Small Soldiers (1998)

Who could be a better cartoonishly greedy and callous CEO than Denis Leary? But do we really need another movie where toys comes to life? Well, at least this flick has the common courtesy to use technology rather than magic.

The story is a problem though. Both the main story and the sub-plot are so exceptionally known, that you need something with Meg Ryan in it to be more predictable. The same goes for the characters. But for those of you that thought Kirsten Dunst had her debut as a cute girl next door in Spiderman... Think again. It appears to be her best asset. Thankfully both the little brats are decent actors, helping the flow immensely.

What Small Soldiers does best is the animated characters development. As they are able to learn, they start on a very low level, and gradually understand more about the world they have been dropped into. Naturally, the commandos learn much narrower. A point lost on few as morals in American films rarely amount to subtlety.

Another strong point is the creativity as to how the toys develop and create weapons. This is a bit underplayed, though. A stronger emphasis could have improved this.

So it's quite entertaining, and the leads have a good chemistry. But since the story is extremely straightforward and uninteresting, parts of it just doesn't catch your interest. That it exceeds the maximal limit for kids' flicks of 90 minutes does noting to hel it. Jerry Goldsmith's score is fantastic though.

6/10

State of Play (2009)

Nothing like a double murder and some Irish folk music to start off a conspiracy theory.

Crowe is his usual excellent self as a scruffy journalist with below average work ethics, and far below average morals. Mumbling when confident and bored. Utterly disdained by new practices as bloggers, he s a dying breed.

More surprisingly, Affleck is good. But perhaps the best casting here is the ensemble. Jeff Daniels, Helen Mirren, Robin Wright and Harry Lennix all provide excellent support, and there is very little attempt to fill the void with young pretty people with lesser talent. Fantastic. No one tells people to fuck off like Helen Mirren.

The breadcrumbs are decent and nicely executed, helped by the solid acting of Crowe. Director MacDonald takes time for quiet scenes, and generally shows that he wants to make a good story, not just a film instigated by PR. The excitement is good enough to keep you guessing and on the edge of your seat most of the time.

A good word for the music of Alex Heffes. Though the theme is a bit overused throughout, it is used with a variation of instrument and in production. Besides the theme is brilliant.

And it's good to see some good, old-fashioned journalism again in a time where every "reporter" seems to be trying to find out who had sex with Olly Murs last week. The friend+reporter-thread seems a bit unnecessary, but other than that, the story is pretty good.

So though it may not be as smart as the conspiracy-films of old, it is a modern and fresh instalment. And with Crowe on top-form, it really is worth a watch, just to know that Hollywood still has other things than formulaic and daft, though it falls very stupidly in the "one more twist" ending. And I shall dock a point for this, as it is most overdone and annoying.

7/10

The Odessa File (1974)

Based on a novel by Frederick Forsyth, this spy-thriller actually introduces its protagonist with a polka. Jon Voight looks fittingly scared and distraught. Like a man who has not slept for weeks. It's only about to get worse for him, though.

These opening scenes are strangely long, and it's unknown what effect they are trying to achieve or show. Not even the opening credit is long enough for it, nor the main theme. 

As this film deals with the aftermath of the war, and in particular parts of the holocaust, it is a bleak story. Slow, unnerving at times, particularly the first third. The Germans are not interested in more stories about Jews as it reminds them of the war, thus making clear the frustrations of our protagonist as no one will support his work. This angle disappears after a while, but gradually enough for it not to feel disjointed.

Where the film goes very right, is in the creation of increasing danger. In the beginning, the hidden agendas consider our protagonist as little more than a nuisance, and his biggest problem is that he is stonewalled. A further poke at the right people, and he is given a beating. A little further and they make an attempt to kill him. After this, it is obvious he has been noticed, and the danger spreads to those around him. Very nice build-up.

I do prefer the older spy-flicks to the modern. Particularly for the fact that they don't have a timer for when they have to have someone shoot or blow something up. Thus meaning one does not lose the natural flow of the story. And more importantly: It leaves room for clever dialogue and intellectual traps. Try to find that in Jason Bourne!

