Tag Archives: Comedies

Frozen  (2013)    85/100

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Rating :   85/100                       Treasure Chest                     108 Min        PG

A dazzling, emotional and thoroughly entertaining Disney animated musical that takes the studio back to the work of Hans Christian Andersen with a tale loosely based on his ‘The Snow Queen’, and this is every bit as good as their previous reworking of his ‘The Little Mermaid’ back in 1989. Two new princesses get added to the canon of Disney hotties as we are introduced to Anna (Kristen Bell), a playful redhead full of energy, and Elsa (Idina Menzel), the elder of the two but who, as she ages, sees her mysterious powers to shape ice grow, effectively becoming a Nordic version of Doctor Manhattan and a danger to everyone she loves. But will she turn to the Disney dark side and kill everyone whilst laughing maniacally? That is, indeed, the question.

Actually, a number of tropes are wisely turned on their head here, and the company have made sure to fill the movie with their trademark wit and intelligence to allow all members of the family to enjoy it. The contrasting voices of the two sisters, with both lead actresses doing all their own singing, works really well, and a number of the songs are delivered with memorable gusto and power. The animation is simply terrific, making the snowy landscape look wonderfully crystalline and at the same time inviting with their choices of rich, decorative and intrinsically beautiful colour schemes. One of the main scenes doesn’t work quite as well as intended, but this slight hiccup doesn’t prevent the film from being great from start to finish. It’s simply the perfect Christmas film.

There is a small post credits scene – the wait is a long one, but if you stay, look out for the brief note regarding one of the characters right at the end.

Quotes

“I want you to take me up the North Mountain…. I’ll rephrase that. Take me up the North Mountain!.” Kristen Bell/Anna

Free Birds  (2013)    20/100

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Rating :   20/100                                                                       91 Min        U

Slapstick animated comedy about turkeys = listening to Owen Wilson squawk pointlessly for ninety one minutes as his stupid blue Turkey is smacked in the face by every person and object he encounters. Don’t watch this.

The Best Man Holiday  (2013)    70/100

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Rating :   70/100                                                                     123 Min        15

Malcolm D. Lee’s comedy sequel to his 1999 film ‘The Best Man’ sees the return of the entire talented cast as we catch up with their lives more than a decade on. This is a situational comedy, with the majority of the film taking place at the rather lavish house of Lance (Morris Chestnut), which looks pretty great onscreen, and although there is little of any striking originality, the story is nevertheless heart warming and at times genuinely funny.

Thankfully, it does a good job of engaging the audience before the really cheesy elements are put on display, but if you don’t mind a touch of melodrama then this is a worthy little Christmas film. As well as Chestnut, the returning cast include Monica Calhoun, Terrence Howard, Sanaa Lathan, Taye Diggs, Melissa De Sousa, Regina Hall, Harold Perrineau, and Nia Long.

Saving Mr. Banks  (2013)    79/100

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Rating :   79/100                                                                     125 Min        PG

There was nary a dry eye in the house by the time this biographical tearjerker ended, and despite slightly over egging the pudding at times, it has set itself up nicely for multiple award nominations over the coming months. The plot focuses on the behind the scenes storyboarding and scriptwriting of ‘Mary Poppins’ (64), or, to be more exact, Walt Disney’s (Tom Hanks) invitation to P.L.Travers (Emma Thompson) to come work with his team in California to oversee that her Marry Poppins novel was being treated respectfully, in order to gain her signature on the rights to make the film – which Disney had been seeking for two whole decades. This task, however, would not prove to be easy.

Initially, Thompson’s Travers is far too ruthlessly curt and acidic to be likeable in any emotionally tangible way, but over time we warm to her and to the heart of the story as we learn that the titular Mr Banks (the father of the family in Mary Poppins) is in fact based upon Travers’ memories of her own father and her childhood in Australia – and we relive those memories via flashbacks, and great performances from Colin Farrell as her father and Annie Rose Buckley as her younger self.

