The LEGO Movie 2 - The Second Part

In The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part, there are continual references to the fact that five years have passed since the events of the original movie and it wasn't until about the third or fourth reference that it finally sunk in that it has actually been five years since the world discovered that the jokey idea of a movie based on LEGO proved that everything was indeed awesome!
However can they recapture lightning in a bottle and "build" on the success of the first one?
Well, YES... and no.
Having been banished into the Mad Max: Fury Road-esque Apocalypsberg after the continued attacks from the beings of Duplo Land, the remaining Master Builders are kidnapped by the Queen of the SISTA system and Emmett must learn how to grow into a tough, grizzled hero in order to save the day, ably assisted by Rex Dangervest.
While the Second Part may lack the surprise factor of the first film, similar to the way you cannot recapture that feeling of that first time you complete building your LEGO Dark Knight Tumbler, it does have some magic and meta touches to it. That actually lead to a very touching finale.
The major surprise in the first film was when Emmett transferred from the LEGO world into the real world and it was discovered that everything was being controlled by human beings and the second part cleverly builds on this.
It is not going to be a shock to anyone on how the "SISTA system" and "ArMamageddon" come into play in the third act but it is a rather moving storyline that shows the true power of LEGO, playing and creativity.
One of the creative choices that is inspired and a complete joy, is Chris Pratt's decision to play the character of Rex Dangervest as his dad in Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2, Kurt Russell in his iconic role of Jack Burton.
Just like the new song that repeats ad nauseum, this movie will get inside your head and leave you with a massive smile on your face because the jokes are on point, the vocal performances are infectious and it is just a hell of a lot of fun.
LEGO, essentially a pile of random bricks, is only limited by people's imaginations and while it might not be as imaginative as the original, it is still a lot of fun and proof that everything is still pretty darn great... if not quite awesome.

3 stars

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom - review

"That's how it starts with 'ooohs' and 'aaahhs' but later there's running and screaming"

Jurassic World breathed new life into an all-but-extinct franchise back in 2015, to the tune of over $1 billion dollars, prompting the "ooohs" and "aaahs".
Now Fallen Kingdom could cause the running and screaming from the franchise as it splits audiences like a T-Rex tearing through a lawyer on Isla Nublar.
While Jurassic World was a success, there were some that felt it was just rehashing the original story for a new audience. Similar to what Star Wars did with the Force Awakens.
Well if World is Force Awakens, then Fallen Kingdom is definitely The Last Jedi because it will divide the fans by destroying what has gone before (metaphorically and literally by blowing up the original island) and forging its own path, albeit for better or worse.
At first glance, this did not appear to be the case as the first trailer and the first hour of the film play out like a beat-for-beat retread of The Lost World.
Character with previous bad experiences in the park is summoned to an old man's mansion and asked to return to help save the dinosaurs. In this case it is Bryce Dallas Howard's Claire, who is re-introduced via a shot of her much maligned high heels, before pointedly switching to boots upon the island. There, like Malcolm did in the original, they team up with an ex and a couple of thinly sketched supporting characters to save the day but are hindered in their efforts by a bald hunter in khakis who may or may not have a hidden agenda.
In fact, Ted Levine's character seems to be dressed as the lead truck Nazi from Raiders of the Lost Ark and the whole first act has a Indy trying to recover the Ark from the Nazis-vibe with the team hiding on board a boat and dressing like the villains. Even Giachianno's score has a familiar theme to that other Spielberg classic.
Once they are off the island, following one of the most emotionally moving shots in the saga and indeed of the last few years of cinemagoing, J.A. Bayona is finally able to take the franchise in a new direction. Like a geneticist, creating a new hybrid of dinosaur perhaps.
Having made his name with The Orphanage, Bayona goes back to the well by setting the remainder of the film within a creepy mansion. This one also features a dark secret in the basement but unfortunately this is a surprise that was spoiled by the final trailer for the film.
To be honest, if you have seen that trailer, you have seen Fallen Kingdom as there are no real surprises left to be had.
At one point, Claire asks Owen (Chris Pratt), "Do you remember the first time you saw a dinosaur?"
For many of us, our idea of what a dinosaur is and looks like was from Jurassic Park and the incredible animatronics.
Sadly, the majority of the dinosaurs in this film are now CGI and they do lose some of that sense of wonder knowing they were created in a computer rather than a lab. Which is a huge shame given how well the effects from the original film still hold up.
The over-reliance on CGI dinosaurs and the 12A rating mean that Bayona's attempts to create a stalk n slash style horror mood in the third act lose some of their power and the end result is as toothless and neutered as a hand-reared velociraptor.

