The Judge (2014, Dir. David Dobkin, USA) (Cert: 15/R) ***

Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Robert Duvall, Vincent D’Onofrio

High-flying lawyer Hank Palmer (Downey Jr.) receives news that his mother (Carol S. Austin, Catherine Cummings) has passed away. Hank returns to his small hometown in Indiana and endures an awkward reunion with his father, Joseph (Duvall) a highly-respected judge. During Henry’s stay, he notices his father struggling with his age and discovers damage done to his car. Soon afterwards, Joseph is arrested for a suspected hit-and-run murder.

On its most of basic of surfaces, The Judge has a fair few things to recommend it. The cast is interesting and full of decent talent. I was also drawn in by the film’s initial poster, which brought this movie to my attention. Robert Downey Jr. sat in a black leather chair, Robert Duvall sat in a similar chair behind him, the colours dark browns. It reminded me of the cinematography of the late Gordon Willis and his work in the Godfather films. Of course when you have Robert Duvall high on the bill and playing someone in the world of law, the comparisons with the Godfather movies and Duvall’s role as Corleone consigliore Tom Hagen, are always going to be conjured up. The poster is very misleading as the subsequent posters and trailers were lighter and more in keeping with the actual film’s tone. It would be a stretch to say I was disappointed, but I was taken aback slightly. In the end, The Judge is a rather enough light film considering the subject matter and could be rather enjoyable, as it is when it’s at its best. The problem is that it’s a rather long film, padded out with way too much detail.

Over the course of the film we elaborate over Downey Jr.’s old life. We see his brothers, Glen (Vincent D’Onofrio) a would-be professional baseball player and Dale (Jeremy Strong) a (seemingly) autistic man with a strong attachment to a hand-held camera. We also meet Downey Jr.’s old fame, played by Vera Farmiga. This is all customary “big man returns to small town” stuff that is pushed into various sub-plots and is either not fully resolved or just fizzles out. This is best exemplified with a sub-plot involving Farmiga’s daughter, played by Leighton Meester, which is technically resolved but is given little real significance given that the ideas in that sub-plot alone could’ve made a separate film.

The acting is to a decent standing, with both Robert Downey Jr. and Robert Duvall both playing characteristics that have been a part of their work for years. This is particularly true Robert Downey Jr., snarking away like Iron Man’s Tony Stark and what you get is basically Robert Downey Jr. playing that Robert Downey Jr. role for over two hours. He does it well but it also gets tiring at times. Robert Duvall has always been a subtly impressive actor and there are few (if any) actors I can think of who can convey so much from just a slight facial expression as Duvall. He’s also been the second banana in a lot of the productions. He’s played the lead role before but as a veteran of Hollywood, he really needs a chance to shine and gets it here…but only on occasion. Sometimes it feels like he’s going through the motions but he still sells the big dramatic moments and his final scene in the film is also his best.

Elsewhere, the other actors entertain but are, as explained, under-explored. Billy Bob Thornton’s role as a cocky rival lawyer is never fully put across very well as to his own personality beyond being smug (against Robert Downey Jr. also playing a smug lawyer) and another far less experienced lawyer character is played like he belongs in a completely separate (and far more comedy-centric) film.

The Judge is taking a critical pasting from some corners, partly because it’s running against another crime-related thriller in David Fincher’s far superior, Gone Girl. But really, The Judge is not a bad film. It’s a film that needs trimming and, being completely sincere with no snobbishness intended, in a simpler form it could’ve fit well as a made-for-TV courtroom movie. As this stands, it’s okay but imperfect.

RE-RELEASE: M (1931, Dir. Fritz Lang, Germany) (Cert: PG/NR) ****

Starring: Peter Lorre, Gustaf Gründgens, Otto Wernicke

Panic has gripped the streets of an unknown German city as a child killer (Lorre) is lurking around. With the police desperately trying to apprehend the murderer, criminal organisations around the city are bearing the brunt of the disturbances by the police. Wanting an end to the harassment and having their own disgust at the killer’s deeds, the criminals go on their own manhunt to find the child killer.

