WORLD WAR Z

And so it came to pass that the much talked about "troubled Brad Pitt movie" finally hit a waiting world. A world where zombies now are a well-worn common appearance due to in part of the success of the likes of The Walking Dead - both its TV and graphic novel existence.

With its well-publicised reshoot of its ending and delayed release date by nearly a year, could the unfilmable World War Z be worthy of attention from audiences in a packed Summer schedule?

Yes.

Director Marc Forster on paper seems an unusual choice for a sprawling story about the end of humanity. His Monster's Ball, Finding Neverland and Stranger Than Fiction are small, intimate stories of struggle and it is exactly this approach that he has brought to this tale of a global struggle for survival. Not too fear though, he's also brought his experience of set pieces from Quantum Of Solace along so that it's not just talking and walking amongst the plague of the undead.

Like the zombies depicted in the film, Forster and the 6 ( yes, 6! ) writers move straight away at an incredible pace - shuffling around aimlessly groaning is definitely off the menu here. Within the first 10 minutes an entire city is overrun with only snippets of information dropped in by news reports played out in the background on radio and TV. You meet Pitt's ex UN guy - Gerry - and his family all living happily in Philadelphia, then, before you can learn their names (which turns out to be pointless but more on that later) suddenly the streets are amok with carnage, but not awash with blood ( again, more on that later.)

With the entire world facing this zombie holocaust, Gerry is forced to help seek out an answer in a bold and refreshingly frank ultimatum - help and we'll guarantee your families safety. Don't and we won't. This plot device of finding "patient zero" allows us to see other parts of the overrun world and also allows Forster to deliver his set pieces. South Korea, Iraq and Wales all get their time on the screen and each has their own very distinct set piece to shred the nerves and start the goosebumps. Korea gets its own Call Of Duty-esque night time manoeuvres with Pitt trying to get from and to his military plane amid a plague of zombies. Iraq gets the big budget sequence which features heavily in the trailer where you get to see exactly what a herd of fast-moving zombies can do. This part pushes the tension to new levels but it never veers into the horror territory because you never really see any consequences of the zombie attacks. Throughout the entire World War Z, you never see any blood or carnage to help you realise the brutal seriousness of what is happening all around. If they hadn't of maybe gone for the lower certificate rating, this could have been a rare thing indeed - a summer blockbuster that added "horror" to its genre listing along with "action" and "spectacle."

Instead what we have is a great thriller that wants to truly scare and unsettle but never gets the chance to fully deliver on that. The sequence involving the lab in Wales is the infamous reshot part of the film and armed with that knowledge you could be forgiven for wondering exactly what it was that they had already filmed. That's because the ending here is a very much quieter and smaller set of events when compared to the first two thirds of the film. For this reviewer however it is the most nerve wrecking of all the land-based attacks with another game called to mind - a very Resident Evil" creep around" feel to it. One that is very different to the shoot 'em up chaotic action of the Call Of Duty part at the beginning.

Those astute of you may have noted the phrase "land-based" attacks just then. There is one other sequence that beautifully captures the terror of being caught between a rock and a hard place - now known as being caught between an airline door and a zombie.  Pitt gets to show some acting chops in this part where he comes face-to-face with the epidemic and with no feasible way out that doesn't involve the death of himself and every other passenger aboard the unluckiest place since Samuel L. Jackson had some bother on his one some years ago. Pitt, as expected and as always, carries the film throughout with ease but that does mean that basically everyone else doesn't get a look in. To the extent that his own family that he's trying to indirectly save by helping find a weakness in the zombie affliction don't really register on the important radar. All that accompany Pitt on his whirlwind tour of "Zombie World" may as well be wearing the red uniforms from Star Trek as they have about the same life expectany of one of The Enterprise's security crew!

A great film that truly delivers on the tension and spectacle, it feels alittle bit short on the gore and the "World War" status - at times more like a World Skirmish In The School Playground type of thing. If the open ending and box office allows for the obvious sequel, here's hoping they go more 28 Days Later than 28 Weeks Later and really try and scare the crap out of the audience!

UK release date: 21.06.13
Certificate: 12A

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING

There are times when certain films generate a buzz from their "behind-the-scenes" info - how much it cost, how long it took, locations used etc. Only a few of those rise above such focus and have the spotlight turned upon their performances and overall experience.

The little film made by the guy who delivered the 3rd biggest box office hit of all time is one such example. And the focus is... bloody good!

