July 2011 Archives

AN ASTONISHING new film about Aaliyah at the age of 16 is set to be premiered in Birmingham on Friday July 22, 2011 - when director Pogus Caesar will also take part in a Q&A.

The screening of Aaliyah Live in Amsterdam is bound to make waves from 8pm at the MAC, Cannon Hill Park, Birmingham.

And, for fans, there might not be a dry eye in the house.

That's because not even Aaliyah's family know this film even exists.

The footage for it was shot on May 9, 1995 in Amsterdam.

Incredibly, Pogus - the nice guy that he is - has been sitting on his tapes ever since.

I am surprised that he didn't make the film in the years after it was shot.

But, once Aaliyah and eight others were killed in a plane crash on August 25, 2001 - just days before terrorists voluntarily ended their own lives on 9/11 - you could understand Pogus thinking that it would be grossly insensitive to do anything with it after that.

With the tenth anniversary of Aaliyah's death looming next month, he began working on the film at home last year, editing it in his own time as a labour of love.

Now he feels the time is right for its release, if only for two nights at the MAC.

The bond he felt with the young, incredibly mature star at that age is, he believes, a validation for releasing what he declares is a 'feelgood movie'.

Watch the film and you see Aaliyah coming across as a carefree spirit, determined to enjoy every second of her career.

And her father, Michael Haughton, who also takes part, is clearly very proud of his girl.

Rightly, so.

As Pogus points out, Aaliyah is one of the key inspirations for the success enjoyed by the likes of Beyonce today.

He tells me: "When I look at the film, it's like seeing a well-mannered 16-year-old who then explodes into action on stage.

"It's like Buddy Holly, Hendrix, Joplin, Gaye or Holliday.

"My close friend said last weekend: 'You don't usually find footage like this in Birmingham'.

"And it shows that archive is so important in this digital age."

To read my full story about this film, click on the link below.

FROM midnight on Thursday, July 14 (or the first minute of the morning of Friday, July 15 if you prefer) members of the public will be able to say their final farewell to Harry Potter on the silver screen.

After that, cinemas will surely be rammed throughout the weekend as fans step out to say goodbye with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 (12A).

Many extra shows are being laid on in both 2D and 3D versions and the IMAX will again come into its own with the West Midlands' biggest screen.

Click on the link below to read my first review of the new movie after a special screening last Thursday night at the Empire Great Park, Rubery.

I only 20 minutes to write that for the Birmingham Mail's next edition once I got home.

But having seen the film for a second time since in its IMAX format, I think it's a fair summary of both the film and the entire series.

On Friday, July 15, the Birmingham Mail will carry my final, full review of this new film.

Order your souvenir copy now... and enjoy the movie!

JUST when we all thought the series might end with this film on November 19, 2010 Warner Bros decided to chop the adaptation of the final book in to two halves.

And what a good move this was by the producers.

A) It has prolonged the suspense for everyone.

B) Provided the time to get the 3D looking better on the this month's final movie after suddenly ditching it last time out, and

C) Let the much warmer summer weather give fans the chance to make the most of such a great-looking spectacle of a premiere last week.

Today, I'd almost be willing to bet my house that The Deathly Hallows - Part 2 will finally enable Harry Potter to join the world's most exclusive film club.

To date, only Avatar and Titanic (both directed by James Cameron), The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, Pirates of the Caribbean 3: Dead Man's Chest (how so?), Toy Story 3, Alice in Wonderland, Pirates of the Caribbean 4: On Stranger Tides (how so?) and The Dark Knight have managed to take more than $1 billion at the global box office.

The enduring reign of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone as the JK Rowling champ with $974 million, must surely be coming to and end this summer.

It is currently the ninth highest grossing film in history, and still the highest of the 'nearly got to $1 billion club' which even Steven Spielberg has yet to join.

Click on the link below to read my original review of The Deathly Hallows - Part 2 in the Birmingham Mail.

