The Devil Inside

My interest in The Devil Inside was non existent until a free ticket came my way and low and then behold I was the first person to arrive.

PLOT: Isabella Rossi’s (Fernanda Andrade) mother Maria (Suzan Crowley) committed three violent murders and is mysteriously incarcerated in a psychiatric institution inside the walls of the Vatican City. Isabella waits twenty years and then travels to Italy in an attempt to have her mother transferred back to the United States. When Isabella gets there she discovers, with the help of two rogue priests, that her mother has been possessed by not one but four demons. The Priests (Simon Quarterman and Evan Helmuth) attempt to perform an exorcism which has deadly consequences for all involved. END PLOT

The Devil Inside opens with the disclaimer that members of the clergy do not endorse this film or agree with the contents. I was glad this was cleared up because lord knows the Roman Catholic Church gets itself into enough trouble with wayward priests and we wouldn’t want to add any more fuel to that fire.

The script boldly emphasised just how involved the Vatican could be in exorcisms when it is in the notion but then the scriptwriters decided not to pursue the matter any further and rather abruptly ended the film. The Devil Inside ended on a dramatic car crash on route to Father Gallo’s house and the mystery of what Father Gallo would have to say about demonic possession will forever remain unknown.

The Devil Inside is the first time I have ever experienced a mob of angry Belfast people shouting at a cinema screen in disgust at such a shockingly bad ending. If I wasn’t feeling slightly smug that I didn’t waste my money on a ticket I would have picked up my pitchfork and torch and joined in.

Not only was the script devoid of any originality some of the dialogue, especially from the possessed characters, was so atrocious I think I pulled a neck muscle from cringing so hard.

Aside from some severe overacting by the actresses playing the possessed characters the cast were completely unmemorable.

The Devil Inside was filmed in the documentary/found footage format which is a fad that I normally like but in order to remain consistent the film makers couldn’t even get that right. The hand-held camera was far too shaky - during scenes when all the characters were sitting around a table you would not be mistaken in thinking that they were shooting through an earthquake.

The effects, which involved some impressive moments of contortionism and scarily unconditioned hair, were fine but unremarkable.

The documentary style and the unknown actors means that if The Devil Inside was released ten years ago it may have been considered a game changer. The reality is it is now 2012 and the standards and expectations for low budget horror films are now so high it just emphasises just how bad The Devil Inside is.

It just goes to show that pretty much anyone can knock out one of these films. I am now ready to dust off my families old video camera, grab my friends, some torches with dying batteries and head to the nearest forest to cobble together 80mins of footage. I doubt I will be the next Wes Craven but if it pays for Christmas in New York isn’t that all that matters?

The Devil Inside gets 2.5/10. Avoid.

The Walking Dead: Better Angels (Spoilers)

Well here we are – the penultimate episode of season two of The Walking Dead.  After the surprise and early exit of Dale I nervously anticipated an angst ridden episode which would in all likelihood precede an action packed finale.

PLOT:  Better Angels open with Dale’s (Jeffrey de Munn) funeral being overlapped with Shane (Jon Bernthal), Daryl (Norman Reedus), Andrea (Laurie Holden) and T-Dog (Irone Singleton) quadruple teaming a couple of Walkers.  Never one to miss the opportunity to give a dramatic speech Rick (Andrew Lincoln) tells the mourners all about “that look Dale used to give us”.  I shed a tear that the startled eyebrows shall never again be startled.

Hershel (Scott Wilson) does a complete 180degree turnaround from his original attitude and invites everyone into the house.  Lori (Sarah Wayne Callies) uses her pregnancy to get out of heavy lifting and to wangle herself a bed. 

The RV dies in sympathy with Dale and Glenn (Steven Yeun) actually does something useful and fixes it.

Carl (Chandler Riggs), Shane and Rick all offer each other Daryl’s gun who is seemingly unaware that it has been taken from his bike. 

Lori apologises to Shane but unfortunately this pushes Shane over the edge and he finally transforms into the bulging eyed crazy person we have been waiting for.

Shane takes Randall out into the Woods, breaks his neck then runs head first into a tree as folk tend to do when they are crazy.

