Author: Ben Browne

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

With this review, I’ve pretty much reviewed the entirety of Summer 2008 with the exception of “Hancock” and all the films I didn’t see. With that completely pointless sentence, it’s time to review “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull”.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)

I know I normally say how much I looked forward to a film prior to its release, but I can honestly say that I wasn’t looking forward to “Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” (hereby referred to as “KOTCS”). To me, “Raiders of the Lost Ark” is as close to perfection as a film can get, “Temple of Doom” is O.K. but nothing special and “Last Crusade” pulled the series back with the duo of Indy and his father. It seemed like “KOTCS” was simply a cash-in and would do nothing to further the story of Henry Jones Jr. (or Indiana to you and me) I think it was morbid curiosity that finally got me to go and see the film in the end. Anyway…

“You know, for an old man you ain’t bad in a fight. What are you, like 80?”

The plot follows a much older Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) as he is captured and taken to Area 51 with his accomplice Mac (Ray Winstone). It is here that Dr. Jones meets severely-fringed Communist Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett) who forces Indy to find a certain artefact captured from Roswell, New Mexico. As the story progresses, Indy also comes into contact with Mutt (Shia LaBeouf), a greaser who needs his help to find his kidnapped mother. As plots go, it’s not the best. For example, the MacGuffin in this film, the titular crystal skull, is a bit rubbish- not to mention massive. I know the size of an object seems like an odd thing to complain about, but it’s a constant distraction to have one of the characters on-screen hulking this huge crystal lump about. Imagine if the MacGuffin was a plot-important wardrobe or oven that the characters have to carry everywhere and you’ll get my meaning. Harrison Ford is still good as Indy. Like everyone, I had concerns that he was too old for the role- but I think he answered his critics by showing them that even though he’s in his mid-sixties, he can still whip-crack with the best of ’em. I quite liked Shia LaBeouf too. He’s a great actor and holds his own in scenes with veteran actors like Ford and John Hurt. The only person who annoyed me a bit was Karen Allen’s return as Marion Ravenwood from “Raiders…” However, I think this is due to sloppy writing rather than bad acting on her part.

The one thing that was ringing in my ears throughout the film was Spielberg’s promise that he was taking it “back to basics” and limiting computer generated effects in favour of old-school practical stunts. My heart sank literally two minutes in when the Paramount logo dissolved into a dirtmound and a shitty CGI prairie dog. I swear that this film was preoccupied with CGI beasties. We have poorly rendered versions of prairie dogs, scorpions, ants and monkeys throughout the film. I don’t know whether Lucas and Spielberg were just joking about or not but it’s fucking stupid. I can understand the use of CGI for explosions or to augment stunts, but to waste it on superfluous crap like unimportant prairie dogs is silly and a waste of money. I also have a problem with the title itself. “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” is way too long and unmemorable. What annoys me is that in the build up to this film being made, far superior titles like “Indiana Jones and the City of Gods” and “Indiana Jones and the Destroyer of Worlds” were considered and registered to throw the ravenous Internet fanboys off the scent. Why this film isn’t “…City of Gods” I’ll never know.

In terms of scenes, let’s get the bad out of the way first. The infamous “nuking the fridge” scene was a bit too silly for my liking, but not as bad as the Internet would have you believe. When Mutt swings on vines surrounded by CGI monkeys, I had a horrible feeling that as bad as that was, the worst was yet to come. As usual, I was proved right when that ending reared it’s ugly head. I’m sure you’ve heard about it but just in case, I’ll Invisotext the next bit (highlight to read)

I’m not against the idea of aliens in an Indiana Jones film. Funnily enough, if you think about it, “KOTCS” is probably the most realistic of the Indy films, considering “Raiders” and “Last Crusade” are all about the infinite power of God and “Temple of Doom” is about magic stones or some shit. I think the whole “B” movie feel suited the film well, considering it’s set in the late Fifties. However, I do have a problem with how sloppily the alien thing was handled. At no point in an Indiana Jones film do I want to see a fully-fledged CGI alien that looks like something from “South Park”.

The main thing that bugged me was driven home when Mac says the line “This is very dangerous” mid-car chase. That’s the thing though. It isn’t. There is no peril whatsoever in this film. I don’t know whether it’s the overuse of CGI or what, but I never believed for a second that our hero and his cohorts were in any danger at all. This is a massive failing as an Indy film without peril is like an Adam Sandler film without long stretches of tedium-unthinkable.

“What exactly am I being accused of, other than surviving a nuclear explosion?”

