July Reviews

July was filled with doubles, with four of the ten already reviewed in previous months. There was still a good selection of others that I saw, from blockbusters to indies, that kept a dynamic balance.

3 Days to Kill
Edge of Tomorrow 3D
Maleficent
The Anomaly
How to Train Your Dragon 2 IMAX 3D
Tammy
22 Jump Street
Begin Again
Earth to Echo
Transformers: Age of Extinction 3D

Read on for the reviews.


3 Days to Kill — and 2 hours to bore! Director McG is confident with action as he has proven before, however when it's not laced with comedy - instead being replaced by drama - it makes for an unevenly paced action flick. The threat isn't particularly compelling either, after all the drug that was going to cure him was experimental(!) so in the end may not have even saved him. That didn't seem like a good enough reason to me. His 'illness' seemed a bit predictable, causing him to pass out at the most inconvenient (or convenient, if you're looking to drag out the plot) times.

Edge of Tomorrow — incredibly underrated, I felt this was worth a second watch before it disappeared from cinemas. This time in 3D, which to be honest isn't really needed to enjoy this one. See June's review.

Maleficent — watching as a stand alone film, this is great as I said before – see May's review. It seems there will always be that nagging in the back of my head though that this has completely destroyed the original!

The Anomaly — this was one that I missed at the Edinburgh International Film Fest and was glad to catch through it's limited UK release. A fast-paced, action sci-fi with both street smarts and twisty plot to keep you guessing. There was some intriguing camerawork by director and star Noel Clarke, giving the pace a shake up along the way and once the plot cleared itself up there was a palpable urgency from then on. The ending was a bit lacklustre, however tied up the ends it needed to.

How to Train Your Dragon 2 — another second viewing, this time in the IMAX though. This one deserves the massive screen and the 3D. See June's review.

Tammy — a perfect accompaniment to Chef, I would say. Both feel good films with some tough situations lightened by the comedic tone. Susan Sarandon is on top form as crazy alcoholic grandmother, stealing many scenes from lead Melissa McCarthy. The romantic subplot gets a bit soppy and predictable though, making the whole film just a bit too sweet and sticky!

22 Jump Street — see June's review.

Begin Again — Mark Ruffalo plays another of his loveable loser characters here and the chemistry with Keira Knightley works well. A selection of secondary characters, including Hailee Steinfeld, James Cordon (surprisingly likeable here), Catherine Keener and Adam Levine, provide a reliable foundation for the plot to carry on. Perhaps a little biased – I have always been a fan of Knightley's, much to people's chargrin – I really enjoyed the laid back, grounded story.

Earth to Echo — plays like an updated version of E.T., except in this one the extraterrestrial is cute! Like really cute – baby metal owl cute. The plot does get a little carried away, with the government officials and underage driving. It proves itself to be a warm, kind and funny take on the kids vs aliens sub-genre though, which is nice.

Transformers: Age of Extinction — with a bigger, better cast – including Mark Wahlberg, Stanley Tucci, Kelsey Grammer – it would seem plausible that the films themselves could take a slightly different stance and create a deeper, more meaningful film. Michael Bay didn't want to do that apparently, as the near 3-hour run-time with more shouting, running, screaming and explosions suggests. The effects are spectacular as usual and the Transformers, along with the new Dinobots (who actually have very little screen time), are just as shiny as ever. The human characters are just as flat though, and time with them drags, leaving you checking the time to see how you have to wait for the end. Shame.