Movie Taco: September 2013

8/22/2019 Movie Taco: September 2013

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2/26

Praesentpretium

lectusadui.

AgentsofS.H.I.E.L.D

Avengers:Ageof

Ultron

Cloudy2:RevengeoftheLeftovers

DonJon

EdgeofTomorrow

GrownUps2

GuardiansoftheGalaxy

R.I.P.D

Rush

StarTrek

SupermanVBatmanThor:TheDarkWorld

Turbo

TheWizardofOz

TheWolverine

X-Men:DaysofFuturePast

INSIDETHISISSUE

DONTFORGETTODOWNLOADBOXOFFICEBUZZ,

BUZZHUBSHUGELYPOPULARFILMPODCAST.

RELEASEDWEEKLYUNTILTHEENDOFAUGUST

ANDFORTNIGHTLYTHROUGHTHEWINTER,ITSTHEONE-STOPSHOPTHEWEEKSBOXOFFICE

NEWSANDFILMREVIEWS!


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OZ : 2 GREAT 2

POWERFUL

NEED FOR

PEED

MyLord,whatsthis?JustsevenmonthsafterSamRaimisverygoodfantasyadventureOzTheGreat&

Powerfulflewintocinemas,theyvealreadymadeasequelcalledTheWizardofOz,anditsbeingreleased

nSeptember?Thishasastrange,all-newcomercast,includingayoungactresscalledJudyGarlandas

Dorothy,ayounggirlwhoistransportedtothelandofOzyearsafterJamesFrancoswizardduringastorm

similartothatwesawinMarch.Thesupportingcastofcharactersincludestalkingscarecrows,lionsanda

tinman,andMilaKunisWickedWitchwillreturnasanolderwoman,playedbyadifferentactress.This

couldbeinteresting,anditsoutinIMAX3D!

Ohwait.

FreshfromhishilariousArrested

Developmentonscreencameo(hehas

voiceover-edthefirstthreeseasons),Ron

DaVinciCodeHowardisgettingprepared

tounveilhisFormula1dramaRushtothe

world.StarringChrisHemsworthandDaniel

Bruhl,itfocusesonatragicaccidentthat

occurredduringaGrandPrixinthe70s,

fromwhichaluckydriverescapedalive.

Werenotgoingtopretendtoknow

anythingaboutsports,butthislookslike

anotherengaging,emotionalworkfrom

Howard,withastellarcast.


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FOOD TIMES

UNTRUE ROMANCE

ThefirstCloudyWithAChanceofMeatballsfilm

wasoneofthemostpleasantsurprisesofthe

century-anear-perfectfamilycomedywith

enoughsweetnessandsillinessforthekids,and

enoughpseudo-psychadelichumorandsettingfo

theadults.However,astherecentDespicableMe

2showedus,animatedsequelsrarelyturnoutas

goodastheirpredecessors,andthishasnew

directors,asLordandMillerlastyearbrokeinto

live-actioncomedywiththehugelysuccessful21

JumpStreet,andarecurrentlymakingasequel.

Whatdoyougetwhenyousticktwoofthesexiestyoungactorsin

Hollywoodinasexcomedydirectedbyoneofthem?Amassive

f**kinghit,asJosephGordon-Levittissoontofindout.Yes,theman

whocametoourattentioninfilmslikeBrick,(500)DaysofSummer

andInception,andwhohadafielddayallthroughlastyearwith

incrediblysuccessfulturnsinTheDarkKnightRises,PremiumRush,

LooperandLincoln,hasdirectedafilm-DonJon(formerlyDonJons

Addiction)aboutapornaddict.Thefilmhasalreadyreceivedgreat

cclaimafterscreeningsatSundace,BerliinandSouthBySouthwest,andGordon-Levittmay

belookingatafuturecareer,Clooney/Affleck-style,asbothamassivenameactoranda

riticallybeloveddirector.


