Archive Review: Cashback (2006) - 4/5 Stars

I discovered "Cashback" this summer and was mesmerized by its blend of genres throwing in a little sci-fi/fantasy to go in with the romantic comedy. If you like indie romance, read the rest of my review below.

Based on his Oscar-nominated short film of the same name, Sean Ellis' "Cashback" is an elegant and funny independent film mixing elements of drama, comedy, romance and fantasy. Musing on the relationship between the speed of life and love, "Cashback" is an artist's rendition of a familiar romance formula.

"Cashback" begins like every other romantic comedy, with its main character Ben (Sean Biggerstaff, best known as Oliver Wood from the first couple Harry Potter movies) getting dumped by his girlfriend, launching him into insomnia and unrelenting personal reflection in the form of narrative. But Ben is an aspiring portrait artist, so Ellis, like his protagonist, reflects that appreciation for imagery in his direction, giving every scene stylishness and grace.

Ellis moves the camera in fascinating ways that capture our attention, making so many shots and sequences have an epic quality. At the same time, it's interesting that the film uses so much narrative, making it seem more literary, almost a memoir even, yet Ellis never leans on this writing -- so many images stand out memorably.

The fantasy angle of the film comes in when Ben discovers he can slow down and pause time for as long as he likes, a skill he learns at the local Sainsbury's supermarket where he's taken up night hours to make use of his lack of sleep. A long-time connoisseur of the female form, Ben freezes time to draw women in the supermarket, often times nude, yet he reserves some modesty when drawing his new crush, Sharon (Emilia Fox), one of the store clerks. Ellis perfectly captures these images of Ben's affection and the result is that we see the beauty that Ben sees.

"Cashback" is very sexually forward, unafraid but not gratuitous or obnoxious in its use of nudity or sexual reference. Its sense of humor comes mostly in the form simple things like quirky characters and clever one-liners or quick shots. Its humor relies on the viewer finding it endearing and lovable.

The movie is also a meditation on time and love, giving us something to think about more so than letting us draw our own meaning. What usually happens is that just as we have surmised our own understanding, more narration comes in speaking of new ideas and we're sort of left confused. Other times, the narration adds key thoughts to our heads that add meaning to what comes next.

Boiled down, "Cashback" is a really fresh take on the boy gets broken up with, does something as a result, finds new girl and struggles to make sense of love in the meantime. Adding in the simple fantasy element of time control, it manages to look at what we've seen in movies in ways we've never really seen them before, which dresses up the romance clichés quite nicely.

4/5 Stars

"Cashback" (2006)

Directed by: Sean Ellis

Written by: Sean Ellis

Starring: Sean Biggerstaff, Emilia Fox

Archive Review: Billy Elliot (2000) - 4.5/5 Stars

Dancing, passion and familial struggle are all tied together in the high-spirited "Billy Elliot," the little independent film that could in 2000, when such films were drastically under- appreciated. "Billy Elliot" caught some attention however because it combines the dream-like fancy-free spirit of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers films along with the social-historical context of the '80s coal miner strike in England. Youthful optimism and social reality are at odds as seen through the young Billy (a very talented Jamie Bell) and the film doesn't let either one completely win out, an admirable and unexpected quality for a story about a child.

Pre-teen Billy lives in a small England town where his father (Gary Lewis) and brother (Jamie Draven) are picketing as part of the coal miner's strike, so money is scarce. His father then becomes especially angry to find out Billy's been taking the money he was supposed to be using to pay for boxing lessons for ballet instruction instead. Despite his father's disapproval at his son taking up a "girl's" activity, Billy meets regularly with Mrs. Wilkinson (Julie Walters) to prepare for the Royal Ballet School audition.

The feature film debut for both writer Lee Hall and director Stephen Daldry, "Billy Elliot" is a real triumph of art imitating life. In a stroke of inspired creativity, Billy dances when he feels it, when he needs to express emotions of anger or excitement or when he was something to prove. Scenes are intercut often to show how Billy's drive to master ballet is indicative of a need for self-discovery, family approval and learning how to handle life's challenges.

With a soundtrack mixing '70s English rock band T-Rex with classical music and orchestration by 1999 Oscar-winning composer Stephen Warbeck, "Billy Elliot" takes on this true independent spirit. It's far from the cheesy uplifting string music of an inspirational drama and more true to its historical context. Its much easier to sympathize with Billy's yearning for movement and his description of "electricity" in terms of how dance makes him feel with modern music.

Billy's dancing outburst scenes give the film the feel of a dance musical movie ala the Fred Astaire era of Hollywood, while his angry and emotionally withdrawn father as well as Billy's own fits of irrational anger ground the movie in the struggles that surround the Elliot family on a daily basis. 

