Chimpomatic

The Sum Of All Fears

Decent re-boot, as Ben Affleck's Jack Ryan plausibly defuses World War III.

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9th Jan 2011

Toy Story

The original Pixar blockbuster is still a classic ...though a little less adult-friendly than I remembered.

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9th Jan 2011

The Hurt Locker

Subtle, tension riddled procedural drama following a bomb disposal unit in Iraq. A bit long.

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9th Jan 2011

Fucked Up Love

'Blind Date' the only real highlight in an otherwise painfully slow collection of shorts.

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8th Jan 2011

The Town

Thoroughly entertaining heist movie from Ben Affleck. Deducting for so thoroughly 'homaging' Heat.

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7th Jan 2011

Animal Kingdom

Brilliant, brooding, Aussie underworld thriller. A great debut and the best film of 2011 ...so far.

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7th Jan 2011

Jarhead

Magnificently assembled film, unfortunately offering little more than updated 80's war movie cliches.

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3rd Jan 2011

Syriana

Stylish, sprawling, epic look at levels of subterfuge and intrigue with the oil industry and the middle east.

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3rd Jan 2011

The Adventures of Robin Hood

Timeless, spectacular, epic swashbuckler - with beautiful Technicolor cinematography.

Halliwell says: A splendid adventure story, rousingly operatic in treatment, with dashing action highlights, fine comedy balance, and incisive acting all round. Historically notable for its use of early three-colour Technicolor; also for convincingly recreating Britain in California.****

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2nd Jan 2011

Staten Island

Clunky compilation of three interlinked short stories.

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1st Jan 2011

Alice in Wonderland

More tedious psychedelics from Tim Burton.

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1st Jan 2011

Best of 2010

CSF

Just because most of our 2010 reviews have been happening on Twitter doesn't mean quality music hasn't be coming in thick and fast this year. Here's my top 5 for 2010:

Abe Vigoda - Crush
Probably my most unexpected favourite for 2010, Crush finds LA Smell regulars Abe Vigoda moving up a notch to make their most accessible album yet. If a band like this can ever hit the mainstream, this is certainly great prep - like Interpol with more ideas and better beats.

The Soft Pack - The Soft Pack
The San Diego post-punkers graduate from community college with straight A's in 'chorus'. After a lot of hype and a fairly average live sighting, I was surprised to find myself so engaged with this first album proper. Side A rules.

LCD Soundsystem - This Is Happening
The bubble may have burst as LCD Soundsystem set to disband, but there was still time for one last go-around. Not quite as ace as Sound of Silver, but with tracks like 'All I Want' and 'Home', it's still stuffed with classics.

Spoon - Transference
Harnessing all their studio 'accidents' into another masterfully produced masterpiece, Spoon yet again deliver a five star album. So consistent I almost forget about them. Some great slow burners on here.

Black Mountain - Wilderness Heart
Almost forgot this one ...which is a surprise considering how bombastic it is. After the note perfect In The Future, Black Mountain had no hope of topping getting even better just yet, but the least they could do was shore up their legend. Old Fangs and the title track cruised into their best-ever playlist.

DULY NOTED: Weezer - Hurley / Pinkerton Deluxe
With their departure from a major label, it seemed certain that Weezer would put aside all the contractually-obliging crap they're been churning out and finally release a great record again. Nope. Hurley crawled back up to a 3, but luckily the time had come for a deluxe edition of 90's classic Pinkerton. A re-release shouldn't be anyone's best album in a decade, but this one is stuffed full of long-lost tracks, b-sides and oddities - plus it's getting a five star rating for being overlooked the first time round.

Monsters was a great movie. Somewhere one of the worst ever. Kings of Leon, The National and Band of Horses all disappointed. Roll on 2011.

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1st Jan 2011 - Add Comment - Tweet

Anything For Her

Gripping French prison break drama, with echoes of The Fugitive.

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30th Dec 2010

Somewhere

Pretentious, drawn-out fluff from Sofia Coppola. A promising idea, stretched to Jarmuschian proportions.

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29th Dec 2010

Dorian Gray

Bodice-ripping, period action movie, predictable in style and execution.

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28th Dec 2010

Moonwalk One

Incredible, beautifully restored Koyaanisqatsi-esque documentary about Apollo 11, from 1970.

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28th Dec 2010

SFW

Shambolic Generation X-ploitation movie. The Stephen Dorff revival has begun.

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28th Dec 2010

Black Swan

Masterfully crafted, pretentious but compelling horror from Aronofsky. The Force is strong with this one.

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27th Dec 2010

Precious

Beautifully acted, unique, original and challenging 80's urban drama - if still a little uneven.

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27th Dec 2010

Avatar

Cartoony, cliched re-hash of Cameron's repertoire, plus Dances With Wolves. Thought it would be better in 2D.

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26th Dec 2010

Up In The Air

Original, inventive, touching rom com with George Clooney on top form.

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25th Dec 2010

The Fantastic Mr Fox

Clever old school animation from Wes Anderson brings Roald Dahl's cheeky chap to life.

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25th Dec 2010