Film Review Round-Up: The Darkest Minds and BlacKkKlansman (2018)

Another review round-up for you all this week, as I've been to see two very different films in the last few days: first up we have the latest adaptation of a young adult novel with The Darkest Minds, and following that the powerful new film from Spike Lee, BlacKkKlansman. Let's go!

Ain't no sunshine . . .

The Darkest Minds (12A)

Starring: Amandla Stenberg, Mandy Moore, Harris Dickinson

Director: Jennifer Yuh Nelson

The Plot: A mysterious virus wipes out 90% of America's children, but leaves the surviving 10% with special abilities ranging from enhanced intelligence to telekinesis. The government orders the remaining children be put into camps for the nation's safety, where they're given a colour that classifies how dangerous their power is. Ruby (Stenberg) is a very rare "Orange" - a powerful psychic deemed most dangerous and to be killed on discovery. She's broken out of the camp by a sympathetic doctor (Moore), but quickly joins up with a group of other escapees led by Liam (Dickinson), who are headed for a secret location where kids can live together freely. Their journey is a dangerous one, and as Ruby and Liam grow closer, Ruby will face a tough choice in order to keep them all safe . . .

Check out the trailer for the film here.

Adaptations of young adult novels can sometimes find mass appeal beyond their intended audience - look at The Hunger Games, for example, or the Maze Runner series. The Darkest Minds, adapted from the first book in a trilogy by author Alexandra Bracken, is unfortunately not one of those films, and is one that's firmly for its target audience. It's a shame, as it has a very dark, interesting premise that makes for some effective moments - an aerial shot of fields of abandoned yellow school buses is particularly strong - and the visual effects when the characters use their powers are pretty good, with their eyes glowing the particular colour that the government used to classify them. Those uses of power are few and far between, however, and the film concentrates instead on their journey and Ruby and Liam's romance, which are far from strong. The acting is a mixed bag - Stenberg as Ruby does fine (you may remember her as the tragic young Rue in The Hunger Games, and she'll be on screens again soon in the racially-charged The Hate U Give) but the rest are pretty poor. Given as this is the first part of a trilogy the story is also left without a conclusion, but the film hasn't performed well commercially so it's unlikely that we're going to get parts two and three. It's a shame, as there was promise here.

Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

A promising young adult tale that hasn't been handled well here. The story focuses on the romance arc and the character's physical journey, which is hampered by poor performances, and doesn't delve deep enough into the more interesting, darker aspects of the story. The effects are great when the kids powers are used, but these moments don't come often enough. A shame, as this could have been good. One for die-hard fans of this genre only.

Infiltrate hate

BlacKkKlansman (15)

Starring: John David Washington, Adam Driver, Laura Harrier, Topher Grace

Director: Spike Lee

The Plot: Colorado Springs, 1972. Ron Stallworth (Washington) becomes the first black man to join the local Police, facing internal resistance. Convincing the captain to let him work undercover, Ron begins an investigation into the local chapter of the Ku Klux Klan by calling them and pretending to be a white man. Enlisting fellow detective Flip Zimmerman (Driver) to pretend to be him, Flip attends their meetings as "Ron" while Ron himself continues to talk to them over the phone, going so far as to speak to the Grand Wizard himself David Duke (Grace). They learn that the Klan has something violent planned, but the pressure of maintaining their charade begins to take its toll on both Ron's relationship with student activist Patrice (Harrier) and on Flip's beliefs . . .

Check out the trailer for the film here.

Director Spike Lee needs no introduction - his "joints", as he likes to call his films, have dealt with powerful topics over the years, particularly addressing issues facing black people. He returns now with a film that's actually based on a true story, and it's a brilliant one, serving as both an informative look at the racism of the era and the tactics and attitude of the KKK, and as a stark warning about how these are still present today. The film has an effective mix of both humour and seriousness - the moments of comedy are very funny, but they never detract from the ugly, serious nature of the racism that Ron and Flip are going up against, and they do help to make the whole thing more palatable. Ron's phone conversations with David Duke are comedic highlights, and there are some not-so-thinly veiled jabs at Donald Trump (at one point Duke talks about how the Klan will "make America great again"). The performances are great across the board, particularly from the two leads, but one thing to note is that (quite obviously) the film contains very strong racist language, so if you find that uncomfortable you'll have difficulty watching this. While Ron's story ends on a humorous high note, the film itself concludes with footage from last year's horrific events in Charlottesville where white supremacists clashed with anti-fascist protesters, and Trump's telling comments on it. It's a thought-provoking and powerful reminder of the hatred still plaguing society today, and a fitting way to end the story.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

