Starring: Brit Marling; William Mapother.
Director: Mike Cahill
CELESTIAL concepts generally tend to be heavy on the mind – about as weighty as a planet.
Another Earth begins with images of a big planet – the largest one in our solar system as it turns out – Jupiter, with a voiceover explaining where our protagonist, Rhoda (Brit Marling), comes from.
Her journey begins one drunken night when she drives while intoxicated and hits another car, killing a composer’s (William Mapother) pregnant wife and five-year old boy.
Four years later and Rhoda, fresh out of the slammer, is hoping to be one of the lucky few to go on a voyage of discovery to the other Earth while she takes up a job as a cleaner both at a nearby school and also at the composer’s, John Burroughs, house who has fallen into drink and is consumed by grief.
The horrific incident at the start of the film happens on the same night as Earth has a galactic visitor and it doesn’t take long for us to work out (the clue is in the title) that what is up there is the same as down here.
But how similar is it, or could it be? And that is the underlying message that continues throughout this film.
It is a psychological question that requires a lot of pathos, and unfortunately this film has a lot of it.
Science-fiction theory is a wonderful genre in films and one that when it is done right can be really entertaining, when it’s done wrong it can be boring.
This year there has been several films that are now included in that canon, The Adjustment Bureau and Source Code being possibly the best and certainly most popular for 2011.
Another Earth is a great stab from debut director-screenwriter Mike Cahill who is joined by Marling on the penning credits.
But it is just too full of itself.
It is clear that Marling and Cahill are two very intelligent and well-read young people but Another Earth could easily have been cut in half.
There were far too many pretentious shots and long camera shots of characters gazing off into the sunset, fingers tapping on wood, quiet moments of reflection.
But if the editing was as strict as the overall craftsmanship then the running time would struggle to get past the hour.
Moments such as when a NASA scientist makes first contact and the subsequent confusion are nail-biting. Similarly a beautiful moment with a musical saw shows that Cahill has great strength.
But the concept of the film is something that would be better suited to a bigger budget – it is drowned by the ordinariness of the world that surrounds it.
Thursday 29 December 2011
Sunday 6 November 2011
You Only Live Thrice
In case you haven't heard the next James Bond film has a title – Skyfall.
It’s interesting to note that the announcement of a film title can become an event itself.
True, it’s been 50 years since James Bond first graced our screens and despite a couple of delays threatening to kill off Bond for good (a legal wrangle threatened the franchise between Timothy Dalton’s and Pierce Brosnan’s turns as the super spy; and the recent financial problems of MGM) he has been able to live not just twice, but three times.
So it was probably not much of a surprise that at the announcement of the film’s title at the West End’s Corinthia hotel Bond himself, Daniel Craig, was there sporting a beard while one on side was French actress Bérénice Marlohe as one Bond girl and British actress Naomie Harris as another.
Of course producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson were there too along with the fictional head of MI6, Dame Judi.
What really made this movie buff get excited were the appearances of Oscar-winning director (and fellow Reading boy) Sam Mendes at the top table as well as everyone’s favourite bad guy, Javier Bardem.
The news that thesps Ralph Feinnes and Albert Finney will be in the film too can only add to the impact.
Let’s be honest how many other Bond actors and actresses can you name beyond the main man? Christopher Lee, Grace Jones, Gert Frobe, Honor Blackman, Christopher Walken, Eva Green. There are plenty more (Teri Hatcher for instance, and film buffs will remember a youthful Benicio Del Toro in Licence To Kill) but it’s difficult to pin them down – yes, I’m sure you will be able to remember others I’ve temporarily forgotten, Famke Janssen, for example. But now we’ve got an ensemble cast and director that’s almost worthy of a Christopher Nolan film.
Have the Bond producers set themselves up for a fall? There’s so much weight on the screen, combined with the three year delay (although that’s hardly the producers’ fault) there will be a lot of expectation for delivery of the goods (there are rumours that Mendes wants this film to be less Bond and more Smiley).
Twenty-three films is no mean feat for a franchise although I can imagine many of today’s blockbuster film making a considerable run.
But now I wouldn’t be surprised if a press conference was called for future franchise instalments.
After Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight Rises he has said he will hang up his hat, but something tells me that if he comes back for a fourth, there will be a similar buzz about that one as there is for this.
And what of other franchises and other comic books? The Pirates of the Caribbean episodes, another Bourne movie, the list goes on.
Perhaps 007 can be more than just a series based around one character – it could have been the inspiration for all the movie blockbusters we have today.
And once again, perhaps that could be down to the success of Bond’s cinematic home, Pinewood Studios, and British technicians.
It’s interesting to note that the announcement of a film title can become an event itself.
True, it’s been 50 years since James Bond first graced our screens and despite a couple of delays threatening to kill off Bond for good (a legal wrangle threatened the franchise between Timothy Dalton’s and Pierce Brosnan’s turns as the super spy; and the recent financial problems of MGM) he has been able to live not just twice, but three times.
So it was probably not much of a surprise that at the announcement of the film’s title at the West End’s Corinthia hotel Bond himself, Daniel Craig, was there sporting a beard while one on side was French actress Bérénice Marlohe as one Bond girl and British actress Naomie Harris as another.
Of course producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson were there too along with the fictional head of MI6, Dame Judi.
What really made this movie buff get excited were the appearances of Oscar-winning director (and fellow Reading boy) Sam Mendes at the top table as well as everyone’s favourite bad guy, Javier Bardem.
The news that thesps Ralph Feinnes and Albert Finney will be in the film too can only add to the impact.
Let’s be honest how many other Bond actors and actresses can you name beyond the main man? Christopher Lee, Grace Jones, Gert Frobe, Honor Blackman, Christopher Walken, Eva Green. There are plenty more (Teri Hatcher for instance, and film buffs will remember a youthful Benicio Del Toro in Licence To Kill) but it’s difficult to pin them down – yes, I’m sure you will be able to remember others I’ve temporarily forgotten, Famke Janssen, for example. But now we’ve got an ensemble cast and director that’s almost worthy of a Christopher Nolan film.
Have the Bond producers set themselves up for a fall? There’s so much weight on the screen, combined with the three year delay (although that’s hardly the producers’ fault) there will be a lot of expectation for delivery of the goods (there are rumours that Mendes wants this film to be less Bond and more Smiley).
Twenty-three films is no mean feat for a franchise although I can imagine many of today’s blockbuster film making a considerable run.
But now I wouldn’t be surprised if a press conference was called for future franchise instalments.
After Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight Rises he has said he will hang up his hat, but something tells me that if he comes back for a fourth, there will be a similar buzz about that one as there is for this.
And what of other franchises and other comic books? The Pirates of the Caribbean episodes, another Bourne movie, the list goes on.
Perhaps 007 can be more than just a series based around one character – it could have been the inspiration for all the movie blockbusters we have today.
And once again, perhaps that could be down to the success of Bond’s cinematic home, Pinewood Studios, and British technicians.
Saturday 5 November 2011
Jack Goes Boating
Director: Philip Seymour Hoffman
Starring: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Ryan, Joe Ortiz, Daphne Rubin-Vega.
Jack Goes Boating is the directorial debut for acting wonder kid Philip Seymour Hoffman highlighting a role reversal that has become endemic in the world of cinema.
A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away – well, some considerable distance for mere mortals in Leicestershire – Hollywood was a social hierarchy.
Directors wanted to be in front of the cameras as well as behind; writers and cinematographers wanted to direct while the technicians who actually made the movie were just happy to be.
Then actors wanted to show they were more than just a pretty face. Luvvies like Richard Attenborough were the first get behind the camera and were swiftly followed on the other side of the Atlantic by Clint Eastwood, Robert Redford and then the likes of Sean Penn.
It was inevitable that a man known for playing Truman Capote, an actor who could easily be considered the best of his generation would want to direct.
He made difficult films like Happiness watchable; he stole Mission Impossible 3 from under Tom Cruise’s, his own star vehicle blockbuster. In short he can’t put a foot wrong.
