On the prowl: Anna Kendrick returns with Blake Lively in murder-mystery comedy ‘Another Simple Favour’.
ANOTHER SIMPLE FAVOUR *** (123 minutes) MA
It’s so lovely to see the unmistakeable Hitchcock reference pop up in the midst of all the fun and games in Another Simple Favour, the sequel to the surprise 2018 hit murder-mystery comedy. It shows that even self-consciously trashy pulp can have touches of class, even if it has to steal them.
Again chaired by Paul Feig (Bridesmaids), the jaunt takes place in the photogenic Italian coastal tourist moneymaker of Capri (named after the pizza, presumably) where wise-cracking true-crime podcaster and author Stephanie (Anna Kendrick) has been invited to be maid of honour at the wedding of Emily (a constantly over-dressed Blake Lively).
Stephanie is naturally curious about this, given how she put Emily in prison for double murder in the previous movie. Still, what are best frenemies for if not to agree with the prompting of a little blackmail.
More glamourous, gag-filled and Euro-trashy than before, the jape turns out to be a winning endeavour, its second hour stuffed with so many nutty twists the whole thing becomes delightfully preposterous as the two leads chime in with super-cheesy performances.
Already a hit on Prime, which has prompted almost as many people to check out A Simple Favour, the film is of particular interest in the light of the proposal by the US government to hit films made in foreign lands – including American productions using international locations – with a 100% tariff.
The idea behind this move initiated by President Donald Trump – unarguably the most entertaining Commander-in-Chief in history – is allegedly to help an ailng Hollywood out by offering an incentive to shoot things in the US.
It’s a nutty idea, of course, as it will drive budgets up, making it harder to schedule productions as demand for crews skyrockets, in turn spiking the cost of admission.
It means that location films such as Another Simple Favour will simply become untenable.
The tariff idea would also greatly restrict the cinematic menu of American film lovers as the costs of distribution suddenly swells, making films “from foreign lands” prohibitively expensive.
On top of that, the impact it would have on Australian talent would be huge as all the local teams and studio facilities making a sweet dollar from big-budget American productions shot here suddenly find themselves with more spare time in their schedules as US films cancel their shoots.
But not to panic. As we all know by now, Trump loved making big announcements that send people into a tizz, then tweak what he meant to bring said people to the table to address his real agenda.
In this case it’s all probably about bringing a moderate increase to US-based productions, possibly with the offer of tax breaks or some such.
Amidst all this carefully planned chaos, it’s important to keep in mind that Trump loves people who do good business, and producers who seek the most cost-effective way of making movies by going overseas is exactly that.
He doesn’t want to put them offside. He wants them on his side – along with everybody else.
OCEAN ***1/2 (98 minutes) PG
Gracefully aware of the little time he has left, veteran naturalist and environmental crusader David Attenborough, 99 as of today (8 May), has one last call – save the seas.
In the stirring eco-documentary Ocean Attenborough – who, wisely, has long credited the invaluable work of his photographers – mounts his plea powerfully, first by showing the delicate beauty of the ocean depths before unleashing horrific images of the destruction wrought by human exploitation.
Ever the optimist, Attenborough presents the case for hope, based partly on the ocean’s extraordinary recuperative capacity, something that only needs human legislation to give it the time it needs.
It’ll be hard for even the coldest enviro-skeptic not to respond to Attenborough’s trademark passion and intelligence as he gently argues for preservation as the film judiciously alternates between the beauty of the ocean’s delicately balanced eco-system and the merciless sweep of trawler nets as they devastate ocean life, their ghastly transformation of the sea floor being especially tough to witness.
CLOWN IN A CORNFIELD *** (96 minutes) MA
It’s more fun on the farm with Clown in a Cornfield, an affectionate throwback to the gloriously excessive horror films of yore the 1990s, a blood-soaked lark about a gaggle of small-town teenagers who learn that the legend of an old syrup factory being haunted by the murderous ghost of its clown mascot is actually a thing.
With gore and gags in equal measure, the emphasis of director Eli Craig (who gave us the wonderfully subversive comedy Tucker and Dale vs Evil) is less on delivering jolts and more about jokes, creepy atmospherics and cheesy scare tactics.
Genre fans will have little to carp about.