RELEASED exactly two years ago this week on July 15, 2009, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince was the sixth film in what was still expected to be a seven-part series.

In the end, it was decided to make The Deathly Hallows as two movies and so this became the fourth and last movie to last more than 150 minutes.

It's also the fourth highest grossing film in the series to date at the worldwide box office.

Click on the link below to read my original review for the Birmingham Mail.

RELEASED on July 13, 2007, this is the fifth film in the Harry Potter series.

In that respect, this marks the beginning of the second half of the eight films.

It was the first to have a mid-July release, a pattern that was to be followed by two of the other remaining films with only The Deathly Hallows - Part 2 breaking the new mantra by being released in November, 2010.

The Order of the Phoenix is not as highly rated as some of the movies and David Yates is lucky that he got to make three more.

But it did well at the box office where it's currently the 12th highest grossing film worldwide in movie history and third in the Potter cannon after The Philosopher's Stone and The Deathly Hallows - Part 1.

Click on the link below to read my original review from the Birmingham Mail.

THIS fourth film in the Harry Potter franchise was released on November 11, 2005 and is notable for being the first with a 12A certificate - which has been duly awarded to the four subsequent adventures, too.

Well, it was taglined: 'Everything will change'.

Goblet is currently the fifth most succesful Potter movie at the worldwide box office and was directed by Mike Newell (Four Weddings and a Funeral).

Click on the link below to read my original Birmingham Mail review of the film.

I WAS AWAY on holiday when this third Harry Potter film was released on May 31, 2004.

Directed by Alfonso Cuaron, it's the 'least successful' film of the whole franchise at the worldwide box office.

Even so, its genuine success compared with most movies means that all of the previous seven Harry Potter movies are still in the all-time top 30.

Only just, mind, since Azkaban is at No 30 and The Deathly Hallows - Part 2 will certainly knock it out of that top bracket even if the current released Transformers: Dark of the Moon doesn't.

I'll be looking at the box office stats in more detail later this week, but for now, here's the Birmingham Mail's review of The Prisoner of Azkaban.

Although I caught up with the film as soon as I returned from holiday, this assessment below is the one published at the time and written by my esteemed colleague in Midland film-writing circles, Mike Davies.

RELEASED on November 15, 2002, this was the all-important second movie in the Harry Potter franchise - and 154m 18s compared with 152m 13s for the original.

Had director Christopher Columbus got this one completely wrong, then it could all have still ended there and then.

Happily, although Chamber... wasn't as good as his debut movie, it did well enough to make sure the JK Rowling adaptations had taken root completely on the silver screen.

The saga is now set to claim its place in movie history.

Click the link below for our review.

TO CELEBRATE the arrival of the eighth Harry Potter movie on July 15, 2011, I'm rerunning all of the Birmingham Mail's reviews of each previous film one by one.

Here's the one which got the ball rolling... Harry Potter and The Philosopher's Stone (PG).

It was directed by Christopher Columbus (the writer of Gremlins and director of Mrs Doubtfire) who also made part two.

The producers who were blackslapping themselves at last Thursday night's July 7 premiere in Trafalgar forgot about his contribution.

Thankfully, author JK Rowling did the decent thing - and mentioned him herself.

At least she recognised the work he's done to 'bring the family together' because if the series had not got off to a flying start it would never have been completed - as The Golden Compass (2007) and Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004) prove.

WITH CINEWORLD Broad Street and Solihull and Empire Great Park showing each of the original Harry Potter movies prior to the release of the eighth and final instalment, I'm re-running all of our original reviews, too.

To get you up and running, here's my first Harry Potter interview with some of the stars and Daniel Radcliffe when he was just another 12-year-old boy in November, 2009.

I had to travel to London and then be taken on a coach up to Knebworth to see them.

NOTE: Richard Harris died exactly one year later on October 25, 2002, having by then already starred in the second film, The Chamber of Secrets.

The role of Prof Dumbledore then went to Michael Gambon who stayed with it until the final movie.