Having said all that I still enjoyed “KOTCS”. It’s fun and there are some great scenes such as the opening warehouse chase and the Peruvian graveyard sequence that kept me entertained. I didn’t want to be merely entertained, though- I wanted to be thrilled by my first experience of seeing Indiana Jones on the big screen. Now the disappointment has died down and I’ve watched it on a considerably smaller screen I can confidently say this film deserves three stars.

Pineapple Express

I’ve been promising a “Pineapple Express” review since last year and today I can finally deliver on that promise. Is it worth the wait? Find out thusly…

Pineapple Express (2008)

As some of you know, I didn’t get to see this film in the cinema, thanks to car troubles and the like. In the time between its cinema and DVD releases I’ve had at least 20 people ask me if I’ve seen “Pineapple Express”. Until today, the answer was “No” and “Fuck off”, now I can proudly say I have indeed seen it and offer some thoughts on it. I suppose the main question is “Was it worth the wait?”. I’ll try and answer the best I can.

“You’re in the jungle now, baby!”

The story follows stoner Dale Denton (Seth Rogen, in his 500th film of 2008) who witnesses a murder. Panicked, he goes to his dealer, Saul (James Franco) and the pair end up going on the run. I actually liked the story, as I thought the idea of two stoners caught up in a highly dangerous and action-packed adventure was a good one. Of course, the “stoner film” isn’t a new idea as they were born in the late Seventies with Cheech and Chong’s “Up in Smoke”.More recent attempts to revive the genre include the god-awful “Harold and Kumar” films. So now it’s up to the Apatow team to have a go at flogging an expired equine. My one problem with the “stoner” genre is that because I’m not one, it seems like a lot of the jokes go over my head. It all feels like an in-joke that I’m not part of. However, “Pineapple Express” has enough accessible humour for that exclusion to not be a problem.

It’s safe to say I’m not the biggest Seth Rogen fan in the World. It’s not that I don’t like the guy, it’s just that he plays the same frickin’ character no matter what he’s in with only minor details changed. Having said that, Rogen’s character in “Knocked Up” and his character here are pratically the same, the only real difference being what their job is. So, 10 minutes into “Pineapple Express”, I wasn’t feeling it. It was just Rogen doing his Rogen stuff. However, all my cynicism faded away when we met James Franco’s character, Saul, who in my mind is one of the funniest comedy characters in a long time. He’s your average stoner with a heart of gold, who reveals the only reason he got into dealing is to pay for his grandmother’s retirement home, all together now- Aww! The main surprise of the film is surely the fact that James Franco is a natural comedian as he’s mostly known for scowling his way through the “Spider-Man” trilogy as Harry Osborn. I’m sure Saul will be his springboard onto more comedic roles. I also really liked the character of Red (Danny McBride), an odd character with a Wile E. Coyote- like ability to withstand huge amount of punishment. The action is suprisingly good too, with an apartment fight, an accomplished car chase and a climactic shoot-out all thrown into the mix.

The main question of any comedy is “Is it funny?” and yes, it is. There are some great lines and scenes throughout. Some personal favourites include the scene in the woods and the fight at Red’s house, which is not only brilliantly choreographed but hilarious too. I also laughed an embarrassing amount at the scene where Dale and Saul are selling the titular drug to a bunch of schoolchildren -as politically incorrect as it is funny. However, there are some really unfunny moments too. One instance that springs to mind is the bit when Saul smashes a coffee pot into a hitman’s face. The following shot shows the hitman on the floor, with his hands covering his face, bleeding and sobbing. I’m sorry- but that’s not funny in the slightest. I don’t mind people getting hit upside the head with bongs or fire extinguishers, but when you show the consequences of them in a supposedly funny film, it takes you right out of it.

“What’s down there, a fucking Rancor?”

Overall, “Pineapple Express” is a good film. I do get the feeling (as I do with most comedies these days) that it’s not as funny as it should be, which is surely a big failing for a comedy film. Thing is, the film has enough funny lines, action sequences and Saul to make even the most miserable git crack a smile. So, I give it a good, solid three stars with a sidenote that you should add an extra star if you’re a stoner.

The Matrix Revolutions

Right, time to round off the reviews of “The Matrix” with my perspective on “The Matrix Revolutions”. Surely it can’t be worse than “Reloaded” was? Right? Er…

The Matrix Revolutions (2003)

I’m starting to like sequels less and less. For every “Dark Knight”, there are about fifty “At World’s End”s. Unfortunately, “Revolutions” is the from the latter category. Actually, it’s scarily like “At World’s End” in a number of ways.