A hilarious but very serious film that delivers a powerful message about how the racism of the 1970s is not only still prevalent in society, but is in danger of growing to those levels once again. Told with Spike Lee's typical stylishness, it features great performances that will have you laughing but also giving you serious food for thought. One of Lee's best films, and one of the best of the year so far as well. Essential viewing. 

Film Review: The Equalizer 2 (2018)

Equal violence for all

The Equalizer 2 (15)

Starring: Denzel Washington, Pedro Pascal, Melissa Leo, Ashton Sanders

Director: Antoine Fuqua

The Plot: Following the events of The Equalizer, former marine and DIA agent Robert McCall (Washington) now lives in Boston working part time as a Lyft driver, where he continues his solitary life of reading books while using his considerable combat skills to help innocent people, anonymously. When his friend Susan Plummer (Leo) is murdered in Brussels while investigating the death of another agent, McCall turns to Susan's second-in-command - and his former friend - Dave York (Pascal) to help find the killer. When the people responsible are revealed to be those McCall trusted, he sets out to get revenge for his fallen friend . . . with violent results.

Check out the trailer for the film here.

Review: The first Equalizer was an excellent - if overlong - film that added another great character to Denzel Washington's list of portrayals with the vigilante Robert McCall. The lethal ghost who helped the innocent while mourning the loss of his wife, alone, was well-received by audiences and must have struck a chord with Washington himself because interestingly, this is the first time ever in his career that the actor has reprised the role of a character in a sequel. Director Antoine Fuqua returns, as does writer Richard Wenk and original cast members Melissa Leo and Bill Pullman (Chloë Grace Moretz doesn't feature, her character's story was concluded at the end of the first film). So is our second outing with Robert McCall as good as the first one? The answer, unfortunately, is not really.

Now, if you enjoyed the first Equalizer you're going to find a lot to like here, as rather than drastically shake things up the film instead plays it safe and acts more as a continuation of the first one. As such, we get a lot of action sequences that are brutally violent - which I love - and show off McCall's skills, characteristically checking his watch to time himself as he dispatches numerous opponents. The film begins with an excellent sequence aboard a train where a disguised McCall rescues a kidnapped child, taking out several thugs with ease, and moments like these continue throughout the film while the level of violence increases. The whole thing looks great too - Fuqua has a real eye for the visuals, and the film's climactic cat-and-mouse sequence that takes place within a small coastal town that's being battered by a fierce storm is terrific. Added to this a typically good performance from Washington, which is exactly what you'd expect for an actor of his talent returning to a role he's already played once before. He handles the action and intense scenes really well, and this time around he's allowed to show a bit more emotion from McCall as he grieves for his lost friend while also revealing a bit more about his late wife.

The negatives all come from the script. Like the first Equalizer, the film is way too long - it clocks in at just over two hours, and it definitely could have been trimmed down without losing any impact on McCall's actions or his drive for revenge. It also attempts to weave a number of subplots throughout, in addition to the main story thread of McCall seeking revenge for Susan's death. Of these the most successful is the one involving a young artist named Miles (played by Ashton Sanders) who McCall takes a liking to, and attempts to help him steer clear of a life with a local gang, but this thread could again have been trimmed a bit without losing any impact. The biggest issue, however, is the lack of any real threat to be found. While it was really cool in the first film to see McCall go unchallenged, I was hoping that in the sequel he'd get an opponent/opponents that would really test him. When the villains of the piece are revealed (and you'll see the main one coming from a mile away), it's clear that they're not on his level at all and so it comes as no surprise when he dispatches them - albeit brutally and stylishly - with ease. It's a shame, as while it maintains that badass aspect to his character, the film would have worked so much better if he'd had to face a real challenge.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
A decent second outing for Denzel Washington as this popular character, that features terrific action sequences and the same brutal violence as the first, coupled with a typically good performance from Washington. It's let down by a lack of real threat from its villains, an overly long run time and an attempt to cram in too many subplots. Fans of the first film will find lots to enjoy here, but if we do see a third Equalizer in the future I hope it'll be one that gives the character more of a challenge.

