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Verdict We have come to expect better from Kevin Spacey, who turns in a solid performance along side a largely unknown but good young cast. This is very predictable, but a moderately interesting film. Nowhere near as clever as other films of the genre, but still easy viewing. 3 out of 5 The forth installment of the Terminator Saga (and suspected first part of a new trilogy); Terminator Salvation was released in UK Cinemas this week. With the inevitable Judgment day of Terminator 3, we now see a much older and much wiser John Connor (Christian Bale, Batman Begins, American Psycho) as leader of the resistance in the middle of the fight against ‘the machines’. After the awesome birth of this franchise from James ‘The Master’ Cameron, and the tentative continuation from Jonathan Mostow, the story is left in the hands of a much documented novice, McG. It would be impossible to write a review of Terminator Salvation without pointing out McG’s questionable filmography, its highlight being Charlies Angels. All great directors have to start from somewhere, James Cameron’s own illustrious career started with the questionable Piranha 2 film in the early 80’s. So lets give him the benefit of the considerable doubt for now, the mighty Christian Bale certainly has, and that’s nothing to be sniffed at! Salvation starts in 2003; Dr. Serena Kogan (Helena Bonham Carter,Fight Club, Sweeney Todd) is recruiting for a medical research program in a generic American Prison. A particular prisoner in question,Marcus Wright (Sam Worthington, Avatar), is on death row for the killing of 2 men, A police officer and his own brother. Clearly showing remorse for his crimes, he is vulnerable and receptive to Dr. Kogan’s research and perhaps sees it as a route for redemption, a second chance. Terminator Salvation is a story about Marcus Wright what happens to him after 2003 and his salvation is unraveled throughout the film. In truth the film’s main ’star’ is Marcus Wright; if it wasn’t for the fact that we already know the characters of John Connor and Kyle Reese(Anton Yelchin, Star Trek) their roles in this film would have been billed as somewhat of a ’supporting’ nature. At this point I feel the need to bring up the method of promotion for the film. Unfortunately for most, the motivation of Marcus’s character was ’spoilt’ in teaser trailers from the very off. I’m not a fan of any kind of spoiler, I am a big believer in watching the plot unfold in the order the writer(s) intended, however in this digital world of hype and over anticipation, directors have seen the need to self spoil some elements of their films simply to create furore (and inevitably more ticket sales). I digress, if you are reading this review now and you know nothing of the story at all, I am not going to join in and spoil it for you. The story moves on to 2018, where the vast majority of the movie is set. As is to be expected from seeing the first 3 movies, we get to see a post apocalyptic world where only broken fragments of human society have survived the daily onslaught of the machines. In what I believe to be the greatest success of the movie, McG shows us a desolate, hopeless, but beautifully rich world. We are shown all manor of different machine models that keep this world in disorder, from Harvesters (of humans) to gunships and awesome motorbikes. What is really plain to see is an evolution of Skynet (the computer system that built the machines) and the terminators. What has only been hinted at before, in ‘flash forwards’, is now shown in brilliant CGI and crucially is completely believable. As the first part in a new trilogy this was probably the most crucial element of the project; to make a world we believed and appreciated. Kyle Reese is but a teenager at this time and John Connor is a mid ranked resistance fighter. Connor is developing a cult following mainly due to his passion and seeming clairvoyance. Finally his mixed up life, being chased by robots from the future, actually comes in handy. 2018 is far from the John Connor of ‘legend’, what we are seeing is very much an origins story, viewing the start of a long and arduous fight that would shape & change him. Salvation maintains quite a steady pace throughout, succeeding as a fairly gripping action romp. All of the main devices are present, Robots, Check; Explosions, Check; Moral Dilemma, Check; overly dramatic chase sequences, Check. If I have a problem with the film its this; Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgment Day were not ‘fairly gripping action romps’. They were terrifying, nut busting, awesome cinematic experiences. Everybody remembers the first time they saw T1 & T2; people will not remember T4 in quite the same high regard. When we left the screening I was contemplating mixed feelings; Christian Bale had achieved another flawless performance, he commands the screen when the time is right but also happily blends in when necessary. Sam Worthington clearly has a presence on screen that we can liken to Russel Crowe and his Gladiator. It’s easy to see why McG was so keen to borrow him from Cameron’s latest masterpiece; think of T4 as Worthington’s teaser trailer, we are led to believe Avatar will be his Oscar winner. Does McG shake off the stigma of ‘that name’ and Charlies Angels? Well, yeah sure! This was a good film; not great, but good! And in years to come, just like T3 (on second viewing), people might grow fond of it. But right now I cant help feeling a little underwhelmed by the whole experience. Is this the problem with rejuvenating classics? Can you ever get it right? Well JJ Abrams and Chris Nolan might have something to say on that score… Verdict Great action, OK story, OK characters, awesome world. A+ for effort but C+ for substance. A steady start for McG but we feel there is plenty more to come, we just hope Bale is along for the ride! See you in 2011. 