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BrianLlywd
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Jurassic World (2015)
Just when you thought it was safe to visit Costa Rica
I only review pictures that are really good... or really bad. And I cannot imagine a worse motion picture than this piece of Dino Doo. It is a tribute to Hollywood's love of nepotism... Ronnie Howard supported his idiot brother for a couple of decades and has now managed to create a career for his daughter. But Opie with a wig would have been far better in this role of a dedicated executive with the Jurassic Park company than his little girl, who has been blessed with the best plastic facial adjustments that can be provided by today's scientists. The script is... non-existent it's only a collection of scenes that were put together in post production. There are more bad guys and gals in this version than all the others put together - and at the end of the picture, you still won't know whom is which. The number of continuity errors from the previous pictures in the series are legion. Is the new TRex bitch bigger or smaller than the old one? It is a jumbled mess and an insult to the concept of recovering antiquities.
The Imitation Game (2014)
Passionless, Pointless, Doomed to Failure
Why does every dramatic film these days have to reach toward higher motives than buying the stars and executives new Ferraris and more girls (which brought us all the finest works in cinema in the past). Have to save the whales or bring peace on earth or have people sympathize to the problems of the protagonist. We went to a spy movie and a passionless, pointless, doomed to failure, non-love affair between an Aspergerish closeted gay genius and my least favourite caterpillar eyed and continually sighing actress broke out. I know this will get me in trouble, but Tury was not special because he was homosexual and was penalized for this in the last century; as pointed out in big letters at the end of the picture this torture of homosexuals was very common then. And his achievement may well have been due to his Aspergers; but this is not unusual either. Remove all mathematicians in history with Aspergers (which is what we call it now) from society and we'd be living in sheds. His accomplishment was breaking the code, yet the makers of this movie made this REAL saving of the world a side story to support a tale of Tury's personal life. And by doing this they fail the viewers and ultimately fail Tury himself. He surely would have preferred to have been seen as a brilliant mathematician who helped end WW2, rather than a strange, oppressed, tortured homosexual who took his own life.
The Calling (2014)
A sleeper, but way good
Despite a few plot flaws, this picture was way better than anticipated. If a thriller is only really good if compelling then this one is a winner. Sarandan is a small town copper who trips over a serial killer, manages to manage a predilection for whiskey (can't blame her for that) manages to connect the dots, and manages to find and follow the leads to a tension filled conclusion. Donald Sutherland, as an ageing priest, is as he always is... wearing a role like a comfortable suit of vraiments. Gil Bellows (who I liked so much in 3 Days in Havana) takes himself up another step in my appreciation. My fellow watcher commented that it's like a Dan Brown movie... but good. And I agree.
Interstellar (2014)
Lost in Space
Take the scripts of "2001 – A Space Odyssey", "The Grapes of Wrath", "Gravity" and "The Stone Angel", and throw them all into a paper shredder, and what do you get? Interstellar. The only thing original in this picture is that Matt Damon plays a bad guy. It's an amalgam of almost ever Ray Bradbury story ever written and man in space movie ever made. If Albert Einstein couldn't explain his "Theory of Relativity" in plain English, then why would anyone expect the 20 million people who watch this to get it? Too long, too cutely ended, and too confusing. With way too many obvious flaws in physics to bother mentioning any. Liked the cinematography and the basic plot and always like Mathhew McConaughey. Anne Hatheway seemed to be lost in space and Jessica Chastain as interesting as ever. I don't regret watching this film, even enjoyed a lot of the special effects. But it loses itself in Dylan Thomas poetry and physics. And I do wish that the black hole had not been located near Saturn, but closer to Uranus...
