Tampilkan postingan dengan label Movie Reviews. Tampilkan semua postingan
Tampilkan postingan dengan label Movie Reviews. Tampilkan semua postingan
Spider-man Homecoming Review
The hype is good for Spider-Man Homecoming, as it comes home to Marvel Studios (sort of)
We got our first glimpse of the rebooted / re imagined (fill in your own Hollywood bullshit term here)
web slinger in Captain America Civil War. Tom Holland's Spidey was on point, but his Peter Parker was a bit off. Thankfully though, Holland's performance in Homecoming is nothing less than stellar! In fact, his Peter Parker is leaps and bounds ahead of his Spidey!
Plot wise, Homecoming is a bit on the standard side. Hero coming of age type deal, fattened up with short appearances from Iron-Man / Tony Stark. Throw in Michael Keaton as the Vulture and you have a movie that entertains when and where it should but ultimately falls down with too much meandering exposition and scenes that seem to drag on for an eternity.
While audiences won't have to endure another origin story, the movie still drags it's heels and takes, what feels like an eternity to get going. When it does get going, it's fantastic. Some top notch set pieces (tragically given away in the 10 billion trailers and clips that were released) abound and are genuinely spectacular to watch.
The humor Marvel fans have come to love is here too with Parker's best friend, Ned (Jacob Batalon) providing much of the hilarity. And yes, there's plenty of visual gags and little "blink and you'll miss them" nods throughout.
The aforementioned Tom Holland plays a blinder, and I do wonder about Robert Downey Jr. Nobody plays Tony Stark better, but he seems just here for the sake of it, in case Holland wasn't able to carry the movie on his shoulders. And carry it he does! Michael Keaton, channeling some Birdman is fantastic as The Vulture. Genuinely one of the best things about the movie and outside of Loki, is certainly the most interesting Marvel big screen villain to date.
Overall, far from a disaster, Spider-Man Homecoming does entertain, but it's bogged down with scenes that drag you back out of the web it does such a good job of capturing you with (enough of the spidey puns)
Worth a watch! Just!!!
We got our first glimpse of the rebooted / re imagined (fill in your own Hollywood bullshit term here)
web slinger in Captain America Civil War. Tom Holland's Spidey was on point, but his Peter Parker was a bit off. Thankfully though, Holland's performance in Homecoming is nothing less than stellar! In fact, his Peter Parker is leaps and bounds ahead of his Spidey!
Plot wise, Homecoming is a bit on the standard side. Hero coming of age type deal, fattened up with short appearances from Iron-Man / Tony Stark. Throw in Michael Keaton as the Vulture and you have a movie that entertains when and where it should but ultimately falls down with too much meandering exposition and scenes that seem to drag on for an eternity.
While audiences won't have to endure another origin story, the movie still drags it's heels and takes, what feels like an eternity to get going. When it does get going, it's fantastic. Some top notch set pieces (tragically given away in the 10 billion trailers and clips that were released) abound and are genuinely spectacular to watch.
The humor Marvel fans have come to love is here too with Parker's best friend, Ned (Jacob Batalon) providing much of the hilarity. And yes, there's plenty of visual gags and little "blink and you'll miss them" nods throughout.
The aforementioned Tom Holland plays a blinder, and I do wonder about Robert Downey Jr. Nobody plays Tony Stark better, but he seems just here for the sake of it, in case Holland wasn't able to carry the movie on his shoulders. And carry it he does! Michael Keaton, channeling some Birdman is fantastic as The Vulture. Genuinely one of the best things about the movie and outside of Loki, is certainly the most interesting Marvel big screen villain to date.
Overall, far from a disaster, Spider-Man Homecoming does entertain, but it's bogged down with scenes that drag you back out of the web it does such a good job of capturing you with (enough of the spidey puns)
Worth a watch! Just!!!
Baby Driver Review
It’s no secret that Edgar Wright is a goddamn wizard in the editing suite. From his time on sitcom Spaced to Shaun of the Dead and right on through to Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, he has wowed audiences with his mastery of head spinning smash cuts and dizzying close ups. Couple that with his inventive, charming and funny scripts, every movie he delivers should be considered a big deal. But his latest, Baby Driver, is different. Percolating in his brain since 1994, this stylish fast paced heist movie is his masterpiece, an editing tour de force that marries its actions perfectly with a killer soundtrack, and proves an action movie can be as smart as it is thrilling.
