Armageddon (1998)

The odd thing about rewatching Armageddon, a film I have watched a number of times before, is that it is somehow both worse and better than I remember. It's quite ridiculous, but manages to be ridiculous in many right ways to balance out the times that it's ridiculous in many wrong ways.

Most people know the story. There's a giant rock hurtling towards Earth. The only way to save our planet is to travel into space, land on the giant rock, and drill down into it to plant some major explosives. There's no way astronauts could manage that. The world needs the best drilling workers, and those drilling workers come in the shape of Harry S. Stamper (Bruce Willis) and co. There are some lame attempts to make things tense, there's plenty of heroism and "America: F**k Yeah!" throughout almost every main sequence, and you get to remember how much you love or hate Aerosmith singing "I Don't Want To Miss A Thing."

It might be Jonathan Hensleigh and J. J. Abrams credited in the writing department, with a bit of input from Tony Gilroy, Shane Salerno, and Robert Roy Pool, although I couldn't say how much any one person added into the mix. It's easy to see the overwhelming stamp of director Michael Bay all over it though. There's no subtlety, of course, and no desire to keep the action clear and watchable. In fact, I would argue that Armageddon is at its worst when viewers have to suffer through the poorly-shot and messily-edited action beats.

Willis may not be doing his best work, but he's fine in blockbuster star mode. Ben Affleck, playing the younger and more hot-headed "drill Jedi", who also happens to be in love with his boss's daughter, Grace (played by Liv Tyler), is also fine, although he has never been as comfortable in these kinds of films as he is in less mainstream fare. Tyler does what is asked of her, and is a welcome presence, despite being constantly pushed offscreen by the tide of testosterone. The supporting cast is pretty great though. Billy Bob Thornton does well, Will Patton and William Fichtner are both as dependable as ever, and there's a lot of fun to be had with any scene involving Steve Buscemi and/or Peter Stormare. You also get Owen Wilson, Keith David, Michael Clarke Duncan, Jason Isaacs, and very brief appearances from Eddie Griffin, Grace Zabriskie, Udo Kier, Shawnee Smith, and Matt Malloy.

There's plenty of impressive hardware on display, the bombastic score from Trevor Rabin ensures that nobody gets to forget the heroism and machismo of our main characters for even one minute, and John Schwartzman tries hard to impress with cinematography that is undermined by the horrible editing so familiar to anyone who has watched any other Michael Bay movie.

Armageddon is not good, but it's comfortingly ridiculous for a lot of the bloated 151-minute runtime. I would put almost every other Bay movie ahead of it, and there are a number of Bruckheimer-produced movies from this time period I would also put ahead of it, but I cannot deny that I can still happily sit down with it once every ten years or so, like treating myself to an unhealthy bit of fast food that makes me hate myself as soon as I've swallowed the last tasty morsel. 

7/10

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Shudder Saturday: Jamie Marks Is Dead (2014)

We come, once again, to a film that is very good, and very well made, but perhaps not what people may be looking for if they're scheduling some standard horror genre fare. Although Jamie Marks Is Dead is very much, as it says, about Jamie Marks no longer being a sane pick for the dodgeball team, it's a teen drama that has more in common with the likes of River's Edge (I STILL need to see that film, but the imagery here certainly brings it to mind) and Submarine than it does with any full-blooded horrors. There are ghosts here, yes, but they're barely any more ethereal than teenagers who hide away from their peers as they deal with their problems.

The story begins with some snapshots of teen life. Sort of. It all really begins with the discovery of the corpse of Jamie Marks (Noah Silver), a young man who seems to have spent most of his high school years being an outcast and a victim of bullies. A shared fascination with the death brings Gracie (Morgan Saylor) and Adam (Cameron Monaghan) closer together, which allows them to stay distracted from their own problems. Adam, in particular, is struggling with the fact that his mother (Liv Tyler) was paralysed in an accident caused by a woman (Lucy, played by Judy Greer) that she is now friends with. Things get more intense when both Gracie and Adam start seeing, and talking to, the ghost of Jamie, which gives them hope that they can find out exactly what, or who, caused his death.

Based on a novel, "One For Sorrow", by Christopher Barzak, Jamie Marks Is Dead is one of those films that is easy to see struggling to find a target demographic. The issues explored are relevant to teenagers everywhere, but the presentation is more serious, and surprisingly grounded, than teen viewers may want. Older viewers, such as myself, can still identify with the things being worked through, but writer-director Carter Smith, who previously delivered solid horror for fans with the excellent plant-based nastiness of The Ruins, seems unwilling to believe that people will be drawn in by the drama alone. He adds an occasional scare here or there, which may stem from the source material, when things may have worked better with more time spent straying away from the horror elements.