5/26

FTER IRON MAN 3S SPECTACULAR $1bn HAUL, THE PRESSURE IS ONOR MARVELS MOST POWERFUL AVENGER AS HE RETURNS FOR MORE IN

THOR: THE DARK WORLD.

tistheafternoonofJuly20,2013,andseveralthousandfilmandcomic-bookfansaresquashedintoHallofSanDiegoconventioncentre.Why?BecauseKevinFeigeisabouttobringmostoftheHollywoodA-

terscurrentlylivingintotheroomtodiscusstheupcomingMarvelprojectstheyarecurrentlyworking(or

avejustfinishedworking)on.SuchactorsasScarlettJohannson,NataliePortmanandBenicioDelToroare

xpectedtoturnup.Whatsthis?Loki,primaryantagonistof2011sThorand2012sTheAvengershasjust

nteredthehall,chantingSaymyname!atthetopofhisAsgardianlungs.TomHiddlestonisonemanwho

nowshowtotreathisfans-withloveandrespect-andinreturn,theytreathimbypayingbucketloadsof

shtoseethefilmsinwhichheappearsasThorseviladoptedbrother,revealedtobefrost-giantbornat

eendofThor,andcapturedanddepotedbacktoAsgardafterdestroyinghalfofNewYorkcityattheend

f lastyearsrecord-breakinglysuccessfulAvengers-whichremainsthehighest-grossingmotionpictureofall


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menotdirectedbyJamesCameron.Thor:TheDarkWorld,thesecondpost-AvengersfilmforFeiges

udioafterthemassivelysuccessfulIronMan3inMay,hasthehonourofseeingthebigscreenreturnof

hefansfavouritevillain.However,Lokiisnotthemainbadguyinthefilm-thathonourgoestoformer

octorWhostarChristopherEccleston,whoplaysMalekeithTheAccursed,oneoftheDarkElves,who

vadeEarthandmustbedefeatedbyChrisHemsworthsAsgardianPrince.Lokiisevilatheart,butthe

hreatoftheElvesloomssolargeinthisfilmthatevenhefeelstheurgetodefendthehumansagainst

hemsaysHiddleston.Yes,DarkWorldwilllargelybeatwo-handerbetweenThorandLokiastheyfightthe

ves.However,NataliePortmanisalsoreturningashumanscientistJaneFoster,forwhomThorfellinthe

rstThor,andyearnedforinAvengers.Portmanspresenceinthefilmseemedunlikelyforaperiod,asshe

rotestedPattyJenkinsbeingdroppedasdirectorandbeingreplacedbythemorereliable,Gameof

hronesveteranAlanTaylor.Taylorsworkonthefilmislookingsuperb,ashesharestimebetweenthearthandAsgardpartsofThorslifewhilstkeepingthesenseofscaleandtheepicactionandromancethat

arriedKennethBrannaghsoriginal.Thor:TheDarkWorldistheWintersonlysuperherofilm,andthe

ggestcomic-bookmovieeverreleasedoutsidetheApril-AugustSummerperiod.Willthisriskpayoff,or

earisktoofar?

Thor:TheDarkWorldisreleased

intheUKonOctober30,andthe

USonNovember8.ItwillbereviewedintheNovemberissueof

MovieTaco.


7/26

THE BIG

QUINTERVIEW


8/26

At a special public interview at the 2013 Galway Film Fleadh on Friday, July 12, Zachary Quinto

discussed his illustrious career and his roles in StarTrek,Heroes and AmericanHorrorStory.BuzzHub had

a front-row seat, and witnessed first hand what Quinto had to say about his current and future projects,

including some revealing and intriguing information!

When asked about his role as Spock in J.J. Abrams StarTrekfilms, Quinto told the audience:

StarTrek

3shouldbefilming,I

suppose,next

year.Itsgoingto

bemadealot

quickerthanthe

lastone.Thats

theplan,

althoughnothingisconfirmedyet.He was also asked if

he would want to

reunite with Abrams

and appear in StarWarsEpisodeVII, and he said he would not, without giving a particular reason.

