Film Review: Power Rangers

"The Answer To What Is Happening To You Is Here. You Five Are The Power Rangers..."

Of all the many facets of my well-nurtured youth between the mid 1990's and the early years of the 20th century, Power Rangers was the pretty much the last thing I personally had in mind to be reincarnated and re-imagined for the purpose of reaching out to a modern-day audience, yet here we are this week reviewing a movie which not only conjures up a youth-infused opinion regarding the sheer awesomeness of 1995's Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, a film which featured the iconic presence of Paul Freeman as Ivan Ooze and in an adult-fuelled retrospect, isn't as awesome as originally thought, but also begs the question where Hollywood will eventually stop when it comes to flogging and remaking as many footnotes of entertainment that they possibly can. Featuring a primarily youth-infused cast such as Me, Earl and the Dying Girl's RJ Cyler and The Martian's Naomi Scott, each battling for screen time against not only their similarly aged peers but the famous figures of both Bryan Cranston and Elizabeth Banks, Power Rangers is a tiresome and wholly predictable CGI-fuelled mess which can't decide whether it wants to adhere to a Nolan-esque level of maturity or come across as just an overly corny cheese-fest, resulting in a movie which bears similarities to the latest adaptation of Fantastic Four in all the worst possible ways.

Straight off the bat, Power Rangers suffers from a fundamental flaw of having five leading characters who aren't only ridiculously underdeveloped but are just outright annoying, with introductions ranging from a criminalised youth who finds spare time to wreak havoc on the local town to a bitter bully who thinks it's fun to sex shame her friend and assault her boyfriend whilst wondering why each of these relationships goes downhill rather fast. Although I understand there is a level of flexibility within a narrative which centres around superheroes and aliens but it takes even the most optimistic of audiences to accept that the five youths portrayed on-screen are indeed the best humanity has to offer. Aside from monotonous central characters, Power Rangers suffers too from the same illness which has raged Michael Bay and Zak Snyder movies for years by including a final act which can only be described as an amalgamation of Man of Steel and Transformers in the worst way possible, utilising awful CGI in creating foes which not only come across as spitting images of the watchers from Darren Aronofsky's Noah, but are as threatening as a battery powered furby.

Whilst the contractual duties of both Cranston and Banks are both adhered to in some form, both appear and act in ways which can only be seen as dollar-ringed, with the former literally doing absolutely nothing in the twenty seconds he is on screen both in physical and digital form, whilst the latter taking the form of the villainous Rita Repulsa, a simply terrible villain whose penchant for gold infused items can only be regarded as a metaphor for Banks' appetite for a Power Rangers signed cheque, thanks to a performance which bears similarities to Eddie Redmayne's camp-fuelled monstrosity in Jupiter Ascending, just without a sense of memorability. Power Rangers ultimately is two hours of film-making recklessness which you won't get back and being aware of the film-maker's promise of at least a SIX movie story arc, perhaps we can live in the hope of their first offering being indeed the worst of the bunch. In conclusion, 2017's Power Rangers is the type of movie in which you leave longing for the ripeness of a 1990's Ivan Ooze in order to push it into a realm of enjoyment which is severely lacking through almost two elongated hours of dullness. Not for me.

Overall Score: 3/10

Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy go Telltale Episodic!

After months of waiting, Telltale have finally released a trailer for their upcoming series of the Guardians of the Galaxy which has received a very mixed response.

Watch it here!

It appears that Telltale have stepped away from their iconic art style that's prevalent in The Walking Dead and Borderlands releases and opted for a style similar to Disney's Infinity games. As a fan of the developers, I prefer the scratchy and darker hues that Telltale have demonstrated and feel like GotG is going to be commercially driven - similar to the Minecraft series. We see the emulation of the property owners styles to fit into the mainstream expectations of the younger, more mainstream audiences rather than the comic book fans and hardcore fan bases. The characters appear very long and slender with a lot of block based colours and little defining features to portray itself as a Telltale game. 

