Foxcatcher delves into the true story of the murky John du Pont, the endlessly wealthy yet under-achieving son of America's infamous du Pont dynasty, and whose obsession with the sport of wrestling sees him buy his own team with hopes of training them to Olympic glory.
Channing Tatum plays Mark Schultz, an upcoming star keen to step out of his brother-come-coach David's (Mark Ruffalo) shadow and moves onto the du Pont estate as his prized trophy sportsman.
But when Tatum fails to live up to du Pont's expectations, the unnerving millionaire brings his brother on board to whip the team into shape, but as David begins to take over the team and question the change in his younger brother, du Pont marks him as a disposable barrier to his reputation.
Steve Carrell's transformation into du Pont extends beyond his sizeable prosthetic nose, with his dead eyes patrolling his staff and darkly irking those he desperately tries to impress and influence while Ruffalo, with his patient manner and humility, was the perfect choice to honour the memory of David Schultz.
The real Mark Schultz's recent furore in the press was unneeded, with the film offering no real suggestion that his relationship with his wealthy benefactor was sexual in any way.
In actuality, Foxcatcher comes down hard on Du Pont's distant mother, suggesting her life-long disproval of her son is to blame for his emotionless ambition and, ultimately devastating, disregard for human feeling.
Reviews
18 Reviews
Taken 3
(2014)
Possibly the worst stereotypical Russian villain tops off what surely must be a parody
7 August 2019
Liam Neeson has been widely quoted on the press circuit for Taken 3 as having never supposed there'd be a third script good enough to persuade him to reprise his role as Bryan Mills and upon seeing the film it is not clear on what basis the actor made the decision to return for this poor excuse of a finale for the Taken trilogy.
Not that the former two films were cinematic triumphs by any stretch, but this third Takes the biscuit.
Writer, Luc Besson's, skills seem to have departed him in recent years, with his former glory days of The Fifth Element and Leon replaced by Jason Statham's Transporter series and now these sorry excuses for action films - a genre not requiring much by way of creative script writing at best and so, difficult to get wrong you would think.
A full review isn't needed for a film of this calibre - if you're interested in paying to see this sort of thing, no rationale would persuade you otherwise - but for everyone else's benefit... Neeson find himself in a new kind of pickle in this third and, thankfully, final instalment of the series in which is estranged wife is brutally murdered and it's down to his 'very particular set of skills' we've heard so much about to find her killers and avenge her death.
Possibly the worst stereotypical Russian villain tops off what surely must be a parody.
Not that the former two films were cinematic triumphs by any stretch, but this third Takes the biscuit.
Writer, Luc Besson's, skills seem to have departed him in recent years, with his former glory days of The Fifth Element and Leon replaced by Jason Statham's Transporter series and now these sorry excuses for action films - a genre not requiring much by way of creative script writing at best and so, difficult to get wrong you would think.
A full review isn't needed for a film of this calibre - if you're interested in paying to see this sort of thing, no rationale would persuade you otherwise - but for everyone else's benefit... Neeson find himself in a new kind of pickle in this third and, thankfully, final instalment of the series in which is estranged wife is brutally murdered and it's down to his 'very particular set of skills' we've heard so much about to find her killers and avenge her death.
Possibly the worst stereotypical Russian villain tops off what surely must be a parody.
Inherent Vice
(2014)
Complex, yet easily followed and stylishly substantial
7 August 2019
Joaquin Phoenix emerges from his professional hiatus in this groovy drug-fuelled crime caper by Paul Thomas Anderson (Boogie Nights, There Will be Blood).
Unconventional private investigator 'Doc' (Phoenix) is dragged into a sordid kidnapping and extortion plot via a soft spot for his troubled ex-girlfriend. Doc's well-placed friends in marine law (fantastic cameo by Benicio del Toro) and the district attorney's office (a surprising appearance by Reese Witherspoon) get him out of some sticky spots and help piece together what's up with his ex's boyfriend, his wife and her lover.
Yet another A-list bit-part went to Owen Wilson as the 'disappeared' husband of an old friend whose fate inadvertently helps to reveal the double, triple and quadruple crossing at the highest levels in 1970's California, but it turns out Doc is more connected than he imagined and may know more than he thought.
Narrated from on high by a celestially connected mutual friend of Doc and his lost soulmate, Inherent Vice takes you on a neon-lit psychedelic ride, leaving you at once wondering if you understood anything at all yet feeling as though everything played out as it should have. It's complex yet easily followed and stylishly substantial.