Mild spoilers coming after the scary dinosaur...

Please can we call time on the T-Rex suddenly appearing in shot to eat something/someone? Yes it is a shock for the audience but are we really expected to still believe that the dinosaur or character does not see or hear it coming?!

End of spoilers. Here is a happy dinosaur!

Anyway, the kid at the beginning of the first Jurassic Park said it best, "that's not scary, looks more like a six foot turkey". That's what Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom is, a giant turkey that is about to go extinct.

2 stars (would have been 1 star but for the Brachiosaurus shot)

Road to Infinity War - Phase 3 - Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)

Controversial opinion it may be but you know what? I'll just come out and say it.
Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 is better than Guardians Of The Galaxy.
While it might not have the shock and surprise factor of the original (in that "Wow, this is actually really good"), Vol. 2 is a much richer, deeper, more emotional film that's true focus is not some scheme to wipe out all life in the universe (well it slightly is).
The film begins the most enjoyable title sequence of any Marvel movie as Baby Groot dances to ELO's Mr Blue Sky and the Guardians battle a giant space monster behind him. Actually come to think about, it, is it the only Marvel title sequence? They don't usually have any credits until the end of the film do they?
Anyway, the fight to protect some Anthrax batteries for the Sovereign race is merely a Macguffin to lead to the real story. Similar to an episode of Family Guy where the first ten minutes of the episode are just set up for another story.
And that story is, as Vin Diesel mentions every ten minutes or so in all of the Fast & Furious movies, "Family".
It is about the relationships between a father and a son, a surrogate father and a son and between two "sisters".
Following on from the events of Vol. 1 where Star Lord Peter Quill discovered that his father was not of Earth, his father Ego The Living Planet comes looking for his son after hearing of a human who "held an infinity stone in his hand and didn't die".
The face of the Living Planet takes the form of the "rugged good looks" of Kurt Russell which harks back to the Eighties as he was one of the decades most iconic heroes in the likes of The Thing, Escape From New York and Big Trouble In Little China and he brings all of that swagger and charisma to the role and is a perfect fit for Peter's father.
Having found him, Ego wants to show Peter his true potential as part-Celestial being. He takes Peter, Gamora and Drax off to his planet, leaving Rocket to repair their ship and babysit Groot and Nebula. But he'll have problems of his own when the Ravagers return with Yondu looking for payback.
Vol. 2 plays out a bit like a Greatest Hits mix tape compiled by Peter's Mom.
On the A side, if you liked the 80s references from the first film, don't worry there are plenty more here. Enjoy the surprise MVP of Vol. 1 Drax the Destroyer? He gets more time to shine and develop in this one. And once again, Gunn has picked the perfect song list to go with the story. Who doesn't spend the next two days after seeing this singing Brandy?
Flip the tape over to the B side however and as expressed earlier, the film is a very deep, emotional family tale.
Gamora and Nebula attempt to work through their issues by doing what any sisters would do. Try to kill each other of course! This manifests in an unexpected but wonderful North by Northwest homage that leads into a proper scrap with some excellent work from Karen Gillan, relishing the increased screen time.
Of course, the main plot is Chris Pratt working through his daddy issues. Early on he tells Gamora he wished he could have played catch with his dad and told the kids at school his real father was David Hasselhoff and both of these references come back later on in surprising ways. When Ego's ultimate plan for Peter is unveiled, it is up to Yondu to float in Mary Poppins style to help save the day.
If Batista was Vol. 1's MVP, then Michael Rooker is certainly the MVP of Vol. 2. He has worked with James Gunn on a number of projects but he delivers his finest work with this performance.
I was not expecting the climax of the film to have the emotional sucker punch that it did.
*Spoilers ahead*
From the moment Yondu sacrifices himself to save Peter with the line "He may of been your father boy, but he wasn't your daddy", to Peter's realisation that he has lost two father figures, to the Ravager funeral...