Baby (Ansel Elgort) is the best getaway driver in the business, a real “Mozart in a go-kart”. Suffering from permanent tinnitus, the result of a car accident that killed both his parents, he relies on an endless stream of music to drown it out, living his life to the beat of his own personal soundtrack. In debt to criminal mastermind Doc (Kevin Spacey), he serves him as driver for all his nefarious plans. But when he falls for a waitress named Debora (Lily James), Baby finds leaving his life of crime is harder than he expected.
Wright wastes no time in letting you what you are in for with it’s fast paced opening which will have you on the edge of your seat just as you have settled in. The whole movie plays as a musical as the likes of T. Rex, Golden Earring, and Queen fade in and out, with characters moving in time to their infectious beat. Gun shots ring out in time with every drumbeat, tires squeal with every guitar riff. The action moves as fast as Baby drives, and it’s awe-inspiring that Wright was able to keep up with it. Any other director would have got lost in the jumble of spinning tires and streaking headlights, but Wright has planned every set piece with meticulous precision. Everything he wants you to see is up on the screen in crisp, clear detail, making for some of the most exhilarating action sequences you’ve seen all year.
But it’s not all about fast cars and daring heists. The story at Baby Driver’s heart is incredibly sweet and charming, and while it’s a simple 'The Boy finding a way out of his horrible life in the arms of The Girl’ type tale, Wright’s sharp and witty script makes it so much more than that. From the whip smart dialogue to the quieter, character driven moments, it rarely puts a foot wrong. The narrative may slow down in the second act, it’s needed as both a palate cleanser for what came before and getting you ready for the seriously manic final act. The hard turn it takes will hit you out of nowhere, but it feels totally earned and is the perfect crescendo for this intoxicating piece of film making.
The assembled cast is another home run for Wright, with Elgort incredibly likeable and endearing as Baby, making all his little quirks, from a seemingly endless supply of sunglasses to an iPod for every mode, feel natural and organic. James works well against Elgort as the bubbly Debora, their growing relationship never feeling forced, but she does feel underwritten at times. The supporting cast compliment the main pair perfectly. Spacey is having a blast as the menacing Doc, bagging the best lines and clearly relishing every time they leave his lips. He’s challenged in the intensity stakes by Jamie Foxx’s psychotic Bats, and Baby’s criminal crew is rounded out by high class Bonnie and Clyde-alikes Buddy and Darling (Jon Hamm and Eiza González), who become so much more than the comic relief they first appear to be.
Ambitious and utterly original, Baby Driver is a truly dazzling spectacle. You won’t see the likes of this too often (maybe never again), so get to the cinema now!!!!
Baby (Ansel Elgort) is the best getaway driver in the business, a real “Mozart in a go-kart”. Suffering from permanent tinnitus, the result of a car accident that killed both his parents, he relies on an endless stream of music to drown it out, living his life to the beat of his own personal soundtrack. In debt to criminal mastermind Doc (Kevin Spacey), he serves him as driver for all his nefarious plans. But when he falls for a waitress named Debora (Lily James), Baby finds leaving his life of crime is harder than he expected.
Wright wastes no time in letting you what you are in for with it’s fast paced opening which will have you on the edge of your seat just as you have settled in. The whole movie plays as a musical as the likes of T. Rex, Golden Earring, and Queen fade in and out, with characters moving in time to their infectious beat. Gun shots ring out in time with every drumbeat, tires squeal with every guitar riff. The action moves as fast as Baby drives, and it’s awe-inspiring that Wright was able to keep up with it. Any other director would have got lost in the jumble of spinning tires and streaking headlights, but Wright has planned every set piece with meticulous precision. Everything he wants you to see is up on the screen in crisp, clear detail, making for some of the most exhilarating action sequences you’ve seen all year.
But it’s not all about fast cars and daring heists. The story at Baby Driver’s heart is incredibly sweet and charming, and while it’s a simple 'The Boy finding a way out of his horrible life in the arms of The Girl’ type tale, Wright’s sharp and witty script makes it so much more than that. From the whip smart dialogue to the quieter, character driven moments, it rarely puts a foot wrong. The narrative may slow down in the second act, it’s needed as both a palate cleanser for what came before and getting you ready for the seriously manic final act. The hard turn it takes will hit you out of nowhere, but it feels totally earned and is the perfect crescendo for this intoxicating piece of film making.
