Pacific Rim: Uprising

This review may contain spoilers!

What was good about the first Pacific Rim fades pretty fast in this film and devolves into a rather mindless blockbuster flick by the film's end. I would give Pacific Rim: Uprising a 4.5/10.

The film does a great job at picking up from where the last film left off, making an interesting setting in which ruined coastal cities are left in disrepair and junkyard Jaegers are pieced together by salvagers. The chaotic introduction of Jake and Amara and their inevitable recruitment into the Jaeger program is actually quite a nice first act and really makes you feel for a number of the characters within the main cast. The initial antagonist appears pretty obvious but some of the Jaeger versus Jaeger combat draws you in as a viewer and has you hooked. The cinematography looks great, encompassing the large sets and effects that take place within the frame as well as the more intimate moments between characters. The special effects look astounding; in particular, it's nice to see some new designs with the Jaegers shown throughout the film and the battle sequences are really what the film lives and dies upon.

John Boyega, who played Jake Pentecost, does a great job as the film's protagonist; his more relaxed and relatable persona really has you invested in him from an audience perspective. Scott Eastwood, who played Nate Lambert, is a very by the book gruff character who immediately fits his military role; Eastwood really lends a more open side to his character and you feel like he really acts as a pillar of support throughout the film. Burn Gorman, who played Dr Herman Gottlieb, is a familiar awkward personality with a thousand thoughts racing through his mind; Gorman is at his best when he attempts to re-establish the bond his role once shared with Day's and the effect the distance between them has had upon him. Rinko Kikuchi, who played Mako Mori, has some immediate sibling chemistry onscreen with Boyega (which is a nice surprise); Kikuchi really holds the weight of responsibility her character now wields well and you can immediately see her in the leadership role she has now taken on. Wesley Wong and Ivanna Sakhno, who played Cadet Jinhai and Cadet Viktoria respectively, are interesting new minor roles in this very different Pacific Rim; Wong makes for a great supporting character who is very welcoming to the Jaeger pilot initiative, while Sakhno's character is aggressive and has some interesting conflict with Spaeny.

However, the best performance came from Cailee Spaeny, who played Amara Namani. This is a real young gun with a streak of brilliance role in the film and she really stands out from beginning to end. Spaeny sets out to portray a lone wolf with a standoffish attitude that works very well alongside Boyega's performance. This character really is driven by a need to belong and fight back against forces she'd otherwise be defenceless against. The scene in which Amara's backstory is revealed is an especially harrowing one and Spaeny does a great job in delivering it. A brilliant performance and a young actress who will be on the rise in no time I hope.

At a certain point in this film, there is a decision to throw out a big twist and reveal the big villain and what motivates the antagonist for the rest of the second and third acts. This is really where you see that the writer for this feature never really got the first Pacific Rim, taking liberties in a major way that really just makes this film feel more like a mindless blockbuster than anything else. The Kaiju no longer feel motivated by anything that makes them interesting to watch so this just becomes what everyone assumed the first Pacific Rim film was going to be: a feature about giant robots slugging giant robots in the face. To make matters worse as the acts progress there's a real drive that this is a 'legacy' oriented film; by which I mean a number of younger actors playing child or teen roles suddenly take front and centre. The result of this is that the stakes are significantly lowered and you're dosed with a shocking number of cheesy one-liners and two-dimensional characters for the final fight of the film. This final fight is disappointing to watch not just for the characters in it, but also for the special effects; throughout the film has looked pretty good but there's no attempt here to balance live-action sets or landscapes with the CGI around it. Everything looks like an animated mess and the drop in quality is quite noticeable. The score for the film doesn't have much to it, there's a significant amount of fanfare and horns but nothing that makes the music within the film distinguishable.

Charlie Day, who played Dr Newton Geiszler, was a real standout performance in the first film and acts like he doesn't even really know what he's doing back this time around; Day doesn't suit the villain performance and his focus on delving into the comedic side of his role means that you don't really tend to take him seriously. Tian Jing, who played Liwen Shao, is a new role that isn't explored very much; the film spends too much time portraying her as a featureless big bad that when she is revealed to be a good character you don't really know enough about her to care. Jin Zhang, who played Marshal Quan, is a pretty generic leading military figure; Zhang fails to lend this character any personality and only ever plays to the stereotype he is given. Adria Arjona, who played Jules Reyes, is an awkward role that doesn't really have much place in the film; Arjona is wasted in a role that only seems to exist to create a love triangle between herself, Boyega and Eastwood. Karan Brar, Mackenyu, Lily Ji, Shyrley Rodriguez, Rahart Adams and Levi Meaden, who played Cadet Suresh, Cadet Ryoichi, Cadet Meilin, Cadet Renata, Cadet Tahima and Cadet Ilya respectively; were a bunch of characters who could've been treated as roles but were instead seen to be background extras; making these characters important only in the final act meant that the stakes were significantly lowered by the film's end and the quality of the narrative had gone down.

Tomb Raider

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This is yet another video game film which, as can be expected, falls under the all too familiar video game film curse. I would give Tomb Raider a 4/10.