Shane announces to the group that Randall gave him the slip and sets off with Rick, Glenn and Daryl to find him.  Daryl and Glenn find Walker Randall and Daryl discovers that he was not bitten. 

Shane and Rick have one final dick measuring contest.  Carl is out walking alone in the woods at night, as children tend to do in the zombie apocalypse, and stumbles upon Rick and the quick reanimating Walker Shane.  Carl makes snipers with years of training look amateurish.  END PLOT

After weeks of Walker-less-ness the safety of the farm is no more.  There are a couple of Walker interactions but as per usual the main danger in The Walking Dead is from people.  The sense of urgency and all the scenes of the group packing up the camp filled the episode nicely but, as is the norm with The Walking Dead, it is all just preamble for the last section of the show.

Lori and her unnecessary shit stirring pushed Shane over the edge and Jon Bernthal didn’t hold back in putting forward the crazy.  I would have preferred an understated crazy to the head slapping kind but Bernthal certainly gave it his all.  Walker Shane was foreshadowed in Triggerfinger and comic readers already knew it was only a matter of time before it happened.  It is interesting that this was dealt with before the finale, which from the preview, looks as though it is going to be very action packed.

It was nice that Carl got to shoot Shane and although it didn’t play out exactly as it did in the comics I think it was a close as it could have been.  With the Walkers already closing in on Rick and Carl it is unlikely that they will have time to deal with the repercussions of this until season three.

The Walking Dead had a few nice musical moments this week such as Dale’s funeral and Andrea and Glenn at the RV.  The best was saved for the end of the episode with the opening theme being accompanied by a frantic drum beat.  Bear McCreary's score hasn’t been particularly memorable but in Better Angels it was very strong.

Better Angels is a strange episode as the scenes with Rick and Shane were worth the wait and the general fuck-up-ery with Randall was finally brought to a close after four weeks of faffing around but aside from this nothing else happened.  The fact that T-Dog got some lines and several walking about shots proves this.  The episode gets a 7/10 - the fact that Shane died before the final episode means that it is wide open for surprises.

The final episode has already aired in America and I haven’t seen it.  This is killing me. 

We Bought a Zoo

The only reason a film entitled We Bought a Zoo was on my radar is because I like Matt Damon. 

PLOT:  After the death of his wife, Benjamin Mee (Matt Damon) and his children Dylan (Colin Ford) and Rosie (Maggie Elizabeth Jones) decide to move house.  They find their dream home in the countryside, the problem is, if they buy the house they are legally obliged to take on the menagerie of animals which reside on the lands.    With money and time swiftly running out Benjamin must try and get the dilapidated zoo back into shape before inspection day whilst trying to repair his damaged relationship with his son.  END PLOT

We Bought a Zoo is based on the true experiences of Benjamin Mee.  If I had of known about the novel before watching the film a misplaced sense of snobbery sprinkled with lack of interest would have prevented me from reading it.

The plot moves along at a decent pace and there is never any doubt that it is heading towards a happy ending.  The family drama is engaging but doesn’t stray into over sentimental territory and there are plenty of light hearted moments to balance it out.

Films like this are always hit and miss.  Although We Bought a Zoo is based on Mee’s personal experiences from a film point of view it doesn’t particularly offer us anything we haven’t see before.  

What saves We Bought a Zoo is the casting.  If this film had fallen into the hands of, dare I even type it, the likes of Ben Stiller I would not have watched it.

Matt Damon handles the dramatic moments with ease and doesn’t overact in the comedy moments - he carries the film with ease.  There is a very well put together scene in which Benjamin is looking through his family photos and it was very moving due to Damon’s silent performance. 

Benjamin’s children are played very well by Colin Ford and Maggie Elizabeth Jones who is officially the cutest child on the planet. 

Thomas Hayden Church brings some dry wit and this is the first time Scarlett Johansson has not bored me although she was, as is the norm, completely bland. 

The weak link in the film is John Michael Higgins’ inspector whose over the top “comedy” performance didn’t fit in with the grounded tone of the film.  

The animals were cute although very much in the background save for Spar, the zoos dying tiger.  I appreciated this as animal related comedy just isn’t my thing.  It is a testament to Cameron Crowe that he didn’t have the desire to include poo jokes – a drugged up bear is as close as we got.  Thankfully. 

