Captain America: The Winter Soldier- Spoilers

Captain America 2 has just been released pretty much worldwide with to both audience and critical acclaim even being compared to the success of 2012's Avengers. Cap 2 isn't that bad at all, in fact as a standalone film its pretty good, but in a franchise in which we've come to expect so much, this film was a disappointment.

These issues are made more evident through the  the overwhelmingly positive reviews the film is receiving.

• Where was Hawkeye?

Don't lie to yourself, no one really likes hawkeye. Perhaps in the comics yes, with his slick purple attire, but not in the films. His bland and underdeveloped character are both hindrances to a hero already bogged down by an unimpressive power, in comparison to the other Avengers.

Some of his only known background in the films is that he works for SHIELD, so...where is he? His appearance in the film would have been extremely fitting and would've worked in neat collaboration with the whole main cast. Think about it, Nick Fury, Falcon, Black Widow and even Captain America to an extent, don't really have any magnificent powers, Hawkeye would've fitted in with all the characters being seen as an equal in the process. That said, however the appearance of Hawkeye as well as the main three heroes would've been a little too messy, however a decrease in the screen time of the bland Black Widow would've allowed Hawkeye time to at the very least make a cameo. Besides in the film Black Widow wears a pendant of an arrow, harking to Hawkeye's character, and considering the subtle relationship they both have, it's bizarre that he doesn't appear... but don't worry you can catch him in the original Thor... doing literally nothing.

• Stop Tricking us into thinking someone's died 

This is a fairly new trend which has plagued Phase 2 of MARVEL in-particular, appearing in all three of the films so far. An issue with all superhero movies is that we pretty much know for certain that the main character isn't going to die. Whether that's because their film is part of a franchise and we KNOW we're going to see them again (for example in the Avengers 2) or simply that the bad guy is so bad that, for the sake of it being a children's film, they cannot win. This therefore makes it very tricky to create a sense of peril in MARVEL movies as we know that nearly every time the hero is going to come out completely unscathed. MARVEL think they've found a way around this by killing off a main character, before bringing them back minutes later.

This can be seen in Cap 2 when Nick Fury is 'killed'. As he is so pivotal to the story however, the audience knows he isn't dead, therefore there is no point in killing him in the first place, it's simply a waste of time.
Through killing people and bringing them back to life MARVEL is damaging itself creating an atmosphere in their films whereby nothing can go wrong and where there is no sense of peril. This forces us care less for the characters and makes the dramatic scenes far less dramatic, thus making their films on the whole less engaging and entertaining. Imagine if characters actually died in MARVEL movies, especially someone so big like Nick Fury,  the Avengers team would go mental, showing their true selves, making the fight scenes in The Avengers 2 not only entertaining but also emotionally involving.

• The Winter what?

With the hindsight on watching Captain America:The Winter Soldier it is quite obvious who the 'bad guy' is. It isn't this 'Russian Assassin'  that MARVEL has been shouting to us about in trailers and various other media platforms, the main villain is actually SHIELD. This was a great twist, which in a way, inverts the functioning of the MARVEL universe, and what ultimately makes the film an important, if monotonous, addition to the franchise.

 Some of the best scenes in the film involved the bemusement of the SHIELD workers as they looked around puzzled at who to trust, reflecting a sincere crisis which is grounded in real life. The infiltration of SHIELD is led by the fantastic Robert Redford, who is gifted perhaps the best scene in the MARVEL franchise so far, seen when he murders his housekeeper after she overhears a top secret conversation, showing the man's hatred and sadistic drive all through one action. With such a fantastic villain underlying the film, it is ultimately a shame that he's not seen more often, replaced by the dumb military antics of the bland Winter Solider.

 This film would be exactly the same, if not better, without the winter soldier in it, heck he even has a cooler, more characterised counterpart in Hydra solider 'crossbones', who could've quite easily replaced him in his role. His only function in the film is to fire his gun and replicate a, walking, talking cliché, with his final movements being unbelievably foreseeable. His character follows the typical story of a man loosing his memory, as he turns on his best mate, before Captain America reminds him of his previous self through an 'emotional speech', until eventually The Winter Soldier joins Captain Americas side.

 This is furthermore yet another example of a character, dying and coming back to life.

•  Inconsistency

Superhero movies, or more accurately MARVEL movies, follow quite a straightforward formula. Everything's fine, till a villain shows up and demonstrates their power, the superhero is then in disarray, and then  eventually overcomes the evil.

 This was starting to get boring, which was why I was so excited to watch Cap 2, showing a premise of action packed espionage entwined with sinister politics that looked different and more appropriate to Captain America's character. This movie is far from this intelligent exterior which it presents.

