Viewer Reviews
Recent Reviews By SIMON CONNOLLY
 | Snow White and the Huntsman (Film)Should've been better, but beats Mirror Mirror by a mile - Simon ConnollySnow White and the Huntsman starts as one would expect any Snow White film to begin. The Evil Queen kills her way to the throne and locks Snow White in a tower. Years later Snow White is identified as the fairest in the land and so the Queen decides she must be killed so that she can become immortal. As she is being transferred to her execution Snow White more ... |
 | The Muppets (Film)One of the finest Muppet movies to date - Simon ConnollyThis new addition to the Muppets franchise tells the story of brothers Walter and Gary, one a Muppet and the other a man (try work that out). Gary is planning to settle down with his longtime girlfriend Mary but his close relationship with Walter is starting to come between the partners. Meanwhile Walter has lived his life as a Muppet in a world of men and more ... |
 | J. Edgar (Film)Interesting, but ultimately too unfocused - Simon ConnollyJ Edgar is the story of J Edgar Hoover, the man who was the first director of the Bureau of Investigation and who went on to become co-foudner and director of the FBI until his death. For 50 years he was the face of law enforcement in the U.S. Despite the hugely important work he did and the technologial breakthroughs he created Hoover became a very more ... |
 | This Means War (Film)How is the rom-com genre still alive? - Simon ConnollyThis Means War follows best friends and top government agents Tuck and FDR who after years of fighting international terrorists side by side find themselves squaring off against each other when both men fall for product tester Lauren. Marketed as an action packed romantic-comedy, This Means War is yet another near unwatchable romantic comedy which tries to more ... |
 | Haywire (Film)Carino is the best and worst thing about this film - Simon ConnollyAfter a rescue mission in Barcelona, freelance agent Mallory Kane is immediately sent on another mission to Dublin where she is double crossed by her employers. As she is hunted down (including by machine gun toting Gardaí) she must use all her skills and experience to stay alive and get payback on those who deceived her. Being juvenilely labeled by many more ... |
 | Shame (Film)Hard to watch, but worth the persistence. - Simon ConnollyA few years ago I read Choke, a brilliant novel from Fight Club author Chuck Palahniuk. Smart, sharp and unhinged Choke was an excellent story of the dysfunctional life of a sex addict. And soon after the book was adapted into a film by actor Clark Gregg, who showed he is as unskilled behind the camera as he is in front of it. All the brilliance of the more ... |
 | War Horse (Film)One of Spielberg's worst - Simon ConnollyAfter tarnishing the reputation of the once iconic Indiana Jones franchise, providing a shoddy Tintin animation and allowing Michael Bay to churn out three entertaining but ultimately dreadful Transformers films, War Horse was tipped to be Steven Spielberg's triumphant return to form. Sadly it is not. I'm not going to get into the story as the title says more ... |
 | The Help (Film)A disgracefully light adaptation that was hugely helped by some great performances - Simon ConnollySet in Mississippi around the time of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960's, the film follows an aspiring young journalist names Skeeter (Emma Stone) who outrages her town when she decides to interview black women about what it is like to take care of Southern families. Her aim is to write a book which tells the truth a will help the Civil Rights Movement more ... |
 | Moneyball (Film)One for the big baseball fans. - Simon ConnollyAdapted from the book of the same name, Moneyball is the story of the man who changed baseball. Billy Beane was the general manager of the The Oakland Athletics baseball team where he was trying to win trophies on a shoestring budget To gain an advantage he enlisted the help of economics graduate Peter Brand and together they managed to create a great team more ... |
 | Red State (Film)Almost brilliant, but fails in the final act - Simon ConnollyRed State follows three teens, who upon receiving an online invitation for sex with an older woman eagerly drive to her trailer only to be drugged and kidnapped by a group of religious fundamentalists. They are taken back to their church where they witness a homosexual man being brutally executed and soon realise they too are to be punished for their more ... |
 | Warrior (Film)Packs a serious punch, one of years best. - Simon ConnollyWhen a successful investor creates Sparta , a competition which aims to reveal who the toughest man in the world of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) is, two brothers set their sights on the 5 million dollar prize money. Brendan is an ex-fighter who gave up the sport to work as a physics teacher but returns to the ring when he discovers the bank are going to take more ... |
 | 50/50 (Film)A funny and moving cancer comedy, well worth a look. - Simon ConnollyBased on the true story of screenwriters Will Reiser's battle with cancer, 50/50 is the story of Adam. Adam is a relatively happy 27 year old radio employee who is diagnosed with a very rare form of spinal cancer. The film documents how the disease effects his relationships and also how a young man is forced to face the possibility that he might not live to more ... |
