Showing posts with label Helena Bonham Carter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Helena Bonham Carter. Show all posts

Thursday, November 28, 2013

Dark Shadows

 Released Year: 2012
Directed by Tim Burton
 
Casted by:
Johnny Depp as Barnabas Collins
Eva Green as Angelique Bouchard
Michelle Pfeiffer as Elizabeth Collins Stoddard
Bella Heathcote as Victoria Winters
Helena Bonham Carter as Dr. Julia Hoffman
 Story:
In 1760, the Collins family migrates to America from Liverpool and sets up a fishing port in Maine, naming it Collinsport. Sixteen years later in 1776 the son, Barnabas (Johnny Depp), has an affair with a maid, Angelique Bouchard, who is a witch infatuated with him since childhood. When he tells her he doesn't love or want her, Angelique kills his parents. Barnabas then falls in love with Josette du Pres. In a fit of jealousy, Angelique bewitches Josette into leaping from a cliff to her death. Barnabas leaps after her in grief, but he survives because Angelique turns him into an immortal vampire. She rouses a mob to capture and bury Barnabas alive in a chained coffin in the woods and curses his family.

One hundred ninety-six years later, in the year 1972, construction workers accidentally free Barnabas from his coffin, who reluctantly slakes his two-century thirst by feeding on and killing his rescuers. He makes his way back to his manor to find it inhabited by his dysfunctional descendants and their servants—the family matriarch Elizabeth Collins Stoddard; her brother Roger; her 15-year-old daughter Carolyn; Roger's 10-year-old son David; Dr. Julia Hoffman, David's psychiatrist; Willie Loomis, the manor's caretaker; and Victoria Winters, David's newly hired governess and Josette's reincarnation. Upon convincing Elizabeth of his identity by revealing a secret treasure room behind the fireplace, Barnabas is allowed to stay under the condition that he never reveal either the room or the fact that he is a vampire to the rest of the family. At breakfast, Elizabeth makes him out to be "Barnabas Collins III", a distant relative from England who has come to restore the family's business and reputation in town. Barnabas becomes very deeply attracted to Victoria, whom he briefly mistakes for his lost Josette, and immediately begins to pursue her romantically.

As Barnabas helps revitalize the Collins' fishery and manor, he is approached by Angelique, who has used her powers to establish a successful rival fishery, called Angel Bay, and live through the decades by posing as her own descendants. She tries to win him back, later convincing him to make wild, passionate love with her, but he still rejects her, as he loves Victoria. He continues to restore his family's name by inviting the entire town to a party at the manor featuring Alice Cooper (whom Barnabas mistakes for a female due to Cooper's name), where Victoria reveals to Barnabas that her parents committed her to an insane asylum, (under her real name "Maggie Evans"), as a child because she could see and talk to an invisible friend, (Josette's ghost). They kiss and confess their feelings to each other, unknowingly enraging Angelique who has witnessed the scene.

Meanwhile, Dr. Hoffman has discovered Barnabas' true nature after hypnotizing him. She convinces him to try an experimental procedure to become a regular human again via blood transfusions using her own blood, but her real intent is to use his blood to become a vampire to avoid aging. Upon discovering this betrayal, Barnabas drains her to death and dumps her in the ocean. Barnabas catches Roger trying to find the secret room and exposes Roger's lack of interest in his son. Barnabas makes him choose between being a good father to David, or leaving the family with sufficient funding to satisfy his greed. Roger chooses to leave, deeply wounding his son's feelings. Immediately afterwards, Barnabas rescues David from a falling disco ball and stumbles into a beam of sunlight, burning his skin and exposing his secret to the horrified children and Victoria.

Later that night, Angelique calls Barnabas into her office, coaxes him into confessing Dr. Hoffman's murder, and traps him in another coffin that she leaves in his family's crypt until she decides to let him out again. She then burns down the Collins' canning factory and plays a recording of the murder confession to the police and gathered townsfolk, once more turning them against the family. Angie leads the mob to Collinwood to arrest the family, but Barnabas is rescued from the coffin by David and shows up at the manor, attacking her in front of the mob, thereby exposing both his and her true natures. As the townspeople disperse, Angelique sets fire to the manor and admits her role in the family's curse, including turning Carolyn into a werewolf and killing David's mother at sea. Barnabas and the Collins family fight Angelique until David summons his mother's vengeful ghost. The ghost gives a single scream which knocks Angelique into a chandelier.