 It starts so well, peaking at the 'death' of Nick Fury whereby the audience is completely stunned at the story that's taking place, immediately turning the MARVEL universe on its head. After this however, the film forgets that its political storyline ever existed and resorts to violence to tell its story. Redford attempts to uphold any sense of intelligence in the final few scenes however his plans are thwarted by the heroes who look incredibly childish in comparison to the clever plot. This contrast between the classy first half of the movie and the dumb second half, only highlights this issue further, like three sugar pumped kids hijacked the script, smearing the final pages with their sticky hands and lack of patience, creating a mess.
 This made the movie, not bad, but incredibly frustrating as the potential was evident, however the final performance lacked any kind of impact.




- This movie's not that bad, heck if it was the first of the Phase 2 movies I would have probably quite liked it. But it's not, it's the third in the ongoing MARVEL franchise and the first film where cracks in the MARVEL franchise have started to show, taking few risks, with plot structures which are identical to the last movie. This movie is part of a franchise, meaning these films aren't going to stop being released any time soon. Since this is the case, why not mix things up a bit and leave the heroes on a bad note, where for example, Captain America has been imprisoned , leading to an exciting opening sequence at the start of The Avengers 2 which would establish a great tone for the start of the film and allow for further character development as we see the heroes in a more desperate situation.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier was a good film, but it wasn't great. It's the potential within the film which makes me so annoyed, promising so much but delivering so little. It felt like a mid-point in Phase 2, nothing special, not the worst, not the best just...meh.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier

In recent years MARVEL has been dominating the film industry, delighting fans and coming out on top of the worldwide box office for both 2012 and 2013. Such success is most probably down to the cock-sure Iron Man and perhaps not the substantially less exciting Captain America, whose standard powers and unestablished personality contrast significantly with the other heroes. Although we want to like Captain America, almost as the good natured underdog, there is simply nothing to root for, he's a 'clipart' image of a standard superhero cack-handedly flung onto a cinema screen, who together with his attempted espionage story-lines leave us with a familiar sense of deja-vu. 

Following the events of The Avengers, Captain America (Chris Evans) is working for Shield, cracking cases, finding files and generally carrying out superhero duties, this is until The Winter Soldier turns up, a seemingly unstoppable Soviet Agent, who turns the life that Captain America knew upside down. The initial plot is perfect,a change from the formulaic structure of: crisis, injury, big battle, victory, which also fits in with the past of Captain America, carrying out field duties as per usual. This is shown from the very beginning which perfectly sums up what the film should've been. It was fast, exciting, intriguing but most of all it did something that neither the first Captain America nor the Avengers did, it established his character, demonstrating his physical power with quick, painful action scenes as well as his inner personality, showing his charisma and decisiveness as the plot began to unfold. 

The fantastic tone that this opening set was almost immediately abandoned  with both Captain America and his equally as boring female partner Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) returning to their bland roles as monotone vehicles for the story. In fact the supporting roles of both the consistently interesting Nick Fury (Sameul L. Jackson) as well as new hero Falcon (Anthony Mackie) easily outdo that of the two protagonists, with Falcons character being fairly well established given the lack of screen time he's allotted; resulting in his character being far more interesting than that of the leading man. The villians, alike the typical workings of the franchise, remain problematic, with Robert Redfords performance of a sinister politician initially showing massive potential, only to be let down by a story which soon runs out of steam. The Winter Soldier is oddly similar to Captain America being wildly bland and easily foreseeable, ultimately holding little value in the film as a whole...why his name is in the title we will never know .As mentioned the story shows to be equally as tired after clinging on to all the sincerity it had for as long as possible until it was replaced by mind-numbing action, the selling point of the film. The action however,despite the quality of story, upholds its quality from previous MARVEL instalments being fun, realistic and at some points oddly gritty, a nice change from the usually soft fight sequences of the character. 

On the whole however the film is a hugely frustrating watch. The first half or so is fantastic and for perhaps the first time in MARVEL movie history, the audience is put into a position where the outcome is totally unpredictable. Then the plot is completely inverted. Suddenly we're reminded that this is 'just another' MARVEL movie, in comes the grandiose final sequence, bringing the unbelieveably foreseeable end, quickly turning the film boring. The classy first half of slick action entwined with intelligent political espionage becomes infested with cheap cliches and horrible one-liners which are about as eloquent as a doner kebab. Attempts to inject the childish second half with any kind of intelligence go laughably wrong, thinking the more politicians they add the more brain cells the film will have, when in reality this simply makes the story so much more of a mess. One sequence especially which showed the Captain walking through a museum showcasing his old life, was notably awful, lasting for far too long, serving only the purpose to provide needless exposision, furthermore as if the audience were blind a voiceover mimics the on screen action, delving deep into the Captains past with such detail that no voice-over man, no matter how talented, would know.

