Posts Tagged ‘action film’

They say football is a game of two halves: and so is my review of Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol.

Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol is an enjoyable movie.  It’s populated by beautiful people in exotic locations.  It has guns and gadgets.  It has explosions.  It has chases.  It has spectacular high places.  It has all the elements of a modern action spy thriller.

It is dominated by Tom Cruise but I don’t see that as a bad thing.  It’s his name above the title on the poster.  He’s the one at the front of the group on the poster.  He’s one of the film’s producers too.   If he’d not been the main player reviewers would be asking “where’s Tom?”

It has a stand out performance for me was Simon Pegg: Benji  is a great foil to Ethan Hunt.  Benji is both competent at the technical parts of the job but Pegg manages to infuse him with enough comedy to  lighten the films atmosphere.  William Brandt  (Jeremy Renner) and Jane Carter (Paula Patton) round out the team yet despite being given more back story than Benji  get less to do.

It’s Not a lot of effort goes into developing the villains whose actions drive the plot with little more justification than they’re a bit mad or are working for cash.

It is overall an enjoyable action movie – not a classic but good fun.

But is it a Mission Impossible film?

On the surface it has the trappings of a film based on the 1960′s TV show: the famous theme music runs over credits that feature glimpses of the action to come while a fuse burns down; there are face masks; there are missions that are impossible; the stakes are high; the secretary will disavow all knowledge etc etc etc.

The problem is these are elements borrowed from the series not what made it unique.  Week in week out they used to select a team of talented individuals, have a little fun as they showed the gear they’d use, then the stone cold operatives would go into action, overcome some unexpected happenings before Mission: Accomplished they’d ride into the distance.  I’ve not kept count but if the current IMF pull off more than 50% of their jobs then I’d be surprised.  At least in Ghost Protocol despite hints there aren’t any traitors in the IMF.

Oddly one of the elements of the movie I liked the most annoys me as being not MI.  Benji is good as the tech guy but he isn’t a Barney.  Barney would crack a joke in prep for a mission but on the job?  Speaking English, talking about how cool it is to be a spy while walking through the Kremlin?  Mission Impossible isn’t about characters who need to wise crack all the time.  Leave the one liners to Bond movies.   I’d actually like to see if Simon Pegg can play a straight role because I have a feeling he’d be pretty good at it.

Jane Carter is another case of not quite getting the original series.  I’m glad she can hold her own in a fight like her three male companions.  We’ve come a long way from heroines who couldn’t do anything in a fight via Buffy and Alias.  Carter shows us that she can fight in Dubai.  Yet if I was picking an MI squad I’d take Barbara Bain’s Cinnamon Carter.  Why?  Because in Mumbai she’d have tricked the guy into giving up the code for the satellite and done it with a ton of style.

Frankly I’d like to see the MIF showing a bit more brain and a little less brawn.   Not so much running around.  Fewer guns.  Fewer car chases.   By now the IMF should be getting disavowed.  And handed their P45s too and looking for jobs as MFI.

On the plus side the theme sounds like it’s in the correct time signature.  The infiltration of the Kremlin is pretty good till it goes wrong.  There are some nice references to elements of the original series dropped in.  This is also a smaller, lighter weight IMF at least after Ghost Protocol is invoked who can’t call tech support or the marines.  And they don’t throw a traitor in the MIF into the story.

So if you’re a fan of the original Mission Impossible series and were hoping for more than a bit of surface ephemera on an OK action film you may be disappointed.

While Sherlock Holmes: A game of Shadows won’t be my favourite film of the year (Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy is still the lead contender for that) it’s one of my favourite action films of the year.

One critic I saw pretty much said it was more of the same as Sherlock Holmes from 2010 as though that was almost a bad thing.  I’d say it’s a very smart move.  Its equal parts modern panto, action film and Sherlock Holmes redefined.  On a grander scale than Sherlock Holmes but without going to far over the top.

Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law keep the repartee going and both carry the action brilliantly too.  It appears such an effortless relationship that it gives space for the Moriarty / Holmes dynamic that drives the film’s plot.

Moriarty is delicious – a truly worthy performance to complement Robert Downey Jr as a villain to equal Holmes.  He’s not at all a moustache twirler but a subtle and balanced villain.  Stephen Fry’s Mycroft Holmes is used sparingly but brilliantly especially his nude scene.   He could probably carry a Quite Interesting film all of his own.

Rachel McAdams, Noomi Rapace, Paul Anderson, Kelly Reilly, Geraldine James, Eddie Marsan and every other character down to extras playing minor villains, street life and gypsies do a great job of supporting the core cast while in many cases bringing characters only briefly on-screen to life as more than punch bags for the leads.

The sound track is excellent and uses a fiddle to add pace.  There is just enough steam punk without going too far over the top.  The visuals are excellent and the use of camera focus on expansive visual effects shots of historic cities to draw the eye is beautifully used.  The slow motion style from the first film is reused to great effect in the action sequences.

Foreshadows wonderfully used.  Too often films foreshadow one thing with a lingering shot. This one plays with it wonderfully by layering foreshadowing with the obvious foreshadowing of some elements to distract from other foreshadowing more subtly set up for later.

