Rating: MMMM

Review of Disney’s return to traditional 2-D hand-drawn animation and to familiar fairytales, this new adventure based on the tale of ‘The Princess and the Frog’.

Director: Ron Clements, John Musker
Starring: (voices) Anika Noni Rose, Bruno Campos, Keith David, Oprah Winfrey
Running time: 97 mins

Disney’s latest fairytale adventure sees the House of Mouse return to their roots with a hand-drawn animated fantasy based on the well known tale, the story of a princess kissing a frog to find her prince. This incarnation of the story is set in New Orleans in the late 1920s and our heroine (and princess) is Tiana, a hardworking and stoic waitress who dreams of one day owning her own restaurant. She works two restaurant jobs to save enough money to purchase a property which she plans to revamp into “Tiana’s Place”. However, her life takes a new and different course at the arrival of the handsome and exotic Prince Naveen – who, after dabbling in the dark arts of voodoo is turned into a frog by the evil villain Facilier.  Before she knows it, Tiana finds herself  also transformed into a frog and she and Naveen are forced to begin a journey to make themselves human again.

From the get-go, The Princess and the Frog is a fun, dynamic and entertaining film. It has all the ingredients of the famed ‘Disney magic’, but has something that lifts it above the rest of the studio’s fairytale canon. Firstly, the film’s heroine Tiana is not only the first African-American Disney princess, but she is one of their few heroines who is NOT a completely passive female character. Tiana works hard to achieve and realise what she wants – which incidentally is NOT simply to marry the handsome prince of her dreams. She doesn’t believe in wishing for things, she knows that you have to strive for what you want in life, not wait for it to fall into your lap without your lifting a finger. And she does NOT need a man to swoop in and save her, she is capable of saving herself.

Secondly, the film’s romantic plot that builds between Naveen and Tiana is not the hackneyed (and frankly unhelpful and unrealistic) depiction of ‘love at first sight’, it is a mutual affection based on friendship, respect and love. Naveen is not the perfect dreamy Adonis put high on a pedestal, he has flaws enough himself and in the face of the inevitable happy ending, supports Tiana’s ambitions instead of forcing her to change (unlike Ariel’ staying human in The Little Mermaid). This realtionship dynamic comes as direct result of the film’s ‘road movie’ style direction – Tiana and Naveen must journey through the swamps of Louisiana in search of a cure to their amphibiousness and on this journey they begin to trust and learn from each other.

The Princess and the Frog has everything – the characters are likeable, fun and sympathetic (the trumpet playing alligator Louis and Cajun firefly Ray are both wonderful creations, the latter playing an astonishing part in the emotional tone of the film), the musical numbers are dynamic and entertaining, the film is warm, bright and original and boasts a lot of laughs, for both adults and children (some lines have real wit and there is a lot of subtle humour throughout the film). And for this critic, where the film succeeds most is in its pleasingly positive portrayal of girls, relationships and outlook on life. A beautiful and entertaining film. Well done Disney.

Rating: MMMM

Rating: MM

Review of James Cameron’s uber-blockbuster and long anticipated space adventure epic, Avatar.

Director: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Giovanni Ribisi, Zoe Saldana, Stephen Lang, Michelle Rodriguez
Running time: 162mins

So, finally, after 10 years in the making and endless industry hype and speculation about the ‘pioneering technology’ behind James Cameron’s movie juggernaut, Avatar is finally with us. And is it worth the wait? Well, its sadly hard to tell. From the off, the visuals of the film are stunning and literally breathtaking in places, with sweeping and swooping camera angles presenting spectacular vistas onto the brave new world of Pandora. The creature design (while being at times somewhat laughable – some animals are just too weird to be convincing) is well produced, particularly the Na’avi people themselves, their skin and hair looking completely real. Similarly, the action sequences with their smoke, fire and explosions are also deployed with astonishing detail. If for nothing else, Cameron (or in fact Weta Digital, the effects house behind the Lord of the Rings trilogy) must be praised for the production value of Avatar – he has created an utterly real new world with exciting vegetation, wildlife and landscapes that need at least 4 pairs of eyes to really appreciate them.