And the same can be said with Jack Goes Boating when he’s in front of the camera. Every second on screen Hoffman is engaging and he performs his role as Jack, a socially awkward middle-aged limo driver in New York with aplomb.
He has all the tics and mannerisms you would expect of someone who is nervous around women, and when betraying thoughts and emotions, even down to a well-placed cough like a drying throat. Hoffman does everything you would expect him to and more.
A tenderness rarely seen in Hollywood actors shines through his performance especially when he confronts his phobia of being in water and his determination to cook a meal.
Co-star Amy Ryan also puts in a fine performance as Connie, a sales woman trying to turn her life around despite a lot of emotional baggage.
She is more than a match for Hoffman while Jack and Connie develop their relationship at a patient pace while they plan to go boating in the summer.
But perhaps Hoffman’s acting in front of the camera is distracting him from his first experience at helming.
The film plods along at just too slow a pace and while less can be more at times, in this case the more you get, the better it is.
Joe Ortiz as Clyde and Daphne Rubin-Vega are welcome additions to a film about real people with real issues but they are not utilised as much as they should be.
There’s a hidden issue about what happens the trials and tribulations and couples that is looked at, but never explored to its full potential.
For a first stab at directing, there are moments of brilliance.
In the moments leading up the film’s climatic scene the fast editing and hallucinatory sequences are awesome, and clearly an influence of his previous boss Paul Thomas Anderson. But more of that is needed.
Starring: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Ryan, Joe Ortiz, Daphne Rubin-Vega.
Jack Goes Boating is the directorial debut for acting wonder kid Philip Seymour Hoffman highlighting a role reversal that has become endemic in the world of cinema.
A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away – well, some considerable distance for mere mortals in Leicestershire – Hollywood was a social hierarchy.
Directors wanted to be in front of the cameras as well as behind; writers and cinematographers wanted to direct while the technicians who actually made the movie were just happy to be.
Then actors wanted to show they were more than just a pretty face. Luvvies like Richard Attenborough were the first get behind the camera and were swiftly followed on the other side of the Atlantic by Clint Eastwood, Robert Redford and then the likes of Sean Penn.
It was inevitable that a man known for playing Truman Capote, an actor who could easily be considered the best of his generation would want to direct.
He made difficult films like Happiness watchable; he stole Mission Impossible 3 from under Tom Cruise’s, his own star vehicle blockbuster. In short he can’t put a foot wrong.
And the same can be said with Jack Goes Boating when he’s in front of the camera. Every second on screen Hoffman is engaging and he performs his role as Jack, a socially awkward middle-aged limo driver in New York with aplomb.
He has all the tics and mannerisms you would expect of someone who is nervous around women, and when betraying thoughts and emotions, even down to a well-placed cough like a drying throat. Hoffman does everything you would expect him to and more.
A tenderness rarely seen in Hollywood actors shines through his performance especially when he confronts his phobia of being in water and his determination to cook a meal.
Co-star Amy Ryan also puts in a fine performance as Connie, a sales woman trying to turn her life around despite a lot of emotional baggage.
She is more than a match for Hoffman while Jack and Connie develop their relationship at a patient pace while they plan to go boating in the summer.
But perhaps Hoffman’s acting in front of the camera is distracting him from his first experience at helming.
The film plods along at just too slow a pace and while less can be more at times, in this case the more you get, the better it is.
Joe Ortiz as Clyde and Daphne Rubin-Vega are welcome additions to a film about real people with real issues but they are not utilised as much as they should be.
There’s a hidden issue about what happens the trials and tribulations and couples that is looked at, but never explored to its full potential.
For a first stab at directing, there are moments of brilliance.
In the moments leading up the film’s climatic scene the fast editing and hallucinatory sequences are awesome, and clearly an influence of his previous boss Paul Thomas Anderson. But more of that is needed.
Monday 31 October 2011
A New Horror - A New Hope?
HALLOWEEN is the time of year where, as everyone knows, you have to get out the horror collection.
But recently there have two new sub-genres that people can curl up in front of the tv with a tub of ice cream – torture porn and trolls.
The first of those is a category which I really don’t see the point because it really just likes to bathe in blood, and has no scary aspect about it.
The Saw franchise is similar in ways to that of the Final Destination saga – elaborate deaths portrayed as something clever but ultimately really predictable and boring. There is a morbid curiosity with all horror films, but while all the others inspire fear, torture porn just makes people go “oooh, that’s clever”. Well, no it isn’t.
At least the Final Destination was able to laugh at itself. You know that the characters won’t die as you first think they will and the humour is in how ridiculous the deaths become. The film makers can string out one death over the course of an entire film and it would be worthwhile, perhaps that’s where they’ll do next for their next film.
But the Saw and Hostel films are just plain boring without any thrills, just a fascination on blood and gore that really isn’t healthy. They just shock for shock’s sake while The Human Centipede is a one-trick pony that should be a ten minute short, at best.
But the second new sub-genre that I think has come about is trolls. Have we ever had a troll movie before? I don’t think we have. Recently I got to see Trollhunter for the first time. (Living in a “provincial city” means that we get most films a few weeks after everyone else.)
It’s a terrific film and one that really deserves to be shouted about and I hope that it will inspire other films of its type.
Yes, it lends itself to the Blair Witch Project and Paranormal Activity films, but at least this one spoofs those documentary films and becomes a great mockumentary.
The comedy and the horror are blended perfectly to create a fantastic film that is at the right length, and really shows up the flaws of those films I’ve mentioned.
At every step of the way you feel for the characters despite knowing little about them, and Otto Jespersen’s performance is spot on.
Like Shaun of the Dead, I think it could really open up a new type of film and one that will see film makers across the planet making their own type. Here’s hoping that there will be more leaders than imitators.
But recently there have two new sub-genres that people can curl up in front of the tv with a tub of ice cream – torture porn and trolls.
The first of those is a category which I really don’t see the point because it really just likes to bathe in blood, and has no scary aspect about it.
The Saw franchise is similar in ways to that of the Final Destination saga – elaborate deaths portrayed as something clever but ultimately really predictable and boring. There is a morbid curiosity with all horror films, but while all the others inspire fear, torture porn just makes people go “oooh, that’s clever”. Well, no it isn’t.
At least the Final Destination was able to laugh at itself. You know that the characters won’t die as you first think they will and the humour is in how ridiculous the deaths become. The film makers can string out one death over the course of an entire film and it would be worthwhile, perhaps that’s where they’ll do next for their next film.
But the Saw and Hostel films are just plain boring without any thrills, just a fascination on blood and gore that really isn’t healthy. They just shock for shock’s sake while The Human Centipede is a one-trick pony that should be a ten minute short, at best.
But the second new sub-genre that I think has come about is trolls. Have we ever had a troll movie before? I don’t think we have. Recently I got to see Trollhunter for the first time. (Living in a “provincial city” means that we get most films a few weeks after everyone else.)
It’s a terrific film and one that really deserves to be shouted about and I hope that it will inspire other films of its type.
Yes, it lends itself to the Blair Witch Project and Paranormal Activity films, but at least this one spoofs those documentary films and becomes a great mockumentary.
The comedy and the horror are blended perfectly to create a fantastic film that is at the right length, and really shows up the flaws of those films I’ve mentioned.
At every step of the way you feel for the characters despite knowing little about them, and Otto Jespersen’s performance is spot on.
Like Shaun of the Dead, I think it could really open up a new type of film and one that will see film makers across the planet making their own type. Here’s hoping that there will be more leaders than imitators.
Sunday 30 October 2011
Frightarama
Watching a horror film is a staple part of the Halloween tradition. The difficulty always comes down to which one to watch. So, on October 29, Leicester’s Phoenix Square cinema had a horror movie marathon, and to make life a little easier, they put on three films – two classics and a new film that is a worthy addition to the genre.
The Shining – Here’s Johnny!
