Tomorrow Never Dies

Movie Name: Tomorrow Never Dies
Year of Release: 1997
Director: Roger Spottiswoode
Starring: Pierce Brosnan, Michelle Yeoh, Judi Dench, Jonathan Pryce, Teri Hatcher, Ricky Jay, Joe Don Baker, Vincent Schiavelli, Gotz Otto, Samantha Bond, Desmond Llewelyn, Colin Salmon, Geoffrey Palmer, Julian Fellowes, Terence Rigby, Cecilie Thomsen, Nina Young
Genre: Action
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 5
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Synopsis and Review

Following the immense success of "Goldeneye", the James Bond creative team was incensed to continue that success, and quickly reconvened with a new director in order to continue the adventures of the super spy, embodied by the newly appointed Pierce Brosnan. This time around James Bond gets involved in a scenario which includes a media magnate by the name of Elliot Carver, who is coincidentally married to one of his former lovers by the name of Paris, and who has made himself a figure of wealth and influence by owning a series of publishing outlets and broadcast stations. As it turns out, Carver is intent in provoking a war between China and the UK, broadcasting everything through his channels and reaping the audience numbers and money from the coverage of the whole ordeal. With that in mind he has some missiles he plans on deploying. Bond, with the help of Wai Lin, a Chinese State Security agent, they both manage to abort the firing one of the missiles directed at Beijing, but Wai Lin is captured in the process, forcing Bond to figure out a plan to rescue her and still deter Carver's plans. 

Roger Spottiswoode's career was not in the best of places in the mid 1990s when he chose to tackle "Tomorrow Never Dies". "Air America" didn't work at the box office nor with the critical responses, something that was made even worse with his next feature, "Stop! Or My Mom will Shoot", which was ridiculed, and not solely for its title. He got some redemption soon after with "And the Band Played On", and he remained in TV land, until the James Bond opportunity presented itself. Unlike Martin Campbell's "Goldeneye" which managed to reasonably balance the silliness and campy factor that at times permeates across the James Bond films, Roger Spottiswoode had a tougher time of reconciling these aspects, with the villainous Elliot Carver being an over the top villain, one that was almost too much for the narrative itself, something that Toby Stephens would repeat once again in "Die Another Day" (less is definitely more as some of the other Bond villains started to realize, including the fantastic Javier Bardem in Sam Mendes' "Skyfall"). The cartoonish aspect of some of the characters took away some of the grittiness Martin Campbell had set in motion with "Goldeneye", and in a way, "Tomorrow Never Dies" was a step back in the direction of the films that John Glen directed for the series during the 1980s (though not quite as tongue in cheek). The film does successfully place Michelle Yeoh as a co-lead, much more effectively than prior Bond Girls in similar situations had been rendered, but sadly she never got much to do, even if she is indeed a scene stealer wherever and whenever she appears. The film suffers from some tonal issues, undecided if it wants to be slicker than its previous chapters, or just as over the top. Ultimately there are some solid action set pieces, such as Bond and Wai Lin escaping Carver's building, but this ended up being a middling affair during Pierce Brosnan's tenure with the character. The cast while populated with great performers, had to portend with characters with very little dimension, including Jonathan Pryce's Elliot Carver (someone must have told the actor to go louder and louder), the previously mentioned Michelle Yeoh, and the always remarkable Judi Dench, who stole every scene she found herself in. The production team was excellent, including David Arnold's score, Robert Elswit's cinematography, and Allan Cameron's production design. It's a watchable and noisy entry to the series, but definitely a step down from "Goldeneye". 

Cooties

Movie Name: Cooties
Year of Release: 2014
Director: Jonathan Milott, Cary Murnion
Starring: Elijah Wood, Rainn Wilson, Alison Pill, Jack McBrayer, Leigh Whannell, Nasim Pedrad, Ian Brennan, Jorge Garcia, Cooper Roth, Miles Elliott, Morgan Lily, Sunny May Allison, Peter Kwong
Genre: Comedy, Action
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 6
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Synopsis and Review

"Cooties" is the feature directorial debut of the team comprised of Jonathan Milott and Cary Murnion, who have since directed other features, including "Becky" and "Bushwick". The film co-written by Leigh Whannell and Ian Brennan (Whannell is responsible and co-responsible for the "Saw" and "Insidious" franchises, as well as the films "Upgrade", "The Invisible Man", and the recent "Wolf Man") follows the story of Clint Hadson, an aspiring writer, but current substitute teacher. On his first day of teaching he is reunited with his former high school crush, Lucy McCormick, also a teacher at the same school, who is now dating the physical education teacher, the high strung Wade Johnson. Unbeknownst to the school staff, the kids eat chicken nuggets that are infected with a mutant virus. The kids start infecting each other on the playground, and they're soon turning on the school staff, killing quite a few of them, including the Vice Principal, and even the Sheriff who happens to come by to check on what's happening. The surviving school staff barricades themselves in the musicl room, and they soon realize that the virus only latches on to children, and not adults. They plan on notifying the parents when it's time for the pick-up at the end of the day, but soon the arriving parents are attacked and killed by the feral children. The survivors try to escape the school, which they do with some sacrifices, only to realize that the nearby city has also been overrun. 

One of the most interesting aspects of the film "Cooties" is the fact that it doesn't take itself seriously (the title is in itself a hint for the prior statement). The film, unlike your typical zombie outbreak film or series, takes its time in setting the premise, and smartly places the most innocent and unexpected group of characters as the harbingers of doom, namely children. The characters are thinly developed, but they also have just enough substance and dimension to feel more than your typical cliché. Where the film differentiates itself is the humor in which the characters are consistently placed on, balancing the element of horror and comedy at all times, in a way that it doesn't feel forced or cringe-inducing. The adult characters are teachers/frustrated professionals, even more overwhelmed by the new situation they're having to deal with, whereas the savagery of the children, is essentially their worst nightmare come alive. The dynamics that exists between the characters is nicely established, with Clint and Lucy's chemistry being one of the highlights, the same going for Wade's irascible yet charismatic presence. The group of actors is perfectly cast for these roles, with Elijah Wood, Alison Pill, Rainn Wilson, Jack McBrayer, all playing to the strengths of their abilities. The production team is equally solid, including Lyle Vincent's cinematography, Thomas William Hallbauer's production design and the makeup effects from the team that includes Megan Areford and Martin Astles. It's an unpretentious and entertaining film worth watching.