Book, Film & TV Reviews
Directed by Francis Lawrence and based on the 2013 novel of the same name by Jason Matthews, Red Sparrow follows ballerina Dominika Egorova (Jennifer Lawrence) who is recruited to ‘Sparrow School,’ a Russian intelligence service where she is forced to use her body as a weapon. Her first mission is targeting a C.I.A. agent (Joel Edgerton) who threatens to unravel the security of both nations.
Written and directed by Darren Aronofsky, mother! follows a couple (Jennifer Lawrence and Javier Bardem) whose relationship is tested when uninvited guests arrive at their home, disrupting their tranquil existence.
Directed by Morten Tyldum, Passengers follows two passengers – Jim (Chris Pratt) and Aurora (Jennifer Lawrence) – who are onboard a 120-year journey to another planet when their hibernation pods wake them 90 years too early. With the lives of thousands of passengers in jeopardy, Jim and Aurora are forced to unravel the mystery behind the malfunction as the ship teeters on the brink of collapse.
The ninth instalment in the X-Men film series, following on from 2014’s X-Men: Days of Future Past, and again directed by Bryan Singer, X-Men: Apocalypse is set in 1983 when the first and most powerful mutant, En Sabah Nur a.k.a. Apocalypse (Oscar Isaac), awakens after thousands of years. Amassed with the powers of many other mutants, which has enabled him to become both immortal and invincible, Apocalypse plans to wipe out modern civilisation and take over the world, and recruits a team of powerful mutants – including a disheartened Magneto (Michael Fassbender), Angel (Ben Hardy), Storm (Alexandra Shipp), and Psylocke (Olivia Munn) – to help him cleanse mankind and create a new world order, over which he will reign. As the fate of the Earth hangs in the balance, Professor X (James McAvoy), Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence), Beast (Nicholas Hoult), and Quicksilver (Evan Peters), return to lead a team of young X-Men – including Jean Grey (Sophie Turner), Cyclops (Tye Sheridan), and Nightcrawler (Kodi Smit-McPhee) – to stop their greatest nemesis and save mankind from complete destruction.
Directed by David O. Russell, Joy is based on the true story of Joy Mangano (Jennifer Lawrence), a self-made millionaire who became the founder and matriarch of a powerful family business dynasty. Set in the early 1990s, the film follows a family across four generations, and centres around Joy, a divorced mother with two children, who reluctantly has her mother Terri (Virginia Madsen), father Rudy (Robert De Niro), grandmother Mimi (Diane Ladd), and her ex-husband Tony (Édgar Ramírez) living in her house.
Done with living an average life, Joy takes her future into her own hands and, with the help of financier, Rudy’s girlfriend Trudy (Isabella Rossellini), becomes an overnight success with a bright new invention – the Miracle Mop. As allies become adversaries and adversaries become allies, both inside and outside the family, Joy must overcome personal and professional obstacles to rise to the top.
A whole year after the release of The Hunger Games: Mockingjay (Part 1), the final instalment in a series of adaptations based on Suzanne Collins’ trilogy of novels is finally here. With Part 1 leaving the dystopian nation of Panem on the verge of revolution, a hijacked Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) attempting to come to grips with reality, and our reluctant heroine Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) preparing for battle, Part 2 picks up in District 13 as the team plan their way into the Capitol.
Directed once again by Francis Lawrence, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay (Part 2) picks up with Katniss as she must bring together an army when Panem moves into a full-scale war. Teamed with those closest to her – Peeta, Gale (Liam Hemsworth) and Finnick (Sam Claflin) – Katniss sets out on her own mission, ignoring orders set to her by President Coin (Julianne Moore), as she leads her unit into mortal traps and humanity-breaking moral choices that will challenge her more than any arena she faced in The Hunger Games, in her efforts to end the manipulative reign of President Snow (Donald Sutherland) for good.
Continue reading “Film Review: The Hunger Games – Mockingjay (Part 2)”
“It takes ten times as long to put yourself back together as it does to fall apart.”
A whole year after the release of The Hunger Games: Mockingjay (Part 1), the final instalment in a series of adaptations based on Suzanne Collins’ trilogy of novels is finally here. With Part 1 leaving the dystopian nation of Panem on the verge of revolution, a hijacked Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) attempting to come to grips with reality, and our reluctant heroine Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) preparing for battle, Part 2 picks up in District 13 as the team plan their way into the Capitol.
Directed once again by Francis Lawrence, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay (Part 2) picks up with Katniss as she must bring together an army when Panem moves into a full-scale war. Teamed with those closest to her – Peeta, Gale (Liam Hemsworth) and Finnick (Sam Claflin) – Katniss sets out on her own mission, ignoring orders set to her by President Coin (Julianne Moore), as she leads her unit into mortal traps and humanity-breaking moral choices that will challenge her more than any arena she faced in The Hunger Games, in her efforts to end the manipulative reign of President Snow (Donald Sutherland) for good.
