27 / 114
027
CINDERELLA
Forget what you think you know and start again; Disney have pulled the
biggest rabbit out of its mouse-eared hat to date with this passionate, fun,
mature, concise and rollickingly entertaining live action film that will have
audiences of all ages melting, loving and remembering what it means
to follow simple golden rules we all but forget in a modern society. Cate
Blanchett was born to play the surrogate matriarch with her sharp features,
intelligent sarcasm and commanding presence; an effortless performance
that ignites the sting in this fairy tale, which amazingly dances between
reality and the magical realm with true wonder and heart. Less heavy on
the CGI and with more concentration on a clever script, plus an uncanny
ability to engage multiple ages and a rich visual splendor that doesn’t
overcook the cake, is likely to make
Cinderella
the biggest box-office
success story to date for the studio, and deservedly so.
Chris Murray
RUN ALL NIGHT
Liam Neeson defaults to action-man mode once again in
Run All
Night
, his third collaboration with director Jaume Collet-Serra and
his umpteenth
Taken
clone. Hitman Jimmy Conlon (Neeson) battles
his inner demons and must decide if his loyalties lie with his son or
with his lifelong best friend. Limo driver Mike Conlon (
RoboCop
’s Joel
Kinnaman) winds up the reluctant target of his father’s longtime ally,
mobster Shawn Maguire (Ed Harris). Let the running and shooting
commence. Neeson reprises some of the skills he's acquired from
previous roles; fights with hot sticks (
The Phantom Menace
), parkour
(
Taken
), and, of course, gunfights (
Non-Stop
, and every other film).
Run
All Night
works fine as a shoot-em up action movie, but one can’t help
thinking that Neeson will struggle to escape this kind of typecasting for
the remainder of his career.
Alesha Kolbe
CINEMA
REVIEWS
RELEASED:
March 26
DIRECTOR:
Kenneth Branagh
CAST:
Cate Blanchett, Lily
James, Richard Madden
RATING:
PG
RELEASED:
March 19
DIRECTOR:
Jaume Collet-Serra
CAST:
Liam Neeson,
Ed Harris, Joel Kinnaman
RATING:
MA15+
RATING KEY:
Wow!
Good
Not bad
Meh Woof!
THE GUNMAN
THE Spongebob MOVIE:
SPONGE OUT OF WATER
A mercenary’s last assassination in the Congo forces him
into leaving not only the country, but also the woman he
loves. Upon returning, it’s soon clear he himself is the new
target. The cinema cliché of ‘the hunter becoming the
hunted’ can be done in many ways; thankfully this is a slight
cut above for two reasons – it takes itself quite seriously,
posing as a loose political actioner with a heavy duty cast
(when it’s really not); and Sean Penn simply being on the
screen looking like he’s having some genuine fun, albeit in a
constant state of poised concentration as not to stop flexing
his rather impressive 54-year-old biceps.
Taken
director
Morel obviously listened to his main star (Penn even gets a
screenplay credit) as this is a no-nonsense journey. Much
attention is given to methodical approaches to the art of
killing, and Penn excels in us believing him – so too the
casting of Ray Winstone as a crusty confidante and the gritty
‘put-em down fast’ a la Bourne attitude to action. Ultimately
the plot is still a join-the-dots affair, letting down any true
intrigue. You’ll find yourself squinting harder at attempting to
believe it’s a greater film.
CM
RELEASED:
Apr 16
DIRECTOR:
Pierre Morel
CAST:
Sean Penn, Idris Elba, Jasmine Trinca
RATING:
CTC
This is an instance where a film's trailer seems to have
been put together by, I don't know, Dane Cook. It's
not actually all about hurling champagne everywhere;
the best parts involve famous actor/comedian Andre
Allen (Chris Rock) walking around New York, talking
authenticity, hip hop and love with Chelsea Brown
(Rosario Dawson), a reporter who tries to get genuine
responses out of her interviewee by revealing her own
personal life. Overall it's a pretty unrealistic rendition
of how magazine interviews are actually conducted,
but it does provide a great structure – interspersed
with the deeper conversations are a stop at Chelsea's
home, where her daughter asks Andre uncomfortably
sassy questions; a visit to Andre's mates', where we see
his flair for quick wit and canny takedowns are shared
by his adored 'regular' friends; and plenty of hilarious
flashbacks to a time when Andre was making big money
doing crappy comedies (he's now trying to get serious
with a sober biopic about the Haitian Revolution, titled
Uprize
). Surprisingly meaningful.
Zoë Radas
RELEASED:
March 12
DIRECTOR:
Chris Rock
CAST:
Chris Rock, Rosario Dawson
RATING:
MA15+
Are ya ready, kids? I certainly wasn’t.
The
SpongeBob Movie
is one of the most eye-opening
things I’ve seen in a long time. Either I’m not the
atypical child, and missed something growing up, or
kids these days are in a whole different ballpark as
far as cartoons are concerned. Whether it’s dolphin
rap battles, time travelling or bad puns, it’s hard to
say if there’s something for everyone – or no one
– in this 3D cinematic rendering of Bikini Bottom.
Starring the voice actors from the series – Tom
Kenny as SpongeBob, Bill Fagerbakke as Patrick,
and Rodger Bumpass (yes, that’s really his name)
as Squidward – it’s not as if the film strays from
the show’s predictably bonkers template. It does,
however, bring a weird, almost illicit substance-
induced fervour to a childhood memory of mine that
I didn’t really want tainted. Despite the title, most of
the movie takes place underwater; probably a good
thing. It’s creepy, and recommended for kids who are
slightly left-of-centre.
AK
RELEASED:
April 2
DIRECTOR:
Paul Tibbitt
CAST:
Tom Kenny, Antonio Banderas
RATING:
PG
TOP FIVE