Friday the 13th - reboot?

Stop the clocks, Paramount Pictures, having been granted the rights through previous guardian Warner Bros. are on the verge of rebooting Friday the 13th. The last time we saw our not so favourite horror slasher (thanks to Jason - X and so forth) was Marcus Nispel's Friday the 13th (2009); was it a reboot? What in god's name was that film? Sure, it advertised butchering at its best, but surely we are entitled to a storyline?

Oh, Michael Bay overlooked it also...just saying.

It is early days yet with a Jason rekindled (or devious mother) hanging in the balance for a number of years now. Empire reports Damian Shannon and Mark Shift of Freddy vs Jason (2003) have crafted some ideas for a script worth looking at. 

Personally, while I am not a huge fan of the franchise believe this will not serve the prolific history of slasher movies any justice. 

It's ironic I am debating the idea of reboots, modern sequels etc with myself because just recently, I watched a documentary called The American Nightmare (2002); based on the origin of horror, crediting the dying breed of Wes Craven, Georgeo Romero, Tobe Hooper and more. Check it out over on YouTube - well worth the look. 

Sabotage Trailer

The trailer for Arnie's upcoming action movie Sabotage has landed and it looks a beast of a movie.

Question his age and acting skills if you will, and while The Last Stand and The Expendables  are quite forgetful, Sabotage; starring Terrance Howard and Sam Worthington (ugh) advertises Arnold Schwarzenegger in great fashion.

Head of a DEA task force, Breacher (Swarzenegger) finds himself surrounded by corruption in a team he once trusted. Following a major drug bust worth 10million, the money goes missing, leaving questions marks over each member of the group. As Breacher struggles to come to a conclusion, he starts to lose members of his team through a anonymous killer.

Director Davide Ayer is no joke either; packing movies such as Training Day, End of Watch and Harsh Times - Arnie may have bagged a gem here. What we may agree on is that Arnie is looking slicker than his John Wayne portrayal in western slash modern parody The Last Stand.  We can all forgive Arnie for some, we refuse to forgive him for many, so let's all agree The Last Stand was a small stepping stone back to what we know best (sorry I didn't see Escape Plan); and that is a big Austrian with a bad-ass haircut chasing down the cartel , all while he enjoys a fat cigar!

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Genre: Action/Adventure
Directed: Francis Lawrence
Starring; Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth and Woody Harrelson 
Running: 146mins

Following the success of the Hunger Games (2012), director Francis Lawrence takes the throne. The prolonged sequel thrives on dramatic revolution rather than hunger games; which depending on your taste, is not a bad thing, rather a clever and more engaging concept that has set the trilogy in fantastic motion. 

Haunted by the events from the last hunger games, Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) struggles to adapt to the new lifestyle her victory in the hunger games has granted her. While her love for Gale (Liam Hemsworth) still stands, her new lifestyle prevents her from seeing him with President Snow scripting her every move. Katniss must maintain her relationship with Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) for the sake of her family by going on a victor's tour with Peeta to commemorate the fallen victims of the 74th hunger games. This is considered bad taste to the people in Panam, with talks of a revolution sending panic waves throughout the capital.

It is from then president Snow deems Katniss a savour of the people, therefore a liability to the capitol's hierarchy. President Snow along with Plutarch (Philip Seymore Hoffman) announce the 75th annual hunger games, with both Katniss and Peeta headlining the show.

A month before The Hobbit sequel hits cinemas, Catching Fire needed to have severe impact on fans global, and while I cannot speak for everyone, I will be very surprised if the drawn out vision of the Hobbit manages to outclass this tremendous visionary sequel. While the book squad will be out in force to analyse both the hobbit and hunger games, catching fire is a visually stunning movie with very little flaws.

The cast (and more) is a step up from its predecessor, introducing likeable (and not so); as Katniss and Peeta are forced to make allies with new characters such as Finnick, Beetee, cashmere and many more. Characters such as Haymitch (Woody Harrelson), Cinna (Lenny Kravtitz) and the peculiar Effi (Elizabeth Banks) all have a major part, in which gives the result of a sequel with way more depth. We see that each individual is torn between right and wrong, revolution and dictatorship.

Catching Fire is over two hours long, and may prove a drag to some. It is the progression from the ruins of the city, to the showdown in the 75th hunger games. Francis Lawrence aims to capture the aftermath of the previous events with drawn out but very relevant scenes. While some may be disappointed at the lack of action, the gritty visuals and character emotions should be enough to satisfy the true movie fan up until the last 45 minutes when the games get under way; however not everyone is graced with the same patience.

Overall, Catching Fire is a well crafted sequel that offers more drama than action scenes. The vision of Francis Lawrence is clear, in paving way for a third and now forth chapter in what has been (in my opinion) an intriguing combination of lust, drama and survival; a concept that has managed to better Twilight and The Hobbit (so far).

8.5/10