Safe House: A film review

 - Vancouver, British Columbia - It would seem that Hollywood has often held a very dim view of the intelligence service, since it is regularly portrayed as an institution not worthy of our trust. Constantly, we're told stories of agents turning coats, or even becoming double agents and being paid by both sides for services rendered. There is an inherent mistrust that is exhibited by characters in films such as the Bourne franchise, The Green Zone, The A-Team, Rendition, and the list goes on with many far more legendary films. In Safe House, we're presented a not too dissimilar scenario, but with the promise of Denzel Washington kicking some intelligent butt, or at least that's what the trailer told me.

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The Guard: A film review

 - Vancouver, British Columbia - It's good to catch a film that's a little different again. Sometimes checking out independent cinema can bite (read: Meek's Cutoff), but it can be a lot of fun to see low budget film making at work. And this one is great because it's foreign also! I think this is supposed to give me movie critic bonus points, right? The Guard is the most successful Irish independent movie in terms of box office numbers, beating out 2006's The Wind that Shakes the Barley. I don't often see Irish films making it all the way out here in Canada, but I'm glad for it this time.

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Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire: A film review

 - Vancouver, British Columbia - The fourth installment in the Harry Potter film franchise saw the face of another new director, Mike Newell, who was best known for his films Donnie Brasco, Four Weddings and a Funeral, and Mona Lisa Smile. Not the most logical choice if I had to go by the sample of work, but he was a veteran film maker and must have given the studio and J.K. Rowling a satisfying treatment to land the job and take over where Alfonso Cuarón left off with Harry Potter's bar raised surprisingly high.

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