The assembled cast is another home run for Wright, with Elgort incredibly likeable and endearing as Baby, making all his little quirks, from a seemingly endless supply of sunglasses to an iPod for every mode, feel natural and organic. James works well against Elgort as the bubbly Debora, their growing relationship never feeling forced, but she does feel underwritten at times. The supporting cast compliment the main pair perfectly. Spacey is having a blast as the menacing Doc, bagging the best lines and clearly relishing every time they leave his lips. He’s challenged in the intensity stakes by Jamie Foxx’s psychotic Bats, and Baby’s criminal crew is rounded out by high class Bonnie and Clyde-alikes Buddy and Darling (Jon Hamm and Eiza González), who become so much more than the comic relief they first appear to be.
Ambitious and utterly original, Baby Driver is a truly dazzling spectacle. You won’t see the likes of this too often (maybe never again), so get to the cinema now!!!!
Transformers: The Last Knight Review
It’s been ten years since Michael Bay put his own explosion heavy spin on Transformers, and while the hardcore fans of Hasbro’s toys that turn into other toys hate Bayformers more than Garfield hates Mondays, the four movie ride was enjoyable for the most part, despite some ups and downs (racial insensitivity, objectification of women, ludicrously long runtimes. Y’know, the Bay trademarks). Now, the Master of Bayhem is ready to take his leave of the franchise with The Last Knight, but rather than bidding farewell with a bang, he delivers an incomprehensible mess of everything his critics lambast him for that will fill you with dread when you realise Paramount wants to spin a shared universe off this pile of garbage.
The story is business as usual: there’s an ancient McGuffin (in this case an artefact that reaches back to the time of King Arthur) the bad guys want, the Autobots and Mark Wahlberg’s Cade Yaeger have to stop them, and the military are stuck in the middle. Cue explosions, shed loads of special effects, and vague attempts at humour. The only difference here is that it makes even less sense than what came before, making the bloated 149 minute runtime that much more unbearable. Throwing in an ancient prophecy (isn’t there always one of those?) and delving into the secret history of the Transformers on Earth, it trips from one plot point to the other with no real rhyme or reason as if the writer’s room assembled for the Transformers shared universe just wrote down whatever popped into their heads. If you actually enjoyed the series so far, prepare to have your intelligence insulted as everything that has come before is completely contradicted or made null and void as the movie bends over backwards to squeeze even more milage out the concept (and I know that continuity is anyone’s real concern with these movies, but there are some major reveals here that immediately fall apart under any type of scrutiny that came off as just plain lazy). Just to compound the movie’s problems even more, Bay has decided to present the movie is three different aspect ratios. This is nothing new, but while this practise is usually used to make action scenes pop that much more, Bay will cycle through them in one scene of just two people talking, the ratios changing what feels like every two minutes. It soon grates heavily on your nerves, and makes watching the movie a massive chore.
After an hour of exposition, The Last Knight finally kicks into high gear with some state of the art special effects and impressive action, and Bay plays to these strengths as you would expect him to. Too bad that after the first set piece we’re treated to, you’re hit over the head with another 30 minute deluge of exposition. The characters don’t help matters at all, with Wahlberg imbuing Yaeger with all the spirt and enthusiasm of an actor just waiting on a paycheque. The returning Josh Duhamel, John Turtturo and Stanley Tucci (oddly NOT playing his character from Age of Extinction) sleepwalk through their roles, and newcomers Anthony Hopkins, Isabela Moner, and Laura Haddock struggle with the weak script. Hopkins is especially cringe worthy, coming across as a hip (in his own mind) dementia patient.
The much ballyhooed heel turn from Optimus Prime that is plastered over every piece of advertising doesn’t add up to much more than a cheap gimmick, with the character having a grand total of 20 minutes of screen time. The rest of the digital cast do look spectacular (a giant junk bot voiced by Steve Buscemi is especially impressive), but the cast of Transformers is so bloated that characters just drop in and out of proceedings. The movies big bad, Transformers creator Quintessa, makes no impact whatsoever. The returning Decepticons figure heavily into the movie’s first act then disappear until they are hastily reassembled for the finale. Even the Autobots, the heroes of the piece and the things the movie is named after, don’t get much to do, with much of the story revolving around Wahlberg. I know this has been a major factor in the Bayformers so far, but at least he tried to hide that fact before. Now, it’s like he does;t even care anymore.
