The Inbetweeners MovieLove the TV series so I was looking forward to seeing this immensely and to a degree I wasn't too disappointed. Its not as good as the half hour episodes but I didn't expect it to be, there are allot of gross moments during the film which are funny but not as much good dialog, I believe the characters aren't quite as good as they used to be really.
The original series was brilliant and allot of that was down to the characters, Bird as 'Will' was the main reason I got into the show with his fantastic performance in the very first episode. His facial expressions, the way he moved and his little quips which were fast witty and you could kinda relate to him. The show has lost that somewhat as its progressed and the film really does show this, there is very little really good funny dialog in the film which is a shame, allot of swearing of course as you would expect but that loses its charm quickly.
So the film is your typical English youth on holiday plot and it does wreak of it haha the type of place they go to, the type of young people there, the look of the area etc...without trying to sound like a snob its all very common, chavy and very accurate on how British youth behave abroad in certain Euro destinations. The plot is really very unoriginal and was done before by Harry Enfield with 'kevin n Perry Go Large' so I was disappointed when I read about it, there is a heavy romantic side to the film too which is nice and expected I guess which does equal the predictable happy ending with the guys all slightly growing up and reversing on their attitudes.
Nothing too much to shout about here really, there are some very funny moments (not many) and there are allot of really gross out moments and cheap laughs. Not as clever as the TV episodes and not as witty but for me this really is down to the fact they aren't in the school environment anymore where allot of the humour you could relate to from your own school days. If you like the TV show then I reckon you will enjoy this but maybe feel disappointed by its lack of sharp bite but I'm also sure you probably know to expect that.
The first series was and still is the best, the very first episode being, for me, the highlight with Bird at his best.
The Football Factory (2004)Based loosely on a novel and directed by Millwall supporter Nick Love who clearly enjoys hard British gangs and fights you start to wonder if he participated in things like these himself haha. Basically this film is about football hooligans which belong to 'Firms' and enjoy nothing better than to beat the crap out of each other every weekend, whatever your poison I guess
The film is actually pretty decent and does keep you glued to the screen as oppsing firms clash, lets be honest here there is nothing else on offer really, you know its about footie hooligans and you just wanna watch them fight lol, this film mainly follows Millwall and Chelsea.
The plot is reasonably interesting as it follows Danny Dyer and his moral dilemma of wether or not to continue being in a firm, nothing amazingly original and not too hard to predict either but like I said you watch the film for the violence period.
You know what your getting with this so for a footie hooligan flick its probably the best out there with a good cast of your regular cockney lads. Doesn't paint a very good picture of England lets be honest but truth be told we're just a bunch of hardnuts
Chaplin (1992)Not a huge success upon release and I'm not really sure why as this lavish epic is thoroughly interesting, charming and well made.
Taken a from a point of narration by Chaplin during an interview with a fictional character played by Hopkins the film simply takes you through Chaplin's life from one event to another although with many gaps. I'm not completely up with the life of Charlie but I have read that the film does take artistic license with the truth and of course skips allot of history. This really can't be faulted as my personal view from someone who knows very little about his life is 'does that matter?'
The film shows much of his upbringing from the dirty streets of Victorian London to his first jobs in the US, his breaking through into the business, becoming rich and world famous and his problems upon returning to the UK after the the first World War. Most of his big films are also covered in the bio and show just how much swing he had during his reign, the issue he had with controversial ideas and how his close friendships with top stars of the time like
Doug Fairbanks helped him.
The film looks excellent in every sense and every scene but clearly the main attraction is Downey Jr and his portrayal of Chaplin. Not only does he genuinely look like Charlie but he manages to mimic the moves, walk, facial expressions and even the comedic slapstick Charlie amazed us with in his movies. To watch Downey making the classic films within the main film you would actually think Chaplin was still alive today starring in his own bio, amazing work to get it right.
Other cast members all add to the superb film both in their looks and portrayals, an amazing line up of known stars from both the US and the UK ranging from Dan Aykroyd to Diane Lane to John Thaw to Milla Jovovich. Kevin Kline is probably one of the better casting choices as he really does seem to belong in that kind of era, born at the wrong time methinks hehe and his lovely showcase as Fairbanks shows this.
As with any film of this nature some sequences are maybe over the top and heavy handed to create that teary eyed emotion but I guess that is to be expected and required to a degree. Never the less a worthy film from Attenborough that has been forgotten and easily sits in the top twenty of all time bio pics.
