Oh, you know I just had to talk about this one. The big news this week and on everyone's minds (at least in the film community) is that fanboy god J.J. Abrams will be directing the seventh Star Wars installment, produced by Disney with a script by Michael Ardnt (writer of "Little Miss Sunshine" and "Toy Story 3").
As for a few new elements to the blog, I've decided to update it whenever I can on exciting film news too, not just reviews. And this is the definition of exciting film news this week.
J.J. Abrams is somewhat of a textbook geek, having grown up watching Star Wars and eventually taking the dying Star Trek franchise and putting his own unique twist to it with 2009's successful reboot. With the release of this year's most anticipated sequel, "Star Trek: Into Darkness", Hollywood set their eyes on this talented nerd to helm Episode VII of the newly acquired Star Wars franchise, which was purchased by Disney after they also bought out LucasArts.
The script will be penned by Michael Ardnt, who was nominated for an Oscar for his work on "Little Miss Sunshine" and also recieved much acclaim for the brainy wit and heartwrenching maturity of "Toy Story 3". Now, all that was needed was a cherry on top of the cake, and J.J. Abrams was that cherry (no homo). I, for one, am extremely excited for this. It seems Hollywood might've actually got something right, and hired a suitable and very talented director for a franchise as big as this one. However, it seems the internet has been divided on this matter, which is utterly baffling for me considering how Abrams is so widely respected in the nerd/geek community. Some (like me) absolutely love the idea of Abrams tackling two big franchises involving big burning balls of gas in their titles, but there are the selected others who think only miniscule thoughts of this matter. "Oh no! He'll ruin it with lens flares!" or "Abrams? Well, what about Joss Whedon, the god of geeks whom I shall dropkick my imaginary girlfriend for to grovel at his feet!"... Well, I'll react to both of those. Personally, the lens flares aren't a problem for me. In fact, it's an Abrams trademark that may set him up for an auteur status in the near future, and it adds some depth and realism to the quality of the film. After all, human eyes aren't capable of crystal quality like cameras. And secondly, Joss Whedon will be up directing "The Avengers 2", another project which I am quite excited about, so there's not much room to squeeze in another big project for the 2015 trio of big summer blockbuster hitters (including "Justice League").
What's blowing my mind right now is even thinking about how close we are to 2015. It's a big time for big movies, especially in the summer, and with this news, I have no doubts that the crew involved will work their magic. Now, all we need is a solid cast and the Star Wars franchise is set for an awesome new chapter.
"The Notebook" Directed by Nick Cassavetes Starring Ryan Gosling, Rachel McAdams, James Garner, Sam Shepard, Joan Allen
RATING 7/10
Dear love of mine,
There seems to be some odd confusion about my sexuality. Let me clear it right now for you, dear. I am a heterosexual male, yet I find exquisite beauty in films of the romance genre. Why does it compell me, you may ask? Well, perhaps it gives me hope, and makes me believe in something that could or could not exist in reality. Then again, that is what all genres are for. We have to believe the unbelievable, darling. It's a rare gift to experience it at least a few times in our lives, and though we may rise and fall in love like the intertwined characters of these films, we may never go down the same path or fill their shoes. Yet, I implore you to reconsider, there is much we can learn and much heartache we have to face before we understand the purpose of our love, and only then, perhaps fifty years in the distant future, may we die together in each others arms. So here's my gift to you... "The Notebook".
This auspicious film begins with a poor and very passionate young soul named Noah who goes about his days as a peasant, putting in effort to construct his perfect future and be seen in his fathers eyes as more than just a worker; a self-sustained and strong individual. And, dear, I would not be reciting this review unless it involved a twisted romance, and we have that with a very wealthy girl named Allie, whose chance encounter with Noah ignites a burning sensation within their hearts and a tale of family feud, lost values, and forbidden romance is born.
