The Hangover Part III

If an above average original film surprises audiences and scoops up plentiful box office treasures you can be assured to see the film stem sequels hoping to replicate the originals success. Seen in 2009 after ‘The Hangover’ thrilled audiences with its sudden surprising success and low budget, a sequel was released two years later to worse reactions helming a plot identical to that of its predecessor. Completing the franchise is this year’s ‘Hangover part 3’ which instead boasts a different plot with the ‘wolf pack’ back to handle the totally hilarious issue of Alan’s mental illness, and this time fails to include an actual hangover as well as any elements of surprise and also any genuine humour.

Alan (Zach Galifianakis), the staple character of the previous two films is the initial centrepiece of this films narrative, being taken by the loveable group of friends to a mental home in order to recover. Being boasted in the films vast advertising campaign ‘This time, there's no wedding. No bachelor party.’ Instead we begin with an undoubtedly bleak funeral which certainly sets the tone for the film which proves to be just as unenjoyable. Being a camp, fun loving comedy necessity in the previous two films, Alan seemingly transforms over a short period of time into an immensely irritating man with the presence of an annoying ten year old child reluctantly being towed along by friends Phil (Bradley Cooper) and Stu (Ed Helms). This leaves Mr Chow ( Kim Jeong) in the comedic driving seat, used only sparingly in the previous films but now used and abused until his brutishly insulting humour smothers every corner of the screen, only occasionally to good comic effect. This leaves nothing but the non-existent humour of Cooper and Helms to entertain the audience, consistently resulting in overwhelming auditorium silence due to the films poor screenplay.

So with the lack of jokes what better to fill the film with obnoxious action scenes and totally irrelevant and uninteresting scenes of drama between characters we don't even cared about? Believing it’s something much bigger and better than it clearly is ‘The Hangover part 3’ consistently delves into the deeper lives of characters we do not wish to know about resulting in awkward scenes of drama which lead to nothing and hold no comedic value or even dramatic impact. The lack of effort here is blatantly obvious being arrogant and in your face, with the opportunity to mix up the series and put a fresh spin on the franchise we thought we knew, director Todd Phillips instead prefers to stick to linear guidelines creating no comedic opportunities.

Disappointing is an obvious word to use to describe this film however this is almost expected of Hollywood that simply solely care about box-office intake rather than audience satisfaction. The fact is that ‘the Hangover part 3’ is a very boring and dislikeable film that holds very few redeeming qualities. It’s very rarely funny, rarely thrilling, and in no way surprising. It’s just depressingly unfunny.

3/10- As much fun as a hangover.

Calum Russell 

Star Trek Into Darkness

Following the success of 2009’s addition to the star trek universe we’ve witnessed director J.J Abrams announce moves to bigger and arguably better prospects already taking the mammoth task of reanimating the rival franchise Star Wars in 2015. With all the buzz surrounding the director however word has been forgotten of the continuation to the sequel of his 2009 success, Star Trek Into Darkness newly warping onto our screens. Whilst this recent instalment sees the whole cast returning with further added thespian delights such as Benedict Cumberbatch being thrown into the fray, it lacks the trepid adventure of its predecessor feeling more like a family blockbuster as oppose to an intelligent sci-fi.

This isn’t to say however that Star Trek Into Darkness is a bad film, in fact it’s quite the opposite helming an exciting narrative which maintains attention throughout with the help of its fantastic performances. Continuing on relatively soon after the previous film, this instalment sees the crew of the enterprise being met by a seemingly unstoppable force from within the organisation (Cumberbatch) and after a terrorist act on the headquarters, Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) and his team set about on a one man hunt to capture him, but not is all as it seems when he follows all too willingly. Proving himself on various acting occasions in the past, Benedict Cumberbatch is equally as impressive here, being the psychotic and wildly powerful villain that acts as the catalyst to send the team into disarray. With further less obvious villains however showing to be at work throughout the film, Cumberbatch isn’t given a sufficient amount of screen time and narrative impact despite his dominating presence which is a disappointment yet in hindsight perhaps an intelligent cinematic move. Upon his arrival the film kick-starts its campaign to stun the audience with its spectacular action set pieces which become increasingly audacious and interesting as the film goes on, looking undoubtedly worse at the hands of 3-D which is at little fault of the film.

