Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (2014)
DIRECTOR: Kenneth Branagh
CAST: Chris Pine, Keira Knightley, Kevin Costner, Kenneth Branagh
REVIEW:
Has any film character, apart from the continually recast James Bond, been rebooted as many times as Jack Ryan? Originating in Tom Clancy’s Cold War international espionage novels and then played onscreen first by Alec Baldwin, then Harrison Ford, the CIA operative was rebooted as a fledgling new recruit—and transported into the present day—with 2002’s The Sum of All Fears, where he was played by Ben Affleck, and now he’s been rebooted all over again, with Shadow Recruit doing what Casino Royale did for James Bond and starting the character completely fresh with no connection to the previous films. Clearly Kenneth Branagh and the studio is hoping for Shadow Recruit to be more successful at kickstarting a new Jack Ryan franchise than the previous attempt at a reboot, The Sum of All Fears, which spawned no sequels, but only time will tell. Clancy fans might grumble about Ryan being removed from his Cold War origins, but taken on its own terms, Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit is a smoothly diverting action thriller that represents a worthy fresh start for the long-running character. Continue reading
World War Z (2013)
DIRECTOR: Marc Forster
CAST: Brad Pitt, Mireille Enos, Daniella Kertesz, James Badge Dale, David Andrews, Fana Mokoena, Ludi Boeken, Pierfrancesco Favino, Peter Capaldi, David Morse
REVIEW:
Fans of Max Brooks’ book of the same name, a pseudo-documentary collecting accounts of survivors from a worldwide zombie apocalypse, are not likely to be impressed with Marc Forster’s screen adaptation, which owes little more to the written source than the title, basic premise, and some plot ideas. Taken as a standalone film, World War Z is still flawed but fares better. Its scattershot focus gives it a fragmented, episodic feel, but it’s entertaining and boasts some impressive set pieces and tense sequences. Continue reading
Skyfall (2012)
DIRECTOR: Sam Mendes
CAST:
Daniel Craig, Judi Dench, Javier Bardem, Naomie Harris, Ralph Fiennes, Ben Whishaw, Berenice Marlohe, Albert Finney, Rory Kinnear, Helen McCrory, Ola Rapace
REVIEW:
WARNING: THIS REVIEW WILL DISCUSS SPECIFICS OF THE FILM’S PLOT
While Martin Campbell started the process in 2006’s Casino Royale, with Skyfall, Sam Mendes has truly finished what Casino Royale started—rebooting James Bond as Christopher Nolan did with Batman and J.J. Abrams did with Star Trek, taking the series back to the starting gate as if the previous films never happened. Casino Royale, star Daniel Craig’s debut—which was well-received—took 007 back to the basics, whittled down to the bare bones, with no gadgets, no Moneypenny, no Q, the quipping and sexcapades kept to a restrained minimum, and 2008’s Quantum of Solace—which was generally regarded as a disappointing follow-up—continued in this vein, but Skyfall truly completes the circle of the old and the new, keeping the “new” series’ restraint and seriousness (by Bond standards, at least), while adding a few familiar ingredients that were MIA in its two predecessors back into the mix. Most notably, Skyfall can stand on its own as an individual film. Familiarity with the events of Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace is not necessary. Continue reading
The Bourne Legacy (2012)
DIRECTOR: Tony Gilroy
CAST: Jeremy Renner, Rachel Weisz, Edward Norton, Stacy Keach, Donna Murphy, Zeljko Ivanek, Oscar Isaac, Corey Stoll
REVIEW:
Considering that the total box office gross for the first three Bourne films is nearly $1 billion, the temptation was too much to resist for Universal Pictures to greenlight a fourth installment, even when director Paul Greengrass and star Matt Damon were uninterested in returning (Greengrass dismissively referred to a fourth film as “The Bourne Redundancy”). Universal tried to work their way around this not by recasting Jason Bourne, but introducing a new character within the same “universe”, but their approach was flawed (in my opinion, forging onward with more Bournes without Damon was a dubious prospect to begin with). While recasting the lead every few movies works for, say, the James Bond series, the Bourne trilogy was not stand-alone episodes, but one continuing story. The Bourne Legacy cannot stand on its own apart from its predecessors. Familiarity with the events of particularly The Bourne Ultimatum is necessary. The audience is invested in Jason Bourne’s journey, and having “Bourne” in the title without Bourne actually being in the movie feels like a cheat. Having him incessantly mentioned every ten minutes and flashing a still photograph only further feels like a tease. Had this ended up paying off in some way, even with a Damon cameo, it might have helped matters, but it never does. The filmmakers try to have their cake and eat it too by constantly reminding us of Jason Bourne’s existence to make this feel like part of the series, but also get us invested in a new character, but the reminders of Bourne only make Jeremy Renner’s Aaron Cross feel more like an impostor and prevent the movie from fully succeeding in either direction. It doesn’t have Jason Bourne, but nor does it strike fully out on its own and try to escape from his shadow, and this leaves it a hamstrung and unsatisfactory episode. And even taken on its individual merits, The Bourne Legacy is diverting in the moment, but has narrative issues of its own.
