#79: C.S.A.: The Confederate States of America (2004) August 13, 2007
Posted by badblokebob in : Documentary, Comedy, 2000s, 2 stars, 2007, Historical , add a comment2004 | Kevin Willmott | 89 mins | DVD | 12
Mockumentary about the history of America had the South won the civil war. While an intriguing idea, in practice it’s disappointing. Apparently such a victory would have led to everything the nation did since being to maintain slavery. There are some neat ideas (a Cold War with Canada) and some genuinely amusing or cleverly satirical bits, but the focus is too narrow and, consequently, unbelievable and sometimes dull. It also seems unable to break away from reality far too often: Wall Street still crashes, JFK becomes President and is assassinated, etc. The acting is frequently dodgy and it all has a very amateurish feel. To top it off, considering it’s pretending to be a British documentary, the style is too like cheap American TV documentaries. All in all, a disappointment.
#75: Confetti (2006) August 6, 2007
Posted by badblokebob in : Documentary, Comedy, Romance, 2000s, 3 stars, British films, 2007 , add a comment2006 | Debbie Isitt | 96 mins | TV | 15 / R
Largely improvised Britcom, shot in a documentary style, about three couples trying to win a most original wedding competition. It starts out quite poorly, with unlikable characters and an irritating style, but things do improve and a number of the characters do grow on you (some do, deliberately, remain horrid). My favourites are the pair of camp wedding planners — you don’t get much more stereotypical, but they’re lovable and amusing from the off. Fittingly, the weddings at the end are probably the best bits.
#64: Ringers: Lord of the Fans (2005) July 16, 2007
Posted by badblokebob in : Documentary, Fantasy, 2000s, 3 stars, films about films, 2007 , add a comment2005 | Carlene Cordova | 93 mins | DVD | 12 / PG-13
Made by the people behind the large Lord of the Rings fansite TheOneRing.net, you’d expect this documentary to focus itself on Lord of the Rings fandom. To a degree it does, but it also encompasses a history of the books and their popularity, as well as various thematic issues contained within them, and also takes in the various adaptations (though, criminally, doesn’t even mention the BBC radio version). It’s a bit unfocussed, sometimes coming across as a selection of featurettes strung together with occasionally random linking interviews. There’s stuff of interest in here, but certainly not to everyone — only fans need apply.
#49: March of the Penguins (2005) May 21, 2007
Posted by badblokebob in : Documentary, 2000s, 4 stars, 2007 , add a comment2005 | Luc Jacquet | 82 mins | DVD | U / G
One of the most surprising hits at the box office in 2005, as you’re probably aware this is a documentary about penguins. Specifically, it’s about their mating cycle — there’s little information outside of that. It does manage to touch on the sex, death and violence inherent in most nature things though, albeit in a family-friendly U-rated kind of way. In fact, it’s a film very much about the story of the mating cycle, rather than about information-giving. Along with beautiful shots of Antarctica and cute shots of baby penguins, I suspect this is why it was more of a hit than a straight-up informative documentary would have been.
#15: This is Spinal Tap (1984) February 28, 2007
Posted by badblokebob in : Documentary, Music, Comedy, 4 stars, 1980s, 2007 , add a comment1984 | Rob Reiner | 86 mins | DVD | 15 / R
I think my viewing of Spinal Tap may have suffered from years of hype. In some ways it was exactly what I’d expected; in others, not. There are plenty of funny moments, and the odd hilarious one (Stonehenge), but there were times when I felt a little underwhelmed by it. Maybe you had to be there; maybe it is indeed a victim of hype.