Hello everyone! So remember when I promised I would put out reviews more constantly and I was determined to get a review of The Lego Movie out there? Well....right when I was about to do that, things here in England started to get very hectic. The workload in terms of papers starting to pile up along with the numerous trips for class, leaving me no time to get the reviews out as I had hoped. This past week especially was difficult due to the fact that all my midterms were due (I actually somehow got to see Need For Speed also in between writing papers but right when I got back from the theater I had to, you guessed it, write more papers. Remember kids, in college, late nights are your friend.
So long story short, it's been a crazy month here and I apologize for not getting the reviews out more like I promised.
BUT, I am on break now and that means I have MUCH more free time on my hands so I will try to keep up with movie reviews. Before we get into the main topic of this blog post, let me give you my (very) brief thoughts on The Lego Movie and Need For Speed.
The Lego Movie is hands down the best movie I've seen all year so far. The film, while basically a two hour commercial for Legos, celebrates the company's legacy of expanding the infinite possibilities of your imagination. The animation is stunning to look at, with some of the worlds being absolutely jaw dropping to look at. The voice casting is spot on as well, with the standouts being Chris Pratt, Will Arnett, and Liam Neeson. A very fun and imaginative movie with a heartfelt message. Grade: ANeed For Speed on the other hand.....let's just say that while this was one of the more decent video game adaptations, video game movies still are not having the best track record. That being said, Aaron Paul IS the best part of the movie, being completely charming while extremely serious as well, and I do appreciate that the director decided to use practical effects for the cars rather than CG, which you don't see enough of any more. However....the movie is unbelievably stupid. I know the point of the film is to turn your brain off and enjoy it, but there's a fine line between enjoyable stupid, and stupid where you have to knock out your disbelief and make sure it stays asleep on the couch for a few hours. Unfortunately, this movie is the latter. Grade: D
NOW, enough of old business. Onto The Giver Trailer!
When I was an 8th grader growing up in middle school, I remember being given the next book to read for class. It was Lois Dowry's The Giver. The book focuses on a young man, Jonas (Brenton Thwaites), who lives in a utopian society where everything is in black and white and society has eliminated pain and strife by eradicating emotional depth, known as "Sameness". Jonas is selected in his community to be "the Receiver of Memory," who is the keeper of memories before Sameness. He learns from the current Receiver, The Giver (Jeff Bridges) and soon discovers secrets that will change him forever.
The book was one of my favorites when I was growing up and to this day it remains one of my favorites. The book helped introduce me to the concept of utopian and dystopian societies, which are always some of my favorite stories. When I heard that there was to be a film adaptation starring Jeff Bridges as The Giver, I was very excited.
I am a bit wary now after watching this trailer, though I still have high hopes for the film. The casting does look incredibly spot on, especially Jeff Bridges and Brenton Thwaites as The Giver and Jonas, respectively. I also like the casting of Meryl Streep as the Chief Elder. However, I am a little surprised at the look of the Community. From what I recall, everything was in black and white and very mundane so I was a little taken aback to see everything so....modern and having a bit of color.
Also, the tone of the trailer reminds me a bit of that movie The Host.....yeah that's not exactly a good sign.
Regardless, I still do have high hopes for the film. Check out the trailer below and you can check out The Giver when it hits theaters on August 15, 2014. Check out the first teaser below!
