2016

The Jungle Book

Posted on by DJ Speaks Movies

I’m sure you have all seen the original tale of Bagheera, a panther, trying to protect the man cub Mowgli from the clutches of tiger Shere Khan and get him back to the safety of the nearby human village but you have not seen it done using modern cinematic methods and Disney, director John Favreau and his team have created a classic kids movie and Favreau has redeemed himself after the disastrous Iron Man 2 and Cowboys and Aliens which was just as bad.

The attention to detail with not only the main events but with what’s going on in the background needs is superb and there are times when you forget you are watching a cartoon as, at times, it feels like a wildlife documentary and I kept expecting David Attenborough to chip in with some narration. The voice acting is spot on with Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley and in particular Idris Elba all perfect fits although both Scarlett Johansson and Christopher Walker are a little underused. One of the few criticisms I would have is that the scene where the snake Kaa is hypnotising Mowgli is so well done for what is essentially an exposition piece, that it was a shame that the python wasn’t developed into the storyline a little more.

The whole movie feels like an experience and the CGI is so well done that it is very hard to spot many flaws in the interaction between live action Mowgli and the rest of the screen. The eco-system and laws of the jungle that the animals live to all feel like a living, breathing environment so you become immersed in but I would advise that you see it in the cinema as there may be something lost when it gets transferred to the small screen. There’s enough humour to keep it interesting for adults and enough tension and minor jump scares to keep kids on the edge of their seats and if this is the future of this genre of movies then we have a lot to look forward to.

DJ Speaks Rating: 7.5 Out Of 10

Midnight Special

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Midnight Special is one of a dying breed of movies in so far as it sets up a plot but does not fill the dialogue with exposition, there are no voice overs and it respects the intelligence of the viewer and let’s you make up your own mind as to what is occurring with only small snippets of hints towards the developing plot at the end of which, again you are not spoon fed an ending, it’s up to you to decide how you take it.

The movie starts in a hotel room with Roy (Michael Shannon) & Lucas (Joel Egerton) watching a news report of a developing manhunt for a missing child. We are then shown Alton (Jaeden Lieberher) who is in the room with them and it is soon apparent that these are the men at the center of the manhunt. There is also a religious group who are speaking about the abduction of the child as the FBI arrive to search their compound so it becomes apparent that there is more to this story than just a simple kidnapping. That’s all you get and it’s enough to peak your interest and pull you in.

Director Jeff Nichols expertly leads you along answering the questions that are building in your head but raising new ones all the time to keep you on your toes. The moments of silence are perfectly placed as they allow you gather your thoughts before the next sequence begins and there is so much in the tone of the movie with threads of faith, loyalty and sacrifice which he handles superbly. The main cast of Egerton, Lieberher, Kirsten Dunst, Adam Driver and in particular Shannon all add to the tale with a believable genuinely that makes this feel less like a movie and more of an event and what could have been a run of the mill film in lesser hands has been turned into a classic sci-fi/thriller with echoes of the classics of the late 1970’s and early 1980’s era.

I recommend that you see this as soon as possible with as little knowledge of the movie so that you can enjoy what is sure to become one of the most memorable, and for my worth, best movies of recent years.

DJ Speaks Rating: 8 Out Of 10

Sing Street

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Heart warming tale of trying to find escapism, healing and maybe even a bit of love, through the medium of music in recession gripped Dublin in the mid 1980’s. At the center of the tale is Conor (Ferdia Walsh-Peelo) who’s parents are struggling financially and emotionally so he seeks solace from the turmoil of his home life in music and his relationship with his music buff brother Brendan (Jack Reynor). As part of the family cost cutting his parents decide to send Conor to a public, Christian Brothers, school in the coming year (but can still afford alcohol and cigarettes, an all too true aspect of the vast majority of Irish parental prioritisation) This is a shock to his system as his first day is filled with playground fights, an encounter with a bully, hurled rodents and a run in with the authoritarian Brother Baxter (Don Wycherley) for his non conformance to the schools strict, black shoe policy. He finds a kindred spirit in equally ostracised pupil Darren (Ben Carolan) and it is during one of their conversations outside the school that he spots Raphina (Lucy Boynton) loitering nearby so, after mustering the courage to speak with her he finds out she is a model when, in a flash of inspiration he asks if she’d like to star in one of his bands videos, gets a phone number and the wheels are thus set in motion.

Darren and Conor put together a band, which to begin with are terrible but with some guidance from Brendan, who full encourages Conor to pursue his dream in a way he gave up upon years before, things start to take shape and it is this brotherly relationship that is the real heart of the movie. Brendan does not want his younger sibling to follow down the same path, making the same mistakes he did and acts as the real father figure for Conor fully immersing himself as a musical tutor of sorts. The fact that he is stoned most of the time only adds additional comedy to some of their conversations. So with a new found confidence Conor starts to find himself experimenting with different looks as the sound of the band changes depending on which albums Brendan has given him to listen to week on week.