The cinematography throughout is very impactful; urban landscapes look as brilliant as desolate islands and underground tombs. The camera work especially knows how to capture fast-paced motion and the editing compliments these sudden transitions into swift action. The fight choreography and chase sequences were the real leading points of the entire feature, every fight was slick and moved at such a fluid pace that the moments of action really distracted you from the low points within the narrative. The score for the film hits a high beat in all the right places, and the descent into the tomb is made to feel very tense and eerie due to the musical accompaniment.

Walton Goggins, who played Mathias Vogel, is an exceptional standout as the antagonist of the film; he manages to pitch some calm, entertaining banter in some scenes while unveiling a silent, threatening persona in other key moments.

However, the best performance came from Alicia Vikander, who played Lara Croft. Vikander really succeeds at capturing the essence of this famous character, her daring and sometimes reckless spirit made her a protagonist worth watching. This is a stubborn character, who sets a goal and moves towards it with a relentless energy until she either completes what she sets out to do or collapses from exhaustion. Vikander is natural as this completely intellectual and instinctual problem-solver. This is a compassionate Lara Croft, driven by her heart and her connection to her family.

This is a very formulaic narrative, a film in which a wayward child chance upon their parent's secret life and stumbles into being even better at it than they were. Tomb Raider doesn't do a thing to try and stray from this format at all, in fact, it shamelessly follows it to the letter to the point that each scene is pretty predictable. Outside of Lara Croft, a lot of the characters are very melodramatic with many hamming up their personas or playing to a stereotype. The film takes a long time to get underway which sets a slow pace; things pick up when we finally get to the tomb but the ending falls flat. Making the big revelation around a plague/poorly presented zombie choice was a poor choice and the sequel set up following that was poorly executed.

Dominic West, who played Lord Richard Croft, really goes fully over the top melodrama with this role; West pours such an overwhelming flood of emotions into scenes that you don't really buy into the person he's presenting. Daniel Wu, who played Lu Ren, seems comfortable playing a fairly stereotypical rogue with a heart of gold; Wu's character goes through huge strides of sudden development throughout this film that seems to serve the progression of the story more purpose than the actual character himself. Kristin Scott Thomas, who played Ana Miller, isn't even remotely subtle as the 'big twist' villain; Thomas approaches her role with a very obvious blunt coldness that earns her character little empathy or interest from the start. Derek Jacobi, who played Mr Yaffe, is absolutely wasted in this film; Jacobi, as a confused lawyer shoved into the background, would have made for a far better villain than Thomas' role for the surprise reveal. Jaime Winstone and Nick Frost, who played Pamela and Max respectively, have no real reason to be in this film and are incredibly off tone moments in the story; this duo really pushes a comedic dynamic in a narrative that really doesn't evidence humour all that often or well.

Death Wish

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If you're hungry for an NRA-friendly film that encourages guns in the home then you might have found the film to tickle your fancy. I would give Death Wish a 2.5/10.

The action within this film was very clever in its design; you really felt like the protagonist was quite fresh to fighting in hand to hand combat and firearms handling. The cinematography used throughout looks sharp, making scenes of home invasion feel very horrific and action sequences incredibly back and forth.

Bruce Willis, who played Paul Kersey, clearly wants to be in this film and therefore suits the leading role; Willis balances a calm, charismatic protagonist with a developing aggression and drive for vengeance/justice. Vincent D'Onofrio, who played Frank Kersey, is quite a kind-hearted and likeable role; D'Onofrio's role has a chequered past which clearly weighs on him and the degree to which he attempts to atone for this throughout is somewhat noble. Stephanie Janusauskas, who played Sophie, immediately feels like she has an emotional stake in the vents of the film as the best friend role; Janusauskas really lends herself to the scene in which she reads to Morrone's comatose role.

However, the best performance came from Dean Norris, who played Detective Kevin Raines. This character was fairly laidback and matter of fact, Norris kept a very grounded air to him throughout his portrayal. This works brilliantly when he has to quite seriously unpack some of the heavy facts about the rate of crime in Chicago. Norris is great at bringing a sense of levity to scenes as well, delivering a comedic line at just the right moment to conclude a scene in a more light-hearted way.

I question a film like this a lot these days; this is a film that should've been delayed in light of the recent shootings in America and its message is frankly quite terrible. Death Wish pushes hard for an America in which every family man wields a gun and takes the law into their own hands. The shift from a calm man of healing to a murderous vigilante is quite sudden and doesn't seem like a smooth transition. There's a lot of advertising throughout for guns and pushing the idea a gun is a necessity within the home which is a grim theme that falls pretty flat. It's unbelievably arrogant of this film to debate it's own theme throughout the film as well; with a very clear bias towards the pro-gun argument. The editing seen throughout is incredibly slow for a film centred around action, more than that this film moves like something that was very basically assembled to rush it out of post-production. The soundtrack for the film really doesn't suit the narrative nor the main protagonist, the use of hip-hop and rap failing to make much effect with Willis' dour expression and mundane character background.