Why they would hire a known quantity as Andrew Lloyd Webber to compose the music seems strange, as music is very rarely used (and God-awful). I like the effect though. Silence leaves so much more room for little sounds and observations. Kudos to director Roland Neame. It leaves the sneaking parts much, much more tense and has the viewer at the edge of his sear.  
On a more sour note, it feels unnecessary that all actors speak with a German accent. OK, so the story is German, but if you want to make a German story in German, then hire German actors. Hearing Americans trying to have a German accent is most annoying. That they shout "prost" when they drink schnaps, only strengthens the hypocrisy.

All in all, this is a good spymovie with a decent plot, and as it is an old one, it even has a cool twist, that isn't simply stupid.

7/10

Shaft (2000)

This was the part they had been waiting for Samuel L. Jackson to get old enough to play. It is impossible to imagine anyone else replacing Richard Roundtree (naturally given a cameo) as John Shaft. So does it deliver?

It's all business as usual from the beginning as the voice of Isaac Hayes dwarfs some very funky guitars and the vignette has many boobs and cool effects like handcuffs and guns. From there, it's straight to the murder scene and only two minutes later, Jackson is having a very interesting tête-à-tête with a young Christian Bale, and naturally solving all mystery in seconds. Bale really is discusting as a racist yuppie, though. There is nothing you want more than to see Shaft get him. Though at five minutes in, it makes everything a bit simple and cut & dry.

Jeffrey Wright is most entertaining, but other than that the cast here is negligible, both the actors and the parts. It's painfully clear that they're all décor for the force that is John Shaft in this flick. It's always nice to see Pat Hingle though, even if he only has a couple of lines.

As for humour, Jacksons one-liners are very cool and very, very black (It's my duty, to please that booty).

A bigger problem is that there is no real plot here. We know the killer, we know the hero, and, quite frankly, we know the ending. There's not even a twist to be found. There are some clever moves, and ideas though, and Toni Collette does provide a MacGuffin of sorts. But I've seen Indiana Jones dig for 3000 year old artifacts, that have more of a backstory than her.

The action is decent, but not very well divided. Meaning you are bored at times, and exhausted at others. And the cursing is most solid. Enough for them to must have hired consultants on the area.

So in summation, Jackson as John Shaft is one of the coolest characters of the decade. Unfortunately, they couldn't be bothered to get him much of a script, and all other characters have the depths of a puddle in Sahara

5/10

All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)

For a 39-year old it is hard to judge a film by 100 year old standards. But let's give it a go nonetheless.

As is fitting for a film displaying the horrors of war, it starts of with a big parade and a fine march as the new soldiers are treated as heroes, leaving the town. The war is generally spoken of in big words and enlisting as the ultimate honour.

As is expected a bit of the acting is very theatrical and over-the-top by modern standards, but it serves to illustrate the development of films, and it's still better than watching actors from High School Musical or all the Vampire-crap made these days. The standout actor is Louis Wolheim, who strikes a note as an officer that only Bill Murray could play with more wry coolness. I doubt he would do callous as well, though. The film is not without decent extras either. John Wray as the local postman turned sergeant over the town's boys is particularly delectable.

Overall it's easy to see how many war movies have been inspired by this earlier instalment. The war seen as a picture of national pride, the young boys wanting to play heroes, the harsh reality of training, the even harsher reality of meeting the more experienced soldiers and the utter hell that is the actual fighting ("Full Metal Jacket" anyone?).

This film is made before special effects were a big thing, so they have to rely on the feeling of danger with other things than big cans of gasoline. Like in "Das Boot" they create a claustrophobic environment that it is impossible to leave (a couple panic and try. Immediate death awaits). And you can see the soldiers slowly (some actually extremely quickly, making the scenes less effective) lose their calm and later their minds as they sit weeks without food or decent sleep. That being said, the war scenes in the field are quite exquisite for their age, and gruelling at times.

