Category: REVIEWS

By Ellisha Izumi von Grunewald.

Silence (2016) is the fifty-ninth film from the celebrated filmmaker Martin Scorsese, who’s diverse filmography includes shorts, features, documentaries and rockumentaries. Best known for his crime films (Goodfellas, Casino, The Departed), his collaborations with Robert de Niro (Taxi Driver, Raging Bull) and Leonardo Dicaprio, (The Wolf of Wall Street, Shutter Island). He is also celebrated for his cinephilia, seen in his work as a film historian, teacher and in films like Hugo. Silence is the latest project from a man who is arguably the most consistent and prolific filmmaker alive today. In on/off development and production for two decades, Silence is finally released to high expectations – perhaps expectations that are too high and impossible to live up to?

Set in the 17^th century, Silence follows two Portuguese priests, Padre Rodrigues (Andrew Garfield) and Padre Garupe (Adam Driver) as they travel to Japan to find their mentor, Padre Ferreira (Liam Neeson) who is reported to have renounced his faith, under torture from the Japanese authorities who have resisted the Christians missionaries. The young Priests have their faith tested by hunger, torture, fear and secrecy in a hostile environment. This is the second screen adaption of the 1966 novel of the same name by Shusaku Endo, exploring themes of faith, colonialism, culture-clash and religious hubris. Silence is a historical drama that aligns itself with Scorsese’s religious-themed films The Last Temptation of Christ and Kundun yet its themes of identity and endurance echo across the oeuvre of the Catholic-raised Scorsese.

The film is mostly in English, but with the understanding that the accented English spoken is in the native Portuguese of the Priests and the Japanese converts who have learnt it from them. The cast works well here, despite varied and occasionally inconsistent attempts at a Portuguese accent from the leads. Liam Neeson, in a supporting role, doesn’t even bother, having reached the stage of his career where he is now an icon who is cast for his presence, his own Irish growl and all. His presence is pretty effective here as this generation’s cinematic father figure, who’s magnetic pull on the young Padres is believable.

We spend most of our time with the younger priests, as Padre Rodrigues, Andrew Garfield’s face radiates the compassion that fuels him, while Adam Driver’s Garupe’s frustration is more obvious. The earnest commitment of both slowly gives way to the arguably stubborn arrogance of a missionary. Yōsuke Kubozuka does well to makes us feel the desperation of Kochijuro, in his highly physical performance of the sometimes-Christian, who frequently struggles with faith. The power play between the stubborn faith of Rodrigues and the authority of the Inquisitor holds over his life and well-being is done well with the piercing often mocking voice of Issey Ogata. Shot in Taiwain using natural light the cinematography captures a visceral texture of inhospitable nature endured by the peasants and our protagonists in feudal Japan. The separate pieces are strong but what about the film as a whole?

Well, with the mammoth expectation and subject matter, I was expecting a historical epic, but it was more of a biopic, simply epic in the length of time it covers – decades – and the length of the film itself at 20 minutes shy of 3 hours. The film also suffers similarly as biopics often do, with too much plot to cover. While I’m not familiar with the novel, it seems the film could’ve benefitted by being a little less faithful to its origins allowing the film more breathing space. With many locations to meet, dialogue and narration to run through the themes are all explored in the text, not the subtext; themes are discussed but not powerfully felt.

The film delivers on a compelling story and transports you to a different time, but does not meet my expectation of a transformative epic. I am not a religious person but that does not mean I sat there as a stony faced atheist asking the film to convince me. I’m interested in the nature of religion and open to its mediation of faith and commitment the film cleanly presents its themes which you consider but did not experience. If you have the patience for its 161 minute runtime, the stomach for 15 rated (but not 18 rated) torture, and curiosity for the latest in Scorsese’s filmography this is a part-way rewarding and affecting film.

A dark black and white tale, Tastes Like Medicine takes us through the mental breakdown and eventual split from reality of Kevin (Justin Walker Wright) as he faces his past, and questions himself at his ex-girlfriend’s baby shower.

Taste Like Medicine opens with a truly powerful scene as Walker Wright delivers a strong monologue coupled with slow motion movements of his ex-girlfriends face as she delivers the news and walks away. Steven Alexander Russell delivers gold in this scene, along with the excellent facial expressions of Marissa Rambaram (Alice).  Unfortunately, the power of scene is taken from with the next  ten minutes before a final scene showing  Kevin’s face during the same conversation re-delivers on this early excellence.

The central scenes of this film aren’t nearly as well delivered with much poorer acting, a confusing story line and an unlikable lead. I feel that Russell uses blank facial expressions and non-emotive delivery to try to display a break from reality as well as several monologue scenes. I can’t fault him for inventiveness and for direction in terms of background characters, but the break from reality itself is confusing and muddled without clarity in what is actually going on. Regretfully, Russell’s style just appears like bad acting and poor delivery, not delivering on an interesting plot-line.

Tastes Like Medicine has a lot of  thought behind it and is inventive in what it seeks to achieve. Unfortunately it didn’t deliver in entertainment and it was hard to stay in the moment. Russell has a future in film-making and the actors themselves have talent, but I wouldn’t put this down as a great display of either.

By Last Caress.

Do you like movie trailers? Do you like Kung-Fu films from the seventies and eighties? If your answer to either question is “Yes”, you might enjoy Fists of Fury, the latest trailer compilation video directed and produced by Charles Band for his own Full Moon Features production company.

