FILM: Shutter Island (dir: Martin Scorsese, 2010)

"Tomorrow we can take them on a picnic."

After being shunted around the release schedules, the wait was definitely worth it - Shutter Island is a very good film indeed. Stylistically, it is closest to his take on Cape Fear, but here Scorsese forgoes the melodrama and produces a tightly-controlled and fascinating film. This is Hitchcock with a modern sensibility, which sits incredibly well with its 1950s setting and old-school thriller stylings. Location shooting and art direction are stunning, making Shutter Island a real visual treat. Long-time Scorsese editor Thelma Schoonmaker ensures that the flow of scenes and tone is seamless, making Leonardo DiCaprio's character's situation develop credibly. DiCaprio gives an astounding performance here, and indeed the whole cast is superb, notably the increasingly-impressive Michelle Williams in a small but pivotal role. It could be argued that the middle section could be tighter and the plotting is quite transparent - it doesn't take much to work out where the film is going - but the script is intelligent and the realisation on screen is extremely satisfying.

DVD: George A. Romero's Survival Of The Dead (dir: George A. Romero, 2010)

"Don't stare at me, start shooting the b*****ds!"

Overtaken by its slicker, sleeker modern counterparts in terms of box-office, Romero's "...Of The Dead" series remains true to itself, and this sixth entry makes a solid effort to move the concept into new territory yet retain an intimacy of how the unexplained zombie uprising affects not just society but also its people. With a film-maker of Romero's experience, there is a clear sense of his confidence and his respect for the material and audience right from the assured opening scenes. A good group of central characters is established, but they never feel fully developed. There is an astonishingly high kill-count for what is a dialogue-heavy movie, and stopping the 'dead-heads' becomes so routine for the characters that even they become openly disengaged from doing it. Much is made of Romero's sub-texts in these movies, such as militarism and consumerism, but what marks out this film and indeed the director's position in the zombie sub-genre is that he never lets go of the humanity of the survivors and, indeed, the afflicted. Survival Of The Dead opens up the scenario into new territory - a supposedly 'safe' island, and with the abandoned car ferry proving a particularly atmospheric setting - but is lacking in scale, which probably contributed to the decision for this film to by-pass cinema release. For its budget, a few of the digital effects sit surprisingly well beside more obvious old-school physical gore stunts. The zombie genre has very little scope, and Survival Of The Dead adds little that is new, but this sixth entry does provide another welcome, passable if low-key glimpse into Romero's fictional world.

DVD: Twilight - New Moon (dir: Chris Weitz, 2009)

"Is it possible that there isn't anything sane or normal at all?"

As I am not the target demographic of the Twilight series, the movies were never going to offer much appeal to me, and the best that can be said is that technically New Moon is a better film than the first, thanks largely to Chris Weitz trying to create some visual interest. The original movie suffered from being unintentionally hilarious in so many respects, but this is much less the case in the sequel, resulting in a generally dull and uninspiring viewing experience. Scenes are extended well beyond the point of maintaining interest (and, incredibly, a number of extended scenes can be found on the DVD), with unnecessary overuse of slow motion making the film drag even further. It is a relief that most of the dialogue is either whispered or mumbled, because to actually listen to the words is unremittingly painful. The plotting is rudimentary, and the audience is patronised even to the extent of an 'October' caption being placed over an autumnal establishing shot. Indeed, the often poor-quality low-end digital effects simply highlight the cynicism of the entire project - make it fast, keep costs down, maximise profit. Kristen Stewart at least seems vaguely interested in what is going on this time around, and Pattinson maintains his one-note delivery and lack of screen charisma. Taylor Lautner briefly brings some warmth and credibility as a teenager at first, but as he embraces his 'true inner nature', he is also sucked into the series' signature morose, plodding style. Weitz clearly had ambition for the movie, starting off with a Kurosawa-lite dream sequence and some good art direction at times, but the hollowness of the writing gives the film little chance to really fly. Frustratingly, the whole teenage vampires vs. werewolves concept has clearly so much potential, if only it were given a spark of life instead of trying to come across as Bergman-esque adolescent angst and failing. The most frightening thing about Twilight - New Moon is that it runs over two hours, and believe me, you feel every second pass.

FILM: Legion (dir: Scott Stewart, 2010)

"I can't believe she was still standing after Percy hit her in the head with the frying pan."

Legion is the 2010 equivalent of a 1980s B-movie - lots of ambition, limited resources, a reliance on a strong cast and, of course, complete nonsense. When it works (largely the beginning and the end), the promise of what could have been an absolute gem is very clear and is hugely enjoyable. The cast is uniformly great, with the likes of Dennis Quaid, Charles S Dutton, Tyrese Gibson and the always-interesting-to-watch Lucas Black, and Paul Bettany playing against type as Angel-with-a-conscience Michael, switching between gravitas and kick-ass and clearly having a ball. This level of casting proved essential, as the terrific lively start then makes way for a relentless series of heartfelt but sometimes over-written two-handers, which do slow things down considerably but would have killed the movie stone dead in the hands of lesser actors. No doubt this is a consequence of having to present The Apocalypse on a tight budget, but FX man-turned-director Scott Stewart manages the action scenes well, especially the final smackdown between the Angels Gabriel and Michael. The director openly admits to being influenced by The Terminator, which frequently is overt on-screen, and nods to other films such as Assault On Precinct 13 and Phantoms are evident, but audience expectations are sometimes subverted, such as the set-up when the old lady first pulls up in her car. The humour is enjoyably dark, and the sense of growing threat is quite effective - all Legion needed was a couple more action beats in the mid-section to keep up the momentum. It's not quite Tremors with Angels, but Legion is certainly entertaining.

FILM: Alice In Wonderland 3D (dir: Tim Burton, 2010)

"Do I amuse you?"
"No."

This is unexpected - Tim Burton's take on Alice In Wonderland is mostly unremarkable, even in 3D. Burton's unique vision and method often seems more in conflict with existing source material than when he creates his own worlds and characters, and Alice here is no exception. As you would expect, the design is often striking (the demonic red-playing-card soldiers are a nice touch), but there is nothing here to really surprise or delight. The heavily-CG landscapes seem at odds with Alice's frequent assertions that 'this is real', and the influence of The Lord Of The Rings bears strongly, especially in Alice's final confrontation with the Jabberwocky. Even the dialogue, which starts off with some wit in the opening real-world framing piece, becomes workmanlike as this sparkle is quickly lost once Alice falls down the rabbit hole. Helena Bonham Carter steals the show as the "bloody big-head" Red Queen, but Mia Wasikovska is a dull Alice and Johnny Depp's Mad Hatter feels surprisingly forced and weak. This latest version of Alice In Wonderland is no more than pleasant and, to a large extent, unengaging. This is an extremely soft Tim Burton film by his own standards, targeting a very young audience and - disappointingly -playing very safe.