Burn After Reading: Movie Review

Burn After Reading: Movie Review

Rating: 7/10
Cast: George Clooney, John Malkovich, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton, Brad Pitt
Director: Ethan and Joel Coen
After the praise heaped on No Country for Old Men and its clean sweep of the Oscars, it'll be no surprise to some that the Coen brothers have returned to the familiar territory of screwball.
Burn After Reading is a film about various people working in the Intelligence spy sector who, to be blunt, seem to be severely lacking on the, erm, intelligence front.
At the film's beginning, John Malkovich's CIA analyst Osbourne Cox is being fired from the department he works in because of his drinking problems. As revenge, Cox plans to write a tell all memoir which would embarrass the CIA.
However, things aren't looking good for Cox - his wife's planning to divorce him to run off with her lover Harry Pfarrer (George Clooney) and steals a copy of his memoir as part of the divorce case.
But as ever, things don't run smoothly.
The disc winds up in the hands of Linda Litzke (Frances McDormand) who works at the local gym along with Chad (Brad Pitt).
Litzke's a desperate woman - turned down for funding for cosmetic surgery, she decides the only way to change her life is to blackmail Cox with the disc and so she enlists Chad's help.
To give away much more would ruin the world the Coens have once again created.
They're masters at bringing characters to life and exaggerating some of their crazier tics so that they seem perfectly plausible.

Pitt's Chad character is slightly detached from reality and when it comes to meeting Cox to blackmail him, he turns up in a suit - on his bicycle. Clooney's Pfarrer is convinced there is someone following him and Malkovich's Cox spends most of his time wandering about in a dressing gown and getting angrier.
There are some moments of violence in Burn After Reading which really do shock - having been put at ease with the idiocy of some of the cast throughout the film, the Coens' dose of brutal reality stuns you when it bursts onto the screen.

The one weak link in this cast is Tilda Swinton as Cox's wife - she is underused in the other woman role - but that gripe aside, Burn After Reading is silly, dramatic fun.
It's up there with some of their finer farces - O Brother, Where Art Thou?, Fargo and the much under-appreciated Hudsucker Proxy.
It also has a last line which will either frustrate you if you've not enjoyed the film - or will make you nod your head in agreement at the absurdity of what you've just witnessed.

Max Payne: Movie Review

Max Payne: Movie Review

Rating: 5/10
Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Beau Bridges, Mila Kunis, Ludacris, Chris O'Donnell, Amaury Nolasco
Director: John Moore
The pantheon of small screen computer games adapted for the movies is littered with relative failures.
From the likes of Resident Evil, Street Fighter, Lara Croft, Silent Hill, BloodRayne, Hitman and Super Mario Bros, many have failed to ease the transition to the big screen.
The latest addition to the genre is Max Payne.
Based on the infamous and quite violent computer game, the film adaptation of Max Payne (played by Mark Wahlberg) centres around one man's quest to track down those who are responsible for the murder of his wife and baby.
Made to look like a robbery and without any substantial evidence, the murder investigation was soon shut down and its lead detective (Payne) assigned to the Cold Case desk.
But Payne's never given up and a mysterious death of a woman (forthcoming Bond girl Olga Kurylenko) reignites the case as a series of leads involving a new drug, pushes Payne back on the quest for vengeance for his slain family.
Joining Payne on his journey are Mona Sax (Mila Kunis) out to avenge her murdered sister, and BB Hensley (Beau Bridges) Payne's wife's former boss.
However, as Payne continues his investigation deeper into the project and company his wife used to work for, he delves deeper into a murkier and spookier world which threatens to engulf him.
Max Payne, the film version, is a curious beast - in some aspects, the film works brilliantly; its visuals such as the realisation of Valkyrie warriors floating in the sky over some of the drug addled characters are stunning and spooky at the same time.
Then, by the same token, some of the dialogue and acting is unbelievably wooden (Prison Break's Amaury Nolasco seems to do little but drip sweat and leer) - and some scenes play out as if they were cut scenes in a computer game, there to provide exposition and break up the action while the next segment loads up.
The shoot outs when Payne is trying to escape various evil-doers intent on bringing him down are violent, bloody and very similar to levels on a computer game (dodge the bullets, seize the incriminating file and shoot the door down as you escape)
Sometimes this plays to the film's strength; but on several occasions, it's simply there to showcase the amount of pyrotechnics the crew and its director Moore (who previously helmed the remake of the Omen in 2006) were clearly able to get their hands on with slow slots of various items exploding around the cast.
If you're a fan of the game, you may well get a little more out of it than I did - and given the ending, there does appear to be the possibility a sequel may be made.

