The Nut Job

The Nut Job is an animated film starring the voices of Will Arnett, Brendan Fraser, Liam Neeson, Katherine Heigl and directed by Peter Lepeniotis.

The film revolves around a rather proud, selfish squirrel named Surly. He likes doing things his way and as a result he is constantly butting heads with the rest of the rodents who live in a massive oak tree. That is until he is responsible for accidentally burning down their home. Which ultimately results in him being banished from that area for good.

At the same time, a sub plot runs congruently with the main plot which deals with a bunch of crooks planning to dig their way into a bank. They have opened a shop across the road from the bank as a front. The shop sells nuts and this is where the two plots meet. While the crooks are trying to break into the bank, the squirrels are trying to break into the shop and get the nuts for themselves.

Now firstly this movie isn’t produced by Disney or Pixar and you can clearly see it in the animations. While it isn’t terrible and still watchable, the animation is just not on par with what you see in today’s animated films. 

After watching this film I decided to check Wikipedia to see what other reviewers said and this film has been universally panned. Almost every critic hated it and for good reason, they complained about character development, a thin plot and called it charmless.

However, I do agree with them on that aspect from an adult’s point of view. But to a child, this is pure gold. Trying watching this movie through the eyes of a child or put a child in front of this film and you will see pure entertainment and enjoyment.

As this is the main target audience of this movie. Families can of course watch along and the average movie goer will find a few laughs, but kids will get the biggest kick out of this movie.

So with that in mind. The Nut Job gets a salted 1 out of 10. And for the kiddies view point: The Nut Job gets a cracked 7 out of 10

Vampire Academy

Way back in 2001 we met Harry Potter, a young innocent boy who found out he was a wizard and was sent to a special school for wizards. Then in 2010 we met Percy Jackson, a young innocent boy who found out he was a demigod and was sent to a special school for demigods. So what’s latest trend of films to clone the Harry Potter franchise? A special school for vampires.

I’m talking about the latest teen target film Vampire Academy, starring Zoey Dutch, Lucy Fry, Danila Kozlovsky and directed by Mark Waters who also helmed Mean Girls.

Instead of going through the usual formula of being introduced to a young innocent girl and then attend a special school for vampires, we’re thrown straight into the vampire school with the characters already established.

Vampire Academy also tries to incorporate a Game of Thrones style of storytelling by focusing on different types of races all at war with each other.

This is the main focus of the film, as we meet Rose who is a Dhampir (half human, half vampire) she is also a guardian and must protect her friend, who is a princess, from the Strigoi, who are the evil vampires. Rose and her friends belong to a class of vampires called the Moroi; they’re the good guys.

Now this might all sound sort of enticing and it might sound good enough to watch, but this film is downright 

terrible.

The plot is just horrible, so is the thinly written script. I honestly could not feel a connection of any kind with any character due to some shoddy performances. The movie takes constant swipes at Twilight yet the irony is - and I never thought I’d say this - Vampire Academy makes Twilight look like a masterpiece.

The film’s main audience is obviously teenagers, especially teenage girls trying to fill the void now that the Twilight fad is thankfully over. However, the film fails to connect with audiences and although I’m no teenager so I have no authority over this claim, but the fact that this movie has bombed worldwide seems to be a good indication.

Mark Waters also tried to incorporate a Mean Girls type of theme again in this film, however, Mean Girls was brilliant due to good script writing and the whole point of the movie was the stereotypical teenage girl behaviour. Vampire Academy had nothing to do with that but Mark Waters tried to add some conflict which just adds more unnecessary weight to the plot which ultimately slows the movie down.

Vampire Academy is a film which tried to enter a niche market and ultimately failed and the disappointing performance at the Box Office has sealed the coffin on any potential sequels.

So with that in mind, Vampire Academy gets a blood clotting 2 out of 10

Captain Phillips

Captain Phillips is a drama thriller starring Tom Hanks, Barkhad Abdi and directed by Paul Greengrass.

