#NoEscape #EnglishHollywoodFilmMovieReview #JohnsonThomas Rating: * * 1/2
#NoEscape #EnglishHollywoodFilmMovieReview #JohnsonThomas Rating: * * 1/2
PicksAndPiquesSnippetFilmReview28thAug2015 #JohnsonThomas
</B><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/"></a> <a href="http://www.mrqe.com/"><a href="http://www.imdb.com/"><a href="http://www.wikipedia.org/"><a href="http://www.aasra.info/"><a href="http://www..com/"><a href="http://www.thepioneer.com efilmcritic.com/"><a href="http://www.talkingpix.co.uk/"><a href="http://www.newyorktimes.com/"><a href="http://www.timesofindia /"><a href="http://www.tirbuneindia.com/"><a href="http://www.hindustantimes.com/"><a href="http://www.dnaindia.com/"></a></a></a></a></a></a></a></a></a></a></a></a><a href="http://www.internationaltribune.com/"><a href="http://www.efilmcritic.com/"></a></a></B>
#PicksAndPiquesSnippetFilmReview28thAug2015
#JohnsonThomas
#Phantom(Hindi) Rating: * * ½ Aiming for #Ludlum effect but settling on nondescript. #KabirKhan’s #BajrangiBhaijaan aimed to gather in the critical and resentful while this next potential blockbuster turns jingoism into onscreen reality in order to tap into patriotic sentiment against terrorists being harbored by an enemy state. Based on post 26/11 encounters with the masterminds of the attack, as fictionally evinced by SHussainZaidi’s novel #MumbaiAvengers, this one goes for adequately referenced predicative spy thrills, a slight whiff of romance and of course nationalistic sentiment( a la #DDay).The choppy pace and ineffective action make this sentiment driven exercise nowhere close to stinging. Even so the resultant experience is a fairly decent one- and that’s about it! #KabirKhan #SaifAliKhan #KatrinaKaif #DenzilSmith #KaizaadKotwal #MohbanooKotwalMody #SohailaKapur #MohammadZeeshanAyyub #RajeshTailang #SpicePR #SajidNadiadwala #SiddharthRoyKapur #DisneyUTV
Runtime:136 mins
#BaankeyKiCrazyBaraat(Hindi) Rating: * ½ it’s crazy alright but nowhere close to entertaining. A rag-tag cast of decent actors repeat their standard tropes in order to stay in the public eye- but it’s definitely not an elevating sight or experience. #RajpalYadav is insufferable here but #SatyajeetDubey does a fairly decent job in a double role though. #HemaUpadhyay #1HMedia #SatyajeetDubey #SanjayMishra #AijazKhan #TiaBajpai #RakeshBedi #RaajpalYadav #VijayRaaz #AMFeelGoodFilms #AnitaMani Runtime: 124 mins
#Chehere(Hindi) Rating: * * ½ Intriguing retro-filmi, Period theatrics set in the UK, embedded in an ineffectual whodunit with obvious referencing from #AgathaChristie’s famed novels. Essentially knotty affairs, old fashioned theatrics & hidden secrets get exposed here but the manufactured run-ins with ill-gotten gains of stardom while interesting, is not very sustainable for the entire runtime. #AaryaBabbar #HrishitaBhatt #ManishaKoirala & #DivyaDutta make it fairly worthwhile though. #WasimSiddiqui #FameMedia #ManishaKoirala #JackieShroff #HrishitaBhatt #GulshanGrover #AaryaBabbar #DivyaDutta #RakeshBedi #BobBrahmbhatt #GeetaVij #RohitKaushik Runtime: 120 mins
#KaunKitneyPaaniMein(Hindi) Rating: * * * A cautionary tale that seeks to use life-sustaining water as the cement to forge unity amongst the diverse castes and classes in a remote Principality plagued by drought, this #NilaMadhabPanda( #IAmKalam) film fails to make the hard-earned lessons worthwhile. Noble intentions get lost in the morass of indistinctive posturing. It could have been a stinging satire on the misuse of natural resources but it just doesn’t get ticking. #SaurabhShukla’s ignoble performance makes it fairly meaty though. #NilaMadhabPanda #ParullGossain #KunalKapoor #SaurabhShukla #RadhikaApte #GushanGrover #OneDropFoundation #EleaanoraImagesPvtLtd Runtime:112 mins
