This looks like an absolute shocker but first views can be deceiving. While this certainly isn’t a film you would describe as great it does in fact generate enough laughs to warrant it as a ‘worthy watch’… just be prepared to suspend your belief a little… well, okay a lot!!!

FDR (Chris Pine – Unstoppable, Smalltown Saturday Night) and Tuck (Tom Hardy – Warrior, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy) are both CIA spies who have such a strong friendship that they see each other as brothers. Then one night a mission goes horribly wrong, a man dies and they find themselves out of action for a while. During their ‘down’ time they both decide to take care of their ‘single lives’. Tuck hits an online dating site and finds someone while FDR pursues a woman he meets in a video store… only problem is they are both after the same woman, Lauren (Reese Witherspoon – Water For Elephants, How Do You Know) who after some bad advice from her best friend, Trish (Chelsea Handler – Hop, TV’S Are You There Chelsea) decides to date both men until she can pick one. The two men see it as a competition and try to see who can win over Lauren first… meanwhile they also have the psychotic Heinrich (Til Schweiger – New Year’s Eve, The Three Musketeers) coming after them to avenge his brother’s death.

You do have to suspend belief but believe it or not the screenplay to This Means War does work. It provides some laughs (the highlight being Tuck’s rampage through a paint-balling course) while you are actually left intrigued at whether Lauren will pick FDR or Tuck… and yes it is quite possible that everyone out there will have their fave for whom she should end up with. There are some parts of the script that are cheesy but there are enough good moments to overshadow that.

The massive problem with the film though seems to be director McG (Terminator Salvation, We Are Marshall). It seemed with his recent efforts that his ‘video-clip’ style of storytelling (that plagued Charlie Angels) was over, it creeps back a little bit here, but the more obvious problem at hand seems to be at times that Mr. G forgot that he was directing an action flick and while the comedy worked some of the action sequences seemed really forced… and worse still filmed with obvious green screens. If you’re going to fake something at least make sure it looks real!!! These scenes really standout and drag the film down a lot.

As you would expect the acting isn’t sensational. Reese Witherspoon oozes her way through the film while Chris Pine seems to relish having a mixture of both comedy and action but it’s Hardy who really steps up and shows that he can deliver comedy with the best of them…that’s not something that you would expect to see.

If you can come to terms with the fact that two CIA agents are willing to ‘battle to the death’ for the girl then you’ll cope with this film. Funny in parts, This Means War delivers more than what the poster promised.

Year: 2012

Director: McG

Stars: Reese Witherspoon, Chris Pine, Tom Hardy, Chelsea Handler, Til Schweiger

Classification: M

Runtime: 98 mins

Rating:

Dave Griffiths

At a quick glance The Vow looks like it is going to be one of your average run-of-the-mill romantic comedies, but it is actually a little better than that. The word comedy is wrong to being with as this is a romantic drama… think along the same vein as The Notebook and while it isn’t brilliant it does offer more than you would expect.

Leo (Channing Tatum – Haywire, Ten Year) and Paige (Rachel McAdams – Sherlock Holmes: A Game Of Shadows, Midnight In Paris) are a happily married ‘hipster’ couple. She is an artist and he is a music producer. However after an accident one night she is left with memory loss that means she no longer knows about her new life or even knows who Leo is. To make matters worse her parents, Bill (Sam Neil – The Hunter, The Dragon Pearl) and Rita (Jessica Lange – Grey Gardens, TV’S American Horror Story) and her sister. Gwen (Jessica McNamee – The Loved Ones, TV’S Packed To The Rafters) use the situation to end a divide between them and because of their dislike for Leo and her new life decide that she should go back to law school and try to patch things up with her ex.

The screenwriting team has created a somewhat impressive script. Yes the romantic drama element of it holds it back (it has to fit the genre) but the film does generate some truly suspenseful moments regarding whether or not Paige and Leo will reunite, however unfortunately some of the dramatic moments are lost by the fact that Tatum does have a limited acting range. But the one thing that does work in the film’s favour is that you do care for Leo and Paige, so much so that you find yourself despising Paige’s parents.

