(500) Days of Summer

Wow. What a very intelligent film. What I was expecting from 500 Days of Summer was a great, entertaining romantic comedy, however what I got was so much more. As it stresses at the start of the film, this is not your average romantic comedy, which in my opinion is so God damn refreshing to hear.

In short, the story follows our protagonist Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and the 500 days that follow after meeting Summer (Zooey Deschanel), a girl who is amazing in every way but doesn't believe in relationships.

This film is incredibly charming. The script is extremely well written and delivers a very engaging premise full of wit and an amazing demonstration of character development. Director Marc Webb has definitely gained my attention. It's a shame his filmography is very sparse, but he demonstrates great promise to his future productions. His direction is incredibly unique and quirky. He manages to fully project the tone the script presents, keeping the stories uniqueness apparent.

The whole film is greatly complimented by the support of solid actors. Zooey Deschanel is amazing in her portrayal of the character Summer and manages to radiate the special qualities Tom sees in her. She is quirky but likeable. Joseph Gordon-Levitt steals the show though. He is definitely the right choice for this role and really demonstrates why we should respect him as an actor. The anguish and raw emotion that is poured into his character is so believable and incredibly touching. He creates a very empathic character, which I believe should greatly be credited towards the charm of the film.

The soundtrack to this is perfect. It suits the tone of the film incredibly well, allowing it to stand out as the quirky romantic comedy it is. The choice of artists that are used follow the mainstream Indie scene, which gives a gentle nod in the direction of Summer's character and how she differs from the pop-culture sheep.

This film is artistic in a subtle and intelligent way. Every component in this film has been produced just right. I was incredibly impressed with how good this film was and how great a job Marc Webb has done. I would highly recommend this film. For me it was a bit of an emotional roller coaster but one that I enjoyed every minute of. It was highly engaging and very heart-touching. A firm favourite. 10/10

Ferris Bueller's Day Off

My rating: 9.5/10

Ferris Bueller is definitely the ultimate teen comedy around. It is one of those films that can be enjoyed from pre adolescence to heavily post adolescence!

The story is simple, Ferris Bueller (Matthew Broderick) is the best in skipping school and getting away with it. With his best friend Cameron (Alan Ruck) and his girlfriend Sloane (Mia Sara) he basically just does all the things that anyone would do if they could. From singing in a parade, to scamming an expensive restaurant to driving a vintage Ferrari.

So as you can probably expect this film is filled with fun. There are no complexities to it, it's just a light-hearted comedy formed for your enjoyment. Naturally, the skipping school isn't AS easy as they'd have hoped since the school principal is determined to catch him out, as well as his jealous sister who detests the favouritism Ferris receives.

This is undoubtedly one of Broderick's most iconic roles. He plays the youth with such perfection you can't help but get sucked into Ferris's world. Every guy who watches this film will want to be Ferris, and every girl who watches this will want to be Sloane. It is truly a very engaging, feel good film that is very cleverly written.

Ok, so where's the substance? The substance is there in the form of Cameron. He is a depressive youth who misses a lot of school through 'illness'. The film retains some nicety as we see his story play out and reach a resolution.

This really is a must see film. There are may iconic scenes and characters that have been ripped off by many programmes. And as well as this, you cannot avoid the 'Ferris Bueller' references and jokes in many of the other programmes that Alan Ruck is in.

The Tagline to this film was, "While the rest of us were just thinking about it...Ferris borrowed a Ferrari and did it...all in a day". Is there any more needed to be said to capture the essence of this film?

The Lion King

My rating: 10/10

Ok, so first of all I will start by saying that this is my ALL TIME childhood favourite. I have watched it more than I could possibly count and even bought it on DVD when I had it on video just because it felt criminal not to.

So, it may seem like the review I am writing is obviously going to be biased towards my childhood attitude. However I think that that cannot be further from the truth because anyone who has actually seen this film CANNOT deny how brilliant this film is in everyway.

I will give a brief outline but I am assuming the vast majority of the population have seen this at some point in their life. The lion king follows a young cub 'Simba'. Heir to a thrown that he is manipulated to believe he does not want by his evil Uncle Scar, Simba runs away from his family and friends. Growing into a man with his new best friends Timon and Pumbaa guiding him he eventually ends up going back to claim what is rightfully his.

The Lion King was left to the hands of Disney's C Team as everyone else was sceptical of the idea and didn't think it would be a success. It was the first Disney film that was completely their own idea and what a fantastic job they did of it. The storyline in itself is just incredibley original and manages to be very engaging, humorous and emotional.

All of the character's are amazing and very strong. We are provided with some very famous voices as well that just improve the stength of them even more, Jonathan Taylor Thomas/Matthew Broderick (Simba), Rowan Atkinson (Zazu), Whoopi Goldberg (Shenzi), Jeremy Irons (Scar), James Earl Jones (Mufasa).

The music...Elton John? Need there be anymore said? One of the best soundtracks in a Disney film. Written perfectly to suit the whole mood and feel of the film and its characters. The Circle of Life as an opener? Engaging and sets up the story so brilliantly. 'I Just Can't Wait to be King' being my favourite Disney song of all time. I Defy anyone to not love that song! 'Can you feel the love tonight' - magical song which is perfectly parallel with the magical setting. 'Hakuna Matata' one of the best songs that sums up the sillyness and comedic essence of two characters.

You have probably picked up on my love from this film as even when I'm typing I cannot contain my enthusiasm and love towards it. It is overall such a beautiful film. The storyline is brilliant and it brings up so many emotions. We become attatched to Simba's character as we see him grow physically as well as, as a (I want to say person but I'm thinking the correct word to use here would be Lion?) The songs just capture the essence of the story amazingly and the balance between seriousness and comedy is done to perfection.

This is without a doubt the best Disney film. With regards to the sequels...number 2, fairly entertaining worth a watch. Number 3 - ATROCIOUS! It completely spoils the concept of the first film.