Darkmatters Review: Batman v Superman Dawn of Justice

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (12a)

Dir. Zack Synder

Reviewed by Matt Adcock (@Cleric20)

Read the newspaper version of this review at: The Luton News

"You don't owe this world a thing - you never did..."


Here it is then, the greatest gladiator match in the history of the world: Son of Krypton (Henry Cavill) versus The Dark Knight (Ben Affleck).

"God vs Man, day vs night..."

Seeing these two titans of comic book history come to blows on the big screen has been the fantasy of fans ever since Frank Miller’s seminal graphic novel ‘The Dark Knight Returns’ pitched them in battle way back in 1986. Now Zack ‘Man of Steel’ Synder has made it happen.

The plot sees Superman viewed with fear and mistrust by many since his city wrecking take down of General Zod which caused serious collateral damage. Bruce Wayne can only see Supes as a danger to society and fears what will happen should the powerful red caped alien be left ungoverned. He decides to stop Superman and gears up in some kick ass new Bat-armour to do the job. But just when it looks like the fight is over a new bigger threat emerges along with a movie stealing Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot). From then on all bets are off as to where we end up.

"The graphic novel that inspired B v S"

Dawn of Justice certainly takes its sweet time building up to the title fight, revisiting Batman’s childhood trauma, some dark and scary ‘what if’ dream sequences and a ground zero re-viewing of the Zod / Superman battle. Some might want things to move along a bit quicker, or grumble as the coherence occasionally flounders, but I found it a sheer joy to get to spend so much time with the two icons.

All the cast are on good form, Affleck’s older, more grizzled Batman is great plus Jeremy Irons is quality as his butler Alfred. Cavill is an earnest Superman who is fond of a tortured look of consternation when not shooting lasers out of his eyes, whilst Gadot is absolutely superb as Wonder Woman, not letting her skimpy armour detract from her fierce, feisty Amazon warrior credibility.

"the new superhero trinity"

Jesse Eisenberg brings a fascinating new Lex Luthor and there’s good supporting work from Amy Adams as Lois Lane, Holly Hunter as Senator Finch and Laurence Fishburne’s news mogul Perry White.

The writers have lots to pack in – setting up the DC super team of Justice League, yep with The Flash, Aquaman and Cyborg too. That they manage to deliver some meaty philosophical elements as well as a dose of unmatched and utterly jaw dropping super action spectacle should be applauded.

"A woman apart"

Maybe a little grim for youngsters and slow burning in parts but comic book fans the world over should embrace the epicness Batman V Superman delivers - the gauntlet has been thrown down for Marvel’s Civil War.

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

öööö

(4 - This Super Dark Knight Kicks Ass)...

Awesomeness öööö – packed with both endorphin rush action and thoughtful scenes

Laughs öö – occasional mirth

Horror öö – heavy duty action violence and threat

Spiritual Enlightenment öööö – still packing that Christ imagery

"messiah?"

Darkmatters: High-Rise

High-Rise (15)

Dir. Ben Wheatley

Reviewed by Matt Adcock (@Cleric20)

Read the newspaper version of this review: The Northampton Chronicle


“You just sit there... and think about what you've done…”


The future isn’t what it used to be. Thanks to Ben ‘Kill List’ Wheatley we have High-Rise – the big screen version of JG Ballard’s ‘70s freak out novel that charts the complete breakdown of a community who live in a high-tech tower block.

"The mind is multiple"

Meet architect Anthony Royal (Jeremy Irons). Royal symbolically lives in the Penthouse of the utopian living block he designed where the floor structure is ‘the higher you live the richer / better’. Things get shaken up when Doctor Robert Laing (Tom ‘Thor’ Hiddleston) moves into an apartment on one of the upper middle floors but is happy to befriend those both above and below him. Laing finds a society of divided loyalties, class injustices and dangerously fragmented tribes. With tangible tension and unhinged madness in the air, there will certainly be ultra-violence before the credits roll.