In the early years of cinema, Germany’s influence over the new art form was one of the greatest in the world and few in Germany ranked as high a film-maker as Austrian-born director Fritz Lang. However, by 1931, fortunes had changed for German cinema and for Lang. The economic depression of 1929 meant that Germany (in the process of breaking free from World War I reparation induced austerity) was again a poor nation and Lang’s career was troubled with the financial failure of his hugely ambitious previous film, the science-fiction epic, Metropolis. Fortune has smiled on Lang however in the long run. His reputation has helped his legacy survive this rough patch and now both Metropolis and M are ranked amongst Lang’s most famous and beloved films.

They may stand as odd comparisons as films go. Metropolis is a lavish, gleaming and fantastical escapist film. M is far more subdued, darker and seemingly lacks the innocence of Metropolis. However, M stands up because however grim the subject matter is, in both films, Lang (and, in fairness, his then wife and screenwriter/producer Thea Von Harbou) have ideals that they push earnestly and for all its darkness, M is a moral tale.

M is also an early adopter of elements that film lovers will be all too aware of. The killer signals his arrival with a whistled refrain of Grieg’s “Hall Of The Mountain King” a highly effective early use of musical leitmotif fitting both a non-chalant innocence and monstrous dread..The lead in the film is Hungarian actor, Peter Lorre. Lorre is now probably best known for his later work in the US, with his credits for Casablanca and The Maltese Falcon. Even those unaware of his name or who haven’t seen his pictures will probably notice his features (his short and stocky frame, bulging bug eyes and tickly-accented and rasping voice almost perpetually on the edge of hysteria). When he got the lead of Hans Beckert in M, Lorre was a comedy actor and M is clearly no comedy (well, it has a few gags, but its darker themes do away with any notions of levity) but Lorre’s wild performance stands out brilliantly, rivalling only Anthony Perkins’ Norman Bates in Psycho for best screen psychopath. Gustaf Gründgens also stands out as a criminal king pin on Lorre’s tail.

Speaking of Psycho, Lang’s direction has ideas that would become akin to Alfred Hitchcock in later years. This is little surprise as much has been made of the influence of German cinema on Hitchcock (who, early in his career, briefly worked in Germany) but the skilled use of panning,  beautiful shot compositions and affecting music often come with a Hitchcockian air, showing the strength and influence of Lang as a director.  

So, why only four stars and not five? Well, I tousled with the idea of a five star review, especially given this film’s reputation. I really like M, but there are a few minor problems, mainly in the pacing. The film is simple. It has a simple premise, a clear way to begin and end. It’s a film that would’ve probably been expected to last an hour back in 1931, but it lasts two. Some of the additional detail works (the criminal gang are entertaining at times, even if they are bloodthirsty) but it slows up the tension. Metropolis is even longer, but it had a much grander story to tell (also, unlike a fair number of people including Lang himself, I just prefer Metropolis as a film)  but with another viewing there’s every chance I could push this to a five rating.

As a coda to the film, in a story that’s been aired countless times, M (and Metropolis) were noticed by the Nazis when they rose to power in 1933, with Josef Goebbels offering Lang a high position with the film studio, UFA. Lang (who was half-Jewish) fled Germany for America soon after. Is M a pro-Nazi film? No. My theory has always been that Lang was offered the job so that the Nazis could keep a close eye on him (tellingly, Lang’s clearly anti-Nazi film The Testament of Dr. Mabuse was banned by the Nazis, as was M, eventually) although Thea Von Harbou did support them. Goebbels praised the film for its lack of humanity, but its overpowering message of tolerance and understanding as well as vigilance makes any claims of this to be fascist, completely nonsensical. In fact this is a film profoundly affected by a sense of humanity and given its dark and even controversial message, that’s the film’s greatest strength.

The Best Of Me (2014, Dir. Michael Hoffman, USA) (Cert: 12a/PG-13) **

Starring: Luke Bracey, Liana Liberato, James Marsden

Having met as teenagers, Amanda (Liberato, Michelle Monaghan) and Dawson (Bracey, Marsden) are star-crossed lovers. However, their home lives, reputations and tragic circumstances ultimately tear them apart. Reuniting years later after the death of an older friend (Gerald McRaney), the romance between them starts to be rekindled.

