Today's News: catching up required

It's been a busy week, which left me no choice but to neglect my blog unfortunately. In the meantime, the news kept flowing on MovieScene, which has caused me falling behind in commenting on it. Let's try and catch up a bit.

Nieuwe trailer Game of Thrones Seizoen 5

Coolest trailer first. Obviously Game of Thrones. I doubt everyone who was already superstoked for the new season will experience that anticipation much more strongly after watching this trailer, since the tension has already mounted to nigh unbearable levels. But as expected, the new trailer looks splendid. Remaining fan favorites present: check. Quotable one-liners: check. Expensive FX shots of new locations and assorted vistas: check. New plot developments as opposed to the books: check. There's definitely going to be many a surprise for those who have already read the books, now that the series is rapidly catching up with them. There's a few shots of such scenes found in this trailer. I better spoil things for people who didn't read the novels while I still can. Personally, I just hope the series won't spoil the fun of the remaining books too much, as it's obvious by now this show will be finished much sooner than the original source material will. Nevertheless, HBO, bring it on!

Singer regisseert Sci-Fi film Uprising

Despite being involved in a sex scandal and busy directing another X-film, Bryan Singer is already planning his next project. It's gonna be adapting a Robert Heinlein novel. Let's hope this is going to honour the source material a bit more than most Heinlein based films, as there's only one of them that apparently really does so, and by now it's 65 years old (FYI, it's the classic Destination Moon). Many Sci-Fi buffs will still look back on Paul Verhoeven's attempt, Starship Troopers, with dismay, even though in many respects it turned out a pretty good film regardless (as long as you like satirical social commentary in your science fiction, and who doesn't?). So far, things don't seem too encouraging on staying faithful: the name has already been changed from the poetic The Moon is a Harsh Mistress to the rather generic (but likely sexier and easier to sell to general audiences) Uprising. I can live with that change. Not having read the book, I can probably live with more of them, as long as the final result still proves to be a good movie. I like the notion of a penal colony on the Moon rebelling against overlords from the Mother Planet, which is basically what the general premise is. So as long as they keep that bit in, things can't be too bad, eh?

Renner en Adams in Sci-Fi film Story of Your Life

Here's another Sci-Fi project for you. This one does less to me. I like Amy Adams fine, but my tolerance for Jeremy Renner has its limits. The plot also doesn't sound all that appealing to my ears: it has elements of V and Contact, and going on the available plot synopsis, not enough to really set it strongly apart. That leaves the director to get me interested, and Denis Villeneuve at least does that, even though I still have to see any of his work (I know, shame on me). The French-Canadian director's oeuvre isn't particularly long, but so far all his feature length films have won critical acclaim. Prisoners for one looked like a generic thirteen-a-dozen thriller judging from the trailer, but from what I've heard from critics and audiences alike, it turned out an unexpected gem against all odds. Plus, they wouldn't just hire anyone to do Blade Runner 2, but they hired him. (Personally, I have no desire to see a Blade Runner 2 get made at all, but that's beside the point.) So apparently, at least there will be some talent sitting in the director's chair. And then you learn the writer of the piece was responsible for Final Destination 5 and the failed reboot/prequel to The Thing, and a wholly skeptical attitude towards this project returns full force.

Fox plant Expendables TV-serie

Another major motion picture franchise being re-developed to fit the small screen? That happens a lot lately. What's up with that?! Apparently the franchise has run its course on the silver screen and now the studio is looking for other venues for its appearance to make it cough up more dough. Aside from developing a spin-off of sorts at the same time (the all-female one, remember?). And stating 'they're still looking at the notion of more sequels', which is more or less saying there's not gonna be any for the next 20 years. Nevertheless, the concept of action stars coming together to make for an explosive team-up might work on telly. Are there enough TV action veterans available though. Sure there are! Plenty of shows to pick your oldies but goldies from. The A-Team, Knight Rider, Miami Vice, Quantum Leap or Battlestar Galactica, to name but a few. No doubt many an old and overly muscled actor from any of these shows is yearning for a chance to relive past glory and cash in on it at the same time. Of course, the appeal of such television (ex-)stars is probably not as great to audiences as it is for movie (ex-)stars, but hey, who cares, it's only television, right? Someone better inform the execs behind this project that these days, television is where all the high-class action is found, so if you want to make a worn-out concept like this work on the small screen, you better come up with some damn intriguing elements to ensure your viewers will stick with you. A gripping and compelling story, solid acting, captivating stunts, etc. Too bad not so much of these were present in the Expendables movies...