My love, in stating that "The Notebook" is one of the best romantic films of the last decade, I would be correct in assuming so. Perhaps it stacks up against other romantic films far more classier or elegant than this, say "(500) Days of Summer" or "Love Actually". Yet, this was brewed at a time when author Nicolas Sparks wasn't a walking parody of himself. Much more innocent times indeed, and in those innocent times did we happen to find this little piece. Now, don't get me wrong, I will always consider you my one and true love, for no amount of romantic movies can match the first time our eyes met, but I did find another love within the great direction of this film. Nick Cassavetes does marvelous work, and I applaud his style. It is quite unique and keeps you engaged thoroughly. And in Rachel McAdams did I find a calm performance, though it never quite reaches the devotion of the male lead, Mr. Ryan Gosling. Ah, before the days when man-crushes were handed out like pamphlets with every viewing of "Drive", Gosling was a rising star in his own way. He accepted films that challenged us, and now, he has given us a romance to remember him for (yes, "Blue Valentine" was good, but darling, this was the role he will forever be remembered for in the eyes of those who were love-struck by "The Notebook"). Many would consider the structure of this film to be quite remarkably cliched, but keep in mind, this was the first to spark Sparks' infamous line of romance films, and to an extent, it really works and manages to satisfy even the most hardened film fanatics.
However, the film does indeed faulter on a few occasions, dear. And while its structure was complimented in the previous comment, perhaps it would also be correct to say that it brings the film down a few notches. It does become predictable, and at times feels all too familiar. Well, that's because this thieving author Nicolas Sparks rehashed and repeated the same formula for this film countless times in his novels to the point where it becomes routine and predictable. And yes, I know I am being unfair with its judgment given the time it was released, but I blame the author and Hollywood for devouring our conscious taste for new romance films and spitting out the same ball of dung responsible for degrading past works. As a standalone film, "The Notebook" is acceptedly very good, but alas, Hollywood has managed to tarnish its legacy repeatedly.
Now, my love, as I approach my final dying words, I leave you with this last and concluding message: "The Notebook" is worth watching, and it does not matter of race nor age, there is much to be admired and much to be desired too. While a set of future events have threatened this otherwise solid films structure to predictability, it still holds as a piece of cinematic work worthy of the attention of any lover, even if it meant falling in love with a brick. It shall resonate a deep desire within you to experience love once again... the right way.
"Mortal Kombat: Annihilation" Directed by John R. Leonetti Starring Robin Shou, Talisa Soto, James Remar, Sandra Hess, Brian Thompson
RATING 1/10
The tagline for the film literally says "Destroy All Expectations". I couldn't have picked a better tagline myself. If you read my review of the first "Mortal Kombat" movie, you see that I quite enjoyed it and accepted it for the cheeseball it was. I also somehow applauded Paul W.S. Anderson, and that's quite shocking to me, knowing I have the capability to praise a reasonably terrible director. Well, I'm about to sing some more praises to Mr. Anderson today, because I really wish he directed this movie instead of John R. Leonetti. Then maybe we would've had a cheesy but highly entertaining flick like the last one. But alas, Hollywood realized the potential of this actually being a decent video game-to-film adaptation, and completely f***ed it up to make a quick buck.
"Mortal Kombat: Annihilation" picks up from where the last film left off. Liu Kang and his sunshine pals arrive in the temples of the monks to celebrate Shang Tsung's defeat, but are quickly interrupted by Shao Kahn, ruler of the Outworld (aka. Bad Guy world) and his henchmen consisting of a constipated-looking faun, a muscular indian woman with four arms who couldn't act her way out of a cardboard box, a red guy who basically has no distinguished qualities, and Shao Kahn's undead wife who is ridiculously hot but unfortunately void of any acting abilities too. Long story short, Shao Kahn kills Johnny Cage very anti-climactically, and Liu Kang and sunshine pals are forced to literally go underground to fend themselves against the wrath of Kahn (bad pun).
Believe me when I say, this movie has no redeeming qualities. At all. None. Not even the music. Yeah, the opening credits gets you pumped and the fight between Sub-Zero and Scorpion is only decent, but there is nothing else I can give this film credit for. Not even Robin Shou is likable in this film because, well, he's a wooden puppet for 99% of it. Then a giant, terribly rendered CGI dragon, but we'll get to that later. I really don't care if I'm going to spoil things in this review because I strongly advise you, for your own health and state of mind, to avoid this trainwreck. I thought it would be something nostalgic, and hopefully let the nostalgia overpower the weak points of the film. I remembered watching it religiously as a kid. Well, now I just want to build a time machine so I could go back and beat that little kid across the face with a steel bat. So let's talk more about the acting... There is no acting. It's a freaking staged opera with rave music and one-liners so cheesy, they actually hurt. In case you also didn't notice, a lot of the original cast is replaced by new actors. I'm assuming that's because they read the script and probably threw up on it or used it for toilet paper afterwards. Christopher Lambert said "hell no" to Raiden returning and passed it over to James Remar, who gets a crew cut. Yes, they gave Raiden a crew cut hairstyle... Besides that, Ashby who played Cage in the last movie was replaced by a generic-looking dude. He gets killed off literally four minutes into the movie, without a word of dialogue. I can see why he passed on that glorious opportunity to be in for four whole minutes. Replaced in the movie is also Sonya. She's just about as useful as a piece of sticky tape that gets stuck to your shoe, only the tape can act better too.
