Darkmatters Review: The Counsellor

The Counsellor (18)

Dir. Ridley Scott

Reviewed by Matt Adcock

Read the newspaper version of this review HERE

“I suspect that we are ill-formed for the path we have chosen.

Ill-formed and ill-prepared. We would like to draw a veil over all the blood and terror that have brought us to this place.

It is our faintness of heart that would close our eyes to all of that, but in so doing it makes of it our destiny... But nothing is crueler than a coward, and the slaughter to come is probably beyond our imagining...”

The Counsellor (Counselor if you’re American) is not alas the exposé life story of a UK Counsellor such as Kirsty Annable who I work with – but rather a dark, violent crime-and-punishment high stakes thriller. Ok, maybe not that different then!?

"The LST Counselling Dept's staff day out..."

Esteemed Brit director Ridley ‘Gladiator’ Scott brings his trademark visual flair to the screen with this the heavy-duty original screenplay by Cormac McCarthy. Blessed with a stunning triple A cast led by Michael ‘Prometheus’ Fassbender as a hotshot lawyer, only referred to as "counsellor" throughout the movie, he’s head over heals in love with Laura (Penélope Cruz still sizzlingly hot) who he plans to marry.

Unfortunately this counsellor has got himself into a bit of pickle financially and is gambling everything on a potentially life changing Colombian drug deal that could make him close to $20million. But with great potential wealth comes massive risk – drug cartels not being people to cross.

"Do you want to talk about your feelings?"

Also on hand are Reiner (Javier ‘Skyfall’ Bardem) who lives a very lavish lifestyle from ill-gotten gains, Malkina (Cameron Diaz ) his glamorous but untrustworthy girlfriend, and slightly dodgy adviser Westray (Brad Pitt).

Just how far the counsellor has drifted from any sense of normality or safety is clear as soon as the shipment he is banking on is stolen. What follows is a compelling narrative and dialogue heavy descent into ultra-violence and paranoia. The few action scenes are sparingly used but they pack a serious punch – especially one character death on the streets of London that will stay with you long after the credits role.

"Death follows"

Cruz and Diaz bring counter balancing sexiness – with one playing the good woman and the other ungodly evil. Bardem and Pitt add decent scenery but The Counsellor is all about Fassbender who eats up every scene in some style.

This isn’t a film for everyone – it’s brutal and offensive in places but at heart it’s a meaty and thought provoking ‘crime does not pay’ cautionary tale.

Out of a potential 5 you have to go with a Darkmatters:

ööö1/2

(3.5 - Sin is a choice - but the wages of sin is death)...

Awesomeness öööö – grissly, hard action in places

Laughs ööö – darkly comic in places

Horror öööö – gets grim and offensive too

Babes öööö – Cruz and Diaz are backed up by Natalie 'Margaery Tyrell' Dormer

Spiritual Enlightenment -öö – evil has consequences

"Dormer helps The Counselor chose some stockings - this scene is from the trailer and not used in the movie itself"

PS4 Sales Figures Released - ONE MILLION on DAY ONE!!

One Million PS4s in 24hrs!

Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCE) today announced that the highly anticipated launch of the PlayStation®4 (PS4™) computer entertainment system resulted in 1 million units sold through during the first 24 hours after it became available on November 15, 2013 in the United States and Canada.

Darkmatters asked Andrew House, President and Group CEO, Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc. to comment but he too busy rolling around in a monster pile of money, when pressed though he said:

"The PS4 was designed with an unwavering commitment to gamers, and we are thrilled that consumer reaction has been so phenomenal. Sales remain very strong in North America, and we expect continued enthusiasm as we launch the PlayStation 4 in Europe and Latin America on November 29. We are extremely grateful for the passion of PlayStation fans and thank them for their continued support."

If you want to put the PS4 launch into context - the PS3 sold c197,000 units in two weeks when it hit the U.S. in 2006...

This makes the PS4 the biggest console launch of all time - and it's only just begun. Last night (16th Nov) there were almost a quarter of a million PS4 players in online playing Call of Duty: Ghosts.

"Tasty"

In two weeks the PS4 rolls out across Europe (Matt Adcock will be there for the midnight launch) - can the Eruo's bring in similar number of units at launch?

And then in February 2014 the PS4 hits Japan.

Looks like Greatness is happening - and gamers the world over are choosing PlayStation...

