Christina Aguilera

Bionic: Deluxe Edition [2010]

3/5

With people like M.I.A, Santigold, Goldfrapp, Ladytron and Sia on board for this project, it's hard to imagine how the final product for this album became so uninteresting. Christina chose the best people for this album, and she seems to have merely sprinkled their work over a handful of tracks, and chosen more generic pop songs produced by 'Tricky Stewart' to make up most of the tracklist.

What's even more baffling is that this album was meant to be her big first step into electronic music, so how the 'electronic' artists helping her out got pushed to the back of the line just makes no sense. Either she had NO idea what she got herself into, or she wanted to play it as safe as possible. Either way, she's missed the boat.

There are a few songs that do stay in line with what direction this album should have gone in. The title track, 'Bionic' [produced by the epic Santigold] is a nice opener to the album, 'Elastic Love' [produced by M.I.A] has a cool new wave sound sound to it, and 'Glam', although lyrically cringe worthy and forced, does have some decent electro production on it. Other than those three songs though, we don't get much else from the world of electronic music. The Ladytron produced track 'Birds of Prey' was even pasted onto the bonus disc of the deluxe edition, while awfully bland songs like 'Desdunodet' and 'Vanity' made the "official" standard tracklist. Huh?............a bit of a mess, yes.

Speaking of 'Vanity', talk about atrocious!!!!! it's the worst song she has ever done in her career and one of the most inflated ego driven pieces of crap i've ever heard. The lyrics MUST be heard to be believed! it's just unbearably tragic to hear. How anyone can stand listening to anymore than 30 seconds of it is beyond it. Just awful. Not to mention how it made it on the album when Goldfrapp's entry didn't event make ANY of the discs!.

It's not ALL bad though, as generic as most of it is, and as awful as a few of the songs are, there is some enjoyable stuff on the album as well. 'WooHoo' is an IMMENSE club track, and some of the ballads are really nicely produced, mainly 'Lift Me Up' and my favourite off the album, 'I Am', such a beautiful track.

If you think of the album and see the producers it had on board, it comes across as a bit of a failure. If you ignore that though, it's a DECENT ENOUGH pop album for the most part. After 4 years, you think she'd be a little MORE adventurous with it though. I'm certainly playing the album a lot, but it's nowhere near what it should have been, and it barely touches the records her peers put out like Britney or Gaga, who know pop like the back of their hand. I struggled with giving the alum a 2.5 or a 3, but i decided with a 3 after i heard the bonus disc.

I appreciate Christina's attempt, but maybe she should stick to what she does best.............which ain't electronic pop music.

DVD Round up: May, 2010

A Nightmare On Elm St [Blu-ray]

I wish the whole series was in HD, but this is the only one.....for now. Classic 80's horror, gotta love it.

Gunslinger Girl 1 & 2

Ah, 2 dorra, 2 dorra! It's been a while since i've watched an Anime. I better get around to seeing volume 2. 1 was good stuff.

The Neverending Story 2

Omg, my childhood!............well, sort of. Not one of my most beloved kids films, but one i enjoyed catching as a kid anyway. Found it for like....$3!.


A Clockwork Orange [Blu-ray]

Trippy, smart and funny..........well.....funny in that sick sort of way. I appreciate this movie the more i see it over the years. I look forward to catching it again when the mood strikes me. Kubrick was a cool director. Love the music in this too.

Never Sleep Again: An Elm St Legacy

A 4 hour long doco covering the 7 original Elm St films. The only making of doco's iv'e seen that come anywhere near as thourough are the ones found on the Lord of the Rings extended DVD's. It's a beast of a film! It's getting raves all over the place. LOVE IT, and worth EVERY penny!

Wild Things

Omg, remember this!.......Neve as a goth, Denise getting champaign poured on her giant tits, and Kevin Bacon's big dick in the shower!!!! trashtastic!

True Blood: Season 2 [Blu-ray]

I was going to wait to get this for a few months, but i couldn't help myself. I'm such a big fan, it'd drive me nuts knowing it's just SITTING there down the road in my local shop and that i haven't got it in my hands.