However, the same cannot be said for the film as a whole. The first problem lies with the basic premise and plot of the film – one we have seen before countless times: indigenous population of resource-rich land is threatened by another greedy civilisation, one hell bent on taking the precious <insert valuable natural commodity here> from the native people. One member of the invading settlers becomes integrated within the native people (often becoming romantically involved with the most attractive female of the tribe), goes on an emotional and spiritual journey, eventually switching sides to fight against his old comrades – we all know the story, from films such as Dances With Wolves to Pocahontas. And this is perhaps the main fault with Avatar – the narrative trajectory is so familiar and predictable that for the most part the film is spent in anticipation of the next part of a story that we KNOW is coming. We know that Jake and Neytiri will fall in love 30 minutes before they do, we know that soon enough Jake will turn against his fellow marines – and this predictability has an intensely negative effect on one’s viewing experience, making it crushingly dull. Whole 10-20 minute sections of the film are completely needless, apparently there to enhance the audience’s engagement with the world of Pandora – with the result being the opposite. It must be said that with a more disciplined director and editor, a good 40 minutes could have been left on the cutting room floor, the probable result being a more dynamic and engaging film – parts are numbingly tedious, with an anticlimactic conclusion that comes 20 minutes too late.

Despite Cameron having successfully created an amazing and believable new world, the characters that inhabit it elicit little or no sympathy, even in their desperate hour of need. The sight of the tortured and homeless Na’avi people do not tug at the heartstrings the way that the hoards of Rohan women and children do in the final act of The Two Towers, and this has nothing to do with the Na’avi being strange blue alien creatures. The problem is posed by Avatar essentially lacking emotional depth and heart. For all the strained looks and pained faces of Jake, Neytiri and their tribespeople, it is hard to feel for them in the way the film suggests we do.

Cameron’s other major sin to be atoned for is his apalling script. The lines are clunky and stupid but their hackneyed sentiments are repeated, with most ‘one-liners’ being spoken twice or three times, effectively becoming very irritating mantras – “Get the hell outta there!!!” As with the predictable plot, the dialogue walks straight into pitfalls of cliche. Having said this, the actors do very well with the drivel they are given. Sigourney Weaver is as good as ever, as is Zoe Saldana as the beautiful Neytiri. Newcomer Sam Worthington is likeable enough in the leading man role of Jake Sully, but sadly lacks the charm and charisma needed to be convincing.

In conclusion, with all its promise, visual flair and attempts at being a ‘new film experience’ Avatar is disappointingly mediocre, demonstrating that looks alone do not make a good film. Despite its stunning surface, there is little underneath.

Rating: MM

Rating: MMMM

Review of new film from niche director Spike Jonze, his adaptation and big-screen realisation of one of the world’s most popular children’s books.

Director: Spike Jonze
Starring: Max Records, Catherine Keener, James Gandolfini, Catherine O’Hara, Forest Whitaker
Running time: 101 mins

Spike Jonze’s film, Where The Wild Things Are is under a lot of pressure, being the big-screen adaptation of Maurice Sendak’s 1963 picture-book of the same name, hailed as one of the most beloved children’s books of all time. But lovers of the book should have no fear as what Jonze has produced is an interesting, entertaining and thoroughly excellent piece of fantasy fare that while not necessarily following the book word for word (this is hardly surprising, given the length of the book and its limited word count), captures the essence and spirit of the source material. Jonze crafts a convincing and illuminating backstory for our hero Max, wearer of Wolf Pyjamas and soon to be king of all the Wild Things, introducing us to his mother (Catherine Keener) and hinting an element of dysfunctionality at play in the family unit – thus creating a believable and solid grounding for Max’s flight of fantasy and subsequent emotional journey.

A frustrated and alienated child, Max has a fight with his mother one evening and takes to the streets to escape his domestic troubles, perilously journeying by sea to a far away land of his imagination. For Max however (and the audience), this new world is completely real, presenting new joys and heartache not dissimilar to the ones he left behind. Once in the land of the Wild Things, Max stumbles upon some strange creatures with terrible teeth and terrible claws, most notably the statuesque Carol (voiced by Tony Soprano himself, James Gandolfini). The Wild Things, though wary of Max at first, soon accept him as a friend and elect him King, joining with him to build a massive structure where they can all live together (having destroyed their houses in a rather boisterous and violent game) as a rather unconventional and furry family group. However, as with the home environment that Max ran from, the Wild Things have their own personal problems and anxieties that hinder perfect social cohesion – Judith’s (Catherine O’Hara) constant downbeat mutterings paired with the possible romantic tension between Carol and KW (Lauren Ambrose) create a rather strained atmosphere between the Wild Things, which starts to effect Max’s role as King.

