George Clooney – cinemescope

100 Word Review – Money Monster (2016)

May 7, 2017May 6, 2017Posted in 100 Words..., F-Rated, ThrillerTagged capitalist, Dominic West, George Clooney, Jack O'Connell, Jodie Foster, Julia Roberts, political, ThrillerLeave a comment

Walking that fine line between socio-political commentary and thriller, this film stands out.

Lee (George Clooney), presenter of financial advice TV show Money Monster, is held up at gun point live on the air after some of his advice goes bad. Under the direction of his producer, Patty (Julia Roberts), Lee is forced to put his life where his mouth is.

Jodie Foster’s direction succeeds in adding extra dimensions to an already punchy script. Politically challenging, it manages to be a thought-provoking thriller that keeps an audience on the edge of its seats while poking holes in society’s capitalist greed.

100 Word Review – O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)

September 8, 2015April 15, 2016Posted in 100 Words..., ComedyTagged 1930s, adventure, America, Comedy, Ethan Coen, George Clooney, Holly Hunter, Joel Coen, John Goodman, John Turturro, Tim Blake NelsonLeave a comment

Joel and Ethan Coen, the Coen Brothers (Big Lebowski, The Hudsucker Proxy), do it again.

Set in 1930s American Deep South, three escaped convicts (George Clooney, John Turturro and Tim Blake Nelson) attempt to avoid the authorities, tangling with a range of weird and wonderful characters, on their quest for hidden treasure.

Loosely based on Homer’s Odyssey and co-starring John Goodman and Holly Hunter, this film manages to be simultaneously charming, familiar and epic.

Nominated for Oscars in Screenplay and Cinematography, it is absolutely full of laughs, a soundtrack that will get your toes tapping and, above everything else, heart.

100 Word Review – From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)

May 18, 2015March 6, 2016Posted in 100 Words..., DramaTagged Action, crime, Danny Trejo, Drama, George Clooney, Harvey Keitel, Juliette Lewis, Mexico, Quentin Tarantino, road, Robert Rodriguez, Salma Hayek, Vampires2 Comments

I do not like Quentin Tarantino. That said, I think Robert Rodriguez is amazing, and I think his hand in this film really shows.

When the Fuller family (Harvey Keitel, Juliette Lewis) find their RV high-jacked by notorious criminals (George Clooney, Tarantino) they think that smuggling them across the boarder into Mexico is going to be their biggest problem.

Salma Hayek and Danny Trejo turn up as some very unsavoury characters south of the boarder, and the question becomes will our heroes survive the night?

Part crime flick, part undead, gory nightmare, this is not for the faint of heart.

100 Word Review – Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)

April 6, 2015March 6, 2016Posted in 100 Words..., FantasyTagged adaptation, animals, animation, Bill Murray, Darjeeling Limited, Fantasy, George Clooney, Grand Budapest Hotel, Jason Schwartzman, Meryl Streep, Owen Wilson, Roald Dahl, Stop Motion, Wes Anderson3 Comments

Based on Roald Dahl’s classic children’s story, with an all-star cast (George Clooney, Meryl Streep, Owen Wilson, Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray), Wes Anderson (The Grand Budapest Hotel, Darjeeling Limited) chose stop-motion animation to adapt this to the big screen.

And he made the right choice. The combination of quirky animation, eccentric characters and utterly delightful use of language make you feel as though you are living the book.

There are some unfortunate Hollywood stereotypes that sneak into it. All the evil farmers are British and the animals are all American. However, it still captures the charm of the original story.