Superhero

BIRDS OF PREY (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)

Cert 15 Stars 4

Girl power is given a badass makeover in this freewheeling foul-mouthed superhero action comedy, whose double identity is as a raucous relationship breakup party for the social media generation.

Led by Margot Robbie’s gloriously anarchic Harley Quinn, it sees a flock of assorted women, such as Ella Jay Basco’s young pickpocket, Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s vigilante, Rosie Perez’s cop and Jurnee Smollett-Bell’s super-powered nightclub singer, in pursuit of a missing mafia diamond.

Harley Quinn was first introduced in 2016’s mostly rubbish but wildly successful super-villain adventure, Suicide Squad, but as its standout character, fully deserves this stand-alone spin-off romp.

The now ex-girlfriend of Batman’s arch enemy, the Joker, a heartbroken Harley is struggling to embrace independence and recognise her own self-worth.

The film takes place in an alternative timeline to Joaquin’s Phoenix’s BAFTA-winning and Oscar-nominated version of Joker, and the clown prince of crime is only very briefly glimpsed.

Without the Joker’s protection Harley is now a target for Gotham City’s underworld, not least Ewan McGregor’s enjoyably camp master criminal, Black Mask, who also wants the diamond.

Robbie is a blast as she pours heart, soul and in-your-face attitude into her character, creating a brilliantly spontaneous and irrepressible modern update on Marilyn Monroe’s sweet and sexy screen persona, complete with a nightmarish spin on her famous song and dance number, ‘Diamonds Are A Girl’s Best Friend.

Harley talks directly to the camera as the story flashbacks and zips forward, with director Cathy Yan throwing out the leering camerawork of Suicide Squad in favour of a hyperactive grab-bag of graphics and fun-filled acrobatic action, including a breathless and brilliant rollerskating finale.

Yan and Robbie dress the thin plot as a ‘this is my life’ Youtube-style confessional video, albeit one with Hollywood production values, and once you’ve adjusted to the manic tone and the story kicks in, there’s a lot of fun to be had.

Imagine an alternative Spice Girls movie, but one bursting with the character and charisma of talented performers at the top of their game and a far superior soundtrack.

Funny, irreverent, violent, trashy and a celebration of sisterhood with an unmissable message of female empowerment, it’s an irresistible rainbow riot of popcorn fun.

SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME

Cert 12A 129mins Stars 4

You won’t believe what you’re seeing in this comic book action adventure as Spider-man hits the high spots in a deliciously deceptive head-spinning romp.

A direct sequel to blockbuster smash, Avengers: Endgame, this is a mischievous mix of sweet high school romcom, fun teenage spy caper and exciting superhero CGI spectacular.

Peter Parker is in romantic pursuit of classmate MJ, on their school’s European vacation, when his costumed alter-ego Spider-man learns heroes don’t get holidays. 

Grumpy secret agent Nick Fury teams Spider-man with superhero Mysterio, which will be a surprise to long-time Spidey fans as Mysterio is one of the web-swinger’s best known arch-villains.

But re-inventing Mysterio as a dimension-hopping hero with a tragic past makes him a more interesting character while also tying this version of Spider-man into last year’s animated Multi-verse adventure.

Parker identifies Mysterio as the man to replace Iron Man as his mentor, and they set about battling the Elementals, extra-dimensional giants with power over air, earth, wind and fire.

Returning with a winning chemistry as Peter Parker and MJ, Brit actor Tom Holland and pop star Zendaya are the beating heart of the film, with her self-contained charisma making MJ the best superhero squeeze since Margot Kidder’s Lois Lane, in 1978’s Superman.

And they’re reunited with the key young cast members of Spider-man: Homecoming, and Marvel fan favourites such as Samuel L. Jackson, Jon Favreau and Marisa Tomei reprise their roles as the adult guardians.

Indie movie star Jake Gyllenhaal brings his unique brand of loopy intensity to Mysterio, and while he often gives the impression of a man with the weight of the world on his shoulders, it’s a useful quality to have when playing a guy trying to save the planet.

Having Parker unveil various old and new Spider-suits is part of a stream of call-backs to previous films, which will have fans cooing in delight.

Plus a pair of fat-rimmed hi-tech spectacles are a knowing wink to Michael Caine’s 1960’s spy, Harry Palmer, and neatly magnify the script’s central concerns.

While the film wears the frothy air of an espionage caper, the tone disguises some very serious thoughts about fake news and multi-media manipulation, while reminding us Parker was employed in other incarnations as a photojournalist.