It's FOR THE PLAYERS

Darkmatters Review: GRAVITY

Gravity (12a)

Dir. Alfonso Cuarón

Reviewed by Matt Adcock
Read the newspaper version of this review in the Banbury Guardian

‘Houston, do you read me? I have a bad feeling about this mission…’

Mission Control: ‘Please elaborate.’

‘Well, it looks like the Russians have inadvertently caused a space incident due to the wreckage from one of their satellites is heading in our direction… All I see now are clear skies – just with a chance of satellite debris!?’

Welcome to the saviour of 3D cinema – a literally ‘out of this world’ thrill ride that sees brilliant medical engineer Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) on her first shuttle mission. The problem is, thanks to a disastrous emergency the envelops her and her team which includes veteran astronaut commander Matt Kowalski (George Clooney), this might very well also be her last ever mission.

So ‘survive-em-up’ Gravity, under the careful direction of Alfonso ‘Children of Men’ Cuarón, is a masterful life and death exercise in eye-popping tension. Blessed with jaw-dropping space visages and the kind of special effects that are so good you forget that they aren’t actually real.

"kick back and enjoy the view?"

Watching Stone and Kowalski facing the truly nightmare scenario of being alone and tethered to nothing but each other as they spiral out into the blackness of space is so incredibly tense that you have to keep reminding yourself every now and then to breath.

And breathing is key to the existence of the two space farers as they face a constant battle to maintain oxygen levels in the oppressive cold dark vacuum. Watching them having to risk everything to grasp even the smallest chance of survival is seriously gripping viewing.

There is a winning chemistry between Clooney and Bullock which helps suck you in to caring about their fates, and there are some nice nods to other sci-fi films in places.

"oops"

Both the lead actors are on career best form but the real ‘stars’ of the film are the stunning views of outer space. Never before have lens-flare and solar halo light-bursts been so effortlessly committed to the screen. Gravity might fill the foreground with raw human emotion but plays out the survivalist plot against a background of the most incredible starscapes.

Oh and about the 3D - I’m no fan of most 3D films but Cuarón has created a film that demands to be seen not just in 3D but also on the biggest screen you can get to.

Remember - In space, no one can hear you biting your nails…

Out of a potential 5 you have to go with a Darkmatters:

öööö1/2

(4.5 - stylish space tension that will leave you breathless)...

Awesomeness öööö – high velocity disaster

Laughs ö – couple of funny lines

Horror öö – tense rather than horrible

Babes öö – Bullock channels Sigorny Weaver and Barbarella at points

Spiritual Enlightenment ööö – the will to survive is strong

"no gravity"

Darkmatters Review: Thor The Dark World

Thor: The Dark World (12a)

Dir. Alan Taylor

Reviewed by Matt Adcock

Read the newspaper version of this review here: THAME GAZETTE


“Some believe that before the universe, there was nothing. They're wrong. There was darkness... and it has survived.”

Desperate times are afoot as in the aftermath of Avengers Assemble and Iron Man 3, earth and all the 9 realms are faced with an enemy that even Odin and the forces of Asgard cannot withstand… So it’s up to the hunky Thor (Chris Hemsworth) to step up and embark on his most perilous and personal journey yet – to face down a challenge so great he’ll even need to team up with his highly untrustworthy half brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston).

Thor: The Dark World brings a new baddie into play - Christopher Eccleston's dark elf leader Malakith who has a plan to plunge the entire universe into darkness. As luck would have it though, sexy earth scientist Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) has managed to get herself possessed by the very freakish energy known as ‘Aether’ that Malakith is after to fulfill his wishes.

"things are looking up..."

Cue Thor and Loki going all out to try and save not just the universe but Foster’s cute butt in particular!? Demi Gods eh?

This being a Marvel Phase 2 film, the production values are superb – with action set pieces that feel fresh and deliver the requisite thrills plus a decent amount of humour keeps the whole film fun and light hearted.

As a Brit it is especially cool to see Thor battling dark elves on the streets of London, plus there are some great laugh out loud incidental pleasures such as Thor getting the tube and having to ask how many stops to take, or politely hanging up his hammer on a coat hook when invited in to a London flat.

