Daniel Craig’s 3rd outing makes up for Quantum of Solace: it continues the rebooted series’ emphasis on a gritty, more vulnerable Bond, delving into aspects of his (and supporting characters’) origins, while also bringing back a little of the fun of pre-Craig Bonds (e.g. the cheesy one-liners, the familiar theme music, etc.) The not-so-good: Javier Bardem’s villain has an interesting setup but is reduced to a vanilla bad guy in the finale, the middle act meanders somewhat, and there are some inexplicable plot holes (e.g. if Q can control the tube why not just stop the train with Javier in it?) But overall, enjoyable entertainment for fans of Bond and action thrillers generally
Category Archives: Film Reviews
Flight (2012, dir. Robert Zemeckis): compelling character study of a compromised captain
Compelling drama that opens with the protagonist pilot (Denzel Washington) saving most of the passengers from a catastrophic plane crash, and then shows the audience the real plane wreck: a riveting study of the pilot’s compromised character. Denzel’s best role in a long while, he will surely be nominated for an Oscar. Plus, Lance Armstrong could have done with legal counsel like Don Cheadle’s 🙂
Cloud Atlas (2012, dir. Lana & Andy Wachowski & Tom Tykwer): flawed, ambitious, impressive adaptation of David Mitchell’s Booker runner-up
An ambitious and impressive adaptation of the complex Booker runner-up novel by David Mitchell that intertwines six stories across genres and time periods. More successful than other recent oeuvres with epic metaphysical sweep (e.g. Malick’s “The Tree of Life” or Aronofsky’s “The Fountain”): partly due to the Wachowski siblings’ sci fi action pedigree, it avoids getting bogged down. If anything it feels like Nolan’s “Inception”, including having so much plot to get through that there’s scant time to connect emotionally with all the characters. As in the book, I still don’t get the point of the second (1936) sequence; it doesn’t thematically link to the other stories, and as far as I can tell only exists to explain the title (the movie would likely have been improved by excising it). Instead, they cut the fun, satirical consumerist language of the 5th (2144) sequence, e.g. “putting on your nikes to get in your ford to go for a starbuck”. And if you found JGL’s makeup distracting in “Looper” you won’t be able to focus at all in most scenes … Otherwise, if film-making writ large appeals to you at all, Cloud Atlas is a highly worthwhile 3 hour event.
Looper (2012, dir. Rian Johnson): Terminator for the millennial generation
High-quality, intelligent sci-fi action movie, feels like a modern update of Terminator, with Bruce Willis as an aged time-travelling killer instead of Arnie’s relentless robot, Emily Blunt as the protective mother, etc. Wlil probably not achieve the cultural impact of T1/T2, but recommended viewing nonetheless for fans of smart thrillers
The Intouchables (2011, dir. Olivier Nakache & Eric Toledano): watchable French dramedy
Watchable French dramedy based on a true story of the improbable friendship between a rich quadraplegic and a lower-class young man from the ghettos. Will inevitably be remade by Hollywood (the Weinsteins already bought the rights), though some of the best lol moments will have to be rewritten – they were quite un-PC 🙂
Total Recall (2012, dir. Len Wiseman): not as fun as the Schwarzenegger/Verhoeven 1990 version
I see the crap movies then tell you about them so you don’t have to … the latest being the Total Recall (2012) remake … wasn’t as fun or OTT as the Schwarzenegger/ Verhoeven 1990 version (though it hews closer to the Phillip K Dick source material) … plays out like a big-budget Bourne movie set in the future. The 1990 adaptation and Inception dealt with the “am I in a dream or not” theme better (e.g. the scene with the sweat bead vs. the tear), Inception also captured the relationship angle better, and the Bourne movies (plus Long Kiss Goodnight (1996)) better explored the amnesia implications. Overall, OK to watch if it’s for free on Netflix, you’re bored, and you’ve already seen the other better movies 🙂
The Hunger Games (2012, dir. Gary Ross): smart, well-made thriller
Smart, well-made thriller which appeals both to the Twilight/Harry Potter set and adult auds who enjoy intelligent action movies. BO should be sky high. For the unitiated, take the central premise of Battle Royale (1999 Japanese novel of teenagers fighting to the death for sport under a totalitarian regime), set it in near future America, then throw in elements from The Truman Show (1998 Peter Weir flick) and the overall story arc from Gladiator (2000 Ridley Scott film). Though it plays more like The Running Man (1982 Stephen King novel, 1987 Schwarzenegger vehicle) than Lord of the Flies (1954 William Golding novel). Jennifer Lawrence shows how Kristen Stewart how to act, though it’s clear the weak link is Josh Hutcherson (who plays Peeta Mellark), especialy if Peeta has a big role in the sequels.
The Muppets (2011, dir. James Bobin): fun nostalgia trip for Generation X
For those who grew up in the 70s and 80s, the Muppets are usually a fond memory of zany puppetry, colourful characters and occasionally uproarious skits. Disney’s revival of the franchise plays up the nostagia value with a simple story about “getting the band back together”, but doesn’t offer much else that would turn it into a classic for the older folk, nor a new hook for the younger generation. Entertaining for a while, but ultimately forgettable, and curiously enough, not one for the kids.
Cowboys & Aliens (2011, dir. Jon Favreau): does what it says on the packet
Passable B movie fare, the story is nonsensical, and both leads Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford are dialing it in, but the action and CGI sequences are OK. Just from the title alone, it could have been far worse, I guess. Does what it says on the packet, no more, no less.
Contagion (2011, dir. Steve Soderbergh): Soderbergh’s Traffic meets global pandemics of a virus, fear and bureaucracy
Plays as an extended episode of the excellent Canadian TV show ReGenesis (watch it on Hulu Plus if you’re a fan of this film or Fringe). Soderbergh applies the multi-layered documentary-like formula of Academy Award-winning Traffic (2000) to a global virus pandemic, exploring also the societal implications – the contagion of fear, and morass of bureaucracy.
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