The film is based on a true story about Captain Richard Phillips who was taken hostage by Somali Pirates. Phillips wrote a book detailing his ordeal and the film is based on that book.

Now on to the movie itself, which starts off departing from the Port of Salalah, and sails through the Gulf of Eden in order to get to Mombasa. However, once they near the Horn of Africa, the ship is attacked by pirates, which is eventually boarded. I’ll stop here so as not to give too much away.

The acting in this film is extremely powerful, especially from the movie’s two lead actors, Tom Hanks and Barkhad Abdi. The tone in the film is perfectly paced, although the film does slightly drag out a bit in the first 20 minutes of the third act. However, the movie is able to capture the tension beautifully, you feel as if you are able to identify with the plight of Captain Phillips, all huddled on a small lifeboat with four armed pirates surrounding him. And you begin asking yourself, what would you do in that situation?

Again a round of applause must be given to Barkhad Abdi, who is a native Somali. Although he has been living in the States for some time, his accent is perfect and of course his native language. He isn’t the only one though as his co actors, all native Somalis now living in the States give incredibly convincing performances which gives you a glimpse of the dangers that ships go through in those waters.

The film also tries to pull on your moral heartstrings by touching on the reasons these pirates do what they do, which of course explores themes of survival and how far would you go to support yourself. However, the film doesn’t justify nor condone the pirating actions, but just leaves the idea there as a little afterthought.

So with that in mind, Captain Phillips gets an anchored 10 out of 10.

Remember to click on the title to hear the audio version of this review. 

Bad Neighbours

Bad Neighbours is a comedy starring Seth Rogen, Zac Efron, Rose Byrne, Dave Franco and directed by Nicholas Stoller.

The film tells the story of Mac and his wife Kelly (Played by Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne), they are a young, happy family with a new born baby.

The couple seem to live in a relatively peaceful neighbourhood, that is until they get new neighbours which turns out to be a frat house.

Mac and his wife are OK with this at first seeing as they discussed the rules with their new neighbours regarding noise levels for the sake of their baby. But of course this doesn’t happen and the constant partying and noises leads Mac to declare war on the frat house. Which of course leads to retaliation from the varsity kids and neither will budge as both parties naturally want to come out victorious.

When I first heard about this film and read the premise, I was quite excited to watch this film, as I do enjoy most of Seth Rogen’s films, even though the continuing theme of marijuana and partying is getting old, and I thought this movie had potential to be a really funny movie.

Alas this is not the case. Although the movie does have its laughs, and there are plenty of them, I was expecting way more, especially when it came to the whole at war with each other concept.

Now I know that this is a stoner movie in a sense and it shouldn’t be taken too seriously, seeing as this film doesn’t take itself seriously, but when it comes to the performances, there were just some terrible moments. One example is both Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne delivered some really shoddy acting when talking to the varsity kids for the first time. The scene was supposed to depict them trying to act cool in from of these kids, but it really just bombed and from there I sort of lost respect for this film. however, at the opposite end, performances from Dave Franco and Zac Efron were really not too bad at all, I would go as far as saying they outperformed the lead actors in this film.

I really enjoyed Stoller’s previous film, This Is The End, and even though that movie was also not meant to be taken seriously, the whole concept and tone was way better and generated some great comedy.

Again, I know this isn’t a movie to be taken seriously, but at the same time, it just felt like something was missing and this is not one of Seth Rogen’s best films. If you are a fan and would really like to watch this movie, then I would suggest that you wait for the DVD.

So with that in mind, Bad Neighbours gets a not so neighbourly 5 out of 10

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is a post-apocalyptic film starring Andy Serkis, Gary Oldman, Jason Clarke, Keri Russell and directed by Matt Reeves.

The film is set ten years after the events of Rise of the Planet of the Apes, most of humanity has been wiped out by the ALZ-113 virus, only a handful of humans remain and the apes, led by Caesar, live in relative peace.