Film Review: The Meg (2018)

The science is sound

The Meg (12A)

Starring: Jason Statham, Li BingBing, Rainn Wilson, Ruby Rose

Director: Jon Turteltaub

The Plot: It's "The Stath" vs a giant shark . . . all right. When a research station successfully sends divers to previously-unreached depths of the Mariana Trench, they're attacked by a Megalodon - a gigantic, 75 foot long shark thought to be extinct. Their only option is to call on the services of deep-sea rescue diver Jonas Taylor (Statham), who previously encountered a "Meg" five years earlier and hasn't been back in the water since. While Jonas is able to overcome his fears and rescue the divers, their efforts unintentionally free the Meg from the trench and it begins heading towards China, attacking anything in its path. It's up to Jonas and the rest of the station's crew to stop it . . .

Check out the trailer for the film here.

Review: B-movie horrors featuring gigantic animals or unusual versions of them are really popular, and not because they're good films. People enjoy them because of how bad they are: how silly the story is, how dreadful the visual effects are, how cheesy the acting is etc. In recent years the Sharknado series has proved a real winner for the SyFy channel for all of those reasons, and amongst all the different animals that feature in these kinds of film the shark is king. Take a quick look through IMDb and you'll find all sorts like Mega Shark vs Giant Octopus, Sharktopus, 5 Headed Shark Attack, Ghost Shark, and my personal favourite Sharktopus vs Whalewolf. Every now and then Hollywood attempts a take on these kinds of film and the results are generally the same, just with a bigger budget. The latest addition to this is The Meg.

Now, this isn't going to be a very long review because really, this isn't a film that warrants one or tries to take itself seriously. It's exactly what you'd expect it to be - it's a big, silly monster movie with the star attraction of The Stath. The acting is bad across the board, the story is full of plot holes and gives science the back seat, there's a far too obvious romance subplot and, at close to two hours, the run time is much too long. It also relies too much on stereotypical "shark movie" tropes - jump scares from sudden appearances of the shark, people being eaten when you think it's safe, people not being eaten when it seems they're about to, etc, and the film's 12A rating means there's very little gore. It is funny (both intentionally and unintentionally) though, and to its credit the visual effects at least are very good, which you'd expect given the film had a reported budget of $130-170 million. Sadly though, if - like me - you were hoping to see The Stath roundhouse kick the shark in mid-air, Transporter style, you'll be disappointed. He does get a decent victory line of "Chew on this, you ugly bastard", but it's no "Smile you son of a bitch!"

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

An acceptable addition to Hollywood's collection of giant monster films. As long as you're in the target audience then you'll get enjoyment out of this, as it has some of the things you love from a b-movie horror - the bad acting, the silly story - combined with some genuine laughs and fairly impressive visual effects. On the flip side though, if you're not a fan of these kinds of film, this won't be the film to convert you.

Film Review: Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)

Size matters . . .

Ant-Man and the Wasp (12A)

Starring: Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michael Peña, Michael Douglas, Michelle Pfeiffer

Director: Peyton Reed

The Plot: Scott Lang (Rudd) has spent the past two years under house arrest for his involvement in Civil War, facing an automatic prison sentence if he leaves his home. Meanwhile, Hope van Dyne (Lilly) and Hank Pym (Douglas) have been forced on the run, wanted by the FBI for Scott's use of their tech. They're grudgingly reunited when Hope - now operating with her own Wasp suit - comes to Scott: they're building a new machine that they hope can help them reach the Quantum Realm and rescue the long-lost Janet van Dyne (Pfeiffer), and need his help to steal a piece of technology to do it. Attempting to stop them is the mysterious young woman Ghost, who has phase-shifting abilities and wants the tech for herself. Scott faces difficult choices if he is to win back Hope's trust and become Ant-Man again, without risking losing his family . . .

