THE FORGING OF THE IRON MAN LEGACY

AN IRON MAN 3 EXCLUSIVE

BY LEIGH KNIGHTS

As I have stated previously in my other articles, being a British Cinema goer can be a frustrating experience from time to time. My American brethren get the majority of big releases before we do over here and that often leaves me green with envy. However, in a change from the norm, I can revel in the fact that us Brits got the brilliance that is Iron Man 3, a week before our friends in The States. What a coup.

I can thoroughly recommend you all to go and see Iron Man 3 when it’s available to you, in my opinion it is a resounding success on so many levels. I really liked the original Iron Man movie but was left slightly subdued after I watched the messy sequel, Iron Man 2. The character of Tony Stark was a huge proponent of the success of The Avengers and reinstalled my passion and desire to watch further adventures of old Shellhead starring Robert Downey, Jr.

Ladies and Gentlemen, let me attest that Iron Man 3 is by far the best film in the series. The story is truly gripping, dramatic, heartfelt and offered me many surprises. The pacing of the narrative was a strong element for me, there never seemed to be a slump, even in the quieter character scenes. The action set pieces do not disappoint either. Finally, Iron Man has some truly dramatic heroics to perform in his own movie; a factor that I felt was a weakness in previous entries in the franchise. The finale was a particular standout scene for me that was full of great effects, great battles and awesome heroism. Everything us comic book geeks need for a great Super Hero film.

The standout performance comes from Robert Downey, Jr. A career best turn as Tony Stark. You really can’t take your eyes off the screen when he is on. He is wonderful and elevates everyone else whom he shares the screen with. In the film Tony befriends a child, and it was this relationship, which really stood out for me. Full of humour and charm, the banter these two characters had was completely infectious. The rest of the cast is excellent too, with Ben Kingsley’s Mandarin, being particularly engaging. The performances are a very strong factor of this film. You wont be disappointed.

I wont go on to spoil any more of the plot for you, but suffice to say I really enjoyed Iron Man 3 and was completely entertained. I hope that with the recent internet speculation that has questioned whether Robert Downey, Jr will be in another Iron Man film, that he will go on to star in further adventures of Shellhead. He is simply amazing. If this is his last solo adventure, then what a great swansong it is. Don’t forget to stay until the end of the credits. A great little scene awaits you. Now get yourself off to The Cinema and watch this bad boy. It’s bloody good summer blockbusting fun. Long live The Invincible Iron Man.

Thoughts on a Trailer: Man of Steel

By:
Jonathan Graves

Confident, cocky, vibrant with pizzazz, these the are words I have equated with the Man of Steel growing up with Dean Caine in the titular role of Lois & Clark until today. Today, we got the 3rd theatrical trailer from WB that features the destruction of a planet, emotional embrace between a surrogate father and son and a man on a journey of self-discovery. Now, if you hadn’t seen this trailer for Zack Snyder’s latest film, would you have guessed that I am speaking of Superman? Those words I used to describe the character are exactly the things that kept me away for so many years. I am and will always be a life long Batman fan and personally I can’t wait for this new interpretation of the Son of Krypton. With the financial success and acclaim of The Dark Knight Trilogy, it’s no surprise that WB let Christopher Nolan and David Goyer reign in this darker toned characterization, and I think it’s about time. Superman has been living in the shadows of Richard Donner’s films for roughly 4 decades and I think that has tampered with its universal appeal. Sure, Superman is well known around the world, but then why isn’t he as popular as some of Marvel’s B rated characters? The answer mainly comes in the form of cinema exposure and finally we will be taken back to Metropolis and discover what makes this Man of Steel so enduring.

