Sunday 3 April 2016

Zootropolis

Image Source:
Entertainment Focus
(Copyright: Disney)
Written By: Paul Burke

Distributor: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Production Companies: Walt Disney Pictures and Walt Disney Animation Studios
Directors: Byron Howard and Rich Moore
Producer: Clark Spencer
Scriptwriters: Jared Bush and Phil Johnston
Main Cast: Ginnifer Goodwin, Jason Bateman, Idris Elba, J.K. Simmons, Jenny Slate, Tommy Chong and Octavia Spencer
Released: March 25 2016
Running Time: 108 Minutes
Certificate: PG

“Life isn't some cartoon musical where you sing a little song and all your insipid dreams magically come true. So let it go.” - Chief Bogo

I see what you did there, Disney: Zootropolis, or ‘Zootopia’ as it is known in America and therefore in the wider world (or ‘Zoomania’ in Germany, just in case you're reading this in Germany and are confused - schreien um meine deutschen fans!)

Those niggling changes are basically forced on Disney having to rename for territories where those titles already have copyright. But while the company will see ‘Zootopia’ as the true title, I'd argue that ‘Zootropolis’ is a more fitting name. Because this is a very modern movie, set in a very modern metropolis. Modern-day items like CCTV and phones are used as plot devices. And the Zootropolis really feels like a full, bustling city of different types. ‘Zootopia’ is basically just a pun on ‘utopia’. Do people really love a pun that much?

But anyway, it is Zootropolis here in the UK and it's all the better for it. Since buying the Pixar company, the Disney corporation have used their acquired know-how to begin putting out their very own Pixar-like content, in terms of looks and almost in terms of quality too. Tangled (before Pixar, it must be said), Bolt, Wreck-It Ralph, Frozen, Big Hero 6 and now Zootropolis move away from how Disney previously would have done stories about a talking animal, a video game, a robot and a Princess. They are almost anti-Disney. Sure, they are still predictable stories with a be-true-to-yourself message, but how we get there is different to what we are used to. With limited musical numbers overall, the Princess’ true love story is about her sisters, and the tale of the talking animal actually goes a little Animal Farm and hits us with a political story wrapped up in a classic ‘follow your dreams’ moral. But unlike every version of Animal Farm I've ever seen, at least Zootropolis does so entertainingly.

So, we basically follow Judy Hopps, a bunny rabbit from the country who not only dreams of living in the big city, but wants to do so as a cop. No easy feat when you consider most of the animal kingdom's predators roam the streets of Zootropolis. But Judy and her boundless energy has proved to herself countless times that anyone who tries to tell her that being the “little guy” is a disadvantage in life is wrong. Standard fare so far, then, as is much of the movie for the first two acts. She teams up with Nick Wilde - a con artist fox who grates on her; they have a standard, though quite intriguing, mystery to solve - to find the missing member of Zootropolis, and they do so through many exciting and often hilarious set pieces. The Godfather-inspired mob wedding provides several laughs, as well as the joke about the DMV being run by sloths, which is probably the stand-out moment of the movie. It's standard, but it's good-looking entertainment up to this point for the intended child audience and their parents (for whom there is even a Breaking Bad reference).

But once the mystery is seemingly wrapped up early, we are hit with a whopper of a third act. All of a sudden, the audience are being confronted with the idea of how people deal with and, just as importantly, use fear. It is a hugely prominent part of modern day politics, especially in this US election year, and arguably modern-day life since 9/11. And here, Disney confront that theme out of the blue, but without beating us over the head with it. With a kids movie! Yes, despite the mentions of 9/11, this movie is aimed at children. But they aren't reading this review. (Well, hopefully; if so, please leave the Internet kids. It's a bizarre and frightening place.)

The story’s outcome is fairly predictable early on, and while it has a lot of heart, it doesn't really have the same emotional weight as something like Up or Toy Story 3. It is not as visually interesting as the likes of Wall-E. But that is not to say that Zootropolis doesn't look stunning, because it really does. So much thought goes into how all these animals live, transport and work together that it could rely on its sight gags alone, but thankfully it doesn't. It plays on our ideas of these animals, modern-day life, and how they blend together, and not just in a superficial way. In fact, they don't ask the audience to forget what we know about animals, but they use our preconceptions on them to forward the plot. And rather than chase its 2D past, as it has been accused of doing before, Disney has instead taken the lead set by its ground-breaking in-house acquisition Pixar, and continues to push its own special Disney brand forward into the new modern-day.

Overall Rating: 8/10 - Very Good

Saturday 26 March 2016

Batman V Superman

Image Source: Wikipedia
(Copyright: Warner Bros.
Pictures, the film
publisher or graphic
artist.)
Written By: Paul Burke

Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Production Companies: DC Entertainment, RatPac Entertainment, Atlas Entertainment and Cruel and Unusual Films
Director: Zack Snyder
Producers: Charles Roven and Deborah Snyder
Scriptwriters: Chris Terrio and David S. Goyer
Main Cast: Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Jesse Eisenberg, Diane Lane, Laurence Fishburne, Jeremy Irons, Holly Hunter and Gal Gadot
Released: March 25 2016
Running Time: 151 Minutes
Certificate: 12A

“The greatest gladiator match in the history of the world. God versus man. Day versus night. Son of Krypton versus Bat of Gotham.” - Lex Luther

It's not Batman vs Superman. It's Batman V Superman. Because having the ‘v’ instead of ‘vs’ is a way ‘to keep it from being a straight “versus” movie, even in the most subtle way.’ According to the director Zack Snyder.

