The Flicker Project

Crazy, Stupid, Love. (2011)

2012-01-27T08:14:00.000-08:00

It's fair to say that the romantic comedy - as a genre - has probably seen better days. The old 'boy meets girl, hilarity ensues' formula of yesteryear has been replaced by bromances and SNL-influenced slapstick, the kind of movie where two characters doing Jello shots in their underwear is about as close to romance as you're likely to get. Apparently the lovey-stuff isn't as hot as it used to be.

Ironically, it's this lack of competition that makes Crazy, Stupid, Love. feel so fresh and new. There's not actually much here that we haven't seen before, but it's presented with such confidence and flair that it almost feels like a refreshing antidote to the steady stream of Hangovers and Bridesmaids that have vomited across our screens in recent years. Go figure.

It helps that Dan Fogelman's screenplay is well-paced and razor sharp, and that the cast uniformly turns in performances worthy of its A-list names. Okay, so maybe one or two are actually B-list, or C-list... but the point still stands. Everyone here punches their weight.

Part of Crazy, Stupid, Love.'s appeal is the fact that it exists largely in the world of responsible, tax-paying grown-ups, rather than the imaginary loserville that forms the setting for so many of Hollywood's comedies. Cal Weaver (Steve Carell) is a gainfully employed father and husband when he discovers that his wife Emily (Julianne Moore) has cheated on him with her co-worker (Kevin Bacon, no less). It's the kind of scenario that could happen to any of us - and in some cases, probably has.

It's when Cal accidentally befriends suave lothario Jacob Palmer (Ryan Gosling, having a landmark year in 2011) that his depressingly self-destructive life starts to turn around. Jacob gives Cal a guy-makeover, teaches him how to talk to women, then unleashes him on the unsuspecting ladies. Cal's encounters include live-wire teacher Kate (Marisa Tomei), and it's when this sexual misadventure misfires that he gradually realizes what he really wants - to win his wife back.

By casting this tale of love lost and won among the story's parents and spouses, Crazy, Stupid, Love. effectively reimagines the High School rom-com for an older generation, and as such it never strays too far from the formula.

Where is scores, though, is in the restrained wit of the screenplay and the spot-on performances of the lead actors - particularly Gosling, whose oddly likable womanizer undergoes the film's most dramatic u-turn as the plot progresses. Carell, Moore and Emma Stone also give the movie plenty of heart, and even if you're not rolling on the floor with laughter you can't help getting wrapped up in their warped little world.

Most of all, however, everyone looks like they're having fun making this movie, and we wind up being swept along by the wave of good will and positive vibrations. It may be crazy, and stupid, but perhaps love can still be entertaining after all.

4/5

The Debt (2011)

2012-01-23T08:35:00.000-08:00

Given its pedigree, The Debt should be prime awards material. Based on the acclaimed Israeli movie HaChov (2007), with Dame Helen Mirren in the starring role, and Tom Wilkinson and Ciaran Hinds in supporting slots, it seems to have everything going for it.

Okay, so it also features Sam Worthington... but it still has almost everything in its favor.

While there's undoubtedly a plethora of acting talent (and Worthington) in front of the camera, however, The Debt never quite scales the heights that it promises. In part that's due to the insistence on Israeli accents throughout, a decision that handicaps movie greats like Mirren and Wilkinson and undermines believability at every turn. While the intention was clearly to provide additional realism, the accents instead constantly remind us of the director's attempt at illusion, breaking disbelief's spell along the way.

The other handicap is the plot itself, a meandering tale that flits back and forth through time in a way that even Bill and Ted would struggle to master. The clumsy attempts to integrate the two timelines are bad enough, but when the foreshadowing lets us know exactly what will happen in a given scene you can almost see the screenwriters shooting themselves in the foot.

If that makes The Debt sound like a bad idea all round, then we should remind you again of that stellar cast. Mirren and Wilkinson alone are worth your time, and Hinds gives a quiet but powerful performance that steals almost every scene he graces. Even Worthington is bearable most of the time, despite that wandering accent.

We won't dismantle the plot here. As with most thrillers, The Debt relies on surprise for many of its effects - it already has enough working against it without us adding to its handicaps. Suffice it to say that it concerns a band of Mossad agents who were sent to apprehend a Holocaust war criminal in 1965, but who end up sharing a secret that alters the rest of their lives.

If you want to know more, then you should get your hands on a copy - because, despite its flaws, The Debt is still an entertaining and thrilling ride through the classic spy era. It will inevitably vanish in the long shadow of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, but you can't blame them for trying.

3/5

The Hangover Part II (2011)

2012-01-18T08:50:00.000-08:00

In recent years filmmakers have become increasingly creative when naming their sequels. Styles range from an inventive use of the subtitle (see: Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen) to a crazy reworking of the original (see: 2 Fast 2 Furious) - but the team behind The Hangover opted for none of these. The fact that they called their sequel The Hangover Part II tells you everything you need to know about our second visit with the Wolfpack.

If you enjoyed the original movie (and you should have), then you'll undoubtedly find something to like in Part II. The jokes get raunchier, the situations get wilder, but this is essentially the same movie that we watched before. They may have relocated to Thailand, but one Hangover feels pretty much like another.

Before you start expecting another breakout smash, however, bear in mind that The Hangover Part II also obeys that other classic rule of movie sequels - they're never as good as the original. While Part II takes pains to follow the same formula from start to finish, the shock factor that ensured the original's success has faded with time, and despite their best attempts you'll find that the laughs rapidly dissipate along with it. The Hangover was a true comedy original, but Part II feels like a cheap Thai knock-off.

That's not to say that it's entirely without laughs, even if much of the charm is lost in the vomit and semen jokes. (Okay, so those were in the original too... but somehow they seemed cuter the first time around.) The Wolfpack are attending another wedding, this time that of dentist Stu (Ed Helms) to his Thai girlfriend. Her father isn't a fan of the union, and Stu tries to ignore his disapproval... but that isn't easy when you've just woken up in a criminal's cockroach-infested apartment, with your brother-in-law's severed finger lying next to you.

As before, most of the laughs come from bearded man-child Alan (Zach Galifianakis), while Helms plays the everyman role, Bradley Cooper provides some eye candy for the ladies, and Justin Bartha makes up the numbers. Even Galifianakis seems to be phoning in the jokes this time around, but he's easily the funniest thing on the screen, and you can only hope that they'll give him an even larger role in The Hangover Part III. Forget the rest of the Wolfpack, Alan is their spin-off goldmine.

There are admirable cameos from Paul Giamatti and Jeffrey Tambor too, but much of The Hangover Part II feels like the build-up to a punchline that never quite comes. As it gets dirtier and wilder with every plot twist we can't help asking whether it's actually funny - and all too often the answer is a resounding 'no'.

Having said that, there's still a peculiar appeal to the series, and some of the extremely R-rated twists will have you laughing at their brazenness if nothing else. The Hangover Part II may not be clever, and it certainly isn't original - but you have to admire its balls.

3/5

Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes (2011)

2012-01-11T08:02:00.000-08:00

When they announced that Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes was going into pre-production there was a worldwide groan of disapproval. CGI monkeys? James Franco as a leading man? A plot that promised yet another re-hash of one of sci-fi's most overworked franchises? No thanks...

And yet, against all the odds, Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes turned out to be one of the best and most successful blockbusters of last summer. It wasn't simply luck, either. This is bold, energetic filmmaking, an exercise in storytelling and mythbuilding that manages to hook us and keep us watching because of - not despite - its many perceived shortcomings.

Okay, so James Franco still mumbles his way through the screenplay as if he's doped up to the eyeballs, but even his dopey charms work in Rise's favor. A more frenetic performance would have rubbed up against the CGI effects, but in Franco they have the perfect foil, an actor who somehow seems less full of life than the pixelated creatures surrounding him. If that sounds like the faintest of praise, then it shouldn't - for once Franco is pitch-perfect in a movie that might all too easily have seen him stumble.

Then, of course, there are those apes. The monkey suits of the original films (and the Tim Burton remake) have been hung up for good, replaced by CGI monkeys brought to life through modern motion capture techniques. In retrospect it seems obvious that they should have approached Andy Serkis for the lead ape - after all, his performance as Golum in the Lord of the Rings trilogy was one of the undoubted highlights of a series that can claim to be one of the most successful movie franchises of all time. If anyone could capture the essence of an ape on film, then Andy Serkis could.

