Independence Day: Resurgence

The original Independence Day is one of those movies that every action movie fan holds in high regard. But a lot of the charm and excitement of that movie is severely lacking in this reboot, with only the crazy destruction remaining. Is that enough to make this movie great? Not when you're dealing with the legacy of the original movie.

Twenty years after the world united against the alien invasion, David Levinson (Jeff Goldblum) is in charge of alien research at Area 51 in Nevada. As the world is starting to prepare for the anniversary of the invasion, a spherical alien ship appears near the moon's space defence station. A decision is made by the global council to shoot it down in case of it being another invasion attempt. But it ends up not being a real threat at all and a bigger one is on its way. An alien harvester ship with a queen on it lands across the Atlantic Ocean (as in it's the size of it) and its up to a small team of pilots led by Jake Morrison (Liam Hemsworth) and Dylan Hiller (Jessie T. Usher).

This movie really doesn't offer much past the action. There is no real tension or high stakes. Yes there is a countdown that the good guys have to go up against to win, but there's no underdog story that was present in the original. Where the humans were going against the aliens with our old technology, in Resurgence, they are fighting with alien technology. So there's no real tension in two equally matched enemies fighting one another with no exciting underdog story to speak of. There is the introduction of the alien queen, but she is so similar to the queen from Aliens, it's unbelievable. At least she's a different colour.

What's really disappointing is that none of the characters stick out in a distinct way. In the original, you had the diverse personalities of Will Smith, Bill Pullman, Randy Quaid and Jeff Goldblum. While both Goldblum and Pullman both return, they are a shadow of their former selves. Even Goldblum, who is known for his eccentric performances, actually gives the first normal performance of his life. None of the new actors offer anything special either. Liam Hemsworth is normally good in an action flick, but it feels like he's relegated to the background. Jessie T. Usher, playing Will Smith's son is equally boring. Travis Tope plays Liam's pilot partner and I was just waiting for him to be killed off, which he isn't. As for the leading ladies of Charlotte Gainsbourg and Maika Monroe, they're both fantastic performers and don't belong in this movie. As for Nicolas Wright (or American John Oliver, you'll know what I'm talking about), his character just baffled me.

All told, Resurgence occupies a weird limbo in the exact centre of the triangle made up of action, sci-fi and 20th anniversary reboot. It's not good enough for everyone to go crazy about, but it's not terrible enough to hate. It just is.

Elysium

Neill Blomkamp is a master of modern sci-fi cinema. His last film, District 9, looked at racism targeted at Zimbabwean refugees in the slums of Johannesburg, albeit through the eyes of an alien race that had been stranded on Earth. Blomkamp successfully identifies social issues and presents them in a way that gets the public thinking.

In Elysium, the social messages are a lot more apparent. It takes place on an overpopulated Earth in the year 2154. Max (Matt Damon) is an ex-con working at a robot factory, with the hopes of saving up enough money to buy a ticket to Elysium, a space station that houses the rich and powerful, who are able to stay healthy with the help of med-pods. After an accident at the factory that leaves Max with radiation poisoning, he endeavours to get to Elysium and a chance at life.

Blomkamp tackles social issues such as overpopulation, refugees and wealth disparity perfectly in this film. There are scenes that somewhat humanise the people smugglers and the refugees trying to lead a better life. The other big issue is the overpopulation that some developing nations are experiencing. Some of the film was shot in Mexico City and it is amazing to see the state of how people live.

One of the only issues that I really had with the film was the poor character development. We never really get any time to fully connect with any of the characters or feel for their situation.

That is not to say that there was any bad acting. Matt Damon was fantastic as Max and you could really see his desperation to get to Elysium. Alice Braga (Predators) plays Max's childhood friend and a nurse at one of the big hospitals. Her character felt like a would be love interest for Max, but her sole intention is the survival of her daughter.

Jodie Foster plays the head of Elysium's defences, but she really has her eye on the position of President. She is ruthless and will do anything to get her way, even if it means using psychopathic sleeper agent Kruger (Sharlto Copley). Copley couldn't any farther from the loveable Wikus he played in District 9, in fact he is downright creepy. He has some very cringeworthy moments.

The visuals in this movie are fantastic. Blomkamp and his cinematographer are downright masters of innovation with a camera. There are a lot of techniques that defy explanation and I studied camera work. There were one or two shots early on that were headache inducing, but by and large, it's a visual masterpiece.

Verdict: Blomkamp once again crafts a biting social commentary that will really force you to not just think of the future, but the present as well.

The Lone Ranger

When I first heard that they were making a new film version of the 80 year old character, I was a little dismayed and saw it as a cash grab by Jerry Bruckheimer to make a new franchise to replace the diminishing Pirates of the Caribbean. How wrong I was.

This film deals with the creation of the outlaw (Armie Hammer) and his first adventure with Tonto (Johnny Depp) to take down a corrupt railroad tycoon (Tom Wilkinson) and his criminal henchman (William Fichtner), whose scheme is to steal a large amount of silver and retire to San Francisco.

This movie is actually a lot of fun. All of the elements that go in to make a Lone Ranger adventure are there, including the William Tell Overture, Tonto's broken English and lots of action.

This is the first time I've enjoyed Johnny Depp in a film for a long time. Jack Sparrow began to wear on me after a while and no one can play Willy Wonka like Gene Wilder. But in this, his eccentricities went a long way and in fact I sensed a little Raoul Duke from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. He brings a levity to a film that has a very bleak premise in an unforgiving land.

Of course, I can't talk about a Lone Ranger film without talking about the man that played him. Armie Hammer (who we know from The Social Network) does a great job bringing such a revered character to life. He has a great chemistry with Depp and I feel as though this is the point that his star will rise from, rather than the past films he has worked on.

There is only one problem I found with the film and that is the extreme violence that is juxtaposed with lighthearted and funny moments. I know that this film is marketed to kids, but most westerns are quite bleak and dark at times. It doesn't really take away from the film, but it does make it a bit of a roller-coaster to watch.

Verdict: A genuinely good effort at reinvigorating a story that has been part of the public consciousness for almost 100 years.