Hunger Games: Catching Fire - Review - SPOILERS

As an excessive internet fiend, I've been involved with many communities on the internet, particularly Tickld.com (go check it out!). My involvement with this community brings many fandoms to my attention on a regular basis and anything that involves Jennifer Lawrence tends to be fairly popular. With the constant push of these groupies, I caved in and watched the first of this series, the night before we saw Catching Fire. Unfortunately, I was let down. I'm still adamant that the Hunger Games is just Battle Royale with cheese and less blood. I had high expectations of violence, excitement and characters that would grasp my interest. After my disappointment and being reassured that the second book in the series is far more action packed, I went in with hope. What I've failed to grasp is the tween audience and devout love for everything and everything related to it, but it could be worse, they could have been "Beliebers"...

Carrying on. With a lot of hope, I sat through the movie. Considering I haven't read the books, I was a bit pissed with the cliffhanger ending but otherwise, it was alright.Very little has changed from the first film. a lot of shit is still going on, riots have put various districts under lock down and general discomfort feeds a waiting beast. The only thing that has really changed is the settings for "Peeta" and Katniss which lacks any of the suspected riches. A year has rolled on, comfortably living in their shabby mansions with little colour and all the aesthetics of a mental institute plucked from Batman's Gotham city; suddenly joined by Tim Burton's wet dream - Effie Trinket (Elizabeth Banks), garnered in vividly sickening colours with influence from Medieval England and a bin, she begins spluttering about some tour across the districts and all that jazz. As I couldn't work out a name for this tour, lets call it the, "Look how rich I am because I won a game tour of 2013". Funnily enough, Katniss was oblivious to the riots she caused with the salute mid-game and notices an impending trend which she begins to abuse. Noticing that it gets people killed, she backed

up and did what she was told. Until, you guessed it, the Hunger Games. Each districts winners are called upon for the 75th anniversary slaughtering because grumpy old president doesn't like being beaten. Once the big baby is satisfied, the games start but don't end in your typical fashion. Yeah, so as a story, it's pretty easy to deduct how big plot pieces unfolds with a few additional little surprises tucked away. Even if I had watched the previous movie on release day, I could have jumped into this movie without worrying to much about a complicated story line and forgetting everything that previously happened.

I'd like to pick on the visuals a little. I'm an ass for good CGI and FX from big budget movies but there is certainly occasions that I have to question what on earth they were thinking. At one point there  centre island and the water effect around it lost a lot of it's focus and resolution and some of the rocks genuinely looked like set props from the Flintstones movie. I fully understand that the Hunger Games world is representing the deformities between the bourgeois and proletariat with the upper classes manipulation of those with little power but I feel it really misses the potential to really portray it after the whole Occupy movement, but I digress. On a positive note, the CGI for the baboons was far better than the ass-faced 'dogs' from the end of the previous movie. But then we get to a few of the deaths. If you're going to walk about without a top, I would at least like to see some blood when you get shot in the chest with an arrow.

Being that Jennifer Lawrence won an Oscar for her performance in Silver Linings Playbook, It's a common belief that they could continue this streak through their other projects. Occasionally, it felt as if she was really struggling to push Katniss. It's hard to get much when he doesn't play much of a role in the actual fighthing too. When Katniss has to act joyfully and blissful, she can do that but it's nothing we don't expect from a person that is a very much the same. It's when she has to portray despair, fear and the really raw emotion. Perhaps not Michael Fassbender's breakdown in The Counsellor with snot smearing his face like a Jackson Pollock painting, but a medium. This issue probably falls on the script and poor directing for not really exploring her to give J.Law some form of platform. Peter, or the incompetent way of spelling it - 'Peeta' (Josh Hutcherson) is a fairly standard role. With very little context to him, he's once again left out by a weak script that makes him look like a giant pussy. The rest are fairly standard, Liam Hemsworth decided he'd tag along and take a bit more time on screen but then just blends back into the ether for the rest of the film. Philip Sermour Hoffman is probably the strongest of the cast, he powers through the lines and enjoys to play a game like a cunning fox, throwing you from pillar to post wondering what he'd do next and redeem himself for playing both sides of the fence.

With all of it's flaws, the film is better than it's predecessor. Not massively but a little better. Created for teens, I may just be an old git. The overall will probably be a 7/10. The script is weak and reflects on everyone. Without the aggression, you never feel the rush of excitement that is a foundation for anything action. A few of the FX were weak and I just longed for more from a production of it's size.
Sorry for the chaotic review. I've been procrastinating all week and it's a bit of a mess so I could get a review up for Saving Mr Banks tomorrow!

