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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 03 June 2013

Now in its sixth instalment, The Fast & Furious series continues to amaze. I’m not talking about the content of the movies… but rather the faith shown by fans over the past 12 years. When it opened two weeks ago in the United States, Fast & Furious 6 took in $97.4m over its first three days. That’s the biggest opening in the franchise to date and it’s no surprise that a 7^th film is already in production. Star Vin Diesel is hopeful that there’ll be a “trilogy of trilogies”. I’m sure his agent won’t mind either.

When The Fast & The Furious premiered back in 2001, the focus was cars, cars, cars. There’s only so far you can take such a concept and so we’ve seen the series take a graduate shift towards a more generic style of action film. I’m speaking of insane villains, over-the-top storylines and elaborate chase sequences.

At the beginning of Fast & Furious 6, we find our heroes have been travelling across the globe and enjoying their newfound wealth. It’s a nice life but Dom (Diesel), Brian (Walker) and Mia (Brewster) are quickly learning an age old truth – there are some things more important than money. They’d love to be able to return home and catch up with friends over a backyard barbeque but unfortunately, they’re still wanted criminals in the United States.

But wait! There has to be a happy ending, right? Diplomatic Security Service agent Luke Hobbs (Johnson) pays Dom an unexpected visit. Hobbs speaks about a rogue British Special Forces soldier named Owen Shaw (Evans) who plans on assembling a weapon of mass destruction and using it for villainous purposes. Don’t ask me much more as I’m unsure about the specifics of weapon and his motives.

Since the best of MI6 and the CIA aren’t up to the case (for reasons also never explained), it has fallen on the Fast & Furious gang to save the day. In return, they will be pardoned for their previous crimes and given clear passage to return to the United States. There’s still hope for that backyard barbeque!

I’ve generally been a fan of this series (well, except for the awful Tokyo Drift) but this new instalment is a letdown. It’s a forgettable premise with a forgettable bad guy. I saw this film a week ago and am struggling to remember much more than what I’ve detailed above. It’s nice to see the return of Letty (Rodriguez), thought to have been killed in the fourth film, but there’s not much in the way of new character development.

As for the action scenes, I think they go too far. I support excitement with a dash of realism. That doesn’t include jumping off a speeding car, flying 20m and then catching someone mid-air. That doesn’t include chasing a plane down an airport runaway that goes for roughly 80km. Further, did we really need such fast-paced editing? With so many characters, I often had trouble working out who was fighting and who had the upper hand.

It’s interesting that the scene which generated the most excitement from the audience was the sneak peak of Fast & Furious 7 that features at the start of the closing credits. It highlights the disappointment of what this film “could have been” but brings a sense of anticipation of how fun the next film could be.

You can read my interview with director Justin Lin by clicking here.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 22 May 2013

Released back in 2009, The Hangover was an amusing, surprising, innovative comedy.  It earned huge points for its shock value – as if daring itself to become crazier and crazier with each passing scene.  While there were a few decent laughs in the 2011 sequel, most would rank it below the original.  It stuck too closely to the first film and didn’t seem to want to take any chances.

If you shared a similar point of view, you’re likely to take some pleasure from this final instalment, The Hangover: Part III.  For starters, there’s no hangover!  In the earlier films, the four guys who make up the “Wolfpack” woke up from a huge bender and tried to piece together the events of the previous evening.

This time around, they’ve been kidnapped by Marshall, an aggravated drug dealer (Goodman) who is looking for $21 million in gold bars that was stolen from him.  Marshall knows they’re not behind the heist… but they can lead him to the person responsible – Mr. Chow (Jeong).  The former police officer recently escaped from a Thai prison and is now rumoured to be hiding in the United States.

Marshall takes Doug (Bartha) as collateral and puts Phil (Cooper), Stu (Helms) and Alan (Galifianakis) in a “no choice” scenario.  They have to track down Mr. Chow and find the $21 million in gold.  If they can’t deliver, it’ll be the last time they see Doug alive.  It sets the stage for another wild adventure spread across several locations.

The Hangover: Part III provides a fitting end to this saga.  It's still dominated by these memorable characters (cheers) and it's not the same as the second film (cheers again).  Zach Galifianakis again steals the show as the 42-year-old Alan – a guy with no girlfriend who still lives with his parents. He’s socially awkward and mentally unstable.  He can’t complete a sentence without saying something inappropriate.  Despite all of this, there’s something sweet, endearing about the guy.  Watching him in action, I can’t help but think of the line – "I dare not look, yet I cannot turn away."

