Film Review: Avengers Assemble

Director: Joss Whedon

The sixth instalment in the franchise sees all of the super heroes come together to save the world. The idea for the film actually started in 2005 after Marvel studios received a grant from Merrill Lynch to develop the film but stalled and was revisited in 2008 after the success of the first Iron Man film. The budget for the film was $220 million following lengthy production and isn't scheduled to be released in the US until Friday 4th May 2012.

An exiled Norse god called Loki (Tom Hiddleston), who is Thor's brother, comes to Earth through a portal created by the Tesseract which is an energy source with unknown potential. He quickly steals the Tesseract from S.H.I.E.L.D. which he intends to use to take over the world so that he will be in charge and have people bow down to him. In response, Nick Fury (Samuel L.Jackson) reactivates the Avengers Initiative in the hope of getting the Tesseract back so he sends various agents out to locate Iron Man, Captain America and The Hulk whilst Thor also appears back on Earth to try and reason with his brother Loki but to no avail. It is left to the Avengers to protect the world from Loki and his army whilst getting the Tesseract back.



Movie Poster

The first thing that strikes you about the film is that the action sequences are very well done, as you would expect. There are some superb special effects on display and my only criticism is that having watched it in 3D I thought they could have developed this aspect even more. The second thing is there are a lot of funny moments in the film and I found myself laughing a lot more than I expected with the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) providing some of the more hilarious moments.

The mix of different characters and super heroes coming together to fight as one is an intriguing one, most are used to fighting alone and without instruction. It creates some great scenes where Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) can provide his cutting quips whilst everyone tries not to anger Bruce Banner at the same time. It keeps what is otherwise a quite formulaic and familiar plot interesting for what is actually quite a long film. The excellent script writing is the reason Avengers Assemble rises above so many similar films.

3.5/4 hugely entertaining and funny, blockbuster already

Film Preview: American Pie The Reunion

You didn't think that the American Pie franchise was going to end on Jim (Jason Biggs) and Michelle (Alyson Hannigan) getting married? Well if you did you were quite wrong as the whole gang are back for a reunion. It is the fourth installment in the franchise not counting the direct to DVD releases. Are the cinema going public still in love with American Pie nearly 9 years after the last film was released?

The gang looking older but definitely not wiser

The gang is brought back together as a high school reunion is announced for 1999 class of East Great Falls so Jim, Oz, Kevin and Finch all prepare to come back having now moved into adult life with adult responsibilities. At a bar having a drink they run into Stifler who joins the party for the reunion weekend which kicks off the mayhem. Look out for cameos from all the usual characters like Stifler's mom and Sherman as well as less likely characters such as Chad Ochocinco (taking time out from doing nothing in New England).

American Pie: The Reunion is released in the UK on Wednesday 2nd May and the trailer is embedded below in case you've been living in a cave for the past few weeks and haven't seen it.

Film Review: Friday Night Lights

Director: Peter Berg

Before the TV series Friday Night Lights became a huge hit over 5 series and Kyle Chandler won an Emmy for his performance as Coach Taylor, there was the non-fiction book by H.G. Bissinger that was converted into a movie and directed by Peter Berg. The film tries to stay a lot closer to the original text by still being set in Permian and featuring the real names of some of the players that played for Permian Panthers in 1988. The book also goes into the history of the town especially during the difficult times of forced racial integration in Texas schools.

Gary Caines (Billy Bob Thornton) addresses his players before a game

Coach Gary Gaines (Billy Bob Thornton) is under constant pressure from the boosters and fans of the town to bring success to the town of Permian through the towns high school Football team. He overuses star player James ''Boobie'' Miles (Derek Luke) who tears his ACL whilst playing and is likely to miss the playoffs. The arrogance of Boobie starts to disappear as his injury struggles to heal and he realises he might not get a scholarship to a big Football college. The team fight on without their star running back and hope to bring the State Championship back to Permian whilst the players must consider their own futures.