The Counsellor - Quicky Review - MINOR SPOILERS

Ever since the release of the teaser trailer, I was hooked. Checking back at IMDB on a regular basis to see any information about a release date, turns out you guys in America received it before us in the UK, I was only mildly peeved but then I remembered that we got Iron Man 3 and Thor so...yeah. HA!...

Anyway, after all the hype, I noticed a low score for it on IMDB and fairly mixed reviews. Trying to keep positive, we hurried to the release, only to come out wondering what on earth just happened. (Update - I just watched Prometheus and I'm just as confused). From what I can fathom, The Counsellor is about a partnership between "Counsellor" (Fassbender) and Reiner (Javier Bardem) who have expanded Reiner's already booming drug business. Something goes wrong and their cartel connections decide to go around killing them. In terms of realism, the outcome is no where near what would typically happen. Portraying everyone as philosophical, highly educated players doesn't really aid the movie in any form. If you do any research into these topics, the majority of the players have crawled from the bottom and lacked a lot of support and wouldn't experience such literature.

So, the film's story didn't make sense and the cinematography reflects this. It shows a higher interest in the way the movie looks rather than flows. You jump from America to Europe, with not so much as a warning. Time apparently passed rather rapidly but you struggle to get to grips with the lay of the
land. Visually, the movie is gorgeous. The blood, gore and shit (yes. Shit.) looks real and the crap certainly made me gag once or twice while the chopping off of the dudes head was epic. The focus and lighting on screen were beautiful and lavish set pieces really push the representation of being young and rich. Yet, there was many continuity errors throughout and they would stick out obtusely like a whore at a dinner party.

One of the redeeming factors for the film is its scripts. Even when they are being philosophical, what they are saying is strong and really resonates (even when factually wrong at points). A personal favourite is even in the trailer and said by Westray (Brad Pitt), "If your definition of a friend is someone who will die for you, you don't have any friends" - It's phrases like this that pop up continually throughout the movie and really pose moral questions in a thriller. It just doesn't fit into the perimeters of the movie, which if the story was stronger, perhaps it could have really flourished. but then you have the screen play reering it's head and pissing on the parade. We have scenes that are so obscure, not even Tarrintino would think of it. Malkina (Cameron Diaz) has sex with a Ferrari. You may be asking how, turns out rubbing your junk over the windscreen while doing the splits constitutes sex. I think the quote best describes it, "It was like one of those bottom feeders, sucked to the glass".

Swiftly moving on, my final attack is at the acting. With A-listers everywhere, top quality acting is supposed to be insured, but we do have Penelope Cruz who only gets jobs because she's willing to go that step further (sex talk with Fassbender and a weird ass opening scene of him, shall we say -  "munching the rug"). Personally, I've never been keen on her as she lacks a lot of emotion and I can't see the sexual attraction of many. My favourite was Brad Pitt, typically he gets a lot of grief for a few bad moves over the years but recently, he has stepped up his game (E.g - World War Z). Being given a cowboy middleman to play, you can't expect much from him but he oozes with swagger. The minor mannerisms make his character, from the way he puts his hat on too the way he talk. It's brilliant. At the end of the movie, Fassbender looks like he's been on a children's TV show and got gunked, spluttering snot everywhere without a care in the world. It's almost cringe worthy then he did so well up to this breakdown. Javiers accent is killer and fits the role he plays as a psycho business man. With an accent like that, I feel he can play a criminal any day, just look at Skyfall! (I guess it helps that he can act too). Oh, let's not forget Diaz who plays a psycho gold digging bitch with a wealth of knowledge and some cheetahs that fuck off when they get bored. Yeah, she played it fairly well, but I think many people could do it.

In total, the film was really weak. Most likely a flop or just about breaking even in the long run. Probably will be showing on BBC 1 at midnight in 10 years and ITV in 5. So, if you don't fancy paying for it, it's not long too wait. The movie deserves a 6/10. Putting my critical head on, you really do feel let down coming out of the movie when you haven't had it explained to you. There's very little excitement and you would think that a movie of this scale wouldn't have so many cock-ups throughout.

Tinie Tempah - Demonstration - REVIEW

No, I don't get it either...

Tinie Tempah’s new album was released today. Seeing as I loved his first big album, I decided to actually go out and buy this one. First time in many years! With that in mind, I have really high hopes for the album and hope he shines through.

This time around, Tinie isn’t an unknown artist with very little supporting artists. Now he is teaming up with the new T-Pain/Lil Jon – 2 Chainz for his first single and as much as I tend to ignore 2 Chainz, I felt it was very good but still a huge rip off of Hopsin’s – Trampoline from a while back which consists of much the same material… Upon stating that one of his biggest inspirations for the album was Dizzie, you would expect a real grime element brought to the music and it’s safe to say, some of the songs do emulate the bass and aggressive beats really well. Don’t worry yourself, it’s now all smashing beats!