The climatic chess game is a cliché setting up to a twist on Holmes working out a fight before it happens.

Twice they don’t show us the body.  The first time we hear her fall and Moriarty tells us Irene Adler is dead but all we see is a slightly bloody handkerchief.  When Holmes sniffs it could he have detected something that will be revealed in a sequel?   And of course there is the other  body we don’t see.

The only bad thing I could say about Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows is that the title is a bit of a cliché.  I mean A Game of Shadows?  Try harder.  Sorry just kidding

So overall I really enjoyed this in fact I can’t think of anything bad to say about Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows.  Great fun.

I’m not sure what film some of the people who had reviewed Colombiana had been to see but it’s not the same one I went to.  Colombiana is not a classic film but its been given some really harsh reviews that often seem to amount to it not being Leon.

Colombiana is the latest Luc Besson action film and this time he’s gone back to some of the themes that made him famous with Nikita and Leon – assassins and revenge.   That makes it hard to review without referring the earlier film.  Leon had three truly memorable characters: Leon (Jean Reno), Mathilda (Natalie Portman) and Stansfield (Gary Oldman).  Colombiana has Cataleya (Zoe Saldana) and a variety of less developed supporting characters.

Personally I’d like to have seen more made of one of:

• Danny Delanay (Michael Varta) and his relationship with Cataleya
• FBI Special Agent Ross (Lennie James) and his teams pursuit of Catelyna
• Emilio Restrepo (Cliff Curtis) and Catelyna family
• The bad guys/CIA played by Jordi Mollà, Beto Benites and Callum Blue

These were all sketched in and developing any of two of those could have elevated the story.  However doing so would either require changing the pacing by losing a set piece or increasing the length of the film by 15 to 30 minutes.

What it lacks in deep characterisation of villains and allies it makes up for by putting its central character on screen and action.  The opening chase scene in Columbia and the assassination in the police station are memorable and the third is clever.

The climactic encounter with the villains is the weakest of the set pieces but it remains coherent compared to the confused mess that was The Expendables ending.  The fight scene was reminiscent of those found in the Bourne films especially the later, Paul Greengrass, directed offerings with their handheld, in the fight style.

Another thing in its favour is a sense of humour closer to the quips of a good Bond film that is more effective than the forced comedy littered through many modern action films.

So yes, this isn’t Leon or a classic, but if you can get past that while Colombiana is a fun Luc Besson action movie.

Potted review: Unknown is a solid thriller with action, a bit psychological solid in all departments but unremarkable.

Back from going to see Unknown which falls into the thriller with some action and not straight action movie genre. Where The Adjustment Bureau, I reviewed last week, has been unfairly (in my book) compared to the Bourne trilogy – Unknown really ought to be. Dr. Martin Harris (Liam Neeson) is in a car accident and wakes up four days later with some sort of movie personality disorder, there is a conspiracy and there are secret agent at work: to me that is very much Bourne territory.

If the film opened with the accident and waking up in hospital the amnesia / mistaken identity angle could have been the focus but since we know he is the real Martin Harris the focus is on why he’s being replaced and his frustration. There is quite a long build up to the first action sequence that I enjoyed but if you were looking for more action this would be quite frustrating. I could hear someone complaining about that loudly as we left that it could have been in Total Recall’s league. While I like Total Recall I prefer more of a thriller rather than a throwback to the action over thrills school of 80s action films. While I’d say this was slow it’s a lot faster paced than The American, which is still the most lackadaisical thriller I’ve seen in years. Once the pace does pick up later on while not unremitting it does keep moving.

Unknown dropped in a moment of discontinuity that I couldn’t work out in the flash backs. I started to worry I was going to run into a moment of refrigerator logic like I do with Taken (where I can’t explain why a guy with contacts and a backer with a private plane goes in solo). It’s pretty obvious from early on that the film is going to have a twist. The discontinuity bothered me because I thought it was setting up one twist and fortunately it went with a more interesting one than I thought it was setting up.

There are solid performances from Liam Neeson, Diane Kruger, January Jones, Aidan Quinn, Frank Langella and others. I particularly enjoyed Bruno Ganz’s ex-Stasi private investigator Ernst Jürgen who felt like he had slipped out of a John le Carre adaptation but not enough to be out of place.

The action sequences were equally solid. Modern, well assembled but nothing breathtakingly original or new. One of the effects shots suffered from either the most unrealistic real flames ever or rather badly done digital flames add in post production but it wasn’t even close to being as glaring as the bad CG moments late in The A-Team.

Overall Unknown is a good thriller with solid action when it’s doing action but not a full on action movie. In fact it’s basically a solid film in all departments. If I was being unkind I’d say this film is called Unknown but might also be called Unremarkable and in time it will probably become Unremembered. I’ll probably pick it up on DVD when it drops to the £5 or less level.

Potted review: The Expendables is OK but a bit of a missed opportunity – was Stalone been eating Quiche while writing?

