Thoughts on two films I watched at the cinema today

MAPS TO THE STARS (David Cronenberg, 2014)

Hollywood, as painted by the twisted paintbrush of David Cronenberg, with two fantastic turns from Julianne Moore and Mia Wasikowska. 

Moore really gives it her all as fading actress Havana Segrand who’s increasingly losing her grip on reality as she fights tooth and nail to play the role her dead mother (who sexually abused her as a child) had in a reprise of the film. 

It’s an unglamorous role, but she’s extremely courageous to tackle it with the dedication that she does. Wasikowska plays an equally disturbed girl with prominent burn marks on face, exiled to Florida after a childhood incident where she burned down her family’s house, she’s back in LA and lands herself a job as Segrand’s ‘chore whore’. 

The rest of cast are all apt, playing their dislikeable characters with suitable panache. Whilst the acting is excellent, however, the depiction of Hollywood was a bit too convoluted to be fully believable. There were black, bleak laughs in almost every scene, and overall, the experience hypnotises you (and I'm definitely not complaining about R-Prattz eyecandy), but, just a bit too acerbic for me to fully appreciate.

Mark: 6.5/10

’71 (Yann Demange, 2014)

I’m not really big on history or army movies, so this one took me by complete surprise. Gary Hook (Jack O’Connell, by far the most talented alumni of the Skins cast), a young Derbyshire soldier, gets accidentally left on the mean streets of Belfast when his unit flee a street. 

He’s left to fend for himself, amongst hostility towards soldiers from the residents of the city as well double-crossing and duplicity amongst people supposedly working for the same side. 

The two MVPs of this film are the cinematography (hand-held cameras that contribute every bit to the urgency and tension of Hook’s increasingly precarious situation) and Jack O’Connell, who, despite having a character who, on paper is seemingly quite paint-by-numbers, actually manages to imbue his soldier with empathy and emotion, so that we feel every inch of dread that he does. 

The direction and score suit the film well as well. With a running time under 100 minutes, it’s refreshing to watch an action movie which commands your attention for the full running time and doesn’t outstay its welcome.

Mark: 7/10

2011 Oscar Nomination Predictions.

I’m in the middle of exams, so I’m just predicting the main categories. And score, 'cos I love me my film music :-)

Best Film

127 Hours

Black Swan

The Fighter
Inception
The Kids Are All Right
The King's Speech
The Social Network
The Town
Toy Story 3
True Grit
Alt: Winter’s Bone

I'm still not used to this 10-instead-of-5 nominations malarky. It really, really devalues the Oscars, if you ask me. And Inception? PAH.

Best Director

Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan
David Fincher, The Social Network
Tom Hooper, The King's Speech
Chris Nolan, Inception
David O. Russell, The Fighter
Alt: Danny Boyle, 127 Hours

Pretty standard, I’d say. I’ve seen all but The King’s Speech, and of them, Fincher is my favourite and the likely eventual winner. I’ll keep my (less than impressed) opinions about Inception to myself, no?

Best Actor
Jeff Bridges, True Grit

Robert DuVall, Get Low

Jesse Eisenberg, The Social Network

Colin Firth, The King's Speech

James Franco, 127 Hours

Alt: Ryan Gosling, Blue Valentine

I’ve only seen Bridges’ and Eisenberg’s performances, both of which are solid turns. I really enjoyed Marky Mark in The Fighter, but he doesn’t seem to have gathered as much pre-cursor buzz, so I’m not predicting him, despite him being one of my favourites.

