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Reviews
A Serious Man (2009)
One for the Collection
I've yet to see a poor Coens film (but there's got to be one I guess). "A Serious Man" isn't it though. The story focuses mainly around Larry (some Jewish dude, living in the late 60s, a maths teacher) and his family, and how he's convinced the forces of El Shaddai are against him. Plainly put, the moral of the story is "it comes and goes" but like so many Coens films, it illustrates this with such engaging and varied episodic scenes and shots. At first, there was always the fear that the fact the main characters had such strong faith in Judaism would restrict their personalities on screen but as the film progressed, these fears were soon quashed. Oh, and despite the usual Jewish hymns and songs, the majority of the soundtrack is compiled entirely of tracks from Jefferson Airplane's "Surrealistic Pillow" LP including "Today" (featured in one very sexy scene I should add). A rabbi even quotes "Somebody to Love" to Larry's son, Danny, at his bar mitzvah. In short, the dialogue succeeds and the actors deliver - and the film should be considered a fine addition to the Coens catalogue.
Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)
Has its place
Didn't quite meet expectations but still okay I guess. Wes Anderson is definitely a director who carries specific traits to all his films and although I enjoyed "The Darjeeling Limited", and "Rushmore" wasn't BAD or anything, I still don't get the fuss over "The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou" (is it the ironic surreal "humour"? the soundtrack? Bill Murray?). To sum up Anderson's tac to film-making is simple: "off-beat, ironic, absurdist sense of humour". However, it often fails, and in the case of "Fox", the frequent (yet sparsely successful) stabs at humour arguably get in the way of what could (and again arguably should) be a whacky inventive narrative. Despite this, the film was an interesting experience - most notably because I initially persisted to attempt to view it as a child's film - when on the whole, it really isn't and it's plain to conclude from a number of conversations that it really wanted to be 'adult' and swear and talk about sex. Considering the reputation of the title's original novel, this is a reality that ultimately couldn't materialise - which is a real shame because I think the humour might have actually worked if it could. I wasn't entirely impressed by the soundtrack either sadly. If perhaps Anderson had asked Mark Mothersbaugh of Devo to write music like he has done on so many occasions already (suitably a veteran in soundtrack-writing for children's programming -repeat 'children's'), I could be claiming different. I won't say the movie's bad because honestly, it isn't really. Most Roald Dahl stories, no matter how wide a film treatment can be, always seem to wind up finishing excellent and though I probably wouldn't choose to watch this film again, it has its place.
The Merry Gentleman (2008)
Avoid.
I feel that, even though I really don't want to, I should maybe watch this film again - to maybe see if I missed out any important details or something because from my experience this film has very little to redeem its creation. Frankly, I'd rather the film didn't make any money so that would teach Michael Keaton a lesson. Kelly McDonald's in it - and her character doesn't do any favours to get the audience to empathise or sympathise in any way with her. Likewise, Michael Keaton the retired hit-man love interest out to do one last job is unengaging and wooden. The only portions of the film I enjoyed were most of the scenes involving the fat cop (who fancies Kelly) because he actually manages to act unlike the rest of the cast. In addition, the first twenty minutes of the film where Keaton sneaks about town doing 'hitmanny stuff' is all very well arranged and is admittedly kind of cool - yet this twenty minutes does not in any way reflect the tone nor the level of quality you should expect from the rest of the film following it. I didn't get it.
Harry Brown (2009)
One for the Collection.
Probably one of the most affecting films around right now. If I was to have guessed in what respect this film would have failed, I would have assumed they would've played the whole "it's not their fault" card in regards to the hoodies and their violent behaviour but I'm happy to say they didn't. Let's just say everyone gets what they deserve in the film. It should be warned though that the film is indeed tragically violent (shockingly perhaps, one could argue it's on the same league table as "Irreversible", per se, in terms of disturbing images). The film isn't for just anyone but it appealed to me specifically because the stakes were high, and the drama was intensely thought-provoking. The only poor elements I could point out would be the fact that some scenes were a bit long and the sound was a bit bad in the latter half of the film so some of the dialogue was drowned or muffled. Oh, and what of Michael Caine's performance? Bravo.