The film is also not a social commentary on gender roles despite the conflict of Billy wanting to dance and his father wanting him to box. Billy takes an unexplained interest in dancing and doesn't exhibit any "homosexual" tendencies. This is about doing something you're passionate about, not a child's struggle with his gender identity. Billy's cross-dressing friend is there to remind us that one thing is not connected to the other, but the film doesn't waste time overdramatizing this small conflict in a greater story.

"Billy Elliot" is a special film, one that perfectly fits the magic of finding one's passion within the troubles of real life and a cast that accurately reflects that vision from Daldry and Hall. It acknowledges that with good comes bad and with reward and hard work comes nervousness and discomfort. It's a unique outlook for a movie based about a young boy and his dreams.

4.5/5 Stars

"Billy Elliot" (2000)

Directed by: Stephen Daldry

Written by: Lee Hall

Starring: Jamie Bell, Julie Walters, Gary Lewis

Disney buys Marvel Entertainment, monopolizes my childhood

Completely out of nowhere, it was announced this morning that Walt Disney Co. had purchased Marvel Entertainment for $4 billion. Wow. 

I've been following the news on JoBlo this morning, and the superhero movie-lover inside me wondered immediately how it would affect the current Marvel films in development. The answer is apparently that it won't -- any contracts already an existence between Marvel and other studious will be honored. The other exciting bit of news is that John Lasseter, the mastermind behind Pixar, has met with Marvel's creative staff and apparently already gotten the wheels turning on how the two might work together. Oh yeah, i felt a shiver right there too.

Well we know Marvel stockholders are dancing in the streets right now and that Stan Lee and Mickey Mouse are probably kicking back somewhere, but what about the rest of us who care very little about the financial side of the deal? Do we want Marvel's superheroes in the hands of a family entertainment conglomerate?

From the fan perspective, there's definitely negative and positive. As far as future films, we definitely won't see the results anytime soon, but it's hard to imagine that Disney, the biggest family friendly brand name in the world, would put Cinderella's castle before before the opening credits of a dark PG-13 superhero movie like "The Dark Knight." Perhaps it could just carry the Touchstone name, but then there's also the risk of a Marvel character getting dumbed down to PG levels to snag that family audience. 

Disney clearly likes superhero movies -- "The Incredibles" and "Bolt" -- so in hindsight their interest in Marvel's properties makes sense. It's hard to imagine X-Men and Spider-Man becoming any more globally recognized considering Marvel's dozens of toy contracts and TV shows (and Broadway musicals) and whatnot, but with Disney it's definitely possible. 

What first comes to mind is theme parks. Orlando already plays host to Spidey and Hulk rides at Universal Studios Islands of Adventure so I'm curious how Disney World might take advantage other than the obvious selling of merchandise, Spider-Man in the New Year's parade, some corny stage show and maybe something in Tomorrowland.

The possible Marvel-Pixar collaboration is the most exciting; talk about two of the movie business' most respected brands. I don't think this means a Spider-Man action figure will be a last-minute addition to "Toy Story 3" (although a cameo would be cool to get the buzz going), but any kind of spin-off of a Marvel character(s) could have huge commercial cash-hoarding potential.

As a child who grew up watching Disney movies only to have them replaced by Marvel cartoons, this kind of deal is pretty exciting. Both are such powerful brands that their reach, albeit a little overwhelming, could really make something special happen. I eagerly await news of that first true collaboration and you can bet I'll be musing about it. 

Summer Superlatives '09: Top 5 Action movies

And at last, time for the final category of the summer and perhaps the season's most beloved genre: best action films. 2009 was a rarity in this decade because it wasn’t dominated by superhero movies. Only one came out and it barely made the list, whereas last year there were three and I probably would have ranked them all in my top five.

 Instead, 2009 features some action dramas and some science fiction, a really nice change of pace. I also saw all five of these films and like the comedies, if I don’t link to the review, that means I’m waiting for the DVD release to post it.

 

 

 5. “X-Men Origins: Wolverine”

 Much like the third X-Men movie, “Wolverine” packed in one too many superheroes and was more focused on special effects and stunts than the character it was supposed to be about. Nevertheless, for the first movie of the summer I was entertained by it. Hugh Jackman and Liev Schreiber worked great together and it was extremely satisfying to see Gambit make his way onto the screen – his scenes were some of the best. As to why he’s not getting his own movie and Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool is, I have no clue.

