hylinski Reviews

Much Ado About Nothing (1993)

Uplifting

[9/10 · 19 May 2010]

This is a wonderful presentation of the immortal bard to the popular audience. A consistently brilliant cast and exuberant direction balance the unfortunate tendency to edit the original script which many movies seem to thing essential to give Shakespeare mass appeal. Apart from the slapstick of the watch (Michael Keaton and Ben Elton) there is little which was not clearly apparent in the original play.

The breadth of the sets and the unrestrained romance in the music finish off the glorious feel this film has throughout.

Possible the finest romantic comedy of all time with the possible exception of Twelth Night.

Leo (2002)

Predictable, but in a good way

[7/10 · 12 May 2010]

Joseph Fiennes is a fine actor, and the consistency of his performance is very much the centrepiece of this movie. There are elements of the script which don't seem as coherent, but I could gloss over these because of his consistency.

I like the look of the movie, and the direction costumes and sets complemented each other well, and this was maintained in recounting present day and 'flashback' experiences.

There are comparisons to other films which could be made, especially to Blue Velvet. Indeed Dennis Hopper could have made the two films without changing stride. And Fiennes' character is similar to that played by his brother Ralph in Cronenberg's masterpiece Spider, without the same degree of madness.

I picked up fairly early on the way the plot would head, and I was right. The late novelist Kurt Vonnegut used to often tell the reader how the book would end in the first chapters, and yet the books were compelling. I found this equally so.

The Razor's Edge (1946)

Dated

[3/10 · 7 April 2010]

Oh dear.

I have wanted to see this ever since reading the book and seeing Bill Murray's competent version. This movie was like Sunday School in comparison. The direction is as bad as high school dramatics, the acting formulaic, the art direction lamentable and the dialogue is much, much worse.

There are a few less bad things. Clifton Webb, who seems to adore being cast as a curmudgeon, is characteristically annoying as Eliot Templeton, Anne Baxter the best of a bad bunch as Sophie and John Payne is competent as Gray Maturin.

This film was actually nominated for best picture of 1946. I think you would have had to have lived then to know why.

Bran Nue Dae (2009)

Disappointing but entertaining

[6/10 · 18 February 2010]

With all the hype in the Aussie media about this, I expected an Australian equivalent to Cabaret, but this is closer to a "Road to..." movie with a black Crosby and Hope. This is farce with a touch of social comment, and when seen in that light could be funny and enjoyable. Personally I could not because of the gushy reviews I'd heard. One day I hope to not rush along, lemming-like, to see a movie because of a Julie Rigg exultation! Like many musicals, Bran Nue Dae has a barely believable plot, one dimensional characters, a resolution which makes a deus ex machina look believable and moderately interesting music.

Within these parameters director Rachel Perkins does a good job, but the star turn of the piece for me was Ernie Dingo as Uncle Tadpole. He's worth the ticket price on his own.

Fearless (1993)

To love life, it helps to lose it

[8/10 · 1 January 2010]

Peter Weir is unique in his ability to convey the niceties of life with authenticity. Jeff Bridges is the master of the theatrical understatement. A plane crash creates a untenable level of fear in the mind anyone who has stood next to one and pondered that fate.Henryk Gorecki's Symphony No 3 creates an overwhelming sense of sadness. Fearless benefits from all these things, as well as a strong supporting cast.

I cannot watch this movie without being buffeted emotionally. I know many film lovers prefer a more concrete plot and less tugging at the heartstrings. They should turn to a different page now.

Fearless is a gem for anyone else.

I hasten to add America, the Peter Weir was only on loan, and we want him back in Australia.

Samson & Delilah (II) (2009)

Confronting

[8/10 · 22 September 2009]

This is an uncanny film which shows a side to Australia most Australians would prefer not to know. First Time Director Thornton presents a series of small tragedies without preaching, moralising and mostly without words, in a similar way to Cronenberg's masterpiece Spider. He creates an uncomfortable atmosphere, which is confronting but wholly realistic.

The main characters rarely speak. Delilah speaks only in an aboriginal tongue. Samson says one word in the whole movie, and that is a laboured attempt to say his own name. Other characters speak English freely, creating a point of difference between Samson and Delilah and the world they encounter. It also alienates them further.