The denizens of the High-Rise are a fantastical bunch including sexy single mum Charlotte Melville (Sienna Miller), sinister oddball Nathan Steele (Reece Shearsmith), dangerous ‘Begbie-alike’ Richard Wilder (Luke Evans) and his good natured pregnant wife Helen (Elisabeth Moss).

"Dance time"

High-Rise boasts jaw-dropping cinematography, everything reeks of a sinister future chic as only could have been imagined in the ‘70s, it’s similar to that of ‘A Clockwork Orange’. The sprawling car park at the foot of the tower is filled with Triumph Stags, the inner décor is avant-garde to the max and the fashions include icy cool business wear, funky print dresses and Blur-esque track suits.

As the ‘Lord of the Flies’ tribal differences turn from insanity to violence, there is an infectious escalation of frenzied scheming which the plot can’t quite keep up with. When a full bloodied class war breaks out between the lower and upper floors, all bets are off as to who will survive and whether or not the Penthouse will be able to keep themselves in white wine.

"Keeley Hawes"

Hiddleston is incredible in the lead role – fully embracing the weird and wonderful casual savagery with a restrained cool that can’t hurt his possible audition to be a future Bond. Wheatley is on top directorial form, obviously relishing having a bigger budget to play with, combining the feel of Ballard’s novel with his own freakish imagination.

High-Rise is a fabulous dystopian psychological breakdown writ large on screen, it makes The Hunger Games seem like light comedies. It won’t be for everyone, those of a squeamish nature should certainly not apply, but for anyone up for a fully wild adventure – this is ‘High’ly recommended viewing.

"Clothes optional"

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

öööö

(4 - Welcome to the high life...)

Awesomeness öööö – Freaky fun going up in the world

Laughs ööö – Very dark mirth at play

Horror öööö – Disturbing English 'Mad Max' alike violence

Spiritual Enlightenment öö - Class / War

Darkmatters welcomes: Darth Maul Apprentice Star Wars Fan-Film

DARTH MAUL: APPRENTICE

Reaction by Matt Adcock (@cleric20)

The Force is very much with T7 Production who bring Star Wars fans something a bit cool...
Step up Ben Schamma - the new face of Star Wars uber baddie Darth Maul who gets to kick copious Jedi butt in this pre-prequel fan film.

Using some nifty lightsaber effects and decent fight choreography (handled by Vi-Dan Trantice) this funky insight into Maul's pre-Episode One life hit the web last Saturday, and has been seen over 1.2 million times (and counting) on YouTube.

Darkmatt Rating: öööö (Very cool)

If you haven't seen it yet, take a few minutes out of your day and enjoy it below...

In the mood for another cool short film? Check PREY ALONE which is superb... 

Darkmatters Review: Hail, Caesar

Hail, Caesar (12a)

Dir. Joel and Ethan Coen

Reviewed by Matt Adcock (@Cleric20)

Read the newspaper version of this review at: The Gazette

“Squint against the grandeur!”

Gird your cinematic loins. Prepare for a mind-bending day in the life of ‘50s Hollywood Studio Exec fighting to maintain a semblance of order in the midst of a madcap volley of problems, the sort that only the genius minds of the Coen Brothers could unleash.

"Capitol Studios Fixer Extraordinary"

Hail, Caesar could be described as a part sequel to the Coen’s Barton Fink (same fictional studio at the heart of the action), or even a sibling screwball comedy to their classic kidnap caper The Big Lebowski. More than anything though, this glorious tribute to the heyday of elaborate musical flicks is stuffed to the brim with pure Coen references and quirks. For some that will mean scratched heads and a sense of ‘what have I just seen?’ – for others, Hail, Caesar will delight with a life affirming crackle of manic energy backed up with a deep spiritual charge.

We join Eddie Mannix (Josh Brolin) who works for Capitol Pictures, he’s having a trying day as his leading man Baird Whitlock (George Clooney) has suddenly disappeared. Meanwhile B-movie rodeo cowboy star Hobie Doyle (Alden Ehrenreich) gets seriously out of his depth when asked to make the jump into high class drama for picky director Laurence Laurentz (Ralph Fiennes).