The new line up of the Guardians confirmed at the end of the film, adding Mantis and a now surly, teenage Groot, there is nothing but excitement to see how they interact with "Earth's mightiest heroes" as all the different plot threads come together for Infinity War.

Infinity Stone counter = 5

Road to Infinity War - Phase 2 - Guardians Of The Galaxy (2014)

Let's admit it. This shouldn't have worked. A cosmic comedy adventure featuring D-list Marvel characters that included a talking raccoon and a walking tree that could only say three words?
And at a time when D.C. were struggling to put together a Batman vs Superman movie.
But Marvel Studios once again proved why they are the best in the business and knocked it out of the park with Guardians Of The Galaxy. Created a smash hit movie franchise. Turned Chris Pratt into a A-List superstar and got a compilation soundtrack to become one of the biggest selling albums of the year and nominated for a Grammy!
It might have seemed like a risk but GotG was actually an essential building block in the MCU as it was the first film to directly deal with the Infinity Stones which Thanos will ultimately look to finally add to his gauntlet after 6 years of sitting on his arse!
We get the Power Stone in the Orb as the "Ark of the Covenant, Maltese Falcon kinda vibe" MacGuffin for the movie and Benicio Del Toro's Collector to provide the back story to the gems.
The central plot is so-so, with the group moving from one planet to the next to retrieve the orb and stop the bland, generic bad guy's evil schemes which result in Phase 2's standard Act 3 of having very large things falling from the sky into over-populated urban areas (Helicarriers in Winter Soldier, Dark Elven ships in Thor The Dark World, Sokovia in Ultron).
What makes the film works in spite of any flaws is the casting, chemistry and "banter" of the Guardians.
Pratt *IS* Peter Quill from the moment he starts dancing around to Come And Get And Your Love in a giant space cave. It tells you everything you need to know about the character without him having to say a word but when he does he is hilarious. Confusing the likes of Gamora and Drax with his Eighties references to mighty heroes such as Kevin Bacon for example.
Despite initial misgivings over the casting of Bradley Cooper, he does an excellent job as Rocket Raccoon and Diesel (who has previous form as The Iron Giant) manages to do so much with just three words. Who knew there were so many different ways you could say "I am Groot"?
The biggest revelation here however was Dave Bautista as Drax the Destroyer. Best known for being from WWE, this was his first real film role and while there were the usual questions over whether he would be a Hulk Hogan or a Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, he actually steals the entire film with his remarkable comic timing.
Overall, there is a looseness and sense of fun and wonder about the film that simultaneously expands the MCU into the wider cosmic universe but also keeps it grounded and real thanks to the soundtrack that features well known (and soon to be well known) songs from the Seventies and Eighties, all of which are perfectly used.
Finally, on this rewatch, despite pouring over every frame, sadly no closer to discovering James Gunn's final hidden Easter Egg. Next time A'Holes!

Infinity Stone counter = 4 (Power Stone, Reality Stone, Space Stone, Mind Stone)

Millarworld: The Proving Ground for Superheroes

With Spider-Man recently finding his way back home to the MCU (well joint custody at least between Marvel Studios and Sony), talk has turned to who will play Spider-Man in the upcoming film Captain America: Civil War in which the character has a pivotal moment in the comic written by Mark Millar.

One of the names mentioned has been Taron Egerton who recently starred in Kingsman: The Secret Service, directed by Matthew Vaughn which is also based on a comic book series by Mark Millar.

If they do go with the character of Peter Parker for the latest reboot of Everyone's favourite neighbourhood Spider-Man (rather than Miles Morales) then Egerton stands a very good chance of landing the role.

It's not just because he is British. Lots of America's top superheroes have been played by Brits (Batman = Christian Bale, Spider-Man = Andrew Garfield, Superman = Henry Cavill).

It is actually due to an interesting trivia fact that proves that Mark Millar comic book adaptations are the proving ground for future Marvel and D.C. Heroes.

Example 1) Wanted (2008)

Millar's first comic to be adapted for the big screen was Wanted which starred James McAvoy in the lead role of Wesley.
McAvoy would go on to play Professor Charles Xavier in X Men: First Class and X Men: Days Of Future Past.

