Dear Charlotte,

I know this is really weird but you are an X-Files fangirl so it won’t be much of a scare for you. I’m writing to you from 2009! Isn’t that cool? I have some things to tell you, to warn you if you like. You’re pretty perceptive so you’ll already be mentally and emotionally prepared anyway.

So here goes…

Mr Sambrook DOES NOT look like Ben Affleck but the memory will be a happy one forever.

They are your best friends and you think that things will never change even if you’ve already been through so much together already. You will drift apart from them when relationships come but don’t worry too much, that’s life and everybody’s gotta learn sometime. You will keep them in your heart forever.

Savour this year – next year she will leave you behind and things will be really tough between you but you will always love her, no matter how many times you cry and say that you give up on her. It will hurt like hell and you will feel like your heart is breaking but be strong, you will get through it.

She is not your friend so don’t trust her. She has been letting you down for all these years and she will never change. You will have some happy memories but she blames you for everything. She is very insecure (but you always knew that anyway). Don’t believe everything she says and don’t worry when she tells you that you will never be a good girlfriend to anyone (you soon show her ).

There will be songs you’ll hear 5 years later and they will make you remember these feelings you’re having right now and they will make you smile, they might even make you cry.

He will never love you the way you love him – you don’t love him as much as you think you do and your first love is yet to come when you least expect it to. You will know the moment you meet him. He may buy you that necklace but don’t take it as a token of any kind. He just has too much money and it probably didn’t take much thought.

When you dye half of your hair red, the habit will stick and you’ll try every colour

A new era is about to start; it’s short lived but enjoy every minute of it as it doesn’t last. You will gain a best friend for life from it though and you will stay in relative contact with some of them even if you don’t think you ever will again.

Tell that tall boy with the big boots that “Super Smash Brothers” promotes violence – you will remember that first exchange of words forever. When he tells you that he loves you, you won’t know what to say at first but the words come. He means it and so do you.

You will hurt her but don’t worry, she will forgive you. Realise that it will be this way for three years but you will be friends again (don’t be stubborn) and you will be one of the first people she contacts when she has her baby.

You will still be friends with her 5 years later even though you first met randomly online by pure chance and you will talk as much as you always did, all these years later.

Make sure you get Chris to buy Project Zero – it will kick off a mini era and broaden your knowledge of all things Japanese.

Treasure Ruby and Dolly above all else. You will miss them when they’re gone.

So, I think that’s it. I’m sorry if any of it scares you but put it this way, I’m alive now right? Well, you are. I may sound like Mystic Meg here but a word of warning now; 2005 will be a really bad year but you will get through it. 2006 is a reward for you! You go travelling and you meet someone you will instantly gel with and will become very good friends with. 2007 is a bit meh, 2008 is alright and so is 2009. That’s all I have to say for now.

Oh, sometime in the near future, you will randomly meet three Danish boys and a baker on a game called Maple Story. Don’t worry, they really are as weird as they sound but they will be great friends of yours! One of them will be one of your best friends in fact. You will meet another friend who comes from Lancashire and he will be a good friend, even if you have your ups and downs!

Be safe and make sure you eat something in 2005!

Love from you xxxx

(In honor, of Johnny Depp winning Sexiest Man Alive, I’ve decided to repost my responce from SMA version 2006 from my old site. Enjoy.)

It’s been over a week now and I’ve buried my discontent long enough. I would go as far as to say I am damn near cantankerous. It just sits there, everywhere, mocking me. In newsstands, book stores, websites, on Entertainment Tonight AND the Insider (that’s a straight hour). I could no longer hold back the flood gates of frustration. I had to know. How is it possible that, for the eleventh straight year of eligibility (although I was confirmed as a man by the Catholic Church at 15), have I been overlooked again for Sexiest Man Alive. Sure George Clooney won, I get it, I would be his man whore, but he’s already won before. Did you know for some God forsaken reason Richard Gere’s won twice (or in his case Buddha forsaken)? There is obviously very little thinking outside of the box going on in the editorial offices. Where’s the creativity? Are they just thumbing through Esquire and pointing when they see a splash page? Why tell people what they already perceive when they can be a voice of true authority?

