Saturday, April 3, 2010
Reviews: Clash of the Titans & Greenberg
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Reviews: How to Train Your Dragon & Waking Sleeping Beauty
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Reviews: The Runaways & A Prophet
Among the few things that are certain in life, one is that audiences can never seem to get enough of the musical biopic. Make no mistake, even though we’ve seen a recent surge of this genre as Oscar-guzzling, baity projects from the likes of Ray, Walk the Line and even Dreamgirls (unofficially), this genre has had a long life stretching as far back as to the introduction of the sound era. Some of these pictures are good and others are a bit more cliched, but in the right hands, any of them can be successful. The latest outing takes a keen eye to this budding rock group in the seventies, and while it suffers from many of the same tired plot points of other films, it is bolstered by some fine performances that make it worth checking out.
The starting point is 1975, and hard, punk-rock is coming into its own. But ambitious, rebel artist Joan Jett (Kristen Stewart) is looking to revolutionize an industry that requires a shakeup every five years by starting an all female rock band. With the help of the extremely eccentric and flamboyant music producer Kim Fowley (Michael Shannon), she teams up with Cherie Currie (Dakota Fanning) and three other rock out chicks to form The Runaways. The group never had a huge following in America, and actually found more success overseas in Japan. With any rock’n’roll group, there are abuses of drugs, sex and personal relationships all the way until the group was disbanded in 1979. Currie went back to a normal life, and Jett became a more famous name with her new more famous band Joan Jett and the Blackheart’s.
If you are one of the lucky few that have avoided witnessing the black hole of entertainment that is Twilight, I’d advise you to continue your abstinence lest your opinion of every Kristen Stewart performance be tainted. I do believe she is capable of being a good actress, and I constantly refer to Adventureland as an example. But I saw that film before I was even aware she was in those vampire films. Now it’s hard for me to judge if she’s an accomplished actress here because I keep getting recalls of her bland work in Twilight. I will say she doesn’t harm the movie any, and her presence in the film does add enough of the angsty intensity needed, but nothing about her never catches on. Shannon probably has the greatest range of character ticks, and even though a little bit of Fowley can go a long way, he still manages to find ways to make him funny and insightful.
However, the real performance to check out here is Fanning. It’s true that we’ve never seen Fanning take on such a hard edge character, but I think she handles the material beautifully. Those who still remember the eight-year-old Fanning pleading to be reunited with a mentally challenged Sean Penn might find some of the drug and sexual content rather jarring, and even I did in some instances, I still look at it as a very talented young actress transitioning to a very talented young adult actress. You’ll have to be ready to hear all the phrases on your list of “Things I Thought I’d Never Hear Dakota Fanning Say”, but it will be totally worth it to see such a mature and well rounded performance.
First time feature director Floria Sigismondi does have an interesting style as director, and she manages to keep the wild spirit of the era alive and crafts the more quiet, intimate moments well also. However, it’s her screenplay that is filled with the usual rock band cliches, and the story never becomes quite ambitious enough to break free from what would normally be seen in a dramatized “Behind the Music” television movie. Often times the predictability of the plot takes away from the some of the positive elements, and it is the major flaw of the film, that plus some poor shooting choices, but the performances do help tremendously.
I can’t say this is a great film, or even a great biopic based on the current standard, because of the pedestrian plot that follows the biopic rules to a tee, and the film goes on for a bit too long. However, because the film is saved by tremendous performances, particularly from Fanning, the film is worth checking out for that reason alone. This will certainly not be the last musical biopic, and there’s plenty of room for improvement. But, in the end, I still look forward to them all. *** / ****; GRADE: B
I know I say that with every Oscar season that I try to get to see all the films nominated, but there are always some categories that I miss completely before the awards are given out. The Foreign Language Film category is one that I usually don't see because these films are not released in Chicago in time. Not too many people know of these films nominated, but there's generally two well known films that get beaten out by a lesser known film that ends up taking the Oscar. For instance, in 2008, Waltz with Bashir and The Class were two highly acclaimed films that lost to the little known Departures. This time, A Prophet and The White Ribbon were beat out by Argentina's The Secret in Their Eyes. I have not seen Ribbon or Secrets, but I can say that judging by how strong this particular film is, I would say this film deserved to be called an Oscar winner.
The film centers on Malik, played by relative newcommer Tahar Rahim. Malik is a French-Arab who is sentenced to a six year prison sentence when he is nineteen years old. On the inside, he is taken under the wing of Cesar (Niels Arestrup), the veteran inmate with deep mafia connections from the Corsicans (close to Italy). After Cesar orders Malik to kill an inmate who poses a threat at an upcoming trial, Malik slowly rises in ranks, becoming his own mafia kingpin all within his prison walls.