The 3rd trailer for the Man of Steel being released this June, takes elements of the entire marketing roll out thus far and bridges the gaps for us to really see what this film will bring. Overtones of the Moses message are clear as we see Kal El being jettisoned from a falling Krypton to Earth. These images are, in my mind, some of the best visuals Zack Snyder has ever concocted. We are then introduced to the footage used in the teaser trailer with a young Clark in the back yard being a kid, aspiring for greatness. The imagery of butterflies should be taken note here. I honestly get the sense that this story will be symbolic to that of a larva becoming a mature, majestic creature ready to spread his wings, much like The Matrix (1999). And if I’m right on that, we can be sure this will be one film we’ll never forget!

The trailer continues into footage from the first theatrical trailer as we see young Clark saving children from a school bus that was sinking in a lake. The next part is one of my favorites where Jonathan Kent reveals to Clark that he is not of this planet. The emotion provided between these two actors is heart felt and truly the substance I’ve missed from any Superman film that has come before. We then are taken back into trailer #2 with Clark searching for himself, however this time we get Lois’ voice over talking about the search for this mysterious savior. This angle is intriguing and something I’m looking forward to see unravel. I always remembered her as a headstrong reporter that liked to be saved by Superman, so the characterization here seems spot on.

BAM. BAM. BAM.

Bombastic action fills the screen as it’s cut to the drums driving the trailer’s score. Could this be Zimmer’s work? I’d like to hope so as I really connected with its triumphant tones in a tribal manner. I think we need this new type of score to separate this film from Donner’s. Nothing against the master, John Williams, but it’s my perception that the tones here are to keep you locked into this Superman story and not one of the past. “I WILL FIND HIM,” is next heard as we are introduced to the villain Zod played by Michael Shannon. Here we get a glimpse at his costume, which is the Kryptonian suit Jor El was wearing when we last saw him and an onyx colored version of Superman’s suit. Quick speed, explosions, meteorites (with a Easter egg) and punches fill out the next few moments in the trailer and I for one am glad we are not being spoiled of any large set pieces here.

The third piece of the trailer is an across the table conversation between Lois and Clark talking about the “S” symbol on his chest. “What’s the S stand for?” “It’s not an S. On my world it means hope” I can only imagine the fans of these trailers and the studio believes that too. The trailer finishes with a punch line! Or a line of punches, rather. This is the first time in a long time that we’ve seen a cinematic Superman punch another character it is GLORIOUS!

Betwixt, ruminating, dark, are the key aspects I have associated with this new take on the 75-year old character, and I couldn’t be more welcoming. I think we are in store for a well-acted superhero tale that is well crafted from beginning to end by very talented artists. Bring on Man of Steel and I applaud the marketing team as this piece towers over all other summer superhero fair.

WATCHING HANNIBAL: Season 1: Episode 3: “Potage.”

By
Austin Bouse

Abigail Hobbs wakes up from a coma. The FBI use her as a way too find out where her father buried the other missing girls. Graham suspects that the last girl, found impaled on a severed stag head, was not Hobbs’ work. But, in fact the work of a copycat. And that the copycat called Hobbs before his death.

Not a lot happened in this weeks episode, but unlike other shows that suffer from being boring with little going on, Hannibal keeps you engaged with creepiness, smart writing, and great acting.

Through out this episode, we see Lecter react to numerous theories of who the copycat is and what his motives are. Lecter is both proud of his artful murders and yet calmly covering his tracks to confuse the FBI. I’m glad that we haven’t seen him kill a single person yet. We just see the after effects. Filling in the blanks is always more scarier than actually seeing it.

The episode ends with Abigail accidentally killing the brother of one of her father’s victims that has come into her house. Lecter decides not to call the police and instead helps her get rid of the body. The idea of Hannibal taking a fellow murderer under his wing is fascinating. I can’t wait to see what happens next.

In this episode, we discuss the newly released third theatrical trailer for Man of Steel.  In addition to that we also mention a few other trailers that have come out over the last few weeks!  We hope you enjoy this filler edition, and as always, Happy Listening!

Living in Oblivion: An Exclusive Review!

"ARE YOU AN EFFECTIVE TEAM?"

