REVIEW: The Book Thief (2014)

The Book Thief

Director: Brian Percival

Writers: Michael Petroni (Screenplay), Marcus Zusak (Novel)

Lead Cast: Sophie Nélisse, Geoffrey Rush, Emily Watson, Nico Liersch, Ben Schnetzur

Running Time: 131 Minutes

BBFC Rating: 12A

With each passing awards season bringing us new treasures from some of the finest writers, directors and performers working today, it's easy to forget that they're always accompanied by a B-List of films, trying so hard to grab some gold that they feel more like glorified show reels than actual narrative pieces. But with The Railway Man, Out Of The Furnace and The Monuments Men having already quietly appeared and just as quietly disappeared from our cinema screens with little more than a collective shrug, the time has finally come for The Book Thief to take its walk of shame. With slumped shoulders and noticeably nomination-light hands (it's only up for Best Original Score at the Academy Awards, and even that's probably thanks to voters ticking any submission that has John Williams' name next to it), it feels as if the massively popular book probably deserves a more artistically driven adaptation than this.

The Book Thief centres on Leisel Meminger, a young German girl who is handed over to her new foster parents (played by Geoffrey Rush and Emily Watson) when her communist mother is forced to flee Nazi Germany. Just as she settles into her new life of being taught how to read by her wacky foster father and how to shut up by her new angry foster mother, a young Jewish man turns up on their doorstep redeeming an old family favour for a place to hide. From here, 'trailer-quote' filled friendships are formed and yes, books are thieved.

Allow me to hit the brakes a little on all my cynicism for a moment though, because underneath all its empty caricatures and schmaltzy dialogue, there are some faint signs of promise. Despite their limited and shallow roles, Emily Watson and Geoffrey Rush are both wonderful. While it should come as no surprise, considering that they seem ever incapable of delivering a bad performance, they both bring a certain charm and class that the film would suffer far more without. Similarly, Sophie Nélisse manages the hugely impressive challenge of carrying the film with a natural sincerity and innocence that is rarely found in child actors. This is still one of her very first projects, and I genuinely hope that the quality of the rest of the film doesn't impact on her career, because based off of this work she really deserves to move onto bigger and better things.

Even aside from the performances, the film shows some very occasional signs of promise of its own. An early scene in which a whole class full of children proudly sing the pro-Nazi songs they've been taught to believe in feels truly haunting. It's a tone which could have improved the film tenfold, if only it had been sustained. But moments as brief as that and three good performances aren't enough to save the film from its far longer list of flaws and questionable Hollywood compromises, chief among them is an unjustifiably bloated running time of 131 minutes. It's understandable that a book as popular as this is difficult to cut down without the risk of irritating its already huge existing fan base, there were whole chunks of the film that felt completely unnecessary. Even without having read the original source, it was easy to see which parts might have developed further and been resolved more satisfyingly in its original long form.

A similar issue is how it tackles the language barrier of making a film about Nazi Germany, starring only German characters, and marketing it at a mainstream audience. For the first few minutes, all of the characters speak in German with subtitles appearing along the bottom. But once the prologue is out of the way and we are presumed to have understood they're not just Americans with funny accents, everyone starts speaking English with variably dodgy German accents laid over the top. This might not have been so much of a problem if they didn't still insist on having basic words such as 'Hello' and 'Thank You' spoken in German, often mid-sentence. It's a weak compromise of a move that feels confusing at best and patronising at worst, as you increasingly begin to wish that the film-makers had just gone for one of the two options and stuck to it properly.

The biggest shame about The Book Thief though is that, despite all these issues, it's not at all a 'bad' film. It constantly feels like it's that little bit off the mark, and if they just made a couple of slightly braver decisions or maybe given the script one last rewrite, it could have really achieved something impressive. But as it is now, it's a bland, middle of the road and incredibly forgettable slice of cinema. When we look back in 30 years on the golden crop of films we've been gifted with this season – 12 Years A Slave, Gravity, Her, Inside Llewyn Davis, The Wolf Of Wall Street – I can guarantee you now this won't even be considered as an afterthought. The Book Thief it may be, but The Awards Thief it most certainly isn't.