At one point in the interview, Quinto mentioned that J.J. Abrams was planning to direct StarTrek3, which

is another surprising fact, but once again, he did not elaborate.

He spoke about a film he is currently preparing to shoot, directed by Big Bang Theorystar Simon Helberg

(Howard Wolowitz) and his wife Jocelyn Towne. He called it a semi-autobiographical romance and used

it as the excuse for the beard he is currently sporting.

He discussed in great length his relationship with the legendary Leonard Nimoy and his wife, and the


9/26

ways in which the veteran actor has inspired him in his acting and his life. When asked by an

audience member if he would follow in Nimoys footsteps and make a cameo on Helbergs BigBang

Theory, he said he would love to.

Mycardboardcutouthasalreadybeenonit,youknow.Ihadtogivemy

permissionforthemtouseit.IloveSimonandIalsoworkedwithJohnny

(Galecki)onanewfilmcalledTheInvitation(alsostarringLukeWilsonand

TopherGrace).Ihavebeenmentionedtwotimesonit,actually.One of his reasons for being at the Galway festival was to attend a premiere screening of the

upcoming J.C. Chandor film AllisLost, which he executive-produced. The film, starring Robert

Redford and featuring almost no dialogue, had its world premiere at Cannes, and Quinto attended

the renowned French festival.

When asked if he was able to see any films other than his own, he answered:

No,IonlysawAllisLost.IplannedonalsoseeingBehindtheCandelabra-the

Liberacemovie-butwhenIturnedup,likeahipster,wearingabluesuitwith

nobow-tie,theywouldntletmein.TheysaidIonlyhadtogoacrossthe

streettobuyatie,butIwaslikeNoway!Itwontgowithmysuit!When asked by a young member of the audience if he had ever read any of the Kirk/Spock fan-

fiction online, he states quite bluntly:

ImafraidIhavebetterthingstodowithmytimethanreadthat.Ifthose

peopledonthaveanythingbettertodo,thatstheirbusiness,butIdoIts clear from this quote that Quinto is not a fan of the FF, and writers of it may be dismayed by

this.

StarTrekIntoDarknessis

releasedonDVD,Digital

Copy,Blu-Rayand3DBlu-

RayonSeptember10th

.


10/26

DESTINYCOMIC-BOOK FANS HAVE WAITED OVER 6 DECADES TO SEE THE MAN OF STEEL ANDTHE MAN IN BLACK TEAM UP ON THE BIG SCREEN, BUT IS THE JUST-ANNOUNCEDCROSSOVER MOVIE COMING TOO SOON AFTER CHRISTOPHER NOLANS PERFECTTRILOGY FOR THE CAPED CRUSADER? IS ZACK SNYDER GOING TO RUIN THE

PROPERTY THAT HAS TAKEN WARNER BROTHERS SO LONG TO PERFECT?


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GeorgeReeves.ChristopherReeve.Adam

West.BrandonRouth.ValKilmer.George

Clooney.MichaelKeaton.ChristianBale.

ThoseactorshaveallplayedeitherClark

KentorBruceWayneonscreen.Theywill

neverplaythosecharactersagain.Henry

CavillwillplaySupermanagain-in2015s

SupermanVSBatman(TitleTBC),Zack

SnydersCC-announcedteam-upmoviewhichsentabillionfanboysintospasms

ofexcitement,rapidlyfollowed(formany)

byacrushingwaveofdisappointment

whentheyrealisedthetruthofwhatwashappening.ZACKSNYDERISDIRECTINGA

MOVIEWITHBATMANWHOISNTGOINGTOBECHRISTIANBALEJUSTTHREEYEARS

AFTERACHRISNOLANBATMANMOVIE.Thatsentenceisntgood,excepttotheWarner

Brotherstycoonswhoarehappytofoolmillionsofcinemagoersintohandingoverbig

bucksforateam-upmoviewhichwontbeaslivinglyandpatientlycreatedasJoss

WhedonsmagnificentAvengers.

