CHARITY

OXFAM

I am a volunteer for Oxfam, and on the 5th October 2013, I will be volunteering for my local Oxjam Music Festival.

OXJAM

What is OXJAM?

Oxjam is a local music festival to simply raise money for amazing causes. Oxjam began in 2006, with the aim of creating a network of music-loving people across the UK, all united by a shared goal - to raise money to fight poverty and suffering around the world. 6 years on and they're still going strong, with hundreds of incredible gigs taking place each October.

The great thing about Oxjam is the diversity of the events on offer - from thier multi-venue Takeover events, to sponsored busks on top of mountains. Over the years they have gained several high profile celebrity supporters, including Jarvis Cocker, Fatboy Slim, Damon Albarn, Hot Chip and many more. But at its heart Oxjam is still a grassroots festival, with thousands of volunteers celebrating music in their local communities by organising their own gigs in support of Oxfam GB.

There are so many events all around the UK, and there definitely could be one near you!

I will be volunteering for my local Oxjam Music Festival which will be in Bury, which is in Manchester, and I am really looking forward to it. Its such a good cause and highly recommend you check out their websites, and check if there is an Oxjam near you, as they ask for so little for such a big cause.

A small donation can go so far. Thankyou.

FIND AN EVENT NEAR YOU!

Oxjam 2013!

OXFAM WEBSITE!

THE NEXT TWILIGHT?

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones 

Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, Romance.

Age rate: 12A.

Cast: Lily Collins, Jamie Campbell Bower, Robert Sheehan.

Director: Harald Zwart.

Based on the novel by: Cassandra Clare.

Set in a voguish New York City, a seemingly ordinary teenager, Clary Fray (Lily Collins), discovers she is the descendant of a line of Shadowhunters, a secret cadre of young half-angel warriors locked in an ancient battle to protect our world from demons, however her mother kept this secret from Clary for her entire life, until now. Then after the mysterious disappearance of her mother (Lena Headey), Clary must join forces with a group of Shadowhunters, who introduce her to a perilous alternate New York style world called Downworld, filled with demons, warlocks, vampires, werewolves and other deadly, mystical creatures. Which comes along with another predictable romance between main characters Clary and Jace (Jamie Campbell Bower). Based on the worldwide best-selling book series from Cassandra Clare.

I went to see this at my local cinema with my dad, who was visiting from Singapore. So we went to choose a film it was between this and Grown Ups 2 (which I have also seen) and I persuaded my dad to go and see this with me. I will quickly sum it up for you. He fell asleep! Haha! However, my dad is always asleep so there is no change there! But I do have to say, it was a very long film! Its on for 2 hours and 10 minutes, and that time certainly does drag, I felt like I was in that cinema for days! I would personally say it was due to the length of time it takes for the story to get into the exciting, romantic, action-filled parts. In other words it took a while to get into. 

In my personal opinion, only selected audiences would enjoy this, so for example, if you enjoyed the twilight saga, or enjoy mythical romance, I really think you would enjoy this. It full of romance, action, mythical creatures and story lines, and will keep you guessing throughout. And I have to add that I strangely found the main character Jace (Jamie Campbell Bower) really intriguing, and gorgeous, as he comes across as very mysterious, and it may also be that he is the main character, and its wrong not to fall in love with the character. Just like Edward Cullen from Twilight.

So all in all, a good film, not the best I have seen, but I am certainly looking forward to the upcoming movies. And I may even begin to read the novels, as they have been spoken of highly and as everyone says "the books are better than the films".

Main characters Jace and Clary

USEFUL SITES

IMDB Profile for Mortal Instruments.

Official Mortal Instruments Trailer

Official Mortal Instruments Websites

OMG PLEASE SUBSCRIBE!

SCREEN JUNKIES!

I love movies, don't get me wrong! But I also enjoy watching YouTube videos, and I came across this channel called "SCREEN JUNKIES", and he is basically a guy with the most epic movie trailer voice, making parodies of movie trailers. I think its funny because what he says about the films are true and its things that run through your head when you watch it. 

OMG THEY ARE HILARIOUS. My favourite one's have to be the Twilight ones he does. As I have a sarcastic sense of humour so this is just delightful and full of sarcasm.

So please, please check out this YouTube channel, and subscribe to it to check out all the videos he makes. They are great. Trust me! You can also message him ideas for more videos you want to him to do!

I uploaded the twilight video on my blog, to give you a taster, and he also does the other twilight films, which you should also check out! 

