Espontaneo Reviews

Punisher: War Zone (2008)

Righteous Trash!

[7/10 · 22 March 2009]

Jam packed with ridiculously over the top violence and hammy villains, this film is really enjoyable, though not for those lacking a sense of humour or a love of trashy movies.

With tongue planted firmly in cheek the plot takes a back seat as a simple tale of revenge plays out in the most violent way possible. The film sets out it's stall from the opening blood bath where Frank takes out an entire mob family as they sit down for dinner. Heads are sliced off, necks are broken and chair legs are rammed in eye sockets! Ray Stevenson is perfectly cast as the Punisher and Dominic West chews the scenery as enjoyably over the top comic villain "Jigsaw." Though not a particular fan of the comics it is clear that this is much more true to them than the previous efforts. Characters are drawn with simple broad strokes and the dialogue is cheesy and efficient. The Punisher isn't the conflicted one we see in the 2004 film. Here he is a remorseless killing machine smiting the wicked with barely a blink. The excellent lighting and cinematography with its palette of bright neon against rich blacks effortlessly give the film the look of the comics without being self consciously over the top about it.

Turn off your brain and spend a couple of hours with Frank. It's righteous trash!

The Chronicles of Riddick (2004)

Riddick should have shived this before release.

[28 November 2008]

Pitch black was a refreshingly decent sci-fi hit, mixing some solid characters into a simple, elegant setup. It seemed to set in a gritty downtrodden universe, all jumpsuits and corporate logos. A rusty, used placed with harsh environments and dangerous individuals. Well apparently not, Riddick occupies a universe full of preening, cheesy, armoured Nazis, stomping around in over-sized plasticy suits. Hey and they are called "necromongers" just in case their permanent scowls don't give away dat dey r da baddies.

Beyond that what you have is a sub-par fantasy special effects vehicle for a neutered character. The whole fantasy silliness of it, the simplistic depiction of good and evil, along with the supposedly epic scale of the film destroys the ambiguity that made Riddick such a well realised character in Pitch Black.

The film also boasts plasticy sets, stiff performances and a dire script. To top it all we are asked to swallow Judy Dench as some kind of daft Elemental type dealy floating around like some kind of ghostly space hippy! Muh?! **

The Good German (2006)

40's Movie styling does not a thriller make.

[5/10 · 12 February 2007]

Soderbergh continues to experiment, but as with Solaris, it just doesn't pay off.

Its clear that from the off that Soderbergh has set himself a strict mandate for this film, make it as much like a forties movie as possible. The music, the acting style, the lighting, the process shots and background paintings all give it a great look and feel.

However, everything is so low key and downbeat that it fails to deliver any suspense or menace. What is essentially a modern thriller dressed as classic noir just isn't thrilling. The plot twist and turns but the drama is never heightened, the pace never seems to increase, it just plods along to its conclusion.

Apart from the sex and swearing, the actors seem straight jacketed into their roles by the 40's styling seemingly because the script lacks any of the dry wit and charm you'd find in a genuine movie of this era. George Clooney for example has every little to do, his character has none of the snappy dialog you'd expect, given his Marlowe-esquire role in the plot. Soderbergh compounds matters by drawing an unfortunate comparison with Bogart. Though generally the acting was of the high quality you'd expect from such a sterling cast, it's difficult to empathise with their characters plights given the lack of suspense or melodrama.

Overall the experiment fails to deliver anything other than a beautifully shot but unengaging film.

Very disappointing.

Hardware (1990)

Cult Classic!

[3 January 2004]

This is clearly one of those films that divides people, but I love it. Its a cult classic and an excellent example of how to make a really interesting and entertaining movie with zero budget. Its also the kind of film that just isn't made anymore, a stylish and original low budget science fiction flick with obvious intelligence behind it and atmosphere by the sack load. I give it solid 8 out of 10. Plus 9 out of 10 for the soundtrack which features Public Image and Ministry among others.

Demons (1985)

Over-Hyped Horror Trashtacular.

[4/10 · 28 July 2003]

I had heard alot about this film and having finally tracked it down was most dissapointed with what I found.

The initial concept is a good one, a film within a film dealy, which causes demons to infest a cinema full of bad actors.

The execution is sadly lacking however, after a promising start it quickly descends into a string of pointless gory scenes with absolutely no suspense whatsoever. Eyes are gouged, scalps are ripped off and boils burst forth green goo. But the imagination is strickly limited to bizarre deaths and little else. The dialogue is atrociously bad (even for a trashy horror) and the final climatic katana wielding demon massacre is unintentionally hilarious. The film contains one genuinely good visual moment which unsuprisingly is the shot featured on the cover and posters displayed here but thats as far as it goes.

Its hard to see what this film had to offer well after the likes of "Night of the Living Dead" or the "Evil Dead" apart from a couple of poorly edited and drably shot gore sequences.

Its derivative and drab, only appealling to the kinds of goofy horror fans who are more interested in modes of death than genuine thrills and movie craftmanship.

4 out of 10