There have been a lot of comparisons made about this film to the likes of The Godfather and Scarface. It's true that Malik goes through a similar transformation that Michael Corleone had, but fortunately Rahim is a talented enough actor for the character not to feel like a carbon copy. Rahim does a magnificent job at creating the complex change in character that Malik goes through, and it's quite an admirable job he does. Every scene of his feels authentic to the character, and he makes a good case for his name to be a recognizable on a global scale. Likewise, Arestrup is fantastic as the more villainous character, also showing many sides to a character that could have been one note. These two are the heart and soul of why the film works so much, even though other members of the cast, unknown to American audiences, are just as excellent.
Director Jacques Audiard always knows how to find the right balance to strike in each scene. When the quiet tension needs to slowly rise, the sly humor subtly sneaks in, the intense drama pierces the atmosphere, it is all delivered. The ambitions of the film never seem extraordinary, but Audiard direction and screenplay find the perfect way to tell this story. Even when some of the directorial choices seem a bit out of place, or give the film a strange beat to hold on, there's still a sense of the overall scheme of things, and the staging of the final moments of the film add a breath of astonishment that can only be achieved through such simplicity.
I know there's a lot of people who avoid the subtitles, and even those who don't mind them will notice a bit of difficulty trying to decipher the uses of three different foreign languages. But once again, I must beg you not to be afraid of the subtitles because you will discover a beautifully crafted film with fantastic performances from the two leads. I know I'm late on seeing this film, but the old adage of "better late than never" applies here. And I also know I'm cheating a little bit with this statement, but considering the movie didn't premiere in my city until March, I would say this is the best film of the year so far. **** / ****; GRADE: A
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Reviews: Alice in Wonderland & Green Zone
After 2009 wasn't quite living up to my expectations, I remember making a list of all the releases that 2010 had to offer and became very excited to enter that new year. Three of the films on that list were The Wolfman, Shutter Island and Alice in Wonderland, and all of those films disappointed. I was beginning to lose hope that the promise this year gave early on was not going to be fulfilled. This film was also on the list, and given the latest efforts concerning Iraq War dramas lately, I was still skeptical on the success of the film, and early word of mouth seemed to add onto the fear this movie would fail as well. Having seen the film, I'm very happy to report that this is the first 2010 release film I've seen, that I was looking forward to, that actually did not disappoint.
Matt Damon stars (obvious from the poster) as a U.S. Army officer named Miller who is on the ground in Baghdad in early 2003. The quest for Saddam Hussein's WMDs are in full swing, but Miller is noticing that the sites provided by a secretive source named "Migellan" keep coming up empty. So Miller, bouncing between a pencil pushing Neocon (Greg Kinnear) and an investigative reporter (Amy Ryan), goes on his own one-man quest to find the true answers as to what is going on. The rest, as they say, is regrettable history.
Paul Greengrass has been the man who has mastered the docudrama approach, his most successful effort being the superbly crafted United 93. Greengrass's strengths have always been that his projects feel real, and even though the shaky camera can sometimes give you a bit of a headache, it is still used as a tool to enhance the apparent realism that is being offered. It's interesting how his direction can seem controlled and loose at the same time, but it always appears that he is a man that knows what the goal of a scene should be, an element he has shown even in his Bourne action vehicles. However, Brian Helgeland, usually an accomplished writer, provides a script is often riddled with hindsight proselytizing and subpar dialogue. The script isn't a tight as the direction, but it's merely passable.
Damon is an excellent actor, and he shows how again how his intense presence does wonder to fulfill his character's needs. After giving two bland performances last year, it is refreshing to see how Damon can balance the action heavy set pieces with the somber emotional moments that can still seep through. While actors like Kinnear, Ryan, Brendan Gleeson as an American intelligence officer on Miller's side, and Jason Issacs as a ground soldier against Miller are very talented, the story doesn't feel like it gives them particularly much to do. Still, they make good on their limited screen time and work well given the limitations.
I won't deny that the film has some chinks in the armor, as the script is lacking and some of the characters are a little lacking on substance, there are still great things to behold here. Grengrass and Damon do deliver a tight thriller that finds a way to tastefully tell a woeful tale. I'm glad that just when I thought I had misjudged this year, there is a film that does fulfills a bit of that promise. I just hope the rest of the year cane make good gain ground after a series of broken promises. ***1/2 / ****; GRADE: B+
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Post Oscar Analysis
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Final Oscar Predictions: The Rest...
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Will Win: Up
Should Win: Coraline
-With Up making it in for the Best Picture lineup, it should have no issues with taking this award. Fantastic Mr. Fox could provide a possible upset, but I don’t think it’s very likely, even though Coraline is the most deserving out of all of them.
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Will Win: Inglourious Basterds
Should Win: A Serious Man
-It’s a virtual coin toss between Inglourious Basterds and The Hurt Locker, but I see them wanting to give something to Tarantino, and since he’ll lose Best Director, this is all he has left. But Boal remains a major contender as well. Of these nominees, A Serious Man should win, though the glaring omission of (500) Days of Summer is simply atrocious.
