17 AGAIN (12A)

Starring: Zac Efron, Matthew Perry, Leslie Mann
Directed by: Burr Steers
Released: 10/04/2009

With Zac Efron gaining a legion of fans from the High School Musical franchise he has become a bonafide heartthrob. It appears being bland yet pretty in a feel good film can catapult you to superstardom. Putting High School Musical aside we are treated to Zac’s first leading man role in which he is really allowed to shine. Gone are the cheesy songs and one-dimensional characters and instead we see a real acting talent.

He stars as Mike O’Donnell, a basketball wonder kid (okay so it’s not a huge stretch) who never reaches his full potential to become a great basketball star. Fast forward a few years and Mike (Perry) at the age of 37 feels as though life has just passed him by and constantly regrets the life choices he made. His kids don’t want to know him and he is in the middle of a bitter divorce with his ex-wife (Mann), who is sick of his self-pity at having missed his chance at greatness.

At a nostalgic trip back to the school where it all went wrong he meets a caretaker who will give him his second chance. After a freak accident, which may test people’s imaginations, Michael is transformed into a 17-year-old Zac Efron for another chance at the life that had eluded him. In the process he is able to help his kids with boyfriends and bullies all under the guise of his best friend’s son. He also captures the attention of his soon to be ex-wife played by a great Leslie Mann and what ensues are some slightly awkward moments when she finds herself being drawn to him. He also becomes the love interest for his own daughter, which results in a very funny yet disturbing scene with him desperately trying to reject her advances.

The film also features a great sub plot involving Michael’s best friend, Ned (Thomas Lennon), who is aware of his best friend’s transformation but who is more concerned with courting the headmistress. Seeing Ned being coaxed into Mike’s plan to invade High School results in some of the film’s funniest scenes, with Efron and Lennon displaying great chemistry.

Although the concept may not be original and some viewers may find the story too far fetched it is a feel good family film with some great laughs. The film does lose a bit of momentum during the middle but is saved by some great performances and an ending which is not too predictable. Zac Efron is sure to gain some more fans as he proves his leading man chops while exuding a great charisma.


Rickee Bhardwaj

In The Loop (15)

Released 17/04/2009

The film is a spin off from award winning T.V. series ‘The Thick of It’, which was an intelligent satire based on British politics. Both the series and the film are written and directed by Armando Iannucci.

Political films are not usually all that interesting or enticing. When America has taken a stab at portraying the Iraq war and the decisions behind it, on screen it has tended to play it straight down the line - films like ‘Syriana’, ‘Lions for Lambs’ and ‘In the Valley of Elah’ are examples of this approach. We Brits tend not to conform to the solemn and miserable attitude; instead we insert insults and humour via said insults.

Simon Forester (Tom Hollander) plays The Minister of International Defence - the surprising thing is that he has a finding himself as a player in a game that he does not understand the rules of and discovering that he is in way above his head. He’s assisted by a not so able team who manage to make him late to meetings and “meat in the room” during important meetings. His bungling assistant Oliver (Chris Addison) adds chaos to every situation but with vast comical effect, whilst attempting to manage his own life, as well as Simon's, with disastrous consequences.

Director, Armando Iannucci, said that the reason he made the film was ‘due to what went on in the build up to the invasion in Iraq and all the petty power politics that went on in Washington’. This is exactly what the film portrays, constantly switching from Capital Hill and British Parliament informing the audience of the decisions made in each with a few eccentric Scots thrown in for good measure. Peter Capaldi as Malcolm Tucker deserves a mention in this category, being one of the only characters who came from the T.V. series and being stark raving mad and full of rather colourful language throughout the film. James Gandolfini, of Sopranos fame plays General Miller who sits on the fence and plays an entertaining game of cat and mouse throughout, with surprising results. The other two characters worth mentioning are key players on the American side of things, Assistant Secretary of Diplomacy (Mimi Kennedy) and her nemesis, Linton (David Rasche) who, like their assistants, are locked in battle and constantly trying to outdo one another.

The film is dialogue-driven rather than plot and the enjoyment comes from the characters and their interactions and relationships with each other. Satire, spin and sex provide an expected combination for politics. There is a lot of unnecessary content in the film and scenes that act as fillers but it manages to hold its head above water, unlike Simon. The cameo from Steve Coogan is well worth looking out for too.


Amy V Gathercole

Fast and Furious (12A)

Starring: Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Michelle Rodriguez,
Directed by: Justin Lin
Released: 10/04/09

The tagline reads…” New Model, Original Parts”. Essentially the original cast has remerged with a structurally (un)sound plot which is basically about women, fast cars and what makes their engines rev. So no changes there, though this one involves more emotion and a revenge plot. Then again do you actually expect anything different from the fourth in this franchise?

Ex-con, Dom (Vin Diesel) and F.B.I Agent, O’Conner (Paul Walker) find themselves attempting to take down a drug lord with a grudge. Both have their own agenda and will have to work together to achieve it. The film engages with a brief flirtation of asking its audience to take it seriously by using subtitles and exotic locations, it even requires you to use your brain in some scenes…

The first film was like getting behind the wheel of a car when you first turn seventeen… a new and exciting feeling. The second recreated the emotion you feel upon passing your driving test (relief and anticipation) and the third...sadly the third is when you crash a car and it becomes a write off… the fourth, I am happy to inform you, is a mixture of the first two with a few new illegal mod cons built in.

Since I first saw Herbie as a child I have been fascinated by cars and what they can do… my secret dream is to be a street racer, a dream sadly hindered by the fact that I only possess a provisional driving licence! This film is not and never will be as good as classic car films such as The Italian Job (the original, not the remake), Gone in 60 Seconds (the remake, not the original) or even Pixars’ Cars. But, for a rough and ready high speed chase or two and an adrenalin injection or three, this ticks all the boxes.


Amy V Gathercole

Let the Right One In

Released 10/04/2009

Although recent horror films have mainly consisted of remakes and gore-fests, here is a film that will reaffirm your belief in the horror genre. Gone are the drunken teenagers and the cliché shock tactics and instead we are left with a powerful story of a friendship that quickly turns more sinister.
We are taken into 1980s Stockholm and we follow 12-year-old Oskar, a lonely boy bullied by his peers and repressing his urge to retaliate. He meets Eli, a young girl for which it would appear life too is a lonely one, and so their friendship begins. Although Oskar is unaware of the true identity of Eli, who is in fact a vampire, the two become close and their lives quickly become entwined. Eli helps Oskar to fend off his bullies; an incident that has horrific consequences for all involved.
Eli is a vampire, yet the film's director, Tomas Alfredson, treads away from clichés of previous vampire films such as fangs and bats and instead, a sense of realism is injected. This is achieved through the use of dark lighting and the grainy camera style. When Eli must hunt for her victims there are no long drawn out scenes depicting their deaths, yet an air of suspense is still maintained and adds to the unpredictability of the film. Eli comes across as a lonely girl who must hunt to survive and so the audience is made to feel sorry for her. The film moves along at a steady pace, all the while focusing on the friendship between Eli and Oskar. The film steers away from the horror and we are shown the power of a true friendship with subtle hints at a romance that is not explored.
The two leads Kare Hedebrant and Lina Leanderson give great performances making the friendship between their characters believable, further adding to the sense of realism.
It is the great performances and the originality of both film and film style that make this a must-see. Swedish horror may not be everyone’s preference but this is a film worth watching - if only to see what happens if you don’t invite a vampire into your home, which culminates in an unforgettable scene.


Rickee Bhardwaj