Shrek Forever After
Words: Kam Williams
bfm rating: Fair
Ogre Matches Wits with Rumpelstiltskin in Uninspired Franchise Finale
As first adapted to the screen in 2001 from William Steig’s popular children’s book, Shrek was an enchanting fairy tale with a marvelous moral about appreciating each other’s inner beauty.
While delivering that heartwarming message, the picture kept you in stitches via the hilarious antics of the title character (Mike Myers) and his trash-talking companion, Donkey (Eddie Murphy). Although that animated adventure spawned a couple of engaging-enough sequels, judging by Shrek Forever After it is clear that the scriptwriters have run out of ideas for the expiring franchise.
This uninspired finale is set soon after the conclusion of the original film, thereby inexplicably ignoring the developments of Shreks 2 and 3. At the point of departure, we find the once-feared, ugly green ogre presently living in the swamp with Fiona (Cameron Diaz) and their three kids. However, he’s already grown discontent with married life and with the fact that he’s beloved rather than feared by the local villagers.
So he enters a pact with Rumpelstiltskin (Walt Dohrn), a diminutive con man who promises to transform him back into his former scary self for a day. But Shrek signs without read the contract’s fine print first, which says that after the 24-hour period expires he will disappear as if he had never even existed. Consequently, Shrek is suddenly transported back in time to but before he ever met Donkey and his other pals, or even his wife. Saddled with overwhelming regret, Shrek learns that his only hope to reverse the curse rests in the agreement’s escape clause is triggered only if he kisses Princess Fiona.
Of course, this proves easier said than done, since he must first locate and then convince her that he’s not a stranger but already her husband in a parallel reality. Furthermore, Rumpelstiltskin, just like the villain of Shrek 1, is a dwarf with designs on the throne of the land of Far, Far Away. Another similarity has Shrek again befriending Donkey before embarking on a quest to rescue both the fair maiden and her family’s peaceable kingdom.
Unfortunately, the dialogue, which was formerly marked by witty repartee and clever allusions to classic cartons and nursery rhymes, has been replaced by unimaginative exchanges lifted out of the hack screenplay handbook. In particular, Ebonics-accented Donkey has become an offensive caricature trading in a number of best-forgotten stereotypes.
Besides being afraid practically of his own shadow, ala Stepin’ Fetchit, the cowardly creature trades in malapropisms that would make Pigmeat Markham and Kingfish sound like they were speaking the Queen’s English. To top it off, he is an irresponsible baby-daddy who is either so dumb or so irresponsible that he doesn’t know whether or not he’s a father. And then, when he belatedly acknowledges paternity, he apologizes that his offspring might be so ugly as to make other people feel uncomfortable.
It’s no surprise that Dreamworks Animation has reportedly already cancelled plans to shoot a planned spinoff revolving around Antonio Banderas’ character Puss in Boots. A dumbed-down ripoff strictly for the tyke demographic too young to notice that the flick’s a thinly-veiled retread.
Get Him to the Greek
Words: Kam Williams
bfm rating: Excellent .5
Intern Escorts Rock Star in Intercontinental Road Romp
Slacker Aaron Green (Jonah Hill) is interning in Los Angeles at Pinnacle Records, a once-formidable company now struggling to stay afloat in an industry with bleak prospects. The underachiever’s relationship with his M.D. girlfriend, Daphne (Elisabeth Moss), is severely strained, because they barely spend any quality time together, given their different schedules and the long hours she has to put in at the hospital. She’s generally coming home just as he’s headed out the door each morning; consequently, they rarely even make love anymore.
The standoff builds to boil the day Daphne’s offered a medical residency in Seattle, and asks Aaron to relocate there with her. Although it’s hard for him to make much of a case for remaining in L.A., he refuses to abandon hope that his fledgling job might blossom into a more substantial position. So, she threatens to break up with him.
But Aaron has some good news of his own to share. Earlier that same day his distraught boss, Sergio (P. Diddy), had assembled all his employees to announce that “The bubble done popped!” After moaning about whether he’s going to be able to afford Air Jordan sneakers for his half-dozen children, the desperate exec asked for new ideas during an impromptu brainstorming session.
Aaron informs Daphne that he’s finally getting his big break since Sergio likes his proposal to try to resuscitate the career of his childhood idol, Aldous Snow (Russell Brand), the front man for a defunct British rock group called Infant Sorrow. The trouble is that Aldous has spiraled down a self-destructive path since the disastrous release a decade ago of “African Child,” a song which was roundly panned as racist by the critics and rejected by his fans.
Sergio agreed that it’s time for a revival, so he signs the band to do a reunion concert at the Greek Theater. The hitch is that Aaron, with promise of a promotion if everything goes smoothly, has to fly to England to escort the boozing, pot-smoking womanizer from London to L.A.
Aaron jumps at the opportunity, but the question soon becomes, who will win the ensuing battle of wills? The spoiled-rotten star used to doing whatever he pleases, or the suddenly-single, aspiring publicist who finds himself seduced by all the trappings of the rock and roll lifestyle? And, if Aaron strays, will Daphne want him back after a week of debauchery.
This is the testosterone-fueled premise of Get Him to the Greek, a fitting spinoff of Forgetting Sarah Marshall, also directed by Nicholas Stoller. To the degree you can stomach scenes of utter depravity, are you apt to find this raunchy road flick compelling.
Think shocksploit, one rendered hilarious as opposed to offensive by the equally-inspired performances of its three male leads, Russell Brand, Jonah Hill and P. Diddy. Plenty of laughs per-minute featuring the outrageous antics of naughty Aldous repeatedly derailing Aaron’s best efforts to deliver him as promised, all to the frustration of an increasingly-impatient Sergio.
A dance movie in 3D is a must see, and if you like dance flicks then you will love this movie which focuses on determination, creativity and the sheer movement of dance. When Jay (Ukweli Roach) chooses to leave his crew as leader, it is up to Carly (Nichola Burley) to earn the respect of her crew and lead them to the championship finals to be hailed Dance Crew of the year.
But with no money or any space to rehearse, morale is low and the crews are forced to take on additional dancers from the Royal Ballet Company in return for using their dance studios. So with a brand new name of Breaking Point each dancer sets about their own journey towards achieving their goals.
Although a little predictable and possibly unbelievable at times, the characters’ actions often seemed quite misplaced. But with that aside, I am sure the film will have mass cross-over appeal and it boasts an impressive soundtrack.
With cameos from Diversity and Flawless it is encouraging to see a UK based production produce a film of this genre.
Out on 21 May, 2010
A Nightmare on Elm Street
A Nightmare on Elm Street
Film Review by Kam Williams
bfm rating: 0 stars
Remake of Classic Splatterflick Repeatedly Relies on Eroticized Violence as Entertainment
I must have missed something, because I don’t exactly remember the Eighties being the Golden Age of Entertainment.? Nonetheless, in lieu of coming up with some original ideas, Hollywood has decided to revisit a number of mostly underwhelming offerings from the decade as a source of cinematic inspiration.
Consequently, 2010 is likely to be remembered as the year of the Eighties remakes, with Clash of the Titans already in theaters and new versions of The A-Team, The Karate Kid, Red Dawn, Tron and Wall Street all to follow.
Back in 1984, Wes Craven’s introduced the world to Freddy Krueger in A Nightmare on Elm Street, the grisly slasher flick which would spawn seven sequels before ostensibly petering out in 2003. Now, award-wining, music video director Samuel Bayer has revived the franchise, making a most-inauspicious feature film debut with this dreadful remake loosely based on the initial installment in the series.
The film stars Jackie Earle Haley as Krueger, an infamous, horror genre villain readily recognizable by his badly-disfigured face, striped sweater, brown fedora and the lethal glove equipped with long, razor-sharp blades used to hack his victims to death. The script’s fatal flaw is that it launches the killing machine headlong onto a bloody murder spree without establishing a premise or bothering to devote any attention to character development. Thus, because the audience hasn’t yet invested emotionally in the ensemble of fresh young faces serving as his prey, it’s impossible to feel much as they proceed to get picked off one by one.
What the production presumably is banking on is a basic familiarity with the original’s storyline, which is only revealed in piecemeal fashion for the initiated. In 25 words or less, Krueger is not human but a disembodied ghost who was burned alive a dozen years ago by a mob of parents whose preschoolers had accused him of sexual molestation. Today, Freddy seeks revenge by slaying each of the almost-grown kids twice, once by frightening them in their sleep and then for real while they’re awake.
Hence, an annoying plot device which wears out its welcome in the first five minutes (although it is repeated for the duration, ad nauseam) is that you never know whether what you’re watching is actually transpiring or just a dream sequence. This means someone might appear to be knocked off, only to sit bolt upright in bed in a cold sweat.
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Worse is how the cast is cluttered with way too many teenagers to keep track of. Splatterflick fans might argue that keeping score is sort of besides the point, anyway, since the idea here is simply to delight in the messy, senseless, highly-eroticized vivisection. To each his own.
It doesn’t get any worse than this.
To see a trailer for A Nightmare on Elm Street, visit here
Paper Man
Paper Man
Words: Kam Williams
bfm rating:
Writer Trades Wife for Teen in Midlife Crisis Comedy
Claire Dunn (Lisa Kudrow), a successful surgeon, is so fed up with her underachieving husband that she’s decided to kick him out of their home in the city on the pretense that a beach house on Long Island during the off season might be a better place for him to work on his novel. But because Richard (Jeff Daniels) has never had anything published, he wonders aloud whether this break from each other supposedly for just the winter might really be a trial separation.
You see, the slacker’s been suffering from a combination of crippling maladies ranging from a midlife crisis to writer’s block to a disturbing tendency to carry on conversations with Captain Excellent (Ryan Reynolds), his imaginary friend in a superhero outfit. And this already confused and lonely soul is about to add a classic case of arrested development to his host of woes soon after his wife drops him off.
For right after his she leaves, this Peter Pan inexplicably hires a luscious, local teenager as a babysitter, even though they don’t have any children. By the time oblivious Abby (Emma Stone) catches on that she’s there to watch him, she’s so intrigued by the eccentric newcomer that she agrees to return regularly. As it turns out, she’s just as troubled, having never quite recovered from the death of her twin sister.
Thus, Abby and Richard bond as kindred spirits, doing their best to keep the relationship Platonic in spite of an unspoken mutual attraction. After all, he’s still married, at least technically; meanwhile, she has an immature boyfriend (Kieran Culkin) who’s always hanging around.
So, unfolds Paper Man, a young girl-old fool dramedy serving up an amusing mix of serendipity and flights of fancy. Written and directed by Kieran and Michele Mulroney (brother and sister-in-law of Dermot, respectively), the movie might best be thought of as Montauk’s answer to Lost in Translation.
Eventually, the moment of truth arrives when shrewish Claire shows up unannounced and catches her hubby in a compromising position on the couch with the not-needed nanny. At that juncture, the miffed spouse throws the proverbial pot of cold water on the cozy arrangement letting Richard’s “It’s not what it looks like, honey!” excuse falls on deaf ears. The only question left is will the philanderer wise up and try to save his marriage, or simply trade in the enraged doctor for jailbait less than half his age?
The Back-up Plan
Words: Kam Williams
bfm rating:
J-Lo Too Old to Play Ingenue in Stock Romantic Comedy
Before becoming a mommy in 2008, Jennifer Lopez had practically perfected the romantic comedy genre, always in the role of a damsel-in-distress waiting for a dashing knight in shining armor to rescue her from dire circumstances.
Whether playing the lowly housekeeper in Maid in Manhattan, the underemployed temp worker in Monster-in-Law or the perennial bridesmaid in The Wedding Planner, J-Lo had a knack for generating the right combo of chemistry and vulnerability to be convincing opposite any leading man.
At 40, Lopez frankly looks a little long in the tooth to resurrect that innocent, coquettish character when there’s obviously a lot of maturity etched into her now middle-aged face. Nonetheless, she throws herself into The Back-up Plan with an admirable gusto, even if the flick ought to be featuring a considerably younger actress.
Still, worse than the miscasting is the script, which is laced with too much in the way of expletives and slapstick, especially groan-inducing, bodily function humor to qualify as sophisticated adult fare. And the worse culprit in this regard is annoying SNL alum Michaela Watkins who ruins every scene in which she appears as J-Lo’s terminally-crude best friend.
The story unfolds in New York City on the very day that Zoe (Lopez) has given up on ever finding a mate, getting married and having a baby. She’s decided to implement her “Back-up Plan” which involves being artificially inseminated with sperm from an anonymous donor with the help of Dr. Harris’ (Robert Klein).
Then, on her way home from the infertility clinic, she serendipitously locks eyes across an empty taxi with the man she’s always been waiting for, when they try to hail the same cab. Despite the fact that she calls Stan (Alex O’Loughlin) “Stupid head!” in the ensuing fight over the car, it is painfully obvious, at least to the viewer, that it’s only a matter of time before the two will meet again and fall madly in love with each other.
The film follows the tired sitcom “one big secret” formula from this point forward, you know, the one whereby the protagonist tries to hide a simple secret which, if owned up to, would instantly clarify matters. But no, when they start dating, Zoe doesn’t want to let on that she’s expecting, although her gradually expanding waistline will soon prove impossible to explain.
Stan, a down-to-earth goat farmer from upstate, is the doting, sensitive sort which makes Zoe's furtive, Three’s Company-style hijinks seem extremely silly. Consequently, it’s a little anticlimactic when the moment of truth arrives after the cat comes out of the bag (or should I say after the twins come out of the womb). Too bad there was never a doubt from the day these lovebirds met that Stan would eventually get down on one knee to propose.
Brace yourself for an ending that puts the audience out of its misery as opposed to generating that warm and fuzzy “happily ever after” feeling. J-Lo’s worst outing since Gigli.
bfm film review: Behind the Burly Q
Words: Kam Williams
bfm rating:
Revealing” Documentary Revisits Golden Age of Burlesque
With roots in 19th Century vaudeville and minstrel shows, burlesque enjoyed its heyday in the United States in the 1930s when it emerged as the country’s most popular form of live entertainment until the advent of television, porno films and the women’s movement would signal its demise.
The genre originally featured both comedians and dancers backed by a live band, although eventually the striptease acts came to be the only things the audiences wanted to see.
The curvaceous cutie pies who plied their trade as ecdysiasts are proud members of “America’s Greatest Generation,” that rapidly-disappearing set whose ranks are thinning at an alarming rate as they pass away due to old age. But thanks to actress-turned-director Leslie Zemeckis their contributions to the culture have been preserved for posterity, recounted in fascinating fashion in Behind the Burly Q, a revealing documentary cobbled from a combination of file footage and dozen of interviews with historians, surviving strippers and may of their offspring.
