Film Review: San Andreas

San Andreas. Rated M (disaster themes and coarse language). 114 minutes. Directed by Brad Peyton. Screenplay by Carlton Cuse.

Verdict: Perfectly distracting, and instantly forgettable, entertainment on a grand scale.

As over-produced, B-grade, disaster movies go, it’s impossible to fault this spectacular attempt to ensure we forget our day-to-day woes for at least a couple of hours. As purely escapist entertainment, San Andreas is faultless – full of sensational special effects and eye-popping sequences of destruction on an almost ridiculous scale. Just don’t make the fatal mistake of thinking too deeply about it, because that is when San Andreas (much like the entire West Coast of the USA), falls apart completely.

Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson is Ray, a search and rescue helicopter pilot who is famous for pulling off extremely dangerous missions. Sadly, he was unable to rescue one of his daughters, Mallory, from drowning – a fact that destroyed his marriage to Emma (Carla Gugino) who has sought solace (and a much nicer house) for herself and their surviving daughter Blake (Alexandra Daddario), in the company of property developer Daniel Riddick (Ioan Gruffudd).

As a ‘swarm’ of earthquakes along the infamous San Andreas Fault begin to decimate the West Coast, Ray and Emma put their differences behind them and race to save Blake, and her newfound heroic friends Ben (Hugo Johnstone-Burt) and his cheeky young brother Ollie (Art Parkinson), from certain death.

To their unending credit, the cast give the cringe-worthy dialogue and nonsensical material all they’ve got. Johnson’s bluff, bluster and screen-hogging biceps are infinitely watchable, while Paul Giamatti, as Lawrence the seismology professor, lends the film genuine gravitas. The Hoover Dam-shattering sequences that kick the movie off work even more effectively because of what Giamatti’s nerdy professor has invested in them – an urgent need for the science relating to how our planet is dying to be taken more seriously than it currently is. But might that be thinking about it all a little too deeply?

This review was commissioned by the West Australian Newspaper Group.

Film Review: Spy

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Spy. Rated MA15+ (strong violence, coarse language and brief nudity). 120 minutes. Written and Directed by Paul Feig.

Verdict: A star turn from Melissa McCarthy manages to maintain our interest.

With his smash-hit romp Bridesmaids (2011), Feig launched himself, and one of the film’s stars Melissa McCarthy, into the heights of the comedy stratosphere. Bridesmaids became one of the most talked-about films of the year, gleefully dividing audiences straight down the line between those who adored its ribald, no holds barred hilarity, and those who found it all too obnoxious, crude and over-rated.

Whatever side of the Bridesmaids debate you were on may well define exactly how much you enjoy Feig’s modestly enjoyable plundering of the espionage genre.

Susan Cooper (McCarthy) is the ‘voice in the ear’ of one of the FBI’s celebrated field agents Bradley Fine (Jude Law). Using state-of-the-art tracking software at FBI HQ, Cooper guides Ford through a dangerous mission to discover the whereabouts of a nuclear device that the mysterious Rayna Boyanov (Rose Byrne) has on the market to the highest bidder. When Ford is assassinated and the identities of all the other undercover FBI agents (including Jason Statham’s wonderfully resentful, rogue agent Rick Ford) are revealed, a guilt-ridden Cooper volunteers to take on the challenge of uncovering the bomb’s location to save the world from nuclear annihilation.

Feig’s screenplay is a good deal more ambitious than he is capable of delivering directorially, and while there are certainly some unforgettable sequences and some hilarious dialogue, the film struggles to maintain the breath-draining pace and equilibrium that it needs in order to feel like the gold-plated comedy experience it is trying a little too hard to be.

McCarthy, though, is brilliant, and Spy would be instantly forgettable if it wasn’t for her exceptional clowning skills and the extent to which she wholeheartedly throws herself both at, and into, the role of the endearing agent Cooper.

This review was commissioned by the West Australian Newspaper Group.

Film Review: Mad Max: Fury Road

Mad Max: Fury Road. Rated MA15+ (strong violence and post-apocalyptic themes). 120 minutes. Directed by George Miller. Screenplay by George Miller, Brendan McCarthy and Nick Lathouris.

Verdict: A masterpiece.

It’s been thirty years since we last spent time in the company of George Miller’s ‘Mad’ Max Rockatansky (Mel Gibson). It was 1985’s Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. Before that was 1981’s Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior, and the ground-breaking movie that started it all, 1979’s Mad Max.

So how do you prepare to experience a film that has been thirty years in the making? After the epic disappointment (in similar circumstances) that was Ridley Scott’s Prometheus, there is always a danger that a keenly anticipated film might not have a chance of being as good as we want, or even need, it to be.

