Film Reviews

PLEASE DON’T READ ON IF YOU DON’T WANT IT TO BE SPOILT!

I feel like the only word to describe this film is incredible, from start to end. One of my main worries about films that are hyped is that I could be disappointed, but it is safe to say that I wasn’t.

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Midnight releases haven’t always been my thing, purely because I am too tired, and it is way past my bedtime, however, I knew I wanted to be one of the first to see it, and plus I knew someone would ruin it for me at work. Its very hard to avoid spoilers as everything is now posted on Facebook and Twitter. Instead of seeing it at home, I went to see it at uni, and the whole atmosphere was very different, with a lot more people at home being invested into the franchise, wearing Marvel clothing or even dressing up, but down here, I could feel the testosterone radiating! My only issue this time was that I was still very tired, and did have a half an hour nap half way through, so obviously had to see it again to catch up on what I missed, definitely not complaining! From seeing it Odeon and Vue, Vue Cinemas create more of an atmosphere due to the different sound systems and the size of the screens, however, the free posters that Odeon were giving away were tempting, and after collecting all of the Infinity War and the Ant-Man and The Wasp ones, I wasn’t going to be missing out on these!

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I was quite lucky, as being from Durham, parts of Endgame were filmed in Durham Cathedral, making the hype more intense because I was literally sat in lessons with the Avengers filming less than a mile away. They really catered to the fans, putting out props for the fans, including the model of Rocket and Thor’s Hammer. However, there wasn’t much to see inside, with the whole cathedral being green screened. The main reason people were there was to catch a glimpse of them, with many fans visiting the nearby hotels in order to meet them. I am very gutted that Chris Hemsworth was only a 10 minute drive away and I still didn’t get to see him! However, I was very confused when watching Endgame where the cathedral came in. It was credited in Infinity War but I didn’t spot the credit in Endgame. According to Twitter, they used the exterior briefly in the Askgard scenes, but some of the scenes featuring Thor and his Mum, but there was a heavy use of CGI.

Instead of spoiling the film, I thought I would make a list of my favourite moments from the film. Personally, I think Korg made the entire film! His scene where he is with Thor playing Fortnite is a comical moment, but from a marketing perspective, it is effective product placement. I have been drawn to Korg since I watch Thor:Ragnarok, and although he doesn’t play a major part in the film, it is one of the moments that I remember the clearest. Another moment that from a woman’s perspective was empowering was during the final fight, Scarlet Witch is fighting against Thanos, and Okoye says “She’s got help”, and all of the female avengers assembled. From studying media and film briefly, I feel that these types of moments need to be represented more, rather than being stereotyped as being the weaker gender or sexualised. However, when speaking to people, mainly guys, about this moment, they felt that it wasn’t necessary, but still understood that if it was a group of guys, this would be seen as the norm, and why should it be different for women? Tom Holland, from my point of view, is the most perfect Spiderman, and made me cry just as much in Endgame as what he did in Infinity War. His interaction with Iron Man feels so real and the emotion is so raw, so from an audience’s perspective, you can get more invested and involved with the story.

There is a lot that I don’t want to include, purely because I don’t want to add to the spoilers that are accumulating on the internet, and I know how annoyed I would be if someone spoilt it for me! I think it was a perfect end to Phase Three of the universe, and I am now even more hyped for the rest of the universe. Next up, SpiderMan:Far From Home.

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In June 2018, I was lucky enough to be able to go on holiday to Disneyland Paris for 4 days with Callum. Trust me, it was hard to convince him but we got there eventually! It was quite a last minute holiday, being booked in March, but we both wanted a cheap deal but so we could still experience the Disney magic. He had never visited any a Disney Park before so this was his first time, but he had never been to France before so we wanted to spend a day in Paris to do all of the touristy bits.  

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Because we only booked it in March, a Disney hotel was out of the question. We looked online for deals with the partner hotels, somewhere where I hadn’t thought about staying before. We looked at Vienna House Dream Castle because it had theming just like the Disney hotels. We booked it through Jet2 so we got it as a package which included return flights from Leeds Bradford to Charles de Gaulle, hotel and baggage. I had traveled with the Magic Shuttle before from the airport, knowing that they drop off directly next to the hotel, and plus it is cheaper than other transfers or taxis. Park tickets did need to be booked separately, but there are many different websites that offer good deals as well. 