Before she dies she pulls out her heart and offers it to Barnabas; he refuses the heart, trying to make her admit she didn't really love him, she just wanted to possess him, and it shatters as Angelique dies. Barnabas then discovers that Angelique has bewitched Victoria into jumping off of Widow's Hill, the same cliff Josette did. Barnabas arrives moments before Victoria is about to jump and breaks her hypnosis, but she reveals she wanted to fall. She pleads with him to make her a vampire so that they can remain together forever, but he refuses. She then casts herself off, forcing him to follow and bite her to save her life, and Victoria wakes up as a vampire. As the two kiss on the rocks in the waves, the film ends with an underwater scene showing a school of fish swimming away from Hoffman, who suddenly revives due to managing to make it far enough into the transfusions.
 L² Scored: 6.5/10
 
L² Comment:
As usual, Tim Burton's movie is funny but this movie has a lot of negative feedback and it dowsn't seems to work this time. For me the storyline is ok, but in the end the add on of the warewolf seems to spoil the whole movie... anyway, i still love Depp :)

Saturday, July 30, 2011

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Released Year: 2011
Directed by David Yates

Casted by:
Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter
Emma Watson as Hermione Granger
Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley
Ralph Fiennes as Lord Voldemort
Alan Rickman as Severus Snape
Helena Bonham Carter as Bellatrix Lestrange
Michael Gambon as Albus Dumbledore
Story:
As Lord Voldemort retrieves the Elder Wand from Albus Dumbledore's grave, Severus Snape has become Hogwarts' headmaster. Meanwhile, after burying Dobby, Harry Potter speaks with Griphook about breaking into Bellatrix Lestrange's vault at Gringotts bank, suspecting that a Horcrux may be hidden there. Griphook agrees to take Harry, Ron, and Hermione to the vault in exchange for the Sword of Gryffindor. Harry asks Ollivander, a wandmaker, to identify two wands they took from Malfoy Manor. Ollivander says they belonged to Bellatrix and Draco Malfoy, but Malfoy's wand has changed its allegiance to Harry.

At Bellatrix's vault, Harry discovers that the Horcrux is Helga Hufflepuff's Cup. He obtains the cup but Griphook steals the sword and abandons the trio, leaving them cornered by the alerted security. However, the three release the dragon guardian and flee. Harry has a vision of Voldemort killing Goblins, including Griphook, and learns that the Dark Lord has discovered the theft. Harry also learns there is a Horcrux at Hogwarts, that is in some way related to Rowena Ravenclaw. The trio apparate into Hogsmeade, which sets off an alarm. They are rescued by Aberforth Dumbledore, who instructs a portrait of his younger sister, Ariana, to fetch Neville Longbottom who leads the trio through a secret passageway into Hogwarts.

Snape hears of Harry's return and informs staff and students of the severe punishment for aiding Harry. Harry confronts Snape, who flees after Minerva McGonagall challenges him to a duel. McGonagall gathers the community of Hogwarts to prepare for battle. At Luna Lovegood's insistence, Harry speaks to Helena Ravenclaw. She reveals that Voldemort performed "dark magic" on her mother's diadem, which is in the Room of Requirement. Ron and Hermione go to the Chamber of Secrets, where Hermione destroys the Horcrux cup with a Basilisk fang. In the Room of Requirement, Draco Malfoy, Gregory Goyle and Blaise Zabini attack Harry, but Ron and Hermione intervene. Goyle casts a Fiendfyre curse and is burned to death, but Malfoy and Zabini are saved by the trio before destroying the Ravenclaw diadem. As the school is attacked by Voldemort's forces, Harry, during a trip into Voldemort's mind, realizes that his snake, Nagini, is the final Horcrux. After entering the boathouse, the trio witness Voldemort telling Snape that the Elder Wand cannot serve him until Snape dies, and has Nagini kill Snape. Before dying, Snape tells Harry to take his memories to the Pensieve. Meanwhile, in the chaos, Fred, Lavender, Remus, and Tonks are killed.

Harry learns from Snape's memories that Snape loved Harry's mother Lily, but despised his father James. Following her death, Snape agreed with Dumbledore to protect Harry from Voldemort out of his love for Lily. He also learns that Dumbledore's death at Snape's hands was planned between them. Harry learns that he became a Horcrux when Voldemort originally failed to kill him and that he must die in order to destroy the piece of soul within him. Harry goes to die at the hands of Voldemort in the Forbidden Forest. Voldemort casts the Killing Curse upon Harry, who finds himself in a strange limbo where Dumbledore meets him and explains that the part of Voldemort within Harry was killed by Voldemort's own curse. Harry, unwilling to die, decides to return to his body.

