Can, and should artistic directors take a crack at action movies? Warner Brothers took a chance and let Christopher Nolan helm the Batman franchise, and look how brilliant that turned out. Before "Batman Begins", Nolan only directed "Memento" and "Insomnia". Two movies that relied more on depth and substance as opposed to action and adrenaline. And i think those two things, depth and substance, are and have been the missing ingredient in this generations action flicks. So with an academy award nominated director Joe Wright taking the wheel behind this one, i can only expect great things.
For starters, the action is not as high octane as one might expect. Nolan had this problem with "Batman Begins" as well. By that i mean the fighting sequences are not as impressive nor filmed as well as most of your big budget action pictures. There are a lot of close in, quick cut hand movements, and then the fight is over. You get the picture that this girl is a bad ass, but you kind of want that establishing shot of her going insane on three guys at once. Instead, the fighting last only a few seconds, and you don't really know how she stuck it to em'. Imagine watching Hit-Girl in "Kick-Ass", but the camera is zoomed in so you can't really tell what's happening.
And as far as the cinematography is concerned, that is only the real flaw in this picture. Everything else is absolutely gorgeous. If you've seen the movie "Atonement", then you already know what your in store for.
The acting is another aspect that was incredible. Both Eric Bana and Cate Blanchett prove their range as actors......but the show stopper is obviously Saoirse Ronan. Even though i think this kid is amazing already, i think she will do nothing but grow into something even greater. She once again does an amazing job of creating this amazing stage presence.
As far as a storyline......it's eh. Don't get me wrong, it did keep my interest, but there really was nothing groundbreaking about it. For example.......when they finally reveal the ultimate plot outline towards the end, your not as blown away as the director would've hoped. It feels like a story that i've already heard before.
So is there really something special here? I would say yes and no. It's special because it's not your typical action picture. It's very artistic, and aside from the action sequences, it's shot very very well. Even if you become somewhat bored by the storyline, the combination of the cinematography and incredible musical score by The Chemical Brothers keep your eyes glued to the screen. But the reason why i would say 'No' is.......it's storyline is not as epic as you want it to be. Sure it starts out great. I mean come on, a little girl being trained by her father to be a mega bad-ass and survive in the wild on her own.......that's freakin' awesome. But after that.......it kind of dwindles off.
Bottom Line......i did enjoy it. But do i think it's the action movie of year? Not really. But one things for sure, it will certainly be the most artistic of the bunch.
For starters, the action is not as high octane as one might expect. Nolan had this problem with "Batman Begins" as well. By that i mean the fighting sequences are not as impressive nor filmed as well as most of your big budget action pictures. There are a lot of close in, quick cut hand movements, and then the fight is over. You get the picture that this girl is a bad ass, but you kind of want that establishing shot of her going insane on three guys at once. Instead, the fighting last only a few seconds, and you don't really know how she stuck it to em'. Imagine watching Hit-Girl in "Kick-Ass", but the camera is zoomed in so you can't really tell what's happening.
And as far as the cinematography is concerned, that is only the real flaw in this picture. Everything else is absolutely gorgeous. If you've seen the movie "Atonement", then you already know what your in store for.
The acting is another aspect that was incredible. Both Eric Bana and Cate Blanchett prove their range as actors......but the show stopper is obviously Saoirse Ronan. Even though i think this kid is amazing already, i think she will do nothing but grow into something even greater. She once again does an amazing job of creating this amazing stage presence.
As far as a storyline......it's eh. Don't get me wrong, it did keep my interest, but there really was nothing groundbreaking about it. For example.......when they finally reveal the ultimate plot outline towards the end, your not as blown away as the director would've hoped. It feels like a story that i've already heard before.
So is there really something special here? I would say yes and no. It's special because it's not your typical action picture. It's very artistic, and aside from the action sequences, it's shot very very well. Even if you become somewhat bored by the storyline, the combination of the cinematography and incredible musical score by The Chemical Brothers keep your eyes glued to the screen. But the reason why i would say 'No' is.......it's storyline is not as epic as you want it to be. Sure it starts out great. I mean come on, a little girl being trained by her father to be a mega bad-ass and survive in the wild on her own.......that's freakin' awesome. But after that.......it kind of dwindles off.
Bottom Line......i did enjoy it. But do i think it's the action movie of year? Not really. But one things for sure, it will certainly be the most artistic of the bunch.