Can't feel the pulse; is it dead?

Iron Man 2 (2010) - dir. Jon Favreau - 2 stars

Comparing the second serving of the Iron Man franchise to its original would be a big mistake.  The special effects are better than before, the Iron Man suit is shinier than ever, and we have a new villain who can kick some ass.  But it's a failed attempt as it has none of the charm, surprise, or fun elements of the first film.  It's downright boring.  Both films have the same actors and the same director so you might be curious as to how this could have happened.  It's the screenplay I tell you, the awful screenplay, coupled with some bad directorial choices.

Iron Man 2 picks up six months after the end of the first film.  Our hero's ego has reached behemoth levels where he proclaims him and himself only as the key to world peace.  This peachy view is somewhat scarred as the US government starts to treat him as a potential threat to national safety and a vengeful scientist builds the same technology to bring Iron Man down to earth.  All this while, Tony Stark also needs to deal with the consequences of his mechanical 'heart.'  It all sounds good on paper, right?  You have the fundamental flaw of the main character challenged by an arch enemy while he is trying to secure his destiny, which ultimately forces him to reconcile his own definition and identity.

Unfortunately, besides the special effects, nothing leaves a lasting impression.  The acting is second rate where obviously Favreau omitted doing multiple takes for some scenes sacrificing his chance to get the best performance out of each actor.  This makes the film feel hurried and unpolished.  The dialogue doesn't follow well and feels spotty.  Tony Stark's character is meant to be a bit short when it comes to dialogue, but that doesn't mean every other character needs to be that way.  At several moments in the film, I just stopped listening as I wasn't missing much anyways.  But let me get back to the point, as these are minor grievances considering the root cause, which stems from a bad screenplay.

Any film that is based on a comic book already has a certain leeway for taking short cuts in the story, and it's generally OK. We don't expect every comic book film to have the depth of Nolan's Batman, but it's downright sad to see too many holes in Iron Man 2.  Who is Samuel L. Jackson in the film and what's with the eye patch?  Why does Petter Potts accept to become CEO of Stark Industries? There are too many holes to mention here...  What's worse is that the film completely ignores these holes and tries to sandwich scene after scene of what we've come to expect from comic book films.  Hero is at the top of his game; gets challanged; loses his initial incentive along with a personal loss or trouble; hero goes down the wrong path; his new enemy reminds him of who he is; he comes back with a pow.  Great.

But the pow never happens in this film.  It has a flat pulse that never seems to pick up and lies dead on the floor.  The events are so uninteresting that even the characters forget about them a few seconds after they happen.  Explosions?  Big whoop.  Let's kiss.

Do yourself a favor.  Save your money; watch it on a plane where you're stuck and need time to kill.

The Woody Allen I like is back!

Whatever Works (2009) - dir. Woody Allen - 4 stars

Allen's latest is being hailed by many critics as a return-to-roots for the director .  It's being compared to Annie Hall, which in itself is a compliment. Considering that Allen wrote the script for Whatever Works in the 70s, the comparison isn't too surprising. Having found his leading man in Larry David some 30 years later, Allen decided to unearth the script and finally shoot it.  (Boris, the character that David plays, was originally written for Zero Mostel who passed away in 1977.) Whatever Works serves as a fresh serving of good ol' Allen with its hysterical antics, wacky characters, unexpected twists and trademark non-stop dialogue. It's a good thing that we're finally getting it in the UK a whopping one year after its US release; what's up with that?


The film traces the life of a New York misanthrope by the name of Boris Yellnikoff. The strange name is just the tip of the iceberg for this interesting choice of protagonist.  A one-time nominee for a Nobel prize in physics, he has a high opinion of himself and the lowest possible opinion of the human race as he believes we would be extinct by now if only nature had her way.  The only things he really enjoys in life are insulting others, keeping to himself and listening to classical music.  He abhors sex, human contact, children - basically everything.  Boris essentially plays out like an exaggerated Allen as most of his conversation beckons to the director's own views.


When a twenty-something named Melody from the South appears on his doorstep asking for shelter, Boris unexpectedly allows the "submental baton twirler", played by Evan Rachel Wood, to stay with him. As they grow on each other, romance starts to flourish between them, which is challenged as Melody's parents show up on their doorstep with their own issues to sort. Regardless of each of their situation, the name of the game is finding happiness and love with whatever that works as long as it doesn't hurt anyone else. The film definitely drives this point in as many ways as possible as the Southerners embrace New York and its eccentric comfort with anything and everything.  With a bit of luck and a nudge from the universe, two people can meet with one-in-a-millionth chance and that might be it.  That might be love.


