The Day The Earth Stood Still: Movie Review

The Day The Earth Stood Still: Movie Review

Rating 5/10
Cast: Keanu Reeves, Jennifer Connelly, Jaden Smith, John Cleese (an incredibly short cameo) and Kathy Bates
Director: Scott Derrickson
Klaatu barada nikto .
Three words which you will either know - or wonder what on earth I've been drinking this early on in the festive season.
To a horde of geeks (myself included) these were the words spoken by Michael Rennie's alien to his destructive robot Gort via Patricia Neal's character in the 1951 original version of this film.
The 1951 film is often used in sentences with the words "classic" "seminal" and "definitive" so it's with some trepidation that I approached a new version with Keanu Reeves as the main star.
In a nutshell, Keanu stars as mysterious alien visitor Klaatu who causes worldwide panic (including an economic crisis - sense any parallels here?) when his ship lands in downtown Manhattan.
In true American style, he's shot the minute he descends from the craft and is taken to a top secret military installation where he's questioned by Kathy Bates' Regina Jackson, who acts on behalf of the President of the United States, over why he's here.
Also among the scientists studying him is Jennifer Connelly's Helen Benson (who in this update/ remake) has a troublesome step child (aka Will Smith junior Jaden Smith).
Klaatu comes round and warns them that he needs to speak to the leaders of the world on an urgent matter which involves the future of the Earth itself... but he's scorned and a chain of events is set in place which don't spell good things for the planet's future.
Having seen the original seminal classic and definitive film (see what I said above?) this latest version was always going to be a disappointment.
Coming at a time when we know the Earth's under threat from global warming (be it manmade or otherwise - that's for another argument) it's easy to appreciate the reason for Klaatu's visit - and perhaps the reason for the remake.
Keanu has often been critiqued for his performances with some critics saying he has an other-worldly presence -and that's kind of obvious here; his stiffness as the alien visitor and awkward staccato acting seems to work - initially.
Although after a while it simply resorts to slow mo shots of him walking in a suit while others try to emote around him in the face of immense danger.
Connelly's astro-biologist is saddled with little to do after initiating first contact - she quickly becomes reduced to a taxi driver for Klaatu and is left with the troublesome kid to deal with.
And talking of the kid - Jaden Smith is the kind of uber moppet who clearly is going to have a big impact on the storyline of The Day The Earth Stood Still . With daddy and abandonment issues, it's obvious how his role has been included in the remake - although his involvement in the film's denouement could be seen from another galaxy.
John Cleese has an all too brief cameo as Professor Barnhardt - and the moment both he and Keanu stand in front of a blackboard discussing equations is quite the surreal moment.
The opening tension and suspense is handled well and it's clear a lot of the budget was thrown at the effects of this film - the new version of robot Gort is pretty true to the original (and seems to channel some of the new Battlestar Galactica baddies the Cylons at times); and scenes of destruction which show cities and people simply being whittled away are pretty effective (even if the attacks are akin to a biblical plague of locusts.)

The Day the Earth Stood Still is a disappointment - at times underwhelming but visually impressive for the most part - but unfortunately the message that we humans have to change our ways is lost a little among the explosions.

Quarantine: Movie Review

Quarantine: Movie Review

Rating: 4/10
Cast: Jennifer Carpenter, Steve Harris, Jay Hernandez
Director: John Erick Dowdle
Remakes of foreign horror films continue to be de rigeur in Hollywood.
And yet, the Powers That Be fail to realize that diminishing returns at the box office are a sign that the Hollywoodisation is just not captivating viewers.
Quarantine is the latest attempt to buck the trend - and sadly it fails.
A rehash (or as they say Based on - or as others say, a shot for shot remake) of Spanish horror [REC], Quarantine finds reporter Angela Vidal (Jennifer Carpenter, TV's Dexter) along with her cameraman (Steve Harris) out for a night with the local LA fire department.
The film opens with Angela filming life around the station house, hoping desperately to score an exclusive by getting a call.
That call comes in and finds the team (along with shadowing from the camera crew) dispatched to a downtown apartment, for reasons unknown.
As they enter the building, the fire dept along with the police and TV crew discover an old woman at the top of the complex whose screaming initiated the call out.
Within seconds of being there, the old timer is attacking people and just seconds after that happens, with no warning or explanation the building is locked down, hermetically sealed off and patrolled by armed guards.
Confused, under attack from people within the building and with no real clue what's going on, the TV crew and adopted fire family try their best to survive - but it soon becomes clear, they're fighting a losing battle&..to live and escape.
Quarantine is the latest film to come aimed squarely at the YouTube generation - with its handheld filming point of view and quick edits here and there, it's clearly pushing for the same audience who fell for Cloverfield.
Yet, while Cloverfield suffered as we didn't know too much about the yuppies who were being picked off by the invading monster, Quarantine tries to temper this by spending a good 10 minutes of the opening with the camera crew bonding with two members of the fire brigade.
It works to a degree as you end up caring more about Angela but comes a little unstuck as you still don't care about the fire crews. Carpenter puts in a good solid performance and holds the film together but her bravado falls apart a little too quickly when the true horror of the situation hits home.
There are few solid shocks in this and most of those which do happen, you can pinpoint coming a mile off. Although Quarantine does score some points for originality by using the actual camera to bash to death one of the invading marauders.

