Needs no introduction….
© BRWC 2010.
Author: Alton Williams
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Redgrave Takes On Robin Hood
I’ve been informed that the Vanessa Redgrave is throwing herself into work so soon after the loss of her daughter Natasha Richardson. She’s signed up to be involved in Ridley Scott’s Robin Hood project, Nottingham and is set to play Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine, mother of the folklore hero’s nemesis King John, played by Oscar Isaacs.
Redgrave will join Russell Crowe as Robin Hood and Cate Blanchett, who was drafted as Maid Marion after Sienna Miller dropped out.
© BRWC 2010.
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The Week in Film by Robert Mann – Week Starting 20/3/09
Duplicity ****½
Coming just three weeks after action thriller The International, Duplicity once again sees Clive Owen on the cinema screen. This time, however, he takes second billing to Julia Roberts in their first on screen pairing since appearing together in 2005’s Closer. This film also showcases Roberts’ first out and out leading role in five years. With such a terrific duo of actors in the leading roles and the presence of writer/director Tony Gilroy, the man behind 2007’s critically acclaimed award winning Michael Clayton and writer of all three Bourne movies, at the helm this film certainly has the credentials that promise something quite special, and this is exactly what the film delivers.
Ray Koval (Clive Owen) is a former MI6 agent and Claire Stenwick (Julia Roberts) is a former CIA agent. Now they both work privately in the world of corporate espionage, finding themselves in a war between two corporate giants headed by bitter rivals Howard Tully (Tom Wilkinson) and Richard Garsik (Paul Giamatti). Both are working for Garsik but Claire is working as mole on the inside of Tully’s organisation. Tully has just announced a new miracle product that will complete revolutionise his company, and Garsik is determined to get his hands on it at any cost. However, he didn’t count on a past romantic history between Ray and Claire and the fact that they are planning to pull a con of their own. However, in the world of corporate espionage nothing is ever as it seems so what is really going on and who can really be trusted?
One part corporate espionage thriller, one part romance, Duplicity is a film that effectively and slickly combines the two genres to produce something that really stands out from the crowd, with virtually everything about it being pitch perfect. Tony Gilroy’s work on the film is excellent in all aspects, with his script providing a plot that is constantly clever, interesting and engaging, and extremely sharp dialogue that the film’s actors deliver with great aplomb. The dialogue is a particular strong point, with Gilroy using it in such a way as to give the film make the film seem sexy without us ever seeing anything and without the film losing any of its class. Here, mere words count for far more than anything more explicit ever would. Gilroy has also created one of the very few films that actually has genuinely surprising and cleverly executed plot twists that really do come as a shock when they are finally revealed. The presentation of the film works particularly well in this regard, with the flashback sequences being used very effectively as part of the main plot to show not only the back-story of the two main characters but also illustrate all the intricacies of what is going on. This is essential considering how complex the storyline is, and while some may have a degree of difficulty following it all, observant viewers will find it perfectly compelling. Gilroy’s direction is also excellent with everything from cinematography to editing being of a high standard. Particularly of note is his use of split screen (which can be a very poor technique if not used properly) is both stylish and effective and really works in every instance. Gilroy also gets excellent performances from his entire cast. Clive Owen is perfectly suave and sophisticated while Julia Roberts is spot on class, and the two share a sizzling on-screen chemistry that is both convincing and thoroughly entertaining. There are also great performances from the always excellent Paul Giamatti and Tom Wilkinson as the two rival corporate bosses, although sadly they don’t get much screen time together, except for the well executed opening credits sequence involving a showdown between them. Overall, Duplicity is a slickly made film that works on virtually every level, working well as an engaging thriller and also being extremely enjoyable as a piece of entertainment. It is also one of the most ingenious films seen in a long while and makes for a must see piece of cinema.
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Paul Blart: Mall Cop ***A huge surprise box office smash success in the states, Paul Blart: Mall Cop is a film that has repeatedly defied expectations since its release there, with the Kevin James vehicle becoming one of the most successful comedies in quite a while, actually outperforming the recent efforts of such Hollywood comedy royalty as Adam Sandler (whose production company Happy Madison produced this film), Jim Carrey, Seth Rogen and Will Ferrell, not to mention countless others. So, why has this film been so successful? After all, it is hardly one of the most original or distinctive comedies to be put onto celluloid. This question has a very simple answer. The film is fun. This is pretty much all there is to it. In a time when many people are in serious need of some cheering up, cheer is something that this film has in spades.
