2015 Summer Movie Season Awards by Matt Harrison

The summer movie season has come to an end. I think it's fair to say that with the exception of a handful of real gems, the 2015 summer movie season was a bit of a let down. However, like last year I'd thought I'd do this to look back over and reflect on the last 4 months of cinematic entertainment.


If you'd like to see the post I made for last year's summer movie season, follow this link: http://movieswithmattharrison.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/2014-summer-movie-season-awards-by-matt.html


A small disclaimer before we begin, I didn't see every single movie to come out this summer. However, I did see all of the big releases. If there was one film I regret not seeing it would be The Gift, the Joel Edgerton directed thriller which unfortunately I have not seen as of right now. I hope to see it soon. Enough delay, on with the "awards"...



Best Hero - Furiosa (Mad Max: Fury Road)

In a year of multiple superhero ensemble films, it was the badass female leads which really stood out. Charlize Theron's Furiosa was the best character in Mad Max: Fury Road, consistently overshadowing the titular character played by Tom Hardy. Furiosa is the epitome of a strong female in an action film, and was equally interesting as a human character who just wants to find her way back home. Rebecca Ferguson's Ilsa Faust of Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation would have been another worthy recipient, but she just missed out to one of the best characters put to screen in any 2015 film so far. Honourable mentions include both Vision and Ant Man.



Best Villain - Ultron (Avengers: Age of Ultron)

Villains have been slightly problematic during 2015 summer movies, with the exception of Ultron. Bursting with a unique, sarcastic personality, armed with a wicked sense of humour and being physically intimidating, Ultron made a great adversary for Earth's mightiest heroes. James Spader's motion capture and vocal performances were the driving forces in creating this iconic Marvel villain, who was also the villain this summer who had his motivations and intentions clearly given to us audience members. He's a brilliantly crafted villain who's fun to watch.



Best Action Scene - Mad Max: Fury Road (yep the whole thing)

Above is just a small peek into the crazed insanity known as Mad Max: Fury Road, a modern day action classic. It is one the craziest movies I've ever seen which immediately pulls no punches by instantly immersing you into this post apocalyptic wasteland where everyone is losing their minds. The action sequences are helmed gorgeously by George Miller who uses minimal cuts and beautiful wide tracking shots to show us the incredible practical effects and convincing stunt work done by dedicated professionals. The whole film is one giant chase scene, and all the action plays out like it does in the clip above. Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation had one of the best bike chase scenes I've ever witnessed, but it doesn't quite edge out this.



Best Comic Book Movie - Avengers: Age of Ultron

I enjoyed Ant Man for what it was, but Age of Ultron is the comic book movie I keep on wanting to revisit over and over again. As said previously, Ultron is the perfect villain for the Avenger's second outing and really challenged the team both physically and psychologically. Its a movie bursting with personality and a great sense of humour, Joss Whedon's staple. Every actor comes to play in this film and every character has a decent arc, even if one or two feel a little tacked on.  The action and visual effects are typically great, and The Vision is an awesome badass who I love... probably too much!



Best Music - Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation

This movie deserved some love, it couldn't go unrewarded considering how good it was for modern day action films. The musical score to this film is fantastic, my personal favourite of the summer, which pumped you up and got you in the moment. To be honest, the great music is only like the 6th or 7th best thing about Rogue Nation, but it's still pretty badass.



Best Animation - Inside Out

No competition what so ever. Inside Out was the best animated film of the summer, and the best to come out in many years.



Biggest Surprise - Straight Outta Compton

Out of all the films I saw this summer, I did not expect Straight Outta Compton to be the biggest surprise of the season. It's a fascinating biopic about young rap artist's rise to fame, their enormous influence within the music industry as well as the conflict which caused the group NWA to divide and go their separate ways. The performances for the characters Dr Dre, Eazy-E and Ice Cube were all really good, as was Paul Giamatti in a supporting role which I don't think is getting enough praise.



Biggest Disappointment - Jurassic World

It's not a popular opinion, but I seriously dislike Jurassic World. While I really enjoy the first film and appreciate its contribution to cinema, it's not one of my all time favourites. I didn't go into Jurassic World and hate on it because I was comparing it to the original, I hated on it because on a basic level it completely sucks. Generic child characters, mediocre acting, a tonally unbalanced screenplay void of logic and common sense and a "military" subplot forcefully trying to be relevant were the major problems I had with it. In a lot of parts, it was simply unentertaining. The CGI wasn't even as good as it was in its 1993 predecessor! Not even Chris Pratt could save this abomination.



Best Trailer - Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice Comic Con Trailer

It's my most anticipated film of next year, and I really enjoyed this trailer. Please check it out if you haven't done so already.



Most Anticipated Fall Movie - Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens

It's a new Star Wars movie, do I really need to tell you why I'm excited to see this? Come on.



Worst Movie - Fantastic Four

When a director publically apologises for a movie which is set to be released in a mere matter of days, your movie is going to suck. Inevitably, Fant4stic sucked and it sucked hard. I'm honestly baffled at how in 2015 we're still getting superhero movies as bad as Batman & Robin. The actors had no chemistry, the characters had no personality, it's boring as all hell, Doctor Doom is completely butchered and looks worse than a Power Rangers villain plus his motivations don't make any sense. The editing is all over the place, there's no joy or fun to be had and it's a movie where absolutely nothing happens. It feels like a set up to another film... big mistake Fox. Big mistake.



Best Movie - Inside Out

It's my favourite movie of 2015 so far, not just the summer. The animation is typically bright, vivid and gorgeous, but this film has such a relatable and impactful emotional core that it made me cry on both occasions I saw it. The characters are all really funny and entertaining to watch, Lewis Black's Anger being my personal favourite. It's not just emotionally investing, it's also incredibly smart and immersive as a result. It's a kid's movie that I think adults and teens will relate to a lot more. It's such a magnificent film which you should seek out immediately.