What people might not remember is that Chris Pratt aka Star Lord in Guardians Of The Galaxy played Wesley's friend in the film...

Which led to this incredible moment where Professor X knocked out Peter Quill with a keyboard!

Example 2) Kick-Ass (2010)

The first Kick-Ass film was directed by Matthew Vaughn (who would also go on to direct McAvoy in X Men: First Class) and starred Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Dave Liewiski and Evan Peters as his friend Todd.

In a very strange coincidence, both actors would later be cast as the same comic book character.
Evan Peters would play Pietr Maximoff aka Quicksilver in X Men: Days Of Future Past and Aaron Taylor-Johnson would play Quicksilver aka Pietr Maximoff in the upcoming Avengers: Age Of Ultron.

Taron Egerton should keep his webbed fingers crossed because starring in a Mark Millar based comic book adaptation directed by Matthew Vaughn can lead to great things as a quick look through his back catalogue further exemplifies.

Vaughn's 2007 film Stardust starred then unknowns Charlie Cox and Henry Cavill...

Who would go on to play Daredevil and the Man Of Steel himself Superman.

And let's not even get into Vaughn's directorial debut Layer Cake which featured Tom Hardy aka Bane in a small role but is even more bizarre for featuring a scene where James Bond steals Q's girlfriend!

If comic book movies operated in the same terms as Scottish Football, Marvel and D.C. would be due Millar and Vaughn several large Bosman-style payouts for scooping up the young talent nurtured by them on previous projects.

It would be fair to say that based on the evidence they have that adamantium touch when it comes to spotting superhero potential.

Review Of The Year

As 2014 comes to a end, I wanted to look back over a great year of cinema with a few personal highlights beyond my own Top Ten Films Of The Year (which you can read here).

Actor Of The Year - Chris Pratt

2014 was the year that Chris Pratt became a man... a leading man to be exact.
Alongside scene-stealing turns in the likes of Delivery Man and Her, he proved he could carry a movie with a great vocal performance as Emmett in The LEGO Movie and dancing onto the big screen as a fully formed action hero as Peter Quill aka "Star Lord" in the best superhero movie of the year Guardians Of The Galaxy.
It's no wonder he is in such high demand, with his name being attached to every franchise going and 2015 should be just as big with a role in Jurassic World.

Actress Of The Year - Scarlett Johansson

It has been a very good year for Scarlett Johansson, who at one point could have been in half of my top ten films of 2014, with career best performances in Her, and Under The Skin, a cameo in Chef alongside leading the push for a solo female superhero movie with Captain America: The Winter Soldier and beating The Rock to the top of the box office with Lucy.

Best Male Performance - Tom Hardy in Locke & Jake Gyllenhaal in Nightcrawler

Ultimately I couldn't pick between these two as they are both terrific and for different reasons.
Tom Hardy does an incredible job of carrying an entire movie which consists of him talking on a phone while driving a car. He provides just enough backstory throughout his conversations to create a fully realised character and earns bonus points for his spot on Welsh accent and concrete has never sounded so interesting.
Jake Gyllenhaal's Lou Bloom is a cross between Patrick Bateman and Travis Bickle who does whatever it takes to achieve his warped perception of the American Dream. Many critics focused on his weight loss and gaunt appearance but it is much more than that as he disappears into the character to create a wolf in sheep's clothing that can flash that killer smile.

Best Female Performance - Essie Davis (The Babadook)

Scarlett Johansson might have received the MVP Award for 2014 but the single best female performance of 2014 was Essie Davis's incredible turn in Australian horror film The Babadook.
Playing a woman trying to cope with the grief and sense of loss following her husband's death whilst trying to take care of her son who begins to act out when he discovers a mysterious pop-up book, which may or may not have summoned an evil spirit, Davis superbly executes a fine balancing act between fragile mother and deranged lunatic that evokes memories of Belen Rueda in The Orphanage and Jack Nicholson in The Shining.

