October Film of the Month

Autumn is well and truly here. As the clocks go back and the dark nights draw in, it's time to head to the local cinema and see some (hopefully) great films. Four movies are included in this month's round up, so let's see who will come out on top.

As always, here is the all important rating system:

* = Poor. Why did I even bother?!

** = OK. Could have done better.

*** = Good. Recommended though don’t feel bad you don’t get to see this one.

**** = Excellent. Not quite perfect but highly recommended.

***** = Masterpiece. You’d be a fool not to see this film.

All movie titles link to their respective IMDB pages so you can find out more about plot, cast and crew.

Gone Girl

Image: thefilmstage.com

After quickly finishing the book the week before the official release of Gone Girl, I was super eager to see the film adaptation. With the story still fresh in my mind, there could have been many opportunities for the film not to meet my expectations. However, this never happened. David Fincher has created an epic tense drama, filmed beautifully and with a brilliant cast. It is hard to review without revealing the plot twists, but the way the story unfolds is captivating - just as the book is. Rosamund Pike is fantastic as the wife, Amy and Ben Affleck plays Nick just how I imagined. Don't be put off by the 2 and half hour running time. The action doesn't drag in the slightest and keeps you guessing (even though I knew the plot twists!).

Possibly a bit melodramatic in places and there are slight differences to the book - which inevitably always happens with movie adaptations - but they are fortunately not enough to make the film a disaster. An excellent thriller and I urge everyone to read the book too. Highly recommended.

Rating: ****

Effie Gray
  

Image: imdb.com

I love period dramas. Sense and Sensibility (1995) is one my favourites, written by the glorious Emma Thompson. Effie Gray is similarly written by the actress, who stars in the film too, however it falls flat in many places. Effie Gray takes itself too seriously and barely anything actually happens. I felt the film could have used more flashbacks to provide further context into the relationship between John Ruskin and Effie. Without these flashbacks, I didn't care for either character and therefore did not care for the story or film. It became almost comical. My friend and I did start laughing in places that were rather cringe-worthy. The cast on paper looks brilliant: Greg Wise, Emma Thompson, Dakota Fanning, Julie Walters and David Suchet. But it is a bit of style over substance. The landscapes look lovely and cinematic - but the story is , dare I say it, boring and dull. It did make me research more about the relationship but I wouldn't particularly recommend this film. Just OK.

Rating: **

The Rewrite
 

Image: teaser-trailer.com

Hugh Grant is back in a new action film...oh wait, no, not action....sci fi? No, that's not right either. Oh, wow! Of course, he's starring as the romantic English lead in a new rom-com. Who saw that coming?! Yes, Mr. Grant is embracing his type casting in a relatively charming film about a screenwriter who has to take a posting at a university to pay the bills. There a few funny jokes here and there but it is nothing to scream home about. An enjoyable rom-com, with some entertaining moments. Recommended for Hugh Grant fans (but even they might be disappointed).

Yes, the review for this film is that short.

Rating: **

Magic in the Moonlight

Image: indiewire.com

I enjoyed this film a lot more than expected. Emma Stone is enchanting - just as Colin Firth's character finds her. It is a charming film but is highly unlikely to be the awards season hit as Blue Jasmine (2013) was last year, with Cate Blanchett winning Best Actress at the Academy Awards. After studying Woody Allen's work at university, I've come to recognise many themes within his movies. Particularly, the subject of death and the afterlife which is at the core of this film. Although that sounds morbid, the script creates an entertaining perspective through Colin Firth's cynical character. Despite some good qualities, the film doesn't have the magic of Allen's Midnight in Paris (2011). Recommended for a Sunday afternoon if you haven't got too much to do.

Rating: ***

As you can see, there is a clear winner this month.

Ticket Stub's October Film of the Month is...

Gone Girl

Check out the trailer below:

What's been the best film of October?

What films are you looking forward to for November?

Comment below or tweet @TicketStubBlog with your suggestions.

Film Nails

If you haven't checked out Ticket Stub's Ideas for Film Fancy Dress post, click the link to be inspired for Halloween. For those of us who haven't got big parties to go to, but still want to get in the spirit of the spooky holiday, I've had a go at creating film inspired nail art.

Why not have a go yourself or tweet/comment with your best film nails.

Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003) - HALLOWEEN PICK

This is very simple and bold. Starting with a base coat, add two coatings of a bright yellow. Once dry, use a black nail art pen and create a vertical line to the left of each nail. I made mine quite thick. To finish, get a red nail varnish and splatter random splots of blood to the right hand corner. Make sure not to have too much paint on the brush for this.

