Author: Jim McLennan

Neerja

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★★★★
“Sticks to the plane truth.”

Time to set up GirlsWithoutGuns.org, perhaps. For this film brings home that among the most courageous of heroines are the unarmed ones – especially when facing people who are not. Such is the case with Neerja Bhanot, the 22-year-old head purser on Pan Am Flight 73 from Mumbai to New York in 1986. Just before takeoff after a stop in Karachi, the plane was taken over by hijackers from the Palestinian Abu Nidal Organization, who intended to divert it to Cyprus. Bhanot alerted the pilots, allowing them to escape and thwarting that plan. She then discarded the passports of American passengers, stopping the terrorists from targeting them. When they believed Pakistani forces were about to storm the plane, she opened the emergency exits, help shepherd passengers out, and sheltered children from the terrorists’ bullets.

Yep, there are good reasons she became the first female recipient of India’s highest decoration for bravery in peacetime, the Ashok Chakra Award, and the youngest ever. Wisely, the film opts for a largely straightforward retelling of the events of those 24 hours, beginning with Neerja’s exuberant attendance at a birthday party the previous evening, through her trip to the airport and the mundane processes of the early, peaceful leg of the flight, before all hell comes storming up the stairs into her aircraft. Against a solid background, the only element which rings significantly false is the note given to her by a friend at the airport: its clichéd contents perhaps explain the disclaimer before the movie, about “Any resemblance to persons living or dead…”

Otherwise, however, it seems to stick to the truth, as far as my post-film Googling has been able to tell. Yes, Neerja was a part-time model as well as an air hostess. She also had already been through an arranged marriage which failed, to an apparently abusive husband (though here again: “Any resemblance…”). But it’s her amazingly calm, yet smart approach in the face of the four hijackers that is most incredible, with death never more than a hair-trigger’s breadth away. This hellish and escalating claustrophobia of the incident is the film’s strongest suit. Madhvani plays it expertly to a crescendo, as the hijackers become increasingly irritated by what they perceive (not incorrectly) as stalling tactics by the authorities in response to demands for new pilots.

It’s likely one of those cases where less knowledge may be useful in appreciating it. For I’m sure most of the original Indian audience was already well aware of the story here; in contrast, as someone who hadn’t heard about it before, I found myself holding my breath on more than one occasion, with no clue of how it would end. As we enter the New Year of 2017, it certainly qualifies as one of the strongest entries of 2016, even if – or perhaps because? – the movie goes in a different direction from the more-traditional kind of action heroines, which we usually cover on this site.

Dir: Ram Madhvani
Star: Sonam Kapoor, Shabana Azmi, Yogendra Tiku, Abrar Zahoor

2017 in Action Heroine Films

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It’s always interesting to look back at the previous year’s preview, and see what happened – which films came out that didn’t live up to expectations? And which ones went above and beyond? Looking at the 2016 list, the films being anticipated included Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, The Huntsman: Winter’s War and Ghostbusters. Bit of a mixed bag there, shall we say, and let’s leave it at that! But 2017 looks to be opening brightly, at least, with a first month which gives us the latest entries in two of the longest running action heroine franchises: Underworld and Resident Evil. Let’s take a look at those, and the other potentially interesting movies for the year ahead. Release dates are for North America and are entirely subject to change at the whim of those involved.

47 Meters Down (TBA)

Already out in some territories under the title of In The Deep, this appears to be significantly inspired by The Shallows. Except, where it had one swimmer trapped in the ocean and menaced by sharks, this ups the ante, and has two. Sisters, played by Mandy Moore and Claire Holt, are in a shark cage which separates from its boat and plunges to the sea-bottom. Never mind their delivery as a buffet to the predators, they also have less than an hour of air left. This was originally going to go straight to home release in August, but the plan is now for a theatrical release this summer.

Annihilation (TBA)

“A biologist signs up for a dangerous, secret expedition where the laws of nature don’t apply.” Directed by Alex Garland, it’s based on the SF book by Jeff VanderMeer. If the film holds true to the book, the four-person expedition will be all-female, and looking at the cast list, seems they’ll be played by Natalie Portman, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Gina Rodriguez and Tessa Thompson, which has the makings of a fine action-heroine cast. I started reading the synopsis of the book on Wikipedia, and it certainly seemed highly intriguing, but I stopped because… y’know, spoilers.