Poster Of The Year - Under The Skin

Best Fight Scene - The kitchen fight in The Raid 2

Quite frankly if I had done a top ten fight scenes of 2014, the majority of the entries would have been from The Raid 2, but the cream of the crop was the kitchen fight between Rama and The Assassin which was six minutes and thirty seven seconds of the most amazing and brutal choreography that caused me to break out into a round of applause in the cinema screen and cemented Gareth Evans as the greatest action director of his generation.

Best Horror Film - The Babadook

It wasn't a great year for horror with a lot of duds like Devil's Due, Annabelle, etc however there were two welcome exceptions.
Oculus was very good but taking the top spot was The Babadook.
What really makes the film stand out from other horrors this year is the story and characters are as three dimensional as the pop up book which proves the catalyst for this terrifying tale.
So take my advice. Just take one look. You'll be thrilled and wowed by The Babadook

Best Song - Everything Is Awesome

Honourable Mention - Please Mr. Kennedy

The catchiest ear worm of a song in 2014 could be nothing other than Everything Is Awesome from The LEGO Movie because it is simply... awesome.

Please Mr. Kennedy from Inside Llewyn Davis must get a mention as not only a great song but for now having the ironical standpoint that two of the three people who were singing about not getting sent into outer space are now starring in Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens!

Best Score - Under The Skin by Mica Levi

Unsettling, otherworldly, haunting, creepy, beautiful and utterly unique.
An integral part of the film that elevates it to one of the most interesting cinematic experiences of the year.

Soundtrack Of The Year - Guardians Of The Galaxy

The best soundtrack of the year is one made up entirely of songs from the seventies and eighties.
From Redbone's Come And Get Your Love to Hooked On A Feeling, it is full of classics that are given a new twist and spin thanks to their use in the film.
Also it gave us one of the year's best moments with baby Groot dancing to the Jackson 5.

The Best Film You Didn't See - Snowpiercer & The Guest

People are probably sick of me banging on about how great Snowpiercer is and you only could have seen it if you happened to be at the Edinburgh Film Festival or imported the DVD from America or France.

Instead I've picked the best film that most people missed at the cinema this year and it is The Guest.
Featuring a terrific performance from Dan Stevens, it is so much more than the trailer suggested, taking some deliciously dark and twisted turns along the way and delivering a house guest that won't outstay its welcome on DVD.

Worst Film Of The Year

Tough decision as I have seen over 200 films this year and 37 of them received 1 star ratings.

Non-Film Event Of The Year - Hans Zimmer Revealed & Empire Magazine Podcast Live In Edinburgh

Easily the best love concert I have ever attended, one of my all-time favourite composers Hans Zimmer played over two hours of his greatest tracks with a live orchestra and choir.
Every song and theme was fantastic but highlights included Man Of Steel, a Pirates Of The Caribbean medley, The Dark Knight and The Thin Red Line which produced the odd tear down my face.
Hans down one of the best night's of my life.

In June as part of the Edinburgh Film Festival, Empire magazine hosted a live podcast recording and I made sure to attend (despite being hospitalised mere days earlier with kidney stones).
It was a very entertaining couple of hours as Chris, Helen, Phil and Ali provided the usual levels of film criticism, gags and spot prizes along with a great interview with Elijah Wood who got incredibly excited when he spotted a bottle of Irn Bru I had given the team as a welcome to Scotland present.

Favourite Cinema Marketing Campaign - The Grand Budapest Hotel

My personal favourite campaign that we did at the cinema this year was turning the foyer into The Grand Budapest Hotel for the film's opening weekend, complete with our own concierge Dallas K. and a Grand Budapest Hotel version of Guess Who.

Guardians Of The Galaxy - review

Ten films in and approaching the end of Phase 2, Marvel Studios are showing no signs of fatigue or the inevitable bursting of the comic book bubble because Guardians Of The Galaxy might be one of their very best films, perhaps for the very reason that it doesn't feel like a Marvel film.

In fact beyond the appearances of previously established characters Thanos and The Collector, and the obligatory Stan Lee cameo, there is nothing to link it to the Marvel Universe and refreshingly director James Gunn is left to create his own universe, albeit one that will eventually tie into the bigger picture come Phase 3 once Thanos gets his hand into that pesky Infinity Gauntlet.

It is strange not to see any involvement from Joss Whedon in this particular slice of Marvel as it is the one that is most similar to his previous work.

