Lucy

Luc Besson's latest sci-fi offering Lucy is one of the most ridiculous films I've seen in the past few years, but somehow it kind of actually works!

Lucy (Scarlett Johansson) is studying in Taiwan, when she is tricked by her boyfriend, Richard (Pilou Asbæk) into delivering a package of drugs to his employer. The super-drug CPH4, which she is forced to smuggle overseas in her abdomen, can increase the brains working capacity and provide superhuman abilities. After being attacked whilst in captivity, the package splits and leaks into Lucy's system.

At the same time, Professor Samuel Norman (Morgan Freeman), who has been researching the theoretical abilities of  higher-functioning human brains for the past twenty years, is contacted by Lucy and the two meet up to assess the nature of her higher state of being.

 

First up, Scarlett Johansson is really what makes this film. Her character is relatively normal but is thrown into unbelievable circumstances, so to be able to watch her transformation as she is affected by the drug, is fantastic. Morgan Freeman is just Morgan Freeman again, to which I mean, slightly typecast, but still a great performance. As for the other actors, I really can't work out how to judge them because, whilst they seem to just constantly over act, they are playing such ridiculous roles that it kind of works...kind of.

The plot of this film is absolutely ludicrous, but not surprising coming from the mind that brought us The Fifth Element. It's pure science-fiction, of course, but it's so unbelievable that it's difficult to take it seriously. It seemed like Besson was trying to be a lot more serious here than with The Fifth Element, but I couldn't help but laugh with half of the scenes because they were just so over-the-top and out there. This sort of weird dramatic-comedy, which may or may not have been intentional, makes this genuinely quite an enjoyable film.

It's beautifully shot and edited, with what seems to be quite a lot of influence from David Fincher's work, with sped-up footage, fast cuts and a similar use of effects used to illustrate the brain at work, as he used in the opening to Fight Club. Comparisons can easily be made to many other science fiction films, even a bit of 2001: Space Odyessy at the end, which certainly pleased this Kubrick fan (not in a sexual way, geez), and generally, it's just great cinematography from Thierry Arbogast, who often works with Besson. 

I'm not really sure what its intended message was, if there was one. You could make the argument that it channels our desire for knowledge, or even our fragility as a species, but at the end of the day, plot issues or not, its really just good fun, with plenty of eye candy (Obviously I'm talking about the Special FX...ok, and Scarlett Johansson is nice too).

New Wonder Woman and Batman pics

I know we seem to be focused on the next Superman movie at this here blog, but until we get some buzz on Star Wars, it'll have to do. This is probably the biggest DC related news to come out of the San Diego Comic-Con, new pics of both Ben Affleck as Batman and the first look at Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman.

Tell us what you think in the comments below.

Hercules

This latest obsession with Hercules isn't the first time its happened in movie history. In the 90s there were two TV series with one spinoff series and an animated movie, so two movies in one year is nothing. I think I saw the better of those two movies.

I thought that this was going to be a very different movie. From the trailer I had expected a movie about the Twelve Labours of Hercules (which I know every one of), but we are instead introduced to the man behind the myth. Hercules (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson) is a mercenary whose only ambition is to get enough gold to retire to the Black Sea and live in peace. He is offered a job by Lord Cotys (John Hurt) to help stop a civil war.

Instead of just presenting a demigod Hercules, this movie looks at how the legend is born. Hercules' nephew Iolaus (Reece Ritchie) heightens the abilities of the hero and exaggerates the labours he completed for King Eurystheus (Joseph Fiennes).

Dwayne Johnson is a sensible choice for Hercules. His muscular physique makes it believable that he is the strongest man ever (obviously), but he is also able to perfectly convey the torment that haunts him after he has murdered his wife and children (or so the legend goes).

Though this movie is incredibly tense at times, there are some moments of great comic relief. These come from quite a few characters. Iolaus can be quite funny, but Ian McShane's Amphiaraus steals the show with the premonitions of his own death. Ingrid Bolsø Berdal, Aksel Hennie and Rufus Sewell round out Hercules rag tag group of mercenaries.

Verdict: Normally anything made by Brett Ratner would make my skin crawl, but there isn't anything for him to ruin here. It is all that it sets out to be; a swords and sandals adventure that certainly has the right level of scope.

John Hughes Movie: Christmas Vacation (1989)

Never before has the phrase 'holiday fun for the whole family' been more suitable. Well ok, there are certainly some mature themes here but this is one of the funniest Christmas movies around.

After European Vacation in 1985, the National Lampoon film series returned with Christmas Vacation. Clark Griswald (Chevy Chase) has convinced his wife, Ellen (Beverly D'Angelo) to let him have his dream, a big family christmas at home, with all the relatives around. But from the very start, things do not go as planned. By ten minutes in, the Griswald family have already been involved in highway road rage, been stuck under a truck, been airborn in their car and got a ludicriously inappropriate christmas tree. But that's just the begining.

Much like the first vacation, the Griswald family seem to be surrounded by absolutely hilarious accidents. From redneck Cousin Eddie's (Randy Quaid) appearence to exploding sewer mains, nothing seems to go as planned. The gags are generally derived from either the sort of jokes that bring out your inner 12 year old or pure slapstick, but don't feel guilty for laughing, because the unstoppable surge of antics rarely ever hits a sour note.