Although these aging senior citizens may just be a shadow of their former selves physically, the life stories they share here show that time has not diminished their inner beauty one iota. Most, we learn, adopted colorful stage names like Blaze Starr, Tempest Storm, Evangeline the Oyster Girl, Little Egypt, Sally Rand, Lady Midnight, Alexandra the Great, White Fury, TNT Red, Kitty West, Gilded Lili, The Sexquire Girl, The Ball of Fire, Gypsy Rose Lee and Bingo. But sadly, behind the glamorous facades were mostly sad tales about how they had basically been driven into the profession by dysfunctional families and/or money woes caused by the Great Depression.
Evangeline the Oyster Girl says she turned to the relatively-easy money of burlesque after watching her mother work herself to the bone in the cotton fields. Coal miner’s daughter Blaze Starr started taking her clothes off after her dad developed Black Lung disease. With the benefit of 20/20 hindsight, Tempest Storm can now see that in her case she pranced around in her birthday suit because she was looking for the father she never knew.
Regardless, it seems that one of the occupational hazards of the job was unstable relationships, as some subjects bemoan never tying the knot while others report marrying four or five times. Then there were those who had mental problems, drank or were addicted to pain killers, the ostensible fallout of a career spent on the road traveling from town to town to get next to naked for perfect strangers.
Apparently, each woman tried to include something memorable in her routine to attract repeat customers. For example, one says she got skin poisoning from dyeing her hair green. Another did yoga on stage, while Sally Keith’s claim to fame was having such control over her pectoral muscles that she could send her tassels swinging in opposite directions and in perfect time to the musical accompaniment.
A fun-filled tribute which elevates the Golden Age of Burlesque to its rightful place in history while belatedly restoring a little dignity to its underappreciated, socially-ostracized performers.
To see a trailer for Behind the Burly Q, visit here
Black Waters of Echo's Pond
The Black Waters of Echo’s Pond
Words: Kam Williams
bfm rating: .5
Haunted House on Remote Island Serves as Setting for Old Fashioned Fright Flick
Ever since the Scream trilogy so successfully parodied the horror movie genre, few directors have dared to try to make a traditional scary movie featuring all the tried and true conventions. But with The Black Waters of Echo’s Pond, Gabriel Bologna has served up an old-fashioned fright flick reminiscent of a Vincent Price classic.
First of all, you have the perfect setting, a spooky Victorian mansion located on a remote island off the coast of Maine. Then you factor in the place’s cursed history, since everyone there had perished 80 years before while playing an evil, ritualistic board game.
Today, Beacon Island has only one inhabitant, Pete (Robert Patrick), a grizzled geezer who patrols the grounds with his trusty gun. The grouchy caretaker has grudgingly agreed to let a group of young people use the house for what they expect to be a fun-filled weekend of imbibing and carousing.
Each of the nine revelers represents a readily-identifiable archetype, ranging from the good-natured host (Arcadiy Golubovich) to the flirtatious tramp flashing her new implants (Mircea Monroe) to a girl in mourning (Danielle Harris) to the macho jock (Walker Howard) to twin damsels in distress (Electra and Elise Avellan) to the uninvited party crasher (James Duval), and so forth.
Upon their arrival, the naïve guests learn that communication with the mainland is impossible because there are no cell phone towers for miles around. Soon thereafter, Anton discovers the ancient board game hidden in the basement, and they all agree to play it that very evening in front of the fireplace. Little do they know they are kickstarting a ghastly chain of events which will have them dying to leave the island, literally and figuratively.
A high attrition, haunted house throwback certain to send chills up your spine despite trading in all the stock clichés, like the one which has the black guy dying first.
Why Did I Get Married Too
Words: Kam Williams
bfm rating:
Tyler Perry & Company in Bahamas for Battle-of-the-Sexes Sequel
For years, four very close couples, friends since college, have been taking an annual vacation together to luxurious getaway spots to reconnect, reminisce, and reflect on the state of their marital relationships.
Their previous reunion at a Colorado ski lodge proved very eventful, especially for the emotionally-abused Sheila (Jill Scott), who eventually summoned up the courage to dump her openly-unfaithful husband, Mike (Richard T. Jones), a creep brazen enough to bring his mistress along.
This go round, these unusually-introspective revelers made reservations at an oceanfront resort in the Bahamas, where just as much melodrama is about to unfold. But this time Mike’s the third wheel, because Sheila’s now remarried to Troy (Lamman Rucker), the local cop who rescued her like a knight in shining armor in a blizzard back in the Rocky Mountains.
Nonetheless, Mike shows up uninvited, hoping to rekindle a little romance with his ex. He’s looking to leverage the fact that the newlyweds arrive a little distant from each other due to Troy’s inability to find a job since relocating to Atlanta. And while Sheila has tried to reassure Troy that she doesn’t mind being the breadwinner, the role reversal simply doesn’t sit well with a guy who’s more comfortable with being the provider.
Meanwhile, the three the other couples find themselves facing serious battle-of-the-sexes issues, too, starting with outspoken Angela (Tasha Smith). She has trouble trusting her hunky hubby (Michael Jai White) who won’t share his cell phone password with her. After all, the former pro athlete has cheated on her before, and likely has more opportunities to stray since he’s finally gainfully employed as host of “The Sports Shuffle,” a TV talk show.
A little more difficult to discern are the subtle strains on the seemingly-perfect marriage of psychologist Pat (Janet Jackson) and architect Gavin (Malik Yoba), given that she’s a celebrated love guru with a best-seller ”He’s Cheated, So Now What?” out on the market. However, we soon learn that even a mild-mannered shrink might need to blow off some steam after keeping her feelings about the death of her son bottled up inside for so many years. Last but last, there’s Terry (Tyler Perry) and Dianne (Sharon Leal), whose relationship tension revolves around his suspicious that his workaholic, attorney spouse might be having an affair in spite of her perfectly plausible explanation for her whereabouts.
“Can this marriage be saved?” remains the running theme raised repeatedly in Why Did I Get Married Too, one of those rare sequels which is actually better than the original. Tyler Perry earns high marks for not only reassembling his entire principal cast, but for embroiling the talented ensemble in another compelling, modern morality play which feels as fresh as it is funny. The panoramic Caribbean location certainly helps, as does the addition of a few new faces, including Cicely Tyson, Lou Gossett, Jr. and a closing credits celebrity cameo it would be unfair to spoil.
As for standouts, scene-stealer Tasha Smith turns in another one of her trademark performances as the volatile Angela, a shrill banshee whose over-the-top antics keep you in stitches whenever she’s on camera. Equally-noteworthy is Janet Jackson, whose character’s deeper development afforded her an opportunity to stretch her acting range. When you factor in that the production went on hiatus after the passing of her brother, it makes her scenes, many of which were shot while grieving, that much more impressive.
Renaissance Man Perry proving he still has his finger on the pulse via yet another, madcap, marital melodrama apt to resonate with the collective conscious of the black community.
Repo Men
Repo Men
Words: Kam Williams
bfm rating:
Forest Whitaker and Jude Law Buddy-Up in Cautionary Sci-Fi
Set in the not too distant future, the picture revolves around the gruesome exploits of Jake (Forest Whitaker) and Remy (Jude Law), employees of The Union, a mega medical services corporation. The two have been best friends since grade school, and even fought in the war together while serving in a tank unit overseas. Today, they still have each other’s back on a job which literally calls for them to cut body parts out of the torsos of delinquent clients, even if they have to remove a vital organ.
This state of affairs doesn’t sit well with Remy’s wife, Carol (Carice Van Houten), who’s been pressuring her husband to quit, especially because of the example he’s setting for their young son, Peter (Chandler Canterbury). But due to mounting financial responsibilities, Remy can’t resign until he has another way of making the same money. Besides, he finds it easy to rationalize chopping hearts out of the chests of deadbeat patients, between the encouragement of his boss, Frank (Live Schreiber), and the healthy enthusiasm of his pal, Jake, for each of their assignments.
The straw that breaks the wife’s back arrives the day he excuses himself from a holiday barbecue to remove a kidney from a client in a cab parked right in front of their house. Carol subsequently not only changes the lock on the door and puts his suitcase by the curb, but she denies him visitation rights to boot. Remy takes it surprisingly in stride, finding a younger girlfriend (Alice Braga) who offers a sympathetic shoulder to lean on.
However, the plot thickens when he needs a heart transplant himself, and then has trouble meeting the monthly finance charges. And it’s not hard to guess who is assigned to chase him down when the account is 90 days past due.
So unfolds Repo Men, one of those splatter flicks which seemingly celebrates dismemberment as a beautiful blood sport. It’s hard to recall a movie where people were murdered with such glee and utter abandon. You would also think that in such a high-tech, futuristic scenario, the medical community would by then have devised a more tasteful and antiseptic way of handling patients in default.
Forest Whitaker has proven he can play a villain in the past, just look at how brilliant he was in Panic Room and The Last King of Scotland. Unfortunately, he’s woefully ill-suited for this red meat, vivisection vehicle. Best thought of as a parnoid fantasy of what’s over the horizon if the macabre rumors about the Obamacare death panels are true.
The Bounty Hunter
The Bounty Hunter
Words: Kam Williams
bfm rating:
Aniston and Butler Square-Off in Battle of the Exes Romp
Milo (Gerard Butler) and Nicole (Jennifer Aniston) were only married a few years before they went their separate ways, basically because he was such a pompous jerk. Nothing much has changed since, except that he’s no longer a cop in the NYPD, having been fired for the same sort of immature behavior that cost him his marriage.
Nowadays, he plies his trade as a bounty hunter, rounding up fugitives from justice for Sid (Jeff Garlin), a bail bondsman who hates the idea of losing any of the money he’s posted for the assorted miscreants who’ve asked for his help. Milo has no reason to believe that his ex might be one of his boss’ clients; after all, she’s a very successful, investigative journalist who’s never landed on the wrong side of the law.
But she did get arrested for ignoring a pile of parking tickets, and then relied on Sid’s services to get out of jail. However, she subsequently failed to show up in court, and Sid currently finds himself facing the prospect of losing the $50,000 he put up as collateral.
So, Milo gets the shock of his life when he opens the file the Friday he learns that his latest assignment is to track down Nicole by Monday morning. Of course, this proves easier said than done, since he still has feelings for her and would rather reconcile than send her up the river. On top of that, she’s currently close to cracking the case of the mysterious disappearance of Jimmy (Adam Rose), the bartender at a local haunt named O’Doul’s.
The evidence that something’s amiss is that his car’s windshield is smashed. Nicole passes herself off as Jimmy’s girlfriend, Lakeesha, to slip past his suspicious landlady (Jayne Houdyshell) in order to snoop around his apartment for more clues.
As it turns out he might have been a stool pigeon who made enemies of the mob. However, before Nicole has a chance to get to the bottom of the story, guess who shows up and places her in handcuffs.
What ensues is a battle of the exes/Mafia comedy which fails to do justice to either genre. For it’s never really established why Nicole would want a Neanderthal like Milo back, nor is the missing persons whodunit the least bit compelling. A romantic comedy with no chemistry between the leads, and a crime caper with no tension, adds up to a deadly combination to be avoided at all costs.
A great time killer for anybody who needs help being bored.
The Eclipse
The Eclipse
Words: Kam Williams
bfm rating: .5 stars
Widower Falls for Empathetic Author in Atmospheric Romance Drama
Michael Farr (Ciaran Hinds) is a recent widower who has resigned himself to raising his 10 and 14 year-old kids alone. The grieving clan lives along Ireland’s seacoast in a verdant, fog-enshrouded town whose only claim to fame is hosting an annual literary festival.
Schoolteacher Michael picked a practical profession, putting his dream of becoming a writer on hold in order to be able to provide for his family. However, he still harbors the hope of one day pursuing his true passion. Meanwhile, the only brushes he enjoys with the publishing industry is when he works as a volunteer at the aforementioned festival.
This summer, he’s been assigned to serve as a chauffeur for Lena Morelle (Iben Hjejle), a best-selling author known for novels exploring supernatural themes. Her specialty dovetails conveniently with the fact that Michael’s been seeing ghosts ever since his wife’s passing. The plot gradually thickens as he develops a crush on Lena during her stay, because she’s the first person to give credence to his claim of feeling the presence otherworldly apparitions.
However, although Lena lends a sympathetic ear, she’s doesn’t think of him romantically. For she already has plans to rendezvous with Nicholas Holden (Aidan Quinn), the equally-renowned colleague she met and slept with at this same gathering the previous year.
But she had been too passionate back then to have the patience to learn much about her lover like the fact that he was married. This time around, the truth comes out in ugly fashion, and the miffed mistress ends up a tad torn about continuing to carry on an illicit liaison with a proverbial Ugly American she now recognizes as a bit of a narcissist.
So, as the days go by, the question becomes whether ardent admirer Michael might actually have a shot with this brilliant bluestocking way above his station whom he’s been secretly pining for from afar. So unfolds The Eclipse, an atmospheric adventure directed by Conor McPherson which proves to be as worthwhile for its breathtaking cinematography as for the intriguing love triangle it spins ever so deliberately, delectably and delightfully.
A literary lass finds more than she bargained for while looking for love on the Emerald Isle.
Alice in Wonderland
Alice in Wonderland
Words: Kam Williams
bfm rating:
Alice Reinterpreted as Feminist in Update of Lewis Carroll Classic
Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (1832-1898), aka Lewis Carroll, was the prolific author of numerous children’s fantasies written in a surreal style known as literary nonsense. But he only wrote two books about his most popular character, Alice, namely, “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” and its sequel, “Through the Looking Glass.”
Since 1903, there have been over a dozen fairly-faithful screen adaptations of these beloved classics, but leave it to a cinematic maverick like Tim Burton to overhaul the once sacrosanct franchise. This reinterpretation revolves around a post-pubescent, 19 year-old rebel as opposed to the original’s innocent, 7 year-old tyke with an insatiable curiosity and a vivid imagination.
The story is set in Victorian England where we find Alice (Mia Wasikowska) being raised like a refined lady by her recently-widowed mother. Alice Kingsleigh (Lindsay Duncan) is concerned about her strong-willed daughter’s feminist tendencies, especially since the blossoming beauty has a well-heeled suitor in Hamish Ascot (Leo Bill).
However, when the pompous aristocrat pops the question in a gazebo at a lawn party in front of hundreds of people, a flustered Alice asks her ardent admirer for a little time to think about the marriage proposal.
Then, she darts of into the woods where she falls down a rabbit hole only to be unceremoniously deposited in Underland, a vaguely-familiar, parallel universe she doesn’t remember having visited a dozen years earlier. There, she is soon reintroduced to the colorful menagerie still inhabiting the magical kingdom, old friends including the White Rabbit (Michael Sheen), the Cheshire Cat (Steven Fry), Tweedledum and Tweedledee Matt Lucas) and, of course, The Mad Matter (Johnny Depp), to name a few.