Either my tastes in film are changing or I am becoming soppier as I am barrelling towards my late mid twenties but I liked the film a lot more than I probably should have.  We Bought a Zoo gets a decent 7/10. 

John Carter

I would be lying if I said I was excited for John Carter.  The trailer was as unoriginal as it was uninspiring and the source material was completely unfamiliar.  The cinema releases are still on their post Christmas/pre summer lull and John Carter has taken advantage of this and made an early dash for Box Office glory.

PLOT:  John Carter (Taylor Kitsch) is a young civil war veteran who is has left the battlefield behind and is searching for a mysterious cave of gold.  After hiding in a cave from a fast approaching enemy Carter finds himself transported to Mars and into the middle of a long running war between two cities.  John Carter must figure out how to save Princess Dejah (Lynn Collins) whilst figuring out how to return to earth and his elusive cave of gold.  END PLOT

I have no idea how the plot of John Carter compares to Edgar Rice Burroughs' original novel but as an introduction to the series I thought the film faired quite well.  John Carter started off slow and kept a steady pace with the total running time clocking in at just over two hours.   I liked that the film did not attempt to whittle itself down to 90mins as this would have felt too rushed.

The script contained some clunky lines which were unfortunately emphasised by an at times wooden Kitsch and the drama school performance of Collins.  Despite a few cringe worthy moments (the “look I am getting away!” line taking the top honour) Kitsch just about had the charm to lead the film.

The rest of the human supporting cast is made up of Mark Strong (when is it not!), Dominic West and James Purefoy who looked to be enjoying himself immensely.  Bryan Cranson also pops up in a little cameo.

Alongside the humans we are introduced to the entirely CGI race of the Tharks.  The Tharks looked impressive and the film lagged when they were not on screen.  They were much more interesting than the warring humans and if there is a sequel I hope they are heavily involved.

The film looked amazing.  The director of Wall:E and Finding Nemo, Andrew Stanton, has done a great job of blending CGI creatures, dusty Mars horizons and futuristic weapons together – the effects in John Carter really cannot be faulted.

I saw the John Carter in 3D as I didn’t have the option of seeing it in 2D.  As a general rule I am not a fan of fad and although the 3D wasn't bad it was by no means great.  If you have the choice – go with 2D.

If I am being honest I expected that my only enjoyment of this film would be to make fun of it.  I was expecting John Carter to top the “so bad it is good” category but in the end I legitimately loved it. 

Yes there are problems, perhaps it is too long and if you drink a shot each time John Carter gets captured you will have severe liver problems but something about the film sucked me in.  I have now seen John Carter twice in the cinema and it transpires that it does hold up on a second viewing which again I wasn’t expecting. It gets a surprising and strong 8/10.

I feel like I have liked a film that the popular kids will say is uncool.  I don’t care. 

The Raven

Like most people James Earl Jones introduced me to Edgar Allan Poe’s most famous poem – The Raven.  I have read a few of his short stories so I do not feel the need to proffer forth my usual disclaimer of knowing nothing about the source material.

PLOT:  Edgar Allan Poe (John Cusack) is a drunken, penniless poet who spends his time getting into bar fights.  After two young women are found murdered in homage to Poe’s short story Murders in the Rue Morgue Inspector Fields (Luke Evans) seeks Poe’s help in solving the crime but it appears they have serial killer on their hands.  Things take a turn for the worse when Poe’s fiancée Emily (Alice Eve) is kidnapped by the killer.  Who is the killer?  I guessed correctly about 3seconds before it was revealed.  END PLOT.

The plot of The Raven is absolutely fine, granted it is not exactly a ground breaker, but it has enough twists, turns and unexpected moments of gore to keep this particular viewer fully engrossed.

There is one weak link which almost ruined the entire film and that weak link is named John Cusack.

Cusack wasn’t just awful; he appeared to become possessed by the spirit of Nicolas Cage.  Cusack embodied Cage’s wide eyed overacting to unintentionally hilarious perfection.  If demand ever rises for Nicolas Cage: The Biopic, John Cusack must be the only contender to play him. 

Nothing about the character fitted the tone of film – Cusack’s performance, his black clothes and even his perfectly crafted goatee all looked out of place.  

