Burke and Hare

More Silly killers than Serial Killers

Lover: Taken from IMDB
“Can't believe some of the negativity on here and in the press. And I really don't why people are saying that it isn't funny. This is a very funny, charming film in the tradition of the old Ealing comedies. The cinema I went to see it in was packed and was laughing all the way through. How anyone can say that Landis has delivered a turkey is baffling. It's witty, well shot, got great performances and it has Ronnie Corbett! Hilarious. I think this is a film that has suffered from all of the expectation and the mass marketing. I don't think it is consistently laugh out loud movie but it is consistently funny. I'm so glad that I got the chance to see something different, other than all of the franchise crap on offer at the moment. Two thumbs up to Landis, Pegg and Serkis and of course, Mr Ronnie Corbett, long may your career continue! 4 stars!”

It was a very funny film and some of the negative press was horribly over the top, Burke and Hare is an essential for anyone who has an appreciation for British comedy.

Hater: Taken from IMDB
“what a load of 'fookin sh*%e' man'. My wife and i are both in agreement, this is without doubt the worst film we've seen this year, and almost the worst ever. Utterly awful, dreadfully dreary tale with zero soul, passion or enthusiasm. Avoid like the hangman's noose or you'll just be wasting an hour of your life. I can't believe this website is actually forcing me to write 10 lines - it's just not worth it IMDb - you're being cruel to me man, rubbing my face in it - this is adding insult to injury - I only wanted to warn the world that plague lies within this tosh, masquerading as a serious film - you' should be encouraging this.”

IMDB forces you to write 10 lines for a good reason, in the vague hope that you might write something productive. It is not so that you can un-ashamedly rip a film to pieces without thought or indeed reason! Ignore these kinds of reviews like the plague, if a film isn’t for you then you’ll know before you see it, otherwise we all know that every now again we get a turkey but by the same rule we also may stumble upon a film that becomes an instant favourite.

What I thought:
As a HUGE fan of Mr Pegg myself I was looking forward to this film, honestly it did disappoint me and that’s solely because of the press beforehand. Even Simon Pegg himself was guilty of singing the line about “daring you to like two despicable people”, It is true that mesas Pegg and Serkis are superbly likeable as Irish Entrepreneurs come serial killers. However it’s not them that are the problem, whilst understandably the body count is quite high; none of their victims even a cameo from Christopher Lee are really that likeable or given any screen time.

What that means is a complete dis-association with their crimes, the people they ‘knock off’ to make a living you don’t really care about and because every time they do take a life they do it quite ineptly it’s all a bit silly. So once again the press has over played the film a bit, you’re not dared to like despicable men your dared to take their crimes with a pinch of salt (even the lines on the screen at the beginning tells you that this is a true story apart from the parts that are not).

There are however some great performances from some of the cream of British comedy talent, clearly when word was around that John Landis was coming back to the UK to make a “Dark Comedy” they were queuing up. Simon Pegg and Andy Serkis excel at those Irish accents and excel at making two of the UK’s biggest serial killers actually likeable, they do that by playing them just a little bit on the dim side which I thought was a bit disappointing I thought they would be less bumbling more calculating. Jessica Hynes joins her Spaced co-star to play Lucky, William Hares wife? I don’t know? She is great and gives massive laughs to possibly the funnies sex scene I’ve ever seen. They are also joined by more Spaced alumni Bill Bailey, Michael Smiley and British thesps like Tom Wilkinson, Christopher Lee, Tim Curry, David Schofield and of course Ronnie Corbett. The shorter half of the two Ronnies is the cherry on top and his usual bumbling schtick fits into this story near perfectly, The rest flesh out a story that is as silly as it is macabre.

Those expecting An American Werewolf in London should look away now but those with an appreciation for the sillier side of traditional Ealing comedies should lap it up.

Paul

Want to know the best thing in this film? Clues in the title…

Lover: Taken from IMDB
“Just got back from the cinema and I am so pleased with how this movie turned out. I was honestly laughing out loud for the first time since I saw pineapple express back in 08. The only reason I haven't given it a 10 is because that would mean it was perfect and there were a couple of minor insignificant down falls to the film the first was Sigourney Weaver's acting which seems to have gotten worse and worse since alien but saying that she is the perfect person for this role no one could have fulfilled the cameo role any better. A little more flashbacks of Paul's time on earth would have been awesome I would have liked to see Paul in the 80's to be honest and a little change to his appearance would have given a little giggle but the film didn't need it. Jason Bateman played the perfect part as usual. Seth Rogan was yet again amazing. As I said this was an amazing movie and I can't wait for it to come to DVD.”

A good review and very telling that Pegg and Frost weren’t even mentioned.