Seems that Alice has arrived in the midst of a crisis, and the motley crew enlists her assistance in ending the reign of terror of the evil Red Queen (Helena Bonham Carter) in favor of the relatively-benign sister she’s rudely deposed, Mirana (Anne Hathaway). All that’s involved is slaying the Jabberwocky (Christopher Lee), the dragon defending the Red Queen’s castle.
Alice in Wonderland 2010 follows a fairly linear plotline compared to the ethereal versions of the past. Tim Burton masterfully winds the subterranean tension around whether or not the White Queen will regain the throne. Meanwhile, in the back of your mind, you’re also wondering whether Alice will marry the odd-looking Hamish when she returns to ground level, especially after spending time with dashing and equally-irreverent Mad Hatter.
Not surprisingly, Johnny Depp easily upstages the rest of the cast, here, between his affected, gap-toothed British accent and that natural flair for the dramatic. Throw in his zany costume, hyperthyroid eyes and frizzy hair ostensibly turned bright orange by an excess of mercury in the brim of his chapeau, and the talented thespian has fashioned yet another unforgettable character for the ages!
21st Century Alice matures and enters The Matrix!
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Brooklyn's Finest
Words: Kam Williams
bfm rating :
Flawed NYPD Officers Featured as “Brooklyn’s Finest”
In recent years, Boston has provided the backdrop for a number of gritty crime capers set in tight-knit communities, intimate character-driven dramas such as Mystic River (2003), The Departed (2006), Gone Baby Gone (2007) and What Doesn’t Kill You (2008). By comparison, New York contributions to the genre tend to more action-oriented and revolve around crooked cops rather than folks from the ‘hood. Just think of 16 Blocks (2006), Righteous Kill (2008) and Pride and Glory (2008).
The latest contribution to the latter category is Brooklyn’s Finest, a gruesome splatter flick from Antoine Fuqua, who directed Training Day (2001), the similarly-graphic, Los Angeles saga which landed an Academy Award for Denzel Washington. Though unfolding on the East coast, this film trades in the same sort of profanity, ethnic slurs and gratuitously-violent fare in service of high attrition-rate fare designed for the blood sport demo.
What makes Brooklyn's Finest unique are its three discrete plotlines deftly interwoven by first-time screenwriter Michael Martin into a delightful braid with a nicely-engaging narrative. And the strands of the taut triskelion remain fairly insulated until the exciting conclusion where the protagonists’ paths finally cross.
One plaid of the cinematic cornrow examines the escalating misfortunes both on the job and at home of Sal Procida (Ethan Hawke), a police officer corrupted not so much by greed as by a need to provide for his growing family on a cop’s salary. His house is not only too small for four kids, but his asthmatic wife (Lily Taylor) is pregnant again, and with twins to boot.
Furthermore, her obstetrician is warning that she might lose one of the babies, if she continues to live in a structure infected with toxic mold. So, can you really blame Sal for thinking about confiscating cash from drug dealers, especially since, like a good Catholic, he confesses his sins to Father Scarpitta (Bruce MacVittie) religiously?
The second story focuses on the equally-desperate plight of Tango Butler (Don Cheadle) a detective who is so deep undercover that it’s taken a toll on his personal life. He begs his boss (Will Patton) for a desk job, but is referred to FBI Agent Smith (Ellen Barkin), a racist who makes that reassignment contingent on his first setting up Casanova Phillips (Wesley Snipes), an ex-con who’s recently returned to the streets after serving eight years in a Federal prison. But because Caz once saved his life, Tang is very reluctant to entrap the former friend.
Finally, there’s Eddie Dugan (Richard Gere), a jaded alcoholic just a week away from retirement. He’s become so blasé he won’t even bother to arrest a perpetrator unless the crime is being committed in his precinct. Separated from his wife, Eddie has been investing emotionally in Chantel (Shannon Kane), the proverbial prostitute with a heart of gold and man-pleasing lips. The tension in this unseemly scenario is wound around the question of whether Chantel is willing to let Eddie make an honest woman out of her when he moves to Connecticut.
Eventually, all roads in this cleverly-concealed, triangulated tale serendipitously lead to some godforsaken projects in Brownsville where live ammo is routinely employed as the ghetto equivalent of a calling card. Bloody beyond compare, but definitely riveting for the duration provided you’re willing to duck a few bullets. What more can you ask of a multi-layered mystery?
An amoral morality play delivering the sobering message that crime does not pay, not even for dirty cops.
The Good Guy
Words: Kam Williams
bfm rating:
Yuppie Sitcom Revolves around Classic Love Triangle
Tommy Fielding (Scott Porter) is a Wall Street whiz raking in big bucks at Morgan Brothers, a fictional investment bank with a name ostensibly inspired by a transparent contraction of Morgan Stanley and Lehman Brothers. Located in lower Manhattan, the company is an ethnically-diverse boys club where greed is good and misogyny reigns around the water cooler chatter. Setting the tone is his beautiful girlfriend (Alexis Bledel) Cash (Andrew McCarthy), a philandering, profit-oriented woman-hating he-man with a moniker about as subtle as the firm’s.
The Good Guy doesn’t offer much of a plot to sink your teeth into until the day one of Morgan Brothers’ rainmakers announces that he’s leaving to take a better offer from a competitor. At that juncture, Tommy taps computer geek Daniel Seaver (Bryan Greenberg) to fill the vacant position, even though he doesn’t have a background in finance or much in the way of or a magnetic personality.
This ill-advised decision comes to take more of a toll on cocky Tommy’s social than professional life, after he encourages his nerdy new protégé to hangout with his gorgeous, green girlfriend (Alexis Bledel). For Beth, a conservationist concerned about carbon footprints, has only been dating morally-bankrupt Tommy for a few months.
So, it doesn’t take much for relatively-sensitive Daniel to have her rethinking her relationship with a Neanderthal. First, he undergoes a Jerry Lewis/Jim Carrey comedy-quality transformation merely by removing his eyeglasses (ala the social zero makeover in your typical teensploit). He then proceeds to win her heart by contributing to the conversation at her women’s book club. Needless to say, a tawdry love triangle ensues, as clueless Tommy catches on too late to prevent complications. Which guy gets the girl?
Unfortunately, without any chemistry among the lead characters, you won’t care, as this insipid sitcom simply fails to engage the audience on an emotional level. And the crude humor isn’t reason enough to invest in this mirthless sitcom either, since the laughs are few and far between, if you know what I mean.
Good guys finish last and make mediocre movies.
Shutter Island
Shutter Island
Words: Kam Williams
bfm rating: .5
DiCaprio Stars in Disappointing Scorcese Mindbender
Leonardo DiCaprio has been Martin Scorcese’s favorite leading man in recent years, starring in Gangs of New York (2002), The Aviator (2004) and The Departed (2006), which won the Academy Award for Best Picture while simultaneously finally landing the legendary director an elusive Oscar. Unfortunately, the pair’s latest collaboration, Shutter Island, fails to measure up to their last, for it simply peters out after establishing a very promising premise.
The movie was adapted from the best seller of the same name by Dennis Lehane, the New England novelist known for his Boston-based murder mysteries like Mystic River and Gone Baby Gone. Shutter Island, by contrast, is a psychological thriller set in 1954 off the coast of Massachusetts at Ashecliffe Mental Hospital for the Criminally-Insane.
As the film unfolds, we’re introduced to Federal Marshals Teddy Daniels (DiCaprio) and Chuck Aule (Mark Ruffalo) as they head by ferry to the high-security facility to help handle a crisis situation. This deliberately-paced opening tableau is rather evocative of the Gothic horror genre, atmospherically, as the boat slowly breaks through a thick mist to reveal the eerie specter of an imposing edifice sitting high atop the tiny isle, ala the fog-shrouded mansion or castle of so many classic haunted house flicks.
The two lawmen are met at the dock by Deputy Warden McPherson (John Carroll Lynch) who insists over their objections that in accordance with proper protocol they must surrender their weapons before being allowed onto the grounds, whose high walls and electrified fence make the place look more like a prison than a hospital. The tension is then ratcheted a notch higher when they are directed to the office of Dr. John Cawley (Ben Kingsley) who explains exactly why they’ve been summoned there.
A patient named Rachel Solando (Emily Mortimer) somehow escaped from her locked cell the night before, and she could be hiding anywhere on the island. The deranged woman is considered extremely dangerous, since she was committed for the deliberate drowning of her own three children.
In the wake of the briefing, a hurricane hits the island which quite conveniently not only knocks out all the electricity but prevents any further ferry service to the now totally-isolated institution. Of course, this only serves to make increasingly-uncomfortable Teddy and Chuck’s frantic search for the murderess even more urgent.
I’m guessing that this scintillating setup probably reads like an appealing edge-of-the-seat thriller. Not so fast, Kimosabe, for I dare not divulge any of the ensuing, unpredictable developments which turn a compelling whodunit into a surreal and patently preposterous mindbender. Suffice to say that in the end this critic felt cheated to have the complicated mystery resolved by a rabbit-out-of-the-hat revelation that had little to do with the misleading series of red herrings that I’d invest over two hours in.
The cinematic equivalent of a bait and switch scam.
The Messenger
The Messenger
Words: Kam Williams
bfm rating:
Oscar-Nominated Iraq Fallout Flick Re-Released in Theaters
While The Hurt-Locker, the Iraq War’s answer to Saving Private Ryan, has been getting a lot of attention during awards season, for my money, the period piece which will be better remembered a generation from now is The Messenger.
I mean really, how much creativity does it take to blow a bunch of battle-fatigued Marines to smithereens as they scour the streets of Baghdad in what looks like heat-seeking, scuba diving equipment? Sure, the graphic splatter flick certainly generates a lot of tension along the way, but who goes to the movies to sit there bracing yourself for the sight of young soldiers on IED detection duty being scrambled in an instant into unrecognizable body parts.
The Messenger, which written and directed by Oren Moverman, is sort of a sequel to The Hurt Locker, since it focuses on death and grieving, the unfortunate fallout of the ugly business that is war. For this reason, the film might have been more appropriately titled “The Hurt Locker 2,” since the term is defined as a period of inescapable, immense emotional pain.
The peripatetic buddy adventure revolves around Army Captain Tony Stone (Woody Harrelson) and Staff Sergeant Will Montgomery (Ben Foster), partners stationed stateside assigned the thankless task job of informing next of kin that a loved one has perished overseas on the field of battle. Steely Stone understands the rules of engagement, especially the one about no fraternizing with or even hugging attractive, vulnerable widows. But sensitive-type Will must have kept his fingers crossed when he made that pledge, because he has a hard time following protocol after delivering the grim news to Olivia Pitterson (Samantha Morton) that her husband has perished.
He offers her a shoulder to lean on, and it’s not long before the suddenly-single ravishing beauty spreads her love, allowing the smitten enlisted man to enter the Forbidden Zone. Will figures all’s fair in love and war, after all, his high school sweetheart (Jena Malone) hadn’t had the decency to wait for him to return from Iraq. As for Olivia, her unseemly behavior is readily explained by the fact that everybody mourns differently, and there’s just something irresistible about a man in a uniform.
The only fly in the ointment is the stoic Stone, a by-the-book stick-in-the-mud in a position to make his immediate inferior’s life hell. Woody Harrelson earned an Oscar nomination for his inspired performance, here, and Ben Foster proves equally-deserving playing his compromised and conflicted counterpart.
A powerful, PTSD PSA for “Don’t ask, don’t kiss and tell” advocates.
Invictus
Invictus
Words: Kam Williams
bfm rating:
Morgan Freeman Stars as Nelson Mandela in Inspirational Historical Saga
When Nelson “Madiba” Mandela (Morgan Freeman) became President of South Africa, an important aspect of his mission was to help his fellow citizens develop a collective consciousness in the wake of the dismantling of Apartheid. This was to be no mean feat, for that de jure system of segregation had strictly enforced color lines which had kept blacks and whites apart and at odds for decades.
Furthermore, the nation had just finished a bloody civil war which left both groups very suspicious of each other’s motivations. Whites worried about how they would suddenly be treated as a minority, while blacks were primarily concerned about improving their lot in life after having suffered second-class status for generations on end.
Although Mandela himself had endured extreme hardships at the hands of the Apartheid regime, including 27 years of brutal incarceration as a political prisoner, he was determined to govern impartially, seeking to balance black aspirations with white fears. Then, in 1995, with the country set to host the Rugby World Cup Championship, he seized on the idea of using the event to unite the people by encouraging everyone to rally around the Springboks, the South Africa national team. So, ignoring the skepticism of his closest advisors, Mandela announced that, “Reconciliation starts here!”
This is the point of departure of Invictus, a combination sports saga and historical drama directed by the legendary Clint Eastwood. The film co-stars Morgan Freeman who disappears imperceptibly into his role as elder statesman Mandela opposite Matt Damon who perfected an Afrikaner accent in portraying Francois Pienaar, the captain of the Springboks. The movie is based on the best seller “Playing the Enemy: Nelson Mandela and the Game That Made a Nation” but takes its title from William Ernest Henley’s classic poem containing the immortal lines: “In the fell clutch of circumstance… I am the master of my fate; I am the captain of my soul.”
A critical component of Mandela’s plan involved inspiring Pienaar and his teammates to embrace the motto “One team, one country!” Still, a slogan alone would not be enough, which meant Mandela also needed the Springboks to rise to the occasion and prevail in the tournament, if his novel notion were to take hold and sweep across the land. This is why he brought them on an outing to the infamous Robben Island, sharing those memorable lines from Invictus which had sustained him during his incarceration in a dank prison cell there.
The movie works better when recounting such poignant, personal interludes which reveal Mandela’s complicated psyche than during the scenes recreating rugby matches staged in Ellis Park Stadium. Unfortunately, Invictus focuses far more on the latter than the former, thereby subtly attributing South Africa’s critical turn towards racial reconciliation more to a fairly-formulaic, sporting exploits than to the wise insights of a sage leader who envisioned forgiveness as the only path to a lasting peace.
“The rainbow nation starts here!”
The Lovely Bones
The Lovely Bones
Words: Kam Williams
bfm rating:
Peter Jackson Epic Snuff Flick Fails to Engage Emotionally
Peter Jackson is fond of making long movies, to wit, each of his previous four films has been at least three hours in length. This latest one, The Lovely Bones, clocks in at a mere two and a quarter, but unfortunately feels a lot longer than that. The movie is based on Alice Sebold’s surrealistic best seller of the same name, posthumously narrated from Limbo by a 14 year-old rape and dismemberment victim as she observes the toll her death takes on her family as her killer remains free and continues to stalk other young victims.
Now an ethereal, disembodied spirit, she finds herself torn between a desire for vengeance and a hope to have her grief-stricken relatives heal. Although the sanitized screen version spares us the gory details of her slaying, it’s otherwise a faithful enough adaptation which falls short in its endeavor to distill the source material’s sentimental, fantasy and suspense elements in an appealing and readily-digestible fashion.