That is until a group of human survivors run into two apes that are out hunting. What results is a very uneasy truce and both species do not trust each other and the tiniest mistake made by ape or human could spark an all-out war.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is one of those rare gems in films today. It is absolutely brilliant from beginning to end. Once the humans encounter the apes, you can feel that immediate tension that not only stays throughout the whole film, but gradually rises as well.

A round of applause must be given to Andy Serkis, the man who spent the entire movie in a motion capture suit. He plays Caesar, and he does so amazingly. He is able to capture the ape-like gestures and is able to convey all sorts of strong emotions through body language.

The film also realistically depicts apes as they would behave if they had somehow become genetically smarter. Unlike the original franchise which depicted the apes as more humanoid, both Rise and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes kept them grounded realistically, which not only results in some amazing on screen brilliance, but also a terrifying realistic experience.

In essence this is how not only a reboot, but how a sequel should be. The reboot is completely different from the source material, yet the spirit is still there. Rise of the Planet of the Apes was brilliant in starting off the reboot, completely fresh and explained how the Apes became so dominant. This of course then spills over to Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, which has a far more grittier and darker tone and doesn’t feel like you’re watching the same movie over again.

One could also compare this franchise to the Dark Knight Trilogy. Tim Burton’s Batman is regarded as a classic film, until Joel Schumacher fulfilled the Joker’s wish and killed the Batman. Franklin Schaffner’s Planet of the Apes is regarded as classic science fiction, until Tim Burton, ironically enough, put his dirty paws all over the film and destroyed it. The reboots, both Rise and Dawn have reinstated the franchise and have made it one of the best in the film’s series to date.

All in all, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is a must watch and trust me you will not be disappointed. The only fault I could find in this movie was a very subtle spoiler that was given in the trailer, but you would have had to pay attention.

So with that in mind, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes gets a “Keep your lovely paws on me, you damn fine ape” 10 out of 10

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The LEGO Movie

The LEGO Movie is an animated comedy film starring an ensemble cast of Chris Pratt, Will Ferrell, Elizabeth Banks, Liam Neeson, Morgan Freeman, Alison Brie and directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller.

The Lego franchise has enjoyed many successes ranging from the conventional building blocks to video games and now its own movie and this is no exception when it comes to a success.

The film tells the story of Emmet, who is just a normal Lego person; he is happy and falls in place with all instructions given. However, he is also the supposed one who is foretold in a prophecy to save the Lego universe from the clutches of the tyrannical ruler known as Lord Business.

I’m going to leave the plot details there to avoid any spoilers and to talk about this film as a whole itself.

First off, the animation is brilliantly done, it’s completely CGI (Save for a few live action scenes) yet it was done in a way to make it look like stop motion animation in order to give it that authentic Lego feel.

The voice acting is of course top notch, although I do feel that Liam Neeson’s performance was a bit too animated and didn’t feel fluid enough, it’s like he was almost restricted. But apart from that, everything was just beautifully acted and gave the entire Lego Universe a life of its own.

The humour is another wonderful aspect of this movie. The gags and one liners are absolutely brilliant. It comes off as something that both children and adults will enjoy tremendously. The whole movie feels really fresh and original. The settings in the movie really stand out, not only do they show off the whole Lego sets, but it gives everything a sense of life and sets it up as a legitimate universe.

There are two comedians I am really not a big fan of, Jim Carrey and Will Ferrell. However, Ferrell’s role in the movie might have just changed my mind about him. He provides the voice for Lord Business and keeps it funny, yet professional. He also appears on camera in the live action sequence yet brings a more toned down, serious performance instead of his usual over the top ranting.

All in all, this a 100 minute Lego commercial, yet it is a fantastic production, it releases your inner child, making you want to pull out your old set and let your imagination run wild.

