Today's Review: Warcraft

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Warcraft - Recensie

Judging from the on-again, off-again subtitle The Beginning, it's clear Universal Studios hopes for this first entry into the Warcraft film franchise not to be the last. A ton of money has been thrown at the screen on a project that has been in development for nigh a decade to entice both fans and ignorant audiences alike, but the best intentions regardless, it's unlikely the film will sit well with the latter demographic, while it remains to be seen whether it'll be to the liking of the former. After all, the gamers are simple spectators on a quest played by Duncan Jones and his team, rather than their own. General viewers meanwhile get treated to a grand and supposedly rich fantasy universe for which they have a tough time developing a feeling, considering Warcraft only forms the tip of the proverbial iceberg.

The World of Warcraft is vast and extensive, yet a film franchise has to start somewhere explaining it all. The Beginning addresses the origin of the wars between Orcs and Men, so it is said in the opening narration. Which also proves a major spoiler to the movie's own plot, considering the outcome of it all has already been determined. While much of the movie follows a minority of Orcs attempting to establish a truce with the world of Men they just invaded, with that opening statement in mind, there's few narrative surprises in store for us. Which doesn't mean we don't feel for this peaceful, noble Orc warriors, who find themselves a pawn of a sinister force's greater schemes to suck this world dry of life like it did their own home before. Brought to life by the latest motion capture innovations, the movie follows the new path of creating convincing digital characters based on intense acting performances, in the same style as the recent Planet of the Apes movie so successfully. It works, as these are some of the finest Orcs we've seen on the big screen thus far.

Alas, the same cannot be said for their human counterparts. The noble knights and conniving warlocks of Azeroth aren't nearly as interesting to behold as their fresh enemies, a victim of both dull, generic fantasy writing and uninspired performances. Though there's definitely a pool of talent assembled here, none of these actors truly seemed to have affinity with the exotic subject matter. All the silly spells and swashbuckling sword moves can't change that, and there's plenty of both to go around. In fact, Warcraft fanatics will recognize plenty of everything from their beloved games much to their enjoyment and to the detriment of ours, the casual viewers not acquainted with this realm. Especially in the first thirty minutes of the movie, the plot travels from one outlandish location to the next without allowing us much room to absorb it all, get to know its rules or develop a sense of geography for the whole. While names like Ironforge and Stormwind are no doubt iconic nomenclature to the fans, they never rise above the sound of generic fantasy to inexperienced ears. Same can be said for the other inhabitants of Azeroth: Dwarves, Elves and the like are briefly seen here and there but otherwise play no part.

Undoubtedly there's more to the World of Warcraft than what's shown here, but for the general audience, what realms are served never really click. It all looks fabulous but none of it makes us truly care on the same level as the Lord of the Rings movies did. Whether the fans will absorb this take on their beloved franchise as much as they did their interactive equivalent remains to be seen, but the studio better hope they do. Other audiences at best get a decent two hours of generic fantasy entertainment out of it, but nobody will be converted to the Warcraft cause. Which, considering the cost of this hugely expensive movie, might easily suggest The Beginning will also prove the end for the Warcraft film franchise.

Today's Review: 47 Ronin

47 Ronin: **/*****, or 4/10

'To understand the story of the 47 ronin is to understand Japan' this movie states as its introduction, attempting to place what's to come in a historical context for audiences unfamiliar with ancient, feudal Japan. The story of these 47 samurai, who witnessed the death of their master which caused them to become shamed ronin and afterwards successfully plotted and executed their revenge to regain their honour and die a noble suicide, is one of Japan's most popular and enduring legends. Such a serious tale of death and dishonour is not the usual stuff of grandiose Hollywood productions and therefore this original saga was embellished with plenty of action, romance and expensive effects to make it more worthy of being turned into a blockbuster movie. However, the heart of the story was left unchanged (something Japanese traditionalists at least will appreciate) and as a result, 47 Ronin proves a rather uncomfortable and uneasy mix of Japanese and western storytelling.