 | Rise of the Planet of the Apes (Film)The surprise hit of a disappointing summer - Simon ConnollyRise of the Planet of the Apes is a prequel to the original, a film which finally tells us the story of how the apes took over the planet. The story follows Will Rodman, a scientist at a pharmaceutical company who are attempting to develop a cure for Alzheimer's. When a chimp causes disruption trying to protect her child, all the apes are ordered to be put more ... |
 | Real Steel (Film)Rocky Robots have never been so boring... - Simon ConnollyBased in the near future, Real Steel is a story set in a world where the sport of boxing has gone through a massive transformation. It is no longer a sport played by humans, but rather robots. The film follows a struggling promoter whose luck keeps getting worse and worse. When he discovers he has a son he effectively sells him to his sister-in-law to buy a more ... |
 | Contagion (Film)Terrifyingly realistic, but a little dull. - Simon ConnollyThe day after returning from a business trip in Hong Kong Beth Emhoff dies from a mysterious new strain of the flu. After a few days the body count slowly begins to rise as the Centre for Disease Control begins to realise the extent of this new disease. In Contagion we follow the efforts of government officials trying to cure the virus, the average people more ... |
 | Final Destination 5 (Film)Unfortunately this is not its Final Destination, but it should be. - Simon ConnollyFinal Destination 5 starts like the previous four installments in this franchise began, with a disastrous accident. En route to a company getaway a member of the travelling group has a vision of a bridge collapse. He drags his girlfriend off the bus and some others follow and then sure enough the bridge does collapse and the rest of the workers, along with more ... |
 | Fright Night (Film)Brilliant remake, but skip the 3D for this one. - Simon ConnollyA remake of the 1985 original, Fright Night is the story of teenager Charley Brewster who begins to expect that his new neighbour Jerry is a vampire responsible for a series of disappearances in their neighbourhood. When Jerry seems to take a liking to Charley's mother and his beautiful girlfriend Amy he enlists the help of self-proclaimed vampire killer more ... |
 | Kung Fu Panda 2 (Film)A far superior sequel - Simon ConnollyIn Kung-Fu Panda 2, the sequel to the hugely successful animation, we are once again following Po and the rest of the Furious Five as they go on yet another adventure to stop a seemingly unstoppable villain. Po's attempts to achieve inner peace, and to get to solve his identity crisis and interrupted by the return of Lord Shen. 30 years ago Lord Shen, heir more ... |
 | Black Swan (Video)Aronofsky's masterpiece and the best film I've seen all year. - Simon ConnollyIn Black Swan Natalie Portman plays Nina Meyers, a ballerina skimming the surface of fame, just one break away from stardom. Emotionally she appears to be at around the same level as a 13 year old, still living with her overbearing mother and sleeping in a pink bedroom full of stuffed animals. But her seemingly controlled, unspontaneous life goes spiraling more ... |
 | True Grit (Video)Better than the original - Simon ConnollyFollowing the mindless killing of her father by hired hand Tom Chaney, 14 year-old Mattie Ross sets out to find her fathers killer and bring him to justice. After being told that the police wouldn't be pursuing Chaney, Mattie enlists the help of tough U.S Marshall 'Rooster' Cogburn. She accompanies him into Indian territory in search of Chaney and his gang, more ... |
 | The Green Lantern (Film)An overly complicated and dull diappointment. - Simon ConnollyI'll start this review by attempting to explain the story so stay with me here. Before we even get any information on our soon-to-be superhero we are led into the world of the Green Lantern comic books. The universe is divided into 3,600 sectors, each one protected by a guardian with a ring which gets it's power from a lantern which get its power from Green more ... |
 | Hanna (Film)More than just a modern day Leon - Simon ConnollyIn Hanna, Saoirse Ronan plays the titular character, a 16 year-old girl who has spent almost her entire life in isolation in a remote part of Finland. This once innocent girl has been transformed into an extremely dangerous killing machine by her father, an ex-CIA agent. Her childhood replaced with intense training, all with the aim to make her the ultimate more ... |
 | Little Fockers (Video)Among the years worst. - Simon ConnollySet 10 years after the first film was released, Little Fockers sees Greg and Pam happily married with two kids joining their family. As a result they are blighted with money problems and so Greg takes a job moonlighting for a drug company. But his sexy new work colleague appears to be quite fond of Greg and this resurfaces the suspicions of Jack who after a more ... |
 | Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (Film)On all too familiar tides.... - Simon ConnollyOn Stranger Tides is the fourth installment of the ridiculously successful Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. Johnny Depp is back as Captain Jack Sparrow who is now in search of the Fountain of Youth. After once again escaping from the English army and the possibility of a hanging, Sparrow runs into an old lover with a mission. She forces him aboard the more ... |