"Pure class"

Add into the mix scandal courting pin-up leading lady DeeAnna Moran (Scarlett Johansson) as a grumpy synchronized swimming mermaid with man problems. And there’s cheeky tap dancing comedy star Burt Gurney (Channing Tatum) who might just be caught up in a sinister communist movement known only as ‘The Future’.

All bets are off when scandal seeking journalist sisters Thora Thacker and Thessaly Thacker (both played by Tilda Swinton) start to pry into the studio’s dirty laundry. Can Mannix survive in the face of such pressure

The Coens are basically having a high old time with this homage-em-up which doesn’t confirm to any standard plotting. There is plenty of fun on offer but it’s mixed up with savvy political comment and a vein of spirituality, the likes of which is rarely found so blatantly presented on the big screen. The climactic speech by Clooney as a Roman Centurion facing the dying Jesus on the cross even makes this into a fascinating ‘Passion Play’ of sorts and makes it perfect Easter watching!

"Which way to Rome?"

Fans of the Coen brothers should make seeing Hail, Caesar top of their ‘to do’ lists – whilst those looking for more standard cinema comedy should see this with an especially open mind.

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

öööö

(4 - Lights. Camera. Abduction.)

Awesomeness öööö – Joy that goes soul deep!

Laughs öööö – Great fun

Horror ö – Very little grimness

Spiritual Enlightenment öööö - Life affirming stuff!

"Wonder Woman!?"

Darkmatters Review: Grimsby

Grimsby (15)

Dir. Louis Leterrier

Reviewed by Matt Adcock (@Cleric20)

When the world is threatened by an evil plot, can MI6's top agent Sebastian Butcher (Mark ‘Kingsman’ Strong) find a way to save us? It’s a big ask, especially as he’s in an emotionally vulnerable state after a reunion with his long lost brother Carl ‘Nobby’ Butcher (Sacha Baron Cohen).

"unlikely team"

These Butcher brothers are made of stern stuff, they hail from Grimsby after all. Meet big hearted and foul mouthed Nobby, an unlikely working class hero. Part football yob, part idiot benefit cheat with 9 children (named Django Unchained, Skeletor etc) – is this the man who can help his brother foil a attempt to assassinate leading humanitarian Rhonda George (Penelope Cruz)? With Sebastian’s cover blown and only his faithful handler Jodie (Isla Fisher) willing to help, he doesn’t have a choice.

Director Louis ‘The Transporter’ Leterrier changes up the ‘usual’ Sacha Cohen tom foolery by injecting some balls out (in every sense of the words) action scenes, up there with Mission Impossible et al. Strong is erm, strong in the super spy role whilst Cohen is brings his cutting satire comedy lens to bear on broken Britain – putting the ‘grim’ in Grimsby.

"Northern family"

Get ready then for a seriously bad-taste-em-up action comedy that will offend as much as it amuses, get your adrenalin pumping and leave you laughing (even if hating yourself for it). Cohen just doesn’t have a PC filter and here the biggest laughs are crafted from seriously gross out scenes – the elephant orgy alone is liable to burn itself into your mind forever.

There is a cleverness at work behind the scenes though - making cutting social points such as when Nobby gets into a shootout and tells Sebastian “I understand why you love guns so much now…It completely detaches you from the guilt of your actions.”

"Gun nut"

Some of the targets work better than others, Donald Trump makes this feel very ‘of the moment’ whilst quite what Daniel Radcliffe has done to deserve such treatment we can only wonder at. There are a ton of fun cameos that include Rebel ‘Pitch Perfect’ Wilson as Nobby’s Northern Mrs - Lindsey, Gabourey ‘Precious’ Sidibe as Banu the Cleaner and Ricky Tomlinson as Paedo Pete.

Not everything works – the jokes about AIDS and wheelchair bound children are hardly fitting as mass crowd-pleasers but Cohen’s horrible gift is in getting you laughing along despite yourself and thus losing the right claim moral high ground.