Best Actress

Annette Bening, The Kids Are All Right
Nicole Kidman, Rabbit Hole
Jennifer Lawrence, Winter's Bone
Natalie Portman, Black Swan
Michelle Williams, Blue Valentine
Alt: Julianne Moore, The Kids are All Right

I don’t know what’s going with Hailee Steinfeld in terms of category placement; she’s quite clearly lead, but I think the FYCs have pushed her as supporting. Now sometimes, the Academy make up their own minds (like Keisha Castle-Hughes in Whale Rider), but if they accept her as lead, I don’t think she’ll get nominated, which is a shame so I’ll take her getting nominated in supporting because even though it’s category fraud, a nomination’s better than none at all, non? And I love Julie Moore, so despite the fact that I haven't seen The Kids are All Right yet, I want her to get another nomination <3

Best Supporting Actor

Christian Bale, The Fighter
Andrew Garfield , The Social Network
Jeremy Renner, The Town
Mark Ruffalo, The Kids Are All Right
Geoffrey Rush, The King's Speech
Alt: John Hawkes, Winter’s Bone

I’m not gonna lie, I really don’t see the big deal with Jeremy Renner’s performance; he was just all psycho-y. Rebecca Hall was the best performance in that film. I don’t see the Oscars “doing a BAFTA” and nominating Pete Postlewaite for the same film, so this is the safe five. I will CUT A BITCH if Andrew Garfield doesn’t get nominated, he was wonderful. Oh, Andy.

Best Supporting Actress
Amy Adams, The Fighter

Helena Bonham Carter, The King's Speech
Melissa Leo, The Fighter
Hailee Steinfeld, True Grit
Jacki Weaver, Animal Kingdom
Alt: Mila Kunis, Black Swan

Awww, I really, really, really wish Mila Kunis were getting nominated, but the pre-cursors just don’t seem enough for her, plus I don’t know if her free-spirited ballerina is “baity” enough for the Oscars. Anyway, I’d love for her to get nominated. However, were Kunis to get nominated, it seems that Hailee Steinfeld would be the opportunity cost, and I loved Steinfeidl in True Grit, her getting nominated would be a score one for the young action heroines that Ivana Baquero in Pan's Labyrinth missed out on. Plus Steinfeld was so natural and wonderful. So I'm so conflicted! Having seen The Fighter last night, I am fully in support of Adams’ and Leo’s nominations; I can’t decide whom I like more, but if Melissa Leo does win the Oscar, good for her!

Original Screenplay
Blue Valentine

The Fighter

Inception

The Kids are All Right
The King’s Speech
Alt: Black Swan

Right, so, why am I going for a Black Swan snub in favour of Blue Valentine? I dunno, I just think they might do it to “compensate” for Ryan Gosling not getting nominated. Plus I’ve heard reviews about how ~~true to life~~ the script is, so perhaps it will resonate with the Academy voters who are stuck in loveless marriages. Again, I’m shaking my head at Inception’s joke of a script getting nominated, but whatever.

Adapted Screenplay

127 Hours
The Social Network
Toy Story III
True Grit
Winter’s Bone

Oh dear god, I sincerely hope 127 Hours’ script doesn’t get nominated (hai. I’m on a rock. Hai, I’m chopping off my arm. Hai, film’s ended.), but I can see Danny Boyle & Simon Beaufoy (the twosome responsible for Slumdog Millionaire’s script – now that was a nice screenplay) getting nominated. The others, I’m cool with. I’d love if Toy Story III (my favourite film of 2010 at this moment in time) won over The Social Network, but that ain’t happening, and The Social Network is my second fave film of 2010 and I loved the banter, so I can deal. The lines coming out of this guy's mouth were hilar:

Score
Alexandre Desplat, The King’s Speech
Randy Newman, Toy Story III
John Powell, How to Train Your Dragon
Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, The Social Network
Hans Zimmer, Inception

Whilst I deeply enjoyed The Social Network, one thing I cannot for the life of me fathom is all the hoo-ha over its score. That’s the only Oscar that I have a problem with it getting. I really liked Desplat’s score to the seventh Harry Potter film, but obviously The King’s Speech is the score he’ll be getting nominated for. And despite holding Inception in the absolute lowest regard, the music in it was pretty decent.

Other?
My main Oscar wish is that “Never Say Never” from The Karate Kid gets nominated for Best Song. It’s actually written by Justin Bieber, and I don’t know if I can be dealing with him as an Oscar nominee, but the song sums up the film so well, plus there’s a swaggerous breakdown rap in the middle. I rate it.


