An awesome and ridiculous film that leaves you thrilled beyond the point of your natural endurance
2012
Theatre
The show has suddenly become quite wonderful, and the galvanising factor is the terrific stage debut of Melanie C
Blood Brothers
Music
The British pop music industry may be eating itself but if Muse are the pick of what it can offer the world in 2010 then British music is in rude health indeed
Muse
I was smitten by both Gilberts enormous luxuriant moustache and the intelligence and nuance of this highly entertaining play
I totally recommend Babbo to anyone who is looking for really good and traditional Italian food
Always been a fan but never seen them live. I was ecstatic to be part of this epic event. WOW!
London,
Evening Standard rating
Reader rating
The Legend of Zorro
It's nice to see Antonio Banderas and Catherine Zeta-Jones again as Zorro and Elena. Age has not withered their charms, even if Martin Campbell's film spends almost as much time with their stunt doubles as he does with them. This is an action movie remember, and not to be treated seriously for a moment.
Zorro is now married to Elena and possessed of a 10-year-old son (Adrian Alonso). She thinks he's deserted them in favour of swashbuckling and serves divorce papers on him; he hits the bottle, along with his steed.
Fortunately, he recovers himself when a corrupt robber baron (Nick Chinlund) and nasty French aristo, Rufus Sewell, start intimidating the honest people of California. He jumps over roofs and battles on moving trains as well as imitating Errol Flynn or Burt Lancaster with the sword. In the end, of course, he beats the lot of them and wins back Elena's love.
Campbell gives too much time to Zorro's boy, who looks a bit like a stunt double for Tom Cruise, and too little to the on-off romance between his two stars - amid the frenetic action, they hardly have time to act as if they even know each other. He also extends the film at least a quarter of an hour beyond its proper measure, so it flags badly halfway through.
But the action suffices if you like that sort of thing, and the stunt doubles are excellent. I liked the drunken horse too.
Otherwise the humour is elementary, the storyline simple to the point of daftness and the whole is not nearly as satisfactory as the first episode.
"We literally shot the final draft of the script," says Campbell, "and that's a rare thing indeed in movies." Unwise, too, as it transpires.
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Morning:
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