Nieuwe trailer Tomorrowland

Ah crap, this looks like any contemporary generic PG-13 Hollywood blockbuster. I liked it better when we didn't really have much of a clue as to what it would be about, but now much of the initial mystery is lifted. I had hoped for something a little more ingenious from Brad Bird. But apparently, he too can't think of anything more than a teen prodigy saving a/the world because he/she is oh so fucking special. Paired with all the crazy and outlandish visual FX a outrageously giant budget can buy. And a superstar to draw in additional audiences (in this case, it's George Clooney). Oh well, expectations weren't high. It's a Disney flick based on a theme park ride, how often do those work? Only on Pirates of the Caribbean, if I recall, and even then only once for realsies (the sequels were okay, but not nearly as catchy). I doubt this will prove as succesful a film, nor spawn four sequels. There doesn't as yet seem room for the quirky humour and truly wondrously exotic locales found on PotC that really pulled audiences in. Please let me be proven wrong in my obnoxious pre-release scepticism, but from the looks of it and full well knowing cynical old me and bland old Hollywood blockbusters, that's not likely to happen, today or tomorrow.

Today's Double News: to tease or not to tease

Trailer season continues, as indicated by these two news flashes I posted on MS the other day:

http://www.moviescene.nl/p/152599/nieuwe_trailer_how_to_train_your_dragon_2

http://www.moviescene.nl/p/152562/eerste_teaser_expendables_3

These two short previews differ enormously in their approach to entice their respective audiences, as illustrated by what they show, or rather, don't show. The vid for The Expendables 3 is as clearly a teaser if ever I saw one, making no use of actual material of the movie proper and telling us nothing about the film's plot. It's sole purpose is to reveal to the public that the movie for which it teases is currently underway, for those who were not aware from online or magazine sources. By now the 'Expendables' brand is itself a perfect indicator for what's in store and the main question on everyone's mind - at least, everyone that is interested in this project - is not so much what to expect but more so who to expect. The teaser acts on this anticipation by bombarding the spectator with names (last names only, since otherwise it would get a little too cramped on the screen): this information will have to suffice for now. In fact, the names are of greater importance than the men visually assembled for our entertainment, since even on the big screen it's hard to recognize them all in a window of only a few seconds. Personally I think the teaser would have benefited from the first names too, to avoid confusion as to which actor will participate in cases where that could be in doubt. For instance, the 'Gibson' here is Mel, not Tyrese. Of course Mel is more wellknown anyway, but Tyrese too has compiled a big enough resumé in action movies over recent years to warrant a place in a movie of this type (maybe for a third sequel then). Rest assured: 'Powell' is not Colin, it's Glen (whom I have never heard of before). Overall, an effective teaser with a cast of names to match. I'm looking forward to the appearance of Ford and Grammer too.

Now, How to Train Your Dragon 2 is another animal entirely. In fact, I daresay it shows too much, instead of the opposite like The Expendables 3 does. Not surprising we get to see more of the story and characters in this preview, considering this film has already passed the teaser stage (and tease it did) and the current Holiday season is perfect for getting people enthusiastic about family films due for release in the next six months. But after seeing this trailer I get the feeling there's little more to the story that what is presented here. I for one would have saved the identity of the mysterious female dragon rider, as well as half of the grandiose dragon shots, for the movie itself rather than taking away such surprises. But then, I haven't even seen the first HtTYD, so what the heck do I know... That said, this preview will certainly succeed adequately in piqueing the target audience's interests, especially since in this franchise's case too popularity has already been established. I hear the first film was quite good, even though the trailers failed to excite me. Maybe the same thing will happen here, since I'm not convinced yet, despite getting the feeling I already know what the movie is about. When a trailer gives you that feeling, you know it hasn't done its job properly, but since this film is geared mostly towards kids, that's not a total loss.

