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Reviews
In the Loop (2009)
A Snarling Mouthful of Iannucci
In The Loop is another Armando Iannucci thing of wonder. It won't be to every taste, but great things never are. The plot wriggles with more twist than any politician you can think of and the sweary insults flow faster than the champagne at a parliamentary garden party. The writing team can be especially proud, as can the casting agents. Anna Chlumsky was an inspired choice, she is a beauty blessed with a natural ability to act. She will go far. The rest of the cast were superb, with Peter Capaldi stealing the show. If insult was a sport at the Olympics they would just give him the medal now; no one insults better than Malcolm Tucker.
This is not a comedy, it is a snarling mouthful of blood stained satire, it is an Iannucci. If you like your comedies with a cheeky grin and ditzy fun In The Loop will leave you disappointed. If you want to belly laugh in disbelief, take notes on how to deal with tricky situations and wonder whether it's actually really like that then you like Iannuccies - so go and watch this film!
Tropic Thunder (2008)
Stiller Gets Lost
Ben Stiller receives a ton of goodwill from me. Asides from looking like a thoroughly likable person, he's been in a couple of films which I have loved. Worringly he has also been in more films that I haven't. In fact, it is hard to remember the last time a Stiller film made me laugh. As I walked in to the cinema to see Tropic Thunder my fingers were crossed.
It started off brilliantly. The first five minutes were guffaw inducing, popcorn spilling nuggets of comedy gold. It was like bumping into an old friend and picking up where we had left off. Then reality set in and for the rest of the film it felt like watching the old friend disappear into something he was not.
The story felt as though it had been butchered from a once promising idea. At no point during the film did it deserve my suspension of disbelief. If, as a film maker, you are going to ask me to suspend it at least fill in the gap. As this was a comedy, give me laughs. There weren't any I can remember. I know the Cruise moment was meant to be funny, but to me it wasn't even close to raising a smile. The crudity and attempts at offensiveness were sad to watch. Surely Stiller has more talent than that?
This is a film about becoming detached. Detached is exactly what Stiller has become. It's as though he has lost sight of what makes something funny. Hopefully he'll be found sooner rather than later!
Maybe I just missed the irony and subtle subtext? That's what I'm clinging to because I still want Stiller to succeed. My hope is that he resets his dials and gets it right next time because any more dross like this and he'll end up relegated to that strata of the last resort DVD rental when all the good films are out.
The Dark Knight (2008)
If this was dinner, I'd get indigestion
This review is influenced by hunger. I didn't make the time to properly eat before watching this film. That meant sitting for 152 minutes feeling hungry. Warning: this review contains food metaphors.
A great director is like a great chef. Great chef's understand how to balance a menu and keep your tastebuds dancing through your meal. Great director's understand how to balance a great film, they know how to keep an audience hanging on every scene, line and twist on the screen. The senses work in harmony with anticipation. It's all about knowing what to add in and what to leave out. It's also all about mixing your ingredients, making all the elements work together to create an experience for your customer.
A sandwich and a glass of juice can be just as enjoyable as a 7 course tasting menu, a straightforward revenge film can be just as exciting as a blockbuster trilogy. It all comes down to the balance of ingredients and the way they are put together. As with any film or meal I watch or eat I try not to decide before experiencing it.
The proof is always in the pudding. First impressions count. The opening scene was promising, this was a neat little appetiser. As bank job scenes go, this was one of the better efforts. My first thought was that to make a villain more dangerous, show them in stark daylight not dark shadows. It was a pleasant surprise to see The Joker in bright light. For some reason Batman has to be 'dark' - I appreciate that the original comics were 'dark', but I can't help thinking that a really brave director would play with that. Whenever the Joker was placed in harsh daylight that made him much more haunting than scuttling around in shadows.
It was impossible not to watch the film without analysing Ledger's performance in a deeper way. His death was a tragedy and quite obviously added a macabre twist of reality to the film which the studio chose to run with. Some may feel uncomfortable with that, I don't. I'm sure if he were alive Ledger would want it that way and I am also sure he would welcome honest opinions of his performance. There has been talk that he should be nominated for an Oscar, to me rather than respecting him in death it actually belittles him. After the film I asked myself whether his performance merited an Oscar nomination; to me it didn't. It was obviously a great role to play and he played it excellently, but if that proves to be Oscar worthy, then I will find it hard to respect the Oscars as a standard of film excellence. What am I comparing against? Last years screen villain Javier Bardem. He set the bar for deranged psychopath. I asked myself; who would I not want to be in trouble with? Anton Chigurh every time.