In all honestly, i feel the trailer demonstrates nothing of significant value. The action and comedy factors that underpin that Guardians of the Galaxy aren't showing through and it feels more of a show reel of that characters we will be seeing through the 5 episode series.

What do you think of the trailers, are you excited or as wary as us? Let us know in the comment section down below!

Film Review: The Lost City of Z

"I Know This Is A Sacrifice For All Of Us But It Will Be Worth It..."

At the prestigious age of the mid 40's, director James Gray is ashamedly a director of whose previous work I have to admit hasn't drifted across my attentive senses, with 2008's Two Lovers and 2013's The Immigrant arguably being his most critically acclaimed releases but too films which both seem to have suffered from a limited exposure platform, something of which cannot be said for The Lost City of Z, Gray's latest cinematic adventure based upon the book of the same name by author David Grann in 2009, which alongside featuring a cast including Sons of Anarchy star, Charlie Hunnam, Robert Pattinson, Sienna Miller and the latest incarnation of Peter Parker himself, Tom Holland, is most definitely his highest-profile release to date. Focusing on the true story of archaeologist and explorer, Percy Fawcett, The Lost City of Z is a mixed bag of a movie, a beautifully designed epic which spans from the beginning of the 20th century to the fallout of the Second World War but too a movie which suffers from a sagging narrative which seems to have conflicted notions regarding where exactly it wants to go and what it desires to be.

When it comes to the positives of Gray's latest adventure, there is no questioning the quality and detailed approach the filmmakers have taken in regards to set locations and design, with everything from the clothing attire to the stunning vast plains of the amazonian jungle being a superb feat, particularly upon the big screen. Unfortunately for the movie as an entire body of work however, the cinematography relies so heavily on the element of darkness throughout that sometimes it comes across as a monumental struggle to actually appreciate the lengths to which such the filmmakers have gone due in order to create such a thorough and finely tuned cinematic world. Perhaps the most telling weakness of the film however is the seriously unbalanced pacing, with the film taking almost an age to really get going and into the realm of something actually exciting, for it to then swiftly fall straight back into an element of tedium in a concluding act which doesn't exactly offer rousing levels of closure, begging the immortal question of, "what exactly was that all about?". If you decide that 140 minutes of scenery admiration is what you desire most about cinema, The Lost City of Z is arguably the film for you but for those who seek something of a narrative and sense of enjoyment, James Gray's latest is more of a miss than a direct hit.

Overall Score: 5/10

Film Review: CHiPs

"Go Undercover Within The Department? That's Awesome...!"

Burdening themselves with the prospect of attempting to distinguish themselves from simply being yet another terrible excuse of a film which classifies itself as a comedy, CHiPs, written, directed and starring Dax Shephard, is based primarily upon the American television drama series of the same name which aired on NBC between the years of 1977 and 1983, and within a week in which Power Rangers has surprisingly succeeded in whinging a modern-day adaptation too, the penultimate week of March can only be classed as the week in which two of the most pointless and utterly undesired methods of entertainment have somehow had the 21st century treatment and had the nerve to grace the big-screen. All negative preconceptions aside, CHiPs, co-starring the undeniably likeable Michael Peña, whose back catalogue includes End of Watch and Ant-Man, as well as the most recent incarnation of Wilson Fisk from Netflix's Daredevil, Vincent D'Onofrio, CHiPs is indeed the type of movie in which you begin to wonder about the mindset of those who have played a part in creating it, with the main driving force in the form of Dax Shephard being primarily to blame in successfully creating one of the most vulgar, idiotic, mindless and utterly offensive movies in recent memory.