Therumoursforwhowilltakeoverthecapeandcowlareabound,butwhocanreally

replaceBalesoridiculouslysoonafterlastSummersDarkKnightRises?No-one,thats

who.


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13/26

Whatarelief!

Aftermonthsofspeculationoverhow

wfulJamesGunnsseemingly

unfilmableGuardiansoftheGalaxy

wouldbe,audienceswereshownan

mpressivelylongfootagereelatthe

Con,andguesswhat?Theylovedit!

Despiteonlyhavingbeenshootingin

ondonforjustoveraweek,thefilms

entirecastturnedupwiththedirector

amesGunnforaspectacularpanel

duringwhichformerDoctorWhostar

KarenGillan,afterarrivinginsome

anboy-pleasingdenimshorts,pulledoffherredwigtorevealthatshehasshaved

herheadfortherole!


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JossWhedonmadeasort-ofsurpriseappearanceattheMarvel

Studiospaneltoannouncethesubtitle(andprimaryvillain)for

hisupcomingAvengerssequel-AgeofUltronandUltron,

respectively.


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TomCruiseandEmilyBluntaresett

sharethescreeninDougLimans

blockbustersci-fiEdgeofTomorro

(formerlyAllYouNeedIsKill)next

Summer,andsomespectacular

footagewasdebutedattheCon.

obie Smulders will in fact reprise her role as Maria Hill in the upcoming Marvel series! Smulders

set to appear in the pilot of the series and will likely guest star in a few episodes of the showsrst season.

wantedverymuchtohaveCobieinthepilotbecauseasmuchasanyoneelse,sheIS

HIELD,said writer-director Joss Whedon.Shescoolandcommanding,andhasthedryhumorhatplayssowellwithClarks.Also,ifshesinitIgettohangoutwithCobie.

Marvels Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. will premiere on ABC on Tuesday, September 24 at 8 p.m

S.H.I.E.LDGIRL

KILLINGTIME


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TheWolverine

s the awe-inspiringly beautiful image of Nagasaki, 1945, fills the screen, one realises that this will not be

nother trashy, cheap superhero film churned out of the studio machine for the purpose of retaining rights.

his is a film with ambition, made by a fan of the story and characters for fans, and made with a great deal

f respect. Respect is a major theme of TheWolverine, James Mangolds firmly stand-alone follow up to

009s commercially successful but critically hated X-MenOrigins:Wolverine, a film which bombarded its

ewers with so many big stars playing so many iconic heroes, it was overwhelming. Origins wasnt a bad

m, it just attempted to give the fans too much, too soon, making up for the previous X-Men film- the

trocious Brett Ratner-directed TheLastStand. TheWolverine couldnt be more different- the focus is

ntirely on Hugh Jackmans Logan, and although the supporting cast do a superb job in their respective

oles, these are not particularly well-known roles, and so the comic-book mythology isnt as disturbed as it

as the last time around.

e first meet Logan during the Nagasaki bombing. He is a prisoner of the Japanese army, chained up in aeep underground cellar. As the final of four soldiers prepares to carry out kamikaze in the face of the

llowing mushroom cloud which has engulfed his hometown, Logan pulls him into the cellar and shields

m from the fire. This is The Wolverine as we havent seen him in over a decade- a true, selfless hero-


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using his healing powers to help non-mutants through disaster and turmoil.

This is The Wolverine as he should be.

