Monday 30 January 2017

Recently watched films

I've been watching a lot of films over the last month, and thought it would be fun to share. Instead of about 12 different reviews, I thought I'd combine it in one post. I find it easier to sum them up than to discuss one particular film.

If you like the facebook page, and if not click here (*shameless plug*), you will have noticed I purchased heaps of DVDS. That is partly where these reviews come from:


















1. Dam Busters (1955)
I honestly couldn't tell you one small detail of what happened. It wasn't my thing and felt like watching paint dry. I was surprised as I usually like learning more about WW2, and with it being scored  at 7.4/10 on IMDb, I was confident I'd enjoy it.
My rating: 2/10 - I just couldn't take to it, but it is a true story and something worth knowing more. I strongly believe WW2 must never be forgotten!

2. Chariots of Fire (1981)
It felt a bit overrated. I couldn't connect with the characters or any of the story. It was another true story which I thought might be interesting. It's set after WW1 in 1924 where Brits, Harold Abrahams and Eric Liddell are natural athletes, and it shows how their lives compare. I do feel like I might be alone in my disappointment of the film as it received 4 oscars, 14 other awards and 19 nominations.
My rating: 3/10 - I knew part of what was happening, and the story itself is interesting. I just don't feel it came across well in the film

3. Cheap Thrills (2013)
This was safely one of the most fucked up (that is really the only word to sum it up - sorry if the swearing offends) films I've seen, and I've watched messed-up films from the likes of Lars Von Trier. I mean I've watched Antichrist, and didn't think I could be easily shocked after that! It centres around two friends, who come across a couple in a bar who make bets for them to do some crazy stuff. It starts off tame with whoever drinks the shot, get $50 and leads to so much worse. One of the worst including betting $15,000 to chop off a pinky finger. That's not even the end of that finger, it comes to haunt twice more with some bizarre bets and turn of events.
My rating: 7/10 - It was really messed up, but in fairness I couldn't stop watching this black comedy. I wouldn't watch it again, and not sure I'd watch it again, but it was definitely memorable. I also realised I wouldn't do much for a bet!

4. Elizabeth (1998)
This era of history has always fascinated me. From the reign of Henry VIII to that of his children. It was one of my favourite eras to learn in history. Divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived - I can never forget that! Onto the film...I find it hard to stay focused on period dramas, but I loved this. I can't think what I enjoyed most, but it featured Elizabeth as the longest reigning of her siblings, her struggles in power and looking for suitors as queen. I was hooked throughout.
My rating: 9/10 - This was amazing, and think most would enjoy watching this. I definitely recommend watching this!

5. Dr. No (1962)
Released 2 years before my mum was born, I wasn't sure whether I'd appreciate it. I'm not huge on action, so I found this hard to follow at times, but love that era of films - the colour, fashions and almost "put-on" voices (not sure how to describe it). However it was easy viewing, and I can now understand how Sean Connery might be a favourite Bond actor.
My rating: 7/10 - Another film I'd recommend watching! It's a great combination of action, drama and romance.

6. Crazy Beautiful (2001)
It was a teen rom-com, which made me feel like I was just a couple of years too old to watch! That being said, I found it easy to follow and would compare it in some ways to a teenage Silver Linings Playbook. I like how Nicole (Kirsten Dunst) and Carlos (Jay Hernandez) characters have completely different lives with different problems and ambitions. It is all about how they cross paths, and their lives are changed forever. Wild child, Nicole helps Carlos fly a plane for the first time, but how will Carlos change Nicole's outlook to life?
My rating: 8/10 - I really enjoyed watching this, but not sure whether I'd necessarily recommend it. You will know from reading my review if it's a story that appeals to you.

7. Frankenstein (1931)
I wanted to watch this, as I couldn't connect to the book. Usually when this happens, it helps me understand and picture what is going on better. It helped when I struggled to read 1984. However this didn't work. It seemed out-dated and too bizarre to keep me interested. The only thing that I enjoyed was that it was short. How many films are a mere 71 minutes? I also like the way it is filmed in terms of black and white, makeup and costume.
My rating: 3/10 - It is worth watching as it is a true classic, but I just didn't take to it.

8. The Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
Unlike most sequels, I like this much more. I found it much easier to follow. I even found the housemaid woman to be funny to watch. When Frankenstein's monster says "friend, lady friend" it also reminded me of Inbetweeners, and couldn't stop laughing.
My rating: 4/10 - I did enjoy this more to the prequel, but it was still not my favourite.

9. Brown Sugar (2002)
Reviewers have compared this to When Harry met Sally. I can see why because it follows the premise of two friends (except more childhood friends), who come to consider a relationship together. Once compared, I didn't think it would be as good as the rom-com classic, but I still loved it. It shows true love, friendship, comedy and links with the love of music. With a combined love for hip-hop, the story of Andre and Sidney is interesting to follow.
My rating:  8/10 - I'd recommend to anyone who loves a good rom-com.

10. Children of the Corn (1984)
I was bored with this. I found it so over-acted that I found it very hard to keep interested.
My rating: 5/10 - Not the worst film I've seen, but not the best either!

