A world-weary man reaches what he believes to be the end of his journey through life and makes preparations to leave the world behind him. Meeting an irreverent stranger at Suicide Anonymous, Joe sees the tiniest glint of light in the darkness and the pair find a connection within the downward spiral.
It would be remiss of me not to mention the similarities between Here Lies Joe and Chuck Palahniuk’s seminal novel Fight Club, from the downbeat protagonist to the Marla Singer’esque enigma who invades his life. This central conceit is prevalent in a number of literary works but the dark subject matter peppered with humour falls very much in line with Palahniuk, and by extension, David Fincher’s adaptation of that material.
That’s not to say this short feature cannot be enjoyed on its own merits. Writer/ Director Mark Battle does a great job of allowing the story to unfurl at a measured pace. There’s an assured serenity to how each scene develops which only strengthens the connection between the viewer and the leads. This isn’t dialogue heavy or overbearingly stylistic in its efforts to convey the almost intangible emotional weight of the suicidal.
Our protagonist (portrayed by Dean Temple) delivers an exceptionally understated performance reminiscent of Macon Blair’s in Jeremy Saulnier’s feature, Blue Ruin, while Andi Morrow injects the flippant “Z” with enough nuances for her character to avoid the pitfalls of being perceived as grating. She balances a surface-level verve with an underlying fragility that makes the relationship between the two characters believable. It’s these performances and the overall proficiency of the filmmakers that elevates this slightly above the clichés and well-trodden elements that we’ve seen countless times before.
Although I wouldn’t consider Here Lies Joe essential short feature viewing, it has certainly piqued my interest in Mark Battle and his future projects. I only hope that his next project ventures into fresher, more compelling territory.
Here Lies Joe is currently doing the rounds on the festival circuit and will hopefully make its way to more public platforms in the near future.
This strange and bleak debut from Director Ben Charles Edwards and Writer Al Joshua is set in a future London where the Thames has risen and left the great city in abject disarray. Set the Thames on Fire looks like Baz Luhrman’s Moulin Rouge on a comedown, sitting in a seriously damp seat after too many sherbets. The backgrounds and establishing shots have a lot going for them and it gives the movie an assured quality that helps go some way to distract from the film’s shortcomings.
The narrative is essentially an episodic tale involving our two protagonists (A piona player named Art and an escaped mental patient named Sal) bumping around from crazy character to crazy character as they attempt to complete their quest to get enough money together to leave these sodden “Dickensian” streets and escape over to Egypt.
The two lead actors are both perfectly passable, if a little unremarkable. Michael Winder’s Art is a quiet Bob Dylan lookalike with a lost love and Max Bennett’s Sal is all bolshie bravado and quick wit. As the opening monologue crudely states “Sometimes all it takes to become friends is to be the only two people in the room who aren’t cunts!”.
The supporting talent are interesting and varied enough, with Sadie Frost playing Art’s landlady who is abundantly horny and David Hoyle popping up as a magician who, with a single monologue over a card trick, essentially steals the show. We also have Gerard McDermott as a brutal city boss called the Impressario and the one and only Noel Fielding playing a transgender gentleman who is particularly fond of S&M. It all adds up to a cast of characters that wouldn’t be out of place on Fielding’s surreal classic The Mighty Boosh, and therein lies the rub. This film feels like a stretched out and bled dry version of an episode of some dark comedy you would catch inadvertently in the middle of the night on BBC3. It has ideas, it has interesting and decent quality set pieces and it has confidence in what it wants to achieve however for this reviewer it felt boring and fundamentally flawed by it’s format.
Much like the portrayed streets of this cold and grey London, my thoughts on this film are cold and grey. If you are a hardcore fan of surrealist new wave then you may find much to like here but unfortunately for me there just wasn’t enough to set my interest on fire.
Southside With You follows Barack Obama and Michelle Robinson over the course of a day in Chicago. It is Barack’s quest to turn his meeting with colleague Michelle from “Definitely not a date” into a date.
The casting is strong – Parker Sawyers as Barack Obama is a perfect fit. But the strength of the actors is not enough to save the feeble script. Comparisons with Richard Linklater’s Before Sunrise are spot-on. Especially in the way that there is so much explanation throughout: it’s all tell and very little show. The reason this is frustrating is that most viewers should have quite a good grasp on what these people are like. They have been in the White House for 8 years, and there is no shortage of TV appearances through which we can learn about their lives. This film sheds no new light on the Obamas. Instead, it simplifies them: Barack’s interests are speech-writing, community organising, and chain-smoking. Michelle’s are social justice, professionalism and ice-cream.