Monaghan and Saylor are both very good in their roles, playing up their sensitivity and empathy without making it all seem too much like an assumed affectation. They work well together, but also separately, and Monaghan gets some excellent scenes in which he can direct his frustration and anger at Tyler and Greer, who both do well in supporting roles. Silver is slightly hampered by the fact that he has to spend a lot of his screentime looking miserable and lonely, for obvious reasons, but he gives a good performance, and the film is at its best in the few moments that have all three of the main characters shifting the dynamic between them. Madisen Beaty is also very good, playing another spirit named Frances Wilkinson who has her own, volatile, way of reacting to living souls around her.

There's nothing really wrong with this, in terms of the performances, the technical side of things, and the visual style. It's a good story, and it's generally presented well. It's just disappointing that nobody, whether that's Barzak or Smith, or both, was unable to nail down something more fitting and consistent when it came to the overall tone.

I tentatively recommend Jamie Marks Is Dead, but I don't know who I recommend it to.

6/10

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Robot & Frank (2012)

An affecting drama with just a dash of sci-fi in the mix, Robot & Frank is a great little film that manages to impress viewers without the need for any unnecessary frills. Of course, Frank Langella being fantastic in the main role is a huge plus.

Langella plays Frank, a man who used to be a jewel thief but who now has to get used to the quiet life. Well, that's what his son (James Marsden) and daughter (Liv Tyler) are hoping for. His son even gives him a gift, a robot butler, to both help him around the house and keep him company. But it's not long until Frank realises that the robot may be able to give him a second shot at his favourite, though illegal, career.

Written by Christopher D. Ford, this is a beautiful little film, one that mixes in a few great characters with a small amount of humour and a story arc that viewers will genuinely care about as things play out. It's a seemingly simple drama that's freshened up slightly thanks to the small sci-fi touches throughout, and also thanks to the great cast. As well as Langella, Marsden and Tyler (who isn't onscreen for very long at all), there are also decent turns from Susan Sarandon (a real highlight in her relatively small role), Peter Sarsgaard and Jeremy Sisto, among others.

Director Jake Schreier does well by the material, never overdoing the emotional button-pushing until a final 10-15 minutes that really earns the right to tug at the heartstrings of anyone watching. There are one or two surprises, but none of them will leave viewers feeling cheated.

It's a shame that, perhaps, some people may avoid this because the word "robot" is in the title, while others may seek it out expecting something more sleek and shiny. It's a drama, first and foremost, about aspects of the human condition (growing old, becoming vulnerable, etc.), but it also uses the near-future world that it presents to highlight just how so much can stay the same while so much else changes.

Almost a dictionary definition of the word "unassuming", Robot & Frank might just end up impressing you as much as it impressed me. It's sweet without being sickly, moving without being TOO heavy-handed, and simply entertaining from beginning to end.

8/10

http://www.amazon.com/Robot-Frank-Langella/dp/B00AENNHOE/ref=sr_1_2?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1398298580&sr=1-2&keywords=robot+and+frank

Super (2010)

In 2009 and 2010 viewers were given not one, not two, but three movies concerning people trying to make themselves into superheroes. The biggest release of the three was the enjoyable Kick-Ass. The one that kind of got lost between the cracks was Defendor (which I highly recommend). And then we have this movie, Super.

Rainn Wilson plays a man who is driven into action when his wife (Liv Tyler) is taken away from him by a local criminal kingpin (Kevin Bacon). At a low point in his life, he receives a vision that blends the message of a character on TV named The Holy Avenger (Nathan Fillion) and the touch of god. He'll become a superhero, fighting crime on a path that will lead him to taking down the kingpin and rescuing the one he loves. It's not long until The Crimson Bolt starts to cause problems for criminals, including anyone who cuts in line at the cinema, and a girl (Ellen Page) who works in a small comic book store doesn't take long to figure out just who the new superhero REALLY is.

James Gunn is a talented guy, capable of writing scripts that blend very dark moments with great entertainment, and he shows that again with this movie, which he both wrote and directed. Super really gets its strength from clashing child-like naivete up against the harsh realities of the world around us. A world in which criminals will draw a gun and shoot a man, superhero or not. A world that replaces the "kapow" and "whammy" of comic book panels with broken bones and blood. It's no place for the main character to try out his deluded plan, but he does so anyway.

Wilson is very good in the main role, a lovable schmuck who overreaches, but does so with good intentions. He's unbalanced, but his moral compass always tends to point the right way, even if the punishment he metes out can sometimes outweigh the transgression. Page is also great, countering the dark and disturbed mental state of Wilson's character with her brighter, though equally disturbed, outlook. Liv Tyler doesn't have as much to do, mainly being the damsel in distress, but she's very good, while Bacon has a blast as the main villain, helped out by a right hand man played by the great Michael Rooker. Gregg Henry fills out the cast, playing a detective who ends up in the middle of quite a crazy situation.

Super is a good film. It's interesting and funny and dark and warped. There's just something that stops me from liking it as much as some others do. I think that may be to do with the fact that I just prefer the two other movies mentioned in the first paragraph. Kick-Ass embraced the idea to provide brilliant, bloody entertainment. Defendor used the notion to really explore perception and mental health. Super sits in between the two, which leaves it slightly less satisfying, cinematically, than either.

7/10

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