Reviews - Slumdog Millionaire, My Bloody Valentine 3D and The Wrestler

Movie Crazy

Now that term has broken up and all the essays are done, it's time to sit back and relax... Or in my case, watch as many bloody movies as I can cram in as possible. This time of year is great for films, as all the big Oscar-friendly movies get released, meaning we have a slew of huge credible films hitting the multiplexes. So first up was Danny Boyle's latest...

Slumdog Millionaire



There has been such a fanfare of critical praise for SM, that it seems like the film could never possibly live up to the hype. SM tells the story of a young man, Jamal, a slumdweller in Mumbai, who defys the odds to get to the very last question on the hindi version of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire. Made for a meagre budget on location in India, SM is a huge change of direction for director Boyle following his last film, the creepy sci-fi epic Sunshine, but Boyle has never been one to stick to one genre as his previous films have shown (Shallow Grave, Trainspotting, Life Less Ordinary, 28 Days Later etc). So how does is foray into fairytale bollywood-esque film-making fare?

I liked the film, I really did, but for me it never transcended from being a well made and pleasant to watch film, into a great piece of cinema. True, it's beautifully shot, and features some great performances from the young actors portraying the heroes in their youths, but for me, it was a little cliched, with an air of inevitability about the whole thing. True, the film is meant to play as a Dicken-esque, rags to riches, modern fairytale, but Boyles vision of Mumbai, although he doesn't pull any punches on the grime of day to day life, never feels fully authentic. Plus, the great turns from the younger versions of Jamal threaten to outshine Dev Patel (of Skins fame), who frankly comes across as a bit wooden, god knows why he's nominated for a Bafta, lets just hope he's not up for an Oscar too.

Worth seeing for the feel-good factor, but don't expect anything truly breathtaking.

3/5


My Bloody Valentine 3D



My only venture into 3D films previous to this was a crappy VHS of some Nightmare on Elm Street sequel which had some pretty ropey 3D sequences which you viewed with those old-skool cardboard red & blue glasses, to pretty dismal effect. The red & blue meant you viewed the sequences in a weird off-colour hue, and the 3D itself was pretty basic. But...let me tell you now. After seeing MBV3D I am converted...

3D IS THE FUTURE OF FILM!

The 3D in this film is so breathtaking, I literally couldn't believe my eyes. The technology is there now. Yes, you still have to wear stupid specs in the cinema, but gone are the red & blue in place of polarised lenses, which mean there is now colour degradation, you view the film just as you would a normal film, but its in 3D! To be honest, being a horror, it can come across as a bit gimicky in places, but even outside of the obviously done-for-effect shots, the 3D is just incredible, bringing the action on screen to life in a way i'd never seen before. Honestly there is no reason why, in the future, that all films should be released in 3D. It just seems to me just a totally natural progression. Good news then that Pixar has announced all it's future films will be released in 3D (as well as re-releasing Toy Story 1 & 2 in glorious 3D), meaning i'm even more hyped for Up than before. You need to experience this new 3D now, trust me, it blew my mind.

The film itself is fairly standard US-slasher fodder, never really that scary, full of cliches and ropey acting, but it is played fairly tongue-in-cheek, so you can forgive that for the most part. The gore is great (if you like that sort of thing), with numerous inventive murders throughout (the spade one my personal favourite, tied with the jawbone one), and they really push for the 18 rating, with plenty of swearing, explicit nudity and gut-churning violence. Stupid mindless fun. But make sure you catch it in 3D...

Bloody, guts, gore, nudity and violence all in incredible 3D.

4/5 (or 2/5 in 2D)


The Wrestler



Another serious critic-friendly award-hungry picture, this time starring Mickey Rourke as a washed up pro-wrestler, Marisa Tomei as a washed up stripper, and Evan Rachel Wood as the wrestlers long-suffering daughter. Directed by Darren Aronofsky (who also directed one of my least favourite films ever, Requiem For A Dream, but I won't hold that against him), The Wrestler tells the sad tale of fictional wrestler Randy "The Ram" Robinson, who was massively popular in the 1980s, but who still wrestles to pay the bills, despite his aging frame crying out for him to stop.



