"Horns" "Fury" "Interstellar"

Due to time, I am offering a brief outline of my thoughts on three recent cinematic visits.

"Horns" - Ig, short for Ignatious is in deeply in love with girlfriend Merrin, but soon finds himself the most loathed man in town when she is found brutally murdered. Naturally he is main suspect #1. Feeling no love from his fellow town folk he gets drunk and pisses on a great height upon the religion that Merrin enjoyed. Someone high above takes exception to this, and the next morning Ig finds himself starting to sport some rather fetching horns. Along with the horns, which no-one finds unusual, comes the ability for people to tell him quite openly their deepest desires and secrets. A lot of these desires are soon being acted upon. He hopes to use this new honesty that people throw at him to find the real culprit behind Merrin's death.

It is a bizarre concept, and a bizarre film. At times interesting, at times amusing, especially involving two Cops who fancy the pants off each other, and at times just odd. For the most part it fails to entertain, it is quirky and different but just does not deliver.

Merely ok, and only scores what it does for sheer audacity and the humour.....5 out of 10

"Fury"  - A bleak and honest look at the futility of War, and all that it brings with it. We join a group of Soldiers who serve together as a unit in their Tank home, they call Fury. When one of their number dies, the replacement is less than promising. A young Soldier who barely knows one end of the rifle from the other. And it mostly through his eyes that we see the story unfold.
As the War is drawing to a close, and defeat is inevitable for Hitler, the German leader seems determined to throw every last Man, woman and child into the conflict, they will not go down without a fight.
Even despite the day to day horrors of War that they see, Don (Pitt) and Norman (Lerman) still try to enjoy some civility, and this is beautifully illustrated when they dine with two German ladies. But the peace and calm is soon shattered as normality comes crashing around them when fellow soldiers barge in and become unwelcome dinner guests.
When their tank team and two other groups are assigned a mission, they head off but come under heavy fire, and soon Fury is the only left to carry out its duty. After going over a mine the Fury is out of commission and a large contingent of German and SS Soldiers is heading in their direction. Woefully outmanned and outgunned, it is the ultimate choice. Stay and fight, and almost certainly die, or make their escape and hopefully live to fight another day.
Strong performances in a great movie, which is wonderfully photographed. It pulls no punches, but if I do have a very minor quibble, it is that the ending is just a little too Hollywood.

That aside a truly great movie.........8 out of 10

"Interstellar" - This was always going to be a must see movie, especially on the IMAX. The latest from visionary Director Christopher Nolan.
The Earth is in trouble and it would seem that our planets days are numbered.A huge dust cloud regularly causes havoc,this has led to starvation on a huge scale, and many more problems besides. But Scientists believe that they may have a solution. A wormhole has been discovered and they have been secretly sending probes and manned ships into to find if their is an alternate World that we can inhabit. The solution comes in two possible scenarios. The pereferred is that we find a new alternate planet, and then send the Population of Earth to it to live happily ever after. The other option is if this is not possible then with this new voyage will go the DNA of so many of Earths inhabitants for possible cloning to populate a new Earth.
So in act one we discover the plight of the Earth.
In act two we get the possible solution, and see it being implimented, mainly thanks to the help of Professor Brand (Caine)and his astronaut daughter (Hathaway). Given the amount of time needed to reach the wormhole, which is near Saturn, they will sleep for the duration of the journey, thus time will passby differently for them as for those on Earth. They do find new worlds, and there are surprises in store, not least of which is a revelation from Earth.

Will the Earth recover from the ravages we have inflicted upon our Planet?  Will the crew make it to and find a new home for us?

As one would expect, the visuals are literally out of this worlsd, and have to rank as some of the most stunning sights I have ever seen on film. And it is this fact that stops the film from being a total letdown. This is an event film. And it was a disappointment. Not a complete loss, as I say the visuals are worth the price of admission. But the film is all over the place, trying to decide what it wants to be, but clearly is an homage to "2001: A Space Odyssey". Kubrick would be very happy. I am reliably informed that the science is very quesitonable, and the end.....well it defies belief.

The cast are all good, but none really shine, and for me Michael Caine is woefully underused, but then again I am a huge fan.
A lot has been said about the overuse of sound, and it drowning out dialogue, and this is the case in quite a few scenes.

It is worth seeing on the big screen, and will not be for everyone. It is good, but a sci-fi classic it will not be.......7 out of 10

"The Dark Knight Rises"

It has been 8 years since the death of the District Attourney of Gotham, alledgedly at the hands of 'Batman', but with his death came the 'Harvey Dent Act', a powerful law which gave the Police and the relevant Authorities increased powers to not only convict but incarcerate criminals. As many as a thousand criminals are now behind bars because of this act, and it has made Gotham a much safer city. Surely something to be proud of?

