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| The Program: Sordid, compelling tale |
THERE was always going to be a movie about Lance Armstrong, it was just a question of the angle: saint or sinner?
The Program (15, 103mins)
Director: Stephen Frears
Stars: Ben Foster, Chris O’Dowd, Jesse Plemons, Dustin Hoffman
Before the cyclist’s spectacular fall from grace Hollywood was planning a biopic with Matt Damon as the hero who battled back from testicular cancer to win the Tour De France a record seven times.
This is a fact we learn in The Program, the Armstrong movie that eventually did get made, directed by Stephen Frears (Philomena). It is not, of course, the hoped-for inspirational tale of one man who beat the odds, but the dispiriting chronicle of one of the biggest frauds perpetrated in sporting history in which everyone was the victim including us the public.
Far fewer people will want to see this sordid, if compelling, tale than a Chariots Of Fire-style triumph but, presumably aware of this, the filmmakers introduce a suitable underdog for whom to root: Sunday Times journalist David Walsh (Chris O’Dowd), who doggedly pursued him.
Suspecting Armstrong of using drugs after his first Tour De France victory in 1999 (Armstrong had no history of winning over long distances) Walsh was for years a lone voice of doubt, even among his journalist colleagues.
It is potentially a great set-up for a drama along classic David (Walsh) and Goliath lines but the facts do not quite play ball and in their fidelity to the truth the filmmakers have sacrificed a degree of tension and emotion.
Although Walsh was a great thorn in Armstrong’s side, belittled at press conferences and intimated by lawyers, he ultimately was not responsible for Armstrong’s downfall. The result is that the dynamism of the drama dissipates as Walsh disappears into the back seat and the promised study of two bull-headed characters, one with no integrity, the other made of it, never quite evolves.
The likeable O’Dowd is also rather too jovial for the role of Walsh while the character remains underwritten. Even so, The Program is very watchable and benefits from an uncannily convincing Ben Foster as Armstrong. We do not penetrate far beyond the surface of the winning machine monster that he is (he remains pretty unknowable) but his hypocrisy and chutzpah is breathtaking and the complex, often grisly, mechanics of the doping swindle, involving the whole US cycling team is astonishing.
The most fascinating character is Armstrong’s team-mate Floyd Landis (Jesse Plemons) whose conscience and sense of injustice erode his loyalty. You may not be uplifted but you will have your eyes opened, especially if you have not seen The Armstrong Lie, Alex Gibney’s documentary.
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| Pan is a rather presumptuous “blockbuster” prequel starring Hugh Jackman |
Pan (PG, 112mins)
Director: Joe Wright
Stars: Hugh Jackman, Rooney Mara, Levi Miller, Garrett Hedlund, Amanda Seyfried
Want to know how Peter Pan came to find himself in Neverland and learn to fly? Mmm, me neither. Pan is a rather presumptuous “blockbuster” prequel that decides to demystify the legend of JM Barrie’s Peter Pan by spelling out exactly how the lad who never grows old came to be.
Directed by Joe Wright (Atonement, Anna Karenina) the result is an efficient, occasionally rousing children’s adventure that has a distinct Pirates Of The Caribbean vibe about it: the baddies are swashbuckling pirates in huge airborne galleons on a quest for pixie dust which can bestow immortality.
It is fun, lively and action-packed with colourful visuals and exotic landscapes. My eight-year-old son and his pal loved it, but it is not an especially magical or inventive tale that conjures up affection.
Its rather prosaic origin story, which cleaves closely to Hollywood formula and revolves around Peter (Levi Miller) being the “chosen one” of a long-told prophecy, rather diminishes memories of JM Barrie’s creation, transforming the magical tyke into a pat schoolboy superhero, a self-doubting lad who must accept his mission as the saviour of an endangered kingdom.
It is fine but a little mundane. The opening scenes set in London during World War Two have the most charm as we witness young Peter, an orphan, get into scrapes with his best pal and try and get the better of the horrible nun (Kathy Burke) in charge of their orphanage.
One night Peter is snatched up into the airborne galleon of Neverland tyrant Blackbeard (Hugh Jackman), who needs slave labour to mine for fairy dust, or Pixum. Can Peter be the saviour of the oppressed masses who toil in a kind of post-apocalyptic hell while chanting, rather oddly, modern pop songs (a misstep that appears to belong in another film)? Is he the oft-spoken of “boy who could fly”?
What follows is a pretty formulaic creation myth in which Peter learns to embrace his destiny while forging new friendships with spunky princess Tiger Lily (Rooney Mara) and, amusingly, a certain James Hook (Garrett Hedlund) a fellow enslaved orphan who escapes with Peter and becomes a Hans Solo-like grouchy sidekick.
I was not so sure about Jackman’s Blackbeard, the star’s performance lacks the necessary twinkle to engage. He appears to be taking the baddie business just a bit too seriously.
That said, Pan is fast-paced and visually impressive.
VERDICT: 3/5
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| Crimson Peak is a ripe Gothic melodrama from director Guillermo Del Toro that verges on parody |
Crimson Peak (15, 119mins)
Director: Guillermo Del Toro
Stars: Mia Wasikowska, Tom Hiddleston, Jessica Chastain, Charlie Hunnam
Set in 1901, Crimson Peak is a ripe Gothic melodrama from director Guillermo Del Toro that verges on parody.
It stars Mia Wasikowska as an aspiring author who leaves New York for a decaying mansion in northern England after falling under the spell of its smooth proprietor Thomas Sharpe (Tom Hiddleston) who lives with his sinister sister Lucille (Jessica Chastain). It is under-plotted and preposterous but quite fun.
VERDICT: 3/5
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| Hotel Transylvania 2 is a lively and amusing sequel to the 2012 hit |
Hotel Transylvania 2 (U, 90mins
Director: Gendy Tartakovsky
Voices: Adam Sandler, Selena Gomez, Kevin James
Hotel Transylvania 2 is a lively and amusing sequel to the 2012 hit in which hotel proprietor Drac (voiced by Adam Sandler) opens up his guest house for ghouls and humans for the wedding of his 125-year-old daughter Mavis (Selena Gomez) and her human fiancé (Andy Samberg). Chaos and comedy set-pieces ensue.
VERDICT: 3/5
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