SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE

In 2008, this British/Indian co-production earned no less that 8 Academy Awards, amongst others for Best Picture and Best Director for renowned director Danny Boyle.

The story is about 18 year old Jamal Malik (excellently portrayed by young British actor, Dev Patel, in his first major film roll) who is suspected of cheating on the local version of the popular TV game show, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? And while he is being interrogated by the police (a bit unnecessarily cruel by times for this type of movie) we get to know him through flashbacks from his life growing up with his brother as orphans in the slums of Mumbai.

As mentioned before, some scenes are a bit disturbing for the typical coming of age theme of this movie but then, on the other hand, is that not the stark reality for countless of children growing up throughout the existence of mankind? Some (Charles Dickens comes to mind) might even go so far and say that this is the rule rather than the exception for some parts of the world...

Be that as it may, in the end the message (regardless of how you interpret it) is a powerful one. Therefore, I gave it a solid 3 out of 5 stars.

Trailer link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwiU94p9XPA

   The two young boys that actually stole the whole show...

  

PERCY JACKSON AND THE LIGHTNING THIEF

I often comment that today's sci-fi/fantasy action movies are too much like extended video games. Well, this one is not. Although the special effects and fast paced roler-coaster-ride of a story line makes your head spin, there is definite structure to it all. Based on the very popular Percy Jackson And The Olympians series of youth books by Rick Riordan, this is the first film in the series.

In this, teenager Percy Jackson (wonderfully portrayed by Logan Lerman) learns that he is the son of Poseidon, the mythical Greek god of the sea and therefore a demi-god (or half-god-half-human) himself. As such, he also discovers that he has some awesome special powers but when the powerful lighting bolt belonging to his father's brother, Zeus, is stolen and he is the prime suspect, he needs all his new found powers and some more as he embarks on a quest to try and prove his innocence.

The mixture of modern times and ancient Greek mythology first seems strange but amazingly enough this fantasy movie pulls it off and makes it work. If you are a fan of this genre, then this DVD is a must for your collection. I rated it 4 out of 5 stars.

Trailer link: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xko1Mx5w4tg

 Cast of The Lightning Thief

PERCY JACKSON: SEA OF MONSTERS

This is the next episode in this franchise and if the rest (there are five books in the series so far) is anything like this to go by, it is destined to become yet another cult favorite just like Harry Potter, Narnia or the Twilight series did.

Once again, young Percy (still played by Logan Lerman) is confronted with a seemingly impossible task: that is to find the legendary/mystical Golden Fleece in order to save, not only his own world, but also that of the gods. In this movie we also get to know Percy's half brother, Tyson (played by newcomer Douglas Smith). And although, like Percy he is a demi-god, unlike Percy, he is a cyclops! (For the uninitiated, that is a one eyed monster.)

Even though the cast of this sequel does not sport the myriad of big star names as the first one, the acting by its young, relatively unknown cast is first rate. As for The Lightning Thief I awarded this DVD with 4 out of 5 stars.

Trailer link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5KoOtiuSjuI

Cast of The Sea Of Monsters

THE LAST STARFIGHTER

In 1984 the digital special effects used in this movie was ground breaking. Today it looks a bit dated but at the time it was considered state of the art and paved the way for the type of computer generated special effects we became used to. Besides that distinction there is really not much more to this film.

By now even the story has become over familiar: Boy (Lance Guest) and Girl (Catharine Mary Steward) falls in love; Boy gets transported to another galaxy where he defeats some alien villain; Boy returns to earth to fetch Girl so that they can live happily ever after somewhere in space. The acting, though, is good, especially that of late great Robert Preston (Victoria Victoria, How The West Was Won and many, many more) in his very last film roll.

This DVD is really only recommended for kids who enjoy playing video games wherein you can shoot at as many space enemies as possible. Subsequently I rated it at only 2 out of 5 stars for my collection. 

Trailer link:  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7NaxBxFWSo

 Chris Hebert and Lance Guest as brothers in the final scene

DUTCH

What a delightful comedy! At first I did not expect too much but was pleasantly surprised as this 1991 movie went along.

Ed O'Neill (who became famous thanks to the rolls he played in sitcoms like Married...With Children and more recently Modern Family) is Dutch Dooley, a well-to-do middle class working stiff who gets involved with a wealthy big shot's ex-wife. When he volunteers to fetch her spoilt brat of a son (Ethan Randall in one of his very first film rolls and who also later on starred in A Far Off Place - see blog entry for Monday 7 July 2014) from his fancy prep-school for Thanksgiving, he has no idea what he lets himself in for...or is it rather the other way round?. However you see it, the two of them embark on a road trip that...well let's just say none of them will ever forget!

By times this film manages to be hilarious whilst at the same time heart rendering (take for example the scenes in the homeless shelter). As far as comedies go this one is really good and I can highly recommend it as healthy family fun. That is also why I gave it 4 out of 5 stars for my collection. 

Trailer link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Weu6uon9oew

             Ethan Randall and Ed O'Neill