If only the Academy didn't have such a 'thing' against Phoenix-he'd be a front-runner at next month's Oscars.
Unconventional private investigator 'Doc' (Phoenix) is dragged into a sordid kidnapping and extortion plot via a soft spot for his troubled ex-girlfriend. Doc's well-placed friends in marine law (fantastic cameo by Benicio del Toro) and the district attorney's office (a surprising appearance by Reese Witherspoon) get him out of some sticky spots and help piece together what's up with his ex's boyfriend, his wife and her lover.
Yet another A-list bit-part went to Owen Wilson as the 'disappeared' husband of an old friend whose fate inadvertently helps to reveal the double, triple and quadruple crossing at the highest levels in 1970's California, but it turns out Doc is more connected than he imagined and may know more than he thought.
Narrated from on high by a celestially connected mutual friend of Doc and his lost soulmate, Inherent Vice takes you on a neon-lit psychedelic ride, leaving you at once wondering if you understood anything at all yet feeling as though everything played out as it should have. It's complex yet easily followed and stylishly substantial.
If only the Academy didn't have such a 'thing' against Phoenix-he'd be a front-runner at next month's Oscars.
Selma
(2014)
Careful, artful but choked (pace and style-wise) by the facts of the true story
7 August 2019
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr infamously stood at the Lincoln memorial proclaiming "I have a dream" to over 250,000 people - but that's not what Selma is about.
The film charts a specific period in 1965, with the civil rights movement well underway and segregation now illegal in the United States, but violent opposition in the south blocking black Americans' right to vote.
King leads his peaceful army in an epic march from the town of Selma, through deepest darkest Klan country, to the courthouse in Montgomery, Alabama, to exercise their rights.
The event is credited as having forced President Lyndon B. Johnson to sign the Voting Rights Act - a portrayal under discussion for its authenticity, as Selma suggests Johnson was a road block to civil rights when historical fact shows otherwise.
The filmmakers couldn't have gotten away from the endless hushed conversations between government officials and various activists if they'd tried, but unlike most political dramas, these instances are well-placed fraught scenes breaking up the noise and violence of the main story.
King is understandably sanctified in this celebration of one of his most significant achievements but the film also places unexpected and artfully presented praise on the members of the press who put the story unfolding in Selma in front of the world's eyes, strengthening the movement to a tipping point, with the closing scene carefully honouring other lesser known heroes of civil rights.
Cake
(II) (2014)
One of the less accessible Oscar contenders of its year due to the heavy, dark content but stick with it
7 August 2019
Cake follows Clare, a reluctant member of a support group for chronic pain sufferers who becomes fixated with the suicide of another member (Anna Kendrick) while refusing to work on her own rehabilitation.
Jennifer Aniston's performance as chronic pain sufferer, Clare, has been overlooked at all major awards ceremonies so far and she's been dealt a final cruel blow by being snubbed from even a nomination at this month's Oscars.
While the masses mourn her losses, a closer look at Cake reveals her strong but not outstanding performance was buoyed by an outstanding story, supporting cast and cinematography. Cake is slow and sad yet gripping and shocking.
Clare's physical pain is immediately apparent, as is her short temper and seemingly life-long attitude problem, but the slow unravelling of why she hates her husband, why her long-suffering housekeeper refuses to quit and her obsession with the suicide case is surprisingly devastating. Surprising because, for the majority of the film, Clare is a hateful character, yet when she makes those painful small steps towards accepting her own past, and in turn revealing it to us, all is forgiven and more.
Cake is one of the less accessible Oscar contenders due to the heavy, dark content but stick with it and you'll see the lightness and positivity shrouded by the tragic mood.
Jennifer Aniston's performance as chronic pain sufferer, Clare, has been overlooked at all major awards ceremonies so far and she's been dealt a final cruel blow by being snubbed from even a nomination at this month's Oscars.
While the masses mourn her losses, a closer look at Cake reveals her strong but not outstanding performance was buoyed by an outstanding story, supporting cast and cinematography. Cake is slow and sad yet gripping and shocking.
Clare's physical pain is immediately apparent, as is her short temper and seemingly life-long attitude problem, but the slow unravelling of why she hates her husband, why her long-suffering housekeeper refuses to quit and her obsession with the suicide case is surprisingly devastating. Surprising because, for the majority of the film, Clare is a hateful character, yet when she makes those painful small steps towards accepting her own past, and in turn revealing it to us, all is forgiven and more.
Cake is one of the less accessible Oscar contenders due to the heavy, dark content but stick with it and you'll see the lightness and positivity shrouded by the tragic mood.
