Film Review: STAND UP GUYS (2012)

Director: Fisher Stevens
Writer: Noah Haidle
Running time: 95 mins (approx)
Certification (USA): R

Genre: Comedy/Crime
USA Release date: 1^st February 2013

Watched on DVD Saturday 13^th April 2013.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE UNINTENTIONAL SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

This is a film that has struggled to find an outlet; not loved by the critics, but it has a good cast and a fairly solid premise. It appears to be the fashion these days to bring out aging film stars and put them in roles they’re clearly not physically capable of fulfilling. For a change, this one doesn’t do that; it’s played straight, they’re old guys and they’ll behave like old guys; old guys with guns and an attitude admittedly, but I liked that about this one. But enough of my rambling, here’s a very brief summary before I give you my thoughts.

Then Val (Al Pacino) is released from prison after serving a 27 year stretch, he is picked up by his old friend and partner in crime, Doc (Christopher Walken). The pair reminisces about old times and Doc takes Val out to celebrate his freedom, but there is a dark shadow over them. Crime syndicate leader, Claphands (Mark Margolis), wants Val dead because he killed his son and he wants Doc to do it. Realising he has it coming; Val decides to go out on a high and they go to get their old driver, Hirsch (Alan Arkin), out of a nursing home for one last night together. But all things must come to and end and when the morning comes Claphands wants his vengeance… But old flames have been awoken and it won’t be that easy?

I found this a very bittersweet tale with an ending that may not have played well to many audiences (I liked the ending by the way). It’s quite melancholic although there are some very amusing moments to ease the way. All of the main parts were excellent with Pacino, Walken and Arkin all living up to their billing. A nice soundtrack sets the scene with many old tracks of yesteryear plus a new song at the end from Jon Bon Jovi. Over all, I think I probably enjoyed this a tad more than the critics and would happily watch it again sometime. Some may find it a little too downbeat, but I enjoyed it; particularly the ending.

SteelMonster’s verdict: RECOMMENDED

My score: 7.3/10.

IMDb Score: 6.5/10 (based on 9,755 votes when this review was written).
http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt1389096/

MetaScore: 41/100: (Based on 30 critic reviews provided by Metacritic.com at the time of going to press).

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Tomatometer’ Score: 36/100 (based on 88 reviews counted at the time of going to press).

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Audience’ Score: 92/100 (based on 8,256 user ratings counted at the time of going to press).
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/stand_up_guys/

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http://facebook.com/andy.steel3

FAVOURITE QUOTES:
Val: [after taking too much ED medication] I'm fighting the Battle of the Bulge here. This thing is going up and down like a yo-yo...

Val: Are you a real doctor?
Doctor: Are you a real patient? Is that a real penis?

Doc: Nobody messes with these guys. These are the type of guys that take your kidneys out and not even sell them.

Doc: You can't open a car with a coat hanger any more, Val.
Val: Says who?
Doc: Says the people who make cars.

Hirsch: Hey, Val, it's like the old days, isn't it?
Val: No! It's better.
Hirsch: Yeah! Why?
Val: Because this time we can appreciate it.
Hirsch: Yeah, that's why.

LINKS:
(Note: All were working at the time of going to press)
Trailer:

Film Review: ARGO (2012)

Director: Ben Affleck
Writers: Chris Terrio (screenplay), Tony Mendez (book “The Master of Disguise”) & Joshuah Bearman (article “Escape from Tehran”)
Running time: 120 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 15

Genre: Drama/History/Thriller
UK Release date: 7^th November 2012

Watched on DVD Saturday 6^th April 2013.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE UNINTENTIONAL SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

Even before it won the BAFTA and something called an ‘Oscar’ I was interested in watching this film. Ben Affleck had impressed me with ‘The Town’ and I was keen to see what else he had in his locker. I must admit he is certainly keeping the bar pretty high! Other than one, very debatable, comment about the fugitives being turned away by the British & New Zealand Embassies, it’s a pretty fine film. Here’s a very brief summary before I give you my thoughts.

