Movies I've watched of late

I've seen a few random flicks lately.

Here's my take on them (sorry Jon for stealing your format):

1. Idiocracy (2005)

Luke Wilson plays an average guy in the military who accidentally gets cryogenically frozen for 500 years. He wakes up in the future only to find that the average IQ of the human race has plummeted (thanks to middle class couples failing to procreate as much as the less intelligent sections of society). One of the those odd films that I'd never heard of (apparently it received zero marketing), it's actually very funny and makes a lot of interesting observations (not sure if the premise is based on any real science, though!). (7/10)

 

2. Richard III (1995)

A dark and brooding modern makeover for Shakespeare with Ian MacKellan stealing the show as the devious and megalomaniacal Richard set in an alternate 1930s Britain. Picking off his rivals one by one, you can't help but be impressed by his clever scheming and twisted sense of self-righteousness. (9/10)

3. Stormbreaker (2006)

Not sure why I chose to watch this one. I guess I was just curious. Anyway, it didn't grab me particularly as it was just a James Bond Junior paint-by-numbers lacking any kind of humour or wit. I haven't real the novel ... don't intend to either. (4/10)

4. X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)

Not as bad as I'd expected, although it lacked any real gems of imagination or sense of wonder (which you'd expect from an adaptation of this kind of material), plodding along quite predictably. I've never gotten very excited about the previous X-Men films (and I'm not bothered much about the new Wolverine installment either). I can see how they're trying to parallel the mutant rights thing with the civil rights movement, but because mutants don't exist I find it hard to care about their plight. Kelsey Grammar playing the blue-skinned freak saved the whole thing in my opinion. (6/10)  

5. Fever Pitch (1997)

Bit of an oldie this one - Colin Firth and Ruth Gemmel play two complete opposites who fall in love, except he's also in love with Arsenal. A really sweet film with great dialogue and funny moments. Probably Colin's best performance on film (he's playing an ordinary bloke for a change). Thoroughly recommended. (9.5/10)