3.5 out of 5 A true story of the life of TE Lawrence, a complex man who has been labeled everything from hero, to charlatan, to sadist. We are introduced to Lawrence first by seeing his death in a motorbike accident, and at his funeral people gave very different opinions of the man. We then flashback to his earlier life, seeing him working as a young intelligence officer for the British Army in Cairo in 1916. He is sent into the dessert to “appreciate” the situation with the Arab tribes and the Turkish army in World War 1. Lawrence heads into the dessert and his strong personality makes him some friends with Arab tribes. We’re shown how fragile the situation between the many Arab tribes are, and how the tribes are so stubborn to each other. Lawrence convinces the tribes to work together against their common enemy the Turkish. Doing much more than simply “appreciating the situation”, Lawrence collects a large army together and leads them to victory against a major Turkish stronghold. We are shown that Lawrence’s character is determined, and enthusiastic, and has a refusal that nothing is impossible. We are shown this clearly when he leads an army of 50 men across a dessert that they had always deemed impossible to cross. He treats everyone equal and refuses to leave a man behind, which enforces his opinion in the eyes of the Arabs he leads. They accept the English man, and dress him in some of their cultural clothes. After a string of victories against the Turkish army, Lawrence’s charismatic personality starts to crumble. His last battles are bloody and the pressure of leadership it etched on his manic face. Peter O’Toole plays the many facets of this complicated character brilliantly. The acting throughout the entire film is good, and characters are strong, but there are too many throughout the course of the film. Cinematography in this film is astounding, and there are many long shots of the vast dessert. The long shots of large armies are impressive (especially for the time it was created), many with hundreds of charging camels and Arabian soldiers. The coordination and planning behind these scenes is impressive, as without today’s CGI it must have been hard to produce. This makes the film endearing and realistic, as you can’t help appreciate the hard work gone into filming. The music in this film is brilliant, and is a well-known film score. It fits the film perfectly, and was used well in the wide shots of camels charging through the dramatic dessert scenes. The main issue our film club had with watching this film was the sheer length. The film is an epic three and a half hours long, and it feels it. Almost all of our panel thought this film could have been cut shorter without loosing any important storyline. You have to appreciate that the story we’re seeing is a significant portion of a man’s life, so to sum up into only three and a half hours seems harsh, but still the length was too much for our film club. We have decided that it is unrealistic to expect people to sit and watch a film of this length in one sitting. Hollywood must have realised this which is why it has become unpopular, and all modern films with a longer story to tell have been split across two or three films instead. Verdict The film is interesting from a historical point of view, and all characters are acted perfectly. The cinematography, and dramatic battle scenes are impressive. The film is very long though, which is a big drawback as it makes it a chore to watch. 3.5 Out of 5 OK, this is a bit like choosing your favourite turd from big pile of turd’s…but could the mere concept of a scream re-boot be the worst reboot idea to date? What is there to re-boot? They were fun films, very of the moment and great for Hollywood. but the progression in them was so tiny I’m not even sure what they could possibly have to write about? i think the fact that they are planning production this year and a release next year (a rush job) highlights that this could just be an attempt at a Hollywood smash and grab. I havnt seen David Arquette in anything rcently but didnt Courtney Cox have a tv show recently? Dirt was it? did anyone watch it, and can they really be this desperate? Moon  Join the forum discussion on this post - (1) Posts
Verdict Perhaps not as inteligent or as well written as Batman Begins, this is still a fantastic action film that does the franchise proud! Bale Is awesome as even, but Ledger steals the show! Full review will follow… This film was watched by the Cinepedia Film Club, Checkout the event here. Verdict
Fantastic writing as ever from Quintin Tarantino; this happy go lucky film, full of A list stars, delivers on all counts. A nice blend of intelligent dialogue and a thrilling plot, you cant help but fall in love!