This feels like Marvel's very own Serenity/Firefly with a rag-tag group of misfits flying round the galaxy occasionally saving the world but mostly arguing with each other and getting into trouble.

With Whedon busy on Avenger detail, he probably hand a hand in bringing in James Gunn who has similar traits (writer-director, comfortable working with ensembles, has strong relationships with actors and uses them regularly e.g. Michael Rooker, Gregg Henry and Whedon's lucky charm Nathan Fillion all make appearances here).

Gunn very quickly and effectively sets up Peter Quill's backstory in a moving segment where he loses his mother to cancer before being transported off Earth in a spaceship a la Flight Of The Navigator, before bringing together this thief, two thugs, an assassin and a maniac through the MacGuffin of a mysterious Orb which Quill himself calls "An Ark Of The Covenant, Maltese Falcon kind of deal".

Yes, this movie features more 80's pop culture references than Marvel Universe references which leads to some inspired gags and hilarious moments including one that I will not spoil beyond the fact it revolves around the plot to a particular film from 1984.

It is certainly the funniest Marvel film with Chris Pratt channeling the perfect amount of Noughties funny man and Eighties Harrison Ford action star, Cooper and Diesel providing terrific vocal performances that generate a lot of laughs and Bautista showing some great comic timing to steal some scenes.
If Guardians falters slightly it is in the Marvel trend of CGI-heavy, world threatening third act battle led by an underdeveloped main bad guy.

Really, apart from Loki in Thor and Avengers and to a certain extent The Mandarin in Iron Man 3, the villains have not really generated the level of evil and danger that say The Joker provided in The Dark Knight.

Having said that the climax is a vast improvement on the space battles that featured in the Star Wars prequels and being our introduction to the Guardians simply our first step into a larger world and there is no doubt that now this particular Marvel universe is established that the recently announced Guardians Of The Galaxy 2 will follow in the footsteps of X2, Spider-Man 2 and Captain America: The Winter Soldier as a superior sequel.

How good is Guardians Of The Galaxy? It can be expressed in just three words. I Am Groot... Rocket knows what it means!

4 stars

P.S. Still amazed at the number of people who leave before the end of the credits. Come on guys, this is Marvel movie. There have been nine others so far, all with a scene at the end! So stay in your seats for a VERY unexpected cameo!

LEGO Movie - review

"Everything is awesome" booms the only song played in Bricksburg 24 hours hours a day and you know what? It is absolutely true.

Everything about The LEGO Movie is awesome and it is easily the most inventive and consistently funny and entertaining film of the year.

With a plot that is very similar to The Matrix, Emmet is a construction worker who lives in Bricksburg and does everything according to the instructions in order to conform and fit in as best he can. One day at work he follows a girl dressed in black, tumbles down a hole and finds a strange object called The Piece of Resistance. Introduced to a sage-like black man called Vetruvius who shows him the true world of Legoland beyond the city limits, he is hailed as "The One"... I mean "The Special" who can fulfil the prophecy and stop Lord Business from unleashing The Kragle from ending the universe as they know it.

Phil Lord and Christopher Miller are now three for three as directors of movies which sound like a potential disaster but turn out to be unexpected delights:

Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs - an animation about a device that turns weather into food.

21 Jump Street - an action comedy based on an 80's teen cop series.

And The LEGO Movie, a feature-length movie based on a kids toy. As Transformers has proved, it doesn't always work.

There are so many amazing and hilarious cameos and surprises in store that it would do a disservice to reveal them in the review but it is safe to say that Superman vs Batman and Ben Affleck have some way to go to beat this for a Justice League movie and best Batman since Nolan's.

An exciting blend of stop motion animation mixed with CGI, the level of detail is simply astonishing with thrilling action sequences and a multitude of background sight gags that will keep revealing more and more with multiple viewings.

This film is one of the greatest films ever assembled and suitable for ages 8-99 (that's just a suggestion) and anyone who has ever played with the sophisticated interlocking brick system, whether you went exactly by the instructions or let your imagination run wild just as Lord and Miller have here.

The only thing missing is a joke where a construction worker gets mad when another guy puts the final piece on a building he has constructed.

5 stars