 

 

 4. “Public Enemies”

 Putting this in the action category when this was really a cat-and-mouse thriller mixed with drama feels a little strange, but the action scenes were among the best parts of this ‘30s gangster dress-up film. I had the neat experience of going to see the actual Wisconsin lodge that the film’s huge night action sequence took place at this summer – where it actually happened and it where it was filmed – and it brought home the historical angle of this film. It could have been better, but what a really cool change of pace for summer action movies. In a normal year, “Public Enemies” would never take the Wednesday before the Fourth of July, but this summer it could.

 

 

3.  “The Hurt Locker”

The only reason I don’t have “The Hurt Locker” higher is because this is foremost a top five action movie list and this film is too sophisticated and intelligent to be action ahead of drama, not vice-versa. Despite being No.3 on this list, it would easily make my top five movies of the summer. Rarely do we get an introspective action and suspense film that illuminates modern historical context. There hasn’t been a great movie about the Iraq War and if I were going to be a history teacher in twenty years, I would certainly use this film to teach the class. It gives you a sense of embedded journalism and part of the reason soldiers signed up. Read all my comments here.

 

 

 2. “District 9”

When I first saw the trailer for “District 9” I was impressed by the visuals but skeptical because I’d heard nothing about it prior to the summer. “Peter Jackson presents” didn’t exactly hook me by the balls like it did some people, but in retrospect maybe I should’ve let it. (Although I guess by that principle I have to see “The Lovely Bones” this winter). What a refreshingly original sci-fi story with plenty of action and all with a tight budget. If this is possible with only $30 million, think of all the great original action movies we could have in the future. The fact that “District 9” makes it up near the top of the list is a fantastic middle finger at movies like “G.I. Joe” and “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” and I love that. Read all my comments here.

 

 

 1. “Star Trek”

What hasn’t J.J Abrams touched and not turned to gold? “Cloverfield” got mixed response (although I was a big fan) and LOST is one of TVs best, so imagine my excitement to find out he was taking the reigns of the “Star Trek” reboot. This re-creation was everything “Star Trek” needed to succeed in the 21^st Century (ironically). Young but talented actors and a great origin story with top-notch special effects and “Star Trek” became 2009’s first completely legitimate hit. It might not have been as original and creative, but it was the only film to exist already in pop culture that was truly great and it deserves that kind of kudos.

 

 

 

Summer Superlatives '09: Top 5 Comedies

I’m all about comedies at the movies, but I’m pretty tough when it comes to reviewing humor. I’m usually either pretty generous in reviewing a comedy that manages to make me hysterical a good number of times and stingy if I’m not won over by the characters.

 All in all, 2009 was a pretty solid comedy summer, but there was a clear favorite and if you’ve been following my blog, you already know what it is. I do understand that means a lot of you don’t, but you don’t have to think hard to realize which of the summer’s comedies was head and shoulders above the rest.

 

 

 5. “Funny People” 

I held out a lot of hope for “Funny People” as being one of those laugh-out-loud comedies with a really strong sentimental side. It ended up being a really long mish-mash of stories and comedy techniques. There were some definitely funny parts and I think it was one of the more appropriate starring roles for Adam Sandler considering he played himself, but Judd Apatow’s previous directorial efforts were easily better. I still enjoyed it overall. Read all my comments here.

 

 

 4. “Inglourious Basterds”

I felt a little strange and guilty laughing at some of these jokes, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t laugh. Quentin Tarantino’s latest had some lines that were just so good you couldn’t not laugh at them. Brad Pitt as Lt. Aldo Raine was one of the summer’s funnier characters, even if it required considerably little talent of Pitt, whose comedy roles tend to be idiots, interestingly enough. Though some parts weren’t funny – Eli Roth as “The Bear Jew” – “Basterds” easily belongs on the top five list. Read all my comments here.

 

 

3. “Bruno”

Although it wasn’t satirically on par with “Borat” by any means, “Bruno” was so outrageous that you had to laugh just to make it through the film. Sacha Baren Cohen lays it on thick in this film, praying on our completely and utter homophobia in this country and taking several shots at celebrity culture (and numerous celebrities). If you haven’t seen it and you’re not too easily offended or disgusted by nudity, I can think of a better rental for this winter. When it does hit shelves, I will be sure to post my whole review.

 

 

 2. “(500) Days of Summer”

I wouldn’t normally put a romantic comedy toward the top of this list, but I rated “Summer” higher that the last three films and it was a comedy among all things. Well, it was definitely deserving too. “Summer” is a romantic comedy that challenged a lot of the annoying clichés we deal with regularly from the genre by confronting them. Its disjointed chronology narrative structure allowed for humor to slip into places where other films simply couldn’t fit it and then it just  charmed our pants off. Read all my comments here.

