Observe And Report (2009) - The seldom-seen `dark side' of cuddly Seth Rogen  

I'm writing this review after a second viewing of Observe and Report. I've always been a fan of Seth Rogan's light-hearted (if adult) humour, so when I first saw this, I was a little let down. The cuddly fat man we can't help but root for has been replaced here by a bi-polar mall security guard who's temper frequently gets him into trouble.

It wasn't until the second viewing (when I wasn't expecting some sort of sweet-natured feel-good comedy, like the 40 Year Old Virgin or Knocked Up) that I really appreciated it. I also like my humour dark. And, if you're in the mood for something pretty grisly and taboo-breaking, you may just get something out of this. Basically, if you haven't laughed in the first ten minutes, turn it off and watch something more mainstream.

As I mentioned earlier, Rogen plays Ronnie Barnhardt, a mall security guard with delusions of grandeur. He thinks he's the hero, but the audience knows otherwise - which is where most of the humour derives from. He also has bi-polar disorder - a mental condition that means he's quite tolerable one minute (and we, the audience, can also unwittingly think the `old loveable' Rogen is back. Then, cut to the next scene and he's battering some kid with a skateboard.

Observe and Report is laden with poignancy and subtle humour. Basically, only watch if you're in the mood for black comedy and laced with taboos. Nothing is sacred here - expect racism, full frontal male untidy, date rape and plenty of violence and mental illness.

If you think you can find the funny side to all that, Observe and Report may just be for you.

Besides, it has a wicked soundtrack (if you're into classic rock).

8/10 The Force is definitely strong with this one

Pacific Rim - Release your inner child (and enjoy)

Okay, being a fully grown man, perhaps I should have grown out of enjoying watching big, over the top monsters smashing big, over the top robots to bits by now. Sadly, I haven't (which also probably explains why I'm single).

If you're looking at Pacific Rim (a film where big, over the top monsters come out from a portal at the bottom of the ocean and start laying waste to our cities, therefore meaning Earth creates an army of big, over the top robots to stop them) on an action-only basis, then it's a sure fire winner. Yes, I loved the action - it was truly amazing special effects wise and I was instantly a twelve-year-old boy again.

Sadly, I'm also a thirty-six year old adult, which means that my logical brain does demand some sort of cohesive plot to tie a two-hour film together. This is where Pacific Rim fell down. It seemed to take every action cliché from the last two decades and put them in here. A fair part of the story is told in a `Lord of the Rings-style' monologue at the very beginning of the film, eliminating the need for any complex plots - it just tells us what's been going down. Then we have the need to recruit the burned-out ex robot pilot who's quit the service, but is the only hope we have now (a cliché so old it was lampooned in Hot Shots Part Deux), plus, when our hero does step up to the challenge, he's met with suspicion and downright hostility from the other pilots (think Team America of all films!). Then throw in the obligatory `love interest' and dialogue that seems as if it's been completely lifted from Independence Day and you have a weird mish-mash of action films.

However, all this may be cliché, but you still have the epic battles to fall back on. I forgave all this and just let my inner child enjoy itself. The only real downside were the (yes, clichéd) scientists. Seriously... they're `uber-geeky' to such an extreme they wouldn't look out of place in a cartoon. In my opinion, if you're looking for a silly, over the top, all action film then you'll enjoy what's on offer here (I just fast-forwarded the scientists in the end - they could well be related to Jar Jar Binks - they're that bad!).

7/10 if I woke up on Groundhog Day and had to watch this again, I could live with that

Dagon - Not bad, but not quite there

‘Dagon’ is one of those films where I watch and yet still can’t really make up my mind about.  I didn’t hate it.  It has its good points, yet overall there didn’t really seem like there was enough story to flesh it out (even to its quite average ninety minute runtime).

It’s about an American couple whose boat gets shipwrecked off a remote Spanish island.  When they get to shore they find the locals are hardly the hospitable types.  It kind of reminded me of ‘The Wicker Man,’ i.e. outsiders who are up against the whole of a town.

