The Other Other Boleyn Girl

Advantages: A great central performance from Natalie Portman.
Disadvantages: Wishy-washy characterisation and weak writing.

..." screenwriter Peter Morgan is probably the weakest aspect of the production. The film is after all based on Philippa Gregory's novel of the same name which, if it is anything like her other books, will concentrate on the sibling rivalry of the two sisters, rather than the political implications of their actions. To my mind this diminishes the scope of the film, making it a soapy romance rather than an historical drama. The characterisation feels overly simplistic as the two leads are such polar opposites and the contrast is too great to feel natural. Anne is dark physically and emotionally; calculating and conniving. Her sexuality is more overt and she understands the power it gives her over men. That being said, she doesn't quite know how to control it, leading to her downfall. Mary, the "milk and honey" sister is pale and pure, coming across as...

afy9mab 11.04.2008 · Read review
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Review of The Other Boleyn Girl (DVD)

'Little Bee' or 'The other Hand ' you choose it the same book!

Advantages: Well written interesting book with a lot of food for thought
Disadvantages: I'm not sure I liked the ending

...?The other Hand? by Chris Cleave ISBN 978-0340963425 Published by Sceptre; Paperback Edition ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Chris Cleave was born in London in 1973 and was brought up both in Cameroon and Buckinghamshire and went to Oxford University where he studied Psychology. He has written two novels, ?Incendiary? which was published in twenty countries and made into a film starring Ewan MacGregor. His second novel is the one I am reviewing ?The Other Hand? as it is known in the UK but in the USA and Canada it is published under the name ?Little Bee? and this book was published in 2008 over here but 2009 in the USA and Canada. Apparently this is due to be made into a film with Nicole Kidman starring in it so I will be looking out for this with interest. BACKGROUND TO THE BOOK: Chris Cleave says that the novel is not a true story but it is...

catsholiday 13.12.2009 · Read review
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Review of The Other Hand - Chris Cleave

SCARY OTHERS

Advantages: Excellent film
Disadvantages: none

...The others, is a film starring Nicole Kidman as Grace a woman whose husband has gone to fight in the war. She is caring for her two children who both suffer from a severe form of 'photophobia'. With which when subjected to any stronger light than a gas lamp, they get covered in blisters and sores. But all is not what it seems in this ghostly tale, which devotes the whole film (bar the last few minutes) to just seven people. Firstly we have Grace herself, portrayed to perfection by Nicole Kidman. She is with her two children a girl named Ann (played by Alakina Mann) and her brother Nicholas (played by James Bentley). Three house workers soon join them: whom Grace readily employs. These are in the form of: Fionnula Flanagan as the housekeeper/nanny, Elaine Cassidy as the mute dogsbody, and the comical Eric Sykes, playing it dead...

dabmim 16.11.2001 · Read review
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Review of The Others (DVD)

Others

Advantages: Very well set out story, full of twists and turns
Disadvantages: Cant think of any

...Believe it or not I read this one from start to finish on a beach in Jamaica and I got so immersed in it that I practically lost 2 days of my holiday, I could just not put it down. It does start off sort of weird but you soon forget about that as you end up practically getting inside the main characters head and experiencing the events from his perspective. I wont spoil it for you because to give you anything other than the vaguest outline of the story would really give the game away but I will tell you that the book was inspired by an elderly friend of James Herbert who used to work at a hospital in London. She apparently entered an unmarked ward and was confronted with numerous cots containing very badly deformed babies but nobody could give her any explanation as to who they were or what happened with them. The book goes on to...

Mickm9 17.12.2000 · Read review
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Review of Others - James Herbert

Wishing Evil To Others

Advantages: Well made/Good performances/Genuinely creepy
Disadvantages: Not as effective away from the big screen

...The Others Genre : Ghost thriller Released : 2001 Certificate : PG Duration : 101 minutes Direction : Alejandro Amenabar Cast : Nicole Kidman/ Fionnula Flanagan/ Christopher Eccleston/ Alakina Mann/ James Bentley/ Eric Sykes. The world is at war in the 1940's and Grace (Nicole Kidman) is left alone in her Gothic Jersey mansion with her two young children, Anne and Nicholas (Alakina Mann and James Bentley), wondering whether her husband and their father will ever return alive from the front-line. Strange things occur from the very start, all the staff at the mansion have disappeared overnight and Grace has been left to run the house all on her own. On top of this the children have a very rare condition which means that they are sensitive to direct sunlight, this means that the house has to be kept in total...