Featuring a supposed array of so-called jokes which offend everyone and everything from the professionalism of the police community to the LGBT community and the disabled, CHiPs is a textbook example of one man attempting to boost his egoistic capabilities by taking hold of a TV blueprint and throwing as much awfully constructed action and comedic set pieces at it as possible in order to overshadow how poor the movie actually is. Unfortunately for Shephard, the ridiculously unfunny narrative and sloppy direction only enhance the shoddiness of the overall finished picture, a picture which shares similar elements with the vile back catalogue of Adam Sandler in regards to how retrograde it comes across towards sex and the treatment of females in a "I can't believe they actually made this" kind of fashion. Whilst the response from fans of the original show has reportedly been less than positive, I would go as far to say that everyone who goes to see CHiPs will come out smiting the air in a retrospective feeling of contempt towards a film which is just so, so awful from start to finish. AVOID.

Overall Score: 2/10

Film Review: Life

"We're Looking At The First Proof Of Life Beyond Earth..."

Battling head-to-head this year with Alien: Covenant for the most obvious rip off of the original Ridley Scott classic, Alien (1978), Child 44 director Daniel Espinosa returns this week with Life, a sloppily directed and face-palm inducingly stupid science fiction movie which steals so many cues from previous and inherently better movies that I began to lose count just over the halfway mark. With an impressive cast, featuring the likes of the always superb Jake Gyllenhaal, Rebecca Ferguson and Ryan Reynolds, Life suffers from a fundamental flaw of failing to be something it really isn't, with its' utter silliness and complete lack of plausibility failing to stack up to the movie-maker's obvious intentions, resulting in a sometimes painful experience which exposes its' audience to a rough reek of sanctimony, particularly in a final act in which the film loses all sense of credibility due to wacky direction and a element of deafening inevitability. In a month in which Get Out reset the bar in regards to the power of contemporary horror movies, Life is unfortunately the type of film which just really lets the rest of the team down.

Whilst the film does boast an impressive leading alien species in the form of Calvin, a terrifyingly murderous martian which in a similar vein to the Alien franchise's Xenomorph's, feeds and grows at the rate of knots, Life doesn't entirely put the leading foes' effective features to good use, primarily due to a narrative which conflicts with the intellect of its' supposed lead characters who throughout the movie are incredibly prone to making the most obviously stupid decisions in order to crank the plot into a dramatic submission. Whilst the death of an early character is strikingly shocking in terms of both its' timing and the manner in which we are introduced to the power of Calvin the killer martian, the movie slowly loses its' element of suspense and threat, resulting in moments of utter tedium when there should have been particles of strong horror which I personally was looking forward to after being warned of within the opening BBFC classification. A messy sci-fi which weakens as it progresses, Life is surprisingly uninspiring and mediocre. Also, what is it with films using defibrillators in the wrong way? YOU CAN'T SHOCK A FLAT-LINE. Peace.

Overall Score: 4/10

Film Review: Get Out

"I Want Your Eyes, Man, I Want Those Things You See Through..."

Following on from the complete and utter nonsense spouted from the mouth of Samuel L. Jackson this month regarding the use of British black actors in lead roles within predominantly American based cinematic projects, first-time director Jordan Peele attempts to divert attention from such utter drivel this week by treating us to the release of Get Out, a film of which Mr. Jackson's ill-judged comments were heavily directed towards. If being judged entirely on the merit of its' trailers, Peele's directorial debut presented itself as an entirely bonkers and mouthwateringly interesting horror, one which seemed to come across as the most surreal and OTT horror movie of the past few years. Starring Daniel Kaluuya in the leading role, an actor arguably best known for his work on Charlie Brooker's Black Mirror and Denis Villeneuve's excellent Sicario in 2015, Get Out is as wacky and relentless as it's many formats of advertisement made it out to be, a brilliantly shocking and wholly entertaining work of genre-twisting mayhem which makes you jump, laugh and squelch at the utter ripeness of its' undeniable lunacy.

