F-Rated – Page 4 – cinemescope

100 Word Review – Spy (2015)

June 10, 2015March 6, 2016Posted in 100 Words..., Action, Comedy, F-RatedTagged 50 Cent, Action, Alison Janney, Bridesmaids, CIA, Comedy, Jason Statham, Jude Law, Melissa McCarthy, Miranda Hart, Paul Feig, Peter Serafinowicz, Rose Byrne, spy, The Heat1 Comment

The best spy film I have seen in years!

The magnificent Melissa McCarthy stars as Susan Cooper, a CIA agent who has been out of the field for 10 years, working intelligence in the “basement” with friend Nancy (Miranda Hart). Will she be able to remember her training, combat her awkwardness and save the world (or at least America)?

Written and directed by Paul Feig (Bridesmaids, The Heat), expect laughs explosions and some seriously butt-kicking action. Jude Law, Rose Byrne, Jason Statham, Peter Serafinowicz and Alison Janney make up part of the ridiculously talented supporting cast.

Go watch this film! NOW!

100 Word Review – Man Up (2015)

June 1, 2015March 6, 2016Posted in 100 Words..., Comedy, F-Rated, RomanceTagged Ben Palmer, British, Comedy, Harriet Walter, Lake Bell, Olivia Williams, Ophelia Lovibond, Romance, Sharon Horgan, Simon Pegg, Tess Morris, The Inbetweeners MovieLeave a comment

Currently in cinemas across the UK, buy your tickets now!

Lake Bell (yes, she’s American but she can do a surprisingly good British accent) stars as Nancy, a cynical 30-something who ends up on someone else’s blind date, with not-quite-over-it divorcee Jack (Simon Pegg).

With a whole host of excellent British actors (too many to mention here), this is the debut feature from writer Tess Morris and hopefully the first of many! Director Ben Palmer (The Inbetweeners Movie) has done a marvellous job, taking the audience on a journey that is truly awkward, funny, romantic and just down right wonderful.

100 Word Review – Tank Girl (1995)

May 31, 2015March 6, 2016Posted in 100 Words..., Comedy, F-Rated, Fantasy, Sci FiTagged Action, Alan Martin, Comedy, f-rated, Fantasy, feminist, IMDb, Jamie Hewlett, Lori Petty, Malcolm McDowell, MGM, Naomi Watts, post apocalyptic, Rachel Talalay, Sci FiLeave a comment

This film is the epitome of 1990s grunge.

In a post-apocalyptic world where water is scarce, Rebecca (Lori Petty) teams up with Jet (Naomi Watts) to fight against the mega-corporation (run by Malcolm McDowell) controlling all the water and power. She’s foul mouthed, completely barmy and hilariously funny.

Based on a British comic strip by Alan Martin and Jamie Hewlett, directed by Rachel Talalay, it is a brilliant piece of feminist filmmaking, despite the extensive cuts made by MGM before release (see the trivia on IMDb for some interesting reading!).

It’s brutal yet highly entertaining with a wonderful 1990s soundtrack.

100 Word Review – Princess Mononoke (1997)

May 28, 2015March 6, 2016Posted in 100 Words..., F-Rated, Fantasy, Sci FiTagged animals, animation, Anime, eco-warrior, family, Fantasy, Hayao Miyazaki, Japanese, Sci Fi, Studio Ghibli1 Comment

I love this film. It’s another classic eco-warrior princess fairytale from the marvellous Studio Ghibli.

While trying to save his home town from a rampaging bear god, Ashitaka is cursed. Forced to venture into the forest, he becomes caught between two warring forces: the humans and the spirits of the forest, lead by Princess Mononoke.

This fairytale is Grimm in every sense, and as such is not Ghibli’s most family friendly feature. The animation is beautiful and truly transportative, with Hayao Miyazaki the driving force behind it.

If that wasn’t enough, it currently sits number 71 of the top 250 on IMDb.

100 Word Review – Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984)

May 16, 2015March 6, 2016Posted in 100 Words..., F-Rated, Sci FiTagged Action, animation, Anime, eco-friendly, eco-warrior, Hayao Miyazaki, IMDb, Japanese, Nausicaa, pokemon, politics, Sci Fi, Studio GhibliLeave a comment

From the makers of Howl’s Moving Castle, comes a fantastic piece of Japanese animation.

Following the eco-theme familiar to Studio Ghibli narratives, this film is about Nausicaä, a pacifist princess, who turns warrior in an attempt to save her planet.

It has Sci Fi for genre fans, including some wonderful creatures not dissimilar to Pokemon, and some epic battles and alien international politics.