It appears to me that Nicholas Sparks is becoming the next Stephen King. Not necessarily in terms of quality or content, but more that EVERYTHING Sparks writes seems to end up as a movie pretty soon. Also, like King, Sparks tends to stick solidly to certain formulas, plot points and tropes. He writes romantic plots often there are elements of forbidden love, dark criminal pasts and our male protagonist is always masculine but sensitive as if he comes home every night after work with a pile of timber under one arm and a puppy in the other. The Best Of Me is this formula to the absolute letter.

At nearly two hours, The Best Of Me is cotton-wool-coated saccharine tosh and is astoundingly contrived as if there was a checklist of all the plot points mentioned above being checked off one by one. Such is its adherence to these old chestnuts that even logical sense can not stand in their way and inevitably, it becomes ridiculous. Those that stand in the way of our lovers are either complete caricatures or their objections are given very little reason save for some fairly blunt and simple points that come pretty much out of the blue.

So is there anything to recommend this movie? The performances are okay, given the material. Liana Liberato has a good screen presence and whilst I've seen him in much better things, I always find James Marsden rather likeable. Also, as tried as this film's romantic conventions are, I do take some comfort that the romance being purported here lacks the rather unnerving undertones of a lot of work being pushed towards this market at the moment. Still, its daft wholesomeness is undercut with a cynical hint. This sort of thing is being peddled fast and loose and its marketability is clear. Films like The Best Of Me aren't hateful, but their brand of ten-a-penny disposability doesn't do the ideals of romance any justice. 

'71 (2014, Dir. Yann Demange, UK) (Cert: 15/TBC) ***

Starring Jack O'Connell, Charlie Murphy, Richard Dormer

Gary Hook (O'Connell) is a soldier fresh out of training in 1971 and looking for a deployment to Germany. However, rising tensions around Belfast force Gary to be deployed instead to Northern Ireland. Whilst out patrolling Republican territory, the soldiers are met with protesting locals, culminating in Gary running for his life. Following his escape, Gary must find his way back to the barracks, deep within enemy territory.

Although this film was set over forty years ago, the simple idea that this a film against the backdrop of The Troubles in Northern Ireland still gives '71 a sense of edge and danger. What the makers of '71 have done is given us a film from an earlier time, but removed the safety that the passage of time gives us. '71 is, at points, a very harsh and brutal film.

The film stars Jack O'Connell as a young soldier stationed in Belfast and O'Connell provides an interesting presence. He's an actor with a flair for expression, but his dialogue in the film is fairly sparse and he exudes a sort of "everyman" persona. He is the surrogate for the audience and given the rather straight-forward nature of the plot, this heightens the experience and tension. At the film's best, you can almost feel you're in the thick of the action, aided by some strong and interesting choices in the direction of Yann Demange. Rare is a man that can take one of my pet hates in the movies ("shaky-cam") and actually make it work.

The downsides to '71 mostly manifest in how the film deals with a day-to-day depiction of The Troubles. Not so much from a perspective of historical accuracy (of which, I'm no expert) but in how it's presented to the audience. Whatever the realities of the situation were, the sheer level of action thrown at the audience is high, even if it's a true representation. On the one hand, it does a good job of selling just how dangerous an environment the setting is. On the other, those looking for a wider understanding of The Troubles rather than an action movie, may be disappointed. The film also appears to be on just the one side of an argument that to this day, divides communities. The resolution (which is under-explained to say the least) resolves much of this inequity, but many who disagree with the film's central viewpoint will be likely to be around by that point. 

