The Inbetweeners 2

The Boys Are Back

Directors: Damon Beesley, Iain Morris

Release Date: 2014

Rating: 15

Running Time: 95 mins

Genre: Comedy

Actors: Simon Bird, James Buckley, Blake Harrison, Joe Thomas

"You know why they call it down under? Cause that's where your face spends most of the time"

No idea of how to be cool, talk to girls or what they want to do in life, sounds like something any teenage boy can relate to, just add constant embarrassment, rejection and downright clueless behaviour to that and you've got the inbetweeners. More outrageous than ever, the boys are back and this time heading on "A mental gap year to Australia" and it's looking like this time it might actually go well for them...of course it won't, these boys have no idea what they're doing and landing them on the other side of the world,  the writers have made for a bigger catastrophe than ever before.

Having left sixth form and been on a lads holiday to Malia where each of the boys managed to strengthen their friendship, find love and maybe even become men, you'd think the writers would leave the poor guys alone and let them get on with their lives. But of course, them being the inbetweeners, this could never happen. Having almost finished their first year at uni, Will, Simon and Neil still haven't really grasped how to fit in with other people and maybe they would've in fact been better off staying together. So when Jay messages them explaining how he's got over his relationship with his ex and is settling into a life as a DJ in Australia with pick of the women when he wants, the other three want to get in on this luxury life and head down under, only to find Jay may not have been completely honest.

As you can probably guess, it follows a typical inbetweeners narrative, with Will thinking he knows best when actually has no idea, Simon constantly having girl problems, Jay covering up any truth to his life what so ever, and Neil. Though the film was entertaining and had it's moments, I just feel that it hasn't been able to match the TV series or even the last film and I think it may be because I felt like I wasn't seeing anything new, but rather just the previous antics but in Australia. The biggest problem was that it all just felt a bit rushed, and with a film there's the luxury of not having to cram it all into 20 minutes like the series. Perhaps if it slowed down a bit and it wasn't filled with just travelling then perhaps the story could've developed and delivered slightly better, but all the same it managed to be enjoyable.

I'd like to think this isn't the end for the inbetweeners, the cast has got almost ten years older than their characters now the writers could actually make the story jump ahead a few years rather than only a few months each time. I guess the possibilities are endless, but I hope the standard of comedy doesn't continue to dip and they can find the sort of humour energy that was there when they first started.

All in all, it was good, but just lacked that flare.

6/10

The Expendables 2

The Expendable Dozen

Director: Simon West
Release Date: 2012
Rating: 15
Running Time: 100 mins
Genre: Action/ 80's Revival
Actors: Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Bruce Willis, Arnold Schwartsnegger 

"You've been back enough, I'll be back".

I'm going to be honest, when I saw there was a new Expendables movie coming out I thought 'Here we go again', another stupid blockbuster that will feature little to no narrative or character development, cost millions to make and its primary aim would be to blow up and much stuff and kill off as many extras as it possibly can and have plenty more to franchise this film to death just so some of the action heros from the 80's could revive their career in a film for the fans. So when I finally had the guts to sit down to watch, I was not surprised at what I came to see. However, what I was surprised at was how much I actually ended up liking it.

I think the truth is at the end of the day, we don't want to sit down every time and watch 'Citizen Kane', 'Vertigo' or 'The Godfather Trilogy' because we just don't have the energy to absorb our minds in such fascinating and genius films that you've got to watch five times before you can actually begin to comprehend. Though perhaps that's hypercritical of me to say given that I do live for those sorts of films. I guess what I mean is, sometimes we all just need to switch our brains off, ignore the many plot holes and just enjoy watching everything that's shown on screen get blown up for 90 minutes.

I can't guarantee that you're going to be watching you're new all time favourite film, or even that you'll remember half of it in six months, but what I can guarantee is that you'll get to see Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger ripping the doors of a smart car and driving round shooting nameless terrorists whilst Chuck Norris walks around just not giving a shit. Stallone also, for a short period revives his role as the legenary Rocky Barboa as he puts aside the Rambo by tossing his gun away and taking on the so aptly named French villain Villain, in a brawl to the death.

As you can probably imagine it tried to take itself seriously, but at the end of the day just had to throw in all the clichés and cheesy one liners they could think of e.g. "I'll be back", "You're ass is terminated" and what's an 80's revival without "Yipe-kaya". If you ask me though, this managed to pull off another rare successful sequel, in terms of star power and finally getting to see Bruce and Arnie get involved in some of the action rather than just compete for who's got the biggest ego. I don't see why this franchise can't keep going as they can just keep replacing the story with new places and villans until maybe one day the indestructible action hero's decide to call it a day.