The Final Verdict:

The Book Thief is probably the most pleasant film set in Nazi Germany you'll ever see, and that's not really a good thing. If you're interested in the story, the book will leave you with far more than this. If you're just after something for a trip to the cinema, there are still far better films than this hanging about from earlier in the year. Even if you've seen them already, see them again. There's nothing to be gained here.

(But if you do still see it, look out for some painfully obvious and shameful product placement in its final emotional climax. It is genuinely awful.)

REVIEW: The World's End

The World's End

Director: Edgar Wright

Written By: Edgar Wright & Simon Pegg

Lead Cast: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Paddy Considine, Eddie Marsan, Martin Freeman

Running Time: 109 Minutes

BBFC Rating: 15

With six years having passed since Hot Fuzz, the dream team of Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg & Nick Frost are back with the third and final part of their much loved Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy, The World's End. The plot follows Pegg's Gary King, as he reunites his childhood friends (played by Nick Frost, Paddy Considine, Martin Freeman and Eddie Marsan) to try and complete the pub crawl they failed 20 years ago. And if you had to do a double take at that lead cast, then I'm not surprised. These are five of the finest working comic actors in Britain today, and even if the film was just them drinking and laughing together it'd still probably end out better than 90% of the films released this year. But, of course, there's more to this fateful pub crawl then first meets the eye as they begin to realise something is slightly off back in their hometown of Newton-Haven.

One of the most interesting choices made with The World's End is to switch up the lead chemistry used previously in the trilogy. Unlike both Shaun Of The Dead and Hot Fuzz, Pegg plays the most eccentric character of the cast with Frost playing the straight man instead. In fact, all four of the other leads play the straight men as they try to put up with the Pegg's selfish manchild of a character. He's the friend everyone has somewhere in their circle, and it's that link you make so easily that makes him all the worse. And yet, thanks to both a truly wonderful script and one of Pegg's best performances to date he remains a character you not only understand but also sympathise with. This is symbolic of an emotional resonance that is far greater here than in either of the two previous Cornetto films.

While the jokes continue to flow thick and fast as they always have, there are several moments throughout that are surprisingly moving. While many are bound to hit far deeper for those of the same age as the core characters, there are still themes here that anyone can feel a connection with. Eddie Marsan in particular, delivers a moment about 30 minutes in that's almost certain to break your heart. This more touching, human side to the film, while certainly not expected, is a more than welcome addition that only displays further why the pairing of Wright & Pegg have written some of the most loved British films of the past decade.

But just because this has a more human edge to it than their previous two collaborations, that doesn't mean this feels any less of a Cornetto film. Running jokes are continued, much to the delight of pretty much everyone in the screening I was at, while almost every familiar face from the past two films pops up as a cameo in some way or another. Oh, and of course as it's an Edgar Wright film, the soundtrack ranks up as one of the best around. It's these familiar touches that go to remind us that, even though all three of them have moved onto far bigger projects since Shaun of the Dead first released, they still remember what makes these films magical just as well as we do.

Overall, it feels as accomplished a film as it could possibly be, considering the huge expectations there have been building up towards it. There were a lot of things that I felt very unsure about the first time round, but when I gave it a second go just a few hours later I was far happier with the end result. Because what first felt like a disappointment, I came to realise, was actually just subverting my expectations in a very good way. The World's End isn't as immediately loveable as it's spiritual predecessor’s, and it's not necessarily as gut-bustingly funny, but it is a far more human and touching side to the Three Cornettos Trilogy that I believe will more than hold it's own in the many years of special screenings and ITV2 repeats to come.

The Final Verdict:

I doubt that anyone who has any idea what this film is needs convincing to go and see it, but if you're feeling a little disappointed after your first watch then give it another shot. You may just find the film you were hoping for in the end, even if it is delivered in a slightly different package to the one you were expecting.