All the hype to this film has been surrounding Mickey Rourke and his performance, in a role which seems absolutely perfectly fitted for him, the washed-up has-been out to prove everyone wrong. And Rourke's performance doesn't disappoint, he looks terrific in the movie, a beaten up hulking wreck of a man, and he hits all the right emotional notes. Kudos too though to Tomei, who also looks fantastic (she does spend half the film in half-naked stripper mode), but carries off the stripper with a heart with convincing results. Evan Rachel Wood feels slightly underused, but holds own in her scenes with Rourke, which have visible chemistry. The film itself doesn't pull any punches, nor does it patronise the 'Sports Entertainment" world of pro-wrestling, which in the UK (and maybe USA I couldn't comment), has always been one to prompt sniggering amongst the masses, but still has a huge fanbase all around the world. The fight scenes are graphic and brutal, with the hardcore fight being so wince-inducing, you almost don't want to watch. The whole world of these pro-wrestlers is laid bare for all to see, with all the hair-dying, fake-tanning, egotistic posturing, illegal drugs and constant pain these guys live with all there on the big screen.

For all that, I did enjoy the movie, although it was a tough watch, there are moments of touching light humour and pathos that lift the film from it's essentially B-movie basing, into something a lot more affecting. That said, I don't think it's a 5 star movie, and that is simply because, without Rourke and his personal history that are now attached to the film, making The Wrestler his 'comeback movie', this film would never have been anything more than an interesting curio of a sports film, that itvery bravely, nearly transcends.

Tough, brutal and affecting movie, shot well, with a great cast. But still just a movie about wrestling...

4/5


DVDs

[rec]

5/5 Quite simply the BEST horror film I have seen in ages. A spanish Blair Witch style, shot on handheld camera zombie movie, which has more scares than your average horror fare. SEEK THIS OUT!

Zack & Miri Make A Porno

3/5 Kevin Smith's latest is crude and funny in equal measure. Just a shame about the ending, bit too obvious Kevin. Worth watching though to hear the concept of The Dutch Rudder.

United 93

5/5 Vital 9/11 film. A heartbreaking recreation of the events on the hijacked United Airlines flight 93. Well worth seeing.

Defiance Review

Defiance is set in Belarus in 1941 and tells the incredible story of the Bielski brothers. The invading Nazi Germans are hunting down Jews throughout Eastern Europe, and thousands of innocents are being slaughtered daily. The three Bielski brothers slip through the net, and seek refuge in the dense surrounding forests. They create a hidden community amongst the trees and hope to avenge the deaths of their families and friends by saving many more in the forests.



The movie is directed by Ed Zwick (The Last Samurai, Blood Diamond), and stars Daniel Craig (007) as the eldest brother and leader of the Bielski Otriad, Tuvia Bielski, Liev Schreiber (The Machurian Candidate, X-Men Origins) as the tough middle brother Zus, and Jamie Bell (Billy Elliot, Jumper) as the youngest brother Asael.

There is clearly an incredible true story at the heart of this movie, as the closing titles inform us, the Bielski camp eventually numbered 1200 when the war ended, and the two eldest brother eventually lived in New York, but never sought any recognition for their incredible achievement. But unfortunately this incredible story gets muddled along the way. Zwick is clearly an adept action director, indeed the action scenes in Defiance are thrilling, but when it comes to the human story, he does have a tendency to lay it on thick. There are so many moments of broad humour, cliched character types, and incredibly awkward dialogue throughout ("Jews don't kill" "Well these Jews do"), you could almost hear the collective eye-rolling in the screening.

