Lima

I admire Joe Wright's work and I think that, despite his last two mediocre films, he's the greatest British talent of our time, but I just don't give a damn about delicate little girls who can beat up a guy a head taller and 50 kg heavier in hand combat. Such stupidly naive screenplays probably don't even belong in contemporary cinema (I hereby salute the 80s).

A missed opportunity with a not very dazzling joke (but at least not insulting to the intelligence), where one of the few things that sticks in the viewer's head are the occasional juicy guffaws and Simon Pegg's wig. Sigourney Weaver’s cameo at the end was great.

Singer's X-Men 2 is still unsurpassed, but in some aspects Vaughn's film comes close. If nothing else, Fassbender's performance defines the concept of "charisma" on the movie screen. We're gonna see a lot more from this guy!

Yes, sometimes I have slightly masochistic tendencies and wander into cinematic realms that are as close to my heart as Shakespeare is to Steven Seagal. It was a little less stupid than the genre-related Twilight, but that was only because of the colourful production design, something that could be described as "plot", and Gary Oldman's character, who probably needed to pay the rent for the year ahead. On a side note, I still don't understand Leonardo DiCaprio's name in the "producer" column.

Pattinson will have a hard time shedding the painful stigma of the awkward vampire, but he can give a serious performance if the script allows it. Films from the circus environment are scarce, so extra points for that, but unlike others I wouldn't praise Christoph Waltz's performance so much – when he’s playing a choleric jealous husband or a slightly sadistic guy (stabbing an elephant), it's all right, but I didn't buy his crying (worrying about his livelihood) at all.

I wouldn't have expected such stylish and inventive entertainment from the author of the schematic The Illusionist. And in the case of Bradley Cooper, all I can say is that he has worked his way up from an extremely unlikable jock in Wedding Crashers to a dependable lead. Charisma combined with acting talent, I have no fear for Bradley’s future.

A pleasant surprise and sheer pleasure from a smart film, and I'd say there have been few legal dramas of the same quality as this since Coppola's magnificent The Rainmaker. Matthew McConaughey has finally shed the jaded skin of the sunny boy on the surfboard, and after years (since his role in Schumacher's A Time to Kill) he has returned to what he does best: a passionate advocate who evokes ambivalent feelings – you want to kick him for his cockiness, but you're rooting for him at the same time. The clever script contains so many plot twists that they would be enough for three other films, and I nod my head in approval and highly recommend it.

Cinema magic. Finally, with Blu-ray, I was able to fully enjoy this immersive experience. At a time when Australian cinema was still in its infancy in terms of international recognition, the talented Peter Weir came up with a film that captivates with its visual beauty, hand in hand with gorgeous music (Mozart, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Bach and George Zamfir's incredibly haunting flute motif), and especially with its incredible atmosphere, which at times reaches horror elements without any boogeymen or similar trappings. All it needs is with one big mystery and atmospheric wizardry with image and music. In Australia, this film is seen in a similar way as Vláčil's Marketa Lazarová here: it also comes on top of all critics’ polls as the best Australian film ever, and rightfully so, methinks.

The enjoyment of this film is directly proportional to the viewer's interest (or lack thereof) in the real story of a group of CBS reporters who in the early 1950s systematically stepped on the balls of Wisconsin Senator Joseph McCarthy, whose campaign against the "Red Plague" infamously went down in history for its disregard of human dignity and human rights guaranteed by the Constitution (Charles Chaplin could tell you about it). The inability to adequately defend oneself against false accusations of collaboration with the Communists and the resulting professional problems, such as loss of employment or even, in extreme cases, imprisonment, were all pointed out by CBS, headed by journalistic legend Edward Murrow. A viewer unfamiliar with the name McCarthy is unlikely to be hooked, not only because of the first twenty minutes, full of overlapping dialogue and a barrage of names, but also because Clooney does not show the problem of McCarthyism in its entirety (only a brief illuminating text outlines the historical context), but plunges the viewer straight into the television studio amongst Murrow and his associates as they prepare for a much-watched evening show at the time, in which they point out false accusations against American citizens (there are two cases in particular in the film). The highlight is Murrow's televised duel with McCarthy himself, whose demagogic speech about Murrow is one of the most powerful experiences of the film. The film’s main asset is its authenticity, thanks to the black-and-white cinematography, the period music and the detailed production design, the atmosphere of the 1950s is palpable, and the inserts of period footage don’t feel like a punch in the eye. And perhaps some of you, with the flood of shallowness currently pouring out of commercial TV stations, will smile bitterly at Murrow's final confession of his desire for "explanatory, educational and inspiring television". Unfortunately Ed, that’s a fight you didn’t win…

It’s clear to me now why a Shakespeare filmmaker like Kenneth Branagh went for this. All the scenes from Asgard seem like great theatre, with interesting characters, great fatality, betrayal, envy and jealousy. Asgard, with its megalomaniacal architecture and all its pomposity, was the most entertaining part, and the episode from Earth, thanks to the good actors, was also enjoyable, although I can't shake the impression that more unintentional humour could have been extracted from "Thor wondering among men like a bull in a china shop". Chris Hemsworth is likeable in every way, Hopkins finally after a long time in a role that suits him best; these classy characters, that's his thing. Overall an enjoyable 2 hours and I wouldn't mind a sequel.