In Where The Wild Things Are, Spike Jonze has created a beautiful, enchanting film that explores the joys and tragedies of childhood convincingly, without condescension or pandering to purists. The story may have been altered a little, but those tweaks and changes only serve to make the spellbinding original story even more interesting and exciting. The acting from young Max Records is excellent, as are the voice talents who give the Wild Things their unique and charismatic voices, in particular James Gandolfini as Carol. In terms of cinematography, the film is also very well produced, the colour palette reflecting enough of the book’s illustrations with a few frames of lens flare that suit the tone of the piece (and link nicely with Max’s terrifying realisation that the sun will eventually die) very well. The Wild Things themselves, by virtue of being actors in big hairy suits, have a wonderfully physical presence, a masterstroke on the part of Jonze – a wonderfully palpable quality that CG creature design could not and probably never will be able to achieve.  Also notable and worthy of praise is the excellent soundtrack, provided by Carter Burwell with songs by Karen O (of indie rock band Yeah Yeah Yeahs fame) which perfectly suits the moments of joy, wonder and childlike fun presented in the film.

Where The Wild Things Are is entertaining, moving and beautifully breathtaking film about childhood, its joys, traumas and wonders – a must-see film of 2009.

Rating: MMMM

Rating: MMMM

Review of animated post-apocalypse noir 9, directed by Shane Acker and produced by Tim Burton and Timur Bekmambetov.

Director: Shane Acker
Starring: (voices) Elijah Wood, John C. Reilly, Jennifer Connelly, Christopher Plummer
Running time: 79 mins

9 is set in the wastelands of a post-apocalyptic world, following a war between humans and machines. With human life all but extinguished on earth, the only survivors are the numbered cloth bag characters and sinister red lens-eyed beasts, which have more in common with the Terminator than our soft-bodied heroes.

The film opens with a confused 9 (Elijah Wood) apparently lost in the wilderness of what used to be a city. He happens upon fellow cloth-bag 2, who is something of an inventor, managing to fix 9’s broken voice box. The pair are then joined by half-blind 5 (John C. Reilly) but their meeting is cut painfully short by the arrival of the ‘cat beast’, a devilish mechanical feline who captures 2 and carries him off to its lair. What follows is a daring rescue attempt which accidentally brings about the reawakening of the huge machine ‘brain’ which appears hell bent on wiping out every last trace of life on earth. For an animated film with characters that are undeniably cute (their huge Bambi eyes are the clincher), 9 is in no way another computerised story for children.

Packed with moments that are unsettling, frightening and challenging, 9 cements itself as animated fare for adults, to the film’s credit – there are enough genuine horror devices to push the film’s 12A rating, one of which is a horrible dementor’s kiss type sequence that is truly disturbing. The film’s premise and story is highly original and fresh, told with clever flashback sequences that are part of the action and not merely exposition for its own sake. 9 also fundamentally has good storytelling, an element that more filmmakers should prioritise a la Andrew Lasseter and his team at Pixar. Acker presents the characters as rounded and unique (despite being numbered, not named) with neat touches such as 6’s striped asylum-like clothing linking his madman persona and a scene in which fat stooge 8 apparently uses a magnet to get high.

The voice talent is good, with an impressive set of actors enlisted to provide the dialogue, including Christopher Plummer as the aging 1 and Jennifer Connelly as the high-kicking 7. Yet the actors are given a script of such weakness that its cliché ridden holes threaten to bring down a film of such promise. The dialogue is terrible, composed of one hackneyed expression after another, which is disappointing indeed as the premise and plot of the film is original and fresh. However, the film is saved by its unique visual style and its wonderfully endearing cloth bag characters, a clever meeting of the organic and artificial, with their soft bodies and metal parts. Overall, 9 is a well paced, well structured piece of sci-fi animation, beautifully told with moments of terror and poignancy. Great stuff.

Rating: MMMM

Rating: MMMM

Review of the hilarious and frightfully entertaining black-comedy road movie adventure, Zombieland.