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2012)
DIRECTOR: John Madden
CAST: Judi Dench, Tom Wilkinson, Bill Nighy, Maggie Smith, Dev Patel, Penelope Wilton, Celia Imrie, Ronald Pickup, Tina Desai, Diana Hardcastle, Lillete Dubey
REVIEW:
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel is one of those low-key, quiet and inoffensive little comedy-dramas (steeped in oh-so-British reserve) that serve as counter-programming to the big summer action movies. To that end, it’s not anything unpredictable or edgy, and doesn’t really venture out of its safe zone, but it serves up enough sweetness with dashes of romance and just a drop of poignancy to make it an enjoyable experience that goes down easily, even if it doesn’t necessarily leave the biggest lasting impression. Those who have a soft spot for lighthearted predictable drama (boosted by a distinguished ensemble cast of respected elder British thespians) might enjoy (one wonders if the movie might play better with those who have more in common, in age and perhaps nationality, with the main characters, than with younger viewers who might want a little more “pep”). Continue reading
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (2011)
DIRECTOR: Tomas Alfredson
CAST:
Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, John Hurt, Benedict Cumberbatch, Tom Hardy, Mark Strong, Toby Jones, Ciaran Hinds, David Dencik, Simon McBurney, Svetlana Khodchenkova
REVIEW:
WARNING: THIS REVIEW WILL MENTION ASPECTS OF THE FILM’S PLOT
George Smiley, the protagonist of John Le Carre’s dense, slow-paced spy novels, could be described as the anti-Bond. Physically unimpressive, meek, quiet, bookish Continue reading
Salt (2010)
DIRECTOR: Phillip Noyce
CAST:
Angelina Jolie, Liev Schreiber, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Daniel Olbrychski, August Diehl, Andre Braugher, Olek Krupa
REVIEW:
Equal parts The Bourne Identity and The Manchurian Candidate, Salt is a dizzyingly-paced whiz-bang action thriller that contains enough spectacular stunts to dazzle in the immediate present, and enough twists and turns to avoid making the viewer feel like checking their brain at the door is a prerequisite to their enjoyment. In fact, Salt requires a level of the viewer’s attention. Continue reading
Letters to Juliet (2010)
DIRECTOR: Gary Winick
CAST:
Amanda Seyfried, Vanessa Redgrave, Christopher Egan, Gael Garcia Bernal, Franco Nero, Oliver Platt
REVIEW:
WARNING: THIS REVIEW DISCUSSES “SPOILERS” OF THE FILM’S PLOT
Letters to Juliet is a pleasant, unchallenging little story that doesn’t offer any plot turns that aren’t possible to see coming a hundred miles away but serves up enough sweetness to be an adequate morsel for those seeking something to whet the appetite of their inner romantic. Continue reading
The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)
DIRECTOR: Paul Greengrass
CAST:
Matt Damon, Joan Allen, Julia Stiles, David Strathairn, Scott Glenn, Paddy Considine, Albert Finney, Edgar Ramirez, Daniel Brühl, Joey Ansah
REVIEW:
Treadstone, the shadowy government agency which recruited Jason Bourne (Matt Damon), appears to be dismantled, and the men behind it dead, but Bourne isn’t finished. Continue reading
Casino Royale (2006)
DIRECTOR: Martin Campbell
CAST: Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Mads Mikkelsen, Judi Dench, Jeffrey Wright, Giancarlo Giannini, Caterina Murino
REVIEW:
With Casino Royale, Martin Campbell has done for 007 what Christopher Nolan did for Batman with Batman Begins the year before: reboot a floundering film franchise back to the basics and start afresh, as if none of the previous films happened. This is Bond stripped down to the nitty gritty. There are no gadgets, no Q, no Moneypenny, restrained sexcapades, and a Bond who’s the most serious he’s been in decades. The iconic line of “Bond, James Bond” isn’t uttered until the closing scene, and the James Bond theme is only heard in brief, subdued snippets until finally playing in full over the ending credits. Even the opening sequences’ conspicuous lack of the expected naked women indicates this “new” series’ direction. This Bond still enjoys attractive women and Aston Martins, he still drinks Martinis, and he still occasionally slips into a tux in glamorous international locales, but the mission holds most of his steely-eyed attention. Those who grew up on the campy tongue-in-cheek charm, nifty gadgets, and wildly over-the-top action of Roger Moore and Pierce Brosnan’s outings may find this Bond disappointing, but others welcomed it with enthusiasm as the first since Sean Connery, and maybe the first ever, to truly portray the cold-blooded professional killer from Ian Fleming’s original novel series (it’s based on Fleming’s novel of the same name, and while other Bond films have used the names of Fleming novels while jettisoning most of the plots, this one follows its namesake fairly closely), before that perception of 007 was overtaken by the ultra-suave super-spy action hero and ladies’ man.