So what does this mean, despite the fact that Lex literally says ‘versus’ several times in the movie? Wait, does this mean we aren't going to see Batman and Superman beat on each other for 151 minutes?! Well, despite what all the excellent marketing we've been hit with might suggest, no we're not. But that was obvious because this is Superman, the character who originally started superhero movies with Christopher Reeve, against Batman, the character who gave superhero movies credibility under Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight trilogy. The sell isn't their great battle or the "who will win?" outcome. These guys are the heroes. The selling point of the film is seeing two hugely iconic characters sharing the big screen for the first time.

It also cannot be a straight “versus” movie because, as almost everyone tells me before seeing the film, Superman is an unstoppable force and Batman is just a billionaire genius (conveniently forgetting that Superman's biggest foe is Lex Luther, who is a billionaire genius). How could Batman stand a chance?! Well, I'll forgo divulging the times Batman has defeated Superman in their comic book forms for now and concentrate on what we have here, which is the first true chapter of the DC Comics cinematic universe.

Because cinematic universes are a thing now. Because Marvel and Warner Bros. have trusted the vision of their universe with Zack Snyder. And what vision Snyder has. Quite a polarising director, Snyder has as many critics as fans due to his vivid style. While it is great for his movies to have a look and a feel that makes a Snyder film instantly recognisable, some argue that it is not fitting for every story he produces.

But it works well here. Better than it did in Man of Steel where Snyder's naturally vivid style seemed at odds with producer Christopher Nolan's natural, gritty look. Unlike Nolan, Snyder is really allowed to make a Batman V Superman comic book movie with more emphasis on the comic book and less on the movie.

And it is filmed very much like a comic book; the scenes can be short and cut between each other in a way that is sharp and rushed. In fact, for adult fans of comic books, this movie should be perfect. More complex and adult notions of what drives Batman and what Superman's place in the world is are explored, but unlike the Nolan films, the other worldly element Superman brings means that the movie can take leaps of reality. Though it means that characters make some questionable decisions (would people really just stroll through a cloud of dust from a destroyed building?), it also allows us to accept Wonder Woman's involvement, and she is an entertaining addition to proceedings.

The problem is that the dialogue also sounds like it is from a comic book. Characters don't really engage with each other, there are no natural conversations, and people mainly just say convoluted things at each other. Everything is metaphorical or anecdotal. Everyone is a philosopher.

The movie also has a hefty run time. Where Marvel used five solo superhero movies to build up to its shared universe team, DC are rushing it somewhat by only giving us glimpses of its entire team here. The several dream/vision sequences are clearly with the bigger picture in mind, but they just expand an already bloated movie, and without serving much narrative which can be very confusing. If you don't have an extensive knowledge of the source, then you'll be left scratching your head at just how odd these scenes are. You'll feel you had a bizarre vision yourself. Think Thor in Avengers Age of Ultron in that electric cave Jacuzzi.

Now, the new guys. Ben Affleck does everything the role calls for adeptly, which is anger. Batman is just really angry. And Superman is stressed. Super stressed. Batman V Superman kind of shows us the absolute worst of the heroes. That said, their action scenes are very well done, although they're a bit of a mess in the climactic battle. Batman, in particular, probably has his best fight scenes in any film; they're fast and brutal, but also clearly show what is happening, which is not how the Nolan fight scenes came out in their finished form. It could be straight from an Arkham computer game.

Gal Godot is a refreshing presence. Different from the other two heroes we've seen done to death in movies, she brings the same exuberance to the role as Wonder Woman does to the action. So much exuberance, in fact, that her arrival in the action changes the previously-sombre score to an up-tempo one. It's bizarre really, like a computer game score; the likes that appear after a cut-scene that basically tell you ‘this is when you fight now’. But it does help her leave her a strong impact, while it also leaves enough mystery left hanging over her character to justify her upcoming solo movie.

And then there's Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luther. Obviously going for a modern type of Mark Zuckerberg-esque billionaire instead of the classic suit character we're used to, the new take is refreshingly different, giving Superman a truly opposite foe. Eisenberg looks like he has more fun than anyone in a film ever has. The man ticks and twitches his way through with a borderline lunacy that you can accept his maniacal side enough; his respected billionaire businessman side, less so.

Overall, the movie probably takes itself too seriously, which never really seems to fit the Superman character. The dialogue seems like a first draft and the scenes, with the expanded universe in mind while also introducing so many characters, give the audience an enormous amount of information to digest in the allotted time. But the structure of the movie is excellent, all things considered; the necessary pieces are all there; and the action sequences actually get a lot more build-up than I expected. In fact, the film is so un-Snyder that it's Snyder's best movie. Not the best Batman or Superman movie by any means, but for the average film-goer, at least they are seeing these old characters do something different.

Overall Rating: 7/10 - Respectable