Wednesday, 28 September 2011 Apollo 18 (Warren Christie, Lloyd Owen, Ryan Robbins) Posted by joeldfisher at 09:12

The moon had been the highest aspiration for years over the 1950's and 60's until finally on July 21st 1969, Neil Armstrong became the first man to set foot on the not so distant planet (sorry technically the moon is a moon not a planet). Since then there had been many other mission to the moon, the ill fated Apollo 13 being probably the most famous and even being made into a movie itself.

There have also been a few movies made about the moon itself, from the infamous Capricorn One, about the faking of the moon landing to more recently Duncan Jones' critically acclaimed Moon, starring Sam Rockwell. However, there have also been many science fiction based horror movies, such as Alien, Event Horizon and even the Friday the 13th genre ventured into space with Jason X. There have been very little or none to my recollection that have brought the science fiction horror genre so close to us until now and Apollo 18 wants to prove its worth.

Taking inspiration, no doubt, from The Blair Witch Project and more recently Paranormal Activity, Apollo 18 is about the 'lost footage' of the secret 18th Apollo mission to the moon and why there have never been any more. The film starts off with a few publicity videos and video diaries from the crew themselves before sending them off on their mission and from then on the footage is entirely of the crew's experiences in space, and on the moon.

Unfortunately, being the film and TV buff that I am I immediately recognised one of the main actors, thus completely destroying the fantasy of the 'lost footage' and the debate that the movie may have been of actual footage. There may have been some people who are not as observant as I am on actors and their careers but as the movie progresses there are a lot more examples of lack of authenticity and things that sadly shatter the illusion for even the most casual observer.

Firstly and most glaringly, there has never been any gravity in space, whether you're on the moon itself or whether you're in your lunar module there is no way that you can firmly put your feet on the ground unless you are wearing a space suit. This fact has either escaped the makers of Apollo 18, or they genuinely didn't realise this or they ignored it, I for one am going for the latter. Also, as the movie progresses there are so many alien movie clichés that for this to be a real documentary would have to let the audience take a massive stretch of the imagination. For example, without giving away too many plot points there is a moment when Captain Bejamin Anderson (Lloyd Owen; best known to British audiences from Monarch of The Glen and to geeks as Indiana Jones' father in The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones) becomes infected, and possessed by an alien virus. To have some sort of authenticity, I believe the screenwriters should have reconsidered taking such outlandish steps and maybe the movie could have been a bit more debatable on its accuracy and not raised as many laughs.

For a documentary, there is also a lot of linear plot lining. There are a few moments of suspense elevating the situation (using such devices as flickering cameras and unusual, alien noises), but the rest of the movie moves along at a pace unusual for a documentary or even 'lost footage' as the movie suggests. For this movie to have been enjoyable, clearly as a fake documentary-cum-horror movie I believe there should have been a lot more taken into consideration in terms of suspense and atmosphere (no pun intended) rather than plotlines.

When we do get to see the aliens, they are about as low budget as you can get, which is fine for a movie that wants to present itself as real footage because you get the feeling that presenting the movie this way would have meant the budget was tight. However the form in which they take is lazy and adds another laugh at the supposed heightened suspense of the movie, particularly so in its climax.

Dimension Films are the distributors of this movie and therefore it should give the audiences an idea of what they're getting. Most famously known for the Scream series, the recent Halloween and Piranha 3D remakes, this is low budget horror from a company that churn them out by the bucket load and a lot of them have been successful and in some cases enjoyable. However, I believe a much bigger budget and a less ambitious, lost footage style would have done nicely for the big screen, and may have been a lot more enjoyable.

Monday, 26 September 2011 Cowboys and Aliens (Daniel Craig, Olivia Wilde, Harrison Ford) Posted by joeldfisher at 11:59

Westerns seem to be the popular genre to make these days. Reinventions, retellings and reboots have all had filmmakers trying to bring new life into the most popular cinema genre from American history. Great stars have been born from the Western, such as John Wayne and Clint Eastwood and the aim of the movie industry is to once again capture lightning in a bottle. Recently the huge success of the classic Western remake, True Grit, gave Jeff Bridges his second Oscar nomination in a row after winning last year for Crazy Heart and Quentin Tarantino is preparing to make his own Western for the film loving audiences that go to see his movies, called Django Unchained. However Tarantino and the Coen Brothers are not the only ones looking to breathe new life into the genre. Steven Spielberg, no less has had his eye on a little project that he hoped to have given the Western genre a new spin, by adding aliens.