And he does just that, injecting life and character into a movie that might otherwise have fallen at the first hurdle. Scientist Will Rodman (Franco) is working on a cure for Alzheimer's, in part to cure his own father (John Lithgow) - but when his program is shut down he winds up looking after a young chimp, Caesar (Serkis), whose mother was one of his test subjects. It soon becomes clear that Caesar has inherited some of the cognitive enhancements from his mother, and with this revelation so Will's experiment is given a new lease of life.

It's when Caesar gradually begins to discover self-awareness and the power of logical thought, however, that things start to get out of hand. After he attacks a human, Caesar is locked up in an animal refuge run by John Landon (Brian Cox), but the conditions are so inhumane that he begins to revolt against his captors - and he intends to take the rest of the apes with him.

Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes is an intriguing combination of complexity and simple thrills, a surefire formula for both commercial and critical success. Director Rupert Wyatt's striking imagery as the apes swarm across Golden Gate Bridge will stay with you long after the credits have rolled, as will the subtler images spotted throughout, including an unusually poetic scene in which the migrating tribe rains a shower of leaves down on a suburban street.

The screenplay is undeniably smart too, combining contemporary fears over cognitive enhancement drug trials with the kind of doom-laden apocalypse that we're used to seeing on our screens. For once it's nice to see something other than zombies threatening mankind with extinction. The use of dual protagonists is deceptively simple as well, and you'll find yourself rooting for Caesar's rebel apes just as much as your fellow humans.

If Michael Bay's messy forays into the world of CGI-action movies have left you sickened and disheartened, then Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes is the perfect antidote. Smart, thrilling, emotionally engaging, and over far too soon, it's everything that Transformers: Dark Of The Moon wasn't. That alone should be reason to see it.

4/5

The Help (2011)

2012-01-06T08:28:00.000-08:00

With all the critical attention it's been receiving - including a whole host of Golden Globe nominations - it seems likely that The Help will be one of the forerunners at the Oscars this year. After all, Uncle Oscar has shown us time and time again that there's nothing he likes more than a story of triumph over adversity, particularly when placed in a historical context. Color me cynical if you like, but the Academy's overwhelming love for Oprah-friendly spiritual awakenings explains a lot of the tear-jerking dross that we endure at this time of year.

In the case of The Help, however, it seems likely that Oscar will sit up and take notice, if only because of the impressive box office receipts. The Academy has always struggled to overlook financial success (we're looking at you, James Cameron), and it isn't unreasonable to suggest that the formula of Money + Historical Struggle must surely = Award Glory.

If that's the case, then let's hope that some of that statue-shaped love goes to Viola Davis. While The Help has plenty going for it, novice director Tate Taylor often flubs the result, turning in a movie that feels more like a Hallmark made-for-TV special than a worthy Oscar contender. But with the help of Davis's performance, it's likely that the movie will grace a podium or two come Oscar night. If she doesn't win a statue for this, then Oscar clearly needs to re-prioritize.

There are some other fine performances during The Help's flabby two-and-a-half hour running time as well, particularly from Octavia Spencer and Sissy Spacek - and it's nice to see Emma Stone finally getting the dramatic lead role that she deserves. But it's Davis who steals this show, and if Taylor walks away with an award this season then I sincerely hope that he places it firmly on her mantel.

If you're not already familiar with the story of The Help, then you clearly haven't been following the bestseller charts. Based on the highly successful novel by Kathryn Stockett, it tells the tale of 'Skeeter' Phelan (Emma Stone), a young white woman in early-60s Mississippi who decides to write an oral history of the black maids in the region, and all that they suffer.

Naturally the women aren't eager to speak out when it might lead to recriminations, but thanks to the efforts of Aibileen (Davis) and Minny (Spencer), and more than a little luck, she eventually pieces together a collection of memoirs and recollections that goes on to become a bestseller. That brings its own difficulties - and also, eventually, a few welcome changes.

If that makes The Help sound simplistic, it's not accidental. It's clear where this movie is headed as soon as it starts, and it never really deviates too far from that path - even when it gets distracted by Skeeter's love interest for a short while. Let's face it, there wouldn't be much point (or much interest) in a movie where the racist white landowners win in the final frame.

In fact The Help is so simplistic that it makes several false moves along the way, some of which have led to accusations of racism in their own right. Yes, the portrayals of the African American characters rely heavily on racial stereotypes from the Deep South; and yes, it does take a college-educated white girl to bring them together and give them a voice. It also whitewashes over the sexual harassment that many maids received at the hands of their employers, and offers crude (and rather unnecessary) depictions of the black men in the community as either abusive or absent.

What you have to bear in mind, however, is that The Help is only ever a simplistic depiction of a complex problem during a murky period of our history, and it inevitably glosses over its story with Hollywood's customary glaze. This is historical exploration as entertainment, not a detailed documentary. That it manages to engage us despite these flaws is a credit to the acting talents of Davis, Spencer and Stone, and let's hope that they're not forgotten at the awards ceremonies.

As for Tate Taylor, we'll be keeping our fingers crossed that Oscar doesn't mistake a powerful story for genuinely outstanding filmmaking. The Help certainly demands our attention - but only in the performances does it truly touch upon greatness.

4/5

Our Idiot Brother (2011)

2012-01-04T08:30:00.000-08:00

As low-budget comedy-dramas go, Our Idiot Brother is curiously likable. What might all too easily have become a pale imitation of Hollywood's preferred slapstick-and-pratfall formula instead turns into a pleasant and amusing - if slightly unremarkable - character-driven comedy, largely thanks to Paul Rudd's charming turn in the title role. If ever there were an argument for Rudd as a Hollywood leading man, then this is it.

Plotwise, there isn't much here that we haven't seen before. Clueless drifter Ned (Rudd) falls on hard times when he sells marijuana to a (uniformed) cop, and he's forced to rely on his three sisters (Elizabeth Banks, Zooey Deschanel, Emily Mortimer) for charity as he tries to scrape his way back to normality. Along the way, his dedication to telling the truth - and his guileless innocence - cause them untold problems, as the lies of their careers, relationships and marriages are exposed.

Do we have to tell you that Ned's innocent interference eventually leads to all four siblings becoming happier and more fulfilled? Of course not - Our Idiot Brother may be a small production, but it still knows the rules of the genre. It'll be no surprise when things finally start to turn around for Ned and his long-suffering sisters.

While Our Idiot Brother doesn't offer many surprises, however, it does deliver the formula with wit and charm, and that's increasingly hard to come by in Hollywood. Paul Rudd channels Jeff Bridges' infamous Dude as he plods a stoned, hippyish path through every disaster, and it's hard not to fall for his unsophisticated naivete. In fact, all three sisters can't help but look bitchy and manipulative in Ned's Christ-like shadow.

As for the humor, it's noticeably patchy in places, and there's no chance of Our Idiot Brother becoming a comedy classic. There are some genuine laughs, though - often thanks to blustering British philanderer Dylan (Steve Coogan) and fellow stoner Billy (T.J. Miller) - and the gaps are pleasantly patched over by Rudd's beaming grin. While this is one movie that won't have them rolling in the aisles, it will at least leave most audiences smiling.

That may not sound like the strongest of recommendations, but as Hollywood dredges the bottom of the barrel for gross-out cussathons and barely-digested toilet humor it's nice to see a pleasant, charismatic comedy deliver the goods. Maybe Our Idiot Brother isn't quite so idiotic after all.

3/5

Beginners (2010)

2011-12-28T08:56:00.000-08:00

A real-life story of cancer and septuagenarian coming-out may not sound like the formula for a romantic comedy, but there's a lot to be said for the redemptive power of tone. Director Mike Mills' Beginners is based upon his own experiences when his father came out of the closet, five years before his death - but here the subject matter is only half the tale.

The other half is the rather melancholy, but unexpectedly whimsical, world that Mills has his characters inhabit, and it's this that lifts Beginners out of its source material, and turns it into a surprise indie hit. Sure, it helps that Ewan McGregor and Christopher Plummer hand in two subtly nuanced performances that fully deserve the nods they won't get come Oscar night, but it's the tone of the movie that remains longest in your mind. That Mills manages to craft Beginners from such intimate personal experience makes it all the more remarkable.

Much of the film is told in flashback, as Oliver (McGregor) remembers his childhood and his father's final years, when the lie that has lurked in the background his entire life is exposed, and Hal (Plummer) comes out as a gay man. Just as Hal embarks on this new life, though - including a new circle of gay friends and Andy, his much younger boyfriend - he is struck down by cancer.

