X-men: Days of Future Past - Review - SPOILERS

If you're a normal human, X-men Days of Future Past has managed to grab your attention. The relentless advertising campaign undoubtedly will make this instalment of X-men one of the biggest movies this year. If you're wondering if its worth going to see it, you are a sad human-being. Of course you need to see this. Days of Future Past stands as one of the best movies I have seen this year so far. With already established characters that need little introduction, jumping into the fold is easy, as long as you've seen First Class.

As you should have guessed, the story is about the extinction of mutants and the majority of the world. The extinction of the race comes down to these giant robots called "Sentinels". Programmed to trace the mutated X gene in people who will give birth to mutants and mutants themselves. So the decision is made to send Wolverine back to when Xavier and Magneto were young to unite them against the catalyst that would signal the next 50 years of war between mutants and humans. Let's be honest, we know how its going to end without seeing the movie. Yet the movie manages to disguise it and keep you guessing until the very last moment.

Over the past few days I have been sat thinking about X-men and how I'm going to review it. Everything was epic. Just looking straight at the acting, we have same of the best actors to grace our screens altogether in one group. Although some do not come into contact with each other, the Magnetos (Michael Fassbender & Ian McKellen) and Xaviers (James McAvoy & Patrick Stewart) are some of the best casting out there. McAvoy's tormented Xavier gives a whole new level to a character that was always fairly confined. His execution of lines and accent allows for real power to be portrayed in many scenes. "I don't want your future!" is one that features in the trailer but really sticks well in my mind.The there is Fassbender who I have critiqued quite a lot for many of his movies. Most recently would be the movie "Frank". I chose not to review it as it aggravated me to the point that I debated walking out of the cinema. Compared to The Counsellor, Fassbender needs good directing to push him for a good performance and its evident that the stone cold Magneto is the role for him and the directing is perfect to make it work and challenge McKellen's portrayal.

What it really comes down to is the action and excitement. As with every Marvel movie, humour is always present and a scene with Quicksilver just demonstrates the pure technical abilities and comedy style that has served them well for years. Many of the scenes with CGI are gorgeous to look at. Everything looks real and its amazing to see and it never looks fake. As if you could almost reach out and touch it. Now we have the violence and action. Fighting sentinels which are meerly computer generated must be a hard thing to do when you are on a green screen but it is executed perfectly. The scenes with Blink are incredible to see as the blend 4 or 5 different angles due to her portal abilities. We must not forget the core man of the X-men franchise; Wolverine. Now I thought he was big in his recent solo outing, yet somehow, Jackman looks like he's spent time in prison and looks like a road map for Britain. The flow of the action is great and it really is exciting. Yeah, sure there are parts I could be critical of but we don't know the true potential for the sentinels so simply cutting them in half may be harder than it seems and leaves a lot to the imagination.

Considering that I have left this to the last minute and Watch_Dogs has just plopped into my hands, I feel I should clear a few things up. This movie is amazing. But I do wonder, The Wolverine shows Logan without the metal claws at the end and in the last X-men outing, Xavier dies?...I understand the reboot of the universe and characters return can happen but in a movie it seems to much of a cheap shot. Although I would have liked to have seen more of the future it doesn't really bother me as the movie was great fun to watch and stands as the best X-men movie ever and deserves a 9/10

Godzilla - SPOILERS - Review

Hey guys!, So once again, exams, essays and life has simply got in the way of everything recently. Now I'm back, Youtube content will be back and plenty of reviews will be back in action! X-men next!

Godzilla stands at the pinnacle of the monster movie genre. It's very nature is primal and built upon the fact that people want to see destruction. We want to witness carnage and giggle manically while people and buildings are torn to shreds and men in white coats begin to descend on you. Last year we had the fantastic Pacific Rim. Godzilla 2k14 has some real competition for craziest monster movie,  unless you count the undeniably disgusting Sharknado and its inbred cousins. Or the majority of Syfy shows...So yeah, Godzilla needed to earn a place in my heart. With trailers cleverly mixed to conceal the story completely, the aura of mystery and a giant roar is way to difficult to ignore. If you were wise enough to ignore the spoiler filled trailer, you are in for a surprise if you've never experienced much of Godzilla.