The movie opens with Susie Salmon (Saoirse Ronan) relating what her life was like up until that fateful day in December of 1973 on which she was savagely murdered by a neighbor, George Harvey (Stanley Tucci). She goes on to describe how despite Mr. Harvey’s leaving no tracks, her sister (Rose McIver) and father (Mark Wahlberg) eventually develop their suspicions about the eccentric loner. And after the detective (LeMichael Imperioli) assigned the case appears to lose interest, Mr. Salmon becomes very tempted to take the law into his own hands.
Meanwhile, we see how Susie’s passing has affected her mother (Rachel Weisz), grandmother (Susan Sarandon), little brother (Christian Thomas Ashdale) and friends. I’m not sure how the audience is supposed to experience all this, except with frustration, given that we were informed the identity of the real culprit at the outset but then have to watch helplessly as the police focus on innocent suspects such as Susie’s first boyfriend (Reece Ritchie).
More an overly-romanticized post mortem of a terrible tragedy than an edge of your seat crime thriller. As such, The Lovely Bones is likely to resonate more with female teens than with any adult demographic. An epic snuff flick which fails to engage the viewer on an emotional level.
The Book of Eli
The Book of Eli
bfm rating:
Reviewed by Kam Williams
Denzel Kicks-Butt in Post-Apocalyptic Adventure
It is 2043, several decades after a war to end all wars which has left America a vast, violent wasteland devoid of infrastructure. In the wake of the devastating catastrophe, civilization has been replaced by a desperate, lawless society where life is cheap, and a man might lose his life over a glass of water, a piece of food, or even nothing at all
In the case of Eli (Denzel Washington), the only item for which he is willing to die is the thick, leather-bound book he keeps carefully-wrapped in cloth and tucked away inside his weather-beaten satchel. Except for the telltale cross on the cover, and his occasionally spouting scriptural-sounding aphorisms like “Do for others more than you do for yourself,” he does an excellent job of hiding its contents.
For the past 30 years this Eli has been walking westward by foot to deliver the precious package to a mysterious man located in the City of San Francisco. As it turns out, this is the only Bible left in existence, and the guy he’s going to meet happens to have a printing press.
So, because this peaceful warrior knows the sacred text represent the last hope for Christianity, he is willing to fight anyone who might dare try to prevent him from reaching his destination. And when you’re negotiating your way some 3,000 miles on foot through a gauntlet of marauding gangs and bloodthirsty miscreants, this means Eli frequently has to put aside his inclinations to turn the other cheek in order to kick butt.
Directed by the Hughes Brothers, The Book of Eli is a relentlessly-grim and gruesome, post-apocalyptic saga sort of reminiscent of another recently-released adventure, The Road. This one, however, arrives imbued with heavy religious overtones designed to appeal to the Born Again demographic, at least those who could care less about the 6 th Commandment, “Thou Shalt Not Kill.”
Eli proves to be ne righteous dude, especially after the plot thickens when Satan incarnate (Gary Oldman) catches wind of what’s in his knapsack. Will that character, Carnegie, and his cronies be able to wrest the Bible away before Eli reaches what’s left of ‘Frisco? That becomes the pivotal issue at the heart of the faith-based morality play.
Despite Denzel Washington turning in a trademark, charismatic performance underscored by appropriately monochromatic cinematography, the film is still surprisingly unengaging. Even the inclusion of a mother-daughter team of fetching damsels-in-distress played by Jennifer Beals and Mila Kunis didn’t help. Maybe it’s the fact that the resolution, which I won’t dare spoil, is such a multidenominational cop-out.
Jesus as the answer, along with a bunch of other prophets.
Law Abiding Citizen
Law Abiding Citizen
Reviewed by Cassam Looch
bfm rating:
The premise and set-up of this violent action film deliver some old school fun and excitement, even if the final execution could have been cleaner. When Clyde's (Butler) family is brutally murdered, Nick (Foxx), the prosecutor, cuts a deal which spares one of the two killers from death row. 10 years later, the killer is murdered and Clyde coolly admits guilt whilst warning Nick that he and the system will pay the price for letting him down.
Nick now finds himself in a desperate race against time to outwit a brilliant enemy who’s hell-bent on destruction and is always one step ahead. Clyde has a plan and an agenda which he has been working on for years and he plans to execute it no matter who gets in the way.
Gerard Butler takes on producing duties and has an enormous amount of fun with a role which is heaven sent. It was surprising to hear that he was originally in line for the role of studious lawyer Nick, because Clyde is just such a great character. He is designed to initially have the audience’s sympathy but to lose it all by going too far… but to be honest I suspect a lot people will be rooting for him all the way to the end.
The idea that the legal system is no longer working for the victims is a universal theme, and most people will identify with the situation if not the extremes that Clyde goes (although again perhaps he does have the majority of the audience vote). The film is cleverly crafted in its build-up so that we get the standard ‘man on a mission’ revenge arc played out within the first 30 minutes. It’s then that the film REALLY begins and Butler turns up the heat.
As previously mentioned the violence is surprisingly visceral throughout with a couple of shocking moments lasting well after the end credits. It’s not as if the climax is particularly bad, it’s just that it is disappointingly conventional in an otherwise innovative take on this genre of film.
Director F. Gary Gray stepped in when original choice Frank Darabont quit the project. Darabont’s track-record (Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile) would have suggested more of a focus on the prison element of the story given that Clyde is incarcerated early in the proceedings. This would have allowed for careful development of the cat and mouse game that the two leads play out but instead in the hands of Gray (The Italian Job) we cut straight to the chase.
There is actually very little for Jamie Foxx to do despite the extensive screentime he is given, he is very much the straight man to Butler’s shenanigans. But he does well as the devoted family man trying to stop a man he initially has all the sympathy in the world for.
Starring: Gerard Butler, Jamie Foxx, Colm Meaney, Bruce McGill and Leslie Bibb Director: F. Gary Gray Written by: Kurt Wimmer Release date: 27 November 2009 Certificate: 18 Running time: 108 min
Be sure to check out our fantastic Law Abiding Citizen competition for your chance to win an ipod touch.
Twilight: New Moon
Twilight: New Moon
Bfm rating:
Reviewed by Cassam Looch
One of the most anticipated films of the year finally arrives... and it turns out to be surprisingly enjoyable in an EMO sort of way. Regardless of what we say, Twilight: New Moon will be one of the biggest films of the year. It may be aimed squarely at a certain demographic but the fan base has proven to be loyal and more importantly willing to invest in their literary hero’s big screen outings.
Bella Swan (Stewart) is devastated by the abrupt departure of her vampire love, Edward Cullen (Pattinson), but her spirit is rekindled by her growing friendship with Jacob Black (Lautner). Suddenly she finds herself drawn into the world of the werewolves, ancestral enemies of the vampires, and finds her loyalties tested.
As Edward quickly disappears from the scene, Bella spends much of the first half of the film sullenly trying to forget about him. Kristen Stewart captures the raging hormones and emotions of a teenage girl and manages to make this seemingly tedious process very watchable. This is aided by the welcome addition of Taylor Lautner's Jacob who now no longer is a minor character watching on passively.
The trailer tells you about the big surprise Jacob is hiding, but to be honest it's still very well done. Of course most fans will have already read in great detail about all the twists and turns (probably more than once) and it will be these people who will be hardest to please. Prior to seeing the film i had been warned by them that this was the slowest of all the books and featured only two big set-pieces. Whilst this is true, the film still moves along at an acceptable pace and it's steadfast commitment to keeping Edward out of the picture whilst Jacob and Bella develop their friendship has to be applauded. It would have been very tempting to give the film's biggest star more screen time purely to please his fans but director Weitz handles this dilemma well and in essence creates a new superstar.
Some of the new names added to the franchise are given little to do in this film however the likes of Michael Sheen and Dakota Fanning are sure to feature heavily in future installments and the film once again makes no bones about being part of an ongoing series leaving questions unanswered and issues unresolved. On a positive note you can't really claim to be left waiting too long as the next Twilight is out in the summer of 2010 leaving a wait comparable to the time in between series of your favoutite TV show... I’m sure we'll cope.
It's not quite in the guilty pleasure category as I neither felt too guilty about liking the film nor entirely pleasured (ahem) by it... but it is still a highly polished and well made film which so far has ticked more boxes than Harry Potter. The influx of Vampire films and TV shows might well be down to a number of factors, but Twilight is surely one of the most significant. Again it seems to trump other likely contenders with Vampire's Assistant and True Blood failing to impress after much hype.
There is no point in trying to make these genre defined exercises too clever or revisionist. Twilight has picked itself a familiar story and it's not the vampires and virgins one you might expect. Bella and Edward play out a tragic love story (we are given heavy hints early into this film that a Shakespearean tragedy might be on the cards) and their angst ridden turmoil will still seem familiar to almost everyone watching.
Whether you're already queuing in the rain to see this or happy to catch it at a later time the chances are you won't regret watching it... even if you won't admit it in public.
Starring: Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, Taylor Lautner, Ashley Greene, Michael Sheen and Dakota Fanning Director: Chris Weitz Screenplay: Mellisa Rosenberg Novel by: Stephanie Meyer Release date: November 20th Runtime: 130mins Certificate: 12A
Cinematic Review: A Christmas Carol 3D
A Christmas Carol 3D
Bfm rating:
Reviewed by Cassam Looch
A sophisticated and uncompromising festive classic that might not be to everyone’s taste but cannot be faulted for its authenticity.
Charles Dickens' timeless tale of an old miser who must face Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Yet-to-Come, as they help to bring kindness to his otherwise cold heart. The Ghosts remind him of the man he used to be, the hard truth of what the world is today, and what will happen if he does not strive to be a better man.
The miserly Scrooge is intent on spending another penny-pinching Yule on his own. It’s a very familiar story, one that as been retold and adapted numerous times. There were comments after the screening we attended that Zemeckis had taken all the fun out of the story. The fact is that this is an utterly faithful adaptation of the original version. Perhaps people were expecting the ‘Muppets’ Christmas tale or something similar, this most certainly is not that.
It’s genuinely frightening in places with the ghosts not just scaring the old grump Scrooge, but also giving the audience a thorough going over. The dialogue is lifted straight from Dickens, but is surprisingly easy to follow, proving just what a great wordsmith the writer was. It feels contemporary despite the setting and requires you only to forget the ‘Disneyfied’ versions you might have seen (the irony being of course that this actually is a Disney version of the film).
The payoff is also just as in the original. This will leave some people unsatisfied; as I’m sure they will want a more ‘cheery’ finale with everything wrapped up in a nice bow. Again don’t blame Zemeckis for this, it was Dickens who opted for the more subtle conclusion and it is thankfully left relatively unchanged.
Carrey plays Scrooge with a great sense of grumpiness. The curmudgeonly old man is still very human yet strangely lifeless, and no that’s not because of the animation style. It is the same signature CGI as used in Polar Express, but whereas Hanks managed to infuse his creations with a sense of dullness and complete emptiness, Carrey brings alive the ghosts and the central character.
The 3D works well and is indeed just as spooky as it should be. The scenes that feel most unnecessary are the ones that have the most 3D excess and are additions to the script for purely action needs. The subtle and unnerving earlier moments are the most enthralling, even if you do wish the director would get over the idea that a swooping camera is essential to show-off the prowess of the technology at hand. It isn’t.
The film will be on Imax and in Disney 3D (both formats proving to be superior that their standard counterparts).
Starring: Jim Carrey, Colin Firth, Gary Oldman and Bob Hoskins Directed by: Robert Zemeckis Written by: Robert Zemeckis, novel by Charles Dickens Release Date: November 6th Runtime: 96mins
Certificate: PG
Cinematic Review: This Is It
This Is It
Reviewed by Kam Williams
Excellent
Michael Jackson Mesmerizes in Cinematic Swan Song
Taped during rehearsals for the late Michael Jackson’s London comeback tour which was not to be, This Is It is captures the essence of a Prince of Pop concert, only sans audience. In this regard, the movie actually allows for a much more intimate experience than one taped in front of throngs of loud, distracting and adoring fans. For here, in the empty Staples Center in Los Angeles, you’re able to focus strictly on Michael, and to listen to him interact with his crew and collaborators in between numbers instead of deafening applause.
For, there’s Michael plus an elaborate menagerie comprised of musicians, backup singers, crotch-grapping dancers, strippers on poles, daredevil tightrope aerialists, costumed actors in masks, pyrotechnics, a blue screen showing a variety of images, human toasters (you’ll see), smoke and wind machines, everything but Mad Dogs and Englishmen. And they all combine to put on quite a show, even if perfectionist Michael periodically interrupts to adjust the lighting, the sound level or the play of one of his accompanists.
The film features plenty of inspired musical performances, including Billie Jean, Thriller, Man in the Mirror, Smooth Criminal, The Way You Make Me Feel, I Want You Back, The Love You Save, I’ll Be There and the title track. What we repeatedly see here is a multi-talented genius at work, a man perhaps most comfortable in this milieu, namely, on stage, whether he’s complaining about an earpiece (“It feels like someone’s fist is shoved into my ear.”), orchestrating complicated choreography, or doing a soulful duet with Judith Hill, the beautiful African-Asian-American soprano who would later sing Heal the World shortly thereafter at his funeral.
Again and again, Michael takes charge, for he knows exactly how he wants each tune to sound and look in order to satisfy his fans. And because he was so unguarded and totally oblivious of the rolling cameras, this flick captures him more authentically than any previous footage this critic has witnessed (including that Martin Brashear BBC documentary), and reveals the very likable persona of an icon who was obviously born to entertain.
Not a ghoulish take-the-money-and-run rip-off, but a surprisingly sweet, sensitive, tenderhearted swan song you will never forget that will have you shedding a tear while tapping your feet.
This Is It Trailer:
Cinematic Review: Dead Man Running
Dead Man Running
Reviewed by Cassam Looch
Excellent
Here’s a pitch that will grab you a ‘mockney’ gangster movie starring Danny Dyer and 50 cent. Wait it gets better, this is also produced by renowned cinematic heavyweights Rio Ferdinand and Ashley Cole. Hello? Anybody still there??
Actually let's be fair, I too had low expectations going into this largely thanks to the numerous reasons given above, but despite a complete lack of originality Dead Man Running does have a likability to it which just about manages to keep you hooked for the duration of the film.
When it becomes apparent that the recession is hitting the criminal world as hard as it is hitting Wall Street, notorious gangster and loan shark, Mr. Thigo (50 Cent) arrives in London to shake things up and make an example out of one of his late payers.
Already struggling financially, reformed ex-con Nick (Tamer Hassan) is given exactly 24 hours to come up with the money left on his bill or he is literally a dead man running. As a guarantee, Thigo’s men hold Nick’s wheelchair-bound mum (Brenda Blethyn) hostage, leaving him no choice but to comply. Enlisting the help of his best mate, Bing (Danny Dyer), the boys embark on a frantic race against the clock. Their mission takes them from the dog tracks of East London to the underground drug scene of rural Manchester as they try every trick and scam in the book to get the cash before it’s too late...