But the act was created through a lie, a act of deceit, and with that deceit there has to be a reckoning. And that reckoning is coming.....in the shape of 'Bane'.
Gotham may be clean of villains, but it has also been clear of both 'Bruce Wayne' and his alter ego 'Batman'. Wayne has become the Howard Hughes of the modern generation. He locks himself away in a quiet wing of the Wayne mansion, rumours circulate as to what he looks like, what his health condition is like. During a Charity event, his safe is broken into by 'Selina Kyle', masquerading as a waitress. Initially it seems she is after a stunning pearl necklace, but her actual intention is to get her hands on the fingerprints of 'Bruce Wayne'.
These fingerprints will be used by shady business John Daggett to cause the ruination of the Wayne Empire. His ultimate aim is to get his hands on the Applied Sciences Division of the Wayne Corporation, and also to obtain a nuclear fusion device. Initially created to be a source of energy, but put on hold by 'Wayne' fearing it could be used for a far deadlier purpose.
But Daggett is merely a front man. The one in charge pulling on the strings is 'Bane', a ruthless, incredibly powerful criminal, intent to see the rich and decadent of Gotham have their wealth redistributed, and barring that he will wipe Gotham from the face of the Earth having converted the fusion power source into a bomb.

With his beloved Gotham at risk once more, and seeing 'Bane' on the horizon, 'Bruce Wayne' knows that his other identity has to return' but the return comes at a cost.
'Batman' attempts to bring down 'Bane' but only finds himself ill prepared, and unable to deal with immense strength, and naturally 'Bane' gets the better of him. He imprisons our fallen hero in the Prison that was his home for many years, leaving to him to rot in a pit of despair.

The pit however will not become a permanant home for the Caped Crusader, and the scene is then set for the ultimate show down between the two masked men.

I have probably made the screenplay sound a lot more complicated than it actually is. It is brilliantly written. Nolan, through the original work of 'Batman' creator Bob Kane, has created some truly memorable characters, all brought to life by the very best in acting talent. You only have to look at some of the many names in the cast, there are many Oscar winners and nominees involved, and though this does not always mean the best acting talent, in this case it clearly does. And though it is hard to single out any from such a distinguished and talented cast, for me there are a few who truly shine bright.
There is Gary Oldman as 'Commissioner Gordon' who brings his worldly wisdom to the great law man of Gotham. Anne Hathaway is sultry, sexy and every bit the equal of 'Batman' as 'Selina Kyle'. Joseph Gordon-Levitt has long been an actor to watch and admire, and again he does admirable work as the cop off the street, somewhat hot-headed but determined that right should always prevail, a loner who sees similarities with the lonliness that follows 'Bruce Wayne'. Tom Hardy has probably the hardest job of all, how to convey emotions behind just a big mask, but he does a really stunning job, the voice is haunting, his bulk is quite something, but it is the eyes, he gives his performance almost solely through the eyes of his character and does so brilliantly. And of course there is Michael Caine who returns as 'Alfred' the long time butler of the Wayne Mansion. But he is so much more than that, and so is his performance. The love that 'Alfred' has for 'Bruce' is so beautifully conveyed in some very moving scenes.

As one would expect, the action comes thick and fast, and Nolan has really upped his game since "The Dark Knight", making great strides with his work using the IMAX cameras. They take the film to a whole new level. The action is pivotal to the film, and not just there for the sake of it, like some action films that we have seen earlier this year.
The photography is some of the best I have ever seen, and Cinematographer Wally Pfister will most ceratinly be nominated for an Oscar, and barring any major competition, deserves to win.
There is a thundering, rousing score from Hans Zimmer, that wonderfully accompanies the imagery on screen.
Some of the cast have already been mentioned, but it is rare to be able to say this, but there is not one poor performance in the entire cast. Everyone is at the top of their game, giving their best.

There are so many memorable scenes in the film, especially the destruction of an American Football pitch, also the first appearance of 'The Bat', and it all builds to a haunting and moving finale. With a running time of just under three hours, you never get bored, there isn't even any annoying scenes which Directors sometimes use to pad out the running time. Nolan has your 100% attention for the entire 164 minutes. And believe me, you will love every single minute of it.

Visionary British Director Christopher Nolan has come a long way since those early days of films like "Memento" and "Insomnia". He has long held this vision of 'Batman' and has wonderfully brought it to life, both with his amazing Direction, and his first class writing. This awesome trilogy that he has created will be watched for many years to come.

Going to the Cinema is about the experience, and if ever there is a film that HAS to be watched on the big screen, then it is "The Dark Knight Rises", and wherever possible I urge an viewers to see it on an IMAX screen, as it is an experience that you will never forget.

The legacy is complete......Bob Kane will be so proud......a well deserved 10 out of 10