Unnerved by the potential racial tensions of meeting his girlfriend's family for the first time, Kaluuya's Chris is swiftly placed at the heart of a Stepford Wives-esque community who seem a tad bit too interested in his own individual well-being and presence amidst a minority of fellow black residents who seem weirder and weirder with every passing glance. What follows for the majority of the movie is a hypnotic, both metaphorical and literal, tale of Twilight Zone magnitude weirdness which evokes a wide range of classic horror tales from John Carpenter's Halloween to the more recent splatter-fest in the form of Adam Wingard's You're Next. Mixing in a variety of effectively timed jump-scares amidst an underlying element of rib-tickling comedy, Peele's debut is an outstanding addition to a supposedly tired format, with ripe as rainbow performances form most of its' cast evoking a chilling sensibility which arches towards a Wicker Man-esque narrative, Get Out is the type of movie destined for classic cult status. The best horror movie of the year so far and by a distance one of the most interesting of recent years, Get Out is the type of movie fans of classic horror movies pray and hope for.

Overall Score: 8/10

Film Review: Personal Shopper

"I'm Lost. I Can't Tell Whether Or Not I'm Going Crazy..."

Whilst many will link the complex aura of Kristen Stewart almost automatically to the Twilight franchise, her reputation as one of Hollywood's most interesting actors has increased delightfully over the course of the past few years, with her desire to work primarily away from the heavy headlines of big budgeted productions ultimately resulting in a change of perception from the moody teen vampire star to a truly remarkable and reliable screen presence. Continuing on from 2014's critically acclaimed Clouds of Sils Maria, Stewart reunites with director Olivier Assayas this week in Personal Shopper, a bone-chillingly creepy ghost story which although is undeniably original in execution, provides enough classic gothic horror motifs to appreciate the cine-literate nature of Assaya's direction which harks back to everything from The Haunting to a Mulholland Drive-esque air of ambiguity throughout its' more than appreciative runtime of 105 minutes. If it's cheap jump scares you're after, go watch Paranormal Activity, Personal Shopper is a marvellous platform for Stewart to work her unappreciated magic in a manner which is calculated with an utmost efficiency from its' impressive director. 

After the tragic loss of her twin brother, Kristen Stewart's Maureen, a self-proclaimed medium, capable of sensing and communicating with the afterlife, attempts to reconnect with her recently deceased twin in an attempt to seek closure and continue with her life in Paris where working as a personal shopper for Nora von Waldstätten's high-profile yet entirely egotistic fashion model, Kyra, is a financial necessity rather than a enjoyable pastime. After embracing the existence of an unknown spirit in her lost brother's previous home, Maureen becomes transfixed with the thrill of the unknown, resulting in a supposed game of cat and mouse between her world and the spirit world, concluding with dire and unexpected consequences. Featuring perhaps two of the most unnerving, bone-tingling scenes of recent years, Personal Shopper is a wildly subversive thriller which leaves the audience to fill in the blanks in a manner which totally understands and respects its' intended admirers. With Stewart in the leading role, her performance is both utterly mesmerising and entirely convincing, creating an air of tension in certain scenes which in the hands of others would have been completely lifeless and forgettable, particularly a long drawn-out scene in which our leading heroine communicates with her unknown admirer via smartphone. Between herself and director Assayas, Personal Shopper is another winning formula for the duo and is indeed one of the more interesting movies of the year so far. 

Overall Score: 8/10

Film Review: Beauty and the Beast

"Think Of The One Thing That You've Always Wanted. See It In Your Mind's Eye And Feel It In Your Heart..."

As per the norm of a well-spent 1990's childhood, Disney movies were indeed the go-to method of escapism for a younger version of myself in which films like The Lion King and Fantasia were at the forefront of what was all and sacred in the world at that specific moment in time, and whilst the original 1991 animated Disney classic adaptation of Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont's famous fairy tale wasn't exactly the top of my list of favourite animations as a young child, Beauty and the Beast has always been arguably one of the most iconic Disney movies to have ever been released, due mainly to the even more iconic soundtrack which even to this day is immediately quotable and enviously recognisable. Following on from the one-two success of both 2015's Cinderella and Jon Favreau's adaptation of The Jungle Book, this year's Disney remake is indeed the famous tale of beauty and beast, this time portrayed by Emma Watson and Legion's Dan Stevens respectively whilst being helmed by director Bill Condon whose previous directorial credits include the good, (Mr. Holmes) the bad, (Candyman 2) and the ugly (Twilight: Breaking Dawn), and whilst this latest version of the classic tale shines brightly in a wide range of different areas, the lack of originality and complete absence of threat reduce it to a movie which is solid but not exactly spectacular. 

