As a Tarantino apologist, I'm prepared to forgive how self-indulgent Django is, but I can imagine many won't. It's not as consistently engaging as Inglourious, but when this movie works it's positively on-fire. Waltz and DiCaprio are good, but Foxx and Jackson are outstanding.
Despite three very distinct acts, the narrative feels like it's playing second-fiddle to quotable lines and messy gunshots.
The fans will love it, but everyone else?
Fairly.
Yes.
Almost.
Cinema.
No.
Yes.
YES!*1.
*1 When Don Johnson's raiding party are on the retreat. Fucking ace!
DISCLAIMERS:
• ^^^ That's dry, British humour, and most likely sarcasm or facetiousness.
• Yen's blog contains harsh language and even harsher notions of propriety. Reader discretion is advised.
• This is a personal blog. The views and opinions expressed here represent my own thoughts (at the time of writing) and not those of the people, institutions or organisations that I may or may not be related with unless stated explicitly.
Gangster Squad Cert: 15 / 113 mins / Dir. Ruben Fleischer
So good, I watched it twice.
Giving Gangster Squad a second-pass, I've figured out what was bugging me about Gosling's performance. He seems to be aiming for a quippy, post-Tarantino delivery, but the script isn't sassy enough to support that.
Everyone else plays their lines straight, and Gosling sticks out like a sore thumb as a result. It's a shame, and stops this really good film from being really great.
…ish.
Yes.
Yes.
…DVD.
Yes.
Yes.
Yes!*1
*1 Again, I could have sworn that during the jailbreak sequence, there's a low-level Wilhelm™ inserted..
DISCLAIMERS:
• ^^^ That's dry, British humour, and most likely sarcasm or facetiousness.
• Yen's blog contains harsh language and even harsher notions of propriety. Reader discretion is advised.
• This is a personal blog. The views and opinions expressed here represent my own thoughts (at the time of writing) and not those of the people, institutions or organisations that I may or may not be related with unless stated explicitly.
Now, as you know, I love Star Wars. And I listen to a lot of podcasts. But for all that, there's only one SW podcast I download: The ForceCast. I've been a listener since 2006, and it's been the only one I've needed, with all corners of fandom catered for. That's about to change though, as this announcement from TFN heralded the arrival of...
Jason Swank and Jimmy McInerney, who've been ably piloting The ForceCast as a duo since 2008, are stepping out on their own with Rebel Force Radio; a new show which will doubtless provide all the Star Wars news, interviews and commentary we love, with the warmth, humour and respect we've become accustomed to.
If you're into Star Wars, old or new, I can give these chaps no higher recommendation. Rebel Force Radio begins broadcasting on Friday 19th January 2013.
DISCLAIMERS:
• ^^^ That's dry, British humour, and most likely sarcasm or facetiousness.
• Yen's blog contains harsh language and even harsher notions of propriety. Reader discretion is advised.
• This is a personal blog. The views and opinions expressed here represent my own thoughts (at the time of writing) and not those of the people, institutions or organisations that I may or may not be related with unless stated explicitly.
Gangster Squad Cert: 15 / 113 mins / Dir. Ruben Fleischer
A brooding score, glistening sets and some slick, stylised camerawork stop Gangster Squad feeling too much like a period piece, although Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone look so out of place in 1949 it's amazing.
But despite featuring some of the most clichéd dialogue I've ever heard, I had enormous fun. Engaging characters and sporadic bursts of gleeful violence compensate for the tropes nicely.
Gangster Squad revels in its body-count.
…ish.
Yes.
Yes.
…DVD.
Yes.
Yes.
Yes!*1
*1 Pretty damned sure I heard one during the jailbreak sequence.
DISCLAIMERS:
• ^^^ That's dry, British humour, and most likely sarcasm or facetiousness.
• Yen's blog contains harsh language and even harsher notions of propriety. Reader discretion is advised.
• This is a personal blog. The views and opinions expressed here represent my own thoughts (at the time of writing) and not those of the people, institutions or organisations that I may or may not be related with unless stated explicitly.