The best thing about the film is the focus on Tamer Hassan as the lead character rather than Dyer. It’s not that Danny ever lets anybody down in his movies it’s just that one can become very tired very quickly of his routine. He’s not doing anything different here, but as support to Hassan he manages to redeem himself for some of his recent big screen outings.
Hassan himself is hugely believable as a desperate man prepared to go to desperate measures. He has the size and intimidation factor needed for some of the more physical scenes as well as the acting ability for the (few) dialogue heavy moments. You do like the pairing as well, old friends who are comfortable with one another and able to go the extra mile for their mates.
Brenda Blethyn has a small role but takes the different material in her stride. She’s great as Nick’s mother and adds some emotional depth to the character which is unfortunately lacking from the typically OTT love interest provided by Monet Mazur.
The action and plot is fast-paced but utterly predictable with an assortment of ‘thugs’ and ‘dealers’ crossing paths with our leads and much low level scamming in place to try and save the day. 50 Cent isn’t too bad in his thankfully short screen time and overall despite it’s overly familiar feel the film is brisk and entertaining enough to warrant a look.
Bonus marks for a complete lack of onscreen footballers as well.
Director: Alex De Rakoff Cast: Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, Danny Dyer, Brenda Blethyn, Tamer Hassan , Monet Mazur Writers: Alex De Rakoff and John Luton Certificate: 15 Runtime: 92mins Release date: 30th October
Cinematic Review: Zombieland
Zombieland
Reviewed by Kam Williams
Excellent
Survivors Seek Sanctuary in Amusement Park in Gory Horror Comedy
With Mad Cow disease having turned the planet into a post-apocalyptic dystopia where most of humanity has morphed into a cannibalistic race of mutant zombies, Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg) opts to travel from Texas to Ohio to check on his parents.
The only reason the neurotic college student is among the few people still uninfected is because he’s so neurotic he never left his dorm room while the epidemic swept across campus. Now, as the nerdy weakling begins the dangerous trek home, it doesn’t look like he’s likely to last long battling the bloodthirsty marauders, even if he has prepared a helpful list of dos and don’ts.
Lucky for him, he soon crosses paths and buddies up with his polar opposite on the macho scale, Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), an alpha male with a muscle car and no qualms about killing to survive. Tallahassee has quite an arsenal at his disposal, weapons ranging from guns to bats to hedge clippers for snapping off the heads of the walking dead. However, since he’s starving and craving Hostess’ Twinkies, his first order of business is raiding an abandoned supermarket.
There, the two encounter Wichita (Emma Stone) and her younger sister, Little Rock (Abigail Breslin), streetwise teens who steal the guys’ auto. But a little farther up the road, conceding that there’s strength in numbers, the girls have a change of heart and pick the boys back up. Then, the quartet decides to drive westward to Hollywood where an abandoned amusement park is rumored to be zombie-free.
This is the engaging-enough premise of Zombieland, a splatter flick marking the noteworthy directorial of Ruben Fleischer. Mr. Fleischer has fashioned a yuck-filled screamfest which generates far more mirth than tension, gobs of gore served up onscreen notwithstanding. For, never do you get the sense that the picture’s motley crew might not survive their harrowing ordeal.
Instead, you tend to focus on the comical, creative variety of ways in which they dispatch the swarming hordes of carnivorous creatures, and on the budding romance between Columbus and Wichita. The film also features a hilarious cameo by Bill Murray, who plays himself with his typically-blasé aplomb.
Zombies as good clean fun, I mean, good messy fun!
Cinematic Review: The Invention of Lying
The Invention of Lying
Reviewed by Kam Williams
bfm rating:
Gervais and Garner Co-Star in Atheist Propaganda Masquerading as Sitcom
I’m not sure how many people are ready for a movie as iconoclastic about Jesus Christ as The Invention of Lying, but you never know. Co-written and co-directed by Ricky Gervais and Matthew Robinson, the picture, at first blush, looks like a formulaic romantic comedy, but turns into something far more sinister about midway into the adventure.
At the deceptively-benign point of departure, we learn that the story is set in a parallel universe where humans can only tell the truth and thus they all innocently trust everything they hear. This state of affairs isn’t good for Mark Bellison (Gervais), a struggling scriptwriter for a company called Lecture Films. Since he’s overweight and not very masculine, he’s always being insulted by compulsively-honest folks, such as his secretary (Tina Fey) who calls him a “fatty fat faggot” and a colleague (Rob Lowe) who refers to him as a “dumpy loser queer.”
Nonetheless, he has an unrequited crush on Anna McDoogles (Jennifer Garner), a beautiful woman out of his league. So, it looks like Mark is fated to be alone until he figures out how to fib for the first time while making a bank withdrawal. After stealing some money, he decides to trick a gorgeous stranger into sleeping with him by telling her that the world will end unless they mate immediately.
Realizing that he’s in a unique position as the only person capable of prevaricating, Mark soon cheats his way to fame and fortune. But he doesn’t stop there, manipulating the minds of the gullible masses by selling them on the idea of heaven while setting himself up as messiah. Eventually, the megalomaniac has everything he wants, except for Anna’s heart.
But while The Invention of Lying is busy masquerading as a light-hearted sitcom where the guy eventually gets the girl, there’s certainly something subversive afoot in the flick’s simultaneous subtle advocating of atheism. What other message are we supposed to get when Mark morphs into a reprehensible, Christ-like figure, complete with the beard and long hair?
A persuasive, comedic argument against the existence of God or a blasphemous reinvention of Jesus as a shameless con artist? You be the judge.
Cinematic Review: Inglourious Basterds
bfm Film Review: Inglourious Basterds
Reviewed by Kam Williams
Excellent
Tarantino’s WWII Saga Sends Revenge-Minded GIs on Sadistic Scalping Spree
Quentin Tarantino took over ten years to finish writing the script for Inglourious Basterds, and fans of his grisly brand of splatter fare will undoubtedly find the film well worth the wait. This gruesome World War II saga stars Brad Pitt as Lieutenant Aldo Raine, a half-breed hillbilly from Tennessee who assembles an all-Jewish unit of American GIs for a Nazi scalp-hunting party across occupied France.
Superficially, the storyline resembles that genre of classic war flicks from the Sixties which revolved around a ragtag team of irregulars undertaking a dangerous mission behind enemy lines, pictures like The Dirty Dozen (1967), Where Eagles Dare (1968), The Train (1964), Von Ryan’s Express (1965), The Devil’s Brigade (1968) and The Guns of Navarone (1961). The difference in this case is that Tarantino has, in his trademark fashion, upped the ante in terms of gratuitous gore while devoting considerable time to character development in service of a fanciful tale of sweet revenge that’s partly historical, partly the product of his own fertile imagination.
The film opens in 1941 in a rural region of France where we find a notorious Nazi colonel known as “The Jew Hunter” (Christoph Waltz) intensely interrogating a dairy farmer (Denis Menochet) suspected of hiding Jews. To save his own skin, the frightened Frenchman points out the precise spot under the floorboards of his home where the Dreyfus family lies huddled together breathlessly. Soon, soldiers with machine guns are surreptitiously summoned, and the only survivor of the ensuing carnage is a daughter, Shoshanna (Melanie Laurent), who miraculously escapes into the countryside.
By 1944, the traumatized young woman has resurfaced under the moniker Madame Mimieux as the manager of a modest movie theater she operates with the help of her black boyfriend, Marcel (Jacky Ido), the projectionist. Later, when she is informed that Hitler himself (Martin Wuttke) will be attending the premiere of a new Nazi propaganda film she’s hosting, she decides to make the most of a golden opportunity to avenge the murder of her relatives. So, she and Marcel hatch a plan to kill the Fuhrer, Goebbels (Sylvester Groth) and hundreds of their henchmen by burning the place down to the ground in the middle of the screening.
Meanwhile, Aldo the Apache and his Hebrew-heritaged recruits exact their own measure of revenge for the Holocaust as they embark on a sadistic reign of terror during which they gleefully gut German soldiers in a variety of ways, including bashing brains with a baseball bat, slicing off scalps and carving swastikas into foreheads. The parallel plots finally merge when the gang gets word of Hitler’s coming to the theater from a spy (Diane Kruger), and they concentrate on assassinating him too, setting up a spaghetti Western-style showdown straight out of Sam Peckinpah.
Don’t be put off by all the explicit gore, for it is ultimately vindicated by Inglourious Basterds’ disturbing, self-referential way of delivering a thought-provoking message not only about war and man’s inhumanity to man, but about our insatiable lust for movies about war. Let the debate begin over whether Tarantino is ultimately sanctioning or condemning the exploits of Aldo and company by juxtaposing them against the utterly reprehensible behavior of the dastardly Jew Hunter, the most despicable screen villain since that creep in No Country for Old Men.
Regardless, Quentin again proves himself a master yarn-spinner adept at keeping his audience both entertained and on edge for the duration, ever so deliberately milking the maximum amount of tension out of each of his tautly-edited five acts. Quentin Tarantino’s best yet, a seamless, tour de force not to be missed.
To see a trailer for Inglourious Basterds, click here
Cinematic Review: The Ugly Truth
bfm Film Review: The Ugly Truth
Review by Kam Williams
Fair
An Ugly Sitcom, and that’s the Truth
Abby Richter (Katherine Heigl) is the exasperated producer of Sacramento AM, a TV morning show suffering from poor ratings. Presently, morale in the studio is so low that crew members have begun bickering with each other on a daily basis, even co-hosts Georgia (Cheryl Hines) and Larry Redding (John Michael Higgins) who happen to be married to each other.
Faced with the prospect of having her program cancelled, Abby grudgingly agrees to let her boss (Nick Searcy) make several programming changes, although she hates the idea of allowing corporate management to dictate content. Still, she could never have guessed that the first personality he’d hire would be a sexist like Mike Chadway (Gerard Butler), a Neanderthal with a popular relationship advice show on public access television.
It turns out that just the night before, Abby happened to tune in to an episode of “The Ugly Truth” by accident. And she’d been so outraged by Mike’s misogynistic musings that she was prompted to call in to confront him on the air about his pronouncement that all men are shallow and only interested in a woman’s looks. Unfortunately, he gets the better of the exchange, putting the anonymous caller on the defensive by insinuating that she was a lonely spinster. Then, he referred to her as a “house-bound inbred” before hanging up on her unceremoniously.
Romantically-challenged Abby’s love life has admittedly been a disappointment, between focusing on her career and saving herself for the sort of perfect gentleman that macho Mike claims doesn’t exist. Of course, the two butt heads from the moment he arrives at the station the following morning, especially when he goes over her head to get approval for segments featuring everything from female Jello wrestling to a couple of brainless bimbos billed as “The Fun Bag Twins.”
So unfolds the battle-of-the-sexes scenario established at the outset of The Ugly Truth, a predictable romantic comedy directed by Robert Luketic (Monster in Law). Only in a formulaic Hollywood fairytale could an infuriated feminist like Abby eventually fall for a creepy cave man like Mike. This transpires in spite of the appearance of a perfectly-respectable suitor, Colin (Eric Winter), a handsome and polite doctor with all the attributes she’d been holding out for. The script (written by a trio of ostensibly self-hating females, by the way) has her preferring a date-rape advocate who believes that “Just because she says no doesn’t mean she means no.”
But worse than the implausible and patently offensive plotline is the picture’s relentlessly-raunchy brand of humor designed to appeal to the lowest common denominator in a decidedly-coarse fashion. For example, director Luketic shamelessly lifts the classic fake orgasm scene from When Harry Met Sally, except that the climax is neither faux nor funny in this crude variation on the theme.
Ugly, and that’s the truth!
Cinematic Review:Bruno
Bruno
Reviewed by Cassam Looch stars
Sticking closely to the road movie formula of Borat, this latest outing by an outrageous comic creation of Sacha Baron Cohen also opts to hold the mirror of mocking up to entertainment culture in general and US society in particular.
When Austrian fashion correspondent Bruno (Sacha Baron Cohen) has his TV show cancelled following an impromptu appearance at a high profile catwalk event, he decides to carry on his quest for fame and fortune abroad. On his way to the US, Bruno stops over in Africa and 'adopts' a baby so that he can have the complete modern celebrity look. Joining the fashionista and little baby OJ is assistant Lutz (Hammarsten) who helps organise a series of interviews to get Bruno’s TV show off the ground. What follows are a series of typically cringe-inducing and hilarious Sacha Baron Cohen sketches and skits with members of the public and lesser celebrities.
The version we saw of Bruno was prior to the death of Michael Jackson, so it was a print complete with the LaToya Jackson interview. This scene although not essential to the plot (actually none of the scenes are 'essential') is as funny as the rest of the film with the subversive manner in which Bruno tries to get Michael's number proving to be hilarious.
Comparisons with Borat will be inevitable, and in those terms this film feels a little uneven in reference to the focus of the comedy. Borat allowed the people he interacted to make fools of themselves without prompting and remain a lovable buffoon in his own right. Bruno on the other hand is used as an instigator, he's still funny on his own but a lot of the responses he generates are manufactured. That also lends to the feeling that some of the scenes are staged with some of the more notable reactions seeming a little too convenient.
It doesn't really matter in the standout scene however, as the séance with a sleazy medium and the spirit of former Milli Vanilli front man is an acting master class by Cohen. Just when you think it has gone as far as humanly possible, Bruno unfolds another layer of over-the-top outlandishness which leaves the audience as stunned as the bystander in the scene. This segment of the film also boasts one of the best payoff lines in recent years, one which hard most of the cinema rolling in the aisles.
Other scenes will appaul and entertain you in equal measure. The reactions Bruno is able to get from the pushy-parents is astonishing. The danger in other sections does feel genuine with attempts to solve the problems of the middle-east leaving one in awe at the sheer audacity of the man.
Cohen himself is too recognisable to be able to pull off these sorts of characters, only the most foolish would fall for the disguises after two films and countless TV series. It's no bad thing however, as the performer has a number of 'straight' acting projects lined up and the format a suitable climax with Bruno.
Starring: Sacha Baron Cohen, Gustaf Hammarsten, Ron Paul, Paul Abdul and Clifford Banagale Directed by: Larry Charles Written by: Anthony Hines, Sacha Baron Cohen, Dan Mazer and Jeff Schaffer Runtime: 83mins Certificate: 18 Release date: July 10th
Cinematic Review: Skin
Skin
Reviewed By Karla Williams
stars
The incredible real life story of Sandra Laing (played by British actress Sophie Okonedo) seems almost too far-fetched to be true. Sandra was born to two white Afrikaners (played brilliantly by Sam Neil and Alice Krige) who were completely unaware of their black ancestry. Because of said ancestry, Sandra was born with the features and appearance of a mixed raced child which caused no end of problems in 1950’s apartheid South Africa. The law in the country dictates that black people and white people cannot mix including being educated in the same schools or even live in the same house. Therefore Sandra’s father fights to have his daughter classified as white based upon the fact that both her parents are obviously so. But when Sandra begins school aged 10, the classification is soon challenge and thus begins her 30 year struggle through identity, race and love as she searches for acceptance.
