Toy Story 3/A-Team

I'm not even going to talk about TS3 too much because you can read everything I want to say from all the positive reviews on Rotten Tomatoes. All you need to know is this: Quality finish to a quality franchise. Be sure to note: This film is NOT a kids' movie. I could hardly find a bit of humour in it that a child would actually laugh at. In fact, there was actually a moment where I genuinely jumped. It was just like a 'holy shit' scary moment.  What the film does is bring us (I'm talking late adolescents, early adults) back to our childhoods. Only thing I was disappointed to see was the omission of some characters (including RC Car, Wheezy, Bo Peep). But yes, TS3 is a nostalgia-fest. Enjoy it while it lasts. Be prepared for bawww at the end. I won't spoil the ending for you but I'll say that it's completely and utterly satisfying. Lastly, the Ken doll voiced by Michael Keaton is pure awesome. 

4.5/5, you MUST watch this. However, if you haven't, watch Toy Story and Toy Story 2 FIRST. 

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Alright, the A-Team. I am honest to God going to try and miniaturise these a bit more. I saw this the day after Toy Story 3, so it was nice to watch a film that has virtually zero emotional impact after that. The A-Team is awesome. I loved it. It's just like, 'here's Liam Neeson, here's some black guy from UFC, here's the guy from The Hangover and here's the guy from District 9, and then we'll just chuck in Jessica Biel as well, now sit back and watch some explosions and shit.' The action and visual effects in The A-Team are nothing short of sublime. It's just a never ending thrill ride that keeps going and keeps going... and when you think it's over, keeps going (naturally leaving the ending open for a sequel). 

Note that I haven't actually watched the original show, but I've heard it shares the movie's main traits, namely being loud, rambunctious and pretty funny. Sharlto Copley (dude from District 9) is fucking HILARIOUS. He plays Murdock, who's apparently a crazy pilot. And yeah. It's good stuff.

There are two things I didn't like though. Firstly, the hand-to-hand fight scenes. Lately, directors have this annoying habit of NOT FILMING THESE PROPERLY. The A-Team simply follows suit. These scenes are so quick and terribly edited that you have no idea what the hell is going on. Also, the story. I don't know, it might be just me, but I couldn't follow it. I'm fairly sure it made sense, but it seemed to jump the gun a lot. Things are explained, and only explained once, so if you miss it, you're screwed. I guess the film doesn't do too well in the sense that movies are supposed to show and not tell. However the action and set piece scenes more than make up for it. There is a scene where they fly a tank. Not kidding. It's not even some super sophisticated airship tank. It's just a regular Panzer tank. Also there's a brilliant satirisation of 3D television.

So yeah, drift into Michael Bay mode (expect no narrative coherence, look for plenty of action and explosions) and catch The A-Team. It's lots of fun.

4/5, recommended. 

-Dilan