Reviews by PvtCaboose91

5.8/10

By 1985, the movie-going public had been subjected to a new breed of action filmmaking: the "one man army" genre. Character development and logic are of no concern to such actioners since their prime focus is instead on a lone hero annihilating as many bad guys as possible (think Rambo: First Blood Part II and Commando). Death Wish 3 (the second sequel to 1974's Death Wish) employs this particular template. It discards the gritty drama and interesting themes of the original movie (which spoke about the urban condition of its time) in favour of simple, orgasmically satisfying violence. Death Wish 3 is a bona fide guilty pleasure - it isn't a particularly good movie and it recycles every '80s action movie cliché in existence, but it's a highly entertaining product of its time.

As expected, the plot of Death Wish 3 is as thin as they come. Paul Kersey (Bronson) departs from Los Angeles and travels back to New York City to visit a friend. His buddy (who resides in a bad neighbourhood) is killed by local gang members, and Paul is mistakenly arrested for the crime. The local police captain (Lauter) recognises Kersey from his earlier vigilante adventures, and sets him free under the condition that he tidies up the streets. Living in his late friend's apartment and amassing an arsenal of weapons, Paul rages war on the local gang, much to the happiness of the law-abiding citizens of the neighbourhood. The movie of course eventually builds to a crescendo in which the neighbourhood is reduced to a massive war zone.

Death Wish 3 is just a 90-minute turkey shoot - a madhouse of rape, torture, violence, brutality, explosions, and savagery. Attempts to justify the violence and mass-murder are perfunctory for this instalment. The dialogue is frequently awkward and the proceedings are generally silly. The street creeps are cardboard caricatures that in no way resemble genuine criminals of 1985, not to mention the main gang is portrayed as more of a cult - they dress in strange break dance fashion and wear identifying marks on their foreheads.

Throughout most of the movie Paul merely lures out his victims with the promise of an easy steal before hosing them down with hot lead. At no point does he ever seem in genuine peril. On top of everything, there's a romance subplot that's cumbersome and random. To set up an incredibly violent climax, Paul has to endure some form of emotional turmoil, and that's where this romantic subplot comes into play (though after his girl is killed, he doesn't give her a second glance before he returns to whatever he was doing). When all's said and done, Death Wish 3 exists to showcase gratuitous violence...and it delivers in spades. It's impossible to keep up with the amount of people who are shot, blown up, stabbed, beaten, pushed off rooftops, or just plain maimed during the climax. The whole thing is so violent that it was initially hit with an 'X' rating by the MPAA, though this was successfully appealed. Death Wish II was also a repellent, exploitative actioner, but this third movie surpasses its predecessor because it has more style and a greater entertainment value.

Charles Bronson remains shockingly one-note for all of his screen-time. Even when people close to him are killed, he doesn't seem too fazed. His dialogue is restricted, and his most complicated deliveries come in the form of providing rundowns of the weapons he receives in the mail. Just like the second Death Wish picture, credibility is a key issue - despite looking so old, Bronson's Paul Kersey is able to run down opponents on foot and is a perfect marksman while the young hooligans can't shoot for shit (even when Paul is in the open).

Kersey's .475 Wildey Magnum is probably as much the star of the movie as Bronson. Hilariously (and perhaps alarmingly), the creator of this handgun (Wildey Moore) admitted in an interview that there is a spike in sales of the .475 Magnum every time Death Wish 3 appears on television.

Bronson tore Death Wish 3 to pieces in later interviews and ended his professional partnership with Winner after the film was released. Bronson was reportedly dissatisfied with the script since production commenced, and at the time he was far more concerned about the health of his wife (Jill Ireland) who was diagnosed with cancer. In any case, Bronson still starred in the film. His performance may not contain much heart, but his rugged demeanour is nonetheless compelling. Death Wish 3 (Roman numerals weren't used in the title like the second film because most Americans are unable to decipher them) fails as a serious crime/drama, but it works marvellously as an entertaining, balls-to-the-wall '80s action film.

Followed by Death Wish 4: The Crackdown.

5.7/10

Death Wish II arrived eight years after 1974's Death Wish (a smash-hit which apparently reduced the crime rate in New York City during its theatrical run!), and this sequel was clearly green-lit for the sole purpose of cashing in on the success of its predecessor. This is fundamentally a shameless rehash of the original Death Wish that's packed with gratuitous violence and rape. Where the first film presented Charles Bronson's character of Paul Kersey as a victim of violence pushed to breaking point, this follow-up finds Paul in John Rambo territory - he has become an apathetic iconoclast bent on revenge. The underlying moral debate of the first film has vanished, and has been replaced with unhealthy blood-lust. The product is a serviceable actioner that most audiences will find unbearably repugnant.