Whatever Works carries the trademark Allen humour with non-PC comments scattered around in continuous dialogue.  David, who is a master of improvisation as evidenced in his role in the HBO hit series Curb Your Enthusiasm, occupies a different ground here as he sticks to his lines devotedly including the three page monologue that starts the film.  He apparently tried to improvise and was encouraged by Allen to do so, but he was afraid to not sound like Boris and end up sounding more like himself, so he gave up.  He does an admirable job with the role and the lines, and I cannot think of anyone else who could have assumed the role better than him.  As for the rest of the cast, the right actors are wearing the right hats. Everyone from Evan Rachel Wood to Patricia Clarkson, who plays Melody's mother, fit the bill creating a nice ensemble.


All in all, this is the Woody Allen that I've always loved and missed.  Yes, the characters and the story might seem outlandish - they may even appear irritating! - but they do instill a sense of childish positive attitude that things do work out at the end if one just goes with the flow.  The universe may be random; we may be here by some stroke of luck, but luck works both ways, and it's better to give in than live against the current.  As Boris says, "Christ, you know the odds of your father's one sperm from the billions finding the single egg that made you? Don't think about it or you'll have a panic attack!"  Here's to Whatever Works!

Funny, Sad, and Everything in Between

I Love You Phillip Morris (2009) - dir. Glenn Ficarra & John Requa - 4,5 stars

The posters showcase a gay couple with two pooches, Barbie-like hair and glowing skin.  They carry the trademark smile that Jim Carrey is famous for. The whole thing beckons like a straight-up comedy from the wrapper, but the film's deep and thoughtful handling of the true story of Steven Russell and Phillip Morris makes Ficarra and Requa's film a highly enjoyable experience.


Steven Russell is a cop who does well and means well. On the surface, he is in a loving marriage with a religious wife who would make any Texan proud. But God wants him to come out, and so he does after a car accident forces him to reassess his life. He reveals to his wife that he is gay and he has been having affairs.  He moves to Miami, gets a boyfriend and starts living the sex-and-the-city life. However, as they mention in the film, being gay is expensive. Clever as he is, Steven beats the system with fraud and becomes a con man to get beautiful things for himself and his lover. All's well until finally he gets caught and put in jail. This may sound like the end of the story, but actually, it is just the beginning.


His time in jail brings love to his life when he meets Phillip Morris, and for love, he's ready to do anything. The following 80 minutes or so surprise, delight, depress and force the viewer into fits of laughter. This crazy, clever, romantic man does what he can to make sure they stay together despite circumstances and enjoy what life has to offer. It might just be the best romantic comedy for those who hate traditional romantic comedies as it is littered with dark themes that remind us we're watching a true story.


With his performance as Steven Russell, Jim Carrey once again proves he is an actor with range. The Carrey we watch is not the same one we've seen in any of his screwball comedies; it's closer to his performance in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. His trademark smile is still there, but his portrayal is inherently believable and convincing. Similarly, Ewan McGregor matches Carrey's performance with his wide eyes, naiveté, and Southern accent. The great performances of the leads are coupled with an astute script and effective editing that drives home the surprising tactics of this con man. At more than one occasion, I found myself as deceived as anyone else in the film. 


Overall, the film has the right amount of all things essential to make it a great film. This is one that shouldn't be missed so go buy your ticket!

Glorified, unimaginative monster bashing

Clash of the Titans (2010) - dir. Louis Leterrier - 2 stars


I must admit I wasn't expecting much to begin with when I went to see this remake of the 1981 classic, but even so, the film was underwhelming. Made in typical cash-cow style that dominates Hollywood remakes, the film pays too much attention to the action and graphics and not enough to the characters or the mythology. It's one of those films that assumes a certain viewership demographic and goes for it. As such, it is riddled with unimpressive acting and predictable dialogue. This is not to say it will not be successful financially, as there will be scores of people signing up to see the Kraken monster in 3D.