WormThatTurned 12.11.2003 · Read review
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Review of The Others (DVD)

better than the others

Advantages: Tense throughout
Disadvantages: Made me try and be scary at the end of my op

...Hmmm first time I've been confused about the meaning of my own opinion title. What did I mean? Ah, the slightly confused feeling of having given blood. You may have to forgive me if my mind wanders.... So The Others. A film by Alejandro Amenábar. (I had to copy that of the official website -www.theothers.com- to get the little accent, where I learnt that this is Alejandro's third film) Starring, amongst others (ahem) Nicole Kidman a couple of kids and a special guest appearance from Keith Allen. The gist of the film is that fine upstanding English Nicole (or Grace) lives in a deserted part of Jersey with her two children awaiting the return of her husband who bravely went and got missing in action in WWII. That kind of sucks. Also their two adorable offspring are "photo-sensitive" that means they will blister up and die if they...

roons_y 07.11.2001 · Read review
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Review of The Others (DVD)

The Other Sister

Advantages: Well acted, funny and at times very moving
Disadvantages: none

...Bear with me as this is my first ever film review! The Other Sister is a story of a Mentally challenged girl, who after years of being at a special school returns to live with her family and her fight for independence. Carla Tate (Juliette Lewis) returns home and almost imediatly a battle between her and her Mother Elizabeth (Diane Keaton) breaks out. Elizabeth wants to make up for sending Carla away to school and does this by smothering her and trying to treat her like the little girl she was when she left to go to school. Carla wants to be treated like any other young woman, not a young girl and wants to go to a "normal" school in order to gain her certificate of high school diploma. When her mother brushes Carlas wishes aside without even a discussion Carla runs away and ends up back at the school after being found by police...

tarara 29.07.2005 · Read review
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Review of the other sister

The Others

Advantages: Two disc DVD
Disadvantages: You need your tv turned up if you are hard of hearing.

...beleve in their their dreams. Grace's daughter, the stronger of the two siblings is the first to see and observe the strange happenings. Grace puts these down to her over-imagination and insists that she stops. Can Grace's daughter really see the unnatural or is she rebelling at her mother and trying to frighten her younger sibling. Beautifully acted, this film will keep you rivoted to your seat with its unusual turns and unpredicable plots. £15.97 ASDA 2 disc DVD (certified 12) Special features include a look inside the others, visual EFX piece, Xeroderma Pigmentosum what is it ?, an intimate look at director Alejandro Amenabar, Still gallery and theatrical trailer. This story shows you how XP can affect sufferers and those closest to them. I particular enjoyed this film as it kept me guessing what was going to happen. The ending...

Jimmi5bellies 14.10.2002 (21.10.2002) · Read review
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Review of The Others (DVD)

The lives of others, a stunning film of life in the GDR

Advantages: Gripping, interesting and cleverly portrayed
Disadvantages: Quite long

...The Lives of Others (German title: Das Leben der Anderen) is an absorbing account of 4 lives in the German Democratic Republic (GDR) that is intriguing and subtly unsettling. The premise of the film starts with committed believer in the East German regime and stasi (secret police) captain Gerd Wiesler asks his former classmate and subordinate Anton Grubitz to spy on playwright Georg Dreyman and his actress girlfriend Christa-Maria Sieland. The film focuses of the development of sympathetic feelings by Grubitz towards his subject and the entanglement of opposing loyalties, betrayal and the dreadful fear of living under such a regime are played out. For a thriller there is not a lot of action and the plot unfolds subtly and slowly. However, whilst not much is happening I was still on the edge of my seat waiting to see what happened next...

flyingllamas 06.07.2009 · Read review
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Review of The Lives Of Others (DVD)

Stacey's essay on introduction to 'The Others'

Advantages: You lucky, lucky people get to read my GCSE writing!
Disadvantages: Same as advantages I think you'll find!

...'No' I hear you cry 'Please god, don't make us read another GCSE essay'. Well, that's what you've got to suffer through! No, I'm really sorry about this but recently I've been overloaded with GCSE English coursework and to keep myself in as part of the Ciao community I wanted to submit something for you to read. We recently were given a media assignment to complete. We watched 'The Others' at the Printworks in Manchester and had to answer this question: Examine the opening scene of ?The Others?. What methods has the director used to create an atmospheric and disturbing introduction to the film? I completed this piece of work last night and would be interested if you have any comments for me. And I'll get a proper op. done soon-promise! --------------------------------- ?The Others? was released in 2001 and was an instant hit...

LBuSBu1 16.06.2003 · Read review
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Review of The Others (DVD)