My Favourite Albums Of ALL TIME! #3 Boomkat A Million Trillion Stars [2008]
Boomkat released their first album way back in 2003. They had a minor hit with the lead single 'The Wreckoning' [great song!], and vanished soon after that. I assume they were dropped from their label, because we didn't hear much else from them for 5 years. I was disappointed, i wanted to hear what else Taryn and her brother [forgot his name] could come up with.

Then, one day in late 2008, Boomkat put up a website containing 13 streaming new songs. I was so excited to hear them, and when i played the songs one by one, i soon realized they had something REALLY special happening with their second album. I played the album over and over, i loved it, but i also realized that the album wasn't as commercial as it needed to be to get radio attention. I figured it would go nowhere, and a year and a half on, the album still hasn't even had a physical release. It has hit iTunes, thankfully, but the exposure for the album seemed to never reach any decent heights, so Boomkat have become one severely underrated act.

Boomkat have a very original sound to their music. Their second album is a mix of pop [Runaway], lite rock [Lonely Child], electronic [Run Boy] and a lot of scratch board/trip hop [Four Track Dub]. They're very eclectic, but still have enough of their own vibe in their music to not sound like a mish mosh. That's a hard thing to do.
Taryn Manning provides all the vocals, and her brother does all the music. You may recognize Taryn from the big screen as well. When she's not singing in Boomkat, she's doing movies. She's most famous for her role in 'Hustle & Flow', where she played a hooker. She also starred in 'Crossroads' with Britney Spears [among many other movies].
Taryn's voice is full of attitude, it's raspy and sexy, but it can also be soft as well for the right song. I guess a diverse voice needs to match the diverse sounds of this album, so it makes sense that she can go between each style of song so easily.

I have NO idea where the album will end up, maybe it will forever remain unreleased and be loved only by their very small fan base online? Either way, it's a fantastic record, and until things change, it will remain one of my most unknown loved albums ever.

1. Run Boy [Here I Come] 4/5

2. Lonely Child 5/5
3. Stomp 5/5
4. Runaway 5/5
5. Elated 4/5
6. Not My Fault 4/5
7. Four Track Fub 5/5
8. Don't Be Shy 4/5
9. Instead 5/5
10. Fall On Me 5/5
11. Wish I Could 2/5
12. Burn 5/5
13. Say Hi 4/5
14. Dressed In Grief 3/5

Kelis

Fleshtone [2010]

2.5/5

Kelis ditches her urban sound for some euro dance on this album, and i can't say the result is all that amazing.

My first issue with the album is that it follows the same sound throughout all 9 songs, so by the time i get to track 5, i have no idea where the hell i am and which song is what. The only song on the whole album that really deviates from the rest of the tracks is the first song, 'Intro'.

The blending of each song into the next is a nice touch, but sometimes the small outro each song has attached to the end of it is actually better than the full length track that follows it.

My main gripe with this album though is how uninspired the whole project is. We've heard all this since Ministry of Sound decided to release house mix albums in the 90's. There's just nothing here that makes me want to care, since it's all like one long generic dance remix. Madonna released her own euro dance inspired album back in 2005 with Confessions on a Dancefloor, and that was FULL of life. Good lyrics, great atmosphere, and samey songs that at least were unique enough in their own way for me to separate them from each other. On Kelis's album, it all drowns in itself.

This review is coming from someone who finds house music a bit tedious at times. I like it, but when i get too much of it, it starts to bore me, and this is why Fleshtone to me isn't all that spectacular.

On a positive note, if you LOVE this sort of thing, chances are you'll think the album is amazing. I'm certainly in the minority with my opinion on this record, people seem to think it's really fantastic, so maybe i've missed the boat on this one, i'm not sure, but it just isn't clicking for me. I think she had displayed much more creativity when she was doing urban music.

If you want an all out house dance album to party to, you've found it with this. For me, 'Fleshtone' isn't a BAD album, it's just kinda dull. If you'd rather something with catchier hooks and richer production, stick to your Confessions album, i sure will be!.

Wake me up from this nightmare!

