Tag Archives: Rafe Spall

MIB International

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Vampire Owl: This particular franchise has been so old that I am beginning to feel young.

Vampire Bat: Do you know that we have a group, Vampires in Black?

Vampire Owl: We do? What do they do?

Vampire Bat: They wear black, and wander around the castle, as if black is the coolest colour a vampire can wear.

Vampire Owl: So, this VIB does nothing of use.

Vampire Bat: Well, MIB has had another sequel, and so we might be up for more.

Vampire Owl: I think that we should run VIB parallel to MIB because I have so many ideas related to it.

Vampire Bat: What kind of idea do you have?

Vampire Owl: It is regarding a group of vampires wearing black, and facing aliens.

Vampire Bat: I think that people won’t need many more of that, unless created with some really good content.

[Gets a ghee cake and three cups of mixed tea].

What is the movie about? :: Molly Wright (Tessa Thompson) is someone who had witnessed her parents’ memories of aliens erased by agents of Men in Black while she helps an alien escape. As her memories of aliens stayed, she started looking for employment in the secret organization which she found out about, but finds out that there is no chance. Everybody thinks that she is delusional, and that there is something really weird about her. With no friends and no life of her own, she finally manages to find the Men in Black after tracing an alien who is taken away by the agents. She discovers the headquarters of the organization quite fast, enters without any hesitation, and makes a fine impression on Agent O (Emma Thompson) who heads the team in United States of America, and after naming her Agent M, sends her to work in London as a probationary agent to know how much she is capable of.

So, what happens with the events here? :: There, Agent M meets High T (Liam Neeson), head of the London branch, and Agent H (Chris Hemsworth), the two of whom are supposed to have stopped an invasion of the Hive, a parasitic race at the Eiffel Tower, many years ago. After that, while High T leads the force, Agent H had become irresponsible, leading to T having to cover up all his failures. M meets H, and manages to go with him in his meeting with his close friend and alien royalty who is killed by some mysterious alien twins able to manifest as pure energy, which the agents are not able to counter. Before dying, the alien royalty provides M with a strange crystal, telling to her that it won’t be useful giving it to H because he had changed after the incident during which he saved the world. It turns out that the crystal is not just the usual thing, and that there is something special about it, but they will have to find it the hard way, while the agency is not happy about the royal alien being killed. So, what is next for the two against all odds? Can they save the world?

The defence of Men in Black International :: As expected, the special effects with the action sequences score more than anything else, and the CGI elements are at fine work here, making the alien presence have glory – after all, the technology has improved so much, and this was to look better in each and every movie. The location explored are really nice, especially Marrakesh in Morocco which provides the best visuals around. MIB does manage to continue as how it used to be in essence, with a big universe with unlimited number of aliens to be saved these days. There is some humour present, even though most of them don’t work, or are repetitive. We can hope to have another movie in the franchise though, including these new characters and some of the old ones, which can prove to be interesting with some extra innovation, for we should never be short of smart ideas as far as alien invasion is concerned.

The claws of flaw :: There is not much different here as far as the plot idea of the Men in Black series is concerned, as each movie works on a similar thing every time, and the disadvantage here is that it lacks those stars whom we have associated this movie franchise with, and there is absolutely no emotional connection here – that side is almost completely done with. We develop no feelings for the protagonists here, and therefore the concern is rather less. There is not much to save here compared to those original movies which we had, and the villain reveal was rather unnecessary, because we could have guessed that from a long time ago, and it was certainly not that good a choice. The twist was pretty much unnecessary, and the best characters in the movie go unexplored. There is also absence of humour, as the funny side here is rather minimal, and it rarely works, leading us to question the direction it is going.

Performers of the soul :: Men in Black will miss Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones this time, and there is no doubt about the same. It might be due to the same reason that we have a pair which worked so well with Thor: Ragnarok to get out of the Avengers world with that grand finish in Avengers: Endgame, and come to this franchise. Yes, they will have their roles to play in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Thor and Valkyire, but their combination doesn’t work that well in this movie, even though they are okay together for most part of the movie. Chris Hemsworth does take a little bit of the early Thor attitude in here too, as the proud MIB agent. Tessa Thompson is fine here, but a younger actress playing this role would have been more appropriate. Rebecca Ferguson, the Mission Impossible and Doctor Sleep girl has fine run in her smaller role, while our Taken – Non-stop action star Liam Neeson is a fine addition to the movie here, but they could have used him in a better way, at least by the end scenes.