I mean I could understand for the first few years of my youth. I was young and needed to be batted around a bit. In college, I was frequently covered in very un sexy paint stained clothing and rarely showered as much as I should, but I always cleaned up very sexily. So I needed to spend some time learning the ropes of sexy and paying my sexy dues. I was fine with that then, but now, even after all of my toil and preparation, it’s like they’re not even considering me. I have the hair, the eyes and my body isn’t gonna get any less fat. My time is now, I may never be sexier.

I need a real answer. After searching around a bit, using my sexy charm and calling in some favors, I finally got a number to an editor at People. Her assistant’s name was Barbara. Barbara had the cute and cordial accent of a girl from coal mining town, but I wasn’t disarmed. I was on a fact finding mission and immediately asked to speak to her boss. She said that my request, “was impossible,” and I knew it was crap. I should have held out but I just started in on her.

“Why haven’t I been considered for Sexiest Man Alive?” She then asked who I was and I told her. She said she’d never heard of me. I said why does that matter? She explained that you had to be famous to be Sexiest Man Alive. So I asked since when does being Alive have anything to do with being famous. Was she saying that my life was in balance with my Q rating? Or is anonymity like a malignant cancer? Would I live longer if I had starred in a movie with Susan Sarandon or Shaquille O’Neal? That’s when it became obvious that I was taking dead aim at Nick Nolte Mr. 1992, who is neither sexy nor alive. There’s been a distinct Weekend at Bernie’s vibe with him since Streisand denutted him in Prince of Tides. Did you also notice George Carlin started to suck right about that time? Also in POT. Then I listed past winners I was definitely more sexy then: the other being Ben Affleck.

I was too worked up to make sense. After taking a few breathes in the nearest black bodega bag, I laid back and thought of all the things I do have: like a very comfortable couch to lay back on. Then I apologized to Barbara. It wasn’t her fault, it was the editors, but next year I would prefer a phone call and left my number. I snapped my phone back into its folded rested position and took up my Play Station 2 controller. I felt, although no one could see me that I was very sexy at that very moment. Definitely sexier then Affleck and the world was just a phone call from finding out.

Three of my men on tv this week ;o)

Yum

Casey Affleck: Weirding out in Ben’s footsteps.

APPEARANCE: 3

I: Oh, I really enjoy the under appreciated Affleck! I like his curly hair and his Boston accent. I think he’s charming and kind of rough around the edges and cool. He seems a bit short, but other than that, I think he’s definitely fine.

L: Does he seem short? I thought he seemed tall and lean, which I appreciate. He does have a boyish cuteness that makes me swoon. The curly hair is absolutely a plus.

PORTFOLIO: 1

L: I don’t follow his career too closely, but of course I lurve 200 Cigarettes—his role in that had me hoping he was like that in real life. But then there was the abysmal Gerry with your other boyfriend Matt Damon, and then…and then? Casey Affleck needs to get out on the scene more, man!

I: He definitely hasn’t done enough! Ben is leaving him in the dust. He has great potential as evidenced by 200 Cigs and that fucking Zach Braff movie that I hated (but Casey was good in), The Last Kiss. Could he be a leading man?

CHOICES: 1

I: So get this! I think Casey Affleck is in cahoots with Joaquin Phoenix (because Casey married JP’s sister) and has something to do with that weirdo shit JP is trying to pull. He’s like, in charge of that documentary about JP’s beard. So I don’t know what to think of him!

L: Whaaa? Why is he humoring JP like that?

PERSONALITY: 2

L: Do you think he seems too serious? Hmm. I like picturing him as his 200 Cigs self but now that he’s all mixed up in that Phoenix crowd and encouraging JP’s beard… What would his purpose at our gathering be?

I: Sigh. I’ve always enjoyed Casey Affleck and thought he was the underdog of the Afflecks, but now that he’s in on this stupid J.Phoenix project, I don’t know what to think. Maybe we’ll invite him just so we can ask him what the hell is going on. He’d probably be boring and quiet though.

