Filmsoc.co.za - UCT Film Society blog gets a facelift

Howzit all our loyal readers over the past few years!

Thank you for your continued support of the Celluloid Hoer blog. We are pleased to announce that although this marks the end of Celluloid Hoer's chapter as the UCT Film Society's blog, our blog is moving up in the world to a brand spanking new self-hosted fully featured more robust platform on the domain www.filmsoc.co.za.

The blog officially 'opens' on the 1st of January of 2012, so if you do check it out before then, please bear with us as it is in the final stages of BETA testing and prep.

Don't miss out on our great reviews, industry news, tutorials, trailers, videos, events and all things film related in the most beautiful city in the world at Africa's greatest university - come Make It Loud with us on our brand new website!

New site features:

• A clean new look
• Tell us YOUR thoughts in our great DISQUS comment system
• Share content easily with Like and Tweet buttons
• Get our latest activity via Twitter, and Like us on Facebook right on the site
• Take part in our polls, find info on our amazing parties, view our pics
• and so much more!

Shotties 2011: "Your Ma Se King Cone"

UCT Film society presents....

A battle of wits ensues between a beligerent Ice Cream vendor and self-centred meat head on the beaches of Clifton.

Directed by: Laylaa Adam
Written by: Laylaa Adam
Cinematography by: Laylaa Adam, Lola Mashabane, Lwando Nteya and Nikola Milosavljevic
Edited by: Nikola Milosavljevic, Laylaa Adam and Lola Mashabane
Starring: Dylan Rademayer and Andrew Badhah, Ashleigh von der Hoven and Abigail De Waal

Malick is black

Brad Pitt and Sean Penn star in Terrence Malick's latest offering the "Tree of life". A coming of age tale set against two different generations and how both struggle through a battle of strengths between a father and son.
It looks breath taking and Malick is easily one of the most eloquent directors alive, so i'm shivering in by UGG boots in anticipation.

Simply the best crazy stupid love

Title: Crazy, stupid, love

Directed By: Glenn Ficarra, John Requa

Written by: Dan Fogelman

Starring: Emma Stone, Steve Carrell, Julianne Moore, Marisa Tomei and Ryan Gosling

The story opens with Ron (Carell) and Emily (Moore) a stagnating married couple who are in the midst of getting divorced, Emily’s cheated and broken Ron’s heart and left him with nothing but a size 44 suit when he’s actually a size 42. In walks mercurial lady’s man and tall glass of water Jacob (Gosling) who takes Ron under his wing and promises to make him better, faster, stronger and make his wife rue the day she ever cheated on him. Ron’s metamorphosis begins and in the process a number of new love interests develop including the baby sitter his son secretly has a crush on, a teacher (Tomei) and Hanna (Stone). Ron embarks on his journey of self-improvement which barricaded with comedic instances and a deep seated determination to get his wife back and prove that love really does exist.

Ficarra and Requa give a master class in directing Romantic Comedy and unpack an incredibly complicated love story in a matter of seconds, they don’t butcher Fogelman’s script either, but just let it be. Framing the most delicate moments intricately and allowing the mania of comedy and zest to explode in the same frame.
It’s filled with one million and one “aaah” moments and that tenderness and honesty you need in romantic films which make them believable yet at the same time enviable.

TKO

I give it 10 hoers.

Love these slippers

Grootboom's in Cape Town and he's raising hell and "sneaking some action".
I like it, it's Capetonian, it's 2011, it's funny and it doesn't exhaust my cap.
It's also got people i know or have seen in it.
Watch out for the dance section, classic!

"what you know about my juicy wors?"

Grootboom's at it again and this time he wants you to try his juicy wors....
Love this, and love this guy.
Check it out

Worst film of the year

Title: Captain America: First Avenger

Directed by: Joe Johnston

Written by: Chris Markus and Stephen McFeely

Starring: Hugo Weaving, Chris Evans, Stanley Tucci and Hayley Atweel

Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) is a skinny guy with a big heart and an incredibly resilient jaw. In the dark boroughs of World War two he fights against the odds to get enlisted into the US army so he can do his part in defeating the Nazi scum. Armed with Jehovah’s Witness persistence and an undying spirit, chance pairs him up with a drafting and the mysterious somewhat paedophilic Dr. Abrahams Erskine (Stanley Tucci). Erskine and his bad German accent are out to create the ultimate soldier not only physically, but psychologically and mentally and with ass-kicking motor mouth general Colonel Chester Phillips (Tommy Lee Jones) they set out to find the perfect soldier for their pseudo-science experiment which will result in something comically predictable.