Skip forward to present day (through the first in a series of emotional Jean

Grey-starring flashbacks), and Logan is living alone in the Canadian

mountains. He defends himself from the predators that share his soil, but

keeps his vow to Jean never to harm a living creature- until the arrival of

the mysterious young woman Yukio causes a bar-room brawl. Rila

Fukushima is a standout in this role- witty, beautiful and feisty- but never

crossing the fine line between action heroine and plain old token eye-

candy. For the first third of the film, it seems that she is the true female

ead, the woman Logan is destined to fall for, but in a surprising turn of

events, it is in fact her adopted sister Mariko, played by the stunning Tao

Okamoto (Japans answer to Scarlett Johansson) that brings out the

romantic, more protective side of Wolverine. Yukio and Mariko are both

very likable but intriguingly quiet women, who although we learn very little

about throughout the story, are just as relatable and engaging as Logan.

They are two of the strongest female characters weve probably ever seen

n a superhero film, and the fact that neither of them have their screen-time

occupied with sex scenes or stripping is a testament to the respect the

filmmakers hold for them as characters and as actresses. The

Wolverine will appeal equally to men and women, I feel, and thats in

keeping with this Summers theme of strong female characters inblockbusters (see Pacific Rim, Fast and Furious 6 and Iron Man 3).While the Japanese women in TheWolverine are strong, tough characters,

the role of Viper (Svetlana Khodchenkova, the only credited caucasian in

the film besides Jackman), the films eventual primary antagonist, is not so.


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iper is, quite literally, a stripper. After stripping Logan of his healing powers with her poison, she later

rips off her coat to reveal a skintight catsuit, to reveal a snakish skin which she then strips off. Her

milarities to BatmanandRobins Poison Ivy- a truly ridiculous cinematic character- are very noticeable.

part from her method of kissing her victims in order to jam her poisoned tongue down their throat

ombined with her control over the Bane-ish Silver Samurai (later revealed to be not-so-robotic after all) to

hodchenkovas uncanny resemblance to 1990s Uma Thurman bring back terrible, terrible memories of

at terrible, terrible film.

his Summers previous blockbusters have mostly been based around prolonged scenes of cities being

iped out, skyscrapers being knocked over and giant holes being blown in walls. Those who felt the urge

walk out of ManofSteelan hour before the end (as I did) will rest well knowing James Mangold has no


19/26

ch tricks up his sleeve. The central set-piece involves Logan and an adversary fighting on the roof of a

gh-speed train as it moves through Tokyo, and although some shots are taken almost directly

m Spider-Man2, thats a pretty good film to take inspiration from. This train scene is almost certainly

e most (literally) gripping fight sequence weve seen so far this Summer, and is a very high watermark

other films to follow in the footsteps of. As in Origins, the films final confrontation takes place on a

gh structure amidst a scientific research centre, and although it doesnt match the dazzlingly stunning

ghts of the nuclear-reactor fight between Wolverine and Deadpool, the mountain-top setting is quite

vely to look at. Everything, in fact, in TheWolverineis lovely to look at. Once you get past the actors

ackman shirtless will keep those of that lifestyle happy while the rest get to watch Viper and Yukio

ht), the fact that the majority of the film is set at night, in rain-soaked Tokyo and the snow-covered

search centre, and the rest in the beautiful sun of modern-day Nagasaki, where we, the audience, as

ell as Logan form a closer bond with Mariko. The film is, as expected, available in stereoscopicewing, but the rain and snow are at no point brought forward by the 3D, as Martin Scorsese did so

onderfully in his Hugo. This is a disappointingly lazy use of the medium, and as Sam Raimi proved with

e hypnotically gorgeous OzTheGreatandPowerfulearlier this year, 3D can still improve the cinema

perience for some films.

mke Janssens, basically, cameo as Jean Grey shows off Logan as his most emotionally frail, and I

nk would be heartbreaking if watched immediately after TheLastStand. The end of the film is

rprising, as it neither shuns or elevates the idea that Logan and Mariko may have a future together

ce he has moved past Jeans death. It is absolutely necessary to say that if you have ever watched

e superhero film in your life, or if you have even the smallest bit of appreciation for fanboy culture, you

l remain in your seat until midway through the credits when you will experience the single most

ectacular post-credits scene ever made- believe me, its even better than IronMans!


