Articles written by Daniel Stephens

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About me - Daniel Stephens

I'm a full time writer living in England. I currently run film and culture website Strange Conversation and I'm the Editor of a construction trade magazine printed and distributed throughout the UK and Ireland. In the past I was a staff writer for the UK's

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Entertainment > Movie Reviews Movie reviews: Cloverfield: 1 of 45
Cloverfield (Matt Reeves, USA, 2008)Dir. Matt Reeves; starring Michael Stahl-David, Lizzy Caplan, Jessica Lucas, T.J. Miller, Mike VogelI was like many intrigued by Cloverfield's marketing campaign: the unnamed movie with a poster that depicted a decapitated Statue of Liberty. The trailer, which first appeared alongside the r... More..
Entertainment > Movie Reviews Movie reviews: Iron Man: 1 of 41
Iron Man (Jon Favreau, USA, 2008)Dir. Jon Favreau; starring Robert Downey Jr., Terrence Howard, Jeff Bridges, Gwyneth Paltrow, Leslie BibbIron Man, partly through sheer entertainment but more so through quality, highlights the deficiencies of Spiderman and its ilk. There is little hiding my dislike of Sam Raimi's Spiderman fr... More..
Entertainment > Movie Reviews Movie reviews: Juno: 1 of 40
Juno (Reitman, USA/Canada, 2007)Dir. Jason Reitman; written by Diablo Cody; starring Ellen Page, Michael Cera, Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman, Allison Janney, J.K. Simmons, Olivia Thirlby, Eileen Pedde, Rainn[sic] Wilson, Emily PerkinsIt's obvious why Juno has been lavished with praise from critics and filmgoers alike. There'... More..
Entertainment > Movie Reviews Movie reviews: Halloween (2007): 1 of 36
Halloween (Rob Zombie, USA, 2007)Dir. Rob Zombie; starring Malcolm McDowell, Scout Taylor-Compton, Danny Trejo, Brad DourifIf there's one thing you learn from watching Rob Zombie movies apart from what your insides look like, it's: don't watch Rob Zombie movies. Zombie is the picture postcard of MTV-generation trash that has ... More..
Entertainment > Movies (Other) When parents bring underaged children to inappropriate movies: 2 of 43
Sometimes it doesn't matter whether they are underage or just children, seeing "young one's" in our theatres without parental control can, and frequently is, as dispiriting experience.Run down the aisle and back up again. Throw popcorn at your friend. Shout with a screeching unbroken voice and exit for half an hour, returning... More..
Entertainment > Musicians & Bands Band reviews: Oasis: 1 of 19
Oasis arrived with feet-stomping, loud-mouthed pomposity in the summer of 1994 with their critically acclaimed debut album Definitely, Maybe. Mixing a range of styles to form what would become the blueprint of Britpop - the rock and roll revolution striking the UK by storm in the middle part of the 1990s - Oasis were the harb... More..
Entertainment > Movie Reviews Movie reviews: Eastern Promises: 1 of 17
Eastern Promises (David Cronenberg, UK/Canada, 2007)Dir. David Cronenberg; starring Naomi Watts, Viggo MortensenDavid Cronenberg is like fine wine: he gets better with age. His early genius saw his anger and obsession portrayed in his body images and visual dysfunctions of human life. His films (which became known as the sub-... More..
Entertainment > TV Genres & Trends Assessing the trend of celebrity reality TV series: 1 of 17
The impact of celebrity-inspired reality television comes as little surprise. The whole notion of what is a celebrity has become as blurred as the distinction between what is real and what isn't on television today.You've only got to look at Big Brother. It created celebrities by simply putting them on television 24 hours a d... More..
Entertainment > Movie Genres Great movies about haunted houses: 1 of 14
The ChangelingQuietly, The Changeling opens with non-descript credits on a black background before fading up to a bright white, snow covered scene, where a man and his family wonder what to do after their car has broken down. It's a picturesque, winter wonderland, with Dad (George C. Scott) joking around with his wife and dau... More..
Entertainment > Movie Reviews Movie reviews: The Amityville Horror: 1 of 13
The Amityville Horror was a film born out of public fascination. That fascination was fuelled by post-Exorcist hysteria, that demanded haunted house flicks anchored by American history and the collapse of the American dream, with all the trappings of religious folklore and the dark side of the Catholic church. No longer would... More..