Thursday, September 20, 2007
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Hairspray by . r o s s .
I have seen Chicago hundereds of times. And this movie follows in the footsteps of this awesome movie, which was also produced by Craig Zadan and Neil Meron.
The original Hairspray move was created by John Waters (who has a great cameo as a flasher in the opening song "Good Morning Baltimore"), Ricky Lake playing Tracy Turnblad (who also has a cameo in this version as a talent agent), and her mother was played by Divine (ten days after the premiere, Divine died in his sleep). I was worried that John Travolta would not be able to fill Divine's massive heels, but he sure did a great job.
Nikki Blonsky, who unsuccessfully tried so hard to get the part of Tracy Turnblad in the Broadway version was discovered working for an ice cream shop in New York where the staff are renowned for singing for their tips. Nikki did a fantastic job of playing the pleasantly plump Tracy, and her voice is heavenly.
I have been like totally such a major fan of Queen Latifa since Chicago when she played Mamma, and her role playing Motormouth Maybelle was awesome, man that girl can sing, she is Big Blonde and Beautiful.
The heartthrobs Zac Effron and James Marsden were great. Especially Marsdens killer smiles, and Effron's amazing eyes (were those contacts he as wearing?). I could swear he was winking at me. The Corny Collins Show is based on the real-life Buddy Deane Show, which was canceled because the producers wouldn't integrate black and white dancers.
Allison Janney was my favourite character, she was always my favourite in The West Wing, and is perfect for this over the top, camp role. Michelle Pfeiffer was great plating the über bitch too. My least favourite character was Christopher Walken, his interpretation of his character was so similar to the role he played in Catch Me if You Can.
The costuming and sets were all over completely the top, along with the hair.... just the way I like it.
This gets a toe-tapping 10/10 from me.
hairspray review
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Hairspray By Mud Guts
Hairspray 18/09/07
Firstly, I love musical theatre (having sung and acted on stage in NQ many, many times while growing up) and this movie is based on a stage show (which I would now love to see. Anyone else wanna go to see it on Broadway this weekend with me?).
Secondly, as a larger guy who has, at times, shyed away from doing things because of my size (which, hard to believe used, to be a lot bigger) and been ridiculed by people because of it, the original mindset of Tracy's mother in not wanting to go outside and her desire to protect her daughter from people who would put her down because of her looks, hit a chord with me.
Then there's the "leftie" social activist in me which hopes for a totally integrated community and equality for minorities. So the attempt to integrate the Negro Day into the regular Corny Collins show also added to me enjoyment of the film.
I would have to agree with my fellow TAT bloggers in praising this film. Excellent music, excellent storyline, excellent acting. It is hard to fault it, really. The performances by Travolta, Walken and Latifa (particularly ... what a voice!) were standouts. I thought Blonski shone in her introductory role as Tracy Turnblad and yes, I think it it widely agreed that Efron is very handsome and a great singer and actor.
As Daniel will testify, I went into the cinema in the pretty bad mood but walked out laughing and joking after watching a movie that made my laugh (and even cry) and got my toes tapping and my hands clapping.
Five stars! I'll not only go and see this again, but I'll probably buy it on DVD and download the soundtrack on to my Ipod.
Hairspray
Hairspray by MikeY
OK – So I didn’t see Hairspray with the Tighty Arsy Tuesdays bois, but whilst in
This movie is is a playful, kitschy, sweet but snarky tribute to the era of sky-
Hairspray arrives as a big, bundle of fun, infectious to the core and accomplishes more often than not what the best musicals are prone to do. It’s got a feel-good quality that stretches from here (
Overall, the music was fun and lively. The dancing, as you might expect from a show about teenage dancing, is terrific. I found this a delightful way to spend a little time out of the
Three cheers for this jubilant, funny, and phantasmagorical musical!
5 of these thingos for sure!
Hairspray - Obe Mossop
The movie "Hairspray" set in the 1960's is centered around a plump teenager Tracy who has a crush on the most dreamy guy I've seen in quite some time. She also loves to shake that groove thang.
This movie.....dare I say it.....could not have been improved in any way. It was just the right length of time. It did not leave me hanging. The laughs were plentyful. There was a heart felt moment. There was a number of opportunities to oogle the beautiful Zac Eferon. And lastly John Travolta in drag was not a trainwreak I was expecting. Quite the contraty, he was pretty good.
Best part: When Blake (Zac Eferon) did his glamour shot winking into the camera and the entire panel plus the cinema audiance let out a lovestruck sigh.
Worst part: belgen dog dropping chocolates.
Overall rating: 5/5
Monday, September 17, 2007
Friday, September 7, 2007
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Black Sheep by . r o s s .
This is the funniest movie I have seen all year. Think of a cross between the Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Watership Down. The SFX were awesome, and completely over the top. The cute little sheep fetus was my favourite character, closely followed by Oliver Driver. This film is almost like an homage to one of Jackson's first movies Brain Dead ( A young man's mother is bitten by a Sumatran rat-monkey. She gets sick and dies, at which time she comes back to life).
Just before Mike (Mick Rose) is attacked by a killer sheep, he is seen reading "The Penguin History of New Zealand", a well known book written by the late Dr Michael King, the father of "Black Sheep" director Jonathan King.
The Wairarapa scenery is stunning, and I felt homesick (and somewhat horny) watching this film.
Five NZ Sexworkers from me
Black sheets?
Best line in the movie. 'Fuck those sheep' .. 'Nah... no time for that bro!'
Worthy of adding to my dvd collection.
Bah Blah Blek Sheep - by Frostydog
OK, so I missed the TAT screening with the bois, so I decided to view a copy from
Stunning vistas of
Anyone lacking a taste for red meat will likely say bah to the one-
I realise that Jonathan King's film is an intentionally moronic mash-
The picture is really a a vibrant advertisement for the scenic glories of
Black Sheep - Obe Mossop
I regretfully was unable to attend the group viewing of this movie but I understand from reliable sources it was a hoot!
No rating this time guys as I wasn't there :-)