This follow-up is a complete break from the Brian Garfield novel series on which the original film is based. Garfield's second novel (entitled Death Sentence) was unused in the creation of this sequel, but was eventually adapted for the screen in 2007 (directed by Saw creator James Wan).

In what is essentially Death Wish revisited, we find Paul Kersey (Bronson) who's turned loose on the creeps of Los Angeles. The health of his catatonic daughter Carol (Sherwood) is improving, but tranquillity in the family was not destined to be long-lived. Five street punks (one of which is a young Laurence Fishburne) break into Paul's home and assault everyone in sight, resulting in the death of both his daughter and housekeeper. Paul, shaken up and deeply pissed off about the event, plots revenge and begins to methodically hunt down each of the five thugs.

Where Death Wish persuaded a viewer to support the protagonist's crusade, this support is taken for granted here. Unlike its predecessor, Death Wish II spends no time watching Paul contemplate his actions before turning to vigilantism - he simply goes to work, rendering himself a stoic killing machine. The punks are unimaginative and soulless caricatures, conceived for the purpose of showing how awful the underbelly of society truly is. The portrayal of street crime is so one-dimensional it practically borders on parody. There are literally thugs on every street block, and they're all unmistakable due to how they dress. While admittedly entertaining, Death Wish II is desperately underwritten and underplotted, alternating between violent action, gratuitous rape scenes and banal dialogue passages.

At the tip of the iceberg, the story of Death Wish II has little credibility - the chances are slim to none that Paul Kersey would suffer two such horrendous experiences during the course of a few years. Credibility is further disregarded during the first ten minutes when a visibly aged Charles Bronson is portrayed as an adept hand-to-hand combat fighter even while battling more agile opponents. One sequence even shows Paul winning a fight with a thug who easily fought off a dozen cops just a few scenes earlier. It's just ridiculous. Death Wish II has no intention of pursuing the interesting themes of its forerunner. Michael Winner dedicates this film to an audience hungry for exploitation.

Director Winner does stage a number of exciting shootouts, however, though the film as a whole sorely lacks both artistry and style. The pace for this tight 90-minute flick is incredibly brisk, but that comes at the expense of interesting characterisations. On top of all this, former Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page (who was Winner's neighbour in the '80s) provides an adequate score.

All things considered, Death Wish II is enjoyable but thoroughly disappointing, and it was made purely for box office returns. It's routine, lazy and silly. A bunch of entertaining action sequences provides the only reason to watch this sequel. Those who seek more weight and/or gravitas with their action films, however, should avoid this empty-headed actioner at all costs.

Followed by Death Wish 3.

4.7/10

An outlandish, uncategorisable blend of John Ford (and, by extension, John Wayne) and cornball Chinese mysticism, John Carpenter's Big Trouble in Little China is a hokey martial arts adventure flick with limitless appeal. The characters are both endearing and witty, with the actors hamming it up to extremes. Meanwhile Carpenter provides directorial genius, suspenseful set-ups, edge-of-your-seat action and a signature musical score. Big Trouble in Little China is simply a delightfully absurd action movie that never takes itself too seriously, although it isn't for all tastes.

In his fourth collaboration with director Carpenter (after Elvis, Escape From New York and The Thing), Kurt Russell plays an imitable, good-natured truck driver named Jack Burton. During one of his trips to San Francisco, Jack's truck is hijacked and he's unwittingly swept up in a universe-bounding plot to kidnap the fiancée of his friend Wang (Dun). The whole situation concerns warring gangs that dwell in the Chinatown underground, and an ancient supernatural spirit named Lo Pan (Hong). But Jack couldn't care less about any of this...he just wants his truck back.

This is not your ordinary kung fu flick, to say the least. The slender plot is virtually indecipherable; merely providing a reason to showcase lots of things happening in colorful settings for no reason other than to have lots of things happening in colorful settings.

