Avoiding the dodgy movie REboot.

We’re in the age of the movie reboot. Films that you can remember seeing about four years ago are being rebooted for the new era. Fortunately, when it comes to deciding whether to go to cinema or wait until it shows up on Sky Box Office, the title of the movie plays a very important part.

Case in point:

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Now, I’m not saying this is going to be a bad movie, but the title doesn’t give me a warm fuzzy feeling. I have a real problem with film titles that reference the franchise, rather than the story. I get to thinking that not a great deal of artistic thought has gone on here. It’s sort of saying: ‘Hey folks, this is the Transporter – again’ rather than telling me that I’m getting more of the stuff I love and enjoy.

Here’s another example: I absolutely loved The Matrix, but I wasn’t that keen on The Matrix Reloaded. The title was telling me that this was just the next one in the series, rather than an outstanding film in its own right.

Do you ever wonder how Fast and Furious made it to seven movies?  I suspect the clue is in the titles. I’m pretty sure Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift wouldn’t have been such a hit if they’d named it Fast and Furious: Resprayed.

Film Review: The Man From U.N.C.L.E.

I always get a little nervous when someone tries to take an okay-ish TV series and tries to make it into a blockbuster movie. Guy Ritchie avoided one obvious pitfall by not trying to update the concept; he left it firmly in the sixties, and the movie was better for it.  In case you don’t know, the Man from U.N.C.L.E. is a pretty run-of-the-mill thriller about two spies from opposite sides of the iron curtain, forced to work together to retrieve a nuclear warhead. It stars Henry Cavill as the ever-s0-slightly camp Napoleon Solo, and Armie Hammer as llya Kuriyaken, the near-superhuman Russian agent.

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Alicia Vikander brings the fiery glamour and, refreshingly enough, most of the brains.

And that’s all you need to know really. It’s a two-hour treat of car chases, machine-gun fights, sneaking about and folk running for their lives. The script was passable, as was the storyline (but don’t expect it to stretch you). The musical score is excellent and even though the film was shot all over the shop, Guy Ritchie as screenwriter, producer and director, gives it a very British feel (and Hugh Grant pretty much seals the deal – if that’s not too much bad rhyming).

The Man From U.N.C.L.E. offers no surprises, but is, nevertheless, very watchable.

I’m going to give it seven out of ten.