Film Review: Independence Day: Resurgence

"That's Definitely Bigger Than The Last One..."

Here we are slap bang right in the middle of the great British summer where rain fades our dream of a the rare sweltering heat wave and anticipated blockbusters sink faster than the titanic after receiving hit after hit of critical slam-dunking by journalists and bloggers alike. Already in the month of June we have the nomination for worst film of the decade in the from of Gods of Egypt and Independence Day:Resurgence swiftly follows suit in the latter's bewildering terribleness with wooden acting, ridiculously hollow CGI and a screenplay so boring I actually managed to fall asleep for twenty minutes during the showing, Roland Emmerich's long-awaited sequel to the 1996 popcorn-infused thrill ride is an overblown turkey of the highest order, a turkey that not only looks like it has been commissioned for the sole purpose of a quick buck but one that completely tarnishes the memory of the original. It's not Gods of Egypt bad, but it's close.

So what's new Roland? Big alien spaceship once again decides to destroy the planet whilst Jeff Goldblum's creaky scientist tries to appear to know what he's doing amongst a mad ex-president and a surprisingly awful Charlotte Gainsbourg and a Will Smith lookalike who bears no resemblance in both charm and character to the Fresh Prince whatsoever. Add into the mix overblown CGI and stone-cold humour which received not one laugh during my particular screening and Independence Day: Resurgence is quite simply a complete waste of time, talent and millions of dollars. Somewhere in hell there is indeed a multiplex showing a double header of both this and Gods of Egypt and to have both films being released within the space of just a week, it makes me fear for what's to come for the rest of the year. Roland, your film stinks. And I hope you know it.

Overall Score: 2/10

Film Review: The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part Two

"Turn Your Weapons To The Capitol! Turn Your Weapons To Snow..."

Looking back at my time growing up as a teenager, it is rather fair to say that in terms of cinematic experiences that was forged during my development from child-minded youngster to well, child-minded adult, that I, and many others of similar age, were well and truly spoiled. I mean come on, we had the reinvention of fantasy epics with The Lord of the Rings, the angsty teen family friendly years of Harry Potter, and the re-invention of both the Bond and the Batman films, with The Dark Knight still being a huge turning point in terms of my understanding of what makes a truly great cinematic memory. This complete spoilage of greatness during my own personal childhood has only received further gratitude in recent times when examining the recent implosion of child-targeted franchises hoping to fill the gaps that series' such as Harry Potter vacated when they came to their concluding tales, most of which have seen that the teen-led dystopian universe is the right way to go. Although The Hunger Games series definitely is the leader of the pack when it comes to such, beating the Divergent and Maze Runner series' hands down, its' concluding tale in the form of Mockingjay - Part Two is an unfortunate mess, leaving the legacy of such a franchise ending with a whim, rather than a stage of defiance and strength in a vein similar to its' titular character.

If you aren't already well and truly versed in the plot-lines of the whole Hunger Games saga, there really is not much point attempting to try and explain almost seven hours worth of backstory right now except from the fact that the entire series is basically Battle Royale with cheese (yes, I loved that too Pulp Fiction fans) where aside from the rather important and intelligent notions of dystopian futures, uprisings and a fight against tyranny, something of which would give George Orwell a run for his money, The Hunger Games franchise has always seemed to be rather misplaced in my own personal point of view due to a variety of reasons that seem to come full circle in its' concluding chapter. Firstly, aside from Jennifer Lawrence well and truly embracing the role of Katniss Everdeen, a character in which is meant to symbolise a role model for many fans of the series, there really isn't one other character in which I can truly say I feel heavily invested in both emotionally and mentally. Because of this, the entirety of MJ Part One was rather a significant bore, with way too many scenes of exposition and explanation and much too less of actually getting to the point, highlighting the argument for why these concluding parts were not just made into one film rather than two. 

Such a problem continues in MJ Part Two, where scenes of excruciatingly dull dialogue are played out far too long too often in comparison to scenes of vital importance which are sped through way too quickly, resulting in a sense of continuous questioning and a jump between states of sheer boredom and utter confusion. Thankfully, with Lawrence in the titular role as the Mockingjay, such scenes are saved from total extinction with her performance as the "girl on fire", continuing her rather brilliant start to life as an actress, whilst the seedy, ice-like figure of the wonderful Donald Sutherland as the ruthless autocratic President Snow is also a trait in the film's favour. Amid scenes of sheer tension, particularly one in which our heroes and heroines venture into the city's sewers, is times in which the film's fundamental dark subject matter come into force, particularly in one scene in which we witness a mass gathering of children being blown to pieces, and it is here where the age-old question of classification comes into account, with MJ Part Two, being definitely in the category of top-end 12A's. In other words, do not take your seven year old child to see this. You may scar them for life.