11. The Departed (2006)
I always get confused with Matt Damon and Leo Dicaprio, so if like me, you might find it harder to follow...otherwise I think it was really well acted. It's another film Leo should have got an oscar for! I loved how it was a true story, and enjoyed watching this thriller.
My rating: 7.5/10 - I'd definitely recommend this film as it explores the story of a mole in the mob and mole in the police force.

12. Death to Smoochy (2002)
What can I say? Robin William stars, I can never fault a film that he's in. Even One Hour Photo was great in my eyes! It follows the story of two rival children entertainers, some comedy and some action.
My rating: 7/10 - I recommend this as it's easy viewing, and unlike many comedies it's not completely predictable in plot.

13. East is East (1999)
My mum said it was one of her favourite films, and I watched it again. I watched it when I was in school (not sure when), and didn't remember much but it was fun to watch. It has the elements of every good genre - action, growing-age, comedy, romance, drama. My favourite scene had to be towards the end, when the art project is revealed. It is funny but cover hard-hitting issues of living around racism and conflicting cultures.
My rating: 9/10 - I think this is great for anyone to watch. It shows how it is to grow up in Britain with Pakistani heritage. You learn a lot about the traditions followed by lots of comedy as it's set in Salford. I also just found out they did a sequel - West is West, which I will need to watch too.

Lots of great and not so great films over the past month - what films have you seen recently? I want to see Trainspotting 2 and more films from my list.

108 comments:

  1. Some great movies on here. I love the James Bond movies x

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    1. Better than I imagined! As I'm not an action fan x

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  2. These are some really great film and I love the mix of genres - I love The Departed and East is East. What are you going to watch in feb?

    Laura x

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  3. What a great mix of different films. The only one I've seen is The Departed as Leonardo Di Caprio and Jack Nicholson are my favourite actors! I've been trying to watch more movies this year! xo

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  4. My favorite from your list is The Departed, I absolutely loved this movie. I'm going to show my age, I actually saw Chariots of Fire and Children of the Corn when I was a teenager. I share your view of Chariots of Fire, I just couldn't connect with that film, I even re-watched it years later and I still didn't quite get the hype. I didn't like Children of the Corn either. My daughter adores Elizabeth, and tells me I need to watch it.

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    1. Glad I'm not alone with that 😊 Yeah it's better than I ever thought it would be x

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  5. You have watched a lot of films! I also can't wait for Trainspotting 2 - can't believe it took them so long to make a sequel.

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    1. Yeah I know. In a way, I'm surprised it's not more based on the books x

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  6. OOoh Children of the Corn is a film I havent seen in absolute years x

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  7. Not a bad mix of films you've got there! Can't believe you didn't like Dambusters :-O but I guess everyone is different. I need to watch more movies this year. x

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  8. Yeah I honestly thought I'd like it x

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  9. I am a huge history fan especially surrounding the Tudor/Medieval and Ancient Egypt legacies so Elizabeth would be a great watch for me!

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  10. Gosh I haven't heard of a lot of these! I have just seen Sing at the cinema with my children, which we loved. Kaz x

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    1. I like the sound of that. It's not my usual kind of film but sounds funny x

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  11. I cant say I have watched any I dont think but then I dont get to watch many unless the kids have chosen them they seem to hog the TV

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  12. I love the sound of all of these! The only one I have actually watched is Frankenstein! I love how varied your taste is aswell!

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    1. Aww thank you - like to try a little of everything x

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  13. I can't say I've seen many of these, but Cheap Thrills does sound messed up!

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  14. What a collection! I love anything about British history. Especially about Kings and Queens.
    I have seen quite a few of them though.good films

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    1. Yeah I find it quite interesting. Not always into watching it though x

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  15. You've got a good variety of genres and decades covered here. I've not seen many of these. East is East sound interesting, I might have to see that one x

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    1. Definitely- you don't see as many British films so when I do, I really enjoy x

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  16. You have my third favourite movie of all time (The Departed) and one of my favourite rom-coms (Crazy Beautiful) in there! A very good mix, I must say!

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    1. Ooh what is your first and second? Yeah it was really good to watch x

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  17. I'll be honest I haven't heard of many of them. After reading through I think I want to watch cheap thrills as I'm intrigued more than anything.

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    1. Yeah honestly couldn't stop watching haha x

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  18. oh theres a lot of oldies there i loved watching children of the corn , i watched another oldie last night , the exorcist that they never wanted you to see, its a good one x

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    1. I think I've only ever seen the exorcism of Emily Rose. I know I was planning to see the exorcist but can't remember if I did x

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  19. The Departed is one of my absolute favourite films - I'll have to check out some of the others though as I've not seen many of them x

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  20. Some great movies featured, I now want to watch Brown Sugar it sounds right up my street. I really do need to start watching more things instead of endless scrolling on Facebook lol

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    1. Haha I'm the same. Probably still scroll through Facebook while watching them! X

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  21. A great movie list. I don't think I have seen any of these which is just SHOCKING

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    1. Not necessarily some of them are really old lol x

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  22. I'm a huge movie buff and there are a handful of movies on here that I've yet to see! I'll have to check them out, starting with East is East.