Check out the trailer for the film here.

Review: 2015's Ant-Man was a (for many, unexpected) delight that introduced us to yet another likeable set of characters within the MCU, and featured a combination of brilliant special effects and a light tone with plenty of comedy. It's ending promised more, including officially setting up Hope van Dyne as the Wasp, and now Marvel Studios have returned to that world with it's twentieth film Ant-Man and the Wasp. The entire cast has returned, director Peyton Reed is once again in the director's chair, and star Paul Rudd also takes a writing credit on the screenplay as well. The big question is, following the shock waves that Infinity War created earlier this year, can Ant-Man and the Wasp both lift the spirits of audiences and be a worthy sequel? The answer, you won't be surprised to learn, is yes.

Perhaps the biggest question that people were asking, ahead of the film's release, is where exactly does it fit in with the time line surrounding Infinity War? After all, Ant-Man was noticeably absent from it, and I personally was a bit disappointed that this was explained via a rather throwaway line from Falcon who mentions Scott's plea deal. Happily, AM&tW clears this all up and offers a satisfying explanation for everything: the film takes place shortly before Infinity War (and there's a incredibly effective post-credits sting that connects to it that I'll talk about later), and we're given a good explanation as to why Scott chose his house arrest deal, why he's had no contact with Hope and Dr Pym, and why he isn't around when Thanos comes to town. Trust me when I say that by the end of the film, everything makes sense.

The story itself is noticeably different to the first film, and this was intentional. Director Peyton Reed has said that while the first film was essentially one big heist movie, he purposefully wanted this one to feel more like a split between an action movie and romantic comedy. This it definitely does, as while it does feature a heist element to it, the film places far more focus on setting up action set-pieces and Scott and Hope's personal and professional partnership. The romance element, pleasingly, isn't overly mushy and progresses naturally - the attraction between the pair was already established in the first film, remember, so here we get to see them build back up to it in a way that flows nicely. The big theme of the film is choice and consequence - all of the characters either have to make important choices, or are still dealing with the consequences of ones they made before, or both. It allows the film to have a serious aspect to it, as some of these choices have life-or-death consequences, but brilliantly the same light, humorous tone from the first film is retained here and it continues to work really well. The laughs come thick and fast, from both verbal jokes and sight gags (a scene where Scott sneaks into his daughter's school and becomes stuck at the size of a small child is hilarious), and after the bleakness of Infinity War this is exactly what the MCU needed.

Now free from having to set up the characters and explain how Pym's shrinking technology works - although there's still a great deal of techno-babble, prompting Scott to ask "Do you guys just put the word 'Quantum' in front of everything?" - the film goes all-out with the action sequences and we're treated to some fantastic visual effects as a result. Some particular standouts include Hope's first foray into action against a whole cadre of thugs that turns into their first encounter with Ghost, and also the film's climactic car chase across San Francisco as the pair battle both inside and out of various cars and an enlarged Scott uses a truck as a scooter. The fight scenes where Scott and Hope team up together are fantastic, with the both of them fluidly shrinking and enlarging in sync to take out their enemies which looks really good. I was a little disappointed at Hope's new suit - the character's traditional yellow and black costume (which was revealed at the end of Ant-Man) has been replaced with  . . . green? I'm colour blind, I can't tell, but it doesn't look as good. She has her blasters and wings though, and she kicks all kinds of ass, which is what really matters. Scott also has a new suit, a prototype model that malfunctions repeatedly and causes him to get stuck at various sizes, a recurring joke throughout the film. There's lots of other great uses of the shrinking tech in the film (Hank now has a portable building containing his lab that he shrinks down to the size of a small suitcase, for example) and these are often used for great comedic effect - you won't see a Pez dispenser the size of a car being thrown at someone in another film, that's for sure.

