Seven Psychopaths, Life of Pi and Pitch Perfect

I guess that like so many other people who loved Martin McDonagh's In Bruges we were very much looking forward to his new movie Seven Physchopaths. In the end it was not quite up to his previous standard, but it still had lots to recommend it. The story is a bit off beat, but the screenplay is a delight. The difference here is that the characters are basically American and the story is set in Los Angeles, a departure from the two leads of In Bruges who are Irish. McDonagh feels very much Irish as his many plays will testify. He does have Irish parents despite being born in London and living his entire life in this country. I'm not sure if he gets properly into the minds and culture of the USA. The voices of the main characters almost have too much a British feel, despite the accents. These are minor quibbles. The story is very witty and and there is plenty of fun to be had with the opposing views that film scripts are either violent or sweet. We have both. The acting is first class. Colin Farrell has followed McDonagh from In Bruges, but he pales in comparison with heavyweights Sam Rockwell, Woody Harrelson and especially the brilliant Christopher Walken. Hardly a lady present, but that mirrors their lack of roles in Hollywood.

I never liked the book Life of Pi, so I could only think that Ang Lee had found something in it to make a movie. Well he hadn't. We still have a plotless experience that relies heavily on narration, and you know how that nearly always disappoints me. Yes, it is beautiful to look at, but I need a lot more than that to enjoy a movie. So lets leave it at that.

When a movie is made that is aimed at teenage girls ( and the audience was them in the main), I would avoid it like the plague. But the reviews of Pitch Perfect were surprisingly good, so I gave it a go. And I was glad I did. First and foremost, the script is clever, lively and intelligent. Where did that come from? It was Kay Cannon, three time Writer's Guild of America award winner and Emmy nominated for 30 Rock. So I enjoy any movie that has a great screenplay, and this adaptation of first time author Mickey Rapkin's book is just great. That is not to say there are some queasy moments, both literally and figuratively, but there enough highlights to outweigh the cringey parts. The casting of the girls is terrific, that of the boys horrific. Anna Kendrick in the lead role is an actress always worth seeing, except at 27, and like almost all the cast, way too old for college. But it was fun anyway.