It has been a bit of a disappointing summer overall, but the films that were good were all really good. Here's hoping the next 4 months of movies deliver us some breathtaking entertainment. After all it is Oscar season, so the movies have got to start getting better, right?

Thanks for reading,
Matt

Southpaw Movie Review

Southpaw is directed by Antoine Fuqua and stars one of my favourite actors Jake Gyllenhaal as Billy Hope, a successful and undefeated boxer who's life, after a tragedy befalls him, begins to fall apart. It's then up to Billy to rebuild his broken life and find redemption in the boxing ring. On a surface level, Southpaw is a very cliché boxing movie with all of the tropes you would expect to find within this sub genre of film. However, it knowingly embraces it's clichés and is an overall entertaining film to watch, if not a tough one to get through.

The direction of Antoine Fuqua and the screenplay from Kurt Sutter combine to create a film with an obvious tone of depression and hopelessness. Just as you think it can't get any worse for Billy, it does. As a result, it feels as if the movie is constantly beating you over the head with these terrible things which keep on happening to this character who you do feel a genuine connection to. It's not a film for casual audience members and at times is difficult to get through.

I also felt that there were a few scenes in the film which had almost identical functions, making the final edit feel slightly repetitive at times. For example, there are more than a few more scenes dedicated to him visiting his daughter in social care which all shared the same function of showing Billy's daughter starting to hate her father. Had a few of the scenes been trimmed off, the depressing tone's impact on the pacing would've been lessened and I would've enjoyed it even more.

However, this film would have completely fallen to pieces if it weren't for a lead performance by Jake Gyllenhaal which is so committed that it deserves recognition from the Academy. He physically transforms his body and immerses himself in this role to the point where you stop seeing Jake Gyllenhaal, and you only see Billy Hope. He does excellent work portraying a character who loses everything in his life that's precious to him before he has to pick himself up and find a way out of the sh*tty hole life has dug for him.

The supporting cast really comes together as an ensemble in this film and includes some knock-out performances. The first of which is a brilliantly natural performance from Forest Whitaker, a character who becomes Hope's new trainer. The 2 actors had really good on-screen chemistry and as characters were really well fleshed out to the point where you feel attached emotionally to both of them. I really liked the purpose Forest Whitaker's character had in this film; to give Hope a new perspective on boxing and teach him various new dimensions to his game.

50 Cent was also surprisingly good, but the standout performance was by far Oona Laurence, the young girl who plays Hope's daughter. She is magnificent and completely natural in a child performance which surpassed all of my personal expectations. She plays this character so well and really encapsulates the emotional confusion a child like her would have if they'd seen their father deteriorate so badly before their eyes.

And this movie on a technical level when it came to the boxing sequences was undeniably impressive. The way Antoine Fuqua helmed these scenes was filled with action and adrenaline, which really increased the levels of tension and intensity of these scenes which made them very enjoyable. He directed these scenes using both wide, tracking shots which gave us the perspective of a television viewer and hand-held POV shots of the boxer, where the camera would duck and weave, really putting you as an audience member in the boxer's shoes. He created some wholesome boxing scenes which saw you switch perspectives from both inside and outside of the ring.

It made for some very immersive scenes, which were made even better by the use of focus, the way the scenes were lit, the stylistic yet impactful use of slow motion as well as realistic sound design which made you feel the raw pain when punches were flown. If I have one gripe about the technical side of how these scenes were created, it would be with the sound mixing. Mainly, the use of commentators which constantly narrated the action with exposition we already knew. I understand what Fuqua was trying to accomplish and this is only a small gripe concerning boxing scenes which I thought were helmed excellently.

Despite the fact it is depressing as all hell and at times this specific tone drags out the movie's pacing, Southpaw is still a film I had a good time watching and enjoying. The boxing scenes are filmed gorgeously putting you into the moment and all of the performances range from really good to absolutely astonishing. Know what you're getting into with Southpaw, know you're in for a tough ride before you go in. Then, you'll be able to enjoy the film for it's technical prowess and high-calibre acting performances:


Rating - B-


Also, don't watch any trailers, especially if you don't want Billy Hope's tragic life event spoiled. I didn't know what it was going into the movie blind, which made the experience all the more enjoyable.


Thanks for reading,
Matt

Captain America: Civil War Teams Revealed!!

Captain America: Civil War is set to change the landscape of the Marvel Cinematic Universe like no film has done before it. Taking place after the events of Age of Ultron, Captain America will lead the new Avengers in their continued efforts to safeguard humanity. However, after a government system of superhero-accountability is introduced, an ideological split will divide the team. Now, thanks to the very generous Jeremy Renner, we know exactly which superheroes will be going up against each other in May 2016.

The 2 concept art photos released seemed to confirm who will be on Team Cap and who will be on Team Stark. And unsurprisingly, there were a few surprises we did not predict. This is also a SPOILER WARNING for Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Avengers: Age of Ultron and Ant-Man, so proceed at your own risk.




Team Cap/Anti Registration/Secret Avengers

Captain America

The symbol of liberty and justice, Steve Rogers will lead the effort against superhero registration with his trusted allies. Having seen first hand the dark side of attempted control before and after being frozen in ice (Nazi Germany and SHIELD's Project Insight) and naturally distrusting Tony Stark after the Sokovia incident, this was already a no-brainer.


