Film Review Roundup 1st February 2012

Tags

A Monster in Paris, animation, Coriolanus, Daft Punk, Interstella 5555 - The 5tory of the 5ecret 5tar 5ystem, Jude Law, Leiji Matsumoto, Mark Strong, Ralph Fiennes, Robert Downey Jr, Shakespeare, Sherlock Holmes, Vanessa Paradis, Vanessa Redgrave

I’d like to be able to give full reviews to every film possible but the backlog has really been building up lately which can only mean one thing, roundup time and four mini-reviews for the price of one.

In Cinemas

Coriolanus

I saw this one with Ryan and Tom’s sister Harri, or rather most of it as I confess we were rather late to the cinema, our bus having not stopped where it was supposed to. Ralph Fiennes, who I’ve always greatly admired for his performance as Amon Goeth in Schindler’s List stars and for the first time directs a lesser-known Shakespearean tale about a Roman war hero who struggles with the position of power he is given. Removed to the modern day and a vaguely eastern European setting that fits the story well the film’s triumph is in making one of the Bard’s obscurer plays extremely easy to follow, understand and appreciate. Fiennes is as intense in the title role as you’d expect from him, Vanessa Redgrave soars as his fierce and loyal mother and the supporting cast are all on fine form. Gerard Butler’s never been better.

A Monster in Paris

This fairly unambitious French CG toon makes good use of clean animation and some catchy musical numbers to elevate the 1910-set story about a cocky delivery driver and his timid cinema projectionist buddy’s accidental creation of a giant singing flea. Vanessa Paradis voices glamorous nightclub singer Lucille (who goes straight into the cute animated ladies hall of fame) and literally takes centre stage casting the flea in her musical show. A likeable bunch of characters and decent script give this one some credit and there are some great sequences to accompany the tunes but it’s not ultimately that memorable. Nice though and one animation connoisseurs like me should definitely give a look.

On DVD

Interstella 5555 – The 5tory of the 5ecret 5tar 5ystem

My surprise Christmas present from my cool flatmates turned out to be a DVD copy of this unusual film that combines two of my favourite things, anime and Daft Punk. The French house band approached their favourite Japanese animator Leiji Matsumoto to create a sci-fi silent film for their album Discovery. The story follows an alien music band who are kidnapped and brought to Earth to be a maniacal record producer’s next big thing while loveable spaceman Shep sets out to rescue them. Some of the story sequences fit the thumping tracks better than others, the standout would be Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger but there are plenty of other highlights. As a film it’s an interesting curiosity that works reasonably well but is unlikely to demand any repeat viewings among casual audiences. If that’s you subtract a star. For anyone like me, who loves both animation and Daft Punk it’s a tremendous treat.

Sherlock Holmes

Having reviewed this film’s sequel A Game of Shadows HYPERLINK #1 not took long ago it seemed a bit redundant to give a full review to the original too so here it is in the roundup instead. Robert Downey Jr’s Holmes and Jude Law’s Watson successfully apprehend Mark Strong’s satanic Lord Blackwood who is hanged for his heinous crimes. But when he seems to rise again from his tomb London is gripped by paranoia and history’s most famous consulting detective must put an end to his chaotic plans. The character chemistry and CG recreation of Victorian London charmed audiences and the film remains better than the recent follow-up.

Film Review: Sherlock Holmes – A Game of Shadows

Tags

action, adventure, comedy, Dr Watson, Jared Harris, Mystery, Professor Moriarty, Rachel McAdams, Sherlock Holmes, Sherlock Holmes - A Game of Shadows, Stephen Fry

Season’s Greetings to all you blog surfers and many thanks for taking the time over the festive period to peruse this humble little review source. That darned review congestion has hit me so hard that I’m deliberately avoiding watching new films such as Happy Feet 2 and Puss in Boots so they don’t get in the way of my still-in-progress Skyward Sword review which is on the way, I promise. Reviews for those three animated films I keep mentioning will now likely appear some time in the new year. One film I wasn’t going to wait to watch was this sequel to Guy Ritchie’s 2009 adaptation of the stories of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous sleuth starring Robert Downey Jr and Jude Law.