Upon seeing the movie, I really enjoyed it. Although, I cannot agree with comments about it being the new 'Jaws'. The story was extremely generic. I understand that it wants to retain the past style that made monster movies what they are, but I can't sit through watching a man trying to get to his family while he faces off with the threat. Featuring Bryan Cranston in the trailers over and over and killing him in off in the first half was just a weak move. Yes, not expected at all but portraying him as the sole heart of the movie with Aaron Taylor-Johnson tagging along for the ride, only to become the main for the majority almost feels like Cranston is nothing but a seat filler and used simply because he's become popular recently. Then we have the fact that Godzilla faces off with the "MOTO's" (Kaiju) but they skimp out on it at several opportunities trying to make it funny rather than exciting while trying to hold onto until they get to the big finale which lacks the Pacific Rim ferocity and opts for a repetitive sequence of movements that simply just aren't working. Don't get me wrong, the movie was fun and is entertainment that really numbs the minds to the outside world, yet I can't help thinking that money and production bodies seems to have their claws dug deep into the crotch region of Gareth Edwards (Director).

Visually the movie was astonishing. The pure scale of Kaijus' must have made the task of generating them huge. Buildings toppling with explosions everywhere and general chaos all captured well with the occasional flaw that made it looks like it was filmed in a Universal theme park. Obviously, there was a lot of effort that went into the iconic roar of Godzilla. For the rest of the sound, it was alright. Nothing that really grabbed the attention. Composed by Alexandre Desplat (Harry Potter – Deathly Hallows), the overall outcome resembled white noise generated from some headphones at the other end of the room. I can’t remember much of what was actually used and its a real shame.

 Only just finding out the Elizabeth Olsen is actually in this movie as one of the mains, I have to admit that she is far superior to her relatives. Yet the actual extent of her acting cannot convince me of anything with real conviction. Now the real reason that this movie is going to succeed - Bryan Cranston. So for the few moments he is on screen, he was fairly good but with his potential, he wasn't given a chance to truly demonstrate what has made him so popular. Finally the lead - Aaron Taylor-Johnson. Kickass was a very weird, yet great movie, but the acting needed for it is very different and Johnson cannot display an army bomb disposal hardman.

I won't drag on but the movie did lack some real key moments that should have been done to really impact the overall excitement of the movie. Its a real shame that the action was repetitive and the action was subpar in relation to prior Legendary project, Pacific Rim. For the fun factor, the choice is simple. Its fun, mindless entertainment and worth 7/10 for a total score.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier - Quicky Review - SPOILERS

I have returned from the dark depths of university deadline season with only a few mental scars. So yeah, expect plenty of content over the next few weeks until I get slapped with another essay and a few exams...

Just a quick shout out, don't go announcing a 3rd film before the 2nd has even released. You ruin it. So Friday we toddled into the cinema to watch possibly one of my favourite members of Marvel go kick some ass. Captain America is easily one of the most relateable characters within the Avengers with the strongest story so far.

Obviously, you would suspect by the title that the movie is about the Winter Soldier. If you've lived under a rock the past few months, it's Steve's (Chris Evans) best friend Bucky (Sebastian Stan), you know, the one who fell off the train in the last one. So it turns out he's not dead and that the movie actually does fuck all with his character. He appears for snippets but in reality he has little change to the outcome of the movie and probably should have called the movie something a little more relevant. Yet, as a story, The Winter Soldier is substantial. Moments, which for any Marvel fans will sit them there in shock. So in reality, Hydra were never defeated. Taking Bucky and wiping his memory and using him as their bitch assassin. Now one of my big pet peeves with the story is that SHIELD sent in Black Widow but told her boyfriend; Hawkeye to do one. Now when it comes to do, Hawkeye is an Avenger and should have been involved!