What I'm basically saying is, if you're expecting Francis Ford Coppola or Alfred Hitchcock, you're going to be disappointed, so just don't expect much but fighting and and dick measuring and you'll pretty much love it.

7/10

Taxi Driver

The Perfect Film

Director: Martin Scorsese
Release Date: 1976
Rating: 18
Running Time: 120 mins
Genre: Action/Drama
Actors: Robert DeNiro, Jodie Foster, Harvey Keitel, Cybil Sheperd

"I go all over. Don't make no difference to me."

If you know Robert DeNiro from Meet The Parents then you'll know a completely different side to the actor than the 'you talkin to me?' vigilante DeNiro that Scorsese introduced us to in 1976. Almost four decades ago and you would probably now barely recognise the actor, but even then it's fair to say DeNiro was on the top of his game. As a method actor, the Hollywood legend would give everything to a role, and after spending months driving taxis preparing for a role, Bobby left us with a truly memorable and fantastic performance as Travis Bickle - Taxi Driver.

When it comes to film directing Martin Scorsese just completley knows what he's doing, and whenever the opening titles emerge with "Directed by Martin Scorsese", you know that you're going to be in safe hands. There's so much to appreciate about Taxi Driver, from the way that writer Paul Schrader is able to manipulate a classic western plot line, into a more contemporary story fit to suit the life of a disturbed taxi driver during the darker years in New York City. The way that once again Bernard Herman can combine romance with a sinister and dark undertone to provide the perfect score for a films theme tune. But mostly the way that even though the pace of it is so slow but at the same time can allow for so much to happen during it.

It's a simple story but the way that it's centred around such a unique and complex character, we find ourselves entranced by what it has to offer. When isolated and disturbed drifter,Travis Bickle gets sent home from fighting in Vietnam, he finds himself returning to a very different home to the one that he left behind. Suffering insomnia and other traumas from the war, Travis becomes a full time taxi driver ("any place any time") and does his best to settle back into a life in civilisation, but civilisation is not what Travis thinks has greeted him, so instead wants to try and clean the streets of the scum that has taken them over.  "Hopefully one day a real rain will come and wash the scum from the streets."

However, it's fair to say that all the acting in this film is done incredibly well, even from Martin Scorsese himself who has the small role of a passenger who talks to Travis one day late at night after climbing in the back of his taxi. But what's so fascinating about the scene is that given Travis' persona and attitude to New York City in the 70's, once the passenger gets out we're left wondering if he was real or just Travis loosing his mind. And that's partly what's so ingenious about this film as their are so many readings that can be taken from it. Jodie Foster also manages to shine through in this film (at the age of 14) as a young girl who one day gets into Travis' taxi and turns out to be working as a prostitute after running away from home. It's a tough character for any actor to play, and at such a young age, she performs superbly.

If you haven't seen Taxi Driver you're still bound to know the famous "Are you talking to me" scene and if not, well I don't know where you've been. It's a film that's so dark yet at the same time still manages to be so poetic, and though our protagonist, Travis, seems so disturbed and someone who know one can understand, we still can't help but like him. There's something about the slow pace of this film that makes it so fascinating, and it's fair to say that this, much like many Scorsese films, focusses heavily on the character development as we see Travis reach his boiling point. There are parts where people will wonder where this film is going and what even is actually happening, but that's why it's so effective and works. It stands alone as a very unique representation of life in 1970's New York during the depression, and probably is one that many people can understand because of this.

Fantastically acted, and superbly written and directed. A true film that can be watched and watched and will always be able to give more each time.

10/10

Double Indemnity

The Perfect Noir

Director: Billy Wilder

Release Date: 1944

Rating: PG

Running Time: 115 minutes

Genre: Film-Noir

Actors: Fred MacMurray, Edward G. Robinson, Barbara Stanwyck

"Yes I killed him. I killed him for money, and a woman. And I didn't get the money, or the woman. Pretty, isn't it?"

