#66: TRON ARES

STARRING: Jared Leto, Greta Lee, Evan Peters, Jodie Turner-Smith, Hasan Minhaj, Arturo Castro, Gillian Anderson and Jeff Bridges.  Story by David DiGilio and Jesse Wigutow. Screenplay by Jesse Wigutow. Directed by Joachim Rønning. Music by Nine Inch Nails (NIN). Budget $200 million. Running time 119 minutes.

So, 15 years have passed since Tron Legacy and in the present Jared Leto plays Ares – a programe who dreams of being human, imagine a digital Pinocchio who's also a one man killing machine. He's a program created by the Grandson of David Warner's Dillinger from the first Tron movie, and he's found a way to 3D print digital weapons and soldiers, but they only have a life span of 29 minutes. Meanwhile there's this scientist lady called Eve who's the owner of all of Kevin Flynn's, played by Jeff Bridges in the original, company and tech and she and Dillinger are mortal enemies. Anyway she finds this old Flynn code that will make all the 3-D printed stuff last indefinitely. Dillinger and his mum, played by Gillian Anderson want it, girl genius wants it and so does Ares. But when Ares escapes into the real world he teams up with genius girl, and Dillinger sends another digital warrior after Ares to get it back. And then there's this big chase and battle somewhere in an American city and Ares ends up in the original Tron world and chats with Jeff Bridges and then more stuff happens and it ends, with a post credit sequel bait sequence and there you have the synopsis for the most unnecessary sequel, since the three Star Wars prequels and sequels, the three Matrix ones and all the Terminator and Alien ones after the second. 

I left the cinema less than an hour ago and I'm desperate to get my thoughts down before I forget I've ever saw this. Interestingly enough the four other members of the audience for this film walked out after ten minutes, while I stayed to the very end and I'm rather glad i did, because I rather enjoyed it. 

Just make sure to switch your brain to neutral, disable your critical facilities, and lower your firewall and just enjoy the visual and audio spectacle because this was a mostly entertaining and exciting little romp that didn't outstay its welcome and didn't offer a world threatening global extinction event. Jared Leto, an actor I have very little enthusiasm for, did well and offered up a mostly reserved and likeable character in Ares, the effects all reds and blacks were very well done, but the highlight of the whole event was a return to the original world of Tron in a most unexpected way, I wish we could have stayed there longer, seeing the original light bike was a total delight and worth the admission price alone. The music by NIN is very good, powerful and raw and very much suited the visuals. The pacing is good, the direction won't win any Oscars but was very competent and there's a very funny bit about 1980s music which had me laughing. The great thing about being the only one in the audience is not only can you whoop and cheer with impunity, but you can also sit there in your underpants and string vest as if you were at home. 

The original Tron came out in 1982 and beyond its ground-breaking special effects had very little less to offer, the story was bog-standard and very Disney-esque. Tron Legacy arrived 28 years later and was an overblown affair mostly remembered for the terrible CGI de-aging of Jeff Bridges. This new sequel, which if it is to be believed has been in development since 2010 makes no effort to resolve the ending of the last film, which saw Sam Flynn and Kiora the female program drive off into the sunrise, or sunset, although their existence is hinted at in this and their possible involvement should there be another installment. That possibility seems very likely since for some inexplicable reason, despite their poor box-office returns, Hollywood just keeps on producing more Tron films. 

To sum up, this wasn't totally ch-TRON-ic, and it did sort of ARES-ise above expectations.

7/10

#65: GOLDENEYE

 

STARRING: Pierce Brosnan, Sean Bean, Izabella Scorupco, Famke Janssen, Joe Don Baker, Alan Cummings, Dame Judi Dench and Samatha Bond. Story by Michael France. Screenplay by Jeffrey Caine and Bruce Feirstein. Directed by Martin Campbell. Music by Eric Serra. Special effects by Derek Meddings. Running time 130 minutes. Budget $60 million. Boxoffice £356.4 million. Originally released in 1995.

