Quick Reviews #4

I was originally intending to use this post to write one big review for The World's End but I watched Mud last night and how could I not review it, especially as it was my favourite film of the year so far. So instead I have a written another 'Quick Reviews' post where I give my opinions on both the films.

The World's End 

The highly anticipated threequel to the Cornetto trilogy is a lot darker than it's predecessors. That's not to say it doesn't dish out the laughs. Whereas Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz were a lot lighter in tone, this time round Simon Pegg's character Gary is a alcoholic wreck stuck in the mindset of his younger more rebellious days while his four other friends have all grown up, he's quite a sad character really. Gary reunites his friends to finally accomplish the Golden Mile, 12 pubs, 60 pints finishing at 'The World's End'. For the first 20 minutes you start to forget that this is in fact a sci-fi film, the characters are so layered that this could have been about the fivesome without the use of an robot/alien invaded town. But this is Edgar Wright and this film would not be right if it didn't involve some kind of fantastical Hollywood element and it worked for this film and made for a lot of laughs. The humour my not be as consistent in this film as it has been in others but it is still really funny, making it one of the best comedies of the last few years. It's great to see the trio that is Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost back together making movies again because they do it so well! I really hope this isn't the last time we see the trio make a film together. The usual ensemble of actors is back with a few new faces, everyone is great in their roles however I do feel that a few minor characters such as Reece Shearsmith's were not needed and were just there for their cameo appearance. The film looks great and Wright's fast paced camera movements define is auteur style and make for some great comic action scenes, ones that should hopefully be replicated when he takes to directing Ant-Man in the next couple of years.The writing is great and the jokes are funny, something which isn't always achieved in mainstream comedy films at the moment. I wouldn't even know where to start when comparing it to the two previous films because all have been of high quality. I am giving The World's End a rating of 4/5.

Mud

I was gripped throughout the whole of Mud. Director Jeff Nichols has written a story so strong and powerful that even if the cinematography wasn't as beautiful and the actors as good as they are, this film would still be amazing. The film follows two boys as they encounter a fugitive and try to help him to evade capture or death from a set of bounty hunters and reunite him with his true love. This film is just incredible, an instant American classic. A change in pace and tone from the director's previous work with Take Shelter, which is also a great film. The two kids played by Tye Sheridan and Jacob Lofland are brilliant and hold their ground against Matthew McConaughey who is continuing his streak of great roles in this film which might be his best to date. With most of the blockbuster films this year being below expectations it's great to see something small come along and blow you away. Hands down this is the best film I have seen this year. The story reminded me of children's stories like Stig of the Dump or coming of age films but with much more mature themes such as loss of innocence and breakdown of romance. I really cannot praise this film enough, therefore I am giving Mud a rating of 5/5. Go and see it!

Thanks for reading!