 | The Road (Film)Hard to watch, and even harder to love. - Simon ConnollyThe Road follows an unnamed father and son as they try to survive in an unrecognisable, post-apocalyptic America. The pair travel across ash covered wastelands towards the Ocean, where they hope their salvation lies. As they journey they face many dangers such as thieves and cannibals. The father is particularly untrusting and tries to teach his son to be more ... |
 | Battle: Los Angeles (Film)Alien vs America - Simon ConnollyIn Battle: Los Angeles Aliens invade Earth and in no time at all make it clear they haven't come in peace. They are here to colonise Earth and seize our resources, specifically water which they use as fuel. They land in every major city in the world and proceed to relentlessly attack the coasts and move inland. The film follows Marine Staff Sergeant, a soon more ... |
 | The Resident (Film)One of the years worst - Simon ConnollyApparently every year three million single women move into a new apartment in America, and The Resident is the story of one of these women. After separating from her cheating husband, pretty young doctor Juliet Dermer begins looking for a new place to live. She finds a big, spacious loft apartment which cost a fraction of what it probably should. The whole more ... |
 | Hall Pass (Film)Pass... - Simon ConnollyWritten and directed by The Farrelly Brothers, I hoped that Hall Pass would be a return to form for the once great comedy directors. In the 90's they were some of the most promising comedy filmmakers around and gave us classics such as There's Something About Mary, Dumb and Dumberer and Kingpin. But unfortunately since 2001 they have been getting gradually more ... |
 | Cedar Rapids (Film)And the Surprise Film is.... - Simon ConnollyThe Jameson Dublin International Film Festival was great this year. But as usual, regardless of how good everything that came before was there was once again a lot of pressure on the surprise film. In recent years, since the fantastic surprise that was 300 in 2007 the film chosen each year has been heavily criticised. In the past three festivals we've had more ... |
 | Inside Job (Film)Best Documentary since The Cove. - Simon ConnollyInside Job is the new film from Charles Ferguson, director of the critically acclaimed and Oscar nominated Iraq documentary No End In Sight. Ferguson is back, this time tackling the banking crisis of 2008 in a fascinating documentary, meticulously researched and impossible to forget. It'll stay with you for days and could possibly give you a new found more ... |
 | Morning Glory (Film)Flawed but really enjoyable - Simon ConnollyIn Morning Glory Rachel McAdams plays Becky Fuller, a highly strung, workaholic morning T.V producer who finds herself out of the job after being robbed of a promotion. She applies for a job everywhere, and finally she gets a call from the producer of a struggling morning chat show called Daybreak offering her a job. Despite the terrible ratings and high more ... |
 | 127 Hours (Film)Amazing story, but average film - Simon Connolly127 Hours is based on the true story of mountain climber and all-round adrenaline junkie Aron Ralston. While exploring some canyons in Utah he grabbed onto a small boulder which came loose and fell on his arm, trapping him in an extremely isolated area. And to make things worse, he didn't tell anyone he knows where he was going. In the days following the more ... |
 | Jackass 3D (Film)Final farewell to the Jackass crew. - Simon ConnollyThat's right. After four years out of the limelight the Jackass boys are back and they are even more brave/idiotic than ever before. Smarter sketches, more dangerous, disgusting and hilarious stunts and now in 3D Jackass it back with a bang, and sadly it seems for the last time too. Now the film isn't too different to the kind of material we've seen more ... |
 | Let Me In (Film)Slightly better than the original.. - Simon ConnollyWhen word first hit that last years critically acclaimed Swedish horror film Let The Right One In was to be remade in English to facilitate American audiences who apparently can't read subtitles film critics, scholars and enthusiasts worldwide were outraged. The original made nearly every film critics top ten films of last year and had a 98% positive rating more ... |
 | The Kids Are All Right (Film)The acting is all right, but the film is all wrong - Simon ConnollyNic is a doctor, controlling, stern and uptight. Jules is fun loving, laid back and seemingly always between jobs. And Nic and Jules are in a same sex relationship with two teenage kids, Joni and the stupidly named Laser. Nic is Joni's biological mother and Jules is Laser's, but the kids share a family connection in the form of cool, successful and charming more ... |
 | The Social Network (Film)Yet another Fincher classic. - Simon ConnollyIn 2003 Harvard undergraduate and skilled computer programmer Mark Zuckerberg sits down and starts up a social networking website to connect Harvard students. What started as this small idea became a global phenomenon and not connects hundreds of millions of people worldwide. He quickly becomes the worlds youngest billionaire but with his fame and success more ... |
 | Unstoppable (Film)Trainfully bad - Simon ConnollyUnstoppable is an action film about a runaway train. And if this premise isn't enough to turn you off this film then by all means keep reading but be warned, things don't get much better. Okay so in Unstoppable a train operator jumps out of a crawling train to switch the tracks, but the train then goes onto full throttle and is now speeding along the more ... |