One thing that is obvious about the couple, when they appear alongside each other in interviews and public appearances, is that they are very much in love. They still have that spark of a new romance. So why is Southside With You so passionless and dry? Writer/Director Richard Tanne seems to be an advocate of President Obama and this film is a vehicle for that. He wraps up pro-Obama rhetoric in an insipid romance. His message is: Ignore Obama’s failings as a president and see what a good heart he has. Yes, the man with a good heart. So good, in fact, that he just won’t quit until he gets into Michelle’s heart. Because ‘no’ means ‘maybe’ right? Gimme a break. Though Tanne is at pains to tell us what a smart, capable, driven woman Michelle is, all Barack needs to do is disrespect her wishes over a matter of hours, wear her resolve down and (spoiler) win her heart with an ice cream. Southside With You is 100% the male perspective on romance and it does Michelle a great disservice for that reason.
Taglines for Southside With You could include: Escape from the Friendzone or Feminism:Mansplained.
In celebration of Warner Bros. launching their Iconic Moments collection we decided to highlight a few moments we consider the most iconic in each of these incredible movies.
It’s a ridiculous notion to pluck just one iconic moment from this 3 hour and 40 minute epic. Peppered throughout are beautiful scenes, stellar performances and rousing lines of dialogue. Max Steiner’s score rocks the foundations of cinematic history throughout but THAT moment when Scarlett stands with her father, surveying their land, silhouetted against the beautiful red hues of the setting sun really takes the cake.
“It’ll come to you, this love of the land. There’s no getting away from it if you’re Irish”.
It’s this singular moment that sets Scarlett O’Hara in motion for the arduous emotional journey, which takes place during the American Civil War.
Got a problem with my choice?
“Frankly my dear… I don’t give a damn”!
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
While there’s no denying the Gene Wilder version is perhaps more beloved, the Tim Burton/ Johnny Depp reimagining manages to truly excel in one crucial department; The Land of Candy.
From the second Willy Wonka opens the tiny door and parades his visitors into the entirely edible room there’s a sense of profound wonderment that sparks the imagination of every adult and child who dreamt of chocolate rivers, candy cane trees, cream filled flowers and gumdrop bushes after reading Roald Dahl’s delicious story.
“Every drop of the river is hot, melted chocolate of the finest quality”.
… Just hold me upside down by the ankles and lower me in please!
Empire of the Sun
Probably the least Ballardian of J.G. Ballard’s adaptations, Empire of the Sun gives a biographical account of his childhood in Japanese internment camps during WWII. Steven Spielberg continues his fascination with airborne vehicles as Jim Graham (a very young Christian Bale) grows from naïve boy to war worn teen and at the point of losing all hope, sees the simmering radiance of an American aircraft.
Racing to the top of the building and throwing down his belongings, John Williams score swells. Jim hugs himself in disbelief before smiling. The music stops and a choir herald the arrival of his favourite plane, the pilot waving as he passes at almost eye level, to which, Jim lets out a jubilant cheer.
“P51, Cadillac of the sky”
Warner Bros. Iconic Moments
North By Northwest
In a pulse pounding case of mistaken identity, Cary Grant’s Roger Thornhill is kidnapped, interrogated and then hunted across country by James Mason’s Vandamm and his thugs.
Directed by the master of suspense, Alfred Hitchcock there’s seemingly no end of narrow escapes and close scrapes for Thornhill. The most iconic of these being chased down in open plains by a hoodlum in a crop duster. As it swoops down, Thornhill is forced into the dirt as bullets rain down around him.
I won’t give away much more but the image of Cary Grant running in the foreground while a bi-plane races menacingly behind him is enough to make your heart skip a beat.
The Wizard of Oz
“We’re not in Kansas anymore”.
Just remember boys and girls. If you ever feel like you’ve truly managed to achieve something in life just remember that in the same year Victor Fleming directed Gone With The Wind, he also released a little known movie called The Wizard of Oz!
From the sepia beginnings to glorious Technicolor we follow Dorothy on an adventure along the yellow brick road. But before the vibrancy and wonder of Oz, this little girl gives a ponderous performance of a sweet dream involving blue skies, with no troubles and no clouds in sight.
Somewhere over the rainbow.
The Shining
All Work and No Play…
Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation of the Stephen King novel is brimming with haunting chills, unease and malevolence. A young boy starts to understand his powers while his father slowly loses his mind in the isolated, out of season hotel. With thunderously violent, murderous intent, Jack chases down his hysterical wife, who locks herself in the bathroom, desperately trying to escape. As he starts breaking through the door with an axe, he forces his head into the opening and delivers probably the most iconic adlib in cinema history…
… “Here’s Johnny”!
In almost any other circumstance, this line would warrant a chuckle. Here, you’ll be lucky if it manifests as nervous laughter. Utterly engrossing and outright disturbing, Kubrick and Nicholson prove to be an admirable partnership.
300
Adapted from Frank Miller’s graphic novel, 300 is where Zack Snyder really honed his particular visual flair. Opulent imagery, kinetic choreography, exaggerated stoicism and oily, half naked dudes with CG six packs, this is as gung-ho as swords and sandals flicks get.