Tatum’s acting is the film’s only major problem. He seems to ‘dope’ his way through the film like a star-quarterback who has been forced into a school play. It’s surprising that director, Michael Sucsy (Grey Gardens) didn’t raise the fact that Tatum is horribly miscast as a ‘hipster’ because it is obvious throughout the film. On the other hand McAdams is good and once again she shows everyone that she is above a lot of the rom-coms she has done throughout her career. It is also good to see Aussie, Jessica McNamee getting a good role, she does herself proud and seems to be the next Aussie on the rise in Hollywood.

The Vow does have some substance… well at least enough to keep you occupied for the 104 minutes that it runs for. Better than expected!!!

Year: 2012

Director: Michael Sucsy

Stars: Rachel McAdams, Channing Tatum, Jessica Lange, Sam Neil, Jessica McNamee

Classification: PG

Runtime: 104 mins

Rating:

Dave Griffiths

It would be good if this could be a review of a new Star Wars film but alas George Lucas still hasn’t put pen too paper, instead he sees fit to re-jiggle this film from 1999. At least he has done more than just silly little things, like making characters blink, this time around… but still the question must be raised – did fans of the series really want to see The Phantom Menace in 3D or is it just a grab for new cash.

Everyone by now probably knows the story of The Phantom Menace but in case you don’t… here goes. Two Jedi Knights, Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson – The Grey, Unknown) and Obi-Wan Kenobi (Ewan McGregor – Beginners, Haywire) are called to the Planet of Naboo to help broker a deal surrounding a blockade. However, they soon learn that this is just the front of something more sinister and realise that Queen Amidala (Natalie Portman – Thor, Your Highness) and her people are under threat. The resulting journey sees them come into contact with Jar Jar Binks (voiced by Ahmed Best (TV’S Star Wars: The Clone Wars & Easy To Assemble) and Anakin Skywalker (Jake Lloyd – Madison)… the latter who becomes one of the most important characters in the Star Wars universe.

You must wonder whether or not Lucas thought the idea of re-releasing all the Star Wars movies in 3D. As most serious film goers will tell you the bottom is about to fall out of the 3D market (people are choosing to see films in 2D rather than pay the high 3D prices) and my releasing The Phantom Menace first people who are new to the series are going to be pretty confused. Simple things like character development for characters such as Yoda (voiced by Frank Oz (Zathura, TV’S Sesame Street) don’t happen to much later in the series (due to the fact that Eps 4,5,6 were released first originally) and you don’t even really get told what ‘Jedi’ is until episode 4.

To be even blunter the 3D does nothing to enhance the film. If the film had been originally shot in 3D then yes scenes such as the pod races would look amazing but by adding 3D in post-production (even if it is 12 years later) you never really get that same look… in fact you soon forget that you are even watching it in 3D.

While it is good to see The Phantom Menace back on the big screen (and maybe for the first time for some) the fact that it is in 3D doesn’t really do anything…although you might find that seeing Jar Jar Binks jump around is even more annoying in 3D.

As far as sci-fi films go The Phantom Menace is okay (it’s nowhere near as good as the original Star Wars films, the story and characters are a lot weaker), but don’t get conned into thinking that seeing it in 3D will make the film-going experience any better.

Year: 2012

Director: George Lucas

Stars: Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Jake Lloyd, Ahmed Best, Frank Oz

Classification: PG

Runtime: 136 mins

Rating:

Dave Griffiths

The term ‘intelligent action flick’ may be an oxymoron to some people. Normally an action flick is a shoot ‘em up style of film with some explosions thrown in for good measure. Storyline and characterization just aren’t that important. Luckily Safe House changes all that. Yes there are explosions and lots of gun-play but the screenwriter also threw in a few things commonly known as storyline and suspense.

Matt Weston (Ryan Reynolds – The Change-Up, Green Lantern) is a CIA agent who feels he is trapped looking after a ‘safe-house’ in South Africa that is never used. He really wants to be in an exciting job in Europe so he can relocate to be with his girlfriend, Ana (Nora Arnezeder – The Words, La Croisiere) but it seems his boss, David Barlow (Brendan Gleeson – The Cup, Albert Nobbs) can’t do anything to help him.

