Pride + Prejudice + Zombies (2016): Mash-up Heaven

Written and Directed by Burr Steers (How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days)

Story by Seth Grahame-Smith (Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter) and Jane Austen (Pride and Prejudice)

Starring:

Lily James (Cinderella)

Sam Riley (Maleficent)

Bella Heathcote (Dark Shadows)

Douglas Booth (Noah)

Matt Smith (Doctor Who)

Charles Dance (Game of Thrones)

Lena Headey (Dredd)

Jack Huston (American Hustle)

Suki Waterhouse

Sally Phillips (Galavant)

Ellie Bamber

Millie Brady

The novel, based on an idea by Quirk Books editor Jason Rekulak that yielded similar titles such as Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters, was begging to be adapted the moment Seth Grahame-Smith released it in 2009. Since then, the process has been nothing short of tumultuous. Not only shuffling between multiple directors and stars (Natalie Portman was cast as Elizabeth Bennett but left, staying on as producer), it also suffered through the release of the much-maligned, mishandled adaptation of Grahame-Smith's Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (2012). PPZ, however, does not meet the same fate.

L to R: Bamber, Heathcote, James, Brady, and Waterhouse. (via BBC)

The book’s charm is largely intact and at the center of it all is PPZ’s stellar cast. Steers directs a collection of talent that would fit perfectly into any straightforward adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. By mixing modestly well-knowns with relative unknowns, the characters manage to hold their own in a film that understands just how odd a concept it is. Zombies and fight choreography are interwoven into the story through the characters, which are, in turn, capably brought to life by the cast. The lives felt lived even if each character wasn't afforded the time they may have deserved.

On that last point, it’s more a testament to how well the cast performed than any knock on the film itself and the underselling of the characters shows an understanding on the filmmaker’s part on how their joke has a runtime shelf life. Any longer and it plays with the idea of overstaying its welcome. The commitment to standing alone as a single film is also commendable. The ending is reminiscent of The Cabin in the Woods (2012) whereas a sequel is not the primary focus, telling the joke is.

The leads, Lily James’ Elizabeth Bennett and Sam Riley’s Mr. Darcy, display wonderful adversarial chemistry despite James' dripping saliva and Riley’s gnarly rasp. They bring a grounded sense of emotion to such a fictional setting to life. But the real champion here should be no surprise. Matt Smith as Mr. Collins reigns supreme. He may not be front and center but he can’t help himself to being the center of attention when he’s on screen.

Burr Steers accomplishes something truly remarkable. He makes a better Gothic horror-romance than Guillermo Del Toro could with last year's disappointingly stale Crimson Peak (2015).  The violence here is laced with creativity by anchoring itself in the world. Instead of being misplaced it proves to be as captivating as the story is timeless. We get an array of exciting camera angles and gleeful brutality while mixing in the properness of Austen's original foundation. Steers never overplays any one tactic and in doing so, lets them all stand out in their own little way. The opening features a rather exceptional beheading while the finale boasts an excellent sword fight. And again, all of the violence is in service of that basic joke. 

The tone throughout is carefully controlled, blending horror with romance and just the right amount of humor that tells us the idea is being sold wholeheartedly. You'll barely notice the mid-conversational sparring. The set design aptly mixes the expected period piece aesthetics with an apocalyptic grit to make for a world that feels natural despite ungodly circumstances. The costumes look rather comfortable, too. 

However, the oddness of it all would certainly be easy to find unappealing. This is a movie made for those with a particular blend of tastes. It’s a wheelhouse movie. (I've found that my wheelhouse films tend to score around 40% on the tomatometer.) The romance is nothing new (obviously) and the zombies are more in line with Warm Bodies (2013) than The Walking Dead so a hardcore zombie fan may be disappointed as well. 

This movie delivered everything you should be expecting from a mashup of this nature. Great performances, decent frights, and bloody violence that makes you forget that it’s not even rated R. 

  

Imad for Movies' Year End Blitz

Welcome to Imad's Vague Opinion! 

Have a seat, preferably like so-

Jurassic World, amarite?

Let us begin with the thespians who dominated the year...