Ultimately though this kind of film has been done before (and better by the likes of 28 Days Later) and is no real addition to the genre.

Quantum of Solace: Movie Review

Quantum of Solace: Movie Review

Rating: 5/10
Cast: Daniel Craig, Olga Kurylenko, Mathieu Amalric, Judi Dench
Director: Marc Forster

Oh dear.
Bond's taken a slight mis-step; a stumble on his path from recent cinema resurrection.
After the visceral feel of Casino Royale, the reinvention of Bond and the furore over Daniel Craig taking the role, Quantum of Solace was always going to be a tall order.
The story picks up one hour after the end of Casino Royale with Bond, seeking vengeance for the death of Vesper Lynd, hauling in a member of the mysterious Quantum cartel for questioning.
Surrounded by M (always reliable Judi Dench) and a couple of other agents, the rug is pulled from under them by the revelation Quantum is everywhere - and there's nothing they can do as they don't have enough information.
So Bond, once again, sets out to find out more about the shadowy group and save the day - while taking in numerous fights, chases and betrayals.
Quantum of Solace is a difficult film - on the surface, there's nothing overtly wrong with it.
Daniel Craig is once again excellent in the role of Ian Fleming's spy - he's softening up a little bit but spends a lot of the film pursing his lips looking like he's swallowed a very tart piece of lemon.
However, the naysayers who thought Bond couldn't be a blond, have got it wrong - Craig is here to stay.
Judi Dench is brilliant as M - by turns she's harsh with Bond and as Craig's spy notes, acts like his mother; then in seconds she's rattled when she realises the Secret Service has been infiltrated by a group they know nothing about.
And yet, somewhere, somehow the film has lost its feel for what it is to be Bond.
It's now somewhere in action film territory where even some of the action feels muted (aside from the final explosive showdown which is welcome after 90 odd minutes of plodding)
I think the biggest problem with this latest outing of 007, is that the supporting characters and baddies are just (and I hate to say this) bland.
Bond girl Olga Kurylenko plays a damaged girl who has reasons for betraying Bond - but she has no real heart behind it; likewise, Mathieu Amalric is disappointing as baddie Dominic Greene, a villain whose motives appear to be nothing more than running a utility company which wants to take over the world by owning some of the natural resources (Maybe he'll cripple the financial world by giving the CEOs a massive payrise)
There are some nice nods to previous films - one (without spoiling it too much) channels Goldfinger.
But, maybe the film makers have gone too far the other way - with Casino Royale, it was about rooting Bond in some form of reality.
Quantum of Solace has made the menace realistic - but surely that was the USP of the old Bond flicks - the villains had super plans which were diabolical, and so insane they forced Bond to use bad puns when he despatched his nemeses.
The box office takings for this have already been stellar both in the United Kingdom and in the USA so it's inevitable there will be a Bond 23.

Just don't be surprised if you go to this one and find yourself leaving neither shaken nor stirred.

The Savages: Movie Review

The Savages: Movie Review

Rating 7/10
Cast: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Laura Linney, Philip Bosco
Director: Tamara Jenkins