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

ööö

(3 - Heavy duty laughs - that will dirty you up)

Awesomeness ööö – Outrage(ous) set pieces a go go

Laughs öööö – You want funny, be careful what you wish for

Horror ööö – Gross out!

Spiritual Enlightenment ö - none

Darkmatters Review: Triple 9

Triple 9 (15)

Dir. John Hillcoat

Reviewed by Matt Adcock (@Cleric20)

“There’s no limit to what desperate men will do when pushed.”

Step this way for a stylishly hard boiled action-crime-drama directed by John ‘Lawless’ Hillcoat that comes on like Heat meets True Detective. This tasty heist-em-up follows a group of dirty cops who find themselves in the line of fire when crossing paths with the Russian mob.

Meet idealistic rookie cop Chris Allen (Casey ‘Interstellar’ Affleck), who gets assigned to work with streetwise detective Marcus Atwood (Anthony ‘Captain America’ Mackie). Trouble is Atwood is part of a bank robbing crew with leader Terrel Tompkins (Chiwetel ‘The Martian’ Ejiofor), foot soldier Russel Welch (Norman ‘The Walking Dead’ Reedus) and his brother / lose cannon Gabe Welch (Aaron ‘Breaking Bad’ Paul).

"red team move in..."

The plot rips along at a frantic pace, the initial heist and freeway shootout is a tight, nail biting affair. But before you can say ‘there’s no honour among thieves’ the pressure begins to tear the crew apart. Things go from bad to worse when Kate Winslet’s nasty mob boss demands a seemingly impossible ‘one more job’ from the gang or else they will all be executed.

So with limited options Tomkins devises a plan to have Allen killed to trigger a ‘triple nine / officer down’ in order to create a diversion which they can use to attempt the heist. From then on all bets are off as to who, if anyone, will survive – especially with Woody Harrelson in the mix as a dangerous investigator who tells his team to “out-monster the monsters.” Easier said than done when Allen and Atwood find a row of severed heads lined up on a car bonnet – the monsters here are not nice.

"why detective, what big teeth you have..."

Triple 9 is a taut action-thriller which deals in serious violence, greed, betrayal and quotable banter. Drug dealers, strippers and gun totting gang-bangers, ensure that this is a super seedy trawl through the underbelly of city on high alert. The cast is superb and their sterling work elevates this above your average cop flick.

Winslet is an absolute revelation as the psychotic mob boss and her acidic chemistry steals every scene she’s in. New Wonder Woman Gal Gadot is on hand too as the love interest / potential kidnap leverage, but the male leads have their work cut out to match Winslet as this is her film.

"America's got talent?"

Highly recommended for crime action fans – Triple 9 is more ‘End of Watch’ than ‘Ride Along’ so come prepared for some heavy duty, hard hitting thrills.

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

öööö

(4 - Not black or white - just exciting shades of violent grey)

Awesomeness öööö – quality crime thrills

Laughs öö – Occasionally funny

Horror ööö – Some nasty violence

Spiritual Enlightenment ö - not much alas

Darkmatters Review: Deadpool

Deadpool (15)

Dir. Tim Miller

Reviewed by Matt Adcock (@Cleric20)

“You're probably thinking ‘This is a superhero movie, but that guy in the suit just turned that other guy into a kebab.’
Surprise, this is a different kind of superhero story.”

Another superhero origin story? I know right. But this one dear reader is a little different, a bit of a spicier cocktail of seriously non-PC jaw dropping violence, laugh-out-loud profane funnies and ironic pop-culture zeitgeist that bleeds cool from every frame.

"forceful negotiations"

Deadpool has already had a brief burst of big screen action in 2009’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine – but here the former Special Forces operative turned ‘Merc with a Mouth’ is the antihero star.

Meet Wade Wilson (Ryan ‘Van Wilder: Party Liaison’ Reynolds), just your average bad-ass mercenary for hire who falls for Vanessa (Morena ‘Firefly’ Baccarin) – possibly the only woman who’d match his seriously ‘wrong’ sense of humour.

