San Andreas

As I am not a resident of New York, LA or any major city in the world with an instantly recognisable skyline I know that I have little to fear from any end of the world type situations.  Despite my high chances of survival there is something about disaster films that terrify me.  I lost weeks of sleep after Deep Impact and the dodgy script isn’t the scariest thing about Titanic.  The trailer for San Andreas looked like classic disaster type fare with the added bonus of Dwayne Johnson’s sweaty headed intensity.  It was an easy sell.

PLOT:  After several earthquakes hit California helicopter pilot Ray (Dwayne Johnson) commandeers his ‘copter and sets off to rescue his ex-wife (Carla Gugino) and thirty year old teenage daughter Blake (Alexandra Daddario).  We finally find out where Rickon Stark went and The Rock squares off against a tidal wave.  END PLOT

I judge anyone who paid good money to see San Andreas and then cried out in shock and alarm that the plot of the film was not a complex think piece subtly hinting at mankind’s destruction of the world.  San Andreas was never intended to be anything more than a leave your brain at the door film and this was fine with me.  The five people in San Francisco that have names survive a series of events that grow in both spectacle and ridiculousness and I was fully invested in the ride.

Despite my ability to go with the flow my love of Dwayne Johnson is what made it easy to enjoy the film.  Johnson is watchable and looks good driving a range of vehicles in dramatic situations.  Carla Gugino and Alexandra Daddario are very capable in their clichéd roles of ex-wife and daughter-in-danger.  The cast also contained my favourite sad-sack Paul Giamatti.  Giamatti is saddled with the task of making the science seem intelligent whilst hiding under a tiny desk and I enjoyed his limited screen time very much. 

The action scenes are loud and messy and San Francisco is successfully destroyed with the earthquake taking out the characters that were the biggest dicks first.  Poor Kyle Minogue.  The body count was suspiciously low but I put that down to Giamatti’s well delivered warnings about getting the fuck out of dodge in a calm and orderly fashion.  There were a few tense moments but thankfully the American flag blowing gently in the breeze at the end of the film gave me confidence that the people of California would endure. 

San Andreas is pure cinematic nonsense and I thoroughly enjoyed watching the stupidity unfold.  If you hated the film I can understand why but you can keep your distain to yourself.  I had a great time in what will probably be one of the most enjoyable cinema trips of the summer.  San Andreas gets 7/10.  Dwayne Johnson makes everything seem better than what it is.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2

 

Under normal circumstances I would begin my blog by subtly bragging that I got to see The Amazing Spider-Man 2 before the American audience but my feelings about this particular franchise are so minuscule I would get no pleasure from it.  There is nothing I particularly dislike about Spider-Man but there isn’t anything about Peter Parker's story that catches my interest.  I think it is fair to admit that the cast is the only reason that I went to see The Amazing Spider-Man 2.

PLOT:  Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield) is now a confident wise cracking Spider-Man and is still dating Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone).  Peter is having Denis Leary flashbacks and suffers from abandonment issues.  Angst.  Peter reconnects with his oldest-yet-never-mentioned-before-best-friend Harry Osborne (Dane DeHann).  Harry also has abandonment issues.  Angst.  Jamie Fox mixes electric, water and eels and ends up like the bastard love child of Drs Doom and Manhattan.  The residents of New York cheer/boo the heroes/villains like a WWE audience whilst hiding behind a seemingly indestructible police barrier.  Angst.  END PLOT.

The plot of The Amazing Spider Man 2 is surprisingly uninspiring and on more than one occasion I found myself getting a little bored. The film clocks in at a mammoth 2hours 22mins and unfortunately for the casual fan this is a good 45mins too long as there were times when the film ground to a halt.  There is more melodrama than a teen soap and the action scenes are few and far between.  The amount of time Peter Parker spent in his spider suit was oddly limited.  Sometimes more is more.