"tasty"

Alan ‘Game of Thrones’ Taylor takes over the directing duties from Kenneth Branagh and Joss Whedon and proves adept at bringing exciting super combat to the big screen. Hiddleston as Loki steals the show with his excellent acting but it’s no wonder as he is given some juicy fun elements to play with including transforming into one of Thor’s Avengers pals, just to mock him.

Hemsworth might not be the best actor in the world but he sure looks the part… For the female comic book fans there is even a slow-motion scene of him washing topless!?

"brotherly love"

The rest of the cast do well with the fantasy material, Stellan Skarsgård is noteworthy as comic relief as Dr Eric Selvig and it’s always nice to see Kat Dennings.

My esteemed pal Tom Wade was moved to poetry by Thor: The Dark World... Apologies in advance but it goes like this:

I saw Thor, it wasn't a bore,

it's got beards on jaw, a chiseled core,

you will not snore, it's really top drawer,

Marvels' word is law...

It goes on but you probably get the gist!?

Overall this Thor sequel is a comic book joy that all Avenger fans should see!

Out of a potential 5 you have to go with a Darkmatters:

öööö

(4 - as Empire mag said 'Thor out of Thive')...

Awesomeness öööö – nothing but a good time

Laughs ööö – some great comedy touches

Horror öö – not really grim (enough?)

Babes öööö – Portman is yummy, but so are Dennings and Jaimie Alexander

Spiritual Enlightenment ööö – comic book deity delight

"Alexandra the great"

Darkmatters Review: Enders Game

Enders Game (12a)

Dir. Gavin Hood

Reviewed by Matt Adcock

“I'll do everything I can to win this war.”

Meet Ender Wiggin (Asa Butterfield) – earth’s potential saviour in our intergalactic war with a nasty alien race called the Formics (also amusingly known as ‘Buggers’ – due their ‘bug like’ appearance)…

Ender is an awesome warrior who is not afraid to break the rules, he’s also a strategic mastermind and an ultimate battle tactician, oh, and he’s all this at only 12 yrs old!?

"alien worlds await..."

It’s 50 years after the insectoid invaders attacked Earth with the intention of stealing our resources and wiping us out. We managed to repel them at great cost – mostly due to the heroics of legendary fighter pilot Mazer Rackham (Ben Kingsley) and since then have been developing our International Battle Fleet to prepare for the expected follow up invasion.

But it seems that the best, fastest minds on the planet belong no longer to our air force pilots but to our children and so it will be they who control our advanced space weaponry and lead the counter attack on the Formic homeworld. Ender is a brilliant but withdrawn boy, who comes from a troubled family – when his potential for battle is spotted by Colonel Graff (Harrison Ford) he’s sent to the International Fleet and attend the legendary Battle School, located in Earth orbit. It’s here that he gets to play increasingly difficult war games in order to prove himself worthy to lead the military into a war that will determine the future of Earth and the human race…

"Hailee Steinfeld = emotional support"

 Enders Game is a quality sci-fi that looks the part thanks to some slick CGI – especially in regards to the spaceships, which are pleasingly realized on the big screen and look amazing when they get into huge scale intergalactic warfare.

Butterfield is excellent in the lead, bringing just the right mixture of tortured innocence and pre-teen angst to a tricky role. Harrison Ford is great too oozing his effortless Han Solo-esq charisma even if Graff is a morally ambivalent character.

"things go 'boom'"

Some of the supporting cast of kids aren’t quite up to the job though and the film sometimes drifts into the realm of melodramatic – but it’s never long before we’re back into a frantic space action scene and things kick into adrenalin pumping battle thrills.

Director Gavin ‘Tsotsi’ Hood shows that he can deliver a winning sci-fi adaptation which like the novel it’s based on will leave you thinking about wider moral issues.

Out of a potential 5 you have to go with a Darkmatters:

ööö1/2

(3.5 - decent sci-fi that delivers)...

Awesomeness öööö – when it hits, the sumblime sci-fi works

Laughs öö – limited comedy

Horror öö – not too grim

Babes ö – not really

Spiritual Enlightenment ööö – fight for the greater good?

4 The Players - since 1995 PlayStation

Yes - we're excited about the PS4...

Check the power of the PS4 with this new EXCLUSIVES focus video...


And then thre is this just lovely vid from Sony that shows how we've gamed with them over the years!