This film gives a snapshot of the effects of substance abuse, extreme poverty, the violence within aboriginal society as well as the violence directed at it and worse of all the general apathy of the white population to these issues. The acting is unpretentious, the soundtrack sparse and conversation is absent.

The tragedies experienced by aboriginal people have no simple solutions. The first step toward a solution is to be aware that there is a problem. This film does that in spades. The sparse non-verbal presentation makes the viewer have to work to interpret the images shown. In the process one may glean an intuitive understanding, which is often the role of art.

Highly recommended.

The Lady Vanishes (1938)

Dated but delightful

[8/10 · 24 August 2009]

This film begins with the camera sweeping down from the hills to a little village - a model complete with two plastic citizens standing by the railway carriage. Yes, 1930's special effects were primitive, but no doubt in 1938 the idea was so new. It reminds me of that wonderful pan backwards in Gone with the Wind of the aftermath of a battle which just keeps going. Two moments in cinematography which probably significantly contributed to our modern art.

The leads in this film are all such strong performances, Margaret Lockwood especially so. The script is not perfect but has so many great moments including some oblique sexual references which are surprising for the era. Hitchcock's direction milks almost every moment for either suspense or humour, both of which he was the master. It's a wonder he never made a "straight" comedy, though the Trouble with Harry goes very close.

It is certainly one of Hitchcock's finest, and is highly recommended.

Into the Wild (2007)

Fascinating

[8/10 · 11 July 2009]

I watched this movie on Wednesday and it has been percolating through my mind ever since. It's not that it has awoken a desire to strike out for Alaska like the hero of the piece Christopher McCandless. Nor do I find his ethics or morality particularly palatable. It's just a good picture of an intelligent young person who does not share the capitalist dream, or the notion that relationships with others should be the basis of life.

Some critics have characterised him as cruel, because he distances himself so fully from his family, especially his sister. This is not a problem for me. My problem with him is that he doesn't fully perceive his dependence on society, even when he's out in the wild. Perhaps that's director Sean Penn's intention. I think I'll seek out the book sometime soon.

But these quibbles do nothing to demean a film which is well crafted and beautifully shot. It should be watched, and watched more than once.

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian (2009)

Yeah it's dumb-dumb, but it's fun fun

[6/10 · 11 July 2009]

OK I know this is a silly movie. A sequel to a movie based on the shaky premise that ancient Egyptian magic can bring antiquities to life and that hostile forces can be tamed by friendship. More than this, Ben Stiller's Larry has somehow mended his bumbling cowardly ways and has become successful and forceful.

Still there is something here which can only truly be enjoyed if you see this flick with a child. And that something is a sense of pure fun. In this respect the film is a great success. There are catch-phrases (often meaningless repetitions of the same line), a series of crazy what-ifs (eg a WWII sailor trying to work out a mobile phone) and a frantic cluttered story line in a similar vein to Jumanji.

Turn off your adult for a while, and enjoy this.

Zodiac (2007)

Not Donnie, but still Darko

[8/10 · 22 June 2009]

I have to say that I love this movie. It is similar in style to Silence of the Lambs, which sustained an air of tension and blackness without the usual visual excesses of the horror genre. The story is told so well both in the selection and the framing of its subjects. The direction is tight and uncomplicated.

But I was most impressed with the acting. The whole cast was effective, but two in particular. Robert Downey Jnr has never been a particular favourite, but he is splendid as edgy journalist Paul Avery. Jake Gillenhaal gives his best turn yet as a man who might, or might not, suffer from one of the Autism spectrum disorders. He has already one iconic character to his credit in Donnie Darko, with Robert Graysmith he has surely established another. He typifies the difficulties autistic people have in maintaining relationships, even when their intelligence cannot be doubted.

A tour de force effort by all concerned.