Alas, character development is slim and an audience isn't given much of a chance to become acquainted with the characters before they're sent into action. However the dialogue never fails to sparkle and the endearing characters will win you over anyway. Big Trouble in Little China mainly works so well due to Carpenter's stylised direction and the breathless pacing. We're taken from one chase to another; Carpenter continually removing his characters from the frying pan and throwing them into the fire. This ever-escalating chain of events always keeps things moving forward, and never allows the movie to bog down (even the few expository scenes necessary to fully outline Lo Pan's dastardly scheme are brilliantly terse). Carpenter's willingness to let ridiculous, unexplained things fly in out of left field is another masterstroke. The character of Margo (Burton) at one stage likens this peculiar adventure to Alice in Wonderland.

The subterranean lairs which accommodate most of the action are great - hokey enough to emphasise the film's camp appeal, but not so hokey that they look like sets. Big Trouble in Little China features plenty of special effects too - and the somewhat dated effects add to the enchanting flavour. Carpenter always respects his influences. He maintains the B-Grade spirit of Hong Kong cinema while also fusing it with his own style and satirising it with a unique campness. From the score's synthesis of Eastern music and Carpenter's trademark synth to the arcade-style battle between two characters and the villain being defeated with a simple bowie knife to the head instead of a grand duel, Carpenter nails the tongue-in-cheek kung fu comedy genre. One definitely needs to be in the right mindset for this movie.

Kurt Russell as Jack Burton is priceless - he's a witty, tough-talking everyman hero in the mould of John Wayne. Unlike John Wayne, however, Jack is not immune from screwing up. Jack has a knack for getting into extreme situations, he believes he has everything figured out, he constantly messes up, and he makes a lot of grand pronouncements and wisecracks (he even talks about himself in the third person a lot). Russell's Jack Burton will definitely win you over with his cheesy bravado. Interestingly, he ain't the real driver of the plot - he's Wan's sidekick and he's just there to find his truck. Jack is, however, the true star of the show

Just like John Carpenter's The Thing, Big Trouble in Little China performed poorly at the box office upon its initial release but has grown vindicated in the years to follow; earning a legion of fans who understand what Carpenter was trying to do. Ancient Chinese mysticism and kung fu is expertly blended with good old-fashioned American gunplay to produce this high-energy mélange of action sequences. You know what ol' Jack Burton would say at a time like this? Jack Burton would say "see this movie!"

7.6/10

Public Enemies is an excellent slice of mature entertainment, and a welcome alternative to the silly, overblown blockbusters of the dire 2009 summer season. This predominantly factual retelling of the descent of John Dillinger is a synthesis of an irresistible triad of elements: a stylish director (Michael Mann), an incredible actor (Johnny Depp), and a great American myth (Dillinger and the golden age of bank robbers). Public Enemies has inevitably been tagged as Michael Mann's Heat in a Depression-era setting, and the similarities are numerous; from the languid cityscapes to an extended street shootout, and even the basic premise. In a modern cinematic marketplace dominated by brainless, action-saturated blockbusters, Public Enemies is brilliantly unique. It's a grand, challenging crime epic that demands multiple viewings in order to fully absorb everything it has to offer. It's also a summer movie for which you don't need to switch off your brain...and you don't want to!

The opening title card reveals that it's 1933, it's the fourth year of the Great Depression, and it's the golden age of the bank robbery. Out of the bank robbers of this period, none were as notorious as the charismatic John Dillinger (Depp), whose gang plied its trade with cunning efficiency. His lightning raids made him not only an admired folk hero to the downtrodden public, but also a target for the Bureau of Investigation. Top G-Man Melvin Purvis (Bale) is assigned to head a special unit in Chicago with the primary directive of tracking down Dillinger. It was during this period that Dillinger also became involved with a coat-check girl named Billie Frechette (Cotillard).

Once the central characters and their respective missions are established, Public Enemies becomes a string of explosive confrontations between government agents and Dillinger's gang, with the two sides engaging in a variety of shootouts. At times the narrative feels genuinely unfocused, and some aspects of the story feel either a tad abridged or foolishly excluded. But with so much packed into one movie, it's forgivable that a few story threads feel underdeveloped.

Mann is wise enough not to overglamorise the bank robbing lifestyle, though he distinctly depicts the difference between how Dillinger is perceived by law enforcement officials (as a criminal who needs to be stopped) and how he's viewed by the public (as a Robin Hood-like figure). Mann even finds time to insert a sly nod to America's fascination with the lurid - a massive crowd congregates once Dillinger is shot dead.

