Author: Callum Forbes

What a struggle it has been to get The Invisible Man back onto the big screen. Not only was the last Invisible Man film Paul Verhoeven’s shockingly underwhelming Hollowman, but the character has been attached to at least two Universal Pictures failed cinematic universes. There was the atrocious I Frankenstein, the boring Dracula Untold and the awful Tom Cruise led The Mummy – all with the goal of starting a new monster series for the classic Universal properties.

The only reason I was looking forward to this one was because the reliably enjoyable Blum House was producing it and Leigh Whannell blew me away with the fantastic Upgrade. So how does the film fair after all this complication?

Very loosely based on the H. G. Wells novel, The Invisible Man follows Kate Moss as a woman who has escaped an abusive relationship. When she hears that her violent ex has apparently committed suicide and left her a ton of inheritance money, it looks like her life is back on track. However, when strange things start happening – subtle at first but increasingly more erratic – she finds that her ex is not only alive and well, he has found a way to be invisible and is using this ability to torment her. Being more abused than ever and finding herself to be more isolated, it’s only a matter of time before she breaks down for good. Unless she can stop him.

It is too early to tell right now, but I feel that this film will go down as one of the greatest remakes of all time. It does for The Invisible Man what John Carpenter did for The Thing and David Cronenberg did for The Fly. Leigh Whannell promises to be one of the best directors working today, and I look forward to whatever he makes next – or at least I would were it not an Escape From New York project (we’ll see on that one). I feel like everything in this film was masterful.

I will not go on without praising Kate Moss. Her performance is so understated and yet absolutely perfect. She feels like a woman wanting to get back on her feet and find a way to move past the abuse she has been subjected to for years, yet this one man is keeping that from happening. It’s heartbreaking and makes this film feel like an underdog story – you root for her ever step of the way.

And she is matched by a great villain. The Invisible Man himself is a very silent character, but words are unnecessary. He has a plan, and we can tell he has one even though we have no idea what the next step is until it’s too late. It makes him as terrifying as any horror villain before him, and in many cases more so.

Whannell’s directing is superb. There are countless long shots or panning shots with huge empty spaces in them. You find yourself scanning the whole screen – you know that you will not see him, you can’t, but you are looking for any sign of him. His breath, something move as he rubs against it, even the faintest sound. It’s using the camera against you, in a way that makes the experience tense and terrifying. Made even more so by the fact that we have no idea which scenes he is present in and which he is not for the most part. 

I loved the films lived in sets and the score was delightfully eerie as well. While I will not spoil it, I thought that how the Invisible Man was, well, invisible in this film was refreshing and smart, certainly better than the other adaptations – much less silly. The script is very strong as well, with perfect pacing, great dialogue and some terrific set pieces and twists. I will say that I did have my gripes with it.

The main two were that, while the film puts a fair bit of focus on security cameras at times, there are points where the protagonist’s innocents can be proven by people looking at the footage. It’s something that you have to accept is just happening for the film to work – and it does work, it’s just a bit weird. And then there is the issue of ‘how did he get here so fast?’. There’s one moment when a character drives miles away, with no way that she was followed, and the Invisible Man still shows up for a moment. But these are just gripes, they don’t spoil the overall film.

It’s just too good a film to pass up. I’d call it the best horror film since The Babadook. I put it on par with Upgrade – the two are very different films from the same talented director. It’s nice to see a horror film this big be slow and methodical. When it finally goes for the throat towards the end, it feels earned. It’s the reward, made sweeter by the respect the film pays it audience. Ironically, The Invisible Man is a must see film.

The Personal History Of David Copperfield: The BRWC Review. I’m sure that everyone has come across David Copperfield at some point in their lives. The Dickensian story is, like most novels by the famed author, truly timeless and ever relevant. I myself haven’t read the book personally – it being over 600 pages long being my main put off – I have seen the 1999 BBC mini-series adaptation, staring Bob Hoskins, Maggie Smith and Ian McKellen among others. So, I was fairly excited to hear of this film’s release.

Adding more excitement to the mix was the announcement that Armando Iannucci would be writing and directing The Personal History of David Copperfield. I am a fan of Iannucci’s work, from Alan Partridge and The Thick of It, to what I consider to be one of the best films of the last decade, The Death of Stalin. It was all falling well for me.

We all know the story. David Copperfield is born without a father and is very close to his mother. Then he gets a cruel stepfather, makes his own way in life, comes across his aunt and a cast of other colourful characters. He lives a life both mundane and extraordinary. The story is, of course, almost biographical of Dickens’ own life, so expect many similarities.

