Reviewapalooza 2007: The Simpson's Movie, This Is England, Common

The Simpson's Movie

One of Television's longest running shows has finally made it to a full-length feature film. Yes I'm talking about The Simpson's. This film is about the city of Springfield cleaning up their local reservoir after it was polluted. Well everything is fine and cleaned until Homer Simpson dumps a pile pig crap into the reservoir that leads the government to seals the town of Springfield over a big dome. Then it's up to the whole family to try and save the town before the government decides to get rid of it.

The Simpson's Movie was an enjoyable funny film to watch. It surprised me that the film was better then I expected because I'm one of those people who haven't watched the TV show in years and thought it was just going to be a rehash of the television show. I thought the writers of the film did a good job making the film funny, as I got most of the jokes. I liked how some of the new characters to the Simpson's universe were spoofed like Russ Cargill, and Arnold Schwarzenegger characters, as they were done very well. The film also has some good cameos too from Tom Hanks (Charlie Wilson's War, Saving Private Ryan), Albert Brooks, Joe Mantegna and Green Day. The only problem I had with the film was that fact that it felt like an extended episode of the television series at times with some original humor added, but that probably just me.

With that aside, I thought the film was surprisingly good. The movie deserves to be ranked up there with the classic episodes from the television series. The Simpson Movie is a good starting point for all those haven't watched the series or heard about one of television's legendary shows.

4 stars
Rated PG
87 Mins

This Is England

This is England is semi-autobiographical film that takes place in 1983 where it exposes a dark side of modern Britain. The film is about a 12 year-old boy (Thomas Turgoose) who is grieving over his father's death. Without a father figure in this live, he runs into a gang of skinheads after he was tormented at school. This gang becomes his second family, as the young boy discovers parties and girls. Soon the fun ends, when the leader (Stephen Graham) of the group returns home from prison. Soon the young boy is drawn is into more uncomfortable areas of the group, as this anger for his father's death makes him vulnerable to the leaders hatred views. The film was semi-based on the life, of the film's director, Shane Meadows (Twenty-Four Seven).

Don't be surprised to see a repost of this review in the December edition of the Underrated film blog this upcoming Friday on my myspace page, as it going to feature the most underrated films of 2007. This is England is truly great. Director Shane Meadows does a great job directing and depicting the shocking and brutal underworld of England. His screenplay does go into what it's like for a lonely kid who is trying to be accepted by people and falling into the wrong crowd. There were also were some different parallels that the director uses in depicting the gang in the film, as in the beginning of the film where they were living life and were having fun until the middle of the film where the leader comes in and changes the dynamic of the group for the worst. Meadows does a great job in directing 15 year old actor Thomas Turgoose, as I imagine it's tough to get a great lead performance from a kid but the director pulls it off. I thought Turgoose's performance was excellent. The film also features a great supporting performance by Stephen Graham as this sadistic leader of the gang. His performance is probably one the most overlooked performances of the year. He does a great job making his character more messiah-like leader type.

I highly urge you to check out this great-directed film from Shane Meadows. This is England is truly one of the year's the best film to come out of Britain.

5 Stars
Not Rated
103 Mins

http://www.thisisenglandmovie.co.uk

Common

(Repost from the Myspace Film Community page)

Common is about two twenty something men (Jordan Gray (who also worte the Screenplay) and John Robert Johnson (who also produced this film) who are on a road trip from Tennessee to California around the Fourth of July weekend. They went on this road trip to meet up with a friend and his wife out in California. During their trip, their relationship with one another gets tested when their relationship becomes strained, as tensions erupt between the two. The film was directed by first-time full- length feature director Jeremy Fiest and was shot for 15,000 (US) dollars.

Common is a very unique road tip movie. Director Jeremy Fiest does a very job in making this film a very interesting narrative piece to watch. I liked how he mixes the title sequences with the story, as it helps move the movie along. Another thing that Jeremy Fiest did well with this film was the photography of it. I thought he it captured the heartland of America very well, as the scenery looked very nice for a very low budgeted movie. His actors give exceedingly good performances here. They had good chemistry with each other and brought their characters to life. The screenplay from Jordan Gray was very good. His script does a good job giving depth to each of the main characters. It made the characters and the film interesting. Also, the screenplay does a good job mixing the road trip portion of the movie with dinner sequence so that the film doesn't get dull or boring during the road trip portion of this film.

Common is currently playing on the festival circuit. I recommend you check out this independent gem, if it's playing at festival near you because Common is rare road trip film that focuses on characters and relationships between friends.

5 Stars
Not Rated
85 Mins


http://www.myspace.com/commonthefilm