Paranormal Activity (2007)
Errr...
A husband and wife who never seem to work or do anything at all decide to spend their free time hunting demons and recording footage of their bedroom whilst they sleep - that's literally as deep as I need to get into describing the plot to do it any favours. Gets a better rating for its convincingly jumpy moments, decent special effects and well-produced audio, but overall the dialogue is painful AND the entire thing has to be one of the most poorly constructed films this decade in terms of editing (and I don't mean that in an exaggerated way, I totally mean it). Credit goes out to the actors who managed to carry weight despite the odds against them.
Dark Nature (2009)
It's not good, but as a media student I can sympathise!
Perhaps when I took my seat, waited twenty minutes through darkness and up came a DVD menu on the cinema screen wasn't exactly what I expected. The film had a very limited cinema release (i.e. twice a week for a month in Cineworld, and that was it) so I was determined to catch at least one showing. When beginning to describe the film, low-budget doesn't scratch the surface, the whole movie no doubt filmed entirely on the Southwest coast of Scotland in the film-makers' back garden. It's a horror/slasher flick in all fragances but it fails badly to pin the woes of the killer on a "you're killing the earth, so we're killing you" twist. It's obvious that although the film tries its very best to be serious (it fails), the dialogue makes numerous nods to slasher films of yore (such classic lines like "He wasn't strong enough" and "The Earth fights back"). Why in God's name didn't they go all out B-movie slasher tribute style, I don't know - because the narrative strengths (if they exist) lie completely in the moments in the film where the killer is honing in on his prey. All in all, the film ends up lamehat because it indeed takes itself far too seriously when it really had no chance at all with the kind of budget it had. Gets a better rating because of the reasonably convincing gore and the slightly present "so-bad-it's-good" factor, but overall the producers should have thrown the script in the writer's face and said "bring back some GOAR!".
Atonement (2007)
A thing or two left to be desired, but an excellent movie experience
I think the film is great. It got me emotionally involved, and I successfully empathised with Robbie, Cecilia and Bryony. The plot, whilst the ending is not anywhere near as exciting as the beginning, is almost play-like in its vivid events and character interaction - something I admired.
Of course, I don't think it's perfect personally. Partly through the film, during the war scenes, the momentum of the film takes a step back. I believe that, after seeing the film, the celebrated five-minute Dunkirk beach scene that people have mentioned is positively over-rated, and didn't prove to be an interesting or integral part of the story. Other than this, the film is a certain thought-provoker, and a great demonstration of human sensibility.
What can I say about the acting by all those involved? Flawless. And the romance and passion and guilt portrayed in the film is simply brimming. It's worth a watch undoubtedly.
Coach Carter (2005)
Better than you may expect; A noble film.
Impressed by a clip of this film showing Carter's hardened approach to training his players on Film4's daily preview, I decided to sit down and watch this film.
As the opening credits took place, two features stood out: (1) the MTV Films logo; and (2) 'Based on the life of Ken Carter'. As the film started, I admittedly began to dread attempting to watch this film, but I hoped that by viewing all the events portrayed in the film as being true, the film would surpass my initial prejudice.
All I can say is that this is a good film, and a cut above everything else of its nature. Its message of determination and success is clear and welcomed, and its actors (young and old) prove to be convincingly genuine. As far as the plot goes, although it does slow down a bit after the end of the tournament, it eventually picks up and proves to be a great story overall. This film certainly showed me.
Okay, the film isn't exactly a masterpiece. It's not the most thought-provoking of films, nor is it an emotional roller-coaster like the best films are. However, the film succeeds at achieving what it set out to do - to tell the true story of a man determined to never deny his beliefs, and by doing so, give hopeless kids a better future. I can't help but respect the characters in what they achieve through the course of the film, and I hope that if you watch the film that you do too.
Raising Arizona (1987)
It's more of a piece of entertainment, than a piece of challenging fiction
Having seen a few Coens films and thoroughly enjoying them (Fargo, Big Lebowski, Blood Simple), I excused Nicolas Cage's usual reputation for bad acting and began watching this film with mixed expectations.
