Review of The Tournament (2009) by Mike

Title: The Tournament (2009)

Original UK Release Date: 25^th July 2010

Original US Release Date: 20^th October 2009

UK Rating: 18

US Rating: R

Director: Scott Mann

Genre: Action

Plot: Every seven years, a random town somewhere on the planet is chosen to host the ultimate tournament. A tournament that pits 30 of the world’s best assassins against each other until only one remains and wins $10,000,000. They have 24 hours.

Mike's Review

This was a film I chose on the spur of the moment. Couldn't decide on what to watch and decided on this as I hadn't heard of it before.

The tournament pits the world’s best assassins against each other every seven years. This one is held in an English town in Middlesbrough. All the assassins have trackers implanted under their skin so they can be tracked. The tournament is watched and bet on for the entertainment of the world's richest people.

The film has a great cast that includes Ving Rhames, Robert Carlyle, Kelly Hu, Ian Somerhalder, Liam Cunningham, Sebastien Foucan, Craig Conway, Rachel Grant & Bashar Rahal. The character of Father MacAvoy played by Robert Carlyle is a great addition to the film, an innocent and accidental participant in the tournament, who gives a level of humanity in an otherwise brutal film. However the stand out performance for me was Sebastien Foucan. He is one of the creators of Parkour (free running). Every time he is on screen he shows off his abilities in astounding ways.

The film is about people hunting people in a similar vain to The Hunger Games where people are made to fight for survival until there is only one left standing. However that is where the similarity ends. This is a violent and brutal film. It reminded me of the action films of the 80’s with Sylvester Stallone, Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger. The action and fights are similar, but unlike those films where there was one almost super human hero, this doesn't have that. There are people that are more civilised than others and some that are pure evil. They are all, with the exception of Father MacAvoy, highly trained killers and fairly evenly matched.

This is a crazy movie, filled with action of a high standard. The battles between the assassins range from a quick and sudden kill, to massive shoot outs, big explosions and car chases as the players of the game attempt to win. The kills are violent and bloody, and by bloody I mean really bloody also with some dismemberments thrown in! There are many hand to hand fights that are spectacular to see. The final battle on a moving double decker bus is outstanding.

This is director Scott Manns first time directing a big movie. Hopefully we will see more from him soon.

This is fun to watch with all the elements that go together to make a good action film. If, like me you are an action movie fan, it ticks many of the boxes.

7 out of 10

Additional Information

Stand out performance: Sebastien Foucan as Anton Bogart

Trailer

Review of Haywire (2011) by Mike

Title: Haywire (2011)

Original UK Release Date: 18^th January 2012

Original US Release Date: 20^th January 2012

UK Rating: 15

US Rating: R

Director: Steven Soderbergh

Genre: Action

Plot: While on a mission, a freelance covert operator is double crossed. She sets out to find out who it was and exacts revenge.

Mike's Review

This film was recommended to me by my oldest friend. We have always had similar movie tastes so I gave it a go.

The film introduces us to Mallory Kane (Gina Carano), a highly trained special ops woman who has decided to leave and start a normal life. She is convinced to take on one last job. During the mission she finds out she has been double crossed and has to fight for her life while trying to clear her name and uncover who set her up.

This was an interesting film. It stars some Hollywood greats including Ewan McGregor, Antonio Banderas, Michael Douglas & Channing Tatum. However it is newcomer Gina Carano who makes the film work. She is thrown in at the deep end with the starring role in her first feature film, but she pulls it off effortlessly. Looking like a pro against the Hollywood stars, hopefully there is a great future in store for her.

The film is an action packed chase film with some of the best fight scenes I have ever seen. They are graphic and very realistic. Gina Caranos background Muay Thai and MMA allows her to really shine and show off her skills. This film substitutes traditional gun fights for fist fights and they have the realism not usually found in films. The direction is also excellent as you would expect from Steven Soderbergh. It puts you right in the middle of the action and allows you to feel part of the film.

