kcollis1985 Reviews

Hotel Rwanda (2004)

Not terrible, but certainly not great.

[7/10 · 11 December 2009]

The story is inspiring, and the film deserves praise for shining a spotlight on issues that the west chooses to ignore. So, whilst it may seem uncharitable to criticise, it would be patronising to overlook the glaring faults. Even though the film isn't that bad, it is disappointing. The problem is that the film-making is second rate - you can't help but be distracted by the mechanics of the film.

The film is overscored. Barely a line of dialogue passes without music telling the audience what they ought to be feeling. This device demeans and patronises the viewer. The blatant product placement throughout the film destroys any attempt at nuance or subtlety. You can't help but pity the actors who have to perform awful dialogue about beer brands or car manufacturers. Even when they are not forced to read dialogue that might as well have come from an infomercial, the dialogue is clunky - and at times woeful. The result is a stack of poorly developed, two- dimensional characters.

Social/ political/ historical complexities are either ignored our disposed of in one line. The Hutus are largely portrayed as soulless killing machines pitted against our 'western-friendly' bourgeois hero (the only good Hutu), his family, and periphery characters. The result is that scenes start to feel more like a horror movie than a serious drama. Inexplicably, the filmmakers deliberately chose to omit actual events (possibly to ensure a PG-13 certificate), which would have given the film a greater sense of jeopardy for main characters.

It's a credit to the actors involved that some of them manage to feel in any way human. Particular credit is due to Sophie Okonedo who is required to make ridiculous mood swings feel believable. Joaquin Phoenix also does well.

Not terrible, but certainly not great.

Elite Squad (2007)

An impressive film (shame about the superficial and reactionary reviews)

[9/10 · 24 October 2008]

Elite Squad is an impressive and enjoyable film. It is well directed, well acted, and well worth watching.

There has been a lot of criticism of Elite Squad for being fascist. Such a perspective is disappointingly superficial. Too many critics have failed to distinguish the narrative perspective from the ideological perspective of the film. Although an admittedly reactionary and authoritarian BOPE member, Captain Nascimento, narrates it, the film's primary criticisms are regarding low pay for police, systemic corruption, and, the middle class's irresponsible consumption of drugs. As for any feeling that the brutal violence is justified that a viewer may be left with, this has more to do with the fact that in certain extreme circumstances desperate times call for desperate measures.

Scream (1996)

postmodern mainstream horror movie classic

[8/10 · 20 February 2007]

Scream is a genuine postmodern mainstream horror-movie classic; Scream impressively manages to reward sophisticated viewers whilst offering pleasurable mainstream horror movie fluff. Its neatly balances mainstream appeal, by obeying the fundamental conventions of horror, with sophisticated satire of the genre's clichés and tendency for conservative discourse.

When viewed retrospectively, the efforts of successive films in the genre, and the parody of it in the (at best) sporadically charming Scary Movie, may lessen the impact of this film. Nonetheless, this potential criticism itself stands as testament to Scream's influence and its legacy of having reinvigorated and informed what had become a tired and clichéd genre.

Burn! (1969)

An almost great film

[9/10 · 20 February 2007]

In some areas, this film actually manages to be a progression from Pontecorvo's masterpiece Battle of Algiers, but unfortunately, the 'sinking lips' mask what may have been great performances making it hard to engage with the characters. The audio quality is most disappointing with regard to Brando's character William Walker. Walker is a cunningly constructed Machiavellian manipulator reminiscent of a Lady Macbeth (with less guilt) and Iago (with arguably less motive) that is, nonetheless (and most impressively), believable. William Walker is potentially one of the greatest roles in film history played by one of the greatest actors of his generation. Sadly, the character, performance and film are diminished by poor quality audio (at this point I feel that it is important to not that I am not referring to the film's excellent musical score). Although the score may benefit from digital re-mastering the dubbing of actors' dialogue would not, and therefore Pontecorvo's Burn may never surpass being an almost great film. An admirable effort – smartly constructed narrative held back by dodgy audio – close to greatness.

Crash (I) (2004)

lack of narrative subtlety prohibits Crash being a truly great film

[8/10 · 20 February 2007]

Its lack of narrative subtlety prohibits Crash being a truly great film; there are great performances and breathtakingly captured scenes, however, the scriptwriter's immense confidence, in an admittedly clever concept (however crudely executed), appears to be to blame for the contrived feeling of the resulting film.

The over simplistic narrative unnecessarily highlights the intentions of the filmmakers and makes it feel like a medium for crudely constructed and (somewhat paradoxically) vague ideology making it hard to focus on the story rather than the story telling. Crash is based on a challenging concept that was sadly underdeveloped (resulting in a slightly heavy-handed and a clichéd script) but otherwise very well made.