Let us dispense with the "behind-the-scenes" part shall we? During the two weeks between the end of filming and beginning of editing Avengers Assemble, Joss Whedon made Much Ado About Nothing. In 12 days, using his own home as the only location and a cast littered from friends made up from his creator/writer/director history with basic cameras and avoiding such things as lighting, Whedon once again has shown that ensemble pictures are definitely his bag. Even if it is The Bard's work and for once not his own!

What Whedon has done here is make a Shakespeare film for people who don't do Shakespeare. By "Shakespeare" I mean the use of the original prose (such as seen in Baz Lurhmann's William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet) as opposed to dialogue "based on" the Bard's works (like 10 Things I Hate About You.) Now, that doesn't mean that you will be able to sit down and understand word for word the various monologues and back-and-forth's between the characters such as Beatrice and Benedict. What you will be able to do however, is get the gist of what is going on more than you may have done in previous adaptations.

This is down to Whedon's clever use of his chosen actors and the delivery that he gets out of them. Most of them "Whedonites"- they have worked with him through the likes of Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly, Cabin In The Woods, Avengers Assemble - it is their obvious ease with the material that makes it so easy to accept for the audience and then go along with throughout the proceedings. Their speed, inflection, tone, interaction - it all seems just so natural. Bearing in mind that they used to meet at Whedon's home and do read through's of Shakespeare for fun during downtime on his previous projects, you would expect nothing less than seamless perfection from them at handling the often-thought-of "hard going" material. All this from the man who made vampires cool before Team Edward was even thought of and who made a Western in space before others tried to make sci-fi genre-mashing cool.

Admittedly, Much Ado About Nothing is one of the easier entries into Shakespeare's world - the comedy about love and its secrets and lies sits somewhat better on the untrained pallet than the tragedy and consequences of  a King - but it is still none-the-less a tall order to try and pull off successfully so that connoisseur's and freshman's alike are both suitably wooed and left satisfied.

With an emphasis on the two "L's" - laughter and lust - the tale of two would-be lovers is played out in a black-and-white dream-like state. Drinks are ALWAYS on hand (and indeed in hand) throughout as the players move around each other (both known/seen and unknown/unseen) as plots are hatched and hearts broken. Here, sex and sexy are evident and evidently abundant in this modern setting where news travels fast via smart phones and iPads rather than horse and parchment.

For those who have followed Whedon's work, his cast are superb. The sheer delight in watching the tom-foolery of Amy Acker's Beatrice as she overhears news of Benedict's love is grin-inducing, with a pratt fall to match any of that from Inspector Clouseau. Likewise, Alexis Densiof's cocky-and-then crumbling confidence when he overhears of Beatrice's love has some of the best peering-through-windows work since Rowan Atkinson was in his prime. Fran Kranz shows that his hyper-geek from both Dollhouse and Cabin In The Woods is not the only entry in his CV with the tortured soul of Claudio both believable and understandable whilst normally Mr Nice Guy Sean Maher as seen in Firefly does a lovely 180 and is deliciously evil as the havoc-wrecking Don John. As of course it should be, the best comedy comes from Captain Hammer / C'ptn Tightpants (Malcolm Reynolds) himself - Nathan Fillion. As Dogberry (along with Buffy's Tom Lenk) you will never see a better or more over-repeated use of the word "ass" as long as you live. And trust me, you will be a better person for it!

Delightful. Delicious. Devious. Do see it!


UK release date: 14.06.13
Certificate: 12A

MAN OF STEEL

Four words changed the face of modern cinema back in 2005 - Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins. With Nolan's take on the Caped Crusader, audiences and studios alike were shown that there could be another way to depict a "comic book character" upon the silver screen. Reality could be part of the foundation for a film of a larger-than-life superhero... and it could work with impressive results.

Jump 8 years ahead and the success of his Dark Knight trilogy has placed Nolan at the top, amongst the few who can pick and choose (and not be interfered with on) any film they wish to make. Passing on Warner Bros. invitation to helm the rebooting of their jewel in the crown, Nolan took on instead producer and co-writer duties, leaving the directing to the dismay of many fans - Zack Synder. With a back catalogue classed by many as a prime example of "style over substance" (300, Sucker Punch, Watchmen, Legend Of The Guardians: The Owls Of Ga'Hoole) Synder seemed a very leftfield choice to bring the all-American hero Superman back to the world.

So, does the mix of "style" Synder and "normal" Nolan work? Yes. And no.