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    1. That has to be one of my favourites from this list x

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  23. face in hands only film from this I have seen is East is East lol !
    I love movies!

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    1. You should check some of them out. East is east is hilarious! X

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  24. I have seen Children Of The Corn I thought it was a very scary film. Haven't seen the others x

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    1. I watched it during the day so not sure if that makes a difference when watching some horrors! Ooh there are some great ones you may wish to check out 😊 x

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  25. You have watched a variety of movies. A lot of them sound like I would enjoy them as well. Hopefully I will get a chance to have a movie night so I can watch one of these.

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    1. Love a good movie night or movie marathon x

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  26. I've only seen two of that list, Dr No and East is East which is hilarious x

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  27. I seen a couple of this list. I love having a movie marathon with my faves.

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  28. haha with you on Cheap Thrills, less said the better! i love Departed though and theres still one point that makes me gasp. every. single. time!

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    1. It was something else! 😂 it is a fab film x

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  29. Love Elizabeth! Such a good film, I love anything historical. Great selection here, certainly some ones I haven't seen but would like to!

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    1. It is an amazing one - I think even those who don't like anything historical will like it. Aww that's good 😊 let me know if you see any of them x

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  30. I'm really surprised I haven't watched any of these! I really need to watch some more older films!

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  31. Some great film choices here, I really like Dr no its a classic film

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  32. That is such a great list!! I've been missing out on a lot of movies lately. Really need to catch up!!

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    1. You're in need of a good movie marathon x

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  33. I used to love watching films but I haven't really had the opportunity to since meeting my wife who is a five minute in sleeper. It's so frustrating. I want to watch nice films with her but unfortunately she is snoring by the time it starts.

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    1. Haha that's funny. Used to be like that if watched a film later than 9! Maybe watch it during the day? X

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  34. This is such a great list. If you can believe it, I've actually never seen any of these films!! I especially want to check out Crazy Beautiful! Thanks for sharing your thoughts :)

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    1. You're welcome 😊Some are very old but worth a watch! X

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  35. I havent watched most of those, which seems crazy! I've watched East is East, but can't remember much about it!

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    1. Like I said I'd seen it before, but didn't remember much of it at all x

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  36. East is East is one of my favourite films. I don't get to watch as many films as I would like.

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    1. I forgot how fab it was so am glad I watched it again! X

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  37. I actually have only ever seen one of these films, The Departed. You've given me some to add to my list x

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    1. Well let me know if you see and enjoy any 😊 x

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  38. I have to admin I haven't seen a film in bloody ages! The only one I've seen from here is east is east and it's hilarious! I first watched it yeaaaars ago, I don't live too far from where it is set.

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    1. Yeah I find it funny as I was born in Salford and lived there when I was very young x

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  39. I love a lot of these films, especially The Departed - Matt Damon is so good.

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  40. I've only watched 2 of these. The Departed and East is East. Loved both.

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    1. They are probably two of my favourites from the list! X

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  41. Oh wow, children on the corn brings back some memories. I remember watching that when I was way too young.

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    1. Many say that! Might have scared me more if I saw it then haha x

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  42. I very rarely watch movies, but I might check some of these titles. Thanks for sharing!

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  43. Crazy Beautiful sounds like my kind of film! Great reviews.

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    1. Yeah I enjoyed it �� Aww thank you! X

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  44. I have not watched all of these movies so will try and check them out.

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    1. Let me do if you do and if you like them 😊 x

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  45. Some really great films here! Fab reviews hun x

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    1. Glad you enjoyed reading 😊 Means a lot! X

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  46. You have quite an eclectic taste in films. It's good to try something you would not normally go for. You might just like it :)

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  47. You've been watching loads of movies. We tend to watch animated movies here with the 3 little ones.

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    1. Fair enough. I really want to see sing despite animated films normally annoying me x

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  48. Some fantastic choices here! I saw Children of the Corn at the cinema and it scared me rigid back in the day. So tame compared to today's horror genres.

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    1. I've never found a horror that scares me actually! Found ones that creep me out like the hills have eyes and psycho but that's it lol x

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  49. Not seen any of these movies. Need to find them.

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  50. I haven't watched East is East in YEARS! I think I should get it out of hibernation to rewatch and enjoy!

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    1. Definitely! I honestly forgot everything that happens. It had me in stitches in some scenes x

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  51. I love East is East, it's so funny! I've watched Absolutely Fabulous The Movie today, I'd say its a 7/10, easy watch but don't take it too seriously

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  52. I THINK (don't quote me on it) they're remaking Dam Busters at the moment???? If I'm right, maybe the modern will hold your attention better... I think it was Peter Jackson directing... x

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  53. Perhaps- I love old films and felt so guilty that I couldn't take to it as it's an incredible story x

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  54. Sounds like a great mix of films. I want to make an effort to watch some different ones this year instead of the same over and over so I'm going to check these out x

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    1. Cool - please let me know what you think x

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  55. I've only seen 2 movies from that list haha damn, need to watch more things :")

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  56. I love Crazy Beautiful and East is East! Can't believe I haven't seen more on your list xx

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    1. They are old and I only watched them recently 😊 x

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