Reviewed: Jeff Who Lives At Home

WE'VE all been through that phase in our lives. The one where dust is your best friend, Jeremy Kyle re-runs seem enticing and three packets of crisps a day is the norm. However, generally speaking, most of us get over that and start taking responsibility for ourselves by the time we reach adulthood. 

This is not the case for philosophical pothead, Jeff (Jason Segel). A creation from Paramount Picture's off-the-wall sibling, Paramount Vantage, Jeff Who Lives At Home revolves around a 30-something slacker who is completely sold on the idea of fate, so much so that he spends all his time in his mother's (Susan Sarandon) basement, wearing out his bong and pondering destiny while seeking inspiration from the Mel Gibson movie, Signs. 

One morning, Jeff's usual couch potato routine is disturbed when his mother, Sharon, sends him out on a mission to buy wood glue, but on his way to the store he gets distracted by what he thinks are signs from the universe. 

A series of unexpected and mildly amusing events lead him to continually cross paths with older brother Pat (Ed Helms), who is currently going through a midlife crisis and thinks his wife Linda (Judy Greer) is cheating on him. "What you just said sounded like Yoda on acid, stumbling into a business meeting," moans Pat, when Jeff begins spouting babble about the cosmic order, proving that the two brothers are anything but close. Regardless, Pat enlists Jeff's help in trying to catch Linda out, sneakily chasing her, and her mystery companion, across town. 

While the pair are busy bonding, crashing flashy cars and offering bribes to various reception staff, Sharon is having her own adventure at work when she discovers that she has a secret admirer. It is a welcome diverson from the two sons that she "hates at the moment" and the constant reminder that she is a lonely widow. 

Written and directed by the Duplass brothers, who happen to be experts in the indie slacker genre, Jeff Who Lives At Home is a dreary insight into the broken bonds of a disconnected family. The look and feel is nothing extraordinary, reminiscent of many indie films before it which reflect the supposed reality of life rather than the Hollywood version. That said, Sarandon, Helms and Segel, make for an exceptional leading cast. 

Light-hearted comedy and a childlike innocence, particularly from gentle giant Segel, differentiates the film from others like it - making it more refreshing than rigidly reflective. Helms and Segel's reconnection is wonderful, too, as they both realise they are still working through the damaging aftermath of their father's death more than 10 years prior. 

Verdict: Despite adopting a dreamy pace in places, the culimination of the day, when Jeff finally realises what fate has in store for him, makes the whole film worthwhile. Unlike the pessimism you expect from the genre, Jeff Who Lives At Home actually has the 'happy ever after' factor. Relationships are rebuilt and Jeff may actually find the meaning of life - and his wood glue - in the end.

Reviewed: Cabin In The Woods

AS FAR as slasher flicks go, The Cabin In The Woods is a game-changer. The idea of five teenagers heading to a remote part of the American outback for a sordid weekend, only to be tortured by a hillbilly with a grudge, has been done to death - no pun intended - so I wasn't expecting much. 

But this latest gore-slathered Lionsgate release is not your average horror film. With only their naivety and a thirst for adventure, Dana (Kristen Connolly), Curt (Chris Hemsworth), Jules (Anna Hutchison), Marty (Fran Kranz) and Holden (Jesse Williams) jump into a caravan and drive into the unknown, all set for a holiday at 'The Cabin In The Woods'. 

En route they come across an inbred-looking local at a ramshackle petrol station, who eerily directs them on their right path. True to the genre stereotype, they brush off the encounter and head on their merry way - oblivious that their every move is being surveyed. However, it is not an axe-wielding psychopath lurking in the shadows, but instead a pristine operations team watching them on CCTV. 

Blissfully unaware, the group descend on the cabin and make themselves at home. When darkness falls the basement door flies open of its own accord, enticing them into the room below where they find a whole host of ancient treasures. Dana discovers a macabre diary which catalogues the lives of a murderous family who inhabited in the cabin in the early 1900s. She reads out one of the entries in Latin and unknowingly awakens a group of ravenous zombies right outside their door. 