The Coldest City (July 28)

Based on a graphic novel, as shown on the right, the film was originally on the slate for this year, this stars Charlize Theron as an MI-5 agent, sent to East Berlin as the Eastern Bloc teeters on the edge of collapse. Per Wikipedia, her mission is “to take down a ruthless espionage ring that has just killed an undercover agent for reasons unknown. She is ordered to cooperate with Berlin station chief David Percival, and the two form an uneasy alliance, unleashing their full arsenal of skills in pursuing a threat that jeopardizes the West’s entire intelligence operation.”

Ghost in the Shell (March 31)

There’ll be plenty of coverage here of the GitS universe nearer the time – I’m currently going through Stand Alone Complex on Hulu. The production is not without its share of controversy, due to Scarlett Johansson’s casting as the supposedly Japanese Major, but personally, casting Takeshi Kitano gets you quite a few points. Director Rupert Sanders gave us the previously mentioned The Huntsman: Winter’s War, so I’m fairly certain this one is going to look good, at the very least (and the trailer seems to prove that). Will it be any more than eye-candy?

The Girl With All the Gifts (TBA)

This British post-apocalypse zombie film has already been released there, but has not yet been fixed to a date in the US. Its focus is Melanie, part of a small subset of the infected who have retained human faculties such as intelligence and the ability to communicate, while still being – in the immortal words of Shaun’s mom – “a bit bitey”. She forms a bond with a scientist researching a potential cure, and the pair leave the complex on a trip through the blasted and highly dangerous landscape which London has become.

The Godmother (TBA)

Principal photography on this biopic of Colombia drug-queen, Griselda Blanco, starring Catherine Zeta-Jones, apparently began in November 2015. So I’m a little surprised we haven’t heard anything about it since. It’s certainly not the first such effort – we already wrote about telenovela La Viuda Negra (our full review will be out at the beginning of March). And, apparently after being spurned for the lead here, it was announced in August that Jennifer Lopez will play Blanco in an HBO movie.

Kidnap (March 10)

“Vengeance is a Mother,” is the tag-line here, with Halle Berry starring as a mother who will stop at nothing to free her kidnapped son. There may be distribution problems here, as studio Relativity has been staggering from one financial crisis to another, with complete liquidation still entirely possible. Figuring that out will likely determine its fate: this was originally on the slate for December, but has been pushed back, and even the March date remains tentative. 

Red Sparrow (November 10)

This one is still apparently in pre-production, and has been rattling around since at least mid-2013. It’s based on a novel by Jason Matthew, about Dominika Egorova, a former ballerina who becomes a spy after an injury ends her dance career. She’s sent to get close to a CIA agent, and uncover the identity of the mole he has working inside the Russian system. Egorova is played by Jennifer Lawrence, and it reunites her with the Hunger Games director Francis “No relation” Lawrence, after Darren Arnonofsky left the project in early 2014.

Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (January 27)

Let’s raise a glass to Alice, who has been kicking zombie ass for close to fifteen years now. This is supposedly the final dance for Milla Jovovich – but I imagine the Resident Evil franchise will continue in some form or other, for as long as they’re profitable [I’ve been reading the RE novels for an upcoming feature, and there’s plenty of potential content there which could be mined]. After a couple of disappointing entries, the last film, Retribution, marked a return to OTT fun, so hopefully Milla will get the send-off she deserves here. 

Scorched Earth (TBA)

“A bounty hunter named Atticus Gage tracks down criminals in a post-apocalyptic Earth.” So what’s it doing here? Turns out that Atticus is actually a woman, and will be played by MMA star Gina Carano, who already made a solid impression with both Haywire and In the Blood, as well as her supporting role in Deadpool. Not much more known to this point, except that it’s set after an environmental disaster has reduced the population by billions. John Hannah will also star in the movie, as Gage’s mentor and confidant, Doc.

