Leigh Paatsch's guide to movies

WHAT better way to while away a winter evening than by heading to the pictures. Leigh Paatsch has reviewed the current crop.

Anna Friel in The Look of Love

WHAT better way to while away a winter evening than by heading to the pictures. Leigh Paatsch has reviewed the current crop, including stand-out Mud, showing at Dendy.

> AFTER EARTH (M) Slack to the future, US, 97 min
An indecipherably inert action flick sees out-of-form director M. Night Shyamalan (The Sixth Sense) stuck in the same snoozy rut as his previous film, The Last Airbender. The story begins when a father-son combo of space-travelling Earthlings are forced to crash-land on their now-abandoned home planet. The dad, Cypher (Will Smith), has broken both of his legs upon impact. So it is up to his teenage boy Kitai (Jaden Smith) to embark on an arduous trek to find the missing rescue beacon that will save them from certain death. Any potential to raise a pulse as Kitai does battle with mutant wildlife of the future is undercut by an overwhelming atmosphere of dullness. No surprise, really, when so much of the film is driven by Will Smith robotically ordering his kid around via a fancy camera phone. Rating: 1.5/5

> DESPICABLE ME 2 (PG) No longer bad. Still very good, US, 96 min
The same, playful, naughty-but-nice humour winningly evident in the 2010 animated hit Despicable Me lifts its sequel clear of the also-rans in the animated sector. Steve Carell returns as the voice of the formerly notorious Gru. Once the world's most fiendish supervillain, Gru is now the world's softest-hearted single dad. However, that devious mind of his is still the eccentric engine room of the franchise, and Gru is soon putting that bad brain of his to good use after being recruited by the crime-fighting Anti-Villain League. The pacing and vocal performances are sharp, the 3D visuals are as eye-popping as before, and those mischievous Minions remain the best bunch of second-bananas in movies. Rating: 3/5

130622 rev despicable

> EPIC (PG) An ecology of scale, US, 100 min
A lavish, beautifully animated adaptation of the William Joyce book The Leaf Men and the Brave Good Bugs. The story takes place in Moonhaven, a magical microscopic kingdom located deep inside the undergrowth of a forest. Forces aligned with growth and decay - the goodies and the baddies of this eco-conscious affair - are gearing up for battle after the sudden death of their queen. Unlike Despicable Me 2 or Monsters University, there is no clever comedy to make the time fly by for adults. For children south of high-school age, however, this could well be a highlight of their viewing year. Rating: 3/5

epic

> FAREWELL, MY QUEEN (M) A right royal goodbye, France, 98 min
In the early days of the French Revolution, a key lady-in-waiting (Lea Seydoux) to Queen Marie Antoinette (Diane Kruger) has the prime position to watch a kingdom crumble before her. This is as smart and sophisticated as a period costume drama can get in this day and age. Though there is a mistaken assumption all viewers will immediately recognise and understand this nuanced snapshot of a famous flashpoint in French history, the performances are where the real need-to-know info is conveyed. Seydoux, Kruger and co-star Virginie Ledoyen (as the Queen's reputed lover) are all at the very top of their game here. Rating: 3.5/5

farewell, my queen

> FAST & FURIOUS 6 (M) Feeling oh so tyred? Hitch a lift right here., US, 128 min
Best forget all previous laps of the F&F circuit. And perhaps ignore that star Vin Diesel's head now resembles a steroid-fed talking kidney bean. Then you can feel the rush of this guilty-pleasure joy ride to the max. In this undeniably entertaining sequel, the F&F gang - last seen hiding out in extradition-free glamour destinations around Europe - is reunited after a revving-up from their old frenemy, Agent Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson). As we should know by now, no-one goes to a F&F movie for the story. (Though if you do, help is available.) All that anyone wants from this hugely popular franchise is to get high on the fumes of one audacious four-wheeled stunt after another. On this level alone, F&F6 delivers the goods spectacularly : both with quantity (the film runs nearly 130 minutes, but never stops for a red-light breather) and quality (there are at least five set-piece sequences that more than justify the price of admission for full-on fans). Rating: 3.5/5

