3D-Day

Like most people, I may have enjoyed reigning in the New Year a little too hard. As a result, my opening day of 2013 consisted of sitting on the couch and nursing a quite severe hangover. After watching more than my fill of Red Dwarf, I decided to delve into the depths of my Sky planner upon which I had three 3D films recorded which I'd been meaning to get around to watching. Perfect match! I thoroughly enjoyed all three films and almost completely forgot to feel sorry for myself. Here's my thoughts on each one:




The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn (2011)

Stunning is the word that comes to mind when I think of this film. Maybe not in script and story, but visually the only word that can do this film justice is STUNNING. Steven Spielberg took the helm in attempting to recreate this classic comic for a modern audience and in my opinion he did a pretty good job.

The story basically revolves around a young reporter, and his loyal dog Snowy, embarking on an adventure to figure out the secret of Sir Francis Haddock and his sunken ship "The Unicorn". Along the way befriending the hilarious drunkard Captain Haddock, all the while being chased by villain Ivan Ivanoitch Sakharine, voiced by Daniel Craig.

As a fan of the comics when I was younger, I was slightly skeptical at first and admittedly it does take getting used to. The story line is a bit flimsy and things seem to escalate very quickly all of a sudden without much time to really settle into the characters or surroundings, however things do eventually come together and you begin to become engrossed in the film.

None of this particularly matters all that much as the animation is just so mind bogglingly brilliant, so good that there were times I genuinely forgot it wasn't real. The colours are eye catching, with fantastically realistic textures, and you almost feel you cut touch every ridiculous follicle of hair on Tintins head.

Some good voice casting also helps this film, Andy Serkis' as Captain Haddock the standout performer showing of his impressive vocal talent with a flawless Scottish accent. Loveable duo Simon Pegg and Nick Frost voice the Thompson twins, doing a great job in adding a bit of comedy to the film.

 Overall this is a good film, not brilliant, but really very good. I would recommend this film just on the grounds that the animation is (you guessed it) stunning.

Toy Story 3 (2010)

From what I gather I appear to be the only person in the world who hadn't seen this film. Being a 90's kid I was madly in love with Toy Story, to the point where I attempted to write my own name on the shoe's of my own toys. So quite how I managed to let this film slip through my fingers for a year and a half is beyond me! However, that how now been rectified.

First things first I loved this film. How could you not? Michael Arndt delivered an outstanding screenplay, given the amount of expectation on his shoulders, and overall this film worked perfectly. It tugged on your heart strings, tickled your funny bone, and in the end left you satisfied after an eleven year wait.

The last installment to the trilogy tells the tale of Woody and co being trapped in the Sunnyside Daycare Centre after years of being unused by Andy, now 18 and off to college.

It looked exactly as Toy Story should and it felt exactly how Toy Story should, sticking with the quality core of original characters. The new additions were also a resounding success - Ken, played by Michael Keaton, my personal favourite. From the homage to Wayne's World in his opening scene, to his fashion show for Barbie, Ken was brilliantly funny. The comedy is childish enough to attract younger viewers, but with mature gags for the older generation to enjoy.

This film is truly brilliant and incredibly emotional. Any small doubts I had about whether this would be a fitting end to a beloved piece of my childhood were quickly quashed and I would happily watch this again. Great film.


Megamind (2010)

Possibly the most risky of the lot, not an arty film like Tintin nor building upon a classic like Toy Story. However, this film is quality. A genuinely funny film that had me laughing like a kid, jam packed with loveable characters, and one of the best soundtracks I can remember in a kids film.

The movie is essentially a spoof superhero comedy, but the main protagonist is an evil genius called Megamind. However, during the film he becomes an anti-hero and, bit of a spoiler but it's a kids film what do you expect, end up saving the day and getting the girl.

I make no secret of the fact that I am a massive Will Ferrell fan, I find him hilarious in almost everything. So when I saw that he was voicing the title character I was instantly persuaded, along with the the knowledge that my younger cousins are in love with this film. I was more than pleasantly surprised at just how good this film really was. Ferrell manages to add some classic Ferrellisms to his character, David Cross' strange incredibly American voice fits perfectly with Megamind's accomplice Minion, and Tina Fey brilliantly voices Megamind's love interest. The only member of the cast that I felt didn't quite fit was Brad Pitt as Metro Man, Megamind's arch nemesis, as I was expecting more of a Patrick Warburton voice. However, you can't really complain too much about a bit of Brad Pitt in your film can you? The man's a good egg.

Megamind himself is the ultimate rock star of the villain world with a brilliant array of suits, including "the black mamba", and a set of backing tracks that put a massive smile on my face every time they came on.

I genuinely cannot tell you how much I enjoyed this film, it was a resounding success in my eyes. It's not particularly clever, or full of fantastically dazzling animation, it's just good. It's funny, entertaining, and has Will Ferrell in it. For me that's all you need for a good night in!




Written by Ash Davies