Oh, and should Andrew Garfield not get nominated? This is gonna be my reaction:

Film review: CHLOE (Atom Egoyan, 2009)

A remake of Anne Fontaine’s 2003 film Nathalie…, Chloe is a film about obsession, sex, and the tangled web that lies weave. Julianne Moore is a successful gynaecologist, who’s accomplishments in her job sadly do not translate to that in her married life. Her son’s a semi-manic depressive teenager who shuts her out and her husband (played by Liam Neeson), misses his own surprise birthday party, under suspicious circumstances.

Her mistrust is further fuelled when she spies a picture message on his iPhone (there’s your product placement). Deciding to take matters into her own hands, she enlists upscale hooker Amanda Seyfried to initially talk to him, see what happens, but soon their encounters become more-than-just-talking as relations between the three become increasingly convoluted and messy.

Julianne Moore is one of my favourite actresses, and her performance in Chloe is the epitome of nuance and quiet heartbreak. The writing in the film is less than stellar, and she is the glue that cements the entire film together. 

Amanda Seyfried, with her huge doll eyes is nice to look at and everything, but her acting is a bit off here because one minute she’s sexy and smouldering, and next she exudes a childish air which does not gel at all with the character she’s playing.

Liam Neeson is good as the possibly philandering husband who simply gets sexier and more attractive to women with age, and the relationship between him and Moore is portrayed well. The relationship between Seyfried and Moore (which enters sapphic territory), not so much. The two women have no chemistry whatsoever and whilst men watching wouldn’t really mind, I just found myself embarrassed for both women in their cringey “sex” scene.

This claustrophobic three-hander boils and bubbles up nicely to its ultimately shattering denouement, and there are a fair few thrills along the way.  Perhaps because I'd seen the original, I knew what was coming, and thus the "twist" didn't surprise me at all, though to be fair, I think most of the uninitiated will see it a mile coming too.

For all the talent involved (Egoyan himself has covered sexual obsession so much better), I couldn’t help feeling a little disappointed.

5/10

My Eyes are Blurred, My Senses are Limited. Am I suspecting a familiar twinge?

Chloe, starring three of my favourite actors, Liam Neeson, Amanda Seyfried, and the very beautiful and talented Julianne Moore (50 this year, but still looking smokin'), is essentially a remake of 2003's Nathalie..., in which a wife, sensing that her husband may be philandering, hires the prostitute Nathalie to put his fidelity to the test. In the original, French screen icons Fanny Ardant, Emmanuelle Béart and Gérard Depardieu starred as the claustraphobic threesome. Here, Moore plays the suspicious doctor wife, Liam Neeson is the husband and Amanda Seyfried is Chloe, the epynomous escort. Of course, things never work out as smoothly as planned, and Moore's Catherine soon finds that she has let herself in for far more than she'd bargained for when she let Chloe into her life.

If the cast alone isn't enough to tempt you into seeing this film, there's also the rather exciting promise of seeing Amanda Seyfried ditch the sunny persona that suits her so well in movies like Mean Girls and Mamma Mia!, to see a darker side of her, which will surely test her acting muscles a bit more. This darker side even involves her in a scene wherein she seduces Julianne Moore's wide-eyed wife. My favourite cinematic wife of Liam Neeson's has thus far been Laura Linney, but it'll be exciting to see what a photogenic couple he'll make with Moore, and Nathalie..., whilst a little uneven, was a terrific watch, centred around a thrilling lead performance by the stunning Béart. With indie king Atom Egoyan at the helm, Chloe is sure to be a intruiging watch. When it hits cinema screens in the UK on the 5th March, I'll be one of the first ones there.

Screening Log (30/03/09 - 05/04/09)

The Deep End (Scott McGehee and David Siegel, 2001)

Tilda Swinton stars as Margaret Hall, a woman who's son Beau goes off the ropes in adolescence, and gets mixed up with the unsavoury character of Josh Lucas' Darby Reese. When Reese's dead body shows up outside her house, Swinton assumes her son has murdered him and does everything she can to protect her son. This is easier said than done when she's being blackmailed by Goran Visnjic, who has video evidence of her son bunging Darby, and demands $50,000 for his and his partner's silence.