In the present day, Oliver is struggling with romantic issues himself, as he finds himself approaching forty and still single with a landslide of failed relationships in his past. When he starts dating French actress Anna (Melanie Laurent) it seems that this relationship might end the same way, but as he dwells on his father's recent death he learns some lessons, and a few truths that suggest a different path.

Beginners adamantly refuses to give us easy answers, and it's this complexity that lends it much of its strength. In portraying romantic failure Oliver, Mills refrains from offering judgement - probably because Oliver is loosely based on himself - and in doing so he creates an intriguing enigma at the movie's core. Exactly what Oliver learns isn't entirely clear, but there's little doubt that he emerges from the other side a more complete - and happier - human being.

That offbeat tone helps too, from the witty subtitles given to Oliver's dog Arthur to the unconventional courting of the two damaged lovers. It's hard not to be reminded of similarly quirky (and melancholy) romance Blue Valentine, and Beginners holds its own surprisingly well against one of the year's most critically-lauded movies. If it doesn't quite develop such a satisfactory story arc, it at least offers us something new and unique in its rare depiction of later-life sexuality.

Beginners won't be to all tastes, and its melancholy undertones at times threaten to drown the reserves of goodwill, but as a refreshing and original piece of indie filmmaking it deserves to hold its head high. Mills could have written no better ode to his father than this.

4/5

The Devil's Double (2011)

2011-12-23T08:29:00.000-08:00

Anyone who's ever watched a Bond film (and I'm guessing that's about 98% of the planet) will tell you that the bad guys always get the best lines. Sure, Bond looks suave enough in a dinner jacket or a skintight Seventies bathing suit; and yes, he always ends up with the girl (or girls). But next to the likes of Dr. No, Scaramanga - and even Odd Job - Bond always looked a little like a cardboard cutout. Albeit a dashingly handsome cutout, obviously.

It's a lesson that New Zealand director Lee Tamahori should have learned. His past credits include 2002's Die Another Day, and while it will never be seen as Bond's finest hour, it at least shows a familiarity with the formula. The fact that he then tried to rebake the Bond recipe into a modern idiom with xXx: State of the Union shouldn't necessarily be held against him.

With The Devil's Double, however, Tamahori runs into the age-old Bond dilemma again - a villain who's far more interesting than his purely-vanilla protagonist. That both are played by Dominic Cooper says much for the actor's range, but does little to remedy the lopsided screenplay.

The Devil's Double is keen to point out its pedigree as a true story whenever possible, and Michael Thomas's script at least has the commercial nous to foreground its basis in some truly incredible facts. Latif Yahia (Cooper) was one of the Iraqi soldiers selected to act as doubles for Saddam Hussein's son, Uday (also Cooper), during the later years of his regime. Latif is offered no choice in the matter, and before long he finds himself forced to tolerate the company and friendship of a man whom he fears and despises - as any sane person would.

It's here that The Devil's Double begins to encounter problems, however, because the double never comes close to being as intriguing as the devil himself. Uday was a violent, sadistic, unpredictable, and almost certainly mentally unstable figure, and Cooper gives him the full range of quirks and extravagances here, turning in one of the most complete portrayals of unhinged power that we've seen in recent years. It's a cautionary tale for over-indulgent parents everywhere.

The same can't be said of Latif. While Uday is dynamic but utterly destructive, Latif is forced to follow the do-gooder's path of disapproval and moral rectitude - and that's a path with few surprises. We can't help rooting for Latif in the inevitable clash of personalities (if you don't, I'd suggest employing a therapist), but he always feels like a hollow shell of moral fiber and unremarkable heroics next to Uday's crazed energy.

Perhaps this flaw was always built into the 'true' story of such an unlikely alliance, but it would have been nice to have felt just a little empathy with our earnest hero. Instead you'll find yourself hoping Latif breaks free - but counting down the minutes until Uday lights up our screen again.

That both are played by Dominic Cooper lends The Devil's Double an unusual dynamic, and this alone makes it worth seeing. In the future, though, we'd like to see more of Cooper's explosive villainy please.

3/5

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011)

2011-12-21T08:35:00.000-08:00

As the Harry Potter series has progressed, the wizarding youth seem to have almost completely forgotten about the vicarious thrills of Quidditch - and thank heavens for that. While the early movies relied heavily upon the quirky - but childish - charms of first few books, the later stories have always had a far darker purpose in mind. If your kids already love the antics of the early Potter films, you may want to put a lock the Deathly Hallows while you can.

Part 2 of the Deathly Hallows at least lacks some of Part 1's bleakness, as plot threads are resolved, wrongs are righted, and battles are fought. If you found Part 1's negative tone to be too much of a downer, then Part 2 throws some much-needed fire and fury back into the mix.

We won't bother dissecting the plot here - there seems to be little point. You've either already watched the first seven films in the series, or you haven't bothered (although how you've managed to avoid the largest cultural phenomenon of the last twenty years will forever remain a mystery). If you're a fan, then suffice it to say that the final battle is upon us, with all the sacrifices and revelations that implies. If you're not - well, there's this boy called Harry Potter...

Deathly Hallows: Part 2 certainly provides a satisfying conclusion to the series, but then it could hardly fail to, given the multi-bestselling source material. The plot moves along thick and fast, as do the action sequences, and you'd better pay attention if you want to keep up. Even better, watch Part 1 again before you start - you might need the recap.

In fact, knowledge of all seven Harry Potter movies is something of a prerequisite for watching movie number eight, and while the desire to include every artifact and character from the early stories is sometimes endearing - who wouldn't want to see Gary Oldman as Sirius Black again? - the endless roll call of references does become tiresome after a couple of hours. I should confess that many of them flew way over my head. I guess Harry Potter was never that large a part of my life.

If, like me, you're not a rabid devotee of the series, then there's still plenty to enjoy in Deathly Hallows: Part 2, even if you won't get every little reference and slice of nostalgia. The film does feel rather action-heavy, but watched back-to-back with Part 1 that could simply be taken as the inevitable progression of the narrative. On its own, however, you may slowly tire of one wand-waving contest after another.

As for the actors... well, we already know what to expect here. The Harry Potter movies have always enjoyed the cream of British acting talent, and with the likes of Helena Bonham Carter, Michael Gambon, Alan Rickman, Maggie Smith, John Hurt and Julie Walters returning to their roles there are plenty of acting chops to admire. A quick word on Ralph Fiennes too: he may be unidentifiable under all that make-up, but he delivers one of the most nuanced performances of the entire series, and deserves credit for doing so much with so little. Maybe the Best Actor Without A Nose statue will be his in 2012.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 still has plenty of flaws, and as a stand-alone movie it largely favors fireworks over subtlety. As the end of an era, however, it does a pretty fine job, and this surely has to be the best possible bookend that we could have imagined to JK Rowling's eight-part epic. As for what comes next - we can only hope that it's half as good...

4/5

Dahmer (2002)

2011-12-16T08:16:00.000-08:00

There aren't many serial killer movies that can justify the time and money expended on them. If that sounds like a harsh assessment, then flick through the racks of straight-to-dvd junk at your local video store, or just browse the serial killer tag on Amazon. For some reason the sordid exploits of society's most evil men translate all-too-easily into cheap melodrama - and I'm not talking about the fat cats of Wall Street.

In Dahmer we have a true rarity, however: the serial killer biopic that aims to be something more than mere true crime porn. In fact, if you're looking for a real life slasher flick then you'd better look elsewhere, because director David Jacobson clearly had his sights set on something higher.

That's not to say that he always succeeds. Trying to present real-life murder without glamorizing or over-dramatizing is a tall order, and one that Jacobson isn't quite able to fulfill. While Dahmer stands a notch or two above much of the competition, it still falls short of its lofty goals.

In part this is due to the nature of Jacobson's subject, and anyone who has watched Silence of the Lambs will tell you that even the best serial killer thriller has to rely on melodrama at times, just to escape the inevitable banality of death. Dahmer adamantly refuses to glorify (or gorify) its subject's crimes, but it doesn't always have anything to replace them with. At its core we're presented with a sad, emotionally cold human being, who was so damaged and dysfunctional that he was unable to survive the confines and pressures of society.

It's hardly light entertainment.

Jacobson is persistent in his attempts to understand and demythologize Dahmer, however, and at times he almost succeeds. In part this is due to the energetic visual language he employs, a style that owes much to the disquieting films of David Lynch (the nightclub scene in particular pays an obvious debt to Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me). In picking Lynch as his model, Jacobson at least attempts to draw from a master of the disturbing cinematic arts.