Falcon

He's Cap's modern day best friend, anywhere Cap goes Falcon follows. Both sharing a mutual respect with each other and allying against HYDRA in The Winter Soldier, this was another no-brainer. The post credits scene in Ant Man 100% confirmed Falcon's Civil War allegiance, showing him helping Cap complete his "missing person's case".


The Winter Soldier

We know the role of Bucky Barnes in this film is going to be considerably large. Now that Bucky is confirmed to be siding with Cap, this proves to us that in the first part of the film at least we will see Bucky fully regain his memory. The directors and screenwriters had a multiple of possibilities when it came to integrating Bucky into this story, and I am eager to see just what route they have decided to take. Like Falcon, this was never really up for debate.


Agent 13

Agent 13 or Sharon Carter, related to Cap's first love and SHIELD founder Peggy Carter, had a relatively minor role in The Winter Soldier. Confirmation that she is siding with Team Cap suggests her role will be much more significant in this film, also opening up the possibility to develop a romantic relationship with Rogers. Even if she wasn't going to be a major player in Civil War, her alliance with Steve was never going to be questioned. Let's see what Emily Vancamp can do with more screen time.


Hawkeye

This decision makes a lot of sense to me. His entire character arc in Age of Ultron centred around him leaving his duties as an Avenger to live a quiet life with his family. The possibility of a registration act threatens the secrecy of his family, and Hawkeye will not be happy with this at all and will side with his old buddy Cap.


Ant Man

Both the post credits scene of his solo film and written descriptions of the non-leaked D23 trailer confirmed that Captain America fanboy Scott Lang will side with Cap during the conflict, along with helping him release Bucky from the vice he is trapped in. Also, Ant Man constantly hinted at a rift of distrust between Lang's mentor Hank Pym and the Stark family name. I don't think Pym would advise Lang to side with Stark, causing him to team up with the First Avenger.




Team Stark/Pro Registration/Government Avengers

Iron Man

Another utter no-brainer. We've seen in multiple films that despite all of his flaws, Stark will do anything he can to safeguard humanity. Case in point; Ultron. That scenario didn't turn out very well causing incredible collateral damage around the world. After these events, Stark will ultimately side with the government, believing that registration of superheroes is the best way forward due to his own personal guilt and fear, both of which were hinted at in Age of Ultron.


War Machine

Tony Stark's best friend, much like the relationship between Cap and Falcon, Rhodey will follow Stark wherever he goes. Besides, War Machine is already government registered, so his allegiance was never in question.


Black Widow

This is by far the biggest surprise. It was pretty much confirmed during the D23 trailer whereby both her and Hawkeye are fighting each other. I find this divide between these 2 characters fascinating. Both come from similar backgrounds yet both are polar opposites ideologically when it comes to government registration and accountability. I can't quite work out what Black Widow's exact motivations are right now. She and Steve made a great team and are both now co leaders of the New Avengers. The conflict arising between her and Steve will be just as interesting as the conflict between her and Clint, in my humble opinion.


Black Panther

This is another surprise considering how everyone was thinking Black Panther would remain neutral in the conflict. Because he is a new character being introduced in this movie, I still think he will have a really important story arc which will follow up from the events of Age of Ultron. Due to the heavy association characters like Ultron and Vision have with Vibranium (his nation's most precious commodity) Black Panther naturally flows his way into this story. Everything he does is for the good of his people, and if government registration of superheroes can keep superheroes in check, he'll probably be all for it and side with Stark.


Vision

Team Cap beware, The Vision is siding with Stark. The infinity stone wielding android is by far the most powerful Avenger we've seen to date and Stark is lucky to have him on his side. As said in Age of Ultron, he is on the "side of life". He accepts that humans are doomed, yet says they're gracious in their failure. He may believe that without government intervention, another Ultron situation could arise threatening humanity again on a similar level. What will be interesting is to see how they flesh out the relationship between him and Scarlet Witch, who's allegiance is still unconfirmed.




Other characters yet to be confirmed

Scarlet Witch

After watching Age of Ultron on multiple occasions, I believe I know what team Scarlet Witch will most likely find herself on should she commit to a cause. Having been on the wrong end of Stark injustice on multiple occasions throughout her life (including the death of her parents during Sokovian bombings and the death of her twin brother Quicksilver at the hands of Ultron, who Stark created) it would make sense that she will be on Team Cap. Her relationship with Vision may turn her the other way, but I think the 2 potential lovers will end up on opposing sides ideologically should she choose a team to join.

Spiderman

Along with Black Panther, Spiderman is also set to make his MCU debut in Civil War. Because we haven't seen his character and because we've had no confirmation, it's hard to predict what side of the argument he will be on. What is clear is that 15 year old Peter Parker is the new superhero on the block, and I think Tony Stark will try and take him under his wing and use him against Cap. Therefore, I predict he will join Team Stark.


Nick Fury - we don't know if he'll be appearing.

Maria Hill - she probably will make an appearance, and could side either way.

Hulk - Ruffalo has hinted at an appearance in the film which he may make. If he does, he'll most likely side with Stark.


It is also clear that Martin Freeman's mysterious unconfirmed character is working with the government alongside General Thunderbolt Ross, meaning that they will both side with Team Stark. It's also important to note that both Frank Grillo's Crossbones and Daniel Bruhl's Baron Helmut Zemo (the new nefarious HYDRA villain who will rise during the conflict) will also be major players in a film which has a ridiculously huge ensemble cast.

However, if the Russo's take some hints off of Joss Whedon, they will be able to juggle screen time between all of these characters allowing us to see all of their motivations for which side they choose to join. Despite the fact this is a Captain America movie, we'll most likely see a balanced argument on both sides. Now all we have to do is wait, and a trailer in the meantime would be very nice indeed.