Anthony Fabian’s film wonderfully highlights the pain faced by all parties involved and leaves you feeling affected not only by Sandra’s story but that of both her parents. Her father will do all he can to make sure his daughter has the best life possible which can only be done through a classification as a white girl. But despite the love and dedication he shows to his obviously mixed race daughter his racist attitudes and behaviour towards his black workers never changes, leading you to believe that the only motivation behind him wanting Sandra to remain “white” is because of his own hatred of black people. Her mother is less extreme in her views but is tragically caught between the duty to her husband and love for her daughter, making her a permanent casualty in what seems a lifelong battle.
Skin is a deeply moving film that depicts the heartrending story of a woman who, simply because of the colour of her skin, seemed destined never to be accepted. The performances in the film are all spot on with Sophie Okonedo, Sam Neil and Alice Krige all portraying the outward pressures and inner struggles of their characters superbly. While the film at times does feel like a bit like a made for TV movie, it contains enough heart and emotion to truly touch its audience.
A film by Anthony Fabian
Starring Sophie Okonedo, Sam Neil and Alice Krige
Running Time: 107 mins
Cinematic Review: Sunshine Cleaning
Sunshine Cleaning Reviewed: by Cassam Looch Starring: Amy Adams, Emily Blunt, Alan Arkin, Jason Spevack and Steve Zahn Director: Christine Jeffs Writer: Megan Holley Release date: 26 June, 2009 Certificate: 15 bfm rating:
Rose Lorkowski (Amy Adams) is intent on getting her son into private school. She struggles making a living as a domestic cleaner but following a tip-off from her lover (Steven Zahn) she decides to move into the Crime Scene biohazard removal business. Rose’s unreliable sister Norah (Blunt) has also recently lost her job and so is persuaded to join Rose to make some extra money. The sisters realise they are in some way helping people over come loss and whilst finding meaning in their jobs they soon realise they have yet to overcome the personal tragedy that has formed them. Having looked after his daughters for so long, Joe Lorkowski (Alan Arkin) has grown restless and is constantly trying to make a quick buck from scams and unlikely deals. Rose feels she has had to look after her younger sister and struggles to trust her with the business leading to an inevitable showdown between them.
Adams and Blunt were last seen in Doubt and Young Victoria respectively (we’re trying hard to forget about Night at the Museum, so no need to bring that up) giving great performances in weighty costume dramas. Sunshine Cleaning in its own way is just as weighty, with the contemporary nature of the characters making this arguably more appealing. Norah’s ‘emo’ infused depression and Rose’s struggles to bring up her son whilst trying to maintain a relationship with a married man might pain broad strokes with our expectations but eventually the story focuses on the fractured relationship between the siblings. This is the core strength of the film, especially when overseen by Arkin’s caring but erratic family patriarch.
It could have been much ado about nothing, yet the screenplay (by first-timer Megan Holley) manages to find emotion in the most unlikely manner. Even more surprising is the dark humour which runs through the story but never seems out of place. The ending (which we won’t ruin) does a great job of wrapping things up with the film never feeling too long or dragging in some of its quieter moments.
Film Review: Terminator Salvation
bfm film review: Terminator Salvation
Reviewed by Kam Williams
Emotionally-Barren Sequel Plagued by Lack of Character Development
When you decide to shoot a Terminator sequel sans Schwarzenegger (sorry, a cameo of Arnold‘s head atop a body double doesn’t count), and with an entirely new cast, you might want to consider devoting some quality time to character development in order to give your audience a chance to become familiar with and, thus, reason to care about the protagonists. Otherwise you’ll probably end up with a superficial, sci-fi saga like Terminator Salvation (T-4), a special effects indulgence in fight sequences, chase scenes, pyrotechnics and techno wizardry at the expense of emotional depth.
This post-apocalyptic adventure is as soulless as the defoliated expanse of barren landscape on which it unfolds. What’s worse, the movie abandons the franchise’s carefully-cultivated trademarks in favor of a lot of nondescript CGI action sequences which feel interchangeable with similar flicks like Transformers and Doomsday.
Blame for this departure in tone rests squarely on the shoulders of Joseph McGinty Nichol, aka McG, who has made a rocky transition to movies after directing award-winning music videos for both Smash Mouth and Sugar Ray.
McG’s stock has gone done since his promising feature film debut with Charlie’s Angels in 2000. Seems he has trouble just controlling his crew, judging by Christian Bale’s having to apologize publicly about going ballistic to maintain decorum on the set.
Bale, by the way, heads a star-studded ensemble which also includes Sam Worthington, Helena Bonham Carter, Jane Alexander, Common, Terry Crews and Bryce Dallas Howard. T-4’s point of departure is 2003, the year in which T-3 was released, but the story soon shifts to a flattened California in 2018 where we find the few folks still alive cowering in caves and makeshift shelters.
That’s because a swarm of invading terminators, Skynet’s T-600s, have practically decimated humanity. With less than four days until total annihilation, it falls to a chivalrous army vet named John Connor (Bale) to organize a resistance movement. Its goal is to get close enough to the cyborgs to shut down their computers by jamming their radio frequency with the help of a top secret weapon provided by General Ashdown (Michael Ironside).
Of course, this is easier said than done, especially since the aliens have a decided military advantage and a “take no prisoners” policy. But Conner is both desperate and game and enlists the assistance of a motley crew in his heroic endeavor. His impromptu posse includes his pregnant wife, Kate (Howard), a downed fighter pilot (Moon Bloodgood), his tight-hand man, Barnes (Common), a teenage soldier (Anton Yelchin), a mute toddler (Jadagrace) and Marcus Wright (Worthington), a very mysterious stranger whom Connor has good reason not to trust.
But keeping the various players straight on the scorecard is never as important here as simply sitting back and appreciating all the fireworks which ensue in this mindless, explosion-driven blockbuster. In sum, T-4 is at best an over-stimulating concatenation of bells and whistles amounting to the cinematic equivalent of bubblegum.
To quote the Bard of Avon, “A tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.” I couldn’t put it better myself.
Rated PG-13 for profanity and intense violence.
Running time: 130 minutes Studio: Warner Brothers
To see a trailer for Terminator Salvation, visit: www.youtube.com
Film Review: Drag me to Hell
Drag me to Hell
Starring: Alison Lohman, Justin Long, Lorna Raver, Dileep Rao and Adriana Barraza Director: Sam Raimi Release Date: May 27th Certificate: 15
Given his recent big budget output with the Spider-man franchise, some people might be unaware of the dark roots that brought director Sam Raimi to public attention. With the gory and terrifying Evil Dead series the (then) young filmmaker blast his way onto the scene with films that were brimming with cool comedy and frightening special effects. It’s pleasing then to report then that not only is Drag me to Hell a return to form, it is probably the best the director has ever made.
When young loan officer Christine Browne (Alison Lohman) is desperate to get a promotion at work she takes the uncharacteristic option of refusing the pleas of an old woman to help keep the bank from repossessing her home. The old gypsy (Lorna Raver) feels ashamed and places a curse on Christine which begins to manifest itself immediately. Fearing she only has three days to live, Christine takes her reluctant boyfriend (Justin Long) to consult and Indian Mystic (Dileep Rao) and get the curse lifted. Things however are not that easy, and as her life begin to fall apart in a terrifying manner only an experienced medium (Barraza) can save her soul.
Don’t let the premise put you off, this is easily the most entertaining and terrifying films Hollywood has produced for ages. It manages to blend superbly original set-pieces with some laugh out loud scenes, which somehow manage to feel perfectly well placed amidst the action. In fact it is the absurdity of the situations that lead to most of the funny moments, which are cleverly realised by Raimi.
Alison Lohman must also get a lot of praise for her fantastic performance in the lead role. She is both the ‘scream queen’ the story demands and the ‘modern-day heroine’ the audience expects. Her delivery in the middle of the chaos is impeccably timed and she brings out the best in the script.
Supporting characters also do very well, with the difficult ‘mystic’ roles coming across as likeable which is very hard to do. If anything this leaves Justin Long with very little to do, but perhaps it’s just the fact that he is now so popular you would think he might have wanted more screen time. Fact is this is the best thing in the cinemas this week, and already a contender for film of the year.
The frights come thick and fast combining gross out ‘splatter’ and nerve-shredding tension... if you think you’re made of strong stuff then go for it!
Angels & Demons
Da Vinci Code Sequel as Disappointing as Original
Film review by Kam Williams
Between its preposterous storyline and its blasphemous revisionist history, the highly-anticipated screen adaptation of The Da Vinci Code was the most over-hyped disappointment of 2006. Although there’s been a lot less buzz surrounding this sequel, Angels & Demons, nonetheless, offers a cinematic experience which is equally underwhelming.
Based on the Dan Brown best-seller of the same name, the film was directed by Ron Howard and stars Tom Hanks who reprises his role as Harvard symbologist Dr. Robert Langdon. Howard assembled an international ensemble which included Scotsman Ewan McGregor, Prussian Armin Mueller-Stahl, Israeli Ayelet Zurer, Dane Nikolaj lie Kaas, Italian Pierfrancesco Favino and Swede Stellan Skarsgard. Skarsgard, by the way, recently trashed the book while on tour supposedly promoting the movie. Not a good omen.
Anyhow, at the point of departure, we learn that the Pope has just passed away and that the College of Cardinals is convening in Vatican City to pick his successor. However, before the conclave can arrive at a consensus, the four favourites to ascend to the papacy are abducted by a madman who announces plans to execute them one-by-one, beginning at 8 PM.
With time being of the essence, Dr. Langdon is summoned from Cambridge to Rome by the Vatican because of a cryptic note left by the Cardinals’ kidnappers. Interpreting the hieroglyphics, he identifies the crime to be the work of the Illuminati, a vengeful, secret society of heretics who have been at odds with the Church for hundreds of years.
Meanwhile, a team of scientists at CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) collaborating on an atomic collider in Switzerland successfully harnesses anti-matter capable of unlocking the secret to the moment of creation in three separate containers. However, an intruder immediately breaches security, kills a member of the research team, and escapes with a vial slated to explode at the stroke of midnight.
Soon, Professor Langdon lands in Europe, where he teams up with veteran Inspector Olivetti (Favino) and the beautiful, if vapid, Vittoria Vetra (Zurer), a colleague of the man murdered at CERN. The intrepid trio proceeds to unravel a multi-layered mystery which, of course, has the two incidents they’re investigating conveniently dovetail together.
Again and again, the terminally-loquacious Langdon proves to have an uncanny knack for deciphering precisely what every inscrutable mark and message means, as each discovery invariably only confirms another one of his cockamamie conspiracy theories. Lucky for him, the constant claptrap never annoys the wide-eyed Vittoria (only the audience), even if he has a bad habit of uncovering clues too late to save the cardinals. But the question remains whether they’ll be able to recover the canister of anti-matter before it detonates and lays waste to the Vatican. Too bad, this dud is so inadvertently funny, there’s absolutely no tension in the theatre when the moment of truth arrives.
A farcical, farfetched, patience-testing, 2½-hour insult to the intelligence. And I had assumed President Obama had signed a law banning torture!
Starring: Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Eric Bana, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, Simon Pegg, John Cho, Bruce Greenwood and Anton Yelchin
Director: JJ Abrams
Runtime: 126mins
Release Date: May 8th 2009
Certificate: 12A
The remake or ‘reboot’ if you insist should fall into the long list of poorly conceived and badly executed cash-in summer blockbusters and yet not only does it excel in entertainment terms it is also arguably one of the smartest films in years. Director JJ Abrams takes the original Star Trek series and movies and shows them whole-hearted respect by completely reinventing the franchise. It’s an initially hard-to-swallow concept (especially for fans of Shatner’s Swagger or Nimoy’s raised eyebrow) but on reflection it’s a brazen and full-bloodied gamble which pays of handsomely.
A young and troubled James T Kirk (Chris Pine) gets caught up in a bar fight in Iowa, where he is spotted by Federation Star Ship Captain Chris Pike (Greenwood). Having known Kirk senior before he died in action, Captain Pike manages to convince Kirk to join the academy and train to follow in the footsteps of his father. At this point Kirk encounters half-human/half-alien Spock (Quinto) and the pair become embroiled in a dispute over a test but before the fallout is reached all the cadets are scrambled into action following distress calls from Spock’s home planet. Along the way other familiar members of the crew join the Star Ship Enterprise… but the danger they face is greater than they could ever imagine. A vengeful Romuland called Nero and his technically advanced ship hold the Federation responsible for the destruction of their planet and one member of the Enterprise crew in particular.
The cast are superb, with relative unknown Pine taking to the cocksure arrogance of Kirk like a duck to water. He and Quinto as Spock are the core of the film, but the crew would not be complete without the other members. Karl Urban plays the dour ‘Bones’ McCoy and gives probably the most vivid turn in relation to the first series… which is particularly welcome. Perhaps the villain of the piece could have done with a little more development but for a film that clocks in at two hours this might just be wishful thinking, and now that we have a fully functioning Enterprise and crew lets have more of the franchise.
Having seen the film on the Imax format, an additional standout feature of the film is the wonderful sound effects. Having been wowed by the films visually on the BIG screen, Star Trek really makes full use of the audio capabilities which arguably makes the whole experience that much better.
X-men Origins: Wolverine
Reviewed by Cassam Looch
Starring: Hugh Jackman, Liev Schreiber, Danny Huston, Dominic Monaghan, Taylor Kitsch, Will.I.Am and Ryan Reynolds
Director: Gavin Hood
Release Date: 29 April, 2009
Certificate: 12A
Runtime: 108mins
Logan (Jackman) and his brother Victor (Schreiber) has been through a lot together from the American Civil War to Vietnam the pair have fought side by side (or back-to-back in this case), and eventually find themselves under the leadership of military man William Stryker who utilises the individual strengths of various mutants to form a formidable if dangerous unit. Logan however disagrees with the violent methods being used and opts out for a quieter life working as a lumberjack and living with the woman he loves. Soon however his peaceful life is shattered and he goes looking for revenge on those responsible and in the process signs up for Stryker’s latest experiment making him more powerful than before. Victor however has his own plans and soon the pair are to face-off whilst other mutants are forced to pick sides.
The story itself is very simplistic and you can understand why some late tweaks were made, however these are only moderately successful. What works is the relationship between Victor and Logan with both slowly transforming into Sabretooth and Wolverine respectively. We know the characters from the earlier films and even though the film fails to give a legitimate continuity (Sabretooth in particular was short-changed in the franchise), the ‘new’ timeline gives us better understanding of their epic battles. Some of the effects are also well-handled and the big set-pieces look a lot better than the early trailers would suggest.