PlayStation -
#4thePlayers
#PlayStationMemories
#OnlyConsoleYouNeed
FTW

Darkmatters Review: Captain Philips

Captain Philips (12a)

Dir. Paul Greengrass

Reviewed by Matt Adcock
Read the newspaper version of this review over at the Luton News


“Attention Maersk Alabama, you should alert your crew, get your fire hoses ready. Chances are the approaching skiffs are just fishermen.”


Captain Phillips: “They're not here to fish.”


And indeed the Somalis who come visiting the U.S. ship Alabama are not here to fish… Led by Muse (Barkhad Abdi) they are pirates intent on hijacking of the container ship and holding the crew to ransom.


Director Paul Greengrass beings this true tale of 2009's horrific sea based terrorism to nail-biting big screen life.

"You can drop off my Oscar portside"

Captain Philips is a superb exercise in taught edge-of-your-seat thrills, the fact that it is based on real events only serves to make it all the more tense.


Star of the piece is Alabama's commanding officer, Captain Richard Phillips (two time Academy Award®-winner Tom Hanks), he’s on the form of his life depicting the brave captain who is prepared to risk everything for his crew.


This is totally Hanks’ film, he brings such a believable, tangible sense of fear to the screen that you’ll be deeply moved and find yourself forgetting that he’s acting. Speaking of which, the actors portraying the Somali pirates weren’t introduced to Hanks until they started filming the pirates taking over the captain's deck. Greengrass said in an interview that he did this intentionally to build up tension between the actors on board the ship and the actors playing the pirates.


The Somali actors are excellent too, even though most of them hadn’t acted before – they bring authentic desperation and danger to the plot, and their motivations are sketched out at the beginning with their fearsome warlord bosses forcing them into their criminal lives.

"hey come by, have a few beers?"

The action ramps up when the U.S. Navy SEALS led by their commander played by Max ‘Pacific Rim’ Martini are called in to try and rescue Philips. It is like seeing a PlayStation game come to life as the snipers desperately try and lock on to the pirates and avoid shooting their hostage.

Along with the action scenes, when Muse and Phillips collide verbally, the sparks really fly, these might both be men at the mercy of forces beyond their control but the sheer battle of wills is awesome to behold.


Captain Philips is very well crafted film, stunning cinematography and acting that must see Hanks up for another Oscar makes this a tense thrill ride that you really need to witness on the big screen!

Out of a potential 5 you have to go with a Darkmatters:

öööö1/2

(4.5 - Yo, Ho, Yo, Ho - a pirates life for me, oh wait, it's not so much fun in real life)...

Awesomeness öööö – delivers top dollar thrills

Laughs öö – not a comedy

Horror öö – gets very very tense

Babes ö – nope

Spiritual Enlightenment ööö – be brave

"The advanced shower system was playing up..."

Darkmatters Review: Machete Kills

Machete Kills (15)

Dir. Robert Rodriguez

Reviewed by Matt Adcock
Read the newspaper version of this review at: Bucks Advertiser & Review

“Machete don’t tweet!”

Opening with a funky spoof sci-fi trailer for ‘Machete Kills Again … In Space!’ Machete Kills is the follow up to 2010’s crazed slaughter-em-up Machete (which itself began life as a gimmick trailer in the Rodriguez / Tarantino flick Grindhouse).

But now Machete (Danny Trejo) is back and this time the blade-wielding hero is backed up with a much-improved cast headed up by Mel Gibson on top form as a devious villain and the lovely Amber Heard who will soon lead the big screen adaptation of Martin Amis’ London Fields.

"matching black outfits FTW"

Machete Kills packs a slicker, slightly more coherent plot than the original but is just as giddy in tearing up the screen with a wanton blast of over-the-top ultra-violence.

If someone tells you that Machete Kills is a romantic comedy (as I may have said to my wife to see if she would accompany me to check it), do not believe them.

But if you go in to this film expecting a hugely entertaining, sneeringly violent, action adventure comedy – then you’ll come out smiling and hoping that the ‘Machete Kills Again… In Space!’ trailer actually gets converted into a real follow up…

"Amber Heard gets in on the gunplay"

Director Rodriguez unleashes a manic revenge potboiler of fun with such inventive ideas as an assassin named La / El Chameleón who is played by a host of actors including Cuba Gooding Jr., Lady Gaga, and Antonio Banderas – each embodying a deadly new ‘face’. He also has fun with grimy jump cuts, grainy film stock and an ingenious ‘put on your 3D glasses now’ moment when Heard seduces Trejo.

