Captain Marvel Film Cast Grows

Filming has now officially started on Captain Marvel the 1990s set comic book adventure staring Brie Larson as one of marvel most powerful heroes. The cast was already confirmed to include Ben Mendelsohn, Gemma Chan, McKenna Grace, Jude Law and Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury. Now the cast has been confirmed to also include a number of other familiar faces for fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Clark Gregg will bring Agent Phil Coulson back to the big screen, taking time out from his continuing small screen adventures with Agents of SHIELD. Likewise Guardians of the Galaxy villains Ronan The Accuser (Lee Pace) and Korath The Pursuer (Djimon Hounsou) will also make a welcome return. That news is perhaps less surprising given the fact that the Captain marvel film will focus on the Kree empire and its eons long war with the Skrulls.

Captain Marvel is directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck with a release date of 8th March 2019.

Pacific Rim Uprising Review

The Plot

10 years after the people of earth defeated the giant monster Kaiju with their own towering Jaeger machines, the son of one of the heroes that saved the world finds himself reluctantly brought back into the fight, uniting with a new generation of Jaeger pilots to face a deadly a mysterious new threat.

The Good

John Boyega continues his meteoric rise once again in increasingly comfortable sci-fi fantasy territory. He delivers arguably his most well rounded and charismatic performance to date as roguish Jaeger pilot Jake Pentecost. Sparring well on screen with co-stars Scott Eastwood and Cailee Spaeny, Boyega is genuinely heroic in ways he largely hasn’t been in his very high profile Star Wars role. After The Last Jedi it’s particularly nice to see the young star showcase the full range of his talents as a legitimate leading man, rather than see him stranded in unnecessary subplots.

Fans familiar with the first film will welcome the return of original stars Charlie Day, Burn Gornan and Rinko Kikichi . Their presence and the film’s careful adherence to the distinctive look of Del Toro’s world helps tie the franchise together into a coherent continuation.

Those that found Del Toro’s original film to be occasionally slow moving and more preoccupied with human melodrama than non-stop monster fighting will welcome a sequel that unashamedly focuses on more frequent action. Similar critics of the most recent Godzilla reboot will be pleased to see a film which places the giant monsters and their mechanical fighting partners on full glorious display throughout. Its cartoonish fun but on the grandest scale possible, giving fans exactly what they want, a giant guilty pleasure.

While the film’s plot is at times a little predictable, this is perhaps less of an issue given the heavy focus on fun and action. Uprising is also fairly accessible to those who have yet to see the first film, but many of the subplots and character relationships may require at least a basic knowledge of the first film to fully enjoy.

The Bad

Del Toro’s Pacific Rim was beautifully crafted fun, born out of his own evident passion for the giant monster genre. By contrast this is a sequel seemingly more born out of a studio desire to repeat the modest international box office success of the first film. Del Toro’s original was a largely self-contained story that left audiences with a satisfying and seemingly definitive climax. So this sequel’s efforts to integrate new characters and plot points into the original story feel at times a little forced and distracting.

While John Boyega’s character being the son of Idris Elba’s heroic leader Stacker Pentecost may serve the narrative of this new chapter, it’s awkwardly inconsistent with the fact that he was never referenced in the first film, much of which dwelt so extensively on the relationship between Stacker and his adoptive daughter Mako.

While much of the surviving cast of the first film make a welcome on screen return, it is difficult to ignore the unexplained absence of leading man Charlie Hunnam’s character Raleigh Beckett. Director Steven S. DeKnight apparently made a conscious choice to leave his fate uncertain, keeping options open for his hopeful return in a third film. But it’s another example of a messy loose thread left by attempts to tie the two films together.

While visually the film does a fine job of matching the well-established look of Del Toro’s world,  faster paced action and less memorable monsters does at times give the film a more generic ‘Transformers’ quality. The Kaiju in the new film are far less distinctive and aside from their newfound ability to ‘combine’ (heavily showcase in all film’s promotional material) they offer little to improve on Del Toro’s eccentric creature creations.

The Ugly Truth

Pacific Rim Uprising will be a welcomed treat for fans of the original film who were left eager for more giant monster sized fun. Uprising boasts a talent young cast alongside it’s scattering of familiar faces, eagerly injecting fresh life into the potential franchise. Overall Uprising does a fine job of replicating Del Toro’s impressive visuals while adapting the franchise into something perhaps more widely appealing for generic blockbuster crowds.

Review by Russell Nelson

Killing Gunther Review

The Plot

An assassin assembles a madcap team of killers with the purpose of taking out the world’s most elusive and notorious hitman ‘Gunther’, allowing him to take his place as the world’s best killer and settle a personal score in the process. In order to ensure they have proof of their accomplishment the team force a documentary crew to follow them at all times. But things don’t quite go to plan as the cameras keep rolling.

The Good

Killing Gunther follows the well-established mockumentary template, following a team of delusional and inept killers on an increasingly disastrous series of misadventures. While much of what happens is equally predicable and silly, there’s certainly no lack of screwball enthusiasm from the cast.

Writer, director and leading man Taram Killam clearly has passion for the project. His performance as chain smoking hitman Blake lurches violently between cool guy swagger and pathetic, with fairly amusing consequence. The film is populated by a fairly familiar host of villainous assassins with an eager cast doing their best to work frequent laughs out of their murderous misfortunes.