After the Shah of Iran left in 1979 the country was in chaos. Fanatical religious factions took over who saw the USA as a great evil since they gave the, much hated, Shah a safe haven. This made life very difficult for the staff at the Embassy in Tehran; every day huge crowds gathered outside and chanted threats against the USA. Eventually they broke through the gates and took over the buildings but six of the staff escaped to the Canadian Ambassador’s residence. As plans were drawn up to get them out, one man, Tony Mendez (Ben Affleck) comes up with something so audacious that it might just work! They were to pose as a film crew scouting locations in Iran, but to make it plausible; they’d need to make it look real. Enter John Chambers (John Goodman) and Lester Siegel (Alan Arkin); these guys set up all the marketing and press to make it look legitimate. So Mendez sets off to Tehran with his boss, Jack O’Donnell (Bryan Cranston), holding things together in Washington. Can he get the fugitives to agree to the scam, and what’s more, can they pull it off and get out of Iran?... Guess I’d better leave you hanging there.

Beautifully made with all everything from the costumes to the technology accurate to a tee. I loved the way the film was intercut with archive news footage of the time; this really gave the audience a sense of the world at that juncture. All the performances were excellent with Ben Affleck taking centre stage, but I really enjoyed seeing Alan Arkin as a Hollywood producer; he stole it for me! There was real tension towards the end of the film; it slowly builds for quite a long time and I found that quite masterful. It’s something that has been missing from many Hollywood films for a long time now but Affleck seems to have rediscovered the art. Because it‘s a film based in real events, there’s little time for character development and I think it suffers slightly because of it. Other than that, it has some interesting songs on the soundtrack and it’s well worth a look!

SteelMonster’s verdict: HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

My score: 8.6/10.

IMDb Score: 7.9/10 (based on 182,559 votes when this review was written).
http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt1024648/

MetaScore: 86/100: (Based on 45 critic reviews provided by Metacritic.com at the time of going to press).

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Tomatometer’ Score: 96/100 (based on 259 reviews counted at the time of going to press).

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Audience’ Score: 93/100 (based on 101,399 user ratings counted at the time of going to press).
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/argo_2012/

If you’re crazy enough… You can find me on Facebook at:
http://facebook.com/andy.steel3

FAVOURITE QUOTES:
WARNING: STRONG LANGUAGE
Lester Siegel: Argo fuck yourself.

Lester Siegel: The saying goes, "What starts in farce ends in tragedy."
John Chambers: No, it's the other way around.
Lester Siegel: Who said that exactly?
John Chambers: Marx.
Lester Siegel: Groucho said that?

John Chambers: Look, if you're going to do this, you're going to do this... You can't build cover stories around a movie that doesn't exist. You need a script, you need a producer.

John Chambers: [after hearing of the plan to get the hostages out] So you want to come to Hollywood, act like a big shot...
Tony Mendez: Yeah.
John Chambers: ...without actually doing anything?
Tony Mendez: Yeah.
John Chambers: [smiles] You'll fit right in!

Joe Stafford: You really believe your little story's gonna make a difference when there's a gun to our heads?
Tony Mendez: I think my story's the only thing between you and a gun to your head.

LINKS:
(Note: All were working at the time of going to press)
Official Site: http://argothemovie.warnerbros.com/
Trailer:

Film Review: LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE (2006)

Directors: Jonathan Dayton, Valerie Faris
Writer: Michael Arndt
Running time: 101 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 15

Genre: Adventure/Comedy/Drama
UK Release date: 8^th September 2006

Watched on DVD Monday 9^th April 2012.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

I bought this DVD several years ago by mistake and it has lurked at the back of my collection ever since. Having heard several good things about it I decided to take the plunge and give it a look. I was pleasantly surprised; it wasn’t the usual ‘dysfunctional family’ cliché ridden rubbish I was expecting. No, it was so much better than that and I must say I even enjoyed it! I will give you my thoughts after this brief summary.

There are six main characters; first there’s seven year old Olive Hoover who has won a place in the finals of the ‘Little Miss Sunshine’ beauty contest. Then we have the mother, Sheryl, harassed as all mothers are in these films and Richard, the father, he has business problems that are causing friction with Sheryl. The fifteen year old son, Dwayne, hasn’t spoken for nine months; he has decided that until he achieves he ultimate goal of becoming a fighter pilot, we will not speak. The grandpa, Edwin, who swears, takes drugs and really doesn’t much care what the others think of him, apart from Olive (of course). Finally, there’s Sheryl’s brother, Frank, who has just attempted suicide and cannot be left alone. This unlikely collection has to get Olive the 700 miles to the beauty contest in a broken VW Camper van in just two days. What could possibly go wrong?... Well, I’ll leave it there or the Spoiler Police will be having me towed (again).