The Boy Next Door
(2015)
Starts off well but the story unravels and is trashed by an inexplicable end
7 August 2019
Jennifer Lopez stars as Claire, a high school teacher conflicted by her husband's infidelity and desire to put her family back together.
Pushed to 'move on' by her forthright friend (Kristen Chenoweth) she falls into the arms of her toyboy neighbour, Noah, who also happens to have transferred to her school as a senior student. Mortified by her indiscretion and finally ready to welcome her husband back into her life, Claire tries to break it off, but Noah's interest in her turns out to be more of an obsession and one which he'll kill in order to feed.
The Boy Next Door definitely qualifies as a low budget thriller. Despite being made for just $4 million by a first time writer and unknown director, they've attracted big enough names to lure audiences.
Chenoweth shows some range outside of her twee, grinning showgirl bit, holding her own against psychotic Noah and Lopez is as good a girl-next-door as ever. You wouldn't expect to see these two in a quick and clever thriller and it's wise to approach The Boy Next Door with that level of expectation.
While it starts off well and there's some palpable tension throughout, rather than building to a climax, the story unravels away from those trying to tell it until it's trashed by an inexplicably gruesome final scene.
Pushed to 'move on' by her forthright friend (Kristen Chenoweth) she falls into the arms of her toyboy neighbour, Noah, who also happens to have transferred to her school as a senior student. Mortified by her indiscretion and finally ready to welcome her husband back into her life, Claire tries to break it off, but Noah's interest in her turns out to be more of an obsession and one which he'll kill in order to feed.
The Boy Next Door definitely qualifies as a low budget thriller. Despite being made for just $4 million by a first time writer and unknown director, they've attracted big enough names to lure audiences.
Chenoweth shows some range outside of her twee, grinning showgirl bit, holding her own against psychotic Noah and Lopez is as good a girl-next-door as ever. You wouldn't expect to see these two in a quick and clever thriller and it's wise to approach The Boy Next Door with that level of expectation.
While it starts off well and there's some palpable tension throughout, rather than building to a climax, the story unravels away from those trying to tell it until it's trashed by an inexplicably gruesome final scene.
Some work is needed on the viewer's part to enjoy this ambling retirement tale
7 August 2019
Silver haired national treasures Dames Maggie Smith and Judi Dench, along with Bill Nighy and Celia Imrie have reunited for the creatively named The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.
Firm friends from the first film, Sonny (Dev Patel) and Muriel (Smith) embark on a new business venture - a second hotel which Sonny is trying to finance while Muriel steps in as the hotel manager. The plot is basically a collection of precarious pairings as each resident (new and old) navigate stop-start relationships against the back-drop of Sonny's pressure-cooked expansionist goals.
Richard Gere's character another creative name-'Guy') has been inserted in a patronising attempt to inject a lustful dynamic but it's Patel who, despite his appearance being downplayed in favour of his more established cast mates, carries the sequel, as he did in the original, with charm and maturity.
Whether you're this film's target demographic or you're a younger party dragged along, two hours in the company of this cast is more than pleasant.
You'll only get a few one-line zingers (all from Maggie) and a handful of breathtaking vistas so don't expect to be carried along - some work is needed on the viewer's part to enjoy this ambling retirement tale.
Firm friends from the first film, Sonny (Dev Patel) and Muriel (Smith) embark on a new business venture - a second hotel which Sonny is trying to finance while Muriel steps in as the hotel manager. The plot is basically a collection of precarious pairings as each resident (new and old) navigate stop-start relationships against the back-drop of Sonny's pressure-cooked expansionist goals.
Richard Gere's character another creative name-'Guy') has been inserted in a patronising attempt to inject a lustful dynamic but it's Patel who, despite his appearance being downplayed in favour of his more established cast mates, carries the sequel, as he did in the original, with charm and maturity.
Whether you're this film's target demographic or you're a younger party dragged along, two hours in the company of this cast is more than pleasant.
You'll only get a few one-line zingers (all from Maggie) and a handful of breathtaking vistas so don't expect to be carried along - some work is needed on the viewer's part to enjoy this ambling retirement tale.
Still Alice
(2014)
A beautiful homage to the strength of unconditional relationships in the face of unthinkable challenges
7 August 2019
Julianne Moore stars as Alice Howland, a 50 year old at the top of her game who receives a shocking diagnosis out of the blue that she has early onset Alzheimer's.
Her ability to do her job, enjoy her hobbies and even talk to her family is thrown into disarray as small but painfully obvious signs of her mental decline crop up more and more regularly.