From the opening shot, this film oozes fear. Opening with Wendy Carlos’s haunting bass resonating throughout the film, it lingers long in the mind, forever connected with Jack Nicholson’s grimace and helicopter views over the Rockies. The terror was just as palpable as when I first saw it many moons ago. Some people find children in horror films psychologically disturbing, and those two girls in their blue dresses contribute to the terror. It’s not something I get because personally I find the blood flooding out of the lifts one of the most horrific moments in cinema history. Others meanwhile find Jack Nicholson’s performance as Jack Torrance the most traumatising aspect of The Shining. The moment Wendy (Shelley Duvall) finds those meaningless scribbles from the typewriter is when we start to cower behind our hands. And of course when he starts running around with the axe, that’s when we get really scared. A great start to the triple bill.
Trollhunter – “they can smell the blood of a Christian”
Zombies, aliens and monsters, ghosts and poltergeists, deranged killers, demons – surely it’s only trolls that haven’t been covered in their entirety in cinema? This must be a sub-genre defining film if ever there was one. After the terror of The Shining, comedy horror came with Trollhunter. So trolls can smell Christians, but can they smell the blood of Muslims? “I honestly don’t know” is troll hunter Hans’s response. The moment our band of heroes are in the trolls’ lair provokes the two great emotions of fear and humour in one go. Who would have thought a fart would be so funny and terrifying at once! Its reception in its home country of Norway has been mixed but over here it looks like it will be every bit of a success story.
For my full review click here: http://filmbuff-moviebuff.blogspot.com/2011/10/trollhunter.html
By this time, because the air conditioning had broken down the heat in screen two was getting too much, despite both films being set in really cold places. There was great relief to find we were being re-housed into the other screen to watch our final instalment ...
The Exorcist - It’s only a movie, it’s only a movie, it’s only a movie...
At the climax of William Friedkin’s classic, you could hear a pin drop in the theatre. Shown on 35mm film, it was cinema gold, it looked like a hand-made movie, like picking up a hand-made leather-bound book. Those precious moments when the devil takes over Regan are great fun and a wonder of technical proficiency. But it’s those little moments that add to make the whole - the very brief frames of the devil pale and gaunt; the devil reminding Father Karras if he could spare some change for “a poor old altar boy, father”; reminders about what he did to his mother by leaving her in the home. By the time Max Von Sydow re-enters from stage left, it was full throttle for the final battle of good versus evil.
The Shining – Here’s Johnny!
From the opening shot, this film oozes fear. Opening with Wendy Carlos’s haunting bass resonating throughout the film, it lingers long in the mind, forever connected with Jack Nicholson’s grimace and helicopter views over the Rockies. The terror was just as palpable as when I first saw it many moons ago. Some people find children in horror films psychologically disturbing, and those two girls in their blue dresses contribute to the terror. It’s not something I get because personally I find the blood flooding out of the lifts one of the most horrific moments in cinema history. Others meanwhile find Jack Nicholson’s performance as Jack Torrance the most traumatising aspect of The Shining. The moment Wendy (Shelley Duvall) finds those meaningless scribbles from the typewriter is when we start to cower behind our hands. And of course when he starts running around with the axe, that’s when we get really scared. A great start to the triple bill.
Trollhunter – “they can smell the blood of a Christian”
Zombies, aliens and monsters, ghosts and poltergeists, deranged killers, demons – surely it’s only trolls that haven’t been covered in their entirety in cinema? This must be a sub-genre defining film if ever there was one. After the terror of The Shining, comedy horror came with Trollhunter. So trolls can smell Christians, but can they smell the blood of Muslims? “I honestly don’t know” is troll hunter Hans’s response. The moment our band of heroes are in the trolls’ lair provokes the two great emotions of fear and humour in one go. Who would have thought a fart would be so funny and terrifying at once! Its reception in its home country of Norway has been mixed but over here it looks like it will be every bit of a success story.
For my full review click here: http://filmbuff-moviebuff.blogspot.com/2011/10/trollhunter.html
By this time, because the air conditioning had broken down the heat in screen two was getting too much, despite both films being set in really cold places. There was great relief to find we were being re-housed into the other screen to watch our final instalment ...
The Exorcist - It’s only a movie, it’s only a movie, it’s only a movie...
At the climax of William Friedkin’s classic, you could hear a pin drop in the theatre. Shown on 35mm film, it was cinema gold, it looked like a hand-made movie, like picking up a hand-made leather-bound book. Those precious moments when the devil takes over Regan are great fun and a wonder of technical proficiency. But it’s those little moments that add to make the whole - the very brief frames of the devil pale and gaunt; the devil reminding Father Karras if he could spare some change for “a poor old altar boy, father”; reminders about what he did to his mother by leaving her in the home. By the time Max Von Sydow re-enters from stage left, it was full throttle for the final battle of good versus evil.
Trollhunter
Director: André Øvredal
Starring: Otto Jespersen; Glenn Erland Tosterud; Johanna Mørck; Tomas Alf Larsen.
EVERY once in a while a genre defining film comes along – and Trollhunter is exactly that.
It is very difficult these days to come up with something new or refreshing but writer/director André Øvredal has done just that.
Recently there has been a truckload of zombie films, Jason Bourne imitators and other spy films.
But a film about trolls? That is something new. A fairy tale monster which rarely comes up on the horror radar is a sight to behold.
Trollhunter begins with three media students finding out about shootings of bears in Norway. Hungry for an assignment, they stalk a man they believe to be a bear poacher.
But when they follow him into the woods, they find that he is a hunter of an altogether different kind of beast.
From the start it turns out that the troll hunter or trolljegeren, Hans (Otto Jespersen who plays along with comic precision that would make Leslie Nielsen proud) has some very odd personality traits.
One of his first questions he asks is whether one of our trio is a Christian, because trolls can smell the blood of God-fearing men. Later, the question of whether trolls can smell the blood of Muslims arises, to which Hans’s answer is “I don’t honestly know”.
Then they have to rub themselves, including their nether parts, in troll scent. And because he can’t sleep during the night time, Hans sleeps on a sun bed. Clearly not very health conscious.
Trailing not far behind is the incompetent yet ruthless Troll Security Service who ship in dead bears from Croatia to make people believe that poachers are responsible for the deaths of cattle.
And throughout there is a light-hearted look at the situation. Everyone is asking themselves: “I mean, trolls. Really?!?!”
But despite a limited budget they’re illustrated with exquisite CGI and inspire real fear. Even when they fart.
A problem in horror movies is when to reveal the monster. If it is too early then it becomes ridiculous and the subject of humour.
Thankfully there are many different breeds of beast and beyond that each time is like the arrival of the T Rex in Jurassic Park - you know what’s going to come and it makes you want to change your pants.
The only thing that kills the trolls is intense UV light, so the nocturnal aspect creeps through with everything that made you scared of trolls when you were a kid, afraid that the troll would come out from under your bed.
What might put people off is that it is yet another one of those ”found footage” faux documentaries but in this film it is almost a spoof of that type of film.
But at the same time, the frenetic use of the hand-held camera adds to the fear of the unknown.
With a great Nordic monster, this film will add another layer to the horror genre. Hitherto unvisited, one wonders why it hasn’t done so before.
Starring: Otto Jespersen; Glenn Erland Tosterud; Johanna Mørck; Tomas Alf Larsen.
EVERY once in a while a genre defining film comes along – and Trollhunter is exactly that.
It is very difficult these days to come up with something new or refreshing but writer/director André Øvredal has done just that.
Recently there has been a truckload of zombie films, Jason Bourne imitators and other spy films.
But a film about trolls? That is something new. A fairy tale monster which rarely comes up on the horror radar is a sight to behold.
Trollhunter begins with three media students finding out about shootings of bears in Norway. Hungry for an assignment, they stalk a man they believe to be a bear poacher.
But when they follow him into the woods, they find that he is a hunter of an altogether different kind of beast.
