Animal Kingdom

OMFG!!!! What a film! It was one of the most stressful hours (and a bit) of my movie watching life.

This has got to be one of the best crime genre films out there, definitely the best Australian crime film made . The story of a criminal family in Melbourne and the lengths they go to to look out for themselves is engrossing and compelling..We sat at the edge of our seats the entire movie, wondering what was going to happen, who would die, when? How? Hoping that 17 year old Jay would be ok, but knowing that he was a lost cause, as they all were. From the opening scene, you are shocked over and over again by this violent, confronting, frightening film..

The performances are amazing, Ben Mendelsohn and Jackie Weaver are outstanding. I don't know if anyone knows what i mean when i say this, but I think that Australian actors do silence very well. Russell crow in gladiator and in state of play, Nicole Kidman in The Hours and Birth, to name a few. You can see what they're thinking and they don't need to say a word. They have such presence. Mendelsohn and Weaver fill the room up with their anger and fear and it is palpable. So so good..

The movie would not have been the same without the music, which was oppressive and haunting and stressful. Beautiful.

This film won the grand jury prize at Sundance and deservedly so. 5/5. Could not recommend it more highly!!!!

Prince of Persia

I took the kids to see this on a Saturday night with no expectations whatsoever. The trailer looked horrid and Jake Gyllenhall all buffed up is something I have no desire to see. Don't get me wrong, Jake is Donnie Darko, and such I could never dislike him, but to me, he is Indie, definitely not big blockbuster and I was dreading the bad mistake I think this choice was for him..

Ok, didn't hate it. Really enjoyed it actually. It was about 150 million times better than Clash of the Titans. The there were several twists in the storyline that were not predictable, and unlike Clah of the Titans, it did not take itself too seriously. There were many tongue in check moments and the cast seemed to be having a good time. Jake has his cheeky smile, Gemma Arterton is beautiful, Ben Kingsley in my opinion is always best as a baddie.

Special effects swear cool, there was loads of action, and the locations were gorgeous.

So once again, if you can leave your critical brain at home and just enjoy the ride, you may enjoy this movie too.

I'm going to change ratings t9 t stars rather than 10 from now on....

2.5/5