There is a nice variation of styles throughout, you can move from party tunes to a slow, mellow song and then to the catchy chart hits that made Tinie who he is today. Fortunately, he hasn’t forgot his beginnings on the streets of London. The variation of styles can be a bit confusing to listen first time around but they catch on after a full listen of the album. As I write this, I’m listening through for the 4^th time and I haven’t got sick of it but already have a few I adore so far. Each featuring artist has brought their flare to the song and the two that Labyrinth in resonate Pass Out which is quite possibly his best and key moment (Hipster moment – I loved it before it went big!).

Back on subject, Tinie’s flow is awesome and doesn’t made it hard to understand at any point. Yet, In Tears Run Dry, he sounds like he is having hairs plucked at the end of every sentence, making a little squeak which just destroys the song and emotion that it’s supposed to portray. With the variations, the lyrics have to switch consistently and thank god, a lot of it is logical, relatable and a little less about money, fame, women and drinking. Witch Doctor is a song that is a little confusing. The chorus and name don’t really reflect that it’s about a women, thus making it a little weird to hear. Typically, the bigger starts throughout talking about who rich they are. Lyrically, Don’t Sell Out, It’s Ok, and Children of the Sun are a few personal favourites and warrant a listen if you’re considering the album anytime soon. PS – If Tinie’s iconic “Yeeaaah” annoys you, expect to hear it a lot.

As a huge fan of Tinie’s and being that I have quite a hipster moment with his music, I felt I should go out and by the physical album. I would highly recommend that you go and get it too. As ever, I have a couple of songs that are weak compared to the rest but the album is really catchy and does show Tinie’s status within the music industry. 8/10 for this album – a few songs didn’t actually catch me and didn’t feel as strong as they could have been, especially when you are singing “A Heart Can Save The World”.

Battlefield 4 - Quicky Review

I really don't know what I expected from a game that is only made for online purposes. Over the last few years, I only bought into Call of Duty and would spend time doing the campaign while sighing over the poorly developed story. This time around, I decided to get both. Seeing that Battlefield 4 was out in America before it was in the UK, it surly pissed a few people off. Alongside pissing off numerous amounts of Russians and Chinese nationals....

Around everything else I had to do, I didn't stick many hours into the game at all. Probably about 4-5 hours overall. It's really short and very confusing when you have no idea who "Chang" is. I still don't know if he has been a theme through the last couple of games but not addressing this to the new players is a really bad play on their behalf. With about six missions that are spread over a few days, everything moves fast. Perhaps a little too fast. The plot twists where predictable and lacked anything that would truly inspire or help you to interact with the characters on a deeper level. So throughout, characters were just distant. You are placed as a Sargent called Recker who doesn't actually say anything, even when he is being spoken too, a little anti-social if you ask me. It also appears that even when he is in command, everything is decided by everyone else. The rest of the characters are fairly annoying, you cannot relate to them and you learn nothing about them through the time you are with them.

For a game that competes with Call of Duty, every damn year, they should have a lot of effort and resources into the build and development of the game. However, the image was never clear. Surfaces looked fuzzy, AI's would glitch out, the environment never looked real enough to immerse yourself in. for my first outing, I had really high hopes for it, even with it's imminent next gen release bragging about higher visual specs.

Where the game shines is in combat. Plug in the headphones, crank up the noise and get ready for a shit show. Reserve ammo and steal what you can as enemies come thick and fast with little room for mistake and manoeuvre. Combat is quite fun, it's a bit of a switch from CoD but it's fairly easy to grasp. You cannot just shoot a moving target by sticking the dot on him, you have to consider that the bullet needs to travel to get there, this makes it feel very real and when you have bullets pinging around you, the only thing you want to do is pop the enemy quick before they overwhelm you. The glitchiness (if that's even a word) of the game got in my way a few times, lining up an enemy only to have it push you away several time, the enemies are also fairly spongy and do take accuracy to put down effectively. This isn't the case on multiplayer.

In total, it's a fun and enjoyable game to play, all be it stressful at times but it's weak and short story mixed in with the general glitches and underwhelming visuals, I have to give it a 7/10.
Tune in next week to see my CoD Ghosts review!

Assassins Creed 4 Black Flag - Review - SPOILERS

When I heard about a new Assassin's Creed game, I was a little apprehensive. Originally supposed to be 3 stories all following from one to the other and Connors story was to be the end of it all. After smashing the game out over a few days, I'm glad to say that it was worth it and if you take the time to dig about, you can really understand the connection between everything in the world and past stories. If you haven't noticed, Edward Kenway is Connor's grandfather.