REVIEW: Monsters University

Monsters University

Director: Dan Scanlon

Written By: Daniel Gerson, Robert L. Baird & Dan Scanlon

Cast: Billy Crystal, John Goodman, Steve Buscemi, Helen Mirren, Aubrey Plaza, Nathan Fillion

Running Time: 104 Minutes

BBFC Rating: U

When Pixar first announced that they were to make a prequel to Monsters, Inc., I was a lot less joyous than I might have hoped. Monsters, Inc. was an iconic film of my childhood (I was 5 when it first came out), and remains my favourite film to this very day. Surely I should be giddy with excitement at the idea of another film spent in one of Pixar's most richly crafted universes? But my problems with it were never that it might be a bad film, but more that it just felt completely unnecessary. Was I right to hold these beliefs? Well, yes and no. While Monsters University never even comes close to holding the same magic that it's predecessor, or any of Pixar's best films do for that matter, I feel a lot more comfortable with it existing now than I did in the run-up to its release.

As far as prequels go, Monsters University has a better and more logical setup than most. We follow Mike in his younger years as he starts at the titular mentioned Monsters University, with the dreams of one day becoming a top scarer. It's here where he first encounters Sulley and immediately dislikes him, giving the film the central story of just how these two enemies become the best friends we know they're destined to be. Pixar made an interesting choice in resting most of the film on Mike's shoulders, compared to how the original was very much Sulley's film and that works out nicely. It helps give the two balance, and also fleshes out Mike as a character in his origins. It doesn't add enough to dramatically change the formula within Monsters, Inc., but there's enough well crafted character beats to compliment it on a rewatch.

My main issue with the university setting is that it feels like so much more could have been done with it. There are a lot of easy, cookie cutter style plot strands and comic setups that come with it, and when Pixar have displayed so much individuality in the past I felt a little disappointed to see them employ pretty much every one of them. It's fair to say that they do at least deliver on each of them with more spark and creativity than most studios would bother, but it still leaves a slight sense that they really sold themselves short. This is the same studio that only a few years ago made a film with almost no dialogue for the entire first act, for kids. Right?

But there's still a lot to love here. John Goodman and Billy Crystal both sound every bit as joyful and passionate to be voicing Mike and Sulley as they did 11 years ago, and the fact that the two share such great chemistry without having any of their own physical presence is nothing short of astounding. Daniel Gerson, Robert L. Baird and Dan Scanlon also deserve a great deal of respect for delivering one of the sharpest scripts of the year so far. The jokes here fly faster and funnier than in most modern comedies, with there being several points throughout that reduced me to genuine tears of laughter. Both Despicable Me 2, and now this, have proven once again that it's often the animations having the last laugh on the big screen.

So, in general, how does Monsters University tally up then? It's a difficult film to fully decide on, in that I'd probably be singing it's praises a lot louder if it wasn't tied to a film so important to me. As a prequel, this should be held up as the golden standard as to what that often mediocre genre can achieve. It perfectly balances the difficult act of working as a standalone story, while fitting in enough little references and cameos to please existing fans. But as a Pixar film, it falls just a little bit shorter of the mark. It's a definite improvement over there last two releases, but still lacks that Pixar magic that makes the Toy Story films, Wall-E and it's predecessor such instant classics.

The Final Verdict:

Monsters University was always at a disadvantage because of the high standards Monsters, Inc. set, but it's given it its best shot anyway and turned out to be a far greater success than expected. Walk in with the right expecations and you'll find it to be enjoyable, hugely funny and well worth just under two hours of your time.

(Also, Pixar once again have a short film before the main feature. It's called The Blue Umbrella and is absolutely beautiful, I'm tempted to even say it's worth the price of admission on its own.)

REVIEW: Pacific Rim

Pacific Rim

Director: Guillmero Del Toro
Written By: Travis Beacham & Guillermo Del Toro

Cast: Charlie Hunnam, Rinko Kikuchi, Idris Elba, Ron Perlman, Charlie Day

Running Time: 112 Minutes

BBFC Rating: 12A

As impressive a landmark for both blockbusters and comic book movies The Dark Knight was, it could be argued that the aftermath of its success has damaged the summer season of megabudget movies. Suddenly being dark and edgy was the new in thing, and the big stupid action flicks were beginning to feel like a thing of the past. Even this year, big hitters like Iron Man 3, Star Trek Into Darkness and Man of Steel have all attempted to 'do a Batman' to varying degrees of success. Thank the heavens then, that Guillermo Del Toro has arrived with one massively fun antidote to all the doom and gloom in the shape of Pacific Rim. Cheesy dialogue, cartoonish dialogue with jaw droppingly huge setpieces throughout? I don't know about you, but this is the kind of blockbuster I've been craving for all year.

