Trailer Round-Up

The first trailer for Where the Wild Things Are is online and it looks promising. There is not much substance on display, so it is hard to gauge the performances, but visually it is a sumptuous delight.

This little film has been getting good word of mouth. The trailer has been online for awhile but I imagine it has slipped under most peoples radar. There is no NZ release date set but I for one cannot wait for 500 Days of Summer.

The trailer for Judd Apatow's latest directorial effort, Funny People, has also been online for a few weeks. I dare you to watch it and not rewind it to watch Leslie Mann's Aussie-accented abuse of Eric Bana! "Lot's of people go to massage parlours... it doesn't mean I was gettin' a rub 'n tug. Oi!"

The Wrestler: Review

Darren Aronofsky's last film, The Fountain, was a modern-day sci-fi parable of love and loss set against a kaleidoscope of Spanish conquistadors and outer space. It is a visual and spiritual feast of ideas that is well-worth the 90min running time. However, critically the film was divisive and audiences stayed away in droves. Add a tortured production, that saw the initial version of it scrapped to be resumed two years later with a lower budget, it is no surprise that Aronofsky followed that ambitious film with this low-key character study.

Playing an ageing wrestler, who only receives affection by having himself beaten to a pulp in-front of a screaming audience or by paying lap-dancers, Rourke's hulking figure is in almost every frame. And, it is his performance that makes the film worth-seeing. Some have said that his performance is perhaps less worthy as he is essentially playing himself; a broken down piece of meat actor playing a broken down piece of meat wrestler. This, of course, is an absurd idea. It is no easier playing a version of yourself than someone else entirely and surely it takes much more courage, insight, and humility to expose yourself on film as Rourke does here.

Aronfosky's direction in his past films has been very conscious. While the mark of his direction is still all over this film; note the use of the steadicam to mirror the images of Rourke heading to the wrestling ring with him heading to the deli counter; all visual tricks to entertain the audience have been discarded to watch the actors in a raw, almost uneditorial fashion. It does not make for an overly entertaining film but it does pay off in dividends by letting this unassuming story seep into viewers hearts as the final frames play.

I think this is what it must have been like to see a film in the seventies. Discerning adults, going to the movies, not for mind-numbing escape but, looking for something to stimulate the heart and fuel the late night conversation. If that was the film-makers goal then they have succeeded admirably!

No more Pumpkins!

Moving away from the flicks for a moment let's turn our attention to its close sister, music!

I am glad that I got to see the Smashing Pumpkins when they played Wellington last year; the older tracks were spellbinding and even one new track, Superchrist, was excellent. And we will never see it again. The Pumpkins are no more. With Jimmy Chamberlain having officially left, Corgan by himself does not the Pumpkins make!

Often mentioned in the top five drummers of all time, Chamberlain's drumming was almost as important to the band as Corgan's song craft. As that has been somewhat lacking since 1998's Adore, any remnants of this once glorious band is dead. Oh, they are going ahead without Jimmy, so the band will remain in name, but any remaining heart is gone.

I hope Corgan proves me wrong and produces another epic as good as Siamese Dream, but with his talk of no more albums, and griping at the fans, this once shoe-gazing artist has become a cynical product factory.

happy-go-lucky

Watching this gem it strikes me that I have not seen nearly enough Mike Leigh films! The man has a talent for evoking life on the screen and twisting it's messy complexities into a concise, meaningful, narrative.

Poppy (Sally Hawkins) is happy-go-lucky. After, somewhat gracefully, having her bicycle stolen she decides to learn to drive. Which brings her into Scott's world. Scott, a fastidious driving instructor, is too obsessed with all that is wrong with the world to enjoy any of it's beauty. In Hollywood this pairing would lead to a rambunctious romantic-comedy; Poppy learning that sometimes it pays to be "an adult", while Scott becomes a carefree lover of small children, cats, ducks, and fluffy bunnies!

Thank God for Mike Leigh! For in his hands this material is played for honest integrity. No formulas or audience polls here; just the sweet, brutal, truth.

His method of film-making is to deduce a loose plot and then have actors improvise scenes. Through many sessions he gathers material and then hones it into a workable screenplay. The results prove that there is method to his madness!

Essentially a character study capped with a charming life lesson, the movie is anchored by it's vivacious lead actress. Her Golden-Globe winning performance has you believing that if you ever happened to meet Sally Hawkins she would be exactly like Poppy. The supporting actors all provide terrific support for her.

So let's raise a glass to Mike Leigh for not selling out to Hollywood and here is to catching up with many more Mike Leigh films in the future!

Need a laugh?

Before Sunset

I am definitely a little late to this movie! A sequel to 1995's Before Sunrise, Before Sunset picks up with the characters nine years on.

