Review: The A-Team (6/10) - 2010: I Pity The Fools

Remakes are dodgy territory in my opinion, especially a series I grew up watching and loving. The cheesy one-liners, BA's susceptibility to drinking milk to get on a plane, Hannibal's cigar-smoking smile, Murdock's perfect insanity, and Faceman's seductive skills, coupled with flipping cars and bullets that never hit anyone were what made it such a phenomenal television show. So here is how I discovered this new film even existed. I was sitting in the cinema waiting to watch Inception, and the trailer for this film came up. I sat there with my head in my hands, to the point of breaking down in tears as to how they ruined a perfectly respectable show. The characters did not fit those I knew and loved: Mr. T is irreplaceable for one thing, and the new theme tune was nowhere near as good as the original.




Here's a tip to all you directors out there who want to produce a remake: Don't deviate too much from the original, or face the backlash! At least keep the theme tune from the original! I mean fair enough, in one section of the film they use the original track, but be consistent and use it in the marketing too!

The story centers around a group of Iraq War veterans looks to clear their name with the U.S. military, who suspect the four men of committing a crime for which they were framed. The group consists of Colonel John 'Hannibal' Smith (Liam Neeson), Lt. Templeton 'Faceman' Peck (Bradley Cooper), Sergeant Bosco 'B.A.' Baracus (Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson), Captain James 'Howling Mad' Murdock (Sharlto Copley) and also Jessica Biel as Charissa Sosa.

Watch the following trailer to see what I mean:



Flying tanks and general ridiculous storyline were one of the main reasons I did not go to the cinema to watch this film. In fact, I was on a five-hour British Airways flight on-board a flight from Cyprus, back to the UK. Unlike the more modern Cyprus Airways planes I normally fly on, I thought I had stepped back in time onto a plane with shared 16" isle box televisions. "Fair enough," I thought, as I was sure they would have a better selection of films on BA than on Cyprus Airways. I opened the entertainment guide and hey presto... The A-Team. 5 Hours stuck on a plan with no entertainment but this 117 minute pathetic excuse for a remake. I mean, I'm FAIRLY sure it was the Vietnam war, not the Iraq War where they met, not to mention BA usually wears tonnes of gold chains claiming that he "ain't gettin' on no plane," compared to "chopper". I was annoyed but thought I may as well give it a go.

You know what? Director Joe Carnahan actually did a decent job. I have no qualms in saying that the storyline was pathetically poor, as was most of the acting aside from Liam Neeson (as always), and newcomer Sharlto Copley (who is possibly the only person on earth who could possibly immitate Dwight Shultz' version of Murdock). Liam Neeson was as effective as George Peppard (who sadly passed away in 1994 with lung cancer). I thought "Rampage" was quite poor, but there seems to be this considerable trend in that wrestlers/cage fighters seem to think that they can act when they get the chance (aside from Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson and Steve Austin who are showing considerable signs of improvement). I have a gigantic crush on Jessica Biel, but recently I think she's been a bit wooden as an actress... but don't worry Jessica, I still love you. Bradley Cooper has been getting all the breaks since his hit film "The Hangover" (2009), and he does quite a good job of imitating Dirk Benedict's Faceman.

Overall I have rated this film 6/10, because as a stand-alone film, I did find myself really enjoying myself as it unfolded. I think the charm of ridiculous scenarios, coupled with a bit more violence and grit than the original, was a welcoming addition to this version. I do feel that it was totally unnecessary to show how the group met for the first time, as everyone knows that they were a unit. In a way it was nice to bring the story forward a few decades, but would have been nice to retain the original recordings of the narration and theme tune. Finally, I think that if I had never grown up with the original series, I would have enjoyed this a lot more, but simply because it was not the same feel as the original, it does not beat its charm and wit overall. I guess "I ain't gettin' on no BA Plane" to Cyprus again!

Review: Toy Story 3 (10/10) - 2010: To Infinite And Beyond!