A change in tone midway through the film allows a space for further characters to take to the stage which some do more than others, with Spock ( Zachary Quinto) most notably taking his opportunity in the limelight to great effect as we witness an exciting side of his character which is rarely expressed.  This however does lead to certain characters missing out, with members like Bones (Karl Urban) rarely making an appearance aside from the occasional humorous ‘side-gag’. In amongst all of Star Treks excitement at its flashy set-pieces, it failed to address even the most simple of plot points creating for a second act which was far more convoluted than necessary. This proves to be evident following the climactic action sequence which seemingly forgets the existence of its surrounding narrative, wrapping up the story almost instantaneously to leave a poorly wrapped present with a lack of aesthetic presentation.

Being an exciting and naturally humorous blockbuster, Star Trek Into Darkness is an extremely strong and certainly worthy addition to the Star Trek franchise. Focusing mostly on story as oppose to the wild futuristic world surrounding it, this film is a delightful throwback to the past series in many ways than one.

8/10- A blockbuster standing proud over its cinematic opposition being entertaining and appropriately dark.

Calum Russell

The Place Beyond the Pines

Following the success of 2010’s Blue Valentine, director Derek Cianfrance has taken a three year break in recovery before deciding to direct and release The Place Beyond the Pines, a story very dissimilar to that of his previous romantic hit. With Ryan Gosling returning in the leading role, Cianfrance shows to continue his notable poetic style of storytelling but seemingly forgets to mould the finished product leaving a cumbersome conclusion of a plethora of loose themes.

 With a confident and ambitious story at the helm, The Place Beyond the Pines does little to prove its worth juggling too many balls that all inevitably come tumbling down. The film follows Luke (Gosling) a motorcycle stunt rider who soon turns to robbing banks to provide support for his new born child, this choice puts him on a collision course with rookie cop Avery (Cooper), whose actions cause repercussions for the following story to unfold. Being very much the chronicle of protagonist Luke’s life the film is almost innately an epic drama that is undoubtedly let down by a totally underwhelming second act that does little to relate to the previous story; acting as a divided sub-plot that was totally unnecessary. The story was ambitious and engaging prior to this act however as further characters are introduced with further sub-plots, you find yourself being detracted from the quality story at hand in order to be diverted to a plot boasting very little but which holds frustrating importance to the proceeding act which proves to be just as devoid of emotion.

 With actors of excellent quality helming the lead and supporting roles, this proves to be the films saving grace always providing realistic performances that are believable throughout. The protagonist Luke, despite being largely dislikeable with few relatable qualities, is acted with brilliant enthusiasm and flair by the increasingly impressive Ryan Gosling.  Clouding his performance however is arguably the supporting performance of Ben Mendelsohn whom despite having a relatively small role acts with e

vident passion that aids his character, Robin, to become immediately involved within the story as new found friend of Luke. Both these characters being engrossing and interesting are prominent mostly in the first act making it by far the best of the well-defined three which could’ve stood alone (with some added tweaks) as a fantastic 90 minute drama. However as the film progresses holes appear and plot points are left untied to the frustration of the audience who simply want to revisit the simplicity and enjoyment of the first act.

 Starting fantastically the film fizzles out to a small, yet still respectable; third act which is as unnecessary as it is cumbersome. Boasting humongous talent and a magnificently ambitious story, this film could’ve been so much more impressive but instead decides to confuse itself by trying to do too much and ending up doing very little at all.

7/10- Performances are fantastic but the threadbare plot provides a heavy burden.