I went to see The Expendables last night.  I had worried that the Arnie, Bruce Willis and Stalone scene was going to turn out to be flan;  that the whole of it might have been used for the trailers.  Fortunately it hadn’t been so it was a fan pleasing moment.  It wasn’t Robert De Niro and Al Pacino in Heat but it was three of the biggest box office stars of the 80s on screen together.

However it set up a pattern for the rest of the film.  Stalone has a scene with Statham.    Stalone has a scene with Rourke.  Stalone has a scene with Li.  It would have been nice to see Statham with Li or Li with Rourke.   Despite all the screen time he had Stalone’s character felt like the least well developed.  His motivation for going back badly drawn pretty much coming down to a facial tick when he first sees Sandra.

Now I’m not saying that any ‘80s action film needed more than that but this film wasn’t a true ‘80s action flick.  It felt like someone was eating quiche while writing it.  It kept trying to be something a bit more modern.   The dialogue in all those scenes between Stalone and an other actor was subpar Tarantino.  The inclusion of, the sadly underused, Charisma Carpenter just reminded me how Joss Whedon turned the heroine needing the male action star coming to her rescue cliché on its head.

The action sequences at least were very much in the ‘80s action style.  There wasn’t a lot of obvious CG or a reliance on slow mo / fast mo to try and make the action more exciting.  There were car chases, fights, explosions, big guns and all the other elements you’d expect.  Sadly the final big fight had one element I’d hoped would be avoided – confusion.  As it progressed it just wasn’t clear who was doing what or who was fighting who.  At one point I thought Stalone was in a fight and then realised it was Statham.  More shots of them working as a well practiced unit like they did in the opening boat sequence could have raised the saved the finale.  It wasn’t Street Fighter confused but it lost narrative in favour of things going bang.

It also felt at times like it was trying to set up a franchise rather than do what it should have.  Jet Li’s whole family thing needed to be developed and explained rather than be left hanging.  Dolph Lundgren’s miraculous return from a “fatal” wound now in therapy / treatment for the ride into the sunset.  Is Stalone hoping he’s set up a new action franchise that he can pick and choose from a cast of action stars for?

So overall I’d come away saying The Expendables was another so-so action film.  It’s on a par with  The A-Team, The Losers or Salt each of which had flaws but, for me, Inception is still leading the pack with Solomon Kane getting an honourable mention for trying to be different.  There is at least one challenger left for the 2010 action crown – the trailers for R.E.D. look good.  Can Bruce and friends teach the youngsters a lesson?

Salt the Spoiler Free one line review: Salt is a good action film but slightly generic and not quite as good as I’d hoped for but certainly better than a lot I’ve seen.

My spoiler filled longer thoughts on Salt follow this picture…

Salt isn’t a bad action film and I don’t think it suffered from the much hyped switch from Cruise to Jolie.  Given I like a lot of Cruise’s work and not a lot of Jolie’s (Wanted being an example of a film that disappointed) was a pleasant surprise.

Liev Schreiber and Chiwetel Ejiofor were both good in their supporting roles but this was no Borne style thriller where we see the action from both the side of the hunter and the hunted.  I can’t think of any other characters who really even stick in my mind: Vassily Orlov and Mike Krause were included just enough to serve their respective function as spymaster and husband/provider of spider venom.  The focus was heavily on Salt throughout.

It doesn’t seem entirely sure if it wants to be Bond, Borne or a generic action film.  It didn’t have its own definitive style but few films achieve that – the Borne trilogy probably being the most recent action films to do that.  It had the directing style of Phillip Noyce’s earlier work on Tom Clancy inspired films with a bit of the Borne style mixed in.  Thankfully they made the film without resorting to gratuitous slowmo / fastmo camera action that have been so in vogue in recent years.

There were some good action sequences.  The chase on the roads where Salt jumps from vehicle roof to vehicle roof sticks in my mind.  The assassination attempt, the boat sequence and her escape from the police convoy less so.  The effects didn’t gratuitously distract – Salt jumping down the elevator shaft was a bit of an obvious effects shot but it wasn’t as distracting as the Face running along a crane arm as it crashes to the docks in the A-Team last week.

The plot reminded me of a description from a book written in the ‘80s of how Spetsnaz and KGB forces would open a war with the West by mounting attacks on America.  This version was lower key and someone had had to do some work to cope with the change from the cold war to a friendlier Russia.  There wasn’t as much of the which characters are traitors as I’d expected from the trailers and Salts disguise wasn’t the full face latex mask much beloved of Mission Impossible since the 60’s.

I found myself wondering at one point how many alternate reality’s there are where the only changes are the holders of positions like the President of the United States or other officials.  This alternate reality had new US President, Vice President and Prime Minister of Russia.  Given the number of officials poisoned, blow up or shot it almost needed a special disclaimer at the end…

No animals or government officials were harmed in the making of this motion picture

I also had to wonder – what if the Secret Service took him to the helicopter and Airforce 1 rather than the static defence of a bunker?  There didn’t seem to be much of a plan B for that happening…

Overall Salt is a good action film but slightly generic and not quite as good as I’d hoped for but certainly better than a lot I’ve seen.