Paul Blart (Kevin James) is a mild-mannered security guard working at a mall who takes his job very seriously and for years has been attempting to become a cop. However, every time he applies he fails the physical exam. He is also very lonely with his wife having walked out on him and the only two people in his life being his mother (Shirley Knight) and his daughter Maya (Raini Rodriguez). However, he is developing a bond with Amy (Jayma Mays), a girl who works at the mall. When the mall is overrun by an organized group of criminals, Paul finds himself being the only person who can stop them and rescue the hostages they have taken, Amy being one of them. With an overwhelming sense of duty and a desire to save Amy, he steps up to the challenge and unleashes the hero within, utilizing all his knowledge of the mall, taking on the criminals one by one. With the police outside powerless Paul is on his own and he gets the opportunity to show what he is really capable of and to win the girl.
The main reason that Paul Blart: Mall Cop works is in the casting of its lead role. Kevin James (who also co-wrote and produced the film) is excellent as Paul Blart, finally moving up from supporting roles in films like Hitch and I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry to leading man. His portrayal of the character makes for a performance that is not only extremely amusing and very likable but also very sympathetic, making it easy for us to empathise with his situation. James has a genuine talent for comedy and he alone makes this film worth seeing. He is also ably backed up by a strong supporting cast with Jayma Mays standing out with a sweet and charming performance as the romantic interest of the piece. There is a lot to enjoy in the film’s humour with some of the potential scenarios of a mall setting being exploited to great comic effect, but unfortunately the film is a bit too lacking in really big laugh out loud moments. As it is the film is extremely enjoyable but with some more belly laughs it could also have been quite memorable too. The storyline is very predictable also and there is not much to speak of in terms of the dialogue, but these are not really much of a problem, given that this film is only really intended to be a fun piece of popcorn entertainment and nothing more substantial. Ultimately, if you are looking for the next great Hollywood comedy, this will not be for you. The film fails to excel in any area but accomplishes what it sets out to do effectively, thus if you are looking for a fun way to spend an hour and a half and forget about your troubles, Paul Blart: Mall Cop is one film that you will love.
—————————————————————————————————————————————Lesbian Vampire Killers NO STARS
Following the success of their award winning (to the bemusement of this critic) TV series Gavin and Stacey new comedy actors on the block James Corden and Mathew Horne have gone from being relatively unknown television stars to being comic superstars. Now, like Simon Pegg and Nick Frost before them, they have broken out into the medium of cinema, with their horror comedy Lesbian Vampire Killers. A sort of spoof of cheesy 70s horror flicks (something that the marketing has played on heavily), Corden and Horne are clearly hoping for a success to rival that of Pegg and Frost’s Shaun Of The Dead. However, the result couldn’t be much further away from that comedy classic.
When Jimmy (Mathew Horne) is dumped by his girlfriend and his best mate Fletch (James Corden) loses his job, they decide that the best way to forget about their troubles is to go away on holiday. However, both are skint, so their only option is to go hiking. Heading to an extremely remote and isolated village they get more than they bargained for when they come across a group of young European students who are there on a field trip. That’s not all, though, as they soon discover the village is under a curse that was placed long ago by vampire queen Camilla that turns all its girls into lesbian vampires when they turn 18, and it just happens that Jimmy may be the only one who can bring an end to the curse. Thus, with assistance from the village Vicar (Paul McGann) and one of the students named Lotte (MyAnna Buring), Jimmy and Fletch finds themselves forced to become reluctant heroes and save the world from the threat of the lesbian vampires.
