Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol
I've enjoyed the Mission Impossible films up to this point, although the franchise has never really excited me that much. However, when I heard that the fourth film in the series was to be the live action debut of director Brad Bird (of Pixar fame) i was more than a little optimistic. My optimism, I discovered, was not unfounded, because what we have here is a likely contender for best action film of 2011.
In a way Ghost Protocol reminds me of the best of the older Bond films, as it is full cool gadgets, multiple exotic locations, beautiful women and a bad guy determined to destroy the world for some ridiculous reasons. The many set pieces throughout the film perfectly filmed, and each action scene is almost a work of art unto itself. The script is funny and intelligently written, making a few knowing jabs at tired action cliches, and they even give a couple of characters there own mini arches within the main storyline. What more could you want from an action film, right?
Well, unfortunately, a couple of things. For one, the villain is a bit lame, and if you were to compare him with Phillip Seymour Hoffman's loathsome baddie from Mission Impossible 3 he really seems to be lacking a lot of the qualities that make memorable movie villains (personality for one.) Secondly, I've found that the action films I tend to enjoy the most are ones where there is something on the line personally for the good guys. To use Mission Impossible 3 as an example again, there Ethan not only had to stop the bad guys from succeeding in their evil scheme, but also had to rescue his wife. Here he is simply trying to prevent all out nuclear war, and important job no doubt, but with nothing personally at stake for him it takes away from the drama a bit.
But forget about the negatives, this is a fantastic popcorn film with some amazing action scenes, and if the series continues in this manner then MAYBE (very big maybe) one day it will rival the Bond series.
**** out of *****
War Horse
And the award for most obvious Oscar bit of 2011 goes to..... C'mon, you know I'm right. When I first saw the trailer I immediately thought four things; 1. Oscar bait, 2. Sentimental and emotionally manipulative, 3. I will still end up seeing the movie and 4. It will nonetheless be a good movie. All four of those statements proved accurate, however further to point 4, while it was a good movie it was a fair way off being a great movie.
The pros? I really liked the storytelling device of showing World War 1 through the eyes of the horse as it went from person to person, which also means we get to meet a number of different characters. The movie is very beautifully shot, and the battle scenes all look pretty impressive. You also get the feeling of being taken on a big, epic journey, which always tends to suck me in The cons? Besides the sentimentality factor the characterisations are all fairly bland, and while enough time is spent showing the bond between main character Albert and his horse for you to care about that relationship, there's no real reason to care about Albert as a Character. While I enjoyed the storyline it suffers from being a tad predictable, and John Williams' score is pretty obnoxious.
So should War Horse be nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars this year? No. Will it inevitably be nominated anyway? Probably. Will it be a blight on the Academy if it is nominated? Not at all.
***1/2 out of *****
Hobo with a Shotgun
I guess this review is kind of pointless as the title of the title gives away whether you're going to enjoy the movie or not. You're either the kind of person who would enjoy spending an hour and a half watching a movie called Hobo with a Shotgun or you're not. But, for what it's worth, here's my two cents.
Hobo with a Shotgun originally began as a fake trailer submitted to a competition run by Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez for their Grindhouse project, and is the second fake trailer from the project to be turned into a feature length film after Machete. While Machete was more of a stylistic tribute to grindhouse cinema, Hobo with a Shotgun appears closer to being an actual grindhouse film, complete with bad acting, cheesy production values and tacky dialogue.
Despite this, it kinda works. The hobo character is portrayed quite sympathetically, and through his relationship with a prostitute he tries to help I actually cared about his predicament. The over the top violence wont leave gore fans wanting, and the movie even attempts to offer some political commentary on crime and homelessness, and actually doesn't do a terrible job. This is what it is.
*** out of *****
Cowboys & Aliens
Yes, the movie does feature both cowboys and aliens, but do you think they could have come up with a more subtle title? While I had a certain amount of fun with this decent but completely forgettable sci-fi/western crossover, on reflection the movie just made me mad. It's not THIS movie specifically, but it just got me thinking about how sick I am of these "not bad" summer blockbusters. They cost heaps to make, often go on to make heaps of profit, yet all they are is "not bad." People go out and see these movies in droves because they are marketed well and feature big name stars, yet the most common response you'll hear is "yeah, it wasn't bad." They could be watching a movie that a director is passionate about and has poured their heart and soul into, but instead settle for by the numbers movies like this which are just another notch in the director's belt. And all you'll hear them say is that it "wasn't bad."
On a more positive note, this film wasn't bad.
*** out of *****
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