Film Review: How to Train Your Dragon 2

How to Train Your Dragon 2. Rated PG (mild fantasy themes and violence). 102 minutes. Written and directed by Dean DeBlois. Based on the novels by Cressida Cowell.

Verdict: This perfectly dazzling sequel is a must-see in 3D.

A sequel to the stunning How to Train Your Dragon (2010) was always going to be tricky. The first film (in what is now slated as a trilogy) was a complete story in its own right – a classic rite of passage tale about a young Viking, Hiccup (Jay Baruchel), and the fearsome dragons he would learn to understand, tame and love.

Not that any reservations appear to have troubled DeBlois and his collaborators, for here we have the most perfect sequel imaginable – a film that not only looks and sounds magnificent, but one that takes the story of Hiccup (a perfect Baruchel again) and his clan to fantastic new heights of storytelling.

From the opening shot, DeBlois and editor John Carr are never less than in complete control, with a dazzling (in 3D it is mind-blowing) opening sequence of gravity-defying spectacle, as the clan’s young dragon riders participate in the annual Dragon Race. While Hiccup and Toothless are away exploring new worlds, they fall foul of a gang of dragon trappers who are working for the evil despot Drago Bludvist (Djimon Hounsou). Using a ferocious alpha dragon’s powers of hypnotism to turn the peaceful dragons against their owners, Bludvist is threatening to take over every clan in the land.

Packed with high drama and spectacular action in equal measure, How to Train Your Dragon 2 is a remarkable achievement. DeBlois refuses to shy away from the confronting events that occur in Hiccup’s perilous fight (and flight) for independence, and powered by John Powell’s ravishing score, the emotional stakes at play will challenge even the hardest of hearts.

This review was commissioned by the West Australian Newspaper Group.

Film Review: Gravity

Gravity. Rated M (survival themes, disturbing images and coarse language). 91 minutes. Directed by Alfonso Cuarón. Screenplay by Alfonso Cuarón and Jonás Cuarón.

Verdict: A majestic, actor-proof cinematic tour de force.

There is no denying the visual majesty of this extraordinary cinematic achievement that, if nothing else, will restore your faith in the scope, scale and potential of cinema as an artform. Unlike so many theatrical releases so far this year, waiting for Gravity to come out on DVD would be pointless – such is its magnificent visual and aural impact on the big screen. In 3D it is, quite simply, astonishing, and the most complete and effective use of the technology since Avatar.

As space shuttle astronauts Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock), Matt Kowalski (George Clooney) and Shariff (voiced by Paul Sharma) are undertaking a space walk to service the Hubble Space Telescope, Mission Control in Houston (voiced by Ed Harris) warns them that debris from a destroyed Russian satellite is heading their way.

Stone (who is on her first mission) hesitates to follow the veteran Kowalski’s orders to return to the shuttle immediately, and the high-speed debris slams into them, causing them to become untethered from not only each other, but also any form of structure. With her supply of oxygen running low, Stone must somehow make it to the relative safety of the International Space Station, and from there, Earth.

Alfonso Cuarón (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Children of Men) and cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki (The Tree of Life, Children of Men) deliver one visually ravishing scene after another to the screen with rare cinematic grandeur, to the point where it becomes easy to ignore Cuarón’s script (co-written with his son Jonás), which clunks along mindlessly.

Sandra Bullock makes the most out of the deep-space drama she has to work with, while the goofy Clooney mis-reads his role entirely. Thankfully, you don’t go to Gravity for the acting. You go to see and hear how stunning cinema can be when the artists behind the camera dare to dream big and loud.

This review was commissioned by the West Australian Newspaper Group.

Film Review: Escape from Planet Earth

Escape from Planet Earth. Rated PG (mild animated violence). 89 minutes. Directed by Cal Brunker. Screenplay by Bob Barlen and Cal Brunker.

Verdict: A family-friendly adventure for the little ones.

With much to redeem it, but little to make it truly memorable, Escape from Planet Earth wins points for blissfully filling the gap in the market for films specifically aimed at younger children who might have occasionally found the recent animation offerings (such as The Croods) a little too dark and frightening. Escape from Planet Earth is a challenge-free zone, boasting an abundance of colour and movement that will keep its target audience buzzing with expectation and excitement.