Then Matt’s world is turned upside down when wanted-fugitive and former spy Tobin Frost (Denzel Washington – Unstoppable, The Book Of Eli) hands himself in and turns up at Weston’s safe-house, much to the excitement of Barlow and fellow agent, Catherine Linklater (Vera Farmiga – Source Code, Higher Ground). But when the safe-house is attacked Matt finds himself on the run with Tobin while trying to protect him, unsure of who is attacking them.

Director, Daniel Espinosa (Easy Money, Outside Love) allows this film to deliver on both levels. He assaults the sensations of the audience with some full-on action and enough suspense to make sure that you are on the edge of your seat for nearly the entire 2 hours running time. But together with his screenwriter, David Guggenheim (Exit Strategy) he also remembers that one of the key things to this working is the relationship between Frost and Weston. The film doesn’t skim over that fact and instead explores the fact that these two end up having to trust each other in an extraordinary situation… and once again that leads to our old friend, suspense!

Guggenheim also needs to be congratulated for being brave enough to touch on some pretty gritty topics. Rendition raises it’s ugly head as does the fact that it seems that the CIA believe they are above the laws of other countries worldwide. Luckily the script works and never becomes preachy.

Safe House also works due to some great performances from Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds. Reynolds really steps up and announces himself as an unlikely action hero. He is perfectly cast here as the naïve guy who is forced to become gun-ho, while Denzel Washington just seems to get better and better with age. The guy is now 57 and as the chase in the slum-area showed can still move like a 20 year old…amazing.

Safe House is surprisingly good. It’s an action film for the intelligent cinemagoer and won’t disappoint.

Year: 2011

Director: Daniel Espinosa

Stars: Denzel Washington, Ryan Reynolds, Vera Farmiga, Brendan Gleeson, Nora Arnezeder

Classification: M

Runtime: 115 mins

Rating:

Dave Griffiths

So slick and fresh is Chronicle that you could be forgiven for thinking that is something new from J.J. Abrams. Chronicle is the sci-fi film that fans of the genre have been waiting to see for a long, long time. The concept is new and this is one time where the hand-held camera actually enhances the film rather then distracts from the story… dare we say it – this is the best handheld film since Cloverfield.

Andrew (Dane DeHaan – TV’S True Blood & In Treatment) is always the kid that gets pushed around at school (and punched around by his Dad at home) but when he starts carrying a camera around to document his life for his dying mother life becomes interesting. When his cousin, Matt (Alex Russell – Halloween Knight, The Best Man) forces him to go to a rave he is there when Matt and Steve (Michael B. Jordan – Red Tails, TV’S House) discover a mysterious hole and decide to investigate. What happens next leaves Andrew, Matt and Steve with power that they could not have dreamt off, now they must really find out what they are capable of.

This really is the kind of film that director, Josh Trank (TV’S The Kill Point) could have lost control of so badly that it ended up being a B-Grade film found in any $2 Shop bargain bin. Instead, thanks to some great screenwriting from Max Landis (The Death And Return Of Superman, Ghost Closet ’07) this really becomes a film that studies what can actually happen to people when they discover they have super-human abilities. For some it is fun, for others it is the beginning of an anti-hero story.

Trank keeps the film looking natural all the way through and to his credit he doesn’t seem to falter with the all the special effects that are going on either. So natural is the film that at first the climatic ending seems a little far-fetched but when you relax you realise that this had to happen. You may even realise that Tranks does an amazing job making the climax so dramatic and suspenseful while never once falling away from the hand-held technique.

Finally something new and fresh has landed in the sci-fi field. Chronicle by far outweighs expectation and this sneaky little sci-fi is a film worthy of blockbuster status. A must for sci-fi fans.