Thanks for reading,
Matt

Straight Outta Compton Movie Review

Directed by F. Gary Gray, Straight Outta Compton is a biopic telling the story of the formation of gangsta rap, hip-hop group NWA. Focusing mainly on members Dr Dre, Ice Cube and Eazy-E, this biographical picture illustrates the challenges these people faced (including consistent police brutality which became their music's main motivation and influence), the enormous impact they had on not just the music scene but for popular culture in general as well as the various conflicts which divided them after they reached success, which ultimately led them to divide and separate. Straight Outta Compton achieves its goals as a biopic, delivering a consistently entertaining and engaging film which I thoroughly enjoyed.

At its core, Straight Outta Compton is really the story of how 3 guys from the exact same background went on to become successful and how they chose to walk down different paths. It's initially a story about raw passion for an art form (which in this case is gangsta rap) before developing into an examination of how money can dilute that passion. As a drama, Straight Outta Compton works, with one or two scenes being particularly powerful. This drama would never have been achieved if it weren't for the young actors cast in the 3 lead roles.

This is a movie where it is bound together by acting performances which, if they did not work, would have ruined the entire film. Thankfully, the young actors chosen to portray Dr Dre, Ice Cube and Eazy-E are all very talented young people who deliver inch perfect performances. The chances are if you're a fan of a rap artist, he was probably influenced or supported by Dr Dre. The movie illustrates perfectly at just how huge the influence of Dr Dre has been for the hip-hop industry. In this movie, Dre is the one who is mostly driven by the music and the music alone.

Both Ice Cube and Eazy-E walk down different paths to Dre once the group begins to split up, despite both coming from the same place and sharing Dre's initial standpoint when the group was emerging as a major success. Eazy-E's plotline revolves mainly around the financial side of things, which ultimately becomes the thing that divides the group. His storyline heavily involves their manager played by Paul Giamatti, who is seriously impressive in this film delivering a natural, nuanced performance. But for me, the actor who stood out the most was O'Shea Jackson Jr, the real life son of Ice Cube. He takes to the challenge of playing his Dad in a motion picture like a duck to water, delivering a performance that is refined right down to the tiniest mannerisms of the real life man.

The films is clearly divided into 2 halves; the first of which is the group's formation and rise to fame and the second being the varying paths they chose to walk after the group's dissolution. The film initially starts out strong by setting up all the characters, gets very strong as it focuses mainly on the raw passion and energy of the group before dwindling in the second half. While it finished strong, the pacing suffered for me in the second half as the financial aspect of everything came to the forefront. Also, I think Straight Outta Compton could've been more enjoyable for me personally had it been more honest about some of the real life events. It makes sense that both Dr Dre and Ice Cube as producers would want to leave things out for the sake of not tarnishing their reputation, a little more honesty would have been greatly appreciated by myself.

And I can't not talk about the movie's soundtrack, which is typically fantastic. During the concert and recording studio scenes does Straight Outta Compton feel its strongest and most alive. I'm not a massive fan of west coast rap, but this film made it so enjoyable to listen to for me. And like most people, I was sat there bobbing my head and tapping my feet as these scenes played out.

Overall, Straight Outta Compton is a good film as it works as a biographical picture. The performances are all fantastic across the board and F. Gary Gray's direction in the first half of the film keeps it consistently energetic and entertaining. While the pacing suffers as the second half of the film progresses and some real life events are blatantly missed out, it's still a film worth seeing in theatres for the experience. Fans of classic hip hop will enjoy the music, movie fans will enjoy the drama-geared direction and the impressive calibre of acting. I enjoyed the latter, and appreciate the former more now because of it:


Rating - B

Thanks for reading,
Matt

D23 Movie News Breakdown - Civil War, The Force Awakens and more!!

So D23 at Anaheim has come to a close and for us movie fans, we were treated to a few real treats and at least one frustration. Despite the fact that the Captain America: Civil War trailer did not leak, to the disappointment of people like myself, there are still plenty of movie news stories to breakdown.



Marvel

 

 

Yes I know the trailer did not leak, however a few kind people who author for various entertainment websites were thoughtful enough to post written descriptions of the scenes they saw within the trailer for Captain America: Civil War, the first film in Marvel's Phase 3 of their cinematic universe. While written descriptions are incomparable to actually seeing the footage first hand, the reports were detailed enough to give us a few minor pieces of info concerning Civil War.

The first of which was that Bucky or The Winter Soldier is going to have a massive role within the film. In the opening action sequence of the trailer, Cap is fighting Crossbones. If you are unaware, Crossbones is the new alter ego of one of Cap's adversaries in The Winter Soldier, Brock Rumlow, who now sports a menacing new look. After he is defeated, Rumlow is quick to drop a small hint to Cap that Bucky may just be regaining his memories.

And that's how we get to the Ant Man post credits scene, which was apparently shown again only this time a little bit longer with more dialogue from the film. It seems that the plot to Civil War will be that "the accords" (the superhero registration act) will be passed around the same time Cap conducts his search for his missing friend.

The trailer is also quick to highlight the growing rift between Tony Stark and Steve Rogers, both leading the charges on the opposite sides of the conflict. Stark even goes as far to say, "Sometimes I just want to punch you in your perfect teeth". What was also interesting to read was that at one point Black Widow and Hawkeye are at odds with each other. Considering both characters are from a similar "SHIELD agent" background it was interesting to read how both of them will be divided ideologically. With many heroes set to turn against each other, this one relationship will be one of the more interesting ones to see develop.

