Review: The Greatest Showman

The first time I heard about this film, I was pretty excited to see this. Especially with it being a musical and Hugh Jackman leading the way as he is a wonderful actor with a strong musical background.
I have also wanted a film about the character of P.T. Barnum, as I find the history of the birth of the circus to be one that needs to be put to film.
The closest we have come is 1952's 'The Greatest Show On Earth'. While I know that film is seen as one of the worst Oscar 'Best Picture' winners, I still see it as a really good film.

While it the film did attempt to cover the topics I was hoping they would, the film itself only just about delivered and left me somewhat satisfied.
The first half moves along nicely and we get a solid arch with many characters and stand-out set-pieces.
However, in the second half. The momentum does slow down as the story goes down routes that contradicts its own message. That for me was slowly deflating my emotion for it.

This was a passion project for Hugh Jackman and his screen presence is still as strong as you would expect. His song-and-dance experience worked well in this and did enough for me in his performance how much of a pioneer Barnum was.
It was great seeing Zac Efron go back to his musical roots and he was a pleasant addition to the cast.
I was happy to see Rebecca Ferguson be involved in this, as I think she is a great talent. But I didn't think her characters involvement added much.
Michelle Williams was massively under-used. For someone of her quality should not have been casted for something so small. However, she did well with what she was given.
For the rest of the cast, they did a pretty good job. Especially with the big dance numbers.

A big part of this film that needs to work, is the music. I managed to like it on the whole. However, the poppy and almost X-Factor style of music felt out of place at times with the period. Also, the timing of them felt odd and if you told me to sing one of them back to you, I would struggle to remember. But thankfully, it did manage to work at times. So much so, that those moments were my high points of the film. Those moments also had crowd-pleasing choreography.

I was surprised at the over-use of visual effects. There were plenty of times where I felt the use of the technology was unnecessary. While there were scenes where CGI is needed, I expected a period piece to have more practical sets and the set-pieces to be always be genuinely done by performers.

A small mention to the script. While the dialogue was a bit on the nose, it did not feel obvious enough to downgrade my feeling of the film.

So while I was disappointed with several aspects, I enjoyed it enough to give it a decent rating. I think the commitment by everyone involved helped a lot, especially when it was working for me.
I think what they did right, was show how much of an exaggerater the character of Barnum and show-business always has been and contain enough moments of the Circus spectacle and razzmatazz.

But it was a shame that they did not seem to concentrate on the parts that I and many others are expecting to see. When they did show those parts, those were the scenes that I enjoyed the most. If they did that, then I think we would have a true spectacle of 'The Greatest Show On Earth'.

It's crowd-pleasing message does lose itself in the second half. There is also a romance going on in there that felt forced and had no reason, except that the people involved are the two most popular people in the film within the teenage demographic.

I can totally see why it is not winning the critics over, but the general public seem to be happy with it. The glossy execution of the story definitely plays to a mainstream crowd. So if you're looking for a thorough account of P.T. Barnum and the beginning of the circus and how we see show-business, you will only get it in small doses.
The way they showed Barnum almost reminded me of how Walt Disney was portrayed in Saving Mr. Banks. They do show his true nature if you look closely. But on the surface, they sanitised his complex personality.

To end this on a high note, I will say that I hope this story becomes a theatre production. I say that because I feel it had plenty of moments that would work really well on stage. So fingers crossed this is given the Broadway treatment.

Rating: 7/10

Review: Molly's Game

It's not often that we have a film with Aaron Sorkin doing the writing. But when we do, it is usually a high-quality and memorable experience. However, as well as being the head of writing, Sorkin is now making his long-awaited directorial debut.

Like a lot of people, Sorkin for me is the best writer in the business right now. His slick, fast-paced and in-depth style of dialogue is a feast for the ears and enhances films in such a way that have made some of them my all-time favourites.

It is really is quite the true story. You swiftly get introduced to the situation at hand and Chastain's screen presence is instantly gripping. As you get back to loving Sorkin's dialogue, the story is getting more and more out of hand, but in a really good way.
Then as we were approaching the final act, it manages to enhance the human part of the story rather well and that gave it that extra edge over similar stories.

Jessica Chastain is nothing but an absolute powerhouse in the lead. I have always been a big fan of hers, since I first saw her in The Help. Most of her performances see her as strong, powerful and sexy all at once. In this, she is hitting all those notes to the highest quality possible. I would not be surprised if she gets nominated in the major awards.
I think Idris Elba was solid enough for me. But I don't think he was that engaging to possibly steal the show from Chastain. If it wasn't for the strong writing from Sorkin, then I think he may have been disappointing. But Elba's execution of the dialogue was perfectly fine to get by and it never detracted my enjoyment levels.
Chastain and Elba's together was a strong point and the execution of the comedic moments worked well.
It was great seeing Kevin Costner and I felt he was a pleasing addition and contributed well when needed. I was expecting this, but I liked the performance of Michael Cera. He is probably one of my most hated actors. But seeing him in this and 'This Is The End', I was engaged and invested with his character.