47 Ronin is told from the perspective of Kai, a mysterious halfbreed orphan who is found by Lord Asano of Ako province. Despite the advice of his samurai who consider him a demon child, Asano takes him in because he sees 'something' in the boy. Raised alongside Asano's daughter Mika the orphan grows up to be Keanu Reeves, and they develop a typical secret desire for one another (credibility of which is hindered by the fact that Keanu looks and is much older than the actress playing his love interest, though they are meant to be about the same age). Kai is of course an all too obvious attempt to make it easier for western audiences to identify with the strange and unknown Japanese way of life, but as is usually the result of such additions, Kai gets too important for the story's good, as if the movie's 'natives' are unable to carry out their bold plan without a white man's help. Identification is ever a challenge for the audience where the stoic Reeves is concerned, and 47 Ronin proves no different, though his emotionless expression at least suits the subject matter. However, Asano was right, as Kai is no ordinary boy but is indeed connected with the supernatural. Which is just as well, as it turns out 18^th Century Japan, unlike the original legend told us, was surprisingly infested with the occult, monsters and wraiths. Did I mention 47 Ronin is also a fantasy movie? Well, it is.

Asano suffers a rivalry with the ruthless Lord Kira (who ironically is played by Tadanobu Asano). Hellbent on taking over Ako (and as is typical, everything else too in the long run), Kira employs the talents of a shapeshifting witch (Pacific Rim's Rinko Kikuchi) to stir things up. Kikuchi is evidently enjoying the role of seductive sorceress, but like her boss plays evil only for evil's sake, which makes for a rather poorly motivated, dull duo of bad guys. Their schemes succeed as Asano is tricked into openly attempting to kill Kira in the presence of their shogun, for which he is sentenced to seppuku. Romanticising this act of suicide, Asano's death is overly poetic and bloodless, despite the fact he's disemboweling himself and getting his head struck off. After his death, his samurai are declared dishonoured ronin and, to turn insult into agony, Mika is forced to wed Lord Kira. This will not do, after which Asano's captain Oishi (Hiroyuki Sanada, grave and cold as often) plots revenge. And even though he never liked him, he asks Kai to join the quest. Good thing too, as the revelation of his upbringing by forest ghosts sure aids in defeating their monstrous and demonic opponents. Most of which were already defeated in terms of convincing the audience due to the poor visual effects job done on them.

Amidst all the beheadings and dismemberment that follows, it's evident that a different kind of cutting called editing also did not work in 47 Ronin's favour. At times it's obvious that material was discarded, making for an occasionally jumbled flow of the movie's plot, especially in the case of the scenes on the 'Dutch Island', where Kai is sold into a brief life of slavery and gladiatorial servitude. An impressively tattooed pirate, heavily used in the film's marketing campaign, is seen only for a short moment, while the perceptive eye is able to spot a brief appearance by Yorick van Wageningen: aggressive changes in the post-production process reduced his part to the quickest of cameos. At least there is nothing wrong with the design of the movie, which does at times look sensational and exotic, even in 3D. Though little effective use is made of that technology, as the straightforward quest for vengeance is otherwise quite two-dimensional. Despite all the added fantasy spectacle, the story remains the tale of a group of angry knights seeking revenge for the death of their lord. Their sense of honour is all that matters, a point which the movie gets across, but is hard to be approved by everybody. Despite the addition of various grotesqueries and scenes of supernatural suspense to make the story more entertaining and acceptable for the non-Japanese, the general mood of the film is overly sombre and devoid of relatable humour. Not counting a particularly fat ronin who, as overweight people tend to do in Hollywood blockbusters, is supposed to introduce a bit of comedy to occasionally lighten the tone, but fails miserably.

The only understanding western audiences will take away with them from seeing 47 Ronin is that Hollywood and Japanese legend don't mix to everybody's satisfaction. We understand that Japanese notions of honour are obsessed with ritual suicide, choosing death over life even when the situation, from our point of view, would definitely dictate differently. As the movie is transformed into otherwise fairly standard fantasy fare, the conclusion of the legend is left unchanged: evil has been vanquished, the land made safe, but still the 47 ronin are ordered to die, as per the climax of the original story. No happy end by western standards here, as Keanu and his fellow warriors take their own life (gladly, even!), leaving their grieving loved ones behind, for such is their way of honour. At times it feels like 47 Ronin means to make suicide a popular trend by extolling its virtues. Western audiences can only stand amazed by what at times appears to be a genuine glorification of seppuku. In this regard, the Japanese can be glad Hollywood left the core of their legend untampered despite the addition of witches and monsters to make things more exciting, but a 'gaijin' audience is left estranged as their notions of what constitutes a satisfactory ending – even if it would have been the stuff of cliché – are shattered. To understand the story of the 47 ronin is to acknowledge the extreme clash of cultures between Japan and Hollywood in this matter: 47 Ronin makes that much painfully clear.