Voldemort announces Harry's death to everyone at Hogwarts, and that anyone who defies him will be killed. As Neville gives a speech, Harry reveals that he is alive. Neville draws forth the Sword of Gryffindor from the Sorting Hat, and as Harry begins his duel with Voldemort across the school, Neville decapitates Nagini, leaving Voldemort mortal. Voldemort is killed as the Elder Wand returns to Harry. During this time, Molly disarms and kills Bellatrix. After the battle, Harry explains that the Elder Wand had recognised him as its master because he had disarmed Draco at Malfoy Manor, who in turn had disarmed its previous owner, Dumbledore. Harry snaps the Elder Wand, rejecting its power. Nineteen years later, Harry and Ginny Potter, along with Ron and Hermione Weasley, watch proudly as their children leave for Hogwarts.
L² Scored: 8.5/10

L² Comment:
As mentioned many times, i'm not a huge fans of Harry Potter, but i watched all the movies in the cinema :) From when they are small until now, you can really see how they change in physically. But how about their career? Do three of the main actors get any better chance in their acting career? Not really that much but only fame of news.

Well, about the movie, i'm really happy it finally ends... phew~ but its a bit confusing as i don't really remember all the names of characters, mayb rewatching the old one will help. Anybody got the DVD?~

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows: Part 1

Released Year: 2010
Directed by David Yates & Ben Hibon

Casted by:
Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter
Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley
Emma Watson as Hermione Granger
Ralph Fiennes as Lord Voldemort
Helena Bonham Carter as Bellatrix Lestrange
Jim Broadbent as Horace Slughorn
Robbie Coltrane as Rubeus Hagrid
Warwick Davis as Filius Flitwick
Story:
The film begins as Minister of Magic Rufus Scrimgeour addresses the wizarding media, stating that the Ministry remains strong as Lord Voldemort increases in power. Severus Snape meets with Voldemort and the Death Eaters to inform them of Harry's departure from Privet Drive. Voldemort takes Lucius Malfoy's wand from him, as his own shares the same core as Harry's and therefore cannot be used to kill Harry.

The Order of the Phoenix arrive at Privet Drive planning to move Harry to safety using Polyjuice Potion to create six decoys. During their flight they are ambushed, resulting in the deaths of Hedwig and Mad-Eye Moody. Voldemort's borrowed wand fails to kill Harry. That night, Harry has a dream in which he sees Ollivander being tormented by Voldemort, who claims that the wand-maker had lied to him for having said that a different wand would succeed in killing Harry.

Scrimgeour arrives at The Burrow and distributes items from Albus Dumbledore's will to Ron, Hermione and Harry. Dumbledore bequeathed Godric Gryffindor's sword to Harry, which Scrimgeour states is an important historical artifact and is therefore not Harry's property and that it is missing. That evening, the wedding of Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour is disrupted by Death Eaters, so the trio disapparate to London. Eventually finding sanctuary at No. 12 Grimmauld Place, they discover that the "R.A.B." from the false Horcrux locket is Regulus Arcturus Black. From Kreacher, they learn that Mundungus Fletcher has stolen the real locket. Kreacher and Dobby apprehend Fletcher, who reveals that the locket is in the possession of Dolores Umbridge. Under the guise of Ministry employees, the trio make their way to the Ministry where they successfully retrieve the locket and escape to a forest.

Unable to destroy the Horcrux, they take turns wearing it in order to dilute the paranoid thoughts which the Horcrux induces. Ron, while wearing the locket, is overcome by suspicions that Harry and Hermione are forming a relationship, so he abandons them. Harry sees a vision of Voldemort interrogating Gregorovitch, a renowned wand-maker who claims that a teenage boy had once stolen the legendary Elder Wand from his shop. Voldemort then begins to search for the thief.

Harry and Hermione go to Godric's Hollow to find Bathilda Bagshot, a historian who may have the Sword of Gryffindor, which they believe will destroy Horcruxes. Unfortunately they are cornered by Voldemort's snake, Nagini, and barely escape. Hermione identifies the mysterious thief seen in Harry's vision as Gellert Grindelwald.

When evening falls, Harry sees a doe Patronus and follows it to a frozen pond where he finds the sword beneath the ice. Harry attempts to retrieve the sword, but the locket almost drowns him. Ron returns just in time to rescue Harry, who opens the locket for Ron to destroy. However, before Ron can destroy it with the sword, smoke emerges and begins to project images of Ron's fears; a fake cloud of Harry and Hermione kiss and embrace naked for it was insulting him but he eventually manages to destroy the horcrux.