I was only aware of the character of Molly Bloom through her sporting background and the success of her brothers as well. So it was fascinating to know about this story and I think Sorkin and his team have told really well.
I think this is a highly entertaining watch with great performances and obvious vintage writing from the man himself. The impressive performance by Chastain and the way she executed the dialogue made this one of the best performances of the year. The support is not exceptional but solid all-round nervertheless, the pacing is fairly fast and slick in its style. It also gets emotional in the perfect amount of doses.
It may be 2hrs 20 mins, but it certainly does not feel like it. I hope to see Sorkin branch out into more directing roles, whilst also remaining the head of writing of course. If you think the art of writing in the movie industry is dead, just check this out and you can still find some high-quality writers.

Rating: 8/10

Review: Star Wars: The Last Jedi

What is now becoming a regular event now, mid-December every year now means a new Star Wars film is coming out.

Now while I did have fun with The Force Awakens and enjoyed it every time I watch it, the safe approach and similarities to A New Hope was too much to ignore. So that's why I consider Episode VII to be good rather than great. So I did come into this new installment with some trepidation, but still some excitement. One reason for this was that director Rian Johnson has been set for the next trilogy once this one has included. That obviously shows that the studio is happy with his vision for the future of the franchise.

Well one thing is for, is that Johnson has gone for a unique approach with many bold choices and new routes for the main saga to take. There is a lot going on and the information that you're having to digest will probably take a fair amount of time to get your defined opinion on the film. It could very well require another viewing, if not more.
My feelings throughout were very mixed. There were plenty of entertaining moments in-between the unsure and problematic moments.

From the cast, there were a good amount of strong performances. The connection between Mark Hamill and Daisy Ridley could well be the strongest part of the film. As for the individuals, Hamill was great. It's as if he has never been away and he never seemed to miss a beat of the Luke Skywalker we all know. For Ridley, I think she enhanced Rey really well and it felt very believable and I continue to be a big fan of her character.
Andy Serkis did a great job as Snoke. He gave him such a presence and a force to be reckoned with. Plus the visual effects on him looked incredibly real and felt more like a practical effect.
I'm still unsure what to make of Adam Driver as Kylo Ren. The performance was fine. It was the character and the conflicted route that he's taking that is making me question whether to care for him.
Carrie Fisher did a solid job in her final role as Leia. It was certainly sad seeing her first moments on screen knowing that this is the last time we'll see her. But like Kylo Ren, there were times that her character went to a place that I struggled to get on board with, but in a more extreme way.
John Boyega did not feel that memorable for me. He was fine, but nothing more. His sub-plot with a new character that was well played by Kelly Marie Tran was solid for the most part. Then there was certainly a forced moment that I did not agree with at all.
I really liked the addition of Benicio Del Toro's character. From his introduction, I could tell this was a character I needed to know about. It certainly gave us an insight to another part of this galaxy that is playing their part in this war.
As for the other notables, Oscar Isaac I felt did a solid job, I liked that Domnhall Gleeson was less involved and tone down his over-the-top performance from The Force Awakens and Laura Dern did not give me much as this character I'm afraid. Had no real impact, except partly contributing to a pretty cool moment just before the final act.
One final thing I will mention was that I liked the use of C-3PO in this film. Did not come off as annoying as I felt he was in the final act of The Force Awakens. The way they used was very reminiscent of his characters chemistry with Han Solo in The Empire Strikes Back.

For the most part, I liked some of the choices that were made. The execution of those moments were either solid, good or very good. One thing in particular that I don't think will spoil the film is the light-sabre sequences. They were great to watch. There were moments that I have been wanting to see in a light-sabre battle that I got to see in this one. I was completely satisfied with that aspect. But there were plenty of unsure moments, and were certainly some moments that completely did not agree with at all.

The lore and mythology has certainly been expanded and evolved in this one, and it will definitely spark debate. But I think it will do that in a good way. Lots of it I was finding it difficult to make a instant reaction to. So maybe over time, I will form an opinion and the expansion of this part of the story.

I liked the humor for the most part. There were small moments when it didn't work and there were certainly times where it felt like it shouldn't belong in a Star Wars film.

While I did enjoy many moments and set-pieces, I found it hard to get fulfillment of the entire story, and I think that might be something to do with the flow of the film. I think the pacing matched well with the tone. But it was the flow that did not work that much. To me there felt to be scattered transitions between scenes or moments. Dare I say it felt all over the place.