The film couldn't be set further away from the glitz and the glamour of the NFL, it looks candidly at the hard work and sacrifice the players make to play for their high school football team in the hope that they might land a scholarship to college. It doesn't sugarcoat the fact that the last game the players play for the team will be their last game of Football for the rest of their lives. All the blood, sweat and pain for your career to be over before you turn 18? Certainly far from glamorous.

James ''Boobie'' Miles (Derek Luke) the team's star running back

The portrayal of a small Texan town is clear and precise, about the only thing more important in the town than the Football team is God. The people of Permian were much happier with the film version of events than they were with the book which is certainly more critical of them and their beliefs. Derek Luke is superb as Boobie who has to deal with being the fallen star after injury potentially derails his entire life, Billy Bob Thornton is decent as Coach Gaines but is certainly no Kyle Chandler from the TV series.

3.5/4 great insight to small-town America and the tough world of high-school Football

PS Trivia: Roy Williams (Wide Receiver for Chicago Bears) is a Permian alumnus and appeared in the movie as an assistant coach for Midland Lee.

This week's releases

The Avengers: The summer blockbuster season is upon us with the first in a line of Superhero movies to be released this summer. The Avengers sees many popular characters including Ironman, Captain America and Thor to name a few coming together to save the world.

The Avengers Preview

Albert Nobbs: This is the story of a woman, played by Glenn Close, who poses a man in order to get work in Ireland in the 19th century. She soon realises that its a role she might have to play forever as escape is not possible.

Outside Bet: A British comedy set during the industrial actions of the unions in the 1980's, a group of friends who have been made redundant decide to invest their remaining savings into a racehorse in the hope that it is the ticket to making money.

Damsels in Distress: Three girls at a male dominated college in America decide to fight for equality and decide to cheer up some of the female students with a variety of different escapades. But their friendship is tested when romance begins to blossom.

Film Review: Rogue Trader

Director: James Dearden

A film I had never seen and given the economic crisis that we've been engulfed in, it seemed apt to watch it. Nick Leeson is the man who started his own financial crisis in South-East Asia by gambling with his own companies money but made everybody believe it was a mystery customer throwing big money into the market. It is based around Leeson's book Rogue Trader: How I brought down Barings Bank and shook the financial world. The money that Leeson lost at the time is actually small fry considering the losses that the banks have written off in the past few years.

Nick Leeson (Ewan McGregor) on the trading floor

 Nick Leeson (young and fresh-faced Ewan McGregor) seems to have worked his way up in Barings Bank and has it all. Job as a top trader, a beautiful wife and money in his pocket in Jakarta, Indonesia. He soon starts to hide away losses in a secret error account (88888 account) but the managers in London believe he is making millions of pounds and everyone thinks he has a secret investor which is putting all the money into the market. As the losses continue to pile up, Leeson is struggling to conceal it with auditors sniffing round and seemingly no way out.

The first two things that hit you in the opening minutes of the film are McGregor's cockney accent that seems to be quite annoying although probably accurate but this isn't as off-putting as how dated the film looks. You instantly know you are watching a film made in the 1990's, the cameras and effects used are renowned from the time the film was made which unfortunately detracts from the film.

Nick Leeson starts to realise his losses

Ewan McGregor and Anna Friel could have been used to better effect within the film, I would go as far as to say they are wasted considering their talents. But worse than that it fails to grip you in parts and does not build the tension as well as it should. The story of Nick Leeson and the Asian banking market at the time is truly fascinating from some of the books I have read but this film fails to live up to that except in small parts. The action in the bear pit of the trading floor is more impressive and the attitudes and characters of the senior managers at Barings Bank are probably very realistic yet worrying.

2/4 an average effort on a thrilling subject matter

Film Review: L.A. Confidential

Director: Curtis Hanson

Released in 1997 and based on the popular book by James Ellroy of the same name, L.A. Confidential looks at the LAPD in 1953 under the back drop of police corruption. Two of the main roles in the film were given to Guy Pearce and Russell Crowe who were relative unknowns at the time. The production team then went on to cast more established stars like Kevin Spacey and Danny DeVito. It was nominated for 9 Academy Awards and won two for Best Screenplay and Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Kim Basinger.