From the start it turns out that the troll hunter or trolljegeren, Hans (Otto Jespersen who plays along with comic precision that would make Leslie Nielsen proud) has some very odd personality traits.
One of his first questions he asks is whether one of our trio is a Christian, because trolls can smell the blood of God-fearing men. Later, the question of whether trolls can smell the blood of Muslims arises, to which Hans’s answer is “I don’t honestly know”.
Then they have to rub themselves, including their nether parts, in troll scent. And because he can’t sleep during the night time, Hans sleeps on a sun bed. Clearly not very health conscious.
Trailing not far behind is the incompetent yet ruthless Troll Security Service who ship in dead bears from Croatia to make people believe that poachers are responsible for the deaths of cattle.
And throughout there is a light-hearted look at the situation. Everyone is asking themselves: “I mean, trolls. Really?!?!”
But despite a limited budget they’re illustrated with exquisite CGI and inspire real fear. Even when they fart.
A problem in horror movies is when to reveal the monster. If it is too early then it becomes ridiculous and the subject of humour.
Thankfully there are many different breeds of beast and beyond that each time is like the arrival of the T Rex in Jurassic Park - you know what’s going to come and it makes you want to change your pants.
The only thing that kills the trolls is intense UV light, so the nocturnal aspect creeps through with everything that made you scared of trolls when you were a kid, afraid that the troll would come out from under your bed.
What might put people off is that it is yet another one of those ”found footage” faux documentaries but in this film it is almost a spoof of that type of film.
But at the same time, the frenetic use of the hand-held camera adds to the fear of the unknown.
With a great Nordic monster, this film will add another layer to the horror genre. Hitherto unvisited, one wonders why it hasn’t done so before.
Saturday 22 October 2011
We Need To Talk About Kevin
Director: Lynne Ramsay
Starring: Tilda Swinton; John C Reilly; Ezra Miller.
Lynne Ramsay shot to fame with her last film (back in 2002) Morvern Callar, a gem of a Brit flick which should have made a bigger splash.
The Glaswegian director then tried to adapt The Lovely Bones for the big screen but in the end the baton was passed to Peter Jackson and Ramsay picked up Lionel Shriver's We Need To Talk About Kevin.
Clearly a difficult book to adapt Ramsay has made an extraordinary job getting this onto film, but it’s a movie that really demands your attention.
It opens with a long shot of a net curtain blowing in the breeze, while the sounds of crickets or either a fan play over the top. It’s a moment of distortion where the confusion continues for several minutes.
The next moment, a crowd of hundreds is bathing in the blood-coloured flakes and juice of the Spanish tomato festival with Eva, played by Tilda Swinton, gloriously throwing herself into the action.
Next, we discover that her house has had blood red paint thrown over it, while the sounds of the festival slowly dissipate.
It’s an arresting start, but incredibly infuriating too as it takes time for the jigsaw pieces to fall into place while the timeline flickers back and forth.
But get past the first 20 minutes and the tension and atmosphere will slowly start to simmer to the boil.
The crisscrossing timeline soon becomes a tour-de-force with heavy symbolism, red-filled complex shots and editing, while Swinton could not have been better cast for the role.
Never a fan of Swinton, I have previously found her cold and at times aloof and have never warmed to her, it seems this role was made for her.
And her battle with devil child, Kevin, (the perfectly evil Ezra Miller) illustrates how difficult motherhood has been for her with this Damien-like offspring.
But her husband Franklin (John C Reilly) finds it hard to understand why she finds him such a mean-spirited child.
There are few clues to why Eva is such a terrible mother but it is clear that Eva would rather be travelling round the world or living in glamorous surroundings rather than raising a family.
But it appears the Kevin is really a horrible child with a bullying streak who really needs taking down a peg or two.
As the film progresses the tension towards the horrific finale grows and grows, answering many questions asked along the way.
But not all of them. The audience is left wondering why Eva is so reviled by the public. Her son has committed an awful atrocity, but she’s lost her family too, so why is she being vilified?
Fans of the book will no doubt be disappointed.
Thankfully this is a film which will see Ramsay get the plaudits and attention she deserves and Miller and Swinton put in performances which hold it all together.
Starring: Tilda Swinton; John C Reilly; Ezra Miller.
Lynne Ramsay shot to fame with her last film (back in 2002) Morvern Callar, a gem of a Brit flick which should have made a bigger splash.
The Glaswegian director then tried to adapt The Lovely Bones for the big screen but in the end the baton was passed to Peter Jackson and Ramsay picked up Lionel Shriver's We Need To Talk About Kevin.
Clearly a difficult book to adapt Ramsay has made an extraordinary job getting this onto film, but it’s a movie that really demands your attention.
It opens with a long shot of a net curtain blowing in the breeze, while the sounds of crickets or either a fan play over the top. It’s a moment of distortion where the confusion continues for several minutes.
The next moment, a crowd of hundreds is bathing in the blood-coloured flakes and juice of the Spanish tomato festival with Eva, played by Tilda Swinton, gloriously throwing herself into the action.
Next, we discover that her house has had blood red paint thrown over it, while the sounds of the festival slowly dissipate.
It’s an arresting start, but incredibly infuriating too as it takes time for the jigsaw pieces to fall into place while the timeline flickers back and forth.
But get past the first 20 minutes and the tension and atmosphere will slowly start to simmer to the boil.
The crisscrossing timeline soon becomes a tour-de-force with heavy symbolism, red-filled complex shots and editing, while Swinton could not have been better cast for the role.
Never a fan of Swinton, I have previously found her cold and at times aloof and have never warmed to her, it seems this role was made for her.
And her battle with devil child, Kevin, (the perfectly evil Ezra Miller) illustrates how difficult motherhood has been for her with this Damien-like offspring.
But her husband Franklin (John C Reilly) finds it hard to understand why she finds him such a mean-spirited child.
There are few clues to why Eva is such a terrible mother but it is clear that Eva would rather be travelling round the world or living in glamorous surroundings rather than raising a family.
But it appears the Kevin is really a horrible child with a bullying streak who really needs taking down a peg or two.
As the film progresses the tension towards the horrific finale grows and grows, answering many questions asked along the way.
But not all of them. The audience is left wondering why Eva is so reviled by the public. Her son has committed an awful atrocity, but she’s lost her family too, so why is she being vilified?
Fans of the book will no doubt be disappointed.
Thankfully this is a film which will see Ramsay get the plaudits and attention she deserves and Miller and Swinton put in performances which hold it all together.
Saturday 15 October 2011
Tyrannosaur
Director: Paddy Considine
Starring: Peter Mullan, Olivia Colman, Eddie Marsan
Fresh from the Shane Meadows school of film, Paddy Considine has put forward one of the bleakest films of the year in Tyrannosaur.
His directorial debut pulls no punches with horrible scenes of domestic abuse and unexplained violence.
The film opens with Peter Mullan’s Joseph softly tapping a baseball bat against his head in an unknown Northern English town. It is a scene which tells us that we’re in for a rough ride. Mind you, if you’d seen the trailer for the film, you knew what to expect.
Joseph is as rough as his appearance, and is easily prone to violence which one wonders whether it is due to a psychological imbalance or from previous experiences.
Whether it is attacking pet dogs or neighbours, he knows he is going down the wrong path and wants to stop.
After a violent encounter in a pub, he takes refuge in a charity shop run by Olivia Colman’s Hannah, a good-natured woman putting up with life’s lot.
From the moment of their encounter, Hannah has a calming influence over Joseph, who relies on her Christian faith to keep her going through a difficult marriage that has brought forth no children.
She also believes others can benefit from God’s love.
But Joe throws her goodwill back in her face and insults her, yet she runs back to this vicious monster, mainly because her abusive husband (played by Eddie Marsan) inflicts black eyes - and worse injuries - on her. In place of him she finds solace and warmth in Joe.
The domestic violence leaves a nasty, bitter taste in the mouth and a cold, uncomfortable feeling over the rest of the body. This is not a film for a first date, or indeed any relationship anniversary.
