Author: BRWC

The Execution of Private Slovik (pronounced “Slovak”) is the made-for-TV telling of Eddie Slovik’s execution for desertion in Europe during the second World War; the only time an American soldier has been executed for this since the American Civil War.  Like all stories based on actual events, we already know the end and the way the filmmaker deals with that challenge can be the making or breaking of the film.

The film opens with open conversation of the execution and how it is to happen.  It is this type of story telling, early on, that sets the style up as documentary in nature.  The dialogue between characters lays down details of the context and process of the story and the actions within.  We don’t even see Solvik, portrayed by Martin Sheen, until quite some time into the film.

When we meet Sovik we find a man we’re not prepared for.  A man accepting of his end and understanding of the situation.  We’re instantly gripped by this character that defies our expectations, and Sheen carries us with him until the end.  We see the story of Eddie Slovik told retrospectively by jumping back to his youth in the US, and hear voiceovers of friends and family from his life to narrate it.

The Execution of Private Slovik is not just a film about this man, it tells a story of the insanity of war as a whole and the story of an everyman.  We grow to know and love Slovik like a distant friend, and feel with him as the fates almost conspire against him.  Not only this, the director educates us about a darker side to World War II, a world of the draft and families torn apart and men not built for violence commanded to kill their fellow man.

This movie is a must see.  Don’t expect explosions and dramatic shoot-outs, but be prepared to be glued to the screen from the moment the opening crawl crests the television.

Airborne is a direct to DVD horror/thriller movie from director Dominic Burns and staring Mark Hamill (yes THAT Mark Hamill) as a senior air traffic controller who on his last shift before retirement finds himself dealing with an unexplained series of disturbances and mysteries on board the final flight under his charge. Strange disappearances and supernatural undercurrents abound as the only flight to take off during harsh weather conditions tries to make it’s way from London to New York.

Tensions are already fairly high as the thoroughly British cast of semi-recognisable wait to board their plane with a mixture of army officers, cockney gangsters, a loved up couple, a still drunk/hungover guy, chipper American, and a few others make up the sparse passenger list. The film tries to spread intrigue and drop red herrings all over the place as to what the film might be about: is it a terrorist plot? A heist? A supernatural thriller? As passengers and members of the crew start to disappear and the remaining members of the cast are forced to start acting a little too ‘tense’, one thing is clear – Mark Hamill’s Malcolm is not going to have the quiet, stress free retirement send off he’d hoped for.

Airborne is trying, often a little too hard, to generate tension and oddness – think Twilight Zone in a confined space – and unfortunately it doesn’t really succeed to any great length, in fact given the minimal cast the relatively small aeroplane actually seem quite expansive. Several of the passengers and staff act ‘odd’ in order to make you wonder at their motives or involvement in what is actually going on and while this does create some intrigue it’s also unevenly handled with half the characters seeming completely irrational. Alan Ford, Bill Murray, and Julian Glover each have their own moments to shine in an otherwise so-so script. Mark Hamill is unfortunately tied almost exclusively to a single room and doesn’t get much of a chance to do anything other than talk into a headset and voice the films narration.

When the reveal comes and we finally understand what is going on, it’s a little bit of a let down, or at least it feels a little tacky. But the very final shot is pure horror B-movie and Airborne isn’t completely devoid of merit. A little slow, a little muddled, but not altogether the worst movie ever made. Fans of schlock thrillers and B-movie style films will probably not be disappointed but really it should have gone further, been darker, or gone all out to try and scare, unfortunately instead the result is a bit tepid and forgettable.

Airborne is available on DVD July 30.

The very notion of an immaculate conception baffles the mind. It’s a concept that is the very foundation of religious beliefs despite its blatant impossibility. It’s also somewhat of a surprisingly rare theme of narrative in movies, well other than in demonic horrors about demon babies.

It’s a strange concept to grasp, then, when portrayed in a real world coming of age tale involving a 15-year-old Mormon girl and the apparent magical impregnating powers of a cassette tape.

Electrick Children is the feature film debut of Rebecca Thomas, she herself raised in the Mormon community, and is very much an extraordinary tale cleverly nuanced within a very ordinary setting. Rachel (Julia Garner) is a 15-year-old girl seemingly content with the simple Mormon life until her curiosity towards a mysterious tape of rock and roll plucks her from the safety of her family’s farm to the neon stained counter culture of Las Vegas. Having listened to the sounds of the cassette, Rachel discovers herself to be pregnant, and sets off with a reluctant Mr Will (Liam Aiken) to find the man singing on the tape; the man she believes to be the father of her immaculately conceived child. On the potentially dangerous yet exciting streets of Vegas, Rachel meets Clyde (Rory Culkin); a rebellious youth who assists her in finding the mystery man while exposing her and Mr Will to a teenage life they never knew existed.