Fast and the Furious 6

> THE GREAT GATSBY (M) There's no business like showy Baz-ness, Australia-US, 142 min
Australian filmmaker Baz Luhrmann (Moulin Rouge) takes the collective substance of the classic novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald, lines it up against a wall, and machine-guns it with all the glitzy style he can muster. Though definitely a hit-and-miss proposition, you will not be bored for a millisecond by what transpires. Leonardo DiCaprio has the starring role of Jay Gatsby, the reclusive tycoon who has seemingly amassed an impressive fortune simply to win back his great lost love. Luhrmann has a field day capturing what passed for a high old time at the height of the jazz age. Everywhere you look, it's fast cars, new money, easy virtues and hard partying. Some sections play out as if there has been multiple explosions inside a warehouse storing nothing but confetti bombs, neon lights and fireworks. The movie ultimately works due to the intuitive efforts of a well-chosen cast. The lead trio of DiCaprio, Carey Mulligan and Tobey Maguire keep proceedings grounded by applying a sincere emotional gravity to their performances. Rating: 3/5

> THE HANGOVER PART III (MA15+) Ends with a sore head and a few regrets, US, 101 min
A disappointing trilogy-closer that sees the celebrated Wolfpack back on their home turf of Las Vegas for one more anarchic adventure. The film assembles a modest collection of guffaw-out-loud moments. However, once again, the high standard of lowbrow laughs achieved by the first Hangover just cannot be matched. More than ever before, this instalment is powered primarily by the franchise's two breakout characters, the bearded weirdo Alan (Zach Galifianakis) and the mercurial gangster Mr. Chow (Ken Jeong). You'll be tired of both soon enough, mainly because the big, side-splitting gags are thin on the ground. Anyone who expected the series to end with a bang will be disappointed by the wispy whimper coming their way. Co-stars Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms. Rating: 2/5

> THE INTERNSHIP (M) Your search for a movie that is one big fat commercial has returned 1 result., US, 117 min
Initially, this so-so comedy tip-toes that fine line between semi-shameless product placement and full-on feature-length advertisement. Then it just turns those toes up, and gives up. The one message is repeated over and over: Google is great. Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson play former wristwatch salesmen desperately competing for an entry-level posting at the highest-horse-powered search engine in the world. Naturally, with the guys being on the wrong side of 40, most of the jokes told here are themed around how a digital world has no place for these analog dinosaurs. Google could well be the greatest place to work, but this is not the greatest movie to watch. The vibe in the air is nearly always genial, but the stuff on the screen is consistently feeble. Co-stars Rose Byrne. Rating: 2/5

The Internship

> IN THE HOUSE (MA15+) Something rustling in the reads, France, 105 min
A pompous writing teacher (Fabrice Luchini) is about to learn some hard lessons about his craft when a star student (Ernst Umhauer) hands in an intriguing essay. The subject? The salacious goings-on within a friend's family. When the educator requests further updates from his pupil, the line separating truth and fiction opens up to become something a moral black hole. A clever, engaged and stylish dark comedy from prolific French director Francois Ozon (Swimming Pool, Potiche). Co-stars Kristin Scott Thomas, Emmanuelle Seigner. Rating: 3.5/5

> A LADY IN PARIS (M) Acting out her age, France, 94 min
Solid, insightfully observed and unpretentious light drama from France. Veteran star Jeanne Moreau makes a welcome return to the big screen playing a prickly, elderly Estonian woman entering the final phase of her life in Paris. The arrival of the latest in a long line of devoted and unfairly abused carers marks the beginning of an unlikely friendship. Skews straight towards the predictable, but little fault can be found with how well this familiar material is handled. Co-stars Liane Magi. Rating: 3/5

> THE LOOK OF LOVE (MA15+) 24 Hour Porny People, UK, 102 min
A disjointed, yet distinctly entertaining immorality tale. Commencing in the 1960s, club impresario Paul Raymond (played by Steve Coogan) cornered the market in all things lewd and crude in the UK. Though Raymond blessed with a rare business acumen (he died one of Britain's richest men), the film's chief concern is its subject's sustained success with the opposite sex. Under the cheeky direction of Michael Winterbottom (The Trip), The Look of Love is centred on servicing Coogan's craftily caricatured portrayal of Raymond, a gentleman disarmingly comfortable in his own sleazy skin. End result? A movie that is here for that certain kind of good time where the less you remember, the better. Rating: 3/5

Anna Friel in The Look of Love

> MAN OF STEEL (M) Polished start, then the rust sets in, US, 143 min
What should have been the Superman we had to have is now a Superman we will have to grudgingly settle for : a long, and sometimes laboured mash-up of the compelling and the compromised. First, the good stuff. A story schemed up by key Dark Knight Trilogy creatives Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer shrewdly strips Supes' famous origin story down to the bare essentials. The relatively unknown British actor Henry Cavill stars as Clark Kent, a tough, buff loner from another planet still learning to harness his super-powers here on Earth. He'd better hurry up some, because some bitter enemies of his late father (Russell Crowe) are on their way. Just as this yarn seems to promising one hell of a finale, the film itself loses both shape and momentum. An overblown, overlong closing act is the culprit. The iconic superhero becomes merely the most recognisable figure in the eye of a digital FX hurricane. The core acting triumvirate of Cavill (very straight), Crowe (very ironic) and co-star Michael Shannon (very mad) remain on the right page throughout. It's just a shame director Zack Snyder (300) threw away the playbook at such a crucial stage of the game. Co-stars Amy Adams. Rating: 2.5/5

