Author: BRWC

Didi – Review. By Nick Boyd.

“Didi,” a Mandarin term of endearment for youngest brother, is a coming-of-age film that takes us back to the turbulent and anxiety-ridden age of 13 (the summer before high school) in 2008.  It is based on writer-director Sean Wang’s experiences growing up in Fremont, California.  The film centers on an Asian boy named Chris (teasingly called “Wang Wang” by his peers), who lives with his older sister Vivian who’s about to go off to college, his aspiring artist mom, and his spirited grandma.  The two siblings bicker a lot, though things do seem to improve when Vivian begins to understand her brother’s difficulties and comes to his aid as the movie progresses.  

Chris is an adolescent trying to fit in and find his identity.  He films skate videos in his spare time and posts them on YouTube.  Social media plays a big part in the film, as we see characters using AIM to message each other, along with MySpace and Facebook.  Flip phones add to the nostalgia.

The film alternates between scenes of Chris and his friends and those of his family, giving us an inside look at his often difficult attempts to navigate his teenage world.  Chris is continually looking for acceptance, whether that be with the cool skaters or with his peers.  His awkwardness and insecurities are palatable and relatable. 

Veteran actress Joan Chen as the mom does an excellent job, showing vulnerability, as well as genuine care for Chris, while at times seeming as lost and helpless as her son.  It is a moving and subtle performance.  Wang’s real-life grandma (“Nai-Nai”) plays Chris’ grandmother in the film with realism and comic wit.  Izaac Wang, no relation to Chris, impresses as the lead actor taking us back to an often cringeworthy time of embarrassment and uncertainty.

While some scenes are an attempt at quirky humor – talking fish on a dinner plate, flatulence in the car, and blowing up a squirrel – I thought they fell flat.  The most poignant moments were with Chris navigating how to impress Madi – a girl he meets at a party and develops a crush on, as well as the scenes with his mom, who Chris realizes is dealing with her own failures and disappointments.

Didi is reminiscent of both “Eighth Grade” (which deals with that same awkward time just before high school) as well as “Minari,” a Korean film with a feisty and sometimes scene-stealing grandmother.  It is an accurate depiction of 2008 and the relationships feel genuine and believable.  An indie film worth seeking out.

Megalopolis: Another Review. By Daniel Rester.

Legendary filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola was a key figure during the New Hollywood movement of the 1970s. A few of his films are regarded as timeless masterpieces, including The Godfather (1972), The Godfather Part II (1974), and Apocalypse Now (1979). And yet his career output has become more unpredictable over the years. 

Coppola returns now with Megalopolis, his first film in thirteen years and a passion project he has been trying to get off the ground for forty years. He ultimately had to self-finance the film by selling part of his winery because nobody wanted to fund it. Did the studio heads make the right decision in avoiding the project, or has Coppola proven them wrong and returned to his glory days? 

Megalopolis takes place in an alternate America, with “New Rome” in place of New York City. Cesar Catilina (Adam Driver) is a brilliant architect who has the ability to stop time and has created a new building material called Megalon. He wants to use it to design a utopia called “Megalopolis” in order to bring humanity into the future. 

Cesar faces opposition from the city’s arch-conservative mayor, Franklyn Cicero (Giancarlo Esposito), and a scheming ex-girlfriend, Wow Platinum (Aubrey Plaza). Meanwhile, Cesar becomes romantically involved with Cicero’s daughter, Julia (Nathalie Emmanuel). This new relationship is complicated though since Cesar is haunted by the death of his wife. 

Coppola’s film is a wildly uneven one, full of big ideas, experimental flourishes, and underwritten characters. Some of it is flat and self-indulgent while other parts are mesmerizing and thought-provoking. It’s a film that left me wondering about the fate of humanity while also questioning the decision to have Jon Voight’s billionaire character pretend to have an erection in one scene. 

The various plot threads simply don’t all come together smoothly and the film leaves the audience with many questions. How can Cesar stop time? Why does he need to be framed in a sex scandal by his mischievous cousin Clodio (Shia LaBeouf) just for it to be dropped in a few minutes? What are the exact rules behind Megalon and its applications?  