This is a film of two halves. The first highlighting the very best of MARVEL with a sophisticated narrative,  blended with exciting action and the second highlighting the very worst, abandoning the narrative and taking the action to utilise until it was all out of juice. Captain America:The Winter Soldier is the first film to show cracks in the MARVEL universe playing it far too safe, fixing no previous faults of the ongoing franchise. The Guardians of the galaxy, and in fact the three upcoming films in the franchise, couldn't come sooner to add a bit of flavour to the now bland tasting MARVEL universe.

6/10- With initial potential to be MARVELS best, it soon fatigues and resorts to familiar cheap tricks.

Calum Russell

The Grand Budapest Hotel

Often overlooked yet consistently impressive, director Wes Anderson is yet to make a bad film with each of his releases bettering his previous work. The Grand Budapest hotel very much follows in this desirable track-record, maintaining Anderson’s distinct quirky style whilst surprising audiences by being the funniest film of his to date.

Gustave H (Ralph Fiennes), a legendary concierge at a famous European hotel and his trusty lobby boy Zero Moustafa (Tony Revolori) are struck with bad news that a veteran guest of theirs has been murdered, prompting widespread investigation and an exciting crime-caper. Despite holding the similar qualities of Anderson’s style that we’ve grown to know and love from his compelling colour palette to his fast flowing narratives, The Grand Budapest hotel shows to be far darker than some of his other releases, complementing this with comedy aplenty. From severed heads to amputated body parts this unexpected darker theme correlates with the setting of wartime Hungary, this is wholly new ground for Anderson but he tackles it with enough wit to make it upbeat and enough sincerity to make it believable. Jopling, a violent henchman (Willem Dafoe) is usually the cause of this comedy with his dark humour consistently contrasting to hilarious degrees with the innocent nature of the two protagonists. This comedy peaks during a skiing sequence which positively goes down as one of Anderson’s best moments to date, with the snappy remarks of the characters mixing with the slap-stick ridiculousness of the cinematography for truly hilarious effects.  

Such coagulation of humour and realism is encapsulated perfectly through the performance of Ralph Fiennes, producing perhaps his very best performance as the hugely loveable, mad eccentric Gustave H. Alike all of Wes Andersons releases the acting across the board is phenomenal pulling in countless famous faces to depict even the kookiest and most meaningless characters. Whilst these cameos did (and always do) add to the overall enjoyment of the film, one too many takes the audiences concentration away from the story and back into the celebrity world of Hollywood, with such actors as Owen Wilson (who is no doubt very good in his role) ultimately serving no purpose as appose to being the cause of soft murmurs whispering ‘Look it’s the guy from Marley and me’. That said, certain cameos that played bigger roles were far more comedically and dramatically impactful, with Edward Norton’s portrayal of ‘Henckels’, a hectic police chief, showing to be just this.

Thoroughly enjoyable from start to finish, The Grand Budapest hotel is a worthy edition to Wes Anderson’s hugely impressive collection, being amongst his very best works. Despite being not as narratively broad as his other films Andersons eye for comedy and unique story telling makes this film truly special being consistently hilarious and overwhelming fun.

9/10- A war film like no other, a whopping great ride

Calum Russell   

Her

Perhaps the most understated film included in this year’s Oscar nominations, Spike Jonze’s ‘her’ is a slow and tentative rom-com-sci-fi which explores the existence of a relationship with a man and his operating system.

Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix), a socially awkward romantic, finds love in the caring voice of his computers operating system (voiced by Scarlett Johansson) whilst in the process of divorce from his ex-wife (Rooney Mara). Despite sounding like a seedy future fantasy, Her is a gentle approach to the formulation and workings of a relationship unearthing a relevant truth about the intrusions of technology in the process. Possessing a truly realised vision of a technologically advanced near-future, Her is extremely self-aware of its context, often showing the unnecessary technological gimmicks other than the large overwrought discoveries. So true to real life social interactions and relationships such a story is easily fathomable in the future. This comes with aid from the excellent characterisation of the protagonist who is grounded heavily in the context, reflecting relatable personal qualities that make us connect with him more closely, sharing in his emotions. Adopting this character, Joaquin Phoenix does a fantastic job, as per usual, as he displays the everyday man with charm and enthusiasm, fully establishing his character into the real world.