Pacific Rim opens with a short and to the point introduction of what's going on in the world. About 15 years previous to where our story begins, our planet is invaded by a huge monster (called a Kaiju) that comes out of a portal from deep within the Pacific Ocean. As the months go by and more Kaijus come out of the portal, each leading a more destructive path than the last, the world's greatest minds come together out of desperation and develop the idea of huge human-piloted robots called Jaegers to combat the threat. Fast forward 15 years, and we centre in on Jaeger pilot Raleigh Becket as the worlds forces prepare for one final assault on the portal in the hope of eliminating the Kaiju threat once and for all. Of course, there's a lot more than that going on around the characters but I'll try to keep this review as spoiler free as possible.

Guillmero Del Toro has always been very upfront about this being his own personal passion project more than anything, and it really shows throughout. You can feel that this is a film made by someone who truly loves the source material (various monster movies and Saturday morning cartoons he grew up on), and is dying to share that love with the new generation of cinema-goers. These aren't the standard glossy robots you've seen in movies previously over the years, which move more like ballet dancers than they do giant metal monsters. Every little detail of the Jaegers has been thought and argued over to a truly meticulous level, their movements slow and heavy as a creation of that size should be. The same can be said of the Kaiju, who vary in design with each feeling like a completely individual creation compared to any of the others. The designs of each is so spectacular, that I was desperate to seek out any books detailing the art and making of this film as soon as I'd left the cinema.

But even designs as fantastic as these wouldn't save the film if the fights between the Jeagers and Kaiju weren't up to scratch, but fear not, because Del Toro has without doubt delivered the finest setpieces of the summer. When these two different types of titan start to duke it out in the middle of the ocean, there are few things more satisfying to watch. You can feel and hear every blow landed, and thanks to the various tricks saved up each Jaeger and Kaiju's sleeve, no battle plays out the same as the last. But the without a doubt highlight of the film, and with that the summer, is the battle that takes place within Hong Kong. The landscape of a densely populated city is used in imaginative and incredibly eye-pleasing ways, such as a massive container ship being wielded by a Jeager as if it were a baseball bat. It might still be a little bit destruction happy for some peoples tastes, but it at least beat having two practically invincible guys punching each other through buildings for 40 minutes. Yes, I'm talking about you, Man Of Steel!

There's certainly going to be a divide in audience reaction to this one, and one of the main causes of that will be how the characters are treated. While most have their own backstories and personal problems to overcome, none of it is very imaginative or particularly indepth. I personally never found this to be a problem, as I went in believing the robots and monsters to be the stars of the show. In fact, the cheesy dialogue actually made it all the more enjoyable for me as it only contributed towards my dream of this being the kind of cartoon I would have watched as a kid, only on $200m budget. But if you're going into this hoping for a strong human-led story, or even a charismatic leading man (Charlie Hunnam never quite manages to tick that box), then you're probably going to walk out feeling pretty disappointed.

For me personally, my biggest issue was that by skipping forward 15 years after the first Kaiju attack there aren't many Jaegers left by the time we join the narrative. Having heard about some of the other designs that never made it into the film, I do feel a little disappointed that we didn't get a better glimpse of some of the more outlandish Jeager designs. But then, Del Toro has designed this in the hopes of expanding on the universe later on so maybe they will get the spotlight they deserve in a prequel someday. But these are only minor gripes against a film that has managed to capture my spectacle-loving heart like no other film has since The Avengers last year. It's a masterful love letter to all that is wonderful about big cinema, and even if it does seem to be unfortunately doomed for financial failure, its cult status seems to be guaranteed already.

The Final Verdict:

With films as fun as this being few and far between, I couldn't recommend enough that you catch this at the cinema while you still can. Honestly, this film demands to be seen on the biggest screen possible!