Cleverly shot and utilising locations such as Dublin, Ireland, gives this film a unique look. However the film’s story isn’t anything we haven’t seen many times before. It’s an old story line, but making the main character female and played by an unknown actor makes this one work. When they used the storyline for Mission: Impossible, you all knew Tom Cruise would kick some ass and save the day. But here you don’t know what will happen due to the casting. You are sure she will win out in the end, but there is enough doubt that the outcome is never clear.

Even with the great cast, good locations and excellent directing, the film doesn’t live up to its potential. Yes it is enjoyable and fun to watch, but ultimately it is nothing more than an above average spy film. There was no great villain of the movie and too much misdirection with characters. This doesn’t allow you the opportunity to connect with or despise any of the players. This works to keep you guessing but robs you of any emotional attachment to the story. Fortunately the main character of Mallory Kane is a good one and keeps you engrossed in the story.

This film is definitely worth the time to see it. It gives us a glimpse of a future star in  Gina Carano.

7 out of 10

Additional Information

Stand out performance: Gina Carano as Mallory Kane

Trailer

Review of Robocop (1987) by Mike

Title: Robocop (1987)

Original UK Release Date: 5^th February 1988

Original US Release Date: 17^th July 1987

UK Rating: 18

US Rating: R

Director: Paul Verhoeven

Genre: Action/Sci-Fi

Plot: A wounded cop in futuristic Detroit, it bought back as a cyborg to rid the streets of crime.

Mike's Review

This was a ground breaking film in the 80’s however, due to the severe lack of imagination in Hollywood, it is being remade. So I thought it was time to revisit and review it.

Robocop is set in the future, where crime has taken over the streets of Detroit and the police force has been privatised and now run by Omni Consumer Products (OCP). OCP are trying to revitalise the city but first they need to sort out the crime. After an officer is mortally wounded in the line of duty, OCP turn him into a cyborg called Robocop. Robocop soon discovers that the criminals are more than the thugs on the streets.

Robocop stars Peter Weller, Nancy Allen, Dan O'Herlihy, Ronny Cox, Kurtwood Smith, Miguel Ferrer, Paul McCrane, Ray Wise, Robert DoQui & Jesse D. Goins. A truly great ensemble cast, each playing the role to the fullest. However Kurtwood Smith is heads above the rest of the cast. He plays Clarence J. Boddicker, the main villain in a great and very over the top way. He stands out as one of cinemas great bad guys. The cast goes a long way to ensure the film works so well, especially the movements of Robocop played perfectly by Peter Weller.

This was a state of the art film upon its release, using stop motion effects and matte paintings as CGI was still in its infancy. Many of the effects do look a little dated now, but it still works with the gritty storyline and dark way it was shot. Big guns, big explosions, excess blood and someone being dissolved in radioactive waste, a great combination!

Directed by Paul Verhoeven, it is a masterpiece of cinema. The story, now 25 years old is still relevant today. Big corporations getting greedy, not enough money for public services and high rates of crime. Paul Verhoeven has always had an interesting vision of the future as seen in Starship Troopers & Total Recall (interestingly, both are also being remade). However he doesn’t seem to have much hope for the future as all the films show life to be even harder than it is now. He is a great movie maker and I have enjoyed many of his films.

The film is so much fun to watch. It is pure entertainment all the way.

9 out of 10

Additional Information

Stand out performance: Kurtwood Smith as Clarence J. Boddicker

Trailer

Review of John Carter (2012) by Mike

Title: John Carter (2012)

Original UK Release Date: 9^th March 2012

Original US Release Date: 9^th March 2012

UK Rating: 12

US Rating: PG-13

Director: Andrew Stanton

Genre: Action/Sci-Fi

Plot: During the American Civil War, a former soldier searching for gold is transported to Mars. After forming an alliance with a princess he finds himself amidst another war and has to fight for his and the planets survival.

