Cinema Sweet

Starring: Simon Pegg, Andy Serkis, Isla Fisher, Tom Wilkinson, Tim Curry
Director: John Landis
Released: October 29, 2010

I read a lot of highly mixed reviews before buying this film on DVD, and as such I started watching it from a neutral standpoint, despite my love of Simon Pegg films. And as I was watching, I couldn't help but feel that something was wrong with it. It wasn't until a second viewing that I realised what it was: it's just not funny enough.

Which is a shame, really, because apart from that it's a rather enjoyable film.

The film is a comedic take on the infamous murders committed by Irish immigrants Burke and Hare in 1820's Edinburgh, who sold their murder victims to Dr Robert Knox for him to dissect. I shan't worry too much about spoiling the plot in this review since the story is well known already, although this retelling is not exactly historically accurate.

Pegg plays Burke and Sirkis plays Hare as they discover the market for fresh corpses, with Wilkinson as Knox and Curry as his rival, Dr Munroe, and Ronnie Corbitt as tiny militia captain McLintock intent on bringing down the villanous duo. Ironically, Burke and Hare are far more likable than many of the films other characters, despite their murderous tendencies. Pegg and Sirkis play the roles with a relaxed cheer which appears very natural, and which is especially amusing in contrast with their sinister deeds. Their cheerful chatter whilst committing a murder is worth a chuckle or two.

Unfortunately, a lot of the 'comedy' in the film appears forced and is highly predictable. Gags like an out-of-control barrel containing a body rolling down a hill have been done to death (sorry) and are obvious long before they take place. A member of the militia fainting constantly at the sight of body parts and murder got a few laughs from me at first but quickly lost its charm.

However, the thing which really killed (sorry) this comedy in my books was Isla Fisher's character, Ginny, an aspiring actress whom Burke falls for. Bless her, she tried her best with what she had, even managing to maintain a believable Scots accent for the majority of the film, but I simply could not force myself to care about her idea for an all-female production of Macbeth which smitten Burke funds with his murder-gained profit. Her part feels tacked on to give the rather mild-mannered Burke a reason for his crimes, and their little romance, when put alongside Burke's other activities in the film, feels clumsy and unnatural. Burke's failing to get her into bed until demanding a conjugal visit before his execution is funny, but neither brilliant nor original.

Worst of all, as Burke stood on the gallows with a noose around his neck, his final words were gag-worthy, to the point where I was actually glad when he dropped out of sight, something I never thought I'd say regarding Simon Pegg. Announcing that he 'did it for love' with an affectionate gooey smile at Ginny before being executed seems too corny for words, and entirely spoiled any sinister mood conjured up by the film. Which is a problem, since the story is rather sinister.

I have not said anything too positive so far, and I would like to point out that I did enjoy the movie as a whole, but it is certainly not Pegg's best. The fact that I believe more screen time was devoted to the romance than to the murders is a major problem. And, while it works just fine not being entirely historically accurate, there were times when I felt it should have been. In the true story, Hare testified against Burke in order to save his own skin. In this tale, Burke confesses to save the rest. I was highly unsatisfied (I found Pegg's Burke likeable, but his selfless act was too slushy), at least in part because I think it might have been amusing to see Sirkis's Hare selling his mate down the river. His selfishness was evident in the quick thank you he offered God when Burke confessed, but this selfishness could have generated more comedy if used effectively.

The film's impressive supporting cast including Christopher Lee, Paul Whitehouse, Reece Shearsmith and Bill Bailey (as the amusingly hypocritical hangman who called Burke's murder-for-money idea 'evil' before accepting his wage for the execution) add a well-needed breath of comedy, with Ronnie Corbitt really stealing the show. Pegg's talent, I felt, was not put to its best use, and I blame this on the useless romance which dragged down the comedy.

Burke and Hare was John Landis's first feature film in quite some time, and while it's certainly not up to his 'An American Werewolf in London' standards, it's enjoyable and funny, if not hillarious. With the actual skeleton of the real William Burke credited at the end of the film, and the sobering tale of what he and Hare did still fresh in my memory, I could appreciate how difficult it must have been to try and make a successful comedy film out of such a horrible story of mass murder. And although it's not brilliant, I do believe they did their best. Not Pegg's greatest by far, but certainly very watchable.

Cinema Sweet Rating - 6/10

With their new movie, Paul, next on my list of reasons to go to the cinema, it seemed appropriate to review the very best of the hilarious duo that is Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. And it does not get much better than...