The runaway success of the first film inevitably birthed a franchise that, for once, makes perfect sense, after all Sherlock Holmes was a franchise character that starred in numerous novels and short stories and gave rise to a great number of other adaptations down the years. The untraditional depiction of the character, visual style, focus on action and director’s trademark flourishes caused many of the more militant purists to cry foul but Sherlock Holmes was perfectly in keeping with the escapist spirit of the original writings and lays down the character vividly and more faithfully than many realise. RDJ’s Holmes is as flawed, difficult and erratic as Doyle’s, maintaining the character’s mastery of disguise and martial arts and his drug use and correctly never wearing a deer stalker. The real triumph of the first film was the brilliant chemistry between Downey and Jude Law as Watson and the well-balanced examination of their amusing bromance. Thankfully the sequel doesn’t go down the Pirates of the Caribbean route by removing the fun in favour of a grim mood and unnecessary and unwanted character complexity but sticks to the winning formula.

Sherlock Holmes is hot on the trail of Professor Moriarty, a criminal genius with an intellect to equal the great detective, whom he suspects to be behind a series of seemingly unrelated happenings in Europe such as bombings blamed on anarchists. Meanwhile Holmes’ partner Dr John Watson is preparing for his nuptials, an event that could jeopardise the regularity of their friendship. The trail takes Holmes to Europe which is fast approaching a state of war as tensions escalate between France and Germany. Holmes and Watson, relieved of his honeymoon enlist the help of a gypsy woman (Noomi Rapace) to track Moriarty down.

It’s a solid story with enough twists and turns to keep things interesting but it doesn’t feel like as much of a mystery this time around. A Game of Shadows is more of a boy’s own adventure featuring some Bond-like globetrotting, exciting action and bromantic character comedy. After a slow and moderately shaky build-up the film finds its pace with a thrilling and hilarious set piece set aboard a train – something every adventure story should have and it never looks back rattling from one memorable moment to another. Ritchie’s distinct and vibrant visual style lends the period setting the same steampunk edge that gave the first film its strong character and makes for some dazzling sequences. One such strikingly graded sequence that sees the heroes fleeing from heavy artillery fire through a European forest stands out as the highlight of the picture and one of the best action scenes of the year.

As before it’s the central relationship between the eccentric hero and his straight-man sidekick that proves the most consistent delight. Law’s Watson is great as he makes his way through early scenes in a state of perpetual incredulity at Holmes’ lifestyle and disregard for his upcoming marriage. Watson’s reaction to Holmes is a mixture of disgust and admiration and his loyalty is stirring. Holmes meanwhile is as aloof and guarded as ever, his unpredictability and focus subtly masking what is clearly a powerful need for his friend. And yes things do get a bit homoerotic particularly in one scene in which a topless Holmes invites Watson to lie down with him (to avoid a hail of bullets) but this aspect of the comedy is not strong or frequent enough to spoil things. It’s a good balance.

The supporting cast are largely strong, particularly Jared Harris as Professor Moriarty, channelling his father vocally and giving just enough balance to lend the film’s other critical relationship much needed weight. In Moriarty Holmes has met his match and his complex and ambitious plot delivers urgency to the narrative. Scenes in which the two meet are loaded with significance and the sense of mutual respect is satisfyingly intact. Noomi Rapace’s character is the weak link as she looks uncomfortable with her first English speaking role. It doesn’t help that her character has little real depth but she does just enough with very little not to end up a complete washout. Rachel McAdams returns briefly and has even less and her involvement in the story winds up rather anticlimactic particularly given her significance in the first film. Better is Paul Anderson as Colonel Sebastian Moran, a character from the original fiction and makes for the most well-developed and interesting henchman I’ve seen in a film in a long time. Then there’s Stephen Fry as Holmes’ older brother Mycroft, doing sterling work with a role that turned out to be more important to the plot than I had expected. Though Fry doesn’t have the same chemistry with Downey as Law his own wit and presence are more than enough to justify his inclusion and one revealing scene of his will live long in the memory.

Some have criticised the Ritchie-directed franchise for valuing style over substance but I don’t see that. This sequel might not be tremendously deep but it is very rich not least because it draws on substantial and iconic source material. I’ve even heard the phrase ‘brainless’ aimed in the film’s direction which is truly puzzling given the nature of the script and the ideas it has fun with. Take the returning concept of Holmes mentally planning fist fights before they happen, an original, entertaining and clever idea if ever there was one and one that is kept fresh here by pitting Holmes against a villain that can do the same. The bottom line is that Sherlock Holmes – A Game of Shadows is a pacey and consistently entertaining romp with a very strong identity, confidently made that never strays beyond the purity of what makes good escapism and that’s getting harder and harder to find, particularly in sequels.

Verdict

Despite a running-time in excess of two hours this breezy, fun and consistent sequel rattles along at a brisk pace that never lets you get bored. Anchored by a great central chemistry and drawing upon a rich mythology of mystery fiction it’s a rock-solid sequel that might not be as rounded as its predecessor but is just as diverting.