My main problem with the film was that very little happens.  Once the couple arrive on the island, they’re quickly separated and we’re left with just the man.  Pretty much the whole of the middle part of the film is him being chased from one dark and creepy location to the next.  He’s all on his own and doesn’t really have anyone to interact with, therefore we don’t really get to know him that well and know that he’s going to make it out of each area, simply because the film would end if he didn’t.  He does meet one local, but the old man talks with such a strong accent I actually had to put the subtitles on to understand him!

Seriously, if you were watching Dagon on DVD, you could skip a few chapters in the middle and you wouldn’t miss anything ‘story-wise,’ just a few creepy scenes here and there.  The atmosphere is one of the plus points.  The story is nicely creepy and the monsters are well done.  It’s just a pity not much happens for the majority of the movie.

The last act is a bit more dramatic and they’ve saved some of the best gore for last, but it’s too little too late to turn what could have elevated an okay film to a really classic one.  Bottom line, it’s okay, but because there’s so little story, I probably wouldn’t watch it again because I can remember everything about it.

6/10 Should probably keep you awake if Freddy Krueger was haunting your nights

Blitz - Statham (made for TV)

I'll start by saying that I'm a huge Jason 'The Stath' Statham fan (sorry!) and I pretty much watch everything he's in.  I'm well aware that 90% of his output his hardly going to be 'high brow' entertainment with deep character development and interlinking character arcs.  What I normally expect is a gruff, bald man punching bad guys (and most recently giant sharks!).  And, normally, I get what I sit down for and come away completely fulfilled.  However, with 'Blitz' there just didn't seem to be enough there to warrant what was - effectively - a 'big budget film.'

I'm used to seeing The Stath locking horns with numerous baddies and wiping them out, not to mention loads of action, fight scenes and that oversize shark again.  In short… I see Jason Statham as a major Hollywood action star and don't really see him in what seemed like such a 'small role.' And, no, I don't mean he only has a 'bit part' in 'Blitz.' He is the film's star after all and there's probably no one else you'll remember seeing in anything (oh, I think 'The Governor' from 'The Walking Dead' pops up).

Blitz' is set in London where a serial killer targets cops.  The Stath is the copper tasked with bringing him to justice.  And that's about it.  The killer ('Blitz' as he calls himself, if you're wondering where the title comes from) isn't particularly threatening.  He just walks up to police officers on the street and shoots them.  There's no 'Se7en' style performing intricate acts with the bodies to make any sort of political point/message.  Nor does he do anything sick with his victims after he's killed them, like you may expect from someone like Hannibal Lecter.  He  just kills them then wanders off.

Plus there's no real action to speak of.  The film begins well enough.. We see The Stath beat up a gang of muggers and that's possibly the high-point of the film.  Okay, so there are a couple of punch-ups and about one major chase (on foot), but that's about it.  I know, I know, some people will say that this is a 'cops and robbers' movie, not 'The Expendables 4,' but when you have an action star famed for over the top films like 'Crank' and 'The Transporter,' I just expected more.

However, I could have lived with the lack of action if there were some memorable characters to speak of.  The killer isn't frightening - he's just annoying.  There are a few other characters who are there to only speak in cliches.  Seriously, that's what wound me up the most about the film - the dialogue.  It's like if you had to list fifty cliches you'd hear in a British cop film then you'll find them all here.  Even The Stath struggles to make his lines sound believable.  He’s okay when he’s exchanging a little bit of banter with his – obviously ‘mismatched’ – partner (a gay police officer who also has a tendency to take the law into his own hands), but that’s about it on the dialogue front.

Basically, the film is so bland that it could have been made for TV.  In fact, if I'd come across it on late night TV (minus Jason Statham), I'd probably just watch about twenty minutes of it and then turn it off - it's that average.  I know I'm ripping on it, but I didn't hate it entirely.  Jason Statham is about the only good thing in it and, as I'm a die-hard fan, I could appreciate it simply for that.  However, coming from a star who makes so many great, fun, ridiculously over-the-top action films, I've already got plenty more (and, of course, better!) films of his to watch, rather than waste my time on this one again.  Sorry, Jason - please punch more mammoth, aquatic sea monsters next time!