ROMANTIC POTENTIAL: 1.5

I: I want to imagine myself getting down with him but I don’t think I can! I wonder if he’s an awkward lay and doesn’t take any initiative. And he’s too anxious and weird to plan a good date and just gets frustrated because I expect too much of him. Blegh.

L: Haha @ your Casey Affleck stress. I can’t see myself having a wild romp with him. I bet it’d be like Carrie and Berger’s first time—all silent and cringe worthy. Meanwhile, you’d be sneaking glances at the clock, thinking, “What’s Ben up to now?” Sorry, Casey A.! What about him doing boyfriend things? I can’t really see that either. If either one of us were dating him, he seems like he’d get disgruntled because we’d be so whimsical when he’d rather talk about the beauty of a dead bird or something.

SUGGESTIONS

L: Oh dears. How about stop doing movies like “Gerry”; let Joaquin be; do a fun, fanciful mainstream role…

I: He needs to find his own avenue that doesn’t involve stupid documentaries starring Joaquin Phoenix. He needs to be cute and quirky in a romantic role! He maybe could have followed in the footsteps of JGL and thrived in roles where he was awkward yet charming, but he just didn’t! Oh well… his loss.

FINAL GRADE: 8.5/25 D+

Sinopse:

Stephen Collins (Ben Affleck) é um deputado que tem sua carreira política ameaçada por uma investigação que envolve a morte de sua amante. Cal McCaffrey (Russell Crowe), ex-chefe da campanha do político, agora trabalha como jornalista num jornal que começa a investigar o crime, o que coloca em jogo a relação entre os dois.

- Bom filme!

- Assistido em 06/09/2009

Russell: Kay mate, ‘eres what I think happened to Sonya…

Ben: (puts his fingers through his hair) Can you believe we are supposed to be the same age? Talk about mis-casting (laughs)

Russell: Whatever! Anyway so I talked to this guy-

Ben: How old are you?

Russell: 45.

Ben: (scoffs) Good god! People are seriously expected to believe we are the same age? Our studio must really disrespect their audience…

Russell: SO ANYWAY! I was talking to this-

Ben: You know I’m 37 right?

Russell: No but-

Ben: That’s like ALMOST ten years younger than you! I gotta get back to the dermatologist, this is just WRONG.

Russell: Hey Benny boy?

Ben: Yeah?

Russell: See this phone?

Ben: Ah-huh… well technically it’s a blackberry but whatevs.

Russell: I’m gona smash it in your face.

Affiche française

L’ingénieur Michael Jennings travaille sur des projets top-secrets, commandités par des sociétés de haute technologie. A l’issue de chaque mission, sa mémoire est “effacée” par contrat pour l’empêcher de divulguer la moindre information confidentielle. Puis un chèque substantiel lui est remis.
Mais cette fois, l’enveloppe ne contient aucun argent, que des objets hétéroclites : à en croire l’employeur, Jennings aurai renoncé par avance à ses honoraires habituels. Celui-ci découvre que ces objets sont autant d’indices relatifs à son passé – un passé “remis à zéro” dont sa mémoire n’a gardé que d’infimes traces. Un seul espoir pour percer ce mystère : la femme avec qui il travaille et qu’il aime depuis trois ans : Rachel.
Une course contre la montre s’engage. Jennings n’a que quelques heures pour recomposer le puzzle de sa vie et échapper à la vengeance de son implacable employeur.

Payckeck est un film de John Woo, adapté d’une nouvelle de Philip K. Dick, La clause du salaire. Il réunit un casting prestigieux : Ben Affleck (Will Hunting, Armageddon, Pearl Harbor), Aaron Eckart (Thank you for smoking, The dark knight), Uma Thurman (Pulp Fiction, Batman & Robin, Bienvenue à Gattaca, Kill Bill), Colm Feore (Empire, Les chroniques de Riddick), Michael C. Hall (Dexter), Kathryn Morris (Cold Case).

Le scenario est un des meilleurs scenario de science-fiction. Le film très bien réalisé, ne peut donc qu’être excellent. Le divertissement est assuré et le film vous amènera à réfléchir.