It's still unclear as to what the exact teams will be during the conflict simply because I don't know out of Hawkeye and Black Widow who is going to side with Rogers and who will side with Stark. However, my gut instinct is telling me that Widow will support Captain America's cause due to the written description of some of the movie's other scenes. I think the teams are as follows:


Team Captain America

Falcon

Winter Soldier

Black Widow

Scarlet Witch

Ant Man


Team Iron Man

War Machine

Hawkeye

Vision

Spider Man


Neutral forces/Villainous threats

Black Panther

Crossbones

Baron Zemo


Spiderman did not make an appearance during the trailer by the looks of things, but I'll tell you who did; Ant Man. In fact, the last scene is devoted solely to Scott Lang completely fanboying over Captain America and the other Avengers on Cap's team. The humorous tone from Ant Man is being carried over into Civil War with the Scott Lang character, which is a nice thing to hear simply because Paul Rudd utterly nailed the Marvel-style humour in his solo film.

Also, Marvel showed off the next film on their Phase 3 slate Doctor Strange, set for a November 2016 release. They showed off various pieces of concept art and visual effects tests plus also a pre-recorded message from Doctor Stephen Strange himself Benedict Cumberbatch, who apologised that he could not be there in person. However, what I took away from this was confirmation that Chiwetel Ejiofor and Tilda Swinton were confirmed to play both Baron Mordo and The Ancient One respectively. If one things for certain, they have an incredible cast of Oscar-calibre talent. And with Doctor Strange promised to be Marvel's version of an acid trip, I just keep on getting more and more excited to see the film.



Star Wars

With Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens coming to theatres in 4 months time, it was to be expected that D23 would deliver a lot of news concerning this new trilogy of films on top of the various anthology films that Disney and Lucasfilm have planned. Among this news was confirmation that director of Jurassic World Colin Trevorrow was confirmed to direct Episode 9, the movie responsible for concluding the stories which will be set up in The Force Awakens.

For those of you who haven't seen my Jurassic World review, you'll know that I seriously disliked the film. However, I'm not at all disheartened by the directorial choice for Episode 9 simply because Lucasfilm seem to know what the are doing when they hire people to make their movies (with the exception of Josh Trank).  If Trevorrow is a director who loves the original trilogy and was inspired by those 3 films growing up, I think we'll have another director determined to please the fans and get a Star Wars movie right. Therefore, I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. Just please don't return to the Jurassic Park franchise... just let it die.

Other Star Wars related news included the confirmation of the cast for Rogue One, the first Star Wars anthology film, directed by Gareth Edwards (Godzilla) set for a December 2016 release. The cast included Felicity Jones, Ben Mendelsohn, Forrest Whitaker and Mads Mikkleson. Boasting a diverse and talented cast, Rogue One is set to tell the story of a group of daring rebels who undertake a mission to steal the Death Star plans.



Pixar

Fresh off the critical and financial success of Inside Out, Pixar were also kind enough to unveil their slate of films for the remainder of the decade. The slate is as follows:


The Good Dinosaur

Finding Dory

Toy Story 4 (which is meant to be somewhat of a love story between Woody and Bo Peep)

Coco (directed by Lee Unkrich, the man behind Toy Story 3)

Cars 3

The Incredibles 2


Is a third Cars film really necessary? I don't know. But it is nice to know that we will finally be receiving a long-awaited sequel to The Incredibles, one of my personal favourite Pixar films.



Kingdom Hearts 3

 

 

 

Considering Kingdom Hearts is my favourite video game franchise of all time, I couldn't let this news slip by. The news from D23 was that one of the worlds set to appear in Kingdom Hearts 3 is going to be based off of the Disney film Big Hero 6. With the promise of a large, open world, a world-specific Keyblade with its own, unique Keyblade transformation and the possibility of having Baymax join your party, I am ecstatic that this world will be a playable one in Kingdom Hearts 3. Hell a trailer would have been nice... and a release date would have been even nicer... but there's always D23 in November.



Thanks for reading,
Matt

Pixels Movie Review

Pixels is directed by Chris Columbus and is the latest comedy movie in Adam Sandler's filmography. In 1982, NASA sent a probe up into space as a means of contacting potential forms of extra terrestrial life, and in this probe were various examples of retro, arcade video games such as Centipede, Pacman and Donkey Kong. The aliens who received this probe interpreted the message as a declaration of war, and send physical manifestations of these famous video game characters down to Earth to wipe out the human race. Typically, its up to our under-dog hero played by Adam Sandler to stand up against the odds and beat the aliens.

While it may market itself as an outlandish science-fiction film, Pixels is at its core a comedy. I believe you should always judge a comedy as to how much you laugh. Unfortunately, I hardly laughed at all. In between the "video game sequences", you're forced to watch a string of awkward and directionless scenes which were unconvincingly slapped together in the editing room. Pixels undoubtedly has an awesome premise, but it doesn't really have a plot. Movies are all about the execution and unfortunately this time the execution paled in comparison to a premise which deserved so much better.

For me, Pixels seemed cheap and lazy despite the goldmine the filmmakers had in front of them. It honestly felt like the script for this movie was taken by Adam Sandler and his production company only to be tainted with his humour which I personally don't understand. A lot of the jokes in Pixels felt like Adam Sandler and Kevin James in-jokes which no one else got, subsequently near enough all of them fell flat.

It's easy to target the blatant Sony product placement or the news footage complete with professional cuts and angle changes and call the film comedically one dimensional, but for me the single worst aspect of Pixels was the dialogue these characters were forced to spout. A lot of it is atrocious simply because it isn't organic. You listen to some of the sh*t people come out with in this flick and your jaw drops in sheer disbelief. At least mine did.

