Film: The World's End

GENRE: Sci-Fi Action Comedy
RATING: 14A for language and sexual references
RUNTIME: 1 hour and 49 minutes
STARRING: Simon Pegg (Star Trek, Mission Impossible 3 & 4)
Nick Frost (Hot Fuzz); Martin Freeman (Sherlock, The Hobbit)
DIRECTOR: Edgar Wright (Hot Fuzz, Scott Pilgrim vs The World)
WRITERS: Simon Pegg & Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead)
PLOT: Five friends reunited to attempt an epic pub crawl but the apocalypse is approaching.

FIVE OBSERVATIONS:
1 This is my least favourite of Wright’s ‘Cornetto’ trilogy. Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz and far better films than this one. The previous two have better genre parodies and much more laughs. The World’s End is pretty weak on all accounts.
2 I’m sorry but I can’t go along with Simon Pegg as a ‘cool’ loner. Even in Hot Fuzz, while he might have been an awesome cop, he was at least nerdy in his straight-laced-ness. I just didn’t buy Pegg’s character in this film.
3 Nick Frost has been utterly hilarious in the previous films, he was so happy and shlubby you couldn’t help but root for him. In this one, he’s angry and not as fun. I guess one of my main issues with this film is that I didn’t find myself caring too much what happened to these characters.
4 After watching him play a retired boxer suffering from Parkinson’s on Ray Donovan, it was fun to see Eddie Marsan in a completely different role.
5 I did appreciate the tie-ins to the other two films. The reoccurrence of the Cornetto ice cream, the jumping of fences and the similar situation of being in a town surrounded by an evil element. I just wished this last installment was far better.

RECOMMENDATION: Maybe TBS for the curious
UPCOMING REVIEWS: Fall Film Preview, Fall TV Preview, Emmys

Film: The Butler

GENRE: Biography, Drama
RATING: 14A for violence, language, thematic elements
RUNTIME: 2 hours and 12 minutes
STARRING: Forest Whitaker (Last King of Scotland, Panic Room)
Oprah Winfrey (The Color Purple); David Oyelowo (Jack Reacher)
DIRECTOR: Lee Daniels (Precious)
WRITER: Danny Strong (Game Change, Recount)
PLOT: The civil rights movement is explored as Cecil Gaines serves eight presidents as a White House butler.

FIVE OBSERVATIONS:
1 I know some have dubbed this film a black Forrest Gump but this one has way more bite and less whimsy. Whitaker’s Cecil is more of an observer and quiet sage as opposed to a participant. Still extremely well done and eye-opening.
2 Whitaker and Oprah are fantastic. They easily command the screen and make you feel every emotion that fills their fragile household. 
3 While there are many stand-out supporting performances, I was most enthralled with Alan Rickman (Die Hard, Harry Potter) as Ronald Regan. While the last half-hour usually drags in a film like this, I found the final years invigorating and part of that is due to Rickman’s entrance into the sprawling story.
4 I was a little annoyed with the editing of the film. There was some intercutting of scenes that I found a little distracting. I also didn’t like that the editing made it seem like JFK was assassinated as a response to civil rights issues.
5 I don’t know why this makes me smile but the writer, Danny Strong, played nerdy Jonathan on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It’s cool to see him make his mark on the industry. In fact, I just found out that he’s writing the screenplays for Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part I & II. I’m even more excited now.

RECOMMENDATION: Theatre for Oscar-worthy stuff
UPCOMING REVIEWS: The World’s End

Film: Elysium

GENRE: Action, Sci-Fi, Drama
RATING: 14A for violence and language
RUNTIME: 1 hours and 49 minutes
STARRING: Matt Damon (Bourne series, Contagion)
Jodie Foster (Inside Man); Sharlto Copley (District 9, A-Team)
DIRECTOR: Neill Blomkamp (District 9)
WRITER: Neill Blomkamp (District 9)
PLOT: A sick man on the trashed and overpopulated earth tries to get to the space Station Elysium, where the wealthy live.

FIVE OBSERVATIONS:
1 This film is definitely District-9ish, if you know what I mean. It has an independent South African sensibility while still being a sci-fi flick. If you liked District 9, you would probably like this one as well.
2 I was hoping for more time and visuals of Elysium. They spent a little too long on Earth. I guess it’s a lot cheaper to shoot it that way.
3 I was also hoping for more sneaking around. They pretty much go everywhere guns a-blazing. And hand-to-hand stuff as well.
4 While Damon and Copley do fine work as adversaries, I also enjoyed some of the supporting cast as well. Wagner Moura (newcomer) as the hacker Spider is fun to watch as is the slimy William Fichtner (Armageddon, Lone Ranger).
5 At some points, watching Damon and Copley fight is like seeing a skeletal version of Iron Man. Just a bunch of metal beings hitting each other really hard; this seems more brutal and painful though.

RECOMMENDATION: DVD or theatre, it’s a toss-up
UPCOMING REVIEWS: The Butler

Film: 2 Guns

GENRE: Action, Crime
RATING: 14A for violence, language and brief nudity
RUNTIME: 1 hours and 49 minutes
STARRING: Denzel Washington (Man on Fire, Training Day)
Mark Wahlberg (The Other Guys, Pain & Gain); Bill Paxton (Twister)
DIRECTOR: Baltasar Kormakur (Contraband)
WRITER: Blake Masters (Brotherhood tv series)
PLOT: Undercover agents (who are unaware of each other) botch the infiltration of a drug cartel and pay the consequences.

FIVE OBSERVATIONS:
1 This film reminded me of old-school Jerry Bruckheimer films like Bad Boys, The Rock, Bad Company and Gone in Sixty Seconds. Get two good actors to play well off each other and shoot lots of stuff up. It maybe formulaic but it’s still pretty entertaining.
2 The film works because of the great chemistry between Washington and Wahlberg. They both get their share of funny lines and action-packed stunts. Wahlberg is pretty hit or miss with me and in this film he does pretty well.
3 After watching this and FX’s The Border, I’m going to steer clear of Mexico/US border cities; maybe forever. They all seem full of crime and corrupt agencies.
4 It’s fun watching Bill Paxton and Edward James Olmos (Battlestar Galactica) play bad guys. They are gleefully intimidating. James Marsden (X-Men, Superman Returns), on the other hand, continues to turn in ‘meh’ performances. He so not dynamic on screen.
5 I was not a fan on Denzel’s facial hair in this film. Just sayin’.

RECOMMENDATION: Wait for DVD or TBS
UPCOMING REVIEWS: Elysium