Because ideas you get on the bus are the best ideas.
Okay, here's how it works: I compare two movies using various (completely arbitrary) criteria, and declare a winner. I then compare said winner to the next movie I watch. Winning streaks will be tallied until I get bored of it, or until the next idea I have when I'm bored on the bus.
Today's contenders are:
I, Daniel Blake - Ken Loach tackles the quiet horror of the lives of those failed by the UK's overstretched social security system.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 - Chris Pratt and crew have more happy spacey funtime adventures to the tune of 70s and 80s cheese-pop.
VISUALS
IDB: Loach is more interested in telling a story than creating a spectacle, and fair play to him. The cinematography here is resolutely unobtrusive, serving the narrative in determinedly un-flashy style.
GOTGv2: On the one hand, this one's definitely upped its game on the original, which occasionally seemed to go out of its way to make interesting settings mundane. On the other hand, there's way too much unnecessary messiness in service of the 3D gods. Oh, and they do that really skin-crawly thing where an older actor is CGI de-aged and it's as creepy as all get-go.
Winner: I, DANIEL BLAKE
SOUNDTRACK
IDB: May or may not have had a soundtrack; I have no recollection either way.
GOTGv2: Shamelessly mixes classic feelgood hits with swirly blockbustery orchestral stuff. Technically about as subtle as a brick, but the writing and performances are strong enough that it doesn't overwhelm.
Winner: GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL 2
PERFORMANCES
IDB: Subtle, naturalistic and quietly affecting.
GOTGv2: On the good side of serviceable, with spot-on comic timing, but marks deducted for two cameos from Stan Lee and one from David Hasselhoff
Winner: I, DANIEL BLAKE
WRITING
IDB: Not as subtle as you might have hoped for.
GOTGv2: More subtle than you might have been dreading.
Winner: GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL 2
LAUGHS
IDB: A couple of grins.
GOTGv2: Tries a little too hard at first, but soon settles into a consistently amusing groove.
Winner: GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL 2
TEARS
IDB: Suffers from being a bit obvious, but eventually left me a sobbing wreck as Loach presumably wanted.
GOTGv2: Left me discreetly sniffly about every 20 minutes or so until the third act, at which point I just dissolved - no idea whatsoever whether this is what director James Gunn wanted. I'd like to think he's a kind man and wouldn't be happy to know that I saw it two hours ago and still keep getting choked up every fifteen minutes or so.
Winner: GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL 2
POLITICS
IDB: Absolutely golden, but gold's pretty heavy if you get too much of it. This one is pure political polemic, which is fine by me but might not appeal to everybody. Scrapes through the Bechdel test just barely.
GOTGv2: Explanation: I'm trying to judge both these films by the standards of their own genres (mostly). This one's actually pretty respectful even by general Hollywood standards, let alone as a superhero flick. Obviously everybody's going to have a problem with something, but I really loved Gunn's stubborn refusal to sexualise his female characters beyond the demands of the plot. It doesn't quite pass the Bechdel test (absolutely everybody in the film has major daddy issues) but Gamora, Nebula and Mantis never feel like window dressing or a crutch for the male leads.
Winner: GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL 2
VERDICT
Okay, so I was never going to be anything other than biased here. I don't think I've ever pretended that I watch movies for any other purpose than escapist fun, and for this reason alone I was never going to give Daniel Blake the higher rating.
That said, there's a lot to like about Guardians, just like there was about the original - it's a character piece first and foremost, with the sci-fi action primarily window dressing. Moreover, much as I hate to admit it, it's probably the subtler film of the two, if only because Gunn doesn't have such an important point to put across. Not a film to change the world, but one I suspect will make a whole lot of people feel just a tiny bit happier - that has to be a good thing, right?
CURRENT WINNER: GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY Vol 2 (1 win)
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