Conan the Barbarian (2011)

Rating: ***/*****, or 6/10

Re-imagination of the Conan franchise and the barbarian character itself, first immortalized by Arnold Schwarzenegger in 1982. Jason Momoa (the former Khal Drogo on the brilliant HBO show Game of Thrones) has big boots to fill indeed, and does it adequately enough judging by the size of his biceps and the lack of subtlety and talent for murder displayed in his take on Conan. This sleeker, more modern action flick retells the origins of Conan, keeping close to Schwarzenegger's Conan the Barbarian (1982) combined with some elements from Conan the Destroyer (1984), starting of as a wild child who witnesses his tribe massacred and his beloved father (Ron Perlman!) viciously put to death at the hands of the evil tyrant king Khalar Zym (Stephen Lang once again failing to portray a truly disdainful antagonist as he did on Avatar (2009)). Seeking revenge in the long run, Conan at first sticks to the life of a thief and a pirate, until he picks up Zym's trace again and slashes his way to the top through a long row of creepy henchmen, delivering some decent action scenes and rescuing a beautiful lady of royal blood (Rachel Nichols) in the process. This princess is intended as a human sacrifice so Zym and his maniacal sorceress daughter (a delightful Rose McGowan who is obviously having a ball here) can summon the powers of an ancient mask and conquer the world. Of course Conan doesn't make it easy for them, resulting in a string of violent fisticuffs, intense moments of swords hacking into human flesh and overly digital monsters to be fought, basically the ingredients most spectators would have expected. Overall a fairly entertaining action film, certainly the best in director Marcus Nispel's repertoire (which isn't saying much with movies like Pathfinder (2007) and Friday the 13^th (2009) on his score), but never truly special and certainly not as iconic as Schwarzenegger's original portrayal of the classic Robert E. Howard character. The movie did rather poorly at the box office, despite being released in 3-D (though for most of the film you wouldn't have noticed this), so we probably won't be hearing from Conan for a while. A shame on the one hand, but on the other, we'll always have Ah-nuld.

Starring Jason Momoa, Stephen Lang, Rose McGowan

Directed by Marcus Nispel

USA: Millennium Films, 2011

Conan the Destroyer

Rating: ***/*****, or 5/10

Mildly entertaining but ultimately underwhelming successor to the superior Conan the Barbarian (1982). The strong but silent warrior returns to the big screen as he is tasked by a ruthless queen to escort her young and beautiful niece to a faraway magic castle to find a jewel that can awaken the sleeping god, Dagoth, she worships. Together with a ragtag band of fellow warriors, Conan fights marauders, sorcery and demons along the way, while the princess falls in love with him. Little do both know she is destined to be a human sacrifice to the monstrous god, and there are those in the warriors' ranks who must ensure the girl will fulfill that destiny, even if it means killing Conan in the process. Though there's more intrigue in the story compared to its predecessor, it often gets in the way of the plan simple action people will expect from this film, while a PG rating, ill suited to the material (Barbarian was rated R after all), further restricts the fighting to such an extent it never gets beyond childish and mediocre. The effects are also not on par with the first film, though they still make for a decent dreamy level of quality that contributes to the overall sense of fantasy. Noted science fiction and fantasy director Richard Fleischer (20000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954), Fantastic Voyage (1966), Soylent Green (1973)) has been known to produce better fare than this, though it remains an interesting entry in his oeuvre. A third movie, which could have undone the flaws of this film, unfortunately never got beyond the planning stages of production. In order to still get his dose of fantasy acting, Schwarzenegger opted for a supporting role in the suspiciously similar Red Sonja the following year, ironically enough also directed by Fleischer.

Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Grace Jones, Wilt Chamberlain

Directed by Richard Fleischer

USA: Dino De Laurentiis Company, 1984

Conan the Barbarian (1982)

