Following is an electronic press release published in its entirety as a service to our readers.
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Dragon*Con may only be twenty-two days away, but we are far from done! Just a few of our exciting new guests and performers are:
Look up in the air… it’s a bird… it’s a plane… no! It’s a super hero changing history while boldly going where no one else has gone and breaking world records along the way!
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FanDominion
Get your geek on.DragonCon: New guests to include Scott Bakula, Stan Lee, Brandon Routh and James and Oliver Phelps
Film Review: ‘Nanny McPhee’: A disciplined treat with a magical touch
Nanny McPhee (2005)
NO SPOILERS
Of all the so-called family films I’ve seen in the past 12 months, two have stood out as films I’ve told adults to go see – whether they have children or not. One is Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, the second is Nanny McPhee.
This film is a modern classic. Like the latest potter movie, and like the classic Disney films of the 1930s and 1940s, the makers of Nanny McPhee know that evil and dark times are required to make the good times matter.
In the title role, Emma Thompson plays the magical Nanny McPhee, who takes on a physical appearance that matches her charges’ behaviour. The more ugly the children’s behavior, the more ugly the Nanny appears.
As the best-known actor cast in a major role in the film, she succeeds in keeping her supporting role from overpowering the other actors and plot of this sweet film. In a bit part, the films biggest star, Angela Lansbury,
does a delightful turn as the pompous Aunt Adelaide, who is near sighted in more than one way.
The true strength of this delightful film is that it is a true family film. It falls happily into a category of its own. It isn’t mind-numbingly boring to adults like most movies for children. Emma Thompson also wrote the script, which is adapted from the Nurse Matilda series of children’s books by Christianna Brand.
It is no wonder that Thompson has won an Academy Award for her abilities to adapt literature for to the big screen. With Nanny McPhee she again does an outstanding job. Here the adults have human faults and the children talk like children, not miniature grownups.
Thompson has a gift for dialogue which is rare, Thompson sets a rhythm and lyrical quality in all of her scripts that are reminiscent of the playfulness in some of Shakespeare’s farces.
Nanny McPhee is one of those films that didn’t set the box office on fire, but is destined to live for years as a classic family film due to its magical mix of wit and moral relevance.
| RATINGS Overall: 8 out of 10 MPAA Rating: PG Genre:Fantasy Sex: None. Violence: Slapstick violence. Some implied dark humor. Special Effects: Average. CAST |
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Film Review: ‘Goblet of Fire’ a darker, better effort
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)
Before I begin this review, I have to admit that although I am an avid reader, I have never read any of the Harry Potter books. And, although I have seen all of previous three films, I would not consider myself to be a Harry Potter fan.
Although I am a fan of good juvenile fiction, the Potter series always struck me as … well … to juvenile. The stories were a little unoriginal and dealt way too much with the fictional sport of quidditch… ugh. (I’m not a big sports fan either.)
But for some reason (yet another one of the things we do for our spouse when we are married!) I found myself standing in a VERY LONG LINE on opening night a couple of Fridays ago. In the brisk autumn air, I tried my hardest not to be annoyed by the throngs of giggly school girls who also were standing in line, gossiping loudly and obnoxiously about boys and the weird “nerd” fan adult types who made up the other large portion of Potter premiere night in-line standers.
After we finally made it into the theatre and were seated, the movie started.
Now, not being a Potter fan and not having much in the expectations department for this flick, I sat there underwhelmed… for about the first 4 minutes.
Director Mike Newell, (best known for chick-flicks starring Hugh Grant or Julia Roberts like Four Wedding and a Funeral and Mona Lisa Smile) deftly used his chick flick creds to pull the emotional strings befitting a tale involving teen angst. It’s been more than two decades – not since John Hughes’ Brat Pack-era triumphs of Sixteen Candles and The Breakfast Club has a film involving teens been so entertaining.
But it didn’t stop there. The action of the film was superb. The dark moments were very dark Newell even added a few frights that one would not expect in a children’s film. He made the dangers seem real – and dangerous.
The best praise I have for this film is that for a two-and-a-half hour film, it didn’t feel like a long movie. I was interested throughout.
The weakest part of the film, I’m sad to say was the writing, which was consistent with the rest of the series. I know J.K. Rowling has made millions of dollars on the back of the Potter franchise. But I found the story to be on the contrived side and a tad derivative.
The young cast and director did wonders with what they had to work with and pulled off a film that not only pleases fans. But also reaches out to people like me who do not consider themselves to be Potter fans … yet.
| RATINGS Overall: 8 out of 10 MPAA Rating: PG-13 Genre:Fantasy Sex: Minor adult themes and mild sexual innuendo situations when Harry is taking a bath and is being “chased around the tub” by a randy spirit. Violence: Fantasy violence. At least one well-known character dies a violent death on screen. Special Effects: Very well done Other: This film – darker in tone, may not be appropriate for children prone to nightmares. CAST |
Trailer Park: Narnia, Harry Potter, Aeon Flux, Slither
As we enter the holiday movie season, film companies are pumping out more trailer preview teasers to the Internet.
Here is a collection of the latest offerings for SF/F type films opening within the next few weeks:
Chicken Little
[Latest Trailer] Source: Apple Trailers
Genre: Science Fiction / Fantasy
Opens: November 4, 2005
Notable Cast/Crew: Computer Animated
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
[Latest Trailer] Source: Apple Trailers
Genre: Fantasy
Opens: November 18, 2005
Notable Cast Crew: Favorites return
Aeon Flux
[Latest Trailer]
Genre: Science Fiction
Opens: December 2, 2005
Notable Cast/Crew: Charlize Theron
Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe
[Latest Trailer] Source: AOL Moviefone
Genre: High Fantasy
Opens: Dec. 9, 2005 Notable Cast/Crew: Tilda Swinton
Slither
[Latest trailer] Source: Apple Trailers
Genre: Comedy Horror/Sci Fi/Fantasy
Opens: March 31, 2006
Notable Cast/Crew: Nathan Fillion