 It was like watching the bastard love child of Severus Snape and Nicolas Cage.  On crack.

Speaking of bastard love children, Luke Evans, the undoubted product of a dalliance between Matt Bomer and Antonio Banderas, is absolutely fine as Fields and indeed whenever he was not on screen the film gravely suffered.

pretty man + pretty man = pretty pretty man

The Raven would have worked so much better if it was a detective story based on Poe without Poe being involved – don’t get me wrong I did enjoy the film but it was an “empty screen no one can hear my piss taking” kind of enjoyment.  The Raven should have been so much better but I still give it a 7/10.

PS - This blog is the result of someone high on half a child's pain killer.  Bed going now am I.

The Walking Dead: Judge, Jury and Executioner (spoilers)

Triggerfinger and 18 Miles Out showed that whenever The Walking Dead can get the balance between drama and action correct it does make for fantastic viewing.  The main problem I’ve had with season two of The Walking Dead is that it has been unable to consistently keep up the quality the fans have come to expect.

The title of this week’s episode, Judge, Jury and Executioner implied heavy drama and luckily that is what we got.

PLOT:  Daryl (Norman Reedus) is questioning Randall (Michael Zegen) in the barn with his fists. Daryl's method of questioning works and Randall tells all about the mystery “Others” and shows his sinister undertones when describing the rape of two young teenage girls.  Daryl frankly tells the group his thoughts and Rick (Andrew Lincoln) decides to kill Randall.  As Dale (Jeffrey de Munn) argues that it isn’t civilised Rick gives him until the end of the day to talk to the group before the final decision is made.

Everyone bar T-Dog (Irone Singleton) voices their opinion and the running joke of not giving the character any lines runs on for another week. 

Carl (Chandler Riggs) wanders off on his own and meets a Walker stuck in some mud.  Carl’s presence gives the Walker the motivation required to free himself.

Dale’s passionate speech at the group meeting has little impact and he leaves the farmhouse in disgust.

Rick decides to execute Randall in the barn but hesitates for so long Carl offers him words of encouragement.  Randall lives for another week.

Dale is out wandering the fields in the dark and stumbles upon a half eaten cow.  Dales startled eyebrows are raised for the last time as the mud Walker uses his stealth ability and ninjas up behind Dale and attacks him.   

Dale is injured beyond repair and signals that he wants to be put out of his misery.  Rick is unable to step up and it is up to Daryl, who is in full Badass Mode, to do the deed.  The angel wings on Daryl’s biker jacket were as subtle as Shane’s lone field Walker.  END PLOT

The plot recaps of my reviews are never strong but this particular recap really doesn't do the episode justice.  Judge, Jury and Executioner has become one of my favourite episodes after only one viewing. 

The Walking Dead loves nothing more than to dither around and the debate of what to do with Randall will now run into a third week. 

The vast majority of the dithering is due to Rick’s inability to figure out what kind of leader he wishes to be.  Rick initially saved Randall from the Walkers in Triggerfinger, spent 18 Miles Out driving Randall around whilst trying to decide whether or not to release him and in Judge, Jury and Execution he contemplates whether or not to kill Randall and how he is going to carry out this task.  Rick trying to hang onto his humanity is a running theme and the show has been dealing with this quite well in the last few episodes.

 

Rick is caught in the difficult position of trying to make the hard decisions whilst being a father and Andrew Lincoln is doing a very solid job in showing Rick’s conflict.

Carl taunting the trapped Walker and edging closer to it is such a childlike thing to do and showed that even though Carl thinks he understands what is going on he doesn’t.  Chandler Riggs has been quiet for a few weeks despite featuring heavily in the early episodes of season two and it will be interesting to see if Carl owns up to his part in Dale’s death.   Riggs is a great little actor and with a potentially dark season three on the horizon I have high hopes for him.

Like Sophia, Dale’s time on the show has been cut short and he will be missed.  Dale’s desperation to keep the group civilised rang out loud and clear with de Munn’s performance.    Dale’s “We don’t kill the living” is a great throwback to season one and highlights just how quickly things can change in The Walking Dead world.  The voice of reason and hope is now dead and I have no doubt that the group will struggle to deal with this.