Now I’m not usually a fan of comedies, but the humour in this one is so dark that I actually enjoyed it! Very well made with some great dialogue and some characters that I could actually relate to (makes a change!). All the performances were great; the young Abigail Breslin did a great job as Olive Hoover and I really loved Alan Arkin as Grandpa Edwin Hoover, he really nailed it! Greg Kinnear as Richard Hoover and Toni Collette as Sheryl Hoover both did a good job. I thought Paul Dano as Dwayne also did a good job and Steve Carell showed what a good actor he can be as Frank Ginsberg.

As road trip movies go, I must say that this is the best one I’ve seen in quite a long time. The mix of characters and the way they interact works pretty well and I found the film quite engaging (I even laughed a few times!). Yes, some of the situations they got themselves into were a tad far-fetched, but I can forgive that (this time) because the characters actually had some substance. Would I watch it again? Yes I would and so I have no problem in deeming this one… Recommended.

My score: 8.2/10.

IMDb Score: 7.9/10 (based on 194,846 votes at the time of going to press).
http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0449059/

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Tomatometer’ Score: 91/100 (based on 205 reviews counted at the time of going to press).

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Audience’ Score: 90/100 (based on 379,546 user ratings counted at the time of going to press).
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/little_miss_sunshine/

If you’re crazy enough… You can find me on Facebook at:
http://facebook.com/andy.steel3

FAVOURITE QUOTES:
Sheryl: [after Frank tried to commit suicide] I'm so glad you're still here.
Frank: Well, that makes one of us.

Richard: There's two kinds of people in this world, there's winners and there's losers. Okay, you know what the difference is? Winners don't give up.

Grandpa: Are you gettin' any?
Richard: Dad!
Grandpa: You can tell me, Dwayne. Are you gettin' any?
Richard: Come on, please.
Grandpa: [Dwayne shakes his head] No? Jesus. You're what? Fifteen? My God, man!
Richard: Dad!
Grandpa: You should be gettin' that young stuff.
Richard: Dad!
Grandpa: That young stuff is the best stuff in the whole world.
Richard: Hey! Hey! Dad! That's enough! Stop it!
Grandpa: Will you kindly not interrupt me, Richard! See, right now you're jailbait, they're jailbait. It's perfect. I mean, you hit 18, man! You're talkin' about three to five.

[Dwayne looks around van; writes frantically on notepad... ]
Frank: [reading notepad] "Where's Olive?"...
Sheryl: Oh!

Olive: What are you guys talking about?
Grandpa: [thinks for a moment] Politics.
Olive: Oh.

LINKS:
(Note: All were working at the time of going to press)
Trailer:

Film Review: CATCH-22 (1970)

Director: Mike Nichols
Writers: Joseph Heller (Novel), Buck Henry (Screenplay)
Running time: 122 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 15

Genre: Comedy/War
USA Release date: 24^th June 1970

Watched on Sky+ Saturday 21^st January 2012.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

This is a film I saw many years ago… I didn’t really understand it then and so I thought I’d give it another look (having matured a bit in the meantime). I must say it’s very weird, anarchic at times and has a lot to say politically… it’s also quite compelling. Based on Joseph Heller’s famous novel which, I have to confess, I’ve never read so you’ll be getting my opinion of the film as a stand-alone piece. But enough of my prattling; let’s have a crack at a synopsis before I give you my thoughts.

Whilst flying missions in Italy during World War II, Capt. John Yossarian decides he wants out and tries to get himself certified insane… But there’s a catch… Catch-22 to be precise. I won’t tell you exactly how it works here; but needless to say, it’s a pretty cunning way of keeping the boys flying. We also meet all of his crew and the locals they associate with when not on duty. There are also those who are out for themselves; Col. Cathcart, Maj. Danby and 1st Lt. Milo Minderbinder to name but a few. All this is interspersed with flashbacks to Yossarian’s efforts to help a young airman who is injured on a mission. I really don’t want to say too much, it’s one of those you have to see for yourself to get a grasp of. Also, the Spoiler Police will be selling off all my stuff.