Mullan’s gruff performance perfectly captures the tortured monster that is Joseph, but the plaudits should be going to comedy actress Colman, who is the ying to his yang.
Her performance is far removed from Sophie in Peep Show, and the ditzy Harriet in Green Wing.
Colman and Mullan waltz perfectly through the film, playing off each other magnificently, but it is Colman’s performance that is the stronger by being less confrontational.
But Tyrannosaur’s not a film that engages throughout and that is somewhere Considine needs to work on. It is still an impressive debut but it is too close to Meadows that it could almost be one of his mentor’s own.
The credits rolled with a sense of relief that the horror was over but left far too many unanswered questions and plot holes than I would have liked.
A bleak and empty feeling is left which needs replacing with a bottle of gin ... or perhaps a good comedy, depending on the tipple of your choice.
Before going into this film I was given the choice of reviewing this film or The Lion King: 3D. Somehow I fear I made the wrong choice for my Friday night viewing.
Starring: Peter Mullan, Olivia Colman, Eddie Marsan
Fresh from the Shane Meadows school of film, Paddy Considine has put forward one of the bleakest films of the year in Tyrannosaur.
His directorial debut pulls no punches with horrible scenes of domestic abuse and unexplained violence.
The film opens with Peter Mullan’s Joseph softly tapping a baseball bat against his head in an unknown Northern English town. It is a scene which tells us that we’re in for a rough ride. Mind you, if you’d seen the trailer for the film, you knew what to expect.
Joseph is as rough as his appearance, and is easily prone to violence which one wonders whether it is due to a psychological imbalance or from previous experiences.
Whether it is attacking pet dogs or neighbours, he knows he is going down the wrong path and wants to stop.
After a violent encounter in a pub, he takes refuge in a charity shop run by Olivia Colman’s Hannah, a good-natured woman putting up with life’s lot.
From the moment of their encounter, Hannah has a calming influence over Joseph, who relies on her Christian faith to keep her going through a difficult marriage that has brought forth no children.
She also believes others can benefit from God’s love.
But Joe throws her goodwill back in her face and insults her, yet she runs back to this vicious monster, mainly because her abusive husband (played by Eddie Marsan) inflicts black eyes - and worse injuries - on her. In place of him she finds solace and warmth in Joe.
The domestic violence leaves a nasty, bitter taste in the mouth and a cold, uncomfortable feeling over the rest of the body. This is not a film for a first date, or indeed any relationship anniversary.
Mullan’s gruff performance perfectly captures the tortured monster that is Joseph, but the plaudits should be going to comedy actress Colman, who is the ying to his yang.
Her performance is far removed from Sophie in Peep Show, and the ditzy Harriet in Green Wing.
Colman and Mullan waltz perfectly through the film, playing off each other magnificently, but it is Colman’s performance that is the stronger by being less confrontational.
But Tyrannosaur’s not a film that engages throughout and that is somewhere Considine needs to work on. It is still an impressive debut but it is too close to Meadows that it could almost be one of his mentor’s own.
The credits rolled with a sense of relief that the horror was over but left far too many unanswered questions and plot holes than I would have liked.
A bleak and empty feeling is left which needs replacing with a bottle of gin ... or perhaps a good comedy, depending on the tipple of your choice.
Before going into this film I was given the choice of reviewing this film or The Lion King: 3D. Somehow I fear I made the wrong choice for my Friday night viewing.
Saturday 1 October 2011
Drive
Director: Nicolas Winding Refn
Starring: Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan
EVERYONE knows the proverb – actions speak louder than words and Ryan Gosling’s acting follows that maxim to the letter.
If you haven’t heard of Ryan Gosling by now, then you must have been in the back of beyond; if you haven’t heard of him after Drive then you must be on a different planet.
He puts in a career-defining performance in Nicolas Winding Refn’s latest thriller as stunt driver forced to commit grisly killings in order to protect Irene (Carey Muligan), the woman he loves and her little boy.
The tension is tight and rarely lets up even until the final shot cuts to black.
With little happening on screen throughout the film, the camera pulls you into the film like the opening minutes of Sergio Leone’s Once Upon A Time In The West.
Opening with a taut heist, he sits and waits for the robbers to return to the getaway vehicle he’s driving, before he drives away in a slick, intelligent escape.
And then when it’s time to release the brakes, control is maintained throughout with one of the greatest car chases in a long while, and certainly the cleverest.
The electro-pop soundtrack adds another texture to the film making sure it doesn’t skip a beat.
And even if wasn’t there, Mulligan and Gosling are great when they’re on screen together, complementing each other’s moves.
But as the central protagonist, Gosiling is the one that shines. Despite having few lines, every time he’s on the screen he makes the film light up. It’s as if Gosling knows he doesn’t even have to try hard, he is effortlessly cool.
Despite the cold exterior he exudes there’s a lot of empathy for him, even after the horribly acts – and the violence is considerably graphic – that the audience will rout for him every step of the way.
From the start we can read him like a book, but it never once gets boring finding out more about him – and Refn allows every part of his character to be explored.
Refn has done another terrific job of allowing the actors to flex their muscles.
As with Bronson, his biopic of Britain’s most notorious criminal, he is not afraid to let the actors pull the audience in, and at the same time push them further with his twisting plots.
And every shot of LA looks as beautiful as it did in Heat.
One big disappointment is that we don’t get to see enough of Mulligan, who is far better than her colleagues in their supporting roles.
A terrifically tight film, this is the film that will launch Ryan Gosling into the stratosphere.
Starring: Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan
EVERYONE knows the proverb – actions speak louder than words and Ryan Gosling’s acting follows that maxim to the letter.
If you haven’t heard of Ryan Gosling by now, then you must have been in the back of beyond; if you haven’t heard of him after Drive then you must be on a different planet.
He puts in a career-defining performance in Nicolas Winding Refn’s latest thriller as stunt driver forced to commit grisly killings in order to protect Irene (Carey Muligan), the woman he loves and her little boy.
The tension is tight and rarely lets up even until the final shot cuts to black.
With little happening on screen throughout the film, the camera pulls you into the film like the opening minutes of Sergio Leone’s Once Upon A Time In The West.
Opening with a taut heist, he sits and waits for the robbers to return to the getaway vehicle he’s driving, before he drives away in a slick, intelligent escape.
And then when it’s time to release the brakes, control is maintained throughout with one of the greatest car chases in a long while, and certainly the cleverest.
The electro-pop soundtrack adds another texture to the film making sure it doesn’t skip a beat.
And even if wasn’t there, Mulligan and Gosling are great when they’re on screen together, complementing each other’s moves.
But as the central protagonist, Gosiling is the one that shines. Despite having few lines, every time he’s on the screen he makes the film light up. It’s as if Gosling knows he doesn’t even have to try hard, he is effortlessly cool.
Despite the cold exterior he exudes there’s a lot of empathy for him, even after the horribly acts – and the violence is considerably graphic – that the audience will rout for him every step of the way.
From the start we can read him like a book, but it never once gets boring finding out more about him – and Refn allows every part of his character to be explored.
Refn has done another terrific job of allowing the actors to flex their muscles.
As with Bronson, his biopic of Britain’s most notorious criminal, he is not afraid to let the actors pull the audience in, and at the same time push them further with his twisting plots.
And every shot of LA looks as beautiful as it did in Heat.
One big disappointment is that we don’t get to see enough of Mulligan, who is far better than her colleagues in their supporting roles.
A terrifically tight film, this is the film that will launch Ryan Gosling into the stratosphere.
Friday 23 September 2011
Kill List
Director: Ben Wheatley
Starring: Neil Maskell, MyAnna Buring and Harry Simpson
VIOLENCE, unease and shock are the main ingredients in Kill List - a film which simmers until boiling point.
Opening with scenes of suburban couple Jay (Neil Maskell) and his Swedish wife, Shel (MyAnna Buring) having a shouting match over the state of their finances.