My reaction to this film, when all was said and done was this – I liked it, but… And that followed the film throughout. There was so much I loved about this film. But! I will say that I was impressed with how well the film came across. Iannucci’s past filmography is cynical, so it was nice to have him successfully deliver something wholesome. It was also his most stylish film. It plays out like a stage play. Outside of some establishing shots, every set feels nice and close. Actor’s literally walk on and off like they are entering and exiting stage and it is edited in such a way that the film feels like it is continually flowing.

What really got me down on this film was its pacing. The film just thunders through its story. I understand that there is only so much that can be done when you are telling a 600 page story in roughly two hours. Combining his time at school and the blacking factory and other such choices are more than fair. But still, we go from his birth, to the whole ordeal with his stepfather, to his mother’s death and the blacking factory and then his introduction to his aunt and Mr Dick, not to mention the entire Mr Micawber ordeal all within the first half hour. There doesn’t feel to be room to breathe with this film. And this is a story where this room to breathe is essential for making it work.

I found Iannucci’s script to be surprisingly weak, with some bizarre choices here and there. A prime example for me is the announcement of Copperfield’s mother passing on. In the story, this news is given to him by the abusive and comically indifferent headmaster (factory owner in this version) Mr Creakle as he is the only figure of authority there. In this version his stepfather is present to the news breaking. But it’s still Creakle who tells him. Little things like that make little sense and feel sloppy in a way. It also falls for the same trap that many adaptations have fallen for lately – Harry Potter, DC films and even those Disney Remakes on a technical level are included in this. If you haven’t read the source material, or watched the original film, then you will be lost. Taking away previous material, these films feel incoherent. I’m sad to say this about The Personal History of David Copperfield, but I doubt I’d know what was going on just by watching this version.

As for the cast, it’s colourblind casting. Meaning that the actors were hired for their talent and what they brough to their roles, regardless of ethnicity. Honestly the actors all do good jobs. Dev Patel is a wonderful choice as Copperfield, bringing a delightful energy to the film. Tilda Swinton, Benedict Wong and Ben Whishaw are also equally up to the task. The stand out to me was the ever fantastic Hugh Laurie as Mr Dick. Peter Capaldi as Mr Micawber however fell hollow, I don’t know what it was, but I found his performance to be subpar. The colourblind casting, while definitely a nice way of casting that I hope to see a bit more in the future, does feel strange when we have parents with pale skin raising a biological child with darker skin. But you get used to it quickly.

I liked it, but. That is the only way I can describe this film. It looks lovely, it’s well acted and it’s genuinely funny. It’s also very rushed, has a weak script and loses most of the original stories heart. I recommend it to fans of British cinema and of Iannucci, or to those looking for a quirky period comedy. But for fans of the source material, you may find it wanting.

I have a love/hate relationship with the DC Extended Universe. By which I mean I hated Justice League and every film before it (I thought Wonder Woman was mediocre at best), and I loved Aquaman and everything after it. DC has learned a valuable lesson that has saved their films – while before they were simply about undeveloped characters (because why develop them when some people have read a comic or two) taking part in the biggest, most convoluted plots, now they are about well developed characters, with simple goals in very low-key stories. Well, okay maybe not Aquaman but that film was just bonkers. But, something about Birds of Prey worried me.

Birds of Prey is a follow-on from Suicide Squad. Suicide Squad being the worst of the bunch so far was enough of a turn off for me. I don’t think that trailer helped either – being unfunny and having some very uncomfortable Michael Bay-ish vibes. Everything about the advertisement felt a bit poor to me. So, no I am not surprised that the film is apparently underperforming at the box office.

Honestly though, it is a shame because I came out of Birds of Prey having really enjoyed it. It was far from perfect but there was a great sense of energy to the film. Instead of falling in line with a Michael Bay production, I got more of a Guy Richie sense from it. The film plays out as if it was really narrated by Harley Quinn – the film’s main character. It feels disjointed.

There is a moment where, after a really fun action scene involving a gun that fires confetti, bean bags and paint, where the film pauses and we hear Harley say “Wait, I’m getting ahead of myself. Let me explain how I got here.” We then proceed to spend a good chunk of time seeing the events that led us here. I feel that, in any other film, this gimmick would have fallen flat and felt annoying. But considering that the story is so tied in with that character, it feels strangely natural.

Director Cathy Yan does a great job with the film’s visuals and seemingly uncontainable energy. Whether the film is going for a rough, urban feel or, well, confetti and paint being shot out of a gun, the film is lovely to look at. It gets more and more crazy as it goes on – ending, literally, as a fair ground of colours and acrobatics. Just from the film’s opening – an animated segment that looked like the style of Chuck Jones – I knew that this would at least be a visual treat.

