300: Rise of an Empire review

300: Rise of an Empire (15/R, 102 mins)
Director: Noam Murro
★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆

The reams of backstory and exposition that make up much of this somewhat uncalled-for action sequel fill us in on how Greek general Themistocles (Sullivan Stapleton) made an enemy of Xerxes, who became the god-king that Gerard Butler and his Spartans fought in the original 300 seven years ago. None of this is particularly relevant to what’s being told here, a battle being waged by Xerxes’ second-in-command, Artemisia (Eva Green), and her massed Persian forces, with Themistocles wanting Sparta to join the fight. What follows is essentially the same sea battle played out over and over, doused in torrents of computer generated blood that passed muster back when this sort of thing was a novelty, but which is now just kinda boring. Grand-scale carnage and destruction it may be, but there’s very little to engage with thanks to woeful dialogue and scarcely more believable performances. A couple of stunning shots offer little respite, and it’s rather cheapened by the fact it’s all taking place at more or less the same time as the events of 300, meaning we’re watching this third division stuff while the Champions League is on. It seemed these words would never be written, but Gerard Butler is badly missed.

Kick-Ass 2 review

Kick-Ass 2 (15/R, 103 mins)
Director: Jeff Wadlow
★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

Based on the graphic novels of Mark Millar and John Romita Jr., Kick-Ass was one of the freshest and most entertaining films of 2010.

It took superheroes out of the realm of fantasy and into the real world, where ordinary New York teenager Dave (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) dressed up as a masked vigilante, Kick-Ass, and took on crime. The problem was that, though Kick-Ass was trying to be a hero, he was never very super, something that made him the least compelling aspect of his own movie.

So it was left to Mindy Macready, aka Hit Girl (Chloe Grace Moretz) to provide both the fighting skills and be the star of the movie. The opening scene in this sequel mirrors one of the most iconic from the first film, in which Big Daddy (Nicolas Cage) shot a gun at his bulletproof vest-wearing young daughter, Mindy. Only this time it’s Mindy who’s holding the gun, and she’s shooting Dave as part of his training.

Mindy, now 15, is still taking on criminals and kicking ass, but Kick-Ass himself has hung up his suit, even though he has inspired others to take to the streets in costumes and fight wrongdoers. But Mindy makes a promise to her guardian, Marcus (Morris Chestnut) who was once her father’s partner in the police force, that she won’t be Hit Girl anymore.

Touching on the insanity of what they're doing, that Mindy should be a girl with a normal childhood, is the first clue that this sequel intends to take a more thoughtful look at these characters’ actions, and not simply be a hyper-violent cartoon.

Yet Dave is keen to get back into Kick-Ass ways, and joins up with a team of masked amateur avengers led by Jim Carrey, who goes by the name Colonel Stars and Stripes. This is where Cage is missed, no doubt about it, with Carrey not really offering the same level of crazed wit as his would-be replacement.

Meanwhile Chris D’Amico (Christopher Mintz-Plasse) is hungry for revenge since Kick-Ass killed his crime-boss father. He reinvents himself as a supervillain, the Motherfucker, and gathers together a team of baddies to hunt down Kick-Ass and his pals.

Also new to the scene is director Jeff Wadlow, taking over the reigns from Matthew Vaughn. Wadlow certainly delivers with a smart screenplay, but isn’t quite able to bring the same level of panache to the action scenes that the first movie offered.

Being modestly budgeted means it’s fairly low key action-wise, in the first two-thirds of the film at any rate, but the scale of the action matters less than the imagination, the originality and the impact that it has. Moreover it allows the focus to fall on the characters, and is what elevates Kick-Ass 2 beyond simple exploitation.

Though it still has its share of outrageous moments, and a truly inspired all-action finale, the element of surprise, particularly in regard to Hit Girl, has been lost. But that’s precisely why they spend so much time out of costume this time round, so we can get to the core of the people under the masks.