> MONSTERS UNIVERSITY (PG) A lesson for those who couldn't scare less, US, 108 min
Pixar Animation have dusted off their beloved 2001 hit Monsters, Inc. and polished up a nifty little prequel. Let's call it Mike & Sulley : The Early Years. The story spirits us back to a time when pint-sized cyclops Mike (Billy Crystal) and hulking shaggy-bear Sulley (John Goodman) were yet to earn their scaring stripes. To gain the necessary spooking skills, Mike and Sulley find themselves enrolled in Monsters University, a Hogwarts for creatures that go "grrrrr" in the night. What follows is a perfectly pleasant pile of shenanigans that never once outstays its welcome. The pacing of the tale is zippy, the energy levels of a clearly enthused voice cast never dips, and the humour in play effortlessly connects with kids and adults alike. Rating: 3/5

> THE PLACE BEYOND THE PINES (MA15+) Crime waits for no man, US, 140 min
A sprawling, archly ambitious drama is also very much a three-card trick of a movie. The first two narrative sleights-of-hand are handled exclusively by actors Ryan Gosling (as an outlaw motorbiker) and Bradley Cooper (the rookie cop in hot pursuit). Each gets a self-enclosed act of the picture to themselves, and rise to the occasion with performances that both near their career peaks. More often than not, there is an undeniable magic in the air. However, when it comes to the grand finale - resting as it does on circumstances sure to break the needle on your Movie-Coincidence-O-Meter - not everyone will blown away by the 'big reveal'. While the contrasts between the main characters are all too obvious, each point of difference is skilfully rendered by Derek Cianfrance, a rare filmmaking talent working on only his second feature. (If you saw his stunning 2010 debut Blue Valentine, this ripples with the same intensely damaged energy.) Co-stars Eva Mendes, Ben Mendelsohn, Rose Byrne. Rating: 3.5/5

> SATELLITE BOY (PG) The sky is not always the limit, Australia, 88 min
A quiet, unhurried and graceful Australian drama. In the far northern reaches of the Western Australia, a young Aboriginal boy and his grandfather face eviction from the unusual place they call home. The pair live at the site of an abandoned drive-in cinema, which has been marked for demolition by a local mining company. Incensed by the news, 11-year-old Pete (Cameron Wallaby) takes off for the big smoke to see if he can change the miners' minds. The film could be construed as a bit slow and airy for some tastes. Nevertheless, its insightful fascination with a fading way of life in the outback (and a people determined to keep living it as vividly as they can) is a small triumph. Co-stars David Gulpilil. Rating: 3/5

> TABU (MA15+) Old, new, bothered and blue, Portugal, 116 min
A tale of two time-shifted paradises, one lost and one found. In the present day, an elderly woman in the Portuguese city of Lisbon wonders what became of her once-glamourous life. The reasons why can found in the past, when her younger, married self falls in love with a seductive adventurer in the wilds of Africa. A film of two distinct sections and a multitude of tricks and tropes, Tabu is definitely a unique movie experience. The stylised aesthetic in play - the old-timey B&W cinematography is just one of many unusual choices by director Miguel Gomes - may leave some viewers cold. Others will be utterly riveted. The risk (and return) is all yours. Rating: 3.5/5

Tabu

> WORLD WAR Z (M) Fighting the biting with the greatest of disease, US, 114 min
It will stress you out. It will mess you up. But you're still going to love living through every last dismembered bit of World War Z. This globe-trotting, nerve-jolting affair is as (un)dead on the money as a zombie film can get. With most of the planet over-run by a virulent invasion of fleet-footed mouth-breathers, it is left to the UN to determine where it started. If their globe-trotting man on the ground (Brad Pitt) can't find the answer, the world as we know it is over. Each new destination visited triggers a devastating new set-piece. Each is different in structure and feel. All are truly frightening. With the film sprinting at the same bite-neck speed as its zombies, there is little time for character development. This is where the sheer presence and under-rated acting smarts of Brad Pitt justifies all those zeroes on the end of his pay cheque. Who better to maintain a climate-controlled cool in an atmosphere always one degree shy of total meltdown? Rating: 3.5/5