Unfortunately not all the CGI is up to scratch and the retracting claws in particular look rushed and poorly executed. Whereas we get to see many of marvels lesser superheroes (and villains) in this movie, at no point do we feel we know any of them. Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool is great for the brief moments we see him in, but it amounts to nothing more than a fleeting cameo… and remember his is the character that was re-shot to feature more in the final film, Imagine what his role would have been like otherwise!
Other favourites are also glossed over with Gambit proving to be nothing more than a sideshow. Director Gavin Hood has a great track record with Oscar-nominated Tsotsi and Rendition being highly praised, but even though the action is well-handled here some of the quieter moments feel very clunky (the ‘Kent’ family farm scene is embarrassing). Where Rendition delivered us smart Hollywood thrills with a superb sucker-punch, Wolverine feels derivative and even outdated. At times you can see the potential, but in this outing it remains unrealised
Film Review: Fast and Furious
bfm Film Review: Fast and Furious
Reviewer: Cassam Looch Release Date: April 10th
Runtime: 107mins
This is the third sequel to the original ‘The Fast and The Furious’ (2001) and all the original cast are back. Following a gradual decline in quality it’s great to see this high-octane outing not only matching the first film, but actually bettering it in many places. The massive US opening might mean we get more films in the franchise, but on the evidence of this film there’s still plenty left in the tank.
Okay enough puns. The film opens with a fantastic ‘heist’ sequence with Dominic Toretto (Diesel) and Letty (Rodriguez) taking centre stage and back in the thick of the action. Soon however Toretto ends up back in the US and coming up against old friend/adversary Brian O’Conner (Walker). The pair end up competing for spots on the team for a drug bosses operations crossing the border into Mexico. Their old relationship is as fiery as ever, and things only get more complicated when Toretto’s sister turns up (Brewster) and both racers have different agendas and motivations for wanting to bring down the crime boss.
You don’t go into a big-budget blockbuster like this expecting to be challenged and certainly not a Vin Diesel movie but to be fair the entertainment factor more than makes up for it. The fun here is the car chases and the old chemistry which actually feels more real given the time that has passed since the first outing.
The race/stunt sequences are of two distinct varieties with CGI cars towards the end (especially the tunnel escape) and real vehicles used in the competition and road race set-ups. The ‘real’ scenes can’t be faulted with exciting and inventive carnage blended with a truly modern ‘satnav’ idea. The computer dominated scene although very tense lack the punch of raw metal on metal action however and sometimes the mayhem just gets too darn confusing.
It’s a small flaw in an otherwise blistering and full-on action film.
Film Review: Knowing
bfm film review: Knowing
Reviewer: Cassam Looch
Starring: Nicholas Cage, Rose Byrne, Chandler Canterbury and Lara Robinson Director: Alex Proyas
Certificate: 15
Runtime: 121mins
Arguably one of the darkest films from mainstream Hollywood, Knowing is a surprisingly effective Sci-fi thriller which verges on horror. Its various twists and turns demand to be kept under wraps so be sure to see the film as soon as possible, but for what it's worth even the ending (which is sure to cause much conversation post-viewing) commits completely to the concept the film establishes. This very 'unhollywood' take on the genre is a welcome return to form for the film's star Nicholas Cage, who acknowledges the intelligence of the material by delivering a subtle and well-mannered performance.
When a time capsule that has been dug up at his son's elementary school is opened John Koestler (Cage) finds himself in possession of a note which has some chilling coded predictions some that have already occurred and others that are about to - that lead him to believe his family plays a role in the events that are about to unfold. In the process of finding out more about the notes writer Koestler and his son are led to Diana Wayland, a mysterious woman who might know more than she is willing to reveal.
It would be unfair to go into anymore detail than that as the film unfolds and slowly comes to the boil with a number of unsuspected twists. These are brought vividly to life by the director Alex Proyas (I. Robot, the Crow and Dark City) in particular two visceral scenes involving a plane crash and later another violent disaster. These scenes a superbly directed (and acted) and go quickly from Tinseltown hokum to frightening horror with expert precision. One suspects the director had this intention all along, in any other film we would be whooping or expecting a hero to swoop in, but not here.
The film never allows the viewer to drift along with the proceedings... nothing is decided for you. It can be read in scientific terms, as a religious allegory or even as a fantastical/supernatural thriller. Understandably the people involved with the film are unwilling to commit to one view or the other (Cage said at a press conference for the film that he didn't want his own beliefs to cloud anyones interpretation of the film). Also of note are the performance by the younger members of the cast, both Koestler's son (Chandler Canterbury) and Wayland's daughter (Lara Robinson) are excellent with difficult and challenging material.
Because of the nature of the film, a lot has been kept under wraps both in this review and by the film companies involved. Take it from someone who has seen the film it has been a wholly worthwhile process, and don't let a few moaning spoilsports ruin it for you. The last mainstream film which had a similar tone would be Will Smith's I Am Legend, personally this film not only has a better ending but is also a better movie overall.
Theatre Review: Pied Piper
bfm Theatre Review: Pied Piper – A hip-hop Dance Revolution Reviewed by Cassam Looch
Published, Tuesday, March 10, 2009
I’ve been unfortunate enough to sit through my fair share of dire hip-hop movies in recent years. So the idea of a live performance 90 minute show based on the Robert Browning poem The Pied Piper of Hamelin hardly had me excited with anticipation. The fact that the resulting experience is an exhilarating tour de force of contemporary ideas and dance proves you should never be too quick to judge.
It is the very fact that it is live that means it is so much better as an idea than dance movies we have become accustomed to. There are no second chances, no retakes, no stunt doubles or stand-ins. You only have one chance to get it right and this not only adds the necessary tension to the audience viewing but serves as the adrenaline-inducing motivation to the dancers. Hailing from the Boy Blue entertainment stable (with it’s roots in East London), Kenrick Sandy takes the lead role of the Pied Piper updating him to a trouble-shooting hired gun taking care of the problems successive governments have failed to solve.
We are introduced to a city living in fear thanks to unruly gangs and violence. This becomes clear to us thanks to an outstanding opening routine which wonderfully set the tone and standard for what is about to follow. To be honest I was left breathless by this scene-setting and couldn’t imagine how the performers on stage could possibly keep the high benchmark. The location could be any inner-city in the UK, but the action then takes us on a whirlwind worldwide tour as the Piper shows his credentials and we see him disposing of various gangs globally. The sassy and hypnotic ‘Viper’s Den’ segment stood out here as the girls showed they were far more than just eye candy. The action throughout blended not just dance but also elements of martial arts which was a welcome surprise.
The sheer size and scale of the production is matched by the venue, with the Barbican proving to be perfect for the ‘up close and personal’ elements of the show as well as the ‘stand back and admire’ set pieces. As well as the ladies, the kids in the show also deserve special mention. There is a moment in the third act when the most elaborate sequence of the show is followed by the arrival of the children. You think that this could merely be an opportunity to score some cute points and get some rest for the finale, but far from it. The ‘charming of the kids’ routine is fantastically well observed with fast changing atmosphere going from dark to light and back again. Those familiar with the source material might know what is about to follow, but the way it is done still manages to be unsettling.
Overall the show is incredibly atmospheric and offers up the sort of entertainment one rarely finds in any medium. Be sure to check it out at the Barbican from now until March 14th. With the production going on tour nationally thereafter.
The grandest graphic novel of them all finally arrives on the big screen and so the supposedly unfilmable has been filmed. The fans can instantly be assured of one thing, very little has been compromised with the violence intact meaning a far from audience friendly 18 certificate (as well as the 2hr 43min runtime). So does the film live up to the hype?
The action begins in the height of Cold War America as tensions rise between President Nixon and his Russian counterpart. The Watchmen exist in a universe where thanks to the superhero predecessors a number of changes have occurred from our history. As well as a 5-time President, a group of masked vigilantes have been working to keep society from falling apart. Dr Manhattan (the only one of the bunch who is ‘super’ in any way) is preoccupied working on preventing all out Nuclear War so he remains unconcerned with the death of The Comedian, an original crime fighter who was as loathed as he was loved. Rumours start to fly that the group are being picked off one by one, even though most have hung up the latex and retired from public life. As the doomsday clock ticks ever closer to global annihilation, sociopath Rorschach, caped crusader Night Owl and Silk Spectre II find themselves embroiled in the midst of a terrifying prospect.
The plotline is complex but never confusing. It is enhanced by having some prior knowledge of 1980’s politics and pop-culture from the previous decades. It’s not essential, but does help with some of the rapidly divulged information. Director Zac Snyder does a great job using music to place the film, which encompasses many events and personalities from history. The film’s look and tone is of course dark and brooding. It’s difficult to see how open non-comic book fans will be to this (and the bloody violence) but early word seems to be that the movie just about pulls off the difficult trick of taking everyone along for the ride.
The film is not a conventional superhero movie nor is it a supervillian film. This is a super-character story, where everyone is just as flawed as everyone else. Characters like Rorschach and The Comedian have traits of other classic comic book icons, but are also cleverly and subversively unlikable. Their performances bring these out, and it was another masterstroke to go with a largely untried cast of actors over A-list ‘faces’ for the roles. The result is that you never have any idea who is going to make it to the end credits, be they the good guys or the bad guys.
The film is not (quite) up to the perfection attained by The Dark Knight. Nolan’s epic enthralled and entertained where this engrosses and unfolds. It’s high praise though to be uttered in the same breath as the latest batman film though, both films have lived up to the hype. So long has this been in the works that we end up with the last great comic book film pre-dark knight, even if the timeline would suggest otherwise.
Notorious Published Thursday, 12 February, 2009 By Cassam Looch
In the world of hip-hop NOTORIOUS B.I.G (or Biggie to his friends) is regarded as one of the pioneers of the East Coast sound during the nineties. Along with his collaborator and friend Sean 'Puffy' Combes, Biggie was embroiled in the feud with West Coast rapper Tupac, which ended with both men dead. The film follows these warring days but also the larger than life character's rise to fame.
Guided by an iron-willed mother and portrayed quite wonderfully by newcomer Jamal Woolard, Christopher Wallace is shown as a talented but self-destructive character. His fiery relationship with the volatile Lil Kim is only part of the story and as we follow him from his early days the vibrancy of the film needs to be checked by the constant worry that this maybe a very biased biopic.
The film is produced by Sean Combes and as such his character comes over as a reasonable business man with a flair for picking up unpolished talent and making them into superstars. All this may well be true, but he is known to be a loud, arrogant and generally unlikeable man. We never get to see this side to him, and so any thoughts this film might have to being realistic are immediately blown out of the water. This is a shame as you would like to think that the elements with other characters are true as it makes for a fairly enjoyable rise and fall.
Pre-B.I.G days, we are shown Christopher Wallace's normal upbringing with his caring mother never too far away. She is however again shown as a too-good-to-be true type figure, who is either blind to her sons drug-dealing or incredibly naive. Angela Bassett gives a great deal of gravitas and dignity to the role, which in fact might be too much.
Overall it is a breezy and enjoyable enough hip-hop romp, but almost entirely unbelievable at the same time.
My Bloody Valentine 3D
My Bloody Valentine 3D
Starring: Jensen Ackles, Jamie King, Kerr Smith and Betsy Rue Director: Patrick Lussier Writer: Todd Farmer and Zane Smith Release Date: 16th January Website: www.mybloodyvalentinein3d.com
Ten years after a horrific murder spree by disgruntled miner, one of the survivors returns to his home town to tie-up the loose ends he left behind. Fellow survivors Sarah (King) and Axel (Smith) have moved on with their lives and when Tom (Ackles) returns their initial surprise turns to terror when people connected to the mine start being ‘picked’ off one by one (that’s a great joke right there). Tom, keen to prove his innocence and find out who is behind the mask, finds himself avoiding the law to track down the killer, as everyone becomes a suspect.
The film relies on some clever twists so I won’t go into any more detail than that, so much so in fact that even if the experience had been in boring old 2D it would have worked well as a movie. As it is however we get all the added benefits (and frights) of convincing and well integrated special-effects., the action starts straight away and once the plot negotiates the predictable ‘Teens in peril’ opening (including 36-year old Smith as a moody teenager) things move along at a cracking pace.
There are several moments when you will jump and also laugh however in this case it is all utterly intentional. With some tongue-in-cheek moments you are left to constantly wonder why this hasn’t been done before. Alright maybe it has given that this is a remake of a 1980’s slasher but when you see it you’ll know what I mean.
Blood-splattering doesn’t get much better than this… need I say more?
Cassam Looch
Twilight
Starring: Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Cam Gigandet, Billy Burke and Kellan Lutz Director: Catherine Hardwicke Website:www.twilightthemovie.co.uk Release Date: 19th November Writer: Stephanie Meyer
With Harry Potter taking the
Christmas period off this year (some cynics say to avoid being trounced
by this release), the screaming teenage girl market is catered for by
Twilight, an inexplicably popular novel franchise which has broken records
and made millions in the US already.
Bella (Kristen Stewart) finds
herself living with her father in a sleepy and dreary town called Forks
in Washington. Never one to fit in with the crowd, Bella is happy enough
(in a goth/EMO sense obviously) drifting from one place to another.
Things change when she meet Edward Cullen (Pattinson) who is not only
the boy of her dreams but also manages to save her life when she is
almost run over by a car. The pair a quickly swept up in an unpredictable
romance, but soon Edward’s secret past begins to catch up with him.
Soon they are forced to go on the run to escape with their lives….
There’s no need to hide the
fact that Edward is in fact a vampire. Not only does everyone who is
going to willingly watch the film already know this given that they
have read the book, but also the trailer and pre-publicity for the film
make no effort to hide that fact. It’s a shame that the film didn’t
take a more creative approach to this however, we know instantly from
the music video style slow motions to the long lingering looks that
there is something going on.
The story itself is slow to
get moving, it takes far too long for the pair to meet and for Bella
to figure out what is going on. To be fair Lois Lane still hasn’t
figured out who Clark Kent is so I guess that’s part of the mystique
of these characters, however the problem is that there has yet to be
a Superman film which focuses for an hour on the trials and tribulations
of a moody teenage girl. There is also a lack of closure in the finale…
I know there are meant to be sequels (indeed a new director and release
date are already in place) but why bother setting up a promising villain
and then opt for a limp ‘quick-fix’ finale?
Let’s be honest though the
film is not meant for old hacks like me (can someone please make something
for us though?) and judging by the bizarre reaction to the screening
I attended (Girls AND boys streaming from the cinema in tears… one
assumes they were happy) the film meets its own modest targets with
gusto.