 

 

1.  “The Hangover”

I haven't laughed that hard that often at a movie in at least a year or two. “The Hangover” was just perfect execution on an idea that felt (and really was) so familiar despite never having been done before. We’d seen Las Vegas comedies, buddy comedies, bachelor party comedies, but never with the brilliant premise of “The Hangover.” The reveal of one’s embarrassing drunken misadventures is funny when your hung over friend tells you about it the next day – a movie about that is even better. Best of all, “The Hangover” gave us new faces to look at in Bradley Cooper, Zach Galifianakis, Ed Helms and Justin Bartha. What an excellently calculated cast. It’s like we were served pretty good leftovers at a five star restaurant and didn’t even notice. This could easily be my first Holiday DVD pick-up and I'll surely post my review then.

 

 

 

Archive Review: Harvey (1950) - 4/5 Stars

A story of a man talking to a tall imaginary rabbit seems like a child's film, but "Harvey" is anything but. In fact, it challenges our tendency to dismiss it as such. It is a case study of a perfectly delusional but perfectly charming middle-aged man who despite those around him believing him insane, ends up making them drive themselves crazy.

Based on Mary Chase's Pulitzer-winning play (Chase also had a hand in the screenplay), "Harvey" tells the story of Elwood P. Dowd (James Stewart), who as mentioned appears to have an imaginary friend rabbit who accompanies him to the bars where he meets people and invites them to have drinks at his house sometime. He appears to have no job and his older sister Veta (Josephine Hull) is embarrassed by his behavior, enough to the point where she finally takes him to a mental hospital to be committed, where farce-like humor ensues.

Stewart, who has always fallen nicely into roles involving naive people passionately committed to something, is an ideal choice for Elwood. He gives the role a dreamy quality few of the other great actors of the '40s and '50s could have. Elwood is warm, kind-hearted, complimentary and other than drinking a lot and talking to an imaginary rabbit, seems devoid of any other vices or character flaws.

As the doctors and nurses at the mental hospital get involved, we learn more about Elwood. The film is like a psychological case study in which we become so focused wanting to know what is triggering his delusion that we miss the point. That is until Chase's wonderful script makes sense of it toward the end.

The film has the vibe of a very straight play adaptation. My guess would be that little of script changed; there's a lot of expository dialogue in the beginning. There's also not a whole lot of interesting visual storytelling. About the best thing director Henry Koster does other than not actually show Harvey is include where Harvey 'is' in the frame of his shot, which as I read was suggested by Stewart. The film relies mostly on the talents of Stewart and of Oscar-winner Hull as the completely whiny and over-dramatic old coot of a sister and the thoughtful and simplistic wisdom of Chase's script that preaches that normality is relative and that kindness is the true measure of character.

4/5 Stars

"Harvey" (1950)

Directed by: Henry Koster

Written by: Mary Chase (play, screenplay), Oscar Brodney, Myles Connoly

Starring: James Stewart, Josephine Hull

Archive Review: The Bank Job (2008) - 4/5 Stars

"The Bank Job" is fun, so much fun that you kinda have to stare awkwardly at its "based on a true story" tagline. Did a bank robbery where the press was blacked out really happen? Was it really set up as a government operation to retrieve critical blackmail photos of Princess Margaret? Speculation aside, "The Bank Job" hardly needs its truth disclaimer. It's a good story taking a different angle on the overdone British heist thriller. Its place in history only makes it the more unique.

First of all, don't be worried of about this being just another Jason Statham movie. The Transporter and Crank series star has finally piloted something genuinely creative here. For one thing, the film takes place in the '70s. With that comes a whole different look to the heist movie and no fancy technology either.

The story has Statham's character Terry and his band of amateur criminals being offered a unique bank robbery opportunity by an old friend, Martine (Saffron Burrows). What they don't know, is that Martine is doing this to clear her own record and has set them up to a do a job for the government: retrieve incriminating photos of Princess Margaret in the possession of Black Panther Michael X, who's using them to keep himself out of jail. The photos are in a safety deposit box in the bank in question.

Half the film is the heist itself, then the second half its aftermath as the thieves find themselves being hunted by law enforcement, the government who put them there in the first place and the immoral men in power who want the photos back. We actually end up pitying Statham and his men because they had no idea what they were getting into.

"Bank Job" works very quickly to get the heist going and it's sort of choppy film-making for a good thirty minutes. After the characters and what's really going on with the government and all settles in, the movie takes off. Its non-traditional heist premise simply requires a good deal of set-up time. The characters are a little shallow, but they have clear goals and clear things at stake. Their amateur technique comes through and wins our sympathies despite their ignorance of radio technology and how they pop champagne bottles found in the deposit boxes before they've even left the bank.