Following on from the death of Desmond Miles in the 3rd instalment, you are now an employee at Abstergo Entertainment who create movies from the stories collected in the Animus. This obviously is a front from the Templars who are using it for research and another source of income to fuel their operations. This unknown character is played in first person and can be rather annoying in the present day missions to actually move about and look about when you you have toiled away in 3rd person missions within the Animus. Otherwise, when you are actually playing the game, you are Edward Kenway, a relentless pirate sailing the oceans and driven to make his fortune and dropped right into it knowing very little.

In terms of story, it was really enjoyable, searching for the observatory with a bunch of pirates and a multitude of others was good fun. As ever, it is the same sort of tale from the rest. The search for an artefact that Templars want so they can control the world while the Assassins will stop at nothing to prevent this. The mix of characters and players during the game was a nice mix. You didn't feel like you had to repeat something so many times that it became meaningless and repetitive. With a load of twists and turns, you are thrown through hoops, even if you aren't engaged with Edward as a character, you still feel for him when friends die or chaos ensues around him. As a character, Edward is fairly packed with a load of crap weighing him down. When he gets the sea, he is extremely cocky and arrogant which makes him really difficult to like but the badass attitude to life and the mannerisms really fit the wicked pirate design. However, he does feel a far better character than his grandson, Connor.

SPOILERS - If you have finished the game, you may have noticed that the Abstergo server room at the end is full of little cubes up the wall. I believe these to be the viles of blood used in the observatory, thus meaning that the memory mining Animus IS the observatory in a new form. The alien figure at the end also means that we are most likely to see another instalment at some point next year.

The gameplay is still plagued by the problematic free running controls. Being chased by 8 heavily armed men?, running through this open door? NOT TODAY!, as you run up the side of the door or stop all together as you have to release all the controls, wait and then move around. This isn't something you want to be faced with on a fairly regular basis. It's much the same with the camera angles when climbing through an obstacle course. You catch try to move on the trigger for the new camera angle, you will find yourself having an epileptic fit. You also won't have a clue about what level your ship is and why any ships have levels. When you are on your own and you are vastly outnumbered, consider yourself dead and get the hell out of there. If you are fortunate enough to defeat several Man O' Wars and then board them, be sure to send them to Kenway's Fleet as this mini game will get you a load of money and a few little extras. These are just a few of my gripes with the gameplay but if you grind through this, you will enjoy the rest. Sailing the ocean is incredibly relaxing and can change at a moments notice, especially if you decide to piss on any countries parade by killing them all and then getting chased by pirate hunters. Fighting in general hasn't changed one bit. You simply have to mash X and B as soon as you see a big red dot coming at you. Not much has changed in the way of gameplay from the rest of the games. It is fairly fast action but minimalism to much smaller spaces, like the deck of a ship and that can make it hard to actually move about. It's also awesome to see that you wanted levels in towns and cities have disappeared. You can disappear

in moments rather than bribing your way through every place you visit, simple because you decided to start a fight with every human soul walking past you at the time.

As ever, there is a lot for you to do in the world, but now we have the addition of fishing. Yes, you heard it right. The fishing is probably a bit controversial as you hunt white whales, humpback whales and many other endangered marine species. You can also play checkers with other pirates. However, playing with them guarantees an unfair game.When they have no move, they simply move the king back and forward, screwing with you and denying you any chance that you could get. If you have any decency when it comes to checkers, stay away from this.

The last few bits is the visuals and sound. Up close and personal, everything can look a bit blurry and uncomfortable to look at, shading can be erratic and too much at points, making it look like characters are grids rather than forms. Yet, when you look at a distance, it is gorgeous. Bright with colour and great with lighting. It makes everything seem real and very lifelike, until you come up close. The colours of the Caribbean ocean are wonderful and really bring back memories of holidays I went on as a kid. Sound is my big problem. I found myself turning the volume up and down on my TV so I could hear with without it knocking down any walls. It was never equalised and made it quite painful when using a headset. The actual music for the game is alright. It reminds me of Pirates of the Caribbean, as it should for the era and style, but it seems way to similar. Continually having to shut up humming POTC while I mortar people and run the decks, stabbing the army in the face. It's pretty damn fun. Then we have the voice acting. At points, Kenway does down like Chris Hemsworth, but it's not! A lot of the voices fit the characters perfectly, apart from Jack Kidd...who always felt like it needed a bit of work.

With everything considered, it has to be one of the most fun Assassins Creed games and the addition of all the extras and the awesome sailing missions, I think the game deserves an 8/10 for it's change of scenery and it's involvement from an overly complicated story, to a truly fun pirate adventure.