Perhaps his greatest tool, however, is actor Jeremy Renner, whose performance in Dahmer was pivotal in securing him his role in Oscar-winning movie The Hurt Locker. Renner is worryingly believable as Jeffrey Dahmer, the killer who preyed on gay men throughout the 80s and eventually claimed 17 victims. We don't see all of those murders here, as the screenplay instead focuses on Dahmer's development from troubled teen to full-blooded killer - and it's here that Renner truly shines. His portrayal of Dahmer as an angry, intense teen stands in stark contrast to the laidback insouciance of the experienced killer, and he makes this progression all too believable.

Even more remarkable is the fact that Jacobson and Renner together manage to muster some sympathy for the notorious murderer, and it's this empathy that truly raises Dahmer out of the straight-to-dvd mire. When Jeffrey Dahmer sits slumped in front of the TV after his first kill, drunk, numb, and sobbing uncontrollably, we're allowed the briefest glimpse into a truly tormented soul. It may not be the place you wanted to go to, but there's no denying its visual and emotional power.

Dahmer still suffers at times from the melodrama that haunts the killer biopic, and Jacobson struggles to craft a satisfying finale - but its blend of artistry and challenging subject matter is rare enough to make it stand out. It's little wonder that Renner has gone on to fame and fortune since. We can only hope that he's offered similar challenges in his future, rather than treading the easy Hollywood path.

3/5

Super 8 (2011)

2011-12-09T08:27:00.000-08:00

In this age of CGI-driven blockbusters and non-stop action franchises, it feels paradoxically refreshing to see an old fashioned summer blockbuster heading up the year's best movies. In Super 8 director-savant J.J. Abrams seems to have finally found his voice, delivering one of 2011's finest films in the process - and wouldn't you know it, it turns out that his voice sounds remarkably like a young Steven Spielberg.

The fact that Spielberg worked as Executive Producer on Super 8 means that this shouldn't come as a great surprise, but it's worth saying again - Super 8 owes a huge debt to the movies of Spielberg's youth. While the great man himself has fallen a little flat of late, Abrams taps into the wide-eyed wonder that made the likes of E.T., Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Spielberg-written The Goonies such huge hits in the late-Seventies and early-Eighties.

Hopefully that's enough to get you interested in Super 8 already - if it isn't, it should be. Sure, it doesn't quite achieve the depth of the movie greats, but it does deliver fun in spades, and you'll actually find yourself emotionally invested in its hi-jinx whether you like it or not. Throw in the strongest child performances of the year and you can see why critics have been drooling.

The action takes place in the town of Lillian, Ohio, and it's fair to say that this small, sleepy town has no idea of what's about to hit. When Joe's (Joel Courtney) mother dies in an industrial accident both he and his father go into silent mourning, but Joe is lucky to have a strong group of friends around him, including amateur filmmaker Charles (Riley Griffiths). Charles is making a zombie movie to enter into competition at a film festival, and he manages to persuade local crush Alice (Elle Fanning) to play the romantic lead.

It's when their small gang heads out to the railway station one night to film a scene that things rapidly begin to head south. A train derails next to them after biology teacher Dr. Woodward slams his truck into it, and our heroes scatter swiftly, relatively unscathed. When weird happenings start to occur around town, however, and people start to go missing, it becomes clear that something not-of-this-Earth has escaped during the derailment.

Most of Super 8 plays out like Cloverfield-meets-The Goonies, and there's a good chance that you'll feel like you've seen much of this before. While Abrams doesn't break much new ground, however, he does remind us that good cinema doesn't always have to be about innovation. Super 8 is a better homage to Spielberg than even Spielberg himself could muster, and if you're hankering after those old-fashioned story-driven movies of your youth then it's a rare treat.

The action is nicely paced too, the 'monster' is hinted at rather than CGI'd to death, and the core of child actors gives a far stronger ensemble performance than anyone had a right to expect. Courtney and Fanning in particular shine as the leads, and there seems little doubt that both have a lucrative career stretching ahead of them.

Super 8 may not be the most original blockbuster of 2011, but with the likes of Transformers: Dark Of The Moon dominating the box office it is undoubtedly one of the best. And if we've seen it all before, then maybe that isn't such a bad thing.

4/5

Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011)

2011-11-29T08:40:00.000-08:00

When they announced the fourth Pirates Of The Caribbean movie, On Stranger Tides, it seemed like the perfect time for an injection of adrenaline into the flagging franchise. The freshness of the original had been replaced by nonsensical plots and Hollywood excess in the sequels, and the idea of throwing out half the cast - and the director - and starting from scratch sounded like the ideal antidote.

Unfortunately for Jack Sparrow lovers everywhere, however, On Stranger Tides would have been better titled On Worryingly Similar Tides. They may have dumped Knightley and Bloom, but the half-baked romantic subplots remain, and beyond Johnny Depp and Geoffrey Rush there's really not much here to justify pushing the franchise through a fourth ill-conceived treatment.

That's not to say that Rob Marshall's On Stranger Tides is entirely lacking in charm - after all, it still has Captain Jack Sparrow at the helm. No one quite does the modern yo-ho-hoing pirate like Cap'n Jack, and if you're looking for some swashbuckling adventures on the high seas - with a little fantasy-horror thrown in for good measure - then you'll come away reasonably happy.

If you're unimpressed by Hollywood's latest run of inspiration-light blockbusters, however, then On Stranger Tides will feel disturbingly hollow. Even Depp seems to realize that he's drifting on autopilot at times, and with a screenplay this barren it's hard to imagine anything other than an already-plundered treasure chest at its core.

The opening is promising enough, if overly long-winded and erratic in historical detail. Jack Sparrow is in the London of King George II (watch out for the cameo by Dame Judi Dench), where he discovers that someone else is putting together a crew in his name, to sail in search of the fabled Fountain of Youth. When he unmasks the imposter, Angelica (Penelope Cruz), it transpires that the pair have a history - but before Jack can restore his good name he's press-ganged into serving on the ship of notorious pirate and black magician Blackbeard (Ian McShane).

Meanwhile two other parties also search for the Fountain: a Spanish expedition, which always seems to be one step ahead, and Jack's old rival Captain Barbossa (Rush), now minus a leg thanks to Blackbeard. There's a subplot about a clergyman and a mermaid too, but you can ignore most of this unless you're a fan of fantasy bodice-rippers. Even the ending is muddled and misconceived, and On Stranger Tides would have been a stronger film without the distraction.

Ian McShane adds some quality to proceedings with his barrel-chested villain, but unless they decide to bring him back for another installment it's hard to see where the Pirates franchise can sail next. Depp's one-liners aren't as funny or original as they used to be, Cruz adds little more than another foil for Jack's misadventures, while Barbossa seems destined to be slowly whittled away until there's nothing left of him.

Of course, that won't stop Disney from cashing in again on what must surely be their biggest cash cow outside of Pixar. But how much longer Johnny Depp will be prepared to walk this same unsteady path remains to be seen.

3/5

Red State (2011)

2011-11-15T08:06:00.000-08:00

When Kevin Smith first announced that his next movie would be a horror film, there was a collective intake of breath. Given that his latest comedy, Cop Out, marked a new low in Smith's career, the decision wasn't entirely out of left field - but even so, this was a newsworthy change of tack from the man who brought us Clerks and Zack And Miri Make A Porno. Even the most imaginative fans struggled to imagine what a Kevin Smith-directed horror movie would look like.

As it turns out, we'll have to keep imagining - because Red State isn't really a horror movie at all. Those who were anticipating wise-cracking undead register drones or grotesque zombie porn can breathe a sigh of relief. Red State plays more like a B-movie action thriller than a horror flick, and while it has some nightmarish qualities, everything stays firmly rooted in reality.

That's not to say that Red State is your average Kevin Smith movie either, and it quickly becomes clear that he was sincere about his change of direction - he just misled us as to where he was heading. Instead of fashioning himself into the next John Carpenter, Smith seems to have set his sights on Quentin Tarantino's career, crafting a wild, gore-splattered ride through B-movie territory with a wink and a smile.

If this sets your pulse racing again, then you may want to slow down a second. While Red State certainly falls into similar territory to Tarantino's best work, it's nowhere near as polished, and Smith has a long way to go before he earns the kind of cult following that QT enjoys.

A large part of the problem is his plot, which meanders and stutters so often that you'll be left feeling confused over what Red State is actually about. Three high school boys use an internet dating service to hook up with an older woman (Melissa Leo) who wants a four-way romp - except she isn't all they expected her to be, and before long they're bound and gagged in the basement of a fundamentalist church.