When Wade gets terminal cancer he is offered a chance by a shady organisation who promise to not only cure him but give him super powers. Things aren’t quite what they seem though, leaving him horribly disfigured, incredibly angry and packing self-regenerating abilities to go along with his enhanced fighting skills.

"Negasonic"

With bloody vengeance on his mind Deadpool takes on an insanely violent one-man crusade to bring down his tormentors and try to win back the love of his life. Main bad guy of the piece is ‘British Villain’ Ajax (Ed ‘Kill Your Friends’ Skrein) who also has mutant powers and may hold the only hope for Wilson to get his face back.

The huge death count and swathe of destruction that Deadpool wreaks draws the attention of the X-Men who send metal skinned Colossus (Stefan Kapicic) and atomic powered Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand) to try and intervene. There are two other people in Deadpool’s life – mostly for comic effect – long suffering taxi driver Dopinder (Karen Soni) and his blind housemate called erm, Blind Al (Leslie Uggams).

You don’t need to worry about the plot – it’s better to just sit back and let the awesome OTT sensory assault wash over you. The action is crunching and makes great use of CGI, especially moments of super slow-mo such as a highway ambush (the infamous ‘leaked footage’ fans loved so much it led to the film getting made)…

"Clobberin time"

If easily offended Deadpool is liable to freak you out completely so proceed with caution but for comic book fans looking for a fresh, exciting total blast of super powered thrills, this is the best subversive joy ride since Kick Ass.

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

öööö1/2

(4.5 - Smart Ass kicks Ass in fine style)

Awesomeness öööö – tasty action and motormouth fun

Laughs öööö – Very funny

Horror ööö – Some heavy duty comic book violence

Spiritual Enlightenment ö - limited

Darkmatters Review: Risen

Risen (12a)

Dir. Kevin Reynolds

Reviewed by Matt Adcock (@Cleric20)

Read the newspaper version of this review at: The Hemel Gazette

“What frightens you?”
“Being wrong... Wagering eternity on him.”

Welcome to one of the biggest and most speculated about events in history. It’s 33 A.D. - a key date for the biblical narrative as it was when Jesus / Yeshua (played here with huge amounts of charisma by Cliff ‘Fear The Walking Dead’ Curtis) was crucified and buried. Yes, Risen is the latest bible-em-up reworking of the resurrection, overlapping and following on from the events in Mel Gibson’s The Passion of The Christ.

"The 'King of the Jews' dying with thieves"

The difference this time is that Director and co-writer Kevin ‘Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves’ Reynolds retells the events through the eyes of a non-believing Roman Centurion named Clavius (Joseph ‘Shakespeare In Love’ Fiennes).

As religious fervour threatens to ignite civil unrest across Judea in the wake of the disappearance of Jesus’s body, the Roman Prefect, Pontius Pilate (Peter ‘Spooks’ Firth) orders an inquiry into what exactly happened. The religious leaders and Pharisees claim that the body had been stolen by Christ’s followers, the soldiers tasked with guarding the tomb go into hiding fearing for their lives and the rumours of a resurrection start to spread.

"I never liked you in Harry Potter"

Risen (although possibly the biggest spoiler title for a movie ever) starts off effectively setting the scene with Clavius and his men caught up in a bloody skirmish with Jewish renegades. As the events of the first Easter Weekend unfold, turmoil and uncertainty run rampant through the city and it’s well portrayed – and avoids falling into the ‘Life of Brian’ style farce.

Fiennes is good as the hard bitten Clavius and his journey is compelling as he gets to lead, along with his ambitious aide Lucius (Tom ‘Harry Potter’ Felton), the manhunt for Yeshua’s body.

As a Christian who reviews films, I’m often massively let down by the attempts to bring scripture or overtly ‘pro-faith’ stories to the medium of film. I really don’t want to be ‘preached at’ any more than the next cinema goer. The fact that Risen actually works as a historical thriller for much of its running time before eventually getting a bit carried away with the ‘it must be true’ narrative is to the credit of the filmmakers. It’s kind of like an ancient times alternative to a Dan Brown novel.