Whilst last year's The Jungle Book was a movie which although was aware of the classic songs which encompassed the original Disney classic animation, it too was a film which instead of just rehashing them into a live-action scenario, developed and alternated them enough to both seem wholly organic yet still held a warm sense of appeal for those who loved the original so dearly. With Beauty and the Beast however, Condon's decision to simply cordon the classic songs into his own adaptation does ultimately seem a slight cop out alongside a narrative which note-for-note follows the blueprint of the 1991 animation without ever having the nerve to swerve off-course and offer something utterly different. In the leading role of Belle, Emma Watson does ultimately seem the correct choice for the part, with her innocent and natural beaming sense of joy the epitome of a Disney princess's genetic makeup yet the real fun of the movie is to be had with Luke Evan's Gaston, the egotistic and arrogant killer who makes it his life's duty to take Belle's hand in marriage. Whilst the cast is impressive and the effects are magical in places, this adaptation of the famous tale is indeed beaming with beauty but ultimately lacking in substantial bite. 

Overall Score: 6/10 

Film Review: Elle

"Both Of Us, It's Sickening. It's Perverse. I Was In Denial But Now It's All Very Clear..."

To say Paul Verhoeven is a man whose career is somewhat contrary in terms of both critical and financial success is on a similar vein when stating the current leader of the US of A isn't exactly held in the highest esteem, and whilst the infamous Dutch director is best known for the likes of cult favourites such as RoboCop, Starship Troopers and the excellent Phillip K. Dick influenced, Schwarzenegger starring, Total Recall, other cinematic ventures including Hollow Man and the hotly panned, Razzie-winning Showgirls, show that excellence isn't exactly the result every time the great Dane decides to release a new film. With Elle however, the highly publicised Oscar nomination for the film's leading star Isabelle Huppert follows in the footsteps of a large amount of hype, a reputation which we all are well aware of doesn't always result in an overly positive movie-going experience come release day. Thankfully for Verhoeven however, Elle is a gripping and wholly twisted depiction of sexual violence and subversive desires, whilst the portrayal of the most dysfunctional family in the past few years of so gives an air of black comedy to the film's wide range of elements which all in all make it a riveting success.

Helmed together by a simply majestic performance from leading star Isabelle Huppert, who throughout the movie is effortless in portraying a rape victim who cautiously and calmly finds her way to exact revenge on the person who wronged her, Elle features quite extensively a narrative which reasserts Verhoeven's knack for the genre-bending uncanny, taking all the sliminess and rough-toughness of previous movies such as Basic Instinct and Showgirls and forming them around a leading character who is both subversive in makeup yet undeniably interesting from start to finish. Whilst Elle is categorically not a film for the majority of audiences, the one-two duo of Verhoeven and Huppert have created a movie which stands head and shoulders above the limited amounts of erotic-based thrillers released in previous years (looking at you Fifty Shades) with its' quirky jet black sensibility propelling the finished article into a existential thriller which verges on the edge of total B-Movie splatter come the final act but ultimately one which is cautiously enjoyable nonetheless.

Overall Score: 8/10

Film Review: Free Fire

"I Forgot Whose Side I'm On..!"