And so it came to pass that after a six-year absence James Bond did return for his 17th cinematic outing, in the guise of Irish actor Pierce Brosnan. Featuring a new Miss Moneypenny, now played by Samatha Bond and a new female M played by the superlative Dame Judi Dench, this was the Bond franchise Rejuvenated and invigorated. It was also the first Bond film not be based, in any small part on the works of Ian Flemming, the first without Cubby Broccoli's involvement and with a new director replacing long-time stalwart John Glenn. It marked a new beginning for series and was the first to seriously try and update the whole template of Bond. There was a lot riding on this one and its success would herald a new era of Bond which would go on to see some of the best entries of the entire series and also some of the absolute worst. 

The story sees little Jimmy Bond going up against the Huge Janus crime syndicate run by Sean 'Bastard' Bean's in a post Soviet Union collapse (rather amusing in this day and age) he's got his hands on the Goldeneye EMP device and Jimmy's keen to get it back before his old work buddy Alec Trevelyan 006 can steal loads of stuff from his super-duper secret satellite dish complex in Cuba. Along for the ride and to be his reward for a job well done is Natalya Simonova (Izabella Scorupco), a Goldeneye computer game programmer. 

Actually, come to think about it, this film is very female-centric, what with Dench's M, Samantha Bond's Miss Moneypenny who's not tolerating any of Bond's leery innuendo, Trevelyan's henchwomen Xenia Onatopp (Famke Janssen) who gets sexually aroused by murder and killing and the aforementioned Natalya. See, strong female characters. 

Despite the reboot, this new Bond film still features many of the tropes that made the series so successful, the visit to Q Branch and its head Q (Desmond Llewelyn), the gun barrel, the iconic Bond March, the gadgets, guns and cars. 

And where as time seems to have been rather kind to Goldeneye, it's not a perfect film. The music by newbie to the series Eric Serra is, in a word, shit. Ghastly 'whaa-waa' twanged disco funk that sits badly with the action and makes you crave a good-old meaty John Barry score. 

I've not seen this up on the big screen since 1995 so it's a nice coincidence that the screening I saw just so happened to be the 30th anniversary of Goldeneye! What a nice surprise.  

This starts extremely well, with one of the best pre-credit sequences ever, that valiantly tries to out-do sublime The Spy Who Loved Me and fails. It introduces the new Bond perfectly even if Bronson doesn't quite feel comfortable in the role and he brings some lovely little tweaks to the mythos of Bond, the straightening of his tie, the way he pouts when peeved and some youthful energy. However he's also a rather seedy, tad creepy and rather predatory Bond and some of his innuendo schtick is rather icky. Martin Campbell, who directs, brings some much needed energy to the proceedings, and helped to kickstart this post-Berlin wall Bond. Special mention also to the special effects of Derek Medding and his crew. using models and practical effects, the film action set pieces are downright superb and some of the best of the series.

While this is definitely not my favourite Bond film, that honour belongs to The Spy Who Loved Me, Goldfinger and Casino Royale, this is my favourite Pierce Bronson Bond and it was an absolute treat to see it writ large on the silver screen again. 

8/10

#64:GODZILLA VS BIOLLANTE

STARRING: Kenpachiro Satsuma, Masashi Takegumi, Kunihiko Mitamura, Yoshiko Tanaka, Masanobu Takashima, Megumi Odaka, Konaiji Toyota, Toru Minegishi, Yasuko Sawaguchi, Toshiyuki Nagashima, Yoshiko Kuga, Ryunosuke Kaneda and Koji Takahashi. Written and directed by Kazuki Ōmori. Story by Shinichirō Kobayashi. Special effects by Kōichi Kawakita. Budget $10.7. Boxoffice $9.14 million. Originally released in 1989.