Ma note:

Jag ska fatta mig kortfattat. Jag satte på teven till maten, såg på TV 1000 att Gone Baby Gone körde. En film som jag älskar, men har bara halva. Sett den halvan flera gånger, älskar den. Sedan har jag glömt den.

Problemet var, att det var precis i slutet när jag slog på. Jag ville inte se slutet, jag ville se från mitten. TV1000 är genier. Det finns en till kanal, TV1000+1, som visar samma film fast en timme senare! Visst är det genialiskt?!?! Helt underbart. Detta gjorde att det överlappade perfekt och nu ser jag slutet på den. Fantastiskt.

För övrigt är det Bröderna Affleck som gjort filmen. Ben Affleck, som jag var lite kär i när jag var liten, har regisserat. Hans lillebror Casey Affleck spelar huvudrollen, och gör det BRA.

Se den.

Ben & Casey Affleck - GÖTT MOS

* * * * * * * * * * 94%

Patrick Kensey (Casey Affleck) searches for Amanda McCready

I loved this movie. It can be sad at times, as it is about a missing child, but the quality of this movie just reminds the viewer that it will be remembered. Ben Affleck directs as his little brother stars in this drama set in Boston. The scenery, acting, and story are amazing and if you are looking for a suspenseful mystery, this is for you. Reviewed by Mr. Fallglass

He’s Just Not That Into You

Released June 2, 2009

Flower Films

Bradley Cooper, Hollywood’s newest “IT” guy scores another role where he plays the nice guy turned asshole after screwing around behind his wife’s, Jennifer Connolly’s back. Scarlett Johansson plays the hot wannabe singer whose “boyfriend” Kevin Connolly just cannot understand she is not into him, just like in real life! Jennifer Aniston plays the needy older lady who wants to get married, a real stretch. Ben Affleck plays a mysterious awesome guy who takes no crap, again a real stretch. Justin Long helps Ginnifer Goodwin with her love life like I’m sure he helped fellow co-star Drew Barrymore with in real life. So is this movie real life mimicking art or the other way around, I’m still not sure.

Don’t get me wrong, the movie is very watchable, especially if you’re like me and you only wanted to see this movie for two things, 1. because Ben Affleck is the man and 2. because Ms. Johansson is in a bikini then gets semi-naked later in the movie.

The story follows around the characters I’ve mentioned in their love lifes, the ups and downs of marriages and the drama that can happen when life takes that proverbial turn for the worse. OH NO! Tough times beguile all the characters, yet the only one who isn’t involved in any of the drama except for hearing Ginnifer Goodwin bitch about how guys don’t like her is Justin Long. He is the Dr. Phil of the movie, while quoting the movie title at least 3 times. DING! we have a winner!

While entertwined in this story, the characters cross paths each on their own road to eventual loss and heartbreak. I won’t ruin it for anyone who wants to see the movie, but the way the hardships are resolved actually seem believable and doesn’t come across as forced, almost like it would happen in real life between these celebrities.

In all, guys, it would be best to suck it up and see this movie, there are parts you’ll enjoy, *coughscarlettjohanssoninredunderwearcough*, and ladies you’ll love how you finally get to see a guy listen to you and offer advice that doesn’t involve trying to get into your pants.

3 out of 6 thumbs up

Oj, jak ja lubię sobie odświeżyć jakiegoś starocia. Mój wybór padł na “W pogoni za Amy” Kevina Smitha. Przyznam się szczerze, że film ten widziałem dobre kilka lat temu i jedynie parę jego wyciętych kawałków. Teraz mogłem się nim delektować w 100 pieprzonych procentach, bo Kevin to po prostu kawał fajnego skurczybyka, który proste historie opowiada w rewelacyjny, dowcipny sposób dosypując do dialogów szczyptę seksistowskiego humoru.