Megalopolis works best when it focuses on Cesar’s optimistic mission. He is trying to bring the people out of the ruins of Roman-like power and into a more promising future, but he faces many obstacles. His arguments with the more traditional Cicero about what is best for the people are fascinating, while his opponent Clodio represents more of a fascist mob mentality that stirs fear in the people.

Driver does well at the center of Megalopolis, with Esposito solid as well. Emmanuel feels completely out of place though and the rest of the supporting cast is hit and miss. Plaza and LaBeouf are clearly having a good time in villainous roles (and they share an amusing sex scene), but they come across as cartoonish at times. The great Laurence Fishburne, who worked with Coppola on Apocalypse Now, narrates Megalopolis with smoothness but is strapped with a role unworthy of his talents (as Cesar’s driver). Dustin Hoffman, Talia Shire, and Kathryn Hunter also pop up in smaller parts.    

Coppola still knows how to craft dazzling sights. The visual language of Megalopolis managed to make me think of both Metropolis (1927) and Ben-Hur (1959) at the same time. Some of the effects look dated at times, but at other times they are impressive. Giant human shadows creeping across buildings and crumbling stone pieces of art have an alluring power to them. Cinematographer Mihai Malaimare Jr. also dunks the film in golden hues while editors Cam McLauchlin and Glen Scantlebury find creative avenues in delivering Coppola’s chaotic story.

I can understand why some producers avoided Megalopolis due to its bold swings, but I’m also glad Coppola was able to make the film despite the lack of assistance. And yet I am doubtful that it may ever be heralded as a masterwork like his ‘70s films. It’s understandably facing polarizing reactions currently, and it will likely continue to divide audiences. I wish Megalopolis was better, but I still admire much of it, and it isn’t the trainwreck some are trying to make it out to be.  

Rating: 7/10

I Don’t Care If The World Collapses: Short Film Review. By Joe Muldoon.

Premiered at the Cleveland International Film Festival earlier this year, I Don’t Care If The World Collapses is the most recent short of Egypt’s Karim Shaaban (director) and Wael Hamdy (writer). A young and ambitious producer, Loubna (Salma Abu-Deif), arrives on a busy set for the shooting of an ice cream commercial.

Talking the ears off of the unbothered director (Ameer Salah Eldin) is the commercial’s enthusiastic main star, the elderly Mr. Farouk (Emad Rashad), who has decided to pursue his lifelong dream of becoming an actor.

Much to the irritation of the production manager (Emad T ayeb), the star answers his ever-ringing mobile phone, receiving word that his closest friend has just passed away. The distraught actor insists upon leaving the set immediately to visit his late friend, but the irate production manager has other plans. As is the nature of the film and television industry, wellbeing comes last.

I Don’t Care If The World Collapses now becomes a heartbreaking story of conflict between compassion and duty; Loubna is deeply sympathetic towards her starring man, but also recognises the money and expectations behind the project, something that must be completed to a strict, looming deadline – Abu-Deif’s performance is fantastic.

Rashad delivers a moving display as the wounded performer, a man forced to effectively choose between his friend and ice cream. And as the grieving actor makes his decision, the question remains: was it really worth it?

By Joe Muldoon.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CeQ_eUSv1TA

Stories We Tell: Review. By Ayrton-Lewis Avery.

Stories We Tell is a documentary more in the style of an epic film. It follows the family of its director, Sarah Polley, all Canadian actors and artists. However, this film is more of a commentary on the art of filmmaking and acting itself.

The story itself is merely of Polley’s search for her father after realizing that she may have been born of an affair. It is neither shocking nor exciting, but does course through a variety of emotions (heartwarming, sadness, nostalgia, et cetera). The plot is beautifully constructed, and as the movie runs its course, it looks more like a play, focusing on a melodrama crafted around the actors’ personal lives. 

One theme is how Polley’s mother bends gender conventions. At the beginning, she appears to be a standard Canadian housewife, energetic and hardworking. But as it goes on, it reveals that she holds plenty of secrets. The media was shocked when she, as a mother, lost custody of the children in a divorce. Later on, it is revealed that a group of men talked her out of an abortion. However, perhaps the men did not do as much influencing as her own thoughts, though that is never revealed to the audience.