After Ledger it was a case of 'the rest of the film'. To me it was a let-down. The constant loud music and sound effects drowned out the mumbling of the actors. It was hard to follow what was going on and that may be the reason why I left wondering what the actual story was. There seemed to be too much going on, as if sticking to one clear plot line was a risk. As with the last film Michael Caine stole the best lines, Morgan Freeman also had his moments. Sadly Christian Bale seemed to sleepwalk through the film. I may be the only person in the known universe who thinks he was more wooden than a Welsh dresser. This was a big shame for me as I believe he's got what it takes to be a screen legend. Maybe it was the way he was directed, or the script?
There were some clear absurdities running through the film. I can suspend disbelief enough to live with a caped billionaire flying around buildings and I can even let them get away with not putting a bullet into the Joker after about 15 minutes of the film. What I can't get is how Rachel Dawes was supposed to be 'really beautiful'. I'm sure Maggie Gyllenhaal is a lovely lady, but just as I'm not really handsome, she's not really beautiful. This had me confused. On top of all the other confusions that was where I lost the plot.
If this film was dinner it would be a huge one course bowl with the tasty appetiser buried at the bottom. There would be nothing but rich fatty meats, chili's and heavy fish and egg sauces piled as high as possible and then covered with more sauces. Some beer would also be hoyed in and maybe some more sauce. There would be no rice, no veg and definitely no Brussels sprouts (not such a bad thing
) It was as though nothing was allowed to breathe, there was just a relentless assault of set pieces and noise all resulting in a tasteless mess. Obviously a dish like that is going to be popular with some, I totally understand that, but I'm looking for something else.
With the ingredients available I was disappointed with this film. With a more direct plot and story, breathing space and pacing (was there any?) this could have been so much better. Nolan obviously has talent, but I was left feeling as though he is much smarter than the film he has just released. Was he under pressure to tick studio boxes, has he lost sight of the trees? If he gets another crack at this franchise I hope that he strips away the extraneous mess and delivers a more direct, better balanced Batman which is worthy of a top 3 IMDb ranking.
El laberinto del fauno (2006)
In fantasy, you have to believe reality
Pan's Labyrinth tempts you in from the first beautiful second. Rather like entering a labyrinth you quickly leave the light and enter dark, mysterious tunnels which promise a new shock around each corner, both fantastical and brutally human. This is not a labyrinth you would take a child.
Sergi Lopez broods a performance so devilishly vile the audience literally recoiled when he was on screen. His blood chilling psycopath in fascist breeches should walk him into the Oscar running, if not he should consider taking his toolbox around to the Academy members and asking them why not.
The rest of the cast perform with subtle class, especially the young girl who proves that young actors do not need to be force fed sugar cubes for 6 months before shooting. Credit for this must go to the Director who is, for me anyway, deserving of all the acclaim he is receiving.
The film is unrelenting in its turns into fantasy and back again, flashing us back into into cruelty of real life.
My only fear is that its stark violence and Spanish language might restrict the size of its audience. This is, of course, what makes the film all the more special. It is wonderfully believable and in fantasy, that is truly everything.
Munich (2005)
What Cinema is for
Taking my seat in the cinema I was lucky. All I knew was that I was about to watch a film made by Steven Spielberg called Munich. Despite enough words written on the film to line a marathon course I had survived without reading any of them. Free from the burden of zealous opinion or prejudice surrounding the film itself I entered only with my own, that the film I was about to witness was created by the master of slushing sentimental slop.
After the first three minutes I revisited this prejudice. Yes this was the director who made "Hook", but this was also the director who made "Duel". Munich was shaping up to be in that class, taught, sharp and no blinks allowed.
This film is the work of a master flexing his muscles. Political and historical accuracy aside and is killing entertainment issues aside Munich is however-long-it-was minutes of invigorating cinematic splendour.