Today's News: women soon expendable too

Old news by now, but still new enough for posting, as it is mine and this is my blog so I post whatever pleases me anyway:

http://www.moviescene.nl/p/151194/diaz_streep_en_jovovich_als_expendabelles

Expendabelles... I actually like that cheeky play on words. Of course it confirms this is basically just a rehash of the Expendables, except with an all-girl team, but I think most audiences would have picked up on that anyway, so why not exploit it to the fullest from the get-go? After all, the Expendables has become quite a brand name, so there's no harm in riding along its wake of success from a commercial viewpoint, especially if the rights belong to the same studio. A film like this was bound to happen, really; with all of the recent action films that feel like Eighties-throwbacks,  spouting their testosteron all over the place, a cry for girl power was to be expected sooner rather than later. I'm only surprised it took so long to get a project like this into gear. Coming from someone who got beat up by his sister regularly as a kid, I know there's plenty of strong women who take crap from no man, though not enough films have made use of this fact. Sure, there's the occasional female action star, but an all-girl team of commandos kicking butt? I can't think of a title that covers that angle. Charlie's Angels comes closest, so I'm not surprised at all Cameron Diaz' name has been revealed to be attached to this film. Same goes for Milla Jovovich, who alone has starred in just about as many action flicks - six Resident Evil films for instance - as all other female action stars combined. Meryl Streep however is an intriguing choice. Surely one of those olden goldies (which is not meant to come off as condescending to actors/actresses who were already active and successful in the Eighties, and still are today) that commands respect, though not particularly in a physical sense (and she better not sing!). In terms of acting it's certainly gratifying to see a woman of her caliber in a starring role. The names of Gina Carano and Katee Sackhoff also sound right up this film's alley, even though they may not be as familiar to general audiences as the previous trio. Still, I think there's room for more here. Linda Hamilton? Sigourney Weaver? Angelina Jolie? Rhona Mitra? Michelle Rodriguez? Seems like there's enough potential actresses to pick from for this film and two sequels at least.

Then there is this question, which just had to be asked at some point (though I haven't heard anybody else on the topic yet, surprisingly): if Expendables and Expendabelles are from the same studio, does that mean they share a universe from a narrative angle, which may lead to a crossover between the male and female departments, resulting in one super-ultimate, big-ass action flick-to-end-all-action-flicks? Or would people prefer to see gents and dames stick to their own corners instead of going at each other, which could only lead to the girls' defeat? I for one really can't see any female action stars surpassing the likes of Stallone and Schwarzenegger in terms of physical stamina, expertise with weaponry or sheer muscles. In terms of intelligence though...

Today's News: Schwarzenegger will be back... again. And again.

I had this to report on Schwarzenegger's busy upcoming schedule on MovieScene:

http://www.moviescene.nl/p/147930/schwarzenegger_terug_voor_expendables_3_en_terminator_5

Now I'm not afraid to say I like Schwarzenegger and his action movies. Some of them I consider to be among the finest action flicks in existence (first and foremost Terminator 2: Judgment Day). And judging from his performance in the recent Expendables 2 and The Last Stand, he can still pull off solid action scenes without making you stop and think 'this guy is too old to be doing this'. In fact, you don't have to think about it, since his scripts are doing that for you in many a moment of good-humoured, tongue-in-cheek hilarity. However, nobody can continue doing this forever without the risk of losing credibility. Especially a guy who was once one of the top-grossing action stars who now seems to do little else than recycle past glories. Schwarzenegger appears to be going that way, considering all the sequels he has in store for us. The Expendables 3 I'm least worried about, since that franchise is basically built around action movie veterans getting together to blow shit up in acknowledgment of a long career of doing just that, so Schwarzenegger fits in perfectly with the rest of them. He did it to great comedic effect in the second Expendables movie, after teasing us with a glorified cameo appearance in its predecessor. The Expendables 3 can merrily have him continue down that path of rampant death and destruction with the other warmongering musclemen that have done the same for many many years. After all, why bother spending old age sitting at home playing Scrabble when you can go out and engage in massive shootouts, maiming people and blowing up tanks and helicopters?