With a soft yet melancholy vision of the future, Spike Jonze integrates his recognisable style which often reflects the feelings and emotions of characters through the films aesthetics, working in cognition with the central story. With beautiful cinematography, Her often touches on the smaller, more unmentioned aspects of everyday interaction, doing so in a way which is consistently interesting, allowing the audience to become easily transported into the world. Furthermore the original soundtrack also aids in reflecting the melancholy emotions of the protagonist, changing as the film continues to adapt to his changing attitude, rarely changing tempo or style Her, as a result, never feels rushed; being a slow and enjoyable view into the life of a couple.

Calm, gentle and hugely engrossing, Her’s real triumph lies in its established context, in a world where technology dictates our every decision as we rely on it to live, it’s this real life setting that makes these characters and their relationship so true. Spike Jonze’s vision of the future is a somber yet oddly uplifting one which tugs at the heartstrings and pounds at the brain cells.

8.5/10- A smart, seductive and comforting alternative to the unrealistic rom-coms of Hollywood.

Calum Russell

The Lego Movie

In an industry which is quickly becoming devoid of any imagination it has become almost commonplace to find inspiration elsewhere, with the laziest example of this being in that of toys. Transformers, G.I Joe, Battleship, it’s not that these films are particularly bad which is the issue it’s quite simply that their completely unnecessary and take away from the imagination created with toys to instead labour an hour and a half of product placement with a story worse than any child’s fantasy. The Lego Movie, on paper, should epitomise the recent commercialism of cinema and join the growing number of films which have dented the imaginations of kids and adults alike, however the Lego Movie is dramatically different to this presenting a narrative so thoughtful and so heartfelt that it will leave you grinning from ear to ear, eager to uncover your old Lego collection.

Emmit (voiced by Chris Pratt), a normal Lego man contempt with his bland lifestyle and routine is faced with a quest to save the Lego kingdom, gifted with the prophecy of the ‘master builder’. To help him on his quest Emmit is joined by an array of characters from Batman (Will Arnett) to the NBA all-stars as he attempts to end the evil scheme of President Business (Will Ferrell). The beauty of this film is obvious when considering this plot outline being so eccentric and original that it’s instantly comparable to the outlandish stories of a child’s imagination, jumping from scenario to scenario with brief and hilarious explanation. This is evident from the very beginning and as a result hurls any audience member in time instantly, back to when they were a child as the film becomes a joy-ride of the exhilaration of playing around and creating the craziest stories possible. Amongst this films many successes, at the heart its greatest achievement is being able to effortlessly tap into nearly everyone’s ‘inner child’ and past times of not only using Lego in particular but playing and creating in general. Being so lovingly crafted, each frame is detailed with a multitude of universally recognisable ‘in-jokes’ from the crack in the astronauts helmet to the use of odd pieces being placed in the wrong places, giving the film a personal quality. This does arguably hinder the film slightly however as, also alike a child’s mind, the story moves at an incredible pace and already within 15 minutes of the film opening we’re a good way into the plot, despite this being expected of a kids film, its procrastination at times would’ve been appreciated to give relief to the overwhelming story.

                

Aided by the incredible voice  cast present, not only is the film a creative marvel to watch but it’s made all the more entertaining due to its comedic nature, delivering jokes to perfect timing , making it enjoyable for all ages. Giving a child-like simplicity yet natural wonder to the world around him, Chris Pratt is able to effortlessly convey the characteristics of the protagonist, Emmit through just his voice and does so with charm and wit. Further notable performances come from the villains, Bad cop and President Business voiced by a surprisingly charismatic Liam Neeson and an ever hilarious Will Ferrell, performing with enough menace to make them both oddly atrocious as well as lovingly redeeming. Coming off the back of two comedic hits, Cloudy with a chance of meatballs and 21 jump street, it’s no surprise that directors/screenwriters Chris Miller and Phil Lord have yet again proved themselves to be possibly the most impressive comedy duo behind the camera in Hollywood today. With their first hit being a child friendly animation and their second a clever, raunchy comedy, it is evident to see that they’ve used their expertise in both fields to blend a perfect mix of the two supplying ‘silly’ and simple jokes for younger viewers and more intelligent and nostalgic ones for the older ones.

                

From its unique visual style, blending the aesthetics of stop-motion animation with practical CGI, to its adventurous story The Lego Movie is a creative wonder which brings some much needed originality and intelligence to the tired animation genre. Taking a turn for the heartfelt in the final quarter of the film, this narrative twist is both hugely daring and overwhelmingly charming presenting a rarely seen important message for younger viewers in comparison to the generic themes of stereotypical animated releases. The Lego Movie is a momentous achievement on many levels and deserves to stand with the very best of animation releases, just short of perfection if this doesn’t put a smile on your face…seek medical assistance.

