Review for Sucker Punch

After adapting material from great writers and director’s such as Frank Miller, Anal Moore and George A. Romero, the 300 director Zack Snyder is back for his first film from a none established source in the seemingly beautiful Sucker Punch. This being Snyder’s fifth film and third screenplay you would have thought he’d be competent enough to whip up at least a half decent movie. However this is not the case as instead he throws up this childish dribble.

                Set at an undisclosed time, the story begins with a nameless character (Emily Browning) going through difficulties at home as her abusive father torments her and her sister after the death of her mother. Shortly after this nameless character is sent to an insane asylum come night club after she is blamed for the death of her little sister.

When at the asylum, she receives the nickname Babydoll as she finds that dancing is taught to the patients to help them overcome their troubles. However Babydoll is special (why wouldn’t she be), when she begins to dance she begins to enter a world of her imagination where she has to defeat some generic obstacles such as dragons, Nazi zombies, robots and so on. Babydoll is quick to realises that she can paralyse men when they watch her dance and she begins to form a simplistic and naïve plan to escape from the power crazy owner Blue (Oscar Isaacs) before the doctor arrives to lobotomise her in a few days time. With the help of a few other inmates such as Rocket (Jena Malone), her uptight sister Sweet Pea (Abbie Cornish), the ironically named Blondie (Vanessa Hudgens) and the unfortunately boringly named Amber (Jamie Chung) they set out to collect four various item which in some way will aid their escape.

In quite a surprising turn Snyder, who has made some good pieces of work, has out done himself as Sucker Punch is one of the most stupid and insipid movies you’ll see this year. The terrible plot is covered by flashy fight scenes which resample an anime sooner than a comic book. The visuals are quite impressive but I falls flat as the context is so preposterous it’s ridicules. The thought that when a character dances she fights generic looking robot is so contradictory it just makes it feel as if Snyder has no respect for dancing and replaces it with a twelve year olds wet dream.

When watching the movie it’s hard not to notice the portrayal of both sexes which Snyder puts forward. If it wasn’t offensive enough to cast only beautiful women from different cultures (one for everyone) who blame men for all the evil in the world, the men in the movie are at times so blinded by their penis’ that they boil down to nothing more than dumb fifties archetypes of a manly men. The machismo is through the roof like the skimpy outfits the women wear when running around the imaginative world. It seems Snyder was aiming more for Sin City in tone then his last audience splitter Watchmen.

Then when you begin to see the characters more clearly you begin to realise that none of the girls are even slightly insane. It isn’t made clear if this is an intentional One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest similarity but it seems it’s more down to a bad script. But that obviously isn’t where the criticism on the script ends. A lot of things are so contrived in the script such as the insane asylum come club (which is more a whore house) who’s workers only gain a sense of morality towards the end after some futile sacrifices and murders of the patients.

The only redeeming fact is that some of the antigravity like fight scenes are impressive which doesn’t compliment Snyder as it does the fight choreographer. The stylish sword swinging as well as the artificial visuals which looks to be mostly green screen do make the film worth seeing but audiences will become restless and soon bored of the subtle distraction to a very flawed movie.

With all it’s flash visuals and smooth choreography, Sucker Punch is nothing more the a horrendous pop corn movie. The film will sell tickets though and audiences will feel cheated as the advertisement promised a better movie all round. All that is left is an immature portrait of mental health which merges into a twelve year olds wet dream. It’s uninspiring and boring. It appears that the genre for a character who deals with troubles in an insane asylum (ala Girl Interpreted, I’m A Cyborg, But That’s Ok) is over as it has become as cut and paste as the last film.

Trailer

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Review for SUBMARINE

Was it just me or did most people grow up believing in the back of their minds that they where the stars of their own movie? For the sixteen year old Oliver Tate this happens to be the case, as the lead character in Richard Ayoade’s new feature debut Submarine, based on the book by Joe Dunthone. The movie which played at a number of film festivals has been picking up speed since its debut at Sundance, and has proven a success in both the UK as well as the US as the Weinstein Brother’s have picked it up for one million dollars.

Set in Swansea, in an undisclosed time period the movie follows Oliver Tate (Craig Roberts) an over-thinking adolescent whose biggest worries are keeping his parents Jill (Sally Hawkins) and Lloyd (Noah Taylor) dying marriage together, whilst trying to woo an anti-romantic girl in his class Jordana (Yasmin Paige). For Oliver it appears he is having a sort of mid-life crisis (even at the young age of sixteen) as he pulls all the strings of his life together, but on the arrival of new next door neighbour Graham (Paddy Constantine), an old flame of his mother’s, Oliver’s depressed dad begins to lose interest in saving the marriage which proves harder then he first expected.

Submarine is the story of a boy trying to grow up before his time. Whilst attempting to keep his family life together, he bullies the easy target at school to impress Jordana. His almost selfish tendencies do become comical as he imagines the repercussions of his death whilst bored in school. The dark subjects of the movie are made comical whilst keeping the respect they deserve, which is shown in one scene as a timid Oliver sits uncomfortably eating dinner around Jordana’s house as the family cry over the possible death of Jordana’s mother after being diagnosed with cancer.

The film has also been compared to the works of Wes Anderson and Francis Truffaut and it is easy to see why as the film holds its heart on its sleeve. Its kooky edge will be appealing to some but annoying to others who aren’t so much a fan of American Indie cinema or the French New Wave, however the film is extremely funny in a way that will please all.

Richard Ayoade (whose popularity arose whilst he played Moss in The IT Crowd as well as Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace) really has done an impressive job as the film looks timeless whilst mixing in 16mm footage of Oliver and Jordana’s blossoming love. Accompanying the two naïve teenagers is a soundtrack by Arctic Monkey’s lead Alex Turner, which is a slow and gentle collection of melancholy tunes which is worth listening to outside of the movie. This all adds to a film about young love which many of us expected and wanted all the while, consistent with the theme of girls growing up faster then boys.  

All in all Submarine is an unbelievably cool and funny British flick which has a lot of staying power. The funny moments are highlighted by the artistic visuals and witty voiceover of an adolescent teenager fighting to grow up, much like Jim in Rebel without a Cause. The film is likely to entertain all, even though nods to Rohmer, Truffaut and Anderson will fly over most audiences’ heads.

* * * *

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Review for Norwegian Wood

Adaptations are never an easy task, at one point you’ll always upset a die hard fan in one way or another. Luckily for Norwegian Wood’s director Anh Hung Tran, this isn’t the case. The only problem is that fans of the original source will enjoy its pace and mood, whilst others might be left slightly bored.

Based on the famous Japanese book by Haruki Murakami, Norwegian Wood tells the story of Watanabe (Kenichi Matsuyama), a student in 60s Tokyo who falls in love with his dead best friend’s girlfriend Naoko (Rinko Kikuchi) as they attempt to over come their shared tragedy. However as depression and teen angst sets in, so does Naoko’s mental illness, forcing her to leave Tokyo. In this time Wantanabe meets free-spirited girl Midori (Kiko Mizuhara) in his class who is a light in the dark tunnel of his life.

The first problem the movie has is its slow nature. However this is a conscious factor that the director clearly wanted for the movie. Long shots of the beautiful Japanese meadows are littered throughout, juxtaposed with close intermit shots inside Japanese flats. The melancholic pace the film has might bore some audiences and entertain others who are used to it. The film clocks in at over two hours keeping in all the importing quirks the book has which fans will latch onto, such as the character of Storm Trooper (Tokio Emoto).

The slow pace is also thrown in with a lot of silent sections which almost makes the content we are watching awkward, as if we are intruders on their lives. This isn’t a fault; this makes the audience feel more involved in the movie as we see Watanabe’s struggles with growing up. When the soundtrack is present its orchestral numbers and electric tunes (done by Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood) are mixed in with songs from the time period such as The Doors. These give it an authentic feel and set it in its time period.

Even though the Vietnam-born director couldn’t speak Japanese, Rinko Kikuchi (who received an Oscar nomination for her flawless performance in Babel) steals the show as the mentally fragile Naoko. The movie is really at its high point when we are with Naoko and drops when Kiko Mizuhara plays an awkward Midori whose playful edge (which is present in the book) is slightly downplayed. Kenichi Matsuyama performance as Watanabe may look dull on the outside but actually hits the nail on the head as he is witness to a world changing around him which he can’t seem to do anything about.

Norwegian Wood is a near perfect adaption of an amazing book. The film has a personal feel from the director which people get when reading a Murakami book. All the little traits and jokes from the book happened to make it in which will entertain some audiences but confuses and bore many others however Anh Hung Tran’s beautiful visuals and believable characters  already has it’s audiences as the movie is playing on limited screens.

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Review for Rango

When you look at a directors back catalogue, such as Gore Verbinski’s, and see the trash they’ve spewed, it’s finally nice to see something off worth and merit shine through. The Pirates of the Caribbean director is back with Johnny Depp in a story of destiny that will have Pixar shaking in it’s boots.

Rango tells the story of a lonesome but charming chameleon (Johnny Depp) who after a literal bump in the road is forced to survive in the harsh climates of the Mojave Desert. Before long he meets Roadkill (Alfred Molina) a mysterious travelling Armadillo who points him on his journey. After some psychogenic trips in the desert our charismatic hero finds himself in the town of Dirt and after some confrontation in the local bar becomes a character he creates named Rango. After taking care of one of many of the towns problems, Rango is promoted to town Sherriff where in he begins to discover the mystery of where all the towns’ water has disappeared to.

As to be expected along the way there is betrayal and redemption which all add up into a somewhat generic story similar to this years terrible action movie The Warrior’s Way, however adds elements from other movies such as Chinatown and A Fistful of Dollars to make it shine.

And that’s really all the negative thinks you can say about the movie. The animated visuals done by Industrial Light & Magic (which is a division of Lucas Arts) are the easily one of the best that’s been seen in the cinema, hands down. Where Pixar balances it’s content with beautiful visuals, Rango’s visuals are heavily impressive with a easy going plot. The detail on the many verities of animals and environments is impressing and leaves the audience in awe.

The voice work by celebrated actors such as Bill Nighy, Ray Winstone and Ned Beatty is on top form with Johnny Depp stealing the show (which was needed after the travesty that was The Tourist). The film will play to both children as well as adults as there are references to Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas as well as Sergio Leone’s Dollars trilogy.

Rango ends up being a very enjoyable film which entertains nearly everybody. Even though the story is lacking in originality the visuals, jokes and characters give the movie what it needs to not be forgotten anytime soon. As well as the LSD implied trips and plastic yellow fish it’s nice to go back to the Wild West.

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* * * *

Review for ‘The Fighter’

Before you even sit down and watch The Fighter it is already apparent that this movie reflects Christian Bales career. He has had some ups (such as the American Psycho) and some downs (need I remind people of the on set freak out). However as he has shown he is once again back on top form along with Mark Walberg and Melissa Leo in David O. Russell’s story of someone following their dreams.

Based on a true story, Micky (Mark Walberg) a small time boxer who’s trainer is his older brother Dicky (Christian Bale) has only been a steppingstone for other boxers. But that’s not Micky’s only problem, whilst battling his latest opponents he is also battling with a controlling mother (Melissa Leo), a crack addicted brother Dicky, an ex-wife who won’t let him see his daughter all the while trying to keep everything in his life together. After loosing an important match, Micky feels as if his career is over as he is being pulled at by several separate things in his life. After meeting Charlene (Amy Adams) a college drop out from a bar, she is soon to boost the fighters moral and help him accomplish his dreams.

Despite the movie being compared to Rocky, The Fighter doesn’t feel too much as if it is living in the shadows of it’s older brother. There is enough in the movie about family conflict to keep the audience focused on the important issues rather then simply the fighting. It goes without saying that it won’t be remembered like Rocky or Raging Bull however that doesn’t mean it’s bad, just very forgettable.

One of the most impressive parts of David O. Russell’s directing involves the sections in the boxing ring as the camera jumps to an ESPN style of live sporting to add authenticity. And the authenticity doesn’t end there; Micky’s training gym is the actual location where the real boxer spent his time training for fights and to add to that Mickey O’Keefe (one Micky’s trainer) plays himself with some dignity and surprising talent.

            At one point The Fighter had Darren Aronofsky’s name attached (before he decided to make Black Swan), and it’s easy to see why as some of the issues which we saw in Aronofsky’s The Wrestler are seen here but without the sheer brutality as we saw with Randy ‘The Ram’ Robinson. The Fighter feels much more like a Hollywood by the numbers film with little originality. O. Russell never goes to much extremes as the film doesn’t take much thought about the effect boxing has on the body, even though Micky is constantly being beaten for rounds on end he seems to shrug of the bruises.

            All in all The Fighter is no where as edgy as films such as Raging Bull or The Wrestler and doesn’t have the apple of lasting effect however is still an enjoyable movie as Bale shows he’s back on top form as some major slips.

* * *

Kevin Smith invents INDIE 2.0

Kevin Smith has upset Hollywood. The Clerks director premiered his latest movie; Red State last month at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah and after a rumoured auction turned out to be true, his producer Jon Gordon sold Smith the rights to his own movie. In the speech that followed Smith talked about how "Indie film isn't dead. It just grew up," before announcing that the writer director himself would be taking the movie on a road trip, much like what happened with Gone With the Wind. Red State with be toured around various cities and after the screening Smith do a Q&A along with lead actor Michael Parks.

Red State is the story of three teenage boys who go into the woods looking for sex but instead find God as horror unfolds involving fundamentalist Christians. The cast includeds Michael Parks, John Goodman, Malissa Leo and Kyle Gallner who recently stared in the remake of a Nightmare on Elm Street.

Smith has a fan base and knows it after creating the successful Smodcast Podcast Network, and is only aiming for his personally audience. However not everyone is as happy as the director, Marketing people and Studios are apparently up in arms after Smith confessed that even though the movie cost five million to make, a studio would waste twenty million just on advertisements. Smith has taken time to research and design a plan to get his movie distributed without big companies throwing money at it but the bit question is; will it work?

Is this the true future for independent cinema? It is apparent these days that independent film-makers are finding it hard to get their films distributed however showcasing it in theatres around the country might be a good way to get buzz for the movie and to find a distributor.

Has all this controversy destroyed the movies reputation before it’s general release sometime in October? Red State will be debuting on tour March 5 at New York's Radio City Music Hall and hitting major U.S. cities throughout March before ending on April 4 in Seattle. This month the movie will be playing at the Berlin Film Festival and Smith hopes to get the movie distributed in Europe in October to make the seventeenth anniversary of his original movie Clerks, which put his name on the map. After seventeen years of independent and studio films, is Smith doing the right thing with indie 2.0 and is this the future?


Kevin Smith speech at Sundance Film Festival

Review for Black Swan

Natalie Portman has always had an up and down career, sometime she chooses her roles carefully (for example Garden State) but other times not she’s chooses the odd questionable job (Star War trilogy). After exploding on the scene in 1994 in Luc Besson’s phenomenal Leon it has taken her almost fifteen years until she has given a perfect performance in the form of Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan. After playing at the Venice Film festivals and several other film festivals the film has gradually built up momentum until it has finally been realised to the general public, however it definitely is a movie not suited for a lot of audiences despite the BBFC giving it a mere 15 certificate.

The story follows perfectionist ballerina Nine (Natalie Portman) who becomes obsessed with gaining the role of the Swan Princess in the latest performance of Swan Lake for a highly acclaimed ballet company. With an over baring and controlling mother (Barbara Hershey) and an eccentric director Thomas (Vincent Cassel) the pressure on Nina becomes a heavy burden. After being told time after time that she’s a perfect Swan Queen however lacks the power to play the swans evil twin the Black Swan, Nina begins to descend into madness and the line between what is reality and what’s in her head are drastically blurred. On top of that new competition in the form of free spirited girl Lily (Mila Kunis) comes in to wreak Nina’s new found fame. Or is she?

For a film in which it’s themes of oppression, obsession and perfection have become common ground, Aronofsky handles them excellently as they feel new and fresh. The dark material is handled excellently as the movie becomes unpredictable as we see Nina’s fractured state. It is also hard to pin point a specific genre for the movie, is it a horror? A dancing movie? A psychological thriller? Who knows? Aronofsky rehashes the same themes he showed with The Wrestler (2008) but moves beyond it in almost every way. The stark black and white feel to the movie is both beautiful but at some points menacing. Aronofsky’s themes of self destructions which are see in all his films such as Requiem for a Dream and The Wrestler are once again back as well as his very dark nature which is present towards the end as the horrific third act plays out. The handheld direction is far from Paul Greengrass territory as it reflects Nina’s state of mind and clever camera techniques make the camera invisible around the ballet studios. This is an artistic movie where the director has used modern technology to tell a story rather then avoid one.

It is easy to see how the movie have been compared to The Red Shoes (1948) mixed with the work of David Cronenberg and Dario Argento as Aronofsky shows the beauty but hardships of pursuing your love. The rituals which Randy the Ram religiously went though in The Wrestler are echoed as we see Nina crack bones and modify her ballet shoes like a professional. Portman in fact even took a year out to train in Ballet and is it clearly apparent here as she moves as if she’s being dancing for years,

It has to be said that Portman’s near flawless performance as the fragile performer is incomparable to any female performances in the past year. However she’s doesn’t just steal the show as Vincent Cassel, Mila Kunis and even Wynona Ryder all play significant roles. All the performances are moving and horrifyingly believable.

Black Swan is definitely a movie for certain audiences who can stomach certain scenes which I couldn’t begin to describe without spoiling plot points. It will have anyone turning away at the graphic images which have an artistic beauty to them. And the movies crescendo will leave you emotionally drained and make you doubt your shadow. This definitely won’t be Aronofsky’s swan song however he has set a bar for himself which will be hard to follow.

* * * * *