Terminator 5 is a more delicate matter in my mind. After all, the various powers-that-be (or in most cases, have been, considering the rights to the franchise have passed through many production companies' clutches up till this point) have carefully and increasingly moved away from Schwarzenegger's involvement in this cyborg-infested universe. Terminator Salvation briefly included a cameo of the Austrian Oak's digitalized head - the Governator himself only had to give his permission for the use of his facial features, instead of actually doing any physical stuff  - but none of the other Terminators in that film had much to do with Schwarzenegger. Furthermore, the TV-series Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles ignored Schwarzenegger entirely, and revealed that in the story of this world, anyone's face and body can be applied over a metal endoskeleton for Skynet's nefarious genocidal purposes. Sure, there were quite a few muscular dudes straight out of the gym who could be viewed as obvious stand-ins for that iconic but inaffordable (and unavailable) ultimate Terminator, but there were also quite a number of people who played similar cyborgs, and one of them - Summer Glau, naturally! - pulled off a totally un-Schwarzeneggerish killing machine with more complexity and emotional subtlety than we ever witnessed in any of the actual films, without losing anything when taking up arms and brutally shooting people up. Something Glau managed to do compellingly for 31 episodes (that show should have run longer, especially considering the major cliffhanger that now ends the show and leaves us in the dark). Plus, she looked better in her undies than Schwarzenegger did in his bare butt.

So basically, we started getting used to the idea of a Schwarzenegger-less Terminator universe, a world where Ahnuld is not actually needed to make for interesting 'man vs. machine' drama and visually appealing future battles. The Terminator franchise has proven to do just fine on its own without repeatedly reintroducing the daddy of all Terminators, and thus having the original Terminator return might hurt that notion. I for one have little interest in seeing more of Arnold in T5, since T3 already felt like an uninspired rehash of T2, were it not for its surprisingly dark ending. If Terminator 5 follows Terminator Salvation, which seems likely - though we should never take this for granted, considering the constant messing with the timeline that, for one thing, allowed TSCC to follow T2 while retconning T3 and TS completely - it would be the first time we saw Schwarzenegger's T-800 in a future setting (not counting the T2 3D theme park ride). What to do with that notion? Either he's a real Skynet controlled Terminator and he's out to kill people (like in T1), or he's a reprogrammed Terminator and fights for the human resistance, as was the case in T2 and T3. He might be a bit of a 'grey zone' killing machine, like Marcus (Sam Worthington) in TS, a cyborg whose loyalty is undecided, but that too has already been done in both TS and TSCC. Plot wise I can't think of much scenarios that would help reinvigorate the franchise with Schwarzenegger's presence, but then I'm no producer or screen writer, so what do I know?

And then of course Schwarzie is slated to do the very late sequel to Twins (1988!), called Triplets: a project I'm sure few people really are actively interested in watching after having to wait no less than twenty-six years for it! And to top it all off, he's scheduled to do another Conan the Barbarian flick (which should have been done in the Eighties as was promised, but sadly that proposed third installment called Conan the Conqueror got scrapped and we got that shitty Red Sonja movie instead). This despite that fact Conan has already been rebooted only a few years ago, starring Khal Drogo Jason Momoa, but that film flopped somethin' fierce, so it comes as no surprise that the studio would be eager to make us forget all about it. Fortunately there's still a few original projects in Arnold's pipeline, but for the most part he seems adamant to return to past success. And if he continues to go the tongue-in-cheek way for all of those projects, like he has done so far, his old age could soon prove very repetitive for his audience. Like a granddaddy with memory problems who continues to tell his grandchildren the same jokes over and over again. That would be a sad final phase of Schwarzenegger's otherwise illustrious career...

Shooting people up, Advanced Class

The Expendables 2: ***/*****, or 7/10

Tony Scott may have jumped off a bridge, thus leaving the movie industry with one less capable action director, but fortunately there's still some of those left. Simon West for example. Though generally not as well known, nor as experienced in shooting pure action judged from the number of action films in his repertoire, with movies like Con Air (1997), Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001) and the recent Jason Statham flick The Mechanic (2011), it's far from unreasonable to state the guy has some knowledge of things that go boom. So when Sylvester Stallone decided to stick to writing and acting while letting go of the director's chair that seemed to fit him well enough for his ultimate action movie The Expendables two years ago, hiring West for the job wasn't the most illogical decision. However, judging from the final product, Stallone would have done well to encourage West to get more innovative, considering The Expendables 2 improves little upon its predecessor: a solid action movie is West's contribution to the franchise, but considering the sheer number of renowned action stars participating in Stallone's second ode to the action genre as a whole, the sequel's approach to things feels like a routine is being established instead of new routes being taken. That routine apparently revolves around action stars getting together and shooting people up.