Dale’s arc in the show differs quite a significantly from the comics – his relationship with Andrea became nothing more than, at best, a father/daughter bond, he never got to raise the twins as they were omitted from the show entirely and a small part of me feels annoyed that we wont get to see Dale with the cannibals, which would have made for great, although disturbing, drama.

It is impossible to criticise the deviations from the source material too much as one of the strongest characters doesn’t appear in the graphic novels (as yet).  Daryl Dixon has always been the wild card and his unpredictable nature and often amusing straight to the point attitude means that he deserves his status as fan favourite.

Dale and Daryl’s conversation brought about the revelation that Daryl already knew that Shane killed Otis due to Shane having Otis’ gun.  Daryl has always lurked in the background but is shown listening intently to every word being said.  It just shows that despite his social awkwardness within the group he sees and understands everything.

Daryl’s insecurities came to the fore in their conversation and Dale’s words of encouragement are a far cry from his attitude towards Daryl at the camp fire in season one.  It was fitting that after this conversation Daryl stood up and took charge of killing Dale - Daryl’s “I’m sorry brother” is one of the top lines of the season so far. 

It’ll be interesting to see how this incident affects Daryl and his standing within the group and with the rumours of Merle’s return never going away Daryl’s story arc is developing nicely.

With some heavy Walker action in the past few episodes we were treated to just one solitary loner Walker but it showed that one can be just as dangerous as a hoard.  The safety of the farm has now been well and truly called into question and the first steps to moving away from Hershel's have been taken.

We are down to the final two episodes of the season and with de Munn’s unexpected departure proving that no character is safe anticipation for the finale is starting to grow.  The battle between Shane and Rick will come to a head and although Shane’s tenure on the show appears to be coming to an end I won’t be surprised if a few others don’t make it to season three.

When it is on form The Walking Dead has had some fantastic character moments and Judge, Jury and Execution is no exception.  It was a brilliant episode which finally matches the strong start to the season.  It gets an 8.5/10.

Performance of the week:Jeffrey de Munn

Annoying character of the week: Glenn (he just irritates me)

Zombie kill of the week:Daryl (by default)

The Walking Dead: 18 Miles Out (spoilers)

I still haven’t gotten over the awfulness of Nebraska to the extent that if I ever live the dream of road tripping around America I will miss out the State in silent protest. Triggerfinger was a welcome return to form for The Walking Dead but the problem with this show is it has difficulties in keeping the momentum going – 18 Miles Out was an important episode.

PLOT:  Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and Shane (Jon Bernthal) take Randall (Michael Zegen) 18.7 Miles Out and away from Hershel’s (Scott Wilson) farm in an attempt to release him back into the wild.  Rick wants to start killing Walkers with knives in order to save bullets and he and Shane practise on a couple of Walker cops.  Rick and Shane argue.  While Rick points out that Lori, Carl and the baby are HIS Shane alters his look between chastised school boy and full on retard.   

Back at the farm Beth (Emily Kinney) overtakes T-Dog’s (Irone Singleton) total screen time tally and tries to convince Maggie (Lauren Cohen) to join her in committing suicide. 

Lori’s (Sarah Wayne Callies) world falls deeper into chaos as Andrea (Laurie Holden) refuses to help the women leaving Lori to cope with the burden of chopping vegetables alone as Carol (Melissa McBride) is absent from the episode.

Randall lets it slip that he knows Maggie from school and recognises the farm.

Rick and Shane have a manly brawl with so many loud and passionate grunts I feel uncomfortable watching the episode in 5.1. 

Rick and Shane take Randall 18.7 Miles In to Hershel’s farm and the debate as to whether or not Randall should be killed will run on for another week.  END PLOT

One of most noticeable aspects of 18 Miles Out is the fact that half the cast were inexplicably missing.  Dale, Daryl, Glenn, Carol, Carl, Hershel and T-Dog were patrolling the perimeter of the farm just off screen. 

The lack of cast mattered not as Shane and Rick finally got to air their grievances and kick the crap out of one another before failing in their mission to ditch Randall.  Shane staring at his bloodied face, which was not un-Walker like, in the shattered glass of the building, was the best moment in the entire episode.  Shane staring at the lone Walker at the beginning and the end of the episode wasn’t quite as subtle. 