At the center of all of this is Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn. One of the biggest shames of Suicide Squad is how it wasted Robbie’s talent as an actress and her casting as Quinn. Here, we get to see it all. And, honestly, I can’t think of a better actress for the job. Robbie loses herself in the role, becoming almost unrecognizable (outside of a pretty weak Bostonian accent that is) and is easily the standout performance of the bunch. Although, actors like Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Ewan McGregor certainly add their own flare to the mix. McGregor in particular is a treat to watch as he chews the scenery. He’s detestable in every way, and it’s hard to not love him for it.

But, for all the films performance and flare, it can’t cover a script that has little meat on its bones. From the writer of Bumblebee, I wasn’t expecting Shakespeare, but even Bumblebee had a cheesy, Saturday-morning-cartoon feel to it. Birds of Prey does have that feel to it, but its darker and viler than that tone suggests. I was a little surprised with the violence – there is plenty of messy shootings and cracking bones on display. There are scenes where a villain literally peals off people’s faces.

I don’t mind violence like this, and I feel it added to the visuals. But for the tone they were going for, it probably wasn’t the best call. The story is also criminally simple – it’s literally about Harley having to find a diamond for the villains. As, unfortunately, are the characters. Quinn is very well developed. Everyone else…not so much. The villain enjoys killing people and getting away with it, as well as being a misogynist. The Birds of Prey have one quirk each. Everyone else is just there. It’s a good thing that the actors playing them are as talented as they are.

This film shouldn’t have been called Birds of Prey – they’re hardly in it. They should have just called in Harley Quinn, because that’s the focus here. And as a Quinn film, I could have had better, but I did enjoy it. I really enjoyed it actually. I would say it was the worst one since Aquaman. But I loved it for its talent, its mad craft and above all its personality. The script is underdeveloped in places – and is probably a little too trigger happy with the man-shaming thing that the likes of Ghostbusters 2016 and Captain Marvel flaunt.

But the directing and acting do manage to find some gold here and there. It’s worth a watch, although most will probably wait for the rental price.

The How to Train Your Dragon series has been one of the greatest in modern animation. It is impossible to describe in words how breath-taking all three of the film are. They boast some of the greatest, state-of-the-art animation and eye-popping 3D of any film I have ever seen. To quickly sum up my thoughts on the previous two films, I think they’re both fantastic. The first film I found to be almost perfect and it remains one of the most pleasant surprises of my film-going life.

The second one I like almost as much, but I always thought that it ended about ten minutes later than it should – the battle at the end is inferior to the battle literally just before it. So naturally I was excited to see How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World – to a pretty unfair degree. I had the highest hopes, so it was a lot to live up to.

The story this time is that a vicious dragon hunter is coming to Burk. His goal is to kill the last of the nightfurys – which is main character Hiccup’s pet dragon, Toothless. But it won’t stop there, any other dragon is up for the slaughter. The people and dragons of Burk move to find a new home, the Hidden World – a sheltered place where dragons rule and can live in safety. The hunt is on! Complicating matters is the arrival of a female nightfury. Toothless is now in love and Hiccup must face the fact that it may be time for his dragon to move on.

How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World is a wonderful film. What we have come to expect from the series is back in full force here. The excellent 3D effects that make the film literally leap off the screen – 3D being something I have little care for outside of a handful of films. The animation is vibrant and beautiful, making you feel as though you are flying through the air with these fantastic beasts. The designs of the dragons are unique and impressive – some beautiful, some cool, some just cute and others terrifying. The music is fantastic. The characters are fun. The comedy hits more than it misses. Director Dean Deblois keeps a steady hand while he excellently crafts a world that will entertain adults and capture the imaginations of children.

Story-wise, the series hasn’t exactly been unpredictable. But it has always felt new. It’s a strange talent that Deblois has, where he takes a tired formula and makes it new and enjoyable again. This film deals with themes of self-doubt and empty next syndrome. We’ve seen it before – a beloved character finds a reason to move on, love as always, and our main character is afraid to let it happen.

Been there, done that. But the plot and theme are so in touch with Hiccup as a character that it all feels organic. Nothing done feels like a betrayal or a breaking of character for anyone in the film. This is helped by performances and animation of course, but we can’t ignore the script either.

