‘The Magnificent 7’ Review

Last time Denzel Washington teamed up with director Antoine Fuqua, we were treated to the wonderfully thrilling ‘The Equalizer’ in 2014. Can they work that magic again in the remake of this 60s classic?

The story follows a group of gunslingers who take it upon themselves to protect a town from a corrupt businessmen. As with any ensemble film, its all down to the strength of the cast. The leader of the 7, is played by Washington. He is supported by a strong team, including Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke, Vincent D’Onofrio & Byung-Hun Lee. The diversity of the 7 also makes a nice change, from American, Mexican to Korean!

The films strength is most definitely any of the numerous scene involving stand offs. As with any Western, you’re bound to get a few stand off between the good & bad guys, and this film does this extremely well. Bringing back shades of ‘The Equalizer’! The shoot out scenes are choreographed well, and the final stand off in the town is thoroughly enjoyable to watch! Peter Sarsgaard does a credible performance in making us look forward to his inevitable downfall! The villain is usually where most films can drop the ball, but it does a sound job is creating a hateful antagonist.

At more than 2 hours in run time, the film does tend to drag at times. The initial hour or so is pretty leisurely in setting things up, and some of the 7 are introduced in a swift manner. It would have been nicer to see more background to some of the 7, rather than scenes of travelling or small talk! The final showdown does seem to go on for a bit too long, you feel like some of it could have been cut from the final take.

I’ve not seen the original, so I can’t really make a direct comparison to it! The film delivers an action packed, raucous adventure. The cast worked together smoothly, and the gun fights rack up the excitement! The film doesn’t offer anything new, so don’t expect any dramatic story lines or shocking plot twists. With all that in mind, you’ll thoroughly enjoy the show!

September 27, 2016 0

Episode 007 is up!

It’s another packed half hour show this month! For the reviews”Don’t Breathe” and “Kubo and the Two Strings” are cross-examined. Can ‘Don’t Breathe’ match ‘Lights Out’ & ‘Conjuring 2’ in the recent string of fine horror films? Can ‘Kubo’ match heavyweights Disney & Dreamworks in the field of animated feature films?

We also have a quick look at ‘Bridget Jones Baby’ & ‘Sausage Party’, to wrap up the reviews.

Marvels latest release, ‘Doctor Strange’ headlines the October release schedule. Tom Cruise returns as Jack Reacher, in the sequel ‘Jack Reacher:Never Go Back’. Zach Galifianakis, Isla Fisher, Gal Gadot & Jon Hamm all star in the comedy ‘Keeping Up With the Joneses’. Finally, as its Halloween next month, we take a look at ‘Ouija:Origins of Evil’.

We’re adding a new section to the show, where we all give our opinions on a question. This show we all discuss “What was the worst film you’ve paid to watch at the Cinema?”. Seeing a bad film is annoying enough, to pay to go watch it is even more frustrating!!

Enjoy the show!

September 23, 2016 0

“Don’t Breathe” Review

Directed by Fede Alvarez

Starring Stephen Lang, Jane Levy, Dylan Minette & Danielle Zovatto

2016 has been a excellent year for stellar horror films, Conjuring 2, Lights Out & Green Room have all helped revive a genre filled with cheap cash ins and cliches. ‘Don’t Breathe’ looks to add another fine feather to the cap with its home invasion flick.

Director Fede Alvarez is already known among horror fans for his savage ‘Evil Dead’ film from 2013. ‘Don’t Breathe’ is no where near as brutal, but it is one of the most suspenseful films of the year so far!

The film follows the misadventures of a young trio of friends (Levy, Minette, Zovatto) who rob the homes of the rich, but make the grave mistake of attempting to rob the home of a blind army veteran (Lang).

Jane Levy stars in Screen Gems' horror-thriller DON'T BREATHE. — Jane Levy stars in Screen Gems’ horror-thriller DON’T BREATHE.

You could split the film into 2 halves. The first half is truly amazing. After the break-in is botched, and one of the robbers is killed, the film takes on a predator like feel. As the survivors attempt to hide and escape from ‘The Blind Man’. He may be blind, but similar to ‘Daredevil’, he has honed his other senses, in such a way he is still a formidable foe! Stephen Lang does a wonderful job playing The Blind Man, his muscular physique simply adding to the danger of the rabid pursuer. The filming during the home invasion at some points is a cut above the rest. The long tracking shots, as the camera follows the protagonists around the house really cranks up the tension! The scene in the basement in the dark has to be one of the most intense scenes in any horror film!