Compared to other Marvel Avengers, Captain was raised in a war and naturally, you have to accustom yourself to killing some bad people. This has been acknowledged and it truly is brutal. Not smashing them with a hammer or punching them with a massive suit of armour, he's got a fast pace that is (Scarlett Johansson) who pretty much climbs all over assailants and then the brand new Falcon (Anthony Mackie) who kinda just shoots people while flying around with these bomb ass wings. However, I don't think I could ever see Anthony Mackie in a different light after Pain & Gain's titty milk moment.

rarely matched and the shift between him and shield is incredibly fun to watch. Then we have Black Widow (

I'm not going to bore you with talk of the acting or screen play. We all know that Marvel as a production company nail all the special FX and the actors are not just pretty faces. The Winter Soldier probably stands as one of the best single hero Marvel movie in many years. Even with a few moments that are a little unnecessary, the movie flows quickly with extravagant actions scenes which seem more realistic compared to Iron Man. Although Tony Stark and Hawkeye should have made an appearance, Captain America deserves an 8/10.

PS - Quicky review is to get back into the swing of things, plenty more content on the youtube channel or follow me Instagram and Twitter on the right of the page!

Need For Speed - The Movie Quicky Review!

I'm only going to spend 5 minutes writing this so please forgive for any mistakes but I'm a little pressed with everything else going on and feel a challenge will get me writing!

Initially I was really hoping that this movie was going to be a pile of crap and I would have something to tear into mercilessly without compromise. However, I found myself shocked. The movie was actually half decent. A few moments left me thinking "Why the fuck?" but I wrote it off too early as a simple rip-off by EA of the Fast franchise.

Although its not a movie that you can expect quality acting, set pieces, script and story, I find myself impressed. As a self confessed car fanatic, I enjoyed it for its aspect of free-roam fun. A little betrayal to kick it into gear and give some pace and a flurry of super cars and a supercharged Ford Mustang that is functional at turning a corner in excess of 90MPH without careering off-road and killing the local wildlife. Although I feel that the car would never hit the specified 230MPH, they are adamant. The elements of realism were just booted from play and replaced with Need for Speed's physics and vehicle engine for the added fun.

All of the stunts and driving throughout were all done. No CGI was used, just good old fashioned camera placement and some bloody good coordinators. The attention to this stands it above the Fast franchise as it shows that you don't need to hit fast forward or have some of the worst CGI known to man thrown into your biggest movie yet (I still hold you to that shit).

With sub par acting, question acts and an English women who grinds me up the wall, everything is fairly lacklustre. Its not a show piece film for your local art house cinema to rub themselves over, its just a good old fashion fun which has managed to disassociate itself from what is a very hit and miss gaming series. Counting everything, I would highly recommend if you just fancy a night out with a bit of mindless entertainment and some expensive cars getting trashed (Please be replicas you destroyed)...Upon calming down from the initial excitement, I feel its worth a solid 6.

300: Rise of an Empire - Review - SPOILERS

300: Rise of an Empire has quite the challenge to stand upon the shoulders of it's predecessor. 8 years after the original, Zack Snyder is back at the helm with an ensemble of shredded men and a puny teen. This time around, we take a different angle on the war, initially set up 10 years prior drifting through the events of 300 and the death of Leonidas all the way to the final navel battle of the conflict. So, yeah, expect news of a third 300 movie as the way it ends sets up so much more. Let's hope its not another 8 years from now and that Zack Snyder pulls his finger out to get it done for next year!

To begin, we enter the fray in battle that leads to Themistokles' (Sullivan Stapleton) killing of Xerxes father 10 years prior to the events of 300. With the narrative moving from this and Xerxes' move from human to God-king we drop into a political debate on the action needed by Greece to fend off the Persian forces. Upon trying to recruit the Spartans into the battle, we are notified that a squad of 300 has already left and Leonidas is among them. While this conflict rages, Xerxes' (Rodrigo Santoro) naval commander and right hand lady Artemisia (Eva Green) is launching an attack on Themistokles' limited ships and it is brutal. Themistokles' tactics are ingenious and his forces exact brutal skill upon the enemy. In terms of acting, the movie was actually very strong (Another crazy thing to see from an action film), Stapleton's voice sent ripples with every word. His huge build, powerful voice and commanding presence on screen makes him perfect for the role, never slipping up and managed the pressure of the main role without letting it get to him. Eva Green on the other hand is an actor I've never been drawn too but she's always been able to play the bitch without a hitch. She played the role convincingly enough but she still lacks presence when she's supposed to be this power house.