Director: Ruben Fleischer
Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone, Abigail Breslin
Running time: 88 mins

In the fictional America of Ruben Fleischer’s debut flick Zombieland, a terrible virus has infected the entire population, bringing about the zombie apocalypse. In the midst of the carnage remain only a handful of anonymous survivors, each adopting the moniker of the towns and cities they are aiming to reach in their attempt to cross the wastelands of America: geeky teen Jesse Eisenberg is Columbus, Woody Harrelson is the hard-as-nails Tallahassee while Emma Stone and Abigail Breslin are sisters Wichita and Little Rock. The film is essentially a road movie with a twist, that the road ahead is peppered with danger in the form of the walking undead (which don’t actually feature that heavily for a ‘zombie film’).

Eisenberg’s Columbus takes the lead role, as a nerdy loner who develops his own code of conduct for surviving – these rules flash up throughout the film as neat little intertitles, adding to the cool charm of the film – one of the rules is “limber up” and as Eisenberg stretches and prepares himself, so do the titles. His performance is very good, further cementing himself as a talent to watch, although he must take active precautions not to be typecast as the nervous good-hearted teen as has similarly befallen Michael Cera of Juno and Superbad fame. As the crazed weapon-happy Tallahassee, Woody Harrelson is fabulous, balancing excellent comic timing with kick-ass energy and carving a surprisingly developed role from a fairly two-dimensional character.  However, director Ruben Fleischer sells Abigail Breslin short of a great role, giving her not a lot to do except play the sassy and cute sidekick to Emma Stone’s big sister.

Zombieland excels at what it does – it is wildly entertaining, funny, charming, intelligent and pleasingly warm and hopeful. The black comedy moments are executed with panache, the dialogue is witty and clever and though purists may argue that the gore factor is relatively low (the film is rated 15), there is enough crawling flesh, violence and occasional shocks to satisfy those in want of high quality comic horror. Fellow zombie comedy-horror Shaun of the Dead may be more intelligent and have an enormous cult following, but Zombieland is arguably funnier, warmer and vastly more enjoyable. With a film this accomplished, you’d be forgiven for thinking that Ruben Fleischer had been making films for years – this is his debut feature but you’d never know. Even the soundtrack is suitably awesome, with the film’s punchy and stylish opening credits rolling along to the killer strains of Metallica’s ‘For Whom The Bell Tolls’. Let us hope and pray that a filmmaker this promising indeed marches on.

With its hilarious antics, deliciously violent horror set-pieces, moments of genuine pathos and a cameo that is just too brilliant to be revealed, Zombieland is the perfect popcorn film. It may not be profound, but it is damn good.

Rating: MMMM

Review of the latest fantasy feast for the eyes from ‘maverick’ director Terry Gilliam.

Director: Terry Gilliam
Starring: Heath Ledger, Christopher Plummer, Lily Cole, Verne Troyer, Tom Waits, Andrew Garfield
Running time: 122 mins

Terry Gilliam is not known in the film industry for having the best luck with his projects; as documentary Lost in La Mancha proves, he has been unfortunate enough to have film sets and equipment float away following mass flooding on location. But Gilliam and show business as a whole was struck the heaviest of blows with the tragic death of Heath Ledger, the star of Gilliam’s latest film. The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus is a strange merging of worlds which sees a topsy-turvy olde worlde sideshow (the ‘imaginarium’) incongruously placed in contemporary London. Dr Parnassus (Christopher Plummer) is an aging monk, who with his daughter Valentina (Lily Cole) and other oddball characters, tries to scratch out a living by travelling around and ‘performing’ for the public. They are joined by Ledger’s Tony, who attempts to glamorise the show and generate more revenue for the group. From this point onwards, things spiral out of control (and comprehension), sending the characters into vivid and spectacular dimensions, requiring twice as many eyes to fully appreciate them.

It is sad to say that despite the legacy of wonderful performances that the late Heath Ledger leaves behind (Brokeback Mountain, The Dark Knight and even early work such as teen hit 10 Things I Hate About You), his final work on celluloid in Terry Gilliam’s latest film is not Ledger’s best. As Tony, the mysterious stranger who joins the oddball ‘family’ of a travelling sideshow, Ledger gives a bland and mediocre performance, a turn which lacks the spark he so clearly displayed in other roles. But Ledger can hardly be blamed for this, given that his character is so confusedly written, creating a role which (even in different circumstances) would be difficult for any actor to make sense of, even one with Ledger’s talent. Following his death, a trio of actors (and friends) Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell stepped in to play different aspects of Tony’s personality, a feature which works well and certainly adds to the character. This is surprising seeing as this element of the film is potentially problematic to say the least, but is instead one of the most successful parts of the film.