At the centre of the picture lies a question Mann and Depp are trying to solve - what motivated Dillinger? Public Enemies is a motion picture probing the icon of Dillinger and how we all respond to that icon, and the film therefore never get inside the rogue's head. A typical origins story is merely brushed over, with Dillinger already a fully-formed criminal at the beginning of the movie. Armchair psychology is happily eschewed as well, forgoing flashbacks in order to tightly focus on exploring a distinct period in Dillinger's life. What truly made the man tick remains the film's biggest mystery, but no-one really knew in real-life either. Public Enemies never pretends to know the truth.

Bryan Burrough (author of the non-fiction novel Public Enemies: America's Greatest Crime Wave and the Birth of the FBI, 1933-34 which inspired the movie) has stated that, although it takes a certain amount of artistic license with history, Public Enemies is to date the most factual retelling of Dillinger's story to appear on screen. The screenplay (penned by Ronan Bennett, Michael Mann, and Ann Biderman) uses Burrough's novel as its backbone, although the writers occasionally manipulate the facts to better suit the film dramatically. (For example, while the gaolbreak at the beginning in fact took place, Dillinger was locked up at the time and was not involved in it. Also, Pretty Boy Floyd was killed three months after John Dillinger but is shown being gunned down by Purvis early into the picture.) Public Enemies will receive criticisms for its inaccuracies, but this is too nitpicky - after all, Bonnie and Clyde is hailed as a masterpiece when it's a very inaccurate retelling of its story. Besides, most of Dillinger's story is unknowable (particularly the details of his death - to this day, some still assert that it wasn't Dillinger but a lookalike who was killed that night in Chicago, and there are conflicting stories as to if Dillinger actually pulled a gun before he was gunned down).

Several of the film's major set-pieces were shot in the actual locations where the same events took place some seventy-five years prior - Depp breaks out of Dillinger's actual gaol cell, fires through the same windows and runs through the same forest at Little Bohemia, and lies on the same segment of pavement in front of the Biograph Theatre. It's excellent!

Evoking his experience as an action director, Mann crafts a number of thrilling action sequences. The bank robberies are gripping and taut, while the prison break sequences are equally exciting. Most impressive, however, is the riveting Little Bohemia Lodge shootout. The killing of Dillinger (while a foregone conclusion) is also a suspenseful and moving sequence. Nitpickers complain about the high-definition digital photography, but this (along with the exquisitely-detailed sets and the effective shooting style) adds a sense of immediacy to the movie, with naturalistic lighting and colours. The soundtrack, too, is masterful - natural rather than exaggerated, with the gunshots very loud and the voices quite subdued. Elliot Goldenthal's score is evocative and touching, while the use of '30s-style music heightens the film's authenticity. Never before has a period piece been created with this level of immersion.

John Dillinger was killed after watching a screening of Manhattan Melodrama, and the definitive masterstroke of Public Enemies is milking this for its movie-ness (if you will) - parallels are drawn between the movie and Dillinger's life brilliantly.

Johnny Depp avoids theatricality in his portrayal of John Dillinger, and nails everything from the accent to the mannerisms. He's simply the best actor to play Dillinger to date. The spotlight is often stolen by Marion Cotillard whose portrayal of Billie Frechette is so beguiling that it's easy to understand why a hard-bitten man like Dillinger would be attracted to her. The scenes between the two, especially the early ones in which Dillinger is attempting to woo Frechette, are given the crackling snap of the movies of that era with sharp, fast dialogue.

Christian Bale submits a top-notch performance as lawman Melvin Purvis, the film's primary antagonist, though he ultimately isn't allowed enough screen-time to fully develop his character. Billy Crudup's supporting performance as J. Edgar Hoover is brilliant - he masters the accent. The rest of the actors mainly appear in glorified cameos, ranging from David Wenham as Dillinger's mentor to Channing Tatum in a blink-and-you'll-miss-him turn as Pretty Boy Floyd. Giovanni Ribisi fares better as robber Alvin Karpis, while Stephen Graham is an absolute scene-stealer as Baby Face Nelson.

Public Enemies is a powerful, amazing, mesmerising depiction of the final months of one of the most infamous criminals in American history. Although viewers will be left wanting to know more about the iconic bank robber, Public Enemies is clearly intended to just be a slice of the gangster's life. In the film Dillinger is depicted as a man who lives for the moment; unwilling or unable to consider the future, and with little use for the past. This is Mann's credo as well - he places us in the moment just as Dillinger chose to live his final year. Mann's latest masterwork won't work for everyone, but it remains a visually enthralling crime-thriller.