Underworld: Blood Wars (January 6)

First out of the gates for 2017 is the fifth entry in the Underworld series, though it has already come out in much of Europe [German friend Dieter, a fan of the series in general, gave it his thumbs-up]. The premise? Vampire death dealer Selene (Kate Beckinsale) continues her struggle against the Lycan clan and the Vampires that betrayed her, with both sides trying to use the blood of her and her daughter to become Corvinus Strain hybrids. After hiding her daughter, Selene and her allies attempt to end the eternal war between Lycans and Vampires, though Selene must take a risk that may cost her her life.

Unforgettable (April 21)

“Where love ends, madness begins…” That’s the tagline on this, which looks exactly like the sort of trashy potboiler we appreciate as a guilty pleasure. Katherine Heigl plays an ex-wife, who becomes convinced that her husband’s new flame (Rosario Dawson) is the only thing standing between her and a reconciliation. As such, the obstacle must be disposed of, by any means necessary. If this does not include a lengthy and hellacious brawl between the two female leads, I will be sorely disappointed. The trailer appears to suggest I won’t be!

Unlocked (March 17)

Another holdover from 2016; by its release, more than two years will have passed since the first pic. Here’s the synopsis: Once the CIA’s best interrogator, Alice Racine (Noomi Rapace) failed to unlock a prisoner in time, prompting her to leave the field. When a suspect believed to have direct knowledge of an imminent terrorist attack is apprehended, Alice is called back in. Successful in ‘unlocking’ the suspect, she gets a call from an old colleague and realizes it’s a set-up. Alice narrowly escapes, and finds herself on the run. as she searches for those responsible and tries to prevent a deadly biological attack on the city. 

Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (July 21)

Luc Besson will always have a place in our hearts: he gave us Milla Jovovich and Natalie Portman. This seems closest to The Fifth Element, depicting a massive, sprawling futuristic universe. Per the official synopsis, “Valerian and Laureline embark on a mission to the breathtaking intergalactic city of Alpha, an ever-expanding metropolis comprised of thousands of different species from all four corners of the universe. Alpha’s seventeen million inhabitants have converged over time, uniting their talents, technology and resources for the betterment of all. Unfortunately, not everyone on Alpha shares in these same objectives.”

Wonder Woman (June 2)

Last, but certainly not least, is probably the most important action heroine film of the year, being the first major comic-book adaptation with a female lead since… Well, depending on your definition of “major”, likely Electra or Catwoman. Neither of which exactly ended well, did they? If this succeeds, expect the doors to open for a whole slew of others; if it doesn’t, then the spigot could be turned off almost immediately. The signals have been mixed, with rumblings of problems on-set, but there’s no denying the trailer got me excited for this one. Fingers crossed…

Grave Mercy, by Robin LaFevers

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Literary rating: ★★★½
Kick-butt quotient: ☆☆

This works rather better as historical fiction than an action novel, and is set in the late 15th century, when the province of Brittany was fighting to remain independent from France. Such high-level political machinations are far above the heads of most inhabitants, who are busy with everyday survival. At the beginning of the book, this includes the heroine, 17-year-old Ismae, who is more concerned about her upcoming, unwanted marriage – more of a sale by her father, to be honest – to a brutal husband. Rescue comes in an unexpected form, as she is whisked away to the Convent of St. Mortain, devoted to one of the pagan gods, absorbed into the Catholic faith as a saint. Mortain’s field is death, and Ismae, who has a natural immunity to poison, is trained in his dark arts. She becomes a tool used by the Mother Superior – albeit for political ends as much as religious ones.

After a couple of training missions, the main thread of the book is her presence at the court of the young Duchess of Brittany, where she is sent as the “cousin” to her adviser, Duval. Quotes used advisedly, since the general assumption is that she’s Duval’s mistress. Know I mentioned “high-level political machinations” in the previous paragraph? Cue these, in spades, as the future of Brittany hinges largely on to whom the Duchess is married. [It was only right at the end that I realized the Duchess had barely turned thirteen, rendering some of the previous events significantly more creepy] There are any number of factions, each with their own agenda, and willing to go to any lengths to make sure they’re achieved; figuring out and negotiating the maze of loyalties and deception is no easy matter.

