MAMMA MIA! HERE WE GO AGAIN (Malaysia, 19 Jul 2018)

Genre: Musical
Running Length: 1:53
Cast: Amanda Seyfried, Andy Garcia, Lily James, Alexa Davies, Jessica Keenan Wynn, Dominic Cooper, Julie Walters, Christine Baranski, Hugh Skinner, Josh Dylan, Jeremy Irvine, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Stellan Skarsgård, Meryl Streep, Cher
Director: Ol Parker
Screenplay: Richard Curtis and Ol Parker and Catherine Johnson

What's this movie about?
This prequel-sequel is about Sophie (Seyfried) learning of Donna (Streep), her mother's past. In the prequel part of things, it explores how her mother met the 3 men (Brosnan, Firth, Skarsgard) who changed her life.

Meanwhile in the present, (no spoilers here) we are informed from the start of the movie that Donna has already passed on. Her friends are still grieving while Sophie is striving to fulfill her vision of re-opening the newly renovated Hotel Bella Donna.

Highlights!

• Lily James as young Donna. She is really believable here as a free-spirited woman. And yes, she can sing and she can dance and is very likable. She lights up the room everytime she's on screen. 
• The ensemble of cast is good especially the younger version of the 3 men. They are much more believable here when they sing vs their older self (Brosnan, Firth and Skarsgard). 
• Speaking of songs, of course I was toe-tapping and fingers snapping when the cast belted out Abba's popular songs like Dancing Queen (which was done much better here compared to the first film). Ahh...such a good nostalgic feeling! 
• The look of this film with its blue tone and gorgeous location is also more memorable. 
• I really like the "fantasy" post credit scene!
• Eventhough Streep only "appears" at the end in a cameo role, I could really feel her character's presence throughout the film. Probably I was sold that the cast was mourning for Donna, so much so, when she appears at the end to sing My Love, My Life, I was very moved.

Lowlights

• At times, the story gets a little unfocused. I supposed that's what happens when a narrative is crafted around a bunch of popular songs. Contextually, it feels forced.
• As the original have used up most of Abba's popular songs, the filmmakers here have no choice but to re-use some of their greatest hits and mixed it with their lesser known playlist.   

In summary
MAMMA MIA! HERE WE GO AGAIN is not a great musical. This prequel-sequel is more of the same as the original but it's actually not a bad thing here.


RATING: 7/10

KINGSMAN: THE GOLDEN CIRCLE (2017)

Genre: Action / Thriller
Running Length: 2:21
Cast: Taron Egerton, Mark Strong, Colin Firth, Pedro Pascal, Edward Holcroft, Julianne Moore, Jeff Bridges, Halle Berry, Channing Tatum, Emily Watson, Bruce Greenwood, Hanna Alstrom
Director: Matthew Vaughn
Screenplay: Jane Goldman & Matthew Vaughn, based on the comic book “The Secret Service” by Mark Millar and Dave Gibbons

I never really did enjoy the predecessor Kingsman: The Secret Service because of its wanton violence, excessive swearing and crude humour. However, there were some quiet tender moments between Firth's character being a father figure to Egerton's Eggsy, which was pretty powerful. The sequel KINGSMAN: THE GOLDEN CIRCLE doesn't really do anything much different from the first film but just to make it bigger and louder, thanks to a bigger budget.

Everything just feels like a 'one-up'; more CGI-heavy action sequences, more characters, more swearing. As meh as the first film was to me, at least it had an element of surprise. But this latest outing just feels safe. As OTT as some of the action sequences were, I actually felt bored.

Thankfully, there are enough gags and humour to save this film from totally unwatchable. To be fair, there are more comedic moments in this sequel, especially the ones involving a British singer. And Egerton proves he's not a one-hit wonder but is indeed capable of playing the lead. Firth is OK but at times it feels like he's not really invested in this movie. The rest of the cast is serviceable (a big shout out to Mark Strong's emotional rendition of John Denver's Take Me Home, Country Roads).

RATING: 5.5/10

BRIDGET JONES'S BABY (2016)

Genre: Comedy/Romance

Running Length: 2:00

Cast: Renee Zellweger, Colin Firth, Patrick Dempsey, Sarah Solemani, Jim Broadbent, Gemma Jones, Emma Thompson

Director: Sharon Maguire 

Screenplay: Helen Fielding and Dan Mazar and Emma Thompson, based on characters created by Helen Fielding 

When you watch a Bridget Jones movie, you're 100% sure it will have a happy ending. So, when I walked into BRIDGET JONES'S BABY, all I did was relax and enjoy the ride. And enjoyed it, I did. It was consistently witty, laugh out loud funny at times and even moving in some scenes. It exceeded my expectations. 

There's just something commendable about making a well written romantic comedy for the older audience. It's rare in an era where movie studios prefer to churn out romcoms to appeal to the below 30s viewers in the name of box office moola.  

As for the plot, the movie title and poster kinda says it all. Bridget Jones, 43 years old, is single again and has split from Mr Darcy some years now. Darcy has moved on and married to someone else. All alone on her birthday, Jones decided it's time to take control of her life by attending a Woodstock "make love, not war" type of music festival, got herself wasted and ended up bonking Dempsey's character; a dashing entrepreneur who's an expert in love algorithm. A week later, Jones is briefly reconnected with Mr Darcy (who is now separated) and yes, you guessed it...also ended up under the sheets. 

Predictably, she is preggers. But who's the father? Jeng jeng jeng...And so the chaos ensues with the two potential fathers fighting over both Jones and her baby. In the previous installments, we all secretly want Bridget to end up with Mr Darcy but she will always be distracted by another man. In the first two films, it was Hugh Grant's character, and in this one, it's Dempsey's Jack Qwant.     

Overall the cast is solid with a special shout out to wonderful new additions Emma Thompson and Sarah Solemani who plays a gynaecologist and Bridget's colleague respectively. As for Patrick Dempsey, he is charming indeed but I feel he is trying a little too hard and thus ended up not being a worthy opponent of Firth's Mark Darcy.  

To sum it up, even if you've not watched any of the earlier films (or read the books), you'll still have a good time watching it. 

Rating: 7.5/10

KINGSMAN: THE SECRET SERVICE (2015)

 
Genre: Action/Comedy
Running Length: 2:08
Cast: Colin Firth, Taron Egerton, Samuel L. Jackson, Michael Caine, Mark Strong, Sophie Cookson, Sofia Boutella
Director: Matthew Vaughn
Screenplay: Jane Goldman & Matthew Vaughn, based on the comic book "The Secret Service" by Mark Millar and Dave Gibbons

KINGSMAN is a fast-paced high energy action flick with a morbid sense of humour. The build-up is engaging especially the no holds barred last man standing recruitment contest to select a "kingsman" (modern day knights). But the last act was a little tiresome even though the action was pretty solid. The biggest highlight to me is Colin Firth, as he makes a surprisingly suave but down-to-earth action hero. It is said that Firth did 80% of his own stunts (and fight scenes) and this is very much evident in a wtf orgy of violence sequence set in a church. Samuel L. Jackson is serviceable as the main villain; OTT with a scarily but valid motivation. I think I would have enjoyed more if it was tighter as it suffers from some pacing issues; it felt repetitive during the training sequences. If only it was shorter, it may have resulted to a possibly much stronger and more focused film. Personally, I'm beginning to enjoy older method actors (above 50) dabbling into the whole action genre ie. cast against type; Liam Neeson, Kevin Costner, Sean Penn and now Colin Firth. That's just something very "jantan" (macho) about it. 

Rating: 6/10