Bradley Cooper and Ed Helms also deserve their fair share of kudos.  They both do a terrific job as the “level-headed” friends trying to find a way out of this insane situation.  Not only do they have to locate Chow and the gold, they have to work equally hard in keeping Alan under control.

You could make a strong argument that The Hangover: Part III contains more of a plot than the earlier movies.  There are fewer surprises, fewer laugh-out-loud moments and fewer tigers in bathrooms.  Instead, this is a film that engages thanks to its carefully thought-out storyline (which does still come with a few twists).  How will these guys find Chow and then convince him to hand over the gold?

With a few nice references to characters from the earlier movies, it’s clear that The Hangover: Part III will be the last in this successful franchise from writer-director Todd Phillips.  It won’t be winning any Oscars but that won’t bother the millions around the world who will have fun checking it out this weekend.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 27 May 2013

He owns a lavish mansion on Long Island that is impeccably maintained by a small army of servants. He drives around in his state-of-the-art motor vehicle while wearing his beautifully tailored suits. He throws extravagant parties filled with fireworks, music and a never-ending stream of alcohol. You don’t even need an invitation to attend!

But who is Jay Gatsby (DiCaprio)? How can he afford all of this? Why is he so generous? Why does he hide alone in the upper floors of his mansion while everyone is partying below? The man who knows the answers is the man telling the story – Nick Carraway (Maguire). Several years have passed since that exciting summer of 1922 and Carraway, now being treated for alcoholism in a sanatorium, is recounting the story to his doctor.

Author F. Scott Fitzgerald could have never imagined that his novel would one day become a blockbuster movie playing to packed audiences across the globe. At the time of his death in 1940, only 25,000 copies of his novel had been acquired. It wasn’t until World War II that it started to become a “must have” addition to any bookshelf.

As of today, an estimated 25 million copies have been sold. One of those found their way into the hands of Australian director Baz Lurhmann. Having already proven that he can adapt a classic piece of literature (Romeo & Juliet in 1996) and bring colour to a long-forgotten era (Moulin Rouge in 2001), Lurhmann decided to the raise the bar even higher. He wanted to take F. Scott Fitzgerald’s much-loved masterpiece (as it is now known) and transform it into something equally memorable on the big screen.

Has he succeeded? The answer to that question is “no” but it comes with an asterisk. Luhrmann picks up plenty of marks for way in which he has brought this world to life. It’s the first time he’s taken advantage of 3D technology and when you throw in the extravagant sets, costumes and visual effects, it's as if you’re watching a moving painting. New York in the 1920s could not look any more beautiful.

There are numerous themes within The Great Gatsby but central to it all is Gatsby’s quest to win the heart of Daisy Buchanan (Mulligan), a young lady who has been his obsession for many years. If he can convince Daisy to leave her athletic, well-to-do husband (Edgerton), Gatsby believes they will spend the rest of their lives in utopia.

This is where the film underachieves. It is missing the most important ingredient – emotion. With both Romeo & Juliet and Moulin Rouge, I can remember being reduced to tears (well, moist eyes at the very least) by their tragic tales of star-crossed lovers.

This too is a tragic tale but, put simply, I did not care about the characters. Nick Carraway is full of profound thoughts but he’s too much of a goofy bystander. Daisy Buchanan has the looks but it’s hard to see the attraction given her bland personality. As for Jay Gatsby, there’s nothing subtle about his deeply insecure demeanour and the way he says “old sport” one too many times.

It’s interesting that despite the lukewarm reception from critics in the United States, The Great Gatsby is thriving at the international box-office. Perhaps audiences are tiring of animated features and superhero movies. They’re looking for films with real people and real storylines. I’m thrilled that Baz has produced another crowd-pleaser. I only wish I was part of that crowd.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 21 May 2013

Two men are sitting in a café in Lahore, Pakistan. They are discussing the recent kidnapping of an American lecturer who had taught for many years at the local university. This isn’t an idle, run-of-the-mill conversation. One of the men is Bobby (Schreiber) – an American journalist fishing for information on the crime. The other is Changez (Ahmed) – a young, highly respected Pakistani lecturer who Bobby believes is linked to the kidnappers.

