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Reviews
Gabriel (2007)
Different than your average Aussie film.
The movie starts with a polished sequence of the angel Gabriel falling through space. The Arc Angel is sent to a place called purgatory where he takes human form. Like those that came before him he must fight the fallen to determine whether light or dark rules the bleak middle world.
I have now seen this film twice. Once in the cinemas and I now picked up a DVD today. I highly anticipated this films release. When I first came across it I was genuinely excited that finally an Australian team was putting together a different film. This is definitely not what you would expect from an Aussie film. This isn't another dreary drama about a couple of drug addicts that can't find a plot. The director Shane Abbess and crew have put together something thats built to please audiences rather than the arty types.
The visuals in Gabriel are a truly amazing accomplishment. To pull off what they have with such a tiny budget is really unheard of anywhere. The whole dark atmosphere that has been created here reminds me of such films as Dark City and Bladerunner. Everything does seem a little off, like a puzzle piece that doesn't quite fit in the space but you can jam it in anyway.
Abbess didn't have the dollars to work massive fight scenes so instead he has taking a more creative intimate approach. He has tried things that are unusual and not typical of regular action movies. For this Gabriel is worth at least one sit through. Watching it on the cinema screen the film was grainy. At home with a DVD that same distortion is hardly noticeable. I've read that it was down to the camera they had used. So experiencing it the first time at home is probably best.
The first time through I really, really wanted to enjoy it. And I did. The second time through I did get bored in places of the story. To me it didn't offer any real connection with the audience. The actors sometimes drifted in and out of American/Australian/neutral or some combination of accents. I remember one of the Arc Angels, Uriel opened with a short first line something along the lines of"Whadda you want?" with a distinctly Aussie accent, afterwards he settled into an American accent. It can be very distracting.
I just didn't feel anything for the story or characters. They were put in a very dark fantasy world and had dialogue that didn't draw you in at all. That seemed to have a high fantasy tone and wording. Always talking of grand concepts much of it to do with strength and obligation to fight evil. Something is lost in the grandness they attempt to pull off.
It was interesting enough to hold together the action sequences and low budget, fancy visuals. It does address some interesting thoughts like how does a person stay good within such an evil place. You will definitely remember this cult movie.
Gabriel is a huge accomplishment. The people that were involved in this project will go on to bigger things because of this. One thing is certain is that Australia should be making more movies like Gabriel. Movies that actually appeal to audiences. It is beyond me why this didn't get at least one nomination at the AFI's.
The Sketch Show (2001)
british and funny!?!?!!
It would be the only british show i ever watch, I usually find it hard to bare british dribble but this, this is british and FUNNY.
Plus without a doubt its the best sketch show ive seen in recent times, they keep there gags so simple and hilarious rather than trying to over do it all the time. Punch lines in the show are most of the time clear and funny. Unlike all of the crappy sketch shows that are coming out of Aus these days, the sketch show is consistant in its level of laughs it produces each week.
With shows like skithouse (god knows why the keep on pushing on with this) its always hit, miss, hit, miss. More often than not, miss. The sketch shows nowhere near as funny as 'Merrick and Rosso Unplanned' but it would come a close second or third.
A+ for the best sketch show on TV.
Micallef Tonight (2003)
The first episode was good but...
The first episode of micallef tonight, i thought was reasonably funny and more original than anything else that i had seen on australian tv. But you notice by about the third episode that he reuses the same jokes over and over again exept he could sometimes re-word them. and you cant help but to see some similatatery's in the set up of the whole show, compared to Letterman's show.
Letterman has that musical Paul guy and his little orchestra, where as micallef has the unfunny guy with the curly hair on the piano with an orchestra with him, fancy that. The layout of the set is pratically the same as well, Letterman has a desk with a couple of chairs next to him and yes so did micallef.
Shaun Micallef doesnt belong on a tonight show he would be better off in some kind of sit-com. Even though it was broadcast live, if they didnt say it was you could probaly never tell. As the whole cast of the show was un-animated and you could easily see that they had tried to perfect every line that the writers had put down on script for them. They could of at least been a little more spontanious.
The Micallef tonight show, did not communicate properly with the audience and shaun himself has no interviewing skill's what so ever. And of corse if was axed becasue no one really watched it, denton's show may not of pulled in the big names but it did pull in the ratings and out rated the unfunny show of Micallef tonight
Skithouse (2003)
Two Thumb's up for the second season!
The first season of skithouse delivered a few laugh's here and there but most of the sketches were more often than not, poorly writing and badly directed. But if seems that the skithouse team has lifted up the laugh's for the second season and the writers have put a little more thought into there sketches to give the audience something worth while to watch on a Wednesday night. Great comedy for everyone, lets hope they could put together a third season as well! 9/10
Finding Nemo (2003)
A worth while animation
The underwater sequences where spectacular, enriched with bright colors and fantastic effects. The story line was a little to simple for me and yet is probaly the best family adventure of the year with a light humour that gets all of the little kids laughing at every bump of a fish which can get a little irritating at the cinemas.
I take pride in being an Australian and it was good to see pixar getting real Australian's to do the voice's instead of some American impersonator's that give Australia a far from reality accent. Even with the Aussie actors the aussie slang was used far to often than what it is in reality. Really, why would a well educated dentist be calling people "sheila" and saying "crikey" and "mate" in every sentence. Anyway sheila is an old school word that only the middle aged bogens use these days. And crikey is Steve Irwins word. Not the best movie ive every seen id say it rate about 7/10