In cinemas now!

Three years after Mike bowed out of the stripper life at the top of his game, he and the remaining Kings of Tampa hit the road to Myrtle Beach to put on one last blow-out performance...

In the wake of the rising juggernaut that is the Marvel Cinematic Universe - and comic-book adaptations in general - sequels are increasingly being seen as an inevitability to every successful film to grace the silver screen. Sequels are, for want of a better term, and as Joss Whedon could probably attest, extremely fickle beasts. As such, they are extremely difficult to tame. The expectation is typically to go bigger, bolder, and better. Such is an expectation, as not-so-subtly referenced in the title, that 'Magic Mike XXL' is determined to live up to.

The lights are brighter. The music is louder. And the abs are firmer and infinitely more oiled. 

Quickly bringing the audience up to speed with the developments in the life of the once-magic-but-now-quite-regular Mike (Channing Tatum), returning writer Reid Carolin, and previous producer/incoming director Gregory Jacobs, are swift in setting in traditional road-trip of calamitous mishaps, random encounters, and stripping. Lots and lots and lots of stripping.

Therein lies the film's biggest issue. Equal to the bigger, bolder, better mantra,  the stripping is, whilst not any more risqué, a lot more prevalent. It will no doubt be divisive in its reception, with the majority of people - most likely men - turned off by the more frequent display of male flesh. The semi-nudity, however, isn't so much the issue, paling in comparison to the amount of nudity usually gracing screens both big and small in this day and age. The problem is that the stripping scenes have moved towards being the core of the story. Where, in the first film, Mike was a person first and a stripper second, the reverse feels very much true in this time around. Though the routines are more elaborate, and Channing's dance-moves as technically brilliant as ever, stripping feels almost like the point this time, like the defining characteristic. More often than not, the stripping scenes go on far too long, and grants the interim scenes the task of justifying the bump-and-grind and an unfortunate aura of padding.

Thankfully, the magic still very much lingers within Channing Tatum, navigating his world with an air of effortless panache, maintaining the charm, compassion and wit from the first film. Serving to support, encourage, unite and uplift those around him - be it helping new love interest Zoe (Amber Heard) rediscover her smile, healing old wounds with old-flame Rome (Jada Pinkett Smith), or pushing his fellow "male entertainers" to find their personal bliss at the heart of their performances.

In the absence of Matthew McConaughey's highly-acclaimed and bravura performance as Dallas and without Alex Pettyfer's The Kid serving as an introduction to the world, as well as through the actions of which Mike can reflect upon his own life, the focus of the spotlight is turned more prominently turned onto the rest of the Kings of Tampa...

Receiving more screen-time and dialogue in ten minutes than they probably were blessed with in the entirety of the first film, Big Dick Richie (Joe Manganiello), Tarzan (Kevin Nash), Ken (Matt Bomer), and Tito (Adam Rodriguez) serve as companions on Mike's whistle-stop tour to former glory. It's a change that's as hit-or-miss as their respective dancing abilities. Though all elevated to having distinct personalities, giving voice to hopes and regrets, it doesn't always click as well as intended, often coming so out of the blue that it serves to disrupt the tone rather than add heart to the respective moments. Truly, it's only really Matt Bomer as Ken that manages to provoke a desired level of sympathy from the upgraded supporting roles, as he copes with a loss and tries to channel that energy into something positive.

The more comedic exploits fare much better. Most notably in the case of of Joe Manganiello who, as Richie, is blessed with the majority of the film's most laugh-out-loud lines and moments. As well as delivering no doubt the film's highlight when he attempts to prove that shopping and seduction aren't necessarily mutually exclusive. Portrayed without a shred of true vanity and a carefree attitude, it's impossible not to like and cheer for him.

All in all, the tone of the film is as much a blessing and a curse as the asset for which Richie is infamous. The film sizzles with style and snappy dialogue but very little poignancy and introspection. The film is packed with a lot more wit and humour, and inspired stabs at certain popular franchises, but seems to have subsequently lost the majority of the substance and heart of the original.

If Magic Mike was almost a coming of age tale, then 'Magic Mike XXL' is most definitely a mid-life crisis. But, thankfully, one very much done in well-choreographed, occasionally hilarious, and still thoroughly entertaining style.

Out now!

Let me just start by saying that this film is okay, not great but okay. I realised as I was writing what you are about to read below that I was getting hung up on one element and one character that I think I dislike so much it has tainted every element of the film for me. As a positive thought crept up all I could think about was this glaring fault and even though it is not the main focus of the movie I kept coming back to it. In fact if that problem alone was solved it’s probable that I’d be giving this film a higher rating. Anyway, I’ll explain further in the review proper, I just wanted to make this point here as my review was feeling a little judgemental.