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How many more puns can we make involving the word Smurf? That was the challenge facing the good

olks at Sony Pictures as they began production on this quickly-made sequel to the incredibly sweet and

njoyable 2011 reboot of the popular Danish cartoon characters. Many more, it turns out, as this equally

ell-meaning if slightly overblown film proves- and the Smurf puns arent the only clever lines in the

cript. For a family film, The Smurfs 2 features some very funny one-liners, such as I just sprained my

ace and Say hello to my enormous friend. The majority of the wit comes from Hank Azarias villainous

izard Gargamel, a performance which deserves awards recognition, and comes near to reaching the

vel of brilliance Jim Carrey achieved as Count Olaf in ASeries ofUnfortunateEvents, a role for which he

hould have won an Oscar. Neil Patrick Harris was the live-action star of the first film, filling in the role

ason Lee occupied in Alvin&TheChipmunks, but takes a secondary seat here. His character has a youngon when this film begins, making him seem even more adult than he was in the original film, and

ienating his character from the young audience. This is most likely deliberate, to make Smurfette and

e Naughties- Gargamels hyperactive Smurf-alternatives the most relatable characters for the children

atching. NPHs child is, meanwhile, not given an opportunity to engage the kids watching, by being

enied dialogue and being whisked away by Brendan Gleesons newcomer grandfather constantly.

leeson gives another great performance, looking genuinely enthusiastic about the film. For such a great

haracter actor whose only major Hollywood turn has been in the Potterfilms, its nice to see Gleeson,

ho gave a career-defining performance in 2011s TheGuard, appear in a major film, despite the fact that

s face isnt exactly on screen for the entire duration of the film.

he view of Paris is more clichd than in a Monty Python sketch, and regular visitors to the city wont

xactly feel immersed in the streets as they would with a better film. However, children for once will learn

at there is more to the city than Disneyland, and perhaps request a future holiday there. A scene

volving Gargamel flying off the Eiffel Tower is brilliant fun, and a surreally beautiful but slightly disturbing

hot of a big wheel gone wild and crushing all in it s path- done for laughs- will get the viewers attention.

argamel s Parisian magic show is the source of much humour, and is certainly more exciting than the

hows we saw earlier this year in NowYouSeeMe and BurtWonderstone.

he actual Smurfs get slightly more attention than last time, while Smurfette- the most annoying of the

unch- takes centre stage in a surprisingly character-developing storyline. TheSmurfs2 is more fun than

e disappointing DespicableMe2, and the live-action actors want to be there. It wont please everybody,

heSmurfs2


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eff Bridges and Ryan Reynolds star in this new addition to the supernatural-action-comedy sub-genreat also includes the MeninBlackand Hellboyfranchises, as two dead cops from very different worlds

ho team up as they are recruited to the Rest In Peace Department (a sort of purgatory for police) and

bligated to solve crimes before they are allowed to move on to the afterlife. Directed by Robert

chwentke, the man behind such mediocre films as Flightplan,TheTime-TravellersWife and RED, a film

hose sequel topped R.I.P.D. at the opening weekend box office, despite a significantly lower budget

nd less interesting premise, the trailers pitched this as a buddy-cop comedy with monsters,

backwardsMIB where the younger member of the duo is the straight man and the elder is a crazy-as-

uts comedian. Bridges occupies this role well, and its been many years since hes gotten the chanceplay a truly funny role. Reynolds standing amongst CGI creatures brings back memories of the

aumatically awful Green Lantern, and to be honest, hes not a great dramatic actor anyway, so the

ubplot involving his grieving wife (Iron Man 3s Stephanie Szostak) being won over by his lying

olleague Kevin Bacon after his death comes across as overdone and incredibly tedious.

he special effects are superior to those in many other recent neo-B-movies, and the colour scheme is

ventive enough to give the eyes something to enjoy while the clichd story wanders along in the

ackground. The films main comedic selling-point involves the fact that, when seen by the living,

eynolds and Bridges appear to be an old Chinese man and attractive blonde woman, respectively.

owever, in conveying the ridiculousness of the situation, the film cant help but be slightly sexist and

cist towards these two stereotypes.

