Review - The Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials

It was a disappointment. The Maze Runner was fresh and inventive, a new take on Lord of the Flies, and my favourite of the Dystopian franchises. Now we have something that has come across as derivative and unfocused.

The first third, action-wise, was good with the introduction of the zombies (cranks) and a few jump scares, but after that, the plot never went anywhere with them. We didn’t learn anything about our main characters, and Thomas’ irrational paranoia made him annoying rather than smart, rebellious and cool. It is very clear that he is rebelling but against what? He doesn’t really know other than knowing you can’t trust authority. The revelation and justification in the final scenes and the reaction to it didn’t work for me.

Again, science is played as the bad guy and the smart people are the evil ones, which is getting old for me.

Now that the plot has matched the other big franchises we can compare them all, and (I can’t believe I’m saying this) but as a film experience I think Divergent is winning.  The Scorch Trials certainly misses the charisma and star power of the Hunger Games. Maybe the third instalment will rectify the problems.

Review - How Big, How Blue How Beautiful - Florence + the Machine

Everything you need to know about the new Florence + the Machine album you can see in the track lengths. Somewhere in between Lungs’ 3.5 min average and Ceremonials’ 5.5 minute average you’ll find How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful weighing in at about 4.5 minute average. And as such, stylistically it sits between the earlier pop styling and later bombastic nature. A far more polished and cohesive album, it moves to a level where the earlier songs feel out of place among her cannon. Not that she ever played Girl with One Eye live. The consistency running through the album is around the strong vocal melodies which tie together the sea-sawing accompaniments, ranging from Mother’s gospel feel through to the irrepressible drive of Queen of Peace. Subtlety need not apply.

This is a serious album heavy with the usual melodrama of a gifted artist. You’ve got to have plenty of self-belief and ability to pull this kind of stuff off. And of course, she can. 

Review - Mad Max: Fury Road

It's awesome. I mean it is really awesome. That should actually be enough of a review.

MMFR (or Tesla for adults as I like to call it) is brilliant on so many levels. On a technical level, the editing (Margaret Sixel) is astounding. The film slows down and speeds up so you can catch all the action. It is sharp and precise, and has the slickness of a polished gem. The cinematography (John Seale) of the bleak Nairobi deserts is breathtaking. I saw it at the VMax sitting fairly close and it was like being in a two hour car crash. It was exhausting, inspiring, exciting and just totally wonderful. I left the cinema with the same level of excitement that I got when I first saw the Bourne Supremacy. There is a sense that the rules have just been rewritten. Films like this do not come along too often. It really will change everything.

The plot of the film is so simple, yet it hints at and gives glimpses into a deep backstory that will probably be revealed as the remaining films are presented to the world. The MMFRs look to be set around the new character Furiosa and her narrative arc, which is great. We need a new 'Ripley' and she fits the requirements perfectly. There's not a whole lot of dialog, but film is a visual medium, and in this particular case the impressive display does the talking. See it at the biggest screen available and sit as close as you feel comfortable. Then select the next row in front.

It also has someone called Max in it, but he only has a small part.

Visual Poetry. Six out of five stars.