Susan Hated Literature

Dir: Peter Weiland
Writ: Bridget O’Connor & Peter Straughan

• Gregg Sulkin - Bernie Reuben
• Helena Bonham Carter- Esther Reuben
• Eddie Marsan - Manny Reuben
• Peter Serafinowicz - Uncle Jimmy
• Stephen Rea - Dr. Barrie

It is the summer of 1966, and Bernie Reuben is looking forward to his Bar Mitzvah. All his life he has been overlooked and forgotten, by his family and by everyone else. This is his chance to shine and to become the centre of attention. But 1966 is also the year of the World Cup, and the date of his Bar Mitzvah is the same as final, and as the day grows closer and closer it appears that the English team will defy all predictions and make the final. This is the last thing Bernie wants, it’ll totally overshadow his big day.

This is a film based on “partially true” events, and it aims to be a comedy, but while there are some humourous moments overall it isn’t funny enough. It is fine, and watchable, and most of the performances are quite good, but it lacks that something that would make it a good film.

It is probably more of an entertaining film if you can appreciate all the footballing nostalgia, because there is some nice inter cutting of the action from the matches, but being from Ireland, watching England lift the world cup isn’t something that makes me shout for joy Although some of the footage is very entertaining, almost worth going to see the film solely to take a look at the football. But there isn’t enough for that justification, because the film does concentrate on Bernie and his trials and tribulations. Some of which will make you shrug in mehness, others are affecting, but in the main it is nothing special. That being said, it does have its charming, touching moments. It just wasn’t very memorable.

IMDb | DarkMatters | Alex Crawford on Film | MyMovies.net

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The first feature length outing for Wallace and Gromit sees them in the vegetable-protection industry. As AntiPesto they specialise in keeping the village’s prized vegetables safe from the ever hungry mouths of rabbits. In a humane manner. The Annual Giant Vegetable Show is only a few days away when the Were-Rabbit makes an appearance. Destruction of many much-loved vegetables occurs, and AntiPesto also have to deal with Victor Quartermaine who believes that the gun would be much more useful in dealing with the problem than any of Wallace’s methods.

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Poor old Victor just can’t get his through his wedding rehearsal, can’t remember his lines, bumps into things, sets the bride’s mother on fire. It is all enough to send anyone running for the woods. But Victor has fallen in love with his arranged bride-to-be and sets about practising those vows. Only problem is that, in doing so, he manages to marry a dead woman; the Corpse Bride. And she has waited long enough for a husband, and so does not intend to let this one get away.

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• Johnny Depp …. Willy Wonka
• Freddie Highmore …. Charlie Bucket
• David Kelly …. Grandpa Joe
• Helena Bonham Carter …. Mrs. Bucket
• Noah Taylor …. Mr. Bucket
• Missi Pyle …. Mrs. Beauregarde
• James Fox …. Mr. Salt
• Deep Roy …. Oompa Loompa

With this film you constantly hear people comparing it to the previous film version starring Gene Wilder. Well not here, because although I think I’ve seen it at some stage, I don’t really remember it all that well. So obviously it didn’t make a great impression on me.

For the few who don’t know this is based on the book of the same title by Roald Dahl. The plot is centered on the chocolate factory of the title, its owner (Willy Wonka) and Charlie Bucket. Charlie, played by Freddie Highmore from Finding Neverland, comes from a family so poor that all they seem to eat is cabbage soup. His four grandparents share the one bed, and never leave it. Every year for his birthday Charlie gets a bar of chocolate, the only one he’ll have all year. He always gets a bar of Wonka’s chocolate and loves the stories his grandpa Joe tells about the factory, and its mysterious owner Willy Wonka.

When a competition to allow five children to enter the factory is announced the chances are slim that Charlie will get a golden ticket…

Now my memory might be faulty here, but wasn’t Charlie supposed to be English? So why did he find a dollar bill? Why does he use the term candy?
But those are just minor quibbles. All in all I really enjoyed this film. Depp’s Wonka is wonderfully weird and, well, just plain wacky. His disdain for the children is perfect for the film, as are the Oompa Loompa’s crazy routines. Certain reviews have compared Depp’s Wonka to Michael Jackson, but I have to say I don’t see the similarities. Yes both are unnaturally white, but Wonka is not interested in the children at all, he doesn’t care about them, all he cares about is chocolate and sweets and inventing.

From the outset it is obvious that this is a Burton film, there are all those weird but great visuals, not to mention Depp’s take on Willy Wonka. Although I did think that the music wasn’t especially Burtonesque, and in most places didn’t really stand out. Having said that I did enjoy the Oompa Loompa’s songs.

The children are all well-cast, Highmore especially is perfect as the scrawny underfed Charlie. But my favourite was the spoiled-rotten “Veruca Salt, the little brute, Has just gone down the garbage chute”.

IMDB page | Official Site | Empire’s review | Tim Burton Collective | Salon’s review |

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