6/10 Should probably keep you awake if Freddy Krueger was haunting your nights

Edtv - Not 'the T-word'

It seems an unwritten rule in Hollywood that every few years two films get released that are basically identical, then one reigns supreme and is critically lauded and the other sinks without a trace - 'Armageddon' vs 'Deep Impact,' 'The Illusionist' vs 'The Prestige,' 'Volcano' vs 'Dante's Peak' and so on.  'Edtv' came out in 1999, only a year later than - the classic - Jim Carrey vehicle, 'The Truman Show.' I know technically 'Edtv' was 'late to the party,' but I'd wager that the two films were in development at the same time and 'The Truman Show' simply pipped Ed to the post.  Anyway, everyone loved 'The Truman Show' and 'Edtv' kind of felt like a poor man's rip-off.  Which is a shame, because it's actually quite enjoyable (and different enough to deserve at least a little bit of love!).

I'll try not to mention 'The Truman Show' any more than I have to when comparing 'Edtv,' but I will say that the premises are actually different enough to warrant being enjoyed separately. 'The Truman Show' is almost a bit of an alternate reality set in a dark, dystopian world whereas 'Edtv' is definitely of its time (and actually could also be made today and not be that different!).  A TV network decides the next 'big thing' in TV would simple be to follow an American 'everyman' around twenty-four hours a day for a month and just see where it goes.

The 'average Joe' (or 'Ed' to be precise) in question just so happens to be Matthew McConaughey, who spends his days playing pool with his brother (a criminally-underused Woody Harrelson) and working in a video rental store (remember those?!).  It doesn't sound like much in terms of 9must see TV,' but - naturally - events start to spiral out of control in his life and he begins to see what 'the dark side' of fame really is - as do we, the audience.

I always see the year 2000 as the one that 'defined' what we refer to as 'reality TV' ('Big Brother' began here in the UK) and 'Edtv' certainly fits into what we'd still call 'reality TV' (even if it doesn't contain any prompts for viewers to 'phone in' and determine the show's next move).  Perhaps that's why the film never became bigger than it was?  Because just one year before Davina McCall took over our small screens here in the UK, the prospect of something like 'Edtv' was too preposterous to be real.

I've watched 'Edtv' a fair few times now and enjoyed it every time.  I do see it as the film-makers trying to warn the audience about the dangers of fame and how it might not be everything it's promoted to live up to, plus - retrospectively - it's also a warning against how low TV can sink.  However, a parable's only interesting and not very demanding of re-watching, yet 'Edtv' is - and this is mainly down to the cast.  Of course it's Matthew McConaughey's baby.  He plays a loveable everyman just perfectly and we can't help but root for him, even when he makes mistakes (that we all probably would if thrust into the limelight so unexpectedly and deliberately without proper media training as to how to deal with it.

Because it's all about Matthew McConaughey the secondary characters are quite as well fleshed-out as they could be.  I've already mentioned how Woody Harrelson probably could have been given a bigger role.  He seems to have natural chemistry with McConaughey and yet seems to basically disappear for the second half of the movie.  Rob Reiner is - basically - the bad-guy and could have been used more, whereas Dennis Hopper only pops up for a couple of scenes here and there, which is a bit of a waste for such a talented actor.  Same goes for Martin Landau.  Jenna Elfman is the obligatory 'love interest' for Ed and - again - she's kind of side-lined for much of the film in favour of having her character develop - much of what happens to her you'll see coming a mile off.

If there is a surprise performance, it comes from Ellen DeGeneres as a long-suffering TV executive.  She's probably the character who we root for the most after Ed.  We see her conflict in working for a company that makes her promote people by destroying their lives for the enjoyment of the masses versus not wanting to be part of something so low-brow and insidious.