Rating: ****/*****, or 7/10

Classic 'Sword & Sorcery' type of film, a landmark fantasy movie of the Eighties and the definitive cinematic breakthrough of the iconic Arnold Schwarzenegger. Based on the works of Robert E. Howard and set in an unspecified chapter of mankind's prehistory, Conan witnesses his tribe being massacred as a child by the forces of the evil sorcerer Thulsa Doom (fabulous role for James Earl Jones), after which the boy is doomed to slavery. Surviving his ordeal of slave labor, the adult Conan rises all the stronger as a gladiator and fights for his freedom, after which he sets out on a bloody quest for vengeance. Trying his hand at theft at first, Conan meets the beautiful female thief Valeria (Sandahl Bergman) with whom he soon falls in love after which the pair is asked by a king to reclaim his stolen daughter from the vile clutches of a Snake Cult ruled by Doom. With a minimum of dialogue (no more than is absolutely necessary for the character), Milius has the rogue warrior mercilessly fight his way through hordes of monsters and minions under the command of the villainous practitioner of the dark arts, often with a very amusing cynical lack of subtlety, a form of acting Schwarzenegger is shown to excel at (and would often do so again in similar roles in his action packed repertoire). Though the effects have aged quite a bit, they still add a wonderful otherworldly quality to the piece, often emulated but rarely surpassed. A fabulous epic score by Basil Poledouris completes the fun. Followed by the inferior Conan the Destroyer two years later. The intriguing opening narration of this film mentions Conan's ascent to the level of king: though this was intended to be featured in a third film, often claimed to be titled Conan the Conqueror, it sadly never materialized.

Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sandahl Bergman, James Earl Jones

Directed by John Milius

USA: Dino De Laurentiis Company, 1982

Black Death

Rating: ***/*****, or 6/10

Thematically intriguing but too overtly low budget and conflicted action/fantasy flick set in medieval times. When England is struck by the outbreak of the Black Death, the bubonic plague, the young monk Osmund (Eddie Redmayne) is ordered to investigate a remote village which supposedly has not been stricken by the disease, much to the chagrin of church authorities who suspect witchcraft is involved. Accompanied by a band of grizzly mercenaries under the command of the butch but superstitious knight Ulric (Sean Bean once again playing in the genre he fits in the most), Osmund discovers a peaceful community of atheists led by the beautiful “witch” Langiva ("our" own Carice van Houten, but with a normal English accent this time) who do not take kindly to the intruders intending to introduce God to the villagers by force and violently dispatch the wicked woman, instead casting the first stone upon them, which leads to a harrowing series of executions, chases and general goriness. The notion of atheists forcing Christians to renounce their religion in a time when that religion tolerated no different points of view is a charming reversal of roles, but the resulting dark climax of the film either doesn't bother making a point or simplistically states 'we're all just faulty human beings'. Overall, playing with religious themes and upturning them makes for an interesting addition to the genre, but eventually ends in general bloodshed all too easily without taking such intriguing content much further. Good action and damn fine acting regardless.

Starring: Sean Bean, Carice van Houten, Eddie Redmayne

Directed by Christopher Smith

UK/Germany: HanWay Films, 2010

The Scorpion King

Rating: **/*****, or 5/10

Conan Light biedt geen inzicht in titelfiguur

Diegenen die vorig jaar The Mummy Returns niet hebben gezien zal de titel Scorpion King niets zeggen. Het tweede deel van de Mummy-reeks voerde het personage, gespeeld door worstelaar The Rock (echte naam Dwayne Johnson), ten tonele als nieuwe schurk waar de daadwerkelijke booswicht, de mummie zelf, mee overhoop lag in een strijd om de wereldmacht. Het optreden van de schorpioenkoning in vlees en bloed bleef in The Mummy Returns beperkt tot een korte maar fascinerende introductie waarin diens geschiedenis uit de doeken werd gedaan; in de climax van de film werd The Rock vervolgens vervangen door een uit de computer getoverd schepsel dat zo overduidelijk digitaal was dat het 't einde van die film geen goed deed. Het was overtuigender geweest als de worstelster gewoon lijfelijk aan het einde weer opgevoerd werd, maar kennelijk was dat niet spectaculair genoeg. Een gemiste kans dus, maar met zijn eigen film mag deze Scorpion King alsnog laten zien wat hij in zijn mars heeft. Dat blijkt echter niet veel te zijn.

Helaas geeft The Scorpion King weinig inzicht in het karakter van de titelfiguur. De connectie met The Mummy Returns is praktisch niet-bestaand. Waar het personage in de voorganger nog werd neergezet als een woeste veroveraar uit lang vervlogen tijden die de wereld de oorlog verklaart, is er van zulke ambities in zijn eigen film niets te merken. Als zodoende levert The Scorpion King meer vragen op dan hij beantwoordt. Niet onbegrijpelijk dat Mummy-regisseur Stephen Sommers voor de eer bedankte en de ervaren actieregisseur Chuck Russell (Eraser, The Blob) naar voren geschoven werd.

