Ant-Man (July 2015)

Official Australian release date: 16/7/15. Viewed: 15/7/15.

Director: Peyton Reed

Actors: Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, Evangeline Lilly, Corey Stoll

Genre: Action / Sci-Fi

Rating: PG       

Another month, another Marvel film! (Well, it’s actually been two months since ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’). And although it may make me sound like a fanboy, I’m still not sick of them – especially when they’re still as fun as ‘Ant-Man’! Definitely not one of the bigger superheroes (no pun intended), but Ant-Man and Wasp were original Avengers in the 1960’s comics and have always been integral to the Marvel universe. The film does well by including the original Ant-Man, Hank Pym (Douglas, holding up well for a 70-year-old) and tying him in with S.H.I.E.L.D. and Howard Stark, as well as showing some of the Wasp. The film also sets up Ant-Man’s involvement in future ‘Avengers’/’Captain America’ films by having the Falcon (Mackie) involved too.

Brought to you by the director of ‘Bring It On’ & ‘The Break-Up’, it’s surprising it’s not a weak rom-com! Reed does an OK job, but it’s hard not to imagine what Edgar Wright, the original director (he still gets a writing credit) – famous for ‘Shaun of the Dead’ & ‘Scott Pilgrim vs the World’ – would have done with it. That’s not to say it lacks imagination or humour – as shown by the tank and the Thomas the Tank Engine scenes – but just that it at times feels a little pedestrian. I guess the PG (and not M) rating also contributes to this.

The story is pretty simple, as is fitting a non-super-powered/non-Mutant hero – Scott Lang (Rudd) is a burglar (not a “robber”!) who is trying to do right so he can be in his daughters’ life again. Luckily, Pym and his daughter, Hope (Lilly) come along and give him the opportunity to wear the Ant-Man suit, which has the ability to shrink, thanks to the “Pym Particle”. The film is fast and fun, with Rudd a great choice for the lead role, with his charm and humour (helped by one of the writers being Adam McKay, best known for ‘Step Brothers’ & ‘Anchorman’). There’s some ‘seriousness’ with Cross (Stoll) as the villain, but it is all very fast-paced and the stakes never seem too high. This won’t be anyone’s favourite Marvel movie, but it’s certainly not a bad one either.

Overall: Light and easy fun and action.

Gav's Rating: 3.5 stars.   

Terminator: Genisys (July 2015)

Official Australian release date: 1/7/15. Viewed: 29/6/15.

Director: Alan Taylor

Actors: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Emilia Clarke, Jai Courtney, Jason Clarke

Genre: Action / Sci-Fi

Rating: M

‘Terminator: Genisys’ (or Terminator 5) is another sequel/prequel/reboot coming out in 2015 (‘Jurassic World’, ‘Fantastic Four’, ‘Jungle Book’, ‘M:I5’, ‘Transporter Refueled’, ‘Vacation’, etc. ), but it’s a very well-made film with plenty to offer long-time fans and anyone looking for a good action film. The film starts in 2029 (i.e. after the events of ‘Terminator: Salvation’) and John Connor is now played by Jason Clarke, with Jai Courtney as Kyle Reese – technically his dad, since he’s the guy in the first film that gets Sarah Connor (now Emilia Clarke) knocked up. It may take a little while to get your head around it, but the filmmakers are assuming you know some of the backstory!

Basically, John & Kyle win the post-“Judgement Day” war against the Terminators/SkyNet – which makes for an exciting opening 20min! – but not before a T-800 (Arnie) is sent back to 1984 to kill Sarah. This takes us full circle and we end up right where the first film starts! Pretty cool, but something’s change in the timeline and old Arnie is (somehow) there to stop just-arrived Arnie. From there, it slowly starts to make sense and fit together – in a parallel-universes kind-of way – but it doesn’t really detract from the story too much. The plot is pretty simple and the same as all the films – stop SkyNet, which involves lots of being chased, shooting, explosions and one-liners!

JK Simmons is funny as a ‘believer’ and gets a few good scenes, but Arnie gets some great lines and moments, especially with his “smiles”! But the main stars are Clarke & Courtney, who work well together and are both better than the actors that played them in the previous films. There’s a little bit of seriousness at the end, but action/fun/set-pieces galore throughout – on the Golden Gate Bridge, in helicopters, in trucks… always moving and fighting!

Overall: Fun and fast – better than the last two films in the series.

Gav's Rating: 4 stars.  

Jurassic World (June 2015)

Official Australian release date: 11/6/15. Viewed: 13/6/15.