As well as Spielberg getting an executive producer credit, Ron Howard is on board as producer and Jon Favreau (Iron Man, Iron Man 2) is directing. Three big names on such a project would bring a lot of curiosity to a film-loving audience and many who are interested in both the Western and Science-Fiction genre so surely this production is onto a winner.

Cowboys and Aliens is about, well, cowboys and aliens. Jake Lonergan (Daniel Craig; forthcoming projects The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of The Unicorn and the US remake of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo) wakes up with no memory of what has happened to him. All he has are little flashes of strange, cryptic pieces and a metal wristband that he cannot remove. After an impressive fight scene, showing his prowess as a man, Jake wanders into the nearest town and observes his surroundings. After setting up the scene; the old time preacher with a steady aim and a steady hand (Clancy Brown; best known for his roles in Starship Troopers and Highlander), the innkeeper, Doc (Sam Rockwell; Iron Man 2, Conviction) with the beautiful wife (Ana de la Reguera; Cop Out, Nacho Libre) and the local villain (Harrison Ford; Morning Glory, Extraordinary Measures) with the wayward son (Paul Dano; Knight and Day, Taking Woodstock), the story changes pace somewhat when the small Western town is attacked, by the aforementioned aliens.

The search then commences as various members of the town are kidnapped and an unlikely posse are put together.

The unique selling point of the movie, besides the mash-up of genres is its two major stars; Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford. One being the latest action movie star who brings in fans from small boys to grown women and is a box office winner, and the other is a long time veteran of the action family adventure movie and will bring in the movie buffs as well as an older audience and they work very well together.

Daniel Craig is clearly being compared as the new Harrison Ford and that's certainly no false accolade. Debatably, one may say that Craig brings a little more acting weight to the leading man role but in his later years Ford has certainly settled into a particular type of role and revels in it. As seen in Morning Glory, where he played a grizzled, grouchy former news anchor, here he plays a grizzled, grouchy former Colonel turned cattle rancher. As in his most famous roles as Han Solo and Indiana Jones, you'd never mess with him and as his career has progressed Ford is starting to use that 'don't mess with me' stare and attitude that Clint Eastwood patented, making him the die-hard elder statesman in Hollywood and he's doing it well.

Besides the cast of mismatched men, a woman is brought into the mix, Ella (Olivia Wilde; Tron: Legacy, TV series House) as an almost more mysterious character than Jake. The cast play off each other well, particularly whoever Craig is partnered with at the time, albeit with varying screen time for them. Craig and Ford's time is scarce but together when it counts and Sam Rockwell is woefully underused but it seems the Western aspect is very carefully crafted to really give the feel for the genre and that's what counts. The problem is the aliens. As soon as this world is brought in it shatters the illusion of the world way back West and it almost feel like an afterthought in a well structured story. The reasons for the alien invasion are vague, as are many of the other plot points in the movie and that's a shame because for what Cowboys and Aliens promised in scale it lacked in finesse.

Not really being the blockbuster it was meant to be, Cowboys and Aliens feels like the big disappointment of the summer, for all the fun of seeing Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford as cowboys the lack of a direction for the movie lets it fall flat. There are a few too many clichés on the alien plotline that make the audience care less about that and more about the cowboys and too much of that seems borrowed from other, more successful movies. At the end of the day, when the cast rides off into the sunset, maybe if they do come back maybe it would be better if they came back without the aliens.

Wednesday, 21 September 2011 Rise of the Planet of the Apes (James Franco, Andy Serkis, Freida Pinto) Posted by joeldfisher at 08:33

'I wanna be like you, I wanna walk like you, Talk like you, too, You'll see it's true, An ape like me, Can learn to be human too' (King Louis, The Jungle Book). Never have these words been so sinister. We go to zoos everyday, usually when on holiday and we see the apes in their enclosures behind the glass and laugh at how they almost seem to mirror our own mannerisms and love the way they look after and protect their families in similar ways to us. Evolution has taught us that we are descended from the apes, we can even teach some sign language to be able to communicate. The thing that Rise of the Planet of the Apes teaches us is, that a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing.

