Film Review #2: The King's Speech

This is where I put that this review may contain spoilers, I will try to make them minimal... But this film is based on a true story so I shouldn't be telling you anything you didn't learn in grade 10 History.

     So The King's Speech is based on the true story of King George VI, father of current Queen, Queen Elizabeth. I realize this movie came out what seemed like ages ago but I just got around to watching it, I'm not going to lie going in I didn't expect very much, I know it won the Oscar for Best Picture, but generally I dislike the films that do, but end up watching them anyway since I consider myself a minor movie buff. That's probably why I took so long to get to this film, anyways I'm rambling. On with the film itself...

The film takes place between 1925 and September 1939 (Those who didn't sleep through History should know the significance of that final date) and it follows King George VI, known as Prince Albert, Duke of York at the beginning of the film, path to the throne. Prince Albert was not first in line for his father's throne since he was the 2nd born son to Prince David, Duke of Windsor. So not only does poor Bertie have to live in the shadow of his father, King George V, but also his brother and his "bloody stammer" doesn't help things.

     At first Prince Albert and his wife hire the royal physicians to help him with his speech problems, the only problems are their methods involve sticking 7 marbles in your mouth and speaking with them in to help with enunciation, smoking because the smoke is good for your larynx and gurgling liquor. He makes his wife promise that there will be no more speech therapy but that's when she meets Lionel Logue.

     Lionel doesn't care who you are, when you're with him it's his world, his game, his rules. The king and him are equals whether Bertie, as Logue affectionately calls him, likes it or not. Following the passing of King George V and the crowning of Prince David, now King Edward VIII, as King Prince Albert begins to see Logue as more than a speech therapist, but as a friend. It is revealed that Prince Albert was treated poorly, abused even as a child, and it went unnoticed by his parents and his brother tortured him to no end about his stammer, all of which was not only condoned by his father, but encouraged. However not all is perfect as the two friends both say some things either are proud of but they make up after a while when it is learnt that King Edward VIII will concede the throne to his brother so he can marry the women he loves, a two time divorcee that the church will not condone having as their queen. The film reaches it's conclusion on an evening in September when King George VI must make the declaration of war broadcast to Britain and the Empire.

Although the above sounds like your typical period drama, it is actually far from, as it wanders onto the ligh-hearted and humourous side, more so than the dramatic prepare for Hitler that most expect, following is an exchange King George VI had with Lionel Logue during one of their speech therapy classes [Source: IMDB]: 

King George VI: All that work down the drain. My own brother, I couldn't say a single word to him in reply.
Lionel Logue: Why do you stammer so much more with David than you ever do with me?
King George VI: 'Cos you're b... bloody well paid to listen.
Lionel Logue: Bertie, I'm not a geisha girl.
King George VI: St... stop trying to be so bloody clever.
Lionel Logue: What is it about David that stops you speaking?
King George VI: What is it about you that bloody well makes you want to go on about it the whole bloody time?
Lionel Logue: Vulgar, but fluent; you don't stammer when you swear.
King George VI: Oh, bugger orf!
Lionel Logue: Is that the best you can do?
King George VI: Well... bloody bugger to you, you beastly bastard.
Lionel Logue: Oh, a public school prig could do better than that.
King George VI: Shit. Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!
Lionel Logue: Yes!
King George VI: Shit!
Lionel Logue: Defecation flows trippingly from the tongue!
King George VI: Because I'm angry!
Lionel Logue: Do you know the f-word?
King George VI: F... f... fornication?
Lionel Logue: Oh, Bertie.
King George VI: Fuck. Fuck! Fuck, fuck, fuck and fuck! Fuck, fuck and bugger! Bugger, bugger, buggerty buggerty buggerty, fuck, fuck, arse!
Lionel Logue: Yes...
King George VI: Balls, balls...
Lionel Logue: ...you see, not a hesitation!
King George VI: ...fuckity, shit, shit, fuck and willy. Willy, shit and fuck and... tits.

     Although the British humor is a high point I think what works so well I think the thing that really makes this film work (outside of the amazing score) is the cast.

