Articles + Quotes on Film & TV

The old rule of the sequel not living up to the first, of being shoddy quality etc, is fast being eroded by the high quality of those now being made. Catching Fire, Star Trek into Darkness, the Harry Potter films, and now this one. The real strength of this film are the actors and accordingly, the focus is on them for the full two hours and twenty minutes. (That and the off the wall - literally, special effects) Andrew Garfield is truly a wonder and in this he brings the torment of the young and torn superhero to the screen in a skilful fashion. Joining him once more - Emma Stone as Gwen Stacey, his off again, on again girlfriend and Sally Field, his aunt May, worrying and caring for him in near equal measure. Joining him for the first time, Dane DeHaan as his long lost friend Harry Osborn (his father is portrayed by Chris Cooper), and Jamie Foxx as Max Dillon, who becomes the title villain of this piece. Marton Csokas, is a doctor and Paul Giamatti pops in too, near the end. ...

Bryan Singer, director of the X Men films (most of them), directs this thrill a millisecond ride to perfection. Millisecond may be overstating things, but considering this film has giants as the bad guys, with the incomparable Bill Nighy as their two headed leader, well - overstated turns to understated, very quickly. Stanley Tucci and the rest of the cast are quite excellent too. Nicholas Hoult, known for Wah Wah, Warm Bodies, X Men Origins (and soon the sequel) portrays the archetype Jack, here a farm boy with his head in the clouds, who soon is swept up into them - literally, when some beans, water and a Princess (Eleanor Tomlinson) come into his life. The plot line kind of has a Shanghai Noon vibe to it, which is interesting. He joins the King's (Ian McShane) men on a mission to rescue her, which includes Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner and Eddie Marsan. With some spectacular special effects, giant bean stalks are climbed on and the giants' world is something else to l...

Once again, a sequel that is just as entertaining, if not more than the first, is made. A new trend in film making, long may it continue. That said, one of the crucial aspects, keeping the same actors from the original was slightly  overlooked with one - Josh Dallas who portrayed Fandral was kept too busy with the TV series Once Upon a Time - to be able to film this. So Zachary Levi stepped in, who was actually in line to play the character originally. And unlike sequels that attempt changes in casting, its not painfully obvious. Alright, as far as minor missteps in sequels are concerned, not a big deal. Moving on. The new villain of the day, the main one - Malekith, returns to darken the doorstep - literally - with the aether and his army of Dark Elves, not a cheerful bunch that you'd expect to be helping Father Christmas with his annual journey, more a black eyed army of fighters out to destroy the universe. And it gets personal this time, Thor's love Jane Foster is...