The Monkey (2025)

When I heard that we were getting a movie version of "The Monkey", a short story by Stephen King, I immediately tried to remember how the tale panned out. I've read a LOT of Stephen King work, including almost all of his superb short story collections, but I could not remember "The Monkey", even after being reminded of the fact that it featured in the fantastic Skeleton Crew. I somehow kept confusing it in my mind with "Chattery Teeth", a story from the enjoyable Nightmares & Dreamscapes collection.

Theo James plays twins Hal and Bill (the younger incarnations played by Christian Convery), men who have very different views on a cymbal-bashing monkey that they took possession of for a brief, but memorable, part of their childhood. Piecing things together, they eventually reached that the conclusion that the monkey would always signify the sudden death of someone close by. Hal would be happy to never see the thing again. Bill, on the other hand, thinks he might be able to make use of such a unique power.

Written and directed by Osgood Perkins, who had great success penetrating the  last year with Longlegs, this looks as if 2025 is the year that allows him to cash in on all of the goodwill he gained in 2024. While still not necessarily for every mainstream horror fan, this is easily the most accessible film that Perkins has directed. As many others have already mentioned, it's a horror comedy with a number of deaths that would easily nestle alongside those showcased in the Final Destination series.

James isn't the best choice for a leading man, but he doesn't do a bad job with his two roles. There are better moments for Convery though, and Colin O'Brien (playing Hal's son, and someone he has kept at a distance in order to keep him safe) brings a better energy to things. Tatiana Maslany is very good as the mother of the twins, and there are very entertaining cameos from Adam Scott and Elijah Wood. Rohan Campbell also has fun in a supporting role, hard to recognise underneath a hairstyle that makes him look like a member of a Ramones tribute act, and I also have to mention Sarah Levy, Perkins himself (giving himself a small role that allows him to almost steal one scene in the movie, Tess Degenstein, and Danica Dreyer.

Everything is decently put together, from the score to the gore gags, from the dialogue to the pacing of the main plot points, but what matters most is that monkey, and I'm pleased to say that it's exactly as it needs to be. Designed to somehow remain completely impassive, yet also oozing menace whenever it's onscreen, the monkey is a brilliant, and unexpectedly effective, "villain". 

Perkins cannot quite navigate the tonal dancing required, but the fact that he gives it a go shows how good his instincts are when it comes to adapting the source material, which really wouldn't work if handled with complete seriousness. The end result is a bit of a mess, but it's an entertaining mess that manages to stand out from a crowd of neater, safer, mainstream horror choices. And I don't need my entertainment to be safe and neat and tidy.

7/10

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Divergent (2014)

Based on a novel by Veronica Roth (the first in a trilogy), Divergent is another movie aimed squarely at the Young Adult market. It focuses on a young woman who ends up being trained for combat in a system that rewards those not up to the task with a type of banishment, or sometimes even possible death. It's also about a society ruled by people who may not always have the best interests of the public at heart. Despite these similarities, and one or two others, this ISN'T The Hunger Games. Even if it hopes to grab a piece of that pie. It's actually a bit better than The Hunger Games, in my opinion.

Shailene Woodley plays Tris, a young girl living in a society that is determined to avoid another major war. To ensure this, everyone is sorted in to one of five factions. There's a test to be taken just before you choose the faction, but you're still supposed to be able to choose a different faction if you wish. It just makes you stand out a bit if you don't follow on the path set down by your parents. The five factions are Abnegation (selfless), Erudite (intelligent), Amity (peaceful), Candor (honest), and Dauntless (brave). When Tris takes her test she is advised to pretend that she had to leave early after taking sick. It turns out that she's divergent, able to think more independently than most and not be so easily controlled. Divergents are viewed as dangerous. And Tris makes her situation worse when she goes to the choosing ceremony the next day and decides to give the Dauntless faction a go. She doesn't realise just how tough the training will be, and falling too low on the scoreboard is not an option when the consequence is being sent away to live outwith any of the factions.