#GauraiyaCrimeNeverEnds (Hindi) Rating: * * gritty but distasteful. Overburdened by cuss words & exploitative nudity, this unsavory account of Harijan-woes plagued by dacoits & police who s’exploit & indiscriminately misuse draconian laws (216A) to suppress their justifiable angst, doesn’t allow for any attachment- other than the obvious ones! #SantoshRaj #BRFilmsVision #BhojrajGuneja #RajeshHans #ShivRajoria #SunderShetty #ShakeelHashmi #BigCurtainsMediaPvtLtd Runtime: 109 mins
#TheManFromUNCLE (English) Rating: * * * ½ Charmingly spliced old fashioned spy thriller trading it’s thrills on inspiration from an ancient TV super successful TV series. Typically #GuyRitchie in narration, this one does get a little flaky in development but the suave, stylish appearances and the exuberant antiquated charm of the three principal leads makes up for it in good measure. #ArmieHammer #HenryCavill #AliciaVikander #WarnerBros #AnkitAgarwal #HughGrant
#ElizabethDebicki
Runtime:116 mins
#RickiAndTheFlash(English) Rating: * * * One for the fans- Three-time #AcademyAward® winner #MerylStreep breaks the mold yet again with an exuberant non-traditional performance as a hard-rocking singer/guitarist who revisits her estranged family ( which includes her real life daughter #MammieGummer as her on screen daughter going through a painful break-up) in the hope of making it right with them. Director #JonathanDemme & fellow #AcademyAward®-winning screenwriter #DiabloCody may not be in their element here but they still manage to juice the return-of-the-prodigal story for some uplifting comedy & drama. The film is also loaded with music and live performance, with Streep doing the honors as Ricki, a guitar toting second rung rocker who gave up everything for her dream of rock-and-roll stardom. #SonyPictures #AnjaliMalhotra #DiabloCody #MamieGummer #RickSpringfield Runtime:101 mins
#NoEscape(English))Rating: * * ½ A couple and their two daughters relocate to Asia, only to find themselves caught in the middle of a coup. The ‘strangers in a strange land’ premise is effective enough as a precursor of ‘alienated’ thrills but the effect is not that happening even if 80-90 mins of the runtime is devoted to escape. The setup is swift and the escalation of trouble is quite meaty but the reasoning is suspect here.There’s no validation either. The lack of political context is a killer #JohnErickDowdle #OwenWilson #PierceBrosnan #LakeBell #SterlingJerins #ClaireGeare #PierceBrosnan #SahajakBoonthanakit
#SaileshPathak #TOPEntertainment Runtime:103 mins
#BestFilmsReleasedthisWeek28thAug2015 #JohnsonThomas
<.B><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/"></a> <a href="http://www.mrqe.com/"><a href="http://www.imdb.com/"><a href="http://www.wikipedia.org/"><a href="http://www.aasra.info/"><a href="http://www..com/"><a href="http://www.thepioneer.com efilmcritic.com/"><a href="http://www.talkingpix.co.uk/"><a href="http://www.newyorktimes.com/"><a href="http://www.timesofindia /"><a href="http://www.tirbuneindia.com/"><a href="http://www.hindustantimes.com/"><a href="http://www.dnaindia.com/"></a></a></a></a></a></a></a></a></a></a></a></a><a href="http://www.internationaltribune.com/"><a href="http://www.efilmcritic.com/"></a></a></B>
#BestFilmsReleasedthisWeek28thAug2015 #JohnsonThomas
#TheManFromUNCLE (English) Rating: * * * ½ Charmingly spliced old fashioned spy thriller trading it’s thrills on inspiration from an ancient TV super successful TV series. Typically #GuyRitchie in narration, this one does get a little flaky in development but the suave, stylish appearances and the exuberant antiquated charm of the three principal leads makes up for it in good measure. #ArmieHammer #HenryCavill #AliciaWikander #WarnerBros #AnkitAgarwal Runtime:116 mins