By coincidence, I read this not long after The White Queen by Phillipa Gregory, which depicts events in a similarly chaotic period, just across the English Channel and around the same time. That didn’t have enough action to qualify here, but did get me in the appropriate Middle Ages mindset. It did share a supernatural element, with its heroine being able to affect the weather, for example. Here, Ismae’s main talent is her ability to see the mark of Mortain on those the saint has targeted for death. But this is problematic when it conflicts with the instructions given to her by the Mother Superior, and the main thrust of the heroine’s development is her transition away from an indoctrinated cult-head, as she realizes she might be being manipulated and used, almost as much as in her peasant days.

Part of this is – and you can insert a heavy sigh, complete with eye-rolling here – her blossoming feelings for Duval. It’s clear, virtually from the first time he appears, that he is the Designated Love Interest, and it’s only a matter of time before our hard-nosed assassin will inevitably be making googly eyes at him. It’s certainly the case that, once she and he arrive at the castle, the action largely grinds to a halt, being replaced by much skulking around and eavesdropping on other people’s conversations. There’s much more suspicion than assassination, outside of one incident at the banquet, where she saves the Duchess from violent death at the hands of a mime – okay, it’s more one of a strolling troupe of players, but I find the idea of a killer mime just too amusing to discard. [Also: while Ismae does wield a crossbow, it’s considerably smaller than the one pictured on the cover!]

I did like the meshing of old and new religious beliefs, and must confess, this certainly didn’t feel like a 550-page tome [one advantage of e-books is their lack of weight!], since I ripped through it in not much more than a week, which is lightning fast by my standards. But the book did suffer from incomplete subplots, such as the psycho fellow novitiate, who is also present in the Duchess’s castle, only to vanish entirely from the story without explanation. Perhaps this is something which will be explained in a future installment. Having paid 99 cents for this on special offer, I guess I can’t complain; but I likely wouldn’t be inclined to pay the $9.99 currently being demanded for the second part of the trilogy.

Author: Robin LaFevers 
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, available through Amazon, both as a printed book and an e-book.

Here’s the trailer. Yep, TIL that books nowadays have trailers…

Dragon Girls

  By

★★
“…and you thought your school sucked.”

dragon-girlsIf you’re familiar with Jackie Chan’s life story, you’ll know he (along with fellow future start Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao) was basically brought up in a Peking Opera school, where he learned martial arts and acrobatics as well as theatrical skills. Discipline there was notoriously strict – the film Painted Faces gives a good idea of what it was like. But that was the sixties. Surely no such abusive educational regime exists nowadays?

Well… This documentary suggests otherwise, though the scale is rather different. For the Shaolin Tagu school that’s the subject here says it has 35,000 staff and pupils on a half-million square metre campus. When you see the opening, the screen filled from side to side and top to bottom with synchronized martial artists, it’s not implausible. However, the reasons why parents send their children to these places haven’t changed a lot. Typically the family is too poor, or the kids are too much of a handful, possibly heading into delinquency, and they believe the discipline will straighten them out.

The film focuses on some of the girls, some as young as nine, enrolled in the school, including one who had run away in the middle of the second year, and returned to her family. As well as the pupils, there are interviews with the coaches, the head of the school (“A community’s backbone is shaped by rules,” he says. “In here, those rules are very strict.”) and the chief monk at the nearby Shaolin monastery, who offers a different (rather more laid-back!) perspective on what martial arts are about. There isn’t much in the way of narrative here. While there are mentions of a tournament, I didn’t realize it had taken place, until one of the participants was reporting to her disappointed father that she had failed to win first place. Some obvious questions are unanswered too, such as who is paying for this? Are these places state-sponsored?

