Idris Elba

News, Reviews & Features

Molly’s Game

Movie Review | Ali Gray | 4th November 2017

If it wasn’t immediately obvious from the impenetrable wall of dialogue that looms over the opening scene, Molly’s Game was written by famed fast-talker Aaron Sorkin. If it wasn’t immediately obvious he directed it too, the clues are there to be found: scenes that smash cut through shot lists like a machine gun play home to worldly and wise characters who spew dictionaries of insightful dialogue. Molly’s Game is adapted from the biography of a poker hostess who ran high stakes games for big game players, but the movie has more of Sorkin’s fingerprints on it than his own typewriter. Often if a writer-director can’t remove their own ego from the equation it can be problematic, but thankfully the story of Molly’s Game feels tailor-made for Sorkin’s style: though occasionally weighed down by sheer volume of dialogue, it’s nonetheless smart, slick and - thanks to a towering Jessica Chastain performance - more than a bit sexy.

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Thor: Ragnarok

Movie Review | Matt Looker | 19th October 2017

There’s a lot that could be said about Taika Waititi being hired at this stage of the MCU. Is it a risk to give a giant special effects blockbuster property like Thor to a director known for off-kilter, low-budget comedies? Is it merely a cynical move in an attempt to mimic the quirkiness of the hugely successful Guardians Of The Galaxy films? Can a unique creative tone even shine through within the confines of the strict Marvel model? And does Waititi’s brand of humour even translate to the big-budget world of EXCEPT IT TOTALLY FUCKING DOES AND YOU CAN FORGET ALL THESE THINGS BECAUSE THIS FILM IS SO MUCH FUN.

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Finding Dory

Movie Review | Ali Gray | 31st July 2016

I was supposed to write a review for Finding Dory about a month ago, but I, er... forgot. Now, in the spirit of the movie's hopelessly forgetful protagonist, allow me to piece together what I can remember in an attempt to create some coherent thoughts. Please also forgive me if I use the same bullshit excuse when filing my Jason Bourne review in six weeks.

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Star Trek Beyond

Movie Review | Ali Gray | 21st July 2016

The things you remember from Star Trek Into Darkness: the theatrical dramatic pause before the shitty Khan reveal; Benedict Cumberbatch doing that weird over-enunciation thing he thinks makes bad dialogue sound better; Kirk kicking the warp core like a broken printer; the bit where Bones basically cures death; Tribbles; the platform game level at the end where Spock channels Super Mario. The things you don't remember from Star Trek Into Darkness: the good stuff, I guess? I don't recall it being a terrible film, quite enjoyable in the moment in fact, but a post-viewing breakdown revealed the story to have as much structural integrity as a piss-soaked newspaper. Star Trek Beyond, however, rights everything that Star Trek Into Darkness put wrong. It may not be as polished or as ambitious as its predecessor, but it is far truer to the core themes of what Trek is all about; crucially, it's a film that looks to the future, not the past.

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Bastille Day

Movie Review | Matt Looker | 20th April 2016

Will Idris Elba be Bond? Can he out-Bond Bond? Can Idris Elbond Bond the Bond Bond? Everyone's obsession with Idris becoming the next 007 (give it up - he's not too black, he's too old) has led to this film being treated like it’s his audition for the role just because he waves a gun around and runs about for a bit. And if it were that easy, they would have cast Elmer Fudd years ago. No, we need to treat this film on its own terms: as a slightly-better-than-generic action thriller with hilariously out-of-touch opinions about how social media works.

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Alternate poster design for ensemble rom-com Bastille Day

Movie Feature | Matt Looker | 19th April 2016

OFFICIAL SYNOPSIS: Another calendar date anthology film from director Garry Marshall sees the lives of four lovable singletons intersect as they search for love on the celebratory streets of Paris, against the backdrop of terrorist attacks and civil unrest. Tonight there's going to be fireworks!

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The Jungle Book

Movie Review | Matt Looker | 15th April 2016

Will they... will they be singing? The 1967 classic animation is so embedded in the public consciousness that it's difficult to know what to expect from this live-action retelling. What will the life-like animals look like when they talk? Will Mowgli look just like cartoon Mowgli? Will Baloo at any point wear coconut shells and a hula skirt? And what of the songs? Those legendary earworms so infectious that it's going to be hard not to resort to punning references throughout this entire review? Thankfully, Jon Favreau delivers a film that is just as wonderful and captivating as that original classic, and he does so by concentrating on the bare n-... the basics. He concentrates on the basics.

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Zootropolis

Movie Review | Ali Gray | 1st April 2016

How many movies make up a renaissance? Without getting too hung up on terminology, I'm interested how we categorise, rank and file nascent movies - the age of this, the era of that etc. When does a hot streak cool into something of more substance? I only ask because Zootropolis is the latest in an increasingly long line of movies from Walt Disney Animation Studios that can rightfully call itself a classic. If you start with 2010's Tangled (and discount the still rather delightful 2011 Winnie The Pooh kiddy pic), that streak also includes Wreck-It Ralph, Frozen and Big Hero 6, all movies with iconic characters, impressively progressive agendas, humour and heart. Shouldn't we be talking about this decade's body of Disney in more grandiose terms? Zootropolis represents the apex of Disney's sparkling Digital Age; a blissfully beautiful, adventurous and charismatic movie that's typical of the studio of late.

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Nikki Finke officially beyond parody

Movie News | Ali Gray | 5th December 2013

Fuck off, Nikki.

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Thor: The Dark World

Movie Review | Ali Gray | 24th October 2013

"How is space?"
"Space is fine."

Isn't it nice that superhero movies don't feel the need to take themselves seriously any more? Even Thor, the superhero with the most potential to be a massive space ponce, is – for want of a better word – smashing it. The Dark Knight trilogy was brooding and brilliant, no one is disputing that, but now that Batman has been put to bed, it feels like the real fun can begin. Marvel are on a hot-streak (if you ignore Iron Man 2, Incredible Hulk and shut up) and their Thor sequel sees that string of hits continue; The Dark World arrives in the same vein as Avengers Assemble and Iron Man 3 i.e. laden with lots of fun, lots of laughs and so much charisma that even the minor characters matter. Who'd have thought a throwaway interaction between Thor and Kat Dennings' comic relief Darcy would end up being the funniest exchange of the movie?

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