A direct sequel to the truly sublime 1984 The Return of Godzilla, this one sees Godzilla (Kenpachiro Satsuma) emerge from the volcano he fell into at the climax of that one and, feeling a bit peckish, set off for a spot of radioactive fast food. However, mankind has not rested while Godzie slept, no far from it! Using Godzilla cells secretly harvested by the Saradia Institue of Technology and Science who hope to use the celles to transform Saradian deserts into fertile land, their pet scientist Dr. Genshiro Shiragami (Kōji Takahashi) and his daughter, Erika have created an anti-nuclear energy bacteria vaccine. However a terrorist attack leaves her dead and him deeply aggrieved. Five years later, Godzie is out and the Doctor is encouraged to join the fight in defeating him. The good doctor hasn't been idle and has managed to merge the Godzilla cells with a rose bush DNA and his daughter's soul resulting in the creation of Biollante leading to an epic fight between the two titans! Add to that a subplot about secret agents, elite assassins and a race against time to save the world and you have one of the best made Godzilla films!

As I've previously stated I am an avid Godzilla fan and simply love the films of the Big Guy to such an extent that I am critically blind to the alleged failings of the Toho franchise, not so to the Legendary efforts which have been a mixed bag. 

ANYWAY, this one. Well, it's not my favourite, it's not as good as Godzilla Vs Megalon, but it's still a delightful and exhilarating rampage. It takes too long to get up and running, and let's be honest, what we want from a Godzilla film is for our titular hero to stomp the living shit out of Tokyo before going head-to-head with another monster(s) of equal or better power. GVB delivers the destruction fantastically and the return of the spectacular Super X flying platform, now remotely controlled like a drone is fantastic! The levels of destruction on display, all done practically and with models and actual explosives, are off the fricking chart, and deliver in nothing but spades! 

The human story at the centre of all the Godzilla films is usually the weakest part of the films, but not so here. Infusing the plot not only with secret agents, gun battles and super assassins but also our various heroes racing around trying to rally the troops really helps to make a gripping and exciting romp of a film. The whole approach was devoid of any humour or comedy and presented very earnestly, however as is often the case with Japanese cinema, that approach can offen elicit hoots of laughter, as was the case with this!

The version presented at the Barbican Cinema 1 screening was part of their Kaiju season and was subtitled not dubbed and was packed, which was a delight, how wonderful to see this time of film with an audience of fans. I count myself blessed that I was able to see both of these Godzilla films on the big screen and am eagerly looking forward to Ebirah, Horror of the Deep in November!

Mixing Godzilla levels of destruction and mayhem with a healthy dose of James Bond for a big, meaty no-holds-barred heavyweight bout of big monster smack downs! 
 
9/10

#63: ALIENS: DIRECTOR'S CUT

Starring Sigourney Weaver, Michael Biehn, Paul Reiser, Lance Henriksen, Carrie Henn, Bill Paxton, William Hope, Ricco Ross, Al Matthews, Jenette Goldstein, Mark Rolston and Daniel Kash. Written and directed by James Cameron, from a story by Cameron, David Giler and Walter Hill. Music by James Horner. Budget $18.5 million. Running Time 154 minutes. Originally released in 1986. BOX OFFICE HAUL $183,291,256.

57 years after the events of Alien, Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) is found drifting in her life pod in deep suspension and revived to take the blame for the destruction on the Nostromo and the death of its crew. Meanwhile LV427 is in the process of being terraformed and the contents of the derelict alien spaceship have been unleashed on the unsuspecting terraformists causing untold mayhem. When the colony goes silent, Earth sends a Marine troop to investigate and Ripley tags along for some more shits and giggles, although this time with the action ratcheted up to 11.

As soon as Ripley and the Marines lands on LV427 the film explodes into action and doesn't let up for one instant. 

I saw this, the Director's Cut just two years ago back up on the big screen, the first time since it was originally released in the cinema. I loved it the first time I saw it in 1986 at a Preview and I've never stopped loving it, if anything as time goes on my love for it grows, cos they just don't make films like this anymore.
This is a fantastic sequel and a damn good film in its own right, utilising optical and practical effects and superb model work from John Richardson and his hand-picked crew. Actually, isn't it funny how old CGI dates horribly but not well done old practical effects. This film is just so inventive, the script is so tight, so well written, the cast and the characters all acting as adults and not making stupid plot choices just to propel the story along. 