Continue reading “Book v Film: The Hunger Games – Mockingjay (Part 2)”
“It takes ten times as long to put yourself back together as it does to fall apart.”
Suzanne Collins’ trilogy of novels, The Hunger Games, is one of the most popular young adult franchises, with the film adaptations being some of the best films over the past couple of years. Now the time has come for the final instalment, the second part of the final novel and the fourth instalment in The Hunger Games franchise, with one of the most anticipated films of 2015, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay (Part 2).
Set to be released on 19th November and directed by Francis Lawrence, with Jennifer Lawrence once again in the lead role, this final book sees Katniss face her biggest challenges yet, as she must become the iconic Mockingjay, a symbol of hope and courage in the revolution, to unify the districts of Panem, fight to save those she loves, and attempt to shatter the games forever.
Continue reading “You Should Be Reading: The Hunger Games – Mockingjay (Part 1 & 2)”
(Written for Filmoria)
With tickets set to go on sale on 1st October for The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2, we have a new trailer and poster for the final instalment that we’re all dying to see.
Reaching cinemas on 19th November, the new promotional items center on the strong bond and compassion between two of the most courageous sisters we know – Katniss and Primrose Everdeen.
Continue reading “New Poster & Trailer for ‘Mockingjay Part 2’ – “A Sister’s Bond Is Forever””
The first part of the final novel in Suzanne Collins’ young adult trilogy of novels, The Hunger Games, Mockingjay (Part 1), directed by Francis Lawrence, follows on from the cliff-hanger of last year’s Catching Fire, with the echoing words that District 12 has been destroyed. Transferred to District 13 in her fragile state, and now under the charge of President Coin (Julianna Moore), Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) must now become the iconic Mockingjay, a symbol of hope and courage in the revolution, to unify the districts of Panem, rescue Peeta (Josh Hutcherson), fight to save those she loves, and attempt to shatter the games forever.
Continue reading “Film Review: The Hunger Games – Mockingjay (Part 1)”
“It takes ten times as long to put yourself back together as it does to fall apart.”
The first part of the final novel in Suzanne Collins’ young adult trilogy of novels, The Hunger Games, Mockingjay (Part 1), directed by Francis Lawrence, follows on from the cliff-hanger of last year’s Catching Fire, with the echoing words that District 12 has been destroyed. Transferred to District 13 in her fragile state, and now under the charge of President Coin (Julianna Moore), Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) must now become the iconic Mockingjay, a symbol of hope and courage in the revolution, to unify the districts of Panem, rescue Peeta (Josh Hutcherson), fight to save those she loves, and attempt to shatter the games forever.
Continue reading “Book v Film: The Hunger Games – Mockingjay (Part 1)”
Directed by Susanne Bier and based on Ron Rash‘s 2008 novel, Serena is set in 1930s North Carolina and tells the story of the newly-wed couple, Serena (Jennifer Lawrence) and George Pemberton (Bradley Cooper) as they return home to begin to build a timber empire. Although George has already lived in the camp long enough to father an illegitimate child, Serena soon shows herself to be the equal of any man, overseeing crews, hunting rattlesnakes, even saving her husband’s life in the wilderness. Together, they take charge of the woodlands and ruthlessly kill or vanquish all those who fall out of their favour. Yet when Serena learns that she will never bear a child, she sets out to murder the son that George has fathered without her.
“What made losing someone you loved bearable was not remembering but forgetting. Forgetting small things first… it’s amazing how much you could forget, and everything you forgot made that person less alive inside you until you could finally endure it. After more time passed you could let yourself remember, even want to remember. But even then what you felt those first days could return and remind you the grief was still there, like old barbed wire embedded in a tree’s heartwood.”
Directed by Susanne Bier and based on Ron Rash‘s 2008 novel, Serena is set in 1930s North Carolina and tells the story of the newly-wed couple, Serena (Jennifer Lawrence) and George Pemberton (Bradley Cooper) as they return home to begin to build a timber empire. Although George has already lived in the camp long enough to father an illegitimate child, Serena soon shows herself to be the equal of any man, overseeing crews, hunting rattlesnakes, even saving her husband’s life in the wilderness. Together, they take charge of the woodlands and ruthlessly kill or vanquish all those who fall out of their favour. Yet when Serena learns that she will never bear a child, she sets out to murder the son that George has fathered without her.
(My original post was written for Filmoria, but it has been edited since then.)