Adam Sandler didn't even look like he wanted to be there. Even if you as a actor don't find the dialogue you have to say at all funny, it's still your job to sell it. In this film Adam Sandler's lack of conviction during delivery of his comedic dialogue was actually quite striking. His body language gave off a half-assed, I don't give a sh't vibe which became more and more apparent as the film progressed. Michelle Monaghan is in the film alongside Sandler's whose sole purpose is to be his love interest. And if you weren't buying into that aspect of the narrative, Kevin James is the President of the United States.

Peter Dinklage was probably my single favourite thing about Pixels. His character is a self-righteous asshole and considering some of the dialogue he's forced to deliver, I thought Dinklage stood out. He's by far the most talented actor of the entire cast and some of his delivery did make me laugh. By contrast, Josh Gad was terrible. And he screams... a lot. In fact I think that's all he does in the film, scream. On top of that, his character has by far the most ridiculous and disturbing character arc in any film I've seen so far this year. And I've sat through Fantastic Four.

I do recognise that movies are a collaborative effort of hundreds and hundreds of people therefore I will give credit to the visual effects artists for creating some truly breathtaking CGI that wasn't just perfectly crisp and colourful, which also interacted seamlessly with the surrounding environments. However, CGI doesn't make a bad film good especially if you have a screenplay like Pixels. Also, because Pixels constantly tries to blend knowingly outlandish CGI with cartoony green screen, it creates a lot of fake environments. Therefore, the action sequences the trailers try to market are in no way impactful and are completely void of tension and excitement.

Long story short, I didn't like Pixels because as a comedy it didn't make me laugh. It's a film which relies on 1980s nostalgia but consists of humour only 11 year olds will appreciate. Pixels doesn't even understand its own audience, and will go down as wasted potential. I wanted to see this excellent premise come to life, just not in the form of an Adam Sandler comedy:


Rating - D

Thanks for reading,
Matt

5 Reasons Why Fantastic Four Went So Wrong

Years from now, I believe we will be sitting there viewing 2015's Fantastic Four movie as an enigma in the comic book genre. Currently projected to be a box office flop and already solidified as a critical bomb, I will try and examine just why Fantastic Four failed so catastrophically. Beware of minor spoilers, but to be honest, nothing of any real surprise happens in the film anyway.

If you've read my original review, you'll know that I was not a fan of Fantastic Four in any way shape or form. As a superhero movie it completely fails; there's no thrills, joy or fun to be had at all. I thought its editing was all over the place, tonally inconsistent and paced atrociously. And those are just a few complaints I had. If you'd like to read it, I'll leave a link below:


Fantastic Four Movie Review - http://movieswithmattharrison.blogspot.co.uk/2015/08/fanastic-four-movie-review.html


Now let's crack on with 5 reasons I came up with as to why Fantastic Four went so wrong:



5) The Rights issue

For those of you who do not know, the Fantastic Four and all the characters associated with the franchise are owned by 20th Century Fox, not Marvel Studios. This means as it stands, the Fantastic Four can't appear in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which is a shame. However judging by the poor reception of this film, we could be seeing the first family of superheroes cross studios (hopefully) soon. Marvel make movies with proper passion and awareness of the fans. Fox on the other hand, simply made this film to maintain the film rights. At least that's how it came across to me.


4) Changes made to the villain

Ask any Marvel comics fan you come across if Doctor Doom is a better villain than he has been portrayed on the big screen. Every time, you will get an overwhelming yes. In the comics, Victor von Doom is both menacing and conniving. But you can also empathise with him as a lot of the evil stuff he does is because he has to lead and protect his nation Latveria. Its not a difficult thing to get right. The Victor von Doom we got in Fantastic Four was a terrible incarnation. There were also rumours during filming that the villain named "Victor" was supposed to be a computer hacker, which fans didn't receive well. I think its possible this was changed at the last second by the studio and then we got the Doom we got. I want a proper Doctor Doom and not a computer nerd, just not the Doctor Doom we got this time around.


3) The Director

Another pre-release controversy surrounding this film concerned director Josh Trank. These rumours included destructive behaviour and turning up to the set smashed off his face. I don't want to believe those things and have no proof it happened. However, I do think its obvious that Trank is probably more comfortable directing indie films over big studio blockbusters. Judging by the quality of Chronicle and Fantastic Four, there's no comparison. Maybe Fantastic Four would've benefited being helmed by someone who had big blockbuster experience. I think Trank couldn't handle all of the studio interference, which leads me onto my next reason.


2) Studio Interference

A load of reshoots, shoe-horned in action sequences which were executed poorly and Kate Mara's inconsistent hair cut just proved that 20th Century Fox couldn't keep their dirty hands off a film which was supposed to be Josh Trank's directorial vision. I have a feeling that the "action climax" was not the intended ending, simply because the CGI fighting is executed terribly and it ends ridiculously abruptly. Much like they did with X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Fox clearly interfered with the film making a tonally inconsistent and poorly edited final cut.


1) Nothing happens

Fantastic Four is nothing more than a basis origin story. The Fantastic Four meet, work on a science project, things go wrong, they get their powers, they fight a bad guy, and then the movie ends. It feels like a set up for another film or better yet an entire franchise. If this film had just stood on its own (which I guarantee was Trank's vision before Fox started meddling with it) and tried to tell a solid story, I think it would've been at least watchable.



Fantastic Four already has a sequel planned for a June 2017 release. Good luck to any director who takes on this project. Fingers crossed it won't happen and Marvel takes back the rights. Only then will we get a Fantastic Four film which does the characters justice.


Thanks for reading,
Matt

Fanastic Four Movie Review

Fantastic Four (stylised and marketed as Fant4stic) is directed by Josh Trank and is the fourth attempt at a live action superhero movie of Marvel's famous quartet. Boasting a stellar cast of very young actors such as Miles Teller, Kate Mara, Jamie Bell, Michael B Jordan and Toby Kebbell, I was naturally excited to see these people hopefully do the Fantastic Four justice on the silver screen. Despite enjoying a few decently constructed scenes and a brilliant and intimidating character design for The Thing, I thought the rest of Fantastic Four was a complete and utter disaster.