Captain Dudley Smith (James Cromwell), Det. Lt. Ed Exley (Guy Pearce), Officer Bud White (Russell Crowe) and Det. Sgt. Jack Vincennes (Kevin Spacey)

Three LA police detectives (Exley, White and Vincennes) all become seperately involved in a case at the Nite Owl coffee shop after half a dozen people are found to have been gunned down. Tension between the three is high after Ed Exley (Guy Pearce) testified in a police brutality case against Detective Stensland who is Bud White's (Russell Crowe) partner. It doesn't take long before Exley is in the middle of a huge case which will define his career in the police force.

The issue of crooked cops always seems to come back to Los Angeles, maybe it's just the way it used to be in the city. This film has a lot more going for it than your routine crime thriller. Starting with the script, which is always the most important thing, it's slick and clever. The plot twists and turns especially in the second half of the film but doesn't become overly confusing whilst the acting is sharp and impressive. Russell Crowe is excellent as the hot headed Officer ''Bud'' White who shows no remorse to the men that beat up women and bares his soul as to why in a touching scene with high class prostitute Lynn Bracken (Kim Basinger).

Lynn Bracken (Kim Basinger)

In many ways the film is quite cynical in it's look at the LAPD and the criminal underworld, everybody is flawed except Ed Exley who is trying to emulate his father who was killed in action. To get things done in the LAPD you have to be willing to operate outside the law no matter who you are, that is a big theme that runs through the entire movie. The whole film carries a sense of menace due to the unwavering amount of bloody shootouts and physical beatings that are handed out. The sideline plot of the police working with and being shown in a positive light in the media is also an intriguing storyline, another show of possibly police corruption.

The movie is very faithful to the book, which is highly regarded by many critics in its own right, and is totally gripping until the final scenes whilst the 1950's setting is a joy to see.

4/4 thrilling plot twists keep you gripped till the end.

Film Review: Vanishing Point

Director: Richard C. Safarian

Vanishing Point is one of the definitive road movies of the 1970's as the whole film is based around a car chase and features the hugely popular Dodge Challenger against the police. It was filmed in the American Southwest (mainly Nevada and Utah) and is known for its commentary on the racist attitudes of the region at the time. The film has since been the inspiration for other movies and music videos.

The 1970 Dodge Challenger R/T 440 Magnum

Kowalski (Barry Newman) is a car delivery driver and instantly picks up a 1970 Dodge Challenger R/T 440 Magnum in white to be delivered to San Francisco from Denver by Monday after finshing his last delivery. Despite warnings by the service clerk about getting some rest, he buys some Benzedrine tablets from his dealer, Jake (Lee Weaver). He bets him that he can make it into San Francisco by 3.30pm the next day despite the delivery not being due till Monday. It doesn't take long before he is pursued by the Police for speeding and challenged to a race by another passing driver.

As the pursuit continues, a blind African-American disc jockey called Super Soul (the excellent Cleavon Little) supports Kowalski saying he is ''the last American hero'' and is able to talk to Kowalski somehow through his radio. As the chase continues more people tune in to here the progress and cheer Kowalski on but some people aren't happy with him or Super Soul.

Kowalski (Barry Newman)

The film wasn't popular upon it's release but gradually built up a cult following. Steven Spielberg said it was one of his favourite movies of all time and is similar in idea to his first feature film Duel. Quentin Tarantino also loved the film and features a similar chase with a Dodge Challenger in his Grindhouse feature Death Proof.

Kowalski is an iconic figure who is hard to understand in the movie. Why does he have to be in San Francisco by 3.30pm the next day? What happened to his old girlfriend Vera who haunts his day dreams? The film shows a great insight into the American Southwest at the time with snake catchers, hippies and racists galore. It's a simple film in terms of plot but is just engrossing to watch in the way the car chases are filmed and the superb scenery of the Nevada desert. Watch this movie and you'll instantly want to buy an old American muscle car and go drive across America, I know I did.

4/4 Classic road movie which leaves plenty of intriguing questions