8.9/10

1974's Death Wish (which initially went by the apt working title of The Sidewalk Vigilante) was released at the pinnacle of Hollywood's obsession with anti-hero movies. This screen adaptation of Brian Garfield's 1972 novel is functionally simplistic, lowering itself to the cerebral level required for straight-up exploitation (though it contains a slight trace of a social commentary). The formerly timely message of this gritty actioner, along with the solid production values and Herbie Hancock's remarkable score, render it able to hold up rather confidently all these decades later. Upon release in 1974 the film was a commercial hit - it earned about $22 million at the box office (from a mere $3 million budget).

Set in New York City, Death Wish introduces Charles Bronson's signature character: a respected architect named Paul Kersey. One afternoon Paul's idyllic life is shattered when a group of street thugs (among which is a young Jeff Goldblum, in his film debut) break into his apartment, leaving his wife dead and his daughter in a catatonic state. The family is shaken to its very core after this attack. Once Paul steps onto a shooting range during a business trip intended to keep his mind off things, his vengeful instincts are awoken. The police are unable to find the hooligans that attacked his family, so Paul takes to vigilantism. He begins prowling the mean streets of New York City at night, killing all the street criminals he encounters.

Charles Bronson certainly isn't noted for his acting skills (or lack thereof), and Death Wish has no real emotional punch as a result. While the man is fairly watchable, he's so emotionless and stale, and eventually we're left wondering what really makes Paul tick. Also, the attack on Paul's wife and daughter would've been more effective if a viewer had been given the chance to know them intimately as characters. Alas, they're merely thinly-sketched narrative tools used to send Paul into vigilante mode. Other parts of the movie, however, are thoroughly effective. Director Winner stages each of Paul's confrontations like a showdown between jaded civility and total depravity. The final half of the flick mostly consists of Paul shooting criminals, but each confrontation is staged with visceral effectiveness that'll get your blood pumping (even if the silliness of the whole affair is sometimes hard to overlook).

In adapting Garfield's novel for the screen, screenwriter Wendell Mayes (who also scripted The Poseidon Adventure) altered the narrative's ultimate trajectory. Moreover, vigilantism is seen in a negative light in the Death Wish novel whereas the film unmistakably romanticises Paul's choice to take the law into his own hands. The fact that those Paul kills are portrayed as soulless criminals only adds to the attractiveness of his vendetta. This allure is further compounded by the fact that the police develop a hesitative admiration for the media-dubbed "Vigilante", and the mayor notices that Paul's activities cause the mugging rate to decrease by about 50%.

At its most basic level, Death Wish is a simple-minded vigilante fantasy and no room is left for any intellectual defence of its ideological standpoint. However the film's stance is more or less identical to that which is taken by most Westerns. Charles Bronson dispensing justice on the streets of New York is hardly unlike John Wayne or Clint Eastwood carrying out the same task in frontier outposts of the Old West. Most Western heroes are sheriffs, but they rarely operate totally within the realm of proscribed law. One could contend that times have changed, but this doesn't deflate the mythological undercurrents of "righteous justice" that transcend the slow bureaucratic processes and give both Westerns and vigilante movies their undeniable kick. The central message of all these narratives is that desperate times call for desperate measures, and sometimes a lone outsider is the only one who can get the job done. The Western likeness of Death Wish is further reinforced when Paul at one stage witnesses a mock gunfight at a reconstructed Western frontier town that's often used as a movie set (in Tucson, Arizona).

Ideology aside, Death Wish is nothing but a specific product of its time. The late '60s was a period in which street crime reached near epidemic proportions, and Hollywood retorted with reactionary films like Death Wish, Dirty Harry, and The French Connection. Characters such as Paul Kersey fill an entrenched fantasy that most people are wise enough not to try to fulfil themselves. Paul and similar characters are the epitome of cathartic excess in cinema; a means by which viewers could fleetingly revel in the delight of seeing a badass punish the wicked with righteous intensity. Director Michael Winner's tale of an epic skewing of the moral compass laid the groundwork for the dozens of films following it that had revenge as a crucial plot point. Death Wish is an excellent capsule of 1970s filmmaking - it's thrilling and thought-provoking, and it sends us off with a wink at the end.

Followed by four sequels, beginning with Death Wish II in 1982.

7.2/10

It seems the older Clint Eastwood becomes, the more mileage he can extract from his age and the more his aging persona appears to fit him. Embodying everything one could love about the movies, Clint is an everyman, an action hero, a tough-talker, a girl magnet and a keen-eyed detective all rolled into one. On top of this, he's also a masterful filmmaker. And for a man in his 70s, that's a tough act to beat. It's disappointing to report, then, that 2002's Blood Work (while well-crafted by director Eastwood) is such a routine, predictable and sometimes perilously naff thriller. In a sense, this movie is a bit like eating a meal you've already devoured hundreds of times before - familiar, fairly uneventful and boasting no real surprises, but tasty and inviting nonetheless.

