Thursday 25 August 2011

Review - The Inbetweeners Movie

The transition from small to big screen is never an easy one. Take Sex & the City, for example. What was once a provocative yet undeniably infectious show about the sex lives of four women from Manhattan was translated into two vapid film adaptations that failed to replicate the spark that made the series such a hit. It comes as great news then that The Inbetweeners Movie, based on the extremely provocative yet undeniably irresistible show about the sex lives (or rather, lack of) of four sixth form students, is just as hilarious and filthy-mouthed as its TV counterpart.

The perfect marriage of lewd acts and social embarrassment has always been one of the show’s milestones and it’s great to see that writers Iain Morris and Damon Beesley are not holding back for their big-screen outing. The opening minutes set the tone perfectly, as Jay (James Buckley) is seen masturbating to sliced ham and wearing scuba goggles, just before his mum walks in to inform his grandfather has passed away. It’s the kind of comedy that induces belly laughs and makes you want to cover your eyes in shame.

From there on Jay, Simon, Will and Neil decide to celebrate the end of their exams by going on a trip of sexcapades and debauchery in Malia, Crete. To say their plans go tits up is putting it mildly. Excruciating dance moves, projectile vomiting, public nudity (there's no shortage of male genitalia in this film) and disastrous run-ins with exes all work towards 97 minutes of unadulterated juvenile humour. Special mention should also go out to Richard, a hysterical weirdo who pops in and out of the plot and is unbelievably even more of an outcast than the core quartet.   

But surprisingly enough, Morris and Beesley also manage to sneak in a couple of poignant moments among the filth and crassness, but they never feel forced. Jay’s unusually kind offer to let a seriously drunk Will sleep in the comfy bed speaks volumes more than a “I love you, man!” snippet from your average American comedy, as is the scene in which the boys acknowledge that this holiday may be the last time the gang will hang out together.

The introduction of four female companions for the lads to inevitably end up with is admittedly a sweet touch, but somehow betrays the origins of the show. A huge part of the comedic appeal of these characters is that despite all the mishaps they had to endure, they never learnt their lesson by the end of each episode. Having them end the film reformed (well, almost) both morally and romantically feels a tad unnecessary and at odds with their small-screen origins.

Nevertheless, with an impressive gag-rate, buckets of quotable lines (“I stopped worshipping God when I realised it was ‘Dog’ spelt backwards”) and four winning leads, The Inbetweeners Movie is hands down the best comedy of the summer. Now that’s how you do it, Sex & the City.

4/5

Sunday 21 August 2011

Review - 300

Brash, violent and oozing testosterone profusely out of its pores, there’s little wonder Zack Snyder’s film is championed by meatheads around the world. Based on Frank Miller’s graphic novel, this retelling of the Battle of Thermopylae is less Gladiator, more Dynasty Warriors, meaning it is ultimately a string of action sequences held together by an undemanding set-up, never mind plot. Hefty Spartan themes such as honour and sacrifice are tragically wasted, as Snyder is too busy playing around with the slow motion button to tedious effect. It may have coined that catchphrase, but 300 is nowhere near the modern classic some will have you believe. THIS... IS... RUBBISH!!

1/5       

Review - Battle: LA

Ever watched a friend play Call of Duty for two hours straight and you never get a go? Battle: LA pretty much elicits the same uncontrollable urge to bang your head in frustration on the furniture closest to you. Apart from ripping off the plot and aesthetic design of every alien invasion movie the past two decades have had to offer, Jonathan Liebesman’s film is a loud, rushed and jittery affair. Worst of all there are no discernable characters to root for whatsoever, other than Aaron Eckhart’s mildly flawed sarge and Michelle Rodriguez’ butch army gal (now there’s an actress stretching herself). Total misfire.

1/5       

Monday 15 August 2011

Review: Project Nim

In 1973 Herb Terrace, a professor in psychology at Columbia University, set out to prove that humans were not the only creatures capable of language. In what was a ground-breaking experiment at the time, he placed a baby chimpanzee called Nim in the care of a human family and attempted to teach the primate to communicate in sign language. James Marsh’s documentary chronicles the quirky and at times very turbulent life of the aptly-named Nim Chimpsky.

As far as real life stories go, Project Nim is a winner. It has a unique set-up, a guaranteed emotional arc and an adorable protagonist at centre frame. As the dated footage reveals, Nim was not only a dungaree-wearing chimp, but one who could communicate his penchant for hugs and cats through a series of clumsy hand gestures. The clips are both unbearably endearing and laugh-out loud funny. Basically, Project Nim would work wonders as a Disney film.