Hanks is good as always (he grew his moustache to meticulously mirror Disney’s) but it is really Thompson that gives both a transformative and genuinely evocative performance – and so far she and Cate Blanchett for ‘Blue Jasmine’ are The Red Dragon’s top two contenders to take home the coveted best actress award at the Oscars next year …

The Family / Malavita  (2013)    61/100

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Rating :   61/100                                                                     111 Min        15

Based on the novel by French author Tonino Benacquista and written/directed by filmmaking legend Luc Besson (‘Leon’ 94, ‘The Fifth Element’ 97), this English language film sees the family of one Giovanni Manzoni, a former member of the Brooklyn mafia, under witness protection with his family in Normandy, France, after bad blood and attempted assassination forced him to testify against one of the other crime lords. It’s a black comedy, as the family’s violent traits find themselves at odds with the quaint/rustic/backward way of life in their small town. Unfortunately, the gags are all very predictable and although Besson stages his familiar action set pieces well, his inexperience with comedy does show.

The central cast all do a good job – with Robert De Niro, Michelle Pfeiffer, Dianna Agron and John D’Leo embodying the main family, and Tommy Lee Jones playing the FBI agent assigned to try and manage their protection. It’s a very likeable film, it’s just not anything more than that. Although the scene where Giovanni is invited by the town to watch and discuss a classic movie of American cinema, is quite wonderful.

Don Jon  (2013)    69/100

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Rating :   69/100                                                                       90 Min        18

Joseph Gordon-Levitt chooses a very interesting subject for his directorial debut – pornography. Also written by Levitt and starring him as central character Jon (nicknamed Don Jon by his friends on account of his pulling prowess with girls) we watch as he works out on his body at the gym, keeps his flat immaculately clean, and works his way through a succession of young hotties – and yet still finds jacking off to pornography more pleasurable than the real thing. Then he meets knock out blonde Barbara Sugarman, played by Scarlett Johansson, and becomes convinced she is the one – but will even her curvaceous figure and sublime features be a match for the infinite and easy choices available online?

The subject matter has been treated very well here by the man at the helm (no pun intended) dealing with it head on (ditto), and by mixing in a lot of good comedy. It is thematically reminiscent of Steve McQueen’s ‘Shame’ (11) but I would argue this is in many respects better as it ditches the prevalent moralising tone which permeated that film, and in many ways it does actually represent the differences between a British and American treatment of the topic, one prudish and judgmental – the other forthright and more fun. Indeed, the very idea of porn is often still hugely divisive between the sexes – the next time you’re in a group scenario just throw in the subject of masturbation over your friends facebook pictures and you’ll quickly see the dichotomy that exists generally (you can google that particular aspect of the debate for a plethora of very humorous threads – also something which works quite well is the timely interjection during a game of ‘I’ve Never’, which is normally used as an excuse for people to show off their real or exaggerated sexual exploits, of the line ‘Never have I ever … masturbated whilst thinking about anyone in this room’. This never fails to issue forth a blanket of silence over the sophistic podium, and you can usually tell by the extremely sheepish faces who indeed has done exactly that. Most amusing).

Both Levitt and Johansson sport very convincing accents (it’s set in New York City) and give really good performances, as does Julianne Moore in support. Although Levitt has done a couple of short films prior to this, for a first feature this is a sterling effort – and kudos definitely has to be given for opting to write about difficult subject matter with originality. The alienating problems with intimacy that Jon suffers from will strike a chord with many viewers, some of which will be surprised by the resonance – so seldom is any light shone on this area in a way that audiences can relate to. The only real criticism would have to be there are many aspects of a more traditional resolution to the movie, and although it makes sense for the story and what he’s trying to do, it nevertheless feels a little too black and white – the shades of grey are conveniently, and swiftly, removed from the equation…

Dom Hemingway  (2013)    31/100

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Rating :   31/100                                                                       93 Min        15