The moment Toy Story 3 was announced, I was both extremely excited and extremely skeptical. The first in the trilogy is in my opinion still the best animation to date. Of course many people will go "but the graphics weren't great," or "UP was SO much better," or "Avatar destroys it in graphics field." No I disagree on this point on a multitude of levels. UP was a phenomenal film don't get me wrong. The talking dog was possibly the best part of the film (primarily as my dog is an uncanny replica to it), and the graphics were very similar in a way to Toy Story 1. Avatar in my opinion shouldn't really be described as an animation as it was too lifelike to the point that you were immersed in Pandora, thus eliminating the animated feel to the film. The whole magic of Toy Story was the realistic, plastic feel of the toys, despite the unrealistic human characters. Besides, you can read my review on exactly what I thought of Avatar, but for now let's concentrate on Toy Story.

The second installment in the film was extremely disappointing, and clearly a lucrative marketing opportunity just four years after the first in 1995. It's hard to imagine that I was just eight years old when the first one came out, so I'm sure you can imagine my emotional ties with the film. People say that you taste changes when you get older, but when I heard that Odeon were going to screen the first one again in 3D, I jumped at the chance with numerous other housemates and friends. I hadn't seen the film in a number of years, but wasn't disappointed. It was exactly how I remembered, allowing me to appreciate the film even more since I've been studying film and television.

The second film for me was a failure for a number of reasons. Firstly, I hated the new characters. Jessie is a terrible addition to the already perfect squad. Secondly, the storyline was very average. Sure it was nice to introduce the Evil Emperor Zurg, but the character didn't fit my childlike imagination. He looked more like a cross between The Devil, Snow White and Rita from the Power Rangers. It was just ridiculous really. Anyway, along with I'm fairly sure the majority of people I know, I thought it was rubbish, so in order to even contend with the first, Toy Story 3 had a lot of making up to do.

Toy Story 3 brings back the same old characters we know and love (minus Bo Peep, Etch & Wheezy, yet annoyingly keeps Jessie). Without giving away too much of the story, Andy (John Morris), is all grown up and getting ready to go to College. His mum asks him to sort out the toys to be donated to charity, and those to be placed in the attic. However, a mix-up occurs and all of the toys (bar Woody who is the only one chosen to go to College) are mistakenly delivered to a day-care center right before Andy leaves for college. As Woody was the only chosen one who could see everything at the time, it is up to him to convince the other toys that they weren't abandoned and that they should return home to their rightful owner.

The following is the trailer for this phenomenal film:



All I can say, is that Disney's Pixar simply hit the nail on the head with this 103-minute film. It was absolutely spectacular. It took them 10 years to develop and complete this film, and the time and dedication completely pays off. The soundtrack takes me back to when I was eight years old, and brings back that innocence we all once had. I guess a lot of people will think that I'm talking absolute rubbish, but it's a truly emotional film. The intro is possibly THE most intelligent introduction to a sequel I have ever seen, and I sat there in awe as it played out. If only more sequels took a leaf out of Pixar's book.

Originally, a sequel was planned when it seemed that Disney and PIXAR would split over creative differences in 2004-2005. Disney started up an animation division titled 'Circle 7,' which would have been in charge of churning out sequels for PIXAR films that would not involve the original creators at PIXAR. Entertainment Weekly published an article that said the original plot for Toy Story 3 was going to be about Buzz Lightyear having a defect. Buzz would then be shipped to Taiwan to be fixed, but the other toys find out that the toy company is just replacing the broken Buzz toys with new ones, so they ship themselves to Taiwan to rescue him. This script had to be canned when PIXAR and Disney made amends. Part of their agreement was not to further develop projects that had been planned during their fallout (IMDB).

I'm glad this didn't happen as this version is much more intricate. The soothing voice combination of Woody (Tom Hanks) and Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) brings back the memories in an adventure of epic proportions. I cannot explain just how cleverly crafted this film is, with points in the film where you think "are they actually going to do this? Is this it?!" There are a magnitude of new characters in this installment, and I believe that unlike the 2nd film, they actually got them right this time. Ken was a brilliant addition to the group (and one that would have benefited in "fixing" the second film), but nonetheless, there were so many hilarious moments, both new and reminders of the past films. This is also the first animated film to make one billion dollars at the worldwide box office, achieving this on August 27th, 2010.