The movie's main focus seems to be the expansion of bit parts of characters from the first film played by screen icons Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce Wilis, plus the introduction of several new characters played by muscle movie veterans Jean-Claude Van Damme and Chuck Norris to the already impressive line-up of (near) legendary action stars from the first film, to further support Stallone's hypothesis that old dogs can still pull off worthwhile tricks that manage to draw huge audience numbers. His point was well proven by the success of The Expendables, making The Expendables 2 feel more like an obligatory Hollywood cash-in than a sincere attempt to outdo what was done before for the audience's entertainment. Nevertheless, The Expendables 2 at least succeeds in delivering ample amounts of gun fights and screen violence paired to often successfully timed moments of humor and referencing the action classics the movie means to pay homage to, which is what most spectators will expect, and what they will get.

The movie starts in medias res, as we follow Stallone's pack of mercenaries – and it's really Stallone's, since few people will ever remember the names of the characters after leaving their theaters, considering they are played by so many larger-than-life people – on a job rescuing a wealthy Chinese entrepreneur from the clutches of nameless Nepalese thugs, in a spectacular raid on their heavily fortified facility involving heavy machinery and man sized artillery, opening the film with a huge bang as our heroes shoot down and blow up endless rows of antagonists in an expected and desired orgy of gun violence, followed by an adrenaline rushed jungle river chase (which saw one stunt man dead and another one crippled) ending in a decently sized explosion to round things up. If you were wondering, the movie is rated R where the previous installment was only PG-13, thus allowing the director more freedom to insert appropriate levels of gore and blood into the film, all for the better. At this point the film has only run for about 15 of its 103 minutes, so it takes a moment to re-establish the characters, introduce some new ones and specify their upcoming mission, plus giving the viewers a much needed moment to catch their breath.

Centerpiece of the first half of The Expendables 2 is rookie team member Billy the Kid (played by Liam Hemsworth: despite his role in The Hunger Games, this is really his first action film, making him feel as much out of place in this movie judging from his experience as an actor as his character feels out of place on the team for his young age), protegée to team leader Barney Ross (Stallone, mumbling his lines as unintelligibly as usual), who despite his excellent sniper abilities decides this is not the life for him and tells his mentor he means to retire soon. However, when the band of extremely broad shouldered brothers find themselves with a new assignment, courtesy of shady CIA operative Church (Wilis), who they owe some money after the events of the first film, to retrieve a brief case from a downed plane in Albania, Billy's loyalty compels him to join them. They are also accompanied by Maggie, an expert on Church's payroll: Chinese actress Yu Nan gets the seemingly thankless job of representing girl power amidst the humongous amounts of testosterone going around, but manages to keep up surprisingly well, giving the occasional witty rebuttal when confronted with near sexist remarks from her new team members. The brief case is easily found, but soon lost to the villain of the piece, a bad guy simply named 'Jean Vilain', played enthusiastically by Jean-Claude Van Damme despite his character's feeble screen name: fully in tone with Stallone's straightforward way of thinking, why bother with intricate designations when you can call a spade a spade? Vilain makes it clear he's not to be messed with and lives up to his name when he takes the team's prize and leaves Billy dead, thus setting the stage for the veterans' quest for vengeance.

Revenge alone is too ignoble an objective for such a notable group of exemplary action stars, so the plot raises the stakes by revealing the brief case contained the exact location of a former Soviet depot in Bulgaria that houses five tons of plutonium Vilain intends to sell despite its threat to the world's balance of power. To make him even more of a ruthless bastard, he utilizes slave labor to dig out the plutonium, so the Expendables' mission is to free the slaves, secure the goods and avenge their comrade. In truth it matters little what the exact mission is, so long as the stage is set for a large string of overly loud gun fights, some neat display of martial arts and general fisticuffs and a decent amount of one-liners mixed in, most of them acknowledging the actors' former entries into the action genre (with the most obvious and funniest remarks referring to the Die Hard and Terminator franchises). In a moderately epic, drawn out conflict staged at an air port the team of good guys, now joined by Wilis, Norris and Schwarzenegger, square off against the legion of bad guys, culminating in a vicious mano-a-mano confrontation between Stallone and Van Damme, kicking each other's teeth in like two Roman gladiators. Needless to say who wins the day, since The Expendables 3 has already been widely announced.

