Weekend Retrospective - No Ticket

INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE (1989)

Like the third instalment in the Star Wars trilogy, this was always a favourite of mine as a youngster. It's sillier and has more action, so I suppose it makes sense. However looking back the series suffers from a clear, if minor, effect of diminishing returns. And yet, it still remains a classic that caps of the trilogy in ways that are satisfying. The faults - things like recycled ideas from Raiders or a weaker first act that tries to explain away far too much of Indy's back story - are always very obvious on repeat viewings. But they are still essential viewings. There's still a lot to enjoy in terms of characters, action, music and set pieces - the essential ingredients in each of the films.

Review Roundup - Blind Fury

DON'T BREATHE (2016)

After the Evil Dead remake, Fede Álvarez apparently decided that it was opposites day; to take another shot at horror but in different direction. The excessive gore is nowhere to be found, and the home invasion plot is flipped so that the thieves quickly become the victims. So while his take on the Sam Raimi favourite left me less than impressed, it's appropriate that this is far more effective and ultimately more satisfying as a taut thriller with a few sharp moments of grotesque horror and panic. It's a fine example of taking a simple idea and running with it, in this case the set up being that our would be burglars are trapped in the home of a blind war veteran. It might push things beyond their limits as it progresses, but this is a minor misstep that I will get into shortly.

Review Roundup - Near Miss

HEADSHOT (2016)

Despite the tired premise of an amnesiac action hero trying to figure out their past whilst fighting against sinister forces, the idea of an Indonesian Bourne Identity held some appeal for me. Starring Iko Uwais from The Raid series under the direction of  Kimo Stamboel and Timo Tjahjanto AKA the Mo Brothers, there were certainly a few good elements that could give it enough flair to escape the trite plot ideas at the centre. If anything the mixture of horror and action expertise would be interesting to see. However despite the names involved this doesn't really come together as a solid martial arts adventure, and unfortunately it falls short of the potential for satisfying mayhem they could have brought to this kind of project.

Scorecard

MAY

FILM OF THE MONTH: Trainspotting ☆☆☆☆
Blow Out ☆☆☆☆
Future Shock: The Story of 2000AD ☆☆☆☆
Guardians of the Galaxy vol.2 ☆☆☆☆
Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation ☆☆☆☆
Mission: Impossible ☆☆☆☆
Mon Oncle ☆☆☆☆
RoboCop ☆☆☆☆
Shallow Grave ☆☆☆☆
The Big Lebowski ☆☆☆☆
The French Connection ☆☆☆☆
Where Eagles Dare ☆☆☆☆

Weekend Retrospective - Back in Black

PERFECT SCORE: TERMINATOR 2: JUDGEMENT DAY (1991)

'Good morning, Dr. Silberman... how's the knee?'

It's a big cliché but it is really hard to imagine a time when computer effects were so primitive that film makers couldn't just do anything they felt like. Someone would have an idea they wanted to see on screen, and more than one approach could be considered. Throw in some puppets, a bit of animation, a couple of miniatures. It's all part of a bag of tricks. Even Jurassic Park, lauded for its computer advances was planned as a feature that would use stop motion as well as the big practical creations. It could have been the swan song for Ray Harryhausen's style of movie monsters, or even boosted the popularity of those classic techniques. But there was a new deal breaker on the horizon. Shows like Insektors and ReBoot began to use computer animation and it gained traction even before Pixar broke new ground with Toy Story. All it would take was one idea to make it a big deal for live action films.