9.5/10- Everything is awesome… #pun

Calum Russell

The Wolf Of Wall Street

 Oscar and general cinematic sweetheart Martin Scorsese rarely hits wide of the mark no matter his genre ventures, his last film Hugo, aimed at children, was an unlikely step to take but one which deservingly rewarded him with only further acclaim for stepping outside his comfort zone. What seems to be a safe bet for the auteur, The Wolf Of Wall Street puts him back in his area of expertise dealing with crime and excess all through the hands of some meaty characters , however it never quite does anything, or says anything, simply screaming in a indulgent world of its own.

 Jordan Belfort ( Dicaprio), once a wannabe stock broker is now a multi-millionaire, leaving behind his life of regularity for one of riches and indulgence, whether his business enterprise was legal or not. With an acting cache at his fingertips it's no wonder that the cast on display here is what makes the film the partially entertaining romp that it is, providing an almost satirical view on the morals of bankers whilst still providing serious performances. The most obvious of which is Leonardo Dicaprio whom, as always gives a fantastic performance which fully fleshes out the complicated character of Jordan Belfort. Perhaps more creditable however is the performance of Jonah Hill, whose bizarre characteristics and transformation in the film is debateably more interesting than the central story.

 Instead we follow Jordan Belfort, a vastly dislikeable millionaire who indulges in sex, drugs and distasteful entertainment, and we see just this, over and over and over again which undoubtedly adds to the films themes of excess but does very little to maintain audience interest, only adding to the running time of a film which runs out of fuel well before the end. It's no wonder this excess gets tired and boring when it fills up a good three quarters of the film with the first being home to Jordan's rise to riches, a story which is far more engrossing and entertaining as we see his growth from young rookie to sales veteran. This transition however is far too fast, done literally in a montage, to fast-forward to the scenes of excess which seem to be deemed far more appealing for the audience than the protagonists' business uprising.

Until this excess is repeated to us however The Wolf Of Wall Street is quite the entertaining ride, with great performances fuelling this, most notably Belfort's first scene of celebration in his company building is both fun and sufficiently over the top, presenting most clearly and most appropriately the greed of the protagonist; as a near nude marching band file into the office. Like the characters we revel in the madness and are shocked at seeing these supposedly composed and professional stock brokers showing their true colours.

 The Wolf Of Wall Street feels like a film which could've been directed by anyone with Scorcese's mark of class and style all but absent from his most recent picture. With the films entertaining value being simply surface-bound, The Wolf of wall street suffers through its lack of content, favouring instead the consistent reminders that its protagonist is a selfish, indulgent pig, neither of which are thrilling or insightful.

7/10- A thrilling ride which soon runs out of speed and leaves you wanting so much more. Bland.

Calum Russell

12 years a slave

Slowly becoming a famous face of the industry director Steve McQueen, famous for his realistic and gritty depictions of life, has never truly found recognition despite two hugely powerful releases. By far the most commercial of his films and clearly out for Oscar attention is his new film 12 years a slave, based on the novel about a free man kidnapped into slavery, which shows to be his best film yet, stuffed with unbelievable performances and power.

Living free with his family Solomon Northup is kidnapped and sold into slavery, the film follows his journey from plantation to plantation and his struggle to survive. 12 years a slave is no easy watch and unsurprisingly so considering its heavy subject matter however what makes this film different is its total upfront honesty which it has with its audience, never shying away from the truth to settle the audience's feelings, always putting us in front of the events with no buffer or filter. This realism and accurate depiction of real events makes the audience question the morality of humans and the ever changing ideologies which we hold. Despite following real events to a key, 12 years a slave doesn't really show tell us anything that we didn't know before about slavery, following a linear path to artistic merit but not perhaps to truly exciting levels. At times when the story slows however the audience is still left captivated, most notably by the truly unbelievable performances from the WHOLE cast, every single person in this film is worthy of some sort of recognition, and to single out one person would be dis-credit to another, the captivating performances of the cast engage the audience fully within the narrative and make us believe even more vividly the horrific actions of the past. Horrific is only one word to describe some scenes in the film, being so harrowing that it's hard to watch, this is aided by the fantastic cinematography which adds depth and meaning to the on screen violence and emotional discomfort.

Being more than worthy of awards praise 12 years a slave is perhaps the best documentation of slavery ever put together on film, recreating images from the novel so brutal and realistic that the shocking content is hard to ignore. All this narrative is brought to life through the emotionally detailed performances of the cast who supply one of the best showcase's of acting talent ever seen in the history of cinema, 12 years a slave is a hypnotic piece of art.

9/10- A relentless view on slavery which brandishes its impact on the brain.

Calum Russell