The Great Wall (2016)
Genre: Action
Certification: 12A
Duration: 103 minutes
Directed by: Yimou Zhang
Starring: Matt Damon, Tian Jing, Willem Dafoe, Andy Lau, Pedro Pascal
KRS Releasing Ltd

The action adventure film stars Matt Damon as a mercenary from the West who is captured by a military organisation called the Nameless Order that is headquartered in a fortress on the Great Wall.

Over time, he and fellow mercenary (Pedro Pascal of Game of Thrones fame) get caught up in a battle between the Chinese warriors and supernatural menace – ravenous beasts that rise locust-like from the nearby Jade Mountain every 60 years to devour humans and everything else in their wake.

As they overcome mutual distrust to fight alongside the defending Chinese soldiers, the warriors realise the world's only hope for survival is the Great Wall.

Directed by one of the most popular visual stylists, Zhang Yimou (Hero, House of Flying Daggers), the film is also his first English language production and the largest film ever shot in China.  Unfortunately, however, the film has not gained favourable reviews.

Helen Roxburgh of The Guardian called the film “a monster movie with a muddled message – but plenty of sweeping swordplay”.

Clarence Tsui of The Hollywood Reporter is on the same wavelength: “Beyond the casting and the ceaseless onslaught of diverse special effects, Zhang and his Hollywood screenwriters have delivered nothing more than a formulaic monster movie ­– albeit one transposed to a historically undefined China.”

Maggie Lee of Variety claims that  the film has no original premise. As regards its main protagonist, she declared: “Matt Damon doesn’t save China in this capably directed but generic fantasy spectacle extolling Chinese culture and military excellence.”

She also wrote that the director’s “signature visual dazzle, his gift for depicting delicate relationships and throbbing passions are trampled by dead-serious epic aspirations”.

With a production budget of $150 million, the film has so far earned $266 million since its December release.

Ratings
IMDB: 6.3/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 35%
Empire: 2 stars

Denial (2016)
Genre: Historical drama
Certification: 12A
Duration: 109 minutes
Directed by: Mick Jackson
Starring: Rachel Weisz, Tom Wilkinson, Timothy Spall, Andrew Scott, Jack Lowden
KRS Releasing Ltd

Denial is based on Deborah Lipstadt’s book History on Trial: My  Day in Court with a Holocaust Denier, which dramatises a case known as ‘Irving v Penguin Books Ltd’.

In the plot, university professor Lipstadt (Rachel Weisz)  includes World War II historian David Irving (Timothy Spall) in a book about Holocaust deniers. He accuses her of libel and sparks a legal battle for historical truth.

With the burden of proof placed on the accused, Lipstadt and her legal team fight to prove the essential truth that the Holocaust occurred.

The film received general positive reviews with praise showered on the main protagonists’ acting, however, some argued that it looks more like a TV legal drama.

Olly Richards of Empire described the film as  “a sturdy by-the-numbers legal drama that really belongs on the small screen”.

Jesse Hassenger of A.V. Club wrote: “Denial is as tasteful, informative and devoid of visual spark as a mid-level TV movie.”

And the critics consensus on Rotten Tomatoes reads: “If Denial doesn't quite do its incredible story complete justice, it comes close enough to offer a satisfying, impactful drama – and another powerful performance from Rachel Weisz.”

The  $10 million budget film has so far earned about $4 million in the US since its nationwide release in mid-December.

Ratings
IMDB: 6.6/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 82%
Empire: 3 stars

Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (2016)
Genre: Action
Certification: 15
Duration: 99 minutes
Directed by: Paul W.S. Anderson
Starring: Milla Jovovich, Iain Glen, Ali Larter, Ever Anderson
KRS Releasing Ltd

Former supermodel Milla Jovovich returns in the sixth and final instalment of the Resident Evil film series, which is loosely based on the video game series of the same name.