Obviously as I am not a die-hard fan of the series, MJ Part Two was never going to fulfill all my expectations entirely, but the fact that the concluding chapter of this franchise is made in such a terrible fashion upsets me personally on behalf of its' core fans. It's messy, it's overlong, it features the worse love-triangle since Twilight, MJ Part Two for me, was a severe let-down from my already mediocre expectations, ending on a sour note rather than a show of brilliance that the first two in the series brought with it. At the end of the day, it may be a suitable end to the Mockingjay series for some, but for me, Mockingjay - Part Two was a wholly mediocre affair, too hell bent on getting too much done too quickly whilst reeling on the lack of assured substance and depth that may have been accomplished if made into one film rather than two for the sake of the accountants. And boy, that ending was truly terrible. 

Overall Score: 5/10

Hunger Games: Catching Fire - Review - SPOILERS

As an excessive internet fiend, I've been involved with many communities on the internet, particularly Tickld.com (go check it out!). My involvement with this community brings many fandoms to my attention on a regular basis and anything that involves Jennifer Lawrence tends to be fairly popular. With the constant push of these groupies, I caved in and watched the first of this series, the night before we saw Catching Fire. Unfortunately, I was let down. I'm still adamant that the Hunger Games is just Battle Royale with cheese and less blood. I had high expectations of violence, excitement and characters that would grasp my interest. After my disappointment and being reassured that the second book in the series is far more action packed, I went in with hope. What I've failed to grasp is the tween audience and devout love for everything and everything related to it, but it could be worse, they could have been "Beliebers"...

Carrying on. With a lot of hope, I sat through the movie. Considering I haven't read the books, I was a bit pissed with the cliffhanger ending but otherwise, it was alright.Very little has changed from the first film. a lot of shit is still going on, riots have put various districts under lock down and general discomfort feeds a waiting beast. The only thing that has really changed is the settings for "Peeta" and Katniss which lacks any of the suspected riches. A year has rolled on, comfortably living in their shabby mansions with little colour and all the aesthetics of a mental institute plucked from Batman's Gotham city; suddenly joined by Tim Burton's wet dream - Effie Trinket (Elizabeth Banks), garnered in vividly sickening colours with influence from Medieval England and a bin, she begins spluttering about some tour across the districts and all that jazz. As I couldn't work out a name for this tour, lets call it the, "Look how rich I am because I won a game tour of 2013". Funnily enough, Katniss was oblivious to the riots she caused with the salute mid-game and notices an impending trend which she begins to abuse. Noticing that it gets people killed, she backed

up and did what she was told. Until, you guessed it, the Hunger Games. Each districts winners are called upon for the 75th anniversary slaughtering because grumpy old president doesn't like being beaten. Once the big baby is satisfied, the games start but don't end in your typical fashion. Yeah, so as a story, it's pretty easy to deduct how big plot pieces unfolds with a few additional little surprises tucked away. Even if I had watched the previous movie on release day, I could have jumped into this movie without worrying to much about a complicated story line and forgetting everything that previously happened.

I'd like to pick on the visuals a little. I'm an ass for good CGI and FX from big budget movies but there is certainly occasions that I have to question what on earth they were thinking. At one point there  centre island and the water effect around it lost a lot of it's focus and resolution and some of the rocks genuinely looked like set props from the Flintstones movie. I fully understand that the Hunger Games world is representing the deformities between the bourgeois and proletariat with the upper classes manipulation of those with little power but I feel it really misses the potential to really portray it after the whole Occupy movement, but I digress. On a positive note, the CGI for the baboons was far better than the ass-faced 'dogs' from the end of the previous movie. But then we get to a few of the deaths. If you're going to walk about without a top, I would at least like to see some blood when you get shot in the chest with an arrow.

Being that Jennifer Lawrence won an Oscar for her performance in Silver Linings Playbook, It's a common belief that they could continue this streak through their other projects. Occasionally, it felt as if she was really struggling to push Katniss. It's hard to get much when he doesn't play much of a role in the actual fighthing too. When Katniss has to act joyfully and blissful, she can do that but it's nothing we don't expect from a person that is a very much the same. It's when she has to portray despair, fear and the really raw emotion. Perhaps not Michael Fassbender's breakdown in The Counsellor with snot smearing his face like a Jackson Pollock painting, but a medium. This issue probably falls on the script and poor directing for not really exploring her to give J.Law some form of platform. Peter, or the incompetent way of spelling it - 'Peeta' (Josh Hutcherson) is a fairly standard role. With very little context to him, he's once again left out by a weak script that makes him look like a giant pussy. The rest are fairly standard, Liam Hemsworth decided he'd tag along and take a bit more time on screen but then just blends back into the ether for the rest of the film. Philip Sermour Hoffman is probably the strongest of the cast, he powers through the lines and enjoys to play a game like a cunning fox, throwing you from pillar to post wondering what he'd do next and redeem himself for playing both sides of the fence.

With all of it's flaws, the film is better than it's predecessor. Not massively but a little better. Created for teens, I may just be an old git. The overall will probably be a 7/10. The script is weak and reflects on everyone. Without the aggression, you never feel the rush of excitement that is a foundation for anything action. A few of the FX were weak and I just longed for more from a production of it's size.
Sorry for the chaotic review. I've been procrastinating all week and it's a bit of a mess so I could get a review up for Saving Mr Banks tomorrow!