There really is an excess of badass babes too – kind of like Sin City, which was also directed by Rodriguez, including Sartana (Jessica Alba), Desdemona (Sofia Vergara), Luz (Michelle Rodriguez), Cereza (Vanessa Hudgens) and Killjoy (Alexa Vega). You’ll probably never forget the scene where Desdemona straps on a truly insane ‘machinegun bra’ but that isn’t even the pinnacle of the insanity going on here.

"don't mess with these ladies"

Then throw in Charlie Sheen as the President of the USA – using his birth name of Carlos Estevez – and Demian ‘The Heat’ Bichir who almost steals the show as Gibson’s main evil enforcer and stand well back as Machete Kills explodes in all directions.

All-in-all Machete Kills is a master class in Friday night entertainment and if you’ve ever enjoyed an action movie, you owe it to yourself to check this out.

Out of a potential 5 you have to go with a Darkmatters:

öööö

(4 - nuts in the best possible way)...

Awesomeness öööö – super crazed

Laughs ööö – some good funnies

Horror ööö – blood and guts in excess

Babes ööööö – overloaded

Spiritual Enlightenment ö – limited

"Alexa Vega - come a long way since Spy Kids"

Darkmatters Review: FILTH

Filth (18)

Dir. Jon S. Baird

Reviewed by Matt Adcock


“So Bruce - what made you join the Force?”

“Police oppression, brother.”

“Ah – you wanted to stamp it out from the inside?”

“No, I wanted to be a part of it!!”


Prepare yourself for a seriously messed up, unhinged, sordid and utterly morally destitute tale from the mind of Irvine ‘Trainspotting’ Welsh.

Yes Filth by name and pretty much filthy throughout – this isn’t a film for those adverse to copious swearing, drug use, disturbing psychotic scenes and sexual material... But even though Filth director Jon S. ‘Cass’ Baird takes a running jump over the boundaries of good taste – the film works thanks almost entirely to a powerhouse performance from James McAvoy in the lead role.

"this is not a well man!"

The plot of Filth follows the unhappy Police Sergeant Bruce Robertson (McAvoy), a broken, bitter man whose corrupt heart is eating him away from all sides. Bruce is a bipolar, bigoted junkie who strives to manipulate everyone around him. He’s the ‘wrong arm of the law’ writ large and we get to spend a festive season with him watching him struggle to keep a grip as freaky guilt induced hallucinations crash into his waking hours.


All he wants is to secure the promotion to detective inspector that is in the offing because he thinks that getting the promotion will help him win back his estranged wife and daughter.

"Reservoir Filth?"

Caught up in the maelstrom of Bruce’s self-imploding life are his work colleagues who include promotion rivals such as young gun Ray Lennox (Jamie Bell) and hotshot sexy WPC Amanda Drummond (Imogen Poots). Bruce however works tirelessly against his teammates, right under the nose of the unwitting Chief Inspector Toal (John Sessions).


As Bruce tries to turn his colleagues against one another by stealing their wives and exposing their secrets, he begins to lose himself in a web of deceit that he can no longer control and his sanity starts to slip.


Can anything save Bruce as he careers headlong into a messy moral void? It might not be pleasant subject matter but it is a riveting / revolting ride watching to see if he can keep his grip on reality long enough to disentangle himself from the tidal wave of filth…

"Hot Fuzz?"

Filth is superbly put together, due in no small part to the excellent editing assisted by Luton’s Steve Worsley who also worked on Judge Dredd.


Funny, filthy and harrowing – Filth is a grimy treat for those who can deal with the seedy underbelly of modern life. And as a Christian, I have to say that Filth is a hard watch, but there is a morality lesson to be had from this tale...

Out of a potential 5 you have to go with a Darkmatters:

öööö

(4 - OTT and far away the most messed up film you're likely to see this year!)...

Awesomeness öööö – nasty and grim but gripping too

Laughs öööö – very funny but it's such dark humour...

Horror ööö – it's an 18 for good reason!

Babes öö – Imogen Poots leads the female empowerment

Spiritual Enlightenment öö – best served as a cautionary tale!