John Williams is back with composing the score, and I honestly don't know what to make of it. It just felt a lot of familiar pieces and hardly any new ones.

Sadly, there are plenty of other things I would like to comment on. But to avoid spoilers, I will say no more.

What I will say is that, I admired the risk and boldness Rian Johnson and his team took with this one. I wanted something totally different, and I certainly got that. Did it work? Did it end up being a cohesive story? I'm not sure that it did.
There's a healthy amount of rich content. I liked the chemistry and development between Luke and Rey, there were cool light-sabre moments, I thought Serkis as Snoke was very menacing and he felt like a genuine formidable villain, there are some cute new small additions and I really enjoyed Benicio Del Toro's character.

But I have many unsure feelings about it as well as problems. You can certainly feel Johnson's love for the material and trying to expand this universe into many different places. But I think they were trying to cram too much new information that they forgot to create a well-rounded story that felt like it could stand by itself. I fear this might just be a platform/set-up for us to process these new details in preparation for future main saga films. Marvel did that with 'Avengers: Age Of Ultron' and it definitely felt like Star Wars did it with this. My enjoyment might get elevated after a 2nd viewing, as it gives you very little time to breathe. But I highly doubt it.
Plus the 2hrs 32mins run-time felt a bit unnecessary. It did not feel it deserved to be that long. There were plenty of sub-plots that were pointless, went nowhere and could have easily been cut from the film.

Thankfully, I did like enough of it and I welcome further ballsy approaches to the next installments. You're bound to hit a home-run with one of them. With Johnson being the director of a new trilogy that we don't know where in the timeline this will take place, I will approach them with caution but excitement as to what he will give us next.
As for episode IX, there is something that they're building up to, but episode VIII did not get me as excited as I feel I should be.

Rating: 7/10

Review: Stronger

Since the tragic incident at the 2013 Boston Marathon, movies involving stories from that event have started to come out.
The very end of last year saw Patriots Day, which presented how the breakdown of tracking down the two bombers. I really liked it and was universally well praised.

Now we have a more human story about the most publicized of the survivors, Jeff Bauman.

While it was a hard time, Boston really showed the world how much of a community they are. I have noticed that during my couple of decades of sports viewing, especially with the Red Sox. While I don't support any of the Boston teams, I did feel somewhat happy when one of them succeeds, except the Patriots. But that's story for another time.

As for the film, I was rather impressed by it. On paper, it sounds formulaic. But its structure felt really authentic, convincing, believable and honest as well as emotional. It does not mess around with the situation at hand, and then it moves at a gentle pace as we see the struggles our characters are facing.
I like it that they showed the bleak side of being a local hero that the media does not usually show. But as we headed towards the end, it does hint at heading the route similar to that of the strange and not that good 'Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk'. But thankfully, that's all it ever did and we were quickly got back on track to an emotional finale.

Jake Gyllenhaal is great as usual. I have always admired the films he chooses and his style of acting is never the type that wants to get noticed. I never feel like he's acting. He always looks like he is just in the moment and being a real person, and you can really feel his characters vulnerability throughout in this one. There is one completely gripping and tense at the very end of the first act, that is really powerful stuff, and that was thanks in part to Gyllenhaal.
Also, his chemistry with Tatiana Maslany was pretty strong, genuine and was engaging to watch. Apparantly Maslany is more known for her TV work. But I hope this pushes her movie career and I really enjoyed watching her. Miranda Richardson did a really good job and became quite integral and highly memorable, especially in the first half.

The only thing I had a problem with was the ending. I can see the this part of the film being heavily criticized for it feeling too Hollywoodized and cliched. I will agree with that for the most part, but there some genuinely emotional moments in that segment, and I felt everything that preceded it made me a bit more lenient with their execution of the final act.

But on the whole, I really liked this. It never felt like one of those inspiring road-to-recoveries like in a Rocky film. The journey this story took felt very real and it did not pull any punches. It made you feel the pain our central character was feeling when adjusting to this dramatic change in his life, plus the people around him.
Jake Gyllenhaal alone is worth the price of a ticket as he continues to expand his strong back catalogue, and I will forever be excited for any of his future projects.

Rating: 8/10

Review: The Disaster Artist

When news appeared of this film being made, so many people have been wanting to watch 'The Room', the film that inspired James and Dave Franco to create this.

I have been aware of 'The Room', the 2003 film being that has been labelled as 'the best worst movie of all-time' for quite a few years now. But it was only recently until I decided to sit down and experience it, and it is most certainly that. The Room is clearly one of the worst films of all-time. However, it manages to be something that you cannot take your eyes off, has many scenes that need to be seen to be believed.