Mike's Review

I knew almost nothing about the story other than it was set on Mars. I am not familiar with the stories about John Carter at all, all I knew was its a big effects movie and considered a major flop at the box office. Looking at the trailer it kind of reminded me of Prince of Persia with the desert setting and a reluctant hero and heroine, but with aliens.

The story sees John Carter (Taylor Kitsch), searching for gold during the American Civil War. After finding a large amount of gold he encounters a mysterious man and kills him in self-defence. He takes a medallion off the man and finds himself transported to Mars. Once there he discovers that his Earth heritage gives him great abilities when once again he is thrust into a civil war and must fight for his survival.

The film stars Taylor Kitsch, Lynn Collins, Samantha Morton, Willem Dafoe, Thomas Haden Church, Dominic West, Mark Strong & Ciarán Hinds. A great cast of actors many from the UK and they are all well used in the film. Taylor Kitsch is great in the starring role, but the stand out performance for me was Dominic West as Sab Than. He plays the ruthless character perfectly. Hungry for power and destruction, he asks for his rival’s daughters hand in marriage to end the war. He has powers granted to him that rival John Carter’s abilities and is a formidable opponent.

The effects in the film are completely mind blowing. But once again this is to be expected in modern films especially those with a budget of around $250,000,000! It was definitely money well spent as the film looks incredible from the flying vehicles to the four armed giant natives. Watching the natives fighting is spectacular.

The story is also good, but one we have seen many times before. However setting it on Mars makes a nice change and allows for a lot of creativity. The mix of technology and primitive weapons works well and allows for some spectacular fights and battles.

This was a great film, really fun to watch and enjoyable. But it wasn’t anything more than we have seen before. There are elements of The Scorpion King, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time and Clash of the Titans. However, it was a good and original idea to set it on Mars and this worked really well.

I believe the reason it failed for Disney was that not enough people knew or cared about the story to make this a big hit. The original story was written by Edgar Rice Burroughs in 1912. There have been various book and comics about the character but it is still a very little known story. Maybe if it was an original story more people would have seen it, as I believe some would have been put off by a story they thought they needed some background knowledge of, but this isn’t the case. It's a good film and no prior knowledge of the story is needed.

This film is definitely worth seeing, especially if you are an Action/Sci-Fi fan as it is one of the good ones.

8 out of 10

Additional Information

Stand out performance: Dominic West as Sab Than

Trailer

Review of 21 Jump Street (2012) by Mike

Title: 21 Jump Street (2012)

Original UK Release Date: 16^th March 2012

Original US Release Date: 16^th March 2012

UK Rating: 15

US Rating: R

Directors: Phil Lord & Chris Miller

Genre: Action/Comedy

Plot: Two rookie cops are sent undercover to a high school to bring down a drug ring.

Mike's Review

I have never seen the original series this film was based on so I had no preconceptions about watching this film. I saw the trailer and it looked good.

The film is about two friends who join the police force. After their first arrest goes horrible wrong, they are sent to a special task force to infiltrate a drug ring in a high school by posing as students.

This film is absolutely hilarious. I found myself laughing out loud throughout most of the film. After watching the trailer I could see it was going to be a comedy, but I never expected it to be so good.

The cast is great. Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum, Brie Larson, Ice Cube, Dave Franco, Rob Riggle, Dax Flame & Chris Parnell. Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum are great as the two leads that start out as enemies in high school but develop a strong friendship when they enrol in police academy. Hill was the high school nerd and Tatum the school bully. Their chemistry together is great. Watching them attempt to fit into a high school, where there are no bullies and the nerds and geeks are the popular group is a riot.

The film was made using the plot to the original series but here the similarity ends. If you are a fan of the series, you may not like the change to a comedy but give it a chance as the film is hilarious. Better than the Hangover and that was one of the best comedies in recent years. The film works so well as it doesn’t take itself too seriously and uses every opportunity to poke fun at itself and remakes in general. Every stereotype is portrayed and poked fun at from the angry black police captain to science lab nerds.