Grudge Match (2013)
Way better than expected
The way that Stallone has been pulling Rambo out of the grave in a series of CGI-enhanced "Expendables" I really expected "Grudge Match" to add another layer of plastic surgery to the Stallone corpse. But instead, I got an over-the-hill "buddies" movie with a decent plot, some terrific acting and an ending that brings back some of my favourite memories from "Raging Bull" and most of the "Rocky" series. Being 'of the age' and still competing in a physical sport against other fellas past their best-before date, I get the movie combatants' desire for one more time, one more season, swapping sweat with the same guys I did a lifetime ago. So I'm glad they made it, and I'm glad I watched it. Well done. Now where did I put my jockstrap and truss...
The Art of the Steal (2013)
Dreg
I only review movies I really like, or really don't. This is a don't. "The Art of The Steal" has the stink of far too many Canadian pictures: bring in Kenneth Walsh and enough of a collection of other Canuck actors to get Telefilm cash, add a few washed up Yanks and a Brit for a touch of class. The basic story line offers some promise: an art theft caper. And this has been well done many times, but with a lot of suspense in the story telling and a sympathetic cast with a touch of sinister... the key being the story... not a twist at the end. Truly a flop... bad enough that the box office justifiably didn't even cover the catering budget.
Battlefield Earth (2000)
On second look...
I admit to having read the book probably 8 times; it stands as one of the greatest science fiction novels in history, by any standard. But a novel allows a reader to suspend all rules of physics and imagine. Films, not so much. First time I watched, my opinion was similar to all the others. But there was a feeding frenzy when this picture came out so everyone - including this reviewer - emphasized every little problem with it. But I read the book again this year, and it still thrills me. And watching the picture - actually the first time all the way through - I have changed my opinion. First off, it would be next to impossible to make this movie with live action instead of animation; 9 foot aliens are real difficult to present on the big screen. Second, the depth of character development presented in a thousand pages can't be told in 120 double spaced page of script. Third, the depth of plot ditto. But if I take this picture, knowing well the book, I think it's pretty well done and that it would be hard to do better. The CGI - for the time - is first rate, the capture of 500 pages into 2 hours would have been an enormous challenge and it has a beginning, middle and end. I loved it this time; think it a better picture than Star Wars as one of a similar genre. If you look for technical stupidities in an SF flick, then you can't only look here, look at all the time travel futuristic movies: they depend on defying the natural rules of the universe, so this picture shouldn't be held to a different standard. Read the book and watch it again. If you liked the book (if you didn't pretty good chance you didn't finish it), then you'll like this.
3 Days in Havana (2013)
I was shocked, I tell you, shocked.
I've been travelling to La Habana for about 20 years, was a travel writer about the place for a while, have probably done 20 radio interviews about Cuba and wrote a book that was pretty well received and paid for a few extra trips there. Americans don't and can't accurately represent Cuba in their reportage, docs and dramas; everything they write and film about the place has a political filter. And I expected this picture to be like every other one that has attempted to tell a story that unfolds in this place. And (redundantly) I was shocked! Bellows and Pantages get it and got it. Habana is, as it must be, a character in the story; the worn out buildings, the eclectic people (even the old doll with chicklet teeth and capri pants), the Coco Taxis, the Malecon, the rum/cigars/chicas. Cuba is a ruse: nothing is as it seems; better or worse. And this narrative fits Cuba perfectly. Nothing is as it seems. When I saw MacKellar and Bellows names attached; I frankly expected another cheesy Canadian Telefilm special. I was wrong. Perhaps the most incredible story in the history of Canadian movie making; that a thriller of this quality can be made for a million (less than the catering budget for most pictures). Congratulations, Fellas. And if any producers are reading this review and looking to make a picture, you'd be crazy not to give these guys a call.
Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (2014)
I really wanted to like this movie...