The story is based on Greek and Nordic mythology. In a time when humans start to rebel against Olympus, the Gods decide to teach their creations a lesson by unleashing a Titan that would set havoc on them. The plan is that the Gods will intervene and save the humans, which will inspire them to go back to their devout ways and pray to the Gods. The prayers are important as they keep the Gods immortal.  The twist in the story is that there is a demi-God among the humans named Perseus who has a personal score to settle with Hades. Hades, on the other hand, has his own agenda involving Zeus and the rest of the Olympians.  For vengeance, Perseus ends up traveling the ancient world killing one famous creature after another to destroy the Gods' plans, while Hades makes his underground agreements to get his dream. Still reading?  Good.

As you can tell, the story is actually quite elaborate, and considering the depth that exists in Greek mythology, it could have been turned into a fully-fledged fantasy world. There were some moments in the film where Leterrier obviously tried to emulate the Lord of the Rings feel cinematically, but overall, the film cannot create the sense of disbelief that Peter Jackson had so masterfully accomplished in his trilogy. Instead, Leterrier's attempt feels very unimaginative and canned. The monsters die as quickly as they appear with almost no backstory for any. Medusa didn't exist just to be slain by Perseus. She has her own story and it's a damn good one. In Leterrier's film, their stories are diminished into seconds and they just exist for the action sequences, which dominate the 106 minutes. Seeing these creatures get beheaded and killed with no justice to their story made me feel a bit sad. Furthermore, the film simply jumps from one monster to another with some heroic leadership speech thrown in the middle to give just enough incentive and need for the characters to go on. The script is obviously not a highlight for this film.

The attention to detail that should have been paid to the script has all been used for the graphics. The monsters are pristine and realistic in their 3D glory and the action sequences make the most of the technology. However, due to the aforementioned issues, the action sequences don't have much heart in them as the viewer doesn't care who or what is being killed. It's just a glorified monster bash.

To add insult to injury, the acting in the film is mediocre with a lot of stereotypical performances. Perseus (Sam Worthington of Avatar fame) is a meathead with heroism thrust upon him, Hades (Ralph Fiennes) is a bad God who apparently smokes a lot in Hell and has to bend to get places as one can tell from his osteoporosis, while Zeus (Liam Neeson) decides to wear full, glittering body armour in Olympus for some odd reason and speaks with a very low voice. Why doesn't anyone really think through what these Gods would live like up there and try to reinvent their world? It's boring to see these stereotypes even in 3D.

If all you'd like to see is some 3D popcorn film, by all means be my guest.  But if you're looking for something with a bit more thought put into it, avoid Clash of the Titans. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Carell-Fey duo needs a better script (or none!)

Date Night (2010) - dir. Shawn Levy - 3,5 stars

Never, ever, take someone else's restaurant reservation. One little white lie can take your life off the rails. That is pretty much the premise behind the new comedy from Levy. Starring the poster children of US comedy, Steve Carell and Tina Fey, the film has to satisfy a lot of expectations on the comedy front. It ends up as an enjoyable night out, but the action takes over from what could have been a funnier film given the improvisation geniuses involved.

Phil and Claire Foster (Carell and Fey respectively) live a quiet life in suburban New Jersey with their two kids. Their marriage seems boring, tiring and extremely ordinary; so ordinary in fact that they don't even remember their date nights - the nights without the kids - and even when they do, it feels like a chore. One of these date nights takes a wrong turn when Phil, in a desperate attempt to save his marriage, tries to take someone else's reservation for a romantic dinner. That lie propels their relationship into resolution; that is after they've been kicked, chased, shot at, among other things that include some extremely funny references to robot sex.

The action in the film takes centre stage with elaborate sequences that are thrilling. Long car chases follow breaking-and-entering, which definitely keeps the film going at a nice pace. However, this also means that the comedy is a bit dispersed so it never reaches a crescendo to sustain itself. This seems a bit endemic in Levy's films from the Pink Panther to Night at the Museum, where the comedy cannot sustain itself and relies heavily on action sequences.

Overall, Date Night is an enjoyable film with some good action and a few good laughs. It doesn't take any risks and plays on a tested-and-true Hollywood formula. However, with the Carell-Fey duo, I was expecting something better than Levy's other films. One thing that I'm sure of after seeing the film is that we'll see more from the duo as they're a good comedy couple. They work off of each other's energy and lines extremely well, which shows off in the small portions of the film where they were ad-libbing and improvising. If you want to see more, stay until the end of the credits and you'll be treated with some extra takes that are well worth it.