There's no denying that the 1940's pulled some incredible memorable crime thrillers out the bag and it became a revolutionary decade for cinema; it can be said that this was very much the era of Film-Noir. Originally named by French Cinema to mean "Black Film", Film-Noir took on the stylistic traits of low key black and white to create dark and ominous crime thrillers taking place in the rough ends of some of the U.S's big cities: New York, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Film-Noir mainly formed Hollywood crime dramas following the lives of outsiders to the developing industrial U.S society and formed an anti-hero, usually morally corrupt or with a disturbed past due to war or politics. In this way it was very much a film that would leave audiences with a bitter taste in the mouth and show viewers the outcome of what real life could be like, Film-Noir showed a much more real life that other genres that were developing around the same time. So there must be something that attracted so many audiences to Film-Noir, featuring shoot outs, heists and almost every time; murder. They were an exciting breathe of fresh air that broke boundaries on what could be shown so early on in cinema, and churned some films that are still so highly regarded today.

So what is it about "Double Indemnity" that still makes it so highly regarded 70 years on, and having it still stand out as one of the greatest Film-Noirs to date. The Story of dying man, Walter Neff (Fred MacMurray) an insurance salesman who gives his final confession; being an accomplice to killing a beautiful yet evil woman's husband after falling in love with her. Their motive, to gain the insurance money left in his name and start a fresh life together. It seemed like a simple idea, but with insurance analyst and Neff's friend Keyes close to figuring out the truth, the couple have to spin a web of lies in order to avoid being found out. The name of the film "Double Indemnity" exists as a clause in a life-insurance policy where the payment is doubled if the cause of death is accidental; therefore establishing the perfect motive for murder.

It's a film that ticks all the boxes for a great noir story and we find ourselves struggling to choose which side to follow: the immoral protagonist or the law. And though we know the outcome, we've no idea how or why events have led to that particular point.

A fantastic and timeless film from the legendary Billy Wilder.

Rating: 9/10

Raging Bull

The Man Outside The Ring

Director: Martin Scorsese

Release Date: 1980

Rating: 18

Running Time: 129 mins

Genre: Biography/Drama/Sport
Starring: Robert DeNiro, Joe Pesci, Cathy Moriarty

"If you win, you win. If you loose, you still win."

When people  think of Martin Scorsese they usually tend to associate him with the crime and gangster genre of cinema, ('Goodfellas', 'Casino', 'The Departed', 'Mean Streets') and because of that they look over the other brilliant films he's made, it makes you wonder what made him choose a sports film at all.  I find Scorsese's films to go deeper than just a singular genre and more often than none, they turn out to be more along the lines of biographical dramas oppose to just full out gangster mob movies. Scorsese stands out to me as a director who's able to capture the harsh realities of life and therefore doesn't necessarily always deliver the happy endings that most audiences usually hope to see. In that sense I see Scorsese as quite a bold risk taker in terms of delivering different and gritty stories about troubled and exceptional people.

Until I saw Raging Bull, I had absolutely no interest in boxing what so ever, if anything I found the concept barbaric and hard to grasp, no need to say  that I was slightly apprehensive when I came to watching Raging Bull. Nevertheless I found it hard to turn down a film directed by Martin Scorsese and starring Robert DeNiro. I had never heard of Jake LaMotta before and I didn't realise when I came to watching it that 'Raging Bull' was infact a biographical film about the boxers life, but I stuck with it all the same having heard such great things about it prior, and I have to say that my opinion of boxing was changed. Whist watching the film, Scorsese still managed to captivate me in much the same way as 'Mean Streets' and 'Taxi Driver' were able to (the two films that Scorsese directed and collaborated with DeNiro prior to 'Raging Bull'). 

Filmed in high contrast black and white, the film starts out with Jake LaMotta being cheated out of winning a fight against Jimmy Reeves in 1941 causing major controversy at that time for fans of boxing. However, despite not really believing in himself both in the ring and outside it with his suffering marriage, LaMotta is spurred on by his brother and manager Joey LaMotta (Joe Peci: 'Goodfellas', 'Casino') and continues to fight. Along the way Jake also meets 15 year old Vickie who he very quickly falls in love with, and despite already being married the two form a very strong relationship. The film follows the highs and lows of LaMotta's life; his career inside the ring and his relationships outside of the ring as well with Vickie and his brother Joey. 'Raging Bull' is able to deliver a gritty and hard hitting side to LaMotta that fans may never have seen before. Scorsese and DeNiro are able to potray an extraordinary (and slightly dramatised) adaptation of the boxers life both during and after the fighting that still intrigues audiences today.

For me, 'Raging Bull' is one of Martin Scorsese and Robert DeNiro's best collaborations and moreover, perhaps one of the best films of both of their careers. Whether you're a fan of boxing or not, it's still definitely one to check out as it's a true masterpiece.

Overall: 8/10