Jude Law plays the titular Dom Hemingway – a crook just released from prison after a twelve year stint in the clink, and now on a mission to make amends with his estranged daughter. It’s a black comedy, but its primary faults are that it’s simply not that funny and Law convincing us he’s a hard-ass, cockney geezer (despite his commitment to the role) is just asking a bit too much from the audience. It’s like the film is trying to emulate the laughs from ‘In Bruges’ (08), whilst evoking Tom Hardy’s performance in ‘Bronson’ (08), and it doesn’t come close to being as good as either of them – in fact for the first third it is difficult not to want the main character to get killed, with him coming across as repulsive rather than endearing or comedic as he either hits/fucks/or insults everyone he meets (I’m making this sound more interesting than it actually is) and demonstrates how hard he is by lighting up a cigarette in a pub in defiance of the anti-smoking law – send him back to prison! There are a couple of nice moments, the support form the likes of Richard E. Grant and Demian Bichir is fine and the central character becomes a bit more palatable as the film progresses, but the whole film feels too forced and amateurish. From writer/director Richard Shepard (‘The Matador’ 2005, ‘The Hunting Party’ 2007).

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2  (2013)    73/100

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Rating :   73/100                                                                       95 Min        U

The sequel to 2009’s ‘Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs’ which despite very much flying under the radar was a really great film, making it onto several lists of the ‘top 50 animations of all time’ I’ve seen published since (like this one). The next instalment begins with the clean up operation of central character Flint Lockwood’s home island, after the inventor last time around peppered the area with super sized food dripping from the heavens courtesy of one of his more bananas, and yet genius, schemes (thus the title, and his pearing up with saucy meteorologist Sam Sparks). Enter traditional bad guy and cereal capitalist Chester V who intends to use Flint’s invention to steak a claim on his own evil food bar empire – all via the Foodbar 8.0, the only problem is he was Flint’s childhood inventing idol when he was growing up, will that boyish admiration be left in tatters?

Chester and his company Live Corp are a not too subtle parody of Apple (and the latte Steve Jobs, who also co-founded animation giant Pixar {Cloudy is from Sony Pictures Animation}) – which not only fits thematically but is arguably comedic with shadier undertones for a company currantly sandwiched between tax avoidance scandals and a price rigging pickle, not to mention their support for SOPA and PIPA… All satire aside though, Chester is one of the weaker ingredients in the film, and he comes across as fairly creepy – more akin to something out of South Park than the loveable creatures Cloudy normally serves up. Indeed, the visual richness and appeal of the animation, and the filmmakers sense of humour, is really where these films stand out – the creation at Live Corp of a zero emission car that runs on ‘cute’, for example, and the shot of the tank being opened up to uncover a cuddly sort of kitten squashed into it – but full of beans and happily purring away, its huge eyes gazing lovingly up at the driver. Nice.

Despite Chester V, Flint becoming a little too weak for a central character, and an over reliance on monkey jokes via his close friend Steve (who is indeed a monkey) eventually the film comes into its own with a wonderful story arc that sees all the food from the previous film literally come to life Jurassic Park style, allowing the animators to really put their creativity to the test – generating a visual feast for the eyes. Flint returns to the island to get to the root of the problem, along with several of the characters from the first film – his father, Sam Sparks, Manny, Brent and of course Steve, but on their adventure they encounter a new companion, Barry, the next stage in culinary evolution (pictured above, with their first meeting below) who turns out to be one of the best helpings of the series, and I think I speak for all the adults in the audience when I say – I WANT A MOTHER FUCKING TALKING STRAWBERRY THAT HIDES IN MY BACKPACK AND SAYS ‘MOOOOOOO?’!!!

Despite the film’s early weaknesses and the slight leekage of interest, I’d still fallen in love with it come the end, and judging by all the young sprouts in the audience running around dancing at the end credits, they relished it even more than I did. Bill Hader stars as Flint, with Anna Farris (who sizzles perfectly in the role) as Sparks, and James Caan, Will Forte, Andy Samberg, Ben jam in Bratt, Terry Crews (replacing Mr Tea) and Neil Patrick Harris rounding out the rest of the support. There is a brief post credits scene too. Mooooooooo?