As for the rest of the cast, Christopher Plummer as the titular Parnassus is solid, as is newcomer Andrew Garfield as Anton. Music fans may be able to recognise Tom Waits in a bizarre turn as Mr Nick, the demonic foil to Parnassus. Verne Troyer of Austin Powers fame is similarly awkward, cracking wise with clichéd one-liners. However, plaudits must go to model-turned-actress Lily Cole who gives a surprisingly subtle and convincing performance as Parnassus’ daughter, the flame-haired Valentina, proving that she is much more than a doll-like face. But fundamentally, Gilliam’s fantasy opus is deeply flawed. Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson once said that the key to great storytelling (and good filmmaking) is to strategically ask and answer a series of questions in the audience’s mind, and Gilliam, for all his wonderful ideas and creative talent fails to do this, leaving the audience asking more questions (arguably the location of any kind of plot structure) than the film is capable of answering. Instead of being taken on an adventure through breathtaking fantasy worlds, the audience is left floundering. The messy structure and lack of narrative rhythm make The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus a thoroughly strange experience – a visual masterpiece with a story that is virtually impossible to understand.

Gilliam’s moments of true genius (and these are many) are overshadowed by a sense of bewildering confusion. There is a certain amount of cruel irony in Tony’s speech to Parnassus, how he must meet the public half way between what they want and what he wishes to show them – if only Gilliam could live by his own character’s words. Once Gilliam marries his vision and creativity with well structured plot and narrative, we will surely have a masterpiece on our hands. Until that day comes however, we are left with a film that is as confusing as it is visually arresting.

Rating: MM

Reposting of my review of the new Disney-Pixar film Up, which I saw in June at Glastonbury Festival in the Pilton Palais cinema tent.

Director: Pete Docter, Bob Peterson
Starring: (voices) Edward Asner, Christopher Plummer, Jordan Nagai
Running time: 96mins

Up follows grumpy old-age-pensioner Carl Fredricksen following a life-long dream to visit South America, inadvertently bringing a new friend with him, in the form of the eager to help Russell – an 8 year old boy intent on helping Mr Fredricksen in order for him to gain his ‘assisting the elderly’ explorer scout badge. However, it is not the South American adventure section of the film which displays the usual Pixar magic; the portions of the film which take place in Mr Fredricksen and Russell’s home town seem to have a different quality to the rest.

The first meeting of Mr Fredricksen and his future wife Ellie is very well conceived and scripted with touches of physical comedy and charming characterisation – character development which is enhanced by a wonderful montage of Carl and Ellie’s life together (the couple’s families seated on either side of the church at their wedding is fantastic) from childhood sweethearts to elderly couple. This set-piece is heartbreaking, handling the highs and lows of their life with delicacy. Everything about Up’s presentation of the Carl-Ellie relationship is charming and delightful whilst never becoming saccharine-soaked and overly sentimental. Sadly as Ellie dies, Carl becomes a slightly bitter and grumpy old man, but remains endearing and likeable. He does typical old-person things with a familiar dislike of outside help (namely the ever-eager Russell and the prospect of living in a retirement home) which magically seem to maintain an element of freshness; Up demonstrates that characterisation can be thorough and well developed even with such limited running time.

As the action moves to South America (courtesy of the thousands of balloons attached to Mr Fredricksen’s house) the tone of the film shifts also, moving away from sweet and gentle and becomes more of a buddy comedy/road movie with the bickering Mr Fredricksen and Russell making an engaging (albeit slightly odd) pair – the sequences in which they pull the house along by a tether rope are particularly good. As the pair cross continents they meet an exotic wild bird which Russell names Kevin (despite later discovering Kevin to be a female with a number of baby Kevins) and a number of talking dogs – luckily these characters escape the usual Disney talking-animal schtick by ingenious collar devices which project what they are thinking through a speaker, a device which allows for some wonderful comedy, with the evil canine leader apparently having a voice hilariously incongruous to his stature and appearance. That the collars project what the dogs are thinking and not what they are saying means that with their ‘dialogue’ come random outbursts of typical dog behaviour, namely shouts of “SQUIRREL!!!” which are priceless.