#RickiAndTheFlash(English) Rating: * * * One for the fans- Three-time #AcademyAward® winner #MerylStreep breaks the mold yet again with an exuberant non-traditional performance as a hard-rocking singer/guitarist who revisits her estranged family ( which includes her real life daughter #MammieGummer as her on screen daughter going through a painful break-up) in the hope of making it right with them. Director #JonathanDemme & fellow #AcademyAward®-winning screenwriter #DiabloCody may not be in their element here but they still manage to juice the return-of-the-prodigal story for some uplifting comedy & drama. The film is also loaded with music and live performance, with Streep doing the honors as Ricki, a guitar toting second rung rocker who gave up everything for her dream of rock-and-roll stardom. #SonyPictures #AnjaliMalhotra #DiabloCody #MamieGummer #RickSpringfield Runtime:101 mins
#KaunKitneyPaaniMein(Hindi) Rating: * * * A cautionary tale that seeks to use life-sustaining water as the cement to forge unity amongst the diverse castes and classes in a remote Odisha Principality plagued by drought, this #NilaMadhabPanda( #IAmKalam) film fails to make the hard-earned lessons worthwhile. Noble intentions get lost in the morass of indistinctive posturing. It could have been a stinging satire on the misuse of natural resources but it just doesn’t get ticking. #SaurabhShukla’s ignoble performance makes it fairly meaty though. #NilaMadhabPanda #ParullGossain #KunalKapoor #SaurabhShukla #RadhikaApte #GushanGrover #OneDropFoundation #EleaanoraImagesPvtLtd Runtime:112 mins
English Film Review
Johnson Thomas
Film: No Escape
Cast: Pierce Brosnan, Owen Wilson, Lake Bell, Sterling Jerins, Claire Geare, Sahajak Boonthanakit
Director: John Erick Dowdle
Rating: * *1/2
Runtime: 103 mins
Synopsis:
A couple and their two daughters relocate to Asia, only to find themselves caught in the middle of a coup. Jack Dwyer (Owen Wilson) transplants his family - wife Annie (Lake Bell) and young daughters Lucy (Sterling Jerins) and Beeze (Claire Geare) - from the familiarity of Austin, Texas to the incongruity of an unnamed, unstable south Asian nation. The film was shot in Indonesia, so much of it is implied but nothing is stated for a fact. it appears to be a promising start for the family but things turn topsy-turvy soon enough. A coup spells doom for the family as jack works for the conglomerate targeted by the rioters. In that highly toxic environment comes a British expat Hammond(Brosnan) who aids them in the plan to escape in his own personal attempt to redeem an uneasy conscience. and the resulting unrest make the environment toxic for foreigners - especially those associated with Jack's new employer, a multinational conglomeration understandably demonized by the rioters. As the situation becomes increasingly dangerous for the Dwyers, with their hotel under siege and the American embassy sacked, a British ex-pat named Hammond (Pierce Brosnan) comes to their aid in an attempt to redeem an uneasy conscience.
Review:
No Escape establishes its "stranger in a strange, alien land" premise quite fittingly. Also there’s not much time for deep thought because panic sets in quite early and most of the runtime is concerned with the family running in all directions seeking an escape route while fleeing bullets and frenzied mobs. And as long as you let your brain waddle in the imagined scenario that prefers not to identify a geo-political conflict context, you can get by on the thrills. But the minute you wake up from that stupor and begin questioning, it all starts falling apart.
While the technique is top-notch and allows for great tension throughout, the story without properly defined context appears a little too fantastic to allow for complete immersion. The thriller milestones are perfectly rendered but the escape route is fraught with difficulties that should have been insurmountable to say the least. It’s a catch 22 situation because the couple and their kids are not superheroes and need Hammond’s help to get out of the fire. Nothing feels legitimate though. Without the politics though this one just runs out of steam!
Johnson Thomas
Comments
Post a Comment