theOneliner.com: Handling the Truth

In a radical departure from the norm, we are going to talk about some films. It's this variety that keeps our relationship so full of pep, zim, and vinegar. Or something. On the chopping board this time round we have Quentin Tarantino's latest, Inglourious Basterds, The Time Traveler's Wife, Mesrine Part 2: Public Enemy #1, The Proposal and some toy advert called G.I. Joe. Bon appetit.

Stephen Sommers returns to strike a chilling fear into our hearts with G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, a thinly veiled toy advertisement. While head bad dude Christopher Ecclestone has some fun with the role, leaving now piece of scenery unchewed, everyone else is taking it altogether too seriously for a film this silly. An effective toy advert, perhaps, but a fairly poor film.

Seemingly brewing for approximately forever, Tarantino's latest outing sees a WW2 group of largely Jewish soldiers dropped behind enemy lines to raise merry hell amongst the Nazis. Sadly, very little of the hell raised happens in front of the camera, reducing much of it to people talking at great length about things that would have had much more impact if shown, not told. With little wit and no discernible point, it's surprising that Inglourious Basterds isn't much less enjoyable than it's turned out to be, a fact I attribute entirely to Brad Pitt and Mike Myers' comedy accents.

Mesrine Part 2: Public Enemy #1 again tells us of Jacques Mesrine, notorious criminal and all-round unpleasant bastard. It's every bit as competently handled and intriguing as the first part, although it's really adding nothing that you haven't seen in the first part. With a combined running time pushing five hours there's too much repetition, so you're perhaps best advised to pick one and wait awhile before watching the other, but make no mistake, both parts are well worth viewing.

In the bafflingly spelt The Time Traveler's Wife, Eric Bana finds a genetic defect bouncing him back and forward in time proving to be a crimp on his lifestyle and romance attempts. Not as chick-flicky as could perhaps be expected, and not a film to fear should you be dragged to it.

The same can't be said for The Proposal, an exceptionally tortured rom-com featuring Sandra Bullock (who else?) and Ryan Reynolds. While it's perhaps not as insufferable as such a team-up would herald, there's nary an excuse in the world to allow this access to your eyeballs.

That is all for now. We'll be back sometime soon, so until then keep your nose clean and if you can't be good, be lucky.