Moving onto the action scenes... When the first scene in the entire film is a fight between Raiden and Shao Kahn, and it sucks, you know you're in for something special. The editing is so extremely choppy and distracting, it makes the technical work in wrestling look professional. You can't tell whether someone lands a hit or not, and it all amounts to a game of "guess who's winning". Chances are, you'll always lose. And while there are twice as much fights in this as the first film, it hardly means anything other than to introduce characters from the game for a few minutes before killing them off, and they don't even have the courtesy to do with a fatality. There's clashes between Sonya and Mileena, Jax and Cyrax, Liu Kang and Smoke... oh yeah, Shao Kahn kills Rain. I didn't even know he was in the movie until he died. Poor bastard. The visual effects? I bet they just hired a bunch of five-year olds to be on the visual effects team, and paid them in Pokemon cards. The climax of this film was a display of some of the absolute worst CGI I have ever bared witness to. Shao Kahn and Liu Kang inexplicably transform into giant monsters. It's never explained why or how, but it just happens. I guess because the director left the set of the film an hour before and gave the director's seat to a chimpanzee. You may have realized I didn't go too deep into the plot, but considering there is no plot to analyse, I'll just pretend the random chance encounters and incomprehensible twists actually meant something.
In short, "Mortal Kombat: Annihilation" is a gigantic fart bomb on the legacy of this great franchise. Why anyone would dare make such a movie, I don't know, but it seemed to earn its bucks in the end of the day. It is one of the worst movies in the world, and I beg everyone to never go near this. If you're into laughable dialogue, random and poorly conceived fight scenes, a lack of substance or character, virtually no plot, and an abundance of bad CGI... I still recommend you see those cheesy kung-fu flicks at 3 in the morning on the week day.
"Mortal Kombat" Directed by Paul W.S. Anderson Starring Christopher Lambert, Robin Shou, Linden Ashby, Talisa Soto, Chris Casamassa
RATING 6/10
How I love the smell of blood and gore in the morning... That came out wrong... I was referring to "Mortal Kombat", the bloodiest and most entertaining video game to ever grace the world of modern technology. But with every ying, there is a yang. Hollywood was quick to capitalize on the impact of video games in the 80's and 90's, and out came a endless array of shitty films based on popular video games that didn't make any logical sense and pretty much were made with the intention of grabbing some hard cash from suckers willing to see it. Among these shit-stains were "Super Mario Bros." and "Street Fighter". When all hope was lost, a director stepped up to the challenge, and his name was Paul W.S. Anderson (to our everlasting shame, this was the idiot that spawned a generation of crappy movies later in his career, but for the time, I say he was alright). And he delivered a kick to the balls with this surprisingly solid video game adaptation: So without further a due...
(best advised you listen to this song as you continue reading this review)
"Mortal Kombat" is the story of Liu Kang, a self-exiled fighter who flees to America in search of a better life. But on his long departure, his younger brother is killed by a warlord named Shang Tsung, and returns home to seek vengeance. He teams up with Raiden, a mystical weirdo who can shoot lighting bolts out of his hands, and meets up with a few other colourful characters before setting out on a journey to Shang Tsung's private islands, where a tournament called "Mortal Kombat" is about to begin... and it pits fighters against some of the most ridiculously awesome supernatural beings on Earth.
And much to my surprise, this was something actually done right on Hollywood's part (well, mostly). It was very faithful to source material, it gathered actors who fit their characters perfectly, and promised what video game junkies were hoping for in a movie about people beating each other to a bloody pulp: people beating each other to a bloody pulp. Being based only on the first game, you won't see much of the other characters (until the sequel, I guess) but with the characters they have at their disposal, the filmmakers and designers do a bang-up job of bringing them to life like the video games' living counterparts. Even though I have seen Robin Shou in other movies, this guy will always be Liu Kang. He embodies his role, and you get on his side every time because he also brings a tough-guy charisma to the cast. And speaking of tough-guy acts, Johnny Cage is in the film, played by Linden Ashby, who does a great job of being an even bigger douchebag with a heart than in the games. And of course, you have B-movie royalty with Christopher Lambert as the thunder god Raiden, who once again proves he is the only man to make wooden acting very convincing. I can't really say much about the other characters, they're pretty much expendable and you don't really care about them (the guy who played Shang Tsung was legit, though). Of course, you do get the badass fights with Scorpion and Sub-Zero, and they're more than welcome as bad guys, but somewhere along the line the writers seemingly got tired of them and chose to take the Jack Dawson route with their characters. After all, what's a MK movie without a few fatalities?
