NB: I was lucky enough to catch a screening of this indie movie back in early June, and was so taken with it that I posted the preview for you back then. The movie's coming out this Friday, so here's a reminder / rundown of what I thought of it!
First things first:
The Wackness is dope. Yes, brush up on your '90s lingo because the next big indie film is set in the sweltering New York summer of 1994.
If you're looking for a likable summer film that has a comfortingly predictable plot but a load of music and dance sequences, then you can't go far wrong with Make It Happen.
Mary Elizabeth Winstead plays Lauryn, a girl from a small town with a big dream; to leave her bookkeeping role at her late parents' garage and enroll at the Chicago School of Music and Dance. After she fails her audition — because she isn't in touch enough with her emotions — she gets lucky by meeting Dana, who gets her a back-office job in burlesque club Ruby's. What follows is a journey of self-discovery, as Lauryn gets in touch with her feelings by hooking up with music director Russ, becoming a burlesque dancer, and dealing with her grief and guilt over her parents' deaths.
The best thing about this film is
Mary Elizabeth Winstead, which is just as well as she's in pretty much every scene.
First things first, Baby Mama ain't rocket science. And why should it be. It's a likeable, smile-inducing comedy with a couple of super-talented ladies at the helm: Tina Fey and Amy Poehler.
Tina plays Kate Holbrook, a woman at the top of her game professionally, but slightly less so personally.
If you haven't already booked your tickets for this week's UK opening of
The Dark Knight then I urge you to do so, because I'm going to add my voice to the chorus shouting that this film is something special. Just so you know my stance on these movies, I didn't think that Batman Begins was anything more than a competent film, and – though the trailers for this one were fantastic – with the running time at over two and a half hours I was worried it would be patchy. It wasn't.
With well-known ABBA songs, an idyllic Greek location and more stars than you can shake a stick at,
Mamma Mia! is bound to be the feel-good hit film of the summer.
Based on the hugely successful stage production, this musical movie stars Meryl Streep as ex-pat Donna, a single mum with a run-down hotel on a beautiful Greek island. Her daughter Sophie (Amanda Seyfried) is marrying Sky (the gorgeous, and often topless, Dominic Cooper) and the bride-to-be wants her father at the wedding.