Before Sunrise told the tale of two twenty-somethings (played by Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy) who meet on a train and spend one night together; mostly talking. I remember being fond of it but I cannot have liked it that much as I have never sought it out again! The sequel is the same two people walking around talking; although, with a little more life experience and reflection the characters have become more immediate and grounded.

I really do not have the heart to critique or dissect this film in any way. Let us just say that I loved it and you might too! If you have not done so I recommend that you watch Before Sunrise first. Let's hope if they make another one it is just as good!

News from the Front

Up Shorts

Up-coming Pixar movie Up (see what I did there - pretty clever huh!) has some new promotional shorts online. You can find them here. This is still looking like a doozy!

More Tree of Life details emerge!

Empire Magazine stirred up a minor frenzy on the web last week when they published a small quote regarding effects in Terrence Malick's upcoming film Tree of Life. After much speculation they were kind enough to publish another snippet online to clarify:

"We’re just starting work on a project for Terrence Malick, which is actually 3 films. There’s going to be a 35mm release, a shorter IMAX version, and then they’re talking about another shorter 35mm version which isn’t quite the Imax version but not the feature length one either.""We’re animating dinosaurs, but it’s not Jurassic Park. The attempt is to treat it as if somehow a camera wound up in the middle of these periods when dinosaurs roamed the earth and creatures first started to emerge from the sea onto the land. The first mammals appearing. We’re doing a number of creatures all seriously scientifically based.""I think when it’s finished it’ll be something that’s referred to for years."

A little science goes a long way

Ever wonder why time-travellers in the Terminator series always jumped through time naked? Neither did I. The folks at CollegeHumour weren't quite so blase about it and, after many long hours of research, they have a solution; presented below in video, so you don't have to read any of those pesky scientific words.

Watchmen: Review

If The Dark Knight was the thinking-man's blockbuster then Watchmen is a character film wrapped up in blockbuster clothing. Based on the worshipped Alan Moore graphic novel, Watchmen is set in an alternate reality, where Nixon is serving his fourth term as president, Russia is poised on the nuclear button, and several former costumed heroes are adjusting to life hiding in plain sight.

Played by a film stealing Jackie Earle Haley, Rorschach, who makes Batman look like a girl guide, plumbs the depths of his righteous, empty, humanity to investigate the murder of former costumed vigilante, The Comedian. Propelling the narrative, the murder mystery uncovers the costumed heroes past and deconstructs them into the fragile, twisted, human-beings that hide beneath their masks.

Along with Haley, Patrick Wilson also gives a nuanced performance as the nebbish, inadequate, Nite Owl. And fan's of Grey's Anatomy may be shocked to see Jeffrey Dean Morgan brilliantly chewing his way through rape and murder as the existentialist Comedian; Hollywood, please give this man his own movie!

With each character lovingly cared for by director Zach Snyder (Dawn of the Dead, 300) their stories resonate with emotional honesty. In fact, it is within the extended set-pieces, usually the lynchpin of the "Summer Blockbuster" that the film occasionally falls flat; an over-the-top sex-scene set to Leonard Cohen's magnificent Hallelujah being particularly grating.

However, these are minor quibbles. Like the narrative, the art design is wonderfully dense and is itself a character within the film; from the bold title colours, to the ridiculously-sublime costumes, and a set design that has you breathing in the scent of rain-drenched pavements, this film screams class.

The squeamish should be warned that the film does not pull any punches; with Dr Manhattan's giggle-inducing, Day-Glo blue, super schlong, and scenes of brutal violence, the film has definitely earned its R-rating. But, everyone else should get themselves along to the cinema and err, watch the Watchmen (Sorry, I couldn't help it).

Geek Week Round-Up

Transformers vs Terminators: It's a robot smackdown!!

I think the Chinese may wish to revise their calendar and rename 2009 Year of the Robot. 

An exciting new Terminator: Salvation trailer has gone up online. With more robot action than the latest Transformers trailer this is shaping-up nicely!

Find the trailer at Yahoo.

Who will be watching the Watchmen?

Well, if critics have their way not many will trot out to the cinemas this weekend for a dose of R-rated comic-book action. For, unfortunately, the reviews are not looking good. Not. Good. At all!

However, those in the geek community (I know some people) are close to raving about the film. Granted, this is the target audience, and they tend to get excited for all the wrong reasons, but there is still some hope...right?! Not a huge comic-book fan I will still make my way to the cinema on the weekend to have a look-see. Expect my review sometime over the weekend (I know you are hanging out for it!).

Break out the Floyd and the reefer; here comes The Tree of Life!

Terrence Malick's latest film is due this year. The project has been shrouded in secrecy with little to go on but a few photos (above) and a brief synopsis (below).