Bloated, incomprehensible, and downright insulting, Transformers: The Last Knight takes every bad thing a Summer blockbuster can be and do, and turns it all the way up to eleven.
The story is business as usual: there’s an ancient McGuffin (in this case an artefact that reaches back to the time of King Arthur) the bad guys want, the Autobots and Mark Wahlberg’s Cade Yaeger have to stop them, and the military are stuck in the middle. Cue explosions, shed loads of special effects, and vague attempts at humour. The only difference here is that it makes even less sense than what came before, making the bloated 149 minute runtime that much more unbearable. Throwing in an ancient prophecy (isn’t there always one of those?) and delving into the secret history of the Transformers on Earth, it trips from one plot point to the other with no real rhyme or reason as if the writer’s room assembled for the Transformers shared universe just wrote down whatever popped into their heads. If you actually enjoyed the series so far, prepare to have your intelligence insulted as everything that has come before is completely contradicted or made null and void as the movie bends over backwards to squeeze even more milage out the concept (and I know that continuity is anyone’s real concern with these movies, but there are some major reveals here that immediately fall apart under any type of scrutiny that came off as just plain lazy). Just to compound the movie’s problems even more, Bay has decided to present the movie is three different aspect ratios. This is nothing new, but while this practise is usually used to make action scenes pop that much more, Bay will cycle through them in one scene of just two people talking, the ratios changing what feels like every two minutes. It soon grates heavily on your nerves, and makes watching the movie a massive chore.
After an hour of exposition, The Last Knight finally kicks into high gear with some state of the art special effects and impressive action, and Bay plays to these strengths as you would expect him to. Too bad that after the first set piece we’re treated to, you’re hit over the head with another 30 minute deluge of exposition. The characters don’t help matters at all, with Wahlberg imbuing Yaeger with all the spirt and enthusiasm of an actor just waiting on a paycheque. The returning Josh Duhamel, John Turtturo and Stanley Tucci (oddly NOT playing his character from Age of Extinction) sleepwalk through their roles, and newcomers Anthony Hopkins, Isabela Moner, and Laura Haddock struggle with the weak script. Hopkins is especially cringe worthy, coming across as a hip (in his own mind) dementia patient.
The much ballyhooed heel turn from Optimus Prime that is plastered over every piece of advertising doesn’t add up to much more than a cheap gimmick, with the character having a grand total of 20 minutes of screen time. The rest of the digital cast do look spectacular (a giant junk bot voiced by Steve Buscemi is especially impressive), but the cast of Transformers is so bloated that characters just drop in and out of proceedings. The movies big bad, Transformers creator Quintessa, makes no impact whatsoever. The returning Decepticons figure heavily into the movie’s first act then disappear until they are hastily reassembled for the finale. Even the Autobots, the heroes of the piece and the things the movie is named after, don’t get much to do, with much of the story revolving around Wahlberg. I know this has been a major factor in the Bayformers so far, but at least he tried to hide that fact before. Now, it’s like he does;t even care anymore.
Bloated, incomprehensible, and downright insulting, Transformers: The Last Knight takes every bad thing a Summer blockbuster can be and do, and turns it all the way up to eleven.
Twice Shy Review
With a style influenced by American made indie movies, making him stand out from the ever growing crop of Irish directors, Tom Ryan quietly made his mark on the film scene with 2014’s Trampoline, a touching and personal micro-budget coming of age drama that dealt with ones struggle with finidnging their place in the world. For his second feature, Twice Shy, the budget is that bit bigger, the story much more topical, but the result is no less intimate.
With Repeal the Eighth heavy on the mind of almost every Irish person at the moment, the release of Twice Shy couldn’t be more timely, concerning young couple Andy and Maggie (Shane Murray-Corcoran and Iseult Casey) as they make the trip from Maggie’s home in Tipperary to London to deal with her unplanned pregnancy. As their journey unfolds in relative silence, we dip in and out of snippets of their past, shedding light on their relationship’s sweet beginnings and the circumstances that brought them to their current situation.