 | Paranormal Activity 2 (Film)More of the same - Simon ConnollySince the release of Paranormal Activity I've kind of been putting of watching it. I've never really been a huge fan of horror films because they're either too gory and boring or else they make me jump slightly and look like a twat. But last week I won tickets to a Paranormal Activity 2 screening and so I decided to finally watch the first the day before. more ... |
 | Vampires Suck (Film)Sucking the life out of parody film - Simon Connolly'woo-hoo'. You might be wondering right now why I'm so sarcastically happy. Well in case you didn't hear, it's that time of year again. Not Halloween no, but our yearly dose of spoof films from Friedberg and Seltzer, hopefully the most hated and most often beaten men in Hollywood. That's right, just when you thought it was safe to return to your local more ... |
 | Red (Film)Decent end to a disappointing blockbuster season - Simon ConnollyWhen ex-CIA agent Frank Moses is targeted by a clean up squad working for the government he finds himself being thrown back into his old life of gun fights, explosions and espionage. After assembling his old team of retirees and bringing along his new love interest for the ride he sets about getting to the bottom of this conspiracy and putting it to an end more ... |
 | Mary and Max (Film)Animation of the year - Simon ConnollyMary Dinkle is a young Australian girl, daughter of an alcoholic mother and a distant father. One day while accompanying her mother to the store she flips through a New York phone book, reveling in reading the strange names within. She pulls out part of a page and since she has never been able to make friends in her own neighbourhood she decides to write to more ... |
 | The Expendables (Film)The most expendable film of the summer - Simon ConnollyWriter and director Stallone plays Barney Ross, leader of an elite team of mercenaries known as the Expendables, each more ridiculously named than the last. The squad consists of Ross himself, Hale Caesar, Toll Road, Gunner Jansen, Lee Christmas and Yin Yang, each man bringing his own specialty to the group. The skilled men are hired by the mysterious more ... |
 | Jonah Hex (Film)Not as bad as expected, but not great either. - simonconnollyBased on the DC comic book of the same name this film is about Jonah Hex. Once a war hero he has been transformed into a dangerous, volatile bounty hunter obsessed with satisfying his need for revenge after the murder of his wife and kid, a desire which has made him more wanted then the criminals he brings in. Then the man who killed his family, who was more ... |
 | The Town (Film)Best film in town at the moment - simonconnollyAfter hitting it big with an Oscar win for Good Will Hunting when he was just 24 Affleck has done a lot, and he's done it with mediocrity. He's done romantic comedies, historical epics, science fiction, war and super-hero films and as much as I like him I've always felt that his acting talents were lacking. Then in 2006 he took a three years break from more ... |
 | Winter's Bone (Film)Dark, compelling and brilliant. - simonconnollyBased on Daniel Woodrell's novel of the same name Winter's Bone is one of this years biggest surprises. Set in the the backwoods of Ozark County the film follows a young girl as she searches for her father. Ree Dolly is a young mountain girl who has been forced to mature far beyond her years. She is trying desperately to keep her poverty stricken family more ... |
 | Black Dynamite (Film)Comedy Dynamite - simonconnollyThis year we have been subjected to more dull rom-coms and apparent comedies than anyone deserves and not only were they critically mauled but very few performed at the box office. and this raises the very important question; what were the Hollywood studios thinking when they decided to make this a straight to DVD feature? Black Dynamite is hands down the more ... |
 | Grown Ups (Film)Time for Sandler and co. to grow up. - simonconnollyWhen their basketball coach passes away five old friends and teammates are reunited at the funeral and decide to spend the fourth of July weekend together. At first they don't get along too well and the kids just want to play video games. Then they start to get into the spirit of the weekend and have fun. It all sounds really boring and it is really boring. more ... |
 | Scott Pilgrim vs the World (Film)Scott Pilgrim vs the World: Rating: Awesome - simonconnollyThis is Scott Pilgrims perfect little life. He's 23 years old, 'between jobs', dating a cute high school girl and plays bass in a rock band. Everything is great until he is visited in his dreams by a beautiful, mysterious, roller-blading girl. The next day he sees her in the real world and instantly falls for her. But dating Ramona Flowers isn't going to be more ... |
 | Knight and Day (Film)A little crap, but fun enough to get away with it. - simonconnollyIn Knight and Day average girl Julie Havens finds herself caught up in a feud between an ousted special agent and his old colleagues. While on the way home for her sisters wedding Julie meets the charming Roy Miller at the airport who ends up on the same flight as her. They talk on the plane and she seems very taken with him, but when she goes to the more ... |
 | Death at a Funeral (2010) (Film)Death of a decent English comedy. - simonconnollyWhen Aaron's father dies he has to organise a funeral and write and eulogy all by himself. Then on the tragic day Aaron is faced with all kinds of unforeseen events which throw the proceedings into anarchy. One of the guests is drugged, everyone criticises Aaron for doing the eulogy himself instead of his writer brother, some inappropriate romancing starts more ... |