Calum Russell

Iron Man 3

After the recent worldwide billion dollar sensation of Marvel’s ‘The Avengers’, Disney is keen to duplicate its success by rolling out the second phase in the ever growing marvel universe. With four films hoping to reel in some ‘petty cash’ before the presumable box office behemoth ‘The Avengers 2’ hits theatres in 2015, we begin with Iron man three, the third addition to the relatively bland trilogy of Iron man. Being evident that Disney learnt something from their previous outing however, Iron Man three shows to be the strongest of the trilogy being painfully witty and surprisingly spectacular despite its lingering issues.

In keeping with the recent depiction of ‘run down alpha-male heroes’ we are introduced to Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr) straight after the events of ‘The Avengers’ as he suffers from post-traumatic stress, seeking comfort in the technology of his own mansion whilst he recovers. During this time the very real threat of terrorism is plaguing his world led by the ruthless Mandarin (Ben Kingsley) who vows to crush Iron Man, forcing him out of recovery to partake in ‘good old fashioned revenge’. Alike every Marvel movie, ignoring their inconsistent plots, Iron Man Three is tremendously fun, displaying spectacular action sequences and frequent witty one-liners to maintain the interest of the audience. Differentiating itself from the crowd however is the films plot, being simple initially it soon becomes interesting after a huge plot twist which will have some groaning in frustration whilst others gasping with enjoyment. None the less the twist provides a fork in the otherwise wholly predictable narrative that was hugely welcomed to a film usually stereotyped as ‘box office Hollywood fodder’ .Used often throughout the film to enhance the stunning action set pieces, Iron Man’s seamless CGI aids in the overall polished tone of the film helping to make even the most unrealistic battle look magnificent (which is undeniably hindered by the optional use of eye gouging 3-D).

A regular theme of the Iron Man series is its use of comedy, usually used to varying degrees of success by challenging ‘Tony Starks’ egotistical views which quickly become monotonous. No doubt glimpses of that humour are present in this addition however for the most part this film uses a quick-witted script and the perfect comedic timing of Downey Jr to show its lighter side. Occasionally however the film gets carried away using humour when perhaps it wasn’t needed leading to some moments of puzzling ‘sketch-show awkwardness’ which runs parallel to some incoherent plot strands and lack of narrative explanation. Throwing comparisons to the enemies seen in ‘The Avengers’, the overly supernatural opponents present here are totally glazed over despite their unrealistic properties that are in need of a sufficient explanation. This is a disappointment as they show promise in comparison to the mundane primary weapon of blue energy seen at the hand of the previous two films’ antagonists. Led by the Impressive performance of Guy Pierce as the mandarins right hand man, his superficial cronies feel like targets for the protagonist with very little development and explanations for their actions.    

If it wasn’t for Iron Mans genuinely hilarious humour and heavy dosage of pizzazz, the latest addition to the Marvel universe would be comparable to its predecessors showing just as much narrative inconsistency and scenes of unbearably sugar coated events. Little threat is felt throughout with the overall tone being harmless to kids of all ages, showing to be both the franchises hindrance and also its formula for success, however overall Iron Man Three is magnificently enjoyable, displaying a brave step forward for the franchise as it boldly enters the realm of phase 2.

7.5/10- Hollywood in black and white, flashy, fun and destined for box-office success.

Calum Russell 

Evil Dead

Evil Dead’s not coming at the best time with horror remakes being Hollywood’s favourite area of decapitation, reminding us of old classics before insulting audiences with blatant lack of care and low grade performances. Hollywood’s newest ‘victim’, the reboot of cult classic 'The Evil Dead' however is bulked with encouraging crew members, Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell, who previously helmed the original as director and beloved protagonist . With aims to transform the recent malnutrition of horror remakes, Evil Dead steers clear of its humorously dark original instead choosing to follow a far more sadistic narrative aimed to shock rather than entertain.

