The Trip to Italy

When Rob Brydon and Steve Coogan embarked on their culinary tour of the north of England in 2010's The Trip, I confess I did not know what to expect, but I very quickly came to love it. Under the helm of director Michael Winterbottom, the duo played fictionalized versions of themselves, and offered over six episodes a wonderful concoction of sheer laugh-out-loud comedic moments, wonderful blurs of reality and fantasy, incredibly poignant moments of pathos and self-reflection, and it has to be said - fantastic food and scenery.

Four years on, and the location is a bit more exotic, the glamour is hyped up a bit, and the food is distinctly more Italian (though apparently no less sumptuous) but still the glorious journey with these two middle-aged men continues to provide great results for one to sit back and enjoy.

A key part of both series, was the cultural and culinary journey that the boys found themselves in. In The Trip to Italy, the journey seems a bit more ad-hock than the previous outing, but all the more adventurous for it; we really do get a sense of discovery when watching Brydon and Coogan travel through the Italian Riviera. One stunning location after another, for me at least generated a bit of envy, but mostly it just felt like I was soaking up and enjoying Italy with the pair of them. The whole feel of each episode really is unique and wonderful to behold.

Though the core formula between the two men is still the same (same barrage of impressions and quips, same tongue-in-cheek camaraderie, same ever-moving mix of comedy and poignancy) there are some alterations and evolutions for both the "characters" of Rob and Steve. Whereas series 1 sort of saw Steve Coogan as the highly ambitious actor, aspiring Lothario, and great imposer of his own slight superiority this series, whilst still portraying him as trying to better himself over Brydon and to preserve his worth in his own eyes as much as anyone else's, we do see a softer, slightly more mellow and slightly more human side of him. Similarly, whereas the original Trip saw Rob Brydon as a very relaxed, affable, humerous and charming man, in the Italian version we still do get all these qualities, but with a distinct edge, and a lot more flair and aspiration; a bit more spring in the great Welsh man's step. I won't go so far as to say that the two roles have reversed, but there is definite cause to draw distinction, similarity and difference between the two figures we are presented with in series 1 and subsequently in series 2. What's more to have such an intruiging, ongoing and thoroughly well performed insight into these two characters only adds to the wealth of charm this series has for me. It was also a very pleasant welcome back for characters such as Emma and Steve's fictional son; they too had development to show off.

Faults? Really not many. OK, there are a couple of times when even this fictional 'mock-umentary' strays a tad too far into the definitely fictional, predictable and hyped up. Also, in series one the literature and massive cultural English figures that Steve and Rob kept citing and aspiring to were elements that very succinctly and very smoothly flowed from episode to episode, whereas this time it seems like a slight after-thought that is a bit forced in places.

Really though, these are definitely not major, and every single element of The Trip to Italy comes together in a marvelous and greatly intrinsic tapestry of sublime viewing. Fans of series 1 will only go on to love series 2 and its developments I feel. But if you have been following this programme or not, I really do insist that it is a true marvel, presented and performed in a truly unique fashion.

The Lone Ranger

I freely confess, though familiar with the iconic imagery, I have never once ever laid eyes or ears upon a single minute of that now iconic original series so ingrained into popular culture. However, thanks to a recent release from Sky Movies, I was greatly enthused to see what the blockbusting, action-packed corker of a modern movie had to offer. From the team that brought us the massive Pirates of the Caribbean series, this is Disney's The Lone Ranger. Apparently, this film was slated for budget issues and a stunted release, and some have even questioned bits and pieces of content of the film. But I just don't care. I loved almost every moment of this film from start to finish. It was a film that featured brilliant actors presenting incredibly mythical and respected characters, but with a hugely impacting and modern twist. 

Some of the key, and some of the most celebrated action sequences of this film were the "train scenes" which were done by building a custom railway track to film on in the desert, which I think is an achievement in itself. They were stunning to watch unfold, highly imaginative with tons of charm and pace and, like almost all of the film, hugely evocative of a true sense of wonder and adventure; the likes of which I have not seen in a film for a very long time indeed. Normally for me, it is the cast and characters and their performances which stand out to me in a film alone, but the whole look of The Lone Ranger, from the beautiful cinematography, to the iconic imagery, to the fantastic costumes and make-up all make for a truly great Western. Which, considering its origins is perhaps not surprising, but very pleasing none the less.