"Mrs Filth"

Darkmatters Review: Prisoners

Prisoners (15)

Dir. Denis Villeneuve

Reviewed by Matt Adcock (read another version of this review in the Bedford Times & Citizen)

“Someone has to make him talk or they're gonna die!”

Welcome to every parents worst nightmare – Prisoners is a nail biting abduct-em-up thriller that sees average American family man Keller Dover (Hugh ‘Wolverine’ Jackman) trying to deal with the kidnap of his young daughter Anna (Erin Gerasimovich) and her pal Joy (Kyla Drew Simmons).

When a massive police hunt locates a dodgy looking RV that had been parked in Keller’s neighbourhood – it falls to Detective Loki (Jake ‘End of Watch’ Gyllenhaal) to take the RV's driver, Alex Jones (Paul Dano) into custody. But with no actual evidence, the police have to release Alex – even though Keller is convinced that he knows where the girls and is the only link to saving them.

"happy families - but not for long..."

Frustrated and angry, Keller abducts Alex and imprisons him an abandoned, run-down apartment building, then with the reluctant help of Joy's father, Franklin Birch (Terrence Howard), they torture Alex for days trying to get him to confess.

The tension ramps up furher when Dt Loki confronts another suspect named Bob Taylor (David Dastmalchian) who has no children but seems to be buying kids clothes each week. Taylor’s house is covered in drawings of intricate mazes, there are also freaky locked crates filled with maze books, snakes, and bloody children's clothing… But does this mean that Keller is torturing an innocent man?

"friend or foe?"

As the clock ticks down – Keller becomes even more desperate whilst Dt Loki has to sift through the various clues. Throw into the mix a possibly dodgy vicar who has a dead body hidden in his basement and Alex’s creepy aunt and you have all the ingredients for a classy, hard-hitting mystery.

Villeneuve proves to be a cool, calm calculating director who has an uncanny knack for wrong footing you with bursts of menace that punctuate the race against time desperate plot. Cleverly intertwining elements such as the destructive nature of guilt, the compulsion of vigilantism, the need for penance and a father’s desire for vengeance – Prisoners will take you captive with its fevered subversive world-views.

"kids today eh?"

The cinematography is spot on, the plot twists and turns nicely and Jackman eats up the scenery in the lead role with a deliciously unhinged performance. Be warned too that Prisoners ends with one of the biggest unresolved climaxes ever – so you’ll be walking away contemplating just what might have happened next…

Good luck sleeping afterwards…

Out of a potential 5 you have to go with a Darkmatters:

öööö

(4 - prime suspect for a decent thriller!)...

Awesomeness öööö – grim but good

Laughs ö – not funny

Horror ööö – quite nasty in places

Babes ö – nope

Spiritual Enlightenment öö – how far do you go for justice?

"Maria Bello - is one of the concerned mummies"

Darkmatters Review: RIPD

R.I.P.D. (12)

Dir. Robert Schwentke

Reviewed by Matt Adcock (read another version of this review over at The Bucks Herald)

“They look like regular people, but they're monsters inside. You see, if you slip through the cracks, and stay on Earth after you die, your soul rots. They rot, the world rots. Global warming, black plague, bad cell reception – the dead are responsible.”

Imagine the situation – you’ve just died (having been shot in the face by your supposed best friend / cop partner) and find yourself ascending through the sky to the afterlife. But before you hit the pearly gates you are whisked into an sterile white office where a stern faced woman named Mildred Proctor (Mary-Louise ‘Saved!’ Parker). It turns out that she’s the director of the Boston division of the Rest In Peace Department (R.I.P.D.) - an specialist afterlife agency that recruits deceased police officers to capture "Deados", spirits that failed to cross over and return to Earth as monstrous ghosts.

You don’t need to imagine it though because this is exactly what happens to Detectives Nick Walker (Ryan ‘Green Lantern’ Reynolds) who is double crossed and killed by his partner Bobby Hayes (Kevin ‘I sold my soul to EE advertising’ Bacon) over some stolen gold they found during a drug bust.

"do you feel lucky punk?"

As he’s a little worried that he might make it into eternal paradise thanks to some of his dodgy dealings on earth, Nick agrees to join the R.I.P.D. after Proctor explains that service can potentially make up for a negative final judgment and it’s ‘only’ for a century of work.