While the alien population of Planet Baab are celebrating the success of the latest daring rescue mission by their hero Scorch Supernova (voiced by The Mummy’s Brendan Fraser), an SOS is received from the ‘Dark Planet’ (Earth). With Scorch’s geeky brother Gary (Rob Corddry) sacked from his position at Mission Control, Scorch departs on a rescue mission to the dangerous planet, only to discover that the evil General Saunderson (William Shatner) plans to exploit Baab’s reserves of weapons-grade ‘blutonium’ and use his new weapons to rule the galaxy.

Barlen and Brunker’s cheerfully derivative screenplay contains a couple of direct hits for the adult members of the audience, but it is essentially a laughter-free, action-packed caper with a fine thread about the importance of family. While Gary is seen as the under-achieving brother, he is also happily married to Kira (Sarah Jessica Parker) and their son Kip (Jonathan Morgan Heit) is typically torn between the love he has for his serious, responsible dad and his admiration for his famous irresponsible uncle’s exploits. Scorch, on the other hand, is more concerned with his heroic adventures (and their commercial value) than he is about settling down and raising a family of his own.

Brunker and cinematographer Matthew Ward (who are both making their feature debuts) certainly have futures in the world of animation, with some of the sequences (such as the one where Gary’s spaceship crashes onto Earth) delivered with supreme confidence and skill. But as is increasingly the case, it is Barry Jackson’s (The Ant Bully) production design that beautifully accounts for all the wonderful sci-fi inspired possibilities that remain the most memorable aspects of this charming, family-friendly, big screen adventure.

This review was commissioned by the Geraldton Newspaper Group.

Film Review: Life of Pi

Life of Pi. Rated PG (mild survival themes). 127 minutes. Directed by Ang Lee. Screenplay by David Magee. Based on the novel by Yann Martel.

Verdict: A curiously uneven but visually ravishing adventure.

As a spiritually uplifting rumination on the undeniable existence of an almighty creator, Life of Pi delivers a good many pleasures. At its core is the unlikely friendship between a young man, Pi (an extraordinary debut from Suraj Sharma), and a tiger named Richard Parker (the CGI creation of visual effects company Rhythm and Hues) who find themselves adrift in a lifeboat after the ship on which they are travelling is lost at sea during a fierce storm. As the two survivors learn to co-exist, the bountiful and perilous wonders of the ocean are revealed in sequences of ravishing visual splendour, flawlessly photographed by cinematographer Claudio Miranda (Fight Club, TRON: Legacy, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button).

If Magee’s (Finding Neverland) screenplay takes a little too long to set sail, the flashback sequences – as the adult Pi (Irrfan Khan) recounts his tale for the benefit of a curious writer (Rafe Spall) – have a surprisingly soul-less quality to them. It’s almost as though Pi only survived a particularly gruelling trip to the supermarket as opposed to the terrifying ordeal of 227 days at sea with only a ravenous tiger for company. It’s the unevenness of the present day sequences when compared to the fantastic main game that lends the film an occasionally jarring lack of cohesion.

Book-ending the astonishing survival sequences that have long been considered un-filmable was never going to be easy, but Lee’s (The Ice Storm, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Brokeback Mountain) patient study of the developing friendship between Pi and the tiger on the high seas is engrossing. The sequence where Richard Parker leaps overboard in search of prey and struggles to get back into the lifeboat, clinging to it with his claws through the night, is deeply moving – and the full screen close-up of the desperate tiger’s face staring up at his potential human saviour is the shot of the film.

Like Martel’s award-winning novel, the film will inspire many conversations about its true meaning and significance. If the novel’s famous conclusion that questions the authenticity of Pi’s tale is a little too neatly accounted for, there is little doubt that this extraordinarily beautiful film (and one that should really be seen in 3D) will linger in your memory for a long time after you have experienced it.

This review was commissioned by the Geraldton Newspaper Group.

Rise of the Guardians. Rated PG (mild fantasy themes and violence). 97 minutes. Directed by Peter Ramsey. Screenplay by David Lindsay-Abaire. Based on The Guardians of Childhood novels by William Joyce.

Verdict: The picture perfect way to launch into the festive season.