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Will Win: Up in the Air
Should Win: Up in the Air
-Probably the only award the film will get, which is deserved, as it will recognize the film and Jason Reitman at the same time. Although a highly unlikely In the Loop upset would work for me as well.
BEST ART DIRECTION
Will Win: Avatar
Should Win: Avatar
-Avatar’s visual spectacle should take an award here, and of these nominees, I’d say it’s deserved. However, Where the Wild Things Are should have been nominated and thusly should have won.
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Will Win: The Young Victoria
Should Win: Bright Star
-This category has shown favor to the Victorian era costumery, but in terms of fitting into the fabric of the film (pun intended), Bright Star’s costume design were first rate.
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Will Win: Avatar
Should Win: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
-The battle of “gritty” versus “pretty” make Avatar and The Hurt Locker seem like the only threats in this category, and I think the former will take it, though Richardson’s work on Inglourious Basterds could spoil as well. Among all the nominees, Harry Potter impressed me the most, though the very-little-seen Tetro had my vote since day one.
BEST FILM EDITING
Will Win: The Hurt Locker
Should Win: The Hurt Locker
-Yet another category where my personal winner, (500) Days of Summer, is not nominated. From this selection, I would choose The Hurt Locker, and I have a pretty good suspicion the Academy will as well.
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Will Win: Up
Should Win: Up
-I’ve been trying hard to think whether or not I liked Giacchino’s score to Up or Star Trek more. I lean toward the latter, but since it isn’t nominated, I’d go with Up here, and the Academy probably will also.
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
Will Win: “The Weary Kind” - Crazy Heart
Should Win: “The Weary Kind” - Crazy Heart
-The Golden Globe curse is finally broken, and the song that has been winning awards left and right should deservedly keep winning here.
BEST MAKEUP
Will Win: Star Trek
Should Win: Star Trek
-I simply CANNOT understand how The Young Victoria is here and District 9 is not. With two weak nominees, the obvious winner is Start Trek, even though the work on The Road should have been recognized as well.
BEST SOUND MIXING
Will Win: Avatar
Should Win: Avatar
-One more technical category for Avatar to easily take, though I wouldn’t be completely shocked if The Hurt Locker made a surprise win.
BEST SOUND EDITING
Will Win: Avatar
Should Win: Avatar
-Yet another technical category for Avatar to easily take, though, again, I wouldn’t be completely shocked by a Hurt Locker upset.
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Will Win: Avatar
Should Win: Avatar
-Yet another technical category for Avatar to easily take, this time no upsets though.
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Will Win: The Secrets in Their Eyes
-Conventional wisdom says that The White Ribbon will win this, what with its multiple precursor wins, while others are also proclaiming the BAFTA winning Un Prophét could take it, and others are naming the Argentinean film The Secrets in Their Eyes to take it. The category is notoriously nutty, so my shot in the dark is Secrets due to a last minute surge in buzz.
BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Will Win: The Cove
-This has been the documentary that has gotten the most attention, and while I will concede that any of the other nominees could take it, The Cove just seems like it has the right amount of support.
BEST ANIMATED SHORT
Will Win: Wallace and Gromit in “A Matter of Loaf and Death”
Should Win: French Roast
-The Wallace and Gromit series has taken four of of five awards it’s been previously nominated for, and I don’t see any reason for it to miss again. However, the inventiveness of a short called French Roast won me over more.
BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT
Will Win: The Door
Should Win: Instead of Abracadabra
-It is said that high production values are valued here. If that is the case, then the Chernobyl inspired The Door will probably take it. However, the wit and charm of the Swedish Instead of Abracadabra would get my vote.
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT
Will Win: The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant
-A topical title is the only reason I’m predicting it. The emotional China’s Unnatural Disaster could possibly take it as well, but honestly, your guess is as good as mine.
Friday, March 5, 2010
Final Oscar Predictions: Best Picture
Will Win: The Hurt Locker
The Best Picture race this year is in total mystery. Because the Academy is using the preferential system for the Best Picture winner for the first time in a long time, this literally means that any film can potentially take this. I assume that in a tough battle between The Hurt Locker and Avatar, the former will take it, as it has the momentum of Bigelow and the fact that Cameron has been here before, plus Avatar’s dominance in the tech categories will probably be seen as enough of a reward. However, Avatar, Inglourious Basterds, Up in the Air or any other film could potentially take this award. I make the call for The Hurt Locker, but this is a very unpredictable race.
Should Win: Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire
This was at one time considered a front runner in a Best Picture race that was still finding its footing. But it peaked way too early and will unfortunately have to settle on a single win for Mo’Nique. That’s a shame because this film managed to pull me in more than any other film I had seen this year. Lee Daniels managed to make me believe in a story and characters that I was skeptical to enter into, but his service is fantastic. No other film this year reached me on an emotional level as this one, which I declared my favorite film of 2009. I’m not guessing a lot of Academy members would agree, but for me, this is the Best Picture winner.