Hater: Taken from IMDB
“'Paul' an alien, who's spaceship crashed etc....found by two complete non-entities go on a journey to aid Paul in returning to his motherland. As fugitives... With all the ideas, opportunity and creativity in this world relating to UFO and sci-Fi, Paul was produced.... the movie is a complete dismal. yes in the beginning there were elements of humour - not witty but i admit, it could evoke a smile or a subtle snigger, but that was all you will get from it. The movie was just horrible and half way through i found refuge in my Ipod. There was no build up of the characters; of the relationship between Paul, the internal characters & certainly not with the audience. When Paul had suggestively 'died' i felt no sympathy for the thing; in fact...good riddance. British comedy...actually, that was English comedy- it varies. it has it's moments (depending on how it is executed)when it can make you laugh until you cry & other times, when it's being forced it's just a horrific encounter. in this movie, it wasn't executed naturally: The acting was horrific, the script was unconvincing and stupid, the story was just cliché and embarrassing. To conclude, it has to be known that it wasn't my idea to watch the film- in fact i protested against it but i was out-voted; 3 against 2. such is life i guess..."

A lot of opinion and no points from a person who was using their i-pod half way through a film, need I say more?

What I thought:
Paul was always going to be a different beast from pervious Pegg and Frost efforts, the first is the character the film is titled after. The titular Paul adds an element to this usually very dependable double act that waters down its usual shtick. It creates a kind of bromance love triangle where the funniest scenes are when Paul is talking to either of our heroes. This could be a bit of a problem for die-hard fans (me included) that have followed the paring since Spaced. Going in to watch it you want pure Pegg and Frost, sharp dialogue and near perfect observational comedy and to begin with that’s what you get.

It’s like their tip of the hat to geeks who have followed them and loved them for years, the opening sequence and indeed then rest of film is filled to the brim with references of science fiction movies. The opening and ending sequences for instance are pure Spielberg and Close Encounters, my personal favourite however is Jason Batemans line when shooting the radio. However this is where the appeal for the Spaced elite will end.

What picks it up is pure mainstream comedy with a foul mouthed Alien voiced by Seth Rogan. To say its mainstream is not to say it’s bad, in fact he has some of the funniest lines in the film. It just might be a bit disappointing for people like me who were expecting another Shaun of the Dead or Hot Fuzz. Silly really as Edgar Wright Is nowhere to be seen but there was hope. Jason Bateman is on superb form and all other cameos are great and with a good touch of tongue in cheek. So apart from a silly long running joke about three tits, Paul is a very good mainstream comedy from the British duo just don’t expect Shaun of the Dead.

Out this week: Cinema

Burke and Hare:
A dark comedy by John Landis (American Werewolf in London)that has a lot of promise. The cast is first rate and the trailers look great. Simon Pegg working with another one of his heroes and Andy Serkis picking up the role from David Tennant.Isla Fisher beefs out the cast with some a-list hollywood cred. There's the a great British presence here to as Pegg's Spaced co-star Jessica Hynes,Tom Wilkinson, the ever brilliant Tim Curry and Ronnie Corbett in a rare appearance join the cast. Looks like comedy gold to me, i mean its got to be pretty funny to make you like a pair of quite frankly despicable characters, bring it on.

Saw 3D:
Yet another Halloween, yet another SAW movie! Gladly this is the last one! I'm not completely against the franchise. The first one was a brilliant original horror movie, sadly it has become a sad excuse of what it started. The so called "Torture Porn" movies that somehow keep getting made, have the Saw movies to thank for the popularity but they all basically come down to how they dispose of their hapless victims. What with the 3D gimmick just adding to an already gimmick filled movie this is one i wont be seeing.

The Kids are All Right:
A movie about kids addopted by a Lesbian couple decide they want to get to know they're dad. Sounds interesting and looks interesting to, it's ben recieved great by the critics so far and will give the casual viewer a chance to sink they're teeth into the new Hulk Mark Ruffalo. With Annette Bening, Julianne Moore its certainly got some Acting cred behind it, maybe one for DVD though.

When I met Simon Pegg (for the second time) and why I will never go to a book signing again…

Now the title suggests one big long rant, so I’ll start from the very beginning…

This is not a rant at Simon Pegg, he was just as polite and as friendly as I remember him. The first time I met him was while he was doing the publicity for Hot Fuzz at The London MCM Expo, both him and Nick Frost spoke to me about the picture I had brought for them to sign. It was a great experience and I left with the largest smile on my face. To really understand how happy I have to go back as far as Big Train a sketch show series that Simon (I’ve met the guy twice now, we’re on first name terms…) starred in. He was great in it and had some of my favourite sketches like no wanking in the office, scared of spoons or the brilliant FAT HANDED TWAT!

Of course it wasn’t until Spaced that the bromance really blossomed! Let me take this moment to tell you that Simon Pegg has what all male geeks are attempting to attain, not only is he famous and well loved but he’s had the chance to meet all the people he never dreamed of meeting; got to be a zombie extra for George A.Romero, has starred in a Star Trek movie, met George Lucas and Quentin Tarantino! Most self confessed geeks will never get to do these things; most of us hide away in our hobbit holes and discuss (in length) whether or not Han Solo shot first. In this sense he is the ultimate geek, not a king or god or anything like that just a geek like the rest of us that has something we don’t. Confidence, talent and comic timing assigned to only the greatest of on screen comics.

