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Jonathan's Review of 'Up'
In the fifteen years or so since 'Toy Story' first made Pixar's name as an inspired creator of feature length animated films, not every release has been an unqualified success; 'Cars' for example, sticks out as a production which was a little underwhelming.
Though the fact that it sticks out is a good measure of the consistency of Pixar's output; technologically brilliant and always original.
So 'Up' is part of a young but proud tradition - and this remarkable film deserves a place right up there alongside not just the very best of
Pixar's movies, but among the greatest animated films of all time.
That's not simply because it's beautiful to watch and hear, and paced to perfection. It also has perhaps the finest screenplay of any film of this kind I've seen, carrying such emotional punch in its opening third that I'm almost - almost - reluctant to see it again.
A story about an overweight boy scout and a recently widowed old geezer tying thousands of balloons to his house doesn't sound like obvious movie material, but clearly co-writers and directors Bob Peterson and Pete Docter found the idea intriguing, and their creativity and daring has been rewarded with a unique, wonderful film which families will enjoy
for generations, and one which I would dare to describe as a masterpiece. -
Jonathan's Review of 'Zombieland'
'Zombieland' takes the conventions and staple ingredients of zombie movies and plays around with them in an undeniably violent but hugely enjoyable way.
Let's be realistic, in that this isn't a film that's going to be troubling the voters come Oscar time, but it's hard to beat for fresh, bold ideas and a sheer sense of fun.
A key factor in providing the latter is the performance of Woody Harrelson, in what may be one of the defining roles of his career. He's ideally suited to the role of the determined but cool zombie slayer, and the amiable eccentricity of an actor beloved by taxi drivers everywhere is never far from the surface.
Abigail Breslin is also tremendous, and even if Jesse Eisenberg - so good in 'Adventureland' - could do with finding a performing style that isn't all but identical to that of Michael Cera, the film doesn't suffer any more than superficial damage.
And while it would be cruel to divulge the details, I can tell you that Zombieland contains one of the most brilliantly unexpected guest star cameos I've seen in years - just one of the surprises in a splendidly entertaining movie, which evolves from a gory zombie comedy to a rather touching commentary on the importance of family life.
Credits
- Presenter
- Jonathan Ross
- Director
- Howard Brenner
- Producer
- Tom Webber
