The key highlight for a movie like this is obviously the fight scenes. As an action movie, the audience might be well served although if the audience I saw this with is anything to go by, it might as well be a comedy. That's unfortunate because the fights are very well choreographed and anyone who has an interest in Martial Arts will notice the various disciplines on display here. It's the acting that's a little suspect, but no one's out to win any acting awards here. For his directorial debut, Keanu Reeves has delivered a technically acoomplished movie, aided by the action stunt team lead by Yuen Woo Ping (The Matrix trilogy and numerous Hong Kong action films). Click on through to read the full review and why I was interested in catching this particular movie.
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Stars Hugh Jackman, Tao Okamoto, Rila Fukushima, Hiroyuki Sanada, Svetlana Khodchenkova, Haruhiko Yamanouchi, Will Yun Lee and Famke Janssen Directed by James Mangold It really couldn't have been any worse that X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and thankfully, it isn't. It is far better actually although early reviews have pointed problems with the slower dramatic scenes. It just feels that in this day and age, where cinematic movies are concerned, general audiences seem to have issue with dramatic scenes in "Summer Blockbuster" movies. Maybe it's due to the fairly old-school movie plot and pacing although the action sequences would make up for it. We do get quite a rough and tumble Wolvie here, slashing and dicing and likely killing (as much as a PG-13 movie would allow). Click on through here for my full review on the Wordpress site Stars Charlie Hunnam, Idris Elba, Rinko Kikuchi, Charlie Day, Max Martini, Burn Gorman, Robert Kazinsky and Ron Perlman Directed by Guillermo delToro Wow! Just what are the chances of seeing anything like this on the big screen ever again? This is a huge movie, no doubt about it. We have creatures from another dimension trampling over cities like a kid trampling over his toys. To fight these monsters, we have giant robots duking it out with thundering power. And despite that, Transformers this is not. With such spectacular set-pieces, should we even care that there's a story there? Of course, there is. A fairly straight-forward, not too complicated and yet, quite human story amidst the massive destructive action. Thankfully, we're not having a repeat of the prolonged destructive orgy that was Man Of Steel. There are four major set-pieces and each stand individually distinct from the other. No, I'm not gonna give any particular description here. Go discover them for yourself. The human story drives he action with a rather diverse bunch of characters with some intriguing names. Charlie Hunnam leads the pack as the American hero, Raleigh Becket, a pilot with a tragic past who's given a second chance to 'get back in the saddle'. At least, Raleigh don't dwell too much on the tragedy, and manages to push it aside for the task at hand. So, something a little different here. Leading the human resistance against the Kaiju (the giant creatures) is Idris Elba's rather Brit Stacker Pentecost (and who really starts out naming their kid 'Stacker'?). Elba does well enough with his speeches and he carries the demeanour of the leader very well. Between these two is Rinko Kikuchi's Mako Mori who has the aspirations to be a co-pilot to Raleigh, but that's not what Pentecost will allow. Rounding out the pilots is an international crew including Chinese, Russians and Australians. There are a pair of scientists, played by Charlie Day and Burn Gorman, who do come across partly as comic relief, but they are intriguing and fun characters. Adding to the surreal reality is Ron Perlman as the equally odd-monikered Hannibal Chau (and there is a story behind his name, just pay a little attention before complaining about Hollywood whitewashing). The one plot gripe might be the concept of The Drift. The need for it is a plot device, but it's also the most complex element of the story that it's function is spelled out several times throughout the movie. It is a small thing though and it's best to simply accept it (as much as you can accept The Force in a Star Wars move) and enjoy the movie as a whole. Director Guillermo delToro shows off his confidence at handling the scope and scale of the story, painting in his visual trademarks of odd novelty and colours. Going into the movie, I got very aware of the details from the overall design of the Jaegers (giant robots) and Kaiju; to the sets and locations; to the gorgeous cinematography by Guillermo Navarro and the pounding score by Ramin Djawadi wrapped around a simple and fairly memorable theme. delToro definitely shows off his influences, not only paying tribute to the old Kaiju features of Japan, but also to monster-maker, Ray Harryhausen. Less obvious might be the influence of one Gerry Anderson. The anime and mecha influences are obvious. Of course, the bulk of the effects by Industrial Light and Magic really shines, especially given the amount