Stories We Tell is more than an independent documentary. All the interviews, the screenplay, and the Super-8 footage made to look like a historical retelling of the family’s life combine to build a powerful and introspective piece of art. The cinematography, for a documentary, is surprisingly well-done too: there are so many scenes that emphasize the minute expressions of the actors’ faces, or that illustrate visually an allegory the characters are expounding upon.

Overall, Stories We Tell is an intriguing film about delusions, lies, and emotions. It is a unique, theatrical, and, for some, revelatory exploration of family, love, and time.

The Substance: The BRWC Review. By Simon Lalji.

Gross, gory and downright grotesque!

When washed up star Elisabeth Sparkle feels the weight of the world, age and self hatred on her shoulders, she comes face to face with a substance that may just offer a newer, fresher and potentially stunning face to offer the world, no matter the bodily cost. Though it’s certainly wise to go into ‘The Substance’ with no spoilers in mind, it should be warned that this flick was certainly not designed for those who are pure of heart… and for those who aren’t, it’s a bloody good body horror time!

From the horrifically twisted mind of director Coralie Fargeat (Revenge) comes what will undoubtedly become a gem in the realm of cult classic horror films, but the question is, will this innovative horror flick be a hit? Though it’s far too early to guess numbers, it seems safe to say that ‘The Substance’ is arguably one of, if not the best horror films 2024 has to offer! Fargeat effortlessly infuses ‘The Substance’ with an unseen stylistic yet eerie sense throughout the film’s runtime. Whether through the sensational score by Raffertie or the potentially Oscar-contending  bloody and brutal practical makeup and effects that’s sure to make a few viewers gag.

Suffice to say, such makeup meticulously manifests and transfers Fargeat’s vision of carnage onto the silver screen. To the grace of film fans, ‘The Substance’ possess an originality, which albeit has it’s clear inspirations from Kubrick’s ‘The shining’, De Palma’s ‘Carrie’ and even a surprising nod to ‘The Wizard of Oz’, the film blesses screens with a fresh, fun and chaotic time which sadly seems to be becoming a rarer and rarer thing in today’s day and age of cinema. Though Fargeat’s chaotic carnage may sometimes rightfully overshadow the drama at hand and provide an invigorating moviegoing experience, ‘The Substance’ comes with powerful metaphors of memory, age and society’s so called beauty, which though certainly is a hefty task it seems all those involved showed up for the challenge. 

Though Fargeat injects ‘The substance’ with a shot of horrific imagery, slick stylistic edits and grotesque body horror gore, pleasing die hard horror fans, the clear standout and caped crusader of this horror flick is obviously the critically acclaimed, acting chameleon and beloved cinema veteran Demi Moore (A Few Good Men) as the character of Elisabeth Sparkle. Moore carries what is already a virtually impeccable script by Fargeat and raises it to A-list stardom with a performance of pain, horror and wicked witch levels of fun that Demi Moore has been known for decades. Many will call ‘The Substance’ the very film that Moore needed for her epic, cinematic comeback thus once again proving why she is one of the greatest actors of her generation and cementing herself as a true Hollywood movie star. With this being said, Moore can’t take all of the credit as Margaret Qualley (Kinds of Kindness) once again proves why she’s a new name to watch with her impeccable performance as the somewhat villainous character of Sue. From the works of  Yorgos Lantimos’s Poor things, Kinds of Kindness and now her pitch perfect performance in ‘The Substance’, it’s certainly not hard to see a future Oscar winner in Margaret Qualley.

While it’s hard to deny that ‘The Substance’ presents a thrilling, innovative and refreshing time at the movies, the obvious make or break point of the film will be its absolutely hilarious, bonkers and yet strangely somewhat touching third act, Fargeat truly goes all out for the films final, world class thirty minutes. Though it’s difficult to discuss without spoilers, just know that this third act, for better or worse, hits every beat from your favourite misunderstood cheesy monster movie.

Overall, Coralie Fargeat’s ‘The Substance’ is a damn good time at the movies! While Fargeat shoots the film up with an uncanny quality of style, humour and horror, once again proving why she’s a name to watch in Hollywood, it’s undoubtedly Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley’s extraordinary performances alone that make ‘The Substance’ a must watch for horror and film fans. In UK cinemas 20th September.

4.5/5