I’d just finished doing my A-Levels and was looking forward to this holiday as a reward for all of the work I had put in so we travelled at the end of June.  We wanted to go this time as well to avoid the school holidays making prices cheaper for us! We were anxious as to what the weather would be like, as only a couple of weeks previously it has been thundering but we weren’t disappointed. 

Our flights were at 1pm so just to be safe, we booked a Premier Inn the night before which was right next to the airport. The drive from Durham to Leeds was nice, it only took an hour and a half which wasn’t too long as well. The hotel was only a short drive into Leeds, so we travelled across to get food and have a wander because neither of us had actually been to the centre of Leeds, so it was nice to explore somewhere new.  

The journey across to Paris was very smooth, not delayed by much, managed to have the window seat after fighting Callum for it! With Jet2 being a smaller airline, we landed in Terminal 3, which was new territory for me. The Magic Shuttle picks up from 2E/2F so with Charles de Gaulle being a HUGE airport, it can be overwhelming is you’re travelling alone for the first time. What makes it even harder is that the signs to the Magic Shuttle all of a sudden stop, so the families who were looking for the shuttle as well were equally as lost. Note to everyone though:Find the REF that takes you to the other terminals, and all of the signs are there! I know Charles de Gaulle is a huge airport but it feels so much bigger when you have to walk from one end to the other. But thankfully, we were on our way to the hotel.

The Dream Castle hotel was lovely. The theming was based around Kings and Queens, with two thrones in Reception. There were two dining areas, one more for breakfast and the other being for evening meals, with the third being under construction. One surprise for us at reception was that there was a Tourism Tax, which is based on what star hotel you are staying at and how many nights you are staying there. It was only 13€ which wasn’t a lot, but it was a fee we weren’t expecting. We were staying on the first floor, quite near to the lifts and reception, so it was quick and easy to get in and out the hotel. When we booked, we booked a double room, however, we got a family one (definitely not complaining about it though because we didn’t have to pay an extra!) So it came with a double bed and a bunk bed as well, which was good because if I didn’t want to sleep with Callum, I could have my own bed. There was a wardrobe, and a very large bathroom, completed with Locetaine products, a lovely treat!

I really wanted to maximise the time that we had in the parks, so we quickly got changed and headed out. The shuttle buses came around every 10 minutes during peak times and did a round of all the partner hotels and into the parks. Because I had never ridden this system before, it was a little confusing on which bus we were meant to catch, as it didn’t say the destination was the parks, so we kind of hopped on one and hoped for the best.  

And the rest of it was pretty much a blur. We crammed in so much: watching the parades and the fireworks, riding Buzz Lightyear’s Lazer Blast 3 times because I wanted to win, went on a trip to Paris in which we were very disappointed by, eating enough McDonalds chicken nuggets, and getting hurled abuse at by a group of Spanish kids on a school trip. So all in all, an amazing first trip for Callum, and a magical experience for myself!

Obviously there is plenty of choice of rides at DisneyLand Paris, however I thought I would give a run down on my top 5. I am not a huge rollercoaster type of person, so that is why non of the bigger rides are featuring here. 

1. Ratatouille  

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A pretty new edition to DLP but it has firmly taken the top spot to be my favourite ride. Ratatouille is an immersive experience where you are transformed into the size of a rat, moving around the kitchen just like Remy. The 4D effects enhance it so much, really making you feel like you are a rat. I’m a complete nerd as well so the fact that it is a trackless ride as well is pretty neat! The queue system for this ride is just perfect, with the smells making it seem like you are in the streets of Paris and the look out to Gusteaus restaurant. This is the one ride that I would happily stand in a 2 hour queue for because it is amazing. 

2. Buzz Lightyears Lazer Blast

What a classic ride that everyone has to go on. Zooming around the galaxy, battling it out against your opponent to see who will become the better Space Ranger. I think what I love about this ride the most is the competitiveness, and I’m a very competitive person anyway, so I will win! Anyway, I have had many a good memory of this ride, and the pictures at the moment really catch the enjoyment of it all. The only issue I have with it at the moment is that there is probably some maintenance needed, as the past two years I have been, it has broken down either whilst I was on it, or just before.

3. Peter Pan’s Flight 

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A very short ride compared to the waiting in the queues, but it doesn’t disappoint! Flying around Neverland in your very own pirate ships, you are taken through the story of Peter Pan, encountering all of the favourite characters, including Captain Hook. My favourite part of this ride is where all of the stars come out, and it truly looks like Tinkerbell has spread some of her Pixie Dust magic. Unfortunately I didn’t get to do this ride on my last trip, but to it being broken down, however, it is definitely one that I intend to ride on my next trip. 