Differentiating itself from the off, Evil Dead provides a meaning for the characters presence at the, now iconic, ‘cabin in the woods’ being that, Mia, a drug addict is attempting to escape her old ways through a weekend of ‘cold turkey’ treatment. With a pact to keep Mia at the cabin in order to fully carry out her promise to quit, her four friends including her brother, David, encounter a strange smell upon arrival and discover that the source of the pungency is a flesh lined book riddled with a sadistic curse that once read unleashes evil onto the helpless Mia and her subsequent victims. Whilst this recent remake may be similar to its 1980’s counterpart in many ways, it also proves to be wildly different pouring not only a consistent flow of cash into the production but also an excess of blood, guts, sick and bile. Done primarily through practical effects, the film heavily benefits from this feature with every slaughter being whimsically graphic and intense, leading to most of the film being viewed with a quivering hand near to the irritable mouth. Despite this however a huge lack of genuine terror is felt with gratuitous violence seeming to take its place to a frustrating degree. As the film progresses and enough red liquid has splattered onto the screen to last a lifetime, boredom begins to seep in as eagerness to escape the intense theatre clouds your viewing ‘pleasure’.

With a huge influx of violence in comparison to the original, the comedy element has all but vanished being scarcely seen and is ill-managed when it eventually appears. Seen as an intelligent device in the old to balance on screen violence and personal enjoyment, the film suffers from a lack of this rarely poking fun at itself, simply turning to further violence to express its comedic ‘funny-bone’.  That said there are moments of hilarity, despite their clever disguise behind the red veil, with the film more laughing at its genre than its own narrative, working on a contextual level that undoubtedly momentarily entertains.

Being notably more successful than recent horror flops (*cough cough* Texas Chainsaw 3-D) Evil Dead certainly maintains the ‘video nasty’ reputation that the original proudly held, despite its clear faults. The gratuitous, almost slapstick type violence allows for breathing space in-between scenes of conscious decapitation and facial disfigurement, with the intriguing storyline playing out at the hands of satisfactory performances. Evil Dead is at its best, disgusting, dingy and disturbingly realistic, encouraging viewers to undergo a through wash prior to viewing, despite its lack of humour and simple enjoyment.

6.5/10- Furiously demonic Evil Dead is a fun enough ‘slasher flick’ that undoubtedly holds very little re-watch value.

Calum Russell

Robot and frank

 With the increase in popularity of the science fiction genre in recent years, a huge influx of flashing blue lights, flying airships and time travel has been evidently present. Whilst this ‘in your face’ form of sci-fi is exciting and imaginative it’s far from relatable, focusing on an indulgence of convoluted scientific prospects instead of actual prototypes that can (and will) be implemented in the near future. Robot and frank accurately tackles this, equipping its world with… well the same resources as present day, but now with added luxuries of robot butlers and single manned cars using these as a key assets to its humorous, immersive narrative.

Introductions to the world of the future are unflattering and simple, as they should be with its overall lack of technological development as we are immediately introduced to Frank, an elderly man with a criminal past of thievery. Displayed as your everyday man, Frank (Frank Langella) is crucially relatable as well as fittingly witty, frequently criticising the modernisation of the world around him. After concerns from his son due to Frank’s isolation at home, he is brought the gift of a robot butler, programmed to look after him, much to the dismay of the protagonist. As the plot deepens, Frank begins to build a relationship with his new found technological friend as he schemes a plan to pair off and reignite his love for the swiping of high end jewellery. Starting slow in comparison to the engaging finale, the plot picks up momentum quickly once the robot is introduced and relationships between the two protagonists as well as sub-characters Hunter (James Marsden) and Jennifer (Susan Sarandon)  are established. This leads for a fluid and realistic story to play out, using the films helpful sci-fi element to extend possible story arcs as it tells the loving story of the humorous relationship between an old man and his robotic friend.

The comedy present works excellently well, helping the audience to easily sympathise with the character of Frank who’s bantering with the robot one minute and suffering from his old age the next. Proving to be more sentimental than initially clear from its exterior, this narrative is truly deep, tentatively touching on themes relevant to the films protagonist. On occasion these moments are knocked by pieces of ill fitted humour, however for the majority of the time there’re tackled with heart and realism to heart-breaking degrees of accuracy with help from the excellent acting of Frank Langella.

