Insomnia's a bitch

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A month or so in movies:

A while ago I mentioned that Iron Man rocks. That may be something of an understatement - it rocks big time, and is possibly the most enjoyable film I have seen all year so far (possibly only to be topped by The Dark Knight next month. If you haven't seen it yet then you should rush out to catch it before it disappears (and don't forget to stay for the scene after the credits). The casting is pitch-perfect - Robert Downey Junior *is* Tony Stark. From weapons-dealing magnate to kidnapped inventor to self-made superhero he makes it believable and he makes it funny. The film is much funnier that you might expect (recalling the tongue-in-cheek of Transformers last year) and the script does not skimp on character. The special effects are stunning - glossy, highly detailed and photo-real (once again recalling Transformers). The film's only flaw perhaps is its third and final act, where the simply-sketched bad guy shows up for a last-minute smackfest showdown. This is the first of a number of films that Marvel are producing themselves, and the lack of interference from idiot Hollywood executives shows - this really bodes well for the other projects in their stable.

What didn't bode quite so well was Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. As I mentioned before, it's not that it's such a bad film, it's just that it's not a great film either. It does well to capture the spirit of the other Indiana Jones films, but the pacing is off and the script in places is frankly awful. The b-movie science fiction themes don't sit very well with the adventurer-archaeologist archetype and the final scenes are extremely hard to fathom. Some sequences - particularly the fridge and the homage to Tarzan - are completely unecessary. I point the finger of blame entirely at George Lucas, whose wobbly track-record is renowned. He apparently vetoed a previous version of the script by Frank Darabont, and I wonder how much better that actually was. It's a shame really as I was hoping this might have been my favourite film of the year...

Back to Marvel, The Incredible Hulk was also very good. The previous Ang Lee version was a bit of a mess, and not very close to the source material; here however the credits dispense with the origin story and the movie opens some time later with Banner on the run with the US military on his tail. What ensues is a much more satisfiying series of 'Hulk Smash!', punctuated by some genuinely endearing moments with Bruce seeking a cure for his affliction, and Liv Tyler's Betty showing real warmth and compassion for his predicament. William Hurt is a much meaner General than Sam Neill, and Tim Roth does well to present Blonsky as a villain with a genuine obsession. Once again the weakest moments come at the end with the obligatory smackfest showdown between the Hulk and Blonsky's Abomination. Like Iron Man there are nods to potential sequels and the much-mooted Avengers ensemble movie - in fact rumour has it that there was a lot of crossover between the two films which didn't make the final cuts - perhaps we'll see such goodies on the DVDs?

A second disappointment came in the form of M Night Shyamalan's The Happening. I was really trying to ignore the critical bashing the film has been taking as I've been a big fan of Shyamalan's work to date - I even thought the last one Lady in the Water was ok, even if it was a little too saccharine for my tastes. As a storyteller myself I like his style and the themes that underly his work. The Sixth Sense for example as well as being a ghost story it was about a man coming to terms with his past and preparing to move on with his life. Unbreakable was a superhero film but it was also about fatherhood and a man accepting his destiny. Signs was really about faith, not aliens, and The Village was a clever examination of innocence. The Happening though... well, I'm not going to spoil it, but the story really lacks the subtle layering of his other films. In a sense its a disaster movie and a commentary of environmental issues, but in terms of character storytelling it just doesn't deliver, despite the best efforts of Mark Wahlberg and Zooey Deschenel (goddamn why is she sooo cute...? ). Very disappointing indeed, and I can only hope this is an unfortunate blip on his CV, rather than a signpost to mark the end of his career.

Finally, Gone Baby Gone is the first major film to be directed by Ben Affleck, and wow, what a surprise. Looks like Ben should give up acting altogether and focus on writing and directing. Based on a novel by Dennis Lahane, the film follows a story about a young girl who goes missing in Boston, and what happens when a couple of private detectives get involved in looking for her. The film exposes Boston's less savoury side and explores issues of greed, corruption and human fallibility with very broad shades of grey. It asks some very hard questions, and the decision that the character played by Casey Affleck (Ben's brother, who is brilliant) makes at the end is tough and will be a source of conversation for years to come. Quite frankly this shits all over the Scorcese's The Departed (which was just a remake anyway) - if this isn't in the running for the next set of Oscars then I'll eat my hat.