From dealing with the fallout of Endgame to deciphering what Marvel has in store for Spider-man, there’s a lot to uncover in this, and one of the best secrets is kept until after the credits, so make sure you stay until the absolute end.

SHAZAM!

Cert 12A Stars 4

Magic and monsters cause mayhem in this terrific crowd pleasing superhero romp which doubles as a body swap comedy. 

This confident seventh instalment in the increasingly lighthearted, bright and colourful, DC Extended Universe, takes place in same world as the recent billion dollar success, Aquaman, but don’t hold your breath waiting for the king of Atlantis to turn up.

Billy is a teenage orphan who while searching for his mother, finds himself endowed with extraordinary powers and unlooked for responsibility.

Following an encounter with a wizard, whenever Billy says the magic word, ‘Shazam’, he’s magically transformed into an adult superhero, with strength, speed and the ability to shoot electric bolts from his fingertips.

Asher Angel is fresh faced and likeable as 14 year old Billy, with an exuberantly gleeful and goofy Zachary Levi, as his super-powered alter ego.

The script owes a lot to Tom Hanks’ 1988 comedy, Big, and pays homage to it during a fight in a department store, while the films energy has the wide-eyed excitable tone of 1980’s kid caper, The Goonies.

As Billy learns to control his powers, the warm family dynamic of his diverse foster family provides an strong emotional grounding. It’s here we meet Faithe Herman, as Billy’s new sister, a delightful pocket-sized scene stealer who’ll win your heart with her charm and humour.

Packed with jokes, this is funnier than Deadpool and has more laughs than Kick Ass, plus it’s also much kinder and far more appropriate for a family audience.

Brit actor Mark Strong played the bad guy in Kick Ass, and appears here as a super-villain who’s hunting Shazam to steal his powers, and is involved in all the flashy CGI action such as magic realms, scary demons, and mid-air fights.

Yet Shazam!’s greatest strength is knowing superheroes were created as a wish fulfilment fantasy for lonely adolescents, and is all the more enjoyable for putting them centre stage.

BLACK PANTHER

Cert 12A 134mins Stars 4

Marvel studios aren’t pussyfooting around with this big beast superhero adventure.

First seen in 2015’s Captain America: Civil War, Chadwick Boseman returns as Prince T’Challa A.K.A. Black Panther.

Back in his African homeland of Wakanda to inherit his father’s throne, T’Challa’s enhanced physical abilities and meteorite-powered suit are of little use against a political coup.

Full of trademark humour this is a typically action packed blockbuster. What separates this from its comic book stablemates is its sweeping multi-generational family saga played out on gorgeous plains of Africa.

Bright bold colours dominate the African influenced design, the soundtrack is tribal and local languages are used, all combining to create an environment unique in the Marvel universe.

Providing African American cast and crew a major Hollywood movie as a stage to strut their stuff is a huge roar for equality and demonstrates the extraordinary depth of talent available.

Among the cast are Oscar winners Lupita Nyong’o and Forest Whitaker, plus Brit nominated Daniel Kaluuya appears in a key role. Though it’s young Letitia Wright who steals the film.

Ryan Coogler previously directed 2015’s excellent Rocky sequel, Creed. Michael B. Jordan had the starring role there and brings his muscular swagger here as the villainous Killmonger.

Similarly to the Amazons of Wonder Woman, the women are warriors, but also scientists, and are frequently funnier than the men.

There are witty riffs on Disney’s Lion King. While an early interlude in a South Korean featuring a casino and a car chase cheekily presents T’Challa as a James Bond figure, which is sure to wind up the 007 purists.

And it politically unambiguous with Wakanda being a progressive vision of Africa, wealthy, independent, strong and united.

Unlike the recent reboot of Spider-man who had Robert Downey. Jnr’s mega popular Iron Man popping by to boost audience figures, Black Panther has to go it alone.

But this cool cat more than earns his stripes.

JUSTICE LEAGUE

Cert 12A 120mins Stars 4

Wonder Woman whips the boys into heroes in this epic and action packed comic book spectacular.

Fresh from her own blockbuster success, the Amazonian Princess joins Ben Affleck’s Batman in recruiting The Flash, Cyborg and Aquaman to save the world.

Despited differing degrees of reluctance, they don’t stand a chance under the onslaught of Gal Gadot’s charm offensive. As  the lasso of truth-wielding Wonder Woman, the actress is the team’s most valuable player with Ezra Miller running her a close second, as The Flash.

This superior final part to Henry Cavill’s Superman trilogy follows on from last year’s overlong and doom laden Batman Versus Superman, which saw the death of the Man of Steel.