As with all Miyazaki’s work, this is beautiful as well as being emotionally meaningful. It sits comfortably within the top 250 films on IMDb. Don’t let the fact you haven’t heard of it stop you from watching it.

100 Word Review – Pitch Perfect 2 (2015)

May 15, 2015March 6, 2016Posted in 100 Words..., Comedy, F-RatedTagged a cappella, Adam DeVine, Anna Camp, Anna Kendrick, Barack Obama, Bardon Bellas, Brittany Snow, Comedy, David Cross, Elizabeth Banks, Hailee Steinfeld, John Michael Higgins, Musical, Pitch Perfect, Rebel Wilson, Snoop DoggLeave a comment

Aca-believe it, the Bellas are back, and this time they are going global!

After an incident involving Fat Amy (Rebel Wilson) and Barack Obama, the Bardon Bellas are thrown off the a cappella circuit. In an attempt to reclaim their title, they head for the ultimate competition, World Champions.

This is Elizabeth Banks’ directorial debut and it is an absolute beauty.

Funny, feisty and feminist, the cast is superb, the songs are great; the film is just fantastic.

No, it’s not as good as the first one, but as far as sequels go, this one’s up there with the greats.

100 Word Review – Bringing Up Baby (1938)

May 11, 2015March 6, 2016Posted in 100 Words..., Comedy, F-Rated, RomanceTagged 1930s, Cary Grant, Comedy, Dudley Nichols, farce, Hagar Wilde, Howard Hawks, Katherine Hepburn, leopard, RomanceLeave a comment

This is the film in which I fell in love with Katherine Hepburn.

Cary Grant plays a mild-mannered, confused palaeontologist who is swept up in the whirlwind that is heiress Susan (Hepburn) and her pet leopard, Baby.

A great, fun film, farcical and wittily written by Hagar Wilde (Carefree) and Dudley Nichols (Stagecoach), and directed by Howard Hawks (His Girl Friday). It’s romantic, it’s risqué and it’s roll-around-on-the-floor funny. I’m not exaggerating.

“It isn’t that I don’t like you, Susan, because, after all, in moments of quiet, I’m strangely drawn toward you, but – well, there haven’t been any quiet moments.”

100 Word Review – The Heat (2013)

May 10, 2015March 6, 2016Posted in 100 Words..., Action, Comedy, F-RatedTagged Action, buddy, Comedy, cop, FBI, Katie Dippold, Melissa McCarthy, Paul Feig, Sandra Bullock2 Comments

Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarty star in this truly excellent F-rated film, one of the biggest grossing movies of 2013.

Ashburn (Bullock), an uptight FBI agent, is paired with Mullins (McCarthy) a rough-around-the-edges street cop. They must learn to work together to bring down a ruthless drug lord.

Director Paul Feig (Bridesmaids) and writer Katie Dippold (currently writing Ghostbusters (2016)) work together brilliantly, bringing in the best bits of cop dramas and buddy comedies to create the best action comedy of recent years.

This is not a “nice” film nor a “girly” film, but one which will have you laughing for days.

100 Word Review – Pitch Perfect (2012)

May 8, 2015March 6, 2016Posted in 100 Words..., Comedy, F-RatedTagged a cappella, Anna Kendrick, Brittany Snow, Comedy, Elizabeth Banks, Jason Moore, John Michael Higgins, Musical, Rebel Wilson, singing, university1 Comment

When I first saw the trailer for this film, I presumed I would hate it. I could not have been more wrong.

Anna Kendrick stars as Beca, a freshman who is determined to become a music producer. She joins The Bellas, one of the university’s singing groups, against her wishes, and “changes the face of a cappella”.

There is a little more to it than that, but you’ll have to watch it. Yes, there is a lot of singing (it’s about a cappella!), but there is enough humour (gross-out and otherwise) to keep even the biggest grouch entertained. Watch it!

100 Word Review – Romancing The Stone (1984)

May 4, 2015March 6, 2016Posted in 100 Words..., Action, Comedy, F-Rated, RomanceTagged 1980s, Action, adventure, Comedy, Danny DeVito, Diane Thomas, Kathleen Turner, Michael Douglas, Robert Zemeckis, RomanceLeave a comment

With promotional images like this, what’s not to love?

Kathleen Turner and Michael Douglas star in this romantic action adventure about a novelist (Turner) who sets off to rescue her sister from Columbian smugglers. On the way she encounters a soldier-of-fortune (Douglas) and becomes embroiled in an adventure she could never have imagined.

I’ll admit to being rather sceptical going in to this, but it is actually brilliant. Think Indiana Jones, but with more romance and a three dimensional female lead. Why all adventure films aren’t like this one, I don’t know. A wonderful escapist film, and it’s on Netflix.