I.P.D. is a B-movie at heart, and doesnt exactly give the viewer much to think about, but Jeff Bridges

ves his best comedic erformance in ears and almost sin le-handedl carries the clichd stor .

R.I.P.D.


22/26

en lesser animated studios like DreamWorks take a successful formula for a film formerly used by Pixar, it rarely turns out

l. For example, A Bugs Life, in no way Pixars best work, managed to eclipse even the mighty wrath of Woody Allen

Antz (bet youve never heard mighty wrath and Woody Allen in the same sentence before). Now, Dreamworks have made

m that is 60% Cars and 40% Ratatouille. As someone who thinks Cars is among the worst animated films ever made, I see

ssue in this being ripped off in what could plausibly be a far better film. Ratatouille, however- NO!

t as Ratatouille opens with a small animal living with many others of his kind in a small community beside a human house,

does Turbo,featuring the voice of Ryan Reynolds (also seen this week in R.I.P.D.) as a talking snail who dreams of being a

e-car (spelt the same backwards) driver, or maybe even the car itself. When she goes to a bridge above a motorway and

nds around for a bit, he eventually develops magic powers which enable him to move extremely fast and play music through

body. Yes, it really is as ridiculous as it sounds. As in Ratatouille, he leaves his group with 1 member of his family (voiced

Paul ive sold out and taken a role in DowntonAbbeyGiamatti) and ends up befriending a hapless manchild loser in need

Turbos special skills.

ike Cars, the characters are nice to look at, and who prefers talking cars to talking snails anyway? The voicework is on a par

h superior DreamWorks work from the early 00s, and if the story weren t entirely taken from a masterpiece of modern family

ema, this would be a pretty decent animated comedy. However, it is ripped off from Ratatouille, and thats BAD.

Turbo

fterEarth is a terrible, terrible film. Its also a very easy film to pick on and call a terrible film. The promotional tour saw star Jade

mith and his real-life father Will humiliate themselves by coming across as scientologists in one interview and using Will s Fres

rince of Bel-Airlegacy to gain attention in another. Director M. Night Shameaboutthelastfilm has, over the past decade, bee

sponsible for some of the worst pieces of rubbish to be released in cinemas, despite having shown great potential in the 1990th TheSixthSense.

ill Smith is an actor who has become as big s movie star as he is today due to his ability to act and be funny and charming a

nce. From Independence Dayto Men in Blackto the animated Shark Tale, his films have pulled in billions due to his presence,ecause audiences know what to expect from his performance. So why on Earth (or afterEarth) would you put Will Smith in a fil

here he plays an utterly emotionally empty and humorless man who doesnt show any affection for his child, and doesnt eve

mile- never mind make a joke. Jaden is a wooden enough actor, as we have seen in TheKarateKid, so this film therefore ha

bsolutely no relatable, likable or even human people in it! Even in his more serious roles in I-Robot and IAm Legend, Will ha

ngaged audiences with his mega-star personality, but here he may as well be a corpse of misery.

ome clichd visuals and a comically stupid plot don t exactly help the case of a film which is bad because it chose to be, no

After

Earth


23/26

GrownUps2

fter a string of mid-noughties PG-13 hits, concluding

ith 2010s first GrownUps, Adam Sandler decided to

xperiment with his hugely successful brand of

omedy by making, within a year, both a PG and R-

ated comedy. They both flopped. You see, the adults

ho loved the PG-13 movies were put off by Jackand

lls family-friendly attitude, and his younger fans

ouldnt get in to ThatsMyBoy. The former was

ctually quite funny (despite what the record-low 3%

core on Rotten Tomatoes suggests), whilst ThatsMy

oywas too desperate to be a properly offensive

omedy that it failed on every level. Intelligently,

andler had GrownUps2 in the pipeline, guaranteed

o draw all of his fans back in and give the studio

ack what they lost on the previous two. I really like

he first GrownUps.It features largely sympathetic but

ot pathetic characters, nice family bonding, hilarious

hysical humor and a great background cast of

andlers regular contributors. Its sequel misses out

uite badly on most of these aspects. Whilst the first

m saw both Chris Rock and Kevin James

characters struggling financially while Sandler

and his family thrived in Beverly Hills, theyreall very well-off when we meet them now. In

