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GrimNirTheGreyGod
Reviews
The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones (2013)
Brilliant film - do not compare it with others it stands alone.
First of all too the dissenters:-
THIS FILM BARES NO Resemblance TO TWIGHLIGHT - ITS NOT SUPPOSED TOO, WAS NEVER INTENDED TO DO SO AND IS A BRILLIANT FILM THAT STANDS ALONE ON ITS OWN MERIT- Just because they are based in the same genre people compare them, but its like comparing News Night with Bugs Bunny. Twighlight was intended as a romance novel but set in a world with vampires to make it an impossible love, sigh swoon, hmmm. Mortal Instruements was intended as an action fantasy novel which happened to have a romantic interest which could be subtly twisted to add to the plot.
And to those who decry that its not a true representation of how they pictured it whilst reading the book. Get over yourselves. Books can explore and vocalise characters thoughts and feelings, they are not restricted by the law of physics or possibility and they have greater depth and length. Its almost impossible to fit in every aspect of a decent sized book unless the movie lasts 6-12 hours plus. You can not vocalise every characters thoughts and feelings in a film, and there are loads of other problems too. Not least budget and believability. Its always the fans of fantasy fiction or comic books that get so worked up on the minuscules that they fail to appreciate a decent movie. Look at the Bourne movies, apart from parts of the first one they didn't bother to attempt to follow the plots of their namesake books yet people managed to appreciate both the books and the movies.
Saying that this is a decent representation of the book and I enjoyed both book and film equally.
THE REVIEW
This is a young adults fantasy action book so the stars are young, however the acting was of a very high standard. All the actors managed to portray a depth of character, that was both compelling and believable. They drew you into the film and plot and kept you riveted. The acting was then complimented with awesome special effects that blended seamlessly into the movie. The demons where excellently crafted, scary and threatening enough to add the edge of danger to the action scenes without overwhelming the scene. Jamie Campbell Bower may have a slight physique but he was able to pull off the wiry, agile, fast, action hero competently and believably, and complimented Lily Collins character exceptionally well. The chemistry was there. The supporting cast's performance was also of a high standard which really made this film stand out as an all time great film.
The film starts out with Lily Collins character being a normal teenage girl who gets quickly and violently pulled into a darker world where all the night mares and scary stories are really true. At the same time it sets up the back story, the plot and outlines the new world she has been drawn into. But it manages too do this in a compelling fashion. Its not just a boring info dump that you have too endure until you get to the move proper. It compliments and balances the rest of the movie. Something that a lot of other movies fail to do. The Action increases as the film progresses, and although its really impressive action scenes, (which maybe could have been drawn out bit longer for those of us addicted to high octane action) they do not overwhelm the plot or the character development. There are lulls between action scenes that drive character development and clarify plot points but do so naturally, nothing feels forced, faked or rushed, whilst still maintaining an edge of urgency.
The Script writer was an absolute genius. There are some action films that deliberately set up a one liner, a humorous quip for the audiences amusement and pleasure but often do so by crow barring it into the scene, with no attempt at subtlety. Whilst this movie lacks the classic one liner in the conventional sense, it did however contain numerous memorable and humorous lines that are instantly quotable. The word by play between the good guys was often funny, cheeky, and very compelling, but it also felt natural and heartfelt.
I could find only one fault with this film, and that was when I left the theatre I was instantly depressed because I have to wait for the next film to be made before I can watch it.
Do not miss this film, it is simply one of the all time greats.
Total Recall (2012)
Brilliant action film with major plot holes
This film is an action fans wet dream. It steams from action scene to action scene with a small pause for dialogue and plot. There's many will say this is a bad thing but not me. I hate long drawn out rhetoric in an action film. So if you like action in your action films you will love this.
If your looking for an up dated version of Arnie's Total Recall then you will be disappointed, but then what would be the point of seeing the exact same film again just with new characters? It needed to pay homage, but also be a little bit unique and new. This managers that with ease.
There's no Mars in this one. Its set in a future where much of the world is uninhabitable and there's really just the United Kingdom and Australia (The colony's) left. Travel between the two just takes 17 minutes by falling through a hole that travels through the centre of the earth. Which features as a major plot point.
The acting's OK by Farrell and Beil and they both give a good strong action performance, however the true star is Kate Beckinsale's role as his fake wife then ardent nemesis. Kate show's she's best in the full on action roles and is totally believable as a hard as nails kick ass ruthless pursuer. She's absolutely brilliant in every scene she's in. From the ambiguous but memorable line "I give good wife", to her die hard relentless attempts to kill Farrell she is definitely the true star of this movie. I definitely want to see her in more action movies.
From the point of keeping you thrilled, this film scores 10 out of ten, from an acting view point I give Beckinsale 10/10 and the others 8/10. The CGI is definitely 10/10 even if the first scenes are so very reminiscent of blade runner. The action, stunts and fight scenes are well above a 10/10 rating. In short this would be a perfect film if not for some silly plot holes.
Now here's where the plot gets a bit silly. Douglas Quaid (Colin Farrell) lives in the UK travels by "the fall" to work in the colonies, where he's building synthetic soldiers that will be transported back to the UK to eventually use to invade the colonies, via the fall. There are terrorists who feel the fall generates second class citizens but no explanation why. UK owns the colonies, who are trying for independence, but are still owned by the UK, so why does the UK need to invade it? Quaid as Hauser has supposedly seen a kill code for the synthetic soldiers, if so why when he was first turned didn't he give it too the resistance. In this version he wasn't a pretend double agent he genuinely changed sides so why didn't he give it then? And as everyone seems to have recall technology why can only the leader of the resistance Matthias (Bill Nighy) get at it? Why endanger him? If anything Matthais roles seems to have been forced into the script from the original, but doesn't actually fit in this versions plot or premise. The the final annoying glaringly obvious plot hole. When the UK invades the colonies they load all their troops into the fall device and fall through the earth. The colonies know the invasion is coming through the fall we see news casts and alerts to the citizens warning them of the imminent invasion. So if they know its coming via the fall why not simply drop a bomb down the hole? Instantly kill the complete army and even block the only means of invasion ensuring their safety? Its so obvious its ridiculous.
Its this plot failure that makes me mark the overall film down to just 7/10. But if you don't care about that and just want an all action fun movie then this is definitely a must see film.