The Deep End is a remake of Max Ophüls's 1949 outing The Reckless Moment, which I watched exactly 15 months ago, and compared to the original, it's darker and more adult, which doesn't necessarily work to its advantage, but the sexual tension between Swinton and Visnjic, particularly as blackmailer begins to fall for blackmailee, is absolutely delicious. 

For their performances and their chemistry alone, The Deep End is worth watching.

Duplicity (Tony Gilroy, 2009)

An initially confusing but generally very entertaining comedy starring Clive Owen and Julia Roberts as an ex MI6 and an ex-CIA worker, respectively, both of which are highly skilled in the art of double-crossing, and decide to collaborate to double cross both Tom Wilkinson and Paul Giamatti's companies, and make a profit in the region of $40 million for themselves. 

However, such is the nature of deceit that they frequently end up mistrusting each other, a little glitch which threatens to ruin the whole operation.

Set chiefly in New York but with flashbacks filmed in the Bahamas, Manhattan and Rome, Duplicity sure is pretty to look at, particularly coupled with its two leads. Julia Roberts, at 41, still looks stunning, and Clive Owen was very, very fit in it! 

The film itself is probably a bit too convoluted for its own good, but I had a lot of fun with it, whether it be in the leads' performances, James Newton Howard's sexy score which had double bass and celli in abundance, the witty script from Michael Clayton writer/director Tony Gilroy, or the final rug-pull of a twist that I truly didn't see coming.

The Shipping News (Lasse Hallström, 2001)

Based on Brokeback Mountain writer Annie Proulx's novel, this film follows Kevin Spacey, who, having been widowed by Cate Blanchett's flighty wife, moves to Newfoundland with his estranged aunt Judi Dench, and sets up shop there, writing a column called The Shipping News, reconnecting with his emotionally scarred daughter and embarking on a tentative romance with Julianne Moore's also-widow-and-single-parent. 

The film was better than I thought it'd be - Spacey doesn't annoy me as much as he has done in other roles, Julianne Moore is always amazing and the overall message of redemption is nice, but it felt a bit underdone in some scenes and horrifically overwrought in others, not least the flashback of Judi Dench's character's disturbing secret. A bit of a mixed bag, this film.

The Final Curtain (Patrick Harkins, 2002)

omgthisfilmissoshitpleasedon'twasteyourtimewithit. kthanxbai.

Fever Pitch (David Hornby, 1997)

Based on Nick Hornby's autobiographical novel and penned by him as well, Fever Pitch follows Colin Firth's Paul, an Arsenal FC-obsessed schoolteacher as he finds himself at a crossroads when he begins courting fellow teacher Ruth Gemmell - football means more to him than life itself and whilst she's at first willing to be initiated into the world of Highbury, referees and last-minute equalisers, she wants him to see that there is more to life than football, particularly when she gets pregnant, putting questions on the two's future together.

I connected with this film from start to finish, from a scene of a young Paul going to his first football match and realising that he'd found his raison d'etre, to the scenes of joyous celebrating on the streets of North London as Arsenal beat Liverpool 2-0 at Anfield.

Fever Pitch isn't a perfect film, I concede - chances are you'll "get it" more if you're English/follow football/live in London, Colin Firth doesn't seem to know whether his character is to groan or gurn in most scenes, the repeated tonal modulations from comedic to dramatic left the film a little lopsided and the acting from some of the schoolkids was suspect, but it captures the mindset of yer typical British football fan perfectly; Nick Hornby, being a dedicated Gooner himself, knows what he's talking about.

The panning scene which follows the footie fans as they advance to their next match, accompanied by Baba O Riley by The Who, is, as far as Bung's concerened, one of the best usages of music in film, bar none. Cinematic gold.