The film's strong points lie within its surprisingly accurate depiction of character, fight scenes, and the blood-pumping opening credits. Even though they're PG-13 in every way, they still bring some heavy brutally and realism to them. For example, the fight with Scorpion and Johnny Cage is stunning to watch because of how gritty and dirty it is. It's not "The Matrix" or anything, or not as immaculately crafted, but its cheap quality is something that suits the tone of the film quite well. I wouldn't have liked to see it any other way besides a low-budget beat-them-to-death fest. This was also at a time when Paul W.S. Anderson wasn't infected by the bug of atrociously bad Hollywood cliches and rehashes and actually had a bit of credibility. His direction isn't bad, though it isn't the spark of greatness you were hoping for either. I say its adequate enough to satisfy your thirst for some fantasy action, and ultimately makes for a nicely paced and wildly entertaining ride. However, that's not to say the film is a masterpiece or anything. It had quite a bit of problems with it.
Goro, the four-armed menace of a monster, is a bulking animatronic mess. Sure, its accurate, but with the technology advance of "Jurassic Park" a couple of years prior to this, they could've at least pulled a few strings to not make him look like a walking potato sack. And on the topic of CGI, this isn't no visual classic either. It has some terrible graphics, especially from Reptile who was probably done by a five-year old on Microsoft Paint. It's all a bit underwhelming, and takes you out of the movie for a bit, but luckily it has the right amount of action dosage to keep you thoroughly entertained. It also has an abundance of cheesy one-liners, most of them coming from Johnny Cage, but I guess that was just being accurate to the video game. Viewers who aren't familiar with the game at all will find them strange, and possibly 95% of the movie strange. That's where the divide happens; fans of the games will appreciate this, while casual movie-goers will smite it with their mighty opinions. That said, this isn't a movie for the sweet normal folks. It's a hardcore fanboys product.
"Mortal Kombat" came at a time when video game-to-film adaptations were failing, and the wicked Hollywood machine raked in the riches. Thankfully, this little flick fell from the hells and delivered a solidly entertaining and thrilling adaptation. To this day, it's still the best one you will find. Despite some dodgy CGI and a script made of cottage cheese, it's all in the spirit of the video game and does plenty right to be able to please the fans. For others hoping to find something more in this, you're best off with "Dragonball: Evolution" or some bad kung-fu flick in the middle of the week at 3 in the morning. It's one strictly for the fans.
"Argo" Directed by Ben Affleck Starring Ben Affleck, John Goodman, Bryan Cranston, Alan Arkin, Scoot McNairy
RATING 8/10
About 14 years ago, a couple of dopey college kids walked away with the Oscar for Best Screenplay, having written the Gus Van Sant-directed "Good Will Hunting". They were Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. Now, one solidified his place as a tough action movie star, and the other became a directing force of nature. I was incredibly surprised at the talent Affleck possessed when I watched his previous two directorial efforts, the solemn peformance-driven piece, "Gone Baby Gone" and electrifying heist film, "The Town". He felt very comfortable behind the camera as much as he was in front of it, and proved to be a director to look out for in the future. Well, we're looking at him now. "Argo" is here.
"Argo" is the account of the joint CIA-Canadian secret operation to extract six American diplomats from Iran in the midst of a violent revolution in 1980. The operation is lead by Tony Mendez, a level-headed but smart CIA operative who conducts a devious way to bring them out of the war-torn country: to fake the filming of a silly, fake sci-fi movie called "Argo" and pretend the fugitives are members of the crew doing location scouting. Sounds far-fetched? Well, hold on to your butts. This is a true story.