     King George VI is played by Colin Firth (Perhaps best known as "that guy" from those terrible Renee Zellweger movies) he was okay in the role, perhaps the fact it wasn't written for him and he was visibly older than all the other actors including his "older" brother Prince David played by Guy Pearce (Memento, The Hurt Locker). This film was carried by the 2 main supporting roles the one of King George VI wife played by Helena Bonham Carter (Fight Club, Harry Potter) and that of Lionel Logue played by Geoffrey Rush (Pirates Of The Caribbean, Shine). Their charisma and acting chops outshine all the other actors (And Dumbledore was in this movie!) while not making them seem so miniscule and unimportant.

     Now this film will not be for everyone but if you enjoy period pieces and british humour I would go out and rent it now, if you don't think it's your cup of tea (see what I did there?) but are still intrigued I'd keep an eye out for it on cable and PVR it, I myself wouldn't go out and purchase the film, but it should definitely be watched at least once in a lifetime and I certainly won't be turning the channel if it comes on TV... Unless something better is on. 

Review : Battlefield Bad Company Two

 Welcome to an alternate reality, where (no big surprise) the Russians have started a campaign of global domination and the United States is all that stands between being red or dead.

            Enter B-company a four man squad of American soldiers that play under the radar and most rules of engagement, and they like to play hard. You play as Marlow, the softer spoken G.I stuck in this merry band of wise cracking soldiers. Fans of the original game will be happy that much of the original storyline has been bridged into the sequel, although there are a few gaps that will leave some gamers a little confused. Its better in my opinion just to let the little things slide, and concentrate on the bigger and better portions of the game. The snow covered levels of the first game are still a large portion of the games locales, but throw in South American slums, the rain forest and a World War Two submarine pen, and we have the perfect recipe for intense firefights.  The action has been beefed up as well as the number of collectible weapons and the amount of hidden jabs in the dialogue towards its main competitor, Call Of Duty.

            The training level (as it is) is also the introduction to the new storyline, (SPOILER ALERT!!!) the Japanese were designing a super weapon (Scalar tech) of their own during WW2 and a group of American soldiers were sent to a secret Japanese base to pick up a defecting scientist with crucial information. Needless to say this mission goes badly, and we jump ahead to present day.

            Our squad is creeping through a Russian minefield on their way to make sure that a transfer between the Russians and an American agent goes according to plan. You guessed it, the Russians can’t be trusted and the agent is killed. Before they receive a kill order on the main antagonist, he flees in a conveniently placed helicopter and the nearby town full of Russian soldiers is declared enemy territory, this is where the fun starts.

            Although the game is linear in fashion, almost all the building in the levels are easily accessed with a handy military grade knife, allowing you to pick your own path, and depending on the difficulty level, you may not want to just run guns blazing into every ambush point. As always I recommend playing through once on easy then upping the difficulty when you know that there isn’t a tank around the corner. All levels are re-playable on their own and if you are a trophy whore such as myself you’ll need to do so to get all the weapons and collectables, although you can play the whole game with one weapon set, as all the specialized weapons you need will be present in situations where your sniper and submachine gun just can’t hack it.

            The game is almost completely bug free, besides a small graphics problem I encountered once later in the campaign, its perfect. The graphics are much better than the original, and the gameplay isn’t easy enough to just take a pleasant stroll through the jungle with your Scar H and not get tube fed a rocket propelled grenade. Following the trend that seems to be going around, the health system is the standard red screen that makes you need to hide to wipe the jam from your face, always the raspberry.... That being said, it isn't as apparent as you would think, which creates many a "wait I died?" situation. Your teammates are pretty comatose but you can (and at some points have to) fight through missions without your squad. Even though enemies almost always see you as a flashing red skull on the Ruskie threat meter and target you first, but its always nice to have someone manning the mounted machine gun in one of the games many vehicles.

            The game follows an interesting storyline but all the cinematics don't have to be watched (press select), but if you have the time to sit through them know that the dialogue is mostly hilarious, and if you pay attention you’ll catch mentions of other games.

