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jmovies
Let's Call It A Bromance
Joined: Tue Aug 07, 2007 7:22 pm Posts: 12333
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Mortdecai
MortdecaiQuote: Mortdecai is an upcoming American action comedy film directed by David Koepp and written by Eric Aronson. The film is adapted from the book anthology Mortdecai written by Kyril Bonfiglioli. It stars Johnny Depp in the title role and also features Gwyneth Paltrow, Ewan McGregor, Olivia Munn, Jonny Pasvolsky, Paul Bettany, and Jeff Goldblum. The film is scheduled to be released by Lionsgate on January 23, 2015. The film is the third collaboration between Depp and Bettany, following 2014's Transcendence and 2010's The Tourist. It is also the second collaboration between Depp and Koepp, following the 2004 psychological thriller Secret Window.
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Thu Jan 22, 2015 4:25 pm |
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David
Pure Phase
Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 7:33 am Posts: 34865 Location: Maryland
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Re: Mortdecai
I do not believe Mortdecai is a film produced with avaricious or bad intentions—I understand its broad desire to replicate a certain light, madcap, swinging-sixties atmosphere (cue the Mancini!)—but it truly is a failed farce, an uncomfortable catalog of overly gesticulating actors and deadly silent pauses for nonexistent roars of laughter. The title character, first name Charlie (Johnny Depp), is an aristocratic, pompous art dealer and "part-time rogue" on the verge of financial ruin who is swept into the dangerous international search for a stolen Francisco Goya painting. By his side are a studly manservant (Paul Bettany), a man of few words and several sexual conquests, and his resourceful wife Johanna (Gwyneth Paltrow), who is also desired by a dashing M15 agent (Ewan McGregor). An inordinate amount of screen time is devoted to a walrus mustache recently grown by Charlie. His pride in it is enormous, but it causes Johanna to gag each time they embrace, and he then dry-heaves in return. He has a sympathetic gag reflex, see! This is repeated many, many times, until the poor dead horse is not only beaten, but pulverized.
David Koepp has directed a few films ranging from the downright solid—Stir of Echoes, Ghost Town—to the pleasant, if rather mediocre—Premium Rush—but he is still known best as the writer of such gargantuan franchise openers as Jurassic Park, Mission: Impossible, and Spider-Man. Here, it is clear from the outset (a wan variation on the nightclub-set opening of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom) he possesses neither the comic timing nor the visual brio required for this type of stylized film. The rhythm is always capricious and lax. Scenes either go on far too long or are cramped and rushed, and the set pieces, including a car chase through London alleyways, are flatly shot as a rule.
Depp is a gifted actor and a true-blue movie star at a strange point in his career. He is beset by audiences' cynicism and perhaps deserves a share of it: the more flamboyant and intricate his construction of a character, from the hairstyle and voice to the costumes and facial tics, the more many presume he is slovenly going through the motions. I still respect his outre craft, but, as Charlie, his absurd flourishes never cohere to form a charming overall character so much as a grotesque horse's ass with whom nearly two hours are not well-spent. His characterization aims for Inspector Clouseau or Austin Powers, but ends up a poorly sewn and uneven imitation sold for a significantly slashed price. Other recognizable faces, such as McGregor and the rarely-more-gorgeous Paltrow, have one foot in the film and the other out of it as if ready to sprint from the set when the director and leading man turn their heads. Only Bettany, a talented performer long left in the cold slightly outside the A list, delivers a complete, satisfying, and extremely humorous performance as unfortunately named footman Jock Strapp. His vision of the character as two-parts Anthony Hopkins' Stevens in The Remains of the Day, one-part street-brawling thug is tremendous fun in an otherwise arid expanse of cinematic miscalculation.
D
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Sat Jan 24, 2015 8:28 pm |
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Algren
now we know
Joined: Tue Oct 19, 2004 9:31 pm Posts: 67000
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Mortdecai
Not terribly funny, but not insultingly silly either. Johnny Depp, surprisingly, shines as Charlie Mortdecai. Yes, he's playing another weird and wonderful character, but this one is encapsulated inside the persona of a British lord (and wheeler-dealer), and it plays to Depp's strengths rather well. Actually the entire cast is pretty good, apart from Paul Bettany. I could have done with a Stephen Fry or David Mitchell appearance, but Paltrow and McGregor suffice, and there are many other supporting roles by British TV faces that I appreciated. It's a fun romp and is much more enjoyable than most of Johnny Depp's other fare in recent years, although it isn't going to linger long in the memory. There are one or two laughs and the rest kind of falls flat, but despite this I had a soft spot for the film, the dialogue, and Depp's mannerisms as the titular character.
C+
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Sun Apr 19, 2015 8:21 am |
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Alex Y.
Top Poster
Joined: Fri Oct 15, 2004 4:47 pm Posts: 5704
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Re: Mortdecai
fun and charming, did not deserve To bomb, B+
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Thu May 14, 2015 11:12 pm |
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zwackerm
Hold the door!
Joined: Sun Jun 01, 2014 10:26 pm Posts: 20302 Location: Where they shot Knock at the Cabin
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Re: Mortdecai
This movie was just dull and boring, and not even the least bit funny. The whole thing would feel at home in a children's cartoon if it were not for the sexual references that add nothing to the proceedings. It's not a total failure, because Ewan McGregor and Gwyneth Paltrow manage to shine in poorly written roles, but this is pretty dire.
D-
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Thu Sep 10, 2015 10:21 pm |
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