To the bitter end...or lager end

And so the third instalment of the Cornetto trilogy has arrived, YES! As you push the play button you can't help thinking you're obliged to watch while either drinking a locally brewed ale or a cup of tea; all while waving a miniature British flag. Finding a British Gem is something special and as the opening sequence of The Worlds End starts, being a fan of the previous two films (especially Shaun Of The Dead) you hope that what will follow is just as, if not better than the previous films. As is the way of my film reviews, I shall only be discussing a few key points...otherwise we may be here for a while.

A key and somewhat expected element of the trilogy are  it's 'running jokes', which fans and strangers alike have come to love. One example being the most obvious is the 'hoping garden fences gag'. I personally feel this is an over stated scene in all the films. This is only due to marketing campaigns however, it would have been much more rewarding to only find out how the characters attempted to hop a garden fence in the film itself; as opposed to the very annoying sales technique of showing what happens in TV advertisments! Having said that,it's small scenes like these that make the films ooze with character.


In regards to The Worlds End specifically, the jokes are less running and more quick back and forth whitey remarks. This is all well and funny, but the very charm of this trilogy is it's physical as well as verbal humour as prominent in Shaun of the dead  and hot fuzz. The Worlds End fails to deliver this well balanced concoction however. Thinking back, the funny moments occur mostly in conversations around a pub table. These scenes are the sole provider of the laugh out loud humour and as such, these scenes almost feel rushed. The conversational pace is extremely quick, trying to squeeze in as many puns and play on words as possible. Leaving you feeling as though Edgar Wright (the Director) shouts "cut!" onset, quickly followed by him rubbing his hands together and saying "right, now there's a funny bit done, let's get back to the action!".

Talking of which, the group find themselves in a town taken over by robots (which are copies of people who are replaced by these robots) and so there is plenty of action! After surviving a couple of intense fights, they group end up being chased from pub to pub. Some of these scenes have a very generic 'doomsday' kind of look. Unlike in Shaun of the dead and Hot Fuzz, it doesn't feel like your watching a locally made film oozing with British culture. It may as well be another American made sci-fi horror. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with such films, but the great 'selling point' of these films is the fact that the most relatable audience should be British pub loving folk. But instead of pub culture it was more 'a sci-fi...but not as you know it.'

Ultimatly, the film deals with some dark and deep themes of problems with the human race and our murderous nature, self destructive nature. In comparison, Hot Fuzz turned out to be people murdering for the sake of winning 'village of the year' award. Brilliant! Discovering that Aliens have planted robots on planet earth to help us mend our ways, just makes you want to grab the nearest bin and stick two fingers down your throat.

I have this few up until the final few minutes of the film, in which the ending is actually, in my opinion, quite touching. As others are trying to survive in a post-apocalyptic world...we see Simon Pegg returning to a pub trying to get served with outcast 'blanks', who are younger copies of his original group. This to me shows that his character is the very embodiment of ignorant adolescence, who just wants to have fun no matter what the cost. So even though the film deals with this dark themes, it concludes by showing us what we want to see. A somewhat light hearted 'FUCK IT!' attitude. This ending dissolves the serious undertones and leaves you with a sense of optimism in that, even when everything turns to shit...we will still instinctively seek out fun. niiiiiiiiiice *borrat voice


I give this film a 7.5/10

Screw the rules. Cross the damn streams, Now!

Why is it taking so long for the new Ghostbusters movie to be made? Everyone keeps on saying this is the age of the sequel. Well where are all the sequels that should be made. I'm not interested in Thor 2 or Paranormal Activity 67 or what ever one we're on now. There's been a few exceptions but they didn't turn out to be very good. The new Die Hard film was a big disappointment. It bored me silly, don't even remember it. And 4.0 wasn't bad, apart from when you masked the 'Fucker' out of the series most quotable line. What were you thinking. One fuck doesn't make it an 18 certificate. I've composed a list of films that are screaming out for sequels.


Gremlins (Bring Mogwai back. I'll keep him, I know the rules)

Ghostbusters (Rumours rumours rumours)

Jurassic Park (Everyone loves Dinosaurs don't they?)

Avatar (I know a sequel is coming but it's too far away)

Sin City (Why are you being delayed)

Dark Knight Rises (Come on Nolan just one more)

Austin Powers (Keep hearing rumours but whys it been so long since Goldmember?)

Ace Ventura (Seriously needs to become a trilogy. release this year and it will have been 20 years since the original)

Dumb and Dumber (This ones definitely happening and can't wait)

Indiana Jones (I didn't mind Crystal Skull, Harrison's got another one in him)

Jackass (I know people think it's controversial but it's what Dunn would have wanted)

Bad Boys (It's been a while since Will Smith has owned the screen. Are you going to make it? Whatcha gonna do)

Southpark (Please make another movie so I can go and see it and not be 7 years old this time)

What are you waiting for?

The other day I was casually browsing the web when I stumbled upon a video for a new streets of rage game. It was only a few minutes of gameplay but after watching it I knew right away that it was a game I needed to play. sadly though, much to my surprise, the game was only a prototype and had been cancelled. Basically, the way it goes is game prototypes are much like movie scripts. There's loads of them floating about but only a handful get picked to develop into a releasable game. It got me thinking though; Surely I'm not alone. Surely there are others that idolise this game and want it back so they can once again play local multiplayer. Oh, they were the days. I used to play the original streets of rage all the time with my brother. I remember we'd... Oh it doesn't even matter. They aren't making it. Why Sega? Why? You own some of my most cherished gaming memories Sonic and Streets of Rage. Why is it that you now suck. You continue to disappoint me with you Sonic games. Why can't you just accept that Sonic, although a better mascot, isn't Mario and doesn't translate to 3D well at all. The games you knock out now make even flickies' island look acceptable and I slated that game when it came out. That games a fucking masterpiece in comparison to the new sonic games. There was a glimmer of hope when you released the highly anticipated Sonic 4 and although people weren't overly keen I liked it more than most. It had signs of potential, even if you did split it into 2 parts you money grabbing... I'm getting side tracked here. My point is you need to start listening to your customers, or at least the majority because there's a few that haven't got a clue what they're talking about ( in case you were wondering I'm referring to the idiots that buy the new games). If you look on videos of the old sonic games, it isn't long before a comment is about nostalgia and, ' oh sega why can't you make another one'. I'm not the only one. Sega, sort your life out and do what I know is right, I'd say do what you know is right but I get the feeling you need a helping hand here. Don't get angry with me, I've only your best interests in mind.

Just in case you missed it.

MAKE A NEW STREETS OF RAGE GAME

MAKE A NEW SONIC GAME THAT IS 2D AND MOVES LIKE `THE OLD SONIC

That is all.