Happy Birthday to
Julie Andrews
76 today
We don't get to see much of Dame Julie, sure she occasionally lends her voices to the Shrek franchise, but rarely is there an opportunity to see her - even fans who went to her comeback concerts saw very little (and heard less, snark snark). So when I heard she has a small role in Garry Marshall's New Years Eve I confess it does make me want to see the film just a little bit more. Missed her in the trailer, mind. For the fans here's one of my favourite vocal performances from Julie, from Victor/Victoria, just close your eyes and think of that "Crazy World".
Showing posts with label Julie Andrews. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Julie Andrews. Show all posts
Saturday, 1 October 2011
Julie Andrews
Saturday, 16 October 2010
So many friends, so few movies (Out this week - 15/10/10)
It is both an unusually quiet week this week with just five new films opening in the UK, that's the lowest since Robin Hood opened against 4 acclaimed foreign language pics in May. This time we're don't have such an interesting back up to the main event, with two half-arsed Bollywood entries, a ho-hum looking animation and a rotting pile of garbage - more on that later. Film of the week, with no reservations at all though, is The Social Network.
Aakrosh
Solid looking Bollywood police procedural which has clearly learnt from the techniques of the Bourne trilogy whilst developing a cast based investigation wich is truly Indian.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
Despicable Me
The minions are clearly the one to watch in this feature length animation from Universal. A Supervillian, played with gusto by Steve Carell, with his army of artificial assistants must recruit three young kids to help with the plan to steal the moon. Looks like silly saccharine stuff, but Julie Andrews plays his mother so I'm giving it a bit of a pass.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●○○○○○○
Knock Out
It's the Bollywoodversion of Phone Booth, although the trailer promises a little more action outide of the titular location and the hit man get a face (Sanjay Dutt's face no less) to go with the overcooked dialogue.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
Social Network
Proving you should never judge a book by it's cover back at the beginning of the year I wasn't anticipating David Fincher's Facebook movie, now the critical reception from the US is deafening all my doubts. Virtually on to the cinema now.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●●●●○○○
Vampires Suck
I'm not sure how writer directors Jason Friedberg and Aaron Setzer keep getting the bugets to make these riseable spoofs of modern pop culture, this time focussing on the Twilight series. You really have to wonder what sort of justice is there in the world where this drivel can take $36m in the US box office (16% more than Scott Pilgrim).
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●○○○○○○○○○
And missing from last weeks release roundup is:
Freight
Cheap and nasty looking British crime film, led by two ex-Eastenders, with a smattering of cage fighting, strip clubs and badly accented Russian mafia types. Too bad for direct to video if you ask me.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
Friday, 2 July 2010
Touch of the greenstuff (Out this week - 02 July 2010)
In the murky race for cinema receipts studios use marketing, the festival circuit and celebrity interviews all to maximise sales, but nothing is as good as the art of timing. Dreamworks' green skinned ogre is managing that feat by releasing in the UK the weekend after England were unceremoniously (and quite justly) dumped out of the Football World Cup. What's more as no other studio has anything near it's scope the film of week is Shrek Forever After.
