FILM 13
THEPHUKETNEWS.COM FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2013 FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2013
Down for whatever
IN BRIEF Smith in talks for Independence Day 2
D i r e c t o r R ol a nd Emmerich says Will Smith is back in talks to star in the forthcoming disaster sequel Independence Day 2. According to reports, Smith was initially not interested in joining the project but has since changed his mind. Joining Smith, should he accept the role, will be Bill Pullman and Jeff Goldblum who have already signed on to a sequel. “[Smith] didn’t want to do it at first. Now we have a meeting planned, we want to talk about it again. Anything can happen,” Emmerich told reporters.
White House Down
FILM REVIEW J.P. Mestanza editor2@classactmedia.co.th
While the stars and stripes appeal for patriotic Americans is clear, why then should non-US citizens feel the need to see White House Down, particularly when this film has essentially already been done earlier this year, with Gerard Butler vehicle Olympus Has Fallen?
Director: Roland Emmerich Starring: Channing Tatum, Jamie Foxx, Joey King, Maggie Gyllenhall Running time: 2hr 11min
R
ight from the start, this movie drips red, white, and blue tears, accompanied by the loud blaring of the Star Spangled Banner and distant chants of ‘U-S-A, U-S-A’. O say can you see... indeed. With few pretensions, White House Down is just a plain old jingoistic destruction movie that moves along at a fun pace. It’s chock full of cheesy one-liners, a recognisable cast, and an ending you see coming from more than two hours off. The film is exactly what audiences expect from the man who brought us Independence Day. Director Roland Emmerich does nothing groundbreaking in terms of story, just brings plenty of backstabbing and faux-political ‘intrigue’ that gives just enough justification for the events that transpire in the film. The story takes place in present-day Washington DC as police officer John Cale (2013’s omnipresent Channing Tatum) is assigned to protect the Speaker of the House. In order to impress his politics-savvy teenage daughter, played by Joey King, Cale applies for a position in the Secret Service detail that protects the president. He fails to get the job though and, not too long after, the pair decide to tour the White House. During the tour though, bombs go off as armed mercenaries begin a search for President James Sawyer (Jamie Foxx). Cale is immediately in the thick of the action as he slips away to try and save the president, his daughter, and himself while the audience begins to learn who is betraying who in this by the numbers thriller. Emmerich is not known for developing his characters, but to be fair he spends a good chunk of the beginning laying the groundwork for what’s to come later. Surprisingly, the film is also much more humorous than the action-packed trailer would make audiences believe, some of it placed in rather awkward moments. But compared with his best known film (of which there may soon be a sequel starring Will Smith, see briefs), the special effects here are inexplicably not up to par. The action sequences, though well edited, are far from stellar: coming across as a series of cartoonish, video game-like explosions that take the film down a notch.
SFX Coliseum Phuket (Central Festival) Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo (E) The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones (E) Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (T/3D) Riddick: Rule of the Dark (E) Riddick: Rule of the Dark (E/G) Riddick: Rule of the Dark (T) White House Down (E) White House Down (T)
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16:10, 18:10 13:30, 18:30, 21:15 20:10, 22:25 13:50, 16:20, 18:50, 21:20 15:00, 17:30, 20:00 14:30, 15:50, 17:00, 19:30, 22:00 14:00, 16:45, 19:30, 22:10 15:15, 18:00, 20:455
Fifty Shades of Grey cast leads announced
The movie adaptation of the much talked-about book series Fifty Shades of Grey will see Charlie Hunnam and Dakota Johnson bring the characters of Christian Grey and Anastasia to life. Johnson, a relative unknown with small roles in The Social Network and The Five-Year Engagement, will play a sexually naive virgin who is introduced to the kinkier side of relationships by Hunnam’s character.
Star Wars gets first star
The past year has been good to leading man Tatum (with several box office hits) who plays a nice double act here with Foxx; though, endearing as it is to see a president who chooses to wear sneakers with his suit, audiences don’t need to hear a sly joke about them as he kicks a bad guy in the face. While the stars and stripes appeal for patriotic Americans is clear (I should reveal I am one), why then should non-US citizens feel the need to see White House Down, particularly when this film has essentially already been done earlier this year, with the Gerard Butler-vehicle Olympus Has Fallen? The reason is, this is a far better movie, with a much more plausible storyline (does anyone seriously believe the North Koreans would ever be able to get across the Pacific Ocean, let alone to Washingon?) than the White House shoot ‘em up that came before. As Scott Foundas of Variety so eloquently puts it, “Setting aside the question of whether the world really needed a second White House takeover movie, in terms of sheer craftsmanship and professionalism, White House Down is to Olympus Has Fallen what Raiders of the Lost Ark was to the 1985 Richard Chamberlain-Sharon Stone version of King Solomon’s Mines.” So, in sum, what you’re getting is a far superior production, with nevertheless a healthy dose of American patriotism. Can I get a U-S-A? Ooh-Rah!
Benedict Cumberbatch has been cast in Star War Episode VII after reportedly turning down two films to free himself up for the project. The news would make Cumberbatch the first star to sign on to the Star Wars movie since Disney bought the rights of the much beloved franchise. The film, which is due out in 2015, will be directed by Star Trek scribe JJ Abrams. It is not yet known which character Cumberbatch will portray.
US BOX OFFICE TOP 10 Film
Gross
1
Riddick
$18.7M
$18.7M
2
Lee Daniels’ The Butler
$8.9M
$91.9M
3
Instructions Not Included
$8.1M
$20.3M
4
We’re the Millers
$7.92M
$124M
5
Planes
$4.27M
$79.3M
6
One Direction: This Is Us
$4.1M
$24M
7
Elysium
$3.1M
$85.1M
$2.69M
$25.4M
$2.5M
$59.8M
$2.3M
$21.7M
Blue Jasmine Percy Jackson: 9 Sea of Monsters 10 The World’s End 8
SFC Jungceylon Phuket (Patong) The Bling Ring (E) The Conjuring (E) Kick Ass 2 (E) Make Your Move (E/3D) The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones (E) Riddick: Rule of the Dark (E) White House Down (E)
Weekend gross
15:15, 17:30, 19:45, 21:45 17:40, 22:15 14:30, 19:20 15:15, 20:00 16:40, 21:30 14:30, 17:00, 19:30, 22:00 14:10, 16:50, 19:30, 22:10
As some movies and movie times change every Thursday morning, after The Phuket News has gone to press, the accuracy of the following information cannot be guaranteed. For up-to-date information, visit sfcinemacity.com, or call the cinemas directly: SFX Coliseum Phuket 076-209000 and SFC Jungceylon Phuket 076-600-555.