Verdict
A true return to form from the slightly weaker second film. Very funny & ever endearing, its rare you get a better all round American rom-com, this is far better than it really should be!
Verdict Horrifically tragic true story played in a honest and beautiful way. A true Modern classic and Spielberg’s most compelling movie to date; this tear jerking history lesson is not to be missed! Full review will follow… Charlie Croker (Michael Caine, The Dark Knight, Get Carter, Zulu) is released from prison, and given the the “job” of hijacking an Italian convoy of gold bars from under the noses of the Italian Mafia. The plan is laid out at the start of the film, and is shown to us (and to Croker) in a series of black and white films. Croker puts together a team of people to make the job happen, travels to Turin, and then implements the plan exactly how it was described. Three Mini Coopers are used for the getaway cars, which gives the film most of its character, and makes it popular with Mini fans. The only twist to the film is at the end, which is left open-ended, and up to the imagination of the viewer to work out what could happen next. This film has many car-centric scenes, with car chases, driving stunts and scenes of expensive cars being destroyed by being thrown down an Italian cliff face. You have to appreciate that the driving stunts were probably cutting-edge at the time, but by today’s standards appear extremely dated. We are used to seeing very fast-paced action scenes, and very dramatic stunts shot from many different camera angles, and with fast cuts. This film has none of those, and so comparing it to modern day driving films makes it look very plain, and lacks excitement. In the driving scenes defence is the knowledge that the stunts are much more honest, and haven’t been over-dramatised with special effects or CGI. There is some great music in this film that firmly concretes the film in the era in which it was made. But the music is under-used. There are many scenes, especially the driving scenes which were often shown without a music track. Even at the film’s most exciting driving scenes when the mini coopers are making their getaway through Turin, music only starts when the cars have escaped all danger. There are a lack of obstacles getting in the way of Croker’s plan. Croker and his gang are criminals performing a robbery, and therefore we can assume they are fearful of being caught by the police, but this is barely shown. The Italian Police only appear in a few scenes, after the crime has taken place and the police give chase. But they are definitely not a worthy adversary, and are easily outwitted. The only real threat to Croker and his gang is the Italian Mafia, who are shown twice in the film that they have the inclination to destroy nice looking cars, serving as a warning to Croker. After this though, they are almost forgotten about and do not prove any danger to Croker’s plan. There are some classic lines in the film, including the famous line “You’re only supposed to blow the bloody doors off.” which is delivered brilliantly by Caine. There are a few more examples of great wit, but these dry up very early on, and there are huge portions of the film where there is no dialogue at all, replaced fully by long scenes of driving. There are a few brilliant characters in this film. Caine plays his character brilliantly, but doesn’t get enough screen time for us to fully get the know the character. His motivation is easy to understand however. He wants money, simple as that. A character that split our group however was the British Mafia boss Mr Bridger. A pompous Royalist inmate who seems to run the prison in which he is held. The character is strong, but doesn’t have any depth or development, and hogs much more screen time than he needs. The other characters are stereotypes. The Mini Cooper getaway drivers all have one character, which is “posh”. The computer programmer played by Benny Hill is a man who loves to chase the larger ladies, the casting here is perfect because Benny Hill just plays himself. The humour here is extremely dated and just makes his few scenes something from a Carry On film. The bus driver is named “Big William” and we are told this is for “Obvious reasons”. This is because “Big William” is black, and seems to have been turned into a racial stereotype. This film’s legacy is one of British patriotism. It uses the Red, White and Blue of the Union Jack consistently throughout, most prominently as the colours of the three getaway Minis. Again, using the Mini Cooper is another symbol of Britishness. The driving scenes make this film very popular with car fans, and undoubtedly the film will always be held high in certain people’s opinion because of this.
Verdict Fun film that is reasonably engaging, but doesn’t demand your full attention. This film is best if you appreciate the time it was made in. But unfortunately time has moved on, and a film which so heavily relies on the driving stunts these days just needs to be better to create the same entertainment value. Reviewed by Onion Verdict Far sillier than i remember, this lighthearted, rights of passage teen movie sets the foundation for the American Pie’s and Superbad’s of today. Very sarcastic, and mostly enjoyable, its hard not to like anything with Michael J Fox in it! 3 out of 5 Reviewed By Moonwatcher |
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