fact, they make jokes about how pathetic

poor people are. Sandlers kids were barely

tolerable in the first film- here they are

unwatchable. Spoilt, obnoxious, arrogant,

boastful- they are nightmarish- yet their father

defends them against school bullies and buys

them more crap. One of the first films primary

antagonists was an old classmate of Sandlers

character, whose only fault was that he

pointed out how wealth had made Sandlers

kids pretentious. Here, he is given the

respectful honour of having ice-cream drip

down the seat of his pants, creating the illusion

that he has excreted himself.

Considering how irrelevant the character

development is to these films, and how


24/26

entical the cast are to their real-life selves, both in personality and relationships, it would be far simpler

o, ThisistheEnd-style, have them all play themselves. Who says Kevin James isnt married to Maria Bello

oming off a great run on FOXs Touch) and Sandler to Salma Hayek? Who says Shaquille ONeill isnt a

amboyant cop?

he fun of the 2010 film was the fact that it was set over a weekend, creating a substantial and realistic plot

here some interesting stuff actually happened. For example, the gang played arrow roulette creating one

f the funniest comedy scenes of that year. GrownUps2 is set over one day, a day on which very, very little

appens. The opening sequence involving a moose running rampant through Sandlers house and a later

oment of David Spade rolling through town inside a tire are two quite funny (and expensive) scenes of

hysical comedy, but are too short and infrequent to save the film from feeling a bit lazily made. The

upporting cast are, once again, brilliant, however, with Maya Rudolph disgracefully underused and Steve

uscemi returning for a slightly longer cameo than one would have expected.

aylor Lautner leads a gang of college kids who lead a plot about ageism and marking territory, which

akes up far too much of the films time and is less funny than ThatsMyBoyplayed 5 times in a row. Lautne

ets to do some odd martial arts jumps and slightly mock his Twilightcharacters leader-personality, but it

ears off fast.

rownUps2 is very funny at times, but its structure and lack of heart leave it feeling inferior to its

redecessor. Still, its suitable for the whole family, and thats rare these days!

EVIEWEDONLINETHISMONTH:RED2,Epic,Byzantium,2Guns,Elysium,WereTheMillers,Kick-Ass2,Lee

anielsTheButler,TheMortalInstruments,TheWorldsEnd&more!


25/26

THISMONTHIN....2012

Thistimelastyear,Skyfalloccupiedourcover,andofcoursewentonto

becomethebestandmostsuccessful007filmever!Alsoinsidewerefeatures

onDreddandLooper,andareviewofTheBourneLegacy.


26/26

NEXTMONTHINMOVIETACO

The Catching Fire Issue 3LimitedEditionCollectorsCovers TheWorldsBestCoverageoftheYearsBiggestMovie TheKatnissEffect,FrancisLawrencesTOUCH&more! TheUltimateYOUNGADULTPreview:Divergent,EndersGame

andmore

LUS:CARRIE,ESCAPEPLAN,OLDBOY,THECOUNSELER,CAPTAIN

HILLIPS,THEFIFTHESTATE,RUNNERRUNNER,MACHETEKILLS&

RAVITY-ONEOFTHEBIGGESTMONTHSFORFILMSEVER?

EVIEWED:THEMORTALINSTRUMENTS-TWILIGHTWITHLEATHER?

THEWORLDSEND-HOTFUZZWITHALIENS?

Documents

Movie Taco: September 2013