While it does tackle some heavy themes, from abortion to an expert handling of the subject of depression, the beauty of Twice Shy is that it doesn’t trivialise or priorities them. It presents them in a fair and balanced way that will make you think, but doesn’t let them get in the way of a truly wonderful story. From the opening frame, you are in this with Andy and Maggie, and as the story unfolds you will find yourself becoming more and more invested. The run time may be slim, 76 minutes, but every available ounce of story is wrung from this narrative, the incredibly smart and witty script (also written by Ryan) dropping details in very subtle and satisfying ways. The story may seem simple at first, but as it moves forward the lines are coloured in, spinning it off in some unexpected ways, and bringing with it it’s fair share of emotional gut punches. But for every trip through the emotional wringer, the movie deliver will deliver a moment of true sweetness, including a strong contender for my line of the year that make will make you laugh due to just how Irish and inappropriate it is.
The small cast do wonders with material, with Casey and Murray-Corcoran breathing life into the already well-rounded characters. We watch this young pair grow up in front of our eyes, with Casey especially becoming a different character by the time credits roll. They spark off each other wonderfully, and really sell every aspect of their relationship, with good and bad. The old guard, Pat Shortt and Ardal O’Hanlon (playing their respective father figures) offer able support, with O’Hanlon putting in a powerhouse performance with a truly genuine portrayal of dealing with depression.
Sweet and thought provoking, Twice Shy is a powerful yet simple movie that is the perfect antidote for those looking for something beyond the typical CGI laden Summer blockbuster.
With Repeal the Eighth heavy on the mind of almost every Irish person at the moment, the release of Twice Shy couldn’t be more timely, concerning young couple Andy and Maggie (Shane Murray-Corcoran and Iseult Casey) as they make the trip from Maggie’s home in Tipperary to London to deal with her unplanned pregnancy. As their journey unfolds in relative silence, we dip in and out of snippets of their past, shedding light on their relationship’s sweet beginnings and the circumstances that brought them to their current situation.
While it does tackle some heavy themes, from abortion to an expert handling of the subject of depression, the beauty of Twice Shy is that it doesn’t trivialise or priorities them. It presents them in a fair and balanced way that will make you think, but doesn’t let them get in the way of a truly wonderful story. From the opening frame, you are in this with Andy and Maggie, and as the story unfolds you will find yourself becoming more and more invested. The run time may be slim, 76 minutes, but every available ounce of story is wrung from this narrative, the incredibly smart and witty script (also written by Ryan) dropping details in very subtle and satisfying ways. The story may seem simple at first, but as it moves forward the lines are coloured in, spinning it off in some unexpected ways, and bringing with it it’s fair share of emotional gut punches. But for every trip through the emotional wringer, the movie deliver will deliver a moment of true sweetness, including a strong contender for my line of the year that make will make you laugh due to just how Irish and inappropriate it is.
The small cast do wonders with material, with Casey and Murray-Corcoran breathing life into the already well-rounded characters. We watch this young pair grow up in front of our eyes, with Casey especially becoming a different character by the time credits roll. They spark off each other wonderfully, and really sell every aspect of their relationship, with good and bad. The old guard, Pat Shortt and Ardal O’Hanlon (playing their respective father figures) offer able support, with O’Hanlon putting in a powerhouse performance with a truly genuine portrayal of dealing with depression.
Sweet and thought provoking, Twice Shy is a powerful yet simple movie that is the perfect antidote for those looking for something beyond the typical CGI laden Summer blockbuster.
The Lost Arcade Review
Chinatown Fair is a name that will be quite familiar to some and completely alien to others. Either way, there's not too many video game arcades that will have their story told in movie form! Set in New York's Chinatown, The Lost Arcade documents the dominance of video game arcade culture in the 80s and 90s as well as it's eventual demise to consoles, all centrally located in a very old school arcade called Chinatown Fair.
Amidst a flurry of hadoukens and some fantastic footage of video games of yesteryear, it would be too easy to crowbar this wonderful piece of film into something about video games. It addresses lots of points in it's 79 minute long running time. From the bigger and better arcades, the rise of the consoles to the arcades ultimate demise and it's subsequent rising from the ashes. Ultimately though, it concentrates on the people. This isn't a video game documentary, this is a people documentary. Their sense of spirit, community and emotions are all on display here and while the world evolves into VR and Live Streaming, it's easy to see the impact that Chinatown Fair had on it's regulars. And the movie makes you care not only about the arcade itself, but it's people and what it stood for and created.