'The Final Haunting' introduces us to Lily (Pearl Chanda), an emotionally disturbed young woman plagued by nightmares that appear to depict some traumatic past experience. She seemingly has no family and her only friend is an elderly blind lady who used to work as a psychic and as we meet her she is advising Lily on how to keep out the evil spirits (dare I say demons?) that plague her dreams.

We’re then dragged into a bizarrely needless plot thread about her meeting Chris (Paris Wharton), a charmingly awkward young man who stumbles around trying to ask her out in the park. The two of them then proceed to clumsily dance around each other and eventually become a couple, but feel free to forget that as it’s basically pointless despite taking forever. I’ll come back to that.

More importantly, Lily is on a job hunt that is not going well until she spots an advert in an agency window for a babysitting job and she jumps at the chance. The job, it transpires, is in a big house in the middle of nowhere where a creepily overly attached mother, Samantha (Bella Heesom), and her frustrated husband, Tom (Josh Burdett), live their bleak unhappy lives. Tom practically drags Samantha out of the house but not before setting out the rules of the job, such as don’t go into the cellar and don’t touch the creepy painting hanging over the stairs, because he seems to be one of the few characters aware that they are in a horror film.

In cinemas now!

It’s enjoyable. It’s good. Fine. Dinosaurs are cool. But what’s wrong with Jurassic Park is what’s wrong with modern cinema. And what’s worse is, it knows it. Dr. Ian Malcolm said it all the way back in 1993: “I’ll tell you the problem with the scientific power that you're using here, it didn't require any discipline to attain it. You read what others had done and you took the next step. You didn't earn the knowledge for yourselves, so you don't take any responsibility for it. You stood on the shoulders of geniuses to accomplish something as fast as you could, and before you even knew what you had, you patented it, and packaged it, and slapped it on a plastic lunchbox, and now you're selling it, you wanna sell it.”

In cinemas June 19th!

Slipping just shy of the ninety-minute mark, 'Natural Resistance' is a far more compact beast, opting to focus more solely on the individual rather than global. Taking the majority of the responsibility upon himself, including operating a handheld camera, and with few in the way of technical flourishes, Jonathon Nossiter has created a film that feels personal and intimate in a way that so few are in this day and age. What the audience receives can, essentially, be described as little more than beautiful, serene images of various Italian vineyards and a collection of conversations.

That is where, unfortunately, the film falters as well as flies. Though already compact, it could have actually benefited from a stricter editing process and a keener eye on the narrative flow. There is a message at the core than serves as both the connective tissue and the driving force, but there is little variety in the ways it can be expressed before it becomes repetitive. Frustratingly, that moment emerges only a little way into the run-time. Nossiter does his best to combat this, making wonderful use of footage from vintage films, no doubt drawing a parallel between the way the corporations hinder the homegrown farmers and the effect Hollywood is increasingly having on independent filmmakers and their work. But, whilst it serves to expand the scope of his ideals and make it relatable to a wider audience, it also has the unmistakable aura of padding, added in order to turn something that could have been expressed in a video-blog or podcast into a film for no other reason than to be a film.

In cinemas June 12th!

As a man who has literally never taken any kind of interest in sports I’m always impressed by a sports movie that can draw me in. I’m not captivated by the spectacle (no, not even of “the beautiful game”), I’m not invested in the world and I don’t care to see how everything works behind the scenes. However, this in no way reflects my choices when it comes to movies and there are powerful stories to be told in the world of sport as there are dull and lifeless ones. If this seem like stalling it’s because 'Shooting for Socrates' sits in that awkward middle ground where I genuinely can’t think of anything all that interesting to say about it.

It’s not so terrible I can bash it or so amazing I can praise it. It was good but all very much made of nothing. Unfortunately, and ultimately this is a fault of the film, I’m keenly aware that this movie wasn’t made for me. If you’re a big football nut then you’ll probably like it. If you’re Irish and interested in a little slice of your culture and history, you’ll probably like it. If you’re Irish, interested in a little slice of your culture and history and you’re a big football nut then maybe this is the greatest movie ever made, I don’t know, but I don’t think you’ll love this movie unless at least some of that is true.

All in all the film feels kind of hollow. The front line that is the streets of Belfast makes for a lot of tense set ups, but nothing really happens. In Brazil despite explicit orders from Billy the squad sneak out for a drink and a bit of late night chicanery, but nothing really happens. Tommy turns ten and his dad fulfils a promise to him that he has been waiting for the whole movie, it’s a sweet moment, but nothing really happens. We have two comic relief characters who sell everything they own to go to Brazil and support the team, but again they don’t really do anything or serve a purpose, so … yeah … nothing really happens.

This film is a whole lot of nothing really happening, we have Campbell joining the team and the lead up to his first ever match for his country, and although he mopes about a bit because he can’t get the managers attention straight away he pretty much fits in and we don’t spend enough time with him to really feel his angst. Even if you don’t know the story in advance it’s clear that he’ll eventually be allowed to play otherwise what’s the point... In addition whilst Ireland in the eighties is a fascinating backdrop for any story the film clearly doesn’t want to be about that and so never commits to any kind of political or philosophical thinking despite how much it insists that it’s making a statement in the third act.