Is it better than Toy Story 1? Surely it must be for 10/10 you must think? My verdict is that it isn't as good as the first, but only marginally. I sat at the end of the film with my group of friends (all of whom kept their 3D glasses on even after the film, (we all did it) for obvious reasons. I contemplated the possibility that this may pip the title for my favourite ever animation. It was perfect in every way, from story, to content, to ending. I believe that the only reason this film didn't beat the first, was the recognisably of new characters. Arguably, the reason that Toy Story 1 was so successful, was because the majority of the toys (aside from Woody(?) and Buzz Lightyear were toys that my generation, and those before me genuinely grew up playing with.

There is a scene with an old toy phone in the 3rd film which I felt I associated more with than the other new characters, simply because I will have played with it at a nursery in my childhood, or a friend will have owned one, etc. I believe that seeing as the toys were in a day care centre through donation, surely they would be old-fashioned, disused toys we would have played with, compared to newly created ones? In any case, the story was still phenomenal, but I felt it was important to add my two cents on why I still think the first is the best of the trilogy. I believe that anyone who had an emotional connection to the first film so many years ago will adore this film. So go and watch it, 3D or not, because it is simply out of this world.

Advertising - 2010: Tippex YouTube Sensation

I was casually checking my Friday email's last week and regularly scroll through FHM's Weekly email. Most of the time the links are average, but every now and then, there is a gem. It's been a while since an advertising campaign has caught my eye like this, but when I saw "NSFW. A hunter shoots a bear!" I was intrigued to say the least. On the whole, if videos make it on YouTube, then they are bound to be funny, rather than gory, so another reason to click.



Watch the advertisement below and see just how shocking this video is!



Well, I bet you weren't expecting that! I can tell you I wasn't. On a Cross-Platform Group Project at Bournemouth University, a group of friends and I developed a very similar concept called iDunno.co.uk, for children, and not too dissimilar to Microsoft's Miss Dewey. Miss Dewey has been discontinued, but was a very intelligent website with thousands of responses. Tippex have done a phenomenal job in integrating this concept with YouTube, and in my opinion is the first of its kind. iDunno.co.uk was a safe interactive search engine for children and hopefully will be developed further in the future.

Anyway, back to Tippex... The advertisement was developed by Buzzman in France and you have the ability to rewrite the story however you see fit (hence the Tippex link...obviously). How many different videos can you find? I'll put up the one's I've found, so just add away!

1. Shoots
2. Erases
3. F***s (come on, I bet you put that in first)
4. Punches
5. Photographs
6. Rides
7. Marries
8. Dances
9. Teases
10. Farts
11. Feeds
12. Eats
13. Finds
14. Sings
15. Couch
16. Football

I think that's enough. Find some for yourselves and let me know if you find anything new! I know there was a film camera one but I can't find it anymore!

Enjoy!

James

Review: Piranha 3D (6/10) - 2010: A Mouthful Of Laughs

I never would have thought that when my brother Jon called me up to go to the cinema, I would even begin to contemplate the thought of spending the little cash I've got, on going to watch Piranha 3D. This is a film I have publicly ridiculed and laughed at in disgust whenever the trailer came onto the television.

Directed by Alexandre Aje (Director of The Hills Have Eyes), this 88 minute bloody babe-fest is set in the sleepy town of Lake Victoria, which is coincidentally also the annual setting for Spring Break. After a sudden underwater tremor, scores of prehistoric man(and woman)-eating piranhas are set free into the bikini-laden waters. An unlikely group of strangers (and pornstars) must band together to stop themselves from becoming fish food for the area's new razor-toothed residents.



The film stars Jessica Szohr (Gossip Girl), Steven R. McQueen (The Vampire Diaries), Elisabeth Shue (Hollow Man), Jerry O’Connell (Obsessed), Ving Rhames (Pulp Fiction), Adam Scott (Step Brothers), Richard Dreyfuss (Close Encounters Of The Third Kind), Christopher Lloyd (Back To The Future), and men's favourites, Kelly Brook (model) and Riley Steele (pornstar).

