Yes, I'm taking a little bit of a different approach this post. Seeing as there are so many brilliant movies either already released or coming soon, I thought I'd forgoe the usual news/review combination and take a good look at three films I've seen this week, all of which were unexpected surprises. Don't worry though, the news will be back next post!

However, there is one piece of news I need to share. In case you hadn't heard, legendary special effects guru Stan Winston passed away last week. To say that this man had a massive effect on my life is an understatement; this is the man who brought to life the Terminator, the Predator, the Alien Queen, Jurassic Park's T-Rex, Edward Scissorhands, Pumpkinhead, the Small Soldiers... the list goes on. His most recent work was Iron Man; he had begun work on Terminator 4 and was said to be preparing for Jurassic Park 4. He was a man who knew how to make dreams become reality, and is one of the major reasons I live in a perpetual state of daydreaming escapism. Stan, I truly wish I'd had the chance to meet you and shake your hand. You'll be sadly missed. 

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REALLY RAD REVIEW ROUND-UP

Get Smart

As a huge fan of the original series, I was definitely looking forward to the big screen adaptation of Get Smart, but I was also nervous; Starsky & Hutch and the Dukes of Hazard both burned me pretty hard. I can happily report that Get Smart is one big ball of fun!

It's no secret I've got something of a mancrush on Steve Carrell; he just can't seem to put a foot wrong (Ok, ok, Evan Almighty...). As soon as he was announced as the man to step into Maxwell Smart's phone shoes, I knew he'd be perfect and lo and behold, he nails it. You can definitely feel Don Adams presence in the performance, but he manages to carve out his own unique take on the character.

I've always had a bit of a soft spot for Anne Hathaway, but this is the first film I've seen where her performance has been, for lack of a better word, sexyashell. Agent 99 is far better in the field than Max and it leads to some hilarious circumstances and arguements. Alan Arkin as The Chief was a piece of inspired casting, and I actually now want to see a film following just his exploits!

Dwayne "Don't call me The Rock" Johnson is his usual charmingly arrogant self as Agent 23, while Terry Crews (Everybody Hates Chris) and David Koechner (Anchorman's Champ) back him up as fellow bumpling agents. Masi Oka (Heroes) and Nate Torrence (Sunset on Studio 60) play CONTROL's gadget guys, and apparently will be starring in their own straight-to-DVD side movie coming out in a few weeks. Finally, there's a cameo for Agent 13 played by... well, that's a surprise I'll leave for you, but one that I absolutely adored.

The legendary Terrence Stamp plays KAOS-leading baddie Siegfried for massive laughs, and with Ken Davitan (Borat's fat mate) and Dalip "The Great Kalhi" Singh as his henchmen, you'll find yourself in tears whenever the bad guys are on screen.

The film isn't perfect; there some moments where the action slows down a little bit as the plot advances, but I found myself howling with laughter so often I truly didn't care. I'm going to go as far as saying this is the funniest film I've seen in a long time; it reminded me of the first time I saw Austin Powers. While still remaining reverent to the source material, Carrell and co. have re-invigorated Get Smart for today's world. Not perfect, but damn good fun for the whole family.

Hancock

In a move largely unseen on the big screen, Hancock bucks the trend of almost every other superhero film you've seen by not springing from a decades-old comic book and benefits greatly from that freedom. With so many superhero franchises making the leap to the silver screen, it is very satisfying that a completely new character and concept can be cooked up, served and still enjoyed by the masses.

What sets this film apart is the story of Hancock himself; in every superhero film, the first hour must deal with the slow-burning, anguish-filled origin story that leads our soon-to-be-hero down the path to greatness. Iron Man did a great job of blazing through this genre-staple by ensuring Tony Stark was in the shoot by the 30 minute mark; The Incredible Hulk had the jolly green giant on-screen by minute three, yet both of them still spent time dealing with who their hero was before he received his powers. Hancock takes this tradition and throws it out the window, opting instead to begin the movie, say, about as far along thematically as Spider-Man 3; Los Angeles has had time to get to know Hancock, and has found him severely lacking.

The premise is simple - what if Superman became bored with constantly saving us while dispensing moral advice, stopped off at the bottlo and drank himself into a decades-long depression? Hancock (Will Smith) may save lives, but the destruction of property that comes along with his assistance now far outweighs the good. He saves Ray (Arrested Development's Jason Bateman), an optomistic and good-hearted PR specialist, from certain death and, while the massed crowd boos loudly due to the damage caused in the process, Ray comes to Hancock's defence. Ray sees the hero that lies buried deep within Hancock and proposes a way that he can win back the public's appreciation. For the first time in years, Hancock has a human connection with Ray, his wife Mary (Charlize Theron) and their young son. However, his gradual awakening causes a major problem for another character...