Actor of the Year 2015  .

Domhnall Gleeson

The Revanant, Ex Machina, Star Wars, and Brooklyn

2014 - Liam Neeson

Actress of the Year 2015  .

Alicia Vikander

The Man from UNCLE, Ex Machina, The Danish Girl, Burnt

2014 - Keira Knightley

The cast of Ex Machina is 2015 in a nutshell. 

Gleeson (Left), Vikander (Center). 

If there were a second place award for Actor of the Year, it might go to Oscar Issac (Right) but I'm not here to talk about losers. 

Across the Finish Line  .

The following is a ranking of films that were released (either limited or wide) during 2015. The final count as of 12.31.15, the natural deadline for such lists, stood at 46 film watched and will be added to as more films are watched. 

Please note that this ranking is relative and doesn’t necessarily represent how great a film is. 2015 had such a high volume of quality films, garnering more 10's on my IMDb ratings than any year prior. Filmmakers truly delivered on their promises and showcased the growing diversity of talent Hollywood has to offer. Even the franchise juggernauts were experimenting with timeless stories to fantastic results. They also still refused to let Matt Damon be abandoned. Even just the action in films this year might be the most thrilling in the history of cinema! 

Relativity in mind, the top ten is truly my top ten and the bottom four are, no doubt about it, the garbest of garbage. Here, now, is the…

2015 Rankdown  .

1.             Star Wars Episode VII – The Force Awakens****

2.             Mad Max: Fury Road****

3.             Spotlight***

4.            Kingsman: The Secret Service****

5.             Creed***

6.            The Martian***

7.            Me and Earl and the Dying Girl**

8.            The Hateful Eight***

9.            The Big Short***

10.          Bridge of Spies**

11.           The Man from UNCLE****

12.           The Revenant**

13.           Ant-Man***

14.          Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation****

15.           Jurassic World***

16.          Shaun the Sheep*

17.          Predestination**

18.          Furious 7****

19.          Inside Out**

20.          Spy***

21.           Avengers: Age of Ultron****

22.          Pitch Perfect 2*

23.          Experimenter*

24.          Run All Night*

25.          Straight Outta Compton

26.          The Walk

27.          Bone Tomahawk

28.          Sicario*

29.          Room

30.          Beasts of No Nation

31.           The Good Dinosaur

32.          Trainwreck

33.          Dope

34.          What We Do In the Shadows

35.          The Final Girls*

36.          Paddington*

37.          The Water Diviner

38.          Goosebumps

39.          Ex Machina

40.         Brooklyn

41.          Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials

42.          Jupiter Ascending

43.          Terminator: Genisys*

44.         Black Mass

45.          Spectre

46.         Slow West

47.         The Night Before

48.         American Ultra

49.         Crimson Peak

50.          Chappie

51.           Everest

52.          The Gift

53.          Fantastic Four

54.          Pixels*

55.          Inherent Vice

56.          Mortdecai

(*denoted rewatchability)

2015 Yet-To-Sees  .

1.        The Lobster 

2.       Sisters 

3.       It Follows

4.       The Hunger Games: Mocking Jay 

5.       Steve Jobs 

6.       Carol

7.       Southpaw 

8.       The Last Witchhunter 

9.       Masterminds 

10.    Joe Dirt 2: Beautiful Loser

11.     Victor Frankenstein

12.    Pan

13.    Cooties 

Creed (2015)

Written and Directed by Ryan Coogler (Fruitvale Station)

Starring:

Michael B. Jordan (Chronicle)

Sylvester Stallone (Demolition Man)

Philadelphia (Rocky)

Tessa Thompson

Creed was a cinematic fist pump ushering in a rebirth to the Rocky franchise with a new, capable lead in Michael B. Jordan's Adonis Johnson/Creed. With the framework of a generic underdog story and the brand name to market it, Ryan Coogler's work boasts life-sized characters highlighted by an ingeniously wielded camera.