Having just read two Clancy tomes in the last month this release was timely and I was hoping that this pic would well serve the Clancy legacy. And I could see Chris Pines as a suitably young Jack Ryan. Clancy's stories are not draped in extravagance; they focus on plot and depiction of a reality that we civilians are not allowed to even dream about. But this was less a story than a special effects piece. When I watch a moving picture I want to see a story unfold, not be a part of it. And the number of close shots and action in lieu of plot and character made it difficult for me to watch as a bystander. Others, of course, will have other preferences. I must admit that I haven't liked Knightly much in anything in which I have seen her. Her presence always urges me to yell out, "Get her a sandwich." And I always wonder if her caterpillar eyebrows haven't sucked all her body fat out through her forehead. I found the action overly confusing so much that I couldn't really focus on the plot. And the time frame for the picture didn't seem to make sense and was a real flaw. He joined the marines and went to Afstan in 2003, met Cathy, recovered and was recruited and joined the CIA shortly thereafter. Then, all of a sudden it's 2010 (or so) and he is still a rookie, wet behind the ears. By then he should have about five years of service and not need so much coaching, nor be treated as such a rookie. I thought Branagh was good; little Larry is one of my favourites. I even liked him in "How to Kill Your Neighbors Dog" which almost no one else ever even saw. Overall, a very disappointing picture. It won't encourage me to see a sequel, nor to even pick up a Clancy book. Too bad. Jack Ryan is a great film character, but not in this mess.
Life of Crime (2013)
The operation failed but the patient survived.
I'm partial to Dutch Leonard movies, "Jackie Brown/Rum Punch" and "Get Shorty" were terrific. His stories are character based and his plots are simply threads that allow his weird and wild characters to be revealed. I liked this picture on the TIFF big screen last night. but the Jackie and Shorty films accomplished this with superior casting, while "Life of Crime" is more "Big Bounce" than these two. The bad guys are well formed, Ordell, Louie & Richard are all well portrayed. And Tim Robbins reproduces well the object of his personal disaffection for the past few decades - the ugly, lying hypocritical capitalist. But Anniston is a vaporous Mickey. She seems unaffected by any events surrounding her, not her husband's drunkenness and philandering, nor his hiding of vast sums of money or even his plans to divorce her. If she's a victim of traumatic stress, she doesn't even pull this off. Every hair on her head stays in place even after being kidnapped and almost raped. So she is the weak link in an otherwise watchable kidnapping caper pic.
360 (2011)
Under the Radar Hit
I gotta say I really, really liked this picture. Now appreciate - I'm an iconoclast and whenever I smell studio BS promo I stay clear away. But this picture has none of this smell (cause it's an indie) but had plenty of pleasant aroma. It had a number of story lines, a number of twists and surprises, a very attractive cast and they all acted well. The plot... could it have been tighter? I suppose. But the apparent joy of the performers lead this picture into high level territory. Hopkins, in his AA soliloquy, was as brilliant as an actor can be. Absolutely authentic and believable. Maria Flor is stunning as a young lost waif looking for love in all the wrong places and Ben Foster as a sex offender trying to control his urges is exceptional. There are more moments of unanticipated joy in this picture than there are expected times of sadness. I recommend this film and will watch it again.
To Rome with Love (2012)
A commentary on celebrity
Anyone who takes this picture at face value lacks insight. Yes, it is a series of vignettes, some romantic, that are placed in Rome. But no, it's not a typical Woody romantic comedy. It's a commentary on celebrity and a fairly biting one. From the short, fat, balding "sexy" movie "star" to the "celebrity of the day" Woody demolishes the star making machinery in which he has existed for the last fifty years or so. The shallowness of movie starlet love, the need for a fading producer to have one more big hit, the vacuousness of celebrity and its fleeting nature. Those are the themes of this picture. And if these are accepted at face value, then the picture is terrific. Any dullard who judges it against "Midnight in Paris" back to "Annie Hall" is bound to be disappointed. But that should be held to their account for not being very bright. An excellent commentary on post-modernism and the current value of impression when measured against real value. Including Adam Baldwin as an imaginary figure in the picture is an excellent choice, because he and his entire family are mostly famous for being famous, not for having talent.
Midnight in Paris (2011)
Really, really liked it.
I gotta admit that I am compelled to rate this picture very positively. My wife had seen it and really liked it (I hadn't).