And our protagonist soon learns: as much as you hate the war, it is better than being in your old life with your new knowledge. A cliché now, but in 1930 it was controversial and would be considered a modern piece of psychology and anti-establishment at its most disloyal. It does however, to a great extent, and with great skill, portray the friendship and comradery that arises between men in war.
For its time, this film is surprisingly insightful and critical of war, not only WW1, but in general. And as such, much of the criticism is based on the hierarchy in society as a whole.

Where the film doesn't quite hold up to modern standards is the thrills and excitement. Though in fairness, it does state in the pretext that that is not a value for a film such as this.

The ending though is so simple, serene and beautiful. Something for newer filmmakers to remember.

8/10

The Man from U.N.C.L.E (2015)

Let me start this review by stating that I never saw a single episode of the TV-show, so I guess readers will either feel I am not worthy of having an opinion, or see me as a breath of fresh air. For those of you who are now thinking "what TV-show?", I recommend "Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy" instead.

An original car-chase is  hard to come by, but using a pair of Trabants is actually a very cool set-piece to introduce your action-flick. Though you don't need to be an expert in these cars to realize that the artistic freedom is substantial. Apart from this the action is quite alright. Both quantity and quality are decent, without excelling.

Where this movie falls flat, is in the characters/casting. Henry Cavill is supposed to be a blend of Len Deighton's Harry Palmer and Ian Fleming's James Bond. With Palmer's background and ethics, Bond's suave demeanour and great dressing, and both agents arrogance and calm. The big problem is that his character is not British. He is an American trying very hard to be an Englishman. And with all the traits of the two most known British spies supposed to be in his arsenal, he falls shy on most. Vikander isn't much better. She is nowhere near credible as an East-German mechanic, and only slightly better as a British spy. And was there ever an actor that looked less like a Russian than Armie Hammer? The cast had to be blind (or blindly in love) to feel that he would make a great Russian agent. His acting is better than Cavill and Vikander, though. He's just very badly cast.

And so, ironically, the only eastern-European in a leading part is the best by a long shot. Elizabeth Debicki is delectable as she takes the style of Holly Golightly to a new level whilst adding great spices of smartness and callousness. One of the finest female villains in a long, long while.

So though you are rarely bored, you are never anywhere near fulfilled either. It seems Guy Ritchie still knows how to make cool scenes, but it would appear as if he has lost the ability to make a cool movie.

5/10

Maverick (1994)

Who loves dust more than Richard Donner? Seriously: whatever time and geography brings, there must be some dust. So why not do a western! Much more dust!

Let's start with the music for a change: There was hardly ever a better composer of comedic music than Randy Newman, and he delivers here as well. A perfect rendition of quirky, upbeat and humorous. Not unlike Basil Poledouris' score for "Quigley down under" 4 years earlier.

Gibson was of course born to play a character that has a constant need to talk and joke. However, it doesn't play to his strengths that in this movie, most of the cast are trying to screw him, and not the other way around. There are other actors who play befuddled, frustrated and mockishly angry better than him. When push comes to shove, Gibson isn't a comedian.

Nor is Jodie Foster, and though her chemistry with Gibson is far from bad, we don't get the constant grin that a better pair would have provided. The reason I bring up that none of the actors on display here are comedians is that this is a comedy. It doesn't take itself seriously enough at anything else, be it action, suspense or drama. It's all in a jovial, good-humoured way. Which is fine, but if you're making a comedy we really should be laughing more.

Not surprisingly, the best acting comes from Alfred Molina. As he is portraying a rather vicious and cruel cowboy, it is quite spectacular to not look stupid and out of place, but Molina always was underestimated. Gibson has some of his better scenes in this flick playing off Molina.

And anyone who is good at making comedies knows that 80-90 minutes is perfect. "Maverick" clocks in at 127. There is nowhere near enough script for that. Not to mention jokes.

So this is a light-hearted and charming as all films Gibson played in during this era, but it doesn't really bring anything else to the table. And as good as Gibson was at that in the 90's, it isn't quite enough.

5/10