In Blood Work, Eastwood continues his exploration of the aging action hero and takes it to the very brink of logical conclusion. Here the actor plays a retired FBI profiler named Terry McCaleb. Two year prior, he was working on a case concerning a serial killer renowned for leaving codes at every murder site. Flash forward to the present, and McCaleb is recovering after a heart transplant. A woman named Graciella Rivers (De Jesus) soon contacts McCaleb, asking him to investigate the death of her sister who was shot dead during a convenience store robbery. McCaleb reluctantly agrees to the assignment when he finds out that he received the heart of Graciella's sister.

Blood Work commences with a jazzy score that plays during the opening credits - an old-fashioned piece of music which establishes the picture as a throwback to an earlier era of more laid-back mystery thrillers. It's therefore a shame that Eastwood fails to capitalise on the film's potential. The script (penned by Brian Helgeland, who adapted Michael Connelly's novel of the same name) is pedestrian, while the plot is pure mechanics, with the wheels grinding at a pace so leisurely that it isn't difficult to predict the twists. The clues McCaleb unearths are so obvious that any half-thinking viewer will have solved the "whodunnit" of the film early into the proceedings. Once one determines the identity of the killer, the "why" of his actions isn't hard to deduce, and thus the majority of the movie is reduced to pointless running around. It's a bad sign if an audience can figure everything out before the characters, which makes them seem frustratingly slow and daft.

For the first hour of its runtime, Blood Work is a compelling thriller despite a painfully obvious plot trajectory and a few silly moments (an early foot-chase feels awkwardly tagged on and is quite laughable). Beyond the first hour, the film quickly falls apart. The proceedings become either clichéd or cringe-worthy (the relationship between McCaleb and Graciella reaching the bedroom, for instance). Blood Work is also quite lazy and poorly constructed, with the camera inexplicably lingering on things that will obviously have relevance later on and characters not mentioning small details which would clearly help solve the case. Aside from the clumsy screenplay, there are other annoyances associated with the flick. Characters possess a tendency to utter irritating and inappropriate wisecracks, for example, and the climax is far too Hollywood.

At least Eastwood's direction is top-notch (even if he falters when it comes to hiding future plot twists). Without ever feeling the need to indulge in the flashy editing techniques or the gimmicky camera work that disguises a lack of imagination in younger directors (such as Michael Bay), Eastwood handles Blood Work with smooth and precise skill. He's simply the best old-fashioned director of the 21st Century. And in front of the camera, the actor still emanates a gripping screen presence. Eastwood evokes his Dirty Harry image here; giving us an aging, flawed version of his most celebrated role. However the character of McCaleb is in some aspects unlike the heroes Eastwood has played in the past - he's not too physical, but more of a thinker. It's a pity the material fails to serve Eastwood's perfectly nuanced performance.

Blood Work is one of Eastwood's weakest efforts to date; suffering from exaggerated action, plenty of clichés and too many preposterous moments. But with the behind-the-scenes expertise of a director who cares about the art of filmmaking, this thriller is easily far more entertaining than it should have been. There's something about the flavour of Eastwood's work that allows a viewer to overlook the flaws and tiresome material...at least for a little while.

6.1/10

Easily the purest Sam Raimi movie since Evil Dead II, Drag Me to Hell is a triumph - one of the best movies of 2009. This horror tour de force is precisely the movie needed to revitalise the genre after a string of superfluous remakes (The Grudge, One Missed Call) and torture porn features (Saw, Hostel). Best of all, Drag Me to Hell allows Raimi the opportunity to reawaken his visceral horror instincts that were mummified by the big-league, big-budget Spider-Man trilogy. Even with the teen-friendly PG-13 rating in place, this is classic Raimi. So why is this PG-13 horror romp a rousing success while other modern horrors fall flat? Two factors stand out - Raimi's respect for his audience, and his desire to make horror fun again. In trademark Raimi style, Drag Me to Hell lurches from wild laughs to beautifully choreographed scares with a steady sleight of hand. The story is basic, the gimmicks are familiar and the mythology is laughable, but Raimi is highly confident with what he's presenting. This is a movie which demands to be seen with a large audience, milking every gasp and laugh for the best experience.