With the film’s climactic final act come some excellent action sequences, involving planes and high-altitude antics all of which are well executed and visually impressive. However, as with the the early parts of the film, Up’s character-driven scenes steal the film, with the closing moments belonging to the now firm friendship between Mr Fredricksen and Russell. In all, Up is highly entertaining animated fun with a lot of heart and bags of charm.

Rating: MMMM

Review of the latest film of the Harry Potter franchise, sixth film Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince which sees Harry and Dumbledore unite to search into Voldemort’s past in an effort to discover secrets that will lead them to destroy him.

Director: David Yates
Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Michael Gambon, Alan Rickman, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson
Running time: 153 mins

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is the second film about the boy wizard to be directed by David Yates (his first outing in the franchise being film #5, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix) with films #1 and #2 helmed by Chris Columbus, the third by Alfonso Cuaron and the fourth by Mike Newell. Interestingly, where the second film suffered with a lack of freshness by Columbus once more taking the reins, Half-Blood Prince also suffers.

But just where the film falls down seems on the surface hard to pinpoint. On the whole (with a few glaring exceptions) the performances are reasonably good, the production value and visual effects are faultless, the dialogue is acceptable and for those wishing to pick holes in the book-to-screen transition, there is little to criticise. Where the problem comes however, is in the film’s pace which lacks dynamism and any sense of rhythm. Some scenes concentrate heavily on the mystery surrounding the identity of the Half-Blood Prince (which Harry comes across in an old school textbook) while others neglect this part of the plot completely. Quidditch seems to feature heavily, which seems incongruous to the film’s advertised tone – the franchise getting darker as Voldemort’s power grows. It must be said that far too much of the film is given over to the pangs of teenage love and raging hormones – all of which are important elements in the source material but here take up far too many scenes.

Having said that the performances are fairly good, this is only true of the adult actors and a very small number of their younger counterparts. Daniel Radcliffe is as ever painfully hit-and-miss, with some scenes feeling cringingly awkward whereas others are fairly good (the scene involving the lucky potion Felix Felicis in particular) . In comparison, Jim Broadbent  is excellent as new Potions teacher Professor Horace Slughorn, as is Michael Gambon as the illustrious Albus Dumbledore. Rupert Grint continues to demonstrate brilliant comic timing and excellent performance skills in his reprisal of Ron Weasley. Sadly, as ever, Emma Watson struggles in her portrayal of Hermione Granger as she has done in the previous films. However, she fares better than Bonnie Wright (Ginny Weasley) who is extremely poor – her relationship and ‘blossoming romance’ with Harry withers on screen with a complete lack of chemistry. However, the two young actors as the young Tom Riddle (at ages 11 and 16 respectively), Hero Fiennes-Tiffin and Frank Dillane are superb, with the two performances maintaining a tension between sinister and eerie and a creepy seductiveness.

Other elements of the film are also good, the visual effects in particular – the inky thoughts tipping into the Pensieve are excellent, as is the fire wielded by Dumbledore near the film’s climax. However, there is an inescapable feeling of mediocrity running more or less throughout the entire film which cannot be evaded even by the aforementioned firy adventures of Harry and Dumbledore and their consequences. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is perhaps the weakest in the canon since the excellence of film number four – and sadly the curse of keeping the same director is set to continue with Yates at the helm of the franchise’s final instalments.

Rating: MMM

Review of the new Disney-Pixar film Up, not released in cinemas until October this year but screened at Glastonbury Festival in the Pilton Palais cinema tent.

Director: Pete Docter, Bob Peterson
Starring: (voices) Edward Asner, Christopher Plummer, Jordan Nagai
Running time: 96mins

Up follows grumpy old-age-pensioner Carl Fredricksen following a life-long dream to visit South America, inadvertently bringing a new friend with him, in the form of the eager to help Russell – an 8 year old boy intent on helping Mr Fredricksen in order for him to gain his ‘assisting the elderly’ explorer scout badge. However, it is not the South American adventure section of the film which displays the usual Pixar magic; the portions of the film which take place in Mr Fredricksen and Russell’s home town seem to have a different quality to the rest. The first meeting of Mr Fredricksen and his future wife Ellie is very well conceived and scripted with touches of physical comedy and charming characterisation, character development which is enhanced by a wonderful montage of Carl and Ellie’s life together (the couple’s families seated on either side of the church at their wedding is fantastic) from childhood sweethearts to elderly couple. This set-piece is very sweet and moving, handling the highs and lows of their life with delicacy. Everything about Up’s presentation of the Carl-Ellie relationship is charming and delightful whilst never becoming saccharine-soaked and overly sentimental. Sadly as Ellie dies, Carl becomes a slightly bitter and grumpy old man, but remains endearing and likeable. He does typical old-person things with a familiar dislike of outside help (namely the ever-eager Russell and the prospect of living in a retirement home) which magically seem to maintain an element of freshness; Up demonstrates that characterisation can be thorough and well developed even with such limited running time.