 | The A-Team (Film)I love how this plan came together... - simonconnollyBased on the 80's television show of the same name The A-Team is about a group of skilled and seemingly fearless American soldiers who specialise in the ridiculous. And this speciality is tested when a general asks them to retrieve printing plated which were used to print a billion dollars. But they are double crossed, dishonorably discharged and sent to more ... |
 | How To Train Your Dragon (Video)Best non-Pixar animation for years. - simonconnollyWhen this film was released I got some tickets for it courtesy of entertainment.ie. Sadly I couldn't go due to looming assignment deadlines and my mates who said they'd take them didn't show up, thinking the film would be rubbish. And since then I have regretted not going. The film was released to some some amazing reviews and the film even took a place on more ... |
 | Inception (Film)A remarkable film; believe the hype - simonconnollyYou can blame the advertisers, the studios, the trailers or the internet buzz but here we have it; another month, another film at risk of falling victim to astronomically high expectations. But Christopher Nolan has faced this problem before when the outstanding The Dark Knight was released in 2008, and he came out the other side unscathed. And the big more ... |
 | The Karate Kid (Film)Decent but unnecessary - simonconnollyWhen 12 year-old Dre Parker's father dies he and his mother move to China. Dre immediately falls for classmate Mei Ying but this gets him an enemy in the form of Mei Ying's secret crush Cheng. Cheng uses his karate skills to try get Dre to back off. Then when Dre tries to get revenge he is chased down by Cheng and his kung-fu friends. He is saved by more ... |
 | The Twilight Saga: Eclipse (Film)Best of the franchise - simonconnollyIn 2008, despite being a really dreadful film Twilight became a global phenomenon and it was almost impossible to go anywhere without hearing someone going on about it. But it was a big success and a sequel was released just one year later. And now number 3 is here a year later once again, keeping the franchise going quickly before people lose interest. So more ... |
 | Hot Tub Time Machine (Film)Best comedy of 2010 - simonconnollyForget trailer, tv spots and clips, there is one thing which should act as the deciding factor as to whether you should go see Hot Tub Time Machine or not. That one all important thing is the films title alone. Hot Tub Time Machine. If you think this is a stupid, juvenile and inappropriate title for a film then this is not the film for you. If, like me you more ... |
 | When In Rome (Film)When in Rome, avoid this crap - simonconnollyA couple weeks back I reviewed Killers, the worst romantic comedy of the last few years, if not in their entire history in cinema. And while When in Rome is nowhere near as desperate as that poor excuse for a film it keeps my dream alive. And my dream is for the films of the rom-com genre, which Hollywood seem almost compelled to make at this stage will get more ... |
 | This Is It (Video)Surely a better Jacko film on the way. - simonconnollyOn June 25th 2009 Michael Jackson passed away in his home and I think everyone knew that every studio in Hollywood was going to be scrambling to start working on possible films about the pop legend. However I don't think anyone expected a film to come out just four months later. Well this is it, this is that hastily composed film. But this is not really it. more ... |
 | The Runaways (Film)Fanning, Stewart and Shannon runaway with this film - simonconnollyKristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning. Ask someone who they think should portray Joan Jett and Cherie Curie in a film about legendary 1970's all girl rock band The Runaways these two actresses would probably be the last who come to mind. Stewart is best known for her dull displays in Twilight and Fanning has simply never given a performance as a woman. But more ... |
 | Killers (Film)Hands down years worst film - simonconnollyI just saw Killers and I genuinely don't know if I should hate it more than I love it. I hate it cause it is a really dreadful film. I like it as if this doesn't make Hollywood studios give up making romantic comedy then I don't know what will. Every year I'd say about 15-20 films just like this are released and maybe only 1 or 2 are actually worth taking a more ... |
 | Give 'em Hell, Malone (Video)Hell of a film. - simonconnollyOnce upon a time Thomas Jane seemed to have the world at his feet. Early in his career he starred in numerous big films such as Boogie Nights, Face/Off, The Thine Red Line and Magnolia. Since then he has been in a lot less projects, and some of the ones he has done have quite simply been dreadful. But this film above all else just shows that poor old Jane more ... |
 | Brothers Bloom (Film)More than just a con film - simonconnollyNo one knew the name Rian Johnson a few years back and then he burst onto the scene with the gritty cult film and critically acclaimed Brick. It was a great debut and got his name known on the circuits. But lets be honest, these days it seems like anyone can make a great directorial debut. Drew Barrymore (Whip It), Steve McQueen (Hunger), Ben Affleck (Gone more ... |