Ultimately, as far as I am concerned Max Payne just misses the mark - it left me frustrated some of the more supernatural elements (such as the Valkyrie demons and ongoing references to Norse mythology) were sidelined in favour of a slightly weaker revenge driven plot.

Body Of Lies: Movie Review

Body Of Lies: Movie Review

Rating - 8/10
Cast: Leonardo di Caprio, Russell Crowe, Mark Strong
Director: Ridley Scott

Post 9/11, spy films have been gritty affairs when the celluloid landscape changed permanently the day after September 11th.
For a while afterwards, Hollywood contented itself with what have been termed "Just War" films (such as Black Hawk Down, Collateral Damage) and fantasy stories (Lord of the Rings) as the horror of what happened that day in New York proved too raw to reflect on the big screen.
But in recent years, there's been a resurgence in grittier, murkier post 9/11 films, where the muddier views of the conflict presented neither side in a good light (think Syriana).
Body of Lies is the latest addition to the genre and sees director Ridley Scott (Alien, Bladerunner) take on the 2007 book from Washington Post columnist David Ignatius.
Leonardo di Caprio plays CIA operative Roger Ferris, an undercover operative, who uncovers a lead on a major terrorist leader Al Saleem.
His shadowy al Qaeda like group has struck several times across Europe and is believed to be operating out of Jordan.
Ferris' work is watched from afar (via a series of satellites and constant mobile phone contact) by Ed Hoffman, a CIA head (played by Russell Crowe) who is impatient when it comes to tackling the ongoing war on terror and is insistent on getting results - no matter what the collateral damage is.
However, Ferris decides diplomacy is perhaps the best way to try and capture Al Saleem, so he teams up with Hani (Mark Strong) a charismatic and enigmatic Jordanian covert operations official.
But as the operation continues and Hoffman's impatience puts everyone at risk, Ferris starts to lose track of who he can and can't trust - not only with the success of the operation - but with his life as well.
Body of Lies is an extremely intelligent thriller - it starts off slowly and will feel to some, overlong.
However, as the film progresses, the tension and paranoia ratchets up and you find yourself completely immersed in it, with some quite realistic and graphic scenes of violence and torture providing the shocks.
Crowe and di Caprio are good in this - but as far as I am concerned, easily the best performance comes from Mark Strong as Hani - you're never quite sure whether how trustworthy he is as he exudes a level of quiet menace - and you get a sense that he could turn the gun on those he's working with while looking them directly in the eye and telling them not to worry.
Ridley Scott's direction is tight and despite the (at times) sprawling nature of the story telling as it traverses the globe, you never once lose track of what exactly is going on.

Body of Lies is an intelligent thriller and one which demands a little concentration from the audience - it's a chilling reminder of what lengths and on what levels (personal and professional), the ongoing fight against terror cells is being conducted.

Journey to the Centre of the Earth 3D: Movie Review

Journey to the Centre of the Earth 3D: Movie Review

Rating: 6/10
Cast: Brendan Fraser, Anita Briem, Josh Hutcherson
Director: Eric Brevig
Gimmicks.
They're always difficult to incorporate into films - and sometimes, even harder to fashion a film around.
So when Journey to the Centre of the Earth purported to be the world's first live action adventure in 3-D, I have to admit to having had a slightly bad feeling about what was to come.
Particularly having suffered the horror of Jaws 3D and the Creature from the Black Lagoon years ago...
While there is the amusement factor of seeing a cinema packed with everyone wearing 3-D glasses, you quickly realise that the novelty wears off and you have to sit there for around 90 minutes with oversize glasses on, which at times make you feel like Dame Edna Everage.
Journey to the Centre of the Earth is, obviously, based on the Jules Verne book of the same name - this time, Brendan Fraser (The Mummy 3) stars as Professor Trevor Anderson, a vulcanologist.
After realising his missing brother may have been onto something, he along with his nephew and a mountain guide, set out to see if there really is a world under the surface (as Jules Verne revealed in his book) - and to try and rescue his long lost sibling.
And that's it for the plot - basically the film will annoy anyone who wants a sensibly plotted, logical and sensitive discussion about how life underground could be sustained for millions of years.
Anyone who wants to see a series of encounters with cool 3D effects stretched over 90 minutes will be extremely happy.
Journey to the Centre of the Earth isn't a bad film- it's a pleasant and brainless enough diversion; and there is something amusing and endearing about seeing kids (of all ages) try to touch the effects springing off the screen.
Brendan Fraser is likeable enough as the lead and seems to have no problem playing second fiddle to what is essentially an effects driven cinematic foray.
Some of the 3D in the film is done simply for effect - such as a kid using a yo-yo, using a tape measure - but the occasions when the 3D is saved for actual sequences, it can be exceptionally well done (such as a scene on raft when the gang is attacked by flying piranha type fish) and actually quite frightening.
I don't know if Journey to the Centre of the Earth will spark a renaissance of 3D films (there is a brief mention during the film of heading to Atlantis as a potential sequel) but as a reminder of what can be done with the genre, it's not a bad entry - and will certainly give the kids something to do during the holidays.

