The Last Exorcism

There’s been plenty of hype about The Last Exorcism already in respect of its hefty box office compared to its (fairly) minimal production costs and an ending that has had people pretty miffed. The film has also drawn comparisons with The Blair Witch Project, in terms of profit ratio, the found footage premise and a viral marketing campaign. However, I wouldn’t bracket this film anywhere near Blair Witch in terms of effectiveness, but it does have a modicum of originality that pushes its head above water level. The film follows the Reverend Cotton Marcus (Patrick Fabian), who after agreeing to take part in a documentary designed to show exorcism as fake, travels to a remote farmhouse with two members of the documentary crew in order to “cure” a teenage girl called Nell (Ashley Bell) who’s father claims is possessed by the devil. To say more would be to spoil the few twists that follow. Though the film is unlikely to raise the hairs on your arms too much it is aptly marshaled by director Daniel Stamm who also coaxes a decent performance from Fabian who is believable as the Reverend trying to get the bottom of what is going on as the mayhem erupts around him, as opposed to running a mile as most mere mortals would do. Speaking of twists this is worth watching for Bell’s contortion alone, as her hyper mobility meant no body churning special effects were necessary in post production. And that ending? Well, it goes for shock value rather than cold chills (and yes, it is stolen from another film) but it doesn’t detract from the film at all and actually makes sense in the fact that, in movie folk-law anyhow, as soon as you take the man out of the city and put him in the woods, bad things are always bound to happen.

The OC Film Sting Final Verdict
Despite a poster and title that feels like you’ve seen it all before this is a smart little film. Rating: 6/10.

Going The Distance

Here’s a rom-com with all the standards intact. Boy meets girl, boy gets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl again….or does he? In Going The Distance, the fly in the ointment of the relationship between Erin (Drew Barrymore) and Garrett (Justin Long) is that one lives in New York whilst the other shacks up in San Francisco. Can they make it work? Though this is by the numbers, there is fair chemistry between Barrymore and Long and the problems of the long distance relationship are handled in a realistic manner. The humour is the most interesting element of this film though as it’s a lot cruder than you would expect from the usual Barrymore fluff. In that respect, the film this mostly resembles is the recent She’s Out Of My League. Whether you think this works or not will probably make or break the film for you, as there’s not much funny stuff coming from either main lead and so laughs have to be garnered from elsewhere. As is usual in these types of films it’s the supporting characters that can steal the show and whilst there isn’t any comedy gold here they still provide enough chuckles to keep the film moving along. Overall, you get the impression that director Nanette Burstein wanted the film to fall in the middle of cheese and vulgarity, but the result is a film that feels confused at times about what it really wants to be. Having said that, it’s still a lot better than some of the more recent output in this particular genre.

The OC Film Sting Final Verdict
Decent stuff from Barrymore and Long just about keep this above water level, but some may still find it too far adrift for rescue. Rating: 6/10.

Dinner For Schmucks

Many moons ago I was going through a phase of watching as many French films that the local video shop (video shop!) had to rent. One of those films was Le diner de cons, an OK, if instantly forgettable comedy in which a group of friends invite a supposed “idiot” to dinner for their own amusement. It hardly needs a Hollywood remake but, lo and behold, we now have Dinner For Schmucks. Though it is only loosely based on the original, this is still spectacularly overblown and further evidence of director Jay Roach’s waning powers. The main “idiot” in the film is played by Steve Carell and he provides virtually all of the laughs. In fact, he pretty much carries the film on his shoulders as many other characters are flatter than week old sparkling water. The exception being Jemaine Clement who’s performance as a sleazy artist doesn’t garner as many laughs as it should but it’s good to see him playing something a world away from his FOTC persona. That the film is outrageously silly doesn’t mean it’s automatically bad of course, but there are too many story lines going on at once and the final idiot’s dinner is very low on laughs. On the positive side, the film does end on a heartening note at least and Carell’s banter with Paul Rudd (who has reluctantly selected Carell as his “idiot”) does provide the film with some semblance of backbone. Overall though, this is just further proof of Hollywoods original ideas barrel running dry.

The OC Film Sting Final Verdict
Too OTT with many gags falling flat, but Carell just about stops things from being a total disaster. Rating: 5/10.

Grown Ups

Before Grown Ups, Dennis Dugan’s previous two films were Don’t Mess With The Zohan and I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry. With this latest effort he must surely be one of the front runners for an award for the worst three films ever directed in a row. Grown Ups is an appalling unfunny film and the only emotion you’ll get from it is anger at the money you’ve just spent watching this turgid overblown excuse of a film. I can’t even be bothered to describe the plot but when you have Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Chris Rock, David Spade and Rob Schneider in a film together it’s hardly going to be a laugh a minute is it? If you think that statement is rubbish you can count the total number of decent films they have been in combined on the fingers of one hand (or two hands if you’re being generous). The film is awash with unlikable characters and unfunny jokes, and a scene at the end is so patronising you literally want to claw the smug main protagonist’s faces off the cinema screen. The only reason it avoids zero marks is due to a few zingers at the start that you can use on your mates, and I can’t even remember any of them anymore.