Moore won an Oscar for her heartbreaking portrayal of Alice, and rightly so - she plays two different people (and everything in between) from the celebrated, confident linguistics professor with all her personal and professional ducks in a row, to the broken, child-like person she becomes as the disease cruelly takes hold.
Supporting her enthralling performance, Alec Baldwin is soft and patient as Alice's distraught husband and Kristen Stewart sticks out as the couple's youngest child, uncomfortably yet welcomed back into the family fold as her mother's sudden decline and neediness overshadows the airs previous issues.
Between the three of them, they usher you through the family's struggle to come to terms with what is happening to their inspirational matriarch.
Still Alice is a beautiful homage to the strength of unconditional relationships in the face of unthinkable challenges - very difficult final scenes somehow leave you feeling grateful and positive.
Her ability to do her job, enjoy her hobbies and even talk to her family is thrown into disarray as small but painfully obvious signs of her mental decline crop up more and more regularly.
Moore won an Oscar for her heartbreaking portrayal of Alice, and rightly so - she plays two different people (and everything in between) from the celebrated, confident linguistics professor with all her personal and professional ducks in a row, to the broken, child-like person she becomes as the disease cruelly takes hold.
Supporting her enthralling performance, Alec Baldwin is soft and patient as Alice's distraught husband and Kristen Stewart sticks out as the couple's youngest child, uncomfortably yet welcomed back into the family fold as her mother's sudden decline and neediness overshadows the airs previous issues.
Between the three of them, they usher you through the family's struggle to come to terms with what is happening to their inspirational matriarch.
Still Alice is a beautiful homage to the strength of unconditional relationships in the face of unthinkable challenges - very difficult final scenes somehow leave you feeling grateful and positive.
Serena
(I) (2014)
A quiet, slow burning watch starring megastars before they were real big-hitters
7 August 2019
In Depression-era North Carolina, Pemberton (Bradley Cooper) fights to keep his flailing logging business afloat in order to make enough money to start of new life in Brazil with his enigmatic new wife, Serena (Jennifer Lawrence).
The town sheriff is suspicious of Pemberton's dirty dealings and increasing pressure to mark the area a national park sees the ambitious businessman turn to his wife for increasingly destructive support and direction.
Serena is billed as a period drama centred around the bleak prospects of a small town and all those trapped within her but in reality it's a much more sophisticated character study of the deeply complicated title role herself.
The Depression era setting is really an extended metaphor for the inescapable darkness of Serena's damaged personality. Having suffered a soul stamping tragedy as a child and left unable to love (by her own admission) each new opportunity or friendly face is terminated by her manipulative neediness and, eventually, brute force.
Her one genuine connection is with the curmudgeonly Galloway (Rhys Ifans) an equally disturbed and quietly menacing character who tends to her every warped whim like a loyal lap dog. What at first seems a perfect union between Pemberton and Serena horrifyingly unravels as each turn to competitively desperate measures to get what they need.
Although both Lawrence and Cooper more than handle their complex roles, Serena could've been a big hitter with more established, serious actors in their place. A quiet, slow burning watch.
The town sheriff is suspicious of Pemberton's dirty dealings and increasing pressure to mark the area a national park sees the ambitious businessman turn to his wife for increasingly destructive support and direction.
Serena is billed as a period drama centred around the bleak prospects of a small town and all those trapped within her but in reality it's a much more sophisticated character study of the deeply complicated title role herself.
The Depression era setting is really an extended metaphor for the inescapable darkness of Serena's damaged personality. Having suffered a soul stamping tragedy as a child and left unable to love (by her own admission) each new opportunity or friendly face is terminated by her manipulative neediness and, eventually, brute force.
Her one genuine connection is with the curmudgeonly Galloway (Rhys Ifans) an equally disturbed and quietly menacing character who tends to her every warped whim like a loyal lap dog. What at first seems a perfect union between Pemberton and Serena horrifyingly unravels as each turn to competitively desperate measures to get what they need.
Although both Lawrence and Cooper more than handle their complex roles, Serena could've been a big hitter with more established, serious actors in their place. A quiet, slow burning watch.
The Wedding Ringer
(2015)
Gadd earns The Wedding Ringer one of its stars and the other is awarded to the editor who only saw fit to put cinemagoers through 100 minutes of it
7 August 2019
When the kind, yet socially awkward Doug (Josh Gadd) gets the beautiful, if a little vacant, Gretchen (Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting, of The Big Bang Theory) to marry him, he doesn't have the heart to tell her that not only does he not have a best man, he hasn't got any close friends to be part of the wedding party at all.