It's safe to say "Bank Job" is one of the better heist flicks made in awhile, with so many tired and repetitive stories being told. British TV writers Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais deserve a lot of credit for finding this story, sealing the rights and bringing it to life in an entertaining and creative way, regardless how much is actually true.

4/5 Stars

"The Bank Job" (2008)

Directed by: Roger Donaldson

Written by: Dick Clement, Ian La Frenais

Starring: Jason Statham, Saffron Burrows

Summer Superlatives '09: Best family films

2009 was a pretty good summer in the way of family/kids entertainment. With kids out of school and day camps not for everyone in this economy, even the films not on this top five list cough“G-Force”cough raked in serious money. In fact, only one film on this list didn’t cream the box office (for understandable reasons).

I saw a majority of these films and based on the performance of the other two at the box office and their reviews, I fit them in appropriately. Interestingly, I had just enough to put together a top five. No other honorable mentions.

 

 

 5. “Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian”

 I was a big fan of the original, but I couldn’t force myself in a busy month of May to entertain the sequel and the reviews didn’t give me enough cause either. I’m sure it was fun and Amy Adams was indeed the highlight, but a lot better family-friendly fare passed through theaters this summer. Part of me also has to wag the finger at Hollywood overworking the formula and giving us more than we can handle with characters and stars and Jonah Hill.

 

 

4.  “Ponyo”

There wasn’t a more age-appropriate animated film to come out this year than Japanese filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki’s “Ponyo.” Although this film was more child-oriented that his last couple efforts, “Ponyo” still charmed every cell of my body that still dawdles in childhood fantasy. Imaginative, creative and an easy watch, “Ponyo” didn’t need furry creatures or artillery weapons to entertain me or anyone’s kids for 90 minutes.

 

 

 3. “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs”

 

I passed on the second movie and I passed on this one. I enjoyed “Ice Age” but I don’t support overkill, no matter how damn cute or into mischief that crazy squirrel gets in those trailers. The rest of the world, however, spoke up with words of great approval. With a $192 million intake to this point, “Ice Age” tres lands at No. 5 on the total gross list for this summer. You can’t argue with that, nor can you with the additional 600-some million dollars overseas, making it No. 1 on that list. Looks like we’ll be getting more squirrel antics.

 

 

 2. “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince”

Normally I’d be the first to deem a Harry Potter movie not a family film, but with its PG rating, “Half-Blood Prince” undeniably falls into this category (and there wasn’t enough action to put it in my action movie top five). This sixth HP installment was in my opinion the best made Potter movie yet in terms of visual storytelling. It lacked the action and emotional impact I wanted, but it was so cohesive and full of so much quality that it easily belongs as the second-best family film on this list and was one of the top five films of the summer.

 

 

1.  “Up”

Pixar does it again. Nothing in my mind will touch the classic that is “WALL*E,” but “Up” was yet another special story that challenged the norms of animated filmmaking. It was funny, touching and had something for all ages from talking dogs to an old man discovering something about himself despite being stubborn in his old age. And the montage in the beginning? Breaks my heart. Pixar made the one huge hit this summer that deserved every dollar it earned.

 

 

 

Summer Superlatives '09: Best Performances by a Male Actor

Summer is the time for the action blockbusters and the year’s best comedies, which despite our society’s many gender reforms, means more roles for men, so putting together the top five acting performances by a male actor was a tougher endeavor than for the ladies.

 To sort things out, I chose quality dramatic acting over comedy in a majority of these cases, shying away from the heroes in the summer’s blockbusters. No Hugh Jackman or Shia LaBeouf in these here rankings. These performances all really caught my attention this summer (I did see all these movies, fyi, and their reviews, if not posted already, will be posted coinciding with the DVD releases).

 

 

 5. Johnny Depp - “Public Enemies”

 

We’ve seen Johnny Depp do better, but that’s like watching an uneventful Chicago Bulls game in the ‘90s and saying Michael Jordan could’ve done better. He’s still Michael Bleepin’ Jordan and this is still Johnny Friggin’ Depp. Depp works in all his charms as notorious ‘30s gangster John Dillinger while still being a cutthroat bank-robbing criminal. It wouldn’t be off to say he was sort of a clean-shaven and mostly sober Jack Sparrow with also more brains. This is Johnny being Johnny, flexing his many skills as an actor who masters quirks.

 

4. Zach Galifianakis - “The Hangover”

I gave Zach his due the other day ago, but he still fits right up here in the top five for his best comedic performance by an actor all summer. His character Alan was so convincingly dumb, perverse, naïve and sweet all at the same time. He simply got fits out of audiences who often went more than once to get a repeat dose of the laughs that just coat “The Hangover.” There might not be a movie from this summer I’m more looking forward to on DVD than “The Hangover” and I pray there’s commentary featuring Galifianakis.