I knew this was based on real-life events going in, but found myself constantly questioning the ludicrious nature of it all. A part of my brain still thinks this didn't happen, but Ben Affleck makes it work splendidly. His direction is the star of this film, simply because of how close-knit the script is and how he manipulates tension and suspense, especially in the last half hour. It's an amazing juggling act that Affleck pulls off like a pro. Performance-wise, there's quite a bit of talent on display here. Affleck does a great job as the subdued but calculated CIA operative, and makes it easy for us to get on his side, while John Goodman plays a make-up artist who helps in the creation of the faux movie. The two standouts here are Alan Arkin and Bryan Cranston, who bring a great balance of comedic and dramatic elements. The dark comedy works extremely well amidst the tension, and provides some relief but never strays far from its central focus.
The true magnetic power of "Argo" is, of course, the direction. I've never been so impressed with Affleck's technical work before, and really shows that this once-golden Hollywood boy has been growing as more than just a pretty face to be cast in atrociously bad movies (I'm looking at you, "Daredevil"). In the end, everything comes together so immaculately, from the directing to the performances to the incredibly tight suspense and anxiety levels. If, perhaps the only gripe I had was that the rest of the cast isn't given much screen time, especially Alan Arkin and John Goodman. I would've loved to see more of their bickering and witty remarks. The film also ends on a very solemn note which doesn't quite matter when you really think about it. All that matters is the journey of this incredible man to pull off quite possibly the craziest government operation in history.
"Argo" is well-acted, superbly written, and nail-bitingly suspenseful in its execution. It is, without a doubt, Affleck's best directed film to date, and I have a whole new-found respect for this guy (if "The Town" didn't already solidify that). I can only say, go see "Argo" immediately. It's definitely worth your time, even if true event-based movies aren't your thing. I'm assuming this will give you a good dose of reality, even if it means suspending disbelief on account of, well, a true event. Bare with me, I know how it sounds.
"Fight Club" Directed by David Fincher Starring Brad Pitt, Edward Norton, Helena Bonham Carter, Jared Leto, Meat Loaf
RATING 10/10
Brace yourself, because I'm about to break the first and second rules of "Fight Club". I bet that opening line has been used a lot in the past by other reviewers, but I figure it's worth the repetitiveness because there really isn't any other way to start a "Fight Club" review. I'm so unoriginal. Anyway, let's get right into it.
"Fight Club" is the story of an unnamed narrator who has a serious case of insomnia. He hasn't been able to sleep in months, so he seeks refuge in the comfort of support groups with mostly fatal health illnesses, pretending to be a part of their community. Then, while at a testicular cancer session, he meets a woman named Marla Singer, and his life takes a turn for the weird. Shortly after his apartment is set ablaze, he takes shelter with the eccentric freeloader, Tyler Durden, in an abandoned mansion, and soon forms a fight club with him to help vent male aggression. But not all is what it seems below the surface.
"Fight Club" is every bit a cult classic as the great masterpieces of the past century. It delivered a jarring perspective on the meaning of life, corporate expansion and the pursuit of the dollar, and anarchy, all in its most bare and foul. Director David Fincher is the star of this film, giving us something more than just a bunch of shirtless men beating each other to a pulp (though you do get plenty of that too). This film has so many intricate layers, it's hard to just classify it as a simple action film. It was written and directed with the intention of pulling the wool over your eyes, and more. The morality of society is crumbling, and the hierachy of law and order is fixed. "Fight Club" pretty much pulls a middle finger at that while throwing flaming grenades too. There's truth and reasoning behind every lie, and the lie of life is that people are promised to become something important in their lives; a technique the media pushes forward to evoke more slave labour out of the blindly ambitious and hopeful. It's a controlled system, and it's not long before Tyler Durden and his posse of fighters begin to *ahem* introduce a little anarchy. This is the point where the film transcends it's labelled genre and becomes something more hostile, but damn exciting and thrilling to watch at the same time.
The cast is simply fantastic in this film, and all fit extremely well into the skin of these crazy characters. Brad Pitt as the clubs leader, Tyler Durden, walks a thin line between free-spirited and absolutely psychotic, and nails his performance. Also joining him is Edward Norton as the enigmatic narrator, who acts as both the audiences eyes and ears. Boy, what a spin they're in for in the last fifteen minutes. It's what all legendary pictures are made of: a slap to the face, in a very good way. And "Fight Club" packs an incredible punch. There's also a recognisable supporting cast, from Helena Bonham Carter as the slightly slutty but also bark-raving mad Marla Singer, to Jared Leto who's face pretty much looks like malva pudding for half the film. All these performances mesh so well together, and create a terrific cast. But it never strays from Tyler and the narrator as the big figures in the plot. David Fincher also does miracle work to the film. His direction is executed with killer style and panache, just as you'd expect from a veteran of the dark and insanely gritty neo-noir movement (go see "Se7en" if you haven't!). It's all very crisp, very smooth-edged, and very timeless craftsmanship.