of water environments (rain and sea) in the movie. The mixture of digital and some practical effects blend very nicely to give a sense of the world. The scales at play between the normal world and the massive forms of the Kaiju and Jaegers is really something to behold. In all, this is a spectacle of a movie that delivers a decent human story driving it, coupled with some truly epic battle sequences aided by amazing visual effects. The entertainment level is definitely there and it took my breath away at most times. I left the hall in a high that had me wanting to turn around and watch it again. Guillermo delToro delivers high entertainment wrapped with a simple and decent story, populated with colourful characters and eye-popping effects with breath-taking action. Oh, yeah… there is a little bit more a little way into the credits. Stars Johnny Depp, Armie Hammer, William Fichtner, Tom Wilkinson, Ruth Wilson, James Badge Dale and Helena Bonham Carter Directed by Gore Verbinski The star, director and producer of the Pirates of The Caribbean main trilogy (yeah, not counting On Stranger Tides) are back with another rollicking romp of an adventure. Or so it might seem. Don't get me wrong, the element of fun is there. The sense of adventure is evident. Johnny Depp putting in another odd turn is always fun. Even Hans Zimmer is in on the fun channeling the stylings of the Pirates score with some jaunty bits from Sherlock Holmes while adding a few new percussive motifs. Why, he even pulls out the William Tell Overture for the hero theme. And the bloated storyline seems more obvious than before what with the just under two and a half hour run time. Upon some examination, it feels like the writers (Terry Rossio and Ted Elliot also from the Pirates of The Caribbean series, along with Justin Haythe) started at the end, and then filled in the blanks of why those characters are there. It's the only reason I can think of for having Helena Bonham Carter's character, a madame called Red Harrington, in the story and why she has a wooden leg; to serve a pivotal moment and nothing else. Also fairly distracting from the fun, and serving no real purpose except maybe to show off the nastiness of the villain, Butch Cavendish (William Fichtner), is said villain's predilection for cannibalism. A small bit of nastiness that does feel out of place within the scope of the story. If he really needed to be that kind of nasty, why not have him shoot a pet dog or something in that area, even if it is off screen. There's no real notion as to why Cavendish has to be like that. In the world of The Lone Ranger, we already have our good guys and our bad guys. The pulpiness of the adventure is such that going to that extreme wasn't really necessary. Pushing that bit aside, the narrative conceit of having an aged Tonto relating the tale to a young kid might give a reason for having a wholly different take on the legendary character. We're getting the origin story, but from the perspective of Tonto, who might even be an unreliable narrator as it is. It would give an excuses for any plot holes and odd deviations, and Depp does pull it all off rather well. The wilder card might have been Armie Hammer as John Reid, our titular hero. Hammer manages to deliver a performance not unlike what he did in Mirror, Mirror (a constantly underrated movie), delivering a character who is not entirely a goof and driven by his sense of idealism. It is a characteristic that puts him at odds with Tonto, as both seek out Cavendish for justice. But each of them have a different sense of justice. So, this is a buddy movie with to polar opposites having to work together. However, Hammer delivers the goods as he slowly, and occasionally painfully, learns the ways of the west, and the need for the mask. So much so that by the time that bit of music rolls through the finale, we know the hero has arrived (albeit fairly delayed). While Johnny Depp leads the cast and Armie Hammer dons the white hat, it's likely that the star that steals the movie is the horse that ultimately gets named Silver. As Tonto keeps saying, "Something very wrong with that horse." Most of the elements that might be considered to be part of the Lone Ranger mythology do pop up, and in that, the filmmakers do deliver a Lone Ranger adventure. if you're expecting anything of the old serials, TV show or books, you might end up complaining of the things that have been changed or updated. Depp's take on Tonto might even be considered controversial by some, but it serves the story here. Sill, it is fun, entertaining and the action gives us some of the more spectacular set-pieces of this summer season. The humour works in most parts with more hits than misses. The cinematography is lush with its epic widescreen shots. While the Pirates trilogy was more of an ensemble with Depp occasionally stealing scenes, this one is more Depp's movie and everyone is supporting it very gamely. And the horse steals a few scenes. It just didn't need to be this long where the story is concerned. |
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