Sadly, while the movie failed to include even a single note from Scott Stapp's band, it thankfully made amends with the first major fight scene. Filmed as a singled tracking shot, the fight was captivating, breathtaking, and gorgeously brutal. When you realize what’s happening, blinking becomes an annoyance. The shot is a challenge to quick-cut fight scenes everywhere. 

The core training montage shows up as expected but Coogler refuses to be lazy about it. He infuses the montage with all the right styles in all the right places, including the holy grail of montage techniques, slow motion. There is also a carefully used atmosphere at play. The montage swirls the city of Philadelphia around Adonis. The people, the gyms, and the worn out streets blended serenely. It's a stylish segment that elicits inspiration, excitement, and awe. All the right montage emotions. 

Finally, the seemingly straight forward final fight was filmed rather remarkably. Coogler's team plays with unexpected angles, the camera moves fluidly and creatively, and the lighting is never neglected. It's a conclusion that feels earned and is thoroughly entertaining.

This is no doubt in the top three for the franchise and may be a top five all-time boxing movie. One thing's for sure, though, if I've recently seen this film, do not try to fight me. 

2015 Rankdown  .

1.      Mad Max: Fury Road***

2.     The Martian***

3.     Kingsman: The Secret Service****

4.     Me and Earl and the Dying Girl*

5.     Creed****

6.     Ant-Man***

7.     Furious 7***

8.     Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation***

9.     The Man from UNCLE****

10.   Jurassic World***

11.     Predestination**

12.    Avengers: Age of Ultron****

13.    Shaun the Sheep*

14.    Inside Out**

15.    Spy***

16.    Pitch Perfect 2

17.    Sicario*

18.    Run All Night*

19.    Dope

20.   Straight Outta Compton

21.    The Final Girls*

22.    Paddington*

23.    What We Do In the Shadows

24.    Terminator: Genisys*

25.    Black Mass

26.   The Water Diviner

27.    The Night Before

28.    Ex Machina

29.   Jupiter Ascending

30.   Spectre

31.    American Ultra

32.    Crimson Peak

33.    Slow West

34.    Chappie

35.    Everest

36.   The Gift

37.    Fantastic Four

38.    Pixels*

39.   Inherent Vice

40.   Mortdecai

(*denoted rewatchability)

The Guest (2014)

Directed by Adam Wingard (You're Next)
Written by Simon Barett (You're Next)
Starring:
Dan Stevens (A Walk Among the Tombstones)
Maika Monroe (It Follows)
Chase Williamson (John Dies at the End)
Joel Moore (Bones)

A small film employing a relatively unknown but talented cast that, to the average viewer, will fail to convey the subtle undercurrent of sarcasm is easily overlooked. To those ready to accept a dark silliness, this film is a treat.

Following You're Next with this, director Adam Wingard and writer Simon Barett have now proven to be worthy of higher expectations. Low key casting coupled with off beat music and unhinged violence, all lathered in a sarcastic ooze make for an enjoyable throwback thriller.

Dan Stevens has star written all over him. He's a charismatic, British version of Josh Lucas. A likable (and British) version of Josh Duhmmel. In The Guest, his American accent is polished and his acting is highly controlled and completely absurd. Glad to see Chase Williamson on the screen after his fantastic work in John Dies in the End.

Maika Monroe, too, holds her own as a girl who is more than a damsel in distress. She may soon find her way to larger projects.

Slickly shot, playfully acted, but slower in pacing it matches You're Next's tone but with a slight hint of otherness. The only thing missing was a broader context. It only teased the grand nature of the situation, which would be fine were it a more flavorful offering. Take John Wick, for example, where it constantly has you immersed in the otherness, and embraces it. The Guest, conversely, shies away from the greatness that was in it's reach. It had the pieces but couldn't quite commit to the right ones.

That said, the action was beautifully shot, the stunts and violence were magnificently choreographed. Stevens showcased a knack for the physicality of being an action star by owning his short bursts of utter mayhem with precise brutality.

This is a film for a particular viewer. If you want anti-hero subversion, and self-aware seriousness, this is a movie for you.

