Movie Review - Cinderella

(Running late! Have Allcon this weekend and after the movie it was way late!)

Cinderella

Starring:  Lily James, Cate Blanchett, Richard Madden, Helena Bonham Carter, Nonso Anozie, Stellan Skarsgard, Sophie McShera, Holliday Grainger, Derek Jacobi, Ben Chaplin, Hayley Atwell, and more

Directed by: Kenneth Branagh Screenplay by: Chris Weitz Cinematography by: Haris Zambarloukos Music by: Patrick Doyle

Premise: Years after the death of her mother, Ella's father remarries a widow with two daughters. The rocky relationship between the new members of the family escalates when Ella's father also passes. Bereft of most of their income and imbued with jealousy, Ella's step-mother and step-sisters slowly but surely relegate Ella to the role of a servant rather than a family member. Things continue to deteriorate and are brought to a boil when the small kingdom holds an open ball for all eligible your maidens. (Rated PG)

Review:

1) Acting - Total Thumbs Up: The casting on this film by Lucy Bevan was great. Lily James does a lovely job as Cinderella. Richard Madden and Lily are adorable together and the chemistry between them felt real and fresh. Cate Blanchett was fab as the evil step-mother. She was very expressive and gave depth to the character, showing her bitterness at her lack of power and socially forced dependence on men to assure a comfortable existence and fear she might not be able to give that certainty to her daughters. Sophie McShera and Holliday Grainger were perfect as the clueless and mean step-sisters. Helena Bonham Carter put her own twist to the Fairy Godmother and did a grand job as the story's narrator.

2) Special Effects - Total Thumbs Up: Lots of lovely and subtle special effects enhance the film to give it just the right amount of magic, yet kept it within the bounds of something that could happen in reality. The CGI for the mice and other animals was very well done. Lots of humorous touches, especially with the goose, that make the film transcend to a possible new Disney classic.

The pumpkin transformation scene was changed with a cute twist, but the payoff is totally there when it starts reverting back to what it originally was on the mad dash away from the castle at midnight. Totally worth the wait and they give you a fun and funny conversion for the mice and lizards to satiate the audience until the later midnight reversion payoff.

The enhancements to the real castle and even the manor that is Ella's home definitely make the places magical. The stag in the forest was fantastic as well. The stag's expressions when he first meets her and then when he realizes she means him no harm, were exquisitely done. Also loved the use of the blue birds, which tie back to the animated film.

3) Story - Thumbs Up: The original tale gets expanded a little, making the whole more robust. Some of the actions and reactions are based on realities, thus giving more depth to the situations. The need for women of certain social status to marry to ensure they have money to live on as their skills are only useful in the management of a home or entertainment, rather than on ways to make a living. The pressures on monarchs to make advantageous alliances through marriage, and more.

They even plug in a couple of issues with the original, like why the step-mother and step-sisters do not recognize Cinderella at the ball.

There's also a little more interaction between Ella and the prince, making them more both more multidimensional. And Ella's conversations with animals and their reactions to her totally fit.

Incidental characters add a lot as well - used for comedic moments or for adding flavor. Both animals and people love to peek in at all sorts of places.

4) Costuming/Makeup - Total Thumbs Up: Great work on both fronts! Loved everything they did with the step-sisters - the horrid patterns and matching fabrics, the hair styles making them closely resemble their animated counterparts. The beautiful dresses and fashion for the step-mother, making a definite contrast between her talents and advantages and the utter lack of same by her daughters.

Cinderella's dress for the ball was fantastic! The gorgeous blue color and the layers and layers of fabric beneath made the dress seem to shimmer in different shades whenever she moved. Lots of prime colors for the other ladies at the ball, giving the scenes the same brightness of the animated version.      

5) Locations/Cinematography - Total Thumbs Up: A lot of the filming locations are real places in England, enhanced by CGI. The combinations works fabulously. The cinematography took advantage of this as well, for lovely sweeping shots of the palace and the country manor. The Old Naval Royal College used for the palace interiors looked awesome all on its own.

Conclusion: This live action rendition of the old classic is definitely good enough to be a new classic. No singing, though they do have two of the songs play through the credits. The extra depth and detail given to the characters make for a better film. The animated short before the main film is a Frozen short and it is utterly adorable and very well done!

Rating: 4 out of 5 (Hubby's Rating: Worth Full Price to See Again)

Movie Review - How To Train Your Dragon 2

How To Train Your Dragon 2

Starring: Jay Baruchel, Cate Blanchett, Gerard Butler, Craig Ferguson, America Ferrera, Jonah Hill, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, T. J. Miller, Kristen Wiig, Djimon Hounsou, Kit Harington, Kieron Elliott, Randy Thom, and more.