I never thought I would see the day when I would deride a major film enough to give it no stars whatsoever, but that day has come with the release of Lesbian Vampire Killers. Quite why James Corden and Mathew Horne are so popular is beyond me, as there is nothing in this film that suggests that either has any discernible talent as actors or comedians. The only thing bigger than James Corden’s lack of talent is his ego which seems to make him believe that he is actually funny when there is absolutely nothing remotely funny about anything he says or does. He is just irritating, something which he should not be applauded for. Mathew Horne is slightly less so but this merely means that he isn’t as brash or as crude, not that he is any better and actor or any funnier a comedian. The rest of the cast don’t fare much better with even Paul McGann unable to salvage this travesty of a movie. Whoever actually thought that this film was a good idea – Corden and Horne apparently – is someone who has no concept what good comedy is, with the film failing to be even remotely funny or even scary come to think of it, a major problem for a horror comedy. The concept would barely have made for a decent sketch and there is certainly no justification in it being made as a full length movie, and even with the short running time the film is a drag to sit through. A disaster of a script doesn’t help matters, delivering a weak storyline and lousy dialogue and failing to produce a single decent comic scenario, and the film fails in pretty every other area too, including effects, which are just cheap looking, editing and cinematography. To put it simply this is a film with absolutely nothing to recommend it, the kind of which hardly ever gets made. And absolutely abysmal film, Lesbian Vampire Killers is a lock for the worst film of 2009 and ranks quite highly in this critic’s worst films of all time. The only thing that is funny about it is how unfunny it is and the only thing shocking is that it ever got made. Don’t’ waste your time on this. Instead just re-watch Shaun Of The Dead, a film that shows how a British horror comedy should be done.
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Reviews by Robert Mann BA (Hons)© BRWC 2010.
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A Look Back To The Future
My media studies teachers told me that once I started studying and analyzing film I wouldn’t be able to sit back and enjoy them. Fortunately I generally seem to be able to juggle my analytical and my ‘brain-off-popcorn-in’ sides of my gray matter, allowing to both enjoy a film or look at it from a different view. Unfortunately sometimes I’ll sit down to watch a film thinking the Casual Captain is in charge only to find out that Admiral Analysis is at the helm.This happened most noticeably when I got comfy to have a nice nostalgic afternoon with 80’s classic and generally acknowledged feel-good, intelligent, comedy masterpiece Back To The Future. I figured I’d be lounging about smiling at the oh-so-familiar scrapes that denim-clad Marty McFly gets himself into as he inadvertently almost erases himself from existence. Instead I wound up getting angrier and angrier with the film as I grew more aware of its sickening 1980’s MTV generation material sensibilities and by the film’s surface-value close I was not bathed in a warm glow of re-established status quo but rather I wallowed in puddle of murky values and questionable responsibilities.
Marty McFly is the most abhorrent product of the 1980s, a skateboarding slacker who grumbles about his own ‘failures’ whilst skiving his education due to his abuse and destruction of a mentally unstable old man’s property all for the purpose of ‘rocking out’, and then zipping into school to the sounds of Huey Lewis and the News in order to play some pop-rock with his band The Pinheads; who sound remarkably like Huey Lewis and the News. His eye, as his attractive girlfriend Jennifer tries to console and comfort him, is drawn to the behind of another lady passing by and then a great big truck with flames on the side, like totally awesome.
McFly’s home life is shot in turgid browns that heighten the pathetic existence eeked out by his NHS glasses and braces wearing nerd-father George and alcoholic, jowly mother Lorraine. His brother wears a terrible visor and his sister stuffs food into her face. Meanwhile former school bully turned car dealer Biff continues to tease, ridicule and intimidate George.
As we all know Marty ends up traveling back in time to the 50s, almost ruining his parents’ relationship and negating his birth, but instead he manages to effect the character of his father, ultimately leading to him punching Biff in the chops and winning Lorraine’s heart rather than her pity. Once Marty travels back these actions have had a repercussion on McFly’s existence that extends beyond a better of understanding of the love bond between his folks. In fact, it never seems that Marty really cares for his parents beyond the concept of keeping himself in existence; which to some extent is entirely understandable, but outside of the fears of incest and eradication Marty doesn’t re-evaluate his parent’s need to be together. This is because that Lorraine, like her son, is something of a shallow and material person.
Marty’s rewards for recoupling his mother and father are a complete overhaul of the decor in his home to success-indicating pastels, a change of attire and posture for both father and mother (including contacts for Dad, glasses are a sign of weakness after all), a business suit and better job for his brother and the latter for his sister and the change of career into science fiction romance that seems to have funded this paint-job and tennis-playing alternate-lifestyle. Not only that but that one right hook from George has crumpled Biff into a sniveling, track-suit sporting toady with bad hair, now reduced to polishing George’s car rather than spilling beer over it as he writes it off.
But the ultimate example of Marty’s material belief system is safely locked up in the garage, the sunlight shines in on that big black truck with the flames down the side and Marty’s life is complete. All the character’s goals have been summarised in the ownership of a gas guzzling behemoth, in which he can drive off with his girlfriend to make-out point. Of course, Marty is a high school student, and it’s quite a relief that he doesn’t go all My Super Sweet 16 on his family and start bawling that the flames are the wrong colour. At this point his equally-denim clad girlfriend Jennifer shows up, but to further cement Marty’s desire for the material she is roundly replaced by the far more aesthetically appealing Elisabeth Shue for the sequel.© BRWC 2010.