Now, let’s be clear here, right up front: A compilation of trailers for a bunch of thirty-to-forty year-old kung-fu flicks is all that Fists of Fury is. Yes, it is hosted by eighties action legend Cynthia Rothrock (star of one or two of the movies featured within Fists of Fury) and, yes, said trailers have been loosely grouped into categories such as “Femmes Fatales”, “Bruceploitation” (those movies which featured a Bruce Lee-type leading man in an attempt to cash in on the success of the legendary Hong Kong superstar) and “Weapon Deception” but, beyond Ms. Rothrock’s introductions to each category of trailers – all of which involve Ms. Rothrock in full “Miss Piggy” attack mode dispatching a motley assortment of random unfortunates in light, humorous fashion – there is no dissection or discussion of the movies themselves, no reminiscences from the casts or crewmembers, no experts in the field of kung-fu cinema appearing as “talking heads” to offer any further commentary or insight, nothing. Just the trailers, each preceded by a plate stating the name of the film featured in the trailer, the year of the film’s release, the stars of the film and a brief synopsis.

That being said, a trailer compilation movie like this can be a lot of fun; I certainly enjoyed Fists of Fury immensely. Whether it retains much replay value beyond serving as a handy reference tool for the clutch of chop-socky flicks I now wish to chase down as a result of watching it remains to be seen (I’ve seen a few trailer compilation vids now, enjoyed them all, and eventually tired of them all), but films such as Fists of Fury are often a fantastic way to see the best genre cinema has to offer in a short space of time. Let’s be honest: A lot of genre movies can be a bit of a ball-ache to sit through – as a fan of Blaxploitation Cinema, Grindhouse Horror and Spaghetti Westerns I’ve seen more than my share of duds – and, often, the best bits are all in the trailers anyway!

With so many trailers featured, even keen devotees of kung-fu cinema will likely discover at least something within Fists of Fury; for those of us who are less knowledgeable but who maybe hold an enthusiastic curiosity for the genre, Fists of Fury has a lot to offer, and comes recommended.

Fists of Fury is released on DVD 20th Jan 2017. Pre-order it now HERE.

La La Land is described on IMDB with the tagline ‘A jazz pianist falls for an aspiring actress in Los Angeles.’  Rarely do I ever see a description of a film that does not do a film even the slightest bit of justice, and so over simplifies the content. Reading that line, and even the more in depth description featured on the site there’s absolutely no way I’d have gone to see this film. THANKFULLY I’m not the sort to choose on film on IMDB. For me, it’s posters, trailers, and the general feel around a film that directs me to the cinema and these were all beautiful. I was very grateful that my senses (and perhaps a little bit my girlfriend) had told me that I would enjoy this film. It was in the words of Bill and Ted…’Excellent’.

Factually, IMDB had it right, this is a film about a Jazz pianist who falls for an aspiring actress, but it is also so much more. It’s a truly modern musical and a truly modern love story with heartbreak, chills, bittersweet endings and a heartwarming sense of beauty that I feel is lost in a lot of modern film-making. There’s sadness without grit and depression and love without a focus on sex. It’s something different.

La La Land has gone down the route of musical, but without throwing it in your face. The opening scene makes you worry that this will be a complete throwback to the 1950’s; but the audience is soon relieved that it uses the medium sparingly and with a subtlety that adds to the growing on screen connection. Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling show the on-screen connection that proved such a success in Crazy Stupid Love and a truth that has made both their careers light up. The singing wasn’t perfect, and perhaps Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling’s voices weren’t quite up to the level you’d expect of  a stage actor or actress, but in a way it added a touch of realism and was unnoticeable for most of it.

I’m well aware La La Land won’t be for everyone, but if you love a touching love story, a bit of music or Jazz, or you’re simply in search of something unique the La La Land is for you, and as usual the Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone fan clubs won’t be disappointed. It may not win the BIG awards at The Oscars, I think La La Land will win it’s fair share.

Palace of Fun brings intrigue, betrayal and mystery to a family estate in Brighton as mysterious drifter Finn comes between a brother and sister as his secrets begin to control him.

After meeting Finn (Andrew Mullen) in a local nightclub, sensitive artist Lily (Phoebe Naughton) takes him into her parents home while  they holiday in Italy. Not to be  be outdone, jealous and vindictive brother Jamie (George Stocks) goes in search of leverage. Events take a darker turn when his secret is discovered as Jamie begins to toy with Finn, and his sister Lily.

Director Eadword Stocks,along with co-writer, brother and star George Stocks have created a poetic, quiet and melancholy piece with Palace of Fun never  quite hitting the energy levels of a typical crime thriller. This is  not to say this is a bad point. In fact, quite the opposite. The film powerfully portrays how normal life often exists alongside intrigues and secrets such as these. The Stocks Bros. should also be praised for dealing with highly dramatic incidents with poise, control and restraint; instead they’ve created mystery amongst trauma.

The level of restraint in Palace of Fun should be praised, but it does in some ways cause it to drag on in the middle and become slightly boring. I recommend not switching off if  you do feel like this as the end result is worth it. George Stocks gives a good performance as a spoilt ‘poshboy’ whilst Naughton portrays a plain well raised girl incredibly well (if that’s what she was going for) and Mullen produces an average performance as Finn. Stocks is most likely to light up the scene, but n the whole performances are average.

Palace of Fun goes down for me as an interesting and good film, well worth a watch if you have nothing in particular to watch, but if you’ve had a  film in your thought for a while, I’d go for that first.