Since it's introduction to culture, it has gained a huge following and has many regular screenings across the world, including a monthly midnight screening at a cinema in London. It has been talked about for quite some time, and thousands of people including myself quickly catching up and understanding why this truly awful movie has become the cult classic that it deserves to be.

My instant response after seeing it, was that the film and the story manages to be as insane as you would expect it to be. They do a great introduction of Tommy Wiseau and you just can't take your eyes off him. There were so many scenes that people who have seen 'The Room' would get great excitement of knowing how crazy certain moments will pan out. You see incredible re-creations of scenes from the film.
By the end of it, you realise that Franco wanted to give this story some humanity and emotion whilst also celebrating the legacy that this film has left.
I was hoping that this wasn't going to re-create the film and make it funny for the sake of it. Thankfully, they didn't. They showed how endearing this story is whilst also remembering the wonderful flaws the film that they are making has. This film definitely does not laugh at Wiseau. You do feel pity and be inspired for the people involved. It is a wonderfully dramatic celebration for the fans of the film.

James Franco totally transforms into the mysterious enigma that is Tommy Wiseau. The first time you see him on screen and the anticipation of waiting for Franco to do Wiseau's mannerisms is highly exciting.
While James is playing the character everyone is coming to see, it is Dave Franco who shines. With the story being adapted from a book written by Dave's character, seeing the story from his perspective gives him a strong amount of depth and you can easily get invested with him as much as James.
It was cool seeing Seth Rogan and Joss Hutcherson be involved. There is also an almost unrecognisable cameo that has one amazing scene that might have stolen the entire film.

I have to sadly admit that there were times where it slightly over-does it, especially just before the credits which lingered the ending a bit. Thankfully, it was not enough to degrade my overall enjoyment of it.

This could have been as much of a disaster as 'The Room', but it was a thoroughly satisfying time. This really shows how special 'The Room' has become for so many people. It can make a great companion piece with films like Ed Wood, Saving Mr. Banks or even The Producers.

The performances are spot on, it's consistently hilarious and the screenplay and production design is really strong. It almost felt like an actual documentary during the filming scenes.

Whether you've seen 'The Room' or not, I think you can still enjoy this film as there are not many 'private joke' moments. But it would obviously help to watch 'The Room' beforehand to understand why this film has been made.

I must mention that there is a fun post-credits scene that gives it a nice final touch to a fun viewing experience.

Rating: 8/10

Review: Wonder

The first I heard of this film at the start of the year, it sounded like an Oscar bait film that would feel rather schmaltzy and over-sentimental.
But after getting highly positive reviews a few weeks ago from America including a few mentions of Oscar contendership, the level of marketing has jumped considerably and is getting a much bigger release then I had anticipated.

I was enjoying the opening as the tone seemed to be one I was hoping it would be. Then I started to see why it was getting the high-quality praise. It really enhanced every aspect and drove its message to be worthy of tearful and uplifting.

What I liked about it the most, was that it wasn't all about the central character. The way they structured it, meant that they heavily developed all the main supporting characters and it moved me in the right way that it intended to.
It managed to be more complex then you would think when approaching this. I also expected the makers of this to aim for a tear-jerker. But in the end, it's more uplifting then anything else. Yes it has its sad and depressing moments, but you feel like punching the air and skipping out of the screening room.

As mentioned before, the character development was aplenty and the performances capitalised on that opportunity. Jacob Tremblay was in leading role. His performance in Room was nothing short of phenomenal and I will never forget it. In this latest role, it was another top bit of acting. His screen presence is something quite incredible. You instantly get the sense of his characters struggles. There were plenty of times where he was basically playing himself due to the character having similar interests to himself.
Izabela Vidovic really shone and was the stand-out performance from the supporting roles. Her story ended up being as strong and engaging as the central focal point of this film and that was helped by memorable contribution.
As for the two big names in this film, Julia Roberts rolled back the years and was almost channeling Erin Brockovich and reminded us how strong of a talent she is. As for Owen Wilson, he fitted into the tone rather well and has a charming presence throughout.
There were a lot of child actors in this one. Outside of Tremblay, Noah Jupe was the most notable. He did a good job and certainly had his shining moments.

The big danger to avoid in this type of story is not over-do the emotions. There were obvious moments of sugar-coating, especially towards the end. But thankfully it was not enough to degrade my overall enjoyment for this.

While most films of this ilk are rarely exceptional, this was one of those films where it really did work. The story structure has a great amount of depth that certainly makes it a more memorable viewing experience and gives you many memorable characters.
There's many good comedic moments and the references it uses was pretty cool to see take place. But there are also several expected emotional scenes that will certainly cause a few tearful moments.

I must finally mention that with this film having a PG rating, this is great time to show this to kids as it will send an important message.

Rating: 8/10