Philip Seymour Hoffman and Laura Linney star as Jon and Wendy Savage in a film about the difficulties of a relative sick with dementia and with nowhere else to go.
As the film starts, we see the father figure Lenny (Philip Bosco) eating cereal being harassed by a helper for his de-facto wife because he didn't flush the toilet.
Lenny's dispatched to deal with the problem, but the situation quickly escalates and the care worker's manager contacts the family.
Things get worse when his de facto wife dies while having her nails done, and pretty soon, Jon and Wendy are summoned to Arizona to take Lenny away.
But the pair have not seen their father for years because of a none too happy childhood, and as the reality of having to put him into a home sinks in, both find different ways to cope - Wendy worries they've made the right choice, whereas Jon initially is just happy to have Lenny out of the way.
Both Jon and Wendy are writers - he of philosophy and she of plays - but there's a simmering rivalry - Jon checks up on his sister's claim she won funding from the Guggenheim foundation.
However, despite the rivalry, there is a closeness between the pair; albeit a strained bond from time to time.
Wendy has other concerns - she's seeing a married man, snatching encounters wherever she can - but as she spends more time for her father (and despite his abusive past to the children), she realises she wants more out of life.
The Savages is not an action packed film; it's a gentle portrait of the effects a sick relative has on your life and how it changes your priorities.

Both leads are stunning in this - their quirks and characters are underplayed to make them feel more real; there is a dark undercurrent to the film at times and a few comic moments but anyone with a sick elderly relative nearing the end of their natural life (or has experienced it) will associate with this film.

Show of Hands: Movie Review

Show of Hands: Movie Review

Rating 7/10
Cast: Melanie Lynskey, Craig Hall, Stephen Lovatt, Chelsie Preston-Crayford
Director: Anthony McCarten
It's a simple idea - a contest of endurance.
Strangers from all walks of life gather in a Taranaki town to try their shot at winning a new Landrover Discovery, thanks to a local garage.
All they have to do is to place their hand on the car and go the distance to be the last man (or woman) standing without taking their hand off.
A simple premise for a film - and one which you would think wouldn't really cut it over 90 minutes or so.
But you would be completely wrong.
Anthony McCarten's take on the whole endurance competition is actually a crafty character study of what makes people tick and how far they're willing to go for a reward.
Melanie Lynskey is Jess, a single mum and parking warden who is first seen crying in an alcove after issuing a ticket; Craig Hall is Tom, an arrogant competitively cocky man who claims to write greeting cards.
These two find themselves forced together on the parking lot as they compete for the car.
Among the other competitors are an elderly security guard, a millionaire's son, a Pacific Island street kid, a car thief, a young woman looking for love - all of them are seeking some form of vindication and salvation by being the competition's winner.
The film's based on actual events - one contest like this took place in Lower Hutt in the 1980s and saw a world record set.
Show of Hands is definitely a Kiwi affair with music from Don McGlashan and good solid performances from the rest of the ensemble cast.
McCarten's film is based on his own book - and he masterfully gets the best out of all his actors; Melanie Lynskey is superb as the quiet Jess, a mum driven by tragedy and who always tries to do the right thing - no matter how it makes her feel.
Craig Hall's Tom is another matter - he is an insufferable character right from the start - although, as is obligatory in these kinds of films, he treads a path to redemption as he pushes himself as far as he can possibly go to win - not only the car, but acceptance from others.
You will get sucked into Show of Hands from the start and while it's pretty obvious who in the competition will be going down to the wire, there are still a few surprises to be had.

And I guarantee you'll never care as much about a mad dash to get fish and chips from a Taranaki takeaway...