“Everything that has a beginning has an end. I see the end coming, I see the darkness spreading. I see death.”

The plot follows on directly where “Reloaded” left off. Neo (Keanu Reeves) is seemingly in a coma after stopping Sentinels with his mind in the Real World- however, we learn that he is actually stuck in limbo between the Matrix and the Real World. Agent Smith (Hugo Weaving) continues to replicate himself in the Matrix and has managed to infiltrate Zion too, in the form of Bane (Ian Bliss) who is also in a coma. The machines are still tunnelling down towards Zion and the humans are preparing for war. Add in a crisis of faith for Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) and a hojillion other characters, some introduced in “Reloaded” and others not and you’ve got a bit of a mess on your hands. The actor comments are exactly the same as in my “Reloaded” review- nothing much changes, except that Reeves has now perfected the act of listening to a long, technical speech, pausing and then asking a simple question like “Why?” or “Where?”. The only new people of note are Ian Bliss, who does a brilliant Hugo Weaving impression and Mary Alice- the new Oracle, replacing Gloria Foster who tragically died before filming was completed. However, whilst the Foster’s Oracle gave off that friendly grandmother vibe, Alice’s Oracle seems the type of grandmother to tell you to sit up straight and chastise you for not calling more often. Odd point, I know.

“Revolutions” is more action-orientated than “Reloaded”, however it seems in the rush to give you more bang for your buck, the Wachowskis have started to repeat themselves. The gun battle in the fetish club plays out like an uninspired lobby rip-off from “The Matrix”, the only difference being that the bad guys fight on the ceiling. I really dislike the final Smith/Neo fight too, where it turns into a sort of “Dragonball Z” type thing where people can fly and mere punches send massive shockwaves out. It’s all a bit too silly. I’m fine with the suspension of disbelief but when two characters who were so grounded in the first one, are flying and knocking the crap out of each other whilst it rains like an afternoon in Cardiff, I start to lose it. The real world fight between Neo and Bane/Smith earlier in the film is much better and shows up the finale for what it is – an overindulgent SFX mess.

“It was, after all, it was your life that taught me the purpose of all life. The purpose of life is to end.”

To be honest, I don’t like a lot of “Revolutions”. It just ends up being just another sci-fi film with unintentionally funny, repetitive dialogue, instead of this epic trilogy that was promised circa 2002. The one thing I hate about the sequels is the mythical/psychological/technological crap that both films are laden down with. Yes, “The Matrix” had these things too, what with introducing place names like “Zion” and character names like “Morpheus”- the difference is that in “The Matrix”, it was there if you wanted to find it, whereas in both “Reloaded” and “Revolutions” – the Wachowskis try and cram all this stuff down your throat, making you feel overwhelmed and them look pretentious and twattish. Sorry Wachowskis, but you lost me at “systemic anomaly”.

The Matrix Reloaded

Predictably, it’s time to review the second film in “The Matrix” trilogy. Let’s reload before the revolutions begin…

The Matrix Reloaded (2003)

After having my brain and face melted by the awesomeness of “The Matrix”, you could imagine how I felt when they announced they were filming two sequels back-to-back. I was so damn excited. Not only would there be more amazing fights and effects, but I was old enough to see them in the cinema! I felt like the luckiest person ever. Then I actually saw “…Reloaded”. I think that something snapped in my brain, because I was massively disappointed, but somehow convinced myself it was the best film ever. Well, not any more! Today I break my silence, today I stand up tall, today I honestly convey what I think of “The Matrix Reloaded”!

“We are here because of you, Mr Anderson. We’re here to take from you what you tried to take from us.”


It’s funny how “The Matrix” series and the “Pirates of the Caribbean” series mirror each other. You get the sleeper hit of the first one, which becomes ridiculously popular on Video/DVD. Then some odious film fucks decide that they don’t have enough mountains of Coke at their parties so they commission sequels to be filmed back-to-back. The second one is ridiculously complicated and sours hopes for the third one. The third one is released and somehow manages to fall below even the lowest expectations of the World-weary audience. What’s that? A plot summary? Good luck. The film is way too convoluted. Basically, Neo (Keanu Reeves) is the One and can shape everything in the Matrix (i.e. the World we live in) to his will. He can defeat Agents, fly, but somehow still can’t act. Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss) is also still inexplicably in love with him. Agent Smith (Hugo Weaving) is somehow back and can now replicate himself. Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) is also in the mix somewhere.

