Four DVDs for 11 euro – you get 5 nights to watch. As the march of Blu-Ray continues and DVD retail prices plummet the days of these offers (and probably Blockbuster itself) are numbered.
I’m happy to take advantage while it lasts and my latest haul have all been rated as ‘fresh’ by the increasingly unreliable Rotten Tomatoes review site .The movies for my Blockbuster nights were ‘Julie & Julia’, ‘Searching For Eric’, ‘Up’ and ‘500 Days of Summer’. Here, gentle reader, are my own freshness ratings :
JULIE & JULIA – As expected , a dog! Meryl Streep hams it up in 1950s France while her modern-day fan in New York blogs about her recipe book. Two movies in one and both of them suck. Director Nora Ephron specialises in these saccharine tales but this makes You’ve Got Mail look streetwise. Amy Adams , as Julie Powell, does her imitation of Meg Ryan but someone should tell Ephron that watching someone writing on a computer does not make compelling cinema. (Rotten Tomatoes say 75% fresh, – I say a dog’s dinner – 10% rotten)
LOOKING FOR ERIC – Ken Loach is a director I respect and I have always admired Eric Cantona for his footballing prowess and especially for his kung-fu kick on an abusive Crystal Palace supporter . Here Loach teams up with the Frenchman and long time scriptwriter Paul Laverty to conjure up what is intended as a warm-hearted comedy of working class life. Here, the postman’s life is miraculously turned around as he summons up the spirit of Cantona to give him tips on anger management and applied arrogance.
On paper it sounds like a promising idea but on screen it’s a damp squid. The storyline is cobbled together and the continued effing and blinding does not make for gritty realism. It just comes across as a series of stitched together clichès and I quickly decided I didn’t give a toss about what happened to these characters. (Rotten Tomatoes says 89% fresh – I say a kung-fu mis-kick- 25% rotten)
UP Now we’re talking! Pixar can do no wrong in my book and this is one of their best. Having a 78 year old pensioner as protagonist is the kind of boldness we’ve come to expect and there are moments here, particularly in the opening sequences, that are profoundly moving. This is not just for kids; it’s a movie about dreams but it doesn’t just fall back on cheap sentiment ( Ken Loach take note). It is visually inspired, intelligently scripted, touching and anarchic My favorite line is when Ellie is describing the appeal of South America – “It’s like America ……but South!” Genius! (Rotten Tomatoes say 98% fresh and I agree – thumbs up).
500 DAYS OF SUMMER This was a happy accident. I added this to my stash as the token boy meets girl movie for my teenage daughter only to find that this is far from being the usual formula-based offering. There’s a genuine chemistry between Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and Summer (Zooey Deschanel) and director Marc Webb brings a freshness and wit to the story of modern love. He makes great use of the non narrative storyline and there’s a fantastic soundtrack that includes songs from Regina Spektor, The Smiths, The Pixies and…erm … Carla Bruni. This sequence after Tom’s first night with Summer is priceless :
(Rotten Tomatoes say 86% fresh – I say make it 90%)
Conclusions – Rotten Tomatoes is 50% reliable – Blockbuster is still good value. I carry my Gold Card with pride!