That’s enough inflating of the man’s ego, it should however tell you why I decided to go and wait outside Waterstones yesterday for four and a half hours to see the man. Now when you arrive early for someone like Simon Pegg you are with a certain breed of geek. Now I’m not saying I’m better than them but these are the people that discuss sci fi facts down to the episode and date and time of when Kirk faced off against Spock! There is nothing wrong with this kind of knowledge I just don’t understand why these geeks feel the need to prove it to you, it’s not a competition! I don’t care what you know! Someone in the queue looked at me like I was the freak when I said “oh I’m just a big fan” in answer to the why are you here question. One gentleman near me who was clearly a collector felt like getting my attention with photos of the stars he had seen and got autographs off. I was able to ignore him till he let of a rather loud scoff of annoyance because a signature was smudged(it really wasn’t that bad!), he the proceeded to tell me of who he had met, how he had met them and what he thought of them.

Now I’ll admit some of his anecdotes were funny, but I was being talked at and I hate that! There were several facts about more recent films he got wrong, I knew it but couldn’t be bothered to get into some big geek debate. Eventually I closed him out with the inception soundtrack booming in my ears. Though he was able to do that to other people in the queue but they were more up for the “No I’m a bigger geek than you!” debate, I just felt like screaming “look I’m not like you I have spikey hair, leave me alone!”. Eventually they let us in, now the weather at the moment (yes I’m going to talk about the weather) is not extremely cold, unless of course your out stood in it for a very long time! My feet and legs had started to go numb by the time they said we could go and wait inside. I’m not complaining about that its just helps to understand the frustration later.

Standing in the crime section looking at the table Simon will be sat at surrounded by copies of his book; I began thinking about what the hell I was going to say to the guy! I didn’t want to gush but I also didn’t want to be silent. The important thing for me at least is; will I be memorable? Will Simon Pegg remember signing my book, the answer of course is no, how could he with so many people meeting him in circumstance like this! I thought of telling him I loved his work, nah to gushy! I thought of asking him for a hug, nah the tables to wide to reach over! I thought of telling him how I had met him before but like I said he wouldn’t have remembered. In the end I decided I would ask him to make the book out to my wife (Naomi, With Love Simon Pegg). I had indoctrinated her using Spaced you see and already had something made out to me so thought it would be nice. I also decided I would try and plug my blog, shameless I know but if I could get someone famous to read it and tell me what he thought it would get noticed. So I wrote Beeonfilm on a receipt I had and planned to give it to him.

The “collector” was still going on about the poor hapless souls next to us and the Waterstones staff were buzzing about here and there. In the “press pit” (a small fenced area) photographers get warmed up till finally Simon appears. He smiles and waves at the people waiting, he is courteous and patient with the press as they tell him to look here there and everywhere. Eventually he sits down and people begin walking forward to meet the man.

Now the beginning of my rant, baring everything in mind! The people at the front with me had been waiting nigh on 5 hours and we were all nervous about meeting someone we are fanatical about, all of us wondering what we’re going to say! So when I reach the table and my book has been handed to him he says hi and someone to our left decides now would be a good time to tell him that “it’s bringing a tear to my eye”… well excuse me but who are you? I have been waiting outside in the cold for ages to talk to this man and you butt in when I’ve only just said hello! I already felt small next to this man now you’re making it worse with a false sense of heart felt emotion! You’ve had your chance publicist, PR man, friend or just hanger on now it’s my turn. I tell him could you write with love Simon Pegg to my wife, He asks me how to spell her name; I tell him. At this point someone at our right puts him off trying to hand him the book of the next person! Excuse me he’s signing mine right now, oh and look because you distracted him he’s signed it wrong! I get a photo (the one above) I say thanks Simon and shake the mans hand, I ask him to google beeonfilm and read what he finds there (if you are reading this Simon: thank you so much for being you and giving my blog a chance). Of course at that point another book has been pushed in front of him and a security guy who has no idea how important this is to me ushers me on. After I realise that the piece of paper with beeonfilm on it is still squashed in the palm of my hand covered in perspiration like some sodden toilet tissue. Some girl speeds past me with her 5 copies she took to the table delighted with the amount of time she got with the man! Is this what I need to do, buy the book 5 times just so I can get more time with him! I resist the temptation to punch her in the face and leave.

I move on, again with a smile but with a bitter feeling of disappointment! Simon will never remember what I said to him, why? because of the inconsiderate pricks that flag him like flies around a turd! If any were family please excuse me, I don’t mean to offend its just I love this mans work I will only ever get a handful of times to meet him and make sure he knows this. You have a lot more time that that! This is why I won’t bother anymore because of arsehole publicists, PR people, security and general people just hanging around who have no idea how important these moments are for the fans! There you go rant over, I’ll go back in my hobbit hole now and watch Spaced with the commentary on…