Instead what we have is a very engaging documentary which appears less concerned with the simian’s progress and more intent on exposing through a series of interviews the flawed and contradictive nature of the humans surrounding him. Stephanie LaFarge, Terrace’s protégé who functioned as a tender mother to an infant Nim, gradually let slip a naïve and deluded conviction that was symptomatic of the hippie era of the 70s. Animal rights activist Cleveland Armory may have been benevolent to let Nim spend his final years on a ranch, but clearly lacked both the knowledge and the resources to maintain him properly. Worst of all is Terrace himself, a man devoid of significant compassion, who refused to refer to Nim as anything other than a “scientific project” and seemingly had relationships with a few of his female students.

But Marsh’s goal is not merely to vilify human beings, as he doesn’t shy away from documenting some of Nim’s more unpleasant episodes, such as his feral and totally unprovoked attack on one of the kinder caretakers, or the time in which he inadvertently killed a poodle by slamming it against a wall. Apparently he just wanted the pooch to stop barking. It is moments like these where the underlying message transpires: man cannot and should not monkey around with nature.

It is a lesson which is heavily emphasised until the film’s final moments, as a greying Nim is locked away, betrayed and abandoned by the human race and suddenly it starts to become clear why Project Nim may have been released a few weeks ahead of Rise of the Planet of the Apes.

4/5      

Wednesday 10 August 2011

Review: Super 8

There’s no point in tip-toeing around the issue, so let’s just get straight to the point: Super 8 is the film of summer 2011. Forget robots, superheroes, boy wizards and horrible bosses. JJ Abrams latest work harks back to a time (the late 70s and early 80s, to be precise) when Hollywood was capable of producing movies that displayed heart and innocence, regardless of the budget and special effects involved. It’s a film that oozes nostalgia and, unlike many of today’s blockbusters, is driven by a plot that is wonderfully simple and linear.

It’s the summer of 1979 in Lillian, Ohio and a group of school friends are filming a homemade horror flick on their Super 8 camera. As they sneak out one night to shoot a pivotal scene at the local station, the kids witness a disastrous train crash. Soon after locals go missing, electrical appliances go kaput and the town is swarmed by the US military, which seems hell-bent on retrieving the train’s undisclosed cargo…

It’s not hard figuring out the inspiration behind Super 8. A sleepy Midwestern town. Absent parental figures. A bunch of prepubescent heroes dealing with what may be an extra-terrestrial case… You can almost hear the teenage Abrams solemnly bellowing “When I grow up I wanna be Steven Spielberg!” Detractors will accuse him of ripping off most of The Beard’s early back catalogue, but truth is, if you’re going to mimic someone, you might as well mimic the greats.

Besides, JJ has earned his right to walk in Spielberg’s shoes. With enough cult TV shows (Alias, Lost, Fringe) and high profile movies under his belt (director of Mission: Impossible III and Star Trek, producer on Cloverfield), the man has proven to be not only a big player in the film industry, but one with smarts and savvy to spare. Unlike many of his contemporaries, Abrams understands that shrouding your creature in the shadows and using the CGI sparingly will have far bigger impact on the viewer’s imagination.    

Most importantly, he understands the importance of having relatable characters and the young cast is without doubt Super 8’s greatest asset. Gawky, doe-eyed, potty-mouthed and terrified by puberty as much as they are by what’s creeping around their hometown, these kids are a joy to be around. Imagine if the cast of Stand By Me had stumbled onto a joint production of ET and Close Encounters and you’ll have a rough idea of what to expect. Best of the lot are Elle Fanning (Dakota’s lil’ sister) and Joel Courtney, whose blossoming relationship is the film’s warm, tender core, while the rest of the boys provide brilliant comic relief in some of the more dramatic scenes. Here’s hoping they don’t end up wasting their talent on teen gross-out comedies.

The film’s sole drawback is that when the creature is finally revealed, it doesn’t appear particularly striking. This may due to a mild case of CGItis or probably because when compared to the Cloverfield monster it looks generic and uninspired, but chances are the final product was never going to compare to the image you’ve concocted in your head. And while Abrams may have learnt a few neat tricks from the school of Spielberg, the genuine emotion that permeated throughout Super 8 starts bordering on saccharine in the final minutes. Great film JJ, but go easy on the schmaltz.  

5/5      

Monday 1 August 2011

Review: The Rules of Attraction

Think of it as Dawson’s Creep. With a cast headed by James Van Der Beek (who shamlessly flushes his 90s teen heartthrob image down the toilet), Roger Avary’s script ditches all farcical notions glimpsed in Van Wilder and American Pie in favour of a darker, deeply upsetting depiction of the college experience. Essentially a film about emotional rejection, the twist is that the protagonists are either deluded misfits or sex-crazed sociopaths, with neither party afraid to experiment with the odd illegal substance. Not exactly light material, but with a killer soundtrack and trippy, chronologically-reversed segments, you’re in for a mind-blowingly psychedelic ride. Rock’n’roll.

4/5