Rough Night (2017) film review

Year: 2017
Running Time: 101 minutes
Director: Lucia Aniello
Writers: Lucia Aniello and Paul W. Downs
Cast: Scarlett Johansson, Jillian Bell, Kate McKinnon, Zoe Kravitz, Ilana Glazer, Paul W. Downs

Rough Night is now showing in cinemas everywhere and is distributed by Sony Pictures.

Designated chick flick Rough Night takes obvious inspiration from a host of other party comedies so much that, not surprisingly, it struggles to find it's own personality and original laughs. Yet, the film has some hidden gems which should not be ignored and should be celebrated.

Party films are almost a comedy sub-genre of their own. With the number of bachelor and bachelorette party films we have seen in the past decade, it is no surprise that Rough Night looks and feels a little familiar. Taking it's inspiration from films such as Bridesmaids, The Hangover and Weekend at Bernies (though not of this decade), the story of five women who travel to Miami for a bachelorette weekend is painstakingly predictable. Every turn their journey takes is unoriginal as are the accompanying jokes.

For the large part of it's 101 minutes, Rough Night throws around obvious situational gags with a painful sense of desperation. Yet, it does not completely fail to generate laughs, there is just perhaps less than there really should be. There are certainly some very funny moments throughout Rough Night, many of which come courtesy of Kate McKinnon, who plays Australian girl, Pippa (with a very interesting accent that often sounds as though she is part Kiwi...which is unintentionally amusing as this is one of the running jokes). McKinnon steals every scene which she is in as  her comedic timing is unrivalled by any other cast member.

However, there is much about  Rough Night that should be celebrated. Despite is downfalls, the film is a strong female driven piece of work that does more than just place five females as the protagonists of the film. From the outside, it may not seem that Jess (Scarlett Johansson), Alice (Jillian Bell), Blair (Zoe Kravits), Frankie (Ilana Glazer) and Pippa are strong female characters, as the plot calls for them to go a little crazy and get a bit messy. One must remember that this is a bachelorette weekend and it's naïve to think that girls would act any other way on such a night.

Yet, once mayhem enters the scene, it becomes obvious that the male characters are the weaker link. Scarlett Johansson's Jess is the strong centre of the film. She is obviously the one who wears the pants in her relationship and in the middle of a political campaign that demands her attention. Her to-be-husband, Peter (who is played by co-writer Paul W. Downs) is aware of the lower ranking he holds in the partnership and is nothing but supportive of his fiancé's decisions to work on her career rather than romance...whether he likes it or not. Their relationship very much represents a new-age marriage in which the woman is ambitious and the man is the unwavering support. The non-platonic rekindled love affair between Blair and Frankie is also refreshing.

The theme of female empowerment we obviously see here also includes the importance of females empowering one another. Women can be nasty creatures to one another and Rough Night demonstrates how horrible women can be to each another, but also how working together produces amazing results.

Rough Night is not a triumph of it's genre and it is a shame that a film with a positive message for women will likely be forgotten within months of it's release.

6/10

The Divergent Series- Allegiant (2016) film review

Year: 2016
Running Time: 120 minutes
Director: Robert Schwentke
Writers: Veronica Roth (novel), Noah Oppenheim, Adam Cooper and Bill Collage (screenplay)
Cast: Shailene Woodley, Theo James, Jeff Bridges, Miles Teller, Ansel Elgort, Naomi Watts, Octavia Spencer, Zoe Kravitz, Maggie Q

Allegiant is now showing in cinemas everywhere and is distributed in Australia by Entertainment One.

The biggest problem that the third film in the Divergent series, Allegiant faces is it's existence. This film that is filled with flaws exists only out of necessity considering the series has begun and must now be finished, which is particular worrying for the final instalment to be released in 2017, Ascendant.

Those who have read the books by Veronica Roth will know that the first book, Divergent starts the series in spectacular style, with the following two not able to follow in the original's footsteps. The same thing is happening with the films. They are progressively becoming less entertaining, enjoyable and successful overall. Allegiant is incredibly weak and does not have the ability to excite or provoke anticipation for the finale. What it does do is make one believe that Insurgent should have been the final film because even though it was definitely more entertaining, it did not have a strong cliff-hanger ending which made people look forward to the next two films.

With Jeanine now dead and the world of factions now at an end, it would seem that Chicago would now be at peace. However, the brutality continues and Jeanine's legacy seems to be carrying on in her absence. Divergents, Tris (Shailene Woodley) and her boyfriend, Four (Theo James) decide to escape this new Chicago by climbing the wall to see if the rest of the world can offer them solace. However, what is on the other side of the wall is not the peaceful world they were expecting nor that it is pretending to be.

The Divergent series (both the books and movies) draw much of their inspiration from other teen fiction film adaptations. Thanks to the Harry Potter series where the final book was split into two movies, both The Hunger Games and Divergent series have attempted to do the same based on it's success. One can understand why this would be a profitable venture for production and distribution companies when the series already has a massive fan base or the previous films have been extremely successful. Of course, the final book in a series does often have the most happening in it so having it split across two films also solves the problem of squishing as much information as possible into an appropriate running time.