Although it runs for over two hours (it's about 140 minutes, approximately), Divergent doesn't feel overlong or bloated. There are plenty of action beats that help to move things along, and the inevitable potential romance is evenly spread out throughout the second half of the film, making it less likely to induce vomiting. The screenplay by Vanessa Taylor and Evan Daugherty does a great job of getting, and keeping, viewers up to speed without grinding proceedings to a complete halt, although there are times when it's a very close call.

Director Neil Burger makes all of the right choices for the material. It's generally light, although one or two moments do venture into impressively dark territory, the soundtrack has some tracks that teenage girls should enjoy, the action is solid, although it doesn't get in the way of the character moments, and there are so many odds stacked against Tris that every small victory has the potential to make viewers smile/breathe a sigh of relief.

There's also the cast. Woodley isn't a particularly strong lead, but she's acceptable enough in the role. Theo James, as Four (a Dauntless man who takes a shine to Tris), is suitably strong and handsome, and Jai Courtney plays a bit of a git, which works perfectly considering how much I dislike him anyway. Miles Teller and Zoe Kravitz are the two other Dauntless recruits who stand out from the pack, for different reasons, and then there are supporting roles for Ashley Judd and Kate Winslet, with the latter somehow managing to be brilliant every time she's onscreen despite often appearing to deliver more exposition.

I hoped to get through Divergent without hating it, or myself, too much. It turned out to be quite a pleasant surprise. So much so that I'm now looking forward to the sequel.

7/10

http://www.amazon.com/Divergent-Blu-Ray-digital-download-certificate/dp/B00GQQ77IU/ref=sr_1_6_twi_2_twi_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1420319217&sr=8-6&keywords=divergent

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Underworld: Awakening (2012)

First of all, my overview of the preceding Underworld movies can be found here.

At the start of Underworld: Awakening the audience is told by Selene (Kate Beckinsale) about "the purge". Yes, humans finally discovered that there really were vampires and werewolves (aka lycans) and set about eradicating them. After telling the audience this information, Selene is then taken out of action and frozen. She ends up in a lab for many years. But the movie is called Underworld: Awakening so you may be able to guess that Selene doesn't stay frozen in the lab for the entire movie and when she gets out there are a few revelations.

If you enjoyed the first two Underworld movies then I can't think of any reason why you would dislike this one. It's more of the same and it's all done very well. Mans Marlind and Bjorn Stein share the directing duties and Len Wiseman (director of those first two movies) is one of the four people who helped to create the screenplay, which brings in a few new ideas and easily mixes them in with the familiar elements and style that fans of the movies have come to expect.

Beckinsale is the star of the show, once again all black leather and cat-like agility (is it getting hot in here or is it just me?) but there's a good supporting cast of players with the likes of Michael Ealy, Theo James, Kris Holden-Ried and Sandrine Holt doing a decent job. India Eisley is a very good young actress getting to play a very fun character and I was surprised to see Wes Bentley put in an uncredited cameo appearance. The most fun, however, comes from watching Stephen Rea and Charles Dance playing their parts. The two great actors appear to have a lot of fun while they play two very different characters.

The special effects are almost as good as they were in the second movie (which remains my favourite of the series so far) though there are definitely times when the CGI isn't quite up to the task, such as an otherwise enjoyable chase sequence involving Beckinsale, Eisley and Theo James trying to drive away from relentless lycans.

Overall, however, this is a bloody good time. The action feels as if it is non-stop, the visuals are cool, there is a nice helping of gore and bloodshed and the development of the characters this time around takes one or two interesting turns. Okay, it also feels very lightweight (thanks to the streamlined storyline and the runtime clocking in at about 85 minutes, despite the IMDb listing putting it at 88 mins, including the opening recap for newcomers) but it's blockbuster fun and that's all it wants to be. Mission accomplished.

7/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Underworld-Awakening-Blu-ray-3D/dp/B0064YOWCI/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1351073682&sr=8-2