It's been a while, but i've joined forces with Super Marcey again to talk about the ELM STREET remake!!!!! The good, the bad, and the slashery!!!!! Stream it here................ >>>>> CLICK

A Nightmare On Elm Street [2010]

Starring: Jackie Earl Haley and some random teens

Directed by: Samuel Bayer

3/5

A serial killer who wields a glove with four blades embedded in the fingers stalks the dreams of a group of teenagers, resulting in their real death in reality.

Maybe my expectations were punched down into the gutter due to the bad reviews this film is getting, but i was honestly entertained enough by this remake to enjoy it. It didn't reach any massive heights, but it was never going to anyway, the original has been out for years, this is a remake, other than a few new changes here and there, it's all very "been there done that".

I've been hearing about how atrocious the acting was, can't say i was all that horrified by it. The actors were serviceable enough. They certainly had to take on more than the original cast of kids did, and for that i think they did fine. I thought the new Nancy was likeable enough, and i didn't care that the kids were emo. That seems to be an issue for some fans, they're apparently sick of seeing emos in horror movies. Only a couple of the cast were, so i didn't see the fuss really. The movie reflects the generation this was geared to. Whatever.

The story was fine [though i had some minor gripes, i'll talk about them later]. I certainly think they tried to give the movie a meater feel, and there was at least more depth to the conversations and back story than the original offered. Some fans mentioned they were really bored by it, i wasn't, i liked that in some ways it became a horror mystery rather than a by the numbers hack and slash fest from start to finish.

The music was great and the look of the film was good. The slightly cheeky side of Freddy that we all know and love wasn't evident AT ALL in this, but i didn't have an issue with them taking the material as seriously as they did. I've seen enough funny Freddy in my lifetime, at least they tried to give us something a little different when compared to the original series. That's what a remake should do, offer something new. Whether or not that's the style of Freddy you like is another story though.

As for Jackie, i enjoyed his portrayal. His face was odd to look at, i wasn't sure if i liked it that much, but at times i kinda did. It's hard to wipe the image of Englund's Freddy out of my mind, i had to keep trying to do that in this to focus on critiquing this Freddy on his own merits. He certainly LOOKED like a burn victim, but his eye area at times made him kinda look like a cute kitten face or something, lol.
I liked where he took the character though. He wasn't "scary" [though Freddy doesn't scare me anymore as an adult anyway], but he certainly felt dangerous in parts, and i liked the little mannerisms he had at times, like the way he would quickly moves his fingers together playing with his knives. Nice touch. He was a bit of a creepy pervert too, he certainly liked getting close with the girls. I thought he did a good job in making it his own.

Now for the stuff that i had some issues with.....

I wasn't sure if i liked that Freddy was a paedophile instead of a child murderer. The movie didn't have enough emotional impact to take that route. They should have kept him as a creepy child killer. I dunno, that just wasn't really meshing well for me. The scene where Nancy finds the peado pics of herself as a kid didn't really leave any impression on me. Making the kids victims of molestation added a whole new weight to the story that should have been a very intense and emotionally unfolding experience. They didn't really do it that way, opting to just have the kids "remember", freak out a bit, and then go on with their day. I realize they had more important things to worry about, like DYING, but if Freddy was simply a child killer, they could have just gone straight to that instead of giving the teens this extra burden to focus on and sweep under the table quickly.

The one thing that the original Elm St does best when compared to the remake, is tension and build up. Freddy is a creepy shadow for most of the first half of the original. We don't see him too clearly, he's a voice in the darkness, he stalks you, he plays with you. In the remake, he doesn't do any of that. He seems to go right in for the kill a bit too fast for my taste. SCARE the teens, HAUNT them, get them shitting their pants, make them feel like something is coming for them. The new Freddy seemed so desperate to see them all dead, the only thing keeping them alive was the coincidental times the teens "woke up" and got away from Freddy. That's kinda boring.