In this sequel, the T-virus unleashed by the evil Umbrella Corp. has spread to every corner of the globe, infesting the planet with zombies, demons and monsters. Alice (Jovovich), a former Umbrella employee-turned-rogue warrior, joins her friends on a last-chance mission to storm the company's headquarters located deep underneath what used to be Raccoon City. But the Red Queen (Ever Anderson) knows that Alice is coming and the final battle will determine if the rest of mankind lives or dies.

The film did not go down so well with critics. Most said that the final chapter adds nothing to the series and is more of a rehash of preceeding films and of other movies.

Joe Leydon of Variety, in fact, wrote: “In addition to repurposing situations, character types, and fight choreography from previous episodes, Anderson borrows freely from a host of other post-apocalyptic action-adventures.”

The film has, however, fared quite well at the box office. Made on a $40 million budget, it received $147 million in box-office sales worldwide since its Janaury release.

Ratings
IMDB: 6.2/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 33%
Empire: 2 stars

The Lego Batman Movie (2017)
Genre: Animation
Certification: U
Duration: 104 minutes
Directed by: Chris McKay
Voices of: Will Arnett, Michael Cera, Rosario Dawson, Ralph Fiennes, Zach Galifianakis
KRS Releasing Ltd

The spin-off instalment of The Lego Movie focuses on the DC Comics character Batman as he attempts to overcome his greatest fear to stop the Joker’s latest plan.

The masked superhero might have to try to work with others and learn to lighten up. His superhero sidekick Robin (Michael Cera) and loyal butler Alfred (Ralph Fiennes) teach him a lesson or two.

The film has been lauded by critics. It has been described as “smart, funny and fast-paced” and “pretty irresistible”.

Jonathan Pile of Empire sums it all up by calling the film “a highly quotable, visual treat that’s packed with in-jokes but is entertaining enough on its own terms to work for fans and non-fans alike. The best Batman film in years.”

With a production budget of $80 million, the film has dominated the US box office since its release on February 10 and has made $179 million worldwide.

Ratings
IMDB: 7.8/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 91%
Empire: 4 stars

Patriots Day (2016)
Genre: Drama
Certification: 15
Duration: 133 minutes
Directed by: Peter Berg
Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Kevin Bacon, John Goodman
KRS Releasing Ltd

Directed by Peter Berg (Collateral, Battleship), Patriots Day revolves around the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing and the subsequent terrorist manhunt. It is actually based on the book Boston Strong by Casey Sherman and Dave Wedge.

The film transports viewers to April 15, 2013, when two bombs explode near the finish line of the Boston Marathon, killing three people and injuring several hundred others.

The plot sees police Sgt Tommy Saunders (Mark Wahlberg), FBI Special Agent Richard DesLauriers (Kevin Bacon) and Commissioner Ed Davis (John Goodman) joining courageous survivors, first responders and other investigators in a race against the clock for justice.

The film has been praised for managing to take a widely reported event and make it feel immediate and at times even unpredictable, especially during the scenes involving perpetrators Tamerlan Tsarnaev (Themo Melikidze) and Jahar Tsarnaev (Alex Wolff).

There is a tendency in true-crime story fashion to focus on and, occasionally, even to explain the perpetrators, but Patriots Day  limits such moments, providing just enough backstory for the incidents to make sense. Despite this, however, the film ends by revealing the real faces of the incident’s victims and heroes, paying a solemn tribute to the actual events that took place.

Patriots Day received positive reviews for Berg’s direction and the performances of its cast and was chosen by the National Board of Review as one of the top 10 films of 2016.

In fact, Variety’s Peter Debruge praised the film as being “genuinely exciting megaplex entertainment, informed by extensive research, featuring bona fide movie stars and staged with equal degrees of professionalism and respect”.

On a similar note, Joe Morgenstern from the Wall Street Journal spoke about “the hurtling action that speaks louder than any dialogue, giving a stirring sense of the suffering and heroism that flowed from the terror at the Boylston Street finish line”.

As of February 19, 2017, Patriots Day grossed $31.4 million in North America and Canada and $6.4 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $37.8 million, against a production budget of $45 million.

The film will open in Malta on Friday.

Ratings
IMDB: 7.5/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 80%
Empire: 3 stars