Superman - the challenge has always seemed to be how to actually challenge him. He is, after all, invincible. Until they introduced the (still strangely unbelievable) reaction to parts of his homeworld - Kryptonite - nothing really ever put him in jeopardy. Apart from his natural urge to protect those mere mortals around him (which is often exploited by the villains), tension for the son of Jor-el has been problematic at best. So, the way around that particular thorny issue for the reboot? Give him the double whammy of both emotional AND physically obstacles to deal with.

Cavill, stepping into the iconic cape donned by Reeves (4 times) and Routh (just once), has the somewhat unenviable task of retreading the origins trail along with some additional development. The plot here spans what was originally taken up by the very first two Superman films - his arrival and "identity" discovery and then his "home compatriots" challenge. Throughout a big chunk of the 143 minute running time, Cavill is asked to perform various shades of reserved, quiet and awkward as the young Clark Kent tries to follow his Earth-fathers advice and keep his head down as "humans won't be able to cope with the knowledge of someone like himself walking amongst them." Kent Snr is given an almost Uncle Ben quality from the Spiderman franchise with every great speech given echoing the infamous "with great power comes great responsibility." Choosing Kevin Costner to be Kent Snr was a wise choice as he walks the fine line between "everyday man" and ""learned father to an alien" easily, making what could have either been a throw-away role or abit of a joke neither. His performance resonates more than Russell Crowe's Jor-el who for the most part has to play it very neutral as he is a hologramatic version of himself, guiding Cavill to make his choice of  whom to fight for.

Now, if all of the above seems a tad "serious" then you have read between the lines! This is played for drama and depth rather than adventure and fun. And therein lies the rub. With the likes of complicated and slightly unhinged Bruce Wayne/Batman, drama and depth can work. However, Clark Kent/Superman, by its very nature, demands a lighter touch - probably to help deal with the way-out-there plot of an alien fighting for justice and the American way. But Nolan and Goyer's script instead concentrates on the "serious" whilst Synder brings the "spectacle." None of them seem to have brought the "light touch" or the "fun" that the original two outings had or the likes of the Ironman franchise repeatedly delivers. Yes, this is a different film from those just mentioned and a different time, but then, out of nowhere, in the last 5 minutes of the Man Of Steel, we are suddenly given a full-on glimpse of just how entertainingly fun it can be! The interaction between Cavill's bespeckled Kent and Amy Adams's Lois Lane is cheek-achingly grin-inducing after all the spectacle, speeches, smashingof Smallville and strangely enough the avoidance of the actual word "Superman."

Up until those final fantastic five minutes of non-special effects fun, the plot sees alot of back story crammed in via a non-linear timeframe but strangely done at a very lesiurely pace. Just like Clark Kent himself, the film seems to meander, looking for a place to fit in. His movement from place-to-place and job-to-job sees him secretly saving people, then moving on before his true nature and identity is discovered. This backstory told through flashbacks is a novel approach to the life of Kent but it does make it slightly harder to feel sorry for the boy who has to keep himself to himself for fear of ruining both his and his Earth-parents lives. Just when you begin to connect with the young Clark, the scene swings to either a burning oil-rig or a bar and the connection between audience and protaganist is weakened somewhat. 

Overall, Man Of Steel is a good foundation to build upon, and no doubt the sequel will be on its way to us very soon, but its not a great stand alone experience. At times too serious and too long, the film suffers from Transformers Torrets where the action is too fast - a fact heightened by the use of camera shake presumably added for realism. When one of the many entanglements isn't taking place, it gives us a good insight into how hard it must be for the son of Jor-el to fit into our world but I just wish they'd have put some fun into it to ease both his and our souls... 

Also, sci-fi geeks, look out for the cast of BSG and Dollhouse and for the Wayne Enterprises and LEXCORP logos dotted around!

UK release date: 14.06.13
Certificate: 12A

STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS

Since his vision was released upon the slightly sceptical world back in 2009, writer/director (saviour) J.J. Abrams has come a long way. His Star Trek gathered both old and new fans alike into the camp of "exhilarated" and made its sequel one of, if not the, most anticipated films of this year. So before he makes the "Force be with us" all over again with his Star Wars Ep VII, let us "boldly go" with him once again Into Darkness...

As is the way, this entry into the Star Trek cannon, will be compared to not only its predecessor but to the original outings of Kirk, Spock and the rest of the Enterprise's crew - and with a certain adventure specifically. More on that later.