With the release of High Rise last year, director Ben Wheatley has seemingly finally shot into the limelight of the widespread cinematic spotlight after years of being at the helm of some truly superb movies such as Sightseers and Kill List without breaking away from the eyes of the critical minorities and into the mindset of the average cinema-going mortal. Alongside taking the time to tackle the first two episodes of Peter Capaldi's reign as the Twelfth Doctor, Wheatley's contribution to the medium of escapist entertainment is a modern-day necessity, with his successful partnership with wife and screenwriter Amy Jump resulting in Wheatley arguably being the most interesting and dependable British director at this moment in time. With his latest release, Free Fire, Wheatley takes full advantage of his rising reputation with a superbly managed cast, including District 9 star Sharlto Copley, Cillian Murphy, Armie Hammer, Brie Larson and constant Wheatley contributor, Michael Smiley, all of whom are squeezed within the confines of a narrative which nods at a wide range of movies from Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs to the jet-black violence of Neil Marshall's Dog Soldiers, resulting in a laugh-out-loud and highly quotable piece of cinema from a director who clearly knows what it takes to have a good time at the cinema. 

Revolving wholly around a weapons deal gone south, Free Fire relies primarily on the black-hole comedic tropes fans of Ben Wheatley have come to learn of and love ever since his early days with Down Terrace and continuing throughout into Sightseers and last year's High Rise, with the blunt of the jokes seeped in B-Movie splatter alongside the embarrassing feeling of laughing at the levels of pain and suffering our on-screen criminals are put through throughout the course of a delightful 90 minute runtime. With a cast as vast as Free Fire's, the inevitably of feeling a utter lacking in terms of character development was indeed strictly adhered to, with Wheatley determined to throw in as many bullets and bruises as possible in order to keep the constant flow of enjoyment from ever dipping below the level the majority of the film sticks to from start to finish. Whilst this isn't strictly the case, with the movie's appeal starting to fade come just over the hour mark, Free Fire is one of the most enjoyable times I've had at the cinema so far this year, solidifying the notion that whether it's horror, socialite dramas or action, Ben Wheatley has the ability to do it all. On to the next one. 

Overall Score: 8/10

Film Review: Kong: Skull Island

"It's Time To Show Kong That Man Is King!"

As per the new craze of recent cinematic ventures, the newest big-screen franchising exploration comes in the form of classic Hollywood monsters being revamped and reissued in Legendary Entertainment's so-called "MonsterVerse", beginning of course with Rogue One director Gareth Edward's excellent Godzilla in 2014 and continuing this week with Kong: Skull Island, a "re-imagining" of the infamous giant ape who graces the big-screen for the first time since Peter Jackson's take on the character back in 2005. Helmed by The Kings of Summer director Jordan Vogt-Roberts, as well as featuring arguably one of the best casts of the year with Tom Hiddleston, Brie Larson, John Goodman and Samuel L. Jackson all vying for screen time, Skull Island is the type of movie which justifies the existence of IMAX-infused mega screens, with the trailer alone being rife with a heightened sense of spectacle and splendour. As for the finished article, Skull Island is indeed the silly, OTT monster-mad movie I think many were expecting without ever pushing the boundaries of being anything more than such.

Light on characterisation yet heavy on the spectacular at times, Skull Island is inherently silly from beginning to end, with a runtime which feels almost half the length of Peter Jackson's epic adaptation but too feels completely different in tone, relying on the effects-heavy production of giant spiders, murderous "skull-crawlers" and of course the titular Kong himself rather than any meaningful contribution to fleshing out its' leading stars in a manner which took up the first hour of Jackson's movie back in 2005. Helping the film along in its' choppily edited fashion is the rip-roaring sound of the 70's, with a soundtrack which ranges from Black Sabbath to David Bowie. evoking the shadow of a film like Apocalypse Now, an argument particularly obvious due to Skull Island's Vietnam War setting, whilst the CGI-fuelled monster-battles feel almost too much like a Jurassic World rip-off at times to be put in the same league of jaw-dropping splendour as its' predecessor within the same cinematic universe, Godzilla. Much likes its' titular ape, Skull Island is a big and fluffy piece of escapism which knows what it wants to be and doesn't attempt to be anything more. Yeah, that's right, Kong is very fluffy. Well, sort of.