 

 

3. Sam Rockwell - “Moon”

 

In “Tropic Thunder,” Robert Downey Jr. warns never to go full retard. The next closest thing on that list of what never to do is a role where you have to act out a scene with yourself. We’re not talking Edward Norton “Fight Club” here, we’re talking Sam Rockwell talking for minutes on end with another Sam Rockwell. The guy has balls and he does it pretty darn well despite the fact that “Moon” as a film didn’t exactly have me convinced. Rockwell plays a lone space worker operating machines that harvest moon rocks alongside only a Kevin Spacey-voiced computer named GERTY. He misses his woman and wants to go home and he has to fight off the solitude and dangers of space. Rockwell gets credit, even if he’s not enough to make this movie into something good.

 

 

2. Jeremy Renner - “The Hurt Locker”

 

Unknown actor Jeremy Renner lucked into playing a character as complex as Sgt. Will James, a man who truly craves the intensity of war and thrives off his adrenaline. He gets to be reckless but also fight some inner demons and a longing for home he’s pretty sure he has. That’s not meant to take anything away from Renner. He brings all that home for us, challenges those perceptions we have about war, and hopefully he’ll get recognized for the achievement by landing bigger parts down the road.

 

 

1. Christoph Waltz - “Inglourious Basterds”

I still can’t believe how intimidated I am by Waltz’s Col. Hans “the Jew Hunter” Landa. Forget me being Jewish and despising Nazi characters -- Waltz’s performance was completely bewitching. His charm, language finesse and conniving methods just steal the breath out of you in every scene. It’s a great character, but not everyone could carry the aura of it like Waltz, not everyone could work it so deeply in every scene that your attention is completely on his next move. Talk about the role of a lifetime for Waltz. Too bad it had to be while playing a Nazi, but someone’s gotta do it.

 

 

Honorable Mentions: Chris Pine (“Star Trek”), Brad Pitt (“Inglourious Basterds”), Sacha Baren Cohen (“Bruno”), Jim Broadbent (“Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince”), Hugh Jackman (“Wolverine”), Adam Sandler (“Funny People”).

Why I dislike most horror movies, especially their sequels

As a movie-lover, I sometimes feel bad about alienating the genre of horror movies as much as I do considering how well they perform at the box office. I watch very few of them and it's not because I'm too scared (though I'll admit I get jumpy no matter how many times horror directors abuse the quick reveal), but it's because they're not your usual movies -- they have a very segmented audience.

I bring up the subject this weekend because apparently distributors now think Halloween occurs the last weekend in August. Both "The Final Destination" (instead of 4 they put up a "the") and Rob Zombie's Halloween remake sequel "Halloween II" come out today, probably moved to the end of August to catch the very last of the summer entertainment wave and because the Saw franchise has monopolized the Halloween release the last six years now.

As you might imagine, I'll be staying out of the theaters this weekend, even avoiding the new "Taking Woodstock" with Emile Hirsch because to be honest it looks like a better DVD movie than anything. Anyway, horror movies will almost never get me to drop some cash, especially their sequels. 

Let's start with "The Final Destination" aka "Final Destination 4 in 3D." I suppose the idea of 3D is enough to excite the wallets of anyone who has a moderately successful mediocre movie franchise, especially one as ridiculous as the Final Destination movies. The concept of these movies is always the same. A character is with a group of friends doing something generally considered safe but capable of disaster; character sees visions of disaster and prevents his/her friends from doing said generally safe thing and they live; the living force of death comes to claim their lives in sick and twisted ways. That's it. Always. Maybe there have been unique twists to each one, but I've only seen the first movie, you know, when it was a novel idea.

Essentially, the Final Destination movies thrive on one concept: outside-of-the-box death scenes. There's no slasher/murderer, no zombies, nothing. When death works as a supernatural force, anyone can die in any way possible and its the writers' jobs to make it creative and frightening. This is much in the same way that Saw can invent endless torture games for people to do horrific stuff in order to save their lives.

What we have here is not a film, but a thrill-seeking movie. Horror is entertainment in its purest form, like raw sugar. There's little reservation about sacrificing characters and developing lackluster story lines because people go in to these movies to get freaked out. I, on the other hand, love movies for their depth of visual storytelling. Occasionally I'll find a horror/thriller/mystery hybrid that does both, but it's rare. I reviewed "Rosemary's Baby" a couple weeks ago -- now that's a great story under the horror genre. "Alien" is an awesome sci- fi horror movie. Creative storytelling has basically been zapped from today's horror films, because filmmakers keep re-imagining and recycling the same premises.