Year: 2012

Director: Josh Trank

Stars: Dane DeHaan, Alex Russell, Michael B. Jordan

Classification: M

Runtime: 84 mins

Rating:

Dave Griffiths

It’s been a long time between Working Dog having a film on the big screen and after viewing Any Questions For Ben? all I can say is it was certainly worth the wait. This is what a romantic comedy (or should that be romantic drama) should be like! Three dimensional characters (and believable), a good storyline and real enough that you know it hasn’t just been dreamed up by some screenwriter that has read too many Mills & Boon novels.

Ben (Josh Lawson – Crave, TV’S House Of Lies) seems to have everything you could ever dream of. His friends Nick (Daniel Henshall – Snowtown, Bars And Tone) and Andy (Christian Clark – Scumbus, TV’S Home & Away) watch on enviously as he drifts from dream girl to dream girl while doing a job they feel most would kill for. But it takes an embarrassing incident in front of a bunch of school kids for Ben to realise his job isn’t that interesting and worse still he never seems to be able to see anything through… a point that another friend, Emily (Felicity Ward – TV’S Laid & Sleuth 101) is only too happy to point out. Ben’s confusion is only made greater when he meets Alex (Rachael Tayor – The Darkest Hour, Red Dog).

Director Rob Sitch (The Dish, The Castle) along with his fellow Working Dog co-workers Santo Cilauro and Tom Gleisner have yet again done what they have been doing since The Late Show and that is create a near-perfect script that has you laughing all along. Yet like The Castle they also remember that you have to feel for these characters. At a first glance Ben might be an unlikable character, but by the end of the film you really are hoping he can pull his life together and get the girl.

The big winners with Any Questions For Ben? are Josh Lawson and the City Of Melbourne itself. Sitch has captured Melbourne in a way that no other filmmaker ever has. He showcases the fact it is a cosmopolitan heaven and as a result it equals London and New York on the big screen. Meanwhile, the screen allows Lawson to prove what fans of The Librarians have known for a long time – that he is one of Australia’s most genuine and best performing comedic actors.

Lawson is well supported by Felicity Ward and Daniel Henshall who also show that they have more strings in their bow. Ward really steps up from her Ronnie Johns Half Hour days and shows that she belongs on the big screen while Henshall backs up his fine performance in Snowtown with a worthy comedic performance.

If you’re looking for a fluffy romantic comedy you won’t find it here. Instead Any Questions For Ben overcomes a slow start to become a well written romantic drama that shows the rest of the world just how this genre should be done.

Year: 2012

Director: Rob Sitch

Stars: Josh Lawson, Rachael Tayor, Felicity Ward, Daniel Henshall, Christian Clark

Classification: M

Runtime: 114 mins

Rating6:

Dave Griffiths

This could have been one of the films of the year – it should be winning awards left, right and centre… and should be taking home a swag of awards on Oscars night. Instead J. Edgar becomes an average drama that is ruined by the filmmakers personal stance on J. Edgar Hoover.

J. Edgar is a biopic that takes a look at J. Edgar Hoover’s (Leonardo DiCaprio – Inception, Shutter Island) fifty year career as the head of the FBI as he helped found the use for modern crime solving technology. The film looks at his relationship with his mother, Anna (Judi Dench), his secretary, Helen Gandy (Naomi Watts – Dream House, Fair Game) and his right-hand man, Clyde Tolson (Armie Hammer – The Social Network, 2081). It is also explores the impact (and influence) that each of these people had on his life and career.

The sad thing about J. Edgar is that Hoover lived a life that is more than worthy of a film based on it, and while things like the Hoover/Tolson relationship ring true you can never really get over the fact that screenwriter, Dustin Lance Black (Virginia, Milk) and director, Clint Eastwood (Hereafter, Invictus) have ended up showing Hoover as a hero (albeit a flawed one) while just skirting over and around the darker sides of his life that really showed him to be one of the biggest villains of the last century. To portray him as anything else is just trying to rewrite history…something filmmakers certainly shouldn’t try and do.

The saddest thing about J. Edgar is that once again Leonardo DiCaprio puts in a fine effort but is let down by filmmakers that seem to have completely lost control of the film. Take a look at the mask that is worn to show that Tolson has aged, at times it doesn’t even look like it fits Armie Hammer correctly… now that is just sloppy and unforgivable in today’s cinematic landscape.