One thing that always got me down about the previous films were the villains. In the first, it was just a big dragon – it roared, breathed fire and was a general annoyance. And that was it. The second film had a villain who was so over-the-top that he was too silly to feel like a threat, in both performance and writing. This time though, we have a good villain. He is cold, vicious and cunning. He is also terrifically portrayed by F Murray Abraham – although the Transylvanian accent is a little strange at times. But best of all, he has been bored and this hunt is fun for him. He will not stop or slow down because of how much he enjoys this. He is the perfect villain to send Hiccup and the gang out with.

But I do have my griped here and there. Despite fantastic colours and breathtaking visuals, The Hidden World is easily the most visually ugly of the three. The flying and the titular hidden world look great, but there are extended periods when we are looking at rotten interiors with all the shades of brown and grey out there. I found the misses in comedy to be the most wince-inducing here as well. There also pretty major characters who feel sidelined for the sake of other, far less important or interesting characters. These issues are a shame, but they are far from deal-breakers.

I’m certain that anyone who has seen the other films – that being most people – have probably made time to see this one too. And why shouldn’t they? I am glad that it is over. This is a wonderful place to end the trilogy. It’s better to go out fresh and early than to keep on going until you turn stale. I can give out far too many examples of that happening so I’m not going to bother listing them. It’s another How to Train Your Dragon film – that alone is great reason to see it. It has all the strengths of the others and, while it has new issues of its own, it does sort out issues from before.

It’s better put together than the second one, but it also lacks the emotional heights of it too. Personally, I still prefer the first film. But it truly is a pick your poison deal. Simply put it on and get swept away.

Buzzard is an independent film released back in 2014. It follows the story of Marty, a man with a boring job who decides that it would be a good idea to take jabs at work and society as a whole. To do this he takes to doing some petty crime – stealing office pens and messing with the system to give him more coupons. Then he gets cocky and goes way too far. Only when it is too late he realizes that the cameras may have caught him. Paranoia and delusion quickly take hold as Marty tries to hide from his deeds.

Recently, Buzzard has been released on Blu-ray. While the main page is nothing to write home about, with the only options being Play Movie, Special Features and Set-Up. There was no option for Scene Selection, which I found a little weird, but perhaps I’m just used to that. However, the Special Features are really quite extensive. 

What we are supplied is a selection of content including the usual group of trailers, director’s commentary and deleted/alternate scenes. These are usually fun and can deliver insight into what was intended for the film. The deleted scenes were what I have come to expect from them – they’re cute and sometimes interesting, but I can see why they were cut out or changed for the final product.

Adding to the insight of the film, we have footage of the film’s release at festivals, in particular the Locarno Film Festival. Any fan of Buzzard, or even aspiring film makers or general supporters of independent films will find good reason to buy this Blu-ray for the content in the menu alone.

As for the film itself, I found it quite engaging – in that weird way only independent films seem to do anymore. Where it feels like someone came up with a strange idea and then the next thing we know it’s being shot and recorded.

Yes, every now and then we get film’s like Upgrade and Crawl, where it is the same thing on a bigger budget – but it’s becoming a sad rarity these days. It’s obvious that the filmmakers are horror fans – from the Freddy Kruger ‘Power Glove’ from Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare (easily the worst film of that series), to Marty constantly wearing t-shirts of giallo movies like Demons. That does come through in some of the visuals and camera work. The film feels like an even lower budget giallo movie – without the use of vibrant colours, more’s the pity. But there is a banging metal track throughout the film.

But I was never in love with the film itself. Partly because it felt a little too slow to me. I’m not one who needs action and mind-numbing visuals to keep me entertained. But I draw the line when I check my watch as we near the final third. There is also an effect in this film that left me baffled. Tonally, Buzzard has a dark comedy edge to it. It’s not a comedy, but I wouldn’t take it seriously either. And some of the effects are quite good for what the film makers had to work with – when a man gets cut by the razor glove it does look like an injury, a bruise looks very realistic at one point and the film’s final shot uses a simple bit of trickery to fantastic effect.

While I watched it, my partner walked in when an infected cut was on screen and she was visibly repulsed – clearly something went right here. But I can’t forgive the effect used in a scene when cone shaped crisps are flying into someone’s mouth. It looked like an early effect an amateur YouTube star would use. It was unfinished and if comedy is what they were going for with that scene, then they simply failed to land the joke. The effect was too bad to be funny.

Buzzard is a weird one, that I think fans of film, particularly of obscure film can enjoy. No, it won’t entertain your Fast and Furious fans and the like. But it is an entertaining film, with a good amount of passion and clearly has its heart on display. The Blu-ray looks lovely and the special features do add more to the understanding of the film’s themes and intention. If you have time, give it a go. It looks like you won’t find a better copy of it yet, so now is the perfect time for it.