If there is a more perfect way to launch the festive season on the big screen, it’s impossible to imagine what it might be. Rise of the Guardians is not only bravura, ground-breaking 3D animation, but also a story for children that refuses to shy away from the grand themes of fear, belonging and the importance of believing in the quintessential goodness in ourselves and each other.

When the Boogieman ‘Pitch’ (voiced by Jude Law) threatens to replace children’s dreams with horrifying nightmares forever, Jack Frost (Chris Pine), Santa (Alec Baldwin), Tooth Fairy (Isla Fisher), Easter Bunny (Hugh Jackman) and Sandman (an unspoken role) must band together to defeat the evil spirits of fear and darkness once and for all.

Film Review: Ice Age: Continental Drift

Ice Age: Continental Drift. Rated PG (Mild animated violence and coarse language). 92 minutes. Directed by Steve Martino and Mike Thurmeier. Screenplay by Michael Berg and Jason Fuchs.

Verdict: The Ice Age gang are back in a virtuoso display of 3D action and adventure.

It’s hard to believe that it is ten years since the lovable characters in Ice Age (2002) burst onto the screen. The original’s mammoth success spawned two sequels – Ice Age: The Meltdown (2006) and Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (2009) – and now the gang are reunited in a virtuoso display of 3D action and adventure. The 3D format is so successful here in fact, that it makes the 3D version almost compulsory.

When Scrat the squirrel (Chris Wedge) decides to bury his beloved acorn in the ice, he inadvertently triggers a cataclysmic chain of events that reshapes the continents and separates Manny (Ray Romano) the mammoth from his partner Ellie (Queen Latifah) and their daughter Peaches (Keke Palmer). With the constant threat of environmental and ecological disaster inching ever closer, the characters must fight the elements (and some classic foes – including Game of Thrones’ Peter Dinklage’s marauding, swashbuckling pirate Captain Gutt) in their desperate race to be reunited.

Sid the sloth (pictured, voiced by the brilliant John Leguizamo) remains a masterpiece of character animation and voice work, while the debut of his Granny (Wanda Sykes), is nothing less than inspirational. Granny’s idiosyncratic zeal for life gives the film a much-needed thread of almost surreal absurdism – keeping it well away from The Lion King and Happy Feet 2 territory when it matters most.

What is obvious from the first frame of this fourth instalment in the Ice Age franchise, is the immense amount of skill and confidence behind the scenes – led by directors Martino (Horton Hears a Who!) and Thurmeier (Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs). The voice work – without exception – is spot on, while Renato Falcão’s (Rio) cinematography and James Palumbo (Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs) and David Salter (Finding Nemo, Toy Story 2) editing are all faultless.

Environmental issues have been a constant feature of the recent Hollywood studio output for their young audiences, and if Mr Berg and Fuchs’s occasionally brooding and intense screenplay plays it with a capital D for Disaster, it also manages to offer an important sense of hopeful optimism. Integral to the film’s entertainment value, too, are the messages about the critical importance of family, great friends and the rightful place that life-changing adventures have to play in our lives.

Film Review: Titanic (re-released in 3D)

Titanic. Rated M (mature themes and coarse language). 195 minutes. Written and directed by James Cameron.

Verdict: ‘Pop-up’ Titanic betrays the splendid original, but it’s an undeniable pleasure to see it on the big screen where it belongs.

Following its original release in 1997, James Cameron’s epic telling of the fate of the legendary, ‘unsinkable’ RMS Titanic went on to create motion picture history. Until Mr Cameron’s Avatar (2009), Titanic was the highest-grossing film of all time – raking in over $2 billion dollars in box office receipts worldwide. Titanic was also nominated for a record-equalling fourteen Academy Awards (a record shared with All About Eve), of which it won eleven (as did Ben-Hur and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King), including Best Picture. Its stars – Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet – were catapulted to unequivocal movie stardom.

Re-released in retrofitted 3D to coincide with the centenary of the ill-fated ship’s catastrophic maiden voyage, Titanic remains a stunning cinematic achievement. Apart from providing some younger audience members with the opportunity to see it on the big screen for the first time, the timely re-release provides others of us with the opportunity to revisit an old friend – and Titanic (in 3D or not) demands to be seen at least once in the cinema.