 | Robin Hood (Film)Maximus Hood? - simonconnollyRobin Hood is one of the most iconic characters in cinematic history and has been the subject of a lot of film and television projects. So when Ridley Scott decided to make a Robin Hood reboot he was either going to make him better, or force the character out of cinema for years to come. Collaborating once again with Russell Crowe certain expectations were more ... |
 | Brooklyn's Finest (Film)Fuqua's Finest - simonconnollyI have always really enjoyed the films of Antoine Fuqua but I've also always noticed that they are all hugely flawed films, and not one of them remained strong for the entirety of the runtime. Tears of the Sun opened and ended poorly but everything in the middle was great. King Arthur was a dull Epic with plenty of fantastic moments around the place. more ... |
 | Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans (Film)One of the years best - simonconnollyI seem to be doing this a good bit lately but I saw this film for a second time at a preview in the IFI and have now decided it is much better than I first thought. And so I deleted my past review and am now redoing it so I can give it the mark it truly deserves. Plus the structure changes can only help. Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans is a fine more ... |
 | A Nightmare On Elm Street (Film)Nothing on the original - simonconnollyWes Cravens 1984 film Nightmare on Elm Street was, and still is a horror masterpiece. Freddy Krueger, the blade fingered, stripy jumpered villain was for lack of a better word utterly terrifying. But since his big debut there have been numerous sequels, which only succeeded in diluting the originals creepiness. And so what do they do to save the franchise. more ... |
 | Iron Man 2 (Film)The difference between this and Iron Man? The number 2 - simonconnollyWhen Iron Man was being made back in 2007/2008 it managed to stay somewhat under the radar. Then in the months leading to its release people started to get more excited due to a brilliant trailer and a lot of positive reviews. But I don't think anyone expected it to be as successful as it was in the box office with the film reeling in almost $100 million more ... |
 | Repo Men (Film)Mindless action repossessed - simonconnollyWhatever happened to the mindless action film? A few years ago there was an army of great action heros we could enjoy. There was Sylester Stallone, Arnold Schartzanegger, Steven Seagal and much more ruling the action genre. They went around killing bad guys, busting out cheesy lines and using puns in inappropriate situations, with no emphasis put on story more ... |
 | Cop Out (Film)Despite Smith direction and the poor plot, this is a great comedy flick - simonconnollyWhen Clerks became a suprise hit in 1994 no one had ever heard the name Kevin Smith. But since then he has churned out seven films and has always kept his cult followers happy. He has done this although he has never been at all consistent and in his career he has made some good (Mallrats), some bad (Chasing Amy) and of course some ugly (Jay and Silent Bob more ... |
 | Ponyo (Film)Extremely enjoyable - simonconnollyPonyo is the first film in six years for critically acclaimed animated director Hayao Miyazaki who continues to show that the hand drawn era of animation isn't dead in the water just yet. In recent years digital animation has ruled supreme with all the memorable animations of late coming from the likes f Disney and Pixar. And we haven't had anyone around to more ... |
 | Old Dogs (Film)Every dog has it's day, and that day is now gone for Williams and Travolta - simonconnollyI've seen a lot of films in my life and out of them all there are very few I have ever gone as far to say are disastrous and quite often I manage to find something good in the bad. For example the woefully made The Happening and Mega Shark vs Giant Octopus I love as comedies and so they aren't complete failures in my mind. But then we have films like G:I more ... |
 | From Paris With Love (Film)If you liked 'Taken'.... - simonconnollyLuc Besson and Pierre Morel. These two names will mean nothing to most people, but for me these two men have in my mind become some of the finest makers of action films around. Besson is best known for directing Leon but a few years back he and Morel collaborated for the first time. Besson writes these brilliant scripts and Morel directs them into extremely more ... |
 | Clash of the Titans (Film)Rehash of the Titans, an epic mistake. - simonconnollyI have always been against remakes, reboots and re-imaginings and never give them a chance. Once I hear a word starting with re and a familiar title I lose interest in the film completely. But when I heard 1981 film Clash of the Titans was the next film to fall victim to Hollywoods recent loss of originality I wasn't as annoyed as usual. The reason being more ... |
 | Green Zone (Film)Another disappointing war film. - simonconnollyThe war genre has always been popular in America. There are hundreds of war films, most of which have been critically acclaimed and some even rewarded by the Academy. So when America invaded Iraq in 2003 it was always going to spawn some films about the conflict. The Kingdom, In the Valley of Elah, Body of Lies, Brothers. Many renowned filmmakers and actors more ... |
 | The Blind Side (Film)A Bland Ride - simonconnollyWhen The Blind Side was released in America it received critical acclaim with many critics claiming it was deserving of Oscars. And sure enough Oscar season came and this film received two nominations and star Sandra Bullock walked home with gold. And so I, and I'm sure many others began to anticipate its Irish release to see what all the fuss was about. more ... |