2014 SQUID Actress of the Year

The race for SQUID Actress of the Year is always a tough one, you can check out the previous winners below and notice that it's slightly less about volume than it is about purely incredible performances. While 2014's candidates may not be as plentiful as their male cohorts, the four horses in this race are proved that they are the real deal.

Jessica Chastain, most exceptionally featured in Interstellar, proved to be the most prolific actress. She also starred in A Most Violent Year, The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby, Miss Julie, and Salome. 

Shilene Woodley firmly entrenched herself as the zeitgeist queen with her various YA vehicles over the past couple years. This year brought forth two particularly noteworthy entries with variable results. The odorous Divergent series sprung forth, starring her amicable performance in a cookie cutter role. The well received adaptation of The Fault in Our Stars garnered a little more genuine praise. Her best received role was in the film White Bird in the Blizzard. All noteworthy but none too special.

Scarlett Johannsen dropped a quartet of films whose range goes unmatched. From swinging and flipping through an explosive blockbuster (Captain America: Winter Soldier) to being center face as the lead in the colorful actioner, Lucy. She went from the deepest depths of strange in the alien-indie Under the Skin, all the way to a sweet supporting job in Chef, Jon Favreau's darling little food truck film. Johannsen brought her stuff in 2014 and it took some serious destiny for her not to win.

Our champion is the holder of that destiny. She's wasn't as present as the others but her performances showcased the wide spectrum of her craft.

Coming from the world of franchises, after dabbling and succeeding quite a few times with heavier fare like Atonement, her 2014 roles were more dominating than she has ever been. As with the SQUID Actor of the Year, our recipient was unquestionably a force to be reckoned with on the silver screen.

Keira Knightley is crowned as 2014 SQUID Actress of the Year. With electric performances, requiring both acting and singing in Begin Again, and beyond-compelling work in the remarkable film, The Imitation Game, she puts forth a twosome that towers above every other actress' work this year. Her characters and her performances in those roles, defied convention spectacularly showing how female characters can be whole, can be an actual agents of change in their story. She added Laggies, a lackluster and contradictory film as far as women's progress goes, but one where she sported an amusing American accent. Knightley was tagged in with the botched attempt to revive a franchise with Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit. She has managed to build a formidable career after Pirates, one that soars to the top in 2014. Knightley begins 2015 in the adventure ensemble, Everest, where she'll look to carry the momentum of a victory she'll never hear of.  

SQUID Actress of the Year recipients:

2014 winner - Keira Knightley
The Imitation Game, Begin Again, 

2013 winner - Amy Adams
American Hustle, Man of Steel, Her

2012 winner -  Anne Hathaway and Jennifer Lawrence
Hathaway - Les Miserable and The Dark Night Rises
Lawrence - Silver Linings Playbook and The Hunger Games

2011 winner - Emily Blunt

Your Sister's Sister, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, The Adjustment Bureau, Gnomeo and Juliet, The Muppets

The Martian (2015) - A true sum of all its parts.

Directed by Ridley Scott (Kingdom of Heaven - Director's Cut)

Screenplay by Drew Goddard (Cabin in the Woods)

Based on the novel by Andy Weir 

Starring:

Matt Damon (The Departed)

Chiwetel Ejiofor (Serenity)

Jeff Daniels (Looper)

Jessica Chastain (Interstellar)

Sebastian Stan (Kings)

Kate Mara (We Are Marshall)

Michael Peña (Ant-Man) 

Askel Hennie (Headhunters)

Mackenzie Davis (Halt and Catch Fire)

Kristen Wiig (Bridesmaids)

Donald Glover (Community)

Benedict Wong (The I.T. Crowd)

Sean Bean (Lord of the Rings)

The Appeal  .

Ridley Scott is at the helm, Drew Goddard, fresh off of Netflix and Marvel's Daredevil (2014), is penning, and the cast is a swarm of A-list talent. I've not read the novel, and a plot centered around a stranded astronaut comes across as potentially clichéd and uninteresting. Add to that the red setting and how few filmmakers have been able to transcend the general blandness of the fourth planet from the sun and I'm left with a lukewarm intrigue towards the whole deal. These big names, however, had me at least curious. Can they all come together and fulfill their potential?