With The Hunger Games franchise establishing Jennifer Lawrence as the highest-grossing action heroine of all time, it’s her first roles in the TBS sitcom The Bill Engvall Show and the independent films The Burning Plain and Winter’s Bone, for which she received her first Academy Award nomination, that made her an actress to keep an eye on.
Since then, Lawrence has won an Academy Award, two Golden Globes, and a BAFTA, as well as a number of other awards, with Rolling Stone commenting in 2012 that she is “the most talented young actress in America”.
From stumbling up the stairs after winning her first Oscar for her role in Silver Linings Playbook to her adorable honesty and natural wit in interviews, Lawrence is undeniably one of the best actresses around at the minute. So let’s take a look at five of her best performances.
Here is my ranking of her performances (not of the films themselves) to date:
“It takes ten times as long to put yourself back together as it does to fall apart.”
Suzanne Collins’ young adult trilogy The Hunger Games has to be one of the most popular series of novels at the minute. Set in the dystopian and post-apocalyptic nation of Panem, the novels follow lead heroine Katniss Everdeen, a young girl living in the poorest of 12 districts who, volunteering to save her younger sister, is forced to compete in The Hunger Games. Set up by the government in order to maintain peace, the annual televised games see 24 young representatives fight to the death in a specially designed arena, until only one remains.
Once again directed by Francis Lawrence and starring Jennifer Lawrence in the lead role, the film adaptation is set to be released on 20th November.
Continue reading “You Should Be Reading: The Hunger Games – Mockingjay (Part 1)”
From the director of X-Men 1 and 2, Bryan Singer, X-Men: Days of Future Past sees the ultimate X-Men ensemble fight a war for the survival of the species across two time periods. As the characters that began our X-Men infatuation from the original trilogy of films – Professor X (Patrick Stewart), Magneto (Ian McKellen), Storm (Halle Berry), Kitty (Ellen Page), and Iceman (Shawn Ashmore) – join forces with their younger selves from the excellent prequel X-Men: First Class – Professor X (James McAvoy), Magneto (Michael Fassbender), Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence), and Beast (Nicholas Hoult) – when Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) is sent back in time, they must change a major historical event and fight in an epic battle that could save both humans and mutants.
Directed and co-written by David O. Russell, American Hustle follows brilliant con-man Irvine Rosenfield (Christians Bale) who, along with his cunning and seductive partner Sydney (Amy Adams), is forced to cooperate with wild FBI agent Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper). Pushing them into a world of Jersey powerbrokers and the mafia, Irvine’s unpredictable wife (Jennifer Lawrence) could be the one to pull the thread that brings their entire world crashing down.
“At some point, you have to stop running and turn around and face whoever wants you dead. The hard thing is finding the courage to do it.”
Directed by Francis Lawrence and the second adaptation in Suzanne Collins‘ The Hunger Games trilogy of novels, Catching Fire continues with the story of Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence), as she returns home after winning the 74th Annual Hunger Games with fellow tribute, Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson). But it doesn’t take Katniss long to learn that surviving the games doesn’t mean that she has won, especially as President Snow (Donald Sutherland) is angry with her for breaking the rules and defying the Capitol at the end of the last Games. Sensing that a rebellion is simmering, the Capitol make a point to prove their control as they prepare for the 75th Annual Hunger Games, The Quarter Quell, a competition that could change Panem forever.
Continue reading “Book v Film: The Hunger Games – Catching Fire”
Directed by Francis Lawrence and the second adaptation in Suzanne Collins‘ The Hunger Games trilogy of novels, Catching Fire continues with the story of Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence), as she returns home after winning the 74th Annual Hunger Games with fellow tribute, Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson). But it doesn’t take Katniss long to learn that surviving the games doesn’t mean that she has won, especially as President Snow (Donald Sutherland) is angry with her for breaking the rules and defying the Capitol at the end of the last Games. Sensing that a rebellion is simmering, the Capitol make a point to prove their control as they prepare for the 75th Annual Hunger Games, The Quarter Quell, a competition that could change Panem forever.
Continue reading “Film Review: The Hunger Games – Catching Fire”
Directed and adapted by David O. Russell, Silver Linings Playbook is based on the novel of the same name by Matthew Quick. Examining a number of relationships and mental illnesses, the film follows Pat Solitano (Bradley Cooper), an ex-teacher with bipolar disorder who moves back in with his parents (Robert De Niro and Jacki Weaver) after being released from a psychiatric hospital. Determined to win back his estranged wife and rebuild his previous life, things get more challenging when Pat meets Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence), a mysterious girl with her own problems, who tells Pat that she will help him get his wife back if he enters a dance competition with her. As an unexpected bond begins to form between them, silver linings appear in both of their lives.
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