Conan the Barbarian: Fails to Recapture the Magic

Jason Momoa (of recent Game of Thrones fame) ably fills the fur lined boots of cinema's original barbarian, Arnold Schwarzenegger, in this remake of Conan.  But Momoa's performance and smoldering good looks are as good as the film gets.  Audiences looking for the epic feel, gritty style and amoral tone of the 1982 fantasy classic will leave theatres mildly disappointed.

 Director Marcus Nispel  re-imagines the origin story as tale of searing vengeance; Conan, born into blood and battle, grows into manhood crossing and recrossing the continent of Hyboria seeking the raiders who destroyed his village leaving him orphaned while wreaking havoc along the way.  The film suffers from the lack of real villain against whom our favorite barbarian might test his mettle.  Khalar Zym (Stephen Lang) never exudes the menace necessary to give birth to a force of nature like Conan.  In fact, as evil-doers go, it is his daughter Marique, played flawlessly by Rose McGowan, who raises gooseflesh on audiences. Ron Perlman also makes an appearance in the film, taking on the role of Conan's decidedly non-barbaric father and teacher.

Perhaps the most glaring difference between the remake and the original film is the reincarnation of this barbarian as a man of honor.  Much of the unpredictability of the barbarian is lost once director and writers conspire to give him a conscience.  It no longer seems like the whim of fate, the finger destiny or the inspiration of the gods that propels Conan on his adventures, but rather his own sense of right and wrong.

The film strikes this reviewer as a project that was a lot more fun for cast and crew to make than it was for audiences to watch.  Conan the Barbarian wouldn't be my first choice at the cinemas this weekend, but it's visuals, action sequences and special effects demand to be seen on the big screen.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes: Hail Caesar

Bravo, audiences are raving and with good reason:  Rise of the Planet of the Apes is a hit, a big, juicy, summer blockbuster smash.

This film gets it all right, outstanding cast, spectacular effects, brilliant story and an epic feel that is absolutely rooted in present day San Fransisco.  James Franco plays Will Rodman, a man of science racing the progression of his father's Alzheimers to find a cure.  One of his lab specimens gives birth to Caesar a very special chimpanzee with genius level IQ.  Andy Serkis is mesmerizing as Caesar, delivering a performance that captures and holds the audience with only 4 lines of dialog.

The danger of re-imagining an iconic film like Rise of the Planet of the Apes lies in the obvious risk of failing to live up to soaring vision of the original.  No worries about that here, Director Rupert Wyatt vision utterly enhances the mythology of the Planet of the Apes.  His visual effects must be seen to be believed.  Wyatt has delivered this decade's Jurassic Park.  He gives us living, expressive apes who are true characters in this compelling story.  And when the bullets start flying, it's not humanity that the audience is cheering for.

As stunning as this movie is visually, enough can't be said about the talented cast who bring the characters both human and simian to life.  Supporting actors Brian Cox, Tom Felton, Frieda Pinto and the incomparable John Lithgow lead audiences through the emotional landscape of the film.  There isn't a simple morality to the film, black hats and white hats are decidedly in the minority.  This film takes a nuanced view of right and wrong, and if there is a central message surely it is that human intelligence demands respect for simple human dignity no matter where it resides.

This movie reminds us why we are fans of the big screen.  If you plan on going to the movies this weekend, or even if you aren't, go see Rise of the Planet of the Apes.  Watch this film and you will leave saying "Hail Caesar" just like the rest of us. 

Cowboys & Aliens - Misses the Mark But Still A Good Ride

Put Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford in a summer blockbuster directed by Iron Man's Jon Favreau and you'd expect a sensation, a film with warmth, humour, drama and tonnes of pulse pounding action; well Cowboys and Aliens delivers on the action- and not much else. 

Craig plays lone gunslinger Jake Lonergan, a dangerous, solitary man afflicted with amnesia and walking through New Mexico territory in the years following the Civil War with alien technology fastened to his wrist.  In a remote western town called Absolution, Lonergan comes into conflict with the law and Colonel Dolerhyde (Harrison Ford), an embittered cattle tycoon who's seen one war too many.  Once members of Absolution's population are kidnapped in a brutal raid by alien mauraders, Lonergan and Dolerhyde lead a rag tag posse on a quest to redeem their lost loved ones.  The film climaxes in a pitched battle between the cowboys, their native american allies and the dreaded alien scourge; while Craig, and his love interest Olivia Wilde (Ella Swenson), creep through the depths of the aliens ship trying to rescue the captured townsfolk.

Not even A-list talent can rescue this film from mediocrity.  The story flows from cliche to stereotype to cliche with only the luscious visuals and dramatic action sequences keeping the audience interested. The sci fi film lovers out there might find some of the effects interesting, but there's nothing here we haven't seen before.  Cowboys and Aliens takes an inspired concept and beyond the most basic promise of lots of guns, explosions and special effects fails to deliver to the audience a movie that is more than the sum of its parts - and it could have been