If you enjoyed John Cusack and Dan Aykroyd’s 90’s hitman caper Grosse Pointe Blank then it’s a fairly good indicator that you’ll enjoy the silly macabre tone of Killing Gunther. It’s easy to see how Killam’s emotionally fragile smartly dressed hitman, pining over his ex-girlfriend while doing battle with rival killers may well have been directly inspired by Cusack’s memorable performance.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is the kind of iconic big screen star that can elevate any film instantly into something far more entertaining and fun than it really has any right to be. While his recent work has veered in more serious and subtle directions since his return to acting, fans will welcome seeing him cut loose in a bonkers comedy role for a change. Whether he’s butchering country and western music or shamelessly parading famous one liners and silly outfits,  he’s clearly having plenty of fun. Even if it is mostly at his own expense.

The Bad

Arnold Schwarzenegger fans may feel disappointed that while the action megastar does play the titular ‘Gunther’, his actual presence on screen is limited to such an extent that it almost amounts to just an ‘extended cameo’. In addition to being noticeably brief it’s also arguably one of Schwarzenegger’s most unashamedly silly performances, quite a feat in a career that has included playing a pregnant man. While some will enjoy this performance as self-aware comedy gold others might make the case it’s just authentically awful. Either way it’s certainly not the triumphant action hero return many fans are forlornly yearning for.

Aside from Schwarzenegger’s odd turn the film goes through the motions of a fairly generic mockumentary. By now audiences may be a little overly familiar with the predictable punchlines and the film never rises to the high standards of memorable cult classics like Spinal Tap or Drop Dead Gorgeous. The film lacks the quotable genius and quirky originality of those films, even if it does have more splashes of action mayhem.

The Ugly Truth

Killing Gunther should appeal to fans of screwball black comedy and dedicated Arnie addicts. Schwarzenegger’s unashamedly self-deprecating turn and healthy bursts of black comedy keep this cinematic oddity watchable. An undeniably acquired taste with an evidently modest budget, Killing Gunther is the epitome of quirky cult filmmaking.

Review by Russell Nelson

BAFTA Games Awards 2018 Nominations

Into Film Awards 2018 Winners

Young filmmakers from across the UK were recognised today as film education charity Into Film announced the recipients of its 4^thannual Into Film Awards.  The Awards pay tribute to outstanding 5 – 19 year olds from across the UK who have demonstrated exceptional achievements in filmmaking and film reviewing. Hosted by Into Film and supported by the BFI through National Lottery funding, the young filmmakers were honoured at a star-studded red-carpet ceremony at BFI Southbank.

Hundreds of young people from across the UK submitted their own short films and film reviews to be considered in the Awards, with nominations exploring a wide range of themes and issues including bullying, history, and immigration. The short films were created and produced by young people as individuals or as part of a wider group in schools, colleges or youth groups.  The non-filmmaking categories – the film clubs of the year, reviewers of the year and teacher of the year – recognised creative use of film as an educational tool in school.

Winners hail from across the UK, with young people from Wales, North Yorkshire, Devon, Scotland, Northumberland, Bradford, Northern Ireland and London being recognised for their achievements, encouraging them towards the development of their learning and future film careers. Finally, as voted by the young  reader’s of First News, the beloved bear from Peru scooped the First News’ Best Family Film of the Year Award for Paddington 2.

The Awards not only highlight the creative talents of young people across the UK, but also aim to re-address the gender and diversity balance within the film industry by activity seeking and encouraging young people from all backgrounds to immerse themselves in film and filmmaking, opening the door for a more diverse pool of talent to seek careers within the film industry.  Among the winners were two all-female groups of filmmakers – Swyn and Still Life, where the participants undertook a range of roles including director, producers, editors, screenwriters, cinematographers and costume designers.

The 2018 Into Film Awards winners are:

Best Live Action by 12s and Under, sponsored by Sony Pictures Entertainment - Presented by Gemma Arterton

Swyn - Dyffryn Nantlle Film Club, Gwynedd, Wales.

Best Live Action by 13s and Over, sponsored by Cineworld Cinemas - Presented by Martin Freeman

The Heart of the City - Adam – Westminster, London

Best Animation by 12s and Under, sponsored by Disney - Presented by Kevin Guthrie & Alexa Davies

The Great Escape by Willowmann Producations / Braunston Primary School.

Best Animation by 13s and Over, sponsored by Mr and Mrs Meyer - Presented by Georgina Campbell & Rosie Day

Ashta and the Dragon – Jude Rogers, age 13 from London.

Best Documentary, sponsored by Paramount Pictures - Presented by Susan Wokoma & Craig Roberts

Still Life - Amy, Rowan, Freya, Rebecca - Northumberland

Club of the Year – 12 and Under, sponsored by Warner Brothers Creative Talent - Presented by Katie Leung & Fionn O’Shea

Horton Park Primary School – Bradford, West Yorkshire

Club of the Year – 13 and Over, sponsored by United Agents - Presented by Will Poulter & Gwendoline Christie

Coleg Sir Gar – Camarthenshire, Wales

Educator of the Year, sponsored by Working Title Films - Presented by Justine Simons OBE & Tom Davis

Suzanne Cohen - Camden Summer University, London

Ones to Watch sponsored by EON Productions - Presented by George MacKay & Hermione Corfield

Krizzah Policarpio (17) from Belfast who was nominated by her teacher, Tracy Rossborough, for her directing, scriptwriting, camera work, editing, film reviewing, and film reporting
Ryan Ogden (18) from Tyne and Wear, who was nominated by teacher Daniel Clifford for his directing, scriptwriting, camera work, editing, and film reviewing
Emily Fisher (16) from Northamptonshire, who was nominated by her teacher Paul Balmer for her superlative skills behind the camera.

Review of the Year, sponsored by IMDb  - Presented by Rhianna Dhillon & Tomiwa Edun

Spirited Away by Fletcher, aged 10, from Fairview Primary in Gillingham

Best Family Film of the Year, in association with First News - Presented by Kevin Barron MP & Emily Berrington

Paddington 2