While it lingers and drags it's heels on occasion, the movie manages to move at a wonderful, solid and enveloping pace. You'll find yourself captivated by the story and fully engaged in the interviews. We all knew an arcade like Chinatown Fair. No matter where you are in the world and no matter what age you were. Everybody has found memories of their arcade travels. Sure, the games were fun. I recall my first time playing Ghosts 'n Goblins, Commando and having my mind completely blow away by Rastan Saga. But it was always about the friends you played with. The laughs you had. The Lost Arcade will drum up all those emotions and then some.
Simply wonderful! Check it out right now on iTunes!
Amidst a flurry of hadoukens and some fantastic footage of video games of yesteryear, it would be too easy to crowbar this wonderful piece of film into something about video games. It addresses lots of points in it's 79 minute long running time. From the bigger and better arcades, the rise of the consoles to the arcades ultimate demise and it's subsequent rising from the ashes. Ultimately though, it concentrates on the people. This isn't a video game documentary, this is a people documentary. Their sense of spirit, community and emotions are all on display here and while the world evolves into VR and Live Streaming, it's easy to see the impact that Chinatown Fair had on it's regulars. And the movie makes you care not only about the arcade itself, but it's people and what it stood for and created.
While it lingers and drags it's heels on occasion, the movie manages to move at a wonderful, solid and enveloping pace. You'll find yourself captivated by the story and fully engaged in the interviews. We all knew an arcade like Chinatown Fair. No matter where you are in the world and no matter what age you were. Everybody has found memories of their arcade travels. Sure, the games were fun. I recall my first time playing Ghosts 'n Goblins, Commando and having my mind completely blow away by Rastan Saga. But it was always about the friends you played with. The laughs you had. The Lost Arcade will drum up all those emotions and then some.
Simply wonderful! Check it out right now on iTunes!
Wonder Woman Review
Whenever you talk about Warner Bros. and the DCEU, there’s alway that voice that is screaming in the back of your head, “What took you so long?”. Time Warner bought DC Comics in 1989, and we only got Batman and Superman sharing the big screen in 2016? What took you so long!!!!???? That statement goes double for the shared universe’s latest installment, Wonder Woman. Not only is she DC’s most iconic heroine, but the current superhero movie fad has been around for almost a decade, and we’re only now giving the girls a chance? I’m not being political here. Super hero fatigue set in quite quickly, and no one thought to shake things up with a female super hero till now. Anyway, Wonder Woman not only has the pressure of being the first female led super hero flick, but given the less than stellar track record of the DCEU so far, a lot of is riding on this one to turn the burgeoning shared universe around. So let’s see if it does.
Gal Gadot may have made her first appearance as Wonder Woman in the present day in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, but we're in origin mode here, with light been shed on Wonder Woman’s past as Amazon princess Diana, growing up on the Amazon warriors isolated home of Themiscrya, and obsessed with the prophecy that only the Amazon’s can defeat Ares the God of War whenever he inevitably resurface after been defeated by Zeus centuries before. When World War I reaches the island's pristine shores, along with U.S. spy Steve Trevor (Chris Pine), Diana is sure Ares is to blame for the great war, and ventures out into the world of man to defeat him.
From the opening frame, Wonder Woman is everything Man of Steel, Batman v Superman, and Suicide Squad were not: earnest, thrilling, and, above all else, entertaining. There is a definite shift in tone form the grim darkness that proceeded it, but it’s not the 180 shift to the Marvel Studios style of super hero movies many people expected. It’s more of a recalibration (though there is plenty of fish out of the water humour when Diana arrives in London, but it’s toned down before it gets too grating), director Patty Jenkins injecting a bit more heart into proceedings than what came before. There’s still a darkness to it, especially when dealing with the horrors of a very real war, but it’s tempered nicely by a genuine sense of hopefulness. The period setting goes a long way to making this feel fresh, much in the same way it worked for Captain America: The First Avenger, and the narrative moves forward at a brisk pace. Once it gets going, that is. The first act is a bit of slog in terms of setting up the story (though it does give us one of the movie’s stand out set pieces), but once Diana leaves Themiscrya, or Exposition Island as I’ve come to call it, the wheel spinning starts to slow down, and we’re thrust into the main story.