Chasing Amy to klasyka i nieodłączna część uniwersum Smitha. Jest to też jeden z nielicznych tytułów, który w obsadzie posiada niezwykle fajnego Bena Afflecka. Aktor ów (wyjątkowo nazwę go tak bo u Smitha zawsze się sprawdza) gra rysownika komiksów, który zjawiając się na konwencie fanów zakochuje się w Alyssie Jones – konkurentce po fachu. Ble ble ble, ale to nie jest zwykłe love story. Jak to u Smitha – fabuła przesiąknięta jest wulgaryzmami i “ciężkimi” tematami spod znaku seksu. Nikt jednak nie potrafi tak jak on przemieszczać się po lekko pękniętym gruncie, który momentalnie potrafi zniknąć spod nóg. Smith nie zalicza gleby, on kontynuuje swoją pracę w mistrzowski sposób.

Jest tu trochę śmiechu, ale nie jest to do końca taki Smith jakiego byśmy chcieli widzieć. Czy to jest wada? Nie. To po prostu dojrzalszy film, nieszablonowy, mądry. Warto chociażby zwrócić uwagę na jak zwykle kapitalny występ Jaya i Cichego Boba – parę stanowiącą impuls dla podłamanego artysty. Dołóżmy do tego niedomknięte zakończenie i o to mamy super komedię o miłości. Ale jakiej! Nie mogę tego zdradzić

Warto sobie uzmysłowić, że 2 lata później Smith nakręcił Dogmę – megakontrowersyjny obraz wyśmiewający Kościół oraz chrześcijaństwo. W zestawieniu z Chasing Amy widać jak na dłoni, że Kevin szuka trudnych tematów, ale opowiada je zawsze tak samo przewrotnie. Coś podobnego poczułem chociażby w trakcie seansu Zack i Miri kręcą porno. Mogę nie lubić reżysera i jego dzieł, ale nie umiem odmówić mu jego konsekwencji. Tak zachowują się jedynie najlepsi.

A w następnych wpisie – recenzja nowego Terminatora! Już teraz gorąco zapraszam. Będzie się działo!

I love my dog more than most people.

But sometimes she makes me so damn frustrated.

She absolutely adores people (except for older people for some reason…they frighten her, but really don’t the elderly kind of scare us all?) and this is (obviously) a great trait for a dog to have. I am thankful that this is the case.

What frustrates me is her attitude towards other dogs. She friggen hates them. I don’t know if she’s got a bad case of the Napoleon Complex, but she goes beserk when she sees another dog.

When she sees anther dog her hair stands up all down her back, she barks really loud/mean, and pays ZERO attention to me. Not only is it ridiculously embarrassing, but it also concerning. If she ever gets loose or another person’s dog is loose when I’m walking her, I could have a huge issue.

My dog already bit a chuck of the Ex’s parents’ dog’s ears off. (Wow that was a lot of possessive apostrophes…) I would be in big trouble if she ever did that to someone else’s pet.

Aside from that fear, it prohibits some activities I would like to do and even meeting some new people.

Sometimes when I’m walking her I’ll see someone else walking their dog and I think “Wow, I have a really easy conversation starter here. I could just start talking about being a dog owner and BAM I could have a new friend.” This is an oversimplification but I think you catch my drift. Sadly, my dog would attempt to maim the other dog before I could even say, “Oh, hey.”

I would also love to bring my pup to a dog park to run around and socialize with other dogs while I socialize with some of the people there. Once again, this is impossible.

Going to the beach with my pup would also be an amazing time, but god forbid there is another dog running around.

—-

I recently emo-blogged about my disappearing self-esteem. I wish I could report that things have turned around, but it is quite the opposite. Last week my work friend, Ben Affleck (no, he just looks like him) invited me out to Montruex (a local bar). He was hanging out with a girl he had recently met, but she had invited her friend. He was hoping I could serve as his wingman. I like hanging with Affleck and I’m always up for meeting some new people, so I agreed.

I went out with zero expectations. I just planned on hanging with a friend and meeting some new people. I showed up and said hello to Affleck who then introduced me to his “date.” She was really personable and nice to talk to.

He then tried to introduce me to her friend, but she didn’t see me walk in, nor did she hear him. Ignoring this I said “Hey, what was your name?”