Will Rodman (James Franco; Your Highness, 127 Hours) is a scientist on the verge of a major breakthrough in human brain research, he holds the cure to Alzheimer's disease. Testing on the company's apes has already begun and the results are astonishing. However, when one of the test subjects 'Brighteyes' runs amok, the whole project is put into jeopardy. Rodman is forced into taking home Brighteyes' only child, a son that he calls Caesar. Little does he know what the ramifications will be, not only for himself and his family, but for the entire planet.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes is, for those who don't know, the sixth in the Planet of the Apes series. After Beneath, Escape from, Conquest of and Battle for, The Planet of the Apes series reboots, in a sense to tell the story of how it all began. Set in modern day San Francisco (or maybe the not too distant future) the story is told with a careful balance of realism and science fiction. Of course there are apes in the movie that can do things that no other apes in reality can do but the story never forgets its human side and also never takes for granted the deeper issues such as those affected by Alzheimer's and the levels humans can go to, to abuse animals.

An impressive cast is pulled together including such names as Brian Cox (Ironclad, R.E.D.) as an evil zookeeper John Landon and John Lithgow (Season 4 of Dexter, Confessions of A Shopaholic) s Will's father, Charles, who has been infected by the disease that he's so desperate to cure. Also Freida Pinto (Slumdog Millionaire, You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger) is added to the cast as Will's love interest Caroline and finding it hard to escape his Harry Potter bad guy roots, Tom Felton is deliciously evil as John Landon's son, Dodge.

However the real stand out performance in the movie, despite John Lithgow's always sympathetic and never cliched portrayal of a man with Alzheimer's, is Andy Serkis. For those who may not know, Andy Serkis is the performance capture king, not only being an award winning actor in his own right but also putting life to characters Golum from Peter Jackson's Lord of The Rings trilogy but also putting in a performance as King Kong himself. It's very hard to distinguish actor from animation sometimes so the debate about performance capture has always been controversial. I for one had been won over by the footage on The Two Towers DVD of Andy Serkis' dual role as both Smeagal and Gollum in one scene, not only showcasing his acting ability but the technology as well but others still beg to differ.

If you feel any sympathy for Caesar, who Serkis portrays, or if you feel any fear or anxiety over the way Caesar is treated then I would say that you can fully put that down to Serkis' acting ability. You hardly ever forget that he's an ape but the scenes where the apes are 'rising' in order to rebel are done with the same intensity and organization that you'd expect to see in a prison movie. Andy Serkis shows us a character that goes from oppressed and angry teenager to defiant and rebellious man and does so just as realistically as if the character was human, and never says a word... well nearly.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes may introduce a whole new generation to the original film series and at the same time never waters down the intelligence and intensity of the original. For those with a keen eye and memory of Charlton Heston's cult movie, there are plenty of nods and things to look out for but it never forgets the new fans it may make. The films delivers just enough intelligence, intrigue and action to please most audiences.

Monday, 19 September 2011 Super 8 (Joel Courtney, Elle Fanning, Kyle Chandler) Posted by joeldfisher at 08:48

In 1977 Steven Spielberg presented his first foray into the world of science-fiction with Close Encounters of The Third Kind. An instant hit with audiences and a new spin on the extra-terrestrial genre, the likes of which they'd never seen before. Close Encounters became such a hit that even top U.S. government officials have even applauded it on its 'accuracy', or so we have been led to believe.

1982 sees the release of E.T. The Extra Terrestrial, his second and arguably his most successful venture into science-fiction to date, albeit from a different angle than Close Encounters ever took. The story of a lost alien who befriends a little boy became an instant classic and still plays well to audiences old and young (even I have been known to cry at it - still).

2011 brings the highly anticipated J. J. Abrahms directed Super 8. A story of a group in their early teens who are making a movie at an old railway station, only to be caught up in the middle of a government conspiracy.

Little had been revealed about Super 8 prior to its release, and I mean very little. The teaser trailer was, to my knowledge the only trailer ever released and after seeing the film it was definitely the right choice. There's so much I could say about Super 8 that could easily give the game away and really spoil what is a wonderful film experience. I mentioned Steven Spielberg's early career because this is exactly the kind of thing that director J. J. Abrahms was looking to as inspiration for his movie, and luckily it pays off.

The movie has so much attention to detail that it may have been film between Close Encounters and E.T. and you'd be forgiven for thinking that this was the lost movie that Steven Spielberg always wanted to make between the two. Joe Lamb (Joel Courtney, in his first film role) is the son of the town's deputy sheriff, Jackson (Kyle Chandler; Friday Night Lights, King Kong). They have both recently suffered a bereavement, Joe's mother was killed in a tragic accident at the mill where she works and the father and the son take to dealing with it in very different ways.