The Duchess: Movie Review

The Duchess: Movie Review

Rating: 5/10
Cast: Keira Knightley, Ralph Fiennes, Hayley Atwell, Charlotte Rampling, Dominic Cooper
Director: Saul Dibb
Stop me if you've heard this before. An attractive girl from a well-connected English family marries a man at the height of British aristocracy. Her motives are well-intentioned, though the marriage proves loveless.
The girl is much-loved by the public, lauded for her fashion sense, her charisma and her passion for societal issues.
Her husband's eye inevitably wanders, as does hers; and it becomes a marriage of three partners and of convenience. Oh - and her maiden name was Spencer.
Sound familiar?
Keira Knightley dons (yet another) corset to play whippersnapper Georgiana Spencer, who at 17 was married off to the insipid Duke of Devonshire (Ralph Fiennes). Georgiana's sole purpose in the marriage was to produce a male heir.
A gambler and a drinker, Georgiana was politically minded - a trait not celebrated in women during the 18th Century. Over time Georgiana learnt to use her public notoriety for her own purposes; specifically furthering the career of politician Charles Grey (Dominic Cooper).
But all wasn't well at home. Despite taking several lovers of his own - including an in-house affair that continued beyond the Duchess' death - the Duke didn't take fondly to Georgiana's wandering eye. I'll leave you to join the dots as to what happens next.
The Duchess sets out to be an epic. In parts it succeeds: the set pieces are incredible. Knightley's costumes are like extravagant art installations. She manoeuvres two-foot high wigs adorned with ostrich feathers. Her waist is reigned in with corsets and bustles, she accessorises with stoles, parasols, and an abundance of hats.
But dressing up an A-list star in a corset doesn't make an epic.
Knightley does her best, but it's becoming increasingly difficult to differentiate her from one role to the next. Georgiana is feisty, determined, the object of a man's affection: familiar territory for fans of Pirates of the Carribean, Atonement, Pride and Prejudice and more. I'd like to see Knightley in a supporting role - as part of an ensemble for a change.
Ralph Fiennes does his best with the emotionally void Duke. But the writing is the character's undoing. The writers have created a deplorable character; a sexist, violent hypocrite who happens to be as engaging as a dead snapper.
He's not your archetype Hollywood villain which is refreshing, however it is still impossible to empathise with him. If the writers had allowed one redeeming trait - even helped the audience to like him a bit - it would be a far more interesting movie.

The Duchess never quite reaches the standard it sets for itself, but it should keep fans of Keira happy.

I look forward to the sequel: The Duchess: The People's Princess.

The Rocker: Movie Review

The Rocker: Movie Review

Cast: Rainn Wilson, Christina Applegate, Jeff Garlin, Will Arnett
Director: Peter Cattaneo