The film was co-written by Jonah Hill, his first major movie story. If this is what we can expect from him then I wait with anticipation for his next story. The only real down side to this film is the ending. It kind of goes on a little long and slows the pace down and the comedy isn’t as sharp as earlier points but it doesn’t spoil the overall feel of the film.

This is in no way a spoof of the series, all it takes is the general plot. It even pays homage to the series with two great cameos towards the end. I have read many reviews on this film and a lot of people were expecting a serious film. See this with no expectation and a sense of humour and you will see one of the best comedies of recent years.

9 out of 10

Additional Information

Trailer

A tale of two films and one plot Part 3: Volcanos

A tale of two films and one plot

 Over the years, film studios produce some amazing and original films. But occasionally, studios produce similar films at the same time. This doesn’t happen all the time but sometimes films with almost identical plots are made and released very close together. But in these circumstances, is it worth seeing both films? Is the more expensively made film always the best? And do the stars of the film make a difference. I decided to go back and watch some examples of these back to back. Starting with whatever film was released earlier and comparing my viewing experience.

Part 3: Volcanos

Title
Dante’s Peak	Volcano
Date of US release
7 February 1997	25 April 1997
UK/US Rating
12/PG-13	12/PG-13
Plot
When a volcano erupts it is a race against time to save the populations of people living in the area.
Budget (Estimated)
$116,000,000	$90,000,000
Lifetime gross
$178,127,760	$122,823,468
Chart position of the year
22	39
Academy award nominations
0	0
Academy award wins
N/A	N/A
IMDb rating
5.7	5.2

 The third of my comparisons feature two more disaster films. The first released was Dante’s Peak, directed by Roger Donaldson. This film focused more on the human side of the disaster. The film’s stars were Pierce Brosnan, Linda Hamilton, Jamie Renée Smith, Jeremy Foley, Elizabeth Hoffman, Charles Hallahan, Arabella Field, Tzi Ma & Grant Heslov.

The second film released was Volcano, Directed by Mick Jackson. This version of the disaster relied more heavily on effects as the main focus of the film. The human side was also added but seemed like it took a back seat in the story. The film stars Tommy Lee Jones, Anne Heche, Don Cheadle, Keith David, John Corbett, John Carroll Lynch, Marcello Thedford & James MacDonald.

So which is better? The stats clearly show that Dante’s Peak is the clear winner in every category. But for a viewing experience is it really better?

For movies with very similar plots surprisingly these films are quite different. Dante’s Peak is set in a small town at the base of a dormant volcano, however Volcano is set in downtown Los Angles. You may realise that there are no volcanos in this location so film makers created one! After a few earth tremors a volcano appears out of the Tar Pits next to Wilshire Boulevard. This may seem a little farfetched but after a little research on the net, these really do happen. This is something really worth knowing before viewing the film.

The cast in the films include some of the most well known in faces in movies. Dante’s Peak has Pierce Brosnan back then the current James Bond and Linda Hamilton from the first two Terminator films. While Volcano has academy award winning Tommy Lee Jones and the Emmy award winning Anne Heche. It also stars Don Cheadle a future Academy Award and Emmy nominee. It is the strength of these actors that makes both of these films work. Dante’s Peak is the more emotional of the two focusing on the personal loss of the tragedy, while Volcano is the more effects heavy and action filled of the two. The effects are pretty good in both films, however Volcano’s effects look a little dated in places while Dante’s Peak uses footage of a real volcano.

With Volcano you suspend your belief and sit back for the ride, however Dante’s Peak for the most part has the element of realism and threat and this goes a long way in making the movie work. While neither of the two films set the box office alight that year (the top film was Titanic), both are good entertainment.

So out of the two which one wins?

Once again the figures get it right, Dante’s Peak wins this one, mainly due to the realism felt while watching.

Coming Next Month

Part 4: Body Swapping