'71 presents itself as a serious film and I don't really doubt the sincerity of its intentions and far be it for me to be overly-moralistic in how The Troubles are portrayed. As a thriller, this is a very effective and well-made film of sometimes heart-pounding levels of tension and when it sticks to that, '71 works very well. Just be sure that that's the film you want to see, because there's little else of the wider story within the film

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (3D) (2014, Dir. Jonathan Liebesman, USA) (Cert: 12a/PG-13) **

Starring: Megan Fox, Alan Ritchson, Noel Fisher

April O'Neil (Fox) is a young journalist wanting to take on some serious investigative work and not covering lightweight fluff reporting. Investigating a crime syndicate causing chaos in New York City, April becomes fascinated with the actions of who she believes is a vigilante. It's in fact four vigilantes and they're all giant talking turtles with martial arts skills looking to save New York.

There's a not insignificant number of twenty-somethings out there with a real fondness for the things they enjoyed as children and few things are remembered as fondly as those heroes in a half-shell, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. A late-80's/early-90's animated TV series that over the last several years has been hammered at to be commercially viable again to mixed results. This latest attempt to revive the franchise has got the heart beating again (it's already made its money back) but its a Frankenstein's monster. Living, but not very well and frankly probably better off in the grave.

One thing that TMNT does achieves as a movie is the ability to be both obnoxious and dull. Although Joe Liebesman has the director's credit, this is really seen by the public at large as the work of the film's producer, Michael Bay. Bay's studio, Platinum Dunes, worked on the project and its revamping of 80's nostalgia and the involvement of Megan Fox means that thoughts of Bay's franchise, Transformers are never too far away.

Fans of the original TV show may be the most offended, though for the record, despite being the of the same age as the nostalgic fans and having watched the show as a kid, I have a passing fondness at best. Aside from the aformentioned Bay connection, Fox seems like an odd casting choice for April O'Neil and whilst there are the expected remarks about her being attractive and some backstory, I don't quite get the sense of intrepid interviewer. Early on, Fox seems rather stilted when delivering to camera as an interviewer. Not a bad performance per se, but not a good casting choice.

As for the turtles, there's a mixture of the old humour of the "totally radical" variety from the cartoon (Michaelangelo is still the comic relief in particular) whilst also a need to make them tough and edgy. Raphael is particularly intense, to the point that you almost think he belongs in a different movie. Donatello is sort of the nerd of the bunch, but this doesn't gets expanded on very much and Leonardo is...present. There are promising supporting roles from Will Arnett and Whoopi Goldberg, but Whoopi disappears not long into the film and Arnett is best doing his over-confident goofball schtick, but seems out of his otherwise fairly plain character when he does so.

As action-packed at the film is, and rightly so, it suffers from low lighting and a frantic editing style that makes the action hard to follow and the 3D, whilst clear at times, doesn't really make the film any better unless you like things pointing out of the screen. Backing this all up is a story that...well...just isn't very interesting and is very predictable. Fans may get something from this as the spirit of the original turtles is buried in there somewhere, but what's come with it is crass and not particularly enjoyable.

The Rewrite (2014, Dir. Marc Lawrence, USA) (Cert: 12a/TBC) ***

Starring: Hugh Grant, Marissa Tomei, Bella Heathcote

After a string of critical and commercial failures, award-winning screenwriter Keith Michaels (Grant) is struggling to pay the bills. Desperate, he reluctantly takes on work as a screenwriting teacher at a modest university in upstate New York, working only for the pay-check and ensuring that his class is mostly filled with attractive, young female students. However, a mature student named Holly (Tomei) also works her way into the class and Keith begins to develop bonds with his students, especially Holly.

To date, director Marc Lawrence has achieved a lot of his fame for his romantic comedies starring Hugh Grant (or Sandra Bullock in the case of his screenplay for Miss Congeniality and in the case of Two Weeks Notice, both Bullock and Grant). In this capacity, Lawrence has combed out a certain persona for Hugh Grant. Whilst Richard Curtis has painted Grant's characters as slightly foppish and inarticulate but charming and romantic buffoons, Lawrence's Grant is a snarker and less kindly, but still ultimately loveable.  