Rating 5/10

Let's face it - we've all dreamt of being the lead singer of a band and practised on a hair brush in front of the mirror.
But how many of us have always wanted to be the drummer of a band?
Rainn Wilson (of the US TV version of "The Office") stars as Robert 'Fish' Fishman, failed drummer with Whitesnake/ Aerosmith knock offs Vesuvius.
As Vesuvius is about to erupt in the music business, Fish is unceremoniously dumped at the urging of new management.
Flash forward a couple of years and Fish has given up the music business while his former band revels in rock star adulation, and he wallows as a call centre worker.
However, even that doesn't last long as he's promptly fired after anger and resentment overflow when a co-worker plays him the latest Vesuvius CD. His day gets even worse, when he's dumped by his girlfriend.
So without a job or home, he's forced to move back in with his sister and their family, your average American family with 2 kids.
But his rockstar dreams bubble away under the surface until his nephew gets him involved in his band as a stand in drummer - and that's when Fish's taste for the rock'n'roll lifestyle is re-ignited.
The Rocker is moderately entertaining in places - Wilson doesn't stray too far away from his role as Dwight Schrute on The Office but is at times deadpan enough to just about carry the role and emerge as a likeable schlub.
Being a film from Peter Cattaneo, the director of The Full Monty, you won't be surprised to learn there is some nudity in this - even if it is just the horror of seeing Wilson perform as a naked drummer.
Christina Applegate is fine as the mother of the singer of the teen band and shows some of the sass we've come to expect from the Samantha Who? actress.
There are a couple of predictable sub plots bubbling away - such as the singer falling for one of the other band members but not knowing how to tell her, and Fish finding he's a bit too old to be donning the spandex and partying all night.

The Rocker is OK and may help pass some of the school holidays, but it's a bit of a disappointment from Cattaneo and won't do much to help Rainn Wilson move away from his US Office role and into the higher echelons of the box office

The Mummy - Tomb of the Dragon Emperor: Movie Review

The Mummy - Tomb of the Dragon Emperor: Movie Review

Cast: Brendan Fraser, Maria Bello, Jet Li, John Hannah
Director: Rob Cohen

Rating: 3/10
De La Soul once remarked that three was the magic number.
When it comes to the Mummy 3, Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, the third time is definitely not the charm.
This latest (and hopefully last) instalment in the franchise finds Brendan Fraser's Rick O'Connell and Maria Bello's Evie O'Connell in 1946, retired from the archaeology game after twice defeating an Egyptian mummy.
Only this time, they're struggling with retirement - Evie's writing novels of derring do and how she and hubby beat the mummy; Rick on the other hand is trying his hand at fly fishing (although resorting to the gun when it doesn't go how he wants); and Evie's brother Jonathan (John Hannah) is now running a bar in China.
But trouble has a way of finding the O'Connells as their son Alex (newcomer to the franchise Luke Ford) manages to unearth Chinese emperor Han (Jet Li) during a dig.
Emperor Han was poised to gain immortality and take over the world with his army of warriors until he was cursed by Michelle Yeoh's Zi Juan and turned to stone.
Trouble is Alex uncovers a whole heap of problems for the world once Han's resurrected via betrayal, double crossing, a magical jewel and some blood&can the mummy be defeated a third time? Well, have a guess...

The "charm" with threequels is that you know the characters, their quirky ways and don't have to worry about the back story and a director can just get on with it.

The "problem" with threequels, is ultimately many appear to have run out of plots and rely on old favourites, bigger bangs and explosions to hide the gaping holes in the story.

I think my problem with this film is that I had a distinct feeling of déjà vu early on and subsequently lost all interest.
However, I was impressed that Maria Bello's appearance as Evie (Rachel Weisz sensibly declined reprising her role) was explained away in a throwaway (but savvy) line about how the Evie of her books was a different person to her; but, the malaise appeared to have spread to the rest of the cast with Brendan Fraser looking like he's simply going through the motions and John Hannah's bumbling fool has a reduced role and seems surplus to requirements.

Although I can pinpoint exactly the moment I mentally checked out of this film - it was when Lin (Zi Juan's immortal daughter and potential love interest to Alex) issued a cry for help in the Himalayas and it was answered by a crack squad of CGI yeti....

There are some attempts at showing the strains of retirement on the O'Connells with the father/ son relationship being difficult (though ultimately resolved through a love of guns) and with Rick and Evie's relationship struggling to survive the banality of a normal life after the thrills of being thrown together in their quest to defeat Arnold Vosloo's Imhotep Mummy in the earlier films.

But if you want to leave your brain in neutral, discard any rational thought, then the Mummy 3 is bigger, dumber and louder than its predecessors.

Sadly though, I'd side with the opinion that it's time this franchise was as dead and buried as the mummies (and ancient plots) they dug up to make it in the first place.