Sarah Jessica Parker – Mosher'sUnimaginativelyEntitledBlog

I actually managed to squeeze four movies in this week due to some nice scheduling at the CineWorld. I’m somewhat busy right now so the reviews will be brief.

The Road

Plot-in-a-nutshell: Father and son travel across the US post-nuclear holocaust trying to find safety.

Sounds like a good plot and the film looks beautiful. All faded colours to a point where you could almost be watching a black and white film. Viggo Mortensen looks skinny and haggard as the dying father, while the kid who plays his son is just annoying and squeally at times.

Thing is… nothing much happens. Every time they meet some nasties, they hide and/or run away. Until the next ones. It’s just one series of non-episodes after another. Boring, uninteresting and tedious.

It’s the kind of thing that will garner OSCAR nominations – arty and pointless. On the other hand it’s just not entertaining, and not worth your cash.

Did You Hear About The Morgans?

Plot-in-a-nutshell: The Morgans (Hugh Grant and Sarah Jessica Parker) are separated yet, due to being forced into protective custody in small-town backwater America, start to rekindle their relationship.

Yes, it sounds awful. Yes, Hugh Grant plays his favourite character – Hugh Grant. Yes, SJP (as well as having confusing football-sounding initials) looks like a miserable horse. But by gum it works.

The dialogue is snappy and witty. Grant’s comic timing is, frankly, superb. None of the situations or slapstick is so over-the-top that it can’t be taken too seriously. The supporting cast are good enough in their own right.

I am amazed to say that I really enjoyed this film. Not a classic, but for a night out at the cinema it’s really good entertainment value.

Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll

Plot-in-a-nutshell: biopic of Ian Dury, polio-suffering lead singer of The Blockheads.

This film is superb. I’m not a huge fan of The Blockheads, though I do know the classics that made the charts when I was a kid. However, the way the story is told held my interest throughout.

While large parts are just “film”, there are some interesting jumps back into Dury’s past as well as some very off-the-wall sequences using animation and bizarre set pieces. It’s unusual, but given Dury’s quirky personality it just works.

What is amazingly clear is that Andy Serkis was by far and away the best choice for the lead role. Looking at him alongside photos of the “real” Dury is staggering. Given that the film’s in Cockney, I reckon it at least stands a shot at Best Foreign Language Film at the OSCARs, though Serkis deserves some kind of award for this performance.

Not exactly family viewing due to the language, violence and drug use but an incredibly captivating film.

It’s Complicated

Plot-in-a-nutshell: A divorced couple start bonking again despite one of them being re-married. Comedy ensues. Or not.

Another film about a separated couple, with an acclaimed cast but this one lacking a major component of a comedy – laughs. Morgans is far better than this dragged-out effort. There are moments, but they’re too far apart and not as funny anything in the other film.

Steve Martin continues his new habit of not being funny, but at least he wasn’t even trying in this. Meryl Streep puts on a good performance and Alec Baldwin is semi-sleezy as the ex. However, they just can’t save a poor, plodding script.

If you fancy a rom-com or a date movie, go and see Morgans.