It has been eight months since Jay’s last job, in Kiev, where it transpires over the course the film, that something went wrong.
It doesn’t take long for Jay’s Irish mate Gal (Michael Smiley) to say the next job is worth good money and the weak-willed Jay accepts it, after a little pressure from Shel.
But naturally things don’t go as planned.
The violence is unrelenting and as strong as the language which sets the tone throughout and there is a menace to the film.
Throughout, there is a mystery as to who is the real monster.
Is it the hitmen, who we should hate, but find charming? Perhaps the client, who performs bizarre rituals to sign up contracts? Are the targets the real monsters?
Throughout there is a question of history, where do people come from, what's their background, and ultimately where are they going?
Any pervading sense of dread, or fear of what may be round the corner has long left the frame after the second assassination with questions as to who is causing the horror fly across the screen.
Technically, the violence is supreme – it is a wonder how something so graphic can be in such unflinching detail on the screen – but it will leave a nasty taste in the mouth.
As Jay and Gal continue on their path of destruction that bitter taste gets stronger and stronger until it is too hard for some to stomach.
But here's the rub, when the finale is revealed, the shock of the earlier violence makes it hard to find it find the third act scary.
The desensitisation of the horrific scenes in the previous two acts almost ruin the final one, for this reviewer at least.
Nevertheless, it is a true British horror film up there with the best this country has to offer.
Controlled throughout, the film keeps pace and doesn't let go at any point until the last moment when panic sets in.
Starring: Neil Maskell, MyAnna Buring and Harry Simpson
VIOLENCE, unease and shock are the main ingredients in Kill List - a film which simmers until boiling point.
Opening with scenes of suburban couple Jay (Neil Maskell) and his Swedish wife, Shel (MyAnna Buring) having a shouting match over the state of their finances.
It has been eight months since Jay’s last job, in Kiev, where it transpires over the course the film, that something went wrong.
It doesn’t take long for Jay’s Irish mate Gal (Michael Smiley) to say the next job is worth good money and the weak-willed Jay accepts it, after a little pressure from Shel.
But naturally things don’t go as planned.
The violence is unrelenting and as strong as the language which sets the tone throughout and there is a menace to the film.
Throughout, there is a mystery as to who is the real monster.
Is it the hitmen, who we should hate, but find charming? Perhaps the client, who performs bizarre rituals to sign up contracts? Are the targets the real monsters?
Throughout there is a question of history, where do people come from, what's their background, and ultimately where are they going?
Any pervading sense of dread, or fear of what may be round the corner has long left the frame after the second assassination with questions as to who is causing the horror fly across the screen.
Technically, the violence is supreme – it is a wonder how something so graphic can be in such unflinching detail on the screen – but it will leave a nasty taste in the mouth.
As Jay and Gal continue on their path of destruction that bitter taste gets stronger and stronger until it is too hard for some to stomach.
But here's the rub, when the finale is revealed, the shock of the earlier violence makes it hard to find it find the third act scary.
The desensitisation of the horrific scenes in the previous two acts almost ruin the final one, for this reviewer at least.
Nevertheless, it is a true British horror film up there with the best this country has to offer.
Controlled throughout, the film keeps pace and doesn't let go at any point until the last moment when panic sets in.
Sunday 4 September 2011
Retro Active Movie Marathon
Leicester's Phoenix Square cinema held a Retro Active day where they would play six films and have video games and arcade machines for people to enjoy. Having never heard of Golden Axe (for which I will have to spend eternity listening to the Tetris theme tune) I was there to take in the movies. Here is my roundup of the marathon.
If you were born in the eighties (and late seventies), then Phoenix Square had love for you at Retro Active.
There was 636 minutes of pure, unadulterated joy on screen or you could spend hours playing to your heart’s content on dozens of arcades and video games.
For the films there was the fun and adventure of The Goonies, the magic of Labyrinth and David Bowie’s music, and the laughs and thrills of Ghostbuters.
The second half of the day saw more comic horror with The Lost Boys followed by Robocop shooting up everything in his path, and then those who could stay to the last watch Kurt Russell bite off more than he could chew in Big Trouble in Little China.
It was a day requiring more strength than Robocop’s hardware and more stamina than Chunk after an orgy of Red Bull and candy bars.
The Goonies - Goonies Never Say Die!
It was madcap adventure all the way as everyone remembered the joy of imagining discovering a treasure map and the possibility of a Treasure Island scenario when they were a kid – and The Goonies delivers that to the screen.
And you and your friends wanted to be those characters: the bravado Brand; the funky Chunk; the streetwise Mouth; Data’s awesome gadgets; Stef the chilled-out girl; and Andy, the one who gets her guy; and of course, there was the determination and leadership of Mikey, and you repeat that line: “Goonies never say die!”
Smiles were beaming on faces as everyone remembered how much fun they had when they saw it the first time.
One down, five more to go. Time for a light snack and to get those beers in.
Labyrinth – and what the hell is David Bowie wearing?
Jim Henson’s imagination goes full throttle in this one, but unlike the more austere The Dark Crystal or the family-friendly The Muppets, Labyrinth had that forbidding quality like you parents wouldn’t approve of you watching it.
And it was almost a sing-a-long when Bowie started singing Magic Dance reminding us of the babe. What babe? The babe with the power ... Yeah that one.
It might have been because there was something slightly sinister and creepy about the film, possibly because the muppets seemed so real, those red creatures with the heads coming off (to be honest, I nearly fell asleep at that point).
Watching it now, the fear seems to be based around Bowie’s wardrobe. With those tight trousers, little is left to the imagination. And why he is wearing a cape full of feathers? Major Tom needs to get it sorted out very quickly.
The Ghostbusters – Who You Gonna Call?
Venkman, Stantz, Spengler and Zeddmore. The screen lights up and the theme tune begins. After losing pace a little with Labyrinth, everything was back on course with the awesome foursome from NY.
From the opening scene in the library to the climactic scene on top of the apartment block, everyone burst back into life for Ghostbusters.
It was like a breeze and, considering it won the vote for the screening at the festival, many faces betrayed feelings of pure joy as they came out of the theatre.
Halfway through and still going strong. Time for another snack.
The Lost Boys – Thou Shalt Not Fall.
After the high of Ghostbusters it was going to be difficult to keep the pace going, but The Lost Boys did a fine job, rewarding those who were licking their fangs – sorry, lips – for more.
Another one of those forbidding films your parents might not approved of you watching round at your mates place and like Ghostbusters it’s full of great scenes, peppered with fantastic lines.
Kids would have been scared by the horror but thrilled by the violence. Adults were left wondering why Corey Feldman was going through puberty at nine, and if it really is possible to suffer death by stereo?
Apparently it is.
Robocop – Dead or Alive You’re Coming With Me.
For some there were worries that there was going to be death by cinema as we went into the penultimate feature.
Joel Schumacher’s contribution to the childhood of the eighties might have been a bit too adult for some, but despite its graphic violence Robocop was still watched by those too young to care.
Paul Verhoeven cranks everything up to eleven, and you know that anyone who gets shot in the film (usually riddled with bullets) is going to need a priest rather than a paramedic.
Despite Peter Weller’s memorable lines it was either fatigue was taking over or the film wasn’t as great as your childhood made you remember.
For some people it was game over at the end of this one.
Big Trouble In Little China – “I'm a reasonable guy. But, I've just experienced some very unreasonable things.”
After nearly twelve hours of butt-numbing cinema, it was going to need something spectacular to keep the stragglers going to the end – and those who stayed were rewarded in spades.
John Carpenter is bang on the money in this action comedy, and Kurt Russell doesn’t produce any bum notes neither as he uncovers ancient magic in downtown San Francisco and takes on Lo Pan and his army and helps his friend get his girl while Jack Warner gets Kim Cattrall.
Is everyone having fun? Hell yes. Does everyone want to be Kurt Russell in this film? Hell yes. Does everyone love the lines? Hell yes. Does anyone have a clue of what’s going on here? Hell no.
