Director Sam Raimi goes back to his horror roots after many successful years in the superhero genre with this rollicking comedy chiller. Christine (Alison Lohman) is a country girl who has moved to the big city and found a nice job at a bank and a nice professor boyfriend (Justin Long). One day she refuses an old lady’s plea and repossesses her house, so the old lady curses her. First she will be tormented by evil spirits, and after three days she will be swallowed up into the fiery pit of hell.
This is a horror film that harks back to both the 70s devilish horror films (The Exorcist and The Omen) and 80s tongue-in-cheek splatterfests, an age before Ringu brought the Japanese style of horror to the West, with its crawling, twisted emaciated spirits, washed out colours and haunted technology. The old gypsy lady (Lorna Raver) is a one-woman splatterfest herself, secreting all manner of nasty things into her handkerchief. The fight between her and Christine in a car is a brutal and hysterical highlight.
Another highlight is Lohman. Female leads in horror films are usually just there to wear tight clothes, and while I wouldn’t say her outfits were loose, Lohman has produced a real character. Christine does some desperate things to try to get rid of the curse, so isn’t all sweetness and screams as you may expect. She exerts a real charm, and seems to be a star in the making.
Raimi has managed to get the tone right throughout, creating a really creepy, funny and satisfying film that feels oven fresh after the stale likes of The Unborn. This is jolly good fun, but be warned: it may leave you with a fear of buttons.
Monday 8 June 2009
Review - Night at the Museum 2
The first Night at the Museum was probably a bigger hit than people expected, but no-one should ever underestimate how much children enjoy seeing inanimate objects coming to life, especially if they are dinosaur-shaped inanimate objects. The sequel sticks with what worked before, but moves the action from the American Museum of Natural History in New York to the Smithsonian in Washington. Here there are spaceships and paintings, as well as the usual dinosaurs and animals, to be enchanted by the Pharoah’s golden tablet.
Larry Daley (Ben Stiller) is now a successful inventor. When he visits the museum where he used to be a night watchmen, he finds the exhibits packed up ready to be shipped to the Smithsonian. As they arrive at their new home, the magic tablet brings to life an evil Pharoah who wants to take over the world using the tablet’s power. Larry Daley must stop him with the help of his old friends and some new ones, including spunky Amelia Earhart (Amy Adams).
The film is really a succession of cameo appearances, mostly from top notch comic actors. Adams shows the same brilliance with sincerity that she debuted in Enchanted, there is a very funny scene with Superbad’s Jonah Hill, and Hank Azaria is decidedly strange as the Pharoah, but in a good way. An appearance by Christopher Guest as Ivan the Terrible is a bit of a waste (it could really have been played by anyone to the same effect), and the reappearance of a dicky-bowed Ricky Gervais is unwelcome to say the least, but overall it is a assorted box of historical and pop cultural chocolates.
Adults will enjoy the clever references and inventive use of exhibits (the scenes in the National Gallery will be particularly fun for art fans) and children will love the wonder of it all and the silliness. Sure, the plot is fraying at the edges, but this is a film that successfully plays to the crowd. The question is, which museum will host part three?
Larry Daley (Ben Stiller) is now a successful inventor. When he visits the museum where he used to be a night watchmen, he finds the exhibits packed up ready to be shipped to the Smithsonian. As they arrive at their new home, the magic tablet brings to life an evil Pharoah who wants to take over the world using the tablet’s power. Larry Daley must stop him with the help of his old friends and some new ones, including spunky Amelia Earhart (Amy Adams).
The film is really a succession of cameo appearances, mostly from top notch comic actors. Adams shows the same brilliance with sincerity that she debuted in Enchanted, there is a very funny scene with Superbad’s Jonah Hill, and Hank Azaria is decidedly strange as the Pharoah, but in a good way. An appearance by Christopher Guest as Ivan the Terrible is a bit of a waste (it could really have been played by anyone to the same effect), and the reappearance of a dicky-bowed Ricky Gervais is unwelcome to say the least, but overall it is a assorted box of historical and pop cultural chocolates.
Adults will enjoy the clever references and inventive use of exhibits (the scenes in the National Gallery will be particularly fun for art fans) and children will love the wonder of it all and the silliness. Sure, the plot is fraying at the edges, but this is a film that successfully plays to the crowd. The question is, which museum will host part three?