Robot and Frank was a pleasant surprise effortlessly coagulating it’s genres of comedy, drama and sci-fi to seamless degrees using these genres to produce a broad narrative packed with heart. Some story arcs deflate slightly towards the end as others become more poignant, leaving some paths slightly undeveloped, however this can be easily overlooked whilst judging the finished product that gleams with emotion both in its plot and in its performances.

8/10- Proving that Sci-Fi’s don’t need guns and flying cars to be imaginative and emotionally engaging.

Calum Russell

Scary Movie 5

Increasingly becoming the most difficult genre in Hollywood, the opinionated world of comedy will never please everyone, and whilst the Scary Movie franchise has never been famous for highbrow humour it certainly divides audiences in its popularity. With new comer director Malcom D. Lee at the helm, comedy legend David Zucker is in the writing seat making a change to the previous two instalments that he directed. Despite these changes, Scary Movie 5 shows to be just as humorously awful as its predecessors depending solely on pop culture references to carry each waffling gag.

  

With its poignant feature of horror parody being this year’s disappointing ‘Mama’, the fifth instalment of this debatably dying series

had a fair amount of potential with seven years since the previous instalment to make of. Instead however it prefers to bow down to pop culture, inserting countless references to irrelevant films, music and even books with an extremely unfunny reference to ‘Fifty Shades Of Grey’ as well as dismal cameos from a number of musicians; proceeding to prove that they can’t act, with musician ‘Mac Miller’ providing a diabolical performance with no redeeming qualities. The narrative is as loose as ever, allowing for a handful of nonsensical yet hilarious jokes to be slotted in, as we follow Jody (Ashley Tisdale) and Dan (Simon Rex) who adopt the children of a deceased relative and take them back to their house of paranormal activity whilst Jody continues her aspirations to be the black swan. The amount of references is certainly overwhelming and unnecessary as funnier jokes could’ve been made had there been more focus, however this isn’t to say that they all flop with the reference to the, now dated, inception being one of notable hilarity.  The crutch of pop culture is annoyingly shoehorned into sequences that would have been funnier without its presence, with ultimately the funniest scenes appearing out of nowhere in the form of a bizarre occurrence or a simple inappropriate outburst.

With a knowingly immature fan base the jokes appeal to the slim demographic that find a ‘punch in the face’ to be comedy gold with jokes similar to this being repeated throughout to varying degrees of success. Fans of this humour will bathe in its utter ridiculousness with the knowing of its dampened quality in comparison to its predecessors however lovers of high-brow comedy will recoil in horror, with this film being as scarily bad as some of the best horror films, most notably in the field of acting.

Never has this franchise prized itself on its ‘fantastic performances’, however a certain expectancy of at least a GCSE pass in the subject of Drama is constantly desired and with the lead actress Ashley Tisdale at the helm of course this quality is never delivered, with her performance being as lazy and unimpressive as a bed with no mattress. Her comedic timing is utterly useless, picking up on features of the film that the franchise ‘prides itself on’ (i.e- Random, nonsensical occurrences), constantly putting a downer on the already partially deflated film. The comedy prowess of Anna Farris was desperately missed, with her dippy screen caricature being a source of comedy in itself in the previous 4 instalments.

With an unbalanced ratio of infrequent moments of hilarity to frequent moments of tumbleweed, Scary Movie 5 shows to be by far the weakest film of the dying franchise. Once showing genuine intelligence and humour this franchise is in danger of cinematic death relying too heavily on highly irrelevant pop culture references as well as puerile sight gags to aid its way through the film. Moments of comedy are scarce but are undoubtedly funny when they eventually emerge from the depths of pop culture that consumes this film in smoke.

3/10- Lovers of nonsensical parodies will enjoy occasional laughs, but inconsistent references delivered with awful performances leave for a low-brow slap in the face.

Calum Russell