After a twist in the middle of the film, the movie takes on a slightly more over-dramatic tone, the Blind Man is still formidable, but the twist seemed like a cheap ploy to make the audience root against him, and the typical horror cliches start to pile up in the second half. The burglars are not exactly characters you feel sympathetic for. Sure one of them is doing this to help her sister have a better life, but at the same time, robbery doesn’t exactly get you points for sympathy! While one of the characters you simply can’t wait to die, as they are so irritating! After a riveting, on the edge opening half, the film does not maintain it’s drama over the entire course of the run-time, and it does get rather predictable. This should not take away from the sheer excellence of the initial hunting phase of the film. Some may enjoy the twist reveal, some may not! It is certainly a film of two halves!

7/10, wonderful concept, slightly ruined by the over-dramatic second half

September 19, 2016 0

“Kubo and the Two Strings” Review

It’s very rare nowadays to see a top notch animation that is not made by Disney Pixar or Dreamworks. But Laika, whose previous works include the intriguingly dark Coraline, has released their latest stop motion animation, which could give films like Zootropolis a run for its money come Oscar season!

‘Kubo and the Two Strings’ is Director Travis Knight’s directorial debut, and he does not disappoint. KATTS follows the journey of a young boy named Kubo who sets off on a mystical adventure in order to defeat the evil Moon King who is pursuing him. In his journey he is joined by the aptly named Monkey (the no-nonsense, tough talker) & Beetle (the comic relief!) in his quest to retrieve the 3 pieces of the magic armour, the key in defeating the main antagonist.

It’s the animation that steals the show, the use of stop motion animation gives the film a unique charm that you simply cannot recreate using standalone CGI.The scenes featuring the origami models are the most impressive, considering the detail that is put into it. The cast behind the characters is stellar. Featuring huge names such as Charlize Theron, Matthew MaConaughey, Rooney Mara, Ralph Fiennes & George Takei. All of whom bring the characters to life. Art Parkinson from Game of Thrones fame does a fine job with the title character.

The film itself does get rather dark at times, especially in the scenes featuring the evil sisters. Who stalk the hero throughout the film, and it has some rather violent fight scenes, so its not all bright colours and one-liners!

The film isn’t perfect though, the ending seems rushed and slightly out of place. The resolution with the villain doesn’t feel satisfying, and the original backstory is left rather vague at times. This doesn’t take much away from the film though. Kubo has to be one of the most visually stunning films of the year, and hopefully it will get some recognition for all the hard work put into creating this!

September 14, 2016 5

Silver Screen Show : Episode 6

So we’ve now been going on for half a year! Episode 6 is up and running! Here’s to another 6 months and making it the full year!

This month we have a new addition to the team, Alenya. Who joined regulars Abu, Mo & Pam on the show.

After the bumper July edition, this month is a bit more calm. We look back on Suicide Squad, Lights Out, The Shallows & Mohenjo Daro.

Enjoy!

September 8, 2016 0

‘Money Monster’ Review

Directed by: Jodie Foster

Starring: George Clooney, Julia Roberts, Jack O’Connell

With recent hits like ‘The Wolf Of Wall Street’ & ‘The Big Short’, Wall Street has been in the cross-hairs for satire. ‘Money Monster’ does not hit the heights of the films mentioned, but it provides some good entertainment with several moments of laughter.

The film focuses on Lee Gates (Clooney), the brash, vibrant presenter of his Investment show, Money Monster. A charismatic TV personality who is just as comfortable dancing on screen as he is presenting! Due to a failed investment tip, one of the companies featured on the show crash in the markets. Leading to one irate shareholder (Jack O’Connell) to take matters into his own hands. The broken investor manages to get into the studio to hold Gates at gunpoint, forcing him to wear an explosive vest. To make things worse, the cameras are forced to keep rolling, broadcasting it across the world. It’s down to Gates’s producer Patty Fenn (Julia Roberts) to keep a calm head and guide Gates in this dangerous situation.

The segments between Clooney & O’Connell in the studio are by far the best segments of the movie. With Gates trying to maintain his composure and trying to reason with the gunman. O’Connell is especially great, playing the role of ‘the desperate man who lost everything’ perfectly. Having Robert communicating with the host via the earpiece was a great touch, which helped build chemistry between the host & producer.