            The games multiplayer is completely online and lauded as a COD killer, the developers were apparently fixing all the problems with Modern Warfare Two’s multiplayer, such as spawn killing, and camping, alas this has not completely happened. The levels tend to be larger and more open with other parts of the map being made available as the match progresses and there are a variety of vehicles that are at some points crucial to the mission. The player chooses from four classes (Essentially- Medic, Assault, Engineer, and Sniper) with upgradable and interchangeable items and weapons, although its probable that you will enter a match where everyone is playing as a sniper, if that is the case promptly leave and play Modern Warfare Two, because you cannot improve upon perfection, the internet doesn’t lie.

            Overall the game is enjoyable, witty, intense, and easy enough to not have to tweek the controls or cause you to dirty that mother kissing mouth of yours. Playing the first game is not important to understanding or enjoying Bad Company Two, but it’s most certainly worth searching your local bargain bins to find.

           

             

Film Review #1 : Sucker Punch

     This movie is confusing on so many levels, which might be why I love it so much. First off, this is a review so there might be a spoilers thrown in here and there, so be warned.

     Sucker Punch, the name does this movie no justice. From the first scene you know this movie is a tragic, I mean its raining outside and someone has already died. The main characters mother, who isn't important enough to have a noticeable name is stone cold dead, and the "father" upon finding out he gets nothing from her death goes on a rape rampage. First he tries to get into the main character, then upon finding out kitty has claws, he goes for the younger sister. Now the main character, who after forty minutes is called Babydoll, and another hour after that, Laura, is obviously pissed. She slides down a drain pipe grabs and gun and points it at the would be rapist, bang, she missed and her sister is dead. Opportunity arises and she gets institutionalized, which is where the fun starts. Now just like Inception, this movie is one reality inside the other, inside another which means every character has three parts to play and you have to follow the story through one dream and into a vision then back to the real world all the while doing your best to learn names and locations. Obviously there was a bit of a budget cut with character design such but you'll get used to it.

    Now reality one, is the actual world, its dark and brooding and really sucks. Our protagonist is locked up in an asylum in Vermont, with her are a motley crew of perverts and mentally unstable hotties. Its from here she derives all of her stimulus for the other realities and reality two begins with a bang.

    Reality two is a seedy strip club, I know right its just keeps getting better. This is where she actually starts meeting some of her fellow inpatients and sets in motion her plan for freedom. Now the section of the movie here starts in essentially the same way as the first, she gets dropped off by the father character, who is this time a twisted priest and the same as before, she isn't allowed to leave. The nurse that thinks he runs the asylum is here as the owner of the club, the Tenenbaum-esque doctor is now a dance instructor and still provides the music. Yes music, this is a strip club, and Babydoll is forced to dance. When she dances though she enters reality three.

     Our last reality is every little boys dream, and well mine too. Babydoll has free reign here to change the location every dance as it takes place in her dreams, and she does. This reality is where she finds her weapons and where she learns how to achieve the final goal, freedom. Our merry band of crazies kicks ass all the way from world war one to a medieval castle. Now in this reality there are obviously a bunch of crazy good looking girls, but here they have guns and swords and they have to fight robotic samurais with chain guns, steampunk nazis, dragons, orcs, and those guys from I-Robot that didn't have sentience.

     As the movie progresses the realities start to affect one another in obvious ways, which means that if you die in one, you die in another, if you steal the map in one you have it in the other, and amazingly enough it all falls into place. Well, you think it does, without ruining everything lets just say all along we had the wrong idea about who's story it was and how it ends. throughout the movie I was stunned by the visuals, I mean epic doesn't even cut it for the battle scenes, beautiful doesn't come close to the stature of the ladies, and I bet you didn't even pay attention to the monologue that started everything, and ends it as well.

    "Who honors those we love for the very life we live? Who sends monsters to kill us... and at the same time sings that we'll never die? Who teaches us whats real and how to laugh at lies? Who decides why we live and we'll die to defend? Who chains us and who holds the key that can set us free? It's you. You have all the weapons you need. Now Fight!"

     This movie turns out to be a thing of majesty, and it was completely covered up with violence, depression and lobotomies, and for that I implore you, look deeper than the grime and darkness, find the meaning of the story, that's where the beauty lies.

     Overall this movie is at least a rent, at most a buy, but watch this movie! If you loved the soundtrack as much as I do find it for download here. And don't pay any attention to the Rotten Tomatoes rating.