Film Review: Mandy

“What You’re Hunting Is Rabid Animals. You Should Go In Knowing You’ll Probably Die…”

With Nicolas Cage primarily confining himself to acting roles within releases of a more B-movie nature since the turn of the twenty first century, its’ understandable when both critics and audiences alike approach the latest Cage-led flick with a slight tingle of trepidation, particularly one which heads onto the big screen following a widening level of support and critical praise, and in the case of Mandy, the second feature from Italian director, Panos Cosmatos, Cage’s latest arrives with exactly that, with an array of extensive positive reports clinging to its’ back after the film’s debut showing at this year’s Sundance Film Festival back in January. Blending supernatural horror with gross-out, exploitation levels of gore, Cosmatos’ latest is as wacky and unpredictable as the temperament of its’ leading star, a movie which synchronises a Death Wish-esque revenge plot with a beautiful, stylish design, accumulating in a wickedly entertaining genre piece which fully understands the nature of its’ existence and completely runs with it, resulting in Mandy being not only the most impressive and original Cage-led movie in donkey’s, but one of the most riveting visual and sensual cinematic experiences this year.

Shot entirely with a blushing, blood red colour palette and smokey, dream like cinematography from the excellent hand of Benjamin Loeb, the film’s stylistic approach to the revenge based narrative is a glossy mix of Dario Argento’s Suspiria and strangely enough, the odd-ball, thematic craziness of The Void. Add into the mix an array of truly baffling camera shots which range from morphing, superimposed character close-ups to shadowy, nightmarish long shots, Mandy is a hazy, drug induced stupor of outlandish visual and audio delight, with Jóhann Jóhannsson’s score, one of his last before his shocking premature death, managing to expertly supplement the crazed, florescent feel of the movie from start to finish. With an opening act which introduces the central relationship between Cage and Andrea Riseborough’s (Battle of the Sexes) Mandy, a pair of reclusive outsiders who seem to be reeling from uncertain traumas from their past, the film’s opening hour manages to assemble a true sense of empathy for what follows, as Mandy soon becomes embroiled in a seedy plan hatched by Linus Roache’s (Batman Begins) Jeremiah Sand, the crazed leader of the Children of the New Dawn, a murderous and drug obsessed religious cult.

Because of the first hour’s willingness to allow the main characters of the piece to breathe and expand behind the backdrop of the sheer wondrous and mythical retro spirit which flows throughout the film’s two hour runtime, the second act in which Cage’s Red Miller is let completely off the chain does ultimately feel thoroughly deserved and immediately welcomed with open arms. Because of Cage’s penchant for exaggerated performances throughout his entire career, Cosmatos seems to actively understand and embrace Cage’s odd-ball nature, allowing him to basically play himself for the second half of the movie after a first act where he is somewhat subdued and second to the ever radiant and brilliant Andrea Riseborough. When the film does begin to hit the conventions of revenge genre cinema however, boy does it become a slice of over-the-top brilliance, with intentionally comical insane set pieces, including a truly unhinged chainsaw duel, and S. Craig Zahler levels of exploitation splatter violence all resulting in one of the most enjoyable second acts I have witnessed in a very long time, and with a final, haunting shot of a bloodied, gleaming Nicolas Cage after his mission has well and truly been accomplished, Mandy is a slice of euphoric, wacky unhinged excellence which will, with time, undoubtedly become a infamous cult classic.

Overall Score: 8/10

Film Review: Teen Titans Go! To The Movies

“Titans, You Guys Are Never Actually Doing Anything Heroic…”

With the success of The Lego Movie and The Lego Batman Movie proving that poking fun at the biggest franchises in the world can be best achieved within the format of animation, DC Comics’ turn at rivalling Marvel once again comes in the form of Teen Titans Go! To The Movies, a feature long adaptation of the U.S show, Teen Titans Go!, which sees the titular squad of lesser-known superheroes attempt to prove their worth in a universe surrounded by the likes of Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman and lose their image of being too immature to be taken seriously as heroes. Featuring a voice cast which mixes the regulars of the television show with guest stars such as Nicholas Cage, Jimmy Kimmel and Kristen Bell, Teen Titans is an energetic mixed bag, one which does manage to successfully orchestrate a huge number of brilliant in-house gags with eye-wateringly hilarious results, but a movie which also suffers from a headache inducing sense of not entirely warranting its’ cinematic status, with issues regarding the movie’s screenplay, direction and tone resulting in a movie which certainly lacks the aplomb its’ predecessing familiars managed to get ever so right.

With the best animated movies satisfying both younger and adult audiences alike, Teen Titans Go! does at least attempt primarily to aim at older viewers in regards to a high percentage of the satirical gags, with comments on the shared universes from Marvel and DC alike, the awfulness of Batman Vs. Superman, and the universally accepted hatred of Shia Labeouth all managing to work to impressive comedic means, but with an over-reliance on more times than not to default back to over-zealous screaming, shouting and an awful, bubblegum pop soundtrack, Teen Titans Go! unfortunately fails to balance its’ tonal control, resulting in you more likely to leave the auditorium with an excruciatingly painful headache than a gleeful rush of wishing to see the film again as quickly as possible.  With a screenplay which weaves in and out of a central story, the narrative path of the film does quickly become overly tedious and dull, resulting in watch checking a common theme as the loudness of the movie forces you to stay awake, and with an overriding sense that Teen Titans Go! should have indeed offered a lot more, the ride from screen to cinema is undoubtedly one of crippling disappointment.

Overall Score: 5/10