As the action moves to South America (courtesy of the thousands of balloons attached to Mr Fredricksen’s house) the tone of the film shifts also, moving away from sweet and gentle and becomes more of a buddy comedy/road movie with the bickering Mr Fredricksen and Russell making an engaging (albeit slightly odd) pair – the sequences in which they pull the house along by a tether rope are particularly good. As the pair cross continents they meet an exotic wild bird which Russell names Kevin (despite later discovering Kevin to be a female with a number of baby Kevins) and a number of talking dogs – luckily these characters escape the usual Disney talking-animal schtick by ingenious collar devices which project what they are thinking through a speaker, a device which allows for some wonderful comedy, with the evil canine leader apparently having a voice hilariously incongruous to his stature and appearance. That the collars project what the dogs are thinking and not what they are saying means that with their ‘dialogue’ come random outbursts of typical dog behaviour, namely shouts of “SQUIRREL!!!” which are priceless.

With the film’s climactic final act come some excellent action sequences, involving planes and high-altitude antics all of which are well executed and visually impressive. However, as with the the early parts of the film, Up’s character-driven scenes steal the film, with the closing moments belonging to the now firm friendship between Mr Fredricksen and Russell. In all, Up is highly entertaining animated fun with a lot of heart and bags of charm.

Rating: MMMM

Review of Bolt first published in a February 2009 issue Spark*, the newspaper of Reading University Students’ Union.

Director: Byron Howard, Chris Williams
Starring: (voices) John Travolta, Miley Cyrus
Running Time: 96mins

If there is one undisputable fact about Bolt, it is the level of cuteness of its eponymous hero, the ‘super’ dog Bolt. But sadly, for all his sweet fuzziness (and when I say he’s cute, I mean CUTE), Bolt never really pulls the heartstrings the way that Wall.E did. And this is mainly because he is totally outshone by Rhino the hamster, the “master of stealth”, who by his own words, is “awesome!!!”. As stories go, the premise of the film isn’t half bad, in fact its quite original. Performing ‘actor’ dog is the star of a primetime television show in which he routinely saves his beloved ‘person’ Penny from the clutches of the evil ‘Green-Eyed Man’. Bolt however, does not realise that in reality he doesn’t have special powers like his famous ‘Super Bark’, and begins on a painful journey of self-discovery, learning how to be a ‘normal’ dog in the process.

In terms of characterisation, Bolt (voiced by John Travolta), and his feline friend Mittens (voiced by Susie Essman) are both characters who maintain a tension between being mildly sympathetic and fairly irritating in equal measure. Penny, Bolt’s on and off screen owner, (voiced by Miley Cyrus) only just manages to hold the audience’s sympathy, partly due to her genuine concern and love for her dog, conveyed in the photos of the pair of them that she collects (pictures highly reminiscent of the travelling gnome in Amelie).

Rhino, as previously mentioned, is the best character in the whole film, injecting into the last 45minutes some much needed laughs. And it is this, aside from the essential charm, that is what really lets the film down. All the pacy and defty handled action sequences and set pieces (and these are in abundance) just cannot make up for good dialogue. The repartee between dog and cat is laboured and clichéd, with their in-fighting and grumbling becoming grating after only 20 minutes.

The film does have its moments of charm, with the introduction of some peculiar Italian American pigeons, a fleeting glimpse of the hamster-obsessed little old lady who Rhino manages to escape from and the sweet series of montages that chart Bolt’s progress in learning about the things that normal dogs do. However, these vignettes and sequences do not make up for the overriding sense of banality which pervades the film. The jokes fall flat, the banter is poor, and if you don’t like the dog after the first act, it will certainly hamper your enjoyment of the film. Solid family half-term fare, just don’t expect anything amazing.

Rating: MM