4. Autopia  

A ride that is probably very dated, and a lot simpler compared to all of the other, but still remains a favourite. Here you get to drive your own car around the depth of Discoveryland. This ride is fantastic for little ones who don’t drive a car, just to give them that grown up feel, however if you do drive, can be a little underwhelming. These cars are ran by motors and petrol, which give them that old fashioned smell which I love. And the queues are pretty short as well, which is obviously a bonus! The perfect time to ride Autopia is towards sunset, because the views that you can get are beautiful.

5. It’s a Small World 

This one is a bit like Marmite, people love it or hate it, and are usually put off by it due to the same song on repeat, which you are bound to have in your head for the rest of the day! However, I love the whole musical vibe with all of the different dolls from different areas of the world, giving younger children an insight into other cultures, however it is very stereotypical. But anyway, I love the song, and it has become tradition that as soon as I get into the parks, this is the first ride I do!  

I thought I would give a rundown of all the Disney, Marvel and Star Wars films being released this year, because Disney are simply killing it! I’ll give you a rundown of the synopsis and my personal opinions based on what I have seen so far. 

Dumbo 

Release Date: March 29^th 2019 

Synopsis: A Tim Burton twist on the classic film, where a young elephant who has extra-large ears gets made fun of and aptly nicknamed “Dumbo”. Overall, I do think that this film will be successful due to the fact that it is such a classic film, and Tim Burton’s work has always been popular, especially from the Alice in Wonderland remakes. What I am most curious about it that there is a key pendant in The Disney Store, so I wonder what this is going to play in the film. 

Avengers:Endgame 

Release Date: April 26^th 2019 

Synopsis: At this point it is pretty unknown. However, from what we know, Ant Man and Captain Marvel are involved, and it is highly likely that Captain America is going to die. From Infinity War, we know that half of the universe has been dusted (and it my opinion, we have been left with the bad half!) but the other two are and addition. Spiderman obviously survives (due to Far From Home being released later on this year), but have avoided spoilers so far so I have no clue who I think also survives. I think this is the film that I am most excited for this year.  

Aladdin 

Release Date: May 24^th 2019 

Synopsis: Following the animated story where Aladdin falls in love with Jasmine encountering a genie across the way, who grants him 3 wishes. From watching the trailers, it does look like it follows the original storyline (unlike the discussion with Mulan where they have removed the songs, changed characters etc.), however I am a little disappointed at how the genie has been portrayed. Obviously Will Smith is an amazing actor, but whenever I look at him, I just see him in Fresh Prince of Bel Air, but I did think the same with Emma Waston and Beauty and The Beast. Also, from the trailer, the genie isn’t always blue, which I can’t get my head. But I will obviously go and still watch it because again it is a classic! 

Toy Story 4 

Release Date: June 21^st 2019 

Synopsis: From watching the trailers, we can see that there is a biggest focus on the story of Bo Peep, as she was pretty absent from the third film. From the trailer that was released today (19^th March 2019), it looks like the new character Forky, is created by a side character, however Forky doesn’t want to be a toy as he is useful tool, so Woody goes on a mission to get him back. With regards to the other 2 new toys, Bunny and Ducky, it looks like they are part of a fairground prize, but I could be wrong. I am so excited to see this film, as it has been long awaited. 

Spiderman:Far From Home 

Release Date: July 3^rd 2019 

Synopsis: Peter goes of a holiday to Europe, to hopefully get some time off being a superhero, but has an encounter with Nick Fury, who wants his help to defeat The Elementals. This is where Mysterio comes in, as Fury drafts him in to help to. Spiderman is by far my favourite Avenger and I think Tom Holland plays the character so perfectly. Very much excited to see the next installment of the Spiderman story 

The Lion King 

Release Date: July 19^th 2019 

Synopsis: From the first trailer that was released, it looks like the live action is a recreation of the original 1994 film, following the story where Simba breaks free from Uncle Scar’s dictorial leadership style. I think Disney have done well in order to get such a star studded line up including Seth Rogan, Donald Glover and Beyoncé involved, and the Lion King is one of my favourite films, and seems to be a firm favourite with many. The stage show is beautiful and I think the live action will match this. I must say that I have a lot more faith in this live action remake compared to Aladdin.  