"Fight Club" is a masterpiece, transcending and challenging it's audiences with every twist and turn up until a very big revelation and one of the most legendary climaxes ever put to film. The cast is superb, the directing is immaculate, and the script is a head-scratcher that will make you reconsider what exactly is going on in the world today. If a film has the visceral and intellectual power to that, and still get away with a title like "Fight Club", you know you're in for something special.
"Seven Psychopaths" Directed by Martin MacDonagh Starring Colin Farrell, Sam Rockwell, Christopher Walken, Woody Harrelson, Tom Waits
RATING 7/10
There's no denying that "In Bruges" is one of the funniest movies of all time. Small-time Irish director Martin MacDonagh crafted a piece of work to put most modern "comedies" to shame. It was clever, witty, uproaringly funny, and had quite possibly Colin Farrell's best performance to date. So yeah, I was highly anticipating the release of MacDonagh's next film, titled "Seven Psychopaths". With a cast that included returning comedic force Colin Farell, including Christopher Walken and Sam Rockwell, I didn't see how this could not be anything short of a stroke of genius in the funny element. And what I got was a mostly humorous, but very meditative and eloquantly layered film. Put it this way: it's abou as hit or miss as it's tagline suggests, "They won't take any Shih Tzu."
"Seven Psychopaths" is basically about a down-on-his-luck screenwriter, Marty, who is desperately trying to write the next big Hollywood script, conveniently titled "Seven Psychopaths". However, he has a bit of writer's block, and can't seem to find the motivation to write anything past the title of the screenplay. His best friend, Billy, urges him to dig deeper into the underground world of crime, and Marty hesitantly declines, but is dragged into it anyway when he runs into Billy's missing dog scamming business with Hans, and aging but smart scam artist. But when Billy kidnaps the Shih Tzu of a hot-headed crime boss, he gets him and everyone around him into trouble, including Marty, who may have found inspiration after all.
Firstly, let's talk about where this film succeeds and fires on all cylinders. The cast assembled here is brilliant, and make for some great dialogue-driven scenes. The screenplay is also something noteworthy as it parodies itself plenty of times, and is very self-conscious of the ridiculousness of its premise. And the cast carry the film splendidly, delivering a dosage of harsh cynicism much missing from most dark comedies of today. Woody Harrelson is the hotheaded crime boss missing his Shih Tzu, and even though his character motivation is nothing short of a trainwreck, MacDonagh makes it work and becomes a nice comedic element to the tale. Sam Rockwell as Billy, or otherwise known as the central psychopath, simply dominates. His chemistry with Farrell is really twisted and diabolical, to say the least, but it serves its purpose well once certain revelations are made. Christopher Walken is also another standout, as he brings his usual charm and charisma to the floor. And between him and Rockwell, they have the best lines in the entire film. The comedic timing is impeccable, and all the jokes hit home. Well, most of it, but that's when the film faulters a bit.
The film is basically a two-part series, as it's first rowdy hour deflates for some heavy meditative time. We find the central character's in a rough spot, and the film from then on strays a bit away from the comedy and touches down on drama territory. The characters are more fleshed out, and given some backbone, but all of this at the expense of holding its themes and initial interest. I would say, as much as it's a welcome breath of fresh air for a film as ballsy as this, you know... to have a heart, it strips a few layers off of the "funny" and adds a few more layers of somewhat tedious downtime. Hence the pacing of the film is thrown a bit off-course, and doesn't really capture your attention as much as the first half did. Yeah, it's an unexpected twist of events, but it doesn't mean it completely goes off the rail. The pay-off is very satisfying and makes for an odd but explosive climax.
"Seven Psychopaths" may not be as good as "In Bruges", but it does have plenty of heart and enough crazy and unorthadox comedy to satsify fans of the director. He proves himself a worthy challenger to the likes of Guy Ritchie, and I can only see him delivering some great films in the future. With a stellar cast, perfect comedic timing, and a standout performance from Sam Rockwell, albeit a slightly off-key second half, the film retains it's wit and charm and is a good time.