The one major moment where atmosphere and tension was lost was with the 'Freddy coming through the wall scene'. In movie 1, that's executed SO perfectly. We get a brief shot of Nancy sleeping with that giant white wall behind her and the cross hanging above her head. That in itself looked creepy. Then when Freddy comes through the wall, it's done in a way that makes you feel like he's watching her. He isn't going to kill her right now, he just wants to let the viewer know he's a presence in her dream. He melts through the wall, and goes away.
In the remake, there's no quiet build up or atmosphere to that scene. He literally just randomly melts through the wall, and quickly moves down to make an attack. Wtf? give us a little suspense please!. The scene seemed to come and go in 5 seconds. Didn't like how that was pulled off, but the scene itself wasn;t "bad"..

Another part of the film that i thought could have been remade frame by frame was Tina's death. Again, Freddy just goes in for the kill with no build up. She rises off the bed [that was cool] and is then thrown from wall to wall violently????? no. What made the original Tina death so iconic, was HOW he killed her. It was SLOW, he took his time, and having her be pulled UP the wall and over the ceiling was a REALLY GREAT moment. She was being dragged to her death and it looked creepy doing it upside down. They really should have done it that way in the remake. Having her simply thrown around was boring and completely took away from what made the original so memorable.

The dream sequences i didn't mind. They weren't overly interesting, but they went for a more "realistic" type of film, so i guess they didn't want to go to crazy with the over the top dreams. Still, the dream sequences are when they could have been really creative, but they kept it a bit too low key for my taste.
I loved the re-creation of the of Tina/body bag school hallway scene [her name wasn't Tina in the remake], that was creepy. I also liked Nancy falling through floor of liquid, and then her falling out of the blood ceiling. The pharmacy dream was REALLY cool, and the only dream throughout the whole thing that had a sense of fun to it. Loved the constant micro sleeping that was going on while Nancy was trying to stay awake while crawling for help with Freddy's image flickering towards her between both worlds. That sort of stuff reminded me of what i loved about the dreams in the original series. They were fun. I would have liked to have seen more of that.

My last issue with this film was the line Nancy delivers right before she cuts off Freddy's head. I'm all for cheesy one liners, but they need to be used right. In that scene, it just came off a bit random and stupid. "This is my world now, bitch!"...........erm, when did she start talking like this?...........she was reserved and quiet, and all of a sudden she becomes Stallone in Rambo. No. Shut up. Drop the "bitch" and just get to the killing. Awful cringe worthy moment.

Overall, was it as good as the original? no, but as a remake i certainly didn't mind it. I think it improved on a few things, like the script and acting, but with atmosphere that wasn't as strong as it should be, and with the imagination being sucked out of the dream sequences, it all felt a little too empty in parts. It's a decent enough effort though, and not the blazing turd disaster critics and some fans are making it out to be. It's light years better than cap like Zombie's Halloween and the Friday the 13th remake.

If you completely remove the original from your brain, it's easier to enjoy. That's hard to do though. Not sure how it'll hold up on repeat viewings, could go a tiny bit higher, could stay the same. We'll see.

Iron Man 2 [2010]

Starring: Robert Downey Jnr, Done Cheadle, Scarlett Johansson, Gwyneth Paltrow

Directed by: Jon Favreau

4/5

Billionaire Tony Stark must contend with deadly issues involving the government, his own friends, as well as new enemies due to his super hero alter ego Iron Man.

I was originally going to wait to catch this on DVD, but found myself being dragged to see it by a friend. Don't get me wrong, i've seen the first Iron Man, and i thought it was enjoyable enough, but it never left me with any lasting impression, and i wasn't going to "rush out" to see it's sequel. I'm glad i did though....

Robert was BORN to play this role. He is SO good as Tony Stark. As intelligent as his character is, he's also a massive douche bag, so for Robert to play him and make him the most likeable guy on screen is pretty impressive. If he was any more charming, the screen would have exploded. Paltrow, who bored me to tears in IM1, seemed a lot more comfortable in her role, and the chemistry between her and Robert was fantastic. The new characters were also fun to watch. Samuel L. Jackson has a small role, but does well with what he is given. Scarlett's role may have been kind of throw away, and she doesn't serve any MAJOR purpose in the film, but it was cool seeing a tough girl in the mix, and she does sultry very well, and that's pretty much what her character was all about. I have no issue with having to look at a hot chic for a couple hours, and she looked VERY good in this. She was great with the action scenes as well, i'm not sure if her way of fighting in the film was a specific style, but i loved how they made her move. I hope to see more of her in future IM films, she's badass. The only other actor who can steal the spotlight from Robert though, is Mickey Rourke. Man, that guy has MAJOR screen presence, he was incredibly intimidating in this, and looked like he had a blast playing the villain. I only wish there was more of him.