Artemis Fowl 

Release Date: August 9^th 2019 

Synopsis: I have to admit that this is the film that I probably know the least about and the one that I am less likely to see out of them all. From a couple of the live action films that have been released recently, especially a Wrinkle in Time (with it being a bit of a flop), I have become a bit apprehensive to see some of the later ones. It follows the story of Eoin Colfer’s original story where the character Artemis Fowl comes from a family of criminal masterminds, and he is faced with challenges across the way. I think that with this film, I will see what other people think about it before I go and watch it myself. 

Maleficient:Mistress of Evil 

Release Date: October 18^th 2019 (seven months before the initial release set for May 2020) 

Synopsis: From the statement that was released by Disney about the film (with no official trailer being released yet) they stated that “Maleficent 2 continues to explore the complex relationship between the horned fairy and the soon to be Queen, as they form new alliances and face new adversaries in their struggle to protect the moors and the magical creatures that reside within.” Maleficent is probably my favourite villain, so the fact that they are making a second one makes me very happy. Angelina Jolie plays the character perfectly, and she just has cheekbones to die for! 

Frozen 2 

Release Date: Novemeber 22^nd 2019 

Synopsis: This is still a little bit unknown, with only the first teaser trailer being released at this point, but the main focus seems to on Elsa’s struggles. We see that she is no longer in her dress, but she has change to a two piece trouser set (much like Bo Peep’s costume change in Toy Story 4), as well as her hair now being down rather than braided. This is the same with Anna who now is sporting a half up half down rather than her usual braids. The only information that we have is that the gang is back together, and they are all played by their retrospective actors from the 2013 version. There has been so many Frozen shorts between this period, so that I am a little unsure on what they could do that is still original at this point. I am hoping that there is still decent soundtrack, as Let it Go is such a classic.  

Star Wars:Episode IX 

Release Date: December 20^th 2019 (After being pushed back from being May 2019) 

Synopsis: Again no synopsis of this film has been released yet, but we are following on from the saga that we left at The Last Jedi in December 2017. Prior to Disney taking over the franchise, I never had properly followed the story, however I have now watched the majority of them and I do prefer the Disney versions (much to everyone’s disgust) but the Disney ones were what got me into it, so I do have high hopes for this one.  

DON’T READ ON IF YOU DON’T WANT TO SEE ANY SPOILERS! 

To be honest, I was a little skeptical about seeing this film, as I had heard really mixed reviews from people online, and plus I wasn’t really hyped about seeing in. The main reason I wanted to see it was to just see the post credit scene to find how it would link to Endgame. But I was pleasantly surprised, and really enjoyed it. 

Me and Callum went to see it on the UK release day (March 8^th), and this was because we wanted to get the free poster from Odeon. We had collected all the Infinity War and Ant Man and The Wasp posters, so we left like we needed to continue this tradition. Obviously, March 8^th was International Women’s Day, and I feel that this was the perfect film to watch. It was focused more on female empowerment and believing in yourself, rather than focusing on the fact that she was a woman. The story had an amazing message, teaching young girls to not be afraid of being themselves, and defying the stereotypes that society has placed upon then, and what better way to do it than through Marvel.  

Humour wise, I’d say that it was on par with Guardians of the Galaxy and Ant-Man, both of which I find are comical films, Guardians of the Galaxy being my favorite out of the whole MCU. I think this is all down to Nick Fury’s well placed humour and Goose the Cat (who is an alien by the way, but this is kind of spoilt in The Disney Store figure set, but we can move past that one!)  Goose was such a dark horse kind of character, show through the connection through Nick Fury, and I think that it is their relationship that makes it more comical.  

The only part that was confusing for me was that it was set in the 1990s, so when it was released, it doesn’t fit into the MCU at that part. With Captain America: The First Avenger being set in the early 1900s, Captain Marvel should immediately follow this. The main giveaway is that The Skrulls become the “badies” further down the timeline. For some who had possibly not followed The Universe from the beginning, this would get confusing. However, the post credit scenes that followed both Avengers :Infinity War and Captain Marvel made the perfect segway for Endgame being released in April (who is also excited?!) At the end of Infinity War, we saw Nick Fury and the pager, where Captain Marvels logo appeared. We see this is the first post credit scene of Captain Marvel where Black Widow, Hulk (or Bruce Banner at this point) and Captain America, all looking at this pager (Marvel told Fury to us it if he ever needed help, which is why it featured at the end of Infinity War). Captain Marvel enters and asks where Fury is, showing the link here.