Drag Me to Hell begins with the decades-old Universal Studios logo, establishing a sense of nostalgia to get the audience in the mood for what follows. This old-fashioned exercise in terror transports an audience back to an era when horror was all about providing a fun, suspenseful carnival ride of fright flick...before torture porn tendencies clogged up vital artistic arteries.

Following an insanely atmospheric pre-title sequence, we're thrust right into the primary story. Christine Brown (Lohman) is a bank loan officer vying for a promotion against a brown-nosing colleague (Lee). In order to receive this promotion, she's told she has to be able to make the "tough decisions". Thus, when the normally soft-centred Christine is approached by aging gypsy Mrs. Ganush (Raver) who asks for a third extension on her mortgage payment, she denies the request. And for this, there is literally hell to pay. Things slowly go downhill for Christine from there as she finds herself the recipient of a supernatural curse placed on her by Mrs. Ganush. The shadowy demon haunting Christine begins toying mercilessly with her, and after three days she'll be dragged down to Satan's dominion.

Drag Me to Hell provides a thin membrane of a plot, quickly setting up Christine's workplace ambition and demonic dilemma which leaves plenty of time for Raimi to torment his heroine in creative ways. Naturally the film is more about the tour de force terror sequences, of which there are plenty. The film's biggest blessing is its humour, which ranges from one-liners to a hilariously awkward dinner scene during which Christine meets her boyfriend's parents. But the best moments occur when the horror elements combine with this humour, and you begin laughing in a combination of terror and delight. If you're not laughing with every scream, you're only getting half the experience. Raimi has an uncanny knowledge of what his audience really wants, ratcheting up the tension when necessary and keeping things moving at a perfectly brisk pace. He even has the good grace to add an extra scare when the pace slows down. In the tight 95-minute running time, not a moment feels wasted.

Raimi isn't too interested in extravagant bloodshed as he frequently uses booming sound effects to generate a mood of inexorable unease instead. This isn't a lazy director hitting the cheap scare button...this is Sam Raimi, and he's a horror maestro. Anyone concerned that Raimi didn't go all the way with this one due to the big studio backing - and worse, the dreaded PG-13 rating - can easily put their fears to rest. There's less blood, but there are some gruesome moments and the bodily fluids flow freely, not to mention the scares are continually thrown at you. Drag Me to Hell is one of the loudest movies of recent memory. Raimi wants the viewer to experience Christine's physical torment through the raucous soundtrack, giving the director a chance to spotlight his Evil Dead roots. The grandiose score courtesy of Christopher Young is the cherry on top.

Most welcome is Raimi's refusal to turn Drag Me to Hell into a CGI-fest of a horror film, instead relying on more traditional effects. It's amazing how much mileage Raimi is able to get out of an acrobatic camera, canted angles, old-fashioned make-up effects and a couple of shrieking possessed people suspended on wires. It's exciting to behold a film released in 2009 that benefits from the vitality of practical effects along with the judicious use of digital effects when appropriate. The CGI is admittedly a tad cheesy, but intentionally so - it adds to the camp appeal.

Although this isn't a message film, Drag Me to Hell can be perceived as a cautionary tale about the perils of greed (rather similar to Raimi's own A Simple Plan). Christine's one concession to ambition is enough to damn her to a horrific ordeal. The film's release is rather timely - with the world in an economic crisis, audiences can be expected to enjoy watching a banker suffer.

Alison Lohman stepped into the shoes of Christine Brown when Ellen Page dropped out during pre-production due to scheduling difficulties. Lohman is no Bruce Campbell, but she nimbly succumbs to a Raimi horror beatdown (being tossed around like a projectile ragdoll time and time again) while retaining much of her natural charisma. She does an amazing job with what is usually a thankless horror victim role, managing to be both in on the joke and sincere without tipping her hand either way. As the vengeful gypsy women, Lorna Raver is disgusting and formidably menacing. Justin Long is also good as her comic relief boyfriend, while new faces like Dileep Rao leave a big impression. Character development is a huge positive factor here - all key characters are fleshed out and developed wonderfully, which is amazing for a horror film. Granted, the acting is somewhat hammy and the dialogue can be tin-eared, but this suits the film's style.

Some simply won't get what Sam Raimi was trying to do with Drag Me to Hell. For everyone else, this is an absolute blast. You'd have to be crazy to pass up the opportunity to see this nuanced symphony of the macabre. The trailer was correct about one thing: this is a return of true horror. It's also the return of true Raimi, and it's great to have him back.