Shaun of the Dead
Starring: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Kate Ashfield, Lucy Davis, Dylan Moran, Bill Nighy
Director: Edgar Wright
Released: April 9, 2004

This is the movie which redefined a genre. Shaun of the Dead ushered in a new era of zombie comedies (zom coms) like 2006's Fido, and 2009's Zombieland. But I maintain that it is one of the best - and that extends further than this genre alone.

Self-dubbed as a romantic comedy with zombies (yes, a RomZomCom), the film sees Shaun (Simon Pegg) try to get his life together, win back his girlfriend Liz (Kate Ashfield), and deal with his mother and stepfather (Bill Nighy). Matters are complicated significantly by a zombie apocalypse.

Shaun lives with disgruntled roommate Pete and the crude, lazy Ed (Nick Frost). As a zombie apocalypse breaks out, Shaun is amusingly unaware for some time that the dead are now walking the earth, too wrapped up in his problems (and a hangover) to notice the many signs - such as bloody hand prints on the freezer door of the local corner shop, a woman chewing on a man's throat outside the local pub, and indeed the moaning, lumbering zombies on the streets. When he eventually realises what's going on after watching the news, there is already a zombie in the house, two in garden, and his roommate Pete was infected the night before. After neutralising the current zombie problem, Shaun and Ed decide the best course of action would be to barricade themselves in the pub, picking up Liz and Shaun's mum on the way, and killing the stepfather Phillip whom he hates and who has also been infected. But this is not as easy as it sounds, what with the growing population of the undead wandering the streets with a hunger for entrails, as well as a lot of bickering and the fact that they are forced to take Liz's roommates (who Shaun dislikes) and the infected Phillip along with them.

I wouldn't have thought it was possible to make a film that is funny, gory, and romantic at the same time, but Shaun of the Dead happily proved me wrong. It is a hilarious film - even the clever title makes me titter. The laid-back attitude of Ed, who sits eating a cornetto after bashing in the brains of a zombie; Shaun and Ed flipping through their record collection deciding which are too valuable to throw whilst bloodied hungry zombies approach; and even the ridiculously gory disembowelment and beheading of Liz's roommate David (Dylan Moran) are just a few of the little gems which make this film so side-splittingly funny. But somehow, miraculously, it manages to hold its own as a zombie film as well, in spite of the comedic and romantic elements which pepper the plot line. I'll admit that there are moments in the film which make me jump, and when you strip away the quick, clever comedy, it does contain some genuine chills. A body bag is seen hanging out of an ambulance with someone thrashing inside it. Shaun is forced to shoot his mother in the head after she dies and becomes one of the undead. Shaun of the Dead manages simultaneously to be a hilarious, romantic tragedy - something which no other film I can think of successfully pulls off.

Fast, funny and gloriously gory, Shaun of the Dead will have you itching to see more of the duo that is Simon Pegg and Nick Frost - and might leave you lying awake that night pondering the threat of a zombie apocalypse. I did. Nonetheless, Shaun of the Dead still makes it onto my list of all-time favourite movies, one I'll keep watching untill the apocalypse I don't doubt.

Cinema Sweet Rating - 10/10

The first film in our series of Horrifyingly Good Hallowe'en Movies is BeetleJuice!

Starring: Michael Keaton, Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, Winona Ryder
Director: Tim Burton
Released: March 30, 1988

Beetlegeuse, Beetlegeuse, Beetlegeuse! Say his name three times to summon him, or just pop the DVD into the machine to watch Keaton's hillarious stripe-suited ghoul in this brilliant comedy-horror which is so funny you might die.