In terms of the cast, well I do feel there are some true supporting gems to look at first, before we get to the main stars. Tom Wilkinson, who is now an incredibly renowned and respected actor globally, gave a sufficiently confident, individual and resounding performance as villain Latham Cole; the likes of which we now come to expect and enjoy from him. The other main villain of the piece Butch Cavendish, played by William Fichtner was dark, brooding and at times gruesome enough for a film like this, but in terms of added depth, there wasn't much for me to see, but a solid Western bad man he did make. Sexy and sassy Red, AKA Helena Bonham Carter was a welcome surprise for me. At first, I thought she would be little more than a bright cameo, but her selected scenes did always seem to sparkle and sizzle whenever she appeared on screen.

Naturally we must discuss John Reid; The Lone Ranger himself. Even though Armie Hammer is still a relatively young and upcoming actor, he once again proved his great talent by taking on the role and donning the famous mask and hat of this iconic character. Playing the part initially with enough maturity and believability, then with a  great baptism of fire into the masked rider with great amounts of humour, grit and edge. If there is to be more to come from this incarnation of The Lone Ranger, then I am sure Armie Hammer will be welcomed back into the role.

If there is a stand out performance for me in The Lone Ranger however, it is certainly the great Johnny Depp as Tonto. The character is simply brilliant, and Depp is simply brilliant. From his very first scene to the last moments before the credits, Depp's Tonto exudes a never-ending barrage of fantastic lines, expressions and mannerisms that, not only make the character thoroughly believable and entertaining, but wonderfully unique. When he delivers humour he is hilarious, when he shifts to drama he is superb, and everything in between just generates so much love and respect for Depp as Tonto. The way Tonto was conceived to look in this film on its own was fantastic, but when inhabited by Johnny Depp's huge personality and sheer genius at creating and sticking with a character; it is pure cinematic magic. I said earlier this film was done by many of the same people who gave us Pirates of the Caribbean, including Depp himself of course, and I shall now go further to say that I think the legendary actor has now given us another legendary character to stand proudly alongside the now immortal Captain Jack Sparrow.

Together, the chemistry which seems so easily created and goes on to link and bind these two stars is for me what drives The Lone Ranger. As dynamic a duo as the original, and one which delivers a fantastic all-out frenzy of Western fantasy, fantastic action, and oodles of utter fun.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2

(WARNING: POTENTIAL SPOILERS)

OK, so as a self-confessed Marvel comic/comic book film fan, my hit rate for films seen has been a bit of a mixed bag of late. I missed Thor: The Dark World (had to see that one on a later DVD release; for the review see the blog's archive) I may possibly miss Captain America 2: The Winter Soldier, and I REALLY hope I do not miss X-MEN: Days of Future Past when its released later this month (if I don't - be sure there will definitely be a review of that one). I am glad to report however, that today I got to see The Amazing Spider-Man 2, the sequel to 2012's all-new, all -shiny revamp of the Spider-Man saga. Now of course, any sequel is going to get compared to its predecessor, but this film also is under added pressure as this re-vamped franchise often gets compared to Sam Raimi's thee-film Spider-Man run of the early 2000s, starring Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst. Fully fledged comparisons with other film series aside (perhaps that might be another potential blog piece) and remaining with this one; all in all I really did like this film. OK yes, there were a couple of things that did not sit right with me but there were enough plus points to carry Spidey home here in quite spectacular style.

Of course, let us address the stars of the show. After two films, I do believe Andrew Garfield to be a great incarnation of Peter Parker/Spider-Man. From the off, it seemed like he had an intrinsic idea of what the character was expected and was meant to be, by the fans, by the director, by the cast, and by himself. He resonates brilliantly as Peter Parker, and often delivers just as well as Spider-Man, and everything in between. Not that this was never true of Tobey Maguire, but it was so in different ways definitely. For example, Garfield has injected a good dose of humour and cheekiness (though on the odd occasion straying into arrogance which I don't like) that I don't feel Maguire ever really mastered. Yet at the same time, Maguire's Spider-Man always resonated gravitas and firm resilience, even in his darkest hour, whereas Garfield seems a lot more free-flowing and malleable in his portrayal of the web-head. OK, I'm going to stop the comparisons now, as we're here to focus on this one film primarily; they are both great actors and both great Spideys, yet this is now well and truly the time of Andrew Garfield to shine, which he does indeed.

