Ben-Hur

The biblical epic is a genre that belongs to a specific time and place in history and that place is Hollywood of the 1950s and 60s, a time when movies could go for over three hours and people would lap it up because you had nothing better to do. Movies like The Ten Commandments, Spartacus and the original Ben-Hur are all classics that really do stand the test of time. Which is why it feels unnecessary to go back and "have another try at the story". That would only be justified if you did it better. That's not the case here.

Judah Ben-Hur (Jack Huston) is a Jewish prince living a comfortable life in Jerusalem with his family. He has an adopted brother Messala (Toby Kebbell), who was a Roman orphan before being taken in by the Hur family. One day, he decides to leave and join the Roman Army to prove his worth as a wife for Judah's sister Tirzah (Sofia Black D'Elia). He returns however, to quell rebels who wish to overthrow the Romans and make Judea free. After an attempt on Governor Pontius Pilate's (Pilou Asbæk) life, Judah is accused by Messala of harbouring zealots and sentenced to labour on a Roman galley. During a battle, his ship is destroyed and he is set adrift, only to be found by Sheik Ilderim (Morgan Freeman), who agrees to free him for help with his chariot horses. After hearing his story, the Sheik agrees to help Judah get his revenge against Messala.

This movie really feels like a bare bones remake of the classic 1959 film. The basic story structure is there, but none of the details that made that movie "classic" are there. From the very start of the movie we know that we are building to the ultimate chariot race showdown between the two brothers, which takes away any of the suspense or surprise at the story that is to come. While the story tries to be epic in its scope, it seems to be on the lesser end because not as many events take place in this movie, which seems counter intuitive. Another big departure from the classic version is the extended presence of Jesus. In the older movie he was limited to the "Drink up, Judah Ben-Hur" scene. (That line is not said in either movies, but a quote from "A Star Is Burns (see below)).

A representation for all those who don't want to watch the clip from the actual movie

While the scene happens almost exactly as it did in the original, it isn't the first time we see Jesus. In fact, his first appearance is pretty laughable. Judah and his wife Esther (played by Nazanin Boniadi) are talking about violent removal of the Romans and he starts to talk about peace in the background, whilst doing some carpentry. It's very on the nose. Apparently the reason he was added was due to the negative reactions from Christians about 2014's Noah. I have to say that the casting of Rodrigo Santoro was an inspired touch. Now he has played the baddest of bads (Xerxes in 300) and the goodest of goods (Jesus).

Rodrigo Santoro is pretty much the only good casting decision of this film. Except for maybe Toby Kebbell as Messala. This had more to do with the fact that Messala was a somewhat sympathetic character. Before leaving for the Roman Army, he is shunned by his adoptive mother and other Romans, so he is just trying to prove his worth throughout the movie. Jack Huston is supposed to be the star of this movie (and also have the weight that Charlton Heston had), but he is outshone by his costars, especially Morgan Freeman. Danish actor Pilou Asbæk seemed like a bit of a wildcard decision.

Ben-Hur is trying to live up to something it will never achieve, which is the case with most remakes. Its lacklustre story that tries too hard to whittle it down to a manageable story feels hollow and in the era of CGI, the stakes are incredibly low in the final chariot race. If you really feel like you need to watch this story, go back and watch the original one with a great performance from Charlton Heston.

Focus

Will Smith's character in this movie is constantly telling everyone to not lose focus when they are pulling a con, but he is constantly ignoring his own advice. When watching a movie about con artists, you don't want to lose focus and keep up with what's going on all the time, but even if you are a seasoned vet when it comes to watching these things and you think you know what's going on, clever writing will always throw you for a loop.

This movie begins with the longest prologue to a film I have ever seen (it goes for almost half the film), where veteran conman Nicky (Smith) comes across Jess (Margot Robbie), who, despite throwing the most obvious con that every sucker knows by know and fails miserably at it, impresses Nicky so much that he decides to bring her into his crew. After a series of small cons (and one big one), Nicky cuts Jess loose because it doesn't help to get tied up in the game. Three years later, Nicky is working for Garriga (Rodrigo Santoro), a Formula 1 race car owner who wants him to misdirect his rival teams to get an advantage at the Buenos Aires Grand Prix. But when Jess turns up saying she is Garriga's girlfriend, Nicky starts to lose focus.

The script is the strongest and weakest part of this film. The cons are perfectly written and fun when they are pulled off (just as they are in any film of this nature). There is a certain satisfaction in being in on how misdirection is being used against other people, like if you were the only other person in the room who knew how a magician was about to pull off an illusion. Again there are times that you don't know how something is going to end up, but being happy and relieved when everything goes to plan. I also thought that I was going to be able to pick the climax of the film, but found that I was off by just a small margin (if a con movie can con a con man, then it's good writing). 

But the script also shows weakness. The whole romantic subplot between Nicky and Jess is such a stretch. I know that they are trying to go for mass appeal, but people can enjoy a single focus film. Also the film uses a lot of confidence terminology that might fly over most audience's heads. Hopefully everyone will know that a "mark" is a target, but when you get down to shills, salting and the like, it can get a bit fast and loose.