We trace the evolution of an eleven-year-old boy in the Midwest, Jack, one of three brothers. At first all seems marvelous to the child. He sees as his mother does, with the eyes of his soul. She represents the way of love and mercy, where the father tries to teach his son the world’s way, of putting oneself first. Each parent contends for his allegiance, and Jack must reconcile their claims. The picture darkens as he has his first glimpses of sickness, suffering and death. The world, once a thing of glory, becomes a labyrinth.

Framing this story is that of adult Jack, a lost soul in a modern world, seeking to discover amid the changing scenes of time that which does not change: the eternal scheme of which we are a part. When he sees all that has gone into our world’s preparation, each thing appears a miracle — precious, incomparable. Jack, with his new understanding, is able to forgive his father and take his first steps on the path of life.

The story ends in hope, acknowledging the beauty and joy in all things, in the everyday and above all in the family — our first school — the only place that most of us learn the truth about the world and ourselves, or discover life’s single most important lesson, of unselfish love.

It sounds like a transcendent drama; small in character with only the ambition of it's themes to make it grandiose. Well, according to the latest reports this project requires CGI dinosaurs and Nasa shot IMAX images from space!

Ain't It Cool News has suggested that these latest revelations may be for an accompanying IMAX project that Malick releases alongside The Tree of Life. But with other rumoured sequences featuring a sleeping Minotaur, and the birth and death  of the Universe, this is sounding like a real trip. Although the details are not yet clear, my excitement for this film has shot from an 11 to a 12! (Beat that Nigel Tufnel!)

Låt den rätte komma in: Review

Horror films get a bad rap these days and deservedly so. With so-called "Torture Porn" flooding the cinemas it is disenchanting to see how twisted the idea of what constitutes horror has become.

Like sci-fi, horror is best when it is allegorical; it is in illuminating the horrors of everyday life that provides the greatest terror. Some great examples from the past are; David Cronenberg's The Fly, The Exorcist, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, John Carpenter's The Thing, and Frankenstein. Films such as the Saw franchise simply cannot compete with their overly-contrived traps and excessive gore.

Lately, good horror films seem to be made, primarily, by foreign film-makers (The Orphanage, Pans Labyrinth, The Others). With their preference to story and character over gimmicks and gore, they create a palpable atmosphere, with haunting images that resonate with audiences for days, not just a titillating moment.

Let The Right One In is just such a film. Focusing on the story of 12 year-old Oskar, a lonely boy, living in Stockholm in the early '80's, the subject matter is surprisingly adult. Young Oskar has developed an obsession with murder and dreams of killing the school bullies that torment him. So, it is unnerving when a young vampire, Eli, moves in next door. As they strike up a friendship, moral lines begin to blur as Eli's predatory nature empowers Oskar.

The cast are excellent with the young leads being particularly effective. With his gaunt body and hollow eyes it is not hard to believe that young Oskar is capable of murder; it is this unease that preys on the mind of the audience as events unfold.

The vampire elements are all present in the film but, in a testament to restraint, they are never brought to the forefront of the tale; always allowing the human element of the story to take precedence. It is this mixture of the fantastic and mundane that makes the film so alluring.

I imagine that most debate about the film will come from the final scenes. In films that weave the fantastic into the reality of normal life it can become difficult to tie all of the threads together. Often films go too far into either direction; either amping up into a caricature of a fantasy film, or crashing back down to earth and disowning its mythical elements in a cruel trick on the audience (see The Village; or rather, don't!). Let The Right One In does perhaps go a little too "Grand Guignol" than it needs to in its final frames but it is still an effective end to an already excellent film.

This is the one of the best films that I have seen in the past year. If subtitles do not scare you then seek this film out; it is bound to have you checking your closet and looking under your bed!

Valkyrie: Review

Valkyrie is the tale of the eighth, and final, known attempt, by Germans, to assassinate Hitler. Directed by Bryan Singer (The Usual Suspects, Superman Returns) it stars Tom Cruise and a veritable smorgasbord of British acting talent.

It does Cruise well to return to a dramatic role, forgoing an out-and-out blockbuster that would be required to be carried by his waning star power. Seemingly more well known these days for his regular starring role in the tabloids, it is unlikely that Cruise could open a film with his name alone. Of course, in the current film market, not even the always reliable Will Smith can guarantee an opening. As Cruise grows older it will do him well to stretch his acting talent and leave event movies behind him; anyone that has seen the likes of Born on the Fourth of July, Magnolia, and Collateral, will know that he has talent to burn.

So, it is good to see that the film, as expected from Singer, tells its fascinating story well. It is a testament to all involved that a film with a known outcome can be so compelling. Cruise does well with the role, although, it is a little off putting trying to view Cruise, and the other well-known actors, as Nazis.

While not a must-see, the film is an entertaining history lesson. Those lacking an interest in history may find it an unfulfilling experience but if the subject matter interests you it is recommended.