The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943)

More a glider than a blimp

[9/10 · 18 May 2009]

This film is pure magic. It fully deserves to be in any list of the Top films of all time. That it was made during the second world war yet treats its topic with objectivity, humour and humanity places it in the category of true art. The story is engrossing, the characters so real that I find that no time at all seems to have passed between the beginning and the end titles. Roger Livesay characterises the many faces of Colonel Wynn-Candy with immense panache and an authenticity which amazes me. The cast provides the perfect backdrop for "Blimp" to realise that his time has passed, and the rules he considered ran the world are no longer valid. He is one of the iconic characters in cinema history, in the same class as Rick Blaine, Inspector Clouseau and Charles Foster Kane.

It is pleasing to see that no-one has had the effrontery to try and re-make this classic. Watch this film.

Happy Birthday, Wanda June (1971)

Stagey but hits the spot

[8/10 · 1 July 2008]

This is one of my favourites, so I admit to being terrible biased about its merit. As a movie it's a bit clunky in places, but the cast is wonderful. For me the best of these is William Hickey. He often has the best lines in the fashion of the fool in Shakepeare. A drunken broken man whose one defining moment (in his friend's eyes anyway) he regrets totally. The movie is worth a look just for him. If you don't understand or enjoy Kurt Vonnegut's cynicism you won't enjoy this film. All of the "living" characters leave something to be desired, and there is little to inspire here. But it is funny in an ironic kind of way, and so indicative of humanity. The deceased characters (who all play shuffleboard in heaven on Jesus' team) are a hoot as well.

Spider (2002)

Read the book then marvel at the film

[9/10 · 16 March 2008]

This is one of those rare films where the film is more accomplished than the book. In the book there is a first person narration, but the story of this film is told in the camera lens. In the first scene we wait for the protagonist's appearance from a terminating train. Fom the first moment we see him we know there is something different about him. We learn who he is through the brilliance of the acting and direction rather than via dialogue. And it is an uncomfortable process. We see him curled up in a ball in a bath of horribly discoloured water - this tells more of Spider than any dialogue. That Patrick McGrath was able to present his story in such a different form to the book is remarkable.

Ralph Fiennes is magnificent in the title role, and Gabriel Byrne not less so as the father. Cronenburg's direction is intelligent and wonderfully restrained. But the tour de force of the film has got to be Miranda Richardson. Unfortunately you will have to see the film to find out why.

This is not pleasant viewing. Spending time with the mentally ill is not something everyone can cope with. In my work I do this daily, and I found Spider insightful and brutally sharp in its depiction of one man's experience.

Babel (I) (2006)

What a disappointment!

[3/10 · 9 July 2007]

This film tells four somewhat interrelated stories in its 138 minutes. Many other movies have tried similar. Viewers who do not like films of that type bemoan oversymplistic plots, or banal dialogue or contrived story lines. This movie fails not just because of those faults, but because it tries so unsuccessfully to avoid them. It aspires to a type of visual literature without enough substance in its construction. In so doing it gives us characters who are not endearing, a complete lack of resolution of its story and an overwhelming feeling of "So What?" at its completion. Babel indeed - many many words, but little meaning or value. Yes there are good points, but the game is not worth the candle.

Crash (I) (2004)

Singular

[9/10 · 2 May 2007]

Occasionally the best film of the year actually wins the Oscar for best film. Crash is a wonderful way to spend two hours. The central issue discussed is racism, but the movie has something to say about human relationships of all types. And despite the hatred and cruelty it describes, it gives hope that things can get better for us all. That is if we can survive our own gross stupidity.

I've always been a fan of the ensemble cast and the multi story format so well executed by Robert Altmann. Lately that genre has become a little tired, but this is right up there with the best. The cast is so consistently good, and each of the interlinking stories has an important contribution to make.

Those who like good and evil to be set up like cans on a rock may not enjoy this movie. There is no central hero, no particular villain, no grandiose conclusion. Outstanding works of art do not require such baubles.

The Pelican Brief (1993)

Hitchcock would have been pleased

[9/10 · 23 March 2006]

You gotta love Alan Pakula. His Pelican Brief is true to the source material but manages to complement it with artfulness learned from Hitchcock and the events portrayed in All The President's Men (also directed by Pakula).

The result is a thriller which never has to resort to the hackneyed or the obvious. Even the chase scene in a car park manages to be a little different.

