Film Review Round-Up: A Simple Favor & Mile 22 (2018)

I intended to bring you a full review of A Simple Favor last week but unfortunately life got in the way (and not Spider-Man on the PS4, honest) so instead this week I'm back with another review round-up. You know the format by now, two shorter than usual reviews that I hope will still give you a good taster of the film in question. First up it's the aforementioned A Simple Favor with my future wife Anna Kendrick, and then we'll take a quick look at the new Marky Mark action film Mile 22. Let's go!

We all have secrets . . .

A Simple Favor (15)

Starring: Anna Kendrick, Blake Lively, Henry Golding

Director: Paul Feig

The Plot: Stephanie Smothers (Kendrick) is a wholesome single mother who runs a "mom tips" vlog but leads a lonely life. Through their young sons she's introduced to Emily Nelson (Lively), a fashion executive who's the polar opposite of Stephanie - glamorous, confident and successful - and the two form an unlikely friendship. Stephanie is stunned, however, when Emily - after asking her for "a simple favour" - suddenly goes missing and is found dead, and soon after she finds herself falling for Emily's now widowed husband Sean (Golding). However, all is not what it seems: as Stephanie starts finding clues that point to Emily still being alive, she begins digging into her mysterious past and uncovers startling secrets - but Emily is not the only one with skeletons in her closet . . .

Check out the trailer for the film here.

Review: If you've been reading my reviews here for a while (and if you have, thanks very much) you'll know that I'm unashamedly a huge fan of Anna Kendrick. I love everything about her, and if by some miracle she would ever be interested in a slightly overweight, socially awkward nerd from Wales, I'd put a ring on it immediately. As such, I'm always excited when she has a new film out, but the trailer for A Simple Favor (yes, I'm using the dreadful American spelling of "favour" as that's the film's title) intrigued me a great deal, as it seemed not only very funny but very dark as well. The wildcard for me is director Paul Feig: he did really well with Bridesmaids, but the Ghostbusters remake was awful. I haven't seen Spy or The Heat, but I'm told they were both very funny. He's a comedy director at heart and clearly enjoys working on female led films, so what would his take be on a film where the comedy is black and the story has a very dark element to it? I'm glad to report it's a success - A Simple Favour is terrific.

Right from the start, the film makes it clear that it's out to keep you guessing. This is a story with more twists and turns in it than I've seen in a long time, and while it's central twist - that of Emily's apparent death and subsequent reappearance - is fairly easy to guess, everything else is not. Both the main characters and Emily's husband Sean keep displaying both subtle and blatant shifts in behaviour, and it really does keep you guessing as to who's really in league with who and what their agendas are. If you like a film that keeps you on your toes, this is one for you - and it's incredibly funny as well, with very dark humour ("brother fucker" is a standout moment), and this suits the story perfectly as without it this would be a very different film indeed. Anna Kendrick is brilliant (you knew I was going to say that, right?), hiding the darker aspects of Stephanie's character behind layers of clutz and innocence, but Blake Lively is also terrific. Her charisma owns the film, and it's great to see her back on the big screen in such good form after the time she took off to have a baby with husband Ryan Reynolds. Emily is the darker character from the get-go, but she too has hidden layers of her own, almost an opposite of Stephanie. The film is driven by these two ladies, and it's a great result.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

An excellent, dark, funny film that's full of twists and turns and will keep you guessing right until the end. Two strong performances from Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively drive forward a well-written story that's beautifully shot to boot. Highly recommended!

Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch

Mile 22 (18)

Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Lauren Cohan, Iko Uwais, Ronda Rousey, John Malkovitch

Director: Peter Berg

The Plot: James Silva (Wahlberg) is the leader of an elite CIA special forces unit known as Overwatch, called in to handle situations that the military can't. In an undisclosed Asian city, nuclear material has gone missing and the only one who knows its location is Li Noor (Uwais) - a local police officer who turns himself in to the American embassy, offering to give them the information in exchange for passage to the USA. Silva and his crew, including Alice (Cohen) and Sam (Rousey), are tasked with escorting Li the 22 miles from the embassy to an airfield where his flight awaits, but the journey will not be easy - Li is a wanted, dangerous man, and the country sends its own special forces to stop them . . .

Check out the trailer for the film here.

Review: This is director Peter Berg's fourth collaboration with Mark Wahlberg, following Lone Survivor, Deepwater Horizon and Patriot's Day, and it's something of a shift in tone for the pair. While this isn't the first time that Wahlberg has played a soldier for Berg, here in Mile 22 we're delving into the murky world of black ops and espionage and Wahlberg takes on a character that's a far cry from the heroic ones he's played in their previous collaborations. Now, I like a brainless action movie - I really like them - and so this film really should have been right up my street, promising not only guns and explosions but marital arts to boot, along with a very appealing cast. Sadly, the action is the only redeeming thing here, in what's a real mess of a film.

I've often said that for a film like this you're not looking for Oscar-worthy writing or performances, but you do at least want something that flows nicely and makes you want to support the characters. There is neither of that here, with a script that's seemingly just been written to allow Wahlberg to run around shouting ALL OF THE FUCKING TIME. This is all his character does - he shouts, swears or speaks quietly and menacingly, even to his fellow Overwatch team members, making him an incredibly unlikeable character. The rest of the cast don't fair any better, hampered by the script which allows zero character development - Lauren Cohan, so brilliant on The Walking Dead, is wasted here, and so is the talented Iko Uwais, who displays excellent charisma here (and even better martial arts skills) but is let down by the story. Thankfully, the action is on point and that's what you've really come for. The violence is brutal (the film received an 18 certificate because of it, which is becoming a rarity in the UK), and the film packs in more shootouts and explosions in it's short 96 minute run time than many other longer action films, but it isn't enough to save it. This film isn't trying to be a brainless action movie, and a result it fails spectacularly.

Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
A poor action film that tries to paint a picture of the impact on people who undertake black ops, unsuccessfully. Strong action can't save a terrible script that does no favours for the talented cast on display here. Catch it on streaming services or TV at another time.