COMING TO A THEATRE IN YOU *SAYS IN CINEMA VOICE*

COMING SOON!

Films coming to a cinema near you!

THE HUNGER GAMES:CATCHING FIRE (Action/Adventure/Sci-Fi)

After the amazing and sensational first film, the trilogy continues, and director Francis Lawrence brings us The Hunger Games:Catching Fire.

Based upon the best selling novel by Suzanne Collins, we are brought the second part of the Hunger Games trilogy, in which Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) and Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) return from their victory in the 74th annual Hunger Games. However, this causes controversy, as it gives the districts hope, which then leads to the districts beginning to rebel against the Capitol. So then Katniss and Peeta become enemies of the Capitol, as the members of the Capitol begin to plan against them for causing this rebellion. 

Well OMG, I have read the books, watched the first film, and I would say I am such a big fan of the Hunger Game franchise! And cannot wait for this next film! I will be going on the release day and seeing it as soon as possible! 

I just think its so different from other novels and films we were brought. As many people relate this franchise to the highly popular Twilight franchise, however I just don't see the similarities. Hunger Games is so much better! 

The next film brings us the complicated love triangle between Katniss, Peeta and Gale Hawthorne (Liam Hemsworth), the story after the 74th Hunger Games and the drama from the feared and almighty Capitol. And the highly anticipated 75th Hunger Games. OMG so exciting! 

If you haven't read the books or watched the first film, I highly recommend it, as I personally think that you will all love it! But in my honest opinion, I think if i had to choose between the books or the film, it would have to be the books! But the films are still amazing!

The Hunger Games:Catching Fire, is released on 22nd November. And I highly recommenced you all go and see it!

CARRIE (Drama/Horror)

Based on the best selling novel by Stephen King, director Kimberley Pierce brings you a modern reboot of the 1976 classic, CARRIE!

Carrie is a film based upon a young girl named Carrie White, who is a shy outcast intimidated by many of her school peers, and kept hidden by her highly crazy and religious mother. After being pushed too far and embarrassed too much by her peers at her senior prom, she unleashes a telekinetic terror on her small home town.

Now I will be honest, I have not yet seen the 1976 classic as of yet, but i will definitely be watching it before I go and see this film, so I can compare and share my verdict with you guys! 

The trailer I saw really intrigued me as it was short and mysterious and made me want to see what happens, which is what every great film trailer should do! And trust me, I am fussy! If a movie trailer doesn't interest me, even the slightest, I will just not want to watch it! Haha!

I also know that one of my favourite young actresses will be starring in it, she being Chloe Grace Moretz. I have seen her in Kick-Ass, 500 Days of summer, and especially in the film Let Me In, and taking her performance from that film into account I think she will be perfect for this role!

This film is released on the 18th October and I will definitely be going to watch it on the release day! And from what I know, I advise all you horror fanatics like me to go see this!

FINALLY!

Its the sequel everyone has been waiting for. After the spine chilling first film, Saw director James Wan presents Insidious 2.

Insidious is based upon a family who holds the ability of astro-projecting, which simply means they can  become alive in their dreams, so they can see and feel everything etc. But things take a disastrous turn when evil ghosts and demons become involved. And becomes apparent, that there is more than what it seems.

I will not give anything away as its a brand new release. But OMG! it definitely made up for the disappointing first film. Theres more scares, thrills and shocks! And I love the way the director and producers smartly linked this to the first film. However you will know this when you see it! 

I went to go see this at my local cinema, the day it came out on Friday 13th! And to be perfectly honest, I wasn't that excited about it because I thought it would just be the same as the first one, as I personally didn't enjoy the first film. But gosh was I wrong, it was amazing!

It was more scary and there was more horror factors, such as frightening visual characters, a thrilling and tension building story line. And all questions from the first film will be answered.

Speak soon and I would very urgently go and see this!

GOLD CLASS...OOO FANCY.

SINGAPORE

GOLD CLASS CINEMA!

Well. I have three words. OH MY GOD. This without a doubt is the best cinema experience of my life. 

So as I briefly explained, I went to visit my dad and his fiancee in Singapore, and stayed for 2 weeks. There were many highlights which I will share with you in the next few posts, but now I will focus and share with you my GOLD CLASS cinema experience. 