This current day storyline plays second fiddle to what this film is really about. Told by way of flashback, The Reluctant Fundamentalist focuses on Changez’s life until this point. He moved from Pakistan to the United States to attend college and on graduating, landed a lucrative job at a prestigious consulting firm in New York City. Changez’s astute ability to value companies and identify cost savings immediately caught the attention of his boss (Sutherland) and he was on track to become the youngest partner in the firm’s history.

That never eventuated. We know this because Changez is now working as a lowly paid lecturer in Lahore. So what happened? How did his life take such a shift? Why is one of the world’s most gifted consultants now being spoken of in the same sentence as a renowned terrorist? Director Mira Nair (Monsoon Wedding, The Namesake) slowly peels back the details of Changez’s life and provides answers to the curious audience.

Without giving too much away, The Reluctant Fundamentalist has some obvious points to make about Changez’s life in the United States and the unnecessary barriers he had to face. We live in a world where people often act in an ignorant, ill-informed manner. It’s hard to win an argument with a person who chooses to go with their gut instinct as opposed to readily obtainable facts.

Unfortunately, the film spends a little too much reinforcing this message. By the time we get back to the two men sitting in the café, there’s only 15 or so minutes left to follow the more interesting story – that of the kidnapped lecturer and what can be done by both of these men to save him.

If there’s a one reason you should see this film, it’s the lead performance from Riz Ahmed. Some might remember him from the great British black comedy Four Lions where he played a not-so-wise suicide bomber. The Reluctant Fundamentalist allows him to show his talent as a dramatic actor and he makes the most of the opportunity through this complex character. It’s hard to work out if his smart, good-natured personality hides something much darker underneath.

There are several great conversations in the film and the back-and-forth between Riz Ahmed and Liev Schreiber in the café springs to mind. On the flip side, there’s some strange stuff between Ahmed and his co-workers at the consulting firm that feels fake, scripted. It highlights the up-and-down nature of the film – some parts are compelling while other parts are unconvincing.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 26 May 2013

About 30 minutes into this film, a person sitting behind me in the cinema whispered to their friend – “this is like watching Abbott and Costello”. I was thinking more along the lines of The Three Stooges but you can probably see the point I’m trying to make – Happiness Never Comes Alone is a light-hearted French film that tries to blend romance with slapstick comedy.

Sacha (Elmaleh) is a casual, laidback musician who likes having fun. By day, he writes jingles for a major advertising company. When asked if he’s done anything memorable, Sacha responds by saying he wrote a split-second piece that plays at train stations over the loudspeakers before announcements are made (in other words, not all that memorable). By night, he’s a pianist at a local jazz club. He turns up, has a few drinks and charms the beautiful women with his gifted fingers (I’m talking about his piano skills).

Sacha is happy with the path he’s taken in life but the arrival of the much older Charlotte (Marceau) will leave him thinking otherwise. The two meet in a scene that can only be described as a humorous farce. Both are leaving work and in pouring rain, they bump into each other on street. Charlotte stumbles (high heels are to blame) and falls into a puddle. On getting up, she tries to salvage the situation but is immediately engulfed in a wave of water as a speeding car drives through the same puddle. Sacha offers her a lift home in his rusty convertible and the saturated Charlotte decides to accept.

There’s an obvious connection between them. If you can’t tell from the look in the eyes, things should click when you see them engage in an exhausting, all-night love making session. It’s not until they’ve fallen for each other when a few interesting truths are revealed – Charlotte is the ex-wife of Sacha’s egotistical boss and she already has three children.

It’s a recipe for trouble and the rest of the film explores their up-and-down relationship. Sacha gets on beautifully well with Charlotte’s kids but is this where he wants to go with his life? What about his plans to create a stage show and travel the world? Should he put these goals on the backburner and take a chance on a woman he has only just met?

We’ve seen this story time-and-time again but there’s a nice chemistry between stars Gad Elmaleh and Sophie Marceau that makes it easy to watch. The slapstick style of comedy used by writer-director James Huth also gives the film a point of differentiation from a regular French rom-com. The goofy, unexpected laughs caught many by surprise at the preview screening I attended.

I’m not quite sure about the abrupt note on which the film decides to end (one subplot in particular was left open-ended) but as one of the more popular releases to come out of the recent French Film Festival here in Australia, Happiness Never Comes Alone can now be enjoyed by a wider audience.