Then we ran into Woody Allen in NYC (I profess pompously) and I told him it was brilliant and he thanked me, so I have to stand behind this... It's brilliant. Owen Wilson (Gil) fills in admirably for Woody in the role of the slightly befuddled nebbish who falls in love at the drop of a coquettish smile by an ephemeral waif of a girl.
The story is exceptionally likable and so are the players. What I liked best were the characterisations of the historical figures. Kathy Bates was a perfect Stein, Brody was as good a Dali as one could be, Corey Stoll a robust Hemingway, etc.
But, a couple of little things did bother me.
One was that Adriana's written memoir of their making love, read by Gil in the present, didn't actually occur. Also, what happened to his book? If Stein and Hemingway both liked it, why wasn't it published?
Another is that it wrapped up too quickly with Gil leaving his fiancée and hooking up with another girl in a wink of an eye and not trying to revisit the past again. I would.
Other than that, it is brilliant. I was prescient, I guess.
The Adjustment Bureau (2011)
In the words of Sam Goldwyn... "In Two Words... Ree Diculous"
I will give it 6 rather dull stars because it did entertain.
But just consider, for a moment, you're an up and coming beauty in NYC and this guy who says he's running for President of the USA screws you around for 3 years and blames a global conspiracy / organization that controls the future from your getting together...
You would get back together with this guy?
And about those hats - couldn't they at least be tin foil?
And if this global conspiracy were composed of an all powerful group of doofusses that somehow could control the future but couldn't ultimately stop said delusional Presidential candidate from, yes, charming said beauty into abandoning her career and fiancé in favour of his battling said conspiracy...... Then there is no help for you.
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)
A Decent Doppleganger?
***Update*** I just screened the Swedish trilogy... They are riveting. The Fincher picture is better filmed, but isn't. Riveting that is. The Swedish characters have more depth, they aren't expanded into iconic figures as are Finchers', they are more real. Rapace would NEVER show a romantic interest in Blomqvist as Mara does at the end of the US pic; there's an expectation that everyone should swoon over Daniel Craig. Which is off kilter. She would never buy him an expensive gift - she would barely offer a thanks. We'll see what the next two are like.
Back to my review of the USA version . . .
Having watched "TGWTDT USA" last night I'm not really convinced that it needed doing. Yes I liked the plot changes; they tightened up the story and allowed time to be spent in a few other parts of the script (notably in the rape and sex scenes). But was it worth $100 million to do a remake when the original is still playing on movie channels? Probably not.
The opening credits are impressive, but seem to relate more to a new "Batman" than this picture. A sign of having way too much money available in the budget. They got the film off to a little bit of a confusing start.
I admit to not being a Daniel Craig (Mikael Blomkvist) fan, frankly he reminds me more than a little of an evil gnome of some sort, a Rumpelstilskin (which does however fit well with the Nordic locale of this picture). He does his usual perfunctory job in this film adding nothing really that we hadn't seen from Michael Nyqvist. For me, he was a little too fit and hunky for the role; Blumqvist is a journalist not a fitness trainer and needs the associated love handles and pot belly of a professional scribbler. Was I the only one who noticed the resemblance of Blumqvist's daughter in the movie to Michael Nyqvist?
Rooney Mara is very good in her role as Lisbeth Salander, but not any better that Noomi Rapace. She (Mara) does borrow so much for her performance from Rapace's work, that it's difficult to give her full credit. I think Rapace, from her acting, was more believable as a hacker, as a victim and as a vengeance taker. (I will admit that I'm always suspicious when an actress from a billionaire family gets a plum role or recording contract which work against my consideration of Ms Mara. {"Daddy can I be a model, an actress and a singer today?")
Where this production catches up to the previous version in my rating is in its cinematography; a hundred million goes a long way to creating exactly what the writer and director want the audience to see. And this production certainly does that. It is brilliantly filmed. The picture also is notable for its dramatic and highly visual scenes of violence and sex, perhaps the most graphically accurate ever put to screen.
Good on David Fincher. Well done.
