In 7 words or less: Indiana Jones/Star Wars/Flash Gordon......Woohoo!
What's it all About? Set in 1939, the story's main protagonists, reporter Polly Perkins (Gwyneth Paltrow) and mercenary Sky Captain (Jude Law) seek to find the cause of a recent robot attack on New York City and the disappearance of several high profile scientists.
Best bits? Strangely there isn't one particular scene that stands out. The connection between the two leads though is riveting and the overall look of the film is great.
Did it make you think thoughts? This film bombed at the box office and was pretty much universally panned by critics as well. I however am not Joe Public and am not a snotty pretentious movie critic so naturally I loved it.
One of the films many strengths is the way it manages to produce a Saturday afternoon matinee feel. The muted soft focus pastels and straight line architecture of the city have an artistic appeal and help to capture a feeling of pre-war futurism. It reminded me so much of Raiders of The Lost Ark and obviously that's no bad thing seeing as Raiders features in The Chief's all time top 5 movies.
The movie also manages to take on a comic book feel, as early on when the robots are attacking New York city the bigwigs decide, 'Only one man can help us', and a call goes out to Sky Captain who flies to the rescue in his P-51 Mustang fighter plane. It is reminiscent of old school Batman being called with the bat signal.
The film would fall flat however without good leads and Paltrow and Law sparkle. They are not asked to do too much but it's in the subtle quieter moments that they shine. There is a prickly tension between them that is Han and Leia all over again. The script is tight and covers all bases from action, romance, suspense and witty one-liners. The last line of the movie which relates to an on-going sub-plot had me chuckling hard to myself. It was a great way to end the flick.
Would you watch it again? Definitely. This is a great action adventure that won't get stale.
Rating (out of 100%): Obviously it's not as good as Indy or Star Wars but if you're looking for a Sunday afternoon adventure romp then you could do a lot worse than stick this in your dvd player. It won't make you think too hard and it didn't win any awards but it will hold your attention and it will make you smile. I give the underrated Sky Captain a popcorn pleasing 88%