The music used and original songs (written by director John Carney along with Gary Clark of 1980’s band Danny Wilson) are clever takes on the music of the era and the first ‘video’ the band shoot is a hilarious take on something that reminded me of an early Alphaville video. The tongue in cheek references to pop culture and fashion at the time and the mannerisms and language throughout were spot on. Perhaps it was the fact that I lived through the era, spent twelve years in that uniform and spent many, many hours in the places and locations that popped up in the film that made the movie resonate with me more than it would most but I though this was a great throwback to a socially dark period in Irish history.

While lacking the emotion and refined musical qualities of Once and perhaps a little similar in parts to the ideals of The Commitments, Sing Street more than makes up for it with it’s comic story and it’s a much more infectious movie which will keep you smiling throughout. If you are a child of this era and, in particular if you lived in Dublin in the mid 1980 then this movie will speak to you. If not, you still have a great coming of age Irish movie which will have you laughing aloud.

DJ Speaks Rating: 6.5 out of 10

10 Cloverfield Lane

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This claustrophobic thriller is loosely (and I mean very loosely) linked to the events in the original Cloverfield movie but, instead of being a sequel following on from the plot of the first film what this movie does is take a different angle and give tons of suspense and tension in a throw back style very reminiscent of something Hitchcock would have created so instead of exposition through dialogue we get subtle hints to point towards who people are and more importantly why the situation has arisen. I would recommend that you try and know as little as possible before watching this movie but I have to give some details in order to carry out this review so I will keep it to the point and will not give anything away.

Mary Elizabeth Winstead plays Michelle, who we see packing her bags, taking off, leaving her fiancé and hitting the road. She is involved in a serious car accident and when she wakes up is locked in a room where her captor Howard (John Goodman) advises her that he has actually saved her after coming across the accident just before the ‘event’ occurred. So he has brought her to his underground Doomsday shelter which he had built specifically for a purpose such as this. He believes they will be trapped there for an undetermined period of time until it can be established what has actually occurred above ground. Along for the ride is Emmett (John Gallagher Jr.) who helped Howard build his shelter and came running as soon as the event occurred.

That’s as much as I’m going to say as what then commences, is a cat and mouse game where Michelle needs to try and establish who is telling the truth and what has actually happened, all the while fearing for her safety from not only what has occurred above ground but from these two strangers she is trapped with below ground as well. The novel thing is that, while she is our central focus in the movie and we only ever see and hear any new information as she does, she is not some dumb damsel in distress. She is smart, manipulating and is not willing to lie down and just accept her situation but the key to the whole film is Goodmans superb performance as a man who has been seriously impacted by the event and swings from mood to mood so believable that you are never sure which, if any, of his actions are genuine.

Overall it’s a clever movie as it doesn’t hold your hand and lead you through the story, it keeps you guessing and second guessing as it drip feeds you snippets of information and let’s your imagination do the rest. The one issue I would have with the film is that there was actually no need to attach the Cloverfield label as it would have worked just as well without it, although it was a very clever marketing ploy to do so and build the hype up, but in saying that forget anything you may or may not have liked about the original Cloverfield film as they are two completely different movies and enjoy this for the tense thriller that it is.

DJ Speaks Rating: 7 out of 10

Deadpool

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From the opening use of Juice Newton during a hilarious opening credit scene to the closing notes of Careless Whisper with the nod to Ferris Bueller, Deadpool never feels like its trying to take itself seriously. With constant fourth wall breaks and smart ass comments on all aspects of pop culture from Superheroes to Ryan Reynolds other movies and even the Spin Doctors (remember them?), it’s a refreshing  entry into the genre.

All credit to Ryan Reynolds who absolutely nails it as Wade Wilson and after his debacles in Green Lantern, Wolverine and Blade Trinity it took balls for him to have another stab in a Superhero film but he made this a project and never backed away from the challenge of getting this movie made and he plays it through every emotion almost flawlessly. The jumps from current to past and back again are well done and do a good job of building the back story without slowing the movie down as much as they could have, plus the action sequences, the use of both slow motion shots and the CGI are all excellent.

On the negative side the use of the secondary X-Men characters felt a bit shoehorned in just so that the movie could have a place in the Marvel Universe and both Angel Dust and Ajax just left like generic villains instead of building on the mutants characters that they are, although both of these points are brilliantly ripped apart in the movie anyway.

Overall, while not perfect it’s a must watch for any fan of the genre and with the large volume of upcoming superhero movies this year, it’s a great start.

DJ Speaks Rating: 7 out of 10