The OC Film Sting Final Verdict
It’s so bad it makes Couple’s Retreat look like Citizen Kane. Now that’s bad. Rating: 1/10.

Piranha

If you’re a horror fan then you’re probably a fan of Alexandra Aja already. He’s not to everyone’s tastes but arguably his films have the combination that makes successful horror films tick, that of the balance between tension and gore. It’s interesting then that for Piranha Aja puts all tension to one side, employing only a few cheap jump scares and concentrating mainly on the splatter. Throw in some dodgy acting and plenty of T & A (or in this case plenty of T & A) and you have the makings of a classic B-Picture. Or do you? What makes a B-Picture is if the film-makers are knowingly in on the gag as they make the movie. I’m not sure Aja thought about it either way, but this does lack the knowing in-joke humour that makes something like Lake Placid a cult favourite (or indeed the quaint naffness of the original Piranha). Having said that Piranha is still entertaining if you’re a fan of outrageous gore as Aja delivers it in bucket loads. The set up is simple: Spring Break, Piranha’s attack. That’s all you need to know. Elisabeth Shue takes the lead role as the sheriff trying to convince everyone that carnage is imminent and does a decent job, but she appears to be playing it straight whilst others ham it up, particularly Christopher Lloyd in a cameo as a marine biologist. But, it’s the grue that people will come for and you won’t be disappointed on that front. Best not to eat anything beforehand unless you’re comfortable with people being eaten alive, severed limbs, crushed bodies and, literally, rivers of blood. Two deaths in particular are memorable. One involves Eli Roth (haters of the man will be loving that one) and another is the unfortunate after effect of a girl getting her hair caught in a speedboat motor. Definitely one for the rewind button on future DVD showings that one. Once the mayhem subsides and you’re left with an un-thrilling final scene of peril (and a set up for a sequel) you will have made your own mind up about whether this is good, bad or so bad it’s good. Whatever you think, (the annoying Jaws homage aside) you can’t deny it entertains the target audience.

The OC Film Sting Final Verdict
Gore-blimey! Fans of the claret will be royally entertained, though there isn’t much else cinematically that even nibbles the quality bone. Rating: 6/10.

The Girl Who Played With Fire

It wasn’t until after I had seen The Girl Who Played With Fire that I found out the film (along with Dragon Tattoo and Hornet’s Nest) was actually a shortened edit of six 90 minute episodes previously shown on Swedish television which covered the whole of the so-called Millennium trilogy. Whilst this didn’t appear to have a significant impact on the first film, it certainly has here. The main problem with Fire is that so much is crammed into the running time it’s impossible to keep up with everything. Some characters come and go with virtually no relevance to the plot (though I suspect this is the result of the snipping) and the overall storyline quickly becomes confused. Daniel Alfredson’s direction doesn’t help as the tone is uneven throughout the film (similar to the first film) and the ending feels like a below par horror, and a ridiculous one at that. If you haven’t seen the first film then don’t bother with this as there’s no set up for new comers. The one bright spark is Noomi Rapace’s performance which is so good it’s already impossible to see anyone else playing the part with such confidence. It’s a shame that this second film fails to grip like the first, which was a smart mixture of grit and intrigue. This is just dull. Perhaps if the whole Swedish TV Series is eventually released on DVD we’ll get the fuller picture. In the meantime though we await Hornet’s Nest. Which way will that one go?

The OC Film Sting Final Verdict
Rapace is great, but this is a long way off the first film due to the confusing nature of the plot and some dull direction. Rating: 4/10.

Salt

In respect of her film career, and much like the Coen Brothers, Angelina Jolie seems to have a nice balance of mixing “one for them” (i.e. the studios), with “one for me”. The studio films, of course, being mainly mindless blockbusters. Her latest film, Salt, fits into the first category, and whilst it’s still a gone from the memory the second you leave the cinema special, whilst you’re watching it you’ll definitely be entertained. There are two main reasons for this, Jolie herself, and director Philip Noyce. In the film Jolie takes the role of Evelyn Salt, an employee of the CIA who goes on the run after a Russian spy spills the beans to the CIA that the Russian President will be murdered by an assassin named….Evelyn Salt. Not a bad pitch as it goes and it leads to a decent game of is she / isn’t she? Jolie is great in this, toning down the sexiness of similar roles and giving us a more rounded individual who can mix emotion and smarts amongst the mayhem. Along with Jolie there is decent support from Liev Schreiber as her boss at the CIA, Ted Winter (Has there ever been a more CIA name than that in cinema history?). Noyce is an old hand at this game and moves the story along at a breakneck pace, getting a bottom kicking performance from Jolie and utilising some cracking and what appears to be mainly CGI free stunts, particularly in a hair-raising motorbike / car / truck chase scene (Knight and Day hang your head in shame). Having said all that there are plot holes galore and Noyce doesn’t leave much room for any character development. Still, when silliness is this much fun, who cares?

The OC Film Sting Final Verdict
Thrills, spills and Jolie in top form more than make up for the implausibility of the plot. Rating: 7/10.