Here’s a homegrown app which should be on every film buff’s horizon – the ability to check out all Irish movie release dates, in addition to regularly updated trailers for each film.
Here at JOE we often don’t highlight as many Irish apps as we should and one of the reasons for that is that so many (with the exception of Carlow Weather) are only happy to provide the bare minimum.
So when we seen that MovieWatch promised to “list the release dates of all new films coming to Ireland”, we were somewhat sceptical.
Would we see out-of-date release dates from the app or even worse, would we only see release dates? Actually, we’d go so far to say that in the end, MovieWatch confounded our expectations, to the point that we’d even say that it might be an essential purchase for all movie fans.
This screenshot is a sombre reminder that the Green Lantern movie actually happened
The app itself promises people that they can view upcoming dates for cinemas releases, DVD/Blu-ray titles and rentals. From here, the app details the number of titles for each week and a countdown to inform you of the amount of days until your chosen film hits the silver screen.
We should mention, however, that when we tried to review the DVD and rental sections, we were met with a ‘No listings found’ message. If the two are set to follow in a forthcoming update, then that’s fair enough, although they shouldn’t appear as an option if the app’s developer has no immediate plans to flesh them out.
As of this writing, we’re pleased to say that the app’s cinema releases stretches all the way back to December 26, although that’s when we will be ‘treated’ by another Mission: Impossible film. Oh, goodie.
IFCO approval
Once you click upon a film, you can add to your favourites section to keep an eye on it or view the film’s IMDB page (a link which opens inside the app), the latest poster, trailer, synopsis and if available, the IFCO certification for the film.
Speaking of the Irish Film Classification Office, the app details the six classifications for movies released in Ireland – G, PG, 12A, 15A, 16 and 18.
This area is somewhere that we would love to see extrapolated in a future update, as apps such as the BBFC’s (the UK equivalent of IFCO) actually go into full details regarding each film’s plot poins and issues to justify their decision. We’re sure that film fans will want to know when their favourite sequel is being released, but maybe parents would appreciate discovering if the film is suitable for their little ones too.
So while MovieWatch is a few updates away from being an absolute must-buy, there’s plenty here for film buffs to help stay up-to-date and more importantly, hugely excited for the next swath of Hollywood releases. Except Mission: Impossible 4, obviously.
MovieWatch is available on iOS devices now.
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