So far, so simple - but it turns out that the boys aren't really the focus of Smith's story (and neither is Leo, come to think of it). Instead the central role oscillates between preacher Abin Cooper (Michael Parks) and ATF Agent Keenan (John Goodman), never really settling on either as they duke it out over the thorny issues of religious freedom, government intervention, and wacko right-wing cultists. It leaves Red State without a clear narrative arc, and as a result the ending comes with a whimper rather than a bang, despite Smith's eye for blustering melodrama.

Maybe it's no surprise that Smith should prove to be less comfortable working within the confines of a plot-driven story. After all, his previous work generally relied on sharp dialogue for its thrills rather than plot twists. With all the gags taken out (apart from the literal kind, of course) his storytelling skills start to look a little thin.

Fortunately his actors are there to pick up the slack, though, because between them Parks and Goodman lift the script out of what might have been a true B-movie mess. Parks is engaging and frenetic as the fervent pastor, but it's Goodman who really draws us in, delivering one of the finest performances of his not-inconsiderable career. Forget every John Goodman role you've seen before - here he's downtrodden, brow-beaten, and the most intense screen presence in a movie that already has the intensity dialed up to eleven. It's his best work since Barton Fink, and one can only assume that Kevin Smith is already praising him as his own personal savior.

So where does that leave Red State? For those who want twists and action, there's plenty of both, and Smith still has a visual and verbal flair that's hard to deny. Those who prefer their movies to have some emotional engagement, and maybe a coherent plot, will be disappointed, however. Just like Smith's central message, the plot comes out as an impenetrable tangle of lost ideas and dead ends, and the film will leave you wondering who you were supposed to be rooting for all along.

Maybe God should have descended and smitten them all after all. Apart from John Goodman, of course.

3/5

Attack The Block (2011)

2011-11-11T09:08:00.000-08:00

If you've grown sick of Hollywood's bloated action movies over the last few years, and are secretly craving some good ol' fashioned low-budget thrills - I'm thinking of John Carpenter here, or Roger Corman - then there's little doubt that you'll want to check out Attack The Block.

That's not to say that first-time director Joe Cornish is in any way another Carpenter or Corman. Anyone who's caught his Adam and Joe Show appearances will know him better as a comedian than a director, and costar Adam Buxton has made a name for himself in comedy too, with his appearance in Hot Fuzz marking his career peak to date. There's certainly nothing to suggest that Cornish would be the next creature-feature sensation.

Attack The Block undoubtedly falls into that category, however, as it updates the cheap sci-fi thriller for the 21st century. Think of it as Assault On Precinct 13-meets-Not Of This Earth. With texting.

If that makes Attack The Block sound like a tacky B-movie, then I've done it a disservice - for this is a well-crafted, perfectly paced movie that isn't afraid to carve out its own niche. From the South London slang to the Rabid Ewok monsters, Cornish brings a unique vision to his debut feature without compromising on the excitement. It's fair to say that Attack The Block is simultaneously reminiscent of some of the low-budget action classics, and like nothing you've ever seen before.

It's November 5th, Bonfire Night, and fireworks are exploding across the London skyline. Amidst the explosions and mayhem the crash-landing of an alien meteor almost goes unnoticed. A group of young hoodie-wearing hoodlums come across the crashed extra terrestrial, however - and proceed to beat it to a pulp. They then drag it to see their pot-dealing friend, to see if they can stow it away and sell it to the press the following morning. It's probably E.T.'s worst nightmare.

This is only the beginning of their troubles, though, as it turns out that the creature they killed was a female - and there are hundreds of angry, horny males following close behind. As they descend on the council block our teen antiheroes have to fight for their lives, desperately trying to escape the rabid creatures and formulate anything resembling a plan.

What makes Attack The Block so refreshing is the combination of a savvy script and some intriguing visuals, the monsters leaping out of the dark like the warped personification of London's graffiti. By weaving his inner city setting together with the creature feature formula, Cornish has managed to create something that thrills on every level. When you bear in mind that he only has one mildly-bankable star (frequent Simon Pegg collaborator Nick Frost) this becomes a clear message to Hollywood - put your story ahead of your actors, and you'll come out smiling every time.

Of course, there may be some who find the London dialect too dense to take in, or the monsters too fuzzy to truly terrorize. But Attack The Block still stands as one of the most exciting debuts in recent memory, and a fine testament to the triumph of vision over bankroll. and enthusiasm over experience. Plus there are enough laughs for Joe Cornish (the comedian) to hold his head high.

Respect due.

4/5

The Next Three Days (2010)

2011-11-09T08:49:00.000-08:00

Anyone who's followed the career of director/screenwriter Paul Haggis will know that he's lived a charmed life. Starting out in TV with the likes of Due South and Walker, Texas Ranger, Haggis somehow managed to turn those humble beginnings into a solid Hollywood career. His 2004 writer-director credit on Oscar-nominated thriller Crash certainly helped, but it's hard to believe that the man behind lovable Mountie Benton Fraser also wrote the screenplays for both Casino Royale and Quantum Of Solace.

All of which makes The Next Three Days a disappointment. While not exactly bad, it's not exactly great either, and even if you can get beyond the ridiculous hole-filled plot and flabby opening hour the payoff feels emotionally light. This is closer to Walker, Texas Ranger than it is to Crash.

Still there are plenty of plot twists for those who like their thrillers to have a few surprises up their sleeves, and while the casting of Russell Crowe is slightly dubious (he spends most of the film looking tired and irritable) both he and Elizabeth Banks put in solid performances in the lead roles. Just don't expect to care what happens to them.

Lara Brennan (Banks) is accused of murder after the body of her boss is found in a parking lot, and all the evidence seems to point in her direction. Under normal circumstances you'd expect a Hollywood movie to spend all its time protesting her innocence, but here that never becomes an option - perhaps the most obvious sign that The Next Three Days is actually based upon a French movie, Pour Elle.

Instead, all the attempts by her husband John (Crowe) to have her conviction overturned meet with dead ends, and it looks like Lara may be spending a long, long time behind bars. John finally reaches the conclusion that his only option is to break her out of prison, aided by some inside info from veteran escapee Damon Pennington (Liam Neeson, in a brief cameo) - and it's here that all sense of reality starts to fly out the window.

Sure, husbands have tried to break their wife out of jail before - but John Brennan is supposed to be an honest, intelligent, respectable college tutor, and it's hard to buy his sudden dip into the criminal lifestyle. Maybe we're supposed to assume that he's reached the end of his tether, but Crowe doesn't look distraught so much as grouchy. And frankly, if I was about to stage a prison break I'd have tried to lose those few extra pounds.

The escape plan is complicated by the fact that Lara and John have a son, Luke, and it's this that makes John's actions even more unbelievable. Perhaps we might have bought that he was desperate to see his wife again, even to the extent of staging a prison break - but at the expense of his son? John largely ignores Luke for much of the film, before putting his life in danger by bringing him along when they're on the run from the law. He may be a devoted husband, but as a father he sucks.

It's this selfish streak that makes John and Lara surprisingly unlikable, and immediately shoots down any chance of empathy. Perhaps we're supposed to assume that John would do anything for love - but instead, it just seems that he'd do anything to get back in bed with Elizabeth Banks.

The Next Three Days still boasts some impressive twists (which I won't go into here, for obvious reasons), and the action sequences are nicely handled - but there's a lack of emotional involvement that ultimately makes it fall flat. What we're left with is a solid two hours of Prison Break-style entertainment, but nothing more. Maybe Paul Haggis's charmed life has reached its limit.

3/5

Transformers: Dark Of The Moon (2011)

2011-11-07T08:44:00.000-08:00

It's hard to think of a more willfully squandered movie franchise than Michael Bay's Transformers. The original movie was arguably the high point of Bay's career, a thrilling and often hilarious summer blockbuster that did exactly what it said on the can. It wasn't clever, but it was undeniably big - in all the right places.

Then came the sequels, however, and all that has been forgotten. Revenge Of The Fallen was a fourteen-year old boy's wet dream, but everyone else's worst nightmare, a flabby sequence of beautiful women, beautiful cars, enormous explosions, and very little else. When it did try to be funny, it just wound up being racially offensive - you have to wonder whether anyone beyond Bay's inner circle ever even looked at the script.