The concept is most certainly a strange one considering it’s contemporary and real-world setting but it’s also a bold one. Challenging an audience to fully accept an immaculate conception as a feasible plot point, Rebecca Thomas confidently lays out the idea and weaves a delightful coming of age tale around it. The film itself is utterly charming throughout. Never dismissing or belittling the Mormon faith, the first-time writer/director clearly shows a certain respect towards such an upbringing, without every pandering to it. There is simply no “villain” of the piece, be that the Mormon way of life itself or Rachel’s authoritarian father  (played with subtlety by Billy Zane). He is simply an honest man who is just trying to do right by his family, and his God. There is never a question of who is right and wrong in how to live their life, merely the idea that one should at least have a choice.  And despite the increasing scrutiny on religion in society as a whole, the film could’ve easily fallen into a snipe on strict American faiths. Instead, Electrick Children just acknowledges it’s existence, and for this fact, I think it’s commendable that Rebecca Thomas sits on the fence as a diplomat rather than using the medium to attack a life bound by rules in the name of God.

As the film progresses, Rachel’s pregnancy unfortunately becomes somewhat insignificant. Instead, the origin of Rachel herself slowly emerges to the forefront of the story leaving the Immaculate Conception plot point lost aimlessly in the first act. It feels a bit unsatisfying, then, that there is never any real closure to a part of the story that initially feels so important. Having shown such gusto in laying out such a theme for an audience to grasp, it feels like a bit of a cop out to throw it on the backburner and hope the audience don’t notice but maybe it’s intentionally left up to the viewer to draw their own conclusions.

Electrick Children feels very much like a product of the Terrence Malick school of cinema; shots of the American countryside painted with the orange hue of the magic hour, subtle dream like sequences wrapped around focused pieces of narration (that often become wholly pretentious) and performances that just feel genuine. Julia Garner is stunning as Rachel. Impossible to dislike at any point of the film, she shines in the lead role. Naïve yet passionately curious, she brings a perfect balance of vulnerability and warmth to her role as the young girl who truly believes she is part of a miracle. A similar array of superlatives can also be said for Rory Culkin; as charming as we’ve grown accustomed to from a Culkin, his rebellious teen schlock as Clyde is the perfect foil for Garner’s oblivious innocence. As a result, the on screen chemistry between the two is a constant delight to behold and is most definitely a highlight of the film.  The two are also supported well throughout; more so by Liam Aiken, who is a constant source of understated sympathy. And while he’s supposed to be the voice of reason in contrast to Clyde’s “live free” outlook on life, you feel compelled to will him on to break the shackles of his suppressed youth.

With it’s curiously bold subject matter, understatedly brilliant performances and a soundtrack that constantly yet softly sings “America”, Electrick Children is very much cut from the cloth of an older generation of American Indie rather than sharing similarities with the modern tales of quirkiness in the genre. It isn’t particularly edgy, it isn’t gritty or hard-hitting, but merely a tale of a teenage girl breaking free from a childhood bound by rules. It’s a simple fable told with an extraordinary twist and Rebecca Thomas has crafted a film that is honest, humorous, inoffensive and completely charming. I for one emerged from the screening beaming, with a warm feeling in my stomach…good job I’m a bloke though, or else I would’ve been convinced I was pregnant too.

Electrick children is released July 13th.

No Witnesses is the debut short film from Big Piktures –  independent film makers James and Thomas Pickering. It is a zero budget, guerrilla filmmaking style short that focuses on trying to create a story and characters over production values. The story is fairly simple, though it hints at something bigger and unexplained; two would be thieves intend to break into a house to steal some mystery valuable object, however when they do they are confronted with a scene that neither of them could have expected. Finding the house already having been broken into, a second group thieves, and presumably the home owner, lie beaten and bloody, unconscious on the floor. What ensues is a comicly tragic exchange between the two girls who had intended to rob the house. Do they help? Do they call the police? Who are these people really?

I’m a fan of low to zero budget cinema, gritty, lo-fi projects that get made from the sheer will of the creators. No Witnesses is just such a project, amateur actors delivering decent performances, hand held camera, story and character focussed. The dialogue between the two young women discussing the morality, and irony, of trying to help strangers in a place that you’d intended robbing provides the hook and the entertainment factor. The story tries to set up this larger crime/heist story, with action or further drama bookending the short as audio tracks over black screen; it hints at a bigger story without showing it and while this leaves questions unanswered it forces the viewer to construct some of the narrative.

This sort of project isn’t perfect, which is usually part of the charm of guerilla cinema, there’s a vinyl rip sound that cuts in to frame pauses that overlay character information and while you can see the intended effect it’s a bit jarring, and there are a couple of filter effects that don’t really add to the overall effect. But you forgive it it’s faults. It’s a nice first project, the story is the focus and as with anything if you can get the story then production values will come with time. No Witnesses makes a good effort considering it’s constraints, and delivers a decent script, hopefully we’ll see more promising projects from this group of young filmmakers.