Mac's Movies

The 31st of July is many things to me. It is my friend's birthday. It is my uncle's birthday. And it is also Harry Potter's birthday.  Born on the 31st of July 1980, Harry James Potter is one of my favourite fictional characters. I love J.K Rowling's books. I love the movies. I love the rides at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando - well, most of them.  So to celebrate Harry's 39th birthday here is my ranking of the Wizarding World movies. 10. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets 09. Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald 08. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban 07. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 06. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince 05. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire 04. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them 03. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix 02. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone 01. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 "You're a wizard, Harry!...

UK Release Date: 11 August 1989 Certification: 12 Director: Tim Burton Cast: Kim Basinger, Michael Gough, Pat Hingle, Michael Keaton, Jack Nicholson, Billy Dee Williams, Robert Wuhl Rating: 57 % "Wait 'til they get a load of me." Review: Like many comic book movies from the 1980's and 1990's Batman doesn't stand the test of time . Tim Burton directs, but in my opinion didn't take the project seriously. Batman is so over the top, but incredibly slow paced at the same time. I know that Tim Burton's Batman is loved by many fans, but as a teenager watching the movie for the first time, it felt dated and devoid of action. I generally love comic book movies but Batman is the exception to date. Michael Keaton is ok as the lead. His performance feels off compared to  Christian Bale's or Ben Affleck's interpretation of the same character [although Keaton donned the mask before Bale and Affleck]. Keaton is oblivious to what is happenin...

UK Release Date: 7 October 1994 Certification: U Director: Roger Allers, Rob Minkoff Cast: Rowan Atkinson, Matthew Broderick, Robert Guillaume, Jeremy Irons, James Earl Jones, Moira Kelly, Nathan Lane, Ernie Sabella Rating: 89 % In the jungle... Review: The Lion King is one of my favourite animated movies of all time.  The animation , the music and the cast is brilliant. W ith one exception. Matthew Broderick feels off as Simba. I think the main character is unlikeable, but Matthew Broderick manages to make the character even more dislikeable through affected, off-putting dialogue and brash, impulsive actions. However this didn't spoil the movie for me too much because the rest of the characters are entertaining. In particular, Jeremy Irons excels as Scar . Scar is manipulative, ruthless and vicious - he brought so much harm to the Pride Lands. I really enjoyed the supporting cast with actors like Rowan Atkinson, Robert Guillaume, Nathan Lane and Ernie Sabella all ...

Late last week, Kevin Feige and some of the MCU cast members announced at San Diego Comic Con (SDCC) Phase Four of the MCU. Feige also announced some other movies and some Disney Plus TV shows but I will purely concentrate on the Phase Four movies today.  H ere is my reaction to what was announced.  Black Widow Black Widow is slated for release in May 2020. It will be directed by Cate Shortland and will star David Harbour, Scarlett Johansson, Florence Pugh and Rachel Weisz. It will explore Black Widow's origins and her time in the much referenced Budapest. Eternals Chloe Zhao will direct Eternals which is set to be released in November 2020. Bryan Tyree Henry, Angelina Jolie, Richard Madden and Kumail Nanjiani will star and the movie promises to explore The Eternals and The Deviants and how both shaped Earth's history and civilisations. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings Shang-Chi is known as the Master of Kung-Fu and the movie will be directed by Destin Da...

UK Release Date: 11 January 1985 Certification: 15 Director: James Cameron Cast: Michael Biehn, Earl Boen, Linda Hamilton, Lance Henriksen, Bess Motta, Rick Rossovich, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Paul Winfield Rating: 91% "I'll be back". Review: Alongside James Cameron's visionary storyline the three main cast members make The Terminator . Linda Hamilton as Sarah Connor is a brilliant female lead that does have the potential to become a genuine action hero (which she evolves into later on in the series). I thought that she had really good chemistry with Michael Biehn's Kyle Reese. Kyle Reese is the perfect action hero - he is charismatic and brave and a great mentor for Sarah Connor. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who is now an established action icon was apparently initially recommended to James Cameron for the role of Kyle Reese, but James Cameron thought he would make a better Terminator. He was correct. Schwarzenegger is a menacing and terrifying villain. ...

UK Release Date: 2 July 2019 Certification: 12A Director: Jon Watts Cast: Jacob Batalon, Jon Favreau, Jake Gyllenhaal, Tom Holland, Samuel L. Jackson, Tony Revolori, Angourie Rice, Marisa Tomei, Zendaya Rating:   74 % London Calling. Review:  I cannot review Spider-Man: Far From Home without giving away major spoilers. Please bare this in mind if you haven't seen the movie. [Spoiler] J ake Gyllenhaal is perfectly cast as Mysterio. All comic book fans will know that Mysterio is one of Spider-Man's main villains. There is an expositional scene in the bar that had the potential to ruin the movie but Jake Gyllenhaal nailed it.   The returning cast are once again excellent, especially Tom Holland, who in my opinion is the best actor to play Spider-Man on screen. And special mention to Jon Favreau, who gave his best performance as Happy Hogan. The movie isn't set in Midtown Science and Technology School as Peter is on an European field trip (to Venice, Pragu...

