We Bought a Zoo

I went to preview of We Bought a Zoo on Monday.

A recently widowed father (Matt Damon) wants a better life for his kids and a 'new' start. Whilst viewing houses he falls for a beautiful, but rundown house. However, it comes with a catch, a minor detail...

Given that I'm not a fan of Damon (I think he's too interchangeable with DiCarprio, Affleck et al) and having read the synopsis, I was debating not going.

I'm glad I did. It is a funny, often overtly sentimental film. But will keep the kids entertained. The younger members of the audience really seemed to enjoy it, especially all the animal scenes. 

The scenes with Scarlett Johansson I didn't really think added much to the film, but Hollywood will always add a bit of romance. I felt it detracted away from her character's passion for her job and the animals.

There are some well written scenes with Damon and his two kids, and with his brother, especially when talking and reminiscing about his wife.

This Means War

I went to a preview of This Means War yesterday.

After being grounded for a covert operation gone bad, two top CIA operatives wage an epic battle against one another after they discover they are dating the same woman. 

It stars Reese Witherspoon as the girl, both Chris Pine and Tom Hardy are dating. 

It was rather slow to start, but good fun.  The two male leads are good together, you believe in their friendship genuinely. Reese Witherspoon does well, but I felt she was let down by the script, she appears a little one dimensional.

Some of the funniest lines were delivered by the CIA agents working with on the 'case'.

Overall, a good funny Rom Com. I think the marketing guys missed a trick not releasing this for Valentine's Day. It's a Rom Com with car chases, explosions, and bad boy banter. The men in the audience seemed to enjoy it as much as the girls.

Safe House

I was lucky enough to go to preview of Safe House this week.

In case you have being living under a rock or just busy being a parent, partner, worker, etc. Safe House is a film about a young CIA agent is tasked with looking after a fugitive in a safe house. But when the safe house is attacked, he finds himself on the run with his charge. 

It stars Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds as the main characters. 

Denzel Washington is extremely good as the fugitive, convincing acting, helped by a good script. 

It is great to see Ryan Reynolds get a meatier role, instead of the usual guy-next-door, love interest style roles.

The film is a fact paced action adventure, full of explosions, chases, thrills, and shoot outs as the two try to keep one step ahead.

Definitely a recommendation for cinema viewing, I don't think the impact will be the same on the small screen.