Before Midnight

http://www.sonyclassics.com/beforemidnight/

Before Sunrise was given to me as a birthday gift from my brother. The fact that I remember this shows that it was one of the better birthday gifts I have received in my lifetime.

Needless to say I loved it. And when I found out there was a sequel set 9 years later, and not only that but that my best friend loved the original and couldn't wait to see said sequel, I was even more excited. I loved the rich, realistic dialogue. And the chemistry Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy had was the kind that most actors can only dream of.

So, what did happen after Celine (Julie Delpy) sang A Waltz For A Night to Jesse (Ethan Hawke) at the end of Before Sunset? Did he catch his flight back to the US? Back to his wife and son? Did he hell!

We pick up with the couple another 9 years down the road, Jesse's son Hank is just leaving Greece having stayed with his dad and Celine over the summer. Jesse and Celine now have twin daughters of their own, and that amazing banter they shared in the previous films is still evident, but it's tinged with sourness due to Jesse's guilt over leaving his son in the US in order to remain with Celine in France. It's putting pressure on them, as is Celine's natural closeness with Hank, that Jesse clearly envies. Will their history be the tie that binds or will they have gone their separate ways by the time the next 9 years have gone by?

Before Midnight keeps the realism of the first two movies, but whilst those movies were filled with hope, this instalment feels very bitter in comparison. *Spoiler Alert* The last half an hour of the film is a very intimate verbal spat between the two, and the way it's shot, following what was beginning as a love scene, feels a little too close for comfort. Julie Delpy spends most of this scene topless, which I didn't feel was at all necessary. Especially given the lack of nudity in the previous films, and given the lack of exposure on Hawke's part. It felt overly unequal that the woman should be exposed in this way. And whilst I appreciate that this was clearly done to prove some sort of point about how women are naturally more exposed in situations like this, or that men always have the upper hand, it just didn't come across this way to me. It seemed completely out of character with the other two films and entirely unnecessary.

Which is a shame because I spent so much time wanting Delpy to cover herself up I undoubtedly missed a lot of what she was saying in this pivotal scene. This film, along with The World's End (review to follow shortly), which is another end to a long spanning trilogy, really makes me worry about my future. Both beginnings to the trilogy's start in the characters 20s, and both films are essentially about being young and carefree and just enjoying life. The next films, set in the characters 30s, are considerably more serious, dealing with much harsher topics; and the final films, set in the characters 40s are all about missed opportunities and bitterness. If that's all my 40s has in stall for me I'm not sure I'm looking forward to that so much?

Delpy and Hawke's natural chemistry with each other is still present, and the script they co-wrote with director Richard Linklater, is as realistic as Sunset, but whereas Sunset was full of fond remembrance and hope, Midnight is full of over familiarity and discontent. The romantic in me wants to believe this pair can overcome anything, but the realist in me isn't so sure.

For those who have seen and loved the previous films, this last instalment is a must. Just don't expect a happy ending. 7 out of 10.

Viewing Date - 23rd June 2013

UK Release Date - 21st June 2013

Cast Overview:

Jesse ~ Ethan Hawke

Celine ~ Julie Delpy

Hank ~ Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick

Ella ~ Jennifer Prior

Nina ~ Charlotte Prior

Natalia ~ Xenia Kalogeropoulou

Patrick ~ Walter Lassally

Anna ~ Ariane Labed

Achilleas ~ Yiannis Papadopoulos

Ariadni ~ Athina Rachel Tsangari

Stefanos ~ Panos Koronis

Director ~ Richard Linklater

Writer(s) ~ Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke

Characters by Richard Linklater and Kim Krizan

Much Ado About Nothing

http://muchadomovie.com/

When I saw the poster for Joss Whedon's Much Ado About Nothing, featuring Alexis Denisof and Amy Acker, my first thought was that it was a poster created by a fan. A mock up. A fake. It was only when I saw the trailer that I started to think maybe it was a real movie. And one I would definitely want to see. 

I kept checking my local cinema listings and eventually found the film was showing at Brighton's independent cinema, The Duke of Yorks, and I asked my ex housemate to join me. When we flat shared we started Buffy night, which quickly became Buffy and Angel night, then after we'd moved into our own abodes we watched Firefly, Serenity and now we're on Dollhouse. Maybe we'll finish up by watching Avengers? So of course, she was my go-to person for a new Joss Whedon movie. 

The idea to make the film apparently came about because every summer, Joss invites a group of friends to his house and they all sit around reciting Shakespeare. And on this particular occasion Joss decided to film it. So we have the usual mix of actors who've all worked with Joss before, performing one of Shakespeare's best known plays. A word to the wise, if you've seen Brannagh's version, this is very different to that. 

We still have the same basic story, Leonato (Clark Gregg), is visited by his friend Don Pedro (Reed Diamond) with his brother Don John (Sean Maher) in tow in handcuffs. He asks Leonato if he, along with two of his officers, Benedick (Alexis Denisof) and Claudio (Fran Kranz), can stay at his home until they can deal with Don John's treachery. However, as soon Claudio lays eyes on Leonato's daughter Hero (Jillian Morgese), he immediately falls for her. A wedding is soon arranged between the two and with love being all around, it prompts Leonato, Don Pedro, Claudio and Hero to match Benedick with Beatrice (Amy Acker), Leonato's niece. The two have a history of loathing each other so it's quite the challenge. Meanwhile, Don John, with the help of his allies Comrade (Riki Lindhome) and Borachio (Spencer Treat Clark), devises a scheme to destroy Hero and Claudio's love and break them apart. Will he succeed? Will Benedick and Beatrice ever manage to say a kind word to one another? 