I think the key word to describe “Reloaded” is “overambitious”. There are some truly great ideas here, but they are dealt with in a sloppy way. A prime example of this was the much hyped “Burly Brawl” in which Neo takes on hundreds of Agent Smiths. It’s a fantastic concept, but there were limits to the technology and the fight goes from an ingenious scrap between 10 Smiths and Neo, to a video game cutscene featuring a block of pixels vaguely resembling Keanu Reeves. Six years on, I’m still sure that it couldn’t be pulled off convincingly with today’s technology. It’s a case of big idea, limited means.

One of the biggest mistakes “Reloaded” makes is that we spend too much time in “the real World”, i.e. a scummy, muddy cave city called Zion where they have sweaty slow-motion raves to shitty music. It’s really boring. When we were in the real World in “The Matrix”, it was passable because the characters were interesting enough to make us want to know more about them. Thing is, they pretty much killed all the interesting characters in the first one, so that sucks balls. Speaking of which- a Trinity/Neo sex scene? Who’s bright idea was that? It would be O.K. if it wasn’t so embarrassingly done. I know the scene is there to prove to us that Trinity and Neo are a loving couple- and that’s fine. However, the way it’s done comes across as one of those foreign “art” films where they all get naked and shag in low-level lighting to odd music. (Sigh)

A lot that the scenes I like in “Reloaded” are often the lower-key ones. I liked seeing the Oracle (Gloria Foster) again, eventhough her lines are nowhere near as good as they were in the first one. I also liked the one-on-one fight between Neo and Seraph (Collin Chou). In fact, the thing I liked most about the huge freeway sequence was the Morpheus/Agent fight on top of a truck. It’s very well done. Clearly a lot of work (and money) went into the freeway sequence. It’s huge in scale. However, it says a lot that my favourite bit wasn’t any of the car flipping or the bike racing, but some good old fashioned fisticuffs on top of a truck. Maybe they should have concentrated on that rather than all this superfluous stuff. Talking of superfluous, the Twins- why were they in it? Completely wasted potential as I liked their unique gimmick of becoming all transparent and ghost-like at will. They were British though, so they reminded me Hollywood can go fuck itself.

“Choice is an illusion created between those with power and those without.”


I can’t review this film without talking about the infamous “Architect” scene. What the fuck is Colonel Sanders on about? I’m not stupid but I found myself getting lost in the sea of elongated words and mini T.V. Neos. Much like the rest of the film it’s abstruse (see what happens when you use words that people don’t generally know? You’re taken right out of it…)

“Reloaded” was never going to live up to being a worthy successor to “The Matrix”. It just couldn’t have the impact that the first film had. It sacrifices the human element for action and then expects you to pay attention when it’s talking about all its religious/mythological bullshit parallels. I therefore give it an average 3 stars. Ergo! Vis-a-vis! Concordantly!


The Matrix

Happy new year to you all. I realise that I’ve been slacking off lately, what with no updates in over a week. This is disgraceful and I shall correct this by reviewing “The Matrix” trilogy. Let’s start with the first film in the series, shall we?

The Matrix (1999)



1999 was an odd year. It was a year where fear of “The Millennium Bug” was a genuine concern and not just a laughable notion. It was also the year that Benjamin Jack Browne III Esq. turned 13 and his outlook and life and films was starting to change. I was bought “The Matrix” on video for my birthday and it blew my mind. As soon as I finished watching it, my friend and I rewound it and watched it again. It is hard to describe how taken with this film I was, but let’s just say I was trying to bend spoons for the next few months.

“What is the Matrix?”

The story follows Thomas Anderson (Keanu Reeves) aka the computer hacker “Neo”- a man obsessed with finding the mysterious individual known as Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne). Also Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss) and Agent Smith (Hugo Weaving) are in it. To be honest, I think nearly everyone has seen this film, so I won’t bother with a redundant plot summary. I’m tempted to use the phrase “modern classic”, but since this film is almost 10 (!) years old now, maybe it has moved in purely “classic” status. The concept is amazing. I mean, we’ve all questioned the nature of our reality- it’s a human trait. Films have explored this idea too, but I think that “The Matrix” is one of the only ones to have done it successfully (the only other one that comes to mind is “The Truman Show”). In terms of acting, Keanu Reeves can’t. We know this to be true and yet his lack of skill in the field of thespianism doesn’t annoy me in this film. I’m not sure if it’s because he’s not given much to do or what, but I can completely look past all his flaws and just watch the story unfold. You just know a film is good when it’s possible to overlook a bad actor, let alone a bad lead actor. Everyone else is great, but the stand out performance by far is Weaving’s Agent Smith. He’s got an amazing drawl – “Mr. Aaaaanderson…” and he’s a bastard to boot. Brilliant stuff.

