josh-thawley Reviews

Taken (I) (2008)

Not the most creative film out there, but definitely worth a watch.

[7/10 · 20 June 2012]

There seems to be a trend in recent years for elderly action stars to revisit characters from their past; be it the upcoming "Dine Hard" (where a geriatric Bruce Willis is living a care-free life in a care- free care home, spoon fed all his meals. Until he realises generic terrorists are purposefully sabotaging Meals on Wheels) or "Indiana and the Quest for the Adult Nappies" (where Harrison Ford realises that having an irritating Shia LaBeouf as your son isn't great when it comes to choosing a care home).

Anyway, I digress. Taken turns this trope on its head, in having the aged Liam Neeson only joining the action genre in his old age. Taken also manages to avoid all of the clichéd plots that other action movies spew out, such as an elite special forces soldier's daughter being kidnapped and him going on an international rip-roaring revenge rampage. Oh wait, that's the entire plot. When his daughter is kidnapped in France, by Eastern European sex traffickers, Neeson heads to Paris to f**k sh*t up for an hour and a half. Of course, this being an American film, the Big Bad must ultimately be brown, so it's lucky Neeson's (I'm making no attempt to pretend I actually know his character's name) daughter is being bought by a Saudi Sheik.

Whilst the plot is terrible and a soggy retread of Die Hard and other classic action films, Taken does provide some amazing action sequences and harrowing torture scenes. Neeson excels, managing to be far better than the script should allow him to be.

Whilst not exactly an Oscar winner, Taken manages to be great in its own right, and it's quotability and enjoyment factor lead to what has shown itself to be a cult classic, and a great piece of pulp fiction.

Sightseers (2012)

A Sight for Sore Eyes

[9/10 · 20 June 2012]

Ben Wheatley provides one of the year's darkest and funniest comedies in this tale of true love, caravans and dead bodies.

Ever since her terrier Poppy died in a bizarre knitting accident, Tina (Darkplace's Alice Lowe) has lived a sheltered life with her mother. New boyfriend Chris (Steve Oram) decides to show her his world and takes her on a self-proclaimed "erotic odyssey" in his caravan to such wonders as the Crich Tramway Museum, Ribblehead Viaduct and, of course, Keswick Pencil Museum. But with litterbug, National Trust snobs and feral youths running rampant, Tina and Chris inadvertently leave a trail of dead bodies in their wake, as their holiday continues to spiral out of control.

Steve Oram heads up the fantastic cast as the muted, yet brutal, Chris, complementing Alice Lowe's awkward, yet creepy, Tina perfectly. However, the real star is the special effects, which provide some of the most realistic and memorable on screen deaths of the year. The unsettling, albeit hilarious, performances of the two leads is mirrored in the soundtrack, a mix of cheery '80s pop songs and a haunting minimalist score.

Shot in the beautiful Lake District, director Ben Wheatley uses lingering shots and slow-mo in an innovative way, making his comedy edgy whilst poignant. No doubt, this is a very British black comedy. Wheatley shows directorial flair, but reigns it in from his previous work Kill List, leading to a much tighter film, with a concentration on the biting wit of the script.

Sightseers, overall, plays out like a cross between Bonnie & Clyde and In Bruges, leading to a perfect pitch-black comedy that's not for the faint hearted.

Hunky Dory (2011)

Space Oddity

[5/10 · 4 November 2011]

Set in 1976 Swansea, "Hunky Dory" follows charismatic drama teacher Viv (Minnie Driver) as she attempts to stage a rock-opera version of Shakespeare's "The Tempest", set on Mars. Predictably, the play serves as a catalyst to examine and solve some of the students' problems, such as broken families and burgeoning homosexuality, and as a point of confrontation between liberal Viv and other sterner and more classically minded teachers.

What the "Freedom Writers", cum "Glee", cum "School of Rock" plot lacks in originality is more than made up for by the stellar ensemble cast. Driver provides a strong, believable lead performance, supported by the frankly superb rising star Aneurin Barnard, as troubled student Davey, and backed by a surprisingly good cast of relatively unknown young actors.

Without a doubt, the best thing about "Hunky Dory" is the great soundtrack, which is performed entirely by the talented, young cast. The film features a staggering selection of classic 1970s rock artists, such as Pink Floyd, The Who, The Beach Boys, with an emphasis on David Bowie, whose album the film takes its title from.

Overall, "Hunky Dory" is a film that would appeal to the younger "Glee-generation", had it not been awkwardly clashing with a classic rock soundtrack, and a more adult storyline. Nonetheless, it is an entertaining, if schmaltzy and clichéd, film.