Things really get going once the action reaches the front, and Diana stands fully revealed as Wonder Woman in the bravura No Man’s Land sequence. Never has an action sequence felt more earned as this one. Sure, we’ve glimpsed it in the trailer, but that won't prepare you for how triumphant this scene will leave you feeling, as Diana singlehandedly rips through the German forces without breaking a sweat. And the bulk of that is down to Gadot's performance. The Wonder Woman we’ve met before was a jaded badass, not so here. This spirited, naive version of Diana is incredibly endearing, Gadot possessing a sweet innocence and intense ferocity that work well in tandem with each other.
The rest of the action works well, even if Jenkins relies on slo-mo a bit too much, and the odd dodgy effect slips through the cracks. But they can’t really hold a candle to Diana crossing No Man’s Land. The same can be said of the supporting cast compared to the movie’s lead. Pine plays the familiar love interest role well enough, sparking off Gadot nicely. The main villains, Danny Huston’s Colonel Ludendorff and Elena Anaya’s Dr. Poison, are ill served by the movie’s plot, reduced to the same moustache twirling, cackling (quite literally at one point) bad guys we’ve seen time and time again. Ares had the potential to be a compelling villain, but we spend so little time with him, that he becomes just another throwaway bad guy.
While Wonder Woman has some flaws, the redemption of the DCEU begins here with this thrilling adventure that also proves, when it comes to super heroics on the big screen, the girls can do it just as well as the boys. Lets hope the DCEU installments that follow reach the high bar set by this one.
Gal Gadot may have made her first appearance as Wonder Woman in the present day in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, but we're in origin mode here, with light been shed on Wonder Woman’s past as Amazon princess Diana, growing up on the Amazon warriors isolated home of Themiscrya, and obsessed with the prophecy that only the Amazon’s can defeat Ares the God of War whenever he inevitably resurface after been defeated by Zeus centuries before. When World War I reaches the island's pristine shores, along with U.S. spy Steve Trevor (Chris Pine), Diana is sure Ares is to blame for the great war, and ventures out into the world of man to defeat him.
From the opening frame, Wonder Woman is everything Man of Steel, Batman v Superman, and Suicide Squad were not: earnest, thrilling, and, above all else, entertaining. There is a definite shift in tone form the grim darkness that proceeded it, but it’s not the 180 shift to the Marvel Studios style of super hero movies many people expected. It’s more of a recalibration (though there is plenty of fish out of the water humour when Diana arrives in London, but it’s toned down before it gets too grating), director Patty Jenkins injecting a bit more heart into proceedings than what came before. There’s still a darkness to it, especially when dealing with the horrors of a very real war, but it’s tempered nicely by a genuine sense of hopefulness. The period setting goes a long way to making this feel fresh, much in the same way it worked for Captain America: The First Avenger, and the narrative moves forward at a brisk pace. Once it gets going, that is. The first act is a bit of slog in terms of setting up the story (though it does give us one of the movie’s stand out set pieces), but once Diana leaves Themiscrya, or Exposition Island as I’ve come to call it, the wheel spinning starts to slow down, and we’re thrust into the main story.
Things really get going once the action reaches the front, and Diana stands fully revealed as Wonder Woman in the bravura No Man’s Land sequence. Never has an action sequence felt more earned as this one. Sure, we’ve glimpsed it in the trailer, but that won't prepare you for how triumphant this scene will leave you feeling, as Diana singlehandedly rips through the German forces without breaking a sweat. And the bulk of that is down to Gadot's performance. The Wonder Woman we’ve met before was a jaded badass, not so here. This spirited, naive version of Diana is incredibly endearing, Gadot possessing a sweet innocence and intense ferocity that work well in tandem with each other.
The rest of the action works well, even if Jenkins relies on slo-mo a bit too much, and the odd dodgy effect slips through the cracks. But they can’t really hold a candle to Diana crossing No Man’s Land. The same can be said of the supporting cast compared to the movie’s lead. Pine plays the familiar love interest role well enough, sparking off Gadot nicely. The main villains, Danny Huston’s Colonel Ludendorff and Elena Anaya’s Dr. Poison, are ill served by the movie’s plot, reduced to the same moustache twirling, cackling (quite literally at one point) bad guys we’ve seen time and time again. Ares had the potential to be a compelling villain, but we spend so little time with him, that he becomes just another throwaway bad guy.
While Wonder Woman has some flaws, the redemption of the DCEU begins here with this thrilling adventure that also proves, when it comes to super heroics on the big screen, the girls can do it just as well as the boys. Lets hope the DCEU installments that follow reach the high bar set by this one.