The trio then visit Xenophilius Lovegood to learn about a symbol seen several times on their journey. They learn that the symbol represents the Deathly Hallows, (the Elder Wand, the Resurrection Stone and the Cloak of Invisibility). Lovegood then betrays them to the Death Eaters in an effort to have his kidnapped daughter returned. Later, Harry envisions Grindelwald telling Voldemort that the Elder Wand lies with Dumbledore. The trio are captured by Snatchers and taken to Malfoy Manor where Bellatrix Lestrange imprisons Harry and Ron in the wine cellar in which they discover Luna, Ollivander, and Griphook the goblin. Bellatrix tortures Hermione for information on how they found the sword, which was supposedly in her vault at Gringotts. Dobby apparates to the cellar and successfully rescues the prisoners, but is killed by Bellatrix in the process of escaping.

When the trio realized that Dobby was killed, they gave him a proper burial without using any magic. Voldemort arrives at Dumbledore's tomb, breaks it open and obtains the Elder Wand.
L² Scored: 7/10

L² Comment:
Well, i'm really not a big fans of harry potter. But i do watch all of them in the cinema. But this 7th movie (part1) is so complicated... i dun remember the names and previous stories. And i was like "huh?" "ummm?" "who?" throughout the whole film...

Maybe i need to rewatch all the previous 6 movies again. BTW, Emma Watson is so pretty now :)


Monday, April 5, 2010

Alice in Wonderland

Released Year: 2010
Directed by Tim Burton

Casted by:
Mia Wasikowska as Alice Kingsleigh
Johnny Depp as Mad Hatter
Helena Bonham Carter as Iracebeth, Red Queen
Anne Hathaway as Mirana, White Queen
Crispin Glover as Knave of Hearts
Story:
Since young, Alice Kingsleigh has been having the same weird dream till she's 19 years old. Alice attend a surprise propose wedding by Hamish Ascot, unable to make her decision, Alice excused herself and bump into a talking rabbit. Therefore, she chased after the rabbit till she fell into a hole beside a tree.

After a long fall, she got onto the base of the hole. She saw the shrink potion and drank it to escape through a small door. After Alice passed through the small entrance, she met Nivens McTwisp the white rabbit, Mallymkun the dormouse, Uilleam the dodo, Tweedledum and Tweedleldee the twins. The gang are not sure whether she's the real "Alice" that they are looking for, so they brought her to meet Absolem the caterpillar. Absolem claimed that she's not the full Alice they are looking at. Absolem also announced that on the Frabjous day, a heroin name Alice will slay the Red Queen's Jabberwocky.

While escorting Alice to see Mirana, the gang was attacked by Red Queen's army led by Knave of Hearts. Alice finally escaped when the dormouse stabs out the eye of Bandersnatch, a big fierce dog who attacked them. Alice was left behind and bump into the Cheshire Cat who took her to a tea party organized by Mad Hatter, March Hare & the dormouse. When Hatter is explaining what's "Alice" for, Knave of Hearts came with his troop. Mad Hatter gave Alice shrink potion and hide her in a teapot. Later on, Hatter brought Alice to look for Mirana on his hat. Mad Hatter again was caught by the army and went to make hat for the red queen.

Alice decided to look for Mad Hatter and gangs in red queen's castle. She managed to got the sword and save others from chain. They went to white queen castle and Alice was request to be the warrior who saly Jabberwocky but rejected by Alice. In the end, Alice took up the offer and fought with Jabberwocky in the Frabjous day. Alice managed to slay jabberwocky in the end and bring the crown back to white queen. White queen decided to chain her sister, red queen with knave of Heart together and shall not return to wonderland in the rest of their life.

Alice was back to the reality again, she rejected the proposed but becomes an apprentice for Lord Ascot in his business.
L² Scored: 7/10

L² Comment:
I have been watching the cartoon version since i was a kid, i still remember i got a video tape of it :) But apparently, Walt Disney decided to present a different version to the fans by working with Tim Burton. Burton of coz with his creative thoughts brought us a real good movie.

And i must say, Helena the red queen is so damn cool~ i jst cant stop laughing when i saw her big head~ And johnny depp still maintain his cockiness and anne hathaway brought me surprises too~ overall, this is the movie i will never miss on the big-screen :)