And that is exactly where I'll stop. In the same way Hancock bucks convention with it's approach towards superheroism, so does the storyline, and the less you know going in the better. As you'd expect, Will Smith is on fine form; there is a very good reason his nickname is Mr July, and Hancock should be another huge hit for the star. I truly can't believe this is only his first superheroic outing, but it makes sense that the first original blockbuster superhero flick is headlined by him. His charisma and swaggering bravado means that even though Hancock is an a-----e (the film's words, not mine) you'll still be cheering for him every step of the way. Jason Bateman adds another hilarious supporting role to his ever-expanding resume as he cements his place as one of the funniest guys around. Charlize Theron does a fantastic job as Ray's wife who refuses to tolerate Hancock, having seen his destruction first hand for far too long.

A lot darker and serious than the trailers imply, Hancock is a great film for anyone looking for a more realistic take on the toll of superheroism of both the hero and the people he saves.

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ADVANCE REVIEW

I was lucky enough to head along to a press screening of 20th Century Fox's Taken, which will be released here in a few months. Normally, after a press screening so far in advance, I would sit on my review and release it closer to when the film hits cinema, but Taken hit me so hard, is so far removed from what I normally review and has stuck with me since in a way I felt I wouldn't be able to shake until I put my thoughts to paper.

Taken

Taken is an ugly, brutal movie; there's no other way to put it. Liam Neeson stars as Bryan, a former agent who has retired in order to be closer to Kim, the daughter he lost to a difficult divorce. Desperate for approval and affection from Kim, he agrees to allow her and her best friend to travel to Paris for their summer holidays on the condition that she contact him regularly to let him know she is safe. While Kim believes he's being overprotective due to his years of service, he tries to impart to her that not everyone in the world is a good person. Only hours into their French trip, the girls discover that they should have listened to Bryan when their trusting innocence leads to them being abducted by slave-traders - all while Bryan overhears via Kim's mobile.

Once Bryan hears Kim's screams for help, his training kicks and the audience quickly realizes his former family has no idea what he truly did as a job. Imagine Liam Neeson as a older, detail-obsessed version of Jason Bourne, complete with memories and one hell of a motive. I went in with hesitance surrounding Liam Neeson; he's one of the most respected actors of our time, but could the 56 year old thespian carry a pedal-to-the-metal action film?

He's done more than that; in the same way Bourne brought a new action staple to the fold in the Amnesiatic Former Weapon hero, Neeson carves out a totally new take on the Bad Ass Dad. This is not a man motivated by the love of his country, survivalism or a city to save; this is simply one man who will not stop until he gets his daughter back, the story of a soldier turned vigilante prepared to do anything it takes to get his little girl back home - legally or otherwise.

Neeson's performance in Taken ranks with the best I've ever seen from him, right up there with Schindler's List and Rob Roy. He plays Bryan with such outwards restraint barely containing the emotional hurricane within; that scenes of Neeson simply sitting in a chair with a furrowed brow speak far loudly than words could. There is one particular moment during his frenzied search in Paris that emotionally crushed me in a way no film has in years, and this is soley due to the emotional investment I had in Neeson's Bryan. Despite years of becoming desensitized to violence thanks to movies, this moment still moved me in a way that has been playing on my mind for days.

Maggie Grace of Lost fame puts in a sterling performance as the daughter Kim, finally rising to the hype that has followed her for the last few years. She plays spoiled brats better than almost anyone else around, rarely a positive, but this worked in her favor in a major way once her almost grating innocence is literally ripped away from her. Famke Janssen (X-Men, Goldeneye) delivers another reliable performance as Kim's stand-offish mother while French actor Olivier Rabourdin makes a memorable appearance as a former ally.

If you still need convincing of the high calibre of everyone involved in Taken, take one look at the creative team. The film is written and produced by Luc Besson (The Professional, The Fifth Element), widely regarded as the French Steven Spielberg, and directed by Pierre Morel, the genius behind French parkour-film District 13.

I went in expecting... well, I don't know quite what, but I came out having seen one of the best films of my life. Easily the best action flick since Bourne, Taken grabs the audience by the scruff of the collar and won't let you breathe 'til all is said and done. I'll be following this one closely through til it's release, and you can expect more coverage here - if you're a lover a good cinema, Taken film comes highly recommended.

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"Whaddya think? A fly... Am I becoming a 185 pound fly? No, I'm becoming something that never existed before. I'm becoming... Brundlefly. Don't you think that's worth a Nobel Prize or two?"

~T