So after watching it, I actually thought it was okay, but not great. With hindsight, I think this movie is better appreciated as an 80's movie in that the humour is mostly visual and the moral of the story is spelt out for the viewer, however sentimental and (I'll admit) heartwarming it is.
It has the usual Coen trademarks (twisting plots, poetic characters etc) but the techniques appear rather forced in this film, which is a shame. The 'Coen touch' isn't executed as nicely as it is in other films they've worked on.
Trying to pinpoint where exactly this film falls short of greatness, I personally believe it comes down to Randall Cobb's character (which I think is needless and only inserted for poetic reasons). The whole cast do their acting job superbly, even Nicolas Cage, who actually provides one of the best performances in the film, to my surprise.
The film succeeds at making me care for the characters of Ed and Hi and Nathan Jr, so I guess that's great but the film doesn't make for a brilliant watch, sadly. Watch it once or twice maybe, but no more. It could have been a great film I think if only some parts of the story had been omitted or extended. So if you're not one for nitpicking (which I horribly tend to be) then this film should provide a good night in or two.
High Fidelity (2000)
Youth-savvy!
It's a movie with John Cusack, Jack Black and Iben Hjejle (who, by the way, is the cutest girl I've seen in a film since Audrey Tatou in Amelie). I had heard about the book and the film quite a while ago in passing - probably on Wikipedia - and when I heard that the film featured loads of music and film references, I was intrigued. I had seen "Tapeheads" before, which was both Tim Robbins' and John Cusack's first feature film in which they acted. "Tapeheads" was about the two starting a music video directing company. It's was really strange, and absurd to say the least - very very very 80's! Just to tell you what the film is about. It's about a man (Robert) in his thirties who lives in Chicago and owns a record store. He has a great fondness for popular music, and likes to talk about music if he can in conversation - in fact, there's one scene in which he discusses the "science and art of creating the perfect compilation". Featured throughout the film are pretentious "Top 5" lists he compiles - like "Top 5 opening tracks" or "Top 5 Dream Jobs". The first one that he begins the film with is his "Top 5 Worst Break-Ups" and he proceeds to talk about them, through the aid of flashbacks. He has recently broken up with a girl named Laura (played by Hjejle), and has consequently positioned her at "No. 5 with a bullet" because she has decided to be with a ex-neighbour whom he particularly detests (incidently, played by Tim Robbins). He then seeks out his "Top 4 Break-Ups" in an attempt to discover why he always screws up with the opposite sex.
I was very glad to have caught "High Fidelity" three minutes in on BBC1 - and am even more so now that I have seen it. Much like the "Top 5" lists featured in the film, there are films that just, once you've seen them once, you just adore them and want to share them with as many people as you can - High Fidelity is no exception, and makes my Top 5, I think.
The film is essentially more about love than music or pop references however, but don't be expecting embarrassing clichés and whatnot! Every reference to love or relationships and everything isn't sweetly sick and all the funny moments are neatly scattered across the film to ensure that the "love" parts don't become too forced or cheesy. Love is dealt with within the film to a great big deal, but it's very subtle - and it's done in a very tidy way, with John Cusack giving soliloquies every second scene as to how he feels, and analysing what he wants.
I think it's a great film for people my age - the bombardment of pop references do nothing but help this film achieve a "youth-savvy" status - and as a result, it helps people like me, who are still learning and coming to grips with the all relationships thing, to have an interest in this film, and Cusack's situations. The film explores the theme of not just falling in love, but also falling out of love - a topic not touched on by many authors or film-makers.
I've only seen this film once, but I'm convinced it will stand the test of time, as they say, because it effectively demonstrates how messy and how confusing "break-ups" and "get-back-together-agains" inevitably are. And even despite the fact that I didn't recognise all of the tunes played, it's "dated" soundtrack is filled with old-fashioned, hearty music. It's good stuff - music that you don't have to put much effort into listening to appreciate it. This film doesn't need to be updated with today's popular hits for its music to remain modern - sounds perfectly cool as it is. (There's at least one Chemical Brothers song, so it's not all Belle & Sebastian or Stevie Wonder)