Although the presence of the documentary crew may have reined in the harsher side of life at the school, the girls have no problem detailing the corporal punishment dished out, it seems at will, by the teachers, or the insect-contaminated food. There’s one scene where the girls compare scars and try to one-up each other, which plays disturbingly like a teen version of the similar sequence in Jaws. But it’s about the only one which sticks in the mind or goes any significant difference between the fairly obvious. I get the feeling we in the West are supposed to look on this disapprovingly, but there isn’t enough digging behind the facade to justify it. For you could likely make something not dissimilar about any high-pressure training environment here – say, for gymnastics. The main difference would probably be that, here, parents have other options…

Dir: Inigo Westmeier
Star: Xin Chenxi, Chen Xi, Guan Luolan, Yang Ziyu
a.k.a. Drachen Mädchen

Scherzo Diabolico

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★★★
“Hell hath no fury like a pissed-off teenager.”

scherzo-diabolicoIf you go in with expectations based on the poster, you are going to get two-thirds of the way into this and wonder if there was some mix-up. It’s only as the last act unfolds that the image makes sense – though it’s still somewhat of a misdirection. The main central character is actually Aram (Barreiro), a middle manager accountant stuck in a dull job, and an even less fulfilling marriage and family. He has a plan to break the monotony, which involves kidnapping a teenage girl, Anie (Vell), and Aram is plotting the crime with his trademark attention to detail.

At first, it all appears that everything has gone perfectly to plan, and Aram’s life changes for the better in a range of ways. The victim is released and returned to her family, alive if hardly undamaged by the psychological trauma of her ordeal, and Aram enjoys the fruits of his efforts. That includes a promotion at work, and an affair with a young woman in the office. It appears to have been the perfect crime. Except, there was one tiny flaw, which opens the door for Anie to take vengeance for what she went through. While the monster which Aram created, may still look like a young, innocent girl, he’s going to find out, her heart is now in a very dark place indeed.

My two main issues with the film were the pacing and a tendency to keep information back from the viewer that should have been revealed. With regard to the latter, for example, there’s one key fact about the identity of his victim which is withheld, for no particularly necessary reason. I’m also unclear on a couple of story points: the length of Anie’s abduction, and why she goes after her first two victims, on discovering who was responsible, rather than directly for Aram. It does also grind to a halt in the middle, with the actual kidnapping and its immediately aftermath, which is a bit of a shame, since the first half does a good job of setting up the situation, and the second half provides an solidly chilling payoff. Not least the final shot, which suggests Aram won’t be the end of the matter…

Bogliano makes particularly good use of classical piano music, which also plays a key role in the plot in a couple of ways – the non-spoiler one is Aram’s childhood ambitions being dashed by his stubby little fingers. The tinkly tunes forming a stark counterpoint to the callous and chilling brutality as it unfolds. Both leads give solid performances too, with Vell certainly having the bigger character arc. There’s enough potential here to leave me interested in tracking down the director’s other efforts, but the problems noted above stop this from being more than an interestingly flawed effort. The less you know going in, likely the better for the experience.

Dir: Adrián García Bogliano
Star: Francisco Barreiro, Daniela Soto Vell, Milena Pezz, Jorge Molina

Electra Woman and Dyna Girl

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★★★★
“They’re super, thanks for asking…”

Initially a web series, the eight episodes are combined into a feature-length production here, and it’s done well enough you can’t see the join. It’s inspired by a Sid + Marty Krofft creation from the mid-seventies, which parodied the Batman and Robin dynamic. Four decades later, when it seems every other movie is a superhero of one form or another, the updated concept works deliciously well, helped by a winning lead performance from Hart as Dyna Girl. She and her partner Electra Woman (Helbig) are low-tier superheroines – without any particular powers, in fact – who operate out of Akron, Ohio until video of them disarming (literally) a convenience store robber goes viral.

That gets them the attention of CMM, the top talent agency for caped crusaders, which necessitates a move from Akron to Los Angeles. With the fame and fortune comes its share of problems, as the more photogenic Electra Woman is seen as the lead, with Dyna Girl increasingly reduced to “sidekick” status. Worse is to follow, as the first supervillain in a long time shows up in Los Angeles, and the ‘Empress of Evil’ rapidly takes out Major Vaunt, the city’s top hero. Can EW + DG patch up their creative differences and save the City of Angels? [Or, at least, the City of Vancouver, attempting to stand-in for the City of Angels…]

I was genuinely and pleasantly surprised by this. I had no clue at all what to expect, having never even heard of the show before, and not even seen a trailer. But I greatly appreciated the dry wit, often bordering on sarcasm, not often seen to this extent in American films. Helbig and Hart are, apparently, YouTube stars, which may help explain the abundant references to social media and pop culture in the script. These may not date well, i.e. jokes about Uber discount coupons or filming with your phone vertical, and if you don’t know what a “Reddit AMA” is, much of the satire there may go over your head. For now, however, it hit the mark for me, and the entirely underwhelming nature of the heroines along with their (lack of) abilities and down-to-earth personalities made them far more relatable than the likes of Jessica Jones.