Ghost Town: Movie Review

Ghost Town: Movie Review

Rating 6/10
Cast: Ricky Gervais, Greg Kinnear, Tea Leoni, A Very Big Dog, Alan Ruck
Director: David Koepp
Ricky Gervais takes the lead in this romantic comedy in his first step away from supporting roles in the likes of Alias, Night at the Museum and Stardust.
He's Bertram Pincus, a dentist who detests all kinds of social human contact; a man who lives for the end of the day when he can sneak out of the office, shunning a celebration and head home for the solitude and relative quiet of his Manhattan apartment.
So it's a complete shock to him, when after going in for what he believes is a routine surgery, to discover he's being stalked by all and sundry who just want a few minutes of his time.
He discovers that for seven minutes while on the operating table, he died.
His resurrection has given him the power to communicate with the ghost world which is spearheaded by Greg Kinnear's Frank Herlihy, who's killed at the start of the film.
Finding himself in a similar situation to the uber-moppet from the Sixth Sense, Pincus starts seeing dead people - everywhere.
And they're annoying the heck out of him with final wishes from beyond the grave.
But it's Kinnear's character who pushes Pincus into a mission (and the pair of them into Odd Couple territory) - to break up the impending marriage of his widow Gwen (Tea Leoni); promising if he does this for him, the dead will leave him alone for good.
Let's be frank about this - Ghost Town is going to rise or fall on how you feel about Ricky Gervais.
If you enjoy his acerbic, socially awkward character, adore his sarcasm and way with barbed quips, as well as his lack of people skills, (patented in the likes of TheOffice and Extras) then you'll pretty much be impressed with the film.
Otherwise, you may feel this hasn't risen above the standard romantic comedy fodder.
Don't get me wrong, there are some pretty funny bits during this film, and the writing for Gervais' character is spot on - and his delivery of some of the vitriol manages to fall into the comedy category rather than the vindictive one.
Whether it's the writer's intention or the whole situation, the film finds itself with nowhere to go but the predictable route - as Pincus heads toward redemption and the realisation that he needs other people to get through life.
Both Tea Leoni and Greg Kinnear acquit themselves well in their supporting roles, but this is clearly Gervais' star vehicle - and he, at times, appears to channel some of the earlier silent comedy greats like Buster Keaton and particularly Oliver Hardy with some of his frustrated expressions.
However, it's clearly an extension of the Ricky Gervais character which has been cultivated over the past decade on TV and in stand up - a slightly unlikeable buffoon, who's offensive and rude simply because he can get away with it.
One character, a naked ghost, seems to have been chosen just because he looks exactly like Gervais' long term writing partner, Stephen Merchant - and left me wondering whether Merchant wasn't available for the cameo role.
That said, there are some nice touches - including the fact all the characters sneeze when they walk through the ghosts - as well as some great throwaway lines.

Ultimately, though Ghost Town will amuse you for an hour or so, but be prepared for the slight lull towards the end when the actual realities of the plot kick in.

Rocknrolla: Movie Review

Rocknrolla: Movie Review

Rating 8/10
Cast: Gerard Butler, Tom Wilkinson, Thandie Newton, Mark Strong, Idris Elba, Toby Kebbell
Director: Guy Ritchie
The gangster genre is one Guy Ritchie knows well.
After trailblazing the way with Lock Stock and 2 Smoking Barrels and Snatch, he stumbled a bit with Revolver (we'll avoid mentioning Swept Away too much given the painful public split he and Madge seem to be going through)
But it's a real pleasure to say he's bang on form with his latest outing Rocknrolla- and he brings out some of the best performances from his cast.
And what a cast - a real mix of characters - Russian gangsters, London gangsters, drugged up, tripped out popstars, crooked accountants - all of your regular underworld low-lives inhabit this latest shaggy dog story.
In Rocknrolla, Gerard Butler is Wild Bunch member One Two, and along with his partner in crime Mumbles (Idris Elba), the pair are desperate to get the money they owe gangland kingpin Lenny Cole (an outstanding and extremely volatile Tom Wilkinson)
So they devise a scheme to steal the money from a Russian bigwig - whose dodgy accountant Stella (Thandie Newton) is only to happy to help.
The problem is those Russian bigwigs are in town to do a deal with Lenny Cole.
Things get even more tangled and complicated when the Russian boss gives Cole a priceless painting as a goodwill gesture - only for that to be stolen by supposedly dead popstar Johnny Quid (Toby Kebbell).
Rocknrolla is a stylistic treat from its opening visuals and booming soundtrack to its final reel comic effect extra.
That's not to say there's a lack of violence and swearing (as well as possibly the cinema's shortest ever sex scene) - but the shaggy dog ride director (and writer) Ritchie spins you along will leave you breathless.
Gerard Butler is good as One Two - his unending fight with a Russian mobster over a series of locations has to be one of the most wearying ever committed to celluloid.
But real kudos must go to Tom Wilkinson's Lenny Cole and his right hand man Archie (Mark Strong).
These two bring a level of menace to London's criminal underworld not seen for a while - Wilkinson, in particular, destroys any trace of him being the cuddly old man many will remember from the Full Monty.
Mark Strong simply consolidates his place as the continually rising star of the big screen.
And there's a hilarious running gag throughout the film which centres on the painting - and is very much akin to the suitcase in Pulp Fiction.
If there's to be a criticism of Rocknrolla, it's that some of the supporting players (such as Johnny Quid's managers Jeremy Piven and Ludacris' Roman) are sidelined because of the sheer numbers of the cast and plot.
However, that's a trivial complaint in what's a darkly funny, stylistic and visually arresting film.

Don't worry if you feel out of breath at the end; according to Thandie Newton, Rocknrolla is the first of a trilogy - which given some of the loose ends, is great news for the Wild Bunch.