Ender's Game

I've made no secret of my inability in 99% of cases to compare cinema adaptations with their literary equivalents, but make no bones about it. The Film Cache is about the film itself, so regardless of real-world homophobia controversies or deviating re-imaginings from the original text, my business is reviewing the final on-screen product. In the case of Ender's Game, that result is a very competent piece of entertainment; a surprisingly in-depth psychological examination of childhood and the implications of growing up too quickly (if one was to read that much into it) married with some decent science fiction and credible acting performances.

Elysium

Elysium marks Neill Blomkamp's second time in the feature length director's chair, and it seems he has brought plenty with him from 2009's District 9 (not least it's leading man, Sharlto Copley). Altogether bigger budgeted and better equipped, Elysium is set in another dystopian future, with the human elite lording it from the heavens aboard an idyllic space station called Elysium. Underneath, amid an overpopulated (District 9?), multinational-company controlled (District 9?) Earth, a small group of smugglers and rebels plan to incite a revolution (District 9?) in defiance of the wealthy's all encompassing monopoly over medical treatment and health care (Obamacare?). Truth be told, it's very difficult to tell whether there is actually an intended political statement at the heart, or just an overactive metaphor gland.

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Truth be told, I didn't know what to expect with this movie. The trailer doesn't really give anything away, and it wasn't so overly hyped that any twists were given away instantly upon release. And being more honest, I'm not totally sure why. While its certainly true that (to me at least) the characters (with the exception of Tom Hanks) are not instantly likeable, it's also the case that I have to admit to spending the last 10 minutes in floods of tears. Now I'm no stranger to my feminine side, but the emotion in this movie just seems so subtle at the start, that being snuck up on so close to the end just brings with it even more impact. Indeed, the very journey the audience is taken on in empathising with the characters makes the crescendo of emotion all the more intense.

Sun Zu would be proud at this level of planning

While all this talk of emotional endings is all very well and good, the filmmakers did choose subject matter that should have struggled to be anything but. In fairness, the story being so entrenched in heartbreaking fact and real life events does result in something even more real and more painful being brought to life, but it does rely on its script and a very well chosen cast to solidify the emotion. In the same vein, the very fact that the main role is played by a Hollywood 'unknown' (Thomas Horn) actually makes the film all the better, eliminating potential distractions to the central point of the story, and providing a better canvas for the emotion of the final chapters. The final word of this review though has to stay with the silent yet undeniably best supporting actor of the film; the city of New York. One other online review of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close likens the film to a love letter to the city, and it's an analogy that's easy to follow. The elegance and flow of the story is really only possible thanks to the beauty and tragedy of the setting itself, a feature-length postcard of affection to the city that never sleeps.

Elektra

Let's cut straight to the chase. I have a great many issues with 'Elektra', but the single biggest, is the overwhelming sense of padding that permeates every scene in the first 60% of the movie. Once you've removed the sweeping panoramas while Jennifer Garner looks meditatively into the middle distance, or the cheesy Rocky-esque training montage which does about as much to move the story along as watching her clean the floor for five minutes - another stimulating treat - there's not a whole lot left to actually entertain. It's almost as if the writers came up with a brilliant idea for a climactic final battle between slightly supernatural warriors of good and evil, but forgot to think of a story to get us there.

Sadly the porous nature of the storyline doesn't really end there. 'Elektra' is the only film I've ever seen which professes that once you've killed one single member of a dark-magic worshipping, martial arts practicing Japanese crime syndicate, you're free of their pursual forever. I was always led to believe that an alliance of ninja gangsters were slightly more resolute in their assassination ambitions, but it seems I'm just out of touch with reality.

I don't know what's more concerning - his Johnny Bravo haircut, or where she's intent on sticking that sai...

Although technically a Marvel film, the martial arts inclusion demands a comparison with a very different genre, and one with which it falls a long way short. Even against some of it's superhero peers, the storyline seems a little vapid and particularly lacking in anything approaching genuine substance. Don't get me wrong, it's a vast improvement on the film that prompted the spin-off ('Daredevil'), which I'm sure I will come to review properly one day, but that goes more to show the alarming inadequacy of it's comic-book predecessor than the comparative success of 'Elektra'.

Enchanted

Being a big kid at heart, it's all too easy to be swept up by Enchanted. Taking a classic animated Disney fairytale (or in fact, more accurately, all of them), and updating them with a real-life twist is a really cool concept, and one that only Disney can really do justice to.

The first ten minutes of the film are spent entirely in the animated world of Andalasia, and immediately make you feel about 8 years old again. There's something quite magical about seeing traditional cel animation again, especially given Disney's decision to switch entirely to computer generated graphics in 2004. After a run-in with the evil queen (who, dressed in true Sleeping Beauty style as an old beggar woman, also just happens to be an evil step-mother as well) our fairytale princess is transported to modern-day New York, a far cry from her true-love-at-first-sight homeland. After bumping into a single-father lawyer for the first time, the rest of the plot is laid out pretty plainly. Even the arrival of her Andalasian Prince Charming to Times Square (an inspired casting of James Marsden) can't stop the inevitable reverse fairytale conclusion of the film.

As adverts for the New York Tourist Board go, this one is particularly long...

Despite the predictability (normally far and away my biggest grievance with a film), Enchanted is still really engaging. It's pretty difficult to find a Disney movie or fairytale cliché that's been left out of the movie in some shape or form, but that's what makes it so charming. The Disney formula has worked since the world first saw 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarves' in 1937, and yet 75 years later, audiences are still enthralled by, what is quite rightfully termed, the magic. Enchanted is no different. The special effects are good (especially the interaction between real-life and animation), the songs are up to typical Disney quality, the script is witty, and it's all delivered especially well by a big-named cast, but at the centre of it is something so simple that it can be enjoyed by every age, gender and social group. And as distinctive and humorous as the fairytale parody is in keeping the film feeling fresh, I think the story simplicity is the enduring film-making secret that Disney don't want others to know.

Entrapment

Aah, Entrapment. Don't be fooled by the low star score; this film is one of my guilty pleasures. Don't get me wrong, it's really bad - full of annoying and/or impossibly implausible plot holes, awkward dialogue, and a wholeheartedly unbelievable romantic connection between Sean Connery and Catherine Zeta Jones. But, as entertainment goes, it flips round the tightrope circle of awfulness, and manages to win a place in my heart. No, it won't be topping my list of all time greats, but if itv2 happen to be showing it (and they normally are), I'll quite happily laugh my way through.

Sean Connery is about to prove that it's possible for a human being to change platforms across the front of a fast moving train, within 6 seconds.
Unbelievable action, or inhuman talent? I'll let you be the judge...