Rob Zombie remade "Halloween" and "Halloween II" with the idea of reinventing Michael Myers and giving him more dimension, but it was the original Laurie Strode played by Jamie Lee Curtis that made the original a classic. I can't say if Laurie was given the same strength in the 2007 remake, but odds are no. Why remake a classic? The only answer to that question is for money. When has a classic, an undeniably great film, been remade and done better? I think this happens because horror producers are lazy SOBs who can't come up with anything new, understand it takes little effort to turn a profit in their genre, and so they turn to old favorites, sequels and Japan for their projects.

I fully respect those who get escapism by watching people die or get hunted or whatever the individual formula might be, but it's not why I go to the movies. I've given enough horror movies a chance and the result for me has always been that I get nothing but a raised heart rate and elevated stress levels. I don't feel like I'm being creatively challenged and entertained at the same time, I feel like the creator's goal every time is to see if I'll crap myself. That's not why I watch movies and its why few critics will give better than passing grades to a horror movie.

Archive Review: Burn After Reading (2008) - 4.5/5 Stars

Sometimes the most genius films are the ones that draw the most criticism. "Burn After Reading" may never reach the elite of IMDb top 250 and confuse and bother a lot of viewers, but if that's you, then you simply have yet to watch enough Coen brothers films to understand and appreciate the deep intelligence that this film possesses though it acts like it doesn't have.

Famous in their comedies for creating over-the-top idiots who concoct schemes way over their heads, the Coen brothers have made no exceptions with "Burn After Reading." This time everyone's missing something, usually the common sense part of the brain, but the trouble is caused by two gym employees (Pitt and McDormand) who come across a CD with CIA code on it belonging to an ex-CIA analyst (Malkovich), thinking they can blackmail him and make money.

Surrounding all that are other characters vital to the story: Malkovich's wife (Swinton) and her lover (Clooney) who is having multiple other affairs regularly in spite of his marriage. Much of the conflict and plot in this actually revolves around the shambled marriages of these couples and actually not on the CD, which of course is all part of the point.

Like all Coen brothers films, including their award-winning "No Country For Old Men," when you sit back and think about this film everything seems to click. It's difficult to explain without revealing the plot, but the important thing to keep in mind when viewing this film is that it plays on our perceptions of movies being great mystery thrillers that you have to try and figure out. You also need to remember that it's supposed to be a comedy. The Coen brothers will do everything to trick you into thinking it's more than just a comedy, but it's not.

Comedy is also not a word used lightly. This is easily the funniest Coen brothers film short of "The Big Lebowski" and what's even better is it has guys like Pitt and Clooney playing complete goofballs unlike their usual typecast. This is easily the most enjoyable part of the film. Actors like McDormand, Malkovich and JK Simmons continue to provide the Coen brothers more great talent for their gem of a script.

The Coen brothers want you to take "Burn After Reading" seriously and will use all of Hollywood's standard smoke and mirrors to align this film with your mental framework about movies (suspenseful music, dramatic and thoughtful camera angles, etc.) but the ability to step back and understand the directors' intent here is the key to loving this film instead of liking or being completely confused by it.

4.5/5 Stars

"Burn After Reading" (2008)

Directed by: Joel and Ethan Coen

Written by: Joel and Ethan Coen

Starring: John Malkovich, George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton

Summer Superlatives '09: Best Performances by a Female Actor

The summer’s best female roles tended to come from the best actresses. Sad as it is, most summer films don’t create great roles for women, so the women that really shine in this season tend to be the best in the business. Though the majority of my top five are younger actresses, the top two belong to proven veterans, though that’s not to say the others won’t win their fair share of acclaim in the future.

The rankings of the best performances by an actor award (the men will come later) have been chosen on overall quality of performances, regardless of genre, and how critically praised they were/their vitality to the film. The latter was especially the case here as I didn’t see most of these films. Just being honest, but you could very well agree with me.

 

 

5. Amy Adams - “Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian”

Most critics were pretty rough on this big-budget family formula flick sequel, but they were sure to reserve their praises for Amy Adams as Amelia Earhart. Though it’s expected that Hilary Swank will outdo Adams when she stars as Earhart in “Amelia” this fall, there’s no doubt that Amy’s the better child’s fantasy version. Considering how believably fantastical Adams was in “Enchanted,” Earhart must have come as a breeze to her. When I finally get around to this film on DVD, I have nothing but those expectations for Adams. She’s awesome.