The following video is the film's official Trailer:



As you have just witnessed, I believe that the CGI (computer-generated imagery) throughout the film is potentially the worst I've seen since A Sound of Thunder's (2005) attempt in making a futuristic city, and worst yet on the big screen. The piranha movement looks incredibly fake (especially when "Doc Brown" drops one into the fish-tank). When I witnessed the above trailer on the television, the thought of people even wanting to download it illegally seemed like an unlikely waste of time.

The fact that this film was marketed as a 3D fright-fest is simply laughable, as I'd like to mention that I was not the only person who went completely cross-eyed at the opening credits to the point I had to take them off. Furthermore, the actual 3D bits of the film didn't really work like that on Avatar, or any other 3D film for that matter.

In an interview, Kelly Brook quoted that the film was "The ultimate horror, action exploitation movie" and that it is "everything you want a movie to be, and the fact that it's in 3D, gives it that extra edge." With this in mind, it makes me think that she has in fact recognised this film as an actual, serious piece of acting work on her part. I hate to be an a****le, but her performance is anything but a serious piece of eye-candy (however nice).

Eli Roth cameo's as a wet-tshirt contest host, which virtually sums up what you may expect from a film he may partake in (see Hostel, 2005). There were times in this film where I believe that Peter Jackson's Brain Dead (1990) influenced it with...erm...gore.

So why 6/10 you ask? You know what...I haven't laughed so much in the cinema in a long time. This wasn't necessarily down to scripted funny parts (of which there were quite a few), but due to the sheer unrealistic, over-the-top cliché aspects of the storyline that the audience (well me and my brother at least) found hilarious and downright ridiculously funny (Remember - Boat + everyone in the water; and a piranha's burp). It is evident that to direct that amount of extras is a challenge, but some of them were so poor, it made me cry with laughter. Some of the movie was genuine horror however, and evoked a shocked, manly "eww" when it occurred (Remember - Hair + Motor for when you see it), but more often than not, the graphics let it down.

One thing I can commend in this film is the make-up department. The actual gore displayed post-attack was phenomenal. The prosthetics were realistic, the blood was the right shade of colouring and consistency, and the main cast acting was in fact, quite decent in this instance. This isn't really the type of film that you can particularly label anyone as a stand-out performance (apart from Elizabeth Shue and Jerry O'Connell I'd say). Furthermore, I am still to this day unsure as to whether or not the director intended this film to be tongue-in-cheek/Shaun of the dead horror, or a genuine Hostel" horror with accidental comedy. All I can say is...if you would like to go to the cinema to see a soft-core porno with glimpses of horror and lots and lots of laughs, go and watch it.

An Update You Say? Featuring: Raindance Film Festival, Black Peak & Life

Well to those of you who thought I had given up Blogging, think again! I'm back and ready to bring you my latest views and thoughts on all things film and television (with the odd bit of advertising). As some of you who follow me will know, I have recently completed my Masters in Producing Film and Television at Bournemouth University. With this in mind, I have decided to revamp the layout of the blog so that it doesn't give you a brain tumour when reading white on black.


The final few months have been the most hectic of my life, and I have learned so much much throughout this one year. It feels as though it was just yesterday I was picking up a Sony EX3 for the first time and wondering how to turn it on, whilst now I have worked on countless productions, not to mention having produced, directed and written a twenty minute film (along with the phenomenal people along the way who made it all possible, and to whom I am eternally grateful).

I am also delighted to announce that I recently received possibly one of my greatest compliments in the film industry to date, back in June of this year, from none other than the Raindance Film Festival. The fact that they have taken the time to acknowledge even a little bit of my work (writing or otherwise), is greatly appreciated.

I have always been an advocate of Twitter once I discovered its powers, and I can honestly say that my daily intake of articles published by Raindance, the brilliant Elliot Grove and other excellent writers has aided my progression 10-fold. I don't usually find myself writing about companies as such, but I just felt the need to almost show my appreciation by taking the time to compliment this great service, so thank you Raindance.

In other news, Black Peak is still in the edit. I'm still awaiting CGI integration, final edit, colour, and sound to be completed (not much at all!). Once that is done, I am hoping that those who watch it really appreciate the hard work, horrendous weather conditions and blood, sweat and tears we all endured to make it possible.

I will follow up this post with an ACTUAL movie post, however belated.

Hope you are keeping well.

James