Back In Business ...Posted on 2008/10/17 12:28:27 (October 2008). ... is the title of an all British film I watched very recently. I don't think it made much of a splash at the movies, but I really, really liked it!
The stars involved are what we would probably call "B-List" even by British standards. Martin Kemp, Chris Barry, Dennis Waterman plus a couple of ex-soap stars. Oh and a guest appearance by Brian Blessed. The plot involved some convoluted trickery around the British Space Agency and their latest Mars rover, a new vehicle which had apparently got the world a-buzz.
Of course it's all fluff, but enjoyable fluff even so. Dennis Waterman was the scene-stealer - I guess it was his experience which showed. The car chases were pretty lame by world standards. Whereas the US film industry would have closed off parts of LA early on a Sunday morning, the Brits had to content themselves with haring around an old airfield (or similar) with a few white-lines painted on! Even so the style of the film still worked. Very much Oceans 11, or the recent Italian Job. Just made on a fraction of the budget.
The lack of any sex or violence was also welcome and I almost cheered! It proved that you can still have a grown-ups film which is fun to watch (willing suspension of disbelief in top gear, obviously!) and simply proves to be entertaining.
The icing on the cake was that there's a nice twist at the very end which made it for me. Oh, and the obligatory out-takes during the end titles.
You might disagree with me if you watch this movie, but maybe not... :-D
Comment 1
I totally agree Nigel, for me a strong story or just very engaging characters will always win over Hollywood style big money special effects and action sequences.
We recently watched a film called "Bombon El Perro", an Argentinian film about a man who falls on hard times, is given a dog in thanks for a random act of kindness, and ends up making a new career for himself taking the dog to shows.
It wasn't even a particularly intricate story, but the characterisation and general atmosphere of the film were just hugely engrossing, it was utterly charming. A bit like Amelie in that respect I suppose.
One wonders why Hollywood so seldom get this - can it really be that the majority of the world's population actually want to see idiotic films full of violence and explosions?
Posted by John at 2008/10/17 23:24:20.
Comment 2
Agreed John. And whereas I have a hard time trying to get into any really "arty" stuff, I don't need treating like just another commoditiy to be fleeced... :-)
Posted by Nigel at 2008/10/19 23:00:45.
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