Directed by: Dean DeBlois Written by: Dean DeBlois Based on the "How To Train Your Dragon" book series by: Cressida Cowell Music by: John Powell

Premise: Five years after the village of Berk embraced having dragons as friends, the village stands transformed by this new era of peace. Hiccup, however, is still trying to figure out who he is and what he wants, especially after his father approaches him about declaring to the village the fact Hiccup will become their chief in future and begin his training. But Hiccup pushes his concerns aside when he and Astrid come across a band of men trying to capture dragons for Drago, who is building a vast dragon army. They also tell Hiccup he's not the first dragon rider they've met - making him realize there are more than those of Berk out there. (Rated PG)

Review:

1) Voice Acting - Total Thumbs Up: Jay Baruchel is delightful as he reprises his role as the peace and dragon loving Hiccup. Wit and snark are served with fun aplomb by Kristen Wiig, Christophjer Mintz-Plasse, T. J. Miller, and Jonah Hill. Gerard Butler will make you cry as he tries to woo back the person he'd thought lost to him forever.

2) Artwork/Animation - Total Thumbs Up: Dreamworks continues to show their ever expanding skills in the animation field. With their efforts and the added 3D functionality, everything had texture, including human skin. The vibrant colors of the dragons were as dazzling as crystals during several scenes.

Of particular beauty and cool effect were the scenes where Hiccup encounters the masked dragon rider and when he sees the protected dragon area. On the human side, the attention to detail on the ships and other common objects was quite impressive and even helped set the mood in a couple of locations.

Great care was taken in the formation of facial expressions, as in several spots that is solely what the audience has to go on. They were all easy to read and did much to elevate the watcher's emotional involvement.

3) Plot/Story - Total Thumbs Up: I've not read the series the movie is based on, though my nieces insist much was changed. But for those only acquainted with the DreamWorks version, I think you'll be quite happy with this new installment.

Five years have passed from the time of the original film and all the kids have grown to different extents. The boys have definitely started noticing the girls and vice versa. It's background and comedic material, though in other ways it does permeate one branch of the main plot.

There are several very moving scenes, some of which will grab you unexpectedly. So, if movies make you cry, make sure to come prepared for this one.

Lots of cute or funny moments. Watching Hiccup and Toothless cavort around and play is always fun to watch. The subplot of Hiccup's Mom was nicely done. Drago though, didn't really have much depth. I would have loved to hear the tale of how exactly he got hold of his grand prize.

Conclusion: "How To Train Your Dragon 2" was a lot of fun and definitely worth watching. It will also tug at the heart strings. Beautiful animation made even more fun by the 3D.

Rating: 4.25 out of 5 (Hubby's Rating: Worth Full Price To See Again)

Movie Review - Hanna

Hanna

Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Eric Bana, Cate Blanchett, Jessica Barden, Olivia Williams, Aldo Maland and more...

Directed by: Joe Wright  Screenplay by: Seth Lochhead and David Farr Story by: Seth Lochhead Music by: The Chemical Brothers

Premise: Hanna has been raised for only one purpose - to kill the woman who is responsible for her mother's death. Things, however, don't go as planned, and Hanna becomes the hunted instead of the hunter.

Review: The commercials gave alot away. The premise is simple, so to be honest, there wasn't much to give away. However, the execution of the simple premise goes pretty well.

At first we get to live like Hanna lives - the training, living off the land, education. Then when she gets out in the world it's a lot of fun to see her soak life in and meet civilization head on. Just when she thinks she has it all in hand, she realizes she's out of her element and not always dealing too well. Some well thought out moments. Others were quite funny! Her time with the traveling family was the best of the film.

Action wise, not shabby at all. Some very well coordianted fight scenes. Be prepared for several flashbacks, one which unecessarilly decided to go shaky cam. Luckily the shaky cam action used here and there never lasts for more than a minute or two, so it's not hard to sit through.

Some gorgeous panoramic shots. Though on one of them they got a little carried away with the panning. There are also several foreign locations that gave it some definite flavor. Even better, it was street life, rather than the usual dolled up city blocks we normally get.There are also some very artful type shots, most quite enjoyable.

The one major notpick would be Hanna's time in the dessert. Having been raised way way up north, she wouldn't have had exposure to such a climate. And with her super light skin. Can you say crispy criter in just a few hours? OUCH!

Saoirse Ronan does a great job.  Cate Blanchett definitely comes across as one evil person. Tom Hollander was totally creepy and disturbing though he didn't do much directly. But his walk, his talk, his whistling - ugh. Nicely done. Jessica Barden and her on screen brother, Aldo Maland added a lot to the film - good job guys!

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 (Hubby is out of town so no rating from him this time. The kids liked it.)