I’m a bit late reporting this but last week I attended a Mystery showing that was put on by Vue Cinemas chain. The basic idea was that you would attend a film and not really know what film it would be until just before it started. All we knew was that it would be a U certificate. Vue were kind enough to send me three tickets for the new cinema that has opened recently in Cwmbran and so we set off for the 6:30 pm showing.

The big difference we noticed right away with this showing was that there was no advertising or trailers. 6:30 start meant exactly that. A few minutes before the showing the usher came in and announced that the film would be Ice Age 3, much to my daughters delight. Not only that but it was the 3D showing so glasses were handed out all around.

This was an extra treat as we had never seen a cinema 3D film before this. I’ve seen the home ones of course with the red and green glasses. But I was happily surprised to see that the cinema technology has really moved on. The glasses were comfortable to wear, the colour was far richer than those home systems and the 3D was much more realistic than I was expecting.

As far the film itself, I found it to be a lot of fun. I loved the first Ice Age and while the second had its moments it was a little disappointing. This one though is a return to form, it had a lot of laugh out load moments and was funny for adults and children alike. The new character Buck (Simon Pegg) is a welcome addition and has many of the best lines.

All in all we had a great night and I thank Vue for the free tickets they were very much appreciated. I don’t know if they plan on having any more mystery showings but I can certainly recommend this one. Although next time I might ease down on the jalapenos’ on my Nachos, I certainly over indulged.

Marley & Me is the true story of John Grogan (Owen Wilson), his family, and their dog Marley. Based on John Grogan’s best-selling autobiographical book of the same name ,this is a true American dramedy (half drama, half comedy), following the Grogan family from John and Jenny’s (Jennifer Aniston) wedding, through multiple house moves, job interviews, pregnancy scares and mishaps, births, and the one constant throughout; Marley, the Grogan family dog.

Marley & Me is based on John Grogan’s best-selling autobiography, of the same name, which was in turn based on a series of newspaper columns he wrote, while working for a high profile Florida newspaper, chronicling all major, and many mundane, events in his family life, that were often centered around the often comical antics of the family dog Marley. Learn more…

At the moment within banks across the world being scrutinised due to their gross mismanagement this film would always garner a little more interest than just a standard film of this genre, however we need to look back into the late 1980’s/early 90’s for the inspiration around this particular film. This being BCCI (Bank of Credit & Commerce International) which, if you read the entry in Wikipedia, seems to draw more than just a slight resemblance to the fictional IBBC as portrayed in “The International”.

Whereas banks these days are being investigated due to bad management and excessive bonuses the IBBC seems to have gone several steps further by getting involved in arms dealing, be that supplying African rebels with small arms, or supplying both Palestinians AND the Israelis with weapons all the way up to purchasing missile systems and assassination. Learn more…

The Wrestler has been heralded as Mickey Rourke’s big comeback film, it was called the film of 2008, and many viewers and critics alike were surprised that it didn’t receive any Oscars, or even more than the two nominations it was given, but now that the hype has died down, and the DVD and Blu-ray have been released, it’s the perfect time to revisit Darren Aronofsky’s Golden Globe winning epic.

As the title suggests, the films plot revolves around a professional wrestler, Randy ‘The Ram’ Robinson (Mickey Rourke), who was a wrestling superstar in the 80’s but has completely run out of luck and has gone from headlining major shows at Madison Square Garden to performing in independent shows at local halls, for a handful of cash that doesn’t even cover the rent on his trailer-park home. Learn more…

Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist is a film from an up and coming director starring up and coming young comedy stars. Peter Sollett puts in a credible stint directing Michael Cera and Kat Dennings in a rambling journey of discovery of two young teens across Manhattan in search of a secret gig.

Nick (Cera) is as mixed up as the next teenager. The fact that he’s recently been unceremoniously dumped just adds to his angst. In a bid to win back the woman he thinks he loves Nick composes a series of ‘mix CDs’ trying to convey his feelings. What Nick doesn’t realize is that his ex is such a callous b*?&h that she’s been binning the CDs. Learn more…

The Punisher:

There have been three Punisher films. The first back in 1989 starred Dolph Lundgren as Frank Castle or the Punisher as he is more widely known. The second, also called The Punisher was in 2004 and starred Thomas Jane in the leading role and also had John Travolta in it. The latest incarnation is called The Punisher: War Zone and yet again the main actor has changed, this time Ray Stevenson has taken the Punisher moniker for an outing, Thomas Jane leaving the franchise due to alleged creative differences. Marketed as a reboot of the series it never really harks back to anything in the past accept some very short flashbacks when Frank Castle holds the corpses of his murdered family, obviously turning the once exemplary military man into the one facial expression Punisher that he is today. Learn more…

Based on the novel by Robert Ludlum and set two years after the events of The Bourne Identity, The Bourne Supremacy again sees ex-CIA assassin Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) at odds with his former employers, a shady undercover CIA department called Treadstone, headed by Ward Abbott (Brian Cox).

Bourne and Marie (Franka Potente) are living quietly on Goa and trying to put his past behind them or at least what he remembers of it. However, they are roughly brought back to reality when a Russian assassin (Karl Urban) frames Bourne for a double killing in Berlin, one of them a CIA operative, and then tracks him to Goa and tries to kill him in an attempt to cover his tracks.

Jason still can’t remember all the details of his past but suspects his former Treadstone pals are behind the attempt on his life so he’s intent on living up to the promise he made them two years ago if they didn’t leave him alone. Meanwhile, the CIA have taken the bait set up by the Russian killer and, out for revenge for the killing of their man, are now out to get Bourne for once and all. Learn more…

The Crow is a film that has been in my DVD collection for sometime. Having recently upgraded the disc I had for the R2 Scandinavian 2 disc Limited Edition steel-book version I thought that I would review a film that is amongst my favourite movies.

Eric Draven (Brandon Lee) and his fiancée Shelly (Sofia Shinas) are murdered on the eve of their Halloween Wedding by T-Bird and his gang of delinquents sent over there on the orders of Top-Dollar (Michael Wincott). Learn more…

Dr Peter Venkman (Bill Murray), Dr Ray Stantz (Dan Aykroyd) and Dr Egon Spengler (Harold Ramis) are parapsychologists at New York University. It is quickly established that Stantz and Spengler are at least semi serious about their work whereas Venkman is just using it to hit on women. Everything however is about to change as they get kicked out of the University. Venkman explains that it was their destiny so that they can go into business together, and so Ghostbusters was born; a company created to rid normal people of the ghosts and spectres that haunt their daily lives. Learn more…

Season 7 is the final season of the Shield, and it’s clear from start to finish that the series hasn’t lost any of the hard-hitting, gritty realism, that’s had fans hooked since early 2002. The stories are as edgy as ever, there’s plenty of action, brutality, and a plot that twists and turns so often that once you start watching, you won’t be able to stop. It’s also the most shocking series yet (fans will know that’s a pretty bold statement to make), as there’s about ten or eleven episodes (out of a 13 episode series) with cliff-hangers so surprising that not only will they make any viewers jaw hit the floor, but leave them with only two thoughts; “wow!” and “what’re they going to do next?” Learn more…