Steve Rogers the perfect candidate fills the role and in a matter of seconds goes from skinny wimp to Joburg Ghei Roid bunny and Captain America. But in the celebrations Erskine is shot and the mysterious formula for Captain America’s creation is lost with him. Setting Captain America on a journey to avenge his friend and doctor, but not before he prances around the USA trying to sell government bonds. But fate and a limited running time sees him travel to Europe in tandem with a bunch of other good hearted men to defeat the imminent HYDRA threat, which is headed by Red Skull the only notable performancve in this shit storm of crappiness by Hugo Weaving.

It’s crap, there’s no two ways about it, from the horrible over stated CGI, to the paper thin narrative, to the 1940’s optimism to the fact that the entire thing is void of any ambiguity to the fact that Chris Evans couldn’t play a convincing douchebage and he is one! Like the horribly average ugly girl with no personality in Biology class, this film’s got noting going for it.

I give it 1 Hoer.

Thrill

Manic mondays mean we're all dragging ass and moaning at the prospect of having to do it all again, in times like these it's good to look to the biggest society at UCT for advice and this what they had to say.

You're on TV, i mean the internet!

Professor Grootboom has been terrorizing the streets of Cape Town with his infectious charm and beautiful brown locks!
And you may have been one of his victims, check out if you made the cut

Bathing planet of the apes!

Title: Rise of the planet of the apes

Directed by: Rupert Wyatt

Written by: Rick Jaffa; Amanda Silver

Starring: Frieda Pinto, James Franco, John Lithgow, Andy Serkis

Monkey’s are terrifying, I don’t care what anyone says and Rise of the Planet of the Apes, proves this more than anything else. It’s the year 2011 and Will Rodman –James Franco- a scientist at Genesys is working on a cure for Alzheimer’s disease, with Apes as his subjects he makes an unbelievable breakthrough and goes to the board of telling them that he’s done it, “Eureka”. Rodman’s palpitations are only increased by the illogical escape of rogue chimpanzee “Blue Eyes” who loses her shit and tries to kill everyone in sight. Rodman is shut down, his cure is shelved and hopes shattered, but there is Hope and it’s name is Caesar –Andy Serkis- , Bright Eye’s son, who has inherited the gene therapy given to her mother and is a super smart chimp, who knows sign, wears clothes and is a badass chess master. All is well in Rodman’s life he meets super hot vet Caroline Arahana – played by Frieda Pinto – and the three of them live a peaceful life in sunny San Francisco. That is until Rodman decides to prematurely administer the experimental drug he was developing on his father and Caesar’s self awareness gets out of control and he starts asking some Mario Balotelliesque questions leading to him swallowing a human finger and being incarcerated. Like Malcolm X, Ruben “The hurricane” Carter and Jacob Zuma, prison only focuses Caesar more and leads him into the beginning of the path to his Ape revolution in his banana republic Slacks.

The CGI in this film is sublime and the motion sequence animation unparalleled, and Frieda Pinto, wow! I mean WOW! Is she hot! James Franco “nyah” and Caesar’s quite a bad mother, but far too many of the primate enclosure scenes read like “Oz” minus the gang-rape.

Wyatt really knocks it out of the park with his ape-to-ape interactions and the show is stolen by the most hideously ugly cute Orangutan! But the Humans are flat, like Amanda Peet Flat.

It’s not gonna change your life, but it will definitely elicit a “Yoh!” from you.

I give it 6 Hoers

Super Good!

Title: Super 8

Directed By: J.J. Abrams

Written By: J.J. Abrams

Starring: Joel Courtney; Kyle Chandler; Elle Fanning; Riley Griffiths

“Super 8” open in the seething lonely cold town of Lillian, Ohio to a broken home, saturated with braces and home video cameras, it’s 1970 something and Joe Lamb [Joel Courtney] has just lost his mother, the caked snow and Nordic blues of Lillian frame Joe’s despair and what will be the film of 2011.
It starts off slow, a band of foul-mouthed misfit filmmakers headed by Charles Kaznyk, a portly tyrant hellbent on winning the local film festival. Summer’s here and Charles with Martin, Cary, Joe and Alice by his side plan on making the film of the decade, and Abrams begins his relentless meta-referencing in this beautiful, nostalgic, perfect film about the pangs of being in 3D and coming of age. A mysterious typically J.J. Abramsesque violent explosive event occurs and starts Joe on a journey of discovery and unbridled courage and bravery all inspired by a beautiful young girl, whose father happens to be his father’s mortal enemy. The gang geared with their Super 8 camera and teenage libido’s embark on the town now in the wake of a cataclysmic train wreck to make their film and do all in their power to get their dicks wet.