Barbara (Davis) and Adam (Baldwin) Maitland thought that a vacation spent redecorating their quaint country home in Connecticut would be perfect. Little do they know that their home is about to get a very unwelcome makeover, not to mention their lives. After crashing through a covered bridge and plummeting into the river below, the couple find themselves back in their home with no memory of how they came to be there. When they realise that they cast no reflections, cannot leave the house without entering a terrifying sand dimension populated by giant hungry sandworms, and have been left a Handbook for the Recently Deceased, the Maitlands realise that they did not survive the crash, and are dead.
As if death wasn't bad enough, the Maitlands have another problem on their hands - unwanted housemates. A new family, the Deetzes, is moving in, and the mother, terrible sculpter Delia, and her interior designer Otho want to turn the Maitland's precious home into a gaudy piece of pretentious pseudo art. Hope comes in the form of Lydia (a very young Winona Ryder), Delia's gothic teenage step-daughter who is willing to believe in the ghosts and so is the only one who can see and speak to them.
The Maitland's efforts to scare the Deetzes out of their house prove fruitless, and when their afterlife care worker Juno informs them that they have to stay in the house for 125 years, they are desperate. Enter Beetlegeuse (Keaton) - an obnoxious, disgusting and devious ghoul who claims to be a freelance 'bio-exorcist', able to get rid of the living. After making himself at home in the detailed model of the town Adam has built in the attic, Beetlegeuse gets the Maitlands to summon him by chanting his name three times, despite Juno's warning that he is bad news. Meeting the mischevious character makes the couple understand Juno's warning and they choose not to accept his help... But they forget to unsummon him, allowing Beetlegeuce to run amock and very nearly kill the Deetzes during another attempt from the Maitlands to scare them away. With the fiend safely back in the model and the couple now deadly certain that he is indeed bad news, what could possibly go wrong? But the crafty Beetlegeuse has more tricks up his sleeve and, worse still, he has a crush on Lydia. With the Deetzes now trying to make money by exploiting the ghosts of the house, and Beetlegeuse planning a wedding to die for, the Maitlands have a lot more problems on thier hands than death.

Beetlejuice (the title spelt as the phonetic of the character's name) is a wonderfully bizarre and creative film. The special effects are impressive for a film of its time, and there is a perfect balance of comedy, romance (even in death, the Maitlands are still in love), horror (though tame for the Saw generation), and fantasy. The insight into death is original and intriguing, with a seemingly eternal waiting room for corpses waiting to see their case workers, coupons, and even a handbook. Keaton's portrayal of the devious Beetlegeuse is hillarious and, though the film may have been better with more of him in it, his scenes are the funniest in the movie. The jokes may border on slapstick from time to time, but Beetlejuice is undoubtedly a funny film which will make you want to say the name once, twice, and most certainly three times over!

Cinema Sweet rating: 8/10

This is my first review for the blog so I hope you like it.

The Other Guys
Starring: Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Eva Mendes, Steve Coogan,
Director: Adam McKay
Released: August 6, 2010 (US)


After his last flop, 'Land of the Lost', the unwritten rules of Hollywood dictated that Will Ferrell was in dire need of a hit. And, personally, I think he's succeeded.
In the tough streets of New York, detectives like Danson (Dwayne Johnson) and Highsmith (Samuel L Jackson) are too cool for school - getting all the action, praise and girls. But after these slick cops jump off a 20-story building out of pride (or stupidity) while pursuing bank robbers and hit the hard pavement below, their job falls upon the other guys - the pencil-pushig, desk-jockeys like Gamble and Hoitz.
Terry Hoitz (Mark Wahlberg) is actually a skilled detective who unfortunately shot Derek Jeter during the World Series and is now stuck at a desk with mild-mannered Allen Gamble (Will Ferrell), a forensic accountant with a badge who'd rather do paperwork than fight crime and is gullible enough to fire his weapon in the office ("desk pop"), leaving him stuck with a wooden training gun as punishment. After hot-shots Danson and Highsmith die, Hoitz decides he and Gamble can fill their place. After trying to arrest billionaire David Ershon (an hillarious Steve Coogan) for scaffolding-violations, Gamble accidently uncovers a massive plot to cover Ershon's losses. As the plot thickens and the "other guys" face increasing resistance from inside the department, Hoitz learns there's a lot more to the seemingly bland Gamble than meets the eye - like an incredible ability to get very hot women like his wife, Sheila (Eva Mendes).

"The Other Guys" is a hillarious addition to the buddy-cop genre, but it also salutes the ordinary cop - far from the gun-toting, trigger-happy Danson and Highsmith, the real heroes are not only the title characters, but cops like Captain Gene Mauch (Michael Keaton), who also works at Bed, Bath and Beyond to make ends meet.
Like in a lot of Ferrell movies, the improv runs wild at times, such as with the amusing lion vs tuna debate between Gamble and Hoitz, but it works. And then there's all the other small comedy gems which make this movie so funny - the party of homeless men who take a shine to having sex in Gamble's car, Hoitz's incredible dance moves which he learned at high school just to make fun of the gay kids, and many more.
The plot slows down from time to time, especially when trying to explain Ershon's plan to make up for his $32billion losses, but there are very few moments in this movie where you won't be laughing. "The Other Guys" is a hillarious and original buddy-cop comedy, and quite possibly steals the show as the hottest comedy of the summer, if not the year.

Cinema Sweet Rating: 7/10