This is an interesting film that has a lot to say about many things; not least war and capitalism. I won’t go into the political questions it raises, but needless to say the point is put across quite forcibly. Decent performances all round, particularly from Alan Arkin as Capt. John Yossarian; he did a first rate job here! Honourable mentions go to; Martin Balsam as Col. Cathcart, Richard Benjamin as Maj. Danby, Art Garfunkel as Capt. Nately, Jack Gilford as Dr. 'Doc' Daneeka, Buck Henry as Lt. Col. Korn, Bob Newhart as Maj. Major Major, Anthony Perkins as Chaplain Capt. A.T. Tappman, Paula Prentiss as Nurse Duckett, Martin Sheen as 1st Lt. Dobbs and Jon Voight as 1st Lt. Milo Minderbinder. Finally a special mention for Orson Welles who played a brilliant cameo as Brig. Gen. Dreedle.

Although I found this film entertaining, I did find it did drag on a bit towards the end. About 20 minutes shorter and it would have been ideal (for me). It’s all very well shot, but I’m afraid it suffers from having the feel of some ‘Frat-house’ comedy which didn’t really endear it to me too much. That aside, I did find parts of it were quite compelling although I did struggle to have much empathy with any of the characters… even the lead. For its day though I thought it was quite groundbreaking and quite an eye-opener (in more ways than one). At the end of the day an interesting adaptation… I’ll have to read the book sometime.

My score: 6.9/10.

IMDb Score: 7.1/10 (based on 10,995 votes at the time of going to press).
http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0065528/

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Tomatometer’ Score: 87/100 (based on 23 reviews counted at the time of going to press).

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Audience’ Score: 62/100 (based on 9,365 user ratings counted at the time of going to press).
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/catch22/

If you’re crazy enough… You can find me on Facebook at:
http://facebook.com/andy.steel3

FAVOURITE QUOTES:
Yossarian: Let me see if I've got this straight: in order to be grounded, I've got to be crazy and I must be crazy to keep flying. But if I ask to be grounded, that means I'm not crazy any more and I have to keep flying.

Yossarian: Is Orr crazy?
Dr. 'Doc' Daneeka: Of course he is. He has to be crazy to keep flying after all his close calls he's had.
Yossarian: Why can't you ground him?
Dr. 'Doc' Daneeka: I can, but first he has to ask me.
Yossarian: That's all he's gotta do to be grounded?
Dr. 'Doc' Daneeka: That's all.
Yossarian: Then you can ground him?
Dr. 'Doc' Daneeka: No. Then I cannot ground him.
Yossarian: Aah!
Dr. 'Doc' Daneeka: There's a CATCH?
Yossarian: A catch?
Dr. 'Doc' Daneeka: Sure. Catch-22. Anyone who wants to get out of combat isn't really crazy, so I can't ground him.
Yossarian: Ok, let me see if I've got this straight. In order to be grounded, I've got to be crazy. And I must be crazy to keep flying. But if I ask to be grounded, that means I'm not crazy anymore, and I have to keep flying.
Dr. 'Doc' Daneeka: You got it, that's Catch-22.
Yossarian: Whoo... That's some catch, that Catch-22.
Dr. 'Doc' Daneeka: It's the best there is.

Capt. Nately: Don't you have any principles?
Old man in whorehouse: Of course not!
Capt. Nately: No morality?
Old man in whorehouse: I'm a very moral man, and Italy is a very moral country. That's why we will certainly come out on top again if we succeed in being defeated.
Capt. Nately: You talk like a madman.
Old man in whorehouse: But I live like a sane one. I was a fascist when Mussolini was on top. Now that he has been deposed, I am anti-fascist. When the Germans were here, I was fanatically pro-German. Now I'm fanatically pro-American. You'll find no more loyal partisan in all of Italy than myself.
Capt. Nately: You're a shameful opportunist! What you don't understand is that it's better to die on your feet than to live on your knees.
Old man in whorehouse: You have it backwards. It's better to live on your feet than to die on your knees. I know.
Capt. Nately: How do you know?
Old man in whorehouse: Because I am 107-years-old. How old are you?
Capt. Nately: I'll be 20 in January.
Old man in whorehouse: If you live.

