Paradise

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01/31/2017 "You may have it bad, but you aren't the only one with problems." See more 09/19/2015 Review: Although the jokes were quite silly, the concept was sweet and the gullible Lamb Mannerhelm really did have a life changing experience in Las Vegas. The storyline follows Lamb Mannerhelms journey into exploring the world after suffering severe burns in an airplane crash. With loads of money at her disposal after the airline pays her out a lump sum, she heads to Las Vegas after denouncing God in church in front of her family and Christian congregation. Whilst in Las Vegas, she becomes friends with William (Russell Brand) who is a bartender in a seedy club. She also becomes friends with Loray whose a singer in the same club and she decides to show her the real Las Vegas. When William finishes his shift, he joins them on there crazy journey and Lamb gets introduced to many different aspects of the world. Its a sweat storyline which is based around people who have to live with a disability and find it hard to go out into the world. With the help of William and Loray, Lamb soon realises that she can do some good for people who also have there own insecurities and money problems, like the prostitute that she meets in the toilet. I would have liked to have seen what the prostitute done with the money but the director chose to cut that element out of the movie. Anyway, I liked the chemistry between Lamb, William and Loray and the progression of her journey was quite enjoyable. I must admit, I was expecting this movie to be really crap but it actually wasn't that bad. Russell Brand was quite toned down compared to a lot of his other performances and he showed a lot of sympathy to Lamb's disability which was a great touch to the storyline. Although the movie didn't get the big budget treatment and it didn't go down well with critics, it still has a very sweet concept which was enjoyable in places.  Round-Up: Although Julianne Hough, 27, isn't a household name, she has starred in some big movies like Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone, Burlesque, Footloose (the remake), Rock of Ages and Safe Haven. There wasn't that much more that she could have done with the role in this movie so I can honestly say that she put in a good performance but I can't really remember her in any of the other movies. She hasn't really got that much in the pipeline in terms of major releases and as this movie didn't do well at the box office, she still has a way to climb before she hits the big time. This is the first movie directed by Diablo Cody, which is why it didn't get a massive distribution budget but she did write Ricki and the Flash which is an upcoming movie with Meryl Streep and Kevin Kline, the award winning Juno, the funny Young Adult and the weird Jennifer's Body. Most of the movies that she has directed have definitely touched audiences heart, from an emotional point of view but she hasn't been able to hit the same height as she did in 2007 with Juno. Personally, I think that she done a great job with this movie but it's a shame that it will go under the radar because of its poor ratings. I recommend this movie to people who are into their emotional comedy/dramas about a young girl who gets injured in a plane crash and leaves her small town to experience the world. 4/10 See more 08/08/2015 Underrated, in my opinion. Not groundbreaking but Russell Brand's performance was excellent, with nuance and depth, and the story is engaging. The ending was abrupt and somewhat incongruous. See more walter m @Harlequin68 06/30/2015 In "Paradise," Lamb Mannerheim(Julianne Hough) has had her beliefs severely challenged by a near fatal plane crash that has left her with burns over most of her body. She expresses those new ideas, especially the parts about now being an atheist and even possibly voting Democrat in the next election, in front of her church, instead of announcing her donation of her settlement money. Rather, she will use some of that money to spread her wings. But instead of traveling to London to do jell-o shots with Richard Dawkins, she flies to Las Vegas for some general debauchery that begins ominously with a peach schnapps. With her engaging directorial debut "Paradise," Diablo Cody shows that along with her skill with words, she also has a knack for visual imagery. It helps that Cody seldom goes after easy targets while having the movie's sweet protagonist find herself and the world, and maybe not in that order. That's not to mention an excellent turn from Octavia Spencer.(I don't know what to make of Russell Brand and probably never will.) See more 04/12/2015 Tough to watch at times; semi-downer of a film is kept a float by a decent script and good acting. See more 09/24/2014 Worthy of viewing! The acting was great and the characters seemed believable enough. You could feel the pain and frustration the main character was experiencing. Overall the actors did a great job! Story was funny and heart wrenching. A story about rediscovering Faith. See more Read all reviews

Paradise

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