Anyway, yet again witnessing this on the big screen was just an utter treat and one you should never give up the opportunity of seeing. It reigns supreme up, twenty feet high. It doesn't need saying but it's lost none of its power, drama or scope. It's superbly paced, and edited, and this is yet another Cameron film that really is a note-perfect, it's amazing to think this was his third film as director. 

You can see why every film in the franchise after this just screwed the pooch, after the sublime genius of Ridley Scott and Cameron there really was no way to go. If only they'd left well enough alone. Oh well. Nothing that has come since has damaged this ones reputation.  

Loved it then. Love it now. Can't fault it. 10/10 

#62: ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER

 

STARRING: Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, Benicio del Toro, Regina Hally, Teyana Taylor and Chase Infiniti. Written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. Budget $175 million. Running time 162 minutes.

When Willa Ferguson (Chase Infiniti) goes missing following a police raid on the night of her high school prom, her permanently stoned single-parent father and ex-revolutionary, Pat Calhoun (Leonardo DiCaprio) races off on a relentless search to rescue her from Colonel Lockjaw (Sean Penn) an obsessive, psychotic hard-core marine who's convinced that Willa is his daughter. With only Willa's sensei, Sergio St. Carlos (Benicio del Toro) to help him, Pat sets forth on a rescue mission whose outcome is anything but certain. 

Directed by the 'good' Paul Anderson, you can tell cause he's got a 'Thomas' in this name, this is a startlingly good film, goddam, perhaps one of the films of the year. It's a breakneck, relentless screwball black comedy whose humour is deep and deeply nuanced. This is nevertheless an action-packed and genuinely thrilling movie that beautifully builds the tension and suspense to a gripping and fantastically satisfying conclusion. 

Its politics resonate with the fascistic America we're all currently living through thanks to the orange one, aka Dozy Donnie Dump, and it's easy to see actions of the heavily armoured police force featured in the film as nothing more than 'ICE' in all but name and the theme of a underground railway helping Mexican illegal immigrants seems terribly prescient.

The acting is fantastic, Sean Penn, is superb as Lockjaw filled with menace, ticks and rage and yet at his core is a raw lust for his adversary which is quite extraordinary to witness. Similarly DiCaprio utterly inhabits the role of Pat, a single father doing everything he can to save his daughter. Willa, played by Chase Infiniti is equally as excellent and she brings a real sense of vulnerability and youthful defiance to the role, her first. I don't think this is the last we'll see of her, she's superb.   

And the music by Jonny Greenwood, fits like a glove! It's never intrusive, never anything less than a perfect. On top of that, the film looks stunning, you can practically taste the sand and the cinematography is as beautiful as the scenery. Anderson directs with true skill and his framing is delightful. Overall this is a thrilling and gripping experience that just builds and builds in threat, menace and action until the conclusion, which is followed by a coda that just seals the whole film with a satisfying and meaty thunk. And aided by humour as dry as the desert. Damn it, I can't fault it. 

10/10

#61: GODZILLA VS MEGALON

 

STARRING: Godzilla, Megalon, Jet Jaguar and Gigan as performed by Hinji Takagi as Godzilla, Hideto Date as Megalon, Kenpachiro Satsuma as Gigan, and Tsugutoshi Komada as Jet Jaguar. Human actors: Katsuhiko Sasaki, Hiroyuki Kawase, Yutaka Hayashi, Robert Dunham, Kotaro Tomita, Wolf Ohtuski and Gentaro Nakajima. Story by Shinichi Sekizawa, screenplay and directed by Jun Fukuda. Budget $1.2 million. Boxoffice take $20 million. Running time 81 minutes. Originally released in 1973.

When a series of nuclear tests cause massive earthquakes and destruction severely damaging not only Monster Island, home of Godzilla, but also the highly advanced underground empire of Seatopia its ruler Emperor Antonio sends two crack secret agents upstairs to Earth to kidnap the inventor of Jet Jaguar, Goro Ibuki, his little brother Rokuro and his best friend Hiroshi Jinkawa and sieze control of their man-sized robot. Meanwhile Antonio unleashes Megalon, the god of the Seatopian people to destroy Tokyo. But when Jet becomes sentient and grows to gigantic size he recruits Godzilla to help him fight the cockroach-inspired Megalon. Concerned his plan for world domination is beginning to falter, Antonio sends for reinforcements from outerspace and gets sent Gigan and so the stage is set for the biggest tag-team monster fight of all time as the four titans of destruction do battle, but only once the combined might of the Japanese military complex has been laid waste. 