In cinemas May 22nd!

The old-school theme continues when we are brought into the futuristic new world. There is something distinctly evocative of Hanna-Barbera’s 'The Jetsons' in this world, right down to the 1960s Sci-Fi costumes. In fact, when we first step in, there is something almost unnervingly 1960s airport about the whole thing. Casey is welcomed with open arms, everyone seemingly expecting her and so calm and smiley that the majority of the English audience, at least, will find themselves very untrusting of the situation in the way that they are when someone in a supermarket wishes them to “Have a nice day now!”. I’ll be honest, this part grated on me a little. Luckily, there is a reason for this intense cheesiness, as explained later in the film, so it is worth gritting your teeth and sidling past it.

In cinemas now!

After quite a long break from our screens, the Moomins finally return in the form of a feature film. ‘Moomins on the Riviera’ sees Moomin (Russell Tovey), Moominmamma (Tracy Ann Oberman) and Moominpappa (Nathaniel Parker), along with Snorkmaiden and Little My, head off for a sea adventure. Out at sea they are caught in a great storm and lose their way before landing on a desert island, but before long they head back out to sea to try and find their way home. However they instead find themselves landing on the French Riviera, much to Snorkmaiden’s delight. As the family try to adjust to their new surroundings their loyalties and family ties are tested through the glitz and glamour, new friendships, romance, and creating a feeling of home.

In cinema's and available on demand May 1st!

'Born of War' is about Mina, a relatively ordinary girl trying to find her place in college (and ultimately the world) who is suddenly thrust into a desperate fight for her life when her parents are killed by the fanatical cohorts of her true father, a terrorist leader intent on taking down an oil company in his native land, who has only just learnt of Mina’s existence after her mother fled his country over two decades ago. Having escaped capture Mina is taken in by British Intelligence and a plan is formed to lure her father out of hiding using Mina as bait.

Without going into any spoilers the plot gets deeper and more complex than that and if you’re familiar with the genre it’s possible you can already see the various twists coming, but I was genuinely surprised and I like that. 'Born of War' is the second film from rising star (I hate that phrase) Vicky Jewson. Now I am fully familiar with Vicky’s story, I remember all the reports when she started her first film at just eighteen. Being as I am the same age, just a few months separate us, she seemed to be living the dream and was and inspiration to my younger self. Admittedly when it comes to Vicky’s first film, 'Lady Godiva', her age is largely considered the only noteworthy thing about the film, but I’m hesitant to dismiss someone just because they didn’t get it right the first time, it was more than I had managed after all.

This second attempt whilst far from flawless is certainly an improvement and it would appear the action thriller genre is a far more comfortable place for Jewson. Let’s get the politics out of the way, yes this is an action film with a female lead, the tightness of whose catsuit is not the primary selling point, by a female director and no those two things don’t happen nearly enough, in fact I can’t immediately think of another time that combination has actually ever happened. I’m not here to debate sexism, good is good and bad is bad, and whilst there’s certainly something positive to be taken away from this I’m here to talk about the film on it’s own merits.

In cinemas the 24th April in the UK!

In cinemas April 3rd in the UK and available on demand April 13th!
Premieres June 14th at the East End Film Festival!

In cinemas January 23rd!

In cinemas December 25th in the US and January 9th in the UK!

That being said, the characters were all a bit too one dimensional and I would have liked to have seen a bit more depth behind them. Johnny Depp as The Wolf was well characterised but far too playful, I wanted him to be almost frightening and much more of a trickster. The original Grimm Tales stories are almost brutal and I felt that this could have been shown more with his character instead of merely hinted at, as it is throughout most of the film.

However Chris Pine as Prince Charming was a very pleasant surprise. Firstly because I didn’t even know that he could sing, and apparently neither did a lot of people including Rob Marshall! Not only can he sing, but he does so very well and personally the duet between the two princely brothers was my favourite part of the film. It was beautifully shot, well performed, and actually very funny. Although both his character and his brother’s (played by Billy Magnussen) were again very one dimensional it actually worked in their case as they are meant to be shallow. To quote Prince Charming “I was raised to be charming, not sincere.”

Daniel Huttlestone captured Jack perfectly, however I found Mackenzie Mauzy as Rapunzel rather flat. Also while Lilla Crawford sang fabulously at Red Riding Hood, I felt that she didn’t quite capture the essence of her. She opened very strongly when interacting with the Baker and his wife but from then on the character seemed a little too emotionless and deadpan for my liking. All in all it is a good film, but not outstanding. However it still remains one of the best and strongest musical to film adaptations I have ever watched.