Starring: Jason Statham, Natalya Rudakova, François Berléand and Jeroen Krabbé Director: Olivier Megaton Certificate: 15 Release Date: 5th December Writer: Robert Mark Kamen and Luc Besson
If you can tell the difference between Jason Statham movies/characters then you must really be watching to closely because the identikit action hero rarely goes above a shirtless high-kick or grimaced frown in any of his performances. The Transporter franchise is no different; indeed it is the very essence of Statham’s appeal (or limit of his ability) that is once again captured in this high-octane low-intelligence bombast of a film.
Frank Martin (Statham) puts the driving gloves on to deliver Valentina, the kidnapped daughter of a Ukranian government official, from Marseilles to Odessa on the Black Sea. Martin feels guilty having palmed off the job to a novice who was clearly not up to the task. En route, he has to contend with thugs who want to intercept Valentina's safe delivery and not let his personal feelings get in the way of his dangerous objective. As an added incentive the kidnappers have a handy device which means that Martin and Valentina must remain with the vehicle at all times.
The film tries to differentiate itself from the prequels by introducing a novel plot device (as outlined above: an explosive proximity bracelet which is ignited if the unlucky person it is attached to strays too far from a given target). Unfortunately the script finds itself caught in a similar no man’s land to Martin, as the further it strays from the staples of the earlier films the more redundant it becomes. What is the point of all the firmly established rules if they get thrown away at the start of this journey?
Statham may not have improved as an actor, but he certainly does convince in the action stakes. His martial arts skills feel far more accomplished and even the toughest elements of the story for him (the bits with DIALOGUE) are tackled head on. Indeed it is he who keeps things together as all the supporting characters fall way short of anything approaching watchable.
Let’s be fair though, this is a brainless action film from the get-go and it doesn’t pretend to be anything else. It even manages some entertaining and innovative chase sequences, even if they are on two wheels and involve a BMX rather than a high powered saloon car. Probably the best/worst 3-star film you’ll see for a long time (depending on how you’re feeling when you watch it).
“INTRODUCING THE FEMALE ANSWER TO TONY JAA!” Talk about a tough sell, it’s almost impossible to live up to... almost. Those familiar with the brutal, bone-crunching martial arts movies of Mr Jaa will know they have set the standard following the more cerebral (i.e. boring) recent efforts from the likes of Ang Lee (Crouching Tiger...) and Yimou Zhang (Hero and House of Flying Daggers). Those new to this brand of cinema are in for a treat, forget the wires and unrealistic special effects you might have been used to... this is as real as it gets.
Zen is a young autistic girl whose only pleasures seem to be mimicking her favourite action movie stars. Using her skills to make small amounts of money to help her ailing mother Zen gets embroiled in a violent form of debt collection with her friend Mangmoom. Unaware of who the money is coming from, the pair are quickly outnumbered and rely on Zen’s increasing abilities to fight their way out of trouble.
So the plot is much of a muchness and won’t be winning any script awards, but let’s be honest we came to this film demanding to see if this is really the ‘female’ Tony Jaa. Given that the man himself has recently gone AWOL from the set of Ong-Bak 2 (thankfully director Panna Rittikrai has stepped in to save the day there), it gives me great pleasure to say the film is an absolute success. JeeJa Yanin may be slight of frame but you quickly realise that she can pack a mean punch. Not only that but she isn’t afraid to be on the receiving end of some of the films more explosive moments. There are a couple of occasions when Jaa’s muscular impact might have convinced more but the action is constructed in such a way that the hyper-kinetic style of Yanin is showcased for all to see.
A protégé of Panna Rittikrai, this is Yanin’s first big screen outing, and she not only convinces in the action stakes but also in acting terms. She brings a depth to the character and indeed has some moving scenes with her mother and best friend. Director Prachya Pinkaew certainly knows how to make these sorts of movies, and anyone in need for a fix of real Martial arts action need look no further.
Chocolate is up there with Ong-Bak in terms of action and ‘wow’ factor, and probably edges it given the nature of the unique lead performer.
We want more...
Cassam Looch
Babylon AD
Starring:Vin Diesel, Michelle Yeoh, Mélanie Thierry, Gérard Depardieu and Charlotte Rampling Director: Mathieu Kassovitz Writers: Eric Besnard and Maurice G. Dantec Release Date: 29th August Reviewer: Cassam Looch
A by the numbers futuristic Sci-fi movie, Babylon AD is worth noting
if only to see that Vin Diesel is actually still alive and well. The
film itself obviously suffers from comparisons to other giants in this
genre, most notably the Granddaddy ‘Bladerunner’ and although having
very little originality to rely on Babylon AD does have just about
enough to haul it out of ‘one-star’ hell.
A mercenary living in Russia is hired to escort a woman to a highly
fortified America. The mysterious girl (Mélanie Thierry) is accompanied
by her guardian (Michelle Yeoh) who will not leave her side and joins
the dangerous mission. As they journey across various wastelands the
girl begins to show special abilities that both protect and endanger
those around her. When the trio finally arrive in America they realise
the full implications of what they are doing…
One of the mock trailers in the outstanding ‘Tropic Thunder’ has Ben
Stiller’s character starring in pretentious-looking futuristic
Blockbuster called ‘Scorcher 2’. I mention this because that was all I
could think about as I was watching this. The heavy-handed message is
delivered constantly to the viewer and the silent, brooding hero is so
unremarkable that you could easily swap Stiller’s ‘Scorcher’ for
Diesel’s ‘Toorop’.
Babylon AD treads a fine line between sci-fi and sentimentality, and
fails to elevate it’s source material to the levels of the outstanding
(and similarly-themed trio on the run movie) ‘Children of Men’. Some
neat touches remind us of the potential here but never amount to
anything substantive. The chemistry between the leads is uneven and
relationships end up going nowhere fast. We learn nothing about the
backgrounds of the leads and even the dramatic flashback opening is
undone later in the film.
There is a good film hiding in this mess but fussy editing, reshoots
and rewrites appear to have ruined the director’s original vision for
the film. As for Vin Diesel, I suspect he will be hoping next year’s
Fast and Furious (third sequel in the cops and cars franchise) will
mark his comeback… good luck with that.
Cassam Looch
Hellboy 2: The Golden Army
Starring Ron Pearlman, Selma Blair, Doug Jones, Seth MacFarlane and Luke Goss Director: Guillermo del Toro Certificate: 12A Release Date: 20 August 2008 Reviewer: Cassam Looch
So another comic book movie enters the already crowded summer
schedule. What’s more this one is a sequel to a film, which was only a
moderate success at best and boasts a central character to is as
unknown in the UK as he is ugly. Does this compare to the Dark Knight?
Absolutely not, it may be a sequel but fails to match up in any other
category. That maybe an unfair comparison as there is no other films
out this year that match up to the latest batman (except maybe Wall-E)
but such is life, and so the prophetic words uttered by The Joker to
the Dark Knight ring true once more: “You’ve changed things…forever.
There’s no goin’ back!”
At the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense, Hellboy and his
cohorts Abe Sapien and girlfriend Liz continue to work for the
government fighting off weird and wonderful creatures. As Hellboy
discovers a level of fame previous protected from him, he comes a cross
Prince Nuada who has returned from exile to wage war on humans who have
destroyed his homelands whilst his father has maintained an uneasy
peace. The Prince needs his twin sister to unleash the titular ‘golden
army’ an unstoppable force that has remained dormant…. Until now.
Whereas other comic book heroes try to maintain the pretence of
realism (see this years ‘rebooted’ Incredible Hulk as a prime example
of why this so rarely works) Hellboy knows its fantasy origins. The
‘baby’ demon from hell raised by the nazi’s and then RAISED by the
allies could never pretend to be realistic, and so in the hands of a
visual maestro like Del Toro we’re in for a treat. The creatures are
beautifully realised, however have no place within the story. Given
that the director is now moving on to make The Hobbit, one feels at
times that he has taken some of the cast-offs from there and crowbarred
them in here.
There is one notable exception to this, and what an exception it is.
The best character in the film by a long way is the superb Johann
Krauss, a German scientist turned on vapour and existing in a specially
modified suit. Krauss is Sci-fi gold and rescues the film with his
timely introduction. Elsewhere the film and relationship feels forced,
and although never lacking in the action and entertainment stakes, it
does feel a little hollow. A half-hearted resolution doesn’t help
matters, and although you won’t regret watching this, you probably
won’t be able to remember it in a few weeks time.
Starring Wagner Moura, Caio Junqueira, André Ramiro and Fernanda Machado Director: José Padilha Certificate: 18 Release Date: 08/08/08 Reviewer: Cassam Looch
City of God and its recent offspring City of men are
two highlights in modern ‘crime’ cinema. They burst with the energy and
excitement of the classics from 70’s Hollywood. Both films have rightly
been lauded but they do only present one side of the story… Elite Squad
focuses on the ‘crime-fighters’ and in doing so could be the best film
of the lot.
Where the police fear to tread, the brutal and uncompromising BOPE
(Elite Squad) are sent in. They are led in the field by Captain
Nascimento (Moura), and an already dangerous job is compromised further
by the impending arrival of the Pope. Whilst clearing the slums in
preparation for the papal visit, the Captain suffers a series of panic
attacks. Realising he needs to find a replacement, he looks to two
rookies to the police force to sign up to the BOPE. The rookies are
friends and have been making a mark trying to fight the corruption and
dirty dealings of many of their seniors. Neto shoots from the hip, and
although a fine officer he is still raw. Thankfully his more studios
friend Matias is often on hand to help out, but does he lack the killer
instinct needed for the job?
The film unfolds in great fashion, and we get to see many of the
supporting characters as well as the three leads change and develop
over the course of the film. The film’s depiction of the corruption is
wonderfully done, and made utterly believable. It’s not the sort of OTT
‘conspiracy’ nonsense Hollywood seems to favour, more a low level
reality of cops selling car parts from squad vehicles to make a quick
profit. Neto and Matias make for excellent protagonists with ones
exuberance matched by the others naivety.
The cops aren’t all bad, just like the criminals they have their own
reasons for doing what they do. Of particular interest is a disgraced
captain called ‘Fabio’ who later attempts to join the BOPE to try and
gain some redemption for his previous misdeeds, and it is he
misfortunes that lead to a superb hillside shootout which is pivotal to
the film.
The film really is best seen as part of an unofficial trilogy with
City of God and City of Men, but even in its own rights this is
gripping stuff.
Starring: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, Aaron Eckhart, Gary Oldman and Maggie Gyllenhaal Director: Christopher Nolan Certificate: 12A Release Date: 24/07/08 Reviewer: Cassam Looch
Film Noir meets comic-book movies in Nolan’s truly epic ‘The Dark
Knight’. The hype for this film has already been off the scale, and is
bound to continue once the word is out… this is a Masterpiece!
Inevitably people will want to know how Heath Ledger performs as the
Joker, and the fact is that he’s flawless. The moment he appears on
screen for the first time you forget that it is Ledger on screen. You
forget the media frenzy around his death and you forget to give a
sentimental perspective to his performance. So consumed in the
character are we that only The Joker appears on screen. Special (and
much warranted) praise must go to Aaron Eckhart in the role of Harvey
Dent/Two-face who gives us the polar opposite to Joker AND Batman one
man. He may be overlooked, but Eckhart puts in some sterling work
throughout. His descent into villainy is genuinely moving and his
grotesque transformation goes some way to wiping out the memory of the
previous camp outing in Batman Forever.
Christian Bale’s growling Batman is fully formed, and if anything
the bulked up Bruce Wayne comes across as far more likeable in this
film than in Batman Begins. There are a couple of scenes where you can
see why Bale will definitely step into the role of Bond in the near
future. Gary Oldman and Michael Caine add to the acting credentials of
the film, and Oldman in particular get to flex some action muscles as
well as his acting chops.
Christopher Nolan keeps things moving at a breathtaking pace. He
employs the same incremental tension system of The Prestige (allied by
a constant soundtrack) to enhance every scene. Every look and word is
used to build to a great climax, not just in overall terms, but also
scene by scene. This can be seen in the opening ‘bank-raid’ as well as
the stunning chase sequence both of which shot on the mouth-watering
Imax format. These sequences stand out in an already near-perfect film,
attaining a peerless quality that automatically place them in the
all-time ‘greatest moments in cinema’ category. The audible gasps from
the audience in the Imax screening I attended were utterly
reinvigorating… they remind you why we watch movies on the big screen
and The dark knight should be seen on the biggest screen possible!
Nolan’s reinvention of the franchise shows all filmmakers exactly
how to tackle this material. That’s not to say there aren’t enough nods
and cues to comicbook fans (I counted two nods to potential future
villains… one obvious one very, very sly) yet the director is free to
swerve the story to such an extent that no one knows what will happen
next.
Film of the year for sure… but also one of the all-time classics as well.
Get Him to the Greek
A Nightmare on Elm Street
Paper Man
Thus, Abby and Richard bond as kindred spirits, doing their best to keep the relationship Platonic in spite of an unspoken mutual attraction. After all, he’s still married, at least technically; meanwhile, she has an immature boyfriend (Kieran Culkin) who’s always hanging around.
The Back-up Plan
bfm film review: Behind the Burly Q 
The Black Waters of Echo’s Pond
The Bounty Hunter
Alice in Wonderland
Shutter Island
The Messenger
Invictus 
The Lovely Bones 
The Book of Eli
Twilight: New Moon
It’s genuinely frightening in places with the ghosts not just scaring the old grump Scrooge, but also giving the audience a thorough going over. The dialogue is lifted straight from Dickens, but is surprisingly easy to follow, proving just what a great wordsmith the writer was. It feels contemporary despite the setting and requires you only to forget the ‘Disneyfied’ versions you might have seen (the irony being of course that this actually is a Disney version of the film).
Zombieland
The Invention of Lying
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Sticking closely to the road movie formula of Borat, this latest outing by an outrageous comic creation of Sacha Baron Cohen also opts to hold the mirror of mocking up to entertainment culture in general and US society in particular.
Sunshine Cleaning
X-men Origins: Wolverine
We are introduced to a city living in fear thanks to unruly gangs and violence. This becomes clear to us thanks to an outstanding opening routine which wonderfully set the tone and standard for what is about to follow. To be honest I was left breathless by this scene-setting and couldn’t imagine how the performers on stage could possibly keep the high benchmark. The location could be any inner-city in the UK, but the action then takes us on a whirlwind worldwide tour as the Piper shows his credentials and we see him disposing of various gangs globally. The sassy and hypnotic ‘Viper’s Den’ segment stood out here as the girls showed they were far more than just eye candy. The action throughout blended not just dance but also elements of martial arts which was a welcome surprise.
Watchmen
Notorious
My Bloody Valentine 3D 
The film relies on some clever twists so I won’t go into any more detail than that, so much so in fact that even if the experience had been in boring old 2D it would have worked well as a movie. As it is however we get all the added benefits (and frights) of convincing and well integrated special-effects., the action starts straight away and once the plot negotiates the predictable ‘Teens in peril’ opening (including 36-year old Smith as a moody teenager) things move along at a cracking pace. 