AN OBLIVION EXCLUSIVE

BY LEIGH KNIGHTS

Throughout my lifetime as a fan of the big screen, I have often felt envious of my American friend’s, as the finest delights of Cinema have always debuted first in your great land.

This is still the normal trend that occupies the filmscape today, however there have been some notable exceptions of late as British film fans have received some releases ahead of our American cousins.

Last year for example, we received The Avengers a couple of weeks before the U.S and some films now come out within a matter of days of each other globally such as The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.

With all this being said, us lucky British folk have had the opportunity for a week as of today, to watch Joseph Kosinski’s latest event movie, Oblivion, starring the one and only, Tom Cruise.

So here are a few thoughts that I have presented exclusively for you unlucky filmgoers who don’t live in Great Britain or who have not had the chance to watch this particular Sci-fi epic.

Joseph Kosinki is a filmmaker whom I am exceptionally fond of. My love for his film’s emanated from his work on Tron Legacy, a film that blew me away visually and stylistically. Tron Legacy is one of my favourite films of all time and for a great chat about that film please check out FilmFoolery’s episode 35 podcast on the site here or on ITunes, it’s a great listen.

As a consequence of his marvellous dip into the world of Tron, I couldn’t wait to see his next film, Oblivion.

I was not disappointed at all with Oblivion. Kosinki’s greatest talent in my opinion is his visual design choices and in Oblivion he has created a truly beautiful world for us all to see. Ruins of The Empire State Building and The Statue Of Liberty surrounded by greenery, chasms and dessert are truly beautiful to look at. The blacks and neon colours of Tron have been replaced with more naturalistic greens, browns and blues in Oblivion and it’s equally as stunning a world as The Grid from Legacy.

The base where Tom Cruises Jack Harper and co worker Andrea Riseborough’s Victoria Olsen live and operate is truly a stunning set, suspended up in the clouds, the interior design is phenomenal, and I wish I could live there. You will too when you see it.

The performances are excellent, say what you will about Tom Cruises personal lifestyle and choices but for me, he remains a magnetic screen presence and has always delivered great acting performances in a wide selection of film genres, which he continues with in Oblivion. I bloody love him and he’s wonderful in this film. As is Andrea Riseborough, she is magnificent too. I could break down her role and performance but to do so might be considered to be spoiling the film and I don’t want to do that for you. Morgan Freeman and Olga Kurylenko are serviceable but Cruise and Riseborough are the key players here. It was also nice to see Nikolaj Coster-Waldau from the excellent Game Of Thrones series make an appearance here away from King’s Landing, but I digress.

Special mention has to go to M83’s soundtrack also. It’s incredibly moody and atmospheric, sad and heroic at the same time. I’ve already purchased it and the Star Waves track in particular is a standout for me. Once again Kosinski has hired fresh and original talent that has produced a brilliant soundscape again just as he did in Tron Legacy with Daft Punk.

In terms of plot, as I’ve just mentioned, I don’t want to spoil the film but I thought it was a great sci-fi movie and the first hour is an opulent mood piece of cinema before reverting to a traditional high octane action flick. It’s not a perfect film by any stretch of the imagination, but what is these days? Some of the pacing could have been improved upon but that’s my only negative comment I’ve got to say about Oblivion. One thing I did want to bring to attention though is some of the negativity I’ve seen from critics directed at this film. I’ve read reviews that say it rips off loads of other movies towards the end and this has irked me. There clearly are influences from other films in Oblivion, but that’s the same for all of Cinema, not just Oblivion. Every film I watch these days you can see influences of other films in them. For example Christopher Nolan is my absolute favourite film director, yet he clearly as been influenced by the films of Michael Mann and Ridley Scott. That’s there for all to see. Why did the critics choose to put the spotlight on Oblivion for being influenced by other films, I don’t know? It didn’t affect my enjoyment of the film, and that’s what really matters, our own enjoyment as filmgoers.