Spielberg masterfully creates a sense of Europe in the seventies and snaps in waves of tension. From the drop dead gorgeous Citroen to the evocative scenes of Rome and beyond this was powerful in your face escapism.
The camera work stylishly framed the story, which clipped along nicely. Casting was perfect, but I think the scene stealer was the French farmhouse of the informer family. This is my kind of getaway! Maybe I'm being overly sloshly and sentimental about Munich, but after all it was a Spielberg film! Only in this production the slosh and slop is kept to an absolute minimum, restraint being played expertly. Whether by accident or by design it worked.
If you are overly sensitive to the fibre thin politics of Israel and Palestine or about calculated revenge and cold blooded killing avoid this film, despite it's excellence. If you can stomach that, go and see this film in the cinema, don't wait for DVD. This is a cinematic treat.
The Bridge of San Luis Rey (2004)
A fate worse than death?
Falling like a stone to your death from a rickety rope bridge suspended high over a merciless gorge is not a lot of fun. Neither is watching The Bridge of San Luis Rey. If I had to make a choice between the two fates I would almost certainly take the rope bridge over sitting in a theatre subjecting myself to this film. Hurtling to your death is all over quickly, the other option is tortuously dragged out to the tune of melodramatic, in your face music and fluffy actors fed only ham for 6 months.
Where this film really falls down though is the flaccid script housing the muddled and confused story, if I can call it that. At no point was I really sure what was happening, as characters seemed to appear and disappear amidst the aforementioned self-important rousing music. Someone lost the plot, if it was ever there. Traces were left behind, but not enough to make sense. I felt no empathy for any of the aforementioned characters, save for perhaps F.Murray Abraham, who was mildly entertaining.
After the first 30 minutes I gave up trying to follow what was unfolding and tried to concentrate on the camera-work, costumes and scenery, which were extremely beautiful. This only heightened the tragedy. This film could have been a great film. Peru, the Spanish empire, vanity, religion and intrigue - all of these ingredients are extremely potent and framed in a great story and script could have been the stuff of a classic. That opportunity was passed up. Shame.
It is obvious that the director has a great talent for visual scenarios and imagery, perhaps working in tandem with a 'story strong' executive producer would be the recipe for their future success. Otherwise, I think it's time to search for another career. The biscuit was finally taken at the 'burning' scene. This drew several bursts of laughter from around around the cinema. It was truly laughable.
I don't want to dwell too long on Robert De Niro's role in this film, which I think was the professional equivalent of risking all traversing along a rickety rope bridge suspended high over a merciless gorge and falling 300 feet down the deep hole into a dark lagoon. Good for him he can walk on water.
Everything else in this film drowns, and if the makers are lucky, without a trace.
The Village (2004)
Finally, the cure for Insomnia!
The Village is actually a much cleverer film than many people give it credit for. I thought that using the wood from the forest surrounding 'the village' to whittle a cast of actors was ingenious. This technique, however, must be fraught with difficulties? Surely Adrien Brody's lawyers will have carefully noted the extreme likeness between their Oscar winning client and the carving who represented the mentally handicapped 'character'?
The ambitious director, producer and writer burden that Shyamalan has handed himself appears to be a negative influence on his career. I would like to think that he might rise from the ashes of this horror (that's descriptive, not genre) and focus on one aspect of film-making and excel in it. The writing bit is probably the first area that he could strike off.
Some of the lines in The Village were so clumsy that they appeared as though they had been formed with the same chisel used to fashion the blind girl.
"Don't stray too near to the forest we are forbidden to pass into by ancient rites and laws because of the bad things that live there, Noah!"
"Oh! Look! He's found the bad things special costume that we hide in here under the floorboards that he has pulled up while we put him in here for being bad!"
"Are we at the weird shed at the edge of the forest with the bad things in it that we are not allowed to see?"
Aaaargh! Awful. Do anything else, but do not see this film.
If you haven't seen this film and are planning to go despite the repeated warnings, I suggest this simple survival kit:-
1)One of those little aeroplane pillow thingies - You can catch up on some shuteye and still miss nothing.
2)A gag - This isn't a comedy, but at times you will feel like laughing out aloud. This could spoil the show for clinical insomniacs, button up.
3)Pulse tester - Some people may look like they are asleep...
1/10 Useless.