The flow of the story is great, although it is obvious how the outcome will be, everything feels like a surprise. For an action movie, it does create genuine bonds between characters and seeing them shattered really eggs you on for some revenge. Speaking of revenge, let's look at the violence and gore. Although I have never read the comic or seen it's art style, the blood looks incredibly glossy, almost paint-like and that really destroys the illusion when pitted with the actual ferocity of the combat. Albeit, the choreography of the fight scenes is perfect, it's fluid movement blended with slow motion shots exacerbate the extent of each hit and I couldn't stop giggling every time I saw someone get a Gladius blade to the face.

Probably one of the biggest and most violent blockbuster this year, Rise of an Empire stands as quite a triumph in my book. A bloody gorefest with a story that answers so many questions. I'm a little peeved with some of the visuals, the blood being one but a giant dog that looked like it had come from Ghostbusters and didn't even fit into place, nor was it even addressed. A sex scene that looks more like rape and a script that throws back to 300 in the cheesiest of fashion. Finally, I would have loved it to have been a bit longer but this desperate need to make a trilogy for something can stretch it very thin and it's removed all of the battles on land and replaced them with only naval scenes. Because of all this, I feel I should rate it more on my entertainment factor and 8/10 stands well with me. It's blood-pumping fun for almost all of the family.

Watch Dogs Release Date Revealed

Wondrous news everyone!

Within the last few hours a brand new trailer was released by Ubisoft depicting a release date of May 27th and the plot for the game! Check the trailer down below and leave your opinion in the comment section below!

After it's hugely disappointing delay, a lot of fans were very miffed about the sudden change of heart and only turning up to Eurogamer with a playthrough of the demo that we couldn't get a hand on made it all the more worrying. Here's me hoping for the best from a notoriously good studio with a back catalogue of Assassins Creed games and Far Cry 3!

The Oscars - Results *LIVE*

Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Jared Leto - Dallas Buyers Club

Costume Design
The Great Gatsby

Make-up and Hairstying
Dallas Buyers Club

Best Animated Short Film
Mr Hublot

Best Animated Feature Film
Frozen

Achievement in Visual Effects
Gravity

Best Live Action Short Film
Helium

Best Documentary Short Subject
The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life

Best Documentary Feature
20 Feet From Stardom


Best Foreign Language Film
The Great Beauty


Achievement in Sound Mixing
Gravity


Achievement in Sound Editing
Gravity

Best Actress in a Supporting Role 
Lupita Nyong'o - 12 Years a Slave
 
Best Cinematography
Gravity


Best Film Editing
Gravity

Best Production Design
The Great Gatsby

Best Original Score
Gravity


Best Original Song
Let it Go - Frozen

Best Adapted Screenplay 
12 Years a Slave


Best Original Screenplay
Her


Best Director
Alfonso Cuaron - Gravity


Best Actress in a Leading Role
Cate Blanchett - Blue Jasmine

Best Actor in a Leading Role
Matthew McConaughey - Dallas Buyers Club

Best Picture
12 Years a Slave

Well, that's it guys! A wonderful show with heartfelt tributes, gorgeous music, good laughs and brilliant films. With 7 awards falling into the hands of Gravity, it is the top movie of the night by the night ultimately belongs to 12 Years a Slave. Congratulations to all and if you want to see the most retweeted image in history, be sure to go to Ellen Degeneres' Twitter to find out what all the fuss is about. Speaking of Ellen, her light hearted approach stands well away from Seth Macfarlane's raw and energetic attitude but personally seemed a little safe after all of the press over Seth's actions.