Film: Nativity

With a sequel to this 2009 Christmas film due soon I decided to take my daughter to a special screening  at our local cinema, and I’m very glad I did.

Schoolteacher Paul Maddens (Martin Freeman) hates Christmas. This is because his girlfriend (Ashley Jensen) left him on Christmas Day some years ago.

Much to his dismay Maddens is chosen to direct the annual school Nativity and soon finds himself running into an old rival and making promises he will struggle to keep.

Freeman (soon to be seen as Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit) is great as the downtrodden teacher and all the kids involved are utterly charming. Marc Wootton also turns in a fine performance as the fun-loving classroom assistant Mr Poppy.

Can Maddens and Poppy beat their local rivals to a 5 star review and will the elusive Hollywood producer turn up to see the performance?

Nativity is a heart-warming and funny film that’s great fun at Christmastime.

Make it a must-see this festive season.

Ric’s Rating: Highly Recommended  

Film: Redbelt

A principled martial-arts instructor is drawn into the world of competition fighting and fight promotion in this 2008 drama from writer / director David Mamet.

Chiwetel Ejiofor (Four Brothers, Salt) is Mike Terry, a former soldier turned jiu-jitsu instructor who has fallen on hard times. As he struggles to pay the rent an accidental shooting at his dojo involving a lawyer (Emily Mortimer) and a policeman sparks a series of events that leads to Terry mixing with movie stars (Tim Allen) and unscrupulous managers.

Against his better judgment and personal beliefs Terry agrees to take part in a mixed martial-arts fighting tournament. Will he triumph while keeping his principles intact?

The growing popularity of MMA has inevitably spawned numerous films. Most of them are straight to DVD efforts that concentrate on action and the biggest success of the genre has undoubtedly been Warrior starring Tom Hardy & Nick Nolte.

While Warrior was a Rocky type story with an MMA backdrop David Mamet (who is himself a jiu-jitsu practitioner) has concentrated on the style of fighting that inspired MMA and the ethics of a man firmly embedded in its teachings.

Ejiofor is superb as the morally conflicted martial artist and brilliant support comes from Mortimer, Allen and Alice Braga as Terry’s wife. Many real-life fighters also appear, including Randy Couture of The Expendables.

This is the thinking man’s MMA movie and is an absolute must-see for fans of jiu-jitsu and MMA. This will also appeal to anyone who enjoys high quality drama and good old-fashioned underdog films.  

Ric’s Rating: Essential.      

Film: License To Drive

The late Corey Haim and his on & off screen friend Corey Feldman star in this 1988 comedy which gets a UK DVD release courtesy of Second Sight.

Les (Haim) sees his driving licence as a ticket to freedom so he is devastated when he fails the test. Such is his shame that he can’t admit the failure and soon decides to go a night out driving to impress his friends and the gorgeous Mercedes (Heather Graham).

What could possibly go wrong?

I had fond memories of this one as I was a fan of the two Coreys and despite a shaky start it manages to retain much of its charm.

Haim is great as the underachieving Les and Feldman provides good support along with Richard Masur and Carol Kane as Les’ parents.

For good nostalgic fun and a few laugh out loud moments check it out.

License To Drive is available on DVD in the UK from 30^th July 2012.

Ric’s Rating: Good  

Film: Raid On Entebbe

A plane is hijacked and the hostages become pawns in a political battle in this 1977 film which has recently been released on DVD in the UK.

Based on actual events this chronicles the daring Israeli rescue mission in Uganda.

There are lots of familiar faces. Charles Bronson gives his usual stoic turn as the army general and there are appearances by James Woods, John Saxon and Robbert Loggia to name but a few. However, it’s Yaphet Kotto’s performance as the irrepressible Ugandan President Idi Amin that steals the show.

The film has aged well and the opening half hour perfectly captures ordinary people mingling while travelling together before being dragged into a life-threatening situation but the running time of 150 minutes makes it seem like forever until we get to the rescue. The lengthy political discussions add little to the drama so when the mission finally came around I was beginning to feel like a hostage myself.

At the end I was glad it was all over.

Ric’s Rating: Dodgy

Film: Out For Justice

Nowadays it’s easy to forget just how good a good Steven Seagal movie is.

This 1991 effort sees Seagal play Gino, a tough Brooklyn cop, out to avenge the murder of his partner.

From the brutal opening scene in which Richie (William Forsythe) guns down the cop in broad daylight in front of his family, you know that this is gonna be all out action.

Seagal swiftly sets about tracking down Richie and his crew and obliterates anyone in his way. The pool hall fight scene remains an all time favourite and the entire film has aged surprisingly well. Look out for The Good Wife’s Julianna Margulies as a downtrodden ex-hooker.