This partnership with Hugh Grant has stood Marc Lawrence in good stead as far as The Rewrite is concerned. Fans of fluffy, inoffensive and ineffectual romantic comedies will probably find this pretty enjoyable as it does everything these films are expected to do, even if it doesn't really break conventions. As a film based around screenwriting, upon critiquing it, its's natural to look at the quality of the material presented and its comedic value is pleasant and lukewarm. There are a few funny moments here and there, but nothing particularly gut-busting. It's here where High Grant is really the secret weapon as his deliveries of these lines and his comfort with the character (which was almost certainly written with him in mind) bring the quality of the jokes up a notch. 

Marissa Tomei is enjoyably sparky and it's always nice to see Chris Elliott, even if this isn't his greatest role as Grant's friendly Shakespeare-spouting colleague. The teens are more troublesome, not because of their performances but because of their depictions. TheRewrite paints its characters with broad strokes with only a few personality traits per character and most of the older characters manage to get away with it (although Allison Janney's turn as an uptight professor disapproving of Grant doesn't do Janney's more energetic talents justice and makes her rather unlikable). The students are just a mixture of stereotypes that are only slightly fleshed-out. There's the hyperactive squealing girl, the Star Wars-obsessed nerd and a nihilistic girl with a Daria-esque monotone. It isn't the worst case of stock characters in movies, but there's no brilliant Breakfast Club style deconstruction either beyond basic attempts.

What little is actually given away of the award-winning script that our lead has supposedly written, Paradise Misplaced, the fictional film sounds pretty terrible and it's odd to hear it being so lauded by so many characters. I have the sense that the original film was a lot sillier and less mature than the final result. If that's the case, then I congratulate Marc Lawrence. This is definitely not scraping the bottom of the comedy barrel. It just isn't at the top, either. It's resting in the middle, undisturbed but maybe not particularly loved, to stretch a metaphor very thin. It's fine, but no masterclass.

The Equalizer (2014, Dir. Antoine Fuqua, USA) (Cert: 15/R) ***

Starring: Denzel Washington, Maton Czokas. Chloë Grace Moretz

Living a low-profile and quiet life, Bob McCullagh (Washington) likes to spend his free time reading in a local diner where he also meets and looks out for Teri (Moretz). Teri works as an underage prostitute for Russian gangsters and after rebelling against them, ends up badly beaten and in hospital. With a skill for defending himself, Bob takes to the streets and literally fights to take the mobsters down.

Director Antoine Fuqua's last effort, Olympus Has Fallen was one of my least favourite films of last year. Beyond its nonsensical plot, I found it to be just rather...disturbing in what it was trying to say. Now, Fuqua has reunited with his Training Day star Denzel Washington, riding high off his success with Flight, to do a film adaptation of the 1980's TV series, The Equalizer; with Denzel Washington playing the vigilante hero, originally played by Edward Woodward.

Towing along as screenwriter is Richard Wenk; not a very big name, but one I have taken notice of. Wenk got his break from cult horror-comedy Vamp, a film set in a vampiric strip club, back in 1985 and more recently wrote Expendables 2, the best Expendables film because it got to the heart of the silliness inherent in the franchise. Here, Wenk's instincts towards comedy have been cut off and we get a very serious film, though thankfully one that doesn't leave the same bitter aftertaste as Olympus Has Fallen.

To get to Denzel Washington from Edward Woodward (excusing he pre-existing work with director Fuqua) is very strange, but as Bob McCullagh, Washington does a good job. Washington has a way of bringing to the screen, likeable, charismatic and confident characters but with a slight hint of being haunted. A quality that was used in Flight. Marton Czokas, who plays the film's main villain, is similarly charismatic and he works well with Denzel. Chloë Grace Moretz plays an underage prostitute and she doesn't get as much screen-time as you might expect, and is also saved from her role being too seedy given her age and the subject matter.

The quality of the presentation is uneven. There are some sequences, particularly towards the film's climax that really look impressive, but others such as Washington analysing each incoming conflict akin to Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes films feels hackneyed and isn't pulled off very well. Also, whilst I mentioned this film isn't quite as disturbing as Olumpus Has Fallen, there eventually becomes a sense that the violence being meted winds up being almost without reason. The bad guys are doubtlessly bad, but slowly it becomes clear that what it all boils down to is Denzel Washington going on a slow but destructive rampage.

Well, there are worse things to watch...