As you should probably expect, the action aspects are somewhat restrained. Yet these are more successful than you’d imagine and are meshed into the rest of the film nicely – the villains who are beaten up by our two leading ladies sell their punishment magnificently, which certainly helps! It’s also refreshing that there is basically not even the hint of any romantic elements here at all; EW & DG sleep in twin bunk-beds, above each other. This charming naiveté extends to other aspects, such as Dyna Girl’s adorably dorky hair-cut, which looks like the kind of thing you do to yourself in the mirror – if you had the attention span of Dory. The self-awareness here is almost off the charts, and this shows that is not necessarily a bad thing.

Dir: Chris Marrs Piliero
Star: Grace Helbig, Hannah Hart, Matreya Fedor

Julia X

  By

★★★
“Battle of the sexes.”

juliaxA date appears to go badly wrong for Julia (Azlynn), when her companion (Sorbo) turns out to be a serial-killer who has been using Internet dating sites to find the young women he targets. However, it turns out the tables are eventually turned, for Julia and her sister Jessica (Willis) are every bit as monstrous, who have been luring in and killing men, as a result of the abuse they both suffered at the hands of their father. But Jessica is a bit fed up of taking a back seat to her big sis, and wanders across the street to kidnap a victim of her own (Moore). But Julia’s captive is not exactly prepared to give up his liberty without a fight.

Nice bit of casting against type for Sorbo, whom we’re used to seeing in more heroic roles. He’s quite effective in a Patrick Bateman-esque way (American Psycho, if you’d forgotten), and this is certainly an equal opportunity film, in terms of the copious violence inflicted both on and by women. The last third is not much more than the two leads battering each other forcefully through the entire house, with extreme and escalating aggression. It’s the kind of thing which I should love. So why does it all feel relatively unaffecting and forced?

It may be because the scenario unfolding requires almost industrial strength idiocy from the main characters. Sorbo’s killer, for example, is so sloppily incompetent, it’s a wonder he managed to pull off his first murder without accidentally killing himself. The sisters aren’t much better, and we’re not given much of a reason to root for Julia and Jessica either. I get the feeling the reveal of them being psychos as well is supposed to “matter”, but it has next to no impact at all. The backstory offered for the sisters is pretty trite and cliched too; maybe it would have been better off if they’d begun with that, and we’d been brought along with the siblings on their journey, to the point where murder apparently started to make sense.

What does work, fortunately, is the action, which is well-staged and crunchy. The film doesn’t linger on the pain with sadistic glee, as it could; this is wise, since if the makers did, some scenes would likely be hard to watch. Instead, there’s an almost Looney Tunes element to the mayhem, particularly in the way the protagonists are able to take a pounding, and bounce back with an even more enhanced vengeance, like a human version of an Itchy & Scratchy cartoon. On the whole, I’d not have minded at all to see this deliberately outrageous aspect played up, highlighted particularly by a beautifully ironic use of The Carpenters’ soft-pop anthem, Close To You. For the film arguably doesn’t do enough with its script or characters to make the viewer interested in taking them seriously.

Dir: P.J. Pettiette
Star: Valerie Azlynn, Kevin Sorbo, Alicia Leigh Willis, Joel David Moore

Win the audiobook version of ‘The Smoking Gun Sisterhood’!

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Your attention please. Do you:

  • Like audiobooks?
  • Like action heroines?
  • Like free stuff?

We’ve got you covered. For we have 10 copies to give away of the audiobook version of The Smoking Gun Sisterhood, by Thad Brown. This collection of short stories received our Seal of Approval, and we heartily endorse the author’s description of the book as containing “Admiring and respectful celebrations of gun-packing women as kick-butt heroines, for readers of both genders who appreciate heroines of this type.” Check out further reviews on the Amazon page, or here’s the publisher’s blurb, which should whet your appetite even further!