"First hand account"

OK so there is very little screen time for women here, Mary Magdalene (María ‘Mad Dogs’ Botto) isn’t given much to do although being one of the core witnesses in the bible account. There is no Pilate's wife either and Mary - Mother of Jesus has a blink and you’ll miss it contribution.

But seeing as the ‘did Jesus rise from the dead?’ question is one that continues to be asked 2,000 years later, Risen is a thought provoking option for cinema audiences to mull over this Easter.

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

ööö

(3 - a historically changed, biblical thriller...)

Awesomeness ööö – The opening battle is a highlight

Laughs ö – Limited mirth here

Horror ööö – Stronger violence than expected

Spiritual Enlightenment öööö - will make you think


Risen opens in the UK on 18 March.

Damaris Media are working with Sony Pictures to produce a free in-depth set of resources for churches and their leaders. Find out more at: www.risen.damarismedia.com 

Darkmatters Review: Dad's Army

Dad’s Army (PG)

Dir. Oliver Parker

Reviewed by Matt Adcock (@Cleric20)

“Who do you think you are kidding Mr Hitler?”

Come back to 1944, just as World War II is reaching its climax. With the Allies poised to invade France - the heroes of Walmington-on-Sea’s ‘Home Guard’ might prove to be the unlikeliest of key strategic elements in the military campaign…

"reporting for duty"

Dad’s Army is a reverent big screen reworking / homage of the much loved BBC tea time sitcom. I count myself a fan of the original owing to much watching of it back in the days when there were only 3 TV channels and we couldn’t record or watch on demand.

Plot wise we find that morale amongst the Home Guard led by bungling Captain Mainwaring (Toby ‘The Hunger Games’ Jones) is at a low ebb. His shambolic unit of generable old duffers, a naïve teen and an opportunistic chancer include: Sergeant Wilson (Bill ‘Love Actually’ Nighy), Lance Corporal Jones (Tom Courtenay) and Privates Frazer (Bill Paterson), Walker (Daniel Mays), Pike (Blake ‘The Inbetweeners’ Harrison) and Godfrey (Michael Gambon).

"tactical genius"

This fantastic British cast are just excellent in recreating the classic roles – and there is much fun to had watching their bumbling antics. The men find themselves are struggling with the double whammy of being the focus of a feature by foxy journalist Rose Winters (Catherine Zeta-Jones) for The Lady magazine and at the same time ordered to track down a German spy operating in the area.

Also on hand in this modern version are the lesser seen ladies of Walmington led by the industrious Mrs Mainwaring (Felicity Montagu). This essential support network of other halves and love interests may be more use than all men put together.

"secret weapon?"

There are a couple of nice cameos by original cast members including Pike (Ian Lavender) who pops up as a brigadier and Frank Williams who reprises his role as the local vicar.

Don’t be expecting huge Saving Private Ryan battle scenes, although there is a small scale skirmish at the climax, this is very much a gentler and quintessentially British kind of war film.

The funnies are mostly of the slapstick tomfoolery and inept soldiering cringe factor, backed up by the catchphrases from the original. There’s real wartime enjoyment on offer here and the characters themselves certainly make this worth seeing – sure - it’s not a classic movie but for fans of the TV series this is a mission accomplished.

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

ööö

(3 - Don't Panic, stupid boy...)

Awesomeness ööö – No stick is left unslapped

Laughs ööö – Good amounts of genial mirth

Horror ö – Not grim

Spiritual Enlightenment öö - the Dunkirk Spirit writ large

Darkmatters Review: 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi

13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi (15)

Dir. Michael Bay

Reviewed by Matt Adcock (@Cleric20)

Read the newspaper version of this review: The Luton News

“You can't put a price on being able to live with yourself.”

September 11, 2012 saw a bloodthirsty attack on the American diplomatic outpost in Benghazi, Libya which led to many political recriminations as to why the U.S. left their people in harms way with no air support or relief.