Cue Jimmy (Kevin Hart) who offers an underground service posing as a life-long friend and acting best man for geeky, lonely men all over the country.
The necessary catch to spice up the storyline is that Doug requires a service Jimmy has never offered before - he needs a full party of groomsmen to learn everything about him and keep up the charade against Gretchen's questioning for an entire weekend.
Yes, this premise is familiar to you - it's Wedding Crashers bromance humour meets The Wedding Singer's attempt at real emotions.
Gadd's an unusual choice for a leading man and his genuine nice-guy persona (how could you not like the man behind the scene-stealing snowman in Disney's Frozen) earns The Wedding Ringer one of its stars and the other is awarded to the editor who only saw fit to put cinemagoers through 100 minutes of it.
Cue Jimmy (Kevin Hart) who offers an underground service posing as a life-long friend and acting best man for geeky, lonely men all over the country.
The necessary catch to spice up the storyline is that Doug requires a service Jimmy has never offered before - he needs a full party of groomsmen to learn everything about him and keep up the charade against Gretchen's questioning for an entire weekend.
Yes, this premise is familiar to you - it's Wedding Crashers bromance humour meets The Wedding Singer's attempt at real emotions.
Gadd's an unusual choice for a leading man and his genuine nice-guy persona (how could you not like the man behind the scene-stealing snowman in Disney's Frozen) earns The Wedding Ringer one of its stars and the other is awarded to the editor who only saw fit to put cinemagoers through 100 minutes of it.
The DUFF
(2015)
The Duff succeeds where other teen high school makeover comedies fall short
7 August 2019
For those familiar with the 2004 film Mean Girls I won't need to say any more than The Duff is Mean Girls rebooted - and yes, it's almost as good.
The writers have infiltrated the most up to date tween-isms (which will leave older viewers/reluctant chaperones at a loss most of the time) but effort has been made to not talk down to those the filmmakers are emulating nor belittle the classroom issues which seem so insurmountable at the time.
Films like The Duff live and die by their leads, on whose shoulders rest the narration as well as the storyline and luckily, Mae Whitman, (despite her 26 years) nails it as the humbly hilarious high-schooler, desperate to redress the balance of popularity, Bianca. She's as kind-hearted if a little more self-affirmed than Lindsay Lohan's Cady (Mean Girls) and miles from the pathetically doe-eyed 'heroines' treated to makeovers in girl-flicks of yesteryear.
The Duff succeeds where other teen high school makeover comedies fall short due to all of the above sparking off each other in the same way Oscar shock-winning, sleeper-hit, Juno came out of nowhere and settled right into the 'classic' category almost ten years ago.
All that having been said, you'll hate this unless you're female and under 16 or within the very specific age range of 25-29 and pining for the aforementioned girl-flicks The Duff appears to have been made in homage to.
The writers have infiltrated the most up to date tween-isms (which will leave older viewers/reluctant chaperones at a loss most of the time) but effort has been made to not talk down to those the filmmakers are emulating nor belittle the classroom issues which seem so insurmountable at the time.
Films like The Duff live and die by their leads, on whose shoulders rest the narration as well as the storyline and luckily, Mae Whitman, (despite her 26 years) nails it as the humbly hilarious high-schooler, desperate to redress the balance of popularity, Bianca. She's as kind-hearted if a little more self-affirmed than Lindsay Lohan's Cady (Mean Girls) and miles from the pathetically doe-eyed 'heroines' treated to makeovers in girl-flicks of yesteryear.
The Duff succeeds where other teen high school makeover comedies fall short due to all of the above sparking off each other in the same way Oscar shock-winning, sleeper-hit, Juno came out of nowhere and settled right into the 'classic' category almost ten years ago.
All that having been said, you'll hate this unless you're female and under 16 or within the very specific age range of 25-29 and pining for the aforementioned girl-flicks The Duff appears to have been made in homage to.
The Last Five Years
(2014)
Not everyone's cup of tea but a good gritty rom-com if you like musical theatre
7 August 2019
Struggling dancer Cathy (Anna Kendrick) sees her whirlwind marriage start fall apart as her new husband's writing career takes off ahead of hers.
The pair tell their story through song, Cathy's beginning at the end and working backwards towards happier times early in their relationship, whereas the more level/pig-headed Jeremy does just the opposite, running away from what brought them together to start with and focusing on current problems.