While the group of youngsters are suddenly fighting for their lives, deep beneath the cabin are puppeteers Sitterson (Richard Jenkins) and Hadley (Bradley Whitford) who have every finite detail of their demise pre-determined and have been meticulously orchestrating a series of tricks, traps and concealed cameras. The teens are plucked off one-by-one and Sitterson and Hadley watch on eagerly, mysteriously insinuating that the group are "humanity's last hope", that their fate is sealed and that a higher - much more sinister - power is afoot. 

Director, writer and producer Joss Whedon (Buffy, Angel, Firefly), alongside co-writer and Cloverfield genius Drew Goddard, tautly splices together a blood-thirsty horror with the subdued tones of the not-at-all-scary concealed control room, creating an elegant contrast. 

The scenes are drenched in gore but The Cabin In The Woods is more reliant on substance than a high kill count - although it certainly achieves both with bloody gusto. It lures you into a false sense of predictability and then turns the entire teen-horror genre on its head, giving birth to a concept that is simultaneously inventive, unexpected and disturbing. 

Verdict: Clever quips and witty one-liners, particularly from the unknown operatives below and visionary-cum-stoner Marty, make for a fantastic and quintessentially Whedon-esque dialogue, delivered by a shining cast. These dark comedic moments come in abundance and help to disperse the suspense, if only momentarily. Terrifyingly tense and razor sharp, The Cabin in the Woods packs one hell of a punch - and the odd bit of decapitation as well. 9/10.

Reviewed: Pirates! In An Adventure With Scientists

WITH the tagline 'it's a plunderful life' it is no surprise that The Pirates! In An Adventure With Scientists metaphorically splashes audiences in the face with a bountiful booty of slapstick comedy and sharp British wit. 

Like Blackadder or Monty Python for kids, the latest Aardman adventure follows the foolhardy voyage of the Pirate Captain (voiced by Hugh Grant) and his haphazard crew. 

The band of miscreants are perceived as laughable by the entire pirate community and the Pirate Captain is keen to change all that by clinching the prize for Pirate of the Year - which of course means that the plucky buccaneers must head out on a nautical quest for treasure. 

After unsuccessfully storming nine ships which are more plagueful than plunderful, the crew finally strike gold when they stumble across scientist and avid explorer Charles Darwin (voiced by David Tennant). Darwin hastily identifies that the Captain's "fat" parrot, Polly - the "feathery heart and soul of the ship" - is in fact a dodo which would win them unspeakable riches if presented to scientists in London. 

The Pirate Captain sees pound signs and is keen to set a course for the capital in attempt to not only boost his bounty and scoop the coveted Pirate of the Year award, but also to embark on the crew's "most educational adventure yet!". Unfortunately for the pirates and their crumbling ship, going to London means facing the mighty Queen Victoria (Imelda Staunton), who has a world-renowned penchant for putting pirates' heads on a block and also secretly enjoys dining on rare animals. 

Directed by animation heavyweights, Peter Lord and Jeff Newitt, The Pirates! is five years in the making and the exquisite detail, from the expressive people to the busy backdrops, really demonstrates the hard work that's gone into forming the feature-length creation. 

On its own, Sony Animation has never quite managed to live up to the sheer brilliance of Pixar, but when teamed up with Aardman it has proven again and again that the results are masterful. The story line is brimming with quintessentially British whimsy and quick one-liners are swiftly delivered by some of Britain's best comedy actors. 

Films about leering pirates who sail the seven seas, hunting for treasure and striking down landlubbers, is an all-too-familiar premise, but this jolly jaunt, based on the book by Gideon Defoe, turns the traditional tale topsy turvy. For once, being a pirate is not about getting scurvy or running people through, it is about sporting a great big bushy beard and enjoying the delights of "Ham Nite". 

Verdict: The Pirates! has innuendos galore for the older generation and thanks to cameos from Brian Blessed, Lenny Henry and Salma Hayek - not to mention great comical characters in the form of Surprisingly Curvaceous Pirate (Ashley Jensen), Albino Pirate (Russell Tovey) and BoBo, the self-subtitled chimp - the gags just keep on sailing. It is yet another Aardman triumph that will keep fond fans of the Wallace & Gromit adventures firmly afloat. 7/10