When compared to the first movie, i feel like this story had a lot more to offer. Tony Stark doesn't really go anywhere new, but he does learn a couple of new life lesson that move his character along nicely within the series. I also think the new addition of characters bulked up the story nicely and gave us a few different things to look at. Yeah a few of them didn't add any life changing moments to the IM universe, but it was still enjoyable seeing some new faces on screen. I like Iron Man with friends.

Aside from a more entertaining story, i thought the action was more exciting, the villains were more dangerous [including Sam Rockwell] and it was a lot more funnier than the first film. You genuinely care about the characters, and the movie doesn't take itself too seriously along the way.

Iron Man 1 may not have impressed me all that much, but Iron Man 2 did. I'm actually really looking forward to seeing what comes up next.

Hole

Nobody's Daughter [2010]

2/5

It's been a good 4 years since Courtney Love released her first solo album, 'America's Sweetheart'. It's been even LONGER since her band, 'Hole', released an album too, over a decade in fact. When i heard a new Hole album was being released this year, i was surprised, but excited. 'Celebrity Skin' and 'Live Through This' are two of my favourite albums ever, so i definitely had high expectations for the new album. Sadly, now that 'ive heard the new release a whole bunch of times, i can't say that it's left any sort of major impression on me.

It suffers the same fate as 'America's Sweetheart', which is that it lacks a lot of hooks. There's some nice melodies and lyrics on the new album, but there's nothing that really GRABS you in a lot of the songs. They simply start and finish with no pay off. In 'America's Sweetheart' it worked a bit better, and the album itself never went through any final polishing, so the rough sound and slightly hookless songs worked. On the new album though, it comes across as a bit too much of a dull mess.

The album isn't a complete loss, there are some good songs on it, mainly found in the first half of the tracklist. It starts off on a good note with the title song, 'Nobody's Daughter', then kicks into 'Skinny Little Bitch' and 'Honey'. All enjoyable enough. 'Pacific Coast Highway' is next, average yet listenable, but a good indicator of where the bulk of the album is going to be heading next, which isn't anywhere interesting. My favourite song from the album, 'Samantha', is next, and that's pretty much where my interest in this album comes to a stop. What you'll find after that song is one droney, messy sounding, out dated ballad after another.

My main issue with this album is how much it showcased to me how truly DONE this band is. They have some GREAT work in their back catalogue, but that era of music, and their sound, has really run it's course. It's tired, it's not fun anymore, and it's gone a far as it can. Courtney sings the SAME melodies, hits the SAME strings on her guitar, and just recycles the same thing she's been doing for her entire career. There's no growth and there's no passion anymore. It's just Courtney on auto pilot.

If you're new to this band, i wouldn't have this record anywhere near you. Start off with one of the older albums first. If you're a fan of them like me, i'm not sure what you'll make of it. Some fans love EVERYTHING Courtney does, so many of you may enjoy it, i on the other hand found it really lazy and uninspiring. Maybe if Courtney had more focus on music rather than drugs and plastic surgery, the album would have a bit more soul in it. As it stands though, it's simply a shadow of a once great band, which has replaced angsty emotional driven grungy rock, with re-hashed production and noisy vapid screaming from it's lead singer.

Time to hang it up Courtney.

My Favourite Music Videos #2


Lil' Kim - How Many Licks
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Lil' Kim - How Many Licks

DVD Roundup: April, 2010

New Moon [Blu-ray]

Not sure why we got this 3 weeks later than the rest of the world, but the wait is finally over!!!! Will enjoy sitting through this beauteous adventure again. And omg! the special features were great! I love a good long doco about the making of a film. NEW MOON!.