Overall Score: 7/10

Catch-Up Film Review: Fences

"Some People Build Fences To Keep People Out And Other People Build Fences To Keep People In..."

Before we begin, a small round of applause is needed alongside a suitable level of kudos for Viola Davis, with a win for best supporting actress at this year's Academy Awards by no means a small, meaningless feat, and whilst most of the hype surrounding Fences has been towards its' two leading stars in the form of Davis and Denzel Washington, who also serves up the time to act as the film's director, the fact that these two have previous in regards to the late August Wilson's famous play gives the cinematic adaptation at least a suitable level of credence regarding its' existence on the big-screen, particularly after the success of the stage play both during its' first run in the 1980's and its' revival in 2010 of which Davis and Washington both starred and won subsequent Tony Awards for. The big question remains however is whether Fences is the type of movie which ultimately works on the big screen after its' success on stage, and whilst Washington's adaptation feels like a successful larger platform for its' leading stars to flourish, the overall execution is somewhat plodding in places, over-dramatic in parts and a movie which doesn't exactly break the chains of its' stage-constructed genetic code. 

Whilst Davis reaps the historical element in terms of her Oscar win, which in retrospect and in my own personal opinion deserved to go to Naomie Harris for Moonlight, Washington is without doubt the powerhouse element of the movie, portraying the character of Troy Maxson in a manner both entirely delicate and masterful that the audience's feelings towards such changes from hatred to sympathetic in the course of a few simple scene changes. A forgotten man whose regret and failures resonate on those around him, the character of Maxson is the archetypal father figure of the mid 20th century; bullish, hateful and hell bent on the outdated rule of adhering to generic gender and familial conventions, Washington is spellbinding from beginning to end. Where the film inevitably falls down is in the rather tedious elements in which it fails to disperse itself from its' stage-based heritage, with endless, trivial moments of ludicrously over-dramatised dialogue which honestly, do not sit entirely right on the big-screen, resulting in a feeling of willingness come the end to be sat in a smoky auditorium instead, revelling in the notion of witnessing a live performance of a tale which is albeit powerful, is inherently stage-worthy.

Overall Score: 6/10

Film Review: Fist Fight

"We're Gonna Handle Our Differences Like Real Men..."

When reviewing a film such as Fist Fight, the first thing you have to realise is that the Ice Cube which is top-billed on such a movie is indeed the same Ice Cube famous for being the great wordsmith which invigorated the gangsta rap scene in the late 1980's with N.W.A and indeed the same Ice Cube whose latter-day career choices include seemingly blundering into a continuous array of comedy-based cinematic projects, with only a few actually being of some notable success such as 21 Jump Street and erm, 22 Jump Street. It comes as no real shock therefore that Fist Fight is nothing more than a lazy, thoughtless and cringe-worthy attempt of a comedy, with awful dialogue, a dwindling, lacklustre narrative, and one of the most pain-inducing performances I have ever seen from Charlie Day in a leading role which consists of a character who is slated for being friendly and kind and instead finds redemption and a sense of purpose by resorting to drug dealing, swearing at minors and unreasonable levels of violence. You know, all those things which make you "cool" nowadays. 

Although running for a reasonable length of 90 minutes, Fist Fight is one of those movies in which you absolutely feel every single second drag past until you reach a conclusion and final act which not only is generically mediocre, but smiles at you whilst it crackles at the thought of the money the audience has paid to watch such a dire attempt of a comedy. Although the blame doesn't entirely lie at the feet of Ice Cube, it just baffles me why this is the kind of film in which he has settled for after a strong start to an acting career which started with the likes of Boyz in the Hood and the culty favourite Friday, yet the real loser of the show is indeed Charlie Day who screams his way into a leading role which laughs at the state of modern-day education, resulting in the first case of a fictional character this year who has actively driven me to a straightforward high level of hatred. Saddled with jokes about underage sex, statutory rape, drug use, casual racism and a clanger of a mis-step in the form of a incredibly young child relaying lyrics from Big Sean to an audience of similarly aged children, Fist Fight is just poop from beginning to end. That's right, poop. I can be a child sometimes too. 