Film Review: The Great Mouse Detective

Tags

adventure, animation, Basil, Disney, Ratigan, Sherlock Holmes, The Great Mouse Detective, Vincent Price

Finally after five book reviews it’s time for a movie review and we begin in the world of animation, an area of film-making particularly special to me. As we’ve established I am very much a connoisuer of adventure storytelling and I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that most of the best adventure movies are animations. My three favourite studios are Disney, Ghibli and Pixar, the latter is without any question the best and most consistently brilliant film studio in the world. For this review however I’m sticking with the best known film studio in the world, one that undeservingly reaps a lot of the credit for Pixar’s films by handling their release but has been responsible for a few corkers of iis own. I am of course talking about Disney.

People talk about Disney’s ‘Golden Age’, which ended with The Jungle Book and the ‘Disney Renaissance’ beginning with The Little Mermaid, claiming that the 22 years in between were a low point for the company but I don’t really hold with that. There were classics released in this period, they just don’t get the attention they deserve. Foremost among them is The Great Mouse Detective, released in 1986.

The Great Mouse Detective (sometimes called Basil the Great Mouse Detective) is based on a series of books by Eve Titus called Basil of Baker Street, in turn inspired by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s innumerable stories about Sherlock Holmes. Set in London in 1897 the film presents us with a colourful adaptation of Sherlock Holmes’ world (minus the opium and cocaine) casting the principal characters as mice. Though the characters are mostly anthropomorphic mice Disney have not quite gone down the same road as their excellent adaptation of the Robin Hood legend (another great film from the studio’s supposed dark years). London is still inhabited by humans, among them Sherlock Holmes who we only see in silhouette, his voice provided courtesy of a recording from The Red-Headed League of Basil Rathbone (whose name inspired the naming of Holmes’ mouse equivalent) some years after the actor’s death. The world of Basil, the titular detective is hidden under floorboards and in secret places and Basil lives in a cosy little apartment underneath 211B Baker Street. There’s that tiny-people-living-in-a-big-human-world theme I love so much. It’s a great premise and paves the way for some terrific setting-based adventure.

So what’s the story? It begins with little Olivia Flaversham’s toymaker father’s abduction at hands, or rather wings of one Fidget, gravelly-voiced, peg-legged bat henchman to Professor Ratigan, equivalent to Holmes’ Professor Moriarty, voiced gleefully by Vincent Price no less. Little Olivia (bright-eyed and adorable thanks in chief to her cute Scottish brogue) seeks out Basil of Baker Street with the help of Major Dr David Q Dawson (our plump, very likeable Dr Watson in mosue form). Though Basil appears at first uninterested in the case, preoccupied as he is by his attempts to track down the aformentioned Ratigan, upon hearing about the bat’s involvement his sleuthing brain is stimulated and so begins a thoroughly enjoyable case.

Among The Great Mouse Detective’s triumphs are the way in which some of the more well-known sensibilities of the famous Holmes have been repackaged and shrunk down for kids. Basil is egotistical about his intellect, hell-bent on catching Ratigan and his persona borders at times on arrogance but he is all enthusiasm and breathless, heroic likeability. Most importantly Holmes’ extraordinary ability to deduce very accurately incredible details from the meagrest of clues is cartoonishly intact in a number of scenes, as is the character’s mastery of disguise. Basil is a worthy representation on one of fiction’s most famous characters and has been perfectly presented in colourful, child-friendly fashion and is the kind of hero pretty much everybody will love. Almost stealing the show is the dastardly Professor Ratigan, a quite excellent Napoleon of Crime figure. The rivalry between the two characters drives the whole show and gives real sparkle to the memorable scene where they finally meet near the film’s conclusion in which our hero faces a pretty sticky fate.

The film is pacy too, with scenes taking in seedy bars, Buckingham Palace and most memorable a dark toy shop at night. The plot is tight and satisfying, driven by Basil’s clever deductions, never staying in one place too long or getting bogged down by unnecessary gags or side-plots. There are faults, it’s too short and the songs could be better and I’m not really a fan of the Loony Tunes-style wacky cartoonishness in some places (piano keys wiggling around in a whip-crack wave), but these are minor quibbles at worst and are overwhelmed by the strength of the plot, it’s characters and settings and thew whole sense of fun.

Verdict

The words ‘forgotten classic’ have never been more appropriate. Considering the inspiration and, more relevantly the quality on show here it’s amazing The Great Mouse Detective didn’t enjoy greater success as it should stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the Disney greats. Be sure to check it out if you have any interest in animation because this is one overlooked film that deserves attention.