"There goes the neighbourhood"

13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi is a meaningfully high-brow, tender piece of big screen investigative journalism – just kidding – this is Michael ‘Transformers’ Bay and he’s here to blow a lot of stuff up and shout ‘God Bless America’ at the audience as loudly as possible!

We get to witness the full ferocity of the night when a six-man American security detail tried to fight off hundreds of Islamic militants —it plays out much like Ridley Scott’s Black Hawk Down, which was also based on real events of U.S. forces outnumbered by impossible odds.. Bay however ups the gung ho, macho factor to ‘maximum’ and peppers the the narrative with the yanks saying things like 'we’re doing the right thing' (which is apparently wiping out hundreds of nasty locals).

"Beards - not optional"

It all looks good, thanks in large part to stylish cinematography of Dion ‘Edge of Tomorrow’ Beebe, and is certainly exciting when the battle kicks off – but there is a deeply ingrained feeling that this is a propaganda-em-up rather than a balanced account of a truly desperate situation.

The cast go about their heavy weapon business with aplomb. Back stories for the likes of lead character Jack Da Silva (John ‘Jim from the U.S. Office’ Krasinski) and his fellow Navy SEAL pal Tyrone ‘Rone’ Woods (James ‘Iron Man 3’ Badge Dale) are just quick clichéd sketches. More time is devoted to the copious amounts of less memorable Top Gun-lite man banter between the team in the build up to the ‘action’.

"incoming..."

Throw into the mix an obstinate outpost commander (David ‘Breaking Bad’ Costabile) who resents having the security team around – but who is also reluctant to let them try to save the visiting U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens (Matt Letscher) when his compound comes under attack.

As the carnage eventually ramps up Bay gets a bit carried away with jump cutting between surveillance drone footage, close up shock and awe mussel flashes and shots of the Americans either panicking (the CIA staff) or being heroically stoic (the security operatives).

In the end 13 Hours feels like the slightly retarded offspring of American Sniper – for gun action enthusiasts only…

"look out for the aliens behind you!?"

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

öö1/2

(2.5 - A slightly retarded offspring of American Sniper)

Awesomeness ööö – Gunfight adrenalin writ large

Laughs ö – Limited mirth

Horror ööö – Nasty battle wounds a go go

Spiritual Enlightenment öö - Honour at what cost?

Darkmatters Review: The Big Short

The Big Short (15)

Dir. Adam McKay

Reviewed by Matt Adcock (@Cleric20)

“We live in an era of fraud in America. Not just in banking, but in government, education, religion, food. Even baseball...”

When the words ‘corruption’ and ‘banking’ became synonymous during the world-wide financial crisis of 2008, millions of people’s lives were completely wrecked, but not everyone’s. Adam ‘Anchorman’ McKay’s The Big Short takes us inside the true story of how a few men foresaw the crash and managed to actually make money from the situation.

And while witnessing the callous, greed driven nightmare that took people’s homes and livelihoods from them will make you potentially want to punch the next banker you meet, this is ‘must see’ filmmaking.

"feel the love"

Meet Michael Burry (Christian ‘The Dark Knight’ Bale), a maverick ex-physician who runs a hedge fund. He is the first to spot that the US housing market’s foundations are built on a volatile bubble that looks like it will burst. So convinced is he about this doomsday scenario that Burry places a huge bet (known as a short) against the housing market with the banks – who are more than happy to take this ‘crazy’ bet against something that just never happens.

Meanwhile market trader Jared Vennett (Ryan ‘Drive’ Gosling) gets wind of what Burry is doing and looks to also cash in. Then a wrong number phone call tips off another small team of fund managers led by Mark Baum (Steve ‘Foxcatcher’ Carell) and the final bunch to the party are young investors Charlie Geller (John Magaro) and Jamie Shipley (Finn WIttrock). Theses two have a secret weapon in the form of retired master banker Ben Rickert (Brad Pitt) who agrees to help them.

"Jedi banking master?"