I have a vivid memory of the beginning of “The Matrix”. When Trinity jumped, hung in mid-air for a second as the camera panned round and then delivered a massive kick to two policemen, my jaw hit the floor and I uttered a very soft but assured “Holy fuck!” Evidently, many filmmakers felt the same as ,arguably, a new way of big-budget filmmaking had just been born. As I was watching through the film recently, I kept forgetting how many good bits there were, be it a line of dialogue or a frackin’ awesome fight scene. The one thing that bugged me about it wasn’t really the film’s fault. Unfortunately, the film seems like a parody of itself at times- what with “Bullet Time” and Matrix parodies cropping up in everything in the early Noughties. It hasn’t stopped either- what with shitty daytime T.V. ads even going as far as to rip off the “Guns…lots of guns” scene- proof here. Yes, thank you so much you advert bastards, when I’m watching a film I clearly want to be reminded of your shitty comparison rip-off crap halfway through (!) Wankers.

Favourite scenes of mine include the famous lobby sequence in which Neo and Trinity turn a shiny marble Government lobby into dust and debris with the aid of several thousand bullets and some flashy wire-fu moves. I love the subway showdown between Neo and Smith too. The brutality and “down and dirty” nature of it really appeals to me. You feel every punch and kick- it’s great.

“I know kung fu”

I’m running out of things to say. Needless to say (but I’ll say it anyway), you’ve probably seen “The Matrix” and probably know every line and occurance like I do. I’m so glad that almost ten years on, I still think it’s a fantastic film. Let’s hope it still holds up in another ten.

Hot Fuzz

Can’t talk now… deadline to meet…New Year almost here….AARGHH!

Hot Fuzz (2007)


Sometimes I get the feeling that the trio of Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost have been reading my “Things that are awesome and what I want to see in films in the future” diary. The films seem tailor-made to the sort of things I would put into films if I had money, talent and if anyone liked me. In any case, you’ve got to admire the efforts of what I call “The Holy Trinity”, those diary stealing, privacy invading fucks…

“Have you ever wondered why the crime rate in Sandford is so low, yet the accident rate is so high?”


The plot follows Nicholas Angel (Simon Pegg)- a top cop in the London Metropolitan Police Service who is relocated to the quiet country town of Sandford, because he’s been making his co-workers “look bad”. Once there he meets inept Constable Danny Butterman (Nick Frost), son of the Police Inspector Frank Butterman (Jim Broadbent) and huge action movie fan. After Angel arrives, a series of grisly “accidents” happen in the town and Angel seems to be the only one who suspects foul play. Just like “Shaun of the Dead” it’s a great story and has some fantastic performances from the main cast. The supporting cast are not to be ignored, however, as they basically act as a “Who’s Who” of British stars, including Jim Broadbent, Timothy Dalton and Edward Woodward.

As you know, I loved “Shaun of the Dead”, but I kept getting the feeling that I was missing out on a lot of the in-jokes because I’m not really a fan of horror. “Hot Fuzz” rectifies this, being a pastiche of nearly every action film ever made. I was cackling like only a nerd can when little references to films like “Point Break” and “Bad Boys II” were made. I think that the film nails the whole insular, small town mindset that a lot of British towns have. In fact, talking of nerdism- I think the whole parody of the “kiss-off” lines ( i.e. Angel distracts a baddie with a cuddly monkey and then hits him, quipping “Playtime’s over!”) is brilliant. I mean, just watch any film from Arnie’s back catalogue, and you’ll find some gems.

“By the power of Greyskull!”


Pegg and Frost continue their persuit for “World’s Greatest Double Act” in this film, as they are both great. The thing I like about their on-screen relationship this time is that it is significantly different to “Shaun of the Dead”. In this film, Pegg is more the straight man whereas Frost is more loveable as Danny than he was as the foul-mouthed Ed. It’s clear Timothy Dalton had a good time making this as he chews every piece of scenery going with great aplomb.

“Hot Fuzz” is similar to “Shaun of the Dead” in the way that I can’t really pick out favourite scenes. The shoot-out is incredible and funny, but I’m also a fan of the fight (being careful about spoilers here) in the town. So, in conclusion- if you haven’t seen “Hot Fuzz” yet, you should because it’s off the fuckin’ chain!