If I was going to offer a criticism it's that the ending is a little rushed and certain things seem to just work themselves out in order to wrap the film up in its allocated run-time.  But, that's a minor gripe.  Don't let people tell you that 'Edtv' is just a 'Truman Show' knock-off.  It's more than that.  Even with the - seemingly never ending - reality TV on our screens today, I can't ever see a 'Truman Show' style situation ever really happening. 'Edtv' on the other hand... well that's probably coming to a network near you very soon!  Oh, and if the fact that Elizabeth Hurley is in it puts you off, don't worry - she's not in it much and isn't that bad at all.

7/10 if I woke up on Groundhog Day and had to watch this again, I could live with that

A Fish Called Wanda - P-p-p-perfect f-f-film

There are some films that probably shouldn't work… and yet they just do.  I often wonder (or should that be 'Wanda?') how 'A Fish Called Wanda' was pitched to the studio?  An English barrister falls in love with a jewel thief and must go about double-crossing her former CIA lover while a man with a horrendous stutter accidentally murders every innocent animal he comes into contact with.  I think that's what they call a 'hard sell.' However, I guess when the barrister is played by John Cleese, his lover Jamie Lee Curtis, the insane ex CIA spook Kevin Kline and the speech-impaired Michael Palin, it somehow manages to come together in the 'perfect storm' of crime, comedy and classic film-making.

I've often heard films being criticised when they 'split genres,' i.e. when a outright comedy film suddenly tries to be all serious and dramatic etc.  This can kind of wrench a viewer out of the world they were currently enjoying.  However, 'A Fish Called Wanda' seems to be able to flit between genres effortlessly and without any jarring effect on the audience.  I guess it's mainly a comedy, yet it encompasses not just strong elements of a 'crime/heist' genre, but ultimately it's a romance, too (and drama!).

Despite all four main cast-members actually being pretty bad representations of human beings (you could argue that Michael Palin's 'Stuttering Ken' is a sympathetic character, but he seems quite able to murder innocent old ladies in order to save his friend's skin!), we do care about them all.  Even the psychopathic 'Otto' (Kevin Kline, who deservedly won a 'Best Supporting Actor' Oscar for his outlandish performance) is a tragic sort of person who we can't help but enjoy watching just to see how bonkers he's going to get and eventually what comeuppance awaits him.

I would say that this is a film that 'appeals to everyone,' but it definitely covers 'adult themes' meaning you're going to have to be okay with s3x, violence and plenty of foul language - not to mention some cruelty to animals (no matter how blatantly comic it's portrayed!).  But the best thing about 'A Fish Called Wanda' is that I originally watched it in the eighties and I loved it.  Now, around thirty years later I find myself loving it and laughing along as much as I did back then.  It's almost as timeless as 'Fawlty Towers' and could well have been filmed today (minus the reference to Margaret Thatcher and the ease that the characters are able to infiltrate Heathrow airport's security - well, it was pre 9/11 I guess).

10/10 The Monty Python Knights of Camelot are currently looking for this

The Good, the Bad and the Aliens (mainly good though!)

Mixing genres that don't normally mix can be risky at best of times.  Sure, put sci-fi with horror or thriller, but westerns?  It's a gamble.  Luckily, in this case, it's a gamble that WORKED.

Cowboys and Aliens - just by the title you don't need much of an explanation as to the plot.  Basically though, it's a B-movie that's elevated to the heights of an A-movie courtesy of some top notch stars (our very own Daniel Craig - doing a passable American accent and, of course, the ever great Harrison Ford) and a decent budget.

The proper stars and budget naturally make a great movie with plenty of fun (if a little stereotyped) characters and realistic-looking (not to mention nasty) aliens to fight.

The film's longer than the average ninety minutes, but don't let that put you off.  The opening half hour establishes the characters nicely and from then on the action flows.

Aliens who fly around in space ships and pack big laser guns versus cowboy with six-shooters and Indians with spears and bows and arrows makes for the perfect mismatch.  You can't help but root for the humans.  They do a great job and it's awesome to watch - the perfect popcorn flick.  The only thing missing from the film was a part for Sigourney Weaver.  I think it would have been great to see `Ripley' riding with cowboys while slapping the odd alien along the way!

8/10 The Force is definitely strong with this one