Nick gets saddled with a grizzled partner, Roy Pulsipher (Jeff ‘True Grit’ Bridges), an ex-U.S. Marshal who lived in the 1800s – who has closure issues thanks to his body having been ravaged by coyotes.

"so I'll sign you up for a 5 year mobile phone contract yeah?"

From then on it’s like a kind of mash up of Ghostbusters, Men In Black and Lethal Weapon – except that R.I.P.D. isn’t even half as good as any of those… Based on a comic book by Rest in Peace Department by Peter M. Lenkov – alas R.I.P.D. doesn’t work very well on the big screen.

There’s nothing particularly wrong with R.I.P.D. – there are some good funny moments, often based around the duo’s altered perceptions… Nick appears as an elderly Chinese man (James Hong), whereas Roy's is a very sexy blonde Russian woman (Marisa Miller). But the action is weak and the tone wildly uneven, with very adult jokes thrown in to this ‘12’ cert film that the trailers make look like a family action romp.

"the whiskered arm of the afterlife law"

R.I.P.D. is destined to be forgotten quickly despite it’s great cast and fun premise…

Out of a potential 5 you have to go with a Darkmatters:

öö1/2

(2.5 - average ghostbusting lawbringing)...

Awesomeness ööö – occasional good stuff

Laughs öö – comedy but not enough funnies

Horror öö – nothing too grim

Babes ööö – Marisa Miller is hot

Spiritual Enlightenment ööö – bank your eternal life credit now!

"she really wanted to catch the bus..."

"Marisa Miller brings the looks"

Darkmatters Review: RUSH

RUSH (15)

Dir. Ron Howard

Reviewed by Matt Adcock (another version of this review can be read at the Milton Keynes Citizen)

“Everyone’s driven by something…”

Vroom vroom – buckle up for some seriously entertaining race drama action from two-time Academy Award winner Ron ‘A Beautiful Mind’ Howard. Rush, is a full on spectacular big-screen re-creation of the bitter rivalry between pretty boy English F1 driver James Hunt (Chris ‘Thor’ Hemsworth) and Niki Lauda. (Daniel ‘Inglourious Basterds’ Brühl).

You don’t have to be a fan of Formula One to enjoy this fast and furious, action-drama powered not just by the nail-biting racing as by the sexy crackling charisma of Hemsworth who is on top form as Hunt. He is ably backed up by Brühl who is all icy discipline as Austrian perfectionist Lauda., Hunt’s nemesis on the Grand Prix racetrack.

"Things that make you go 'Vroom!'"

Howard directs the film with style and heart, bringing to life the ’70s, which was arguably the most glamorous and dangerous age of Formula 1 racing.

Rush really lives up to its name covering the exhilarating true story of how two people pushed themselves to the very edge of physical and psychological endurance in their desire to win.

Everything works to deliver a superb viewing experience. The racing action rivals the excellent Senna for the title of most edge-of-your-seat cinematic on track thrills. Whilst the personal lives of the two drivers are fascinating as their sheer opposite lifestyles offer insights into the driving styles of these two legends of F1 history.

"See you on the track..."

There are some great dialogue lines – enough funnies to make you laugh out loud in places, too. The many love interests of Hunt bring a James Bond-esq playboy element too even though the main females of the film Olivia ‘TRON: Legacy’ Wilde and Alexandra ‘The Reader’ Maria Lara play second fiddle to the two men who eat up the screen with their fierce rivalry.

Rush packs real emotion too – especially in dealing with Lauda’s near death crash, which sidelined him for many races and gave Hunt the chance to wrestle the title from his grasp. Both men are flawed but the actors manage to have you empathize with them – all the while leaving you astounded that this is a true story.

For sheer visceral racing thrills there is nothing else out there to touch Rush and it is definitely a film that deserves to be seen on the big screen. You can almost smell the ‘70s cologne alongside the engine fumes and burnt rubber!?

"Hunt 'and friends' at the races"

Out of a potential 5 you have to go with a Darkmatters:

öööö

(4 - You'll feel the need, the need for speed)...

Awesomeness öööö – racing has rarely ever looked so good

Laughs öö – some very funny scenes but not a comedy

Horror öö – the crash is a bit nasty

Babes ööö – Hunt is a lady's man...

Spiritual Enlightenment ööö – being driven can get you results...

A friend asked how he might tempt his wife to go see RUSH with him - well all I can offer is this gif of a shirtless Hemsworth: