saturnalia33 Reviews

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009)

Resurgence in Gilliams ability to match creativity with an ability to deliver a fully formed concept.

[7/10 · 12 October 2009]

Terry Gilliam films are never known for telling a straight story and his productions are no different. Often both are fraught with setbacks, doomed failure and last minute redemption. His 1999 production of The Man Who Killed Don Quixote was a spectacular disaster. On the second day of shooting, a flood ravaged the set causing $15 million in damages and was compounded days later when his lead actor, Jean Rochefort, sustained a slipped disc which forced the film to shut down. However, a second film crew was documenting the entire proceedings and produced the rather interesting documentary Lost In La Mancha.

His latest opus, The Imaganarium of Doctor Parnassus was no different. Starring the late Heath Ledger, whose sudden death caused production to grind to a halt having only filmed a third of his parts, it seemed that once again Gilliam's film would be destined for the cutting room floor.

With developments in technology, Gilliam initially planned to use computer generated effects to change Ledger's appearance akin to those used in The Curious Case of Banjamin Button and finish the film. However, the actors JOhnny Depp, Colin Farrell and Jude Law were eventually cast to portray alternative versions of Ledger and production resumed several months later.

The film itself concerns the travelling theatre troupe led by Doctor Parnassus who offers unsuspecting members of the public a chance to enter a magical mirror to unbeknown worlds of an almost hallucinatory nature. These worlds are classic Gilliam animations of a similar theme of those first espoused on Monty Python albeit using modern CGI to create an ethereal reality reflecting the subjects mindset. Those who enter the Imaginarium are manipulated by Dr Parnassus to offer them an experience of a lifetime.

The twist in Parnassus's ability, however, is that his powers were granted by the Devil for a ransom and now he is back to collect on the bargain, his daughter Valentia. The role of the devil is adeptly played by Tom Waits who plays his character as a reluctant anti-hero, seemingly willing Parnussus on whilst simultaneously mocking his ability to beat him at his own game. Indeed, the Devil can also change the landscape of the vision by those who enter the mirror giving him a somewhat unfair advantage.

It's true of Gilliam films that the plot is often muddled by the visuals employed to truncate or assist the narrative and certainly there are moments in The Imaginarium where it detracts from the storyline by an overambitious and needless set piece. Nevertheless, the visual effects are stunning at times and add to the grandeur of the moment.

It is also interesting to see how Gilliam has used the mirrors own powers to change Ledgers character as he enters successive times and how this allows other actors to take his place. It would certainly have been interesting to observe the original idea as subverting the plot to allow Farrell, Law and Depp would have seriously altered the concept of intent as initially conceived.

Ledger's own performance is satisfactory and it's a shame we do not get to see the change in his own character throughout the entirety of the film but which is adequately filled by the performance of his fellow stars.

Despite these setbacks and reworkings, the film succeeds in pulling the viewer into the story, despite how ridiculous it becomes at times. As the race reaches its climax for Parnassus to save what is dearest to him, the fragmented storyline pulls more or less neatly together and it is easily Gilliams best film in a decade although not without it's aforementioned detractions.

This will certainly please fans of his previous work and must have given the studios enough confidence to start production on the ill-fated Don Quixote project which is his next film. Let's hope this is a resurgence in Gilliams ability to match creativity with an ability to deliver a fully formed concept.

Let the Right One In (2008)

A highly artistic and involving movie about loneliness and emotions in an unusual friendship

[8/10 · 6 April 2009]

Låt den rätte komma in (Let The Right One In) is an interesting mix of drama and horror which could only have been made outside of Hollywood. Whilst the horror element is subdued, when it does occur it is harsh and violent with an obvious realism that is absent from most films in this genre that go for a hyper-reality form of gore and blood lust.

It is based on the 2004 novel of the same name set during the early 1980's of Stockholm.

The film focuses on Oskar, an only child in a divorced family who spends a lonely time living between his mother and father which is further compounded by his bullying at school.

One evening outside the apartment blocks, he meets an unusual girl called Eli and they form an curious chemistry. During the course of the film situations arise that questions how far their relationship can go, the strength of character that friendship provides and nature of the friendship itself.

Set against this human drama there are other social relationships within the community where Oskar lives which impact on everyone concerned.

Let The Right One In turns the idea of a horror film on its head and brings a more natural as opposed to supernatural element to play. It's only downside is that the pace can be a little slow at times but this is a relatively minor qualm in an overall highly artistic and involving movie about loneliness and emotions in an unusual friendship.

An English language remake is on the cards for a 2010 release. I imagine it will lose most subtle nuances and go straight for the action jugular. I suggest getting in now and enjoying the original.

Chronicle of an Escape (2006)

A taut psychological thriller

[9/10 · 28 March 2007]

Buenos Aires 1977 tells the true story of four men who narrowly escaped death at the hands of a military death squad during the Argentinean dirty war in the late 1970s.

The Dirty War is the name given to the state-sponsored violence against citizens mostly carried out between 1976 and 1983 by Jorge Rafael Videla's military government in Argentina during what was called by the dictatorship the "National Reorganization Process" or what the modern world calls "genocide".

The film follows Claudio Tamburrini, a goal keeper for a minor league football team, who was forcefully kidnapped by members of the Argentine secret military police.

He is taken to a detention center known as Sere Mansion which is an old dilapidated house in a suburban neighbourhood on the suspicion he's an anti-government terrorist.

Tamburrini is not alone and his fellow abductees are frequently tortured by the jailers for information he doesn't have because he was never a political activist.

After four months of imprisonment, and many sessions of torture, Tamburrini and his fellow captives make a break for freedom.

It is a gripping film throughout with bleak filming adding depth to the situation making it a taut psychological thriller especially because you are aware that this actually happened. The camera work and acting immerse the viewer into the mundane but arduous life that these innocent prisoners lead right through to the climatic finale.

According to the Nunca Más report issued by the National Commission on the Disappearance of Persons (CONADEP) in 1984, about 9,000 people were "disappeared" between 1976 and 1983. Estimates by human rights organisations place the number at closer to 30,000.

Buenos Aires 1977 is a deeply moving and involving film worth a trip to the cinema for an education on both how to shoot this kind of film and a brief education about the not-so-distant Dirty War of Argentina.

Days of Glory (2006)

Fantastic

[9/10 · 28 March 2007]

Days of Glory is set during the second half of World War 2 and the slow but steady liberation of France, Alsace was essential to the victory of the allies.

The film surrounds the First French Army, recruited in Africa in order to avoid German eyes and the Vichy authorities: over 200,000 men, including 130,000 "indigenes" (natives) including 110,000 North Africans, and 20,000 "pieds- noirs" (French colonials) and one third young Frenchmen who fled the occupation.

The story is a sad and forgotten story of the soldiers known as "Indigènes" and follows the story of four of them: Abdelkader, Saïd, Messaoud and Yassir, a mobile corps, reputed for their endurance, ground sense , and courage in close combat, each one in pursuit of a different objective throughout the passage across France which they are in part responsible for her liberation.

The first half of the film relates to how the four men end up in the same corps and the racism they encounter along the way from the French despite them doing the same job and for a mother country they have never seen. It also allows for substantial character development and the audience can closely identify with each characters positive and negative personality traits.

The battle scenes are well crafted and carried out and you get a real sense of the horror of warfare both on and off the field as the Indigenes are sent in as fodder before the First French Army.

The second half of the film deals with the four men as they hold and defend a small town in Alsace against the German army. There is a real sense of danger translated off the screen thanks to great direction and importantly fantastic acting and some of the best non-dialogue "eye-acting" I have seen which sucks the viewer in to their plight.

What is really horrific is the statement at the end of the film. In the early 1960s, after decolonisation was completed, France then decided to freeze the pensions of veterans of the African Army. In 1996, a Senegalese ex-Staff Sergeant, Amadou Diop, sued the French government. After serving in the army from 1937 to 1959, he was dismissed after Senegal became independent and only received a third of the pension he was entitled to. In 2001, the Council of State ruled in his favour posthumously but in 2003 the French government put a new freeze on the pensions.

French president Jacques Chirac announced last September after seeing the film that he would reverse a 47-year-old policy of freezing war pensions for the widows of expatriate African Army soldiers that fought for France. Chirac's proclamation affects 80,000 people at $140 million annually.

The Road to Guantanamo (2006)

A film about innocent people paying a high price for stupidity

[6/10 · 28 March 2007]

I have to admit that I'm not a fan of docu-dramas. I would rather have substance in the background and narration over the top than the film being constantly broken up by those involved retelling what we've just seen or are about to see.

Nevertheless, it was an important story worth telling. The real question is whether it was told properly. The director, Michael Winterbottom, has been criticised for not questioning the accounts of the Tipton Three. James Christopher, in his review in the Sunday Times, stated that Winterbottom had "an insane lack of cool perspective," for not questioning the accounts of the Tipton Three.

"Why, oh why, jump on a minibus to Afghanistan when jets are carpet-bombing the country? If your friends are mortally sick, why catch the next truck to the front line? The sheer stupidity of these Brits mocks the sincerity of the film." After watching the film I felt that the three men had no real reason to be in Afghanistan at the time. They stated that they had heard mixed reports of the Taliban and wanted to find out if they really were bad people. How flimsy an excuse is that for a group that were on their way to an arranged marriage of one of them in Pakistan? A slightly erroneous detour to take don't you think? From a cynical perspective you could argue that it looked like they went over to meet the Taliban and possibly see about aiding their cause at the same time the war kicked off and they were in the wrong place at the wrong time about to get involved in a very wrong thing.

So whilst they were innocent of any crimes it is their possible intentions that were guilty and they paid a high price for stupidity.

The Black Dahlia (2006)

Excruciatingly slow with a messy plot and redundant storyline

[3/10 · 11 December 2006]

The Black Dahlia is a mystery thriller set in the 1940's and directed by Brian De Palma. He has spent a long time in the industry and is responsible for three arguable classics: The Untouchables, Scarface and Carrie. You'd therefore be right in thinking he's an esteemed director although if look closely, his last great film was Carlito's Way back in 1993 and he's directed some very mediocre movies in between then and now, most notably Mission Impossible and Snake Eyes.

The movie is based on the novel by James Ellroy and follows two detectives, played by Josh Harnett and Aaron Eckhart, as they investigate a murder. As Eckharts character Blanchard becomes obsessed about the case, Harnetts character Bleichert becomes involved with his partners lover, Kay, played by Scarlett Johansson.

As Blanchard estranges himself from the close relationship that the three have enjoyed and Bleichert and Kay grow closer, Bleichert himself delves deeper into the murder mystery to solve the case and resolve the tensions that have boiled over into their personal relationships.

The Black Dahlia is expertly shot with great sets of 1940's decoration displaying the inherent seediness that the film revolves around; the world of femme fatales, corrupt policemen, and the criminal underworld.

However, the plot development is excruciatingly slow and when it does take off it becomes messy and I had all but lost the plot and will to live around three-quarters of the way in until it started to piece together at the end but twist after twist made the storyline redundant and pointless and I couldn't wait until the credits rolled. With De Palma returning in 2008 with an Untouchables prequel, is he grasping at straws to redeem his career?

Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

Charming, laugh-out-loud family road movie for adults

[8/10 · 11 December 2006]

I wasn't sure what to expect from Little Miss Sunshine. From the trailers it seemed like an indie-orientated family road-trip movie and I suppose to a certain extent it is. You have what could be construed as cliché family members: self-righteous dad who tries his best to force his opinions and beliefs on everybody else even though he's a loser; an angst-ridden teen; gay uncle working out his own issues and a grandfather who has reached a certain age he doesn't care who he offends. However, it is how these characters work together and the situations they find themselves in that elevates this film to hilarious heights instead of hitting comedy rock bottom.

The film begins as a young girl, Olive, is reviewing a Miss America pageant and mimicking her winning emotional behaviour. Meanwhile the father, Richard, is presenting his 9-step plan to a group of school children and the mother, Sheryl, is picking her brother Frank up from hospital after a failed suicide attempt. As they congregate at the family house for dinner, we are introduced to Olives older teenage brother Dwayne who is on a self-imposed silence and hates everyone and their grandfather Edwin who is snorting heroin before dinner.

During the less-than-successful family dinner where arguing and bickering ensues, a phone call is made whereby Olive finds out that due to a drop-out she is now in contention for the Little Miss Sunshine title. Leaving no-one behind, the family jump into their VW wagon and set off across the country to the pageant where comedy drama ensues.

The key to the laughs in this film are mainly down to two things: the actors delivery of the material and the material itself. Some of the best lines are delivered by Alan Arkin who plays the free-talking grandfather who has been secretly training Olive for her routine for pageants. He speaks his mind about whatever he feels like including his own life-experience advice. Naturally, this being a road-movie, everyone learns something and they are richer for the experience. The bonus is that the audience is richer for the laughs they are given. Despite the apparent un-original set-up, Little Miss Sunshine is far greater than the sum of its parts and is a charming, laugh-out-loud family road movie for adults.

Pan's Labyrinth (2006)

A gem of a movie

[9/10 · 11 December 2006]

Pan's Labyrinth seems like quite a left-field film for director Guillermo del Toro, who is responsible for such recent Hollywood popcorn as Hellboy and Blade II. However, it's not the first time he has used the Spanish Civil War as a backdrop for this style of film. His 2001 movie The Devil's Backbone was another drama/fantasy/horror set in 1939 Spain when General Franco's right-wing Nationalists are poised to defeat the left-wing Republican forces.

Pan's Labyrinth takes place in 1944 after Franco's victory and a young girl is travelling with her mother and adoptive father, who is the captain of the guard, to a rural area in northern Spain in order to wipe out the lingering Republican forces.

The young girl is Ofelia and is being brought unwillingly with her pregnant mother by order of her adoptive father, the tyrannical Captain Vidal whom she refuses to recognise as her adoptive guardian. She has brought with her a bundle of books which are all fairy tales and it seems this is a world that she often travels to in order to escape the harsh environment in which she has found herself growing up in.

While Captain Vidal sets about eliminating the bandits that live out in the woodlands surrounding the base, Ofelia is contacted by a fairy who brings her to a nearby labyrinth where she is told by a faun named Pan that she is the lost princess who's soul has finally reappeared in Ofelia's body and that she must succeed in 3 tasks to prove her true worth and be reunited with her father, the King, who has been waiting for her return.

The film makes fantastic use of two main plot lines. One of which concerns Ofelia and her three tasks and that of Captain Vidal and the bandits, each of which overlap with other subplots and are beautifully woven together to make a fantastic storyline both contextually and visually. The acting is sound from everyone concerned and the CGI creatures that exist are realistically portrayed and fit in perfectly with the story being told, adding extra depth and edge to the mystical world in which Ofelia finds herself.

Pan's Labryinth is a gem of a movie and one the best movies of 2006. Go and see it.

Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price (2005)

Fascinating Documentary but lacking style and production values

[7/10 · 23 November 2006]

'Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price' is a documentary by Robert Greenwald about the market dominating global corporation that subverts towns across America by extracting government subsidies to establish themselves when other local family-owned businesses do not and muscling them out of business through price under-cutting brought about by the importation of slave-labour goods from China. This combined with highly aggressive Anti-Union tactics to exploit its own workers in America by forcing them into overtime and not paying them and suggesting that they will be fired for fighting for a fair wage and working conditions - which they are.

The film documents various towns around America that had numerous small family-run businesses who were forced to close down when Wal-Mart came and the repercussions on their lives and the townsfolk as shops closed down and main streets became ghost towns.

As a flip-side to the conditions in America, the documentary interviews European workers who are free to set up Unions and are not exploited like their American counterparts and have no qualms about their working conditions. However, it also shows the predicament in the Chinese sweatshops where workers are almost forced to live within a commune as rent is taken out of their pay whether they live there or not and the state of these buildings is atrocious.

Whilst the documentary itself is fascinating, the style and production is lacking and at times it comes across as amateur. Nevertheless this is a serious documentary not a blockbuster so one can overlook this minor shortcoming. If you are interested in these types of films, I highly recommend another work of Greenwald - the excellent documentary 'Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism' about the absolute bias with which Fox News operates in it's pro-Republican/Conservative and anti-Liberal marketing.

Night Watch (2004)

Unfocused but worthy of a Hollywood blockbuster

[6/10 · 24 October 2006]

Nightwatch is the first in a trilogy of films based on the fight between good and evil. It is set in modern day Moscow which is refreshing especially as it is based on a Russian novel and acted and directed by Russian actors and a director, Timur Bekmambetov.

Centuries ago the forces of light and dark battled for days until both sides realised none would be victorious. A truce was agreed upon whereby no side would attack another and Nightwatch was set up as a police force for these forces called The Others to protect and prevent any killings which might take place and arrest those who break the truce.

The style and direction is excellent with some great camera angles and CGI footage worthy of a Hollywood blockbuster. However, what lets the film down is the pace and plot development which at times is unfocused and slightly amateurish. Nevertheless the acting and and action scenes are well put together and the finalé sets up the plot for the sequel.

The reason for the above may boil down to huge changes in the international version of the film where scenes have been changed or removed and conversations re-dubbed and entire subplots removed making it 10 minutes less than the Russian version. I would certainly like to re-watch the original for comparison purposes but unfortunately this version didn't enthuse me too much to go and see it in the cinema so like it's predecessor I will be watching it on DVD.

The Girl in the Café (2005 TV Movie)

Wonderfully acted relationship drama over far fetched background story

[6/10 · 9 October 2006]

The Girl In The Café stars the great Bill Nighy and Kelly McDonald. Nighy plays a lonely civil servant who works for the Chancellor of the Exchequer who meets McDonald, another lonely figure, in an awkward café meeting which turns around when the two spit out a conversation and Nighy plucks up the courage to ask her out as there seems to be fraught chemistry between them. Nighy is quickly besotted with McDonald and invites her to the G8 Summit in Reykjavik. However, their relationship is tested by Nighys professional obligations and McDonalds behaviour towards other delegates during the conference.

I found the films plot regarding the G8 summit to be very far fetched although the relationship between the two was accessible and also wonderfully acted by Nighy and McDonald from their tenuous beginnings in awkward conversation to held-back passion and restrained love. I feel that if this tenuous relationship was at the forefront of a more believable background it would have garnered a more realistic and approachable reaction. Nevertheless, the political background brings an important issue to the widescreen and illustrates how world poverty tends to be a lot of empty gestures amongst world leaders over preference of economic stability and placing their own country first.

Population 436 (2006 Video)

The dregs of the horror barrel

[4/10 · 13 September 2006]

A film such as Population 436, like many in its genre, is a straight-to-DVD movie. Occasionally such films make their way there because they are first-time directed low-budget flicks with no distribution company pushing behind it. Most films in this field however make it to the shelves because they are simply bad films and probably did not win over audiences in its screen test. Some are diamonds in the rough and some are so amazingly amateurish it's surprising that they were ever made. Most are just plain bad and unsurprisingly this is the category that Population 436 fits into.

It begins with a journey by a census-taker who is travelling to the small town of Rockwell Falls in order to find out why the population has remained at 436 since the 19th century. It's an original idea granted but I always find if a movie is based in a small town ending in 'Falls' you better hold on to the receipt as you are in possession of damaged goods. My trepidations increased due to the fact that Fred Durst aka Mr Limp Biscuit was acting in this film and on the whole, rock stars do not make for great actors. Interestingly enough his acting is actually one of the best features of the movie as an initial intriguing plot soon gets bogged down into the mundane and obvious horror plot.

As you might imagine, all is not well in Rockwell Falls and the census-taker is viewed with trepidation and treated with disdain. Can our intrepid main character find out the mystery behind the small town before he falls victim to their evil ways? By the end of the movie you probably wont care enough because if you're intelligent you'll see the ending coming a mile off besides numerous other plot points which borrow from the big box of horror plots. Sometimes I think writers use fridge magnets to put these scripts together. Your oven deserves to get cleaned above your priority of watching formulaic nonsense like this and whilst I'm a sucker for trashy horror movies but this is certainly the dregs of the barrel that should be avoided.

Snakes on a Plane (2006)

Sit back and enjoy the flight

[8/10 · 21 August 2006]

Unless you have been living on a remote island for the last couple of months, you should probably have heard something about Snakes On A Plane.

Originally called 'Venom', it was turned down by over 30 Hollywood studios in 1995 and it would take a decade later until it started garnering interest after a screenwriter, Josh Friedman, blogged about it after being asked to work on the script and Samuel L Jackson was on-board after only reading the title of the movie.

"Sam Jackson's pretty sure he's doing a movie called SNAKES ON A PLANE. And if Sam Jackson thinks he's doing a movie called SNAKES ON A PLANE...you're doing a movie called SNAKES ON A PLANE." We all know how the internet can turn a small thing into a phenomenon and even though the film wrapped up principal photography in September 2005, due to the overwhelming internet fan base, New Line Cinema incorporated feedback from bloggers and websites into the film. The studio ordered five days of additional re-shooting to raise the MPAA rating from a PG-13 to an R.

So...is the film any good? Yes and No. No if you haven't been swept away by the wave of interest over the film, have not been waiting eagerly to see it for months and if you were expecting something like Executive Decision. If, however, you have been cruising websites for the latest news and information, have created your own t-shirt and know exactly what the film is about then you bet your sweet ass it's a great film. Let's read on shall we? The film begins when Sean Jones, a free-wheeling biker witnesses the brutal murder of a prosecutor by Eddie Kim, a famous gang land leader and becomes a target of the gang. His only way out is to testify against Eddie Kim which involves a flight from Malibu to Los Angeles which is where the real fun begins.

A crate opens midway through the flight and dozens upon dozens of poisonous snakes make their way throughout the cabin killing numerous passengers along the way. The death scenes are hilarious and grotesque. The lines of dialogue are hilariously bad. The plot is hilarious and unbelievable. It has all the ingredients of an absolute stinker but the fact that it is pulled off in a rather over-the-top pseudo-serious manner just adds to fun. This is a film to drop all pretensions, sit back and enjoy the flight. After all, it's called Snakes On A Plane!

Wet Hot American Summer (2001)

Gut-busting Oddball Parody Comedy

[8/10 · 17 August 2006]

I decided to rent Wet Hot American Summer after reading a short diatribe on Collider stating that "if you've been wondering just what David Wain's been doing since he wrote and directed the funniest movie of 2001, Wet Hot American Summer, then you're a real a**hole." 'Damn, I better rent me this movie' I thought.

I mean, look at the poster for it. It screams National Lampoon yet it stars David Hyde Pierce. I thought it seemed out of place yet he did play Emperor Zombie in the funniest cartoon I've seen in a long time, The Amazing Screw-On Head.

So what's it all about? Well, as you can tell from the poster, it's a comedy set in a summer camp. Actors too old to play late teens compete with each other to get laid, barely look after the kids they're responsible for and the camp director tries to hold everything together whilst romantically involving herself with a local astro-physics professor.

Thus the stage is set for for an oddball parody comedy that is half styled towards obvious gross-out and half subtly placed laughs. Janeane Garafalo's comic timing is cause for convulsive laughter and there is a hilarious continuous scene in an arts and crafts hall where the children console and build up the character of a crushed divorcée. Everywhere else is chaos with camp leaders having their own dilemma with each other and getting into and out of trouble as the last day of camp forces them into action.

I can see why some people wouldn't get this kind of humour which is a shame and while some of the humour is hit-and-miss the laughs have a great batting average and when something is funny it's always gut-busting laughter that is forced out of your lungs.

I would certainly recommend this for a group watch with some friends to perk up the evening.

Everything Is Illuminated (2005)

Rich rewards within the facade of a comedy adventure drama

[8/10 · 14 August 2006]

Everything Is Illuminated is Liev Schreibers directorial debut surrounding Jonathan Safran Foer, an abnormal young Jewish American who collects artifacts from his family which leads him to Ukraine in search of the woman who appears in a photograph with his grandfather and helped him escape from the Nazis when they decimated their village.

When Jonathan arrives in Ukraine he is met by a quirky family-run tour guide involving Alex and his grandfather Safran who claims he is blind but seems to get around just fine especially with the help of his insane dog Sammy Davis Jr. Alex, who occasionally narrates the plot, has an unhealthy passion for American pop culture and wears off-kilter bling clothing and broken English which often involves hilarious but diplomatic translations between Jonathan and his cranky grandfather.

At first it seems that Jonathan is in the hands of the tour guides from hell and one can only sympathise with him although the characters bond during their journey and their stories intertwine to a dramatic and heartfelt conclusion which is an unexpected series of twists and pulls of the heart-strings surrounding the Nazi destruction of Jonathons village during World War II.

Everything Is Illuminated is nothing like I expected and there were rich rewards to be found within the facade of a comedy adventure drama. Incidentally Schreibers parents are of German heritage, his mother German-Jewish and himself a practising Jew was perhaps one of the key factors behind his decision to turn Jonathan Safran Foer's novel into his first movie as a director. Jonathan Safran Foer himself travelled to Ukraine in 1999 to research his grandfathers life which turned into his debut novel so the book and indeed movie itself is semi-autobiographical for the author.

Everything is Illuminated is an outstanding film and I would recommend it to anyone.

Ab Tak Chhappan (2004)

Extremely polished piece of film-making

[8/10 · 25 July 2006]

Ab Tak Chhappan is a fictitious story surrounding a police department in Mumbai, India. Sadhu Agashe is a hard working, hard-edged cop heading up a plain clothed crime squad who makes a name for himself by killing dangerous criminals in staged police encounters rather than locking them up in prison. His loyal officers obey him without question but a rift forms when one of his officers, Imtiaz, becomes frustrated by Sadhu's high ranking status and is secretly competing with him for criminal kills and status. A new recruit is also pushed into the fraternity and Imtiaz is angry when Sadhu allows him to take the lead on his first case. Further change comes in the form of a new police commissioner who disapproves of Sadhu's tactics and everyone gets caught up in internal politics.

I was surprised to see such a well directed action thriller coming from India. The camera work is excellent, the story is well told and the tension is high when the drama unfolds. The acting, pace and political subterfuge convinces the viewer that they are a fly on the wall witnessing the blood, sweat and tears from a close up and personal view and that the events are based on reality which is no doubt why we are told that it is not at the beginning of the film although it is likely that the director, Shimit Amin, has taken liberties with factual accounts. Nevertheless, Ab Tak Chhappan is an extremely polished piece of film-making.

V for Vendetta (2005)

Highly watchable but lacking in firm ground

[7/10 · 20 June 2006]

V for Vendetta is another comic book adaptation from Alan Moore whose previous works - The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and Hellboy - were brought to the silver screen and, I have to say, sucked pretty hard. However, there was more hope for this movie because the screenplay was written by the Wachowski brothers and the director James McTeigue was the first assistant director on all three Matrix flicks indicating that there would be a happier working structure between what's on the page and what appears on celluloid. Nevertheless, controversy surrounded the movie due to the use of scenes of the bombings on the London Underground train network and Alan Moore publicly disassociating himself from the movie and cutting his remaining ties with DC Comics.

The film is set in a futuristic England that has become a fascist state akin to something straight from 1984 where the government controls all form of life and the public are told what the government want the people to believe. However, a lone figure makes an entrance onto the stage to refute the current state of being, opposing the government and fighting for the freedom from autocracy. Caught up in his plot to overthrow the current state, Evey, played by Natalie Portman, is seduced by V, played by a masked Hugo Weaving and becomes a target herself.

Over the course of the film, Evey discovers herself in an implausible manner that I cannot divulge lest giving plot detail away, and becomes V's unofficial aide and ultimately plays a vital role in his crusade.

Whilst I found the movie to be highly watchable, it was also lacking in firm ground, and was as fictitiously futuristic as it was unbelievably unconvincing in terms of suspension of disbelief. The acting all round was over the top but entertaining and despite its lacking, it is a decent action thriller worthy of renting for a Friday or Saturday evening.

Lucky Number Slevin (2006)

Vapid Trash Slick Flick

[4/10 · 14 June 2006]

Lucky Number Slevin is one of those films that looks slick as snails but has a worse setup than a stunt in Jackass. In an effort to look and and feel cool, it negates that one thing that makes a cool film, which is a great plot line with some snazzy unforeseen twist(s) and witty dialogue. However, within the first twenty minutes, the plot and twist was obvious to anyone with half a brain, leaving the slickness of the film to pick up the slack but without one notable line of speech by any of the great range of actors, by the time the "revelation" is revealed at the end of the film, you just want let out a sigh and wonder why Morgan Freeman, Ben Kingsly, Bruce Willis and Lucy Liu have put their names to such trash.

Imagine Me & You (2005)

One to watch on TV for a quiet night in

[6/10 · 13 June 2006]

Compared to other British Rom-Coms in the past, this one was easier on the senses, lacking the hoity-toity sensibilities of any film starring Hugh Grant. Nevertheless, the characters all came from upper-middle class backgrounds and not an ugly duckling between them. I'm figuring two good looking lesbian girls will probably swing a few male heterosexual bums on seats for women trying to drag their boyfriends along. Taking the plot with a pinch of salt is probably the best way to ingest this film and although enjoyable, it contains no twists and the direction to the end is obvious to viewers from the beginning. It is a pity that the movie is largely forgettable and one to watch on TV for a quiet night in. It's a shame that Britain cannot do romantic comedies without the upper-middle class London location recipe because there is plenty of other ideas out there worthy of backing.

The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (2005)

A cracking story of redemption and guilt

[8/10 · 13 June 2006]

The film is set in a small Texas town by the Mexican border where newly recruited patrolman Mike Norton monitors the strip for activity in the form of Mexican border jumpers trying to cross into America. His over-handed methods soon get him in hot water when he shoots a Mexican farmhand of Pete Perkins, played by Tommy Lee. After finding out the murderer, Perkins kidnaps Norton and takes him across the border to give him a proper burial in Mexico after Nortons co-workers literally try and bury the crime and Perkins farmhand, Melquiades Estrada, in an attempt to cover up any wrong-doing. The film is expertly directed by Tommy Lee and weaves an interesting tale which perhaps suffers only a little in over-extending itself but succeeds in delivering a cracking story of redemption and guilt. Well worth checking out.

The Omen (2006)

Unwarranted and unnecessary updated version of a much loved classic

[5/10 · 7 June 2006]

If you haven't seen the original Omen film it is well worth checking out as a benchmark of horror excellence. Unfortunately, as with most modern remakes, they fail to live up to expectation or quality control and The Omen, although better than most, is still an unwarranted and unnecessary updated version of a much loved classic.

In place of an atmospheric and chilling set-up, the remake relies on cheap horror tricks such as creepy dream sequences ending with a loud noise to make the audience jump which I find obtrusive and ill-fitting. The acting is also below par with Liev Schrieber cruising through the film unconvincing in his slow realisation that his son is devil incarnate and must be destroyed. Julia Stiles acting is also sub-standard and occasionally smirk-worthy especially in her confrontations with Damien but it is Damien himself that pulls in laughs when he should be portraying the exact opposite. When he glowers at those he is manipulating it looks more like a child who has just dropped his ice-cream and is silently demanding an immediate replacement before the crying and stamping of feet begins.