Obviously I recommend you watch Oblivion, it’s great escapism and has now opened the floodgates for the rest of the summer movies to follow. There has been a drought of truly interesting films to see this year but now Oblivion is here we can enjoy that and look forward to the other great blockbusters to make their way through to us. Iron Man 3, Man Of Steel, Star Trek 2 and Elysium, I’m looking at you.

Oblivion is a truly sumptuous starter to have before we hit the main courses of the films above. I whole heartedly recommend it, it’s a great sci-fi movie with ace performances from both of the leads, set in a gorgeous world with an epic soundtrack, expect some twists and turns too and have a great time at the movies. Joseph Kosinski remains a talent to behold and I hope he gets a bloody move on with Tron 3. In the meantime I will happily be fulfilled with re- watching Oblivion again and again.

WATCHING HANNIBAL: Season 1: Episode 2: “Amuse-Bouche.”

By:
Austin Bouse

At the end of last week’s episode, Will Graham shot and killed serial murder Garret Jacob-Hobbs. But, when Graham and is boss Agent Jack Crawford (played by Laurence Fishburne) continue to investigate, they hypothesize that maybe similar killings aren’t being done by a copy cat. But, are being carried out by Hobbs’ daughter who is now in a coma as a result from the climax of last week’s episode.

I really appreciate the fact that this show isn’t a killer of the week type series. In reality, a case never is wrapped up in the span of a TV episode. It usually takes a very long time for it to close. And some of them never do. Although, this episode does feature a killer that is unrelated to Hobbs, the writers do find a way to tie him into that case in a way that doesn’t feel forced.

I’m also glad that they are keeping with the same visual style that they introduced in the first episode. The killer that I mentioned in the previous paragraph buries his victims in a garden specifically designed so that fungus can grow on their skin. If reading that sentence doesn’t make your skin crawl, I don’t know what does. It’s a disturbingly beautiful image that makes me jump for joy that a network horror show is going this far.

In this episode, we are introduced to another character from the Thomas Harris’ novels. Tabloid reporter Freddy Lounds. You may remember the character wonderfully portrayed by Phillip Seymour Hoffman in Red Dragon. But, this time they made a slight difference in that the character is now a woman. I find this change interesting and non-intrusive to the mythology. Even though Lounds is written as a man by Harris, I don’t think it hurts my perception of the character at all. The actress playing Freddy still plays the part like Freddy. The reporter is still a sleaze and will do anything for a story. And yet, the actress doesn’t make Lounds an absolutely loathsome human being. She may be sleaze, but she isn’t incapable of being a good person. I’m hoping that in later seasons the writers introduce other Harris‘ characters like Benjamin Raspail, Jamie Gumb, and Mason Verger. I would love to see their takes on them.

But, what about Will and Hannibal? Crawford orders Graham to take therapy sessions with Lecter just in case the brilliant FBI agent is slipping. Even though I know what’s going to happen, I genuinely feel bad for Will. Dancy plays him with the sense that his “gift” puts the weight of the world on his shoulders. The only person that really understands him is Lecter. They’re conversations are filled with so much richness that I was hanging on to every word. It’s both a mental chess game and mutual respect for one another. Their relationship might turn out to be the most disturbing buddy cop pairing ever. Take that Rush Hour.

While I think I liked the first episode a little bit more just because it filled me with so much excitement, this second one is equally fantastic and left me wanting more.

Thoughts on a trailer: Elysium

By:

Mike Wright

After it's stunning debut yesterday, the first trailer to Neil Blomkamp's Elysium hit the web and social networks across the globe.  This of course is Blomkamps much anticipated follow-up to 2009's District 9, which I felt WAS the best film of that year!  If he hadn't proven himself already with that film, then he most certainly has with what we've seen in this trailer!  The phrase "visually stunning" doesn't even do it justice, I don't know what phrase could.  What I do know, is that this trailer promises to give us industry-breaking visual effects and a story with originality infused with social commentary.  As a film fan, I couldn't ask for anything more.  Although it has been four years since his directorial debut, it definitely appears that it has been worth all the wait.  August 9th can't arrive soon enough!