Abrams first foray into Roddenberry's world saw him introduce the characters whilst using the new time line plot to show off their slightly altered personalities. Here, with the core characters already in place, the task is to further build upon the bond between them and accentuate their now different life stories. This focus is primarily aimed at the burgeoning friendship of Pine's Kirk and Quinto's Spock. As the film progresses, so to does their banter, bickering and bromance. Kirk has the journey of becoming a Captain worthy of the legacy left by his father and Spock meanwhile has the journey of acknowledging and embracing his human heritage given by his mother.... so it's more like Into Deepness than Darkness in a way.

Now, don't be fooled or alarmed by that last sentence. This is not really as the title suggests a "dark" affair. This is far from it. Like Joss Whedon, J.J. Abrams brings fun and excitement onto the menu along with the side dishes of tension and death. If someone needs to die to further the plot, then die they will. Like his idol Spielberg, Abrams knows how to put you through the emotional wringer and have you roller coastering from laughs to shocks to gladness and then back again through sadness. Here, laughs are shared more throughout the cast than the previous journey of the U.S.S. Enterprise. The bickering of Kirk and Spock remains one of the films comedic building blocks, but upon that the rest of the crew get to bring their gag reels with them - Pegg's Scotty sees the homage to the original performance of the Engineering Officer take it up a notch (but sadly still no "she can'ne take it C'apn. I doen't have the powwer!") Cho's Sulu gets a taste of the chair and likes it and Yelchin's Chekov (the character with the least to do this time round) gets to fake confidence to his superior in the face of danger. That leaves only two other central crew members. It is their spotlight moments that show the cleverness of the script which does something surprising and very, very well. Saldana's Uhura isn't confined to the comms desk with the blobby bit sticking out of her ear - she gets to go on away missions, fight baddies but best of all, gets to have relationship arguments with her boyfriend - Spock. The three-way argument in the shuttle between them and Kirk (the awkward 3rd wheel who's dragged into the discussion) is comedy gold and makes you unprepared for the action sequence that directly follows it - that roller coaster ride feeling again! So that keeps the newbies to Roddenberry's universe happy and glad that they've come back for seconds. It's Urban's McCoy that underlines the cleverness of the script.

He is the one that sticks out as the direct link to the original series - the Trekkie's lifeline and pacifier. His many variations of "I'm a physician, not a ...." callback to the 60's TV show but help with a shocking revelation - normal  cinema audiences are quietly being turned into Trekkie's. They might not realise it, but this journey of the Enterprise has so many references to the world of Star Trek gone by that it's hard to count them. Normal people are sitting there watching the events unfold whilst sitting around them Trekkie's are feeling them slowly being seduced and moving over to the darkside (mixing metaphors and Star Wars/Trek deliberately there!) There is one MASSIVE callback to the origins of Trek's world but to reveal that here, without warning, would be sacrilege. If you wish to know it, the spoiler review will be below the trailer.

Now, there are other callbacks and not all of them are to previous connected works. Not unlike James Bond, Into Darkness has an opening sequence that is a totally separate adventure from the main story. I say James Bond, but to be honest, it's Raiders Of The Lost Ark - Abrams' nod to Spielberg again. This sequence has the forest, the chase, the spears but instead of an idol we have a submerged Starship and an overactive volcano. And a fantastic opening sequence that raises the bar so high that you wonder how the rest of the film will live up to it.

But, it does. Spectacularly. And part of that success goes to Cumberbatch and the introduction of a classic baddie that isn't a baddie. But then is. And then isn't. And then...oh, you get the picture. His portrayal of agent-gone-rogue John Harrison is cold, calculating and at one point when he's behind a glass prison cell, quite Hannibal Lecter-ish. You even hang on every quietly-spoken word of his whilst he and Kirk do brains-battle to see if he's going to have his "liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti." Of course, such an impression would not be part of Abrams style and it never goes beyond a quick moment of recognition, but Cumberbatch gets to create his own standout villain - a man who can take out a mass of foes (human and non-human) single handedly all whilst looking immaculate apart from his moppish hair. His presence and memory impact on the viewer is ten-fold of what Eric Bana was able to do with his Star Trek baddie Captain Nero which was the only slight niggle of the entire film so it would seem that Into Darkness has risen above its predecessor. And rightly so.

Now that he has Star Wars to do, there could be a chance that this is Abrams final foray into the final frontier. If so, which I mostly sincerely hope is NOT the case, then he leaves Star Trek in a place that many thought not possible - new and old fans alike, together in appreciation of a vision that has been reborn and yet still holds a torch and a mirror to its origins.

The Best Fun You Can Have In A Cinema With Your Clothes On This Year! Brilliant!


UK release date: 09.05.13
Certificate: 12A

SPOILER ALERT REVIEW!