The cinema which I went to was in Singapore, in a shopping mall called Vivo City, which was around a 5 minute taxi drive from my dads apartment. And the cinema consists of normal screens, which we have here in the UK, then they had the option of GOLD CLASS, which is where I watched one of my new favourite horror films "The Conjuring". Gold Class cinema screens can hold up to 20 people. And it consists of 20 luxury and incredibly comfy recliner chairs, where you can adjust the chair as much as you want, to the position most comfortable to you. And you are also provided with a large blanket, which you can snuggle up in during the film, (or in my case, to hide behind! haha). And these chairs come in pairs. You then have a small table between the two chairs, where you can put your drinks etc, and you also have access to a button, which you press when you require a drink or food (this can be from popcorn to a cooked meal!) and a waitress/waiter will come to your side and take your order. And you don't have to move a muscle! They then bring you your chosen drinks etc without major disruption  and this service is available throughout the whole film.

Well that is a brief summary of what gold class is all about. And it was awesome. 

The only reason I found out about this Gold Class is from my dad, as he has been many of times, and always told me about it on the phone when he rings home. Well i will just say that he under-rated it! It was far better than he made it out to be and was very impressed! 

The film, "the conjuring" was an amazing film, as I have explained in my previous post, and the Gold Class made the experience of watching this film even more better. As you may well know, I absolutely love films (especially horror) and love the cinema, so to experience this, and in a different country was such a great experience for me! And when I go back next year for an extended 4 weeks, I plan to be visiting gold class a couple more times. I do think it is a shame that these opportunities aren't available in the UK.

And the best part of it was that Gold Class cost $40 (Singapore Dollars) each, which is equivalent to £20, which I think is amazing value! Especially when cinema prices here in the UK are high and rising. 

So anyone who knows of a Gold Class cinema near them. GO GO GO! Its absolutely amazing. Or if you have been, let me know your experience and opinions. 

The only other places i'm aware of that have a Gold Class cinema is Pasadena, Melbourne and Innaloo. 

Again THANK YOU for reading this, and I hope you enjoyed hearing my experience. 

I tried my hardest to keep it as interesting as possible but to a minimum. 

As I know from experience it can be a nightmare to read pages and pages! 

SINGAPORE GOLDEN VILLAGE CINEMA WEBSITE-GOLD CLASS

HORROR FLICK RECOMMENDATIONS

Tavish's Recommended Horror Flicks!

My blog post's are mainly aimed at younger audiences around my age 16+. Just basic, straight to the point and fun posts that people will enjoy reading! 

And here I will do regular posts recommending films from my own personal opinion. I will do all genres of films and not just horror. Don't worry! But these are my personal opinions from what I have previously enjoyed, and does not mean you will like them just because i do! Haha.

So here are my recommended "horror flicks"! I hope you benefit from this!

• THE EVIL DEAD (2013) 9/10

Evil Dead advertisement and DVD Cover.

I went to go and watch this movie at the cinema a number of weeks ago. I didn't know what to expect, but all I knew is that it was an updated remake from the original (made in 1981). So as you would stereotypically think..."it will never beat the original". Well I disagree. 

The original is a scary flick, and enjoyable, as its a classic 80's horror flick! But as you would imagine the technical and visual side of the film was poor, obviously due to less developed technology. 

But back to the now! I find the majority of horror films being brought out in this day and age, are purely based around the paranormal, demons, spiritual backgrounds. And I have not seen a modern day gore in a long time! Until this.

Scene from "Evil Dead"

This may sound weird but the mass amount of blood, gore and thrill is amazing! But thats just my personal film taste. It puts you in suspense from beginning to end, and this I personally think makes a good horror! The gore levels are so extreme but bring back the good old fashioned gore vibe! 

So if your into your gory, thrilling horror flicks, i definitely recommend this one! It will have you on the edge of your seat or in most cases hiding behind a pillow! (YOU CAN PURCHASE THIS ON DVD)

• THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT (1999) 7/10

The Blair Witch Project advertisement.

I had heard of this film many of times but truthfully, I never got round to watching it, and it didn't really appeal to me, as my first impressions from just the DVD cover were quite negative.

But I finally sat and watched it, when I came across it on NETFLIX (Which I highly recommend!). So it first reminded me of Paranormal Activity, from the method it was filmed mainly. I originally thought it was based upon a true story, but a short while after found out it was not. However I do believe the background story to the film is based upon true events. 

Well knowing that this was based around the paranormal and not particularly gore, I was very intrigued. I admit, it takes a bit of getting into for the first half, but as it finally gets into the thrilling, spooky scenes, it really sends shivers down your spine, and really puts a lot of questions in your head. But also knowing some aspects of the film are based upon true facts/events, makes it that little more spooky. 