It is more gritty and real than most fluffy rom-coms but viewers not au fait with musical theatre will feel that depth is lost in the all-singing narrative style. If you were left bereft by the silence of The Artist and couldn't stand the spontaneous outbursts of Moulin Rouge, then steer well clear of this.
Straight-up rom-com fans won't necessarily appreciate The Last Five Years either, it's pitched equally at Broadway lovers (it's based on a Broadway musical) and/or low-budget indie flick fans and even then, the two styles may not sit well together for you.
Neither of our leads have pleasantly bland pop voices either, both are classically trained vocal powerhouses-again, not everyone's cup of tea. The Last Five Years earns three stars, however, as it does what it wanted to do fairly well, it's all a question of personal taste.
The pair tell their story through song, Cathy's beginning at the end and working backwards towards happier times early in their relationship, whereas the more level/pig-headed Jeremy does just the opposite, running away from what brought them together to start with and focusing on current problems.
It is more gritty and real than most fluffy rom-coms but viewers not au fait with musical theatre will feel that depth is lost in the all-singing narrative style. If you were left bereft by the silence of The Artist and couldn't stand the spontaneous outbursts of Moulin Rouge, then steer well clear of this.
Straight-up rom-com fans won't necessarily appreciate The Last Five Years either, it's pitched equally at Broadway lovers (it's based on a Broadway musical) and/or low-budget indie flick fans and even then, the two styles may not sit well together for you.
Neither of our leads have pleasantly bland pop voices either, both are classically trained vocal powerhouses-again, not everyone's cup of tea. The Last Five Years earns three stars, however, as it does what it wanted to do fairly well, it's all a question of personal taste.
Cinderella
(I) (2015)
Other DIsney money-spinner lacking style or enchantment
7 August 2019
Kenneth Branagh has inexplicably been chosen to take the helm for the latest in Disney's money-spinning line of live action versions of their classic princess stories.
You know the drill storyline-wise but special mentions go to Cate Blanchett and Helena Bonham-Carter who pop up (not quite enough, however) as heavily stylised manifestations of the wicked stepmother and fairy godmother of the piece.
Branagh hasn't done a Tim Burton, whose fairly recent retelling of Alice in Wonderland was dripping in his signature style, nor has he matched the dizzying enchantment of Disney's Oscar nominated fairytale, Into the Woods.
Cinderella is just a straight-up reissue of a classic children's story with perfectly charming actors, sets and costumes, but nothing by way of modernisation or reimagining.
The original 1950s animation had more by way of sassy one liners and a sense of mild peril, and if it's older children in need of entertainment, they're better off with one of any of the retellings of the last ten or so years involving dowdy waitresses/library geeks/bowling alley attendants 'rescued' by the seemingly unattainable jock/millionaire businessman/rock star.
Branagh's Cinderella seems more like a festive TV special than silver-screen worthy and it's now clear why Disney have had to tack an exclusive Frozen short film onto it as a trailer to lure cinema-goers.
While We're Young
(2014)
A grown-up drama with the watchability of a rom-com and the tension of a classic whodunit
7 August 2019
Indie king, Noah Baumbach returns to helm the closest thing to a rom-com he'd ever put his name to, directing Ben Stiller, Naomi Watts and newest gawkily handsome anti-leading man on the block, Adam Driver.
While We're Young captures middle-aged couple, Cornelia and Josh (Stiller and Watts) in a period of flux where friends their own age are disappearing down the baby rabbit-hole, leaving them to hitch their wagon to bewitching hipster couple Jamie and Darby (Driver and Amanda Seyfried).
Josh's insecurities surrounding his flailing career as a documentarian lead him down a path of paranoia as he convinces himself Jamie is posing as an adoring fan while ruthlessly trying to get to his famous father-in-law in order to boost his own star.
The first half hour is a whirlwind of vintage bicycles, home-made ice cream and street parties as Cornelia and Josh push to try and keep up with their new twenty-something friends but a serious lull must be endured before a final build to the gut-wrenchingly awkward finale of double-crossing, amateur sleuthing and shrill revelations.
Stiller's internal rifts are expertly played out by the seasoned actor, who carries his youthful counterpart's (purposefully) flighty performance.
Save for the disappointing middle-section, While We're Young is a grown-up drama with the watchability of a rom-com and the tension of a classic whodunit - a departure into real-life for the usually fantastical Baumbach. Posted 10th April 2015 by Unknown
While We're Young captures middle-aged couple, Cornelia and Josh (Stiller and Watts) in a period of flux where friends their own age are disappearing down the baby rabbit-hole, leaving them to hitch their wagon to bewitching hipster couple Jamie and Darby (Driver and Amanda Seyfried).