Why are there two Lo Pans? And what the heck is that giant orange monster? Who cares?
Game Over
After more than twelve hours of viewing time, the end of the final film brought huge sighs of relief to all who left with square eyes and a feeling that it really was time to get away from the screen and go to bed. Now!
If you were born in the eighties (and late seventies), then Phoenix Square had love for you at Retro Active.
There was 636 minutes of pure, unadulterated joy on screen or you could spend hours playing to your heart’s content on dozens of arcades and video games.
For the films there was the fun and adventure of The Goonies, the magic of Labyrinth and David Bowie’s music, and the laughs and thrills of Ghostbuters.
The second half of the day saw more comic horror with The Lost Boys followed by Robocop shooting up everything in his path, and then those who could stay to the last watch Kurt Russell bite off more than he could chew in Big Trouble in Little China.
It was a day requiring more strength than Robocop’s hardware and more stamina than Chunk after an orgy of Red Bull and candy bars.
The Goonies - Goonies Never Say Die!
It was madcap adventure all the way as everyone remembered the joy of imagining discovering a treasure map and the possibility of a Treasure Island scenario when they were a kid – and The Goonies delivers that to the screen.
And you and your friends wanted to be those characters: the bravado Brand; the funky Chunk; the streetwise Mouth; Data’s awesome gadgets; Stef the chilled-out girl; and Andy, the one who gets her guy; and of course, there was the determination and leadership of Mikey, and you repeat that line: “Goonies never say die!”
Smiles were beaming on faces as everyone remembered how much fun they had when they saw it the first time.
One down, five more to go. Time for a light snack and to get those beers in.
Labyrinth – and what the hell is David Bowie wearing?
Jim Henson’s imagination goes full throttle in this one, but unlike the more austere The Dark Crystal or the family-friendly The Muppets, Labyrinth had that forbidding quality like you parents wouldn’t approve of you watching it.
And it was almost a sing-a-long when Bowie started singing Magic Dance reminding us of the babe. What babe? The babe with the power ... Yeah that one.
It might have been because there was something slightly sinister and creepy about the film, possibly because the muppets seemed so real, those red creatures with the heads coming off (to be honest, I nearly fell asleep at that point).
Watching it now, the fear seems to be based around Bowie’s wardrobe. With those tight trousers, little is left to the imagination. And why he is wearing a cape full of feathers? Major Tom needs to get it sorted out very quickly.
The Ghostbusters – Who You Gonna Call?
Venkman, Stantz, Spengler and Zeddmore. The screen lights up and the theme tune begins. After losing pace a little with Labyrinth, everything was back on course with the awesome foursome from NY.
From the opening scene in the library to the climactic scene on top of the apartment block, everyone burst back into life for Ghostbusters.
It was like a breeze and, considering it won the vote for the screening at the festival, many faces betrayed feelings of pure joy as they came out of the theatre.
Halfway through and still going strong. Time for another snack.
The Lost Boys – Thou Shalt Not Fall.
After the high of Ghostbusters it was going to be difficult to keep the pace going, but The Lost Boys did a fine job, rewarding those who were licking their fangs – sorry, lips – for more.
Another one of those forbidding films your parents might not approved of you watching round at your mates place and like Ghostbusters it’s full of great scenes, peppered with fantastic lines.
Kids would have been scared by the horror but thrilled by the violence. Adults were left wondering why Corey Feldman was going through puberty at nine, and if it really is possible to suffer death by stereo?
Apparently it is.
Robocop – Dead or Alive You’re Coming With Me.
For some there were worries that there was going to be death by cinema as we went into the penultimate feature.
Joel Schumacher’s contribution to the childhood of the eighties might have been a bit too adult for some, but despite its graphic violence Robocop was still watched by those too young to care.
Paul Verhoeven cranks everything up to eleven, and you know that anyone who gets shot in the film (usually riddled with bullets) is going to need a priest rather than a paramedic.
Despite Peter Weller’s memorable lines it was either fatigue was taking over or the film wasn’t as great as your childhood made you remember.
For some people it was game over at the end of this one.
Big Trouble In Little China – “I'm a reasonable guy. But, I've just experienced some very unreasonable things.”
After nearly twelve hours of butt-numbing cinema, it was going to need something spectacular to keep the stragglers going to the end – and those who stayed were rewarded in spades.
John Carpenter is bang on the money in this action comedy, and Kurt Russell doesn’t produce any bum notes neither as he uncovers ancient magic in downtown San Francisco and takes on Lo Pan and his army and helps his friend get his girl while Jack Warner gets Kim Cattrall.
Is everyone having fun? Hell yes. Does everyone want to be Kurt Russell in this film? Hell yes. Does everyone love the lines? Hell yes. Does anyone have a clue of what’s going on here? Hell no.
Why are there two Lo Pans? And what the heck is that giant orange monster? Who cares?
Game Over
After more than twelve hours of viewing time, the end of the final film brought huge sighs of relief to all who left with square eyes and a feeling that it really was time to get away from the screen and go to bed. Now!
Saturday 3 September 2011
In A Better World
In A Better World strikes a poignant chord with the current national psyche where recent events have made people point a finger at home rather than abroad.
Medical aid worker Anton (Mikael Persbrandt) returns home from war-torn Sudan to his estranged wife Marianne (Trine Dyrholm) and two boys, of which the eldest, Elias (Markus Rygaard), is being bullied at school.
A new school year brings a new friend to Elias, Christian (William Johnk Juels Nielsen) who has his own baggage – a mother who has died of cancer and a father with not enough time for his son.
While the two worlds we see in the film – Sudan and Denmark – could not be further apart in terms of topography and demographics, they are united in a world of violence.
Unsurprisingly while the plot pivots around the violence in sedate Denmark, it is the grim scenes in Sudan which are the most arresting.
Questions are raised as to whether Anton, who has to deal with horrific wounds day-to-day, has the right attitude to bullies, which is firmly passive aggressive.
Meanwhile Christian, who is struggling to adapt to a world without his mother, finds that the best answer to the bullies is to confront them.
At one point the boy says: “This guy bullies everyone, but nobody stands up to him.” It is something that many people in this country have been wondering for some time.
And again Christian poses the difficult-to-respond argument “I don’t think he understood that he lost” after Anton confronts the same bully at the garage he works in a bid to prove to the kids that he’s not a wimp, but doesn’t throw a punch.
His strong arguments and determination also influence the lonely Elias, who has to deal with his absent father.
But without a permanent father figure, Christian takes his attitude several steps too far and he very soon becomes problem child.
A complex film, Susanne Bier makes every scene count, aside from a few brief moments where there is a lot of soul searching and gazing beyond the camera by the adult characters.
It’s the scenes in Africa which drive the film forward along with Persbrandt’s, Dyrholm’s and Nielsen’s performances.
In one memorable scene, immorality gives way to a sense of justice when Mikael, who takes Christian’s mentality with him back to Sudan.
It is a pitch-perfect performance by Persbrandt, who makes the film come alive and doesn’t overshadow the other actors who also their chance to shine.
Anyone seeking to find the answers to the recent riots will find many answers, and thought-provoking questions, in this mesmerising film.
Medical aid worker Anton (Mikael Persbrandt) returns home from war-torn Sudan to his estranged wife Marianne (Trine Dyrholm) and two boys, of which the eldest, Elias (Markus Rygaard), is being bullied at school.
A new school year brings a new friend to Elias, Christian (William Johnk Juels Nielsen) who has his own baggage – a mother who has died of cancer and a father with not enough time for his son.
While the two worlds we see in the film – Sudan and Denmark – could not be further apart in terms of topography and demographics, they are united in a world of violence.
Unsurprisingly while the plot pivots around the violence in sedate Denmark, it is the grim scenes in Sudan which are the most arresting.
Questions are raised as to whether Anton, who has to deal with horrific wounds day-to-day, has the right attitude to bullies, which is firmly passive aggressive.