In the middle of all the action, the main attractions of The Expendables 2 regrettably also turn out to be its main flaws. Since the success of the first movie was based mostly around the large number of famous action stars getting together for a mother-of-all-action-films flick, The Expendables 2 clearly needed to outdo its predecessor by gathering some more noted heavyweights to join the fun. The full line-up of action stars of the film now consists of Stallone, Van Damme, Wilis, Schwarzenegger, Norris, Dolph Lundgren, Jet Li, Jason Statham, Randy Couture and Terry Crews and with so many vets gracing the screen, it'll come as no surprise not everybody gets an equal chance to shine. Li, an established team member in the first film, exits the movie immediately after the opening mission has been completed, not to be seen or even mentioned again, while Couture, Crews and Norris are left with little to do during the whole piece, and Lundgren largely has been reduced to comic relief (which thankfully he pulls off well). It makes you wonder why the movie needed an action virgin like Hemsworth at all, considering his role could have gone to one of the older and more accomplished actors, thus offering a chance to make the narrative feel more poignant upon the moment of his death. The same can be said for Yu Nan's role (though it's laudable West and Stallone provided the opportunity for her big break on the international market), which could also have gone to one of the other actors in favor of balancing the existing amount of characters properly instead of relegating them to the side line in favor of even more characters joining the stage. Wilis and Schwarzenegger are no longer restricted to playing mere cameos as they were before but are finally offered the chance to get their hands dirty: they do so vigorously, but their status as (former?) A-list superstars is mostly applied to referencing their most memorable movies more often than feels appropriate, at times making their presence feel forced despite generating a few more laughs. At least Van Damme gets the opportunity to explore Vilain's savage villainy in much more detail, making his climactic final fight with Stallone work on the intended levels. As was the case with the predecessor, at the heart of The Expendables 2 still lies the camaraderie between Stallone and Statham, with the pair of them exchanging both witticisms and drama, acknowledging the fact the torch has successfully been passed from Stallone's age of action stars to Statham's more recent generation, with relentless love and understanding for the genre and its conventions clearly driving the both of them. The more things change, the more they stay the same after all, and both sides of the coin are amply represented in West's The Expendables 2 as much as they were in Stallone's own The Expendables.

The Expendables 2 is a double confirmation of the age gold adage that more of a good thing isn't necessarily better. First, it's good to see more familiar faces from past glory again, but if the talent we all know to be underlying said faces remains underused, little has been accomplished. The movie is running for an entertaining 103 minutes, but could have benefited from another 15 or 20 minutes fleshing out the likes of Norris, Couture, Crews, Li and Lundgren some more, especially considering that, second, like the first Expendables film, the movie still feels lacking something in the action department, even though that sounds incredible. Fact is, the first 15 minutes of the film basically say it all, showcasing the Expendables' efficiency as a team to great effect – with each team member getting the opportunity to display his fighting skills more or less equally – in an ever expanding rollercoaster ride of an action sequence, with a big explosion to tie it all up. The rest of the movie simply can't live up to this opening, despite throwing in more stars, more gags and more action, and even more plot (which makes you consider just how much, or how little, of that is needed in a film like this). Though it still entertains tremendously, the audience keeps waiting for a staggeringly huge motherfucking explosion that never comes.

Director West can't be blamed for his film's shortcomings, which simply lie in the movie's changing intentions as it finds itself transformed into a franchise trilogy – which it didn't start out to be – changing from paying homage to past glory, to a series of films revolving around ever greater numbers of action stars joining each other in referencing eachother's oeuvre as they dispatch large scores of bad guys. With The Expendables 3 already in the pipe line, Stallone would do well to take a closer look at the direction the franchise has taken and the effect this has had on both the audience's expectations and the overall coherence of the films proper, before signing on more colleagues the likes of Nicolas Cage and Steven Seagal to further relive the good ol' days. After all, the audience is not expendable, and it's still craving that giant stupendously big-ass explosion...

And watch the trailer here:

http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/lions_gate/theexpendables2/