With that in mind, The LEGO Movie gets a constructed 9 out of 10

Aftershock

Aftershock is a disaster film with horror elements starring Eli Roth, Ariel Levy, Nicolas Marinez and directed by Nicolás López.

The film is set in Chile and after a massive earthquake hits, the darker side of human nature is explored. The narrative is told through the story of three people who are travelling through Chile, they meet three girls, arrive at a night club and once the earthquake strikes, they do what they can to survive. However, the earthquake has also broken the walls to a nearby prison which of course lets all sorts of psychos out on the street.

If you are a huge horror fan, then the name Eli Roth should stand out as one of the pioneers of horror. As he is the one who started a whole new genre known as “Torture Porn” with his films Hostel and Hostel part 2.

Although he didn't direct Aftershock, his name is attached as producer and he stars in the film, which I suppose is a good way to garner attention to the horror fans as any film with Eli Roth should be pretty good.

This is sadly not the case this time around. The one problem is the characters don’t seem to have any back-story whatsoever, there are one or two who have a very minor backstory but it isn’t enough for us to identify with them. “This is a horror, so why should we care about the characters?” I hear you ask. Well for one, the first 40 minutes of the movie just focuses on them exploring Chile and going to parties, with absolutely nothing else happening. The only reason for this incredibly long exposition is to get the audience emotionally attached with the characters. However, due to bad acting and bad script writing, it just does not happen.

Another problem with this movie is the supposed theme of exploring the dark side of human nature. Before watching this movie, I had a feeling this was going to be on par with The Purge, which also has similar themes. However this is not the case. The escaped prisoners that are mentioned hardly show up, except for one scene, and that scene itself is devoid of all tension. For the most part of the movie, the protagonists have to deal with street hooligans and rioters who were shown as terrible human beings from the start.

The fact of the matter is, this film had a lot of potential, but it is left disappointing and nowhere near what it could have been. Even the gore hounds, who know Eli Roth’s work, will be left empty handed as the gore is quite minimalistic, with maybe one or two scenes at best which will leave you wincing.

The one thing going for this film was the ending. I was expecting a traditional horror movie ending, but was left pleasantly surprised with the little twist.

My advice would be to give this a skip and wait for Eli Roth’s next film, The Green Inferno, which is due for release in September 2014.

So with that in mind, Aftershock gets a mild tremored 4 out of 10

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The Brooklyn Brothers Beat the Best

The Brooklyn Brothers Beat the Best is an independent dramedy starring Ryan O’Nan, Michael Weston, Arielle Kebbel and directed by Ryan O’Nan.

The film focuses on a man named Alex, a struggling musician, who is desperate on getting recognition and getting somewhere with his music. His partnership with a fellow musician sours at the beginning of the movie due to his lyrics being far too depressing.

He battles in both his musical career as well as his day job, that is until he meets a fellow musician by the name of Jim. He convinces Alex to join him on tour, playing at a number of small gigs and eventually take part in a Battle of the Bands.

The only problem is Jim doesn't really possess any proper instruments; all he has with him is a whole bunch of children’s instruments which he utilizes on stage.

When most people think of independent films, they’ll most likely be turned off as they feel that it won’t have the same impact as with a movie funded by a major studio. The fact is, this is a fantastic movie. The performances are really solid and you are able to feel the emotion in the acting and particularly in the music.

As I mentioned earlier, Jim utilizes children’s instruments and it sounds really great accompanied with Alex’s acoustic guitar. Which is another great thing about this film, the music is really good. It’s got this really relaxed, chilled vibe and it just has this entire feel-good tone.

In fact, this is a feel-good movie which will leave you feeling warm and fuzzy inside. If you are a musician yourself or more specifically a guitarist, then this is a movie which should be on the top of your list to watch.

With that in mind, The Brooklyn Brothers Beat the Best gets a strummed 8 out of 10.   

Remember to click on the title to hear the audio version of this review