Meanwhile Christian, who is struggling to adapt to a world without his mother, finds that the best answer to the bullies is to confront them.
At one point the boy says: “This guy bullies everyone, but nobody stands up to him.” It is something that many people in this country have been wondering for some time.
And again Christian poses the difficult-to-respond argument “I don’t think he understood that he lost” after Anton confronts the same bully at the garage he works in a bid to prove to the kids that he’s not a wimp, but doesn’t throw a punch.
His strong arguments and determination also influence the lonely Elias, who has to deal with his absent father.
But without a permanent father figure, Christian takes his attitude several steps too far and he very soon becomes problem child.
A complex film, Susanne Bier makes every scene count, aside from a few brief moments where there is a lot of soul searching and gazing beyond the camera by the adult characters.
It’s the scenes in Africa which drive the film forward along with Persbrandt’s, Dyrholm’s and Nielsen’s performances.
In one memorable scene, immorality gives way to a sense of justice when Mikael, who takes Christian’s mentality with him back to Sudan.
It is a pitch-perfect performance by Persbrandt, who makes the film come alive and doesn’t overshadow the other actors who also their chance to shine.
Anyone seeking to find the answers to the recent riots will find many answers, and thought-provoking questions, in this mesmerising film.
Sunday 10 July 2011
Monday 4 July 2011
Film du jour for July 4
Film du jour
So it’s July 4. In America the fireworks are lighting up the sky as they celebrate their independence from us. In Monty Python the joke is that the Americans have had their fun and now it’s time they came back home to mother and settled in for dinner. But in celebration of this day I need a film du jour. So here’s a brief line-up July 4 related movies and my film du jour.
The Patriot
Mel Gibson swings from one side of the fence to the other and then upsets pretty much all of Blighty and ends up using a hatchet in a rather interesting fashion to dispatch some of the Redcoats who rape and pillage and pretty much upset all of the colonies.
Team America: World Police
One word: A-meh-he-rik-ka. Don’t go up against Alex Baldwin and Matt Damon. Seriously, Kim Jong-Il take note, these American actors mean business. And woe betide any city containing thousands-years old monuments that gets in the way.
Dave
This is what the American Dream is all about. Yes, anyone can become POTUS. Just look at Kevin Klein. He’s got charm, he’s your average man, he’s self effacing and he will do anything to make sure they can find that extra one percent in the budget. If only all the American Commanders-in-Chief were like him ...
Mr Smith Goes To Washington
OK, Dave was lucky, but Jefferson Smith had a mountain to climb after his poor fortune. He might have thought that getting into the senate was a golden ticket to representing the boy rangers, but he soon realises that’s not the chance. Still, as the motto goes: “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again...” And anyone who doesn’t cry at the end has a heart of stone. Go Jefferson, go!
Independence Day
This is the film du jour. Yes, it’s cheesy, but what’s not to like: Will Smith kicking alien butt, a corny speech delivered by an even cornier Bill Pullman, Jeff Goldblum showing that the geek c’est chic. Oh, and the White House gets blown up. But when the chips are down, those Yanks will show the world how to do it. It might have more cheese than a McDonalds cheeseburger, but you gotta love it. God Bless America!
So it’s July 4. In America the fireworks are lighting up the sky as they celebrate their independence from us. In Monty Python the joke is that the Americans have had their fun and now it’s time they came back home to mother and settled in for dinner. But in celebration of this day I need a film du jour. So here’s a brief line-up July 4 related movies and my film du jour.
The Patriot
Mel Gibson swings from one side of the fence to the other and then upsets pretty much all of Blighty and ends up using a hatchet in a rather interesting fashion to dispatch some of the Redcoats who rape and pillage and pretty much upset all of the colonies.
Team America: World Police
One word: A-meh-he-rik-ka. Don’t go up against Alex Baldwin and Matt Damon. Seriously, Kim Jong-Il take note, these American actors mean business. And woe betide any city containing thousands-years old monuments that gets in the way.
Dave
This is what the American Dream is all about. Yes, anyone can become POTUS. Just look at Kevin Klein. He’s got charm, he’s your average man, he’s self effacing and he will do anything to make sure they can find that extra one percent in the budget. If only all the American Commanders-in-Chief were like him ...
Mr Smith Goes To Washington
OK, Dave was lucky, but Jefferson Smith had a mountain to climb after his poor fortune. He might have thought that getting into the senate was a golden ticket to representing the boy rangers, but he soon realises that’s not the chance. Still, as the motto goes: “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again...” And anyone who doesn’t cry at the end has a heart of stone. Go Jefferson, go!
Independence Day
This is the film du jour. Yes, it’s cheesy, but what’s not to like: Will Smith kicking alien butt, a corny speech delivered by an even cornier Bill Pullman, Jeff Goldblum showing that the geek c’est chic. Oh, and the White House gets blown up. But when the chips are down, those Yanks will show the world how to do it. It might have more cheese than a McDonalds cheeseburger, but you gotta love it. God Bless America!
Sunday 3 July 2011
Clunking juggernauts roll into town again.
THE THIRD instalment of that juggernaut of a franchise Transformers rolls into the cinemas this weekend but it seems that most people will be rolling their eyes rather than rolling into their seats.
The first film was lively despite the heavy commercialism but then the second instalment just dragged, and dragged like a clunky tractor making its way down a country road in Wales.
So after Shia LeBoeuf admitted that they had “dropped the ball” there was the chance maybe they would correct their mistakes.
It now seems like they have only repeated them.
But should anyone really care?
After all, it’s just yet another blockbuster, yet another film franchise that will have its core fan base so won’t care whether it is good, bad or indifferent.
I think most people are fed up with the Transformer series for various reasons but yet again style has managed to power over substance, and people are beginning to get fed up.
Huge clunking robots whacking ten tons of steel out of each other; salacious imagery; tired clichés; rapid-fire imagery – all these problems add up.
Michael Bay has always been a fan of machine-gun speed editing –and, like MTV, it is something he has made his name on.
But whereas MTV can thrive on the 30 minute shows it creates by using style over substance, movies can’t.
Anyone who sits through more than 60 minutes of frenetic action would inevitably begin to feel like their brain has melted.
But Transformers fall down again because it throws in the clichés which only add to the audience’s frustration.
Beyond all of this it is hard for many mature audiences to feel any empathy for a bratty nerd who complains about his girlfriend. And his super-duper car.
It is hard for most adults to warm to the MTV style, especially when it is aimed at teenagers who prefer style over substance anyway.
Should we be preachy if teenagers get their kicks from the Tranformers franchise?
The first film was lively despite the heavy commercialism but then the second instalment just dragged, and dragged like a clunky tractor making its way down a country road in Wales.
So after Shia LeBoeuf admitted that they had “dropped the ball” there was the chance maybe they would correct their mistakes.
It now seems like they have only repeated them.
But should anyone really care?
After all, it’s just yet another blockbuster, yet another film franchise that will have its core fan base so won’t care whether it is good, bad or indifferent.
I think most people are fed up with the Transformer series for various reasons but yet again style has managed to power over substance, and people are beginning to get fed up.
Huge clunking robots whacking ten tons of steel out of each other; salacious imagery; tired clichés; rapid-fire imagery – all these problems add up.
Michael Bay has always been a fan of machine-gun speed editing –and, like MTV, it is something he has made his name on.
But whereas MTV can thrive on the 30 minute shows it creates by using style over substance, movies can’t.
Anyone who sits through more than 60 minutes of frenetic action would inevitably begin to feel like their brain has melted.
But Transformers fall down again because it throws in the clichés which only add to the audience’s frustration.
Beyond all of this it is hard for many mature audiences to feel any empathy for a bratty nerd who complains about his girlfriend. And his super-duper car.
It is hard for most adults to warm to the MTV style, especially when it is aimed at teenagers who prefer style over substance anyway.
Should we be preachy if teenagers get their kicks from the Tranformers franchise?
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