The Ides of March (2011)
Pretty Good Political Thriller
Usually I only review pictures that I find are deeply flawed, but this one marches right through any slip ups. All the characters are believable; the political interchange and personalities are pretty much what I've seen in 20 years of campaigns. George plays the stereotypic Democratic candidate who is out to save the world but can't manage his zipper. Hoffman and Giamatti are exactly like guys I know in their jobs and are bang on. And the hopeful up and coming 30 and unders are just as randy and ambitious as such staffers are want to be. (Politics is Hollywood for the homely, they say). Only flaw is that when Molly leaves the movie, she leaves behind pill bottles for pain killers that were prescribed by an abortion clinic. Now Cinci / Kentucky coppers are out in the country... but are sharp enough to have probably noticed this and someone would have leaked it and the whole complexion of the picture would have changed. George is a little bit wishful if he thinks a US Presidential candidate could be successful in declaring himself an atheist - could never happen. 100% electric vehicles? Impossible, but the idea of requiring every kid to take on a two year public service requirement would give him my vote. Overall I give George a pass on the few goofs, overall it was a terrific watch.
Page Eight (2011)
Another Great Spy Story from the UK
For the first time, last night, a tele-film was selected to close the Toronto International Film Festival. And 3000 people were glad they did. In David Hare's Page Eight we have a wonderfully crafted story, well told, and superbly delivered by a stellar cast.
Bill Nighy, as Johnny Worricker, is perfect as an idealist MI5 spook dragged into a deep dark conspiracy. He learns that it leads all the way to the Prime Minister (played by a sinister Fiennes) and involves treachery within MI5 itself.
Nighy is close to becoming my favourite actor - there's just something about the guy - he's equally likable and as enjoyable to watch here as he was as a zombie, a vampire, an assassin and a hippy pirate radio station manager. Rachel Weisz is an equally likable character as an activist seeking justice for the murder of her brother.
Fiennes is frightening as a politician who would do anything to protect his job. And it was nice to see Alice Krige, for whom I have had a bit of a crush for 30 years since she played Eva Galli in "Ghost Story".
The Worricker character was well drawn by Mr, Hare, his idealism and depth is revealed bit by bit; in his making up with his estranged daughter,in his loyalty to friends, in his supporting a worthy cause and even in his love of art and beauty.
I asked Mr. Hare last night over a cocktail how he could make such a strong picture in five weeks for $3 million. He explained that all he had to do was call Ralph Fiennes, Judy Davis, Rachel Weisz and Bill Nighy and there you have it. I think he's modest. He wrote a great story that attracted this talent and he directed them extremely well.
Take This Waltz (2011)
Take this film...not
Last year we finished TIFF with "Last Night" a poorly done, anti-romance about betrayal and infidelity. This year we started with "Take This Waltz", apparently Sarah Polley's tribute to last year's "Last Night". Both are insults to philandery. Sarah Polley has developed a bit of reputation for being an upstart and edgy; this picture, think upchuck and edging on ridiculous. A boring husband (Seth Rogan), an innocent child-like wife and an irresistible rickshaw driver, cum cad & stalker who can afford an apartment and regular trips to Cape Breton (at Air Canada rates only affordable by government bureaucrats). Please. Sarah Silverman offered promise on the big screen but sadly, her characterization of a recovering alcoholic was so shallow that, at the end, she couldn't even play a drunk. But it's not her fault. There are two reasons why this film fails so badly. One is story; there is almost none. The second is direction; there's no evidence of the cast being driven to play their roles well. I have to think that Polley is the beneficiary of a desire by the Canadian film industry to build a star system in behind the camera. I doubt that this film would have been financed, made and screened at TIFF without a little insider trading of sorts. WARNING - there are several explicit sex scenes near the end that appear out of nowhere and are no better acted or more interesting than the rest of the picture.
