"Deadpool" in (belated) review - will Hollywood learn the right lesson?

What's it about?
The saucy-tongued, fourth-wall-breaking, pain-in-the-arse to the goody two shoes of the Marvel universe - finally - comes to the screen in a faithful adaptation. Wade Wilson is a goon for hire - the 'Merc with the Mouth' - but his world all goes a bit wobbly once he finds love, only to have his bright future torn away by a terminal cancer diagnosis. Undergoing procedures to bring forth mutant DNA in his blood in order to cure his cancer, he's gifted extraordinary healing powers but becomes horribly scarred in the process. Now he's sworn revenge against his maker.
Who would I recognise in it?
Ryan Reynolds, Morena Baccarin, Ed Skrein, T.J. Miller, Gina Carano.
Great/Good/Alright/Shite?
There's little to say about the quality of the film that hasn't already been said. Deadpool is a big slab of blood-spewing, bullet-spraying, sword-slicing, tongue-lashing awesomeness. Sure, the revenge plot is straight-forward and not what you'd consider remarkable (Ajax, the villain, sufficiently detestable as he is, rarely feels close to out-right besting Deadpool), but it does provide the structure on which to hang the real draw here - Ryan Reynolds as the snarky, goofy, and ever-so-violent Deadpool. Considering it was written by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, who were behind Zombieland, you can hazard a guess at what delights are in store.

The film's key strengths, riding roughshod over its few weaknesses, are its sense of fun and franchise anarchy. Deadpool is a razor sharp pin prick into the increasingly bloated and serious-minded superhero movie mindset...

Click "READ MORE" below to continue the review...

Triple Bill Mini Musings: Exes, Voices, and Maxes...

Burying The Ex:
What's it about?
Max, a horror nerd, comes to realise his horny environmentalist vegan girlfriend Evelyn isn't exactly a match for him, so he decides to dump her. However, a spanner in the works comes in the form of a bus - which promptly runs over his soon-to-be-ex. Sufficiently grieved, our young hero starts a new relationship with someone far suited to him (Olivia, a fellow horror fan and novelty ice cream shop owner). Trouble is, our boy's dead ex-girlfriend is back from the dead, un-killable, and distinctly unaware that they're no longer in a relationship!
Who would I recognise in it?
Anton Yelchin, Ashley Greene, Alexandria Daddario, Oliver Cooper, Dick Miller.
Great/Good/Alright/Shite?
Joe Dante makes a welcome return to our screens with this L.A.-set, cine-literate (Romero references, the horror of a folded film poster) slice of comedy horror. It's an efficiently told, sparky, and decidedly fun ride. Dante fans would do well to check it out, and in the - admittedly slim - sub-genre of the 'rom-zom-com', Burying The Ex is the best entry since Shaun of the Dead (although don't go in expecting something as blow-you-over-fantastic as Edgar Wright's audience favourite). Gleefully silly and occasionally quite gooey. Good.

Click "READ MORE" below for weirdo Ryan Reynolds and feral Tom Hardy...

Triple Bill Mini Musings: Klowns, Zombies, and Coffins...

Killer Klowns From Outer Space:
What's it about?
Bonkers horror comedy from the Chiodo Brothers (who created the Crites for the Critters movies) about clown-lookalike space aliens who invade a small American town in search of sustenance.
Who would I recognise in it?
Suzanne Snyder, John Allen Nelson, John Vernon.
Great/Good/Alright/Shite?
Goofy fun from the get go, Killer Klowns is a bizarre laugh riot complimented by wonderful practical effects, in-camera visual effects, and a charming sense of mischief. Self aware and deliberately cheesy, it's a perfect summation of a bygone era of filmmaking that has rightly continued to receive love, respect, and obsession from movie fans the world over. There's even a rumour of a sequel titled "The Return of the Killer Klowns from Outer Space in 3D". Good.

Click "READ MORE" below for zombies and coffins...

Triple Bill Mini Musings: Lanterns, Strippers, and Helpers...

Green Lantern:
What's it about?
Comic book adaptation by Martin "Goldeneye/Casino Royale" Campbell about Hal Jordan, a cocky test pilot who ends up becoming The Green Lantern, part of a league of superheroes who protect their respective sectors of the universe.
Who would I recognise in it?
Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively, Tim Robbins, Peter Sarsgaard, Mark Strong.
Great/Good/Alright/Shite?
Considering Campbell expertly rejuvinated the Bond franchise not once, but twice, it comes as quite a surprise that Green Lantern feels so conflicted and flat. It is at once lumpen with awkward and unfocused pacing, and yet unsatisfyingly light on plot and character. The big bad - in the form of Paralax, a big fart-cloud of dust heading for earth that feeds on fear and consumes all in its path - never feels threatening, and is rarely glimpsed ... although there is only so much you can do with an evil space cloud. Sarsgaard's bulgy-headed back-up-baddie Hector Hammond is likewise under-developed, his character amounting to little more than a pissy 'failure' in life. Hal Jordan is about the only one who gets enough screen time to develop a solid back story and character arc of discovery (even if it is predictable and generally a bit "meh"). I've never read any of the Green Lantern comics, and have no interest in doing so, so purely in terms of it as a movie - only alright.

Click "READ MORE" below for Kristen Stewart's stripper-sass-mouth, and Emma Stone telling the tales of 1960s house maids...

Quadruple Bill Mini Musings: Booze, Bots, Aliens, and Body-swapping...

The Lost Weekend:
What's it about?
Billy Wilder's Oscar-snatching drama about a writer who is hopelessly addicted to alcohol, and finds himself alone with just his inner-turmoil and his bottle.
Who would I recognise in it?
It depends how well you know your 1940s cinema, but Ray Milland and Jane Wyman.
Great/Good/Alright/Shite?
While not as deliciously dark as Wilder's previous film Double Indemnity, nor as blackly comic as his iconic Sunset Boulevard, Wilder brings his trademark touch of class and incisive directorial skill to one writer's alcoholism. Naturally, the subject is dealt with to 1940s standards (although I'd wager it took away a few breaths upon its initial release), you might draw some parallels with the hopeless alcoholic in Leaving Las Vegas (a relatively more modern telling of a similar depressive tale of the battle with the bottle). It might split the audience - one man's seemingly cosy ending, is another man's rather more ambiguous fade out that uncomfortably comes full circle. Great, with a few softened edges.

Click "READ MORE" below for robo-boxing, gunslingers shooting up aliens, and projectile poo jokes...