The difference between Harry Potter and both The Hunger Games and Divergent was that it wasn't decided until late in series of films (which admittedly is a series with more films anyway) that Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows would be divided into two parts, while the other two series made this decision after the first film. Focusing primarily on Divergent, the series has really not taken off the way the film makers would have hoped and like the books, it is losing momentum with each film. The decision to make the book "Allegiant" into two films is now more than likely a fatal one as far as the film makers are concerned. Allegiant does not make the final film enticing to anyone and it is almost painful acknowledging that there is still another film to go after this.

Even if you have not read "Allegiant" and have only heard that it is the weakest book in the Veronica Roth series, one can still understand why. Allegiant feels as though it is far removed from the two previous movies and like a completely different story rather than a continuation of Divergent and Insurgent. There are absolutely links between with the past films and quite a few viewers who have not seen the previous films will not understand them, but the story itself doesn't feel as though it neatly connects to Insurgent. This is perhaps because the end of Insurgent felt so final without a clean cut cliff-hanger that the beginning of Allegiant is met with a feeling of "Oh, here we go again..." With this feeling, it is hard to take anything seriously in this monotonous film.

However, it is not just the story that feels weak, the visual aspects of Allegiant are quite awful. Slow motion is used to no benefit in a number of scenes and provokes more eye-rolls than feeling of awe. One of the worst parts about Allegiant is an issue which is a deal-breaker for any action film in this day and age. As this is a dystopian film, the majority of it is obviously filmed on green screen, but you should not be able to tell this by watching the film and it is a crime that the use of a green screen is obvious. Many of the special effects also come across as unrealistic. These things could be forgiven had Allegiant been a low budget film, but with a budget of $100 million this is far from the case. Only a tad of the production design of Chicago is somewhat impressive.

Much of the acting talent in this film is being wasted, particularly that of Shailene Woodley and Miles Teller. The two of them are of considerable talent which has been seen in their past films and the past two Divergent films, but their roles of Tris and Peter are not written to be as meaty as what they should have been. Tris lacks the courageous and strong personality we have come to know and Peter is basically repeating the same character patterns that he did in the past two films and becoming rather annoying in the process.

Naomi Watts as Four's mother, Evelyn probably isn't given enough to do in the film to make enough of an impact, but her scene with Four's father, Marcus (portrayed by Ray Stevenson) is particularly memorable for the hard emotion she shows in it. Casting Jeff Bridges as David was a rather awful decision as the character is supposed to assert authority over all he meets and be rather domineering and menacing, yet he comes across purely goofy. Every time he says the name "Tris" it is a moment that calls for unintentional laughter.

It is not often that a final film in a series is met with a feeling of dread and not excitement and anticipation, yet that is exactly how Allegiant makes us feel about Ascendant. This extremely flawed film is almost the kiss of death for the series' next film, but one can only hope that there is no way it can get worse than this.

3/10

Divergent (2014)

Year: 2014
Running Time: 139 minutes
Director: Neil Burger
Writers: Veronica Roth (novel), Evan Daugherty and Vanessa Taylor (screenplay)
Cast: Shailene Woodley, Theo James, Kate Winslet, Ashley Judd, Jai Courtney, Zoe Kravitz, Miles Teller, Ansel Elgort, Maggie Q, Tony Goldwyn, Ray Stevenson, Ben Lloyd-Hughes, Christian Madsen

Divergent is perfectly tailored to it's young adult target audience, without neglecting the needs of the older audience. While many aspects of the film are stereotypical to it's genre and predictable as a result, it sets itself apart from the rest with it's suspenseful plot and intense action sequences. Fans of the book will have no complaints (or only very minor ones) about the bestseller's transition to screen, but for those who haven't read the book there may be some confusion over particular aspects of the dystopian world of Divergent.

Set in the future in the city that used to be Chicago, all inhabitants are divided into five factions based on human virtues. These factions are Amity, Erudite, Abnegation, Dauntless and Candor. When they turn sixteen, the young of each faction face an aptitude test to find out where they really belong. When Beatrice Prior (Shailene Woodley) completes her test, she is told that her test was inconclusive and that she is Divergent, meaning she exhibits behaviour typical of all factions rather than belonging in one. She is told how dangerous it is to be Divergent, and instead chooses Dauntless over staying in Abnegation. In Dauntless she must face a number of initiation tasks in order to stay in that faction, but more importantly, she must do her best to convince everyone that she is not Divergent.

The novel of the same name by Veronica Roth is a piece of fiction targeted towards the young adult audience. Yet, like many young adult novels these days, it is extremely popular with older audiences as well. The film works in much the same way as it is enjoyable for people of any age. On the other hand, it cannot be mistaken as a film in any other genre as all the things that have become known as being stereotypical parts of a YA novel turned film are there. Of course, the main character is 16 which places it in the YA genre territory straight away, but there is also the obvious romance between Tris and Four (Theo James) and the dystopian living with a fight for survival. All things which we have seen in one or two YA films before. So there really is a great deal of predictability regarding what will happen to who.