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We now know that Captain Marvel will feature in Endgame, along with Ant Man, featured in the post credit scenes to that film. The second scene was very much like Ant Man and The Wasp (with the pet ant playing the drums), but this time it is Goose the cat (the Flerken) trying to gag up the Tesseract, which we see him (if you can even call him a him) swallow in the film. Kind of disgusting to watch, but you can’t hate Goose either.  

All in all, I was definitley not disappointed by this film, and it was the perfect lead up to Avengers: Endgame, roll on April 26^th. Kind of hoping Odeon does another poster set so then it gives me an excuse to see it 3 times again!  

In August 2017, I was given the opportunity to dance at Disneyland Paris as part of the Performing Arts OnStage Programme, thanks to Mardi Gras. Mardi Gras is a company that organises performances and events all across the world.

My dance school invited me to be part of the audition, which was a year prior. There was around 40 of us, ranging from age 7-16. For the audition, we had to do a 20-minute performance, with certain songs that met the guidelines set out by Disney and Mardi Gras themselves. The way that this was arranged was that there were 6 different songs as part of the set, two in the beginning featuring all the performers, one with the youngest performers, one for the juniors and one for the seniors, and then a finale at the end again featuring all performers. We worked on these performances for a year, before taking them to the Sunderland Empire to film, and also do a performance. 

After this, we waited only a couple of months before we got the go ahead for Disney. We were told that they were very picky, and we all need to be part of the “Disney Look”. We are all judged individually, so they picked who they thought looked the part, but out of the performers that were chosen, a 10% allowance was given, allowing us to take all the people who auditioned. After this point, we decided to change the entire set, to give it more of a theme but also ensure we met Disney’s guidelines.

The August quickly rolled around and before we knew it, we were jetting off to DisneyLand Paris. The trip was offered as a package holiday, including hotel and park tickets. We had to arrange flights but quite a few of us booked the same flights. We flew from Newcastle at 6am (trust me, the 3:45am start was hard!), so we arrived in Charles de Gaulle Airport just after 9am. The easiest way to the hotels from the airport is the Magical Shuttle as it’s only €47 return, making it much cheaper than a taxi. 

As part of the package, we were staying at Hotel Cheyenne, a hotel I had never stayed in before. The theming was amazing, as is with all the Disney hotels, and Toy Story is one of my favourite films, so I was very happy to be staying in this hotel. Unlike other hotels like Newport Bay and Sequoia Lodge where all the rooms are part of one building, Hotel Cheyenne is split in 24 smaller blocks, with the majority of the performers staying in block 24, Calamity Jane.  

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Baggage drop is a wonderful thing, because as we arrived early, we couldn’t get into the room, but we wanted to make the most of the parks. I’d last gone to DLP when I was 9, so after 8 years, a lot had changed, and there were many rides (especially Ratatouille!) that I wanted to experience. Being a HUGE Disney fan, I obviously ran into the packs, dressed head to toe in Disney gear, obviously not forgetting the ears.

Breakfast was served in the Chuck Wagon Café (I don’t know whether it is still served in here it there were renovations taking place at the time). The group was meeting outside Marne le Valle train station at 8am, so it was an early start to get costumes stored, hair and makeup done and getting the shuttle to the meeting point (walking is just too slow when you have an 8am start!) The backstage Disney people took us and the other group who was performing with us (they were from Spain), to the theatre we were

performing in. This was the Videopolis theatre in Tommorowland, it hides just next to Buzz Lightyear’s Lazer Blast and behind Space Mountain. We were taken to the stage, and given a health and safety tour, and given an idea of how big the stage will be, so staging could be changed if necessary. Then we were left to get into our costumes, until we were called to the stage. It’s a nervous wait, but we were all so excited. Even though our changing room was small, we were able to fit in one last practice before the show itself. For the juniors and seniors, there was a quick change of only a couple of minutes, where we had to change out of tutus, leotards and take out bows, to change these to unitards, tutus and head bands, all in heels may I add! The morning went so quick, and in a blink of an eye, the show was over. I don’t even remember specific details,

because it all happens so quickly, and after two years of work, its done. But I will always be proud of the fact I can say that I have performed at DisneyLand Paris, and it’s a memory I will never forget. I have always been a fan of Disney, but this really consolidated the fact that this is a company I aim to work with for as long as I can. This also prompted visiting Disney every year during the summer, as I visited last year (more details to follow in another post), and I’m also planning to visiting again this year. I am lucky that I am in a fortunate position to be able to visit Disney this much, and I will always give credit to this experience. For that, I am eternally grateful.