Unfortunately Transformers: Dark Of The Moon isn't much better, although there are at least some minor improvements. You know a director has reached rock bottom when a film's inconsistent tone can be seen as a positive.

We'd try to summarize the plot, but there really isn't much to summarize. During the war on Cybertron, it turns out that a ship carrying a new prototype weapon crashed on our moon. This was the real purpose behind the moon landings, and our governments have kept it secret from everyone all these years - including the Autobots.

When the Decepticons decide to go after the technology that the ship housed, however, the secret comes out, and the Autobots aren't happy. Then there's some fighting, and the world nearly ends. Or something.

Anyone who's ever watched a Michael Bay film will tell you that he's never been strong on story, but it's hard to see any of the wit and excitement that infused Bad Boys or The Rock here. Instead Bay seems to think that he's shooting an endless commercial for a new boys-own channel, preferring slow motion sequences of guns and flash cars to anything resembling a coherent storyline. Sure, his new toys look pretty cool - but the rest of us get bored of them fairly quickly.

His case isn't helped at all by Shia LaBeouf's Sam Witwicky, surely one of the most ridiculous and unlikable leading men in cinema history. Sam is grumpy, incompetent, brattish, ignorant... and yet he somehow both ends up with a beautiful woman and saves the world. Go figure.

Even more confusing is the long list of acting talent behind this movie, from John Malkovich and Frances McDormand to Hugo Weaving and Leonard Nimoy's voices as the CGI robots. One can only assume that the paychecks were too big to turn down, because there's nothing in the screenplay to attract talent of that caliber. Either that, or Michael Bay has some serious dirt on half of Hollywood.

The one true positive is that Transformers: Dark Of The Moon isn't quite as mind-blowingly terrible as Revenge Of The Fallen, but that's hardly a recommendation. The action sequences hold together well though, and if Bay had spent as much time on the story as he did on the CGI then he might have had a vaguely interesting blockbuster on his hands. As it is, Dark Of The Moon is good for nothing more than a few hours of mindless entertainment. And it's not even very good for that.

2/5

Submarine (2010)

2011-11-03T08:52:00.000-07:00

A coming-of-age teen sex comedy set in Swansea probably doesn't sound like a recipe for critical success, but first-time director Richard Ayoade comes at the genre with such a fresh approach that Submarine has won over audiences and critics alike.

If you're a fan of British comedy then there's a good chance that you'll already know Ayoade's work in front of the camera, as Maurice Moss in The I.T. Crowd and Saboo in The Mighty Boosh - but Submarine explores much deeper, darker waters than either TV show. In fact the 'sex comedy' tag is immediately misleading, as Submarine has more in common with Executive Producer Ben Stiller's Greenberg than American Pie, plumbing the depths of social inadequacy and romantic failure.

Even Stiller's name would have made that a hard sell, however, so the 'sex comedy' tag sticks. Just don't expect too many bare asses and masturbation jokes.

Oliver Tate (Craig Roberts) is a clumsy, geeky 15-year old who nonetheless has a ridiculously inflated sense of his own popularity. In reality he's an uncomfortable class nerd, but in his own head he's a debonaire - and highly popular - genius.

Submarine follows Oliver's (mis)adventures as he attempts to woo classmate Jordana (Yasmin Paige) and prevent his parents (Noah Taylor and Sally Hawkins) from splitting up. Matters reach a head when Oliver fails to turn up at the hospital when Jordana's mother is undergoing surgery, and his own mother strays from the marital bed by giving self-help guru Graham (Paddy Considine) a handjob in the back of his van.

If this all sounds a little gritty and sordid, that's because it is - and it's no surprise to see Mike Leigh favorite Sally Hawkins in one of the lead roles. Beneath the gritty surface lies a quirky sense of humor, however, and at times you'll find yourself laughing out loud without really knowing why. Sometimes laughter's just easier than the alternatives.

There's no doubt that Ayoade's directorial debut is a strange, dark beast, but he somehow manages to keep a thread of humanity running through the bleakness, largely thanks to Roberts' central performance. Deluded, self-important, and yet undeniably genuine, Oliver has to be one of the most realistic depictions of teenage angst that we've seen on the big screen.

Of course, for some viewers that still won't be a substitute for a slice of old fashioned American Pie. But even this bitter pill will leave you curiously satisfied.

4/5

X-Men: First Class (2011)

2011-10-21T11:08:00.000-07:00

If you ever wanted a case study in running a movie franchise into the ground, then look at X-Men. One of Marvel's most popular comic book lines, and boasting the likes of Wolverine and Professor X, X-Men should have been the most exciting superhero franchise on the block.

And it was, for a while. The original X-Men, and the sequel X2, were huge box office and critical successes, boasting a truly visionary director in Bryan Singer and some of the finest spandex-clad action since Superman first flew across our screens. The stories were complex, the characters well drawn - even the performances shone, in a genre where hamminess had become the order of the day.

Then Singer left to direct Superman Returns, however, and the X-Men rapidly began to slide. X-Men: The Last Stand was a muddled end to a rousing superhero epic, while X-Men Origins: Wolverine proved to be exactly the kind of cynical cash-in that its title suggested. While their Marvel comrade Iron Man seemed to go from strength to strength, the X-Men looked out for the count.

All of which makes X-Men: First Class an even more pleasant surprise. Taking the original X-Men backstory, and rewinding the action to the Sixties - giving the cast and the visuals a much-needed reboot along the way - X-Men: First Class is about as close as you can get to the buzz that surrounded Singer's first X-Men outing. The period look and historical detail help too, turning it into the perfect superhero fable for the post-Mad Men era. The villains even have an excuse for camping it up, now that we're back in the Swinging Sixties.

At first glance the ensemble cast may look a little light on major stars, but the good news is that director Matthew Vaughn (Kick-Ass) has gone for talent rather than box office credit. The British double-whammy of James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender as fledgeling friends/mortal enemies Charles Xavier (Professor X) and Erik Lensherr (Magneto) works some powerful chemistry, while Kevin Bacon makes for a shockingly entertaining supervillain (and no, he doesn't threaten the world with his evil dance moves).

The support cast are given plenty of room to shine too, making this a true ensemble effort. Jennifer Lawrence shows once again that she's one of the most exciting young actors around, while Zoe Kravitz and Nicholas Hoult head up the rest of the young talent. Oliver Platt's star still seems to be on the rise as well, and Mad Men's January Jones remains stuck in the Sixties as Emma Frost. There's even room for a hilarious cameo by Hugh Jackman - clearly X-Men Origins hasn't completely sapped his respect for the franchise.

The plot is disconcertingly convoluted at times, and the Cuban Missile Crisis backdrop doesn't always ring true, but X-Men: First Class is so packed with laughs, thrills, and all manner of frenetic fun that it can't help feeling like an unexpected second coming. Let's just hope that this time they don't run the franchise into the ground - when X-Men Origins: Havok comes around we'll know that they've truly lost the plot. Again.

4/5

Skyline (2010)

2011-10-17T08:51:00.000-07:00

In many ways low-budget sci-fi actioner Skyline makes a lot of sense.

The meager spending (under $20 million) ensured that even poor box office receipts would turn a profit. The stars are far from A-list but still recognizable, including Donald Faison (Turk from Scrubs), Eric Balfour (Milo from 24) and Scottie Thompson (erm, DiNozzo's girlfriend for a while in NCIS). The effects are surprisingly strong for a small production too, thanks to the involvement of the Brothers Strause, founders of effects company Hydraulx.

It's there, however, that Skyline stops making sense - because as soon as you start watching it, it rapidly becomes clear that this sci-fi flick is about as trashy as it gets.

If you can forget the amateurish acting for a moment (and believe me, you'll try to), there are enough holes in the plot for even the most casual sci-fi fan to drive the Millennium Falcon through. Aliens arrive unannounced overnight, hypnotizing humans with a beautiful blue light then sucking them up and eating their brains. Why do they do this? Because they're aliens, I guess...

Our heroes survive the first wave because they've passed out after a wild night of partying, but when the morning comes so does another wave of aliens, and another, and another. They also leave small craft (or maybe fellow aliens? who can tell?) behind, to mop up the survivors. And, yes, eat their brains. You may be spotting a common theme here.

The survivors proceed to run around for a while, sit on couches arguing, then run around some more. They achieve precisely nothing, and barely make it out of the apartment before they're forced back into it again. Clearly the budget didn't allow for too many sets.