Fear not, because Mad Max: Fury Road is, in a word, magnificent. It is, in fact, beyond magnificent. It is a film of such complete, jaw-dropping cinematic mastery in every way that after the first astonishing twenty minutes, you will find yourself wondering where on earth Miller (Happy Feet 1 and 2, Lorenzo's Oil, The Witches of Eastwick) and his superb collaborators have left to go. The answer is, miraculously, everywhere and back again.

The screenplay is all fascinating, lean, cinematic muscle – creating a world where actions speak much louder than words and manage to say a good deal more. Photographed from every impossible angle by veteran cinematographer John Seale, scored majestically by Junkie XL, and edited to breathtaking perfection by Margaret Sixel and Jason Ballantine, Fury Road also boasts visionary work from costume designer Jenny Beavan and production designer Colin Gibson.

The performances from Miller’s outstanding cast are exceptional, but the stand-out is Charlize Theron. In a performance of immense emotional range, it is Theron’s Furiosa who matches the cars, trucks, weaponry, pageantry and gob-smacking stunt work, blowout-for-blowout.

This review was commissioned by the West Australian Newspaper Group.

Film Review: Pitch Perfect 2

Pitch Perfect 2. Rated M (sexual references). 115 minutes. Directed by Elizabeth Banks. Screenplay by Kay Cannon.

Verdict: A hugely entertaining sequel that lights up the big screen.

As surely as the sun will set, sequels to smash hit movies will eventually find their way onto our cinema screens. In the case of this sequel to Pitch Perfect (2012), it’s a welcome relief to discover that instead of trying, unsuccessfully, to reinvent what worked the first time around, Banks (making an assured feature-length directorial debut) and Cannon (Pitch Perfect, 30 Rock), play to all the first film’s undeniable strengths and deliver a sequel that is almost superior to its predecessor.

After a disastrous televised live performance in front of the President and First Lady of the United States, the Bellas are suspended from auditioning new members and from performing in the US. Facing the end of their dreams of a capella stardom, the girls discover a loophole in the terms of their suspension, which means that they can compete in the European titles in Copenhagen. The big challenge will be regaining the confidence to take on their nemesis, German supergroup Das Sound Machine.

One of the key aspects to the success of a sequel is ensuring that as many of the original cast members return to reprise their roles, a feat that Pitch Perfect 2 has achieved with great success. While the performances are effervescent, the standout is Cannon’s screenplay, which is the perfect fusion of musicality, personal drive and ambition, romance (although thankfully nothing too tense or complicated) and some fantastic laughs, of which Rebel Wilson (Fat Amy) and Adam DeVine (Bumper) get the majority share with which to have an absolute ball. Wilson (who clowns with the very best of them) canoeing across a huge lake to woo Bumper, is just one of the hilarious sequences that is guaranteed to have you laughing like you won’t have laughed in the cinema yet this year.

This review was commissioned by the West Australian Newspaper Group.

Film Review: Unfriended

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Unfriended. Rated MA15+ (strong themes, violence and coarse language). 83 minutes. Directed by Levan Gabriadze. Screenplay by Nelson Greaves.

Verdict: This ingenious little film packs a seriously big punch.

Having risen from anonymity to become the go-to horror flick of the year so far, Unfriended is a nerve-shattering cinematic experience that breaks all the rules in a way that hasn’t been done this brilliantly since The Blair Witch Project (1999).
 
Taking place entirely on Blaire’s (Shelley Hennig) laptop screen, Unfriended begins with Blaire watching a YouTube video of her good friend Laura Barns (Heather Sossaman) taking her own life. Laura had suffered extraordinary levels of online abuse and bullying, and the final, fatal decision she makes is brutally shocking.

In an effort to distract herself from the horror, Blaire hooks up with her boyfriend Mitch (Moses Storm) on Skype for a video chat. Their private conversation is soon interrupted by their friends Adam (Will Peltz), Jess (Renee Olstead) and Ken (Jacob Wysocki), and the group engage in some light-hearted banter. But when an anonymous caller joins the conversation, it quickly becomes apparent that this catch-up is not going to end at all well.

As the extent of the fear, panic and almost unbearable levels of tension and horror mount, Blair darts chaotically between the Skype video conference call with her friends, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Google in an effort to find out why the intruder is targeting them. Gabriadze’s is a supremely effective (and ridiculously simple) way of telling the story, and his ensemble of previously little-known talent respond with outstanding performances.

Powered by the devastating effects of cyber-bullying, Greaves’ screenplay refuses to side-step the issues associated with this disturbingly common phenomenon. That Unfriended is aimed squarely at the audience most likely to experience it makes Unfriended more than a terrific horror movie. It also makes it a timely and important one.

Lifeline 13 11 14 (24-hour telephone service)
crisischat.lifelinewa.org.au (online chat service)
Kids Help Line 1800 55 1800 (24-hour telephone service) www.kidshelp.com.au

This review was commissioned by the West Australian Newspaper Group.