I'll give you a small story before the review. So there I was myself and my friend driving to my local theatre when we decided to turn on the Radio. Ironically, it was a news bulletin concerning the release of Fantastic Four. According to the report, Josh Trank had posted and later been forced to remove a tweet on his social media saying something along the lines of "about a year ago we had a really good movie in front of us". This was followed by cast members saying that they hadn't even seen the film yet and something else which said that there weren't any early screenings for Fant4stic for fear of terrible reviews. That just says it all doesn't it?

I love the cast and its easy to tell that people like Miles Teller and Michael B Jordan are trying to give some decent performances. However, the screenplay for this movie doesn't physically allow them to explore the emotional recesses of their characters. As superheroes, the Fantastic Four themselves aren't all that likeable simply because the film doesn't really flesh out the relationships they have with each other. They don't feel like a team and have no natural synergy, which was a big let down.

This could've been a film about 4 very young people who have to deal with these incredible life changing superpowers and all of the consequences that could have come with it. We could have seen the Fantastic Four come to terms with their powers and learn how to harness them, meaning that as the film drew to its conclusion we as audience members would really feel as if they have earned their wings as superheroes. Instead, the film jumps a year later as soon as the Four return from the dimension which gave them their powers.

The movie, for me, was edited and paced atrociously. They spend around 80 minutes spouting exposition with nothing of any surprise or interest actually happening only to rush the villain in at the last 10 minutes where they have a really short-lived and underwhelming fight.  Hardly anything happens at all in this movie. Scenes which are supposed to flesh out characters or that try and be funny in some way feel forced and unnatural. I think one of the biggest complaints I can have with Fant4stic is the dialogue; it ranges from dumbed-down exposition, awkward character development and humour which falls flat on every single occasion it is attempted.

Toby Kebbell's Doctor Doom is terrible. I won't blame the actor at all because I know that given a decent script, he can be a great antagonist. Just look at Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, my favourite film of last year. However, this interpretation of Doctor Doom is laughable. There's a love triangle between him, Reed Richards and Sue Storm which they set up and never harken back to. There's also a rivalry between him and Reed which never fully arcs. And don't get me started on his lack of real motivation or ugly character design.

With the exception of The Thing, even the use of visual effects, green screen and costume design were disappointing especially with a film of this size and budget. But visuals don't make a film, it's the acting, the characters, the story and the script which are the real meat and bones of an effective film. We've seen the standard of superhero films raised by both DC and Marvel over recent years proving they can be more than light entertainment, they can be thought provoking and impactful stories. But most importantly, they can be all this but still fun. Fantastic Four isn't fun. I was never thrilled, surprised or excited at anything that happened which is unforgiveable in this day and age of superhero films.

Fantastic Four? More like Fantastic bore.


Rating - D-

Thanks for reading,
Matt

Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation Movie Review

Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation is directed by Christopher McQuarrie and stars Tom Cruise once again as quintessential action hero Ethan Hunt. In this film, we pick up with Hunt as he is trying to uncover the existence of "The Syndicate" or a "Rogue Nation" intent on causing multiple terrorist attacks across the world. Meanwhile, Hunt's organisation the "IMF" is officially shut down by the director of the CIA, played by Alec Baldwin. With the help of the few friends he has, it is up to Hunt to uncover the mystery of "The Syndicate" during a film which is a relentless, fast-paced action thrill ride helmed excellently by Christopher McQuarrie.

It has always been the Mission Impossible way to get in a new director for each new instalment. As a result, each film feels fresh and different from the last. This is a sleek and gorgeous looking movie with incredible action sequences and stunts performed not just by committed stunt men, but by the headline actors willing to stand up to the physical challenge of the stunts they were tasked to perform. McQuarrie's fast paced direction accomplishes effective thrills in all 3 acts. His helming of the various action set pieces was refreshing to witness. He utilises wide takes and elegant tracking shots which allow you to actually see what is happening as opposed to the epileptic quick-cut, shaky-cam bullshit currently plaguing Hollywood action films.

Because of the convincing stunt work, accomplished direction and swift cinematography, Rogue Nation has a lot of incredible action sequences to watch and enjoy. There is one scene whereby Ethan has to dive into a large body of water, hold his breath for a good few minutes and successfully replace a security mainframe. It's a very suspenseful scene which is filmed excellently, plus was so effective due to the high stakes Rogue Nation accomplishes. My palms were sweating and I was gripping my seat. There is also a bike chase sequence which might be my favourite of the entire film which really got my blood pumping and my adrenaline rushing. So many action films nowadays forget that the main goal of the film should be to pump up the audience and get their heart beating. Rogue Nation understands exactly that, and works so well because of this.

It's easy to make fun of Tom Cruise but as an action movie star he is one of, if not absolutely, the best in Hollywood. He's not only heavily committed when it comes to performing his own death-defying stunts (most notably the one from the trailer) but an excellent physical actor. The character of Ethan Hunt, while being a top field agent, is not invincible by any means. In Rogue Nation, we see him physically and in some ways psychologically challenged by the Syndicate organisation. He may be an iconic action hero, but he isn't a superhero. He's a vulnerable man who cares for his team and always does what is right, and is relatable as a result.