The film had a choice to go down the route of hostage films such as ‘The Taking of Pelham 123”, where the situation is very much real, and anyone could be killed if things flare up. But with this, after a while, you can tell that he won’t go through with his threat, and the film becomes somewhat of a comedy, similar to ‘The Martian’. There are several moments which will genuinely make the audience laugh! One highlight being Gates giving an inspirational speech to the world, to save his life, only for it to fail miserably.

The film is not a classic, the plot does become somewhat dull when the story leaves the studio setting. The shady corporate dealings of the company that lost millions is one of the side plots, but it feels pedestrian when compared to the hostage situation. It’s the cliche story of a corrupt CEO. While the humour is plentiful, people expecting an intense thriller will be not be too pleased. The film won’t live long in the memory once you leave the cinema, but it won’t leave you disappointed.

June 8, 2016 0

Silver Screen Show : Episode 3

Another month down, another episode wrapped up! In this episode we take a look at the biggest release so far this year, Captain America : Civil War. It’s a Marvel double with X-Men : Apocalypse also coming out this month. Comedy sequels never really hold up, will Bad Neighbours 2 prove us wrong? Also a small word for a rare Bollywood flick getting a mainstream release, with Fan.

Enjoy 🙂

June 8, 2016 0

‘X-Men : Apocalypse’ Review

The X-Men series has been on a long road to recovery. The Last Stand was an underwhelming ending to the original trilogy. Since then, the success of ‘’First Class’’ & ‘’Days of Future Past’’ have seen the fortunes of the franchises improve, the latest chapter to the saga looks to seal the revival.

Apocalypse picks up following the events of DOFP. Magneto is trying to reintegrate into a normal human life secluded away in Europe. Mistique is now seen as a hero to many mutants, and Professor X’s school is up and running.

The story follows the return of Apocalypse (Oscar Isaac). The ‘’original’ mutant, dating back to the Egyptians.

Following Civil War, this is another ensemble cast, with various characters getting show time. The lead duo of McAVoy and Fassbender are fantastic as they have proven before. The chemistry between to two works well, and they have become a capable replacement for Stewart & McKellen from the original trilogy. This film also sees characters such as Cyclops (Tye Sherian), Jean Grey (Sophia Turner) & Storm (Alexander Shipp) all get recast. This gives all the characters a second chance, one which Cyclops most definitely needed. The supposed leader of the X-men played second fiddle in his previous incarnation. Quicksilver once again returns, and his cameo is even better than his set piece from DOFP. Nightcrawler’s (Kodi Smit-McPhee) addition also worked really well, and provided moments of comic relief, especially his interaction with the fellow young X-Men students.

The main part of the plot was that Apocalypse will recruit 4 warriors, he so called ‘4 horseman of the Apocalypse’ to be by his side during his reign. It’s here where the film loses some of its edge. Apart from Magneto, the rest don’t really have a serious agenda. Storm, & Angel all seem unnecessary, and compared to Magneto, a real step down. They spend most of the film posing by the side of Apocalypse. The main antagonist himself is a bit one dimensional, he is just evil for the sake of being evil. No real reason to why to wants to rule the world. The role of Mistique is also a bit perplexing; it looks like they forced Mystique into being one of the main characters, solely down to Jennifer Lawrence’s name. Her attempt to lead the X-men feels much like her character in The Hunger Games!

Overall Apocalypse is a thoroughly entertaining film, the set pieces are amazing, the characters are mostly well done, and there are several humorous moments. The cameo from a certain X-Men was good to see, although it was spoiled in the trailers! If your after a great popcorn flick, this certainly delivers.

May 27, 2016 0

‘Captain America : Civil War’ Review

Ever since ‘Avengers Assemble’ released back in 2012, the cracks in the relationship between Tony Stark’s Ironman & Steve Rodger’s Captain American were starting to appear. It all finally comes down to an explosive conclusion in one of Marvel’s finest films so far in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).

A film containing so many different superheroes could have become a complicated mess. But the Russo Brothers once again served up a right treat for fans and critics alike. After their stellar work in creating the superb ‘Winter Soldier’, they have proved that they are capable of handling the upcoming Avengers movies.

Following the destruction in previous films caused by members of the Avengers across several previous films. The world has decided to reign in the action of the Avengers with the introduction of the ‘Sokovia Accords’. Which would mean the United Nations would have control of what the Avengers do. Simply put, Ironman is for it, Captain is against it.