It’s spectacular and I’m not referring to the CGI or the flawless Michael Giachinno soundtrack or Larry Fong’s painstaking attention to detail cinematography or the out of this world art direction, I’m talking about everything! The performances are out of this world, the script is perfectly balanced and the big mystery – which Abrams is synonymous for – is so superfluous in comparison to the magnificence of this film that you completely forget about it and get lost in the magic of Joe’s courage and desire for gash.

Like Les Quatre Cents Coups and “Le souffle au cœur” after it “Super 8” is teenage angst and fury wrapped in the most delicate of handkerchiefs growing legs in every direction to touch and mesmerize.

There’s something literary about Super 8, which makes it an immediate comparison to Jean-Paul Sartre’s “words” or Albert Camus “First Man”

All I can say is “Wow!”

J.J. Abrams take a bow

I give it 10 Hoers!

Loving it!

Local based production house ODC is putting together a one of kind off the wall show which has the industry a buzz.... HAhaha the industry.
I've got no clue what it's about, but let's just say it's worth watching just for the protagonists rowing technique ;-)

How to steal two million

Their very few things I’ve been looking forward to quite like “How To steal two million”.

Freshman Transatlantic South African Director Charlie Vundla, makes his screen debut with this action charged, crime drama about an ex-con looking to have one more hit to sort out his life and double cross his double crossing former partner.
With local super producer Mfundi Vundla behind the project and Michelle Wheatley. This promises to be one of the true cinematic gems of the year and the film we’ve all been waiting for.

Watch it!

Hanna Banana!

Title: Hanna

Directed by: Joe Wright

Written by: Seth Lochead, David Farr

Starring: Cate Blanchet, Eric Bana, Saoirse Ronan and Tom Hollander

Hanna in white writing on a red canvas, sums up this film. Frenetic, action packed, sexually charged, and jam-packed with historically out of place references.
Hanna a very special young girl living in the Russian Tundra with her father has been reared from day one to destroy and kill Marissa (CIA Boss). Armed with a former CIA operative as a father and a suspiciously large Adam’s apple, she exhausts her day’s hunting, speaking 6 languages, and learning to kill the average adult male in a matter of seconds.

Her life is thrown into a complete meat spin, when her father informs her that she is ready to kill the infamous and evil Marissa sounding as suspiciously Mission Impossible – and I mean the 80’s one – looking alarm, the CIA learn of her and her father’s whereabouts. From here a projectile of action, repressed sexuality and all out ass-kicking scream across the screen framed by laughably stereotypical German hitmen, clad in knee high boots and armpit hugging acid blue jeans. And Cate Blanchett as the smoky red-headed femme fatale who can kill you with her pencil sharpener, but can’t wear any shoes except heels!

It’s action like it should be, without the unnecessary love bullshit and generally nonsensical plotlines which explain themes and ideas which really make no sense whatsoever.

Hanna will knock your sock off!

The C word!

Title: Bridesmaids

Directed by: Paul Feig

Written by: Kirstin Wiig ….

Starring: Kirsten Wiig, Rose Byrne, Maya Rudolph and Melissa McCarthyy

Comedy is unforgiving, unrelenting, ruthless and at times painful, but it’ll do it’s job, make you laugh. And that’s Bridesmaids in a nutshell, a ferociously funny film filled with unbelievably nauseating moments. The text follows Annie (Kirsten Wiig) a failed bakery owner down and out on her luck who makes worse decisions than the South African Wildlife protectorate – really tighten up those damn Hooker hunting laws. Her best friend Lillian is soon to get married and asks Annie to be her maid of honour, reluctantly she agrees and a comedy of errors in the crudest and most intelligent ways unveils itself. Producing one of the funniest films of the year with a knockout all-female cast who deliver the goods repeatedly in this hilarious yet at times suicidal comedy. Wiig and McCarthy are a tour de force delivering the comedic performances of a year in a solid script which isn’t over basterdized by vulgarity or sensitivity. But rather strikes a feminine balance to make wholly believable and at times endearing.

Bridesmaids, comedy with a Capital C!

