Xmen : Days of Future Past Review

A new squeal after many prequels but has the cast of the prequel  

Released : May 22nd 2014

Certificate : 12A

Director : Bryan Singer

Cast : James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Jennifer Lawrence, Hugh Jackman, Shawn Ashmore, Anna Paquin, Ellen Page, Nicholas Hoult

Plot : Set in the future (2023) the war between the mutants and humans has destroyed most of the world. As a last stand, the Xmen send Wolverine (Jackman) back in time to the 70’s to stop the war before it even happens.

A very pleasing return of Bryan Singer to his superhero masterpiece, as it has been a total of four Xmen films made since Xmen 2 in his absence, and in those four films the franchise has come to close to collapse since the first wolverine spin off. The series was renewed with James MaCavoy and Micheal Fassbender. Much to mixed reactions, some less picky viewers loving the 70’s groves and the new young characters, and as you would expect many missing the original gang. But one thing that both will sides will agree on is the size. As this is by far the biggest of all the films, for better or for worse. Featuring the old and the new cast to come together for a true superhero epic, the biggest assemble since Avengers Assemble.

Continuing the storyline from this point had its problems thou. Such as how did Magneto get his powers back. And having to allow for the new cast members of Fassbender and MaCavoy. But because of the time since X3 only the very attentive will be bothered by the plot whole or even notice it, and the large cast did make for a big scale epic, but at the cost of not devoting enough time to all the characters. As you would expect Jackman features most of the screen time as he always has. The film also chose to focus more on the young blood than the old, with MaCavoy and Fassbender featuring more then Stewart and McKellen .Depending on where you stand this will be pleasing, or annoy you that the first Xmen film with the full original cast for 8 years doesn’t devote enough time to the original team.

But MaCavoy and Fassbender don’t disappoint in there roles of Magneto and Professor X, as they didn’t in First Class. In this instalment MaCavoy even took the character, and the series, to character depth that hasn’t been visited before. A drunk (and arguable junkie) recluse is not the sort of character that you would expect to find in a film based on cartoons for kids. But the part is short lived and MaCavoy played it well, so we could quickly return to the fun Xmen legend and action. With the presence of Bryan Singer, the action and coolness were in no shortage. Best of which was in the form of Quicksilver played by Evan Peters and his role in breaking into the Pentagon, you might be forced to rethink which ever power is your favourite. And Magneto picks up even larger stuff, making the works of First Class look like child’s play. Plus the robots are pretty sweet to.

Verdict : Bryan’s back and this is everything you would want from a Xmen film with nothing held back.

Verdict : 4/5

Quote : “I don’t want your suffering, I don’t want your future”

Nebraska Review

Million Dollar Grand-dad 

Released : December 6th 2013

Certificate : 15

Director : Alexander Payne

Cast : Will Forte, Bruce Dern, Stacy Keach, June Squibb

Plot : Believing he has won $1 million in a online lottery, an elderly Montana pensioner Woody Grant (Dern) decides to go on foot to Nebraska to revive his supposed winnings. Compelled by his persistence and total belief Woody’s son David (Forte) is forced to drive is father to Nebraska.

This was yet another moving and thought and thought provoking instalments from Alexander Payne, who seems to effortlessly produce picture that are inclined to make us stop and think before we get up from the seat in the cinema and walk away. And his latest venture with Nebraska, while may prove slower to watch, and has to be said does not provided many thrills (apart from an old lady telling her family to go and fu*k themselves, have no choice but to love June Squibb), the devil is in the details. I marvel at how Alexander Payne can look at life and project it onto our screens with such a harsh truthfulness. And with Nebraska the effects of which are uplifting in parts, but maybe prove to be too much for what some to consider an entertainment motion picture.

Nebraska is by far Payne richest story so far, with relatable characters shown through Oscar worthy performances, and a very potent decision to produce in black and white.  The most notable performance of which is Bruce Dern , who deservedly revived his nomination for the  Best Actor Oscar. His portal of Woody Grant, is both believable and mesmerising, his frantic desperation of the wealth over weighing his relational mind is beautifully executed, and lead to an almost unbearably truthful ending.

He is supported by brilliant supporting performances from the like of June Squibb who stars very much as the comic relief of the film. With an overly animated character, in scenes almost being seen as a cartoon of a grumpy old woman, is a welcome splash of colour to the film. And also from the main supporting role of Woody’s son played by Will Forte, his kindness and protection of his father proves to be  moving in parts. All brought together to make a utterly compelling cast, who are a joy to watch, even if the film isn’t. Payne again easily manges to search out the depth of our conditions and means. And presentment them to us in a story that is metaphoric and majestic.

Verdict : $1 million dollars, worth ever penny.

Verdict : 5/5

Quote : “I never even knew the son of a bitch wanted to be a millionaire”

Review: Gravity (3D)

Released: 7^th November

Certificate: 12A

Director: Alfonso Cuarón

Cast: Sandra Bullock, George Clooney

In space, life is impossible. So says the opening caption in Gravity’s short prelude, which soon gives way to a tense, beautiful and deeply engaging tale of survival in the most hostile of environments. The film follows Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) and Matt Kowlaski (George Clooney), two astronauts at opposite ends of their space-faring careers (this is her first mission and his last before retirement). The opening sequence unfolds in one long take as Stone and Clooney perform maintenance on the Hubble space telescope, the camera effortlessly gliding around them to take in their celestial surroundings as they exchange banter. The light mood doesn’t last long however, and things go awry when debris from a demolished Russian satellite come hurling through space towards the pair and their shuttle Explorer.

What’s particularly striking about Cuarón’s camerawork is how effortlessly he plots three dimensions onto the screen in a way that is both grandiose and unobtrusive. Objects in frame appear exactly where they should be, from the tiny dust particle floating past the viewer’s eye to the great shadow of the distant Earth. This is no mean feat given that in a zero-gravity environment concepts such as ‘up’ and ‘down’ are very much subjective, however Cuarón handles this with aplomb. The setting of most of the action in weightless environments adds a dream-like quality to Stone’s journey, with the balletic weightless effects achieved by some impressive wire-work. Many shots stand out: the long opener, Stone suspended foetus-like in the womb of the international space station airlock, and the oddly mesmerizing sight of a Marvin the Martian figurine floating at eye-level through a hole in a damaged shuttle are the most memorable among them.

But quite apart from the special effects, the film also works as a narrative, both in terms of thrilling action and an exploration of Stone’s character when stripped of the context of an earthly setting. If one were looking to criticise, the script is functional rather than extraordinary and the narrative becomes a little video-game like in the second and third acts. There is also rather a lot of religious imagery which is featured but not examined, however the viewer never feels preached at and the film remains generally (though admittedly at times frustratingly) apolitical. Bullock and Clooney are compelling leads, with Bullock demonstrating an impressive range in a challenging role. Clooney seems not to stray far from his usual archetype, but it’s something he does extremely well, providing a lighthearted foil for the more nervous Stone.

A ‘special effects’ film, but in the best possible way, Gravity is a thrilling 90 minutes of good storyline, made with a satisfyingly artistic approach to 3D filmmaking.

Verdict: 4.5/5

Quote: “I hate space.”

A.E.S.