UK Release Date: 27 September 2002 Certification: 15 Director: Sam Mendes Cast: Liam Aiken, Dylan Baker, Daniel Craig, Tom Hanks, Tyler Hoechlin, Jude Law, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Paul Newman Rating: 84% A state of spiritual ruin. Review: It is fair to say that Road To Perdition wasn't on my radar until I heard about it on a podcast. I am glad I did. The cast in Road To Perdition is excellent. Tom Hanks is brilliant as ever. I felt that having Tom Hanks play a gangster ( Michael Sullivan) was a masterstroke and a unique role in the Hank's movies I have seen. The casting really worked for me. The up and coming (at the time) Daniel Craig and Jude Law both portrayed creepy, sinister and unnerving characters. Both characters are the type of people you love to hate,  whenever something bad happens to them you have to smile a little. And veteran actor Paul Newman delivers a brilliant performance as John Rooney, a conflicted but compelling character in an impossible p...

9 July is one of the world's most talented actor's birthday. Tom Hanks has received five Best Actor Oscar nominations and won two - for Philadelphia (1993) and Forrest Gump (1994). As he is my favourite actor  I thought I would share with you my five favourite Tom Hanks movies I have seen as of 9 July 2019. 05. Road To Perdition 04. Toy Story 4 03. Saving Private Ryan 02. The Terminal 01. Forrest Gump Forrest Gump is a cinematic masterpiece and my second favourite movie of all time. It is the movie where Tom Hanks gets to shine the most and he thoroughly deserved his award for his portrayal of Forrest Gump. Tom Hanks is a phenomenal actor so he is associated with many fabulous movies. Honourable mentions for this list include Big , Cast Away and all of the Toy Story movies. Happy Birthday to Tom Hanks and if anyone has any other actors or directors that they would like me to rank please tell me in the comments section.

UK Release Date: 5 July 2017 Certification: 12A Director: Jon Watts Cast: Jacob Batalon, Donald Glover, Jon Favreau, Laura Harrier, Tom Holland, Robert Downey Jr, Michael Keaton, Tony Revolori, Marisa Tomei, Zendaya Rating: 76 % Just You're Friendly Neighbourhood Spider-Man. Review: Spider-Man Homecoming is the first MCU solo Spider-Man movie and you can tell it is an MCU production, which is no bad thing. It has more jokes, more action and of course cameos from other MCU characters. Tom Holland and the rest of the cast are amazing in Spider-Man: Homecoming . For me, Tom Holland is the best actor to play Spider-Man. He is perfect for the part - suitably cocky as Spider-Man and equally insecure as Peter Parker. It is incredible that he is this good at such a young age [when Spider-Man: Homecoming came out Tom Holland was only 21 years old, making him the youngest actor to play Spider-Man].  Michael Keaton creates one of the best villains in the MCU with his portrayal...

Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle was the movie that surprised me most in 2017. I thought it was different, entertaining and above all hilarious. I hated the original Jumanji (1995) but I thought the reboot was brilliant. So this week when Jumanji: The Next Level trailer came out I was really excited. Jumanji: The Next Level is a sequel to the 2017 movie Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle which is planned to be released on 13 December 2019. I thought the trailer looked good and made me laugh at least a few times, especially the 'Smouldering Intensity' joke. The addition of Danny DeVito and Danny Glover to the cast looks excellent - they were really funny in the trailer. And the impersonations that Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart did were so good. Also I liked that everyone had a new character except Martha. It keeps the franchise fresh. I am really looking forward to this movie and I will definitely be at the cinema opening weekend for Jumanji: The Next Level .

UK Release Date: 21 June 2019 Certification: U Director: Josh Cooley Cast: Tim Allen, Tony Hale, Tom Hanks, Christina Hendricks, Keegan-Michael Key, Madeleine McGraw, Jordan Peele, Annie Potts, Keanu Reeves Rating: 83% "You can't teach this toy new tricks." R eview: Originally I didn't intend to watch Toy Story 4 in the cinema but it was my friend's birthday so I went to see it with him. I am glad I did! Toy Story 4 is my second favourite movie of the year so far. The cast is brilliant, it is emotionally satisfying and is an entertaining continuation of the 'toy's story'. The one aspect of this movie that annoyed me was the limited screen time of old favourites like Jessie and Rex. Even Buzz Lightyear only enters the story half-way through the movie and doesn't really contribute anything of importance.  However t he new cast and characters are amazing. Old favourites like Woody and Buzz are still interesting and funny, and th...