Director: Colin Trevorrow

Actors: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Vincent D’Onofrio, Ty Simpkins, Nick Robinson

Genre: Action / Sci-Fi

Rating: M

‘Jurassic World’ (or Jurassic Park 4) is set 22 years after the original film (and 14 years after the last film), on the same Costa Rican island, with it now a fully-functioning theme park. Why anyone would open or invest in it after the events is another story altogether and never really mentioned! Owen (Pratt) is the Sam Neil replacement and is charming and solid throughout and Claire (Dallas Howard) is the Laura Dern replacement and becomes less stuck-up and annoying as the film progresses. Jake Johnson (Nick off ‘New Girl’) is great as the computer tech in the control room and gets a few funny moments – a more than admirable job as the Jeff Goldblum replacement!

The film keeps a similar formula to ‘Jurassic Park’ – two kids, a concerned parent-figure (but not the actual parents – why are they never with their kids?), a dinosaur escaping and everyone running for their lives! There’s some nice throwbacks to the original too – the score motifs, the kids stumble into the foyer of the memorable final scene, the original/distinctive jeeps are seen, Dr Wu – the geneticist – is played by the same actor, Hammond is mentioned a few times and there’s a heard of Gallimimus at one point. I was glad to see more Stegosaurs and also to see Ankylosaurs for the first time in the series.

My main issue was the similarity to some aspects of ‘Jurassic Park III’ – there’s a dinosaur bigger than Tyrannosaurus Rex that kills everything; there’s Pteranodons that get loose and their consequences never properly dealt with; and the Velociraptors aren’t really treated as vicious killing machines until it’s needed in the story. However, it doesn’t really need to make much sense when there’s so many great moments of tension, then action, then surprise throughout – and some genuine wonder with the Deinosuchus in the Sea World part. A well done final scene(s) cap off an enjoyable experience.

Overall: An exciting return-to-form for the series – there will be more!

Gav's Rating: 4 stars. 

Entourage (June 2015)

Official Australian release date: 4/6/15. Viewed: 8/6/15.

Director: Doug Ellin

Actors: Adrian Grenier, Kevin Connolly, Jerry Ferrara, Kevin Dillon, Jeremy Piven

Genre: Comedy

Rating: MA

If you haven’t seen any of the ‘Entourage’ TV series (which ran from 2004–2011), then you may occasionally be at a loss during the film. The film starts off with a brief ‘where-are-they-now’ (on a yacht in the Mediterranean, surrounded by dozens of women, obviously), but doesn’t offer much background otherwise, assuming if you’re watching it, you already know the four main characters – Vince (Grenier), Eric (Connolly), Turtle (Ferrara) & Drama (Dillon) – plus Ari (Piven), who is almost more essential to the show/film than any of the others.

As usual, there’s plenty of guest stars – Wahlberg, Alba, Favreau, Neeson, Grammer, Busey, Saget, Spade, Hammer, various NFL players – which sometimes add something to the film, but often seem unnecessary and seem to be there purely to make it feel like Hollywood. There’s a minor plot for each of the entourage – Vince directing his first film; Drama hoping for a breakout role in that film (& getting embroiled in some online retribution); Turtle trying to get date a girl who happens to be a professional wrestler; and Eric doing pregnancy things with his currently separated wife. Nothing revolutionary plot-wise and – besides Royal Blood at the start, Jane’s Addiction at the titles and Tame Impala in the middle – there’s some very average music throughout.

Ari is slightly calmer and – even though he still screams and says mean things – he comes off as more charming and less abrasive than before. Great to see Piven & Thornton acting together – arguably to only two ‘real’ actors/stars in the film! Also, credit to Haley Joel Osment, who plays entitled, ignorant hick superbly. The main issue most people will have with this film is its portrayal of Los Angeles – young/skinny women in bikinis (or not), always a party, always sunny, always a brunch. Possibly true, but it does often feel plastic/forced. However, the film isn’t bad – it just feels like three episodes rolled into one, with no real sense of tension or resolution at all. It’s just a comfortable ride with familiar faces.

Overall: A fun, simple comedy and extension of the series.

Gav's Rating: 3.5 stars. 

Mad Max: Fury Road (May 2015)

Official Australian release date: 14/5/15. Viewed: 19/5/15.

Director: George Miller

Actors: Tom Hardy, Charlize Theron, Nicholas Hoult, Hugh Keays-Byrne

Genre: Action

Rating: MA

‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ doesn’t – to the best of my recollection – pick up from where the third film ended, which is fine, seeing as ‘Beyond Thunderdome’ came out the year I was born! I don’t recall too many specifics from the original trilogy, other than it was a post-apocalyptic desert (Australian) wasteland and motorcycle and car gangs reigned supreme. ‘Fury Road’ keeps that tradition alive – at its core, it is a road/chase film, and is relentless throughout with everything it does, from the scenery, soundtrack, stunts, cars, violence and explosions.

