Movie Review: The Foreigner

The Foreigner ** ½ / *****

Directed by: Martin Campbell.

Written by: David Marconi based on the novel by Stephen Leather.

Starring: Jackie Chan (Ngoc Minh Quan), Pierce Brosnan (Liam Hennessy), Michael McElhatton (Jim Kavanagh), Charlie Murphy (Maggie), Liu Tao (Keyl Lan), Orla Brady (Mary Hennessy).

 

The Foreigner is one of those movies that would have benefited from either taking itself more seriously or less seriously – as playing things as they did means the film cannot be the fun, goofy action movie that you may expect from a Jackie Chan film, but also not a serious exploration of the cycles of violence the film obviously strains for. It’s an odd action movie in that it is one without a true hero – everyone in the film exists moral gray areas, and are more than a little compromised. But it’s almost as if the movie doesn’t quite know that – and tries to elevate Chan’s character into a hero, which he really isn’t. Neither is Chan really up for some of the sad, subtle dramatic scenes the movie asks of him. It’s a film that left me more frustrated than anything else – because I think there’s a good film in here somewhere.

 

The film stars Chan as Ngoc Minh Quon – who came in England in 1984, after fleeing his native China. He has already had to bury a wife and two daughters – and when a terrorist attack takes from him his last child – a teenage daughter – he pretty much snaps. A group calling themselves the “Authentic IRA” takes credit for the bombing – which leaves a total of 12 people dead – although what precisely they’re asking of Britain is not entirely clear. The bombing places pressure of Liam Hennessy (Pierce Brosnan) – the highest ranking Irish member of the government, a former IRA and Sein Fein member himself, who has tried to go fully political in achieving his goals. One of the people who isn’t convinced Liam has completely left that side behind is, of course, Quon – who doesn’t know anyone else in the IRA, so he starts to target Liam himself. All he wants is the names of the bombers he warns – and has the skills to back up his silent threats.

 

I admired parts of The Foreigner to be sure – especially how it really didn’t really depend on false villainy at any step along the way. The movie makes it clear just what a horribly awkward position Liam is in – and while it is of his own design – it would have been hard regardless. Things started so simple – but that got bigger than he could have imagined. He has pressure from the Brits, from his fellow Irishmen, and from inside his own family. Brosnan doesn’t often get good roles anymore – but here, he shows why he should – it’s a fine performance. Chan doesn’t fare quite as well. He is, of course, aging – and not quite the physical performer he once was. There was a time, when Chan was as gifted at that as we’ve ever seen in movie history – but time marches on. As a man suffering from grief and perhaps PTSD, Chan doesn’t really do much other than sit and look morose. The extended middle section – where I almost felt like I was watching a remake of First Blood – was probably the nadir of this. I’m not sure if the filmmakers – or Chan himself – didn’t realize that Quon really isn’t a hero here – he’s as morally compromised as anyway – but the films confusion over this, doesn’t help.

 

The film was directed by Martin Campbell – a fine director of action movies – his best being Casino Royale, but it’s a solid, sturdy resume. This isn’t his best work - it’s even more workmanlike than usual for him – but it’s decent. But what the movie really needed to do is either embrace the action movie clichés it exhibits, and go wholly over-the-top fun, or else become a more serious exploration of terrorism and the cycle of violence. Because it tries to be both, it doesn’t really work as either.

Movie Review: Green Lantern

Green Lantern ** ½
Directed by: Martin Campbell.
Written by: Greg Berlanti & Michael Green & Marc Guggenheim and Michael Goldenberg.
Starring: Ryan Reynolds (Hal Jordan / Green Lantern), Blake Lively (Carol Ferris), Peter Sarsgaard (Hector Hammond), Mark Strong (Sinestro), Temuera Morrison (Abin Sur), Angela Bassett (Dr. Amanda Waller), Tim Robbins (Senator Hammond), Jay O. Sanders (Carl Ferris).

Green Lantern is the fourth superhero movie to hit screens in 2011, and the third in the last six weeks or so, following closely on the heels of Thor and X-Men: First Class. Perhaps if I had not seen those movies so recently, I would enjoyed Green Lantern a little more than I did. Most of the reviews so far have been awful, and while I do think Green Lantern is the weakest of the three summer superhero movies so far, it certainly isn’t a horrible film. In fact, I’d feel much more comfortable talking a kid to see Green Lantern than Thor or X-Men: First Class, which are a little darker, more violent and overall simply more adult. Green Lantern on the other hand is just lightweight fare. It really does feel like a live action Saturday morning cartoon show.

The movie is about Hal Jordan (Ryan Reynolds), a test pilot who lives his life on the edge, although sometime he freezes up because his own father, another test pilot, died in a crash in front of his eyes as a child. So it is early in the movie, when Hal is asked to have a simulated battle with robot pilots that his company has made to prove to the army that they are better than humans. Hal wins, of course, but at a price. It’s later that day that he is magically sucked up into a glowing green vortex or some sort and transferred to the docks. A spaceship has crashed there – and inside is an alien named Abin Sur. We know him, because the introduction to the movie explains what Green Lanterns are – a group of intergalactic beings whose job is to protect the universe. They each have a ring and a lantern, that allows them to turn whatever they think of into reality. Abin Sur is going to die, and the ring has selected Hal to be his replacement. And the ring doesn’t make mistakes.