The Verdict  .

Absolutely. Set The Martian along side Sunshine (2006), Interstellar (2014), Moon (2009), and Serenity (2005) to join the upper echelon of modern space odysseys. 

A smooth mixture of Interstellar's scope and Gravity's (2013) realism without both films' tendencies to induce a bit of vertigo. The Martian is a film that yields a stirring and triumphant return to form for Ridley Scott. A film that captures the vastness of space as an instrument of our future rather than a gargantuan uncertainty. Stunning visuals are on display without a daunting hopelessness that usually accompanies disaster films. It's a pleasant change of pace. 

The science is exhilarating while also being relatable. There's a multi layered sense of humor, too. This survivalist adventure uses cinematic and dramatic limitations (censorship, time delay, gravity, trust) to great effect. With a depiction this sharp, you have to wonder what the point is of actually going to Mars if we can pretend this well that we already will have done it. (That last sentence works if you let it.)

The scenic details are a treat to behold as Mars is given center stage. The planet certainly needed as big a win as Scott did after the critical beatings they've both suffered (Scott more recently and Mars more consistently). This not only compensates for Ghosts of Mars (2001), Red Planet (2000), Mission to Mars (2000), Mars Needs Moms (2012) and John Carter [of Mars] (2012), but also, Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014), The Counselor (2013), and Prometheus (2o12). That's some heavy lifting for a single film.

Andy Weir's novel provides a strong narrative paired excellently with Goddard's resonant screenplay to give the actors and Scott every opportunity to soar. The shifting perspectives feel natural on camera and the performances are provided by a cast whose resumes are wonderfully eclectic. At the heart is Matt Damon's terrific performance as the ever-quotable, stranded, resilient botanist, Mark Watney.  

The supporting characters are thankfully diverse. We get to witness a decent melting pot with the power dynamics between genders, cultures, and ranked officials are never insulting. It's nice to know, too, that there was an effort to be more diverse. Ejiofor's character (Surname: Kapoor) was definitely supposed to be an Indian guy and only wasn't due to scheduling conflicts. 

There also isn't a role in the movie that induces a face palm. Each person makes believable, rational decisions with good intentions. There isn't a slimy publicist, there's a rational publicist. There's no callous boss, there's a decisive boss with hard choices to make. 

While that means that there's no true villain here (not even Mars), it also show's that there doesn't need to be one. Bonus points for not forcing a romance to take center stage while still having a gentle touch of love floating about. On the whole we are given a clichéd story that avoids clichés. 

Lightness aside, The Martian succeeds at being a survival tale that never feels predictable. The run time is two and a half hours but you'll be so enraptured by the film that you'll hardly notice. 

Spotlight: The highlight of the film was most certainly the moment when Project Elrond's significance is explained by an attendee of Elrond's Council. Glad whoever forced Scott to keep that in the film succeeded. Sean Bean's Mitch Henderson shines bright in the film as a guy who's clearly seen the middle seasons of every drama on the CW and knows the value of honesty. I'm sure Bean's character would have had a more gruesome fate were he at any point in space but, fortunately for him, he is safely on Earth the entire 
time. 

And now for the placement...

2015 Rankdown  .

1.      Kingsman: The Secret Service****

2.     Mad Max: Fury Road***

3.     The Man from UNCLE****

4.    The Martian***

5.     Me and Earl and the Dying Girl*

6.     Ant-Man***

7.     Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation***

8.     Jurassic World***

9.     Avengers: Age of Ultron****

10.   Furious 7***

11.     Shaun the Sheep*

12.    Spy***

13.    Sicario*

14.    Inside Out**

15.    Predestination*

16.    Run All Night*

17.    Dope

18.    Straight Outta Compton

19.    Black Mass

20.   Terminator: Genisys*

21.    Paddington*

22.    What We Do In the Shadows

23.    The Water Diviner

24.    Ex Machina

25.    Jupiter Ascending

26.   Slow West

27.    Everest

28.    The Gift

29.   Fantastic Four

30.   Pixels*

31.    Inherent Vice

32.    Mortdecai

(*denoted rewatchability)