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Review: Watchmen
By Robert Mann.
Watchmen is quite possibly the most eagerly anticipated film of 2009. An epic 20 years in the making, there is a level of anticipation amongst fans of the graphic novel quite unlike anything that has been seen lately. As such, if anything has been done wrong (and I mean anything) with it there could very well be an uprising amongst the loyal fans who have waited so long for this film to finally get made. And taken a long time it has. The journey to Watchmen’s release has been a very long and difficult one with it having been in development at virtually every major film studio (20th Century Fox, Warner Brothers, Universal and Paramount) at some point before finally actually getting put into production as a Warner Brothers/Paramount co-production, and going through a number of high profile directors, including Terry Gilliam, Darren Aronofsky, David Hayter and Paul Greengrass, before eventually being brought to the screen by 300 director Zack Snyder. That’s not the least of it either, as recently the film has been at the centre of a bitter copyright infringement lawsuit filed by 20th Century Fox who claimed that they still own the movie rights to the source material. Fortunately things were eventually resolved amicably but the suit did threaten to delay or even completely prevent the film’s release in cinemas. All this shows that bringing the graphic novel to the big screen has been no easy task, as does the fact that it has often been described as unfilmable. However, with self-professed die-hard Watchmen fan Zack Snyder at the film and his work on 300 showing that he really knows how to pull off this type of film, everything up to this point has suggested that this film may actually live up to the hype, and live up to the promise it certainly does.
In an alternate 1985 where American won the Vietnam War and Richard Nixon is still President, costumed superheroes have long been a part of the fabric of everyday society. This has been the case since the 1940s when a team of heroes calling themselves the Minutemen roamed the streets, delivering justice. Among the members of that team were The Comedian a.k.a. Eddie Blake (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), Nite Owl a.k.a. Hollis Mason (Stephen McHattie), Silk Spectre a.k.a. Sally Jupiter (Carla Gugino). Since then a new generation of heroes has emerged, known as the Watchmen. Its members include The Comedian, Nite Owl II a.k.a. Dan Dreiberg, Silk Spectre II a.k.a. Laurie Jupiter (Malin Akerman), Ozymandias a.k.a. Adrian Veidt (Matthew Goode), Rorschach a.k.a. Walter Kovacs (Jackie Earle Haley) and Dr. Manhattan a.k.a. Jon Osterman (Billy Crudup). Dr. Manhattan was once a scientist who, following a freak accident, was transformed into a glowing blue superhuman being with the ability to see the past and future and transform matter at a molecular level. Viewed as a weapon by many, Dr. Manhattan was instrumental in America’s victory in Vietnam, and is also viewed as America’s only defence against the imminent threat of all-out nuclear war with Russia. Things have changed considerably since the glory days of the Watchmen, however, as costumed heroes have been outlawed unless they choose to reveal their identities to the public. Only Adrian Veidt and Dr. Manhattan chose to do so and the Watchmen, as a result, are no more. Everything changes, though, when The Comedian is murdered by an unknown adversary and Rorschach, the only remaining active hero, believes that an assassin is taking out costumed heroes. The washed up vigilante discovers a plot to kill and discredit all current and past superheroes, and as he reconnects with his former crime-fighting legion he glimpses a wide-ranging and disturbing conspiracy with links to their shared past and catastrophic consequences for the future. It is the mission of the Watchmento watch over humanity but who is watching over the Watchmen?