She gave me the most disgusted/confused/get the fuck away from me face I have ever seen. I muttered something like, “Oh no…I’m uh..I’m Affleck’s friend I was just introducing myself….”

Wow. Thanks, bitch. I was just saying hi, I wasn’t hitting on you, but thanks for making feel like a complete waste of life.

I promptly turned back to Affleck and his girl to talk to two people who weren’t repulsed by me. The girls soon went to the bathroom. I asked Affleck what the girl’s deal was, but being drunk, he didn’t realize what I meant. He stated that she was kinda shy, had a boyfriend who lived in California and then gave me some other boring info about her.

When the girls came back I essentially ignored the other girl, but once Affleck and his girl started making out a little, I felt obligated to distract the friend. I started the conversation with a “So, I hear you have a boyfriend and you guys live in California…” aka “I am in no way trying to get in your pants and never was.”

I could understand if I went up to her and was trying to be all smooth or was extra sketchy and trying to moleste her like other guys at bars do, but I was just being a regular, nice guy. I wasn’t even hitting on her!

Even though I was super mad, I’d be lieing if I said it didn’t hurt me a little. For someone to just look at me that way and have their snap judgement written all over their face is not easy to forget.

What a lousy weekend. I was ill from Thursday last week yet solidered on into work on Friday (yeah I know, what a martyr) which essentially led to me being restrained to my bed for most of the weekend, I felt better by Sunday lunchtime so decided to try and salvage the remainder of my free time and hit the cinema. I’ve had my eye on this and will certainly be catching this during the week, however due to the London Marathon and subsequent disruption to travel arrangements I had to keep things local which essentially reduced my choice to the well received thriller ‘State Of Play‘ which was playing at the local multiplex. Before you ask yes, ‘Paul Blart: Mall Cop‘ was sold out, I’m just not having much luck at the moment am I?

Firstly of all I haven’t seen the BBC series the film is based on so I was going into the film ‘fresh’ as it were, I’d heard good things about the series so was hoping for a challenging little thriller to distract me from my receding symptoms. US Congressman Stephen Collins (Ben Affleck), chairman of a senate committee investigating the alleged corrupt conduct of military contractor Pointcorp (a thinly veiled Haliburton clone)  visibly breaks down on TV as he discloses the suspicious death of his beautiful assistant which opens the film. A media circus ensues and Collins confesses to an affair, threatening the marriage to his wife Anne (the always welcome Robin Wright Penn) and a political scandal. Hard-nosed Washington Globe editor Cameron Lynne (Helen Mirren) assigns veteran reporter Cal McAffrey (Russell Crowe), an old friend of the senator to cover the story along with ambitious rookie Della Frye (Rachel McAdams). A deadly conspiracy soon emerges which challenges the official suicide verdict of Collins mistress, it’s a race against time to uncover the truth before the evidence is destroyed and potential witnesses silenced….

Does the world need another nervous, hand-held camera Washington political thriller movie? Evidently so. Well, this was perfectly acceptable mainstream Hollywood stuff, no more, no less, which will evaporate from the memory the morning after you’ve seen it. An unnecessarily star laden cast all turn in acceptable enough performances with only Affleck not quite convincing as the junior senator and Mirren excelling as the irascible Washington Globe commander in chief. The film just never really takes off, there are some nice scenes detailing the actual investigative trails that McCaffey and Fry follow to unearth the conspiracy and only a couple of lapses into unnecessary action frolics, it so desperately wants to be ‘All The Presidents Men‘ but unfortunately fails to reach the lofty plateaus of that movies classic status. I don’t want to sound too harsh, it’s worth a look on a uneventful Saturday night, again I’m just mystified by the lavish praise that perfectly average films seem to get from certain quarters, even the usually bullseye accurate Philip French seems to have gone overboard on this one although he does seem to give a historical context for a film rather than review the actual movie these days. Oh well, different strokes for different folks eh?