This rag tag bunch of outsiders are thought to be crying wolf but as the crisis escalates, well, it’s not a spoiler because we know what went down, they actually make serious money when everybody else was losing big time. Burry’s fund sees 489% profits on their gamble!?

OK enough plot, The Big Short does a good job of making the hard to comprehend world of subprime loans, collateralized debt obligations and AAA credit ratings into a darkly comic thrill ride. There are some genius 4th wall breaking moments of handy explanation from the celebrity likes of starlet Margot Robbie (in a bubble bath), top chef Anthony Bourdain (with some fish) and pop star Selena Gomes with business guru Richard Thaler – which really help you keep up with key details.

"listen carefully the lady in the tub as she explains sub prime loans"

The Big Short is a superb film that blows the lid off a very painful real life topic. The cast are fantastic, making what could have been a hard slog of a tale bounce along with energy and believable humanity.

If this had been a fictional account you might have said it was too far fetched to believe but the fact that it happened and we’re still feeling the financial fallout from it is absolutely terrifying.

"Aint that a kicker"

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

öööö

(4 - Sky-Fell: attack of the bankers)

Awesomeness öööö – Truth can be as terrifying as any fiction

Laughs öööö – Very funny in places but painful too

Horror ö – Only the swears and the tension to upset here

Spiritual Enlightenment öö - Is money the root of all evil?

"Get the batmobile"

Darkmatters Review: The Revenant

The Revenant

Dir. Alejandro G. Iñárritu

Reviewed by Matt Adcock (@Cleric20)

“As long as you can still grab a breath, you fight. You breathe... keep breathing.”

Revenant: a person who has returned, especially supposedly from the dead… which makes the title of this epically brutal ‘survive-em-up’ spot on.

The ‘revenant’ in question here is Hugh Glass (Leonardo Di Caprio on surely Oscar winning at last form) – a real life frontiersman and fur trapper in the 1800’s who underwent an incredible wilderness ordeal to try and find revenge.

"it's snow joke out there..."

Strap in then for a seriously perilous thrill ride of survival, where the extraordinary power of the human spirit is writ large in breathtaking cinematic style. Glass’s experiences of the uncharted American wilderness are certainly not for the faint of heart. Brief highlights include a brutal bear attack, beatings, being shot at with arrows and guns, freezing conditions and surviving on no provisions, plus being left for dead by his own friends. Broken limbs, life threatening injuries and a hunting party of bloodthirsty natives tracking him, Glass’ s quest for survival is the very definition of ‘against the odds’.

"where are my marmalade sandwiches?"

The bear who mauls Glass is a work of cinematic genius, terrifying and brilliantly realised – this is the best on screen bear since, erm, Paddington… Although anyone looking for a Paddington sequel here will be severely traumatised!?

Villain of the piece is back-stabbing scumbag John Fitzgerald (Tom Hardy also on good form) whose betrayal of Glass sets up the main plot. The sheer force of will that sees Glass battling enemies, the elements and physical ailments in order to exact bloody vengeance is a glimpse into the dark motivations that lie under the civilised surface of man. This is a decent man who chooses a terrible course of action in order to exact a form of justice and find inner redemption. In the process he burns up his soul with the astonishing physical torment he has to endure.

"better times"

Director Iñárritu brings jaw-dropping cinematic spectacle to this snowy tale, the scenery is liable to transfix you with wondrous shots of forests and mountains which wouldn’t look out of place in a gallery.

The Revenant packs a compelling story, aided by a top notch cast. The two leads are ably supported by Domhnall ‘Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ Gleeson and Will ‘Maze Runner’ Poulter in particular.

This is a movie that will make you appreciate your nice warm home and safe existence just a little more. Highly recommended!

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

öööö1/2

(4.5 - Survive Hard: with a vengeance)

Awesomeness öööö – Like the most brutal ever episode of 'I'm a Celebrity: Get Me Out Of Here)

Laughs öö – Not a comedy but some black humour

Horror öööö – Very grim

Spiritual Enlightenment öö - What drives you?