Elisabeth Shue, who played Lucy Kersey, really lacks any chemistry with Willis as the husband and wife couple the film centres itself around; Shue's overtly bubbly personality comes across pretty strong and forced. Camila Morrone, who played Jordan Kersey, really doesn't show much range in this film and gives quite a generic portrayal of a teenage daughter; Morrone sets out to play the goody two shoes victim of the criminal and doesn't strive to present Jordan as an interesting character. Beau Knapp, who played Knox, doesn't feel like much of an antagonist for this feature; Knapp struggles to be intimidating nor does he really feel like he raises the stakes all that much throughout the feature. Kimberly Elise, who played Detective Leonore Jackson, feels like a rather unnecessary role created purely for Norris to bounce dialogue off of; Elise's character is generally pushed to the background unless she's needed to set up a joke for Norris to deliver. Len Cariou, who played Ben, is such an exaggerated role that you can't help but laugh at him when he goes from kindly grandfather to gun-toting defender; Cariou sets up the direction the narrative will take but he really mishandles the delivery of this moment. Kirby Bliss Blanton, who played Bethany, isn't in this film to be anything other than an attractive woman selling guns to middle-aged men; it's a really simple role that has no subtlety to it and is a major low point of the entire feature.

Red Sparrow

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This is an incredibly dull spy film with pacing issues half the time and an erotica film posing as a spy film for the other half. I would give Red Sparrow a 4.5/10.

The strength of this spy film is the brutal nature of the piece, the violence and the heightened sense of danger, action and torture make this a film with exceptionally high stakes for the characters at hand. What works in the narrative's favour is small cues scattered throughout, scenes that are seemingly insignificant or unimportant but result in what is actually quite an incredible reveal right at the film's end. This reveal isn't enough to rectify many of the mistakes throughout but it is a clever moment, one that hints at what Red Sparrow could've been with the right guidance. The cinematography for the feature is alright, often going big on the more significant or brutal scenes but keeping consistent enough throughout to appear interesting.

Matthias Schoenaerts, who played Vanya Egorov, is a very cunning and deceptive role to watch; Schoenaerts plays his role to be very 'together' and the perverse connection he attempts to form with Lawrence is very well orchestrated. Ciaran Hinds, who played Zakharov, is a figure of immense power throughout his scenes in this film; Hinds has a dark, threatening presence that quietly looms over other roles he has exchanges with. Thekla Reuten, who played Marta, is a very guarded role who comes quite naturally to this spy film; Reuten's ability to balance a gentler, more trusting side with Lawrence and a hardened exterior in other scenes really make her an intense talent to watch.

However, the best performance came from Charlotte Rampling, who played Matron. This was a very firm role who governed her 'school'/training facility with a rigid fist. The subtle ways Rampling depicted her role manipulating others was a fascinating watch and you immediately believed that this was a character with layers of espionage experience. I was never really impressed with the films rampant and aimless scenes around sex and lust but Rampling navigated them well and certainly showed these ideas as a tool in the spy game.

This is a great example of a film with a clever idea for the end that really lacks substance anywhere else in the feature. The main character really hurtles into the espionage world and you never really feel very convinced that she has a place there. It's disappointing that the film tries to tease the audience by having Dominika switch sides every few minutes; you lose interest in her and the narrative grows repetitive. The film really has a weird obsession with sex, especially at the beginning of the film. There is a time where Red Sparrow just gratuitously attempts to push the boundaries in how it portrays sex to the point that it no longer seems to serve a purpose and delves into the realms of fetishism and erotica. The entire American angle of the story is quite simple and goofy, with cheesy roles and moments of comedy that are in complete conflict with the narrative unfolding in the Russian storyline. The editing of the film is very dull; it's clear that there isn't much vision as to whether this is an action feature or a slow burn spy flick. The score for Red Sparrow is oppressively dull and doesn't differ greatly between scenes, in fact, some of the uses of famous classical pieces come in at rather jarring moments.

Jennifer Lawrence, who played Dominika Egorova, was quite simply a poor actress for this leading role and has been on the backburner in her choice of films for a while now; Lawrence could have at least managed a consistent Russian accent rather than hash that basic prerequisite for the character. Joel Edgerton, who played Nate Nash, doesn't succeed at playing an espionage agent so much as he plays the most hapless schmuck you'll see in a spy film this year; watching Edgerton force a steamy relationship between Lawrence and himself is cringeworthy at best. Mary-Louise Parker, who played Stephanie Boucher, comes crashing into this film to wreck the tone completely; Parker's heightened comedic portrayal of a shady deal is extremely off-colour and a weak link in the narrative. Joely Richardson, who played Nina Egorova, is more in this film for a placeholder of an important stereotype as opposed to portraying a character; Richardson is certainly a mother role in this film but you won't see much deeper than that. Bill Camp, who played Marty Gable, is another American character who comes in cracking jokes and feeling off-colour to the feature as a whole; Camp really is shunted to the background and feels like one role to many in some of the scenes he is in. Jeremy Irons, who played General Korchnoi, is quite a predictable role, to be frank; Irons plays up a gruff exterior that goes strongly against most other characters in the scenes he's in. making his reveal as an ally not much of a twist. Douglas Hodge, who played Maxim Volontov, was quite two-dimensional and never really allowed to be more than he was; this character was made to be a brute and Hodge was content simply playing him that way and no more.