Because Everybody Else Has One

An successful mix of sub-Spielberg war action with sub-Tarantino talkiness doesn't quite manage to overshadow the modest pleasures of David Ayer's latest. This review is also up at Channel 24 What it's about In the final days of World War II, Hitler has called on all German men, women and children to fight the allied invaders and within that setting Fury tells the story of a ragtag tank crew led by the tough-as-nails but war-worn Sgt. Don 'Wardaddy' Collier who are the first and often last line of defence against German forces that both out-man and out-gun them. What we thought Fury is a major step-up for director David Ayer after his last film, the dreadful Schwartzanegger-led Sabotage, which went some way towards erasing the good will that he engendered with his top-notch “blokey” cop film, End of Watch. Unfortunately, though it's a handsomely made and well-acted piece of work, it is dragged down by a muddled tone, unfortunate comparisons t...

A lot less scary than your average pyramid scheme... This review is also up at Channel 24 What it's about With a documentary crew following their every move, a team of archaeologists enter a newly unearthed pyramid in Egypt, only to come face to face with some very powerful ancient forces. What we thought Another month, another sub-par horror movie, but even by the lackluster standards of modern day horror films, The Pyramid is still notably terrible. It's especially maddening though, because the rich wellsprings of ancient Egyptian mythology it so ineffectually tries to mine offers so much in the way of otherworldly weirdness. Most of the film's most heated critics – and, to be sure, there are a lot of them – point towards the film's utter lack of originality as its biggest flaw, but however much it may share rather obvious similarities with everything from Neil Marshall's The Descent to every found-footage horror movie ever made, its la...

It may have been snubbed in the recently announced Academy Awards nominations but, make no mistake about it, Pride is easily one of the highlights of the past year.  This review is also up at Channel 24 What it's about During the UK's lengthy miners strike in 1984, a group of young gay activists (and one lesbian) take up the cause of those who they perceive as their brothers in arms: the thousands of miners who, with severely dwindling amounts of both resources and morale, continue to hold out against the Thatcher government's steely resolve in a battle for their very livelihoods. The only problem is that the conventionally conservative, often homophobic miners, may be less than appreciative of where their latest support is coming from. What we thought “Gay” in both its homosexual characters and in the sheer joy that it will inevitably instil in the hearts of all but the most cold-hearted (or, at least, Tory-leaning) of us, Pride is “feel good” filmma...

Angelina Jolie once again silences her critics with another strong directorial effort. Who knows, maybe next time around she'll finally deliver the truly great movie that she's been hinting at with her first two films. This review is also up at Channel 24 What it's about Unbroken tells the true story of Louis Zamperini, an Olympic athlete, who, during his time serving in the frontlines of the second world war, survived a plane crash that killed most of his unit, only to spend over a month stranded at sea, before being “rescued” by the Japanese navy who transferred him to spend the rest of the war in a prisoner of war camp under the heel of a particularly sadistic Japanese officer. What we thought At only her second turn in the director's chair, Unbroken once again proves Angelina Jolie to be a very fine filmmaker with a good visual eye and an even stronger storytelling sense but, like her début feature In The Land of Blood and Honey, it eludes gre...

And now for a major awards contender that's really, really worth your time. This review is also up at Channel 24 . What it's about An ageing actor who, in his heyday, played a beloved silver screen superhero named Birdman tries to reclaim his reputation by throwing everything he has into a theatrical adaptation of a short story by the illustrious literary-writer Raymond Carver. Along the way, he has to deal with his semi-estranged daughter, impossible actors, vicious critics and, most debilitating of all, his own doubts and insecurities that may or may not be presenting themselves as his long-buried Birdman persona – superpowers and all. What we thought Birdman is one of those films that is surprisingly difficult to talk about. Not because of any major plot twists or some such narrative surprises (though it certainly has its share of those) and certainly not because it's so “arty” that it becomes impossible to discuss in any sort of concrete way (it...

I'm on holiday so this s going to be short but I didn't want to let Foxcatcher come and go without leaving my own two cents on the matter. Foxcatcher tells the true story of an eccentric millionaire, John du Pont and his relationship with a pair of Olympic Champion Wrestling brothers as he enlists them to help bring the American team, of which he has become chief benefactor, to the top of the 1988 Seoul games. This is not, however, the kind of feel-good, inspirational sports drama that these sorts of things tend to be but a very dark character study of two very unlikeable men who are joined together by perhaps more than their professional aspirations. Unfortunately, while I remain a fan of both of director Bennett Miller's previous cinematic outings, Moneyball and Capote, I unfortunately don't share the love that most critics seem to have for Foxcatcher. Part of the problem I have with it is what I like to call "Raging Bull syndrome" in that however muc...

Just when you thought you'd seen all the Marvel movies to come out this year, here comes yet another one that's an absolute must-see - even if you probably din't realize it was a Marvel movie. You think that's surprising though, wait until you get a load of that Paddington Bear movie...  Big Hero 6 is, despite the lack of Marvel branding, yet another Marvel Comics-based movie - or yet another really, really good Marvel Comics-based movie, to be exact. Playing out as something of a mix between The Incredibles (itself a thinly veiled Fantastic Four pastiche) and The Iron Giant, Big Hero 6 tells the story of a young genius inventor, Hiro Hamada, who, after tragedy strikes, teams up with a group of slightly older but like-minded young wizzkids and an inflatable medical-helper robot names Baymax to stop a menace that threatens the entire city of San Fransokyo (a beautifully imagined metropolis that melds together the styles and architectures of , you guessed it, Tokyo a...