As the world mourns and turns to hopeless violence, a large horned monster descends at the head of an army of flying man-sized insectoid warriors.

Voiced by Ciaran Hinds, Steppenwolf is intent on seizing ancient three cuboid power sources with which he plans to destroy the Earth.

Picking up speed after a clunky opening, there’s a reduction in the series’ grim bombastic mood and overrides it with plenty of optimism and a greater sense of fun. There’s a change on emphasis from tortured martyrdom to a more crowd pleasing and uplifting tone.

Despite production difficulties a consistent vision has been adhered to throughout the three films. Characters have developed and matured, ideas of duty and sacrifice have been explored, and it goes out with a bang.

Always visually spectacular, the dark palette of previous films is punched up with colour, while John Williams’ famous original 1978 Superman score is sampled. It sends tingles down the spine, and signals a new dawn for truth and justice.

In this determinedly inclusive adventure unity is urged at every opportunity, however Wonder Woman is the star of the show and very much remains in a league of her own.

 

THOR: RAGNAROK

Cert 12A 130mins Stars 3

Gods and monsters battle for interstellar supremacy in the latest Marvel superhero adventure.

It’s a rainbow coloured bridge connecting the Earth-bound adventures of Marvel’s Avengers, to the sci-fi comedy of their Guardians of the Galaxy movies. 

Chris Hemsworth has previously played Thor endearingly dim. But here the Norse God of Thunder is disappointingly transformed into a generic action hero. He’s shorn of his blonde locks, is relieved of his trademark magic hammer and is noticeably more clever than before.

Thor continues his established rivalry with The Incredible Hulk, with the pair forced into gladiatorial combat an alien planet.

It’s ruled by Jeff Goldblum’s gangster, meanwhile Cate Blanchett sports goth fetish chic as the goddess of death, and Tom Hiddleston reprises his role as Thor’s half-brother Loki.

There’s are a stream of blink-and-you’ll-miss-them cameos, infantile bickering and a juvenile delight in swearing.

Marvel fans will love the endless in-jokes and there’s sufficient CGI action to keep casual viewers reasonably entertained.

 

 

SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING

Cert 12A 133mins Stars 4

Marvel’s most popular superhero swings to ever greater heights in this wildly entertaining reboot.

Despite being the sixth Spider-Man film since 2002 and featuring yet another actor under the mask, this exuberant blast of summer fun is the best ever Spider-Man film.

Winningly confident, exciting and funny, it’s a web of wisecracks, stunts, and special effects, and is strung together by the gleeful performance of Brit actor, Tom Holland. 

Having developed super powers by being bitten by a radioactive spider, Peter Parker is a high school nerd by day and Spider-Man at night. He fearlessly confronts criminals yet is intimidated by the father of his date to the Homecoming prom.

Meanwhile Michael Keaton has a lot of fun as a super villain called The Vulture, much more than the actor ever did as Tim Burton’s Batman, back in – gulp – 1989.

The bad guy flies a set of mechanical wings created from the remnants of the alien attack on Earth seen in Marvel’s Avenger’s Assemble, back in 2012.

The script is faithful to the spirit of the comic but never slavish in attention to detail and gives a contemporary take on the character. It’s all the better for being happy to introduce key characters late on, or dispense with them entirely.

The tone owes a huge amount to the giddy vitality of the 1980’s teen films of John Hughes, most notably Ferris Bueller’s Day Off which is clearly referenced.

 

Sony have long owned the Spider-Man film rights but not the rights to other heroes in the Marvel universe. This co-production with Marvel Studios is a ‘Homecoming’ for Spider-Man as it allows him to become integrated into the adventures of other Marvel heroes such as Captain America and Iron Man.

This gives the web slinger a much needed fresh set of legs, and that of course is a whole lot of legs.

THE MUMMY (2017)

Cert 15 110mins Stars 1

This big budget action adventure lumbers into cinemas and begs to be put out of its torment. Long before it ended, so did I.

Though the world is threatened when an ancient terror is unleashed, a directorial dead hand can’t muster a sense of fun, danger, mystery or suspense.

It’s only brought to a semblance of life by the spark of Brit actress Annabelle Wallis and the dogged determination of Tom Cruise.

He stars as Nick Morton, an impish US soldier and blackmarketeer who is cursed when he opens a tomb in the Iraqi desert.

To save himself he must reunite a ceremonial dagger with a jewel discovered in a London grave.

He’s accompanied by a shouty, face slapping Egyptologist called Jenny, played by Wallis.

They stagger through a script which exhumes the dead bits of better movies and wraps them up in murky CGI.