One Chance  (2013)    35/100

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Rating :   35/100                                                                     103 Min        12A

I’m very tempted to say James Corden has already had his one chance with ‘Lesbian Vampire Killers’ (09) which was one of the direst films I have ever seen in my life – no hyperbole, but he at least has the saving grace of not having been involved with its screenplay. Here, he embodies the opera singer Paul Potts who rose to international prominence by winning the first ever ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ TV competition in 2007. Now, given that it is painfully (perhaps even disturbingly) obvious here that it is not him singing and that he equally cannot do the accent required (all the more emphasized by the fact he is surrounded by actors who either can or for whom it is their natural accent anyway. Bizarrely Potts is depicted as growing up in Port Talbot in Wales here and Corden’s lack of anything approaching a decent Welsh accent is astounding – and yet Potts is actually a Bristolian and not only didn’t move to Wales until later on in life, but also does not have a Welsh accent, so if they hadn’t butchered his real life story Corden’s accent would have been fine. Crazy) the reasons for his casting would seem to be whittled down to naught more than the extra layer of insulation he has lovingly nurtured (notwithstanding the Tony award he won in the States last year, minor detail). Something which we are visually treated to in all its fleshy glory on more than one occasion.

Was it not possible to find a vocally gifted actor that could just shove a pillow up his jumper? Or a young opera talent who could passably pull off the dialogue? Actually, just the pillow singing by itself would be more believable – unfortunately the leading man leads this film straight down the pan, and it is only due to the supporting cast that it manages to deliver any sort of reward or emotional engagement whatsoever, with most of the first half just cringe worthy. Alexandra Roach (pictured above) is wonderful, and it is her that’s largely responsible for saving the movie from complete incineration, together with a bit of help from Colm Meaney, Julie Walters and Mackenzie Crook. The fact that the film also takes enormous liberties with the actual life of Potts, including not mentioning previous employment with local government in Bristol for seven years and multiple opera tours before appearing on television, together with the knowledge that the movie is partly produced by the man behind the talent show Mr Simon Cowell himself, just drives the final nails into its coffin.

One of the other producers for the film – big Hollywood player Harvey Weinstein, aka ‘The Punisher’, was actually responsible for pitching the role to Corden, but then in rehearsals immediately called his main actor ‘tone deaf’ before hiring Potts himself to do the voice over (he should really have just played himself) and then, astoundingly, having this to say to the MailOnline about the final product – “James is definitely up for a Golden Globe or Oscar: it’s that kind of performance.” Is he deliberately trying to sabotage his career? Corden is actually due to appear in two upcoming big budget films where he will be singing, so this slight debacle will probably be forgotten about soon enough …

When I began writing this review, it became apparent whoever care takes the imdb page for the film was also not a fan of it, with any clicks around the top of the page directing to different lesbian films. Sadly, these links have been removed now – but to save the affront to your patience that watching this film would entail, you can find the clip below of the actual performance from Potts that got him his place in the ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ show (apparently it’s one of the most watched clips on YouTube) thus extracting the best bit from the movie, and another more recent clip from the same show which is also worth a gander …


 
James Corden is definitely up for a Golden Globe or Oscar it’s that kind of performance.”
Read more at http://www.entertainmentwise.com/photos/129884/1/James-Corden-Labelled-Tone-Deaf-By-Producer-On-Set-Of-One-Chance-Film-#6SuteRmTRPUS3Jyd.99

Bad Grandpa  (2013)    61/100

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Rating :   61/100                                                                       92 Min        15

Normally, trailers for films don’t usually wet The Red Dragon’s appetite much, partly due to overexposure and partly due to having a somewhat voracious appetite, but the ad for this did have me looking forward to seeing the full movie. The difference is though, that with the trailer the fact that this involves pranks on real people is not so prevalent on the consciousness of the audience, whereas it is foremost on one’s mind when watching the film and it’s not so easy to switch off completely and enjoy it – although all the people whose faces aren’t blotted out did give their permission to appear in the final edit.

This is of course the latest Jackass film, one with a slight alteration to their previous movies as here Johnny Knoxville dresses up as the titular Bad Grandpa, Irving Zisman, and goes on a road trip with his grandson, played by Jackson Nicoll. A lot of the gags are funny, just not as much as I was expecting them to be – all except for the beauty pageant scene, which never failed to get a laugh in the cinema when the trailer was on and despite seeing it many times over, it is still quite hilarious. A slightly higher rating is probably merited when watched with a couple of beers and your mates …