 

 4. Diane Kruger - “Inglourious Basterds”

To be honest, I didn’t think much of Kruger in either “National Treasure” movies, so I didn’t have high expectations for her in “Basterds.” I should have. Tarantino doesn’t just cast any blonde girl – just ask Uma Thurman or Darryl Hannah. As a result, Kruger left a lasting impression that definitely snuck up on me as I was sorting through actresses to rank. As German movie star-turned spy Bridget von Hammersmark, Kruger had an energy and a gravity to her that we didn’t get to see when she was playing Americans (she was born in Germany). She was charming but also dramatic in the few pivotal scenes where her character is under duress. She really had the deceptive thing nailed down and she deserves kudos. Hopefully if she lands more American roles, she can live up to this performance.

 

 

3. Zooey Deschanel - “(500) Days of Summer”

 

Deschanel is a fine actress and her big blue eyes were perfect for playing the heart-breaking Summer in this … summer’s indie hit. Free-spirited, funny, natural, sincere, blunt – all these things can describe both Deschanel’s style and performance as a girl who doesn’t have a concept of love despite her attraction to Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s character. She’s always been the recipient of praise for her work, which has usually been comedy second to a leading man, but this role really places her as the kind of actress she is and draws on all her talents.

 

 

2. Rachel Weisz - “The Brothers Bloom”

Another indie film I didn’t get to see that I’m really bummed about, “The Brothers Bloom” got a good amount of positive feedback, and though there was disagreement between some critics, there was unanimous applause for Weisz. Through much of her career, Weisz has sort of dabbled, never really fitting into one genre mold. I’ve seen her as more the dramatic type, but she’s been in romantic comedies before and she got to be a fancy-free heiress in “Bloom.” I won’t offer much more opinion being in my not-having-proof situation, but having seen most of her other work, there’s little doubt this seasoned actress of many colors made “Bloom” more than just another con comedy.

 

 

1. Meryl Streep - “Julie & Julia”

 

Is there anything that Streep isn’t amazing at? The record holder for Oscar nominations is the most unanimously praised person working in Hollywood and she does it all, from drama to comedy, which playing Julia Child definitely falls into. Only Streep could make a summer movie out of this sort of Holiday time/February premise. You never see movies like this come out in August, but that’s how money Streep is. She’s the fine wine of acting, only getting better – and more in demand – with age. In surveying people who’ve seen “Julie & Julia,” it was pretty clear that Streep’s scenes were the ones that kept the movie interesting.

 

Honorable Mentions: Marion Cotillard (“Public Enemies”), Leslie Mann (“Funny People”), Melanie Laurent (“Inglourious Basterds”),  Sandra Bullock (“The Proposal”).

Archive Review: Waltz with Bashir (2008) - 4.5/5 Stars

There's very little gutsier film-making than creating an animated war documentary. Israeli filmmaker Ari Folman's genre blend is exactly what makes "Waltz with Bashir" a stand-out film, one made with every intention of frightening producers in concept and spitting in Hollywood's face with its quality. The challenge of every war film is to illuminate a repetitive genre and "Bashir" does exactly that almost by approach alone.

The film is best described as a narrative documentary told in the first person. Folman, who served in the Israel army during the 1982 invasion of Lebanon, interviews friends and others who shared his same experience in hopes to jog his memory, images from his experience that he's subconsciously erased from his mind. It begins by addressing the fine line between memories and dreams, fiction and reality and evolves into a story of war's horrors

The animation is a technique called animatics, where live action footage is shot in a studio to provide sound and an image for the artists to work with, then the artists animate these scenes and use computers to add in Flash techniques. It's a rough animation style but its infused with beauty from the computer, namely light and smoke techniques that go beyond traditional animation. "Bashir" has an allure all its own despite the tough story it tells.

So why this technique? Folman's answer might just have been to be different, but the reality is it forces you to observe with a different perspective. Animating tragic events jades us to the horrors, allows us to ignore them. Contrast that to the perspectives of the people telling their war stories and suddenly we can sympathize with their own fragile memories, the reason so many soldiers stood idly as Christian Phalangists brutally massacred Palestinians in their own refugee camps no less.

The use of Flash allows for some really interesting sequences in the film that depict these memories. Its supposed to be about the young soldier's perspective of war and so rock music and this '80s music video style at times contrasts other scenes showing what war was really like with the idealistic painting of 'cool' that some soldiers thought they were walking into. With every Israeli having to serve in the army, this is about coping regardless of one's opinion of war.

Other than its insights into the war-torn memory, "Bashir" is a pretty standard exposure of war. What makes it special is there's no glorifying of war -- not even a single character who believes it to be that way -- and its one-of-a-kind medium. It's important to blur the boundaries of films when its appropriate and this revisiting of war proved to be one such setting.

4.5/5 Stars

"Waltz with Bashir" (2008) - Israel

Directed by: Ari Folman

Written by: Ari Folman