Overall Score: 3/10

Film Review: Logan

"Nature Made Me A Freak. Man Made Me A Weapon, And God Made It Last Too Long..."

With the monumental success of Marvel's Deadpool last year, the inevitably of a sudden spike in similarly R-Rated comic-based movies was somewhat unavoidable, with Suicide Squad being the first to match the all-swearing, all-shooting red guy in terms of regressing to a somewhat more "adult" nature with naughty swear words and a level of sexual awareness which was unbeknown to the vast majority of audiences who simply couldn't believe a film could actually be made, let alone be a success. Whilst Deadpool was a middling critical success, Suicide Squad on the other hand was a film which at the time seemed no more than a utter disappointment, yet in almost six months retrospective can only be regarded as an utter, utter clanger. Attempting to establish themselves as the leading figure of recent R-Rated superhero adaptations this week is Logan, a continuation of the X-Men/Wolverine movie franchise directed by James Mangold, famous for movies such as Walk The Line, 3:10 to Yuma and The Wolverine, and of course starring Hugh Jackman in a leading role which since 2000 has arguably been his most iconic and eye-catching amongst the many X-Men movies which have graced our screens over the last 17 years. Most impressively, Logan is indeed the movie everyone wanted since the film first began to play its' cards in pre-production, but more importantly, it is the film the superhero genre needed. Forget Deadpool, Logan is the ultra-adult, ultra-violent and swear-tastic Marvel film we've all been waiting for. 

Set in 2029, an elderly Wolverine strives for survival in the heat of the Mexican border alongside a severely ill Professor X within a world in which the mutant race has all but been wiped out with no sign of a mutant birth in over 20 years in a Children of Men style world crisis. After colliding into the life of young Laura however, Logan is forced to battle his demons and seek closure not only from his own life and the past he most desperately is seeking to leave behind, but for the future of mutants entirely. With Logan being released half way through the week, my view count of the movie has already hit the lofty heights of two, resulting in a much more aligned opinion of a movie in which hype and excitement has once again preceded its' release. With the parallels between Logan and Deadpool almost inevitable, the difference between the two is astronomical in terms of tone and overall satisfaction levels with the former being a hard-hitting tale of age and loss and the latter just an open canvas for a silly, albeit moderately enjoyable, teenage fantasy of sex, violence and breaking of the fourth wall. Logan is the type of movie in which pain is transposed from screen to audience, with the sharp swoosh of Wolverine's claws being as piercing as they are deadly, resulting in a wide array of foes and enemies which are violently massacred in jaw-dropping moments of action which bring to mind everything from Kill Bill to The Raid.  

One of the main questions arising from the release of Logan however is why has it taken this long to finally see a Wolverine this exciting and deadly? With Hugh Jackman on top-form almost every time he kicks into the character of Wolverine, the foresight of witnessing a rip-roaring Logan in his prime is mouthwatering to say the least and although Mangold's movie does indeed mark the end for both Jackman's portrayal of the iconic character and Patrick Stewart as Professor X, Logan is the melancholic, character-based superhero movie no one was really expecting, yet a movie which makes crystal clear sense in regards to a conclusion for characters which have graced our screens for nearly two decades. Whilst not exactly The Dark Knight in terms of overall superhero greatness, Logan is a surprisingly powerful Westernised drama which just happens to feature mutants. Obviously Jackman deserves to take the plaudits for his conflicted and degrading portrayal of the titular hero, but kudos too belongs to Stewart and newcomer Dafne Keen whose ambiguity and bad-assery threatens to steal the limelight away from her elder counterparts. Logan is excellent, there are no two ways about it, with the second viewing only increasing the levels of enjoyment of which the film secretes throughout a running time which simply flies by. A fitting end for one of the most iconic big-screen characters of this millennium so far, Logan is brill. That cross turn bro, that cross turn.

Overall Score: 8/10