If you don't know the answers to these questions already I heartily suggest you give Mr Whedon's version of Much Ado a go, as it was very different from previous adaptations I've seen, whilst remaining very faithful to Shakespeare's original text.

I am unsure if the actors chosen were merely round at Whedon's house for the annual Shakespeare reading or if he actually planned in advance to cast them in their respective roles. Whichever scenario is true they are all well suited to the parts they are playing here, with Acker and Denisof seeming to take particular relish from all the verbal sparring with each other, and both surprising me with their dedication to slapstick. The only problem for me, as with anything I see Denisof in, is believing his accent! As I watched him on Buffy and Angel for so long and truly believed he was English, I now always struggle when I hear him perform in his native tongue, to believe that it's his real accent. But I'm sure I'm alone in that and it didn't spoil the film for me, it was merely a distraction. 

If you're a fan of Joss Whedon's other films and TV shows you may like to play a little game that my friend and I enjoy, 'when have they worked with Joss before' in which you name all of the Joss Whedon written/directed films and TV shows that the actors have starred in. For example Amy Acker appeared in Angel, Dollhouse and Cabin In The Woods before Much Ado. It's a fun passtime as Joss does like to use a lot of the same actors time and again. In this instance it works well. With the limited budget and time constraints (as well as having to film the picture in Whedon's house), I'm sure it helped that most of the cast knew each other very well beforehand. And it certainly worked well from the audience's perspective, because these characters are supposed to have a history, so it doesn't hurt that the actors playing them really do have one too. 

Although I do sometimes struggle with Shakespeare, Much Ado is one of his more accessible plays and Joss and his crew have worked to make this even more accessible via the setting, costumes and familiar actors in these well established roles. See it, even if Shakespeare's not your usual cup of tea! 8 out of 10.

Viewing Date - 22nd June 2013

UK Release Date - 14th June 2013

Cast Overview:

Beatrice ~ Amy Acker

Benedick ~ Alexis Denisof

Dogberry ~ Nathan Fillion

Leonato ~ Clark Gregg

Don Pedro ~ Reed Diamond

Claudio ~ Fran Kranz

Hero ~ Jillian Morgese

Don John ~ Sean Maher

Borachio ~ Spencer Treat Clark

Comrade ~ Riki Lindhome

Margaret ~ Ashley Johnson

Ursula ~ Emma Bates

Verges ~ Tom Lenk

Director ~ Joss Whedon

Writer(s) ~ Joss Whedon (written for the screen by) and William Shakespeare (Play)

After Earth

http://www.afterearth.com/site/

Since I began my cinema arrangement with one of my work colleagues, I've seen some films that I probably wouldn't have seen without her. Films that have been her choice, such as G.I. Joe: Retaliation. I'll say no more on that! After Earth was one such film. I'm not a huge Will Smith fan, and while Jaden impressed me more than I thought he would in the Karate Kid remake, it's not enough to make me want to see everything he's going to do from here-on out. 

But as I said, this wasn't my choice of film. I merely narrowed down the options because I wanted to see something I hadn't already seen, which meant it was this, or Epic. And as Epic is an animated film, it wasn't really showing at a suitable time. So After Earth it was to be. 

The film shows us the story of father and son Cypher and Kitai (Will and Jaden Smith respectively). Kitai has just been told that his hard work to become a Ranger like his father have not paid off. His squad leader thinks he's reckless and he needs more training. So his father takes him with him on leave. A chance for the two to get to know each other better as Cypher has been absent for much of his son's childhood. Unfortunately for them, the transport carrying them - and a dangerous creature called the Ursa - crashes on earth. But this earth is different from the one you and I know. This is a savage land, one that would chew up and spit out any unsuspecting humans that might land here. Even more unfortunate is the situation Cypher and Kitai find themselves in. Cypher has two broken legs and the homing beacon that will allow them to call for help is in the tail end of the ship that has broken off in the crash. All hope of survival sits on Kitai's shoulders. He must navigate a foreign and dangerous land, and also avoid the escaped and hungry Ursas, in order to save his father and in turn, himself.

We were warned beforehand that After Earth was a terrible film, and in many respects I think that served the film well as we had lower than low expectations and actually quite enjoyed it.

I wouldn't buy it, but it had it's merits and was enjoyable enough. The acting however, from father and son, is pretty atrocious. I don't think I've ever seen a more wooden performance from Will Smith. It seems the intention was for him to appear hardened by his career in the military, to show how distanced he was from his son, but it just felt like he was reading from an auto cue the whole time. Jaden was slightly more believable but still not great. But then with wooden Will as his role model what can you expect? 

Overall, considering this is a M.Night Shyamalan film (which have gotten progressively worse over the years), and considering the quite bad acting, you do still care about these characters, and you do want them to get out of the situation they've found themselves in. Both myself and my companion found ourselves tearing up at a particularly emotional moment involving an eagle. I won't say anymore but I wanted to put across that there is emotional depth. Just not always by the humans. 

If there's nothing else on you could do a lot worse (*cough* Man Of Steel *cough*). But keep your expectations low if you want to be pleasantly surprised. 5 out of 10.

Viewing Date - 19th June 2013

UK Release Date - 7th June 2013

Cast Overview:

Will Smith ~ Cypher Raige

Jaden Smith ~ Kitai Raige

Sophie Okonedo ~ Faia Raige

Zoe Kravitz ~ Senshi Raige

Director ~ M.Night Shyamalan

Writer(s) ~ Gary Whitta (Screenplay), M.Night Shyamalan (Screenplay) and Will Smith (Story)