Paranormal Activity [Blu-ray]

Been looking forward to seeing this again. They really should have included ALL of the different endings on this disc, but oddly enough, they didn't. Comes with a commentary from the director, will DEFINITELY check that out. Creeptastic!

Silent Hill [Blu-ray]

Had to order this from the UK since it isn't on Blu-ray here. I've always loved this. Dark and twisted, with a great ending. It looked beautiful in HD. Good extras too.

Where The Wild Things Are [Blu-ray]

Haven't watched it again JUST yet. It's such a special movie, it needs to be seen when i'm in the perfect mood for it. The features look a bit shit, hopefully they're decent.

My Favourite Music Videos #1

30 Seconds To Mars: The Kill [Bury Me]

This video will only make sense if you've seen The Shining. If not, you may be a little "wtf" at the whole thing.

Kick-Ass [2010]

Starring: Nicholas Cage, Aaron Johnson, Mindy Macready

Directed by: Mathew Vaughn

4.5/5

Dave Lizweski is an unnoticed high school student and comic book fan who one day decides to become a super hero, even though he has no powers, training, or meaningful reason to do so.

Whew! talk about blowing my mind. Could another film in 2010 top this? time will tell....but i'm guessing probably not. I've never read the comic book this is based on, so i won't be able to compare the two in my review, i do hear it's a faithful enough adaptation though, with a few minor changes, so fans of the comic should be happy with the result on screen. Either way, whether it's true to the book or not, as a stand alone film, this REALLY lives up to it's name.

For the first half of the film, it was pretty much what i expected. Quirky comic drama, with smart dialogue and colourful characters. I was enjoying the film, and could see it's mass appeal, but it wasn't reaching any MASSIVE great heights for me. Not to diss it or anything though, it was smart and funny, but just not changing my life.

As the film went along though, and as we entered the second section of the story, things started to really get impressive. I thought the comedy lite themes would play out till the end, and obviously they do mostly, but the story also gets a little dark, and surprisingly emotional. Once REAL danger falls upon the characters, you start to realize you actually care about them a lot. I was very emotionally invested in what was happening, and the movie was getting more and more dramatic and interesting as the climax built. It was a great direction to take the story.

The last 20 minutes of the film was breathtaking, not only for the action, but also for the music and direction. Mathew Vaughn chews this up and spits it back out with so much FORCE you barely get a chance to take a breathe before the credits roll.

After having your eye balls burned off by the end, they throw in one last over the top gag to remind you it's all in good fun. It's such a perfect mix of comedy and drama.

Kick-Ass is the most original comic book film i've seen since 'Watchmen', and like Watchmen, it's not for kids. Although in saying that, i would have loved it as a kid, but i'm a bit fucked up.

The only downside to this flick will be depending on what STYLE of movie you like. Some people may find the strong violence and language in it a bit off putting. I've read some reviews who felt a little unsure about seeing a 12 year old girl shoot and knive her way through a crowd of villains as she calls them "cunts" and "mother fuckers". Personally, that's MY sorta style [lolz], so it didn't bother me one bit. In fact, i fucking LOVED it.

Best film of 2010 so far. SEE IT. SEE IT. SEE IT. SEE IT. It's a BEAST!

3D Schmee Dee!

Look, i'm all for TECHNOLOGY and what it has to offer. I'm a techno whore, i love it. But there is a limit to how much fuckery i can take, and lately, this "coming soon in 3D" trend that's happening is starting to really bore me.

3D should ONLY be implemented if the actual film is CREATED in 3D, like Avatar for instance, or the new Tron film, Tron Legacy. That's when the medium has some sort of creative substance, and gives the film added visual DEPTH. All these new films transforming into 3D flicks AFTER being filmed though, that's some serious bullshit right there. Why? because it DOESN'T work!. It just looks like card board cut outs, because the 3D was added as a bonus, so it just looks like a children's pop up book. If i want to see that, i'll just go down to my local library and sit my ass down in the kids reading area.