Shaun of the Dead

With my self-imposed “50 reviews” deadline looming, I thought I’d round off 2008 with the first two films of the “Blood and Ice Cream” trilogy, “Shaun of the Dead” and “Hot Fuzz”. First off, Mr. Of the Dead.

Shaun of the Dead (2004)

I’m so glad “Shaun of the Dead” came out at the time that it did. I remember moaning about the fact that all the films that come from the ol’ British Isles were either the clichéd period dramas that we always pump out with no apparent irony, and romantic comedies probably starring Huge Grunt. Whilst this still hasn’t been fully resolved, “Shaun of the Dead” and “Hot Fuzz” have gone a long way to rectify this.

“Look, I don’t care what the telly says, all right? We *have* to get out of here. If we don’t they’ll tear us to pieces, and that is really going to exacerbate things for all of us”

The story follows Shaun (Simon Pegg), a thirty-something loser whose life is going nowhere. His girlfriend Liz (Kate Ashfield) breaks up with him because of this, leaving Shaun heartbroken and depressed. After a heavy night of drinking with his best friend Ed (Nick Frost), Shaun returns home to the news that there’s a zombie invasion going on. The story is brilliant. I love the fact that the huge zombie invasion happens in the background of Shaun’s life. I’ve got to commend the fact that the cause of the zombification is not explained. Thank God there are films out there that let us decide for ourselves what the answers are, rather than spelling it out like we’ve all got jagged shrapnel embedded in our brains. My idea? Penguins with jetpacks decide enough is enough and wage biological warfare on us pesky humans.

I can’t really fault “Shaun of the Dead” on anything. The actors are all great, especially the double act of Pegg and Frost- surely one of the best comedy duos in a long, long time. It’s very funny, surprisingly touching in places and has enough classic zombie blood ‘n’ guts to keep even the most twisted of gore fans happy. I mean, a lot of the film consists of homage and parody, but it’s very cleverly done. You don’t get the feeling that it relying on other films’ ideas to carry it along. It’s got a clear sense of story and doesn’t lose sight of it even when the zombified shit hits the fan.

“Who died and made you fucking king of the zombies?”

In terms of favourite scenes, I love the “Don’t Stop Me Now” scene (I’m sure you know the scene I’m talking about) and the record flinging scene. Actually, to have “favourite scenes” seems like a bit of a disservice to the rest of the film. It’s fantastic and there’s a “oh, I like this bit” moment in pretty much every scene. If that isn’t a recommendation, I don’t know what is.

The Simpsons Movie

As I desperately race to get 50 reviews by the end of 2008, I’ve been frantically searching for suitable things to review. What better than the first big-screen adventure of everyone’s favourite yellow family? Well, probably a lot of things, but it was the only film I had to hand.

The Simpsons Movie (2007)

Like most people my age, I grew up watching “The Simpsons” on T.V. As I got older, I started getting more of the jokes and appreciating it more. What I’m trying to say is that “The Simpsons” has had a large effect on me for many years now. So, on paper I’m the movie writers’ worst enemy- the hardened Simpsons fan who’s seen it all and can quote it all. Did the film win me over? Find out the answer to the lamest cliffhanger ever, after the next paragraph!

“Homer: Don’t you just love being with someone who’s recklessly impulsive?
Marge : Actually, it’s aged me terribly.”

The story basically follows Homer’s (Dan Castellaneta) accidental pollution of Lake Springfield, which leads to the city of Springfield being declared toxic and encased in a giant dome. The Simpson family are forced to become fugitives after the townspeople discover that Homer is the one to blame. The plot is at least functional, although I’m not a big fan of the whole dome idea. In fact, I’m not really a fan of the story. It’s OK, but after the time it took to bring the Simpsons to the big screen and drafts this feckin’ film had (158!) I expected it to be the new Jesus in animated form. My main problem with the whole thing is the villain. For some reason, they used a new character called Russ Cargill, voiced by Albert Brooks. Why not Mr. Burns? He’s such a great character and one of my favourites. He’s done dastardly things such as blocking out the Sun in the series, so why is he apparently incapable of encapsulating the city in a giant dome? When it comes down to it, Russ Cargill isn’t a funny character.