More of the same just wouldn’t cut it, and it’s entirely right and necessary to expand the world and move the characters forward. It’s a movie that’s aware of its comic book origins, but this isn’t the world of Spider-Man and his oft-repeated “with real power comes real responsibility” mantra. This is the real world, with real-world consequences and responsibilities.

It’s the growth of the characters through this realisation that makes Kick-Ass 2 a successful piece of storytelling, far more than it’s a successful bit of comic fun. For that it should be applauded.

Dredd Review

Dredd (18, 95 mins)
Director: Pete Travis

★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

As is often the case with futuristic thrillers, America is a wasteland, with 800 million people living in the walled off Mega-City One. Only the Judges, who are in fact judge, jury and executioner rolled into one neat package, keep any sense of order. The most feared of these would appear to be Dredd (Karl Urban, never unmasked), although any introduction or backstory is dispensed with, and we should just take it as read that he’s the baddest of the bad-asses. But they're losing control of the city, and on the same day Dredd takes on rookie Judge Anderson (Olivia Thirlby), who happens to be psychic, a talent that comes in handy during their day, they find themselves trapped in a 200-floor tower block controlled by vicious gang leader Ma-Ma (Lena Headey). With the building locked down and Ma-Ma telling the residents she wants the Judges dead, the film takes on the mantle of The Raid from a few months ago, as Dredd and Anderson make their way up through the levels, eviscerating goons at every turn. Amid the slaughter, it’s smart enough to pause for a moment to consider the moralities and consequences of a system that endorses this savage avenger, this Dirty Harry in a Robocop mask, before barrelling ahead anyway with the massacre. As an action blast it ticks most boxes; justice is swift, merciless and bloody, and the impact of this is often troublingly satisfying. It looks absolutely glorious, and Ma-Ma has unleashed a new drug called Slo-mo, the effects of which give rise to a few visually stunning, super stylised slow motion sequences, as blood and bits fly everywhere. But it’s single-minded to a degree that can occasionally become repetitive and tedious, and though there’s enough style and zip to banish memories of the widely derided Stallone version from 1995, it’s just a shame The Raid has already set the bar so high for this sort of thing.

Red review

Red (12A, 111 mins)
Director: Robert Schwentke

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

Based on a graphic novel, this fun action romp stars Bruce Willis as a former CIA agent who’s designated RED (retired, extremely dangerous) by his old employers who send an army of hitmen after him, forcing him to go on the run with the help of his old colleagues, Morgan Freeman and John Malkovich. Don’t worry about the daft plot and just enjoy some cool moves and slick action and comical byplay from a first rate cast. There’s an easy charm that comes from no one trying too hard, with a low key, softly spoken Willis reaffirming how likeable he is when he isn’t being smug and Malkovich a riot as his wildly paranoid pal. And even though it loses some zip in a protracted finale, it might be the only chance you’ll ever get to see Helen Mirren in evening dress firing a machine gun the size of a giraffe.

Tamara Drewe review

Tamara Drewe (15, 111 mins)
Director: Stephen Frears

★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆

A diverse bunch of people gather at a rural writers’ retreat run by the philandering Nicholas (Roger Allam) and his wife Beth (Tamsin Greig). Into their lives comes Tamara Drewe (Gemma Arterton), who used to live in the village but has been away for some years, and her return causes passions to run high among the group, as well as an out-of-town a drummer (Dominic Cooper). Based on a newspaper comic strip, this is a broad and overwrought comic drama, pitched like a sitcom in tone, delivery and situation. And just who is Tamara, what does she want and why are we supposed to root for her? It’s full of larger than life characters, not one of whom is remotely likeable or believable (with the possible exception of Beth) and the whole is really rather irritating.