Aeroplane and underwater stunts are airlifted in from Cruise’s last Mission Impossible film. And scenes from An American Werewolf in London are humourlessly reanimated.

Meanwhile a resurrected Egyptian mummy wants the knife to rule the world, or something.

Algerian dancer Sofia Boutella spends her time either chained in rags or parading across the desert in the style of a 1980’s Turkish Delight advert.

This stumbling mess is intended to be a franchise starter for Universal Studio’s Dark Universe. It’s a series of connected films rebooting classic movie monsters such as the Wolfman.

So our heroes also encounter Russell Crowe’s Dr. Jekyll, lurking in a lair of Bond villain extravagance.

Years of good living hang heavy on the 53 year old Crowe and he makes the 54 year old Cruise seem even more remarkably well preserved.

Next year we’ll have a new version of The Bride of Frankenstein and Johnny Depp has been announced as the Invisible Man.

After this dull horror show, that’s a truly terrifying prospect.

WONDER WOMAN

Cert 12A 140mins Stars 4

A super powered supermodel breaks the hero mould in this thrilling, involving and funny action spectacular.

Glamazon Israeli actress Gal Gadot is undeniably kick ass as the Amazon warrior princess. And she impresses in quieter scenes as her civilian alter ego Diana Prince. In these she’s an endearing mix of Julia Robert’s Pretty Woman and Christopher Reeves’ Clarke Kent.

Gadot benefits enormously by being paired with Chris Pine as ace spy and airman, Steve Trevor. Best known as Star Trek’s Captain Kirk, Pine’s gift for romantic comedy is astutely deployed in a hand holding role to aid the less experienced actress.

Leaving her home of Paradise Island to fight on the Belgian front, Wonder Woman seeks to kill the legendary Aries. Diana holds the ancient greek god of war responsible for the mass carnage and believes he’s taken the form of Danny Huston’s German general, Ludendorff.

There is hope and optimism as the old fashioned values of sacrifice, courage and duty are dressed up in state of art CGI.

A long way from the daft TV series starring Lynda Carter, this Wonder Woman is strong, smart and sexy. As one character says of her ‘I’m both frightened and aroused’.

From Supergirl to Catwoman female superhero films have been terrible. After fifteen super successful films starring various masked heroes, Marvel have no plans to make one.

This is despite their having the globally popular actress Scarlett Johansson playing a more significant character, the Black Widow, and even giving Ant-Man his own movie.

Meanwhile lead by the anguished Henry Cavill as Superman, the DC comics film adaptations have been overly long, dark and dull.

Director Patty Jenkins blows all this away with a fabulous mix of epic fantasy, wartime romance and screwball comedy.

Easily the best DC superhero film since Christian Bale hung up his Batman cowl, this woman is a downright wonder.

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY: VOL 2

Cert 12A 135mins Stars 4

Brace yourself for cinematic hyper-speed as Marvel’s bickering band of galactic outlaws return in another loony tunes outer-space adventure.

Once again the inadvertent heroes have to save the universe, this time from a celestial being who wants to recreate  all life in his own image. 

The Guardian’s first adventure in 2014 was a £600 million box office supernova, and this one is bigger, brighter and funnier.

Although it is set in the same universe as Spider-Man, Iron Man, the Hulk and the rest of Marvel’s team, there are only fleeting references to it. This gives it a stronger identity than most of their comic book adaptations.

Chris Pratt is the nominal star but is comprehensively outshone by pretty much all of the crowded cast.

He plays the super cocky half human halfwit Star-Lord, the leader of the pack. Sharing considerable screen time with the charismatic Kurt Russell, Pratt wilts in the heat of the veteran’s screen presence.

But even the scene stealing Russell can’t compete with the Baby Groot, an adorably cute animated stick creature, voiced by Vin Diesel. 

The laid back freewheeling groove disguises a remarkably smooth and accomplished ride, of dazzling sophisticated design, and an eye bending sense of scale.

Space battles riff on 1970’s Atari video games and are set to another soundtrack of 1970’s pop hits. It’s a trippy experience in 3D.

With a multi-coloured cast engaged in cartoon action and a laboured emphasis on friendship and family, The Guardians are clearly racing with the Fast and Furious franchise juggernaut to be box office champ. 

Fully clothed, covered in paint and half robotic, Karen Gillan and Zoe Saldana prove to its competitor, films don’t have to rely on upskirt shots to be sexy. 

Almost needy in it’s desire to entertain, this is a rocket-fuelled psychedelic roller coaster of cosmic fun.