This all eventually leads to two sides being formed, which has been the main angle the marketing team for the film have used to stir up the crowd. What works well here is that all the players in the ‘Civil War’ get their moment to shine. Even the minor characters such as Falcon & Vision get their moment in the spotlight. The usual Marvel humour is there as always, though they know when to use it, the final act is virtually devoid of any humour. The new additions also hit the right spot. Chadwick Boseman does a great job as the fearless Black Panther, his no nonsense attitude makes a refreshing change from the usual Avengers banter and quipping. Tom Holland’s portrayal of a young Spiderman steals the show in his brief appearances, and has everyone looking forward to his solo adventure! The Russo Bros. did a fantastic job in managing to fit everyone in, and making it work so fluently.

The films centerpiece is the showdown at the airport, where the 2 sides finally get down to trading blows. In what some will say is one of the greatest action scenes ever filmed, the set piece is filled with cameos, humour and action. The build up to this does not disappoint. It’s pretty obvious the heroes are pulling their punches during the scene, as they don’t really want to hurt one another. The final showdown at the end of the film between Ironman, Captain & The Winter Soldier is the polar opposite. The showdown is dramatic, and filled with tension. Which served as a nice treat, not the usual ‘end of the world’ scenario. This film is very much about Captain America, not the Avengers. Chris Evans & Downey Jr put in probably their best performances so far in all of the MCU outings so far.

The film though isn’t perfect. On the plus side of 2 hours, the film is stretched out a lot. The first hour or so is key in setting up the showcase battle, but it feels like some scenes could have been shortened or even cut to speed up the pacing. The 3rd act is a brutal fight, but it feels a bit of a let down after the epic airport scene. The films ”antagonist” was once again one of its weak points. Not since Loki have Marvel been able to produce an enticing villain. This is somewhat put on the side, as the feud between Tony & Steve is what really drives the film, the villain feels like somewhat of an after-thought. If he was removed entirely, it really wouldn’t have made much of a difference.

After the underwhelming critical response to Dawn of Justice, Marvel once again proved that they are the kings of the comic book big screen experience. The hype to the film has most certainly been justified, and it will interesting to see if they can top this in Infinity Wars.

5/5

May 1, 2016 0

Silver Screen Show : Episode 2

Our second show is up! 😀

This month we take a look at the big release of the month, ”Batman v Superman, Dawn of Justice”. Was all the hype worth it? ”Zootropolis” is the latest animation from Disney, will it reach the heights of previous releases like Big Hero 6 & Frozen? Finally we discuss one of the films that have flew in under the radar, the wonderfully suspenseful ”10 Cloverfield Lane”.

Enjoy 🙂

April 29, 2016 0

‘The Jungle Book’ Review

Directed by Jon Favreau

Starring Neel Sethi, Ben Kingsley, Bill Murray, Idris Elba, Scarlett Johansson

I can’t even remember the last time I watched the original 1967 animated version of The Jungle Book, so it was great to see that their would be a CGI remake to bring back those childhood memories!

The story follows a similar pattern to the original. in which Mowgli (Sethi) is escorted by his mentor, Bagheera the Panther (Kingsley) to go live with his fellow humans in the village. Baloo (Murray), King Louie (Walken), Shere Khan (Elba) & Kaa (Johansson) once again all feature along with the addition of a few other characters.

In what could have just been a quick cash in for Disney, has turned out to be already one of the films of the year. With director Jon Favreau doing an excellent job in the pacing the story, with some incredible action scenes.

The CGI was always going to make or break the film, especially as 12-year-old Neel Sethi would have to act the entire film on his own, in front of a green screen, as he is the only human character in the entire movie! It cannot have been easy to act on your own for the entire film at such a young age, but the kid did well. The CGI shown here is by far some of the best we have seen, Disney did a fantastic job with all the animals, and never at any point during the film does the quality drop.

The voice casting is near perfect. Bill Murray absolutely nails it with his role as Baloo, and Ben Kingsley provides the calm assurance as Bagheera. Idris Elba does a wonderful job as the villainous Khan. Lupita Nyong’o takes up the role of Mowgli’s adopted Wolf mother Raksha, who does well to voice the pained mother who has to give up her child. One gripe would be the role of Scarlett Johansson as Kaa the Snake, who only features in the film for a brief moment. It would have been nice to the more of the deceptive snake!

The nostalgia factor will play a huge role in the enjoyment of the movie, you cant help but smile when the music for ‘Bare Necessities’ starts to fire up, and the homage to the Lion King with a stampede scene was a lovely touch. Younger members of the audience will find this the definitive version of The Jungle Book, and maybe even for some Adults! It’s no wonder a sequel is already in the works.

4/5

April 26, 2016 0