The cast for the movie is exceptional, they appear to be all very carefully cast because besides their clothes and hairstyles it seems that these children could easily have appeared in a Spielberg film from the early 80's and would have fitted right in. A true testament to their acting or maybe a look at how childhood has changed in the past 30 years, which was then perhaps a simpler time.

Charles (Riley Griffiths, also in his first film role), Cary (Ryan Lee, an actor from various short movies and tv appearances, Martin (Gabriel Basso, The Big C and other numerous television appearances) and Preston (another veteran of television appearances, despite his age) make a connection between each other like they really had grown up together and the times when they're talking, singing and making fun of each other really come across very naturally.

A special mention however should go to Alice (Elle Fanning; The Nutcracker 3D and again various television roles). Being the younger sister of one of Hollywood's most acclaimed young actresses, Dakota Fanning, must be rather daunting, especially when cast in a breakthrough role such as this. With the world's cinemagoers knowing her lineage then it must have been a lot to live up to, however Elle Fanning proves to be just as talented as her sister and one to watch in the years to come. Also it should be said that considering this to be Joel Courtney's first film role, he does an exceptional job, evoking Henry Thomas as Eliott in E.T and he should do well as being cast in an upcoming production of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn, yet another iconic American child's role.

The direction Super 8 takes shouldn't be spoilt by anyone, because to watch such a movie spoiler-free is an experience of nostalgia, wonder and excitement that will win fans far and wide, old and new. For years to come.

Monday, 12 September 2011 The Inbetweeners Movie (Simon Bird, Joe Thomas, James Buckley, Blake Harrison) Posted by joeldfisher at 08:45

Ah to be 17 again, to be out partying with your friends, kissing girls (and other such things) and generally loving life. For those who remember this time in your lives all too clearly, these days will never be forgotten although as time goes by the tint in your glasses will get much rosier, thank goodness for The Inbetweeners.

For those who don't know the popular British Channel 4 comedy series of the same name, Will, Jay, Neil and Simon are four teenage boys whose lives are currently at an crossroads in their lives. They're old enough to smoke and to legally to have sex, but they have two problems, they're not really sure they like smoking and, well, nobody in their right minds would sleep with them. Will (Simon Bird) is a bookish nerd who wants to pass himself off as an intellectual who only really has one thought, how to get a woman to like him. Simon (Joe Thomas) is obsessed with a girl he's known since he was a kid and believes they are destined to be together. Jay (James Buckley) is a typical jack-the-lad, always boasting to his friends about his sexual conquests, if only they were true, and Neil (Blake Harrison) is stupid. Together the four of them give the audience a rather vivid, all too familiar and often cringe worthy account of what it really was like when you were only 17.

The movie kicks off with an even briefer synopsis and throws the audience right into it all as it's the last day of school and their adult lives beckon. So there's only one thing to do, live it large where the party never stops, for about a week anyway.

Once the lads arrive at their destination they realise that it's not all that it's cracked up to be. Their accommodation is less than standard and the locals (and some of the holidaymakers) are a little strange for their tastes. But when you're on holiday you make the best of it and that they do. After being coaxed into an empty bar by a woman Jay is convinced he'll have as much fun with as all his other (fictional) conquests then the fun begins.

The casting of the boy's female counterparts and potential girlfriends is a really well made choice as they balance out the main cast quite well. Alison (Laura Haddock) is the main attraction as Will's easy going love interest who overwhelms him with the idea that she might actually be interested in him. Lucy (Tamla Kari) plays very well against Simon as he pines over the loss of his long-time love Carly. Jane (Lydia Rose Bewley) does the funny, fat friend well but also brings warmth and believability when partnered against Jay and finally Lisa (Jessica Knappet) is the perfect coupling for Neil, and not just because she is probably the only actress they could find that looks like she may actually be related to Neil.

The sun is shining and the drink is flowing free but there's that all too familiar tinge of embarrassing behaviour that many may remember from being that age and also from the TV series of the same name. While the movie could have been seen as another Holiday On The Busses, Kevin and Perry Go Large or even Mr Bean's Holiday, The Inbetweeners Movie doesn't stray from the comedy styling that has made the TV series so popular. There's no compromise on the character's behaviour (if anything Jay's opening scene pushes the envelope on anything they did on the television) and the audience are never felt cheated into watching something that has a name slapped on it that never lives up to its namesake.