Spider-Man (2002)

Start with the base coat. Paint two nails a dark blue to match Spider-Man's trouser legs, add a top coat. Paint the other three nails bright red. Using a black nail art pen, create webs. On the thumbnail, use a white nail art pen to recreate the eyes. I coloured in two of the gaps in the web and made them the same triangular shape as Spider-Man's. Use the black pen to outline.

Life of Pi (2012)

This design is based on the book cover - which is also used as a shot in the film.
Apply a base coat on all nails. Paint a bright orange for the thumb and pinkie, then colour the other nails with a sea blue. Once dry, using the white nail art pen, create a boat shape on the middle nail. With the black nail art pen, create a curved 'C' shape at one end of the boat for Pi (see top right). Using a small brush, take the orange and blob the other end of the boat for the tiger, Richard Parker. I then added some black dots/small lines to stripe. Finally, for the tiger print on the other nails, take the black and white pens and alternate stripes on the edges.




The Joker from The Dark Knight (2008) - HALLOWEEN PICK

For Heath Ledger's brilliant Joker, start with the important base coat. For the thumb, a white polish. Alternate the other four nails with purple and a dark green to match his suit. Once dry, create the high angled eyes using the black nail art pen. I then used a small brush and dipped it in the red polish to make the smile. It doesn't have to be neat at all - the messier, the creepier!

The Wizard of Oz (1939)

If you have a silver polish or a golden lion colour along with a green scarecrow polish, you could create all the characters. I instead went for something a bit quirky and easier! Base coat your nails then apply a bright yellow to the middle three nails and a deep red for the outside two. Once dry, add a red glitter top coat to the thumb and pinkie (I used Barry M's appropriately named 'Ruby Slippers'). For the yellow nails, create a brick pattern using the black nail art pen. And there you have the yellow brick road and ruby slippers from Oz!




A Clockwork Orange (1971) - HALLOWEEN PICK

This was super simple to create. Starting with the base coat, paint orange on all nails except the ring finger - paint this white. Once dry, use the black nail art pen to draw the bowler hat on the thumb and the wide eye with the lashes on the ring finger.

Why not have a go at creating your own film nails?

Who will you be going as for Halloween?

Comment below or tweet @TicketStubBlog

Trailer Tuesday: American Sniper (2014)

Image: seat42f.com

After directing the slightly disappointing Jersey Boys (2014) - click here to see my review - Clint Eastwood is back in the directorial chair. His new film, American Sniper, is set to be a much greater success. And if the trailer is anything to go by, it certainly will get audiences hooked.

The movie is based on Chris Kyle's autobiography of the same title. The Navy S.E.A.L has been acknowledged as the deadliest sniper in American military history. His confirmed kill count reached 160 deaths out of 255 claimed kills. He served four tours during the Iraq War and was awarded with various medals for his service.

Bradley Cooper plays Kyle and the movie spans his military career. Sienna Miller also stars as Kyle's wife, Taya Renae Kyle. 

The trailer is very tense and I am definitely intrigued to find out more.

The movie will be released in the States on Christmas Day, but UK audiences will have to wait until 16th January 2015.

Check out the trailer here:

Seen any great trailers worth sharing?

Comment below or tweet @TicketStubBlog with your suggestions

Quote of the Day #23

"I don't want to survive. I want to live"

12 Years a Slave (2013)

Image: newstatesman.com

Happy Birthday to Steve McQueen, director of 12 Years a Slave.
The film won Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay and

 Best Supporting Actress for Lupita Nyong'o at the Oscar awards earlier this year. 

Trailer Tuesday: The Theory of Everything (2014)

Image: focusfeatures.com

The first Trailer Tuesday of October is here!
This week's pick is the widely anticipated The Theory of Everything.

The bio-pic centres on physicist Stephen Hawking and his relationship with his wife, Jane. The film is based on Jane Hawking's memoir Travelling to Infinity: My life with Stephen. It sees the beginnings of their relationship at Cambridge University, the impact of his success and the challenges of his diagnosis with Motor Neurone Disease at the age of 21.

Eddie Redmayne stars as Stephen and there is already Oscar talk of him winning Best Actor. Felicity Jones plays Jane and they are also joined by Emily Watson, David Thewlis and Charlie Cox. The world premiere, at the recent Toronto International Film Festival, was well received by critics:

Tremendously moving and inspirational - NEW YORK POST

To say the response here was rapturous would not be understating the enthusiasm I heard - not just from pundits but also Academy voters with whom I spoke. One told me he came in with high expectations for a quality movie and this one exceeded them. - DEADLINE, Pete Hammond

UK audiences will have to wait until January next year to see the film and will be released in the States on November 7th.

Check out the trailer here:

Have you seen any recent trailers worth sharing?

Tweet @TicketStubBlog or comment with your suggestions below.