Cinema Reviews

world war z brad pitt zombie

World War Z Review

Director: Marc Forster
Writer: Matthew Michael Carnahan, J. Michael Stracyznski, Drew Goddard, Damon Lindelof, Max Brooks
Starring: Brad Pitt, Mireille Enos
Running Time: 116 Minutes
Year: 2013

World War Z has so much to overcome before its audience even enter the theatre. It’s a situation which repeats more often that not, especially in the information age of the ole interweb. Films open with a barrage of expectation attached. In the case of World War Z, the background surrounding its plagued production has become the centre of its own mammoth spectacle. As well as taking its central idea from a much loved novel, these ingredients make features such as this easy pickings for critical vultures.

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Snitch Review

Director: Ric Roman Waugh
Writer: Justin Haythe, Ric Roman Waugh
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Susan Sarandon, Barry Pepper
Running Time: 112 Minutes
Year: 2013

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has taken to donning the everyman crown in recent roles with an assurance you can’t believe belongs to a chap who was once a wrestler.  It’s his affable nature which lends films like Snitch a watchable onscreen persona.

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Black Rock Review

Director: Katie Aselton
Writer: Mark Duplass
Starring: Kate Bosworth, Lake Bell, Katie Aselton
Running Time: 83 minutes
Year: 2012

Director Katie Aselton has conjured up a masterful stalk n’ shoot thriller, slamming through the expected turns before sliding into an assault of unusual twists with a fresh eye. Dreaming up the idea herself before handing over scripting duties to her partner, Mark Duplass, Aselton has created a winner in Black Rock.

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Behind The Candelabra Review

Director: Steven Soderbergh
Writer: Richard LaGravenese, Scott Thorson, Alex Thorleifson
Starring: Michael Douglas, Matt Damon, Rob Lowe, Dan Aykroyd
Running time: 118 minutes
Year: 2013
This review appears courtesy of Derby QUAD Blog

There’s mixed emotions when you head into the cinema knowing the film you’re about to watch is the last ever from a director. Steven Soderbergh has truly run the gamut during his career as a filmmaker. Never opting for one specific genre to make his mark, he’s laid his hand to a diverse range of features. From his breakout indie hit Sex, Lies and Videotape right through to the recent actioner Haywire, he always keeps his audience loyal through a directorial hand that knows when to go bold and when to pull back.

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Man Of Steel Review

Director: Zack Snyder
Writer: David S. Goyer, Christopher Nolan
Starring: Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Michael Shannon, Diane Lane, Russell Crowe, Kevin Costner, 
Laurence Fishburne
Running time: 143 minutes
Year: 2013
This review appears courtesy of Derby QUAD Blog

Man Of Steel is why we see movies on the big screen. It’s that rare beast of summer blockbusters with a brain driving forward the story. You’ll have no doubt heard about Zack Snyder’s rebooted take on Superman. In the months building up to its release, every form of media has been saturated with previews, yet none of them truly prepare you for what is an absolutely breathtaking contribution to cinema.

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Fast & Furious 6 Review

Director: Justin Lin
Writer: Chris Morgan
Starring: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Dwayne Johnson, Michelle 
Rodriguez, Luke Evans
Running time: 100 minutes
Year: 2013

The Fast And The Furious franchise has become a big deal following the success of last instalment Fast 5. Fast & Furious 6 is what you’d call a Ronseal film. It does exactly what it says on the tin. For a series which careened into public view by putting the everyman (Paul Walker) in the driver’s seat, six films in that formula remains steadfast. If it ain’t broke and all that.

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The Purge Review

Director: James DeMonaco
Writer: James DeMonaco
Starring: Ethan Hawke, Lena Headey, Max Burkholder, Adelaide Kane
Running time: 85 minutes
Year: 2013

The Purge arrives fashionably late to the home invasion party. From director James DeMonaco, this creepy intruder thriller is underpinned by giant helpings of social commentary. But would these motifs have better suited two separate films?

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Mud Review

Director: Jeff Nichols
Writer: Jeff Nichols
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Tye Sheridan, Jacob Lofland
Running time: 130 minutes
Year: 2012
This review first appeared on Derby QUAD Blog

Matthew McConaughey is making big changes to his method. Anything he appears in almost certainly guarantees that at some point he’ll tear off his shirt – under the illusion that it’s too hot/it got dirty/it’s suddenly gone out of fashion.

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The Great Gatsby Review

Director: Baz Luhrmann
Writer: Baz Luhrmann, Craig Pearce, F. Scott Fitzgerald
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, Carey Mulligan
Running time: 142 minutes
Year: 2013
This review first appeared on Derby QUAD Blog

When Leonardo DaVinci put the final touches to the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, he probably stood back, poured himself a vino from his carafe and revelled in the pleasant ache of completion. It’s unlikely that he had to contend with some pesky runt sidling up to him muttering; “You see the way you’ve got God and Adam touching finger tips as God blesses Adam with the gift of life? Yeaaah, that’s not exactly how it happened. I mean, it was hinted at, but not explicitly stated.”

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Star Trek Into Darkness Review

Director: JJ Abrams
Writer: Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman, Damon Lindelof 
Starring: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Benedict Cumberbatch
Running time: 132 minutes
Year: 2013
This review first appeared on Derby QUAD Blog

JJ Abrams’ sci-fi sequel, Star Trek Into Darkness from the outset has quite the reputation to live up to. Most sequels only have to contend with bettering the original so as to satiate fans and attract new audiences. Into Darkness is lumbered with satisfying two criteria; paying tribute to the original Star Trek TV series, and the world created in Abrams’ first big screen Star Trek feature.

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