George Lucas’s Star Wars changed cinema forever. Released in 1977, and with a little help from the blockbuster monster that was Spielberg’s Jaws, the movie set a new precedent for blockbuster movie making and changed the industry forever. Star Wars (later released as A New Hope) marked the end of the 70s Renaissance, and though … Continue reading
Tag Archives: fantasy
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
Unlike Peter Jackson’s original Lord of the Rings trilogy, which was almost universally praised, reactions towards his Hobbit movies have been mixed. The first film, An Unexpected Journey, received its share of average to negative reviews, with some critics finding the movie overlong, self-indulgent, and most damning of all, boring. And honestly, it’s hard not to agree with these views.The … Continue reading
Eyes Wide Shut
Eyes Wide Shut received a lot of attention upon its release. Kubrick’s bizarre sex odyssey was separated from the rest of his filmography by a 12 year gap – the director hadn’t made a movie since Full Metal Jacket in 1987, and critics were keen to see what had brought the reclusive Kubrick out of hibernation. This focus was further … Continue reading
Pan’s Labyrinth
Ask someone today about fairy tales, and they’ll probably describe simple children’s stories; fantasies about princesses and monsters which contain no real sense of threat or danger – just little fictions to help babies sleep at night. The prince will always save the day, the witch will always be vanquished, and the kingdom will always … Continue reading