Even the decision to bunker in the apartment seems ridiculous and inexplicable, given that it's perched at the top of a tall apartment building at a time when the structures around them are collapsing to rubble. Oh, and did we mention that it has floor-to-ceiling windows on almost every side? Now, that should make it easy to hide from the invading alien horde...

In the end Skyline tries to justify all this nonsense with an uncharacteristically daring twist, but by this point you'll have given up caring. Unless you're a fan of watching C-list actors running around an apartment shouting, Skyline doesn't have much to offer beyond the rather derivative visual effects. Except perhaps watching Dr. Turk being sucked up into a giant alien claw.

Given that Skyline aims to for a wild Independence Day-meets-Night of the Living Dead-meets-The Fly-meets-Cloverfield mashup, it's little surprise that it ends up as a soggy, goo-dripping mess. The good news is that it only lasts 94 minutes. The bad news? The Brothers Strause have already been talking about a sequel. Having your brain sucked out by an invading alien isn't starting to look so bad after all.

1/5

Win Win (2011)

2011-10-14T11:51:00.000-07:00

Is there a better actor to portray the downtrodden and the hopeless than Paul Giamatti? If there is, it's probably Jeffrey Tambor - so the fact that both of them appear in Win Win ensures that this indie sports drama lives up to its name.

Mike Flaherty (Giamatti) is a New Jersey attorney whose business is on the brink of going under. He also coaches the local High School wrestling team in his spare time, but the team isn't any more successful than his legal practice. It's little wonder that he suffers from regular panic attacks.

Things change for Mike, however, after he makes the unethical decision to act as legal guardian for one of his clients, Leo (Burt Young). Leo is swiftly shipped out to the local care home so Mike can turn an easy profit, but his grandson Kyle (Alex Shaffer) turns up unexpectedly, and in order to cover his tracks Mike has to take the troubled teenager under his wing.

It's here that Mike's fortunes start to change, and Win Win starts to truly take off. Shaffer oozes oddball teen charm as Kyle, and while he's about as far from the heartthrob role as you could imagine he still wins over both Mike and the audience. It's a performance that's rooted in teenage surliness, and yet somehow displays just the right amount of tenderness and heartbreaking vulnerability. You'll find it hard to believe that this is Shaffer's feature debut - keep an eye out for him in the future.

Giamatti is on top form as the oh-so-human attorney Mike Flaherty too, bearing the weight of the world on his slumped shoulders, and Amy Ryan gives yet another impressive turn as his slightly scary wife. It's Tambor and Will & Grace's Bobby Cannavale who bring the laughs to the table though, turning what might have been a competent sports movie into an entertaining comedy-drama. Without them Win Win would still have been a good film - but with their leavening touch, it occasionally flirts with greatness.

You'll still see the redemptive ending coming before anyone even hits the mat, but the performances alone ensure that Win Win rises above its feelgood roots. Throw in some sharp humor and an honesty and tenderness towards its subjects, and it quickly turns into a surprise indie hit. And that's a win-win for everyone.

4/5

Thor (2011)

2011-10-04T08:35:00.000-07:00

If there has been one overwhelming trend in Hollywood moviemaking so far this century, it's the unstoppable rise of Marvel Studios.

True, superhero movies have always brought in big bucks, but it's hard to think of a more artistically consistent or commercially successful run of spandex-wearing heroes than Marvel's Avengers series. If The Dark Knight hadn't already set the bar so high, most of them would be vying for the title of Best Superhero Movie of All Time. As it is, the list is still populated by Marvel films for much of the Top Ten.

If you were waiting for Marvel to slip up, then I'm afraid you'll have to look elsewhere. While some critics managed to manufacture flaws in Thor, Kenneth Branagh's addition to the Marvel canon, there truly aren't too many to be found. Sure, the plot is thin at best, and at times it feels derivative - but this is a blockbuster superhero movie, folks. Those pretty much come with the territory.

Where Thor delivers is in its energy and vibrancy, and for sheer unadulterated fun it proves tough to beat. You'd need more than a hammer to flatten this film.

Unlike your average superhero flick, Thor spends much of its opening half on another planet - but it smoothly turns this into a pleasure, as the visuals are piled on thick and fast. Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is about to be crowned ruler of Asgard, but his father, Odin (Anthony Hopkins), has his doubts about his son's temperament. When he picks a fight with the Frost Giants, Thor is banished to Earth, while his brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston) steps into his shoes.

There's plenty more to the plot than that, but most of Thor consists of our Norse hero struggling to cope with life on Earth, while earning his stripes to return to Asgard once again. Throw in some rather obvious treachery from Loki (anyone who knows their Norse mythology will have seen that coming), and the rest is mostly a steady stream of battle sequences and CGI visuals.

But when the CGI is this thrilling, we really don't mind.

Quite apart from the Asgard visuals - which are arguably the most exciting cinematic world-building since Bladerunner - there are some strong performances too, and while the plot doesn't amount to much the actors do their best to put some flesh on the characters. Hemsworth is all brawn and puffed-out-chest as Thor (if you think you've seen him before, you probably have - he played minor roles in both the reboot of Star Trek and the Hawaii thriller A Perfect Getaway); Hiddleston is Machiavellian cunning personified as Loki; Natalie Portman is wide-eyed but unusually likable as the love interest.

The smaller roles are well handled too, and there are some major cameos to savor here as the studio gears up for their long-awaited Avengers movie. Stellan Skarsgard, Kat Dennings, Ray Stevenson and Idris Elba all have significant supporting roles, but it's the short cameos that will truly have fans drooling. Jeremy Renner appears in an uncredited appearance as Hawkeye, Samuel L. Jackson delivers his usual postscript as Nick Fury, while Stan Lee... well, you'll just have to look out for Stan.

Thor undoubtedly still has its flaws, especially the derivative plot that seems to owe a debt to 1987's Masters of the Universe - but when a film's this exciting, and this fun, there's no reason to dig too deep. For sheer viewing enjoyment Thor matches Iron Man blow-for-blow, and that's really saying something. Bring on the The Avengers...

4/5

The Adjustment Bureau (2011)

2011-10-03T08:44:00.000-07:00

There will undoubtedly be plenty of reviewers who loved The Adjustment Bureau. After all, in a season that's looked noticeably light on intelligent thrillers, here's a movie that wears its philosophical and theological queries on its sleeve. The fact that it also raked in impressive box office receipts just goes to show that commercial success doesn't always have to come at the expense of a little smarts.

Matt Damon plays David Norris, a US Congressman who runs an unsuccessful campaign for the Senate. During his defeat he has a chance meeting with enigmatic beauty Elise (Emily Blunt) in a toilet stall. The encounter has a far-reaching impact on him, so when he spots her again several years later he can't wait to jump at the chance to get reunited.

There's one problem with this scenario, though - Elise and David were fated to never be together. The Adjustment Bureau runs on the premise that our lives are governed by an omniscient, sentient being called The Chairman, who sends his agents (the Adjustment Bureau of the title) out into the world to ensure that everything runs according to his grand design. They don't govern our every move - instead, they simply step in when we're straying from the path, gently prodding us back onto the right course with suggestion, telekinesis, and mind-erasing gizmos.

Sounds a little creepy? Well, yes, and if ever there was an argument against divine intervention then this is it. David Norris is naturally unhappy when he uncovers the truth, and he does everything he can to defy The Chairman and win Elise back - even when faced with the bureau's finest agent, the Hammer (Terence Stamp).

The religious undertones are so blatant that they're barely undertones at all, but it's hard to see exactly which side of the divine argument The Adjustment Bureau comes down on. One the one hand, the bureau's agents are heavy-handed, aggressively intrusive, and really not very likable. No one enjoys having their memories wiped. On the other hand, the ending suggests that The Chairman may not be all bad after all - just a little short-sighted, and heretically fallible. He's not malicious, just flawed.

Maybe it's a good thing that The Adjustment Bureau doesn't follow the usual Hollywood route by offering unambiguous answers for everything, but that doesn't stop it from becoming frustratingly obtuse and unfocused. We may not always want answers, but it would be nice if the filmmakers at least had an opinion.

Once you strip away The Adjustment Bureau's theological philosophizing it's remarkably thin too, drawing far too heavily on The Matrix for some of its action sequences, and losing all momentum in the closing act. Unless watching Matt Damon run around wearing a hat is your idea of thrilling cinema, the final minutes can't help but disappoint.

There are still some strong performances, and it's nice to see Mad Men's John Slattery in a sizable movie role (it always seemed wrong that Jon Hamm should win all the plaudits), but The Adjustment Bureau is never quite as smart as it thinks it is. But, given the subject matter, maybe it was destined to be that way.