 | She's Out Of My League (Film)Not out of our League but very enjoyable - simonconnollyOn Paper She's out of My League sounds like the same old drivel. Nerdy, pathetic nerd with low self-esteem meets unbelievably hot girl and they strike up a fun filled romance. Only in this films plot synopsis they simplify it somwhat. She is a strong 10, he is a 5. Surely a 5 can't possibly hold on to a 10, but the films shows us that personality also comes more ... |
 | Kick Ass (Film)Kick-Ass: Kicking the ass of past comic book movies - simonconnollyRight well I sat down here to review Kick-Ass and saw Mike Sheridan discussing the old hype thing I though 'Damn, I was gonna do that". And you know what... I still am. Because the worst thing a film can receive is a lot of publicity, especially for these comic book movies with a large following. Forget razzies or bad reviews, hype is the big problem. The more ... |
 | Everybody's Fine (Video)Flawed but stunning nonetheless - simonconnollyOnce upon a time Robert De Niro was the scariest man in Hollywood. After years of playing fast talking, gun toting and cold hearted gangsters he had gotten himself quite a reputation. So maybe that's why in 1998 he hung up his gun and concentrated on broadening his horizons. Since then he hasn't done anything like what he used to and has concentrated mainly more ... |
 | The Lovely Bones (Film)Flawed but stunning nonetheless. - simonconnollyPeter Jackson is quite possibly today considered as one of the most established and respected directors in the world. He got this title thanks to his unbelievably long but impressive King Kong remake and his unworldly long and extraordinary Lord of the Rings trilogy. Four films that made him famous and now he turns to The Lovely Bones, an adaptation of more ... |
 | Crazy Heart (Film)Masterpiece - simonconnollyWith a career lasting almost all his life and around 80 T.V and television projects it is hard to believe that Jeff Bridges has never won an Oscar. He has been nominated four times yet has never taken the gold home but if IMDb's user poll is anything to go by that will end this year. Because Crazy Heart is not only going to bring Bridges his much deserved more ... |
 | Sherlock Holmes (Film)Funnest film of last year - simonconnollyWhen it was announced that after years of desperate attempts Sherlock Holmes was finally to reach the big screen with Guy Richie at the helm not everyone was for the idea. Richie has had his great films in the past but in recent years he has been a shadow of his former self. Not to mention he has always been quite a hard hitting director with guns, more ... |
 | The Hurt Locker (Video)You'll be blown away - simonconnollyThe hype around the Hurt Locker has been quite substantial since it became a relatively suprise hit earlier this year. And with Oscar season fast approaching and nominations almost guaranteed for this film I decided a few days ago it was time I finally gave it a look. And despite all the hype the film managed to be much more impressive than I expected. It more ... |
 | The Princess And The Frog (Film)An old Fashioned Fairy Tale to lift the spirits. - simonconnollySet in 1920s New Orleans The Princess and the Frog follows waitress Tiana who works in two jobs so that she can raise enough money to open restaurant her and her late father always dreamed of owning. Then Prince Naveen arrives in town to attend the party of Tianas spoilt friend Charlotte. Before he gets to the party however he comes in contact with voodoo more ... |
 | The Invention of Lying (Video)An Invention for Dying, disastrous. - simonconnollyI've never been a fan of Ricky Gervais. I've seen people in tears laughing at him but he has never done anything to make me laugh. When I watch Extras the guest stars are the only amusing ones, The Office was just dull, Ghost Town was unbearable and now we have The Invention of Lying. It's a high concept comedy set in world where everyone always tells the more ... |
 | The Informant (Film)Stylish, entertaining and funny. Take a look. - simonconnollyThe Informant! is the true story of Mark Whitacre. While working high up in lysine development company ADM he contacts the FBI and starts to act as an informant in a price fixing scandal. In his years as an informant Mark begins to think he is a real agent. But eventually his lies pile up and his personal life become worse with each lie and exaggeration he more ... |
 | The Box (Film)Think outside The Box - simonconnollyI went to this film with relatively high expectations. Described as Donnie Darko director Richard Kelly's return to form and boasting an all star cast it all sounded good on paper. And the film had a very strong start, the films big question is introduced and it is a very interesting one. For days you'll be asking yourself 'Would I press the button'. And more ... |
 | Invictus (Film)Another Clint classic. - simonconnollyA lot of people were rather upset by the news that Clint Eastwood was to quite acting and concentrate solely on developing his directing career in the future. I on the other hand was quite excited as to be honest I think he is a far better bahind the camera than in front of it. His directed works make up quite an outstanding collection. Mystic River, more ... |
 | Avatar (Film)Biggest movie disappointment in cinematic history. - simonconnollyIf ever there was a film that had to be good, it was Avatar. For a start it is the first film from James Cameron in ten years after the hugely successful, record breaking Titanic. Pair this with the $500 million budget and the astronomical amount of hype and publicity and you've got a film that really needs to impress. And I don't want to sound blunt but more ... |
