Will Smith plays real-life neuropathologist Bennet Omalu in Concussion.

Concussion (2015)
Genre: Drama
Certification: 12A
Duration: 123 minutes
Directed by: Peter Landesman
Starring: Will Smith, Alec Baldwin, Albert Brooks, David Morse, Paul Reiser, Luke Wilson
KRS Releasing Ltd

The American biographical sports medical drama film is based on the real life story of Bennet Omalu, a Nigerian forensic pathologist who fought against efforts by the American football league to suppress his research on permanent brain damage, suffered by many professional football players. His story was first captured in the 2009 GQ exposé Game Brain by Jeanne Marie Laskas.

The film is aptly directed by a former investigative journalist, Peter Landesman, who covered the conflicts in Rwanda, Kosovo and Afghanistan/Pakistan after 9/11 for Time magazine and the New Yorker among other publications.

The plot sees Omalu (Will Smith) conducting an autopsy on former National Football League player Mike Webster (David Morse). The legendary sportsman played for the Pittsburgh Steelers and boasted four Super Bowl titles and unrivalled strength and toughness to be then followed by health issues that led to an early death at age 50. Upon examination, Omalu discovers that the player suffered from neurological deterioriation similar to the kind that happens in Alzheimer’s disease. He names the disorder ‘chronic traumatic encephalopathy’ (CTE) and publishes his findings in a medical journal. As other athletes face the same disorder, he starts a personal crusade to raise public awareness about the dangers of football-related head trauma.

The film received lukewarm reviews, which may have cut Smith’s chances of being nominated for an Oscar for best actor, even though many said he deserved a nod.

Andrew Barker of Variety wrote: “The film’s attempt to marry an earnest public-health expose with a corporate-malfeasance thriller and a sweet immigrant love story never comes together in a satisfying way.”

Manohla Dargis of the New York Times shares the same feelings: “Concussion lacks the exciting film-making that rises to the level of its outrageous topic.”

Smith has since joined fellow colleagues in their boycott of the awards show because of the lack of diversity among the nominees.

Ratings
IMDB: 7.1/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 62%
Empire Magazine: 2 stars

Ryan Reynolds is intent on revenge in the masked vigilante comic book story Deadpool.

Deadpool (2016)
Genre: Fantasy
Certification: 15
Duration: 108 minutes
Directed by: Tim Miller
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Morena Baccarin, T. J. Miller, Ed Skrein, Michael Benyaer, Gina Carano, Brianna Hildebrand
KRS Releasing Ltd

Deadpool is the eighth instalment in the X-Men film series and follows the adventures of the Marvel Comics antihero of the same name. The character had already appeared in the 2009 film X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

Ryan Reynolds stars as Wade Wilson, a former Special Forces operative who works as a mercenary and spends his time in New York City protecting teenage girls from would-be stalkers. He is diagnosed with terminal cancer and in his desperation to live, he accepts to take part in an experimental cure.

He is injected with a special serum and tortured for days in order to trigger a mutation. After weeks of no success, he is strapped into an airtight chamber, where the drop in oxygen triggers a healing factor, severely disfigures his face and skin in the process, but renders him immortal. He manages to escape from the chamber and find shelter at an elderly blind man’s home. With help from mutant allies, he becomes a masked vigilante named Deadpool and uses his new skills and a twisted sense of humour to hunt down the man who nearly destroyed his life.

The foul-mouthed antihero, who first appeared in 1991, gained a cult following despite not being as popular as other comic book characters. The film has been received warmly by critics and comic book fans alike. The Fox film in fact made a whopping $135 million in its opening weekend at the North American box office.

Ben Kendrick of Screen Rant wrote: “Deadpool, much like its source material, is an irreverent, bloody, and riotous twist on the superhero genre – a must-see comic book movie experience.”

Ratings
IMDB: 8.7/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 84%
Empire Magazine: 3 stars

Zac Efron learns a thing or two about life from Robert De Niro in Dirty Grandpa.

Dirty Grandpa (2016)
Genre: Comedy
Certification: 18
Duration: 102 minutes
Directed by: Dan Mazer
Starring: Robert De Niro, Zac Efron, Zoey Deutch, Julianne Hough, Dermot Mulroney, Jason Mantzoukas
KRS Releasing Ltd

Uptight lawyer Jason Kelly (Zac Efron) is one week away from marrying his boss’s controlling daughter, putting him on the fast track for a partnership at his firm. Tricked by his grandfather Dick (Robert De Niro), Jason finds himself driving the foul-mouthed old man to Daytona Beach, Florida, for a wild spring break that includes frat parties, bar fights and an epic night of karaoke. While Jason worries about the upcoming wedding, Dick tries to show his grandson how to live life to the fullest.

The film was panned by critics and many voiced their dismay about De Niro’s performance, in which the Oscar winner spouts an endless stream of profane one-liners and plays a dirty elderly man.

Nick Schager of Variety sums it up in his comment: “Robert De Niro hits rock-bottom opposite Zac Efron in this atrocious excuse for a comedy.”

As of February 15, Dirty Grandpa grossed a measly $33.5 million in North America.

Ratings
IMDB: 6.0/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 9%
Empire Magazine: 2 stars