The film raises a lot of questions too. Why did they make the Arnold Schwarzenegger parody character, Rainer Wolfcastle, actually Arnold Schwarzenegger? Why did people think the Spider-Pig thing was so hysterically funny? Why has Lisa’s (Yeardley Smith) new love interest got the worst “Oirish” accent I have ever heard? Why are the making some jokes a bit ruder (Homer giving double middle fingers) and then making others more child-friendly? (“He’s not Spider-Pig anymore, he’s Harry Plopper”- I’m sorry, but if you are over 10 and laugh at that, you’re an idiot) When it comes down to it, I don’t think “The Simpsons” works as a film. It feels a bit overstretched, considering it’s around 4 times as long as your average episode.

“Homer: Homer do good?
Bart: Actually, you’ve doomed us all. Again.”

All of the above are minor things, really. Okay, I’ve just said I don’t like the story, the villain and that I don’t think it works as a film-but all those grievances go away when you’re laughing this much. It’s very, very funny and so much better than most of the crap out there, posing as “comedies”. The only reason I seem to be quite harsh to it is that I love “The Simpsons” and you always hurt the ones you love most- especially if you’ve been drinking. These days, episodes of “The Simpsons” are hit-and-miss, but the movie is like a longer good episode. I love the fact that Green Day and especially Tom Hanks lend their voices to proceedings too. As I’ve said, “The Simpsons Movie” is funny, satirical and intelligent. Word of warning though- does contain animated wang.

Shoot ‘Em Up

After the depressing experience of reliving the “what ifs” and the “could have beens” of the “Pirates of the Caribbean” trilogy, I felt that I needed something a bit off the wall. Well, you can’t get much more off the wall than the Clive Owen starring “Shoot ‘Em Up”.

Shoot ‘Em Up (2007)

Being clever is a dangerous thing in the movie business. If you put a product out there that’s steeped in irony and post-modernism, chances are the ‘tards out there will take it at face value and believe that was the message you wanted to convey. Case in point-“Shoot ‘Em Up”.

“My God! Do we really suck or this guy really that good?”

The plot follows the mysterious Mr. Smith (Clive Owen) who inadvertently ends up with a baby in his care. Thing is, there seem to be quite a few people who want the child dead, especially “businessman” Hertz (Paul Giamatti). Along the way, Smith recruits prostitute D.Q. (Monica Bellucci) to help him care for the baby. Yes, the plot is naff- but in a film like this, the plot is shoved aside for set pieces and loud noises. I would normally complain about this, but the difference is that “Shoot ‘Em Up” is well aware of what it is doing and carries on shamelessly. “Refreshing” doesn’t cover it. The three lead actors are fine. They seem to get the odd tone of the film and play to it, especially Paul Giamatti-who spends 80% of the film gleefully snarling, like a dog with peanut butter stuck to the roof of its mouth.

Before we go further, let’s analyse the title. It’s not called “The Death Zone”,”Time to Kill 2″ or anything shite like that. It’s called “Shoot ‘Em Up”- a clear indication of the kind of meta-level this film is on. This isn’t the sort of film with quotable dialogue or amazing twists. It’s a John Woo film (hard)boiled down to the basic elements.

The action is superb. Every sequence is designed to give you a chuckle one minute and a surprise the next. Nearly all of which are set to music like Motorhead’s “Ace of Spades” and Wolfmother’s “The Joker and the Thief”. It’s completely nuts, but at the same time extremely likeable. Plus, it has a gunfight in nearly every scenario possible. There’s a gunfight in a warehouse, during a car chase and in a bathroom. Doesn’t sound that groundbreaking? Well, what if I was to tell you there’s a shoot-out during a birth, a shoot-out in mid-air and even one during a sex scene?

I have two main problems with this flick. As it’s quite a small film, budgetry restraints are quite evident here and there. The ideas are great, but I got the feeling that sometimes the director just didn’t have enough scratch to fully realise his blood-soaked vision. The second is a problem that most video games suffer- repetition. You might think it a bit odd for me to suddenly start talking about gaming, but that’s what “Shoot ‘Em Up” is. It’s the film equivalent of a bloodthirsty video game. I mean “Shoot ‘Em Up” is even a genre of game! As I was saying, repetition is a problem. I loved Smith killing a man with a carrot the first time I saw it because it was fresh, funny and fucked up in equal measures. By the second and third times I wanted to see something new- strangulation by a grapefruit, perhaps?

“Aren’t guns just fucking great, Hammerson?”

“Shoot ‘Em Up” is an unashamedly fun film. What I love about it is that it’s the sort of film readers of “Nuts” and “Loaded” will think is amazing, blissfully unaware that it’s mocking them the entire time.

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End

Third “Pirates…” review. Prepare accordingly.

