Friday Sep 03
TheatricalThe Expendables (2010)
19/08/2010 | Nikki Baughan

On The Sly Eighties action movies will always hold a special place in cinematic history, their glorious excesses a continuing influence. But although it's been hyped as 2010's biggest movie, there was always the possibility that The Expendables would be nothing more than an exe [ ... ]


TheatricalKnight and Day (2010)
10/08/2010 | Paul Spragg

Summer Knights When June Havens (Cameron Diaz) finds herself on a rapidly descending plane with a strange man, she’s pleased to awaken the next day back in her own bed. But the mysterious Roy Miller (Tom Cruise) quickly reappears in her life and tells June she’s in danger, c [ ... ]


More Theatrical Reviews

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009)

Theatrical

Black magic...

HP6D-04117I gave up reading the Harry Potter books just before The Half-Blood Prince got published. Frankly, I was bored with the same old story of 'boy wizard going up against yet another annoying Hogwarts teacher wanting to stop him fulfilling his Voldemort-killing destiny'. Plus the fact that the books really are just kids-lit, even with all the titter-some adolescent sexual problems. So is it because I was unfamiliar with the plot line of the sixth in the JK Rowling series that I preferred Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince to the rest of the variable film adaptations? Because this David Yates directed episode is truly outstanding, and everything I had hoped the others would be from a mature and magical standpoint.

HP6-VFX-00072rBeginning with a dizzying Death Eater attack on central London resulting in the Millennium Bridge crashing into the Thames, the main plot focus is Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) luring former potions professor Horace Slughorn (Jim Broadbent, an eccentric blast) back to Hogwarts so Harry (Daniel Radcliffe, looking older and wiser) can dislodge a key clue regarding the Dark Lord from the teacher’s resistant mind. Because Slughorn taught Tom Riddle, who transformed into Voldemort, and only he knows critical information crucial to unlocking the Dark Lord’s defences. Meanwhile Draco Malfoy (Tom Felton) is experimenting with a Vanishing Cabinet in Hogwarts’ attic as Professor Snape (Alan Rickman, slimier than ever) makes an unbreakable vow leading to the shock demise of one of Rowling’s beloved characters.

HP6-FP-00473A difficult book to adapt because it’s more about setting up The Deathly Hallows finale (which Warner Bros, in their financial wisdom, have split into two movies), returning scripter Steve Kloves (he took a break from Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix) does an admirable plot condensation without losing the engrossingly emotional depth or darker tone of the surprisingly adult narrative. The result of this accent is that the romantic entanglements (between Harry and Ginny Weasley) and rampaging hormonal comic relief (the Ron Weasley, Lavender Brown, Hermione Granger triangle) gets somewhat overshadowed. So does the inevitable Quidditch match, hooray!

HP6D-06331rYet returning Order of the Phoenix director Yates dazzles with an evocatively brooding style and conjuring up of deliciously demonic atmospheres. Especially the scary wonder of the underground cavern centrepiece where Dumbledore turns into a wizard Moses parting a red sea of flame in truly awesome Ten Commandments mode. Seamless throughout its lengthy running time, top-drawer in terms of production value and with its murky morality play vigorously conveyed, this satisfyingly grown-up segment raises the story-telling and technically superior visual effects bar for the entire series.

4 stars

Alan Jones

ROLL CREDITS...
Stars Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint
Director David Yates
Screenplay Steve Kloves
Certificate 12A
Distributor Warner Bros
Running Time 2hrs 33mins
Opens
July 15

All images © 2009 Warner Bros. Ent.
Harry Potter Publishing Rights © J.K.R.
Harry Potter characters, names and related indicia are trademarks of and © Warner Bros. Ent. All Rights Reserved.




Theatrical Reviews Archive

Star Trek (2009)
X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009)
Night at the Museum 2 (2009)
Drag Me To Hell (2009)
Terminator Salvation (2009)
Dorian Gray (2009)
Tormented (2009)
Angels & Demons (2009)
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009)
Coraline (2009)
Summer Scars (2007)
Blind Loves (2008)
The Wrestler (2008)
Helen (2008)
Inglourious Basterds (2009)
Watchmen (2009)
Cherry Blossoms (2008)
Aliens in the Attic (2009)
Paul Blart: Mall Cop (2009)
Fireflies in the Garden (2009)
Jennifer's Body (2009)
GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2009)
Synecdoche, New York (2008)
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009)
Bottle Shock (2008)
Public Enemies (2009)
Delta (2008)
Afghan Star (2008)
Moon (2009)
The Taking of Pelham 123 (2009)
Awaydays (2009)
500 Days of Summer
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (2009)
Anything For Her (2008)
District 9 (2009)
Gran Torino (2008)
Orphan (2009)
Brüno (2009)
Paranormal Activity (2009)
The Last House on the Left (2009)
New Town Killers (2008)
Frozen River (2008)
Year One (2009)
Just Another Love Story (2007)
Sunshine Cleaning (2009)
Not Quite Hollywood (2008)
The Disappeared (2008)
Zombieland (2009)
Adam (2009)
Fuck (2005)
This Is It (2009)
Coco Before Chanel (2009)
The Unborn (2009)
The Yes Men Fix the World (2009)
Heartless (2009)
2012 (2009)
Sex and the City 2 (2010)
Shutter Island (2010)
The Road (2009)
Iron Man 2 (2010)
The Bad Lieutenant - Port of Call: New Orleans (2009)
Cemetery Junction (2010)
The Scouting Book For Boys (2009)
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (2009): Review & Clips
Robin Hood (2010)
DVD & Blu-ray Reviews: April 26, 2010
Predators (2010)
Lebanon (2009)
Hierro (2009)
Tetro (2009)
Knight and Day (2010)
The Expendables (2010)

FrightFest 2010

Highlights

FrightFest 2010

FrightFeat_thumbThe full line-up for FrightFest 2010 promises enough thrills and chills to please even the most hardened horror fan...

READ MORE: FrightFest 2010


Red

RedFeat_thumb

Action hero Bruce Willis tells us all about new comic book adaptation Red...

 

READ MORE:Red


Machete

MacheteFeat_thumb

The first international trailer for Robert Rodriguez's crime thriller Machete, starring Danny Trejo, Robert De Niro and Lindsay Lohan.

READ MORE: Machete

Movie Highlight

The Expendables

Eighties action movies will always hold a special place in cinematic history, their glorious excesses a continuing influence. But although it's been hyped as 2010's biggest movie, there was always the possibility that The Expendables would be nothing more than an exercise in nostalgia. Luckily, it's a little more than that.

READ FULL REVIEW:  The Expendables

DVD Highlight

The Scouting Book For Boys

With the likes of An Education and A Single Man dominating awards ceremonies, and films like Philip Ridley's Heartless on the horizon, it's easy to feel upbeat about the current state of British cinema. When something like The Scouting Book For Boys comes along, it' also easy to feel inspired, excited and proud of our home-grown talent...

READ FULL REVIEW: The Scouting Book For Boys

Like it? Share it!