reviews that it’s received.
But I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised. I actually really liked the drama and thought it was sweet. I was also impressed with how it managed to touch on love relationships at so many different stages of life without seeming to fall apart or lose focus on the main story. I thought it was really neat how they explained everything and ended it too - they did explain quite fast and wrap it up, but it was still fairly well done.
I would definitely recommend this drama if you’re looking to watch something with some laughs but that is overall really sweet. I’m actually kind of sad to say bye to it.