You have been warned - do not read unless you've seen it or don't want your world rocked whist watching it!

What Abrams and writers Lindelof, Orci and Kurtzman have done is something wonderful, and to this reviewer, thought once impossible. They have taken one of the most respected and loved Trek films and literally rewritten it. The realisation of who the new characters are what their roles mean to the Trek legacy is gasp-inducing as the makers drip feed you clues then in Oz style, pull back the curtain for the "Ta Da!" moment. The second "new" Star Trek film is a rewrite of the second "old" Star Trek film. This is a new generations The Wrath Of Khan and it is bloody brilliant!

But of course you can't just replay the events of the mighty Khan - old Trekkie's won't stand for it. So, all the events that you know do happen, but, not in the order you remember OR to those you expect. Back To The Future II was one of the cleverest sequels penned with its revisiting the first films timeline and observing it but Into Darkness joins it on that podium, however for very different reasons. It's a sequel but also a kind of reimagining of its natural parent film and in that sense it does too revisit the timeline but alters it just like Marty McFly once did... Things will not be as you remember them but it seems that destiny does have a sense of irony. Like with Final Destination, you can try and cheat the outcome but it seems that some events are written in stone. The Enterprise will be crippled. Someone will die to save the many. And someone will realise the meaning of friendship all too late. And you will be hooked. End of.

IRON MAN 3

And so it came to pass that "Phase 2" of Marvel's plan to rule the world  via the medium of the box office began with the continuing story of the character who started "Phase 1" back in 2008.

Returning to the suit (rumoured for the last time now that his contract is up), Downey Jr this time is under the direction of a new helmer to the World Of Marvel. With original director Favreau now just in front of the camera as Stark's upgraded from-bodyguard-to-head-of-security sidekick, it's the turn of Shane Black to help shape the world of Tony Stark, billionaire playboy who "builds neat stuff and occasionally saves the world."

Black and Downey Jr who previously worked together on the underrated Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang, show all the spark, wit and downright questionable laughter that they delivered on their first project together  here on the more personal story of Iron Man in its third outing. For those who know Black's work, all the things that make him "him" are present and correct throughout his latest. Like his previous efforts (Lethal Weapon, The Last Boy Scout, The Long, Kiss Goodnight, Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang) the story takes place around Christmas; there is a voice over to help proceedings along and there are some cracking lines of dialogue for you to try and remember so that you can quote them back to others and feel cool whilst doing so.

Yep, Downey Jr's natural swagger and Stark's coolness have just been given an illegal dose of Black's cultdom and it's a match made in heaven. As Kingsley's The Mandarin states to the US President via one of his many Bin Laden-esque video messages, you, as an audience member "will never see them coming" with what they have in store for you during its 130 minutes running time. More on him in a moment though.

The challenge facing Iron Man 3 is more than just being better than its predecessors (although that's not too hard when the below par Iron Man 2 is considered) - it has the task of being the first film released after the exceptional Avengers Assemble showed that under Joss Whedon, a superheroes film could be, well, super. And with all the superheroes having interacted and now aware of each other, the challenge  here would be to find a story that would only involve Iron Man and not the likes of Thor, Hulk or Captain America. The way that Black and co-screen writer Drew Pearce have gotten around this is simple  - make it personal - "no politics here, just good old fashioned revenge." With this personal edge now in place story-wsie, we are able to see the cool swagger of Downey Jr/Stark get stripped away - along with his suit - and have him try to build things back up from scratch... his composure, his strength, his trust and love in others and a back-to-basics suit just like the first time we saw him held captive in a cave, have to be built up from scratch. It's Tony Stark's fall from grace and his rise from the ashes as the premise. He may have helped save Earth with his newfound superhero chums, but the dying in the process has weighed heavy upon his mind. This makes him feel more real to the viewer despite his Malibu pad, his millions and his suits - of which they are plenty!

Downey Jr as expected is a star and this time gets to play off a few people - notably Cheadle - "it's WarMachine rocks...with a Z" - and a smalltown boy that gets just as good as he's given in the banter stakes, but the real other main shining star who gives Downey Jr a run for his money is Kingsley. His performance of The Mandarin, once the plot has moved on to its big reveal, is brilliantly executed.

A confidence-boosting start to Marvel's "Phase 2" of its universe, Iron Man 3 sets the bar for Captain America 2 (Captain America: The Winter Soldier) and Thor 2 (Thor: The Dark World) and only adds to the already building anticipation that will be Avengers 2.

Cool. Neat. Go see.

UK release date: 26.04.13
Certificate: 12A