All of this humour is balanced out by heartwarming, albeit cheesy family moments, which is exactly what you'd expect from a comedy family movie, and seems to suit the christmas theme quite well. As well as Chase and D'Angelo, who reprise their roles perfectly well, the rest of the cast seem to gel fantastically with their characters, because they are entertaining from start to finish.

This is also one of those films where you recognise one of the actors from something (not just the child actors here) but you're not sure what they've been in. Then there's the great moment when you realise who they are and it's amazing to see how they've aged since. So I won't ruin that for you all by telling you who all the great actors are in this film.

This is a lighthearted, hilarious comedy movie that is perfect to run in the background whilst relaxing on Christmas day. As our final John Hughes movie for the month, this one is definitely a classic.

Trailers Week 3: 27/07/14

The Gracefield Incident
Even though found footage movies invariably suck, I have always been a huge fan of them (even the hideous Apollo 18, they're my guilty pleasure). Apart from the trailer, the only info I could find is that it's directed, edited, written, produced by and starring Mathieu Ratthe. I'm already hooked.

Nightcrawler
This intense looking award-chaser from Dan Gilroy is about Lou Bloom, 'a young man desperate for work who discovers the high-speed world of L.A. crime journalism. Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Rene Russo and Bill Paxton.

50 Shades of Grey
Based on the extremely popular erotic novel by E.L. James. Dakota Johnson will play the impressionable Anastasia Steele, with Jamie Dornan as the bondage loving Christian Grey.

The Imitation Game
Benedict Cumberbatch stars as Alan Turing, the British mathematician who was a key figure during the cracking of the Nazi's Enigma Code. It looks to have a similar feel to Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, but set during the Second World War. Also starring Matthew Goode, Rory Kinnear, Keira Knightley, Charles Dance and Mark Strong.

Tusk
Writer/director Kevin Smith has always divided audiences. Here at That Other Movie Blog, we are quite partial to his films. I (Jack) have been following the development of his latest film which was created on his Smodcast podcast. It is a horror film that looks quite chilling. Starring Michael Parks, Justin Long, Haley Joel Osment and Johnny Depp. #WalrusYes.

Manhattan
This week's TV trailer is of Manhattan. Set in 1943 at the time of the Manhattan Project, it follows the lives of scientists working on the atomic bomb in a New Mexico town.

John Hughes Movie: Home Alone (1990)

I don't understand why this kid's family all hate him so much. Even his own mother. No wonder he's so happy that he gets left behind when his family goes overseas for Christmas.

Eight-year-old Kevin McCallister (Macaulay Culkin) and his family are set to travel for the holidays, but the night before they go, power in the neighbourhood goes down and they oversleep. In the rush to get ready in the morning, they leave behind Kevin, who quickly adapts to life without them. Operating in the same area are thieves the "wet bandits", Marv (Daniel Stern) and Harry (Joe Pesci). The have targeted the McCallister household after casing the house at the beginning of the movie. Kevin finds this out and sets up a series of deadly Rube Goldberg like traps around the house.

This is probably the weakest of the John Hughes movies I've watched this month. This is mainly due to to the fact that it has aged the most. The timeless feeling that is felt when watching all the other movies on this list. It has the exact feeling of it's early 90s setting.

This was Macaulay Culkin's first big movie role. I feel as though child actors from this time weren't given too much direction. Culkin just runs around either screaming or giggling. Catherine O'Hara, who is a funny actor at the best of times isn't give enough screen time to get some good laughs.

The weight of the acting really falls back to Joe Pesci who isn't really working at to the best of his ability. In fact he is quite restrained here. He is known most for his foul mouth and had to be reminded at many times by director Chris Columbus that this is a family movie.

Verdict: A decent family movie that is worth watching. I think it is probably where my fear of spiders comes from, not to mention that it is pretty much the same movie as Die Hard.

Deliver Us From Evil

Director Scott Derrickson seems to be drawn to horror. At least that's the genre that he fits best in. Both Sinister and The Exorcism of Emily Rose are the standout films of his directing career. Deliver Us From Evil is probably not his best foray into the genre so far, but has great performances and a well-executed script that he co-wrote with Paul Harris Boardman.

Eric Bana plays Ralph Sarchie, a tough cop working in New York's south Bronx. He gets pulled into a case which leads him to meet Mendoza (Edgar Ramirez), who believes the case is demonically related. This pushes Sarchie's beliefs to the limit.

This is based on the real life Sarchie's non-fiction book 'Beware the Night'. While I like to believe that what I'm watching can happen in the world in which a movie exists, I find it very hard to believe that these things (demonic possessions and the like) actually occur in real life, but I'm not going to get into that.

The scares in this movie are pretty straightforward. Anyone with common sense would know when they are coming and get ready for them. I will, however, award points to this seeming mash up of cop and possession movies. I do applaud the original approach to the exorcism scene, it takes place in a interrogation room.

Most of the performance are really good. Eric Bana is a really subtle actor and felt believable in this role. I really felt as though the relationship between him and his daughter was genuine. Edgar Ramirez could have easily gone over the top playing a priest who performs exorcisms, but he was quite restrained.

Joel McHale is fantastic but slightly too generic as Sarchie's fast talking partner. Sure he has skills with knife, but when you fall into the same sidekick cliche maybe this isn't the role for you. Olivia Munn just floats around in the background looking good, but not really contributing anything.

Verdict: Cool story and idea, but not much too many good scares. A decent cast does lift it up.