The last few days have seen a glut of good to excellent films pass before me. It’s rare to experience such a purple patch. Usually you’ll watch a couple of poor films but not this time. Of the films below, I urge you to watch them all if you haven’t already.
Martha Marcy May Marlene
The Olsen twins much less famous sister (Elizabeth) soars like a Chinese Lantern in this incredibly powerful film. It tells the story of a young girl who flees a cult and rejoins her family – albeit at the upstate holiday home. It’s only her sister left and the sister has spent the last few years wondering where Martha (Olsen) has been. We see recollections of Martha’s time in the cult as she struggles to slot back into family life and the real world. It goes without saying that it’s been a truly harrowing experience for her. Olsen deserves an Oscar nomination for this performance – she’s pitch perfect as the shell-shocked victim. The tension is cranked up by a very tight performance from Hugh Dancy as the sloaney husband of Martha’s sister trying to enjoy ‘his only two weeks off’. You’ve got to watch this. Easily one of the my favourites of the year with “Snowtown” and “We Need To Talk About Kevin” and the film below…
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1441326/
Tyrannosaur
What can be said about this film. It’s immense. Incredible. Brilliant. There’s a degree of Frank Gallagher to Joseph, our incredibly reluctant anti-hero. Joseph (Peter Mullan) is an unfathomably angry man. His temper has reached a tipping point when Hannah (Olivia Colman), a Christian charity shop worker, comes into his life. Joseph doesn’t know to deal with a patient, caring person who doesn’t reciprocate his anger. Hannah has experience in dealing with anger, though, via her husband, James (Eddie Marsan). It’s definitely best to go into this film knowing as little as possible, so I won’t reveal anything else. The cast is incredible. Each of the three leads delivers a powerhouse performance. It’s likely you’ll recognise elements of these characters in people you know. They personify anger that’s prevalent in everyday life and enrich the film with a realism that may scare a few people.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1204340/
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Having not seen the original films or read the books, it was intriguing to go in blind to this. I’m a big fan of David Fincher and appreciate his heavily stylised films. They look beautiful and are anchored with strong performances. There’s no change here. At the core, the premise owes a debt to “The Wicker Man” and the confusion in unravelling the mystery definitely mirrors ‘Wicker’. Rooney Mara is exceptional as Lisbeth Salander. One of the things I really enjoyed with this film was how we are privy to Lisbeth’s world before she becomes involved with the film’s lead mystery: the disappearance of a young girl (Harriet Vander) who’s part of Sweden’s most successful family. By investigating Lisbeth’s backstory and running this parallel to the investigation into the disappearance of Harriet, there’s a nice connect between ‘finding’ the girls and discovering the mystery of them – it’s surely no coincidence that the photo of Harriet looks remarkably like Lisbeth. By the time Lisbeth becomes involved with the investigation into the disappearance, we see how she is dedicated to her work and how vulnerable she can be. There are a couple of scenes which are stomach churning and do an awful lot towards making us care about her. When she joins up with Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig), I found myself totally immersed in her character and looking out for her. Rooney Mara and David Fincher deserve enormous credit for crafting that. Christopher Plummer is also excellent as the old man desperately seeking closure on the disappearance of Harriet. This is an incredibly layered film that requires you to submit to it with patience in reserve.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1568346/
Tabloid
This documentary possesses more ‘kooky’ characteristics than hours of watching Phoebe Buffay. It’s a recounting of the kidnapping of a Mormon missionary. The fact that the abductor is a former beauty queen (Joyce McKinney) and the victim (Kirk Anderson) is a portly bespectacled man only adds to the craziness. The official line is that Joyce abducted Anderson, had her wicked way with him (he had been a virgin), and then packed him off on a train back to the Mormon Church. Once back, he had her arrested and she became part-pantomime villian, part-heroine of the ‘I-wish-she’d-do-that-to-me’ variety. Now, naturally McKinney disputes this chain of events. She claims that Anderson willingly participated in the romp and was planning to marry here when he grabbed the train; she says he only recanted once back in the clutches of the Mormon Church who threatened to excommunicate him for his sordid behaviour. The tabloids (The Express and Daily Mirror) had a field day with her and once she was released on bail, she fled the country impersonating a mute. You couldn’t make it up. McKinney is a captivating interviewee. You cannot take your eyes off her. She claims the screen with incredible charisma. I’ll leave it to you decide if she’s telling the truth.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1704619/
The Devil’s Double
I’m sure there will be a number of forthcoming films about Iraq under Saddam. I’m not sure, however, they will be as fun as this film. There’s a tightrope between serious and silly at times, yet this film just about toes the line without ever getting silly. There seems to be no attempt to politicise the content: Saddam’s sadistic first son, Uday Saddam Hussein, employs a body double like the one Saddam himself employs. Uday’s intentions seem to be as much about ‘creating something’ for his ego as it is for his safety. There’s a sense of Uday as a lonely man who, unrestrained by normal social rules, seeks alternative pleasure. Latif (his body double) becomes like a human Barbie to Uday and in turn witnesses the brutality that led Saddam to pass him over as heir apparent for his younger brother. Dominic Cooper plays both characters and infuses each man with his own personality. He does an excellent job in showing two sides of what becomes one coin. On the one hand, he shows Uday revelling in the chaos he causes, whilst on the other hand showing a peaceful man caught up in an alien world trying to reclaim his identity. The source material itself is compelling and the book written by the real Latif must be a good read. The film does a great job in bringing Latif’s story to the screen.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1270262/
Moneyball