Another core aspect of this Spider-Man of course, is the leading lady Gwen Stacey, played by the beautiful, beguiling and brilliantly talented Emma Stone. Many who have worked on these films have commented that the chemistry between the two is always incredibly tangible, and that does definitely come out in spades when watching. The Gwen/Peter relationship has been ever-evolving from the very start, and Emma Stone encapsulates Gwen Stacey to the core, as Andrew Garfield has with Peter/Spidey. Individually they are great to watch, but together they are superb, and as an audience member you never want their screen time to end. And yet... From the moment it was first announced that Emma Stone would be bringing Gwen Stacey to this incarnation of Spider-Man, any Marvel comic fan worth their salt had an inkling of what was coming. Yet the brilliance of this twosome's chemistry and how their relationship has played out did keep me guessing, at least until the last twenty minutes or so of this sequel. Following that however, and with a sense of impending and tragic inevitability, the classic sequence was brought before my eyes in a very powerful, slightly different, but still quite resolute way. Nevertheless, despite firm fans possibly knowing what was coming in this Gwen and Peter story, every moment of it, throughout both films, is done perfectly and wonderfully to behold, and that I think is thanks in no small part, to the two talented young actors behind this great on-screen pair.  

The other major cast member to return for this sequel is Sally Field as Aunt May. I do feel Sally Field has well and truly established herself as the Aunt May of this film series, no question about that, and most of the time her scenes, almost exclusively shared with Garfield, make for touching and/or humerous viewing. And yet, with the first film and this one, I just don't beleive in her performance as much as I wanted to. I think there might possibly be a similar issue to Field's performance in Lincoln (again for my review - see the archive) in that she was perhaps thinking too hard and trying to force a bit too much into her character as Aunt May, leaving the result a tad flat. If you take it as red that Aunt May is on screen before you and accept her in this Spider-Man universe as so many have then that is fine and you will enjoy her scenes as much as any others. Yet I think if you search for any depth to Sally Field's Aunt May, which you'd be forgiven for as she is given quite a few powerful scenes, you might be a little dissapointed.

A new addition this time around, is Dane DeHann, who is the Harry Osborn of this re-vamped saga. Whilst he convincingly comes off as the young, manipulative "anti-archetype" of a villain behind the scenes, the moments where DeHann is required to either resonate personally with Garfield's Peter, or later descend into manic and murderous insanity as the Green Goblin, whilst good, are nowhere near as good as they could have been I think; perhaps even ranging into the clichéd. The Peter/Harry relationship is just believable enough I think, and whilst the Green Goblin side of the character was done in a bit of a blur (and at times wasn't aided by DeHann's performance) it was action-packed and dramatic enough too, and from how it was left I'd wager it ain't over yet.

Other new villains of this film include Paul Giamatti as a self-confessed "hammy" Russian gangster who eventually becomes the Rhino. Say whatever you want about this, I have no doubt Giamatti enjoyed doing this one and for what it is, it certainly shows. Also we have Jamie Foxx as Max Dillon who becomes the super-villain Electro. As I'm sure fans will know, Foxx is billed as the main antagonist of this film, and he deserves to be. I really do think that Jamie Foxx has evolved into a superb actor in his prime, and that is the case again in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. He is just the right amount of vulnerable, sweet-natured and just on the right side of pitiable as "nobody" Max Dillon, and upon becoming Electro he is just the right mix of troubled, power-hungry and quite kick-ass.

Yes, this sequel in a young yet thus far great franchise does have a few plot holes and the tad demure performance here and there, all summed up to create a blot on the film, but quite a small one. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is all kinds of action-packed, emotional roller coaster-esque, and a film that epitomizes the whole idea of a Marvel Comics movie, more so than many I have seen in a while, Spider-Man or otherwise. Regardless, if you are a fan of Marvel and Spidey then I am pretty darn sure you'll love this film. If you aren't, but have the slightest of inklings that this genre might be for you, then this film and its predecessor are certainly not bad places to start.