I admit, I went in with prejudice. Paul Abbott’s State of Play was a terrific back-to-the-Old-School piece of TV drama. Reminiscent of Edge of Darkness, I guess, it had a proper extended run, a complex grown-up story arc, and the best the Beeb can afford (David Morrissey, Bill Nighy, John Simm) acting their little socks off. And so, a big Hollywood blockbuster, with big Hollywood blockbuster-y people (Russell Crowe, Ben Affleck, Jeff Daniels); well, wouldn’t you be worried?

I fully expected chases, and cars flipping into the Potomac. I fully expected saccharine kisses at the tensest moments. I fully expected a total sell-out. Isn’t it awful that I would do that? But, hey. We’ve all been disappointed with the big screen adaptations of much-loved Brit creations. Remember Thomas and the Magic Railroad?

I’m not joking. Over on this side of the pond, seeing John Simm’s darkly feral Cal replaced by a corpulent and long-haired Crowe (this is a fat Russell movie, as opposed to a muscular Russell movie) was as eye-rolling a moment as Robert Downey Jr. being cast as Sherlock Holmes, or – hehehe, imagine – Jude Law as Dr Watson, or even Guy Ritchie pretending to be a film maker. It just seems wrong.

Director Kevin Macdonald, though, is too cute to the vibe to fall into any potholes. This is the man who made Touching the Void, after all…

Macdonald’s legacy helps. Bringing the intelligence of One Day in September (his documentary about the Black September terrorists at the Munich Olympics) and the non-action action of The Last King of Scotland into convergence, what he’s managed to do here is create a properly tense adult thriller that burns consistently and effectively without recourse to absurd set-pieces, explosions or unnecessary icky stuff.

In fact, the only real action takes place in the first minute, with a Bourne-esque wobbly camera race across a Washington street and into an alleyway. This is a neat trick. Macdonald is just kidding with you. The Bourne camera is put away immediately after and the film shifts happily into what it feels easiest doing; being talky and smart and labyrinthine. There are several more you-thought-we-were-going-to-do-that-huh? moments, where the film smirks at the BBC’s concerned and restless demographic, but it never really cocks a snook at them, merely has a bit of fun and then puts their mind at ease by being simply very very good at what it does.

For the uninitiated it’s a dark tale of conspiracy at the top of Washington’s power tree, uncovered by journos. That’s all I’m prepared to say, really. It’s a good story, a tad too complex in the final reel perhaps, which I guess may be the result of condensing 6 hours down to 2, but that’s the most minor of grumbles. Everything else works; even Crowe, of whom I’m normally wary, pulls off that Master & Commander trick and wins you over. Rachel McAdams is feisty and watchable in the cub reporter role, and swapping Nighy for Helen Mirren is inspired (no-one, I imagine, would be able to say “fuck you very much” with the same level of venom).

What I liked about State of Play was that it focussed on morality and the shades of grey therein. It’s not just about good men and bad men, but the mess of complex decision making, and how easy it is to find yourself up to your neck in it. There are no explosions. There are no car chases. There are guns, but not many. There is no CGI, or at least, no moments that make you think, “nice CGI”. Everything that happens happens relentlessly in the real, physical world, and as such you can believe that even the chubbiest of reporters can be a hero. Talky, dark and tense, don’t let the kid-friendly certification fool you. This is grown up.

“One of the best movies of the Year! Russell Crowe is fantastic in this thrilling, entertaining and fast paced movie.”

- imdb

Short: 9.

Metacritics.com: 63

.this film looks pretty funny, especially because it stars Jason Bateman who is hilarious in his own way.

Actually, I’m going to do a quick blog about him.

He’s been in ‘Smokin’ Aces’, ‘The Break-Up’, ‘Arrested Development’ and others, but his characters are always interesting, but not too outrageous. Funny in their own light. If you haven’t seen him act, he’s actually really funny to watch. Dry, but catchy. Anyway, this film also has Ben Affleck in it, who plays a rugged careless worker at the company. He wasn’t bad in Smokin’ Aces which, like i said above Jason Batemen was in also, and almost laughed in the scene where they visit Bateman in his hotel room. If You watch the film again, look at Affleck’s face. Anyway, the lead girl is pretty, and the film looks funny, so look out for it.