De situatie ligt nu als volgt. The Rock speelt Mathayus, de laatste Akkadiër, die zijn diensten als huurmoordenaar heeft aangeboden aan een groep rebellen die strijdt tegen de oorlogszuchtige tiran Memnon (televisie-acteur Stephen Brand) die van plan is de wereld te veroveren en daarin bijzonder goed slaagt dankzij een geheimzinnige tovenares (de zeer verleidelijke Kelly Hu) die de uitkomsten van zijn veldslagen kan voorzien. In een poging de tovenares te ontvoeren sneuvelt Mathayus' broer, waarop zijn vete met de krijgsheer persoonlijk wordt. Vervolgens slaagt hij er alsnog in de heks te schaken en sleurt hij haar mee de woestijn in, waar zich uiteraard de typische romance tussen het tweetal ontwikkelt. Ten slotte waagt het duo samen met de rebellen en hun onstuimige hoofdman Balthazar (de altijd indrukwekkende Michael Clarke Duncan, The Green Mile) een laatste aanval op Memnons fort in de hoop hun vijand te verslaan. Voeg hier de nodige actiescènes, een nogal irritante sidekick (Grant Heslov) en namen en plaatsen uit allerhande mythen en legenden (van het Bijbelse Gomorra to Cassandra uit de Ilias) aan toe en de resulterende potpourri levert het eindresultaat The Scorpion King op, waarin de link met The Mummy Returns volledig ontbreekt en zowel het gehalte 'scorpion' als de hoeveelheid 'king' tekort schiet.

Als op zichzelf staande film levert de film nog enig vermaak op tijdens de daverende actie, maar stelt het in totaal weinig voor. Het uitbundige spierballenvertoon van The Rock gaat doorgaans gepaard van nogal flauwe 'tongue-in-cheek' humor, die aangeeft dat we het geheel vooral niet te serieus moeten nemen, wat we toch al niet van plan waren. Inhoudelijk doet de film sterk danken aan Conan the Barbarian, ook al een film met als protagonist een bonk spieren die strijdt tegen een kwaadaardig heerser die hem ooit een dierbare ontnam, in een fictieve voorhistorische wereld met elementen uit allerlei mythologieën.. Echter, die film was een stuk gewelddadiger, waarmee vergeleken The Scorpion King nogal soft overkomt. Bovendien mist The Rock het norse, cynische karakter waarvan Schwarzenegger zich destijds bediende, maar wat in deze film juist niet misstaan had. The Scorpion King is in principe 'Conan light'.

Naast The Rock houdt de rest van het acteursensemble zich goed overeind. Michael Clarke Duncan speelt hem in feite van het scherm, waardoor het jammer is dat zijn personage vrij weinig scènes heeft. Stephen Brand levert goed werk af, maar zijn Memnon is te beschaafd (inclusief Engels accent) om een overtuigende booswicht te zijn: als een soort Alexander de Grote tracht hij de wereld beschaving op te leggen door volkeren te verbinden, zij het met geweld, waardoor hij niet een typische machtswellusteling is. Ook ervaren Britse rot Bernard Hill (Titanic) komt langs, als een excentrieke uitvinder die zijn tijd ver vooruit is en het buskruit levert aan de rebellen. Het merendeel van de acteurs in deze film heeft meer in zijn mars dan The Rock zelf, die duidelijk nog weinig ervaring heeft in de kunst van het acteren maar meer bedreven is in het loslaten van zijn spierkracht ten bate van hersenloze actie.

The Scorpion King biedt hoofdzakelijk oppervlakkig avontuur. Het altijd bloedeloze geweld duidt aan dat de makers een tienerpubliek voor ogen hadden, een gevoel dat nog versterkt wordt door de hoeveelheid blote huid die Kelly Hu de gehele film door tentoonstelt zonder daarvoor daadwerkelijk uit de kleren te gaan. De film voelt aan als de jongensdroom van een middelbare scholier die in de schoolbanken tijdens saaie lesuren fantaseert van een leven vol spanning en sensatie in exotische locaties met een mooie meid aan zijn zijde. Misschien voelt het puberpubliek zich sterker aangesproken door The Scorpion King dan de gemiddelde bioscoopganger. Diegenen die hoopten op een interessante kijk op de voorgeschiedenis van het intrigerende personage uit The Mummy Returns komen hoe dan ook bedrogen uit, want hoe de schorpioenkoning van koene vrijheidsstrijder naar bloeddorstig veroveraar ging blijft hier een raadsel.