J. Edgar is a real let down as a film. Over-long and completely biased it certainly does not make for good cinematic viewing.

Year: 2012

Director: Clint Eastwood

Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Josh Hamilton, Naomi Watts, Judi Dench, Armie Hammer

Classification: M

Runtime: 137 mins

Rating:

Dave Griffiths

There are going to be some people out there who will be quick to judge this film as ‘just another action film’, but they really need to lighten up because while Underworld: Awakening is top-heavy with action is does do what it sets out to do – entertain it’s audience.

When the humans conduct a Nazi-like blitz on Vampire and Lycan alike the two species now find themselves the hunted. When Selene (Kate Beckinsale – Contraband, Everybody’s Fine) is captured she finds herself waking up years later in a facility run by Dr. Jacob Lane (Stephen Rea – Stella Days, Roadkill) who is conducting experiments left, right and centre. When Selene escapes she finds that both Vampires and Lycan have gone underground and in a bid to survive she must protect Eve (India Eisley – Headspace, TV’S The Secret Life Of An American Teenager) (who will be a big surprise for fans of the series) and work with Detective Sebastian (Michael Ealy – Margaret, Uncoditional), a detective who knows that vampires and Lycans aren’t extinct and David (Theo James – The Inbetweeners Movie, Room At The Top), a young people who wants Vampires to once again rise to the top.

Directors, Mans Marlind (Shelter, Snapphanar) and Bjorn Stein (same) make this film work but not trying to make out it is something that it isn’t. The story is enough to keep action junkies happy (and fans of the series) but certainly isn’t strong, therefore Marlind and Stein allow the film to shine by making it look good on the big screen. The special effects and action sequences look spectacular and are more than enough to keep your eyes peeled as you wait to see what happens next.

Once again Beckinsale shines in this role and it is during this film that you realise that she has overtaken Angelina Jolie as the number one action-actress. The other winners here are Michael Ealy who gets enough screen time to show some attitude and Theo James, who could well be the next Hollywood hunk about to make it big.

If you’re a fan of the series you’ll love Underworld: Awakening, if you’re new to the series though this isn’t the film for you. An above average action film!!!

 Year: 2012

Director: Bjorn Stein, Mans Marlind

Stars: Kate Beckinsale, Stephen Rea, India Eisley, Michael Ealy, Theo James

Classification: MA15+

Runtime: 88 mins

Rating:

Dave Griffiths

If you haven’t already seen the trailer for Man On A Ledge what ever you do don’t go looking for it as this is one film that you really need to know nothing about when you start to view. As far as thrillers go this is one of the best to surface over the last few years and even better still, it’ll keep you guessing from start to and finish and looks great on the big screen as well.

Nick Cassidy (Sam Worthington – The Dark Fields, Last Night) is a man that has nothing to lose. He has just asked from prison (he is serving a 25 year sentence) and now stands on the 21^st floor of a New York building. Worse still is the fact that the Detective responsible with talking him down, Lydia Mercer (Elizabeth Banks – Our Idiot Brother, The Details) is still recovering from her last jumper. While the Police soon work out that Nick is trying to clear his name, they don’t realise that his brother, Joey (Jamie Bell – The Adventures Of Tintin, Jane Eyre) as well as Angie (Genesis Rodriguez – TV’S Entourage & Dona Barbara) are also part of the plan.

Everything comes together brilliantly to make Man On A Ledge a truly memorable film. Firstly, Pablo F. Fenjives’ (Murder On Spec, The Devil’s Child) screenplay is an absolute beauty. Sure there are some really small holes in his script but overall he has produced a script that keeps the audience on the edge of their seat with some amazing twists and turns and he is one screenwriter who has remembered the importance of characterization. Even though he wants to keep things about Nick secret, you certainly can’t say that you don’t get to know him.

Secondly, director, Asger Leth (Ghosts of Cite Soleil) shows true class. It has hard to fathom that this is actually his first time in the director’s seat of a feature film. He captures some truly amazing shots, so good in fact that in the screening I was in some people found themselves suffering from some mild vertigo. Leth is one director who you feel has a massive future ahead of him.