Josh's insecurities surrounding his flailing career as a documentarian lead him down a path of paranoia as he convinces himself Jamie is posing as an adoring fan while ruthlessly trying to get to his famous father-in-law in order to boost his own star.
The first half hour is a whirlwind of vintage bicycles, home-made ice cream and street parties as Cornelia and Josh push to try and keep up with their new twenty-something friends but a serious lull must be endured before a final build to the gut-wrenchingly awkward finale of double-crossing, amateur sleuthing and shrill revelations.
Stiller's internal rifts are expertly played out by the seasoned actor, who carries his youthful counterpart's (purposefully) flighty performance.
Save for the disappointing middle-section, While We're Young is a grown-up drama with the watchability of a rom-com and the tension of a classic whodunit - a departure into real-life for the usually fantastical Baumbach. Posted 10th April 2015 by Unknown
Lost River
(2014)
Dystopian fairytale featuring 21st century horrors
7 August 2019
Desperate to retain the house she grew up in and her sons now call home Billy (Christina Hendricks) agrees to a dubious job proposed by her dirty dealing bank manager, and it's darker than you could ever imagine.
Her eldest son, Bones, wants to free his mother of her money troubles and his copper-stripping trips lead him on an adventure to discover the history of Lost River and the curse said to be behind its demise.
Ryan Gosling's first foray into directing (he also wrote the film) is set in a near-desolate Detroit town with most of its residents forced into poverty or moving home. Not too far from the truth, except in Gosling's fantastical world, the town is now run by a modern-day Mad Max, played by our own scene-stealing (possibly film-carrying) Matt Smith, who you may know better as The Doctor.
Lost River occupies a weighty middle ground between raw documentation of the human struggle and Hollywood-friendly theatrics, with glamour-grunge imagery and a haunting soundtrack. The fact heart throb of the decade, Gosling, is responsible for the project is nothing more than a distraction, but a welcome one if it goads a wider audience to see a film likely to have only small-scale success on the indie circuit.
Succumb to the dystopian fairy-tale world and experience the 21st century horrors some sadly know as their reality.
Her eldest son, Bones, wants to free his mother of her money troubles and his copper-stripping trips lead him on an adventure to discover the history of Lost River and the curse said to be behind its demise.
Ryan Gosling's first foray into directing (he also wrote the film) is set in a near-desolate Detroit town with most of its residents forced into poverty or moving home. Not too far from the truth, except in Gosling's fantastical world, the town is now run by a modern-day Mad Max, played by our own scene-stealing (possibly film-carrying) Matt Smith, who you may know better as The Doctor.
Lost River occupies a weighty middle ground between raw documentation of the human struggle and Hollywood-friendly theatrics, with glamour-grunge imagery and a haunting soundtrack. The fact heart throb of the decade, Gosling, is responsible for the project is nothing more than a distraction, but a welcome one if it goads a wider audience to see a film likely to have only small-scale success on the indie circuit.
Succumb to the dystopian fairy-tale world and experience the 21st century horrors some sadly know as their reality.
The Age of Adaline
(2015)
Original, well shot, well acted, gripping, touching and intelligent. A rom-com with brains.
7 August 2019
Adaline Bowman (Blake Lively) is suspended at the age of 29 following a freak accident.
When it becomes clear that she cannot live safely with her secret, she resigns herself to moving countries and changing identities every ten years to protect herself and her daughter.
Adaline lives through world wars, London's swinging sixties scene and now, present day San Francisco, all the while keeping herself from getting too close to anyone for fear of hurting them when she finally has to move on, and hurting herself with the knowledge they can never grow old together.
The scenes between Adaline and her ageing daughter are sweet and heartwarming, serving to reveal the deep connections between family that transcend age and geography.
Similarly, the love story between Adaline and our leading man (whose on-screen father, Harrison Ford provides the major spanner in the works) is also heightened with the knowledge that our heroine has truly been waiting a lifetime (many, in fact) to meet the one person she can finally reveal her true self to.
Lively embodies an old, patient, wise soul beneath her surface beauty and her emotional resistance due to decades of pain in deceiving those she loves is heartbreaking to watch.
The Age of Adaline is the sort of film that is sadly a rarity these days - original, well shot, well acted, gripping, touching and intelligent. A rom-com with brains.
Adaline lives through world wars, London's swinging sixties scene and now, present day San Francisco, all the while keeping herself from getting too close to anyone for fear of hurting them when she finally has to move on, and hurting herself with the knowledge they can never grow old together.