He has casted brilliantly (perhaps Fletcher Coal should have been older?) but his masterstroke is commisioning James Horner to provide the score. At times sparse and at others boldly chromatic it jangles the nerves as Julia and Denzel duck and weave their way through a maze of unease.

A great way to spend two hours.

Spanglish (2004)

A fine romance

[7/10 · 13 February 2006]

Unlike earlier contributors, I found the loose nature of the storytelling in this movie to be refreshing. Life is not simple. Lots of things happen in the timespan depicted in this movie. Some are resolved, some not.

The characters are a little one-dimensional, but that is par for the course. Paz Vega's Flor seems to do little actual work. And would someone as hard nosed as Tea Leone's Mrs Klasky have hired her on such an interview? But these are minor quibbles.

What is terrific is that this movie manages to steer clear of the usual cliché ending. I admire the self-confidence of the script in this. Though we all love a happy ending, life does not often provide them.

The two teenage girls will have, I hope, a long and distinguished career in films. Their performances are worth the rental fee even without the surprise that Adam Sandler can actually act and that Cloris Leachman has lost none of her ability.

Watch this film.

633 Squadron (1964)

Flawed classic with a brilliant score

[6/10 · 10 December 2005]

I saw this when it first came out I was eight years old, and lived close to a WWII airfield south of London, so I was captivated by a film which gave me a wealth of fantasy to enjoy while I walked the then deserted runways of Kenley.

I have just watched the DVD. I still enjoyed the movie despite its many shortcomings. Probably the score has a lot to do with this. Ron Goodwin is a most under-rated composer. Only a master could base music on machine gun fire and end up with something so thoroughly uplifting.

Though this film does not bear excessive scrutiny, I have to applaud the hard-nosed portrayal of the fliers. It is my understanding that grieving is often a luxury in war, and one combatants did not allow themselves.

The parallel with Star Wars is valid. but the finale is something Lucas could not have contemplated without risking his box office takings!! You'll have to see it to figure out why. Oh and turn the volume up for the music.

The Dish (2000)

Small town boffins make good

[8/10 · 7 November 2005]

This movie certainly gives an accurate impression of Australia in the late 1960's, especially the lack of sophistication and difficulty dealing with authority. It was a time of change though, and this provides an interesting backdrop to the events of July 1969.

Edmund Choi's excellent soundtrack is paired with an apt selection of popular music, which will be remembered well by those who were around to see the live coverage of Armstrong and Aldrin walk on the moon. The archival footage of NASA etc are well utilised to support the action. eg the juxtaposition of Nixon talking to Armstrong while US Army guys watch the TV, possibly in Vietnam(?) There is a great depth to this little tale, and more to notice each time you slip the DVD into the machine.

Sam Neill and Tom Long are wonderfully cast, and the Working Dog team display their usual panache in mixing the serious and the absurd to form a film which is uniquely Australian.

The Goddess of 1967 (2000)

High quality

[8/10 · 19 October 2005]

This film combines an interesting and meaningful plot with cinematography which is a tribute to the many textures of Australia and some restrained but insightful acting and direction.

Most of the funding for the movie was from two state governments. The producers have had to be sparing with their special effects. Despite this the film has more atmosphere than most Hollywood films with budgets in the tens of millions.

This film does not shout any particular message at its audience, so how much you see is really up to you. Many films about such a sensitive topic can be too heavy handed. It is a great credit to Clara Law that she says so much so quietly.

Karaoke (1996)

Outstanding

[9/10 · 1 May 2005]

This was my first experience of Dennis Potter. Subsequently I find he used similar themes in other works, notably the Singing Detective. Though that work is terrific, I find Karaoke and its sequel Cold Lazarus to be the total package. I am yet to see anything on the small screen which comes close to them. The incomparable Albert Finney leading a strong supporting cast, tight direction and a fascinating story. The characters are so believable, and ironically (as Potter was dying when he wrote this) they are mostly likable despite their many flaws. It is hard to find anyone likable in the Singing Detective My only question is why has the Beeb Beeb Ceeb not released this on DVD?