This may have been a Shane and Rick episode but Andrea and Lori’s argument also made for great viewing.  Andrea putting Lori in her place was great stuff and she was in the right with her theory of letting Beth make her own decision over her suicide.   The problem is Andrea and Lori are both very inconsistent in their likeability so whilst it was great to see Lori getting knocked off her pedestal I just know Andrea will probably take a dive off hers next week by doing or saying something ridiculously stupid.

18 Miles Out was essentially an episode based around two arguments and with half the cast off on their own adventures it was left up to Walker action to fill in the gaps.  This worked out surprisingly well as like Shane and Otis in the school – the less cast members there are to give screen time to the more intense the Walker action becomes.

There were some impressive kills this week with Rick shooting through the mouth of a deceased Walker to kill another and the wheel of the mighty Hyundai even got a kill.  The Walker scenes have been very sparse this season however when the Walkers finally shuffle their way into the mix the effects and prosthetics cannot be faulted.

The most vicious kill of the week fell to Randall as he repeatedly stabbed a Walker in the skull with his knife.  Knife kills involve more strength, passion and anger than a straight out head shot so I think it would have been more interesting character wise to have someone we are familiar with kill a Walker in this manner – unless Randall is going to hang around a bit longer and reveal some dark intentions.  

As 18 Miles Out ended pretty much where it began I am finding it hard not to label it a filler episode albeit a very good one.  

Despite falling into filler territory 18 Miles Out was a very decent episode and it gets 7.5/10.  There are three episodes left in season two and with the casting of The Governor being announced the farm story arc is now coming to an end.  There is a lot to get through in three episodes and hopefully The Walking Dead will keep the plot threads moving forward at a decent pace.   

Jenner’s Secret from the season one finale has still not being resolved despite promises from the Robert Kirkman that this would not drag on.  Shane raised the point that the two Walker cops did not appear to have been bitten and Rick did not avail of the opportunity to reveal the worst kept secret in the history of television.  It is becoming fairly obvious that Jenner’s Secret will tie in with the ending of Shane’s time on the show.

The worst thing this show can do is have two quiet episodes and a rushed and unsatisfactory conclusion to a choppy season.  

Performance of the week: Jon Bernthal

Annoying character of the week:  Lori

Zombie kill of the week: Hyundai

This Means War

As February was such a slow month for film releases I only went to the cinema twice.  This is probably a depressing new record for me and it remains to be seen if the March releases are more appealing - first up is This Means War.

                                              

PLOT:  FDR (Chris Pine) and Tuck (Tom Hardy) are two ludicrously named CIA agents and best friends who both happen to fall in love with Lauren (Reese Witherspoon).  The agents try to win Lauren’s affections whilst sabotaging their partner's attempts.  On the scale of Male Faults having small hands is on par with being British.  Lauren makes her choice.  END PLOT

This Means War has nothing new to offer to the extent that it really is quite an achievement that a film has been made which is completely devoid of any originality.  The plot of This Means War is exactly as advertised in the trailer.  Is this a good thing? Is it a bad thing? If I knew what I was going to see before hand am I in any position to criticise the storytelling?

If you are a fan of Reese Witherspoon you will enjoy her performance and Tom Hardy and Chris Pine had the chemistry needed to make This Means War work.  The problem is Tuck and FDR spent more time with Reese Witherspoon than with each other so the film noticeably sagged when they were not on screen together. 

Chelsea Handler was in the charge of most of the witticisms, but for the record, she is not known to anyone who lives outside of North America and quite frankly she can stay there.  

An unreasonable problem I had with the film was the names of the characters.  A CIA employee called Agent Tuck?  In This Means War FDR is short for Franklin however in my world FDR is short for Financial Dispute Resolution hearing and I did not appreciate the image of a file I have been avoiding at work popping into my head several times throughout the film.

The even more ridiculously named McG has created a gorgeous looking film which is so bright and glossy I almost required sunglasses but as an action comedy it raises more sniggers then laughs and is book-ended by two standard action set pieces. 

This Means War is an entertaining bubblegum film which adequately filled 97mins and gets a generous 6/10.