However, this doesn't matter when it comes to the film overall. It is still very entertaining and has made the transition well to the big screen. Those who have read the book will notice that the violence has been toned down a great deal from the book and there are a few things that are missing, but that is to be expected considering the film was already over two hours long without these things. In the latter half, Divergent becomes extremely action packed and the physical fighting scenes are very well choreographed and entertaining to watch. However predictable it can be at times, the film is still very suspenseful as a result of these battle scenes. The idea of the five factions and being Divergent and factionless can be a bit of a task to take in and understand, especially for those who haven't read the book.

The physical world of Divergent is wonderfully brought to life. From the beginning shot just outside the city with the deserted ship on the open plain, you are blown away by the reconstruction of Chicago to make it look as though it is futuristically war torn. The whole film is so visually intriguing, especially the images of the train and during the flying fox scene. The musical score is also perfectly suited as it has an edgy, suspenseful and futuristic feel to it, but can also feel as though it is trying a little too hard to add to the atmosphere of the film.

Shailene Woodley is perfect as Beatrice, or Tris as she becomes known as. Her character development throughout the film is perfect, as she changes a great deal from when we first meet her. When Tris is first met at the beginning of the film, it is not expected at all that this meek and curious little girl could become who she is at the end of the film, but she does so gradually and believably. Woodley, although good throughout the whole film, has one particularly memorable and powerful scene which is quite hard-hitting and emotional.

Woodley works well with Theo James, who plays her love interest. There is a great amount of chemistry between the two. James is perfectly cast as Four, who has a great deal of charisma due to his mystery. Jai Courtney, who plays Dauntless leader Eric, is also very well cast as he is just as charismatic, but in a dangerous way. Zoe Kravitz and Miles Teller also do very well as Dauntless initiates who have a great deal of character. It is great seeing Kate Winslet in such a different character than what she usually plays, and she is wonderful as Jeanine Matthews, Erudite's leader.

Divergent is an entertaining watch and although not the most unique and creative of the young adult novel turned movie category, is certainly not the least enjoyable.

7/10

After Earth (2013)

Year: 2013
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Cast: Will Smith, Jaden Smith, Zoe Isabelle Kravitz, Sophie Okonedo

Will Smith wanted to once again work with his son, Jaden. M. Night Shyamalan needed a blockbuster to get his approval rating back up. Post-apocalyptic movies are very in vogue at the moment.

These are probably the three reasons After Earth was made.

Apart from these three reasons, it is a confusing notion as to why this film was made at all. It lacks more than it does achieve and although not completely mind-numbingly boring, it may be at the bottom of the blockbusters (if you can call it that) this season.

Some years into the future, Earth has been deemed unfit for humans to live and the race has migrated to Nova Prime. General Cypher Raige (Will Smith) returns home to his wife, Faia (Sophie Okonedo) and son, Kitai (Jaden Smith) after a lengthy mission. In order to develop a better relationship with his son, Cypher takes him on his next duty. During the flight, an asteroid storm hits and damages the ship, sending it crashing into Earth. Cypher and Kitai are the only two survivors and as Cypher is badly injured, Kitai must venture across the dangerous lands of Earth in order to get help for his father.


It has been years since M. Night Shyamalan has had a well received film. After Earth is a different path for him to walk down but it has not proved a successful one. Even having one of the biggest movie stars in the world take part in his film hasn't helped his cause.

 After Earth lacks the suspense, wonder and emotion such a film would be expected to provoke. What it doesn't lack is predictability, which isn't anything to be proud of. From the word go, you know exactly what is going to happen and how the film will reach that point. Although it isn't so dull that you would rather have a nap than watch it, it isn't a particularly interesting or unique piece of work. It just seems like the film didn't even have that much potential from the onset being as it comes along in a swarm of apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic films and it doesn't present anything that makes it stand out from the rest.

What the film does have going for it are some very impressive and realistic visuals, particularly those on Earth itself. It is just a shame that there is no impressive story nor a worthy musical score (which is very much like the score in other Shyamalan films) to accompany it.

Jaden Smith does well in his role and does absolutely overshadow his father. He does well in the emotional scenes with his father and shows that he does have a successful career ahead of him. Smith Snr is completely unlikable in his role as Cypher. He gets no sympathy from the audience and just gives a dull and lifeless performance. Perhaps he wanted to let his son have the spotlight more in this film, but it is painful how little substance his performance and character has.

After Earth is sure to be one of those films that just disappears into the abyss when it's season is over. The Smith combination should look into the past at what made the team work in The Pursuit Of Happyness and stick at this rather than try too hard to make a blockbuster.

4/10



On a side note.....

This is the way we would much prefer to see the father and son combination.





(Photos courtesy of JustJared.com)

Everyone loves some Smith love! We need Will Smith to crack a smile or two in his films, he is far more likable when he has a smile and hope.