Barney's Version (2010)
A Different, Not So Redeemable Barney in a not so Commercial Picture
Brilliantly cast, acted, make-upped and costumed this picture suffers from three deathly serious commercial (and award) flaws: 1/ perhaps the most irritating depiction of Jewish stereotypes in memory, 2/ a Canadian locale and 3/ the most despicable and unlikeable lead character in a feature film since Mark Harmon played Ted Bundy. Rosamund Pike plays a Westmount wife like she was born to it and ages as gracefully as any one of these icons ever has. Her makeup was superbly applied. Dustin Hoffman, as excellent as he's ever been, adds a little touch of almost every character he's ever played, a bit of Ratso with a some Rainman and a little Focker spiced by a hint of some Tootsie and even a little Benjamin all grown up. An absolutely brilliant job by him as the most engaging character in the picture. The greatest and regrettable difference from the self-indulgent tome of the novel is in Barney himself. The book worked because Barney was a lovable ass despite his failings. I'll point at the screenwriter for making an eminently forgivable and redeemable Barney a drunk, a philanderer and altogether a condemnable and despised cad and the director for allowing this to happen.
The American (2010)
Blah, Blah, Clooney, Blah, Nudity, Blah
I am still waiting to see a decent picture in 2010. This one I thought might be based on Lew Ayres 1960 novel. But it was instead based on any Seinfeld episode. It's about nothing. Clooney seems to be an "assassin" (as if there are a lot of those around) but really most resembles Casper the Ghost. He's transparent, boring and maudlin. There is as much of Clooney in this as in any still pic from any picture in which he has ever worked. Does anyone care about whether he lives or dies? Does anyone care about what he is doing or anyone else in the picture is doing? Is the nude scene worth $14 when a table dance can be purchased for $20 and not require 90 minutes of commitment? Did Clooney need work so badly that he had to produce such boring dreg as this? A real disappointment with real sadness for wasting time waiting for something of interest to happen. 1 for the scenery and 1 because it's the giving season.
Last Night (2010)
Last Knightley
After the Toronto premiere of "Last Night", ahhh last night . . . one of Canada's top film producers revealed that he enjoyed this new tribute to the depth of human romantic despair as little as the rest of us did.
It is described as a story about "complicated love", loyalty and betrayal.
It features Keira Knightley (Joanna) as the supposed betrayed and betrayer, an emotionless Sam Worthington (Michael) as the suspected betrayer, betrayed and betrayer, Eva Mendes as betrayal enabler, and French actor, Guillaume Canet, as betrayer, betrayer.
We see Joanna wash her legs, smoke, wash her dishes and apply her "Jerry Seinfeld's Uncle Leo's" eye brows. We mostly wished that somebody would just get her a sandwich. We see the disappointment of Guillaume not cutting another notch on his bed post proved by a single teardrop.
We see enough angst to fill a whole psychology section of a library, but a plot barely long enough to fit on a napkin. And for a film supposedly based upon life's most passionate emotions there is barely enough heat to melt an ice cube in one of Guillaume Canet's many glasses of vodka.
For me, the most interesting moment was when Eva and Sam were in the hotel bar, and while I was counting the liquor bottles behind them, I noticed six brands of bourbon. Spectacular...
There is a bizarre scene when Sam and Eva retire to the hotel pool with the contents of their mini-bars. For a solid five minutes they chat while suggesting an intent for something more. It was a scene without purpose, like many of them in this picture, and anyone ever tried to get into a hotel pool after 10 pm?? The director could have easily cut directly to the consumation of the chase. Or just cut to the chase in general. Way too much transition footage and empty moments in the film.
The whole picture could have fit into a single episode of the Y&R. I was beginning to hope that the film was a sequel to Cloverfield and that a monster would appear and eat them all and all the buildings around them.
All in all a waste of celluloid, though I expect, with Keira and Sam, it will likely receive accolades and awards. Griffin Dunn, of "After Hours" fame, is terrific, as an observer of the various trysts and is very welcome back to the big screen. But for our group, as is often seen in a dog of a movie, the character who really stole the show was Lucy, Joanna's Labrador Retriever.