How it finishes :: Men in Black International continues that same format which it had been following for a long time, and through that idea which has been well-established, it manages to be entertaining – after all, there is also the presence of the big names like Chris Hemsworth, Tessa Thompson, Rebecca Ferguson and Liam Neeson who are there to keep us entertained. There is not much that we will find new in this movie, or to be greater than the previous movies in the franchise, but you have the guarantee because it is this particular franchise that we are talking about. But, it could have had a movie like Charlie’s Angels had, a long time later, but falls short due to the absence of that humour and an energetic cast. Yet, it is the movie that you watch for being Men in Black with all the aliens and saving the world stuff.

Release date: 14th June 2019
Running time: 115 minutes
Directed by: F Gary Gray
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Tessa Thompson, Rebecca Ferguson, Liam Neeson, Kumail Nanjiani, Rafe Spall, Laurent Bourgeois, Larry Bourgeois, Emma Thompson

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@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

Jurassic World II

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What is the movie about? :: A few years have passed after the events of the earlier movie, and the Jurassic World theme park on Isla Nublar has been abandoned since the evacuation. As dinosaurs roamed freely on the island, a mercenary team which arrives on the island makes an attempt to retrieve DNA from the remains of the cloned hybrid dinosaur Indominus rex, which was killed by a Mosasaurus. They successfully deliver the sample even though the team is attacked by a Mosasaurus and a Tyrannosaurus. The aim of the mercenaries is unknown, but at the same time, there is wide protest in the United States of America and other parts of the world in favour of saving the dinosaurs as the species, even though cloned, faces extinction again while facing a huge volcanic eruption, with the exception of Mosasaurus which escaped from the island through water.

So, what happens with the events to follow? :: Jurassic World’s former manager Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) who is now part of a dinosaur protection group gets a call from Sir Benjamin Lockwood (James Cromwell). The man, along with Eli Mills (Rafe Spall) confirm that they are planning to move these dinosaurs to a place where they will be safe. There will be no human contact, and without men to bother them, the creatures could thrive in their own world – this would cause no alarm for any other species. For locating Blue, the last living Velociraptor and smarter one among the dinosaurs, Claire recruits Owen Grady (Chris Pratt), Jurassic World’s former Velociraptor trainer, to join the mission to save the species facing extinction. They are joined by Franklin Webb (Justice Smith) and Zia Rodriguez (Daniella Pineda) as they travel to the island.

And what is follow with the tale? :: The leader of the hired soldiers at the island, Ken Wheatley (Ted Levine) is in charge of resue operations at Isla Nublar. He enjoys stealing the teeth of dinosaurs and making sure that they stay in the cages in one way or the other. Sooner or later, a few dinosaurs won’t be the biggest of their problems. There is Gunnar Eversol (Toby Jones) who comes into play, as he hopes to sell these dinosaurs through auction, while making them perfectly suitable for becoming war machines – as animals have always been used as weapons by humans throughout history. In between all of this, time is running out for dinosaurs, as the whole island gets ready to be destroyed by volcanic erruption. Can at least some of them including Blue be saved by the team, as the chances for extinction is once again so high?

The defence of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom :: The movie begins nicely as it introduces its two best pre-historic creatures, Mosasaurus and Tyrannosaurus very early, displaying moments of glory that this franchise has to offer us. There is no shortage of such moments, with the dinosaurs trying to escape the island, and the lava taking over, as well as the final battle with another hybrid dinosaur. There is the fear factor being utilized really well, and the dinosaur nostalgia taken to the next level. We are all left in need of another movie in the franchise, and there seems to be certainty in the same. The idea here more or less like that of a Frankenstein story, about humans trying to play God by giving life using science, and finding it extremely difficult to control their creations. The dinosaurs are all good here, and so is the world – there is more to see with both as we keep looking on.