It's a shame as well that most of the enjoyment in the film comes from the supporting cast. Robbie and Smith are just treading the boards and saying their lines at the right point and not really offering much aside from that. Adrian Martinez and Brennan Brown, who both play members of Nicky's crew, are so good that you know that when they come on screen there is bound to be some laughs. The same is said of BD Wong's Liyuan, one of their early marks, he plays such a fun character that is unlike most of the roles he takes. Rodrigo Santoro serves amiably as the antagonist of the piece.

If you can look past the wooden leads or poor romantic undertones, Focus is a pretty solid con artist movie that will keep you guessing. While it may not be as cool as something like Oceans Eleven (and it's trying so hard to be that, if only you gave it a chance), it does have some fun schemes that are good to watch unfold.

300: Rise of an Empire

Or 300: On Water. This prequel/sequel takes the scenario of the first film and puts in on the sea in a slightly boring, albeit actual, naval battle. Despite the rampant action set pieces that are paraded around, this film could not capture the magical essence of the original film and I feel as though part of this stems from the fact that so much effort was put into creating elaborate 3D visual effects.

The film takes place alongside the events of the original 300 film. So while Leonidas and his 300 Spartans are fighting the Persians at the battle of Thermopylae, Athenian statesman and war hero Themistocles (Sullivan Stapleton) engages the Persian fleet, commanded by Artemisia (Eva Green), in a series of naval battles with a pitiful fleet of ships.

I think the main problem with the film is that it is trying too hard to recreate the underdog feeling of the original and falling short, as well as recounting a lesser known battle. I would have rather seen an adaption of Xenophon's Anabasis, but alas that exciting epic came much later in the Persian Wars and has already been perfectly adapted as The Warriors (1979).

It also seems to me that ancient Greece was populated by mostly Australian and British people, for there is not a single American (or Greek, for that matter) actor in sight. Sullivan Stapleton (Animal Kingdom) does a passable job as Themistocles, but somehow I felt he was channeling either Mel Gibson or Russell Crowe in his rallying speeches. A lot of the original cast have returned, with Lena Headey (Game of Thrones) getting the most screen time of them.

The only noteworthy, although flawed, performance comes from Eva Green (Casino Royale). She plays a female character that is as hard and tough as the men in the film and I was happy that she was treated with the same brutality as those men. I was unhappy, however, with the one massively out of context sex scene in which she dons a pair of fake breasts that are way too large for her slender frame (anyone who's seen her debut role in The Dreamers (2003) will spot this immediately).

Verdict: A seemingly passable movie on the surface, but once you scratch a little deeper you can see that even Green's performance can't save this sinking ship.

The Last Stand

This really should be Arnie's last stand. While it was a fun romp through the Nevada desert, Schwarzenegger has no business fighting crime. It is a young man's game and even he acknowledges the fact.

The Last Stand revolves around Sheriff Ray (Schwarzenegger) and his rag-tag group of deputies trying to stop an escaped cartel boss from making his way to Mexico. The plot is almost that simple. The reason the cartel boss escaped is due to FBI agent John Bannister's (Forrest Whitaker) negligence. The whole thing could have been avoided if he checked up on his agents and moved his prisoner in daylight instead of the wee hours of the morning.

I feel like this movie could have been a whole lot shorter than it's 107 minute running time. There are a whole bunch of extraneous shots of glances between Deputy Sarah Torrance (Jaimie Alexander) and Frank Martinez (Rodrigo Santoro), I'm still not sure what his role was in this movie, and these shots in this modified Corvette, where cartel boss Gabriel Cortez (Eduardo Noriega) shifts gears. Although they looked cool, we only needed to see them once or twice, not every single time he changes speed.

There is a strange sort of familiarity between Ray and Cortez. I feel as though we are missing some scenes where we find out that Ray has run into relatives of Cortez during his stint as a LAPD Narcotics officer. Although they barely hint at this, it would have been nice in this sort of movie to have that explicit connection. It would also explain the reaction Ray gives when he finds out who is making a run for his town.

The cast (apart from the few who I will point out) were not suited for this film. Of course this role was written for Arnie and he does fit in. The same is said for Johnny Knoxville, who is just playing Johnny Knoxville (like he has any other setting!), and Luis Guzman, as the loyal but hesitant and insanely funny deputy.

On the other hand, Forest Whitaker is playing just an angrier version of the role he played in Species. He only really comes off as incapable of following proper protocol. The other person not suited here is Jaimie Alexander. She is capable of extraordinary range and I felt that she was a wasted talent. The way that they built up the character of Cortez, you were expecting a name actor when he would finally be revealed, but instead we get an unfamiliar face.

The person who sort of defies both of those positions and is in sort of a middle ground is Peter Stormare. Whilst you would expect to see him silently shoving body parts into a wood chipper (Fargo, anyone?), here he is playing a loud gunslinger type and at the end of every scene with him, I was waiting for him to spit his tobacco on the ground.

Verdict: Some great driving sequences coupled with callbacks to old Arnie one-liners ("Consider yourself deputised") make for a great action movie. My recommendation to Arnie: quit acting while you're ahead, maybe move into producing and directing like your Twins co-star Danny DeVito.