The over-the-top-ness serves the film well, though – much in the same way ‘300’ was hyper-visualised, this is the same, but instead of heaps of slow-motion, some of it is sped up, keeping the pace of the chase buzzing. It also has the same silly-ness, in that none of it is remotely realistic, but it all works within the universe the film inhabits (except for where all the fuel comes from!). Miller must’ve dreamt up most of the car/truck hybrids when he was a kid – and kudos to him for making them a reality, especially the pole-swinging guys and the main rig – certainly great to watch.

Hardy is satisfactory as Max (there’s not many lines for the brooding hero) and Theron is good as the vengeful Furiosa, trying to protect a group of women from the evil Emperor (or whatever his name is – played by Keays-Byrne, with Billy Connolly hair). Not sure why Hardy had to have a Bane-like face covering for some of the film, after ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ – detracted a bit from the film. Favourite bit – the guitarist on the front of the truck! Loved how the drums and his riffs only came to the fore when the camera panned to them.

Overall: Exciting action/pursuit film. Beware driving after watching – “road rage” is a given!

Gav's Rating: 4 stars.

Pitch Perfect 2 (May 2015)

Official Australian release date: 7/5/15. Viewed: 10/5/15.

Director: Elizabeth Banks

Actors: Anna Kendrick, Hailee Steinfeld, Rebel Wilson, Brittany Snow

Genre: Comedy

Rating: M

‘Pitch Perfect 2’ (rare in the fact that it doesn’t have a sub-title!) is a decent sequel to the surprise 2012 hit comedy about a university a capella group. This film is obviously aimed at females and is going after a younger audience, introducing 18-year-old Emily (Steinfeld) into the mix now – probably to allow a third film in the series. However, these don’t make it a bad film – still plenty of enjoyable moments throughout.

There’s probably less of a focus on the singing this time round, because – let’s face it – a capella isn’t really that exciting and can get old pretty quick. Especially with some of the rival teams – “Das Sound Machine” – and some of the terrible song choices (depending on your point-of-view, obviously). This is usually a good thing, as it gives Amy (Wilson) a chance to drop more quick-witted remarks and have more awkwardness with Bumper (DeVine) and even Becca (Kendrick) has some funny moments with her new boss (Keegan-Michael Key). But the best bits are still between the commentators – Elizabeth Banks (also her first time directing) & John Michael Higgins – plenty of hilarious lines and inappropriate comments.  

It’s a little too long (almost two hours), has a few redundant scenes and is very predictable, but you’re going to get what you expect – lots of laughs, some young-adult-what-does-the-future-hold musing and plenty of extras in a Louisiana field pretending it’s a Danish festival! I wish the original song (‘Flashlight’) wasn’t by Jessie J, but there’s still some decent songs in it.

Overall: Up-tempo feel-good fun.

Gav's Rating: 3 stars.

Avengers: Age Of Ultron (April 2015)

Official Australian release date: 23/4/15. Viewed: 23/4/15.

Director: Joss Whedon

Actors: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Jeremy Renner, James Spader

Genre: Action / Adventure

Rating: M

Avengers 2 starts off very fast-paced – you’re already in the midst of a battle and one of the first exchanges is a hilarious back-and-forth between Iron Man (Downey Jr.) and Captain America (Evans). It at once sets the scene for a great action film, but also helps to quickly re-introduce characters and their personalities. It’s not essential to have seen the first movie, or even the ‘Thor’, ‘Iron Man’ or ‘Captain America’ films (and even ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’), but they definitely help to add another layer of nuance and understanding to some events/characters.

The plot is pretty straight forward – Iron Man wants to protect the world by having his automated suits everywhere. This inadvertently creates artificial intelligence, which turns out to be Ultron (Spader) – who wants to protect Earth by helping it to evolve. This obviously involves wiping out the human species! The Avengers can’t handle him – and with Scarlet Witch (Olsen) and Quicksilver (Taylor-Johnson/Kick-Ass) on his side (before they see his true intentions) – they have to re-group and learn to all work together again. The introduction of Vision (Bettany) is handled well and is a welcome one for future films.

One of the best aspects of this film is the characterisation – each Avenger gets some backstory and exposition, not just fight scenes. Hawkeye (Renner) probably comes off the best here, since he’s often overlooked – he is after all just a guy who’s a good archer! The Black Widow (Johansson) and Hulk (Ruffalo) ‘romance’ is odd and new, but doesn’t necessarily work. However, it’s good seeing Thor (Hemsworth), Iron Man and Captain America work as part of a team – especially when Thor and “Cap” combine to take out dozens of enemies at once!

           

Spader’s voice is great as the voice of discontent with the human species. While the ending is a little reminiscent of ‘Superman Returns’, the film takes you on an entertaining ride through the Marvel universe – I still look forward to the next instalment(s)!

Overall: Not perfect, but still an extremely enjoyable superhero flick.

Gav's Rating: 4 stars.