The Ballroom
Perhaps the best way to celebrate the World Cup this week is this Brazilian drama, following a number of couple during one balmy night of ballroom dancing. There's some nice music and delicate tangoing in the trailer.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
Crimefighters
Shoestring budget British comedy with vigilante justice York-style taking on the vicious wave of increasing crime. Looks silly, but fun, with some chucklesome sound mixing in the trailer.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
Heartbreaker
Romain Duris stars as a professional relationship destroyer, yes you can pay him to romance one half of a couple in order to force them to break from their unsuitable partner. The Frenchman is unfeasibly attractive. Can someone please tell him I need to be rescued.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●○○○○○○
I Hate Luv Storys
Imran Khan and Sonam Kapoor make a very attractive couple in this Bollywood-set Bollywood drama, shame the plot looks horribly contrived.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
Lymelife
There are a couple of Culkin brothers, together on screen at last, heading up this semi-autobiographical look at disintegrating families from the inside from writer-directer Derick Martini. Maybe a bit too familiar to The Squid and the Whale to really shine, Timothy Hutton and Alec Baldwin are among the adults.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●○○○○○○
Nandalala
Don't hold your breath, this Sri Lankan film about an incredible journey undertaken by a seven year old and the child-like adult he's befriended has already been delayed twice. Look out for this again in about 5 months.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
Shrek Forever After
If it ain't broke, don't fix it is the Dreamworks maxim for their green cash cow, and the constant OKayness of this franchise will continue. Expect the same fair to middling jokes to be trotted out along with the stars Mike Myers and Cameron Diaz. Eddie Murphy will still steal the show as donkey, and Julie Andrews is still selling out.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●●○○○○○
Skeletons
Direct from the Edinburgh film festival it's a buddy comedy about travelling exorcists, a curious deadpan mix of gothic horror and double-glazing sales techniques. And Jason Isaacs' moustache.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
White Material
Isabelle Huppert makes it to UK cinemas two weeks in a row with Claire Denis' study of post-colonialism racial tensions in modern Africa. Her steely eyed plantation owner immediately brings to mind Deneuve in Indochine.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
Friday, 28 May 2010
Out this week (28/05/10)
Oh, dear. It's another really awkward week with nothing I actually want to recommend opening. Not that there aren't big films simply begging for me to go, and with musical icons turning up in the two highest profile releases it's a wonder I'm not absolutely gagging for it. I suppose ultimately it's important that I stand by quality as much as possible here, which is why the film of the week is Spanish horror sequel [Rec] 2.
Fish Story
Charmingly bizarre looking Japanese feature about the effects of a punk song over a 40 year period. Witness the band splitting up, a victim standing up for himself, a boat hijack and the end of the world - all scored to the eponymous track.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
The Happiest Girl in the World
Romanian drama about a teenage girl that wins a car, but rather than let her keep it her parents decide to sell it to start a small business. I'm sure it's better than that synopsis sounds.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
Losers
Why why why would you call a film The Losers? I mean, what were they thinking of in the marketing team. The joke reviews just write themselves. What's worse is that this looks like the low-rent version of The A-Team.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
[Rec] 2
Picking up just 15 minutes after the end of the first film this Spanish sequel sees a bunch of grunting army types going into the high-rise to stop the zombiefied hordes. It's unlikely to end well for them.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●○○○○○○
Sex and the City 2
I am pleased to say that in the 32 years I have been on this Earth I have only ever sat through one episode of "Sex and the City". It was alright, I guess. Therefore in spite of the movie sequel promising cameos from Penelope Cruz and (gasp) Liza Minnelli I won't be going as I don't have any knowledge of the characters. The reviews are pretty poisonous too.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●○○○○○○
Singam
Tamil star Surya Sivakumar headlines this stodgy looking effort, the trailer is really confusing and tonally all over the place. Need to do better than that to appeal to me Surya.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
Space Chimps 2: Zartog Strikes Back
The first Space Chimps bombed in the states, yet it was surprisingly popular over this side of the Atlantic (11% of it's income was in UK markets), so we been treated to a sequel. With none of the original cast. And nothing approacing a joke in the trailer.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
The Time That Remains
Elia Suleiman's tragicomedy about the State of Isreal as seen through the eyes of Palestinian family over 50 years attracted a lot of attention at the 2009 Cannes festival, and comes a very close second for the film of the week this week.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●○○○○○○
Tooth Fairy
The Rock (Dwayne Johnson) continues to steal Arnie film career by starring in kid friendly crap. Shame he doesn't have the big hits behind him. Julie Andrews proves she's still alive by joining in as the fairy boss.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
The re-edited version of Kites is also out this week, it's a little shorter han last weeks release and may appeal to a broader audience so following the Box Office success last week (the first Bollywood movie to ever hit the US top ten) I'm upgrading the RLAG Excitometer to ●●●○○○○○○○
Finally, missing from last weeks reviews was:
Trafficked
Dublin set sex trafficking drama that's taken an incredible 6 years to make it to the big screen. Looks gritty and worthy.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
Thursday, 1 October 2009
Julie Andrews
Happy Birthday to
Julie Andrews
74 today
Mary Poppins, Maria von Trapp, Millie Dillmount, Gertrude Lawrence, Victoria Grant... so many star making musical performances from just one woman.
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