2/5

The Eagle (2011)

2011-09-28T08:29:00.000-07:00

Before going any further with this review, I should admit to something. When I was a kid I loved Rosemary Sutcliff's novel The Eagle of the Ninth, on which Kevin Macdonald's film The Eagle is based - I read it multiple times, and it sparked off a mini-obsession with all things Roman.

Because of this, there's a good chance that I was predestined to enjoy The Eagle. After all, no matter what they did to the story, the overwhelming wave of nostalgia would always provide a heady trip. In my books Macdonald was onto a winning formula before anything even hit the screen.

Even so, The Eagle doesn't always deliver the goods, despite my sunny predisposition. There's much to like about it, including Macdonald's bleakly realistic vision and a talented cast - but somehow it never quite gets off the ground. It's not bad enough to register as a total disappointment, but there isn't the immediate surge of enthusiasm that I'd expected.

In part that's due to the casting, for despite the impressive list of talent on display not everyone suits their assigned role. Mark Strong has to take on a bizarre American accent, even though he's a British actor, on British soil, playing a British role. Donald Sutherland has one of the flimsiest roles of his career, consisting of little more than grinning inanely and slapping lots of people on the back. Even Channing Tatum struggles in the horribly miscast lead role, and his strong, silent performance leaves the movie lacking a charismatic leader at its core.

There - now I've got that off my chest, we can finally move on to the positives, because The Eagle is still a better film than these casting complaints may suggest. While the actors aren't always suited to their roles, the storytelling from Sutcliff's original remains strong, and Macdonald imbues Roman-occupied Britain with a wildness and savagery that lends their plight an added edge.

For those who didn't grow up on Sutcliff's novels, Tatum plays Marcus Flavius Aquila, a Roman centurion whose father was responsible for the ill-fated journey of the Ninth Legion north of Hadrian's Wall - five thousand men were lost, and the legion's standard, the eagle of the title, was lost in the wilderness. After an act of heroism cuts Marcus's own military career short, he sets off in search of the true story - and the eagle - with his native servant Esca (Jamie Bell).

The screenplay plays heavily upon this theme of righting the sins of our fathers, as well as the master-slave dynamic - without giving too much away, we can say that the relationship between Esca and Marcus undergoes at least one major upheaval.

The decision to portray the Romans with American accents probably seemed smart on paper too, even if it proves to be an unwanted distraction on the screen. It does mean that British actor Strong has to switch accents, which seems weirdly unnecessary, but at least Sutherland and Tatum get to act with their accents intact. Still, for a film that prides itself on gritty realism it's an uncharacteristically modern intrusion.

Tatum does his best with the role of Marcus, but in the end he's just too stoic to lend The Eagle the kind of blockbuster charm that it desperately needs. Macdonald has done a solid job with his material too, but as someone who grew up on Sutcliff's fiction the film can't help feeling a little lacklustre, as if the spark has gone missing in the translation to the screen.

The Eagle has still landed - but only just.

3/5

Source Code (2011)

2011-09-26T08:40:00.000-07:00

Some movies seem determined to make things difficult for reviewers, and Source Code certainly isn't easy for the critics to grapple with.

After all, how do you write about a movie which has so many twists that you can't discuss the plot without immediately giving the game away? We'll always try to avoid spoilers... but in Source Code everything from five minutes in could be considered a spoiler of sorts.

Of course, you can always talk about the director instead. Duncan Jones (aka Zowie Bowie) may only have one other feature film under his belt, but when that film happens to be the excellent Moon his CV is certainly not to be ignored. Both Moon and Source Code demonstrate an admirable grasp of the twisting, turning sci-fi thriller-of-ideas, and it's a subgenre that he seems to be rapidly turning into his speciality. If Inception hadn't already been made, you'd almost expect it to be the next production on his list.

(And yes, we're aware that this makes him sound like the next Christopher Nolan. We can only hope...)

You can discuss the actors too, and while there are no Oscar-worthy fireworks here, there are solid central performances from Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Monaghan and Vera Farmiga (we'll ignore Jeffrey Wright's bizarro accent and faux-nerdiness for now). No single actor shines, but there's an earnestness and honesty to the performances that props up the far-out plot just when it needs it.

But now we're back to the plot again - there's no getting away from it completely. Source Code relies so heavily on its mysterious twists that it's near-impossible to discuss the plot without giving away spoilers aplenty, but here's our best shot...

Helicopter pilot Colter Stevens (Gyllenhaal) last remembers being on a mission in Afghanistan, but he suddenly wakes to find himself boarding a train on the outskirts of Chicago. With him is Christina Warren (Monaghan), who apparently knows him as teacher Sean Fentress.

Confused yet? Well this is only the start. Within minutes the train explodes, killing everyone on board - and Stevens wakes to find himself wired-in to a weird sci-fi cockpit. Before he really gets a grip on what's happening he's suddenly transported back to the same train journey again, sitting next to the same people, and with the same result. Ka-boom.

Then he's back in the cockpit again...

This pattern repeats itself throughout the film, so you might as well get used to it. The repetition has led some reviewers to compare Source Code to Groundhog Day, but all similarity ends there. Instead, Source Code relies on a central double mystery for its thrills: Who rigged the commuter train to explode? And what the hell is happening to Jake Gyllenhaal?

Neither answer is particularly mind-blowing, but by the time we get there you won't really mind. Source Code succeeds best as entertainment rather than logic puzzle, and it packs so many twists and turns into its 93-minute running time that you'll barely find a free moment to leave the edge of your seat. Even if Gyllenhaal's earnestness proves to be too much for some, the plot keeps driving forward at such a relentless pace that it's easy to ignore the fact that he's simply reprising his usual pretty-but-dumb role.

Purists may take issue with Source Code's preference for thrills over smarts, but it's hard to argue with the end results. Jones can definitely handle pace, and Moon proved that he could deal with a little sci-fi philosophizing too. If he could just put the two together, then we might get really excited.

4/5

Hanna (2011)

2011-09-19T08:52:00.000-07:00

When Saoirse Ronan and director Joe Wright made their Hollywood splash with Atonement, the period drama based on Ian McEwan's novel, few people could have predicted that an all-out action thriller would lie in their future. In fact, it's hard to think of a genre more diametrically opposed to Atonement's subtle undertones and character studies.

Ronan and Wright have paired up again for Hanna, however, and it's soon clear that this is no Atonement. As Eric Bana trains Ronan in survival techniques and martial arts in a snowy wilderness, it feels a long way away from Atonement's thriller-of-manners.

Fortunately Hanna is strong enough to stand on its own merits, and it's realized with such a flourish that even fans of the period drama might find something to like amidst its gun battles and stylized fight sequences. This isn't your typical Hollywood no-brainer action flick, at times striking a tone somewhere midway between the arthouse and the multiplex. Think of it as a twist on modern French classic Leon - only here the young girl is the deadly assassin.

For some audiences the teenage-girl-as-lethal-killer plot may stretch disbelief a little too much, but if you can accept this one outlandish premise then the rest falls into place - just sit back and enjoy the ride. Ronan imbues the role with just the right blend of cold distance and heartwarming vulnerability too, so the leap is never a huge one.

Hanna (Ronan) has been raised by her father (Bana) in preparation for an unexplained battle that lies in her future. She's as tough and as lean as you'd expect for someone who's lived hand-to-mouth in a snowy wilderness for most of her life, and she has some wicked moves as well. Hanna has to be the most kick-ass female lead since Kick-Ass.

When her father finally decides she's ready, he flicks a switch on a transmitter and declares their presence to the world. The flick of a switch might not sound like much of a signal, but it's picked up by CIA agent Marissa Wiegler (Cate Blanchett), and all hell swiftly breaks loose. There's clearly some history between Bana and Blanchett, but we won't give too much away here - the twists are too good to be ruined by spoilers.

Where Hanna really shines is in the action sequences, though, and even if you don't buy into the twisting, turning plot then you'll still sit slack-jawed in admiration of the film's sights and sounds. The Chemical Brothers' soundtrack is as frenetic and thrilling as anything on the screen, while Wright shows that he's just as accomplished with full-blown action scenes as he is with simmering tension.

That Hanna manages to blend genuine characterization with the excesses of the thriller genre is reason enough to see it. With a trio of excellent performances from its star cast too (and a gloriously psychotic turn from Tom Hollander) this is one killer story that you won't want to miss. Don't be fooled - Hanna doesn't pull any punches.

4/5