Andrew Garfield is perfectly cast as Peter Parker.  He handles the overabundance of angst levels with little effort and is as watchable as ever.  Garfield also shows that he can handle zippy one liners just as easily.  Emma Stone, a favourite of mine, manages to make Gwen Stacy one of the most likeable love interests in history.  Although the chemistry between Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone was sizzling hot there was more will they/won’t they relationship nonsense between Peter and Gwen than the entire ten year Ross and Rachel saga. If you can stomach the teenage angst then you will be rewarded by a legitimately tense final act which is when The Amazing Spider-Man 2 finally springs into life.

Dane DeHann is an actor that I thoroughly enjoy watching and his portrayal of Harry Osborne was essentially his audition tape to play a drunk and petulant Leonardo DiCaprio in a future biopic.  I am immensely looking forward to the Oscar ceremony when DeHann wins a best actor award for an impersonation of Leonardo DiCaprio and if Fate enjoys Internet memes it will be before DiCaprio wins his own coveted Oscar.  DeHann’s performance aside the introduction of Harry Osborne and his defection to the dark side was far too rushed. 

The action, when it came, was typical Spider-Man fare.  Any scene with Spider-Man flying through New York is a pleasure to watch and there were a few chuckles to be had during these moments.  The Amazing Spider-Man 2 has a very good action packed opening but unfortunately it was downhill from there.  The final confrontation is a by the numbers CGI battle which is saved by emotional shocks and the performances of the cast. 

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 seems happy enough to be solid summer fare and nothing more.  If it weren’t for Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone and Dane DeHann I would be tempted to use the word “lazy”.  Marc Webb played it safe.  Even the title is safe.  It will make its money but it will be crushed by some of the bigger films yet to come and deservedly so.

On the Paul Giamatti scale of “I don’t give a fuck 'cause I’m enjoying myself” The Amazing Spider Man 2 gets a 6/10.

Ides of March

The latter half of 2011 has given us quite a lot of Ryan Gosling and I am quite surprised just how little he was on my radar prior to September of this year.  October sees yet another Gosling release with Ides of March.

PLOT:  Stephen (Ryan Gosling) is an idealistic young political consultant working on the campaign of Governor Mike Morris (George Clooney) in a bid to have him become the Democratic nominee for the presidency.  Stephen agrees to meet with Tom Duffy (Paul Giamatti) the campaign manager of Morris’ opponent and from there a series of events snowballs which leads to Stephen being fired from the campaign.  Stephen must decide whether or not he is prepared to stick to his morals or get immersed in the dirty world of politics and get the man he once admired into the White House.  END PLOT

The film is written and directed by George Clooney and whilst the plot is purposefully slow it still manages to be very engaging.  The problem is the script wasn’t written by Aaron Sorkin, who is no stranger to political dialogue, and therefore it lacked the punch it needed to really lift the film.

Ryan Gosling is quickly becoming one of those actors who say very little but can portray so much with a look.  If Gosling chooses his next couple of roles wisely he is suddenly going to find himself having a very respectable career indeed.

Philip Seymour Hoffman was very good as Stephen’s campaign manager Paul however Paul Giamatti stole the show as Tom Duffy.  The way that Tom played, outsmarted and defeated Stephen was very devious and Giamatti does play an intelligent villain very well.

George Clooney is George Clooney in an over extended cameo.  This is not a compliment. 

Although Clooney’s script wasn’t as strong as the film’s tone required he didn’t fare too badly on the directing front.  There were two exceptionally well put together shots the first being between Governor Morris and Paul. 

This particular conversation takes place inside a car and although the audience already knows the outcome of the discussion the camera stays outside and we do not hear or see what is being said.  I found myself trying to peer in through heavily tinted windows to get a glimpse of what was going on – there was no music at this stage so the tension was very high.

The second would be the final shot which ended with a voiceover from Morris speaking about integrity and honesty, the main themes of the film, with Stephen staring straight down the camera lens at the audience.  I absolutely loved this moment.

Ides of March is such a slow paced film with all the drama taking place in a hushed manner that I fear people will either love it or hate it - I absolutely loved it and the film gets a very strong 8/10.   That being said I do not think that Ides of March is strong enough for any Oscar nominations although with stronger scripting it may have stood a chance.  If anything Ides of March solidifies the acting talent of those involved and by those involved I mean anyone who is not George Clooney.