Gerard Butler IS King Leonidas. There is no greater statement of intent than his actions when messengers from King Xerxes demand tribute from the Greek warrior kingdom. In refusing to submit to the Persians, Leonidas backs the messenger to the edge of a great pit.
“This is madness”, decries the messenger.
“This is Sparta”! bellows Leonidas as he straight-up kicks the poor fellow into the pit, where he is soon followed by the remaining Persians.
The Goonies
In a story of pirates treasure, murderers, booby traps and kids growing as a team there are a huge number of scenes that immediately jump to the forefront of my mind. Chunk’s truffle shuffle, Data’s “Pinchers from Hell, Mouth’s disgusting tongue through the painting and Mikey’s stolen kiss with Andi… these are all funny, jubilant, gross and charming moments but the one that gets the biggest cheer, that never fails to put a smile from ear to ear is the battle cry of the gargantuan man-baby, Sloth.
“Hey you guys”!
With his Superman T-Shirt and tiny pirate’s hat on, he makes his way down the ship’s sail in true swashbuckling style, with a terrified Chunk holding on for dear life. It’s such an air punching moment, full of childlike joy that perfectly encapsulates the stirring excitement in the final reel of this 80s classic.
Dirty Harry
There are few men as badass as Dirty Harry Callahan. He’s a no-nonsense cop who makes up for his lack of political correctness with snarl, gristle and a very, very large gun.
While eating a hotdog and minding his own business, Harry hears the sound of alarm bells as a bank is being robbed. With a mouth still half full of lunch he makes short work of the bad guys, casually sauntering over to one assailant edging toward his firearm, Harry addresses the man with an iconic monologue regarding the number of bullets he’s fired in all the excitement that’s occurred.
“I know what you’re thinking… Did he fire six shots or only five?” Well to tell you the truth in all this excitement I kinda lost track myself. But being this is a .44 Magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world and would blow your head clean off, you’ve gotta ask yourself one question: ‘Do I feel lucky?’ Well, do ya, punk?
It’s Clint Eastwood’s proto Action hero that set the bar for the stars that followed, and where as some of these actors became known for their quippy one-liners, it’s still this incredible prose that’s the granddaddy of them all.
Boy meets girl, boy falls in love, boy introduces girl to dad…
The Greasy Strangler stalks the night.
From the moment we are first introduced to Ronnie and his son Brayden I knew this movie was going to be special. There’s a heightened reality and otherworldly disconnect to the universe they inhabit, from the stilted dialogue to their garish clothing and the disjointed characters they interact with. If David Lynch and The Mighty Boosh had a disgusting baby, raised by Napoleon Dynamite then you may end up with something as special as The Greasy Strangler.
Michael St. Michaels gives a grotesquely captivating performance as the monstrously well-endowed, titular serial murder. He lies, cheats and seduces with an air of indignant pomp, slathers everything in viscous grease and kills to sate his urges in an animalistic rage. His Ronnie is Klaus Kinski by way of Peter Stringfellow with the dress sense of a mescaline fuelled Swedish crime drama. He is both chief villain and a superb anti-hero. He’s crass, cruel and devilishly brilliant in equal measure.
The absolute standout performance comes from Sky Elobar as put-upon protagonist Brayden. There’s a pathetic, downtrodden fragility to this cartoonish sad-sack. Talked down to by his father and shown no modicum of respect, Elobar imbues the protagonist with infantilised innocence that makes his burgeoning romance with Elizabeth De Razzo’s Janet oddly sweet. This sweetness doesn’t make the utterly grotesque sex scenes any easier to swallow. Played for laughs, these darkly comedic forays into grubby eroticism are as wince-worthy as the numerous Greasy Strangler murders. Sex and death linked in all their horrific and indulgent glory.
An integral part of the overall texture of this peculiar movie is the phenomenal score from Andrew Hung (Fuck Buttons). Squelchy, pneumatic and repetitively anthemic, each electronically produced earworm burrows into your brain and even after the moist, pungent grime of the film’s visuals are scrubbed away, Hung’s themes offer a reminder of the feast of filth you’ve experienced.
It’s clear that The Greasy Strangler won’t be everybody’s idea of entertainment. This is most definitely a “Marmite Movie”. Some will find it repulsive and nauseating, while others will see this as hilariously quotable and weirdly engaging from beginning to end. For my sins, I definitely fall into the latter category and don’t mind going on record to say director Jim Hosking’s debut has become one of my favourite films of 2016. Considering Elijah Wood’s production company SpectreVision also produced the outstanding A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night, I’m going to have to keep a watchful eye out for both Hosking and SpectreVision’s future features.
The Greasy Strangler has a limited cinematic run starting Friday 7th October and launches on DVD/ Blu-Ray Monday 10th.