Brad Pitt adds another impressive performance to his resume with this retelling of the Oakland A’s adoption of computer-based analysis of statistics for constructing your team. Forgoing the wisdom and experience of the team’s scouts, Billy Beane (Pitt), faces ridicule and pariah status for this strategic shift. As a sports film, it’s likely to turn a few people off, which would be a shame. To me it spoke more of the pursuit of your dreams in the face of financial constraints, the opposition of naysayers, and your own self-doubt. Who cannot relate to that? Who cannot remember being told you can’t do that or that it’s not the ‘way we do things’? Beane discarded the advice and has changed the game forever. Or so I’m told – I cannot think 0f anything worse than following baseball to actually find out. And that’s the triumph of the film – I liked it irrespective.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1210166/
Kill List
It’s been a good year for British film. This film will infuriate many with its inconclusive ending. There’s a huge debt (in my mind and for a second film in this post) to “The Wicker Man”, but to explore that link would be to ruin it for those who haven’t seen it yet. There’s a lot of ‘kitchen sink drama’ and violence. Jay (Neil Maskell) has to take on a job to fix up his finances and together with his buddy, Gal, embarks on a ‘kill list’. From there we sink into a world that becomes increasingly confusing but intoxicating. This is a very British film and if you like that kind of thing (which I do), then you’ll enjoy large parts of this film. The ending will divide opinion but this film will never leave you bored. Neil Maskell does a sterling job as a deranged man with unfinished business in ‘Kiev’. Maskell is best known to me for his excellent turn in “The Football Factory”. One of the scenes is so excellent, I’ve had to drop it in below. The quality is shabby but listen to those words. Excellent.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1788391/
Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol
Finally! Tom Cruise is back where he deserves to be. At the very top with a smash hit. The man is a great actor (“Collateral”, “Magnolia”, “Jerry Maguire”, “Born on the Fourth of July”) and apparently a lovely guy. He’s taken a barrel load of abuse these past few years for his devotion to the Church of Scientology. Who cares? You think he’s a weirdo for being a member, I think you’re a weirdo for being offended. As you can probably tell, I’m a fan of Cruise. It’s the reason I’ve written a feature length script called… “Cruiseaholics”. Great title but one I nabbed from a man who’d prefer to remain anonymous. This latest installment of the M:I series is up there with the third one in my affections. This is a very strong action movie. Some of the stunts will stun you whilst others will tread the line of ‘Oh, come on!’ but that’s the beauty of this film – it makes the impossible possible. It works. Whilst I prefer the grittier (rather than the more showy M:I) action of “Taken”, “Die Hard” or the Bourne trilogy (especially “Bourne Ultimatum”), M:I films will always entertain you.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1229238/
Margin Call
Now this is a loaded film. Set in an investment bank, we see the fallout from the discovery of some toxic investments that will ultimately lead to the financial crisis of 2008. Writing this film must’ve been extremely difficult. It’s a setup laden with opportunities to disseminate arguments of the ill effect of greed and malpractice in financial services, the lack of regulatory oversight and commentary of our complicity in the whole affair wrapped up in a thriller to the moviegoing public. Lofty ambitions but surely on the writer’s mind when he wrote this. As it is, the film succeeds to a degree in showing you the scramble to sell off these bad debts with scant regard for the human impact (and yes, the negative impact on bankers) and the repercussions and ripple effect on the whole sector. Jeremy Irons plays the top dog who – in unavoidably echoing Gordon Gecko – precipitates the crisis by seeking preservation of his firm over the economy. When you boil it down to a simple decision and omit the ramifications of his decision, on a human level it’s simply a decision to save your own bacon – an example of a man with the power to enact Social Darwinism. What the film is lacking is more nuanced characterisation and disappointingly, a raft of excellent performances. There are some good performances but no standouts and that’s what ultimately holds this film back. I would’ve also enjoyed a character like that of Blake in “Glengarry Glen Ross”. Would’ve added so much. See clip below for one of my all-time favourite cameos.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1615147/
Sarah Palin:You Betcha!
What an incredibly divisive figure she is. Revered by far-right Republicans and loathed by the left. Broomfield’s documentary describes a polarising figure who has anywhere between 30-40 on-going feuds. That’s a lot of angst. The central point to Michael Moore’s “Roger and Me” was that he couldn’t get an interview with the CEO of General Motors. He tuned his whole polemic to that central problem in his documentary. The supposed irony is that Moore was able to interview ‘Roger’ but elected not to as it wouldn’t serve his ‘agenda’. I’m a big fan of Moore and whilst I acknowledge he’s disingenuous at times, his heart is certainly in he right place – he’s a man of the people, in my opinion. Broomfield attempts to channel Palin’s reluctance to be interviewed into a commentary of her paranoia and the lingering suspicion she has ‘something to hide’. That’s all well and good, but it lacks the conviction of Moore’s work. In my mind, (and the reason I keep referencing Moore) Broomfield was using the Moore template without the delicate touch. For large parts of the documentary, Broomfield feels a prisoner to his decision to go ahead with the documentary and appears to be scampering around for material to fill the 90 minutes. It could just be that Broomfield didn’t enter the film with an agenda and presented what he found, though. For me, the film is at its strongest when it focuses on Palin’s role on the McCain-Palin ticket in the 2008 election. That was an avenue I felt should’ve been explored more. She was a disaster with her bumbling interviews and divisive rhetoric. There’s a revealing interview with Steve Schmidt, McCain’s campaign manager, that echoed these thoughts. He considered her a huge mistake that ultimately put the final nail in the coffin. All that said, the exploration of Palin’s roots and her strong religious conviction were interesting. Broomfield did gain access to Palin’s family and the interviews with her Dad revealed a very down to earth family a world away from the fast pace of Washington, DC.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1965264/
Andrew Allen 