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kaemera
Reviews
Snakes on a Plane (2006)
A good old-fashioned B-movie roller-coaster
I had heard all the hype and read all the stories about internet fanbases and such, but wasn't sure if the movie was good. Watching it on your own at home may not work so well, but seeing it in a theatre with a dozen noisy, hyperactive friends (like I did) makes this an awesome piece of B-grade cheese pumped up with early-noughties film techniques.
The plot, such as it is, can be summed up really quickly (for those who haven't heard already): A young surfer witnesses a murder and is placed under the protection of the FBI to testify against the killer, but said killer fills the Honolulu-to-Hawaii red eye with hundreds of poisonous snakes high on pheromones which wind them up into a killing frenzy.
But enough about that. Samuel L Jackson is excellent in his role as the FBI superman, somewhere between his role in "The Negotiator" and a parody of Jules in "Pulp Fiction." Julianna Margulies is great as the sarcastic stewardess. Nathan Phillips is pretty good as the murder witness, but there wasn't much in the way of acting involved in his role. That in mind, he does a good job with what's there. And there are some other great, hilarious performances by people playing RnB stars (and their bodyguards), daffy blondes with tiny dogs in their purses, the passenger who's scared of flying (and that's before the snakes come out), the pilot who sexually harasses the stewardesses, the woman with a baby, two little boys flying along for the first time... the list of clichés goes on.
The effects are pretty good, the music works well, and there are quite a few sudden jolts as snakes dart out of dark corners, vents, and assorted other nastier places. There are claustrophobic crawls through ducts, fort-under-siege stand-offs, utterly predictable budding romances, a lucky couple who join the Mile High Club, some zany one-liners, and just about every scary snake you can poke a stick at.
So to sum up, if you go in expecting a Hollywood blockbuster, an intelligent plot, detailed and subtle character development, or anything else that requires much thought process, you may be disappointed. But as long as you sit down without expectations like these, with a huge popcorn in one hand and a big gulp in the other, completely unprepared to take it seriously, you'll have a blast.
The Book of Revelation (2006)
Confronting and thought-provoking.
I saw this at the world premiere at the Melbourne International Film Festival last night, not really knowing what to expect. The set-up was intriguing: a dancer at the height of his skill is abducted by three women, abused and tormented for twelve days, then turned loose in the world to find meaning in his life in the aftermath.
I won't say much about what happens after this, but I will say it is confronting, unflinching, sometimes disturbing, and very thought-provoking. Tom Long's portrayal of Daniel, a victim searching for meaning (as well as a means of releasing his rage and hurt caused by this victimisation) was stunning. Anyone familiar with victims of trauma will see more realism in his performance than could be comfortable. Greta Scacchi was excellent as the ballet director confused by her lead's sudden disappearance and subsequent dramatic change in personality, and also burdened by her own serious troubles. There are other great performances in the film, but it really belongs to Long.
The film feels like a roller-coaster ride, but not in the usual sense of explosions, chases and gunfights. Rather, the audience is dragged through the depths of Daniel's abuse and his struggle to come to terms with it - we witness in grim details his confusion, his fury, his obsessive search for his tormentors, and the social forces which discourage him to tell his story.
This one gets my vote for best Australian film of the year.
Release (1998)
A bit dated, but still an excellent introduction to hardcore...
So most of you will know hardcore as Atreyu and Hatebreed (if you have heard of it). This documentary, released before these bands became worldwide metal giants with ridiculously frequent MTV coverage, gives an entertaining and informative look at punk rock and hardcore's roots, development, musical evolution and love-hate relationship with mainstream success. It also attempts to address the issue of violence within the punk and hardcore scene, as well as taking a range of viewpoints on the ever-contentious "straight edge" lifestyle.
The opening scenes sum up what punk and hardcore are (or at least, used to be) about. The live footage, which features Earth Crisis, Less Than Jake, MxPx, Agent Orange, Hatebreed, Bouncing Souls, Vision Of Disorder, Good Riddance, Homegrown, Sick Of It All, and more, is very good - it gives an insight into what a hardcore show looks like, and the sound quality is about as good as that at a hardcore show gets. Some of the interviews with the above bands are a tad repetitive, but most are informative and amusing - check out Blink 182's Mark Hoppus rabbiting on for close to 60 seconds without taking a breath, while Tom DeLonge sits by staring at him (possibly waiting to squeeze a word in).
Some of the footage and opinions voiced seem a bit dated now, with the increasing prevalence of watered-down hardcore bands (e.g. Atreyu, The Used, etc) in mainstream media, and the apparent decline in punk rock's fanbase (siphoned off by hardcore, metalcore or emo). If you don't like punk, metal or hardcore, then chances are you won't enjoy this documentary as much as people who do, but for those just discovering this musical culture, introductions don't come much better.