malaysian1789

A distinct lack of action heroes in 2013 and the public's obsession with recreating nostalgic moments has meant that Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone are very much in demand, 30 years after the peaks of their respective film careers. After the massively adored yet not very good Expendables, the pair return for Escape Plan, which as the title overtly suggests, focuses centrally on an escape plan. Hopefully this is a no-nonsense film that doesn't take itself too seriously or run too long, or I'll probably hatch an escape plan from the cinema....

Ray Breslin (Stallone) possibly has the worst job I've ever heard of: he intentionally becomes an inmate at various prisons and duly escapes, revealing the safety flaws each prison has and then selling them security tips to make a profit. In essence, he gets paid to stay in prison for numerous months at a time. Stallone doesn't really have any facial expressions in this film so it's hard to tell whether his character enjoys his life or not, or whether he even knows how to string a coherent sentence together. Anyway, soon enough Breslin is offered 5 MILLION dollars to be sent to a new secret prison and try to escape, but once arriving their he realises it's all a setup and he actually can't get out. Thus, he gains the help of inmate Emilt Rottmayer (Arnie) to try and escape using sheer strength and occasional flickers of intellect. The evil guards patrolling the hi-tech prison are led by former footballer Vinnie Jones, so it clearly won't be hard to escape.

This was an average film to put it nicely: it took itself far too seriously, and so the ridiculous plot and acting felt like a drag rather than the ironic parody it should have disguised itself as. Arnie and Stallone have their share of one-liners and gun battles, and even team up with Muslim inmates in the prison, as if to show they are representing a new, inclusive America. Brings a tear to my eye. Not to say it's a horrendous film, some of it was enjoyable, and the story goes along at a nice pace, but it just lacked that bit of you know....logic. Overall, it's not a film you would watch again, or even watch to the end, but if you're a fan of basic action films with no depth I'd probably recommend it.

4/10

Kick-Ass came out of nowhere in 2010 and turned out to be one the most refreshing films to be released this decade, a super-hero film that didn't hold back on language or violence, it was the antithesis to all the Marvel films being released and had a clear identity which separated it from any other film from the genre; it remains to this day the only film I've seen at the cinema that received a standing ovation from the audience afterwards. Well, three years on, the inevitable sequel hits the screens, with the added casting of Jim Carrey to the cast (who then promptly went on record to say the film was far too violent for him to promote): surely Kick-Ass 2 can't be a failure?

Beginning virtually from where the last film ended, Mindy aka ''Hit- Girl'' is still recovering from the death of her father and trying to fight crime in the city dressed as a now 15 year old super-hero, along with the help of Dave, aka Kick Ass himself. However, things begin to change when Mindy promises her new foster father (played by Morris Chestnut of Boyz N the Hood fame) she'll hang up her crime-fighting boots. This leaves Kick Ass deciding to join a superhero crew of crime- fighters dedicated to making the world a better place, but also a crew who suddenly find themselves being chased by Super Villain ''Red Mist'', now known by a different,more unusual name.

This film was very identical to the first instalment, but that's not a problem, it was still an excellent film, the over-the-top violence and humour consistently entertain and the plot is madcap enough to keep the audience guessing what each twist will hold. The only disappointment for me personally was that Jim Carrey was very subdued in his role and not as funny or crazy as I imagined he would be in a film of this nature. Overall, not a film for the easily offended, but a great film for the rest of us.

8/10

Humans have a natural instinct as predators to kill, but society forces us to repress these feelings by living in a ''civilized'' way....according to new Ethan Hawke led film The Purge, a very interesting concept of a film, which explores a future society in which all crime is allowed for one night a year...

It's 2022 (not actually that far away), and unemployment in America is 1%, crime is at an all-time low, and generally, everybody seems happy, especially James Sandin (Hawke), a rich citizen who makes his fortune selling security systems for houses to use during the annual Purge. Basically the reason why unemployment and crime is so low is because, for one night a year, a Purge occurs, where all crime (murder, raper robbery, the whole lot) is made legal, and no police or emergency services are allowed to interfere. Mad. But also intriguing. James and his family happily avoid the Purge by using a security system outside their large house while the rest of society kills each other, but all that changes when their youngest son Charlie decides to let a stranger into the house......

This starts off as a really captivating film, the concept of legal crime kept me hooked, but soon enough, it descends into a stereotypical action film where Ethan Hawke fights off gangs from his house with a variety of handguns,and all originality gets lost in a haze of bullets (literally). The short running time (85mins) and variety of twists every 5 minutes makes sure that it doesn't get too boring, so overall a decent watch, but nothing that provokes any thinking afterwards.

6/10- A lesser version of Panic Room