Jonah Hex review

Jonah Hex (15, 81 mins)
Director: Jimmy Hayward

★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆

The first warning sign that all is not well with this fantasy western is the running time which, taking the closing credits out of the equation is barely 70 minutes, with reports suggesting at least half an hour of it has been left on the cutting room floor. It’s yet another comic book adaptation, with Josh Brolin taking the title role as a back-from-the-dead bounty hunter tracking down the man who killed his family (John Malkovich) and who now plans to unleash a WMD on Washington. It’s visually impressive if ear-splitting, with a pounding rock score and frequent bruising action, and Brolin growls and scowls like a good ‘un throughout. But though it’s generally coherent, its brevity means it goes straight from the setup to the climax with almost nothing in between.

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World review

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (12A, 112 mins)
Director: Edgar Wright

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

A couple of questions are raised going into Scott Pilgrim Vs the World which, as with almost every other film these days, is based on a graphic novel.

The first is whether director Edgar Wright can parlay the success he found with Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz into his first shot a proper Hollywood feature. That’s not to say that he’s necessarily taking a step up here, because anyone familiar with his zom-rom-com and cop spoof will know they're two of the very best films of the last decade, British or otherwise. But it is the first time he’s made a film with a fairly substantial chunk of purely American money, and Hollywood will be watching to see if he can pull it off.

There’s also the question of whether the film’s star, Michael Cera, can finally shake off his Juno/Superbad likeable nerd persona and deliver a sufficiently different and truly interesting character and performance.

Cera plays the titular Scott Pilgrim, who at 22 is something of a slacker, in a band and dating a high school girl called Knives Chau. But when he sees new girl in town Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) at a party he falls for her hard.

What takes this to a level beyond that of the standard teen rom-com is that, in order to date Ramona, Scott must defeat her seven evil ex-boyfriends. That’s evil as in they want to kill him, and defeat as in fight to the death.

It all takes part in a world that, though more or less real, is part comic book and part video game. With its quirky scene transitions and on-screen graphics and text, it could easily tip over into arch and irritating but Wright quickly establishes the world and sets the rules for what is to follow, and there shouldn’t have been a moment’s doubt that he could handle it expertly.

And what does follow is every bit as insane as the premise suggests. Everyone appears to have superpowers, so the characters can soar through the air as they battle, and withstand atomic blows in the process. It ends up playing like a much funnier and far less bloody Kill Bill, with each of the fights offering something different, more original or more comical than the last as Scott ploughs his way through the hordes to face the final showdown with Gideon (Jason Schwartzman).

As for Cera, it’s not a complete departure but it’s a step in the right direction, playing a character who’s still reasonably sweet but also self-obsessed and a bit dim. Taking part in numerous fights scenes obviously helps Scott stand out from the usual Cera shtick, and he even gets to display an unseen darker side while still remaining funny.

Of the seven evil exes, Chris Evans and Brandon Routh make the biggest impacts, the former as a smug actor, while Routh (who played Superman in Superman Returns) provides big laughs as a psychic vegan.

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is bouncy, demented and packed with so many fun characters and moments that it becomes difficult to pick a highlight. It’s one of the most fresh and inventive action comedies of the last few years, and one that can proudly position itself beside Kick-Ass in terms of sheer entertainment value.

The Losers review

The Losers (12A, 97 mins)
Director: Sylvain White 
★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

Looking to steal a march on the upcoming A-Team movie, actioner The Losers is based on a graphic novel about a group of mercenaries (including the likes of Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Chris Evans and Idris Elba) betrayed by the CIA. Presumed dead and left to rot in Bolivia, they meet Zoe Saldana’s former agent who tells him she can get them back to America so they can find the man who betrayed them, someone she also has a grudge against. So they come up against an arms dealer (Jason Patric) in a well paced adventure that’s full of globetrotting and double crossing and some energetic burst of action that try to incorporate traditional gunplay with heist machinations. By adopting a light hearted approach and a flippantly violent tone, it canters along as harmless fun that isn’t necessarily always funny. So while Patric and his henchman have a nice line in banter, sort of a riff on Dr Evil and his son from Austin Powers, elsewhere it’s just fairly lame bickering by a minor cast.