Whilst it isn't big or clever it is nevertheless immensely entertaining and delightfully funny, this was the subtitled version and not the notorious sublime dub-version, which I have to say I was rather looking forward to. I've been a Godzilla fan ever since I first glimpsed a picture of him in my Octopus Book of Horror and a screening of Ebirah, Horror of the Deep back in the early days of Channel Four. And he's played a significant role in my imagination ever since and as such I have no critical facilities for the films of Godzilla, the Toho era. This was shot in three weeks, with a production time of six months, it reused footage from previous Godzilla films and introduced the Godzilla tail slide attack. Some of the practical monster and model effects are simply terrific, particularly the dam destruction caused by Megalon. 

It's on as part of a season of Godzilla films at the Barbican until Dec 10th and I can't wait to see both Son of Godzilla and Ebirah, which I'm predicting will both be 10/10s and I hate Minja, Godzilla's son. 

No room for discussion. This was 81 minutes of pure cinematic heaven 10/10 FACT!  

#60: DIE HARD 2: DIE HARDER

STARRING: Bruce Willis, William Sadler, Bonnie Bedelia, William Atherton, Reginald VelJohnson, Franco Nero, Robert Patrick and John Amos. Screenplay by Steven E. de Souza and Doug Richardson. Directed by Renny Harlin. Budget $60-70 million. Running time 124 minutes. 

It's Christmas Eve and John McClane (Bruce Willis) is at Dulles airport to pick up his wife, Holly (Bonnie Bedelia)who's flying in just ahead of a really big storm. Unfortunately for them, and all the passengers and crew of the Air Windsor flight, US Colonel William Stuart (William Sadler) has other ideas. He and his private personal army of ex-marines have taken over the airport's air traffic control to facilitate the rescue of corrupt South American military leader, General Ramon Esperanza (Franco Nero), who's being flown in to face drug charges. Now it's up to one plucky, NYPD cop to save the day.

What follows is a bombastic, loud, furious, action-packed and deeply violent action film of the sort that Hollywood used to do with great aplomb. Originally released in 1990 when action films weren't the shaky-cam blurs of frantic editing they sadly became. It was fantastically successful at the boxoffice, earning over $240 million worldwide, almost twice as much as the original film.

This is an utterly un-apologetic, un-reconstructed two-gun action film whose only crime was being a sequel, because while it's clearly not as good as the note-perfect 1988 Die Hard directed by John McTierran it's never-the-less a bloody good thrill ride.

Directed by Renny Harlin who made a name for himself with Prison and A Nightmare on Elm Street 4 before making this, and then rising to prominence thanks to Cliffhanger before crash and burning his bridges with one of the biggest boxoffice bombs of all times - Cutthroat Island. He'd go on to make both The Long Kiss Goodnight and Deep Blue Sea before a slow gradual decline into mediocrity with a series of low budget action films.

With fantastic action sequences, the Skybridge shoot-out being the standout. Die Hard 2 upped the violence but sadly lost the humanity of McClane. Bullets are spewed at a rate that would humble John Wick, and blood squibs explode with glee in slow motion that would shame Zack Snyder. William Sadler makes a fantastic foil for McClane and his nude introduction is legendary. At the end of the day this was just an absolutely fun and very satisfying and visceral romp that delivered in spades. 

1990 was a great year for action films. Tremors, Hard to Kill, Revenge, The Hunt for Red October, Blind Fury, Blue Steel, Nuns on the Run, Total Recall, Another 48 Hours, Dick Tracy, Gremlins 2, Robocop 2, Wild at Heart, Darkman, I Come in Peace, King of New York, Marked for Death, Predator 2, and Robo Jox to name but a handful. It's sad to read a list of the films released in that year and compare them to the dreck we get these days, there was so much variety back then, and not just in action films. 

8/10