9.1/10

For fervent action buffs, Joshua Tree (also known as Army of One) is a definite must-see - it stars action icon Dolph Lundgren, and it's directed by legendary stunt coordinator Vic Armstrong. It's a breathless exercise in hardcore action violence, and it moves at such an exhilarating pace that its stupidity and conventionality can be easily overlooked for the sake of entertainment.

In Joshua Tree, the Dolphster plays former race car driver Wellman Santee. With his racing days long behind him, Santee's livelihood is now transporting exotic stolen cars. During a run-in with the police, however, his partner (Foree) is killed along with a highway police officer in a shootout, and Santee is framed for the policeman's murder. But while being transferred to prison, Santee escapes. He abducts a young woman named Rita (Alfonso), unaware that his hostage is actually a deputy sheriff. What ensues is a variety of action sequences as Santee struggles to clear his name.

Logic is disposed of fairly quickly into this feature (as is any sense of originality). For instance Rita looks surprisingly calm considering she has been kidnapped. She's also given endless opportunities to escape or turn the tables on her abductor, but she rarely capitalises on these opportunities. There's also the fact that police officers are unable to shoot properly (despite, you know, being trained to use firearms). During an encounter with Chinese gangsters at one stage in the film, cliché after cliché is doled out - the gangsters are incompetent shooters while Santee is a perfect marksman, and guns even run out of bullets at the most convenient of times. Stupidity really kicks in when the climax comes around. Said climax features a series of brutal hand-to-hand combat battles, but the combatants never succumb to any serious harm despite being pounded with fists and inanimate objects continuously. Some of the protagonists are shot too, but bullets don't seem to faze them. However, as these things are virtually unwritten requirements for action films of the '80s and '90s, they're somewhat forgivable.

Joshua Tree was written by Steve Pressfield, who had previously penned the Steven Seagal vehicle Above the Law. Pressfield takes a formulaic tale of dirty cops and a man out for revenge, and constructs a fairly involving narrative. The trajectory of the plotline is the very definition of predictability, but it's the action and the decent dialogue that hold our interest. Plus, we've come here to see the Dolphster kicking some butt...and in this respect, it delivers in spades! Another unwritten law for action films is one-liners - since a lot of actioners are hilariously ridiculous and tongue-in-cheek, humour is often employed to match the tone. Screenwriter Pressfield delivers in this aspect too.

With renowned stuntman and action director Vic Armstrong at the helm (a man who handled the stunts for the Indiana Jones films, a lot of the James Bond films, Starship Troopers, Patriot Games and Universal Soldier, just to name a few), one can expect Joshua Tree to deliver oodles of satisfying action, which it does! Armstrong delivers breathtaking, over-the-top action set-pieces, ranging from a John Woo-esque shootout in a warehouse to a high-octane car chase featuring a Ferrari and a Lamborghini. Blood squibs explode left, right and centre...this is an unapologetic R-rated action film. To top everything off, Joel Goldsmith has provided a terrific score - it features atmospheric background music for the quiet sections, and chest-thumping music for the action. But the editing is occasionally very choppy, and there are a number of technical faults in general.

Due to the excessive violence of Armstrong's directorial debut, the censors went bonkers and the film was edited down for a number of countries (like Britain, where it still received an '18' rating even after the graphic violence was toned down). Bizarrely, three different endings exist for this flick. Unfortunately (as of 2009), the version of the film containing the best ending (which wraps up everything) is yet to be released on any format (be it DVD or Blu-ray).

Dolph Lundgren earned his chops as an action star after his appearance in Rocky IV opposite Sylvester Stallone. Although Lundgren never truly acts much during the film (he merely says lines instead of meaning them), he's perfect for the role of Santee - he has the physique of an action hero, and he knows his way around an action sequence. Best of all, he's competent enough to hold our interest. Alongside the Dolphster is the duo of George Segal and Beau Starr as the main villains of the picture. It's easy to hate these guys, which makes Santee's plight easier to sympathise with. And as the trademark woman of the picture with the perfect body, there's Kristian Alfonso. Naturally, her character gets naked at one point (laughably gratuitous) and she ends up becoming the Dolphster's love interest.

At the end of the day, Joshua Tree is just a disposable '90s actioner that remains essential viewing for genre aficionados. This ain't anything groundbreaking, but it's definitely an entertaining distraction best enjoyed when the thinking side of your brain craves a rest.

5.7/10