"The Counsellor"

What a combination......an amazing cast, Directing legend Ridley Scott, and a screenplay from Cormac McCarthy, who wrote "No Country for Old Men", surely a match made in heaven........

Alas far from it. And it is the mighty pen that fails here. The story is rather lacking, and whilst being a dialogue piece, what made the Oscar winning "No Country" so successful was that it was compelling viewing, it did not need big action scenes, the sharp words, great characters and brilliant performances are what made it the hit it became. And unfortunately that has not reoccured with "The Counsellor".

The Counsellor works for some dubious characters, especially Reiner, a drug dealer who has many deals in the making. Through  circumstances, the Counsellor is believed to be involved in a heist which sees the theft of a high quantity of drugs. The owners of the drugs naturally assume that the Counsellor is involved, and slowly he sees the world around him begin to fall apart.

Given the talent involved with the film, this should have been a movie to keep you glued to your seat, but it wasn't. There is a great look to the film, compliments to Mr. Scott for that.
There is no doubting the capabilities of the highly talented cast, but they can only be given a chance to shine if the material they are working with is of high quality,The look of the character, Reiner, played by Javier Bardem, had me hooked after watching the trailer, and as one would imagine, he does give a fantastic performance.

Similarly to McCarthy's earlier work, "No Country", it is surprising how many of the lead characters do not make it to the end of the picture, and there are some interesting demises. But on the whole it was a rather disappointing effort.

Ok but have seen far better...............6 out of 10

"Prometheus"

Every so often, along comes a special film, what I like to call an 'event' film. Being such a fan of the "Alien" franchise that I am, it was only natural that I would be majorly looking forward to this film, especially with having 'Alien' Director Sir Ridley Scott back at the helm.

So what do we have to expect from "Prometheus"?
We see life on Earth, or rather its very creation. Then we jump to the future, not too far, and a team of Scientists happen upon a cave, and within is a drawing, having been there some considerable time. It turns out that the same pattern is turning up in cave systems all over the planet. They eventually work out that it relates to a star system. Could this be the key to the very foundation of life on Earth? Is there where our humble beginnings started?

The crew set off on a journey, on board the Prometheus. Once settled on the Planet, they start a survey of the area. They come across a cave system, and it looks remarkably like something we may have seen before. They find some cannisters, almost egg shaped. What could be inside? The team get seperated, and two members are left in the cave system. Unfortunately things do not pan out too well for these crew members. And things in general do seem to take a turn for the worse.
One of the Crew members is David, and he is an android, and seems to have a hidden agenda. Have we been here before I ask myself?

Whether you class this as a prequel to the Alien franchise is one for each individual viewer to decide. Personally I think it is, but it is hardly in the same league as the 1979 masterpiece.
The plot is very sloppy, at times very predictable. Although Ridley Scott has assembled some great names to appear in the film, very few come away with any high marks.  Worst of all has to be Oscar winner Charlize Theron, if the Acadamy asked for their Oscar back, I would not blame them.
Noomi Rapace  and Michael Fassbender do fair better in their respective roles.
One cannot argue that the film is visually stunning, but this does not compensate for where else the film is lacking.

For such a huge build up, this film majorly failed to deliver, there were a lot of unanswered questions, presumably to lead to a sequel, but ultimately what was it all for? A real shame......5 out of 10