The Claws of flaw :: There is always more expected from a dinosaur movie, and anything with the name Jurassic needs to do more each and every time. The second Jurassic World doesn’t add much to the franchise, and won’t bring anything that is special – it is more or less the same thing that we have been watching since the first one, Jurassic Park. There is no real attempt to move beyond the safe mode, and the focus is not really on the story – well, the big dinosaurs on the screen was always going to work in one way or the other, and that is the one thing were all the focus goes. The questions about the necessity of saving a species are not touched that much as one would expect. Do humans have the responsibility to save those other species which are as much part of this world as we are all are? Well, that is one question that humanity will find difficult to answer, and even coming close to trying for the same is out of question for many.

The performers of the soul :: Chris Pratt who comes right out the Star-Lord shoes in Avengers: Infinity War and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 has this one in full control. One has time to remember that Passengers was a lovely movie too, as he keeps things going well, following Jurassic World which brought the dinosaurs back to us. Bryce Dallas Howard gets some nice job to do here again, and this time, the character gets stronger on ideology. We can be sure that we need to see her as well as Christ Pratt in the next possible movie too, the team looks strong with the two around. We do miss Irrfan Khan this time, as his character had to die in that earlier movie. Daniella Pineda and Justice Smith support well, with something extra added here and there. Rafe Spall brings one ambitious and unpredictable character to fine strength. Isabella Sermon does a nice job here too, rising to the occasion.

How it finishes :: We have been in love with this franchise ever since the first move released in 1993 by the name Jurassic Park. The science fiction novel written by Michael Crichton did form the core, but with two more films, this movie franchise had the advantage and became another name for anything related to dinosaurs. In 2015, Jurassic World brought it back with nostalgia written all over it, and now, we have Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom which decided to get an early release in India before it released in the United States of America. Well, we can see only filled seats in the theatres more than one week after its release in the country. It is one big entertainer with big creatures, and it is to be seen about how much of a threat it possesses to Avengers: Infinity War which is still running in the theatres, and how much challenge it faces from the strong monsoons.

Release date: 22nd June 2018 (USA); 7th June 2018 (India)
Running time: 128 minutes
Directed by: JA Bayona
Starring: Chris Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, Daniella Pineda, Rafe Spall, Justice Smith, James Cromwell, Toby Jones, Ted Levine, BD Wong, Isabella Sermon, Geraldine Chaplin, Jeff Goldblum

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@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.

The BFG

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thebfg-2

Vampire Owl: Is it like LPG and CNG?

Vampire Bat: You seriously need to work on your studies about abbreviations.

Vampire Owl: So, it is not another kind of dirty fuel that humans use to destroy nature?

Vampire Bat: No, it stands for Big Friendly Giant.

Vampire Owl: Now, that is new. I am BFVO then. Big Friendly Vampire Owl.

Vampire Bat: Everybody knows that you are not friendly. You are surely not big either.

Vampire Owl: Come on, it is one of those lies spread by Werewolf Anger. He is just angry at me for no reason.

Vampire Bat: But I witness your lack of friendliness everyday.

Vampire Owl: You, sir need to check your vampire mind for hallucinations.

Vampire Bat: This is a Steven Spielberg movie. Will you just watch it?

[Gets three cups of masala tea with banana chips].

What is the movie about? :: Sophie (Ruby Barnhill), a ten year old orphan girl spends her nights at an orphanage at London by reading books, as she has a sleeping problem. She is more of a loner and has less number of friends there. Even though it is not allowed, she manages to stay awake at night all the time. One night, at three in the morning, which she herself calls the witching hour, she sees an old giant (Mark Rylance)outside through her window and the creature sees her too. It captures her and takes her to the Giant Country which is a secret place. As he establishes himself as a friendly giant and doesn’t want to eat her, she asks him to let her go, but he tells her that she has to stay there forever as she has seen him and now knows that the giants exist, which she will tell the other humans causing trouble for them. He also adds that if she tries to escape, one of those non-vegetarian giants will eat her.