What follows is a fairly standard issue superhero origin story. The irresponsible, womanizing Hal has to learn how to be a hero – he gets transported to the Green Lantern headquarters for training under the eyes of Sinestro (Mark Strong), their leader – but Hal thinks he isn’t right for the job. The only qualification seems to be that you must be fearless – and Hal is far from that. He cannot even seem to tell the woman he loves, Claire Ferris (Blake Lively) that he loves her, and of course, some times he freezes up under pressure. But Hal will be tested sooner than he knows. Hector (Peter Sarsgaard), the scientist son of a Senator (Tim Robbins), was called in to examine Abin Sur’s eventually discovered body – and it appears like something he came into contact with is having strange effects on him. Hector grew up in love with Claire, but always in Hal’s shadow, so of course, he’s just bitter and smart enough to become super villain when the opportunity arrives.

The movie is enjoyable in parts. The day after I saw Green Lantern, I watched an episode of The Avengers on TV with my 6 year old nephew. He was transfixed by it, while I found it mildly amusing. I feel the same way about Green Lantern – I bet my nephew would love it – but for me, it never really gets to takeoff velocity. Part of the problem with an origin story like this is that they have to spend so much time setting it up – and let’s face facts here, Green Lantern’s origin story is pretty lame – and I could have done with much less talk about Will Power vs. Fear. Ryan Reynolds is fine as Hal Jordan, but nothing great. The same could be said for Blake Lively, who has the thankless role as “The Girl”. The best performance clearly belongs to Peter Sarsgaard, who is terrific as the embittered Hector. The problem is that he’s only one villain – the minor one – and the major one is a strange alien who looks like he’s made of poop, which just isn’t all that interesting.

The film was directed by Martin Campbell, who made the terrific Casino Royale a few years ago, and has spent his career directing action movies. He knows what he’s doing, and for the first time in a while, I can actually say the 3-D in this movie works. It works better when Hal is in space, but its fine for most of the time. I’m still not convinced it’s necessary. But overall, I think the movie had to spend so much time setting itself up, that it never really takes the time to tell a real story. Green Lantern isn’t as good as it could have been – but on the basis of what’s here, I’d watch a sequel.

Movie Review: Edge of Darkness

Edge of Darkness ***
Directed By: Martin Campbell.
Written By: William Monahan & Andrew Bovell based on the BBC Miniseries.
Starring: Mel Gibson (Thomas Craven), Ray Winstone (Jedburgh), Danny Huston (Jack Bennett), Bojana Novakovic (Emma Craven), Shawn Roberts (Burnham), David Aaron Baker (Millroy), Jay O. Sanders (Whitehouse), Denis O'Hare (Moore), Damian Young (Senator Jim Pine), Caterina Scorsone (Melissa), Frank Grillo (Agent One), Wayne Duvall (Chief of Police), Gbenga Akinnagbe (Detective Darcy Jones).

Greedy Corporations have become the new catch all villain in America movies – following Nazis, Communists and Islamic Terrorists, who at one point were the go to villains for thrillers like this. Corporations make excellent villains – they do not care about people, only profits, and all one has to do is look at the newspaper on any given day to discover that one. So Hollywood has just taken it another step farther, and made them even more evil then they really are. Apparently the British were ahead of the curve on this one, since Edge of Darkness is based on a 1985 BBC miniseries (which, it must be said, is a better, richer experience than this movie). If a thriller is only as good as its villain, than Edge of Darkness has a great villain.

In the film, Mel Gibson plays Thomas Craven, a detective with the Boston Police who gets a surprise visit for his daughter Emma (Bojana Novakovic). He is happy to see his daughter, but there is obviously something wrong with her – something he cannot ignore when she starts throwing up blood. He rushes her to the door, and waiting for them is a car, and a man with a shotgun yells out “Craven” and guns her down brutally. Everyone assumes that the shot was meant for Thomas – a cop would have enemies – but there are no viable suspects. Craven starts investigating the murder himself, and he doesn’t like what he finds. All roads lead by to Northmoor, the chemical company that Emma worked for before her death.

I won’t say anything else about the plot, because one of the pleasures of the movie is to watch everything unfold, the web of the conspiracy getting bigger and bigger. Gibson is excellent in his first acting role in a few years – proving that when it comes to action movies like this, he can still pull it off. Yes, his Boston accent is a little inconsistent at times, but the heart of the performance – his anger and pain about the death of his daughter, he does very well. He is supported by an excellent cast as well. I especially liked Danny Huston as the slimy CEO of his daughter’s company. Huston seems to have inherited his father’s ability to play evil, untrustworthy men, and he plays a great one here. Even better is Ray Winstone as the mysterious Jedburgh, a fixer brought in by the higher ups to try and conceal what exactly happened. He shows up at Craven’s door to have a talk with him, but it doesn’t go the way we expect it to. Jedburgh has been doing this for years, but just this once it seems, he is willing to stand aside and give the little guy a chance. If it didn’t, then most likely Craven would never be able to put the pieces together.

The movie is directed by Martin Campbell (Casino Royale), who also directed the original BBC series 25 years ago. I missed the extra detail that the series was able to provide to the story. The extra twists, yes, but mainly the extra bits of character development that were afforded each character. Of course, considering that this movie is less than a third of the running time of the original series, cuts are necessary and to be expected. What writers William Monahan and Andrew Bovell do is distill the story down to its essentials, and craft a very interesting little thriller. It is intelligent for almost its entire running time – suspenseful, thought provoking and well detailed. The film ends with not just one, but two shootouts, and yet for once, the shootouts appear to be necessary. Considering how far we have seen the corruption spread over the course of the movie, perhaps the only logical thing to do is to pick up a gun and start shooting.