Baywatch Review
21 Jump Street has a lot to answer for. Now, I know big screen remakes of old t.v. shows are nothing new, but the success of Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s R-Rated, meta comedy, has given rise to a number of imitators who have grabbed the wrong end of the stick, thinking incredibly blue language and gross out humour is the way to go. The latest movie up to bat is Baywatch, a show that people only remember because of David Hasselhoff, Pamela Anderson, and that one joke from Friends. While you never call it a t.v. classic, the original show was cheesy, fun camp about lifeguards whose main skill was slow motion running, but director Seth Gordon (Identity Thief, Horrible Bosses) forgoes all that, upping the raunch and saddling it with generic R-Rated humour that never manages to hit the mark.
Dwayne Johnson and Zac Efron share the spotlight as Mitch Buchannon, the overzealous chief of Baywatch, and Matt Brody, the team’s newest, cocksure recruit, and while they’ve both proven themselves incredibly charming and charismatic in the past, they are both having serious off days here, barely able to wring one single laugh from Damian Shannon and Mark Swift’s offensively dumb script. The whole thing just feels incredibly lazy, with a plot stolen from any number of 80’s cop movies involving an upmarket hotel acting as the front for a drug operation flooding the beach with a product that is like ‘Bath Salts on Meth’. But you quickly get the feeling that the main plot doesn’t matter as it moves forward with all the care of , plot points just dropping into our laps with no rhyme or reason, and when the villain’s (played limply by Priyanka Chopra) ultimate plan is revealed in a throwaway line, you know no one gives a crap about the narrative.
The movie instead focuses on the misjudged gross out humour and eye candy, obviously trying to emulate the success of 21 Jump Street, and missing the point completely. The reason that movie work was because it was in on the joke. It knew remaking the show was a ridiculous endeavour, especially since hardly anyone remembered it, so ripped it into itself at every turn. Baywatch isn’t that self aware, painfully so. Gordon and the cast approach the subject matter with a reverence that is almost commendable, if the finished product wasn’t so painful to endure. Each gross out joke, from dicks getting stuck in lounge chairs to Zac Efron forced to hold a flaccid penis in his hand (a lot of dick jokes in this movie. Not the body part you’d think they’d rely on, is it?), hits with the impact of a bone dry sponge, and the action that is peppered throughout doesn’t fare much better, not helped by the incredibly bad green screen subbing in for real locations.
Lazy and unfunny, Baywatch is the worst example of this new trend for R-Rated t.v. show remakes. Avoid at all costs.
Dwayne Johnson and Zac Efron share the spotlight as Mitch Buchannon, the overzealous chief of Baywatch, and Matt Brody, the team’s newest, cocksure recruit, and while they’ve both proven themselves incredibly charming and charismatic in the past, they are both having serious off days here, barely able to wring one single laugh from Damian Shannon and Mark Swift’s offensively dumb script. The whole thing just feels incredibly lazy, with a plot stolen from any number of 80’s cop movies involving an upmarket hotel acting as the front for a drug operation flooding the beach with a product that is like ‘Bath Salts on Meth’. But you quickly get the feeling that the main plot doesn’t matter as it moves forward with all the care of , plot points just dropping into our laps with no rhyme or reason, and when the villain’s (played limply by Priyanka Chopra) ultimate plan is revealed in a throwaway line, you know no one gives a crap about the narrative.
The movie instead focuses on the misjudged gross out humour and eye candy, obviously trying to emulate the success of 21 Jump Street, and missing the point completely. The reason that movie work was because it was in on the joke. It knew remaking the show was a ridiculous endeavour, especially since hardly anyone remembered it, so ripped it into itself at every turn. Baywatch isn’t that self aware, painfully so. Gordon and the cast approach the subject matter with a reverence that is almost commendable, if the finished product wasn’t so painful to endure. Each gross out joke, from dicks getting stuck in lounge chairs to Zac Efron forced to hold a flaccid penis in his hand (a lot of dick jokes in this movie. Not the body part you’d think they’d rely on, is it?), hits with the impact of a bone dry sponge, and the action that is peppered throughout doesn’t fare much better, not helped by the incredibly bad green screen subbing in for real locations.
Lazy and unfunny, Baywatch is the worst example of this new trend for R-Rated t.v. show remakes. Avoid at all costs.