I caught this on tv with no intention of watching the entire thing but before I knew it, it was all over. Seagal’s character is a brilliantly clichéd action hero, the tough guy with a heart of gold which is perfectly shown in the cool puppy rescue scene and the subsequent encounter with the greaseball who threw it out a moving car.

With the odd exception, they just don’t make them like this anymore.

Ric’s Rating: Highly Recommended

Film: The Muppets

Brothers Gary (Jason Segel) and Walter (a muppet) are inseperable so when Gary decides to take his girlfriend Mary (Amy Adams) on a trip to Hollywood Walter tags along, determined to visit the legendary Muppet Theatre.

They find a ruined theatre about to be demolished by oil baron Tex Richman (Chris Cooper) and decide to track down Kermit The Frog who sets about assembling the old gang to stage a show that will raise the ten million dollars required to save the theatre.

This is the first Muppet movie I've seen since Christmas Carol and the characters have lost none of their appeal. Kermit, Miss Piggy, Fozzie and the rest of the muppets are in fine form, especially the crazy drummer Animal who steals every scene that he's in.

Segel, Adams and Cooper all look like they are having great fun too and there are appearances by Jack Black, Zach Galifianakis, Ken Jeong, Alan Arkin, Whoopi Goldberg and Mickey Rooney.

It's more of a nostalgia trip than a riotous comedy and I did have to look past the song & dance numbers but this is still a nice film that shows the incredible staying power of these characters.

If you fondly remember The Muppet Show you'll enjoy it and a new generation of youngsters will be singing "It's time to play the music....it's time to light the lights".

The Muppets is in cinemas now.

Ric's Rating: 72%

DVD: This Boy's Life

Recently released on DVD here in the UK by Second Sight this 1993 film serves as a stark reminder of just how good Robert DeNiro can be.

This is the true tale of the childhood of author Tobias Wolff who moves town to live with his Mother’s new husband, the seemingly affable Dwight (DeNiro).

Dwight’s true obnoxious personality soon emerges and Tobias is subjected to mental and physical abuse while his Mother (Ellen Barkin) looks on.

This is an acting masterclass from DeNiro, he absolutely nails his portrayal of the deluded Dwight, who is convinced that he has the boy’s best interests at heart. Leonardo DiCaprio is fantastic too as Tobias, a young man still trying to find his way while dealing with a horrendous family life.

Never having seen this before I was completely captivated from the beginning and even if you’ve already seen it it’s worth another look. The 1950s setting ensures that there is no dated feel and the snippets of information at the end provide suitable closure on all the characters involved.

Ric’s Rating: 89%

DVD: Double Impact

This 1991 action movie gets a DVD release in the UK on 19th September 2011 courtesy of Second Sight.

Following the murder of their parents, six month old twins Chad and Alex are separated. Chad moves to California with Uncle Frank (Geoffrey Lewis) and Alex is left at a Hong Kong orphanage.
Twenty five years later the brothers (both played by Jean – Claude Van Damme) reunite for revenge. The twins must overcome their personal differences and take on the villains, including female body-builder Cory Everson and perennial martial-arts movie bad guy Bolo Yeung.

This has stood the test of time surprisingly well. Following the recent reality show Jean – Claude Van Damme: Behind Closed Doors (see review elsewhere here) and his upcoming turn in The Expendables 2 it’s a timely reminder of how much fun a JCVD movie can be.

Ok, the effects are outdated and the acting is cheesy but this is still a very enjoyable action movie that showcases Van Damme’s considerable skills which, hopefully, will be gracing the big screen again next year.

Ric’s Rating: 68%

Films: Top Films of 2005

As this is a new blog I'll include some retrospective lists so here is the first.
2005 was a pretty good year for films and here are my top picks.
They are in order of merit and should all be available cheap on DVD.
Each one is a worthy addition to any collection.

THE JACKET
Adrian Brody in this highly original psychological thriller.

KUNG FU HUSTLE
Stephen Chow’s excellent martial arts mayhem movie.

THE EXORCISM OF EMILY ROSE
A rare thing nowadays. A horror film that’s actually scary.

CRASH
Ensemble piece dealing with racial tension.

CINDERELLA MAN
Russell Crowe gives another powerhouse performance as boxer Jim Braddock.

STANDER
Thomas Jane plays the real life cop turned criminal.

ONG – BAK
Excellent showcase for the amazing skills of Tony Jaa as he sets out to retrieve a stolen ancient statue.

5 X 2
French film about the breakdown of a marriage. Told in reverse.

SIN CITY
Dark comic adaptation starring Bruce Willis, Mickey Rourke and Clive Owen.

THE 40 YEAR OLD VIRGIN
Very funny comedy about a late developer.