 | Iron Man (Video)Exceptional superhero film. - simonconnollyWith a second installment of Iron Man fast approaching I decided to revisit the franchises starting point to get myself ready for it. And even though it was a few years ago now I remember heading into Iron Man with a lot of skepticism. The main reason for this mistrust was that the film was to be directed by Jon Favreau. Although he is experienced (director more ... |
 | Untraceable (Video)Dreadful 'Gorror' film. - simonconnollyI doubt there is anyone who failed to notice how the Saw franchise became somewhat of a phenomenon a couple of years back. This unexpected hit led to a lot of people attempting to make the next Saw. In other words more and more people released films which tried to be horribly gory, incredibly smart and entirely engaging all at the same time. Untraceable is more ... |
 | Thank You for Smoking (Film)Thank you for Jason Reitman - simonconnollyWith the release of Up in the Air I have been reading many reviews for the new film. A lot of these reviews mention Jason Reitmans two previous films Juno and Thank you for Smoking. And so after seeing the exceptional Up in the Air recently I decided to go back and watch these two films. First on my list was this and it was even better the second time more ... |
 | The Brave One (Video)Don't be brave, give it a miss. - simonconnollyA Brave One is a film with an age old idea behind it. Someone becomes victim of a huge tragedy and takes the law into their own hands to bring justice. In this case Jodie Foster is the vigilante. One night she is out walking with her soon to be husband, played by Lost star Naveen Andrews when they are attacked by a group of thugs. They beat both of them up more ... |
 | The Cove (Film)Best documentary ever made - simonconnollyThe Cove is a documentary exploring the unjustified and sickening killing of thousands of dolphins and whales by the Japanese. They kill in or around 200,000 animals a year in a mysterious cove in which no one truly knows what happens. And so a team of dolphin lovers led by former dolphin trainer turned activist Rick O'Barry set out to uncover the truth of more ... |
 | Youth In Revolt (Film)Wonderful, feel-good comedy film. - simonconnolly'Youth in Revolt' is a film adaptation of the first three of C.D. Payne's six-book series about teenager Nick Twisp. Twisp is quite simply a loser. He only has one friend, he has never had a girlfriend and is desperate to lose his virginity. Then his mothers new boyfriend Jerry, played by Zach Galifianakis gets in trouble with some marines and takes the more ... |
 | Up In The Air (Film)Quite simply a Masterpiece - simonconnollyUp in the Air has been on the receiving end of a lot of Oscar buzz lately and it's a film that I personally have been highly anticipating for quite some time. In the film George Clooney plays Ryan Bingham, an expert traveller whose job requires him to be called in to fire people on behalf of businesses who are afraid to do it themselves. He spends over 300 more ... |
 | Precious (Film)A huge waste of my precious time - simonconnollyI saw Precious expecting a lot, and rightly so. Surrounded by some serious Oscar buzz after becoming a suprise hit in America and at the Sundance Film Festival, and talked up quite some bit by Oprah anyone would expect a masterpiece. The film however couldn't be further from a masterpiece. It was in fact one of the worst films I've seen in a long time. Set more ... |
 | All About Steve (Film)A truly dreadful 'comedy' - simonconnollyWatch a trailer for All About Steve and one thing you will know about his film is that it looks dreadful. I saw the trailer a while back and it looked disgracefully bad. But it was released in the US a while back and when it came down to it the films cast was just too intriguing. Bradley Cooper follows up his brilliant display in The Hangover as title more ... |
 | Crank: High Voltage (Film)INSANE! - simonconnollyWhen Crank was released back in 2006 it took everyone by suprise. Everyone, including me expected another mindless action film starring Jason Statham. Everyone was wrong. The only word which can describe that film is insane, it was completely insane. And I thought that was their finest hour but upon reading the films brilliant tagline I realised I was wrong more ... |
 | Fast and Furious (Video)The Fast and the Furious: The Remake. - simonconnollyI watched Fast and Furious recently and after doing so I found myself being reminded of the films tagline. New Model. Original Parts. What they mean to say is 'Fast and Furious is more or less The Fast and the Furious, we just removed a couple words from the title. And I can't say I am surprised. After the disappointing 2Fast 2Furious and the abysmal Tokyo more ... |
 | Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (Video)Revenge of the Fallen: Transformation to the mediocre - simonconnollyTransformers: Revenge of the Fallen was without doubt the biggest film of the summer and one that I personally have been looking forward to since the franchise kicked off with style back in 2007. And I think that Michael Bay had one word in mind while he was making this: more. There are a lot more robots, more people, more action, more comedy and a lot more more ... |
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