So if your a patient individual, who enjoys a spooky thriller, i do recommend this. I admit, it isn't the best paranormal thriller I have watched, but I did weirdly enjoy it and don't regret watching it. (YOU CAN PURCHASE THIS ON DVD)

• THE CONJURING (2013) 9.5/10

One of many advertisements for "The Conjuring"

The Conjuring. Based upon true events from world renewed paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren, they share with us the case that was so terrifying, they kept it hidden. Until now. This film is also a prequel to The Amityville Horror, but the paranormal investigators only released their story recently.

I have to admit, after watching films similar to this, such as Insidious, Sinister, I did not particularly have high expectations for this film. And boy was I blown away! I went to watch this in the cinema whilst on holiday in Singapore, where I experienced gold class cinema (which I will do a separate post about). Anyway, I first think knowing it was based upon true events, gave it a head start, regarding the scare rating. But the story line is so cleverly executed, and really does have you on the edge of your seat, as there is shocks and surprises from beginning and throughout! 

I love horrors as you may already know now. And I love a spooky, paranormal horror, and this had it all, as well as the un-seen paranormal actions, you actually visually see the ghosts and demons in particular parts of the film. Which doubles the scare rating! I wont go into detail as I don't want to give anything away!

The story behind the film is very spooky indeed. The actors/actresses (Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga) really do make the film as good as it can be, and even makes the film feel real, so the choice of the cast was great!

I dont recommend this to particular people...I RECOMMEND THIS TO EVERYONE! Even if your hard to please and it doesn't spook you just the littlest bit, I will be shocked! A truly great spooky thriller. A glimpse of hope for future horrors to come.

"So there you are. Three detailed and relatively recent film recommendations.

I do realise now there is a lot of text for some people who may not want to read loads, but I tried to cover as much as possible, to the highest standard I could, whilst keeping the text to a minimum."

And I also would like to remind people that these are purely my own opinions and doesn't mean they must apply to everyone. I am purely giving my opinion to help you.

Don't worry I will keep some posts to a minimum and do others detailed like this one.

Thank you. And I will be posting many more soon!

Horror Film Disappointment!

THE PURE  DISAPPOINTMENT OF A HORROR...

The "You're Next" feature film advertisement.

The introduction...
I absolutely adore horror films. They are by far, my favourite genre of films. Ranging from a classic gory flick to a thrilling paranormal motion picture. So when the trailer for the relatively new horror flick "you're next", comes upon my television screen, i am very intrigued and excited!

Advertising...
The trailer that is shown is indeed very intriguing. Using short thrilling snippets from the film, a surprisingly suitable background music track, whilst giving the audience a good portrayal of the films storyline/plot/what the film is all about.
The masked killers shown in the trailer intrigued me as it reminded me of a previous favourite thriller flick of mine, "the strangers", and thought the mystery behind the unknown, masked killers would make a great new horror. 

One of the masked killers in "You're Next"

I did not particularly recognise many of the actors/actress's in this film, but from the trailer they seem to be suited to the film.
And finally, I thought the structure of the trailer was very impressive, and the individuals who constructed this trailer did a relatively good job, and confidently portrayed the film in a positive form. 

But then I actually progressed to watch the film in my local cinema.  Absolute disappointment. 

The Final Review...

From beginning and throughout, I was incredibly bored. I did not once hide behind my cardigan or go to watch the film through my fingers, which in my opinion is the best part of watching a good old horror film. I will not go into detail as I do not want to give away any spoilers if some of you would want to go and see this film but it is undoubtedly the most predictable horror film I have seen in a long time. And this is not a good thing! 

The majority of the cast starring in this film were without a shadow of a doubt, some of the poorest and laziest acting i have seen again in a long time. I personally feel that they didn't put any effort into their acting, and had no passion to make it a good horror film, as it could've been an acceptable horror film, if the acting standards were higher. 

It was also rated an 18, which i personally think is ridiculous. As there was hardly any gore or scary scenes. I have seen 12 rated films with more horror in them! The scenes that did contain gore or bloody violence, were only mild. So I was indeed puzzled to why it is rated an 18.

Ratings...

Storyline: 5/10

Acting: 6/10

Scare Rating: 4/10

Overall Film Rating: 5/10

The IMBD Profile of "You're Next".

"You're Next" film trailer.

Book your tickets at your local vue cinema!