The supporting cast is very good as well. The addition of Rebecca Ferguson to the movie was a fantastic move by the casting directors as she is utterly magnetic as Ilsa Faust. She holds up well in the movie's action sequences but is also a very compelling character simply because she is so hard to lock down as a person. You're never quite sure where her true motivations and allegiances lie for a good portion of the film, leaving you guessing throughout. She's also not just in the film to be the love interest like a Bond girl, she's an interesting character. Aren't the best and most intriguing characters the ones who are complex and difficult to see through? I think so, and Ferguson effortlessly shared the limelight alongside Cruise in a break-out performance.

Simon Pegg is good in the film but not in the way you might first assume. He's a great comedic actor and his style is utilised well in a naturally funny screenplay (written by director McQuarrie). But, Rogue Nation also showcased the talent of Pegg as a dramatic actor as well. Jeremy Renner is good here as is Mission Impossible regular Ving Rhames. I really liked the direction they took with Renner's character, something I feel a lot of reviews won't touch upon. His ideals sometimes clash with Ethan's which makes for some interesting minor conflicts between the 2. It would be easy for the movie to make the IMF team a cooperative, well-oiled machine where it all runs smoothly. Instead, they go for the more realistic route whereby not everyone agrees with each other 100% of the time.

While the film may be a fast-paced action film for the most part, there are a few scenes located before the action finale which seemed to extend the runtime by about 10 minutes or so. That is only a minor nit-pick of mine. However, my one main issue with Rogue Nation is the villain. I won't spoil who he is, but he's a little underwhelming. He lacked a compelling reason and motivation for his actions. The character and the actor who played him were both perfectly functional but that was it. For me, I wanted something more from his character. If I had gotten that, I'd be calling this the best action movie to come out in half a decade.

Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation despite its villain problem excels as a thriller and stands out as a modern day action flick. The stunts are performed brilliantly, it's shot fantastically, the characters are all handed brilliantly to boot. This is the sort of stuff I want to be seeing when I pay money to watch an action movie. While some action movies fail at a fundamental level, Rogue Nation succeeds because it gets the fundamentals so spot on:


Rating - A-

Thanks for reading,
Matt

Furious 7 Movie Review

Grossing over $1.5 million at the worldwide box office and currently sitting as the 5th highest grossing film of all time, Furious 7 is a continuation of the revitalised Fast & Furious franchise. Ever since 2011's Fast 5, this franchise has undergone a complete transformation from street-racing movies to big, bloated summer action flicks. Furious 7 picks up right after 6 left off. This time, Deckard Shaw, played by Jason Statham, plans to exact revenge on Dom and his crew for the part they played in crippling his brother, the villain of Fast 6.

Furious 7 is a bloated and over-the-top action movie with all of the explosions, action sequences in which multiple characters should die 100 times over and fast cars you could ever wish for. It is a very self aware film. It knows you haven't come to the theatre to watch actors give great performances or for everything to make sense 100% of the time, it understands that you come to watch these movies to have a laugh. If you can suspend your disbelief, you'll have an absolute blast.

This movie endured one of the biggest production dilemmas imaginable when Paul Walker tragically passed away. As someone who appreciates the filmmaking process, I can not even begin to imagine the emotional and practical strain it would've had on the director and the screenwriters. As a result, the films plot is rather choppy. Dom and his crew seem to drive to various different places to try and find a device known as "God's Eye" and everywhere they go Jason Statham's character seems to follow them. I can't honestly say too many negative things about the movie's plot. But I will commend the screenwriters for resolving the situation as best they could whilst still delivering an entertaining film.

And the Paul Walker send off they gave at the end of the film was handed very well. It bought a tear to my eye. For that one moment, I forgot I was watching a movie and instead was emotionally captivated by the send off both Vin Diesel and James Wan (the director) gave to Paul Walker's character and the man himself. Vin Diesel's narration here gets me every single time.

In terms of the things I enjoyed, I liked the camaraderie between Dom and his crew. You felt as if they knew exactly what they were doing, they're incredibly experienced working together in the field plus have a realistic banter and back-and-forth with each other. The car chase sequences are all filmed well by director James Wan who approached these scenes with a more gritty standpoint compared to Justin Lin. Plus, I really liked Jason Statham as the villain. Statham is a naturally menacing looking guy who sells the villain role with his appearance. But his character had clear motivations and clear intentions, something a lot of big blockbuster villains seem to lack nowadays.

The hand-to-hand combat sequences are a mixed bag. I couldn't tell whether or not they were using stunt doubles, but I'll give the actors the benefit of the doubt and say they weren't. Seeing actors commit to their action roles and physically selling their performance is always a positive thing. However, I didn't enjoy the way Wan filmed these particular sequences; he adopted the typical quick-cut, shaky-cam approach most directors do nowadays. In these sequences, it's hard to tell what is going on meaning for me they were difficult to get immersed into.

Other aspects of the movie I wasn't so impressed with were the use of certain characters. For example, The Rock is barely in the film. He is one of the most likeable, charming and charismatic actors in Hollywood right now who I have a blast watching on the big screen. However, he is only in the film for 20 minutes. He is incredibly under-utilised. On the other hand, we have one character who is used way too much for my personal taste. For me, Tyrese Gibson as the "comic relief character" came across as an annoying side character who was used way too much. His jokes always fell flat and I don't actually see what he brings to the team compared to everyone else there. If he wasn't in it, I feel the movie would have been no different.

Considering the troubled production of Furious 7, I have to congratulate James Wan, the screenwriters, and everyone else involved in the making of the movie for delivering a film which is dumb popcorn entertainment at its absolute finest. It has everything which made both Fast 5 & 6 successful and on top of this handled the Paul Walker situation as professionally as they possibly could. It's a fun time for sure, and a fitting goodbye.

RIP Paul Walker.



Rating - C+

Thanks for reading,
Matt