I give it 8 Hoers

Lose Lose

Title: Win Win
Director: Tom McCarthy
Writer: Tom McCarthy
Starring: Paul Giamatti, Bobby Carnavale, Amy Ryan and Jeffery Tambor

It’s difficult to say much about this film, because nothing actually happens in it. Not in an Existential or Jarmuschesque manner but rather in a hopelessly indie middle class way. Now films of a similar dispensation have succeeded with this formula, however their character were at least partly memorable. Nothing about this film is memorable, its horridly average and indie, from the nauseating colour schemes of the New Jersey winter to the Flat coke performances by Alex Shaffer . The films saving grace is the credits, okay I lie, Bobby Carnavale and Amy Ryan put in solid work as Giamatti’s supporting cast but outside of that it’s just really just one elevator music cong after the other. The film faired well at the 2011 Sundance Festival and there’s no surprise there as it comprised all the elements of the criteria that the folks at Sundance look for, but that being said their taste like Burt Young’s erections are highly unreliable and very rarely delivers what they promise.

Watch it, but don’t say we didn’t warn you.

I give it 4 Hoers.

Marcel Woods @ 91

All i can say about Marcel Woods at 91 was that it was the only time i lost my underwear but not my pants, sweat more, party harder.
OH snap it's April! and that means the next film soc event is on the horizon.....
Can't wait
Check it out to see what's in store

I love College

A place where stupidity and fierce intelligence battle it out against each other in some of the most respected halls in this county.
A place where the mind and the liver is allowed to run free and consume and exhume whatever it's eye fancies.
Oh UCT How good you are to me.
For proof see the above!
Second favorite day of the year.

Jackassess and Virgins

OMG! Sofia Coppola's coming to South Afica.
Okay she's not. Bit she has released quite an exciting little number after the abortion that was "Marie Antoinette". It's supposed to debut at the Cape Winelands even though it's a 2010 release (Ja thanks Ster Kinekor).
It's your typical run of the mill indie far.
Actor makes it in Hollywood then gets injured and goes to Spa (Really expensive Hollywood Spa) and in the process has some kind of mild existential break down. Of course Coppola treats it with her ephemeral tenderness and insight that makes her one of the few mildly original (female) filmmakers in Hollywood. But what really raised my eyebrows was Chris Pontius in the cast list.
Party Boy is going to be in the new Sophia Coppola film.
F-my cow in roses!
See it just to see if Pontius really only wears thongs

"Back when Mark Wahlberg was Marky Mark!"

Title: The Fighter

Directed by: David O. Russell

Written by: Scott Silver and Paul Tamasy, Eric Johnson & Keith Dorrington

Starring: Christian Bale, Mark Wahlberg, Amy Adams and Melissa Leo

Do you remember that annoying catchy song? “Cuma Cuma Chameleon…” You hated it, but couldn’t get it out of your head and despite your best efforts you can’t remember the artist or song title and when you finally do see it again, you swear to find the artist and slaughter all the sheep in his homestead. But then you hear it again and you start to forgive the poor sod, and almost like him and then before you know it you’re singing along and boom! The cycle comes full circle.
That’s Mark “Marky Mark” Wahlberg in a nutshell a chameleon who changes colours repeatedly and as much as you try to hate him, you can’t because he’s just so damn catchy and likeable!

The following applies to “the Fighter” which sees Wahlberg and an out of this world cast produce what can be called one of the best films of the year. It’s 1990 and Dicky Ecklund (Christian Bale) is having a documentary made about him, under the auspice to celebrate his illustrious career as a fighter but in truth to shed light on the horrific effects of Crack Cocaine, his younger brother, Boxing legend and hero Mickey Ward played by Mark Wahlberg follows Dicky on his road to roedemption. Dicky who at one time defeated Sugar Ray Leonard in the ring, now defeats needles in his attic whilst trying to help his younger brother get to the upper echelons of the Boxing world. Unfortunately Dicky is a crack addict and like all crack addicts he manages to somehow steal the show with an out of this world performance by Bale, which is almost as haunting as his portrayal of Patrick Bateman in American Pyscho. On the road to sanity and redemption Micky meets home girl Charlene Fleming played by Amy Adams and the two form an bat-shit crazy blue collar tryst that is tested by Mickey’s wacky and zany army of sisters and megalomaniacal mother who do everything in their power to separate the two only leading the two closer and Dicky in jail.
It’s a tear jerker like the way they used to make them and Russell gives us a Massachusetts like no other without the famous monuments and glory of the Red Sox, but just a bunch of poor white folks trying make ends meet in a dog eat world covered in crack and John Adams Lager.

It’s a gem one of the finer Oscar contenders of the year and one of those films that’ll have you shadow boxing till dinner’s ready and make you think about taking out your old axe or set of swimming trunks and have one more shot at Fame and legally beating men to death.

Bravo 5 times over

I give it 9 Hoers!