LINKS:
(Note: All were working at the time of going to press)
Trailer (Not the official one):

Film Review: SUNSHINE CLEANING (2008)

Director: Christine Jeffs
Running time: 88 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 15

UK release date: 26th June 2009

Watched on Sky+ Saturday 23rd October 2010.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

The title of this movie gives very little away. We know it’s about a cleaning company, but that’s about it. Well, the company specialises in crime scene clean-ups. That’s all the mess that’s left after the body has been removed and the police have finished their investigation. This engaging independent film tells how two sisters in New Mexico got into the business and what happened as a consequence.

The sisters in question are Rose and Norah Lorkowski. Rose has a son, Oscar and Norah still lives with their father, Joe. Oscar gets expelled from school and Rose has to make more money to get him into another one. She is having an affair with a cop, Mac, who suggests she goes into the lucrative crime scene clean-up business. Having looked into it she ropes Norah in and they start cleaning up after all kinds of deaths, quite badly at first. Then they meet Winston who runs a store that sells cleaning supplies. He takes pity on them and helps them with paperwork and the like. During this tale we learn a lot about the girls and their lives and some of the reasons they turned out the way they did.

This is a pretty well made film which has quite a slow pace. It does tend to wander off on a tangent now and then, but I didn’t find that too distracting. Excellent performances all round, particularly from Amy Adams as Rose, Emily Blunt as Norah and Alan Arkin as Joe. Honourable mentions should also go to; Jason Spevack as Oscar, Steve Zahn as Mac and Clifton Collins Jr. as Winston.

Over all I found the gentle pace of this film quite refreshing. It allows the audience to absorb what’s going on rather than have it thrust at you like some crazy 3D piranha. The film is very much about feelings, sorry, no blood and guts here, unless it’s already on a wall, of course. I guess it will be enjoyed more but female viewers, but still, as a male in touch with his feminine side (she made me say that), recommended.

My score: 7.1/10

LINKS:
IMDb Site: http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0862846/
Official Site: http://www.sunshinecleaning-themovie.com/#/home
Trailer: http://uk.imdb.com/rg/VIDEO_PLAY/LINK/video/screenplay/vi144572953/

Film Review: GROSSE POINT BLANK (1997)

Director: George Armitage
Running time: 107 mins (approx)
Certificate (UK): 15

UK Release Date: 8th August 1997

Watched on Sky+ Sunday 13th June 2010.

PLEASE NOTE: POSSIBLE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

Remember back a few years when John Cusack used to make good films. You know, before he sold his soul and started to make not so good films like ‘2012’. Well, as part of a season of ‘Movies you never got round to watching but always wanted to see’ on one of the movie channels, this film came up. Well, I’d seen all the others they were showing and so I thought I’d better give it a viewing. Here’s a short summary followed by my thoughts.

Martin Blank is a hit man, he works freelance with his assistant Marcella doing the office work for him. One day Marcella tells him he’s been invited to his ten year school reunion. Martin is at first reluctant to go, but agrees when a job comes up in the area and his therapist, Dr. Oatman, tells him it would be a good idea. Unfortunately Martin has upset one of his rivals, Grocer, who is now stalking him using two government agents as a screen. Whilst in town for the reunion, Martin looks up his high school sweetheart, Debi Newberry, who works at the local radio station. After a bit of an awkward start the Debi agrees to go with him despite the fact the he didn’t turn up on their prom night ten years earlier. Throw in another assassin with a contract on Martin and we’ve got us a movie!

First of all, a really great soundtrack, The Clash, Motorhead, Queen, lots of great songs littered throughout. Pretty well made, but showing its age now just form the fact the mobile phones (or cell phones) have got so much smaller nowadays. Decent performances from all of the leading cast; John Cusack as Martin Q. Blank, Minnie Driver as Debi Newberry, Alan Arkin as Dr. Oatman, Dan Aykroyd as Grocer and Joan Cusack as Marcella.

This is a bit of an awkward one to assess; it starts out as a comedy, and then becomes a love story and then back to an action comedy for the grand finale. For me it works best as a comedy, I found the somewhat schmaltzy love story a bit of a distraction. I also kind of wasn’t all that convinced that Debi would have trusted Martin after what he did on prom night. But that may just be me. Over all, as I just said, I think it works better as a comedy than a love story, and it’s worth seeing for the satire alone. Recommended.

My score: 6.8/10

LINKS:
IMDb Site: http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0119229/