Right from the opening studio idents, which are presented in simple yellow and black (the colours of the Watchmen logo) and made to look they are part of a comic, the look and feel of the graphic novel is captured perfectly. There is no doubt that Snyder is a huge fan of the source material as every scene is a loving recreation of panels from its comic book inspiration, and just as with 300, Snyder delivers an adaptation that isn’t merely a film but almost the graphic novel brought to life. The attention to detail is tremendous and this film could be considered art as much as entertainment because of all the beauty and style that is put onto the screen. Visually, the film is spectacular. The visual effects are eye-popping and there are lots of truly jaw-dropping sequences that really stand out from anything else seen recently, although I won’t give any of them away here. 300 style green-screen technology is combined with live action sets to create an incredible looking and very convincing alternate 1985 New York City, with excellent realisation of how the city could be if things had gone down a very different path. This alternate timeline is made all the more convincing thanks to the inclusion of real historical events that are interwoven brilliantly into the storyline and real historical figures, such as Richard Nixon, Henry Kissinger, Pat Buchanan, Eleanor Clift, Ted Koppel, Andy Warhol, Truman Capote, John F. Kennedy, Mick Jagger, David Bowie and Fidel Castro, into the film’s events in some way or form. The opening credits sequence gives some of the back story (and introduces a number of characters), showing how events have taken place leading to the version of 1985 that we see in the film. The feel of the period is also helped thanks to an excellent soundtrack which consists of popular music from the 1980s.
The storyline as a whole is extremely complex but it is very well done and provides an interesting deconstruction of the superhero genre, raising important questions about the boundaries between good and evil, right and wrong. The characters are all very well written, with most not being clearly definable as good or bad, but rather being shades of grey, with each having their own set of beliefs about what is right and what is wrong. This makes for some far more interesting characters than those often seen in superhero movies where a character is generally represented as being one or the other with little crossover. The fact that there isn’t just one superhero but an entire ensemble of varied and unique characters also makes for a more interesting film that you usually get from a superhero movie. The characters also work thanks to great performances from virtually all involved. Rather than casting big name stars, many of the cast members are lesser known actors, but they are well chosen for their parts. Billy Crudup delivers a suitably cold performance as the seemingly emotionless Dr. Manhattan/Jon Osterman; Jeffrey Dean Morgan is perfectly offbeat as The Comedian/Eddie Blake and convincingly sincere as his broken down older self; Jackie Earle Haley is excellent as vigilante Rorschach/Walter Kovacs; Matthew Goode is believably condescending as Ozymandias/Adrian Veidt, portraying a man with delusions of grandeur well; Malin Akerman is spot on as the sassy Silk Spectre II/Laurie Jupiter; and Patrick Wilson is honest as the most decent of the lot Nite Owl II/Dan Dreiberg. The rest of the cast are all very good as well but there are far too many to mention, although I will point out the very good performance by Robert Wisden as Richard Nixon, who may not be as good as Frank Langella was inFrost/Nixon but is certainly a good second in the role.
One of the things that stands out most about Watchmen is probably just how mature it is. This is not your average superhero movie that is aimed at young viewers. No, this is a full-on hardcore adult movie that pulls no punches in its execution. In the action sequences the violence isn’t toned down on any level. It is brutal, bloody and graphic, in a manner completely unlike any superhero film that you have seen before. This film makes The Dark Knight look like Teletubbies, that’s how violent it is. And there is far more as well. What other superhero movie would include an attempted rape, a graphic sex scene or full frontal male nudity (of the glowing blue kind)? All of this features in this film and more, but it isn’t there for the sake of it. It is the essence of the graphic novel and to remove it from the film would have been sacrilege. All of this is so well executed and so stylishly done that it is itself a crucial part of the film as a viewing experience and it is a testimony to Snyder’s directing abilities that it all works when in other hands it could have completely failed. For all its strengths, however, the film is not completely perfect. Snyder has firmly stated that he would make a film faithful to the source material that would satisfy the fans and he has done just this. If any criticism can be levelled at the film, however, it is that the film may just be too faithful to the source material, with Snyder going to great lengths to include a lot of detail from the graphic novel and the film suffering slightly as a result. The multiple storylines get in the way of each other at times, highlighting the difference between film and comic as mediums, and at 2 hours 40 minutes in length (and this is the cut down version – apparently a 3 hour version will be released on DVD) it does drag in some scenes. Also, for those who are not already familiar with the graphic novel the storyline may be a bit difficult to follow in places, and this isn’t helped by the fact that some things are not shown in chronological order, with flashbacks that are used to show past events not all being clearly recognisable as such. These flaws are relatively minor, though, when compared with the huge achievement that the film as a whole is. Director Zack Snyder has taken a graphic novel that has long been considered unfilmable and made out of it a film that is spectacular, entertaining and interesting in equal measure. It may not appeal as much to non-converts but fans of the source material will find much to love. Watchmen definitely isn’t one of the best superhero movies ever made but it is certainly one of the most different, most original and above all most mature superhero films you will ever see and it is likely that you will never see anything else quite like it again.