I made an exception for Alice In Wonderland when that came out, because i thought, even 3D as an after thought would look decent in that flick, since it was all so fantastical looking. At times it did look decent, but was it really needed??? no, i wouldn't say it was. Now EVERYTHING is 3D, everyone's rushing to edit their films into 3D format to roll in more cash. The latest being Clash of The Titans, which has been getting a very negative response in regards to how POINTLESS the whole 3D is in the film.

Look, i get it, it's Hollywood, it's about money, they found a new toy, they wanna stick it on everything, i understand, but really............give me a fucking break. Next up we have Step Up 3 in 3D for Gods sake. Yes, Step Up, the DANCING movie.....in 3D? why??? what do i want to see poking out of the screen? a break dance spin? a ballet kick? what???........no.

At LEAST the upcoming Resident Evil 4 was FILMED USING A 3D CAMERA, so they aren't pasting it on afterwards and giving everyone the finger.

At the end of the day, the films themselves are being released in both 2D and 3D, so i HAVE the option to ignore the 3D. When i saw Alice, i chose to use it, when i saw Clash, i ignored it, and that's a good option to have. But when someone like James Cameron works his ass off for nearly a decade developing a new3D format to better the VAST and INTRICATELY DETAILED world of Avatar, it's a bit sad to see every studio clinging to the technology and using it in such a CHEAP way to bring in the masses. If you want it 3D, make it 3D, use the 3D camera to film it. Don't dust a bit of computer 3D onto it like shitty glitter sprinkles and tell me it's "OMG 3D" when it's just a bit of scenery sticking out a little further than usual.

The 3D effects when used right can look really impressive, and it's a shame we aren't savouring that and using it when it's needed and not OVER DOING IT ALL. We've jumped from action films to DANCING movies in 3D, what's next? the new Julia Robert's and Jude Law romantic comedy where we get to see Julia's horse teeth in ALL NEW DIMENSIONAL GLORY?????

Fuck off.

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

Starring: Some Swedish people

Directed by: Some Swedish guy

4/5

A Swedish thriller based on Stieg Larsson's novel about a journalist [named Mikail] and young female hacker [named Lisbeth], trying to solve a 40 year old mystery about a missing girl.

It's really satisfying when you sit and watch a movie that turns out to be a very FULFILLING experience. This is what 'Girl' turned out being.

I wasn't sure what to expect, the books this new movie trilogy is based on are HUGELY popular, and the first film of the series has been getting strong reviews, so i knew i was in for a decent film.

The movie was exactly what i suspected it would be, a twisting and turning mystery thriller that makes you sit and think for a good 2 and a half hours. Because of that, you certainly need to be in the right mood to watch it. It isn't really something you just THROW ON, but it's not a HARD movie to understand either. There's a lot of story to get through and it isn't done in a short period of time, you definitely need to pay attention to what's going on.

That's what i loved about it though, it was meaty. There were a lot of story lines to get through, and it was all executed in a really entertaining way. It did take a little while to kick into gear, and it didn't hit a faster pace until the two main leads team up closer towards the middle of the film. That isn't a major issue though, because following Lisbeth's story in the beginning was one of my favourite parts of the film. In fact, i could have watched the whole movie centred around her character.

The movie wasn't in anyway mind blowing, or OVERLY impressive, but it was a very consistent thriller that unfolds at a good slow pace and leaves you wanting to find out more. Throw in a well written and layered female lead who has good chemistry with her male co-star, and you have a solid story all tied up in big package.

If you're in the mood to put your feet up and watch a good crime thriller, this is the perfect movie to go with. You won't be disappointed. I look forward to seeing the next 2 films in the series.

Keep an eye out for...
Nicki Minaj: I've become completely obsessed with this chic over the last week since i discovered her. I've heard her name thrown around a few times online, and finally decided to check out her work. Most of it's good, but fairly standard hip hop [available in various mixtape form], but it's her debut album that you should really be anticipating, and if her debut single is anything to go by, we may finally have a new female rapper on the charts!. Here's her video for 'Massive Attack', fucking immense!:



Natalia Kills: She describes her music as "dark pop", she also directs her own music videos and is even doing a short film as a side project for her album [out this year]. Here's her first music video, i love it: