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Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer - By Paul Bullock

Comic book geeks are an odd bunch. They’ll spend months and even years before the release of Hollywood’s latest superhero adaptation picking apart trailers, set photos and plot spoilers before logging on to their favoured internet message board to hail it as potentially the greatest film of all time. Then, once its released, they see that Superman’s pants are a slightly darker shade of red than usual or that Spider-Man shoots his webs organically rather than through sophisticated mechanical devices and what’s the response: WORST. COMIC BOOK ADAPTATION. EVER. Rise of the Silver Surfer director Tim Story has done all in his power to avoid such a fate, staying almost one hundred per cent faithful to the source and even bringing the idiotic Fantasticar into action. Yet still the geeks complained. It’s not deep, dark or cool enough, they whined, and they‘re right. ROTSS is a big stupid cartoon in live action form and perhaps that’s part of the problem. As soon as you put the Fantastic Four onto screen in living, breathing reality the audience starts asking questions: why did the seemingly meek and mild Mr Fantastic give himself such a grand name; why does The Human Torch always say Flame On when igniting; what’s happened to The Silver Surfer’s knob? One day, someone will realise that these are characters best left to the comic book page or a big budget cartoon (come on Pixar!), but for now Story’s adaptations will have to do and regardless of what the geeks say they’re entertaining fare. The script hands some nice one-liners to The Thing and The Human Torch, while Ioan Gruffudd is still a neat fit for Mr Fantastic (alas, Jessica Alba remains miscast as the Invisible Woman). Yet it’s the magnificently-realised Silver Surfer who makes the film fly, something proven by his prominence on the two-disc ‘Power Cosmic’ DVD set, where there’s an in-depth documentary on his origin and social context. Our advice is to stick to the cheaper one-disc edition though, because the absence of the doc is the only real difference between the two versions. Hollywood studios getting you to fork out a fiver more for one geek-grabbing feature? Now that is something for the internet to get angry about…

This Is England - By Richard Graham

Shane Meadows (Dead Man’s Shoes, Once Upon A Time in the Midlands) is one of Britain’s most prolific but relatively unknown Directors. His latest film is typically low budget and paints a bleak, though very humorous, picture of 1980’s Britain post-Falklands. Based partly on Meadows own childhood the film tells the story of 12-year old Shaun (played brilliantly by Thomas Turgoose) who is a troubled child trying to come to terms with his Fathers death in the Falklands. Bullied at school, disillusioned and lonely he finds an unlikely group of friends in the form of a gang of skinheads led by Woody (Joseph Gilgun). Far from the stereotype the gang is focused on clothes, partying, fun, camaraderie and of course music in the form of soul and reggae. Shaun quickly embraces his new life and the gang rapidly become as much a family as they are friends. With the bleakness of Thatcher’s era and its miner’s strikes, race riots and mass unemployment never far away the unlikely team supports each other and Shaun finally feels like he belongs. This near as can be idyllic working class right of passage for Shaun is soon affected though by the arrival of one of Woody’s old friends in the form of thug Combo (Stephen Graham). A bad history between the two old friends is soon apparent and Combos recent experience in prison has left him feeling bitter, xenophobic, militant and belligerent. This new influence in the group is quickly felt and soon Shaun, desperate to find meaning in his Fathers death, is taken under Combo’s wing and rifts in the group swiftly develop. It is not long before the realities of this life are soon made apparent to Shaun and his already fragile world is affected by the influence of the National Front. This can only be described as a truly superb film and certainly Meadows greatest work to date. What could have easily have been weighed down with the grim realities of working class life in the early 80’s soars and has moments of such comic and moving value that you almost wish you were a member of Woody’s gang. Standout performances fight for attention and young Thomas Turgoose would surely win any film award this year for best debut. His portrayal of Shaun is at times both moving and melancholic but is always tempered by an attitude and a swagger that lets you know his anger at what the world has given him. The rest of the cast are also excellent and Stephen Grahams magnificent performance of the psychopathic Combo perfectly balances Joseph Gilguns equally adept laidback performance of Woody. Set to a backdrop of classic 80’s TV montages such as Roland Rat and Knight Rider and with a soundtrack ranging from 80’s classics to the Ska and Soul adored by the gang this will appeal to anyone who likes thoughtful, emotional, amusing, poignant and sometimes shocking cinema. Do not miss this film.

28 Weeks Later - By Richard Graham

When Danny Boyle (Sunshine, Trainspotting) decided to try his hand at a zombie film in 2002 with previous collaborator and writer Alex Garland (The Beach, Sunshine) little did he probably realise how his supercharged zombies would reinvent the genre and be a box office smash across the world. The original was set in England, between Manchester and London, where the deadly ‘Rage’ virus was infecting the population and decimating it in typically gory zombie fashion. Incurable the country was quickly overwhelmed and within 28 days only a handful of survivors remained. With Danny Boyle at the helm of his latest film (Sunshine) the Directors chair has been passed to relative newcomer Juan Carlos Fresnadillo. Set in London 28 weeks after the first outbreak the virus has died out along with most of the population. Attempts to repopulate the nation by (you guessed it) the Americans have resulted in militarised ‘safe’ zones where survivors group together and try to rebuild their lives. But this is not where the film begins. The film starts in a small cottage at the height of the outbreak and it is here we are introduced to Don (Robert Carlyle) and his wife Alice (Catherine McCormack). Hiding from the mutated killers they have tried to build a sanctuary along with an elderly couple. Their peace (and the audiences) is shattered within moments by a horrific zombie attack and it is here we first see Don’s cowardly inclination as he abandons his wife to the zombies in an attempt to save his own life. Fast forward to the repopulating and Don has made it to a survivor camp where he is reunited with his Son Andy (Mackintosh Muggleton) and Daughter Tammy (Imogen Poots). Devastated upon hearing of their Mothers apparent death at the hands of the mutated Andy and Tammy break out to try and return to their old home. It is here they discover their Mother is anything but dead and despite being bitten appears to be immune from the virus. Taken back to the base it is not long before the blood is flowing again in spectacular fashion. While this is most definitely a sequel very little feels familiar as with the arrival of the Americans understatement has gone out of the window to be replaced with napalm, choppers and machine guns. The survivors and the newly introduced British population are not given the chance to be around for long and nobody (apart from the family) is given anything but a bit-part in the film. Truly spectacular backdrops and scenes of devastated deserted London set the scene for a tense film and harrowing clashes between the military, the mutated and the survivors fight for audience attention. As the violence escalates the only focus for the audience is the fragile relationship between an American scientist and marine who attempt to lead Andy and Tammy to safety. For fans of the zombie genre this will tick every box on the George Romero standard checklist. Mind boggling violence is around every corner and provides many a jaw dropping moment. A scene involving a field of zombies and a helicopter has to be seen to be believed and several other scenes were watched with a mixture of suspense and horror. For those just seeking an action packed night’s entertainment with enough serious substance (provided by excellent acting from Muggleton and Poots) this will also easily suffice. The pace is maintained throughout the film and the fragile existence of the children more than compensates for the overblown violence to make a harrowing and moving story.

Joe Strummer: The Future Is Unwritten - By Richard Graham

Joe Strummer was arguably punk's most iconic singer. Intelligent, articulate and belligerent the lead singer of the Clash was a rebel with a cause. Following his untimely death in 2002 long-time friend and Director Julien Temple (Glastonbury, Filth & The Fury) paid homage to Strummer by gathering together decades worth of footage and interspersing it with interviews from friends, colleagues and celebratory admirers. Temples credentials are impeccable (if slightly biased) and include the Sex Pistols documentary ‘The Filth and the Fury’ as well as over 20 years worth of music videos for the likes of Depeche Mode and Blur. Having filmed The Clash in some of their first rehearsals 30 years ago his insights into the life and times of the complicated Strummer and The Clash shine through. Born into a wealthy background (he was the son of a Diplomat) Joe Strummer lived all over the world before rebelling in his 20’s against his upbringing. He ended up living the life of a squatter busking in London to survive the poverty and it was in these conditions that he formed his first band the 101’ers. Going under the alias of ‘Woody’ this band was little more than pub rock but it was this scene that led him to Mick Jones and they would in 1976 form the band The Clash. Strummer (another alias to reflect his limited guitar ability) and The Clash would shortly conquer the UK and later America with their critically acclaimed albums. Their burgeoning song-writing skills (matched by their rebellious outlaw reputation) and their social awareness made them a magnet for disaffected youth and music admirers alike. Success brought its own problems however and despite staying true to their punk and political beliefs band rifts and drug problems developed and they began to fall apart. Tensions led to Jones being sacked as Strummer showed his ruthless side and the band struggled on with dismal reviews before permanently disbanding in 1986. Strummer released solo albums that were critically mauled until the 1990’s where he changed direction and began presenting a BBC Worldwide radio programme that reflected his wide musical taste. He also co-produced various soundtracks (including Grosse Pointe Blank) before finally settling down and becoming a dedicated patron of the Glastonbury festival. It was perhaps here that he seemed his happiest surrounded by fellow musicians around campfires and this would later motivate him to return to the studio with The Mescaleros. This back to basics approach inspired by influences ranging from reggae to jazz and of course punk would result in three albums between 1999 and 2003. The last of which ‘Streetcore’ was released after Strummers death and was described (without sentimentality) as ‘his best work since The Clash’s London Calling’1 Temples approach to history is to skilfully edit TV footage, home videos, live performance, animations of Strummers artwork and audio into a wonderfully entertaining and moving portrait of the incongruous figure that was Strummer. In between this montage, friends, colleagues and several stars (including Johnny Depp, Bono & Martin Scorcese) pay tribute to the man by telling stories and reminiscing around a campfire. Whilst this reviewer hardly has an encyclopaedic knowledge of Strummer and the punk movement you can’t help feel that this is how Strummer would have wanted it. Temple, despite being a friend and almost being a fan who knows too much, does not pull any punches and several times we see the bad side of Strummer. What cannot be masked though is that Strummer was a genuine rebel who believed what he said and never had a desire to turn rebellion into money. This is neither a documentary nor a rockumentary but a well edited look at the history of punks iconic Father figure and his mellowing into a content family man. The future will forever be unwritten for Strummer and the film leaves the audience realising the loss of such an important figure.

Flyboys - By Paul Bullock

They just don’t make ‘em like this anymore. This well-worn cliché was used both to praise and condemn Flyboys when it was released earlier this year and you can see why it‘s such a one-off. With its hokey plot, simple characterisation and sepia-tinted cinematography, Tony Bill's film is just too damn uncool to attract interest in our postmodern world, a fact highlighted by its poor performance at the box-office. But criticising Flyboys because it plays it straight and doesn’t try any fancy narrative loopdeloops while telling the true-life story of a group of mismatched Americans who became their country‘s first fighter pilots in World War One is missing the point. This is simple, fun matinee fare that’s perfect for a lazy Sunday afternoon or Bank Holiday weekend. Bill, who‘s best know for his acting rather than direction, helms the aerial battles with real verve and gives an informative commentary on the DVD, while James Dean-esque star James Franco brings a cool charm to an accomplished cast. Some nice deleted footage and a pair of features on prepping the actors for flight and the creation of the action scenes round out an impressive package to a film that’ll probably find its true home on DVD.

COMPETITION: We've got three copies of Flyboys on DVD to give away to lucky entertainment manchester users, and all you need to do is answer the following question:

Who directed Flyboys?

E-mail your answer plus name and address to: entertainmentmanchester@googlemail.com, closing date is 17th October at midday.