Ten women, each one between a rock that might be her tombstone and a hard place that it may take a gun to blast her way out of. Author Thad Brown’s collection of hard bitten, bullet paced fiction centered on women embroiled in violence and danger takes pulp to a whole new level. Being a woman often means fighting against all odds. And the women in Brown’s tales are charter members of The Smoking Gun Sisterhood. This is a fantastic, double-barrelled collection from author Thad Brown and Pro Se Productions.

At the time, it was a self-published work, but has since become available on Amazon – and now, as an audio book. Which is where we come in, since in conjunction with the narrator, Aisling Gray, we are giving away 10 copies of the audio version of The Smoking Gun Sisterhood through audible.com. Note: winners do not need to have an audible account, though there’s no reason why you wouldn’t want one; I believe iTunes and other downloads work.

To win, all you have to do is get social with us.

  1. Follow us on Twitter or like us on Facebook.
  2. Then send us a DM (Twitter) or a message (Facebook) with your email address.
  3. Er, that’s it.

First 10 people to do so will be put on Santa’s nice list, and will receive their copy in time for Christmas listening. This contest will close when all 10 copies have been given away; we’ll let you know when that is. So if you are reading this – act now, while stocks last… Ho-ho-ho! Heavily armed season’s greetings to one and all!

Morgan

  By

★★★½
“Hannah goes Haywire.”

I watched this twice: once on an airplane flight from London, and once after I returned, and I think I preferred the second viewing. For the ending here, if not perhaps what you’d call a “twist”, does provide a piece of information about the lead character, that will change the way you watch her performance in subsequent viewings. It’s something I appreciate, and also goes a long way to explain what would otherwise potentially be flaws in the plot. Said character is Lee Weathers (Mara), a “risk-management consultant” for a tech company, who is sent to a remote outpost, literally buried in the heart of the countryside.

Its inhabitants have spent more than five years working on developing an artificial life-form; after multiple failed attempts, their current creation, Morgan (Taylor-Joy) had appeared to be doing better. Initially, crafted with talents such as accelerated growth, she (or, as Lee stresses, “it”) is now developing unexpected talents such as precognition. However, a violent streak is also making itself known, culminating in Morgan stabbing one of the researchers in the eye. This is where Weathers comes in, seeking to assess the viability of the project, as well as whether it should continue or not. And if not? Well, as the one-eyed researcher, played by Jennifer Jason Leigh, bluntly tells her, “You’re a goddamn assassin.” But Morgan’s creators won’t take that lying down; nor will Morgan her/itself.

Mara captures just the right degree of cold, passionless disinterest, and is helped out by a very solid supporting cast. This includes Leigh as well as Brian Cox, Paul Giamatti and even action heroine icon, Michelle Yeoh, albeit in a non-action role, playing the head of the project. After the opening scene, depicting the eye-stabbing from the POV of the complex’s security cameras, we already know everything is going to kick off, it’s just a matter of when. Given this, the first half could be considered too slow; we really don’t need to be introduced to everyone, because what matters is the Weathers-Morgan dynamic, perhaps with a side of the latter’s closest “relative”, Dr. Menser (Leslie, not without her own action cred, having played Ygritte in Game of Thrones – like GoT, this movie was filmed in Northern Ireland).

The arrival of Dr. Shapiro (Giamatti), the man in charge of carrying out Morgan’s psych evaluation, signals the start of this inevitable escalation of hostilities, and the pace certainly kicks up from that point forward. It’s this aspect which separates it in tone from the similarly-themed Splice, a more horror-oriented story, also about an artificial life-form gone awry. I note the stunt personnel here included Zara Phythian, a British action actress, whose star appears to be on the rise. Despite the loaded cast – it helps having Ridley Scott as a producer! – this was relatively cheap to make, at $8 million, and was somewhat unjustly overlooked on its cinema release. Even if it probably does take two viewings to appreciate it.

Dir: Luke Scott
Star: Kate Mara, Anya Taylor-Joy, Toby Jones, Rose Leslie