The scenes between Adaline and her ageing daughter are sweet and heartwarming, serving to reveal the deep connections between family that transcend age and geography.
Similarly, the love story between Adaline and our leading man (whose on-screen father, Harrison Ford provides the major spanner in the works) is also heightened with the knowledge that our heroine has truly been waiting a lifetime (many, in fact) to meet the one person she can finally reveal her true self to.
Lively embodies an old, patient, wise soul beneath her surface beauty and her emotional resistance due to decades of pain in deceiving those she loves is heartbreaking to watch.
The Age of Adaline is the sort of film that is sadly a rarity these days - original, well shot, well acted, gripping, touching and intelligent. A rom-com with brains.
Man Up
(I) (2015)
Man Up may mark an attitude shift resulting in 'rom-com' no longer being dirty words in cinema
7 August 2019
Repeat relationship ruiner, Nancy (Lake Bell) decides to finally take a chance with her love life after an awkward run-in on the train leaves her in the right place at the right time to pretend she is the blind date Jack (Simon Pegg) is waiting on.
Nancy fumbles along pretending to be Jessica and the pair end up having the best first date of their lives, until a toe-curling figure from Nancy's past blows her cover.
It's films like Man Up that remind you British films are just better than their glossy American counterparts, with their inauthentic overblown gestures and impossibly beautiful casts.
Every inch of the script rings true and each character bounces off each other as skilfully as Richard Curtis' Four Weddings crew did two decades ago.
Pegg breaks free from his King of the geeks reputation and puts in a layered, emotional performance as a proper romantic lead. Bell is in a league of her own, however, as an American actress playing the Bridget Jones type better than Renee Zellweger herself, perfect accent and all.
Man Up may mark an attitude shift resulting in 'rom-com' no longer being dirty words in cinema.
Nancy fumbles along pretending to be Jessica and the pair end up having the best first date of their lives, until a toe-curling figure from Nancy's past blows her cover.
It's films like Man Up that remind you British films are just better than their glossy American counterparts, with their inauthentic overblown gestures and impossibly beautiful casts.
Every inch of the script rings true and each character bounces off each other as skilfully as Richard Curtis' Four Weddings crew did two decades ago.
Pegg breaks free from his King of the geeks reputation and puts in a layered, emotional performance as a proper romantic lead. Bell is in a league of her own, however, as an American actress playing the Bridget Jones type better than Renee Zellweger herself, perfect accent and all.
Man Up may mark an attitude shift resulting in 'rom-com' no longer being dirty words in cinema.
Jurassic World
(2015)
The new generation will be just as thrilled and enraptured as original fans
7 August 2019
The horrifying events on Isla Nebula have been forgotten and Jurassic Park has reopened as Jurassic World. But the public's waning interest sees the park's scientists (still headed up by BD Wong!) go to questionable lengths to keep them entertained - a genetically modified hybrid dinosaur bigger and more deadly than anything the park has handled before.
It's hard to believe this is the director's second only feature length film and you can see why Steven Spielberg selected him personally. It's as though you're on a theme park ride for the full two hours, which goes by in a flash of teeth, technology and rain soaked forages through the undergrowth.
Chris Pratt is intensely likeable as the rebooted Sam Neill of the piece, connecting audiences to the new story's backbone, the struggle to help the paying public (and the park's investors) understand that these once mythological creatures, now relegated to ordinary zoo attractions, are real animals in need of proper care and capable of heinous acts if they don't receive that care.
Jurassic World is a 21st century big budget family action film to rival the best.
The new generation will be just as thrilled and enraptured as original fans were more than 20 years ago and us originals will appreciate the return of John Williams' theme and the raptors as the stars of the show.
It's hard to believe this is the director's second only feature length film and you can see why Steven Spielberg selected him personally. It's as though you're on a theme park ride for the full two hours, which goes by in a flash of teeth, technology and rain soaked forages through the undergrowth.
Chris Pratt is intensely likeable as the rebooted Sam Neill of the piece, connecting audiences to the new story's backbone, the struggle to help the paying public (and the park's investors) understand that these once mythological creatures, now relegated to ordinary zoo attractions, are real animals in need of proper care and capable of heinous acts if they don't receive that care.
Jurassic World is a 21st century big budget family action film to rival the best.
The new generation will be just as thrilled and enraptured as original fans were more than 20 years ago and us originals will appreciate the return of John Williams' theme and the raptors as the stars of the show.
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