So, what is meant to be a serious horror becomes farcical tirade and the film is essentially a shot for shot remake of the original without passion or tenacity begging the question of why bother remaking it? The answer is of course money. So save yourself the price of a cinema ticket and rent the original if you haven't seen it or go and see something else.

Silent Hill (2006)

fantastic dark visual sequences

[7/10 · 26 April 2006]

In the past, Hollywood has thrown some pretty poor video game based films at their audience such as Doom, Mortal Kombat and Tomb Raider, so it was with trepidation that I went to see the adaptation of the successful computer game series Silent Hill.

I had never played the game and had it pinned as a family member of Resident Evil and expected a movie based on a town over-run with zombies and lots of shot-gun action. Instead I was pleasantly surprised with uber-nightmarish visuals and no cheap shock-tactic camera tricks. The demons are most certainly real in the town of Silent Hill and creepy as hell to boot.

It all begins when a little girl, Sharon, goes sleep walking in the middle of the night and her parents find her on a precipice near the family house looking into a firey cataclysm. that only she can see. It turns out that this is not uncommon and she often goes off in the middle of the night in search of a place called Silent Hill. Rose, her mother, disagrees with her husband, played by Sean Bean, that the daughter needs psychological help and decides to take her to the deserted town of Silent Hill to find some answers.

However, a lone cop spots Rose and Sharon asking for directions to Silent Hill at a petrol station and follows them towards the deserted town. After pulling them over and with Rose hitting the gas to escape to her destination, a pursuit ends in disaster with an awakening on the edge of the dreamlike ash-raining town. Worse still, Sharon is missing and Rose enters Silent Hill to find her.

Things quickly descend into a living darkness and after failing to find her daughter in a plot sequence familiar to Don't Look Now, Rose hooks up with the cop, Cybil, to find her daughter. If they can get out alive and find out just what is going on.

Silent Hill's first half fires along at a great pace, with monsters, demons and fantastic dark visual sequences which are among the best I have seen in any horror film. However, what lets the movie down is when it tries to explain itself and the last half an hour, although still pretty cool, implodes on itself with mediocre dialogue and a flimsy plot structure in an attempt to tie up loose ends and explain to the audience just what the hell is going on when I feel viewers should be left in the dark just like the characters were for most of the film. Nevertheless, it is the best video game cum movie I have seen so far and would make a good DVD to add to any burgeoning horror collection.

Brokeback Mountain (2005)

An Oscar worthy movie full of twists, turns and outstanding performances.

[8/10 · 11 January 2006]

The story begins in 1963 where two saddle riders are looking for work in a dead end town and are put to work guarding sheep on Brokeback Mountain. Over the course of several weeks, they develop a friendship which on a cold and drunken night becomes something more. At first they are wary of what they have done but realise that what they have shared which each other overrides any shame or anguish they may have about their taboo relationship. It soon develops into more than either two could have imagined but of course there are difficulties to overcome. Heath Ledger's character, Ennis Del Mar, is to be married in November and cannot commit to Jake Gyllenhaal's character, Jack Twist, who wants them not to hide what they have and move somewhere where they can make a living and continue their relationship unabated. However, Ennis cannot make this commitment and rejoins his fiancé and marries.

The story picks up years later when Ennis has 2 children of his own and receives a postcard from Jack that he will be in town. When Jack turns up on the doorstep, none of the affection has diminished and they passionately embrace, a move which is not missed by Ennis's wife and the seeds of disaster are sown. Over the next lot of years they make trips away to "fish", and life continues as normal as far as Ennis's character can foresee. Due to their on/off relationship and intricate nature of their own desire for each other, Jacks character also marries after knocking up a girl he woo's at the rodeo and both women are obviously kept in the dark to their extra-marital affair.

The film explores the deep seated bigoted machismo of the American mid-west and the necessity to hide their love even when they are not around their wives. However, it is more of a film where a secret love must be hidden from everyone even to the point of hiding their true feelings from each other. About how such a love can have disastrous impact on those around them when such a love is revealed and how love survives through even the most difficult times. If you thought Brokeback Mountain was just a gay cowboy movie then you are in for a revelation. If you thought Brokeback Mountain was just a love story then you're in for a surprise. The film is as groundbreaking as it is a treat to watch. Do yourself a favour and saddle up to an Oscar worthy movie full of twists, turns and outstanding performances.