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End (2007)

Now, if you ask the average film fan to rank the “Pirates…” films, they will most likely rank them in the descending order of:
“Curse of the Black Pearl”,
“At World’s End”
and then
“Dead Man’s Chest”.
However, I’m not an average person (or so my belt sizes keep telling me). I think “Dead Man’s Chest” is the superior of the sequels. I’ll tell you more in a minute.

“The song has already been sung! The brethren court is called!”

The plot is a continuation of the ridiculous number of character threads from “Dead Man’s Chest”. Lord Cutler Beckett (Tom Hollander) is now executing anyone and everyone remotely associated with pirates. Due to this, a defiant song is sung to summon the nine pirate Lords to order. Thing is, Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) is dead and failed to appoint a new Lord before the Kraken munched on his face. So, Will (Orlando Bloom), Elizabeth (Keira Knightley), Tia Dalma (Naomie Harris) and the Black Pearl crew, led by Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) go on a mission to rescue Jack from Davy Jones’ Locker. Beckett also has the heart of Davy Jones (Bill Nighy) and now can control Jones and the crew of the Flying Dutchman. He does so and is using Jones to wipe out pirate ships.

Unfortunately, “At World’s End” started off at a disadvantage because it had to carry on and end all the characters’ stories satisfactorily. Thing is, “Dead Man’s Chest” was so ridiculously complicated, “At World’s End” had very little chance of doing this. Also, I’m sure there was another insufferable prick studio exec shouting “bigger and better!” whenever he wasn’t snorting cocaine from a hooker’s navel. I knew the film was going to be on the faecal side of things when the damn thing opened up on a mass hanging. Nice one, Disney- good to know you’re still catering for the kiddies (!) Actually, it takes it one step further by showing a small child getting the ol’ rope neckwear. I know these things happened, but since we glossed over all the raping and pillaging that real pirates did, I figured the hanging thing would be left out. I realise that Jack Sparrow was nearly hanged in “Curse of the Black Pearl”, but the key word is “nearly”. He escaped with the help of Will and all was fine and dandy. Here, there are no miraculous escapes but a shot of the feet of lifeless bodies. I’m not against violence by any stretch of the imagination.What annoys me is there are plenty of films out there showing violence and people dying. In contrast, there are hardly any kid-friendly films out there that aren’t animated, and of the ones that aren’t- 90% of those are pure monkey bollocks. If I’m in a bloodthirsty mood, I’ll stick on “Rambo” and the like. However, it would be nice to have the family-friendly live action trilogy that seemed to be promised to us in the first one.

I came to the realisation that this film actually makes me angry. It’s clearly had all the money in the World spent on it and it still manages to be unintelligible and boring. Yes, that’s right- I said boring. Sure, there’s the feckin’ epic sea battle in a whirlpool at the end, but that’s about all that’s noteworthy. One of the film’s biggest mistakes is not re-introducing Jack sooner. He is the lifeblood of the series and when he’s not on screen we have to put up with Keira Knightley’s wobbly acting and Orlando Bloom’s consistently shite acting. When Jack finally does show up, there’s about ten Jacks all crewing the stationary Black Pearl. It’s not as entertaining as the film wants you to think it is. To be honest, it seems to me that the whole Davy Jones’ Locker bit is just an excuse to show off some (admittedly impressive) effects.

I remember when I heard that Keith Richards was going to be in one of the sequels. I thought it was a funny idea. However, seeing it isn’t as great as I thought it’d be- something which seems to be the theme of this film. Don’t even get me started on that Calypso/Davy Jones thing. Why the flying fuck did they feel the need to have Tia Dalma grow 60 feet tall and then explode into thousands of crabs? I don’t care what you, IMDB or anyone says. IT. DOESN’T. MAKE. ANY. SENSE. Plus, this film is even longer than “Dead Man’s Chest”, if you can believe that.

Since my bile ducts are starting to hurt, I’ll tell you the one thing or rather one scene that I like. It’s Beckett’s death scene when he slowly walks through his ship whilst everything blows the fuck up around him. I actually liked the character of Beckett as he was a booable (not a word, but should be) villain. The scene is not only a great send off to the character, but a triumph of special effects. Destruction has never looked so damn good. In fact, the effects are probably the only good thing in the film. I suppose if you treated it as a very long tech demo, it would work.

“Gentlemen, I wash my hands of this weirdness.”

In summary, there are a few good things in “At World’s End” but they are sparsely sprinkled throughout the harsh runtime. Overall though, this film is dense- in every sense of the word.