Sunday 7 June 2009
Review - Star Trek
Prequels to well-loved franchises are big business. By going ‘back to basics’ while simultaneously ‘sexing up’ the characters, new life is breathed into old product. Batman Begins and Casino Royale have been recent success stories for studios, so it was only a matter of time until the origin story of Star Trek, one of the most successful franchises of all time, was explored on the big screen.
Star Trek is not something that is cool to love, but I do. I wouldn’t say I’m a Trekkie, but I know how Captain Picard takes his tea, if you know what I mean (Earl Grey, hot). As for many fans, I’m sure, the prospect of this film was both exciting and troubling for me. Exploring the early life of the Enterprise crew has never been done before, and the thought of someone else playing Spock or Kirk was upsetting. Would they get it right? Would the chemistry be there?
The answer is yes. Star Trek is not, and never has been, only for geeks – the original series and the Next Generation were big hits because they had great characters and loads of interesting ideas. Director J.J. Abrams knows this and has made an exciting and well-paced blockbuster that should appeal to everyone, whether they’ve seen the source material or not. That’s not to say that the feelings of fans have been sidelined by the greed of Hollwood; there are plenty of references to make them feel at home. And if anyone does get angry, they will be sated by the knowledge that this is set in an alternative reality to the TV universe so needn’t impinge on anything that’s gone before. This also cleverly allows writers freedom for future sequels.
The story follows James T. Kirk as he decides to join Starfleet to follow in the steps of his father, who died a hero at the hands of a mysterious Romulan ship. When he realises that the ship and its crew have returned, he must convince Starfleet to stop it, even though he is only a cadet.
Seeing Chris Pine as Kirk took a bit of getting used to, but he actually fits the part very well. Jim is an over-confident idiot, and as a youngster would probably be insufferable. Pine plays him as cocksure dropout with an eye for the ladies. Zachary Quinto is perfect as Spock, and the relationship between Kirk and Karl Urban’s Dr McCoy feels right. The only slightly bum note was made by Simon Pegg as Scottie, here used as comic relief.
Luckily he’s only in a few scenes, and his presence doesn’t detract from an otherwise extremely well-polished film made with love. For some, the prospect of seeing a Vulcan high school will be worth the price of admission alone. Even if that holds no attraction for you, there is much to enjoy. Star Trek will surely be one of the brightest and most successful blockbusters of the summer.
Star Trek is not something that is cool to love, but I do. I wouldn’t say I’m a Trekkie, but I know how Captain Picard takes his tea, if you know what I mean (Earl Grey, hot). As for many fans, I’m sure, the prospect of this film was both exciting and troubling for me. Exploring the early life of the Enterprise crew has never been done before, and the thought of someone else playing Spock or Kirk was upsetting. Would they get it right? Would the chemistry be there?
The answer is yes. Star Trek is not, and never has been, only for geeks – the original series and the Next Generation were big hits because they had great characters and loads of interesting ideas. Director J.J. Abrams knows this and has made an exciting and well-paced blockbuster that should appeal to everyone, whether they’ve seen the source material or not. That’s not to say that the feelings of fans have been sidelined by the greed of Hollwood; there are plenty of references to make them feel at home. And if anyone does get angry, they will be sated by the knowledge that this is set in an alternative reality to the TV universe so needn’t impinge on anything that’s gone before. This also cleverly allows writers freedom for future sequels.
The story follows James T. Kirk as he decides to join Starfleet to follow in the steps of his father, who died a hero at the hands of a mysterious Romulan ship. When he realises that the ship and its crew have returned, he must convince Starfleet to stop it, even though he is only a cadet.
Seeing Chris Pine as Kirk took a bit of getting used to, but he actually fits the part very well. Jim is an over-confident idiot, and as a youngster would probably be insufferable. Pine plays him as cocksure dropout with an eye for the ladies. Zachary Quinto is perfect as Spock, and the relationship between Kirk and Karl Urban’s Dr McCoy feels right. The only slightly bum note was made by Simon Pegg as Scottie, here used as comic relief.
Luckily he’s only in a few scenes, and his presence doesn’t detract from an otherwise extremely well-polished film made with love. For some, the prospect of seeing a Vulcan high school will be worth the price of admission alone. Even if that holds no attraction for you, there is much to enjoy. Star Trek will surely be one of the brightest and most successful blockbusters of the summer.
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