The performances from the main cast are all great, across the board. They're certainly helped by that theme of choice and consequence I mentioned earlier, as it allows each of them to have something to grapple with on a personal level as the main story of them racing to rescue Janet from the Quantum Realm progresses. Paul Rudd proves once again that he's a good leading man, and despite being more well known for comedic roles he's more than up to the task for the heavier stuff too: Scott is torn between wanting to fix the rift he's created between himself and Hope and protecting himself, as if he's caught outside of his home being Ant-Man he faces losing his precious daughter Cassie and going to prison. On equal footing to him this time is Evangeline Lilly as Hope, who's wonderful once again, and now getting to wear the Wasp suit and kick some serious ass. Hope was already shown to be a strong character in the first film, and while she spent that one trying to state her case that she should be the one in the suit, when this one kicks off she's already proved her point. Her conflict comes from deciding whether to trust Scott again against her obvious feelings for him, and she's also facing the daunting prospect of getting to see her mother again after thirty years of absence. The two of them together - both their romantic angle and teaming up together professionally - work really well. Michael Peña returns as the brilliant Luis, offering the same comic relief as he did in the first one. This time around he's formed a security company with Scott and their friends Dave and Kurt called "Ex-Con" and he's the only one of them who seems to be serious about it, and also finds himself (terrifyingly) involved in the third act's big set-piece. And yes, he does have one of his fan-favourite exposition sequences, courtesy of a very funny scene where's injected with a truth serum. He stole the first film and he comes very close to doing it here too. Michael Douglas and Michelle Pfeiffer are also both great - Douglas gets much more screen time, as Janet (spoilers, she's rescued) doesn't turn up until the end of the film, but he's in much more of a supporting role here and has some withering put-downs for Scott. His reunion with Janet is an emotional one, and Pfeiffer brings a touch of class to the small amount of screen time she gets.

There are some weaknesses to the film, however. Chief amongst them is the villain, or rather the lack of one. The antagonists of the film (the brilliant Walton Goggins as tech-dealer Sonny Burch doesn't count, as he's never a believable threat) are Ghost, played by Hannah John-Kamen, and a former associate of Hank's called Bill Foster, played by Laurence Fishburne. The characters are revealed to be in a very grey area: Ghost (or Ava)'s phase-shifting condition is slowly killing her, painfully, and she needs the same tech that Scott and Hope are after to try and cure herself. Fisher has become Ava's carer and father-figure, trying to use his knowledge to help with a cure. While she proves willing to hurt innocents to get the tech, Fisher refuses to, and ultimately both characters are shown to not really be bad, but just driven to their actions out of desperation. The original Ant-Man had a good villain in Yellowjacket and I honestly think superhero films work best when you have a villain that is clearly out to do harm, regardless of how complex their reasons are for doing so - just look at Killmonger from Black Panther and Thanos himself, two of the best villains Marvel have given us - and I think this film suffers a bit without one. Another weakness is the structure of the story, which feels a bit chaotic in places - each scene feels like a reaction to the previous one, rather than a smooth progressive feel, and while I personally didn't mind this, some viewers may find this noticeable and a bit off-putting.

The biggest issue I have with the film though, is a bit of stupid one to be honest - Hope isn't referred to as the Wasp once. Not once! In a film called Ant-Man and the Wasp, which a big part of is about the two of them pairing up together, she doesn't get called Wasp a single time! It's a really silly oversight and shouldn't be that big of a deal, but it is.

Now, before I wrap things up, I mentioned earlier that the film links itself to Infinity War via the traditional Marvel post-credits sting, and you'd better prepare yourself as it's a heart breaker. Spoilers follow! Having rescued Janet, finished his house arrest and rekindled his relationship with Hope, Scott descends into the Quantum Realm once again, under the guidance of Hope, Hank and Janet, to retrieve some particles to help Ava, and while he's down there . . . Thanos clicks his fingers. The results are shocking, and Scott is left stranded, completely unaware of what's happened. The credits even end with "Ant-Man and the Wasp will return?", just to mess with us even further. Infinity War Part 2 just got even more interesting!

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Another excellent film from Marvel that not only acts as a worthy sequel to Ant-Man but provides a welcome light relief after the bleakness of Infinity War. Keeping the same comedic tone as the first film but upping the action, AM&tW delivers lots of laughs, visual spectacle and emotion to boot. The lack of a real villain and the reactionary structure of the story are flaws that keep it from being truly excellent, but this is still essential viewing.