This isn't the British American Pie, this is better, there are real characters in there and by the end of the movie not only do you feel like you know them better (as fans or non-fans of the series) but you can properly feel like you can wave them goodbye safe in the knowledge that a fitting end has been made to one of the 21st Century's best and brightest British comedies.

Captain America: The First Avenger 3D (Chris Evans, Hayley Atwell, Hugo Weaving) Posted by joeldfisher at 07:59

America has almost completely cornered the market in the film industry, when you think of cinema, you think of Hollywood. America has a certain reputation of national pride and to an extent it could be said a great sense of self worth, who some may say is not always deserved. In the 1940's Captain America was created to help boost the moral of the American public during the war. Everything good, noble and patriotic was shoved into one character to remind the public what their troops are fighting for. In the 60's comic-book god Stan Lee revived the character, given the Cold War, he felt that America needed a symbol again to fight the forces of evil and Cap's been going strong ever since.

These days, however, the rest of the world sees America as an overly proud, self congratulatory nation that is deluded in it's own sense of self importance. There are numerous jokes about how America thought they won World War Two single-handedly and how they seem to continue governing all the major conflicts in the world today like it's their own personal crusade so making a movie about a character called Captain America is a risky move, one that in the wrong hands could become a new joke all of its own.

Captain America: The First Avenger tells the story of Steve Rogers (Chris Evans; The Fantastic Four, Scott Pilgrim vs The World), a diminutive man who has a passion for his country and for what is worth fighting. He's given the chance to enlist in the army, despite his size and other physical problems he may have provided he takes part in a new experiment to make him into a super soldier. Willingly sacrificing himself for his country, Rogers enlists without a second thought and becomes the man he always wanted to be, Captain America.

This movie could have very easily taken a route down the cheesy path that we all recognise. Steve Rogers could have been an arrogant American who believes his country is the only one that can truly save the world and thus his transformation would have lead to the whooping and cheering that all American audiences are thought to do in such patriotic circumstances. However Chris Evans' portrayal of Steve Rogers is of a humble man, a man aware of his self worth but with the knowledge that he is only one man and only one man can make a big difference when it counts so he is an admirable character, whether you're an American or not.

As the story continues we are introduced to an impressive supporting cast. Dr. Abraham Erskine (Stanley Tucci; The Lovely Bones, Burlesque) is a kindly, German scientist who Tucci has a lot of fun with, his accent may not be completely authentic but he brings light and warmth into the character as only he knows how. Colonel Chester Phillips (Tommy Lee Jones; In The Valley of Elah, No Country For Old Men) is played with relish, Tommy Lee Jones is soon due to reprise his role as Agent K in Men In Black III and he fully flexes his comedy muscles as the sharp-witted all-American soldier, if you've seen Small Soldiers, Men In Black and Batman Forever then you'll know what to expect from this performance and no doubt, you'll love it.

Finally The Red Skull, Johann Schmidt (Hugo Weaving; The Wolfman, the forthcoming movie The Hobbit) is evil beyond evil. Having such great character actors as Stanley Tucci and Hugo Weaving in the same movie is a definite plus and particularly Weaving's performance is the creation of another great cinema villain that cinema goers will remember for a long time.

The story of Captain America has evolved over the years in the comics, as it had to in order to survive. However this being a period piece it enabled director, Joe Johnston (The Wolfman, Jurrasic Park III) to poke fun at the genre as well as homage it and the balance of comedy, satire and action is well balanced. As well as their being sly nods to other movies that inspired Johnston during the making of the movie, the tone gets into Indiana Jones action territory and Johann Schmidt (who is so evil he is even betraying the Nazis) makes a reference that he's going after bigger things while Hitler is searching for trinkets in the desert.

Captain America: The First Avenger is probably the best superhero movie of the year, not a great accolade most of the time but considering Marvel's full-frontal assault on the superhero movie genre, gearing up for their climax, The Avengers next year then they certainly left the best for last. The worst thing about it is that, without giving too much away, I very much doubt that there will be a Captain America 2. Considering the final outcome of the movie I believe that Marvel have used up probably their greatest resource too soon and I for one am certainly hoping for more.