So, what is it really about? :: There she understands that none of the giants really like the one she has named BFG a.k.a. Big Friendly Giant, starting with their leader, the Fleshlumpeater (Jemaine Clement) who thinks that he is good for nothing as he eats those which he considers as pathetic vegetables. The Bloodbottler (Bill Hader) doesn’t fall behind in hating the giant who doesn’t belong either. The list is long with the rest of the giants, the Butcher Boy (Michael Adamthwaite), the Bonecruncher (Daniel Bacon), the Manhugger (Adam Godley), the Gizzardgulper (Chris Gibbs), the Meatdripper (Paul Moniz de Sa), the Childchewer (Jonathan Holmes) and the Maidmasher (Olafur Darri Olafsson). All these giants are bigger and stronger than the BFG, and are not hesitant in making fun of him each and every time they meet.

So, what happens next? :: The special thing about the BFG is that unlike the other giants who spends their time in laziness, he is more of a scholar who can not only read, but is also skilled in many other fields. What he does with most of his life is to capture the dreams from Dream Country and send them to little children. With one of the giants getting hold of Sophie’s blanket, the BFG realizes that she won’t be safe anymore, anywhere in the Giant Country and tries to get rid of her – but she doesn’t agree to it, and soon, all the giants are at BFG’s place looking for the little human being for dinner as they can smell her. With all the destruction they cause at his place, finally the two friends decide that enough is enough, and these flesh-eating creatures need to be taught a lesson. But shouldn’t their preference be to survive rather than anything else? How can they do anything to the group of powerful giants?

The defence of The BFG :: The visual treat is the one thing that makes The BFG score really high, and there is absolutely no fault in that – the world of giants, dreams and everything is nothing less than that enchanting fairy-tale that we hope to see waiting for us. There is no dark shade to this tale either, even with those giants looking for humans to eat whenever it is possible – this is why there is so much of a magical effect which goes right into one’s heart to satisfy a childish side which rests there. The child takes over, and we can only see how satisfied that one is. The visual beauty is one thing, and the strong emotional side just gets right into us with Mark Rylance as the good giant making us feel amazingly good. The kid, Ruby Barnhill doesn’t stay far behind either, as this combination works like magic for all of us who have been looking for more and more of beautiful feelings within us. You are going to leave this one with a smile on the face, that stays.

The claws of flaw :: When you consider this one only as a Steven Spielberg movie, one is sure to expect more from The BFG. No, this is not going to stand that kind of an expectation, with our movie coming from a 1982 children’s book which was written by the British novelist Roald Dahl. Also illustrated by Quentin Blake, it is supposed to be an expansion of a short story from Dahl’s own 1975 book Danny, the Champion of the World. The first live-action adaptation of the same is this one, and so what we need here is to accept its childishness – otherwise, things are not going to work. This is the kind of movie which would have become my instant favourite if this had released during my childhood – still, it is surely not without its flaws, as rarely does it try to rise above what seems to be in the material; there is no attempt to make it bigger, as there was scope without doubt. The repetitions could have also been avoided.

How it finishes :: Even those adults who feel that there is nothing serious happening in a children’s movie will agree that there is fun in this one, and there was surely a visual treat that nobody can miss. There are those moments which come up with positive messages, and there is the funny side. Friendship is found when it is least expected, and the same is the case of courage and wisdom – you will know when you watch this movie. The sweetness in this movie will surely make you feel good, and wish that there was one big friendly giant who could bring a better meaning to your life – it is that much which the child in you will ask for, and it is what this movie delivers visually. It is your inner child and the misfit in you that wins this battle to choose the movie to go for, as I checked for some of the movies in my favourite genre, and still got attracted to this one more than those first choices on the list; your case will be no different.

Release date: 1st July 2016
Running time: 117 minutes
Directed by: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Mark Rylance, Ruby Barnhill, Penelope Wilton, Jemaine Clement, Rebecca Hall, Rafe Spall, Bill Hader, Michael Adamthwaite, Daniel Bacon, Adam Godley, Chris Gibbs, Paul Moniz de Sa, Jonathan Holmes, Olafur Darri Olafsson, Marilyn Norry, Chris Shields, Matt Frewer, Geoffrey Wade

thebfg

@ Cemetery Watch
✠ The Vampire Bat.