And last but not least Man On A Ledge is made a great watch by some good acting performances. You could forgive Worthington for wanting to take the action star approach to this film, but instead he mixes all aspects of genre together with some truly dramatic moments spliced with some breathtaking stunts. He is also well supported by Elizabeth Banks who reminds everyone she is still capable of some great performances.

Man On A Ledge is certainly not your average run-of-a-mill thriller. This is one film that can boast suspense by the bucket load… and it even finds time to take a little swipe at American society.

 Year: 2011

Director: Asger Leth

Stars: Sam Worthington, Elizabeth Banks, Jamie Bell, Genesis Rodriguez

Classification: M

Runtime: 102 mins

Rating:

Dave Griffiths

I’m not sure I have ever heard a movie title cause as much confusion as Journey 2: The Mysterious Island seems to be causing. Outside the world premiere tonight people were asking “Journey 2? Did I need to see Journey 1 first? Was there a Journey 1?” Another asked “is it a sequel to Journey To Witch Mountain”… kind of an out there question considering the film was actually caused Race To Witch Mountain.

Well, put your troubled minds at ease because this is actually a sequel to Journey To The Centre Of The Earth which surfaced way back in 2008 and starred Brendan Fraser in the lead role. And I’m happy to say that chances are if you enjoyed the first one you’ll enjoy this one as well, because even though at times the film does stretch too far in a bid to get a laugh and has some ordinary (at best) special effects, at the end of the day it is a decent family orientated sci-fi/fantasy.

This time around the film centres on Sean Anderson (Josh Hutcherson – Detention, The Third Rule), who as loyal viewers will realise is the son of Trevor Anderson (the character that Brendan Fraser played in the original). Sean has followed in the footsteps of his father and is continuing to explore the works of Jules Verne in the belief that his work is based on fact and not fiction.

Sean’s mother, Liz (Kristin Davis – Sex And The City 2, Couples Retreat) is now married to Hank (Dwayne Johnson – Fast & Furious 5, Faster), a step-father he is struggling to bond with. However, the pair find common ground when Sean intercepts a coded message which he believes came from his grandfather, Alexander (Michael Caine – Cars 2, Gnomeo & Juliet), who in his eyes is a famous explorer and has just discovered Verne’s Mysterious Island. Buoyed by the call to adventure Hank and Sean leave for Palau when they find the other people willing to help find the island is helicopter pilot, Gabato (Luis Guzman – Arthur, The Caller) and his daughter Kailani (Vanessa Hudgens – Sucker Punch, Beastly).

For the most part Journey 2: The Mysterious Island works well. The script flows well, there is a good set-up of story and characters, so good in fact that you are willing to over look some of the amateurish special effects and even a few ‘well-it’s-lucky-that-happened’ moments…after it all it is a family film. But the one thing that I couldn’t overlook (because it’s one of those horrible film moments I feel I’ll remember forever) is a weird ab-bouncing scene that features Dwayne Johnson. The scene is completely out of place and is only there to try and get a laugh, director Brad Peyton (Cats & Dogs 2: The Revenge Of Kitty Galore, A Tale Of Bad Luck) really needed to just say ‘guys we aren’t filming that.’

Of course none of the actors are really stretched. Hudgens and Hutcherson recover from some incredibly cheesy moments to put in good efforts while Guzman shows (like he did in Arthur) he can pull off some comedy pearlers. Michael Caine as usual does a wonderful job and Dwayne Johnson shows strength in the fact that he can make fun of himself… oh and he sings, and I have to admit he doesn’t have such a bad voice.

Journey 2: The Mysterious Island is your typical family-friendly sci-fi-fantasy that is capable of entertaining the whole family… just remember that I did warn you about the ab-bouncing scene.

Year: 2012

Director: Brad Peyton

Stars: Josh Hutcherson, Dwayne Johnson, Vanessa Hudgens, Michael Caine, Luis Guzman, Kristen Davis

Classification: PG

Runtime: 94 mins

Rating:

Dave Griffiths