Tianic Movie Poster

Empire Magazine have just released the ‘500 Greatest Movies. EVER.’ edition, complete with 100 different covers with something for everyone. I dutifully chose the cover with Titanic on it as an homage to the very first movie that had me thinking about it a long, long time afterwards and fascinated me enough to wonder how it was created.

So in the spirit of such a release, I thought I would create me own list of Greatest Movies as I couldn’t have agreed less with Empire’s choices. The Godfather is a masterpiece, I understand that,  but it wouldn’t even rank in my top 20.
So, with no further ado -

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The Other Boleyn Girl - Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson, Eric Bana
Director - Justin Chadwick

The word ‘romp’ is often used to describe this sort of period film. While that word is fitting when talking about the superb novel by historical fiction wirter Philippa Gregory, it does not really apply to Justin Chadwick’s so-so adaptation.

The story follows the ambitious Boleyn family at the court of Henry VIII, 28 years into his reign. He is married to the pious Katherine of Aragon, a Spanish princess and fierce Catholic. Henry takes Mary Boleyn, the older and wiser (and the more beautiful) sister of Anne Boleyn as his mistress. The two fall in love and Mary falls pregnant. The pregnancy is complicated and while she is in confinement, Henry falls for Anne, just returned from the French court. While Mary produces a son, Anne seduces Henry and convinces him to marry her. In order to do so, he must break from the Catholic church and reform England entirely. Henry, madly in love, does so and the country is thrown into chaos. Anne, however, fails to produce the coveted male heir, and subsequently Henry tires of her. Realising his country will not withstand another royal divorce, his advisors devise a plot to have Anne beheaded for treason. They just need the confessors…

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Click here to see the first look at Revolutionary Road.

This is the first look at the upcoming film starring, together again for the first time in 10 years, the fabulously talented Leonardo DiCaprio & Kate Winslet. The film is based on the popular novel by Richard Yates (1961) and focuses on a married couple in the 50’s struggling to make their suburban marriage work. April Wheeler (Winslet) dreams of life in France, and is aspiring to be an acress - while her husband Frank (DiCaprio) works & plays hard at his job day in, day out.The two are convinced they are destined for more than their current life is providing them.

This highly anticipated adaptation of one of the great American Novels is directed by the genius that is Sam Mendes (American Beauty), also the husband of leading lady Kate Winslet.

Opens Boxing Day 2008.

The Dark Knight - Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Michael Caine, Maggie Gyllenhaal
Director - Christopher Nolan

There was always the chance that this release could be over-hyped due to Heath Ledger’s untimely death in January of this year. Could a movie based on a comic book really garner Oscar recognition? Could Ledger’s performance really over-shadow Jack Nicholson’s definitive joker? Did we really need another comic book movie?

Yes, yes and thrice yes. Read the rest of this entry »

Candy - Heath Ledger, Geoffery Rush, Abbie Cornish.
Director - Neil Armfield

The amount of ‘indie’ (and I use that term loosely) films about drug abuse is ever escalating, and while some are fabulously brutal, others seem to skirt around the subject. This film falls somewhere in the middle. Based on the novel with a much longer name by Luke Davies, this is the directorial debut from Neil Armfield, and it’s not half bad.

Narrated by Ledger’s character, Dan, this story is essentially very basic. Two young lovers find themselves spiralling into self-destruction thanks to their heroin addiction. Read the rest of this entry »

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix – Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Michael Gambon, Imelda Staunton, Ralph Fiennes.

Director - David Yates

The fifth book in J K Rowling’s unstoppable series about the boy wizard and his geeky but great friends is the latest to be turned into a PotterFilm. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, while not the fastest-moving, or most eventful of the series, is the book where Harry starts to grow up, and he begins to feel abandoned and angry at the world – aka “A Teenager”.

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The Departed – Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Mark Wahlberg, Martin Sheen.

Director - Martin Scorsese
It’s been a while since Scorsese directed something worth watching. Gangs of New York was a shambles, and The Aviator was good…good, but not great. People are getting worried now, their faith is shaken, their vocal support of the ‘Master of the Mob Movie’ is feeling like an invite for ridicule.

Enter: The Departed.

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