Daniel Craig asserts his leading man status, with his piercing blue eyes shining through the mud, he brings depth to a role which feels underwritten, and could potentially have come ended up very unsympathetic in someone elses hands. Liev Schreiber puts in a convincing action-man type performance, but didn't leave much of an impression otherwise. Jamie Bell probably makes the most out of his slender role, building on it, and growing with the film, his rousing speech in the final third feels genuine and heartfelt, and gives older brother Tuvia the boost that he needs to pull through.

Overall, the film makes a fairly decent action romp, but due to it's sensitive subject nature, and the fact that this is a true story, it feels like it perhaps may have been better suited to a director more interested in the human element, than the action side. I just got the feeling that if it had been MY story that they were telling, i'd have been disappointed. WW2 and the holocaust are rich source of material of material for film-makers, and this is perhaps one of the most inspiring unheard stories yet, but it can be done with subtlety, and this just shows you how not to do it.

2/5

Despite the glossy production, thrilling action and decent performances, this is no more than an average war movie. Not the inspirational gut-churner it should have been.

2008? That's soooo last year....

It's been so long since my last blog, I almost feel like someone who has skived work, but not just once, for a few days, and i'm not sure whether i'm actually welcome back or not. But since it's a New Year, then I should start as I mean to go on. I started this last year as an exercise to get more writing done, and it has opened up so many possibilities to me that I fell that only good things can come from continuing with it.

But what to write about for the New Year. Well i'm rolling with the cliches here and chipping in with my top films of 2008, and with some films to look out for in 2009. My top films of 2008 are by no means an exhaustive list, because frankly, I haven't seen every film that came out, of course, i'm no lucky film journo with tickets to all the screenings. No, if i've seen a film, i've paid good money for it, which makes my opinion just as worthy to be heard (yeah right, big head....whatever, here it is, you don't have to read it anyway).

Number 5 - Cloverfield



It's just a big dumb monster movie if you have to sum it up. With 2-D Gap models for the main characters to boot. So what made it one of the films of the year? Well, anticipation for the film was ratcheted up to boiling point before its release by one of the cleverest viral marketing campaigns yet (that's before The Dark Knight came along and stole its thunder), and when something is hyped so much, there is always the risk that you'll be let down. But for once, Cloverfield delivered. From start to finish, the action never let up, and had the right mix of scares, shocks, 'whatthehell' moments along with stunning special effects, and all filmed in Blair-Witch patented shaky-cam. It was just a moment of 'damn, why didn't I think of that" for me. Well executed, not bloated, succint, and no messing around. Like I said... It's just a big dumb monster movie. Just don't bother with a sequel guys. Oh and if you didn't see it at the cinema, then don't expect the home viewing experience to live up to the big screen. Unless you have a kick-ass home system.

Number 4 - The Dark Knight



If you read back over my blog, you may find a slight obsession with this movie, so you may be surprised to hear it didn't make number one on the list. But in hindsight, my mind flags up all the problems I had when watching the film, rather than it's plus points, so for this reason, it makes number four. What else is there to say about TDK that hasn't been said. The movie has made damned near $1billion making it the fourth highest grossing film EVER, and is set to be re-released in the States for a pre-Oscar push, and probably to see if they can't scrape in a few more pennies for Warners. I just hope to god that it's still playing this year at the IMAX because I need to see it there. The film has to be seen for Heath Ledgers whirlwind performance as the Joker. Lets just see if he gets a posthumous nod at the Academy Awards, it seems like the mawkish sort of thing they would do, but I still wouldn't bet on it.

Number 3 - Let The Right One In



This is a bit of a cheat, as this hasn't been released over here yet. But it's a swedish vampire film, part horror, part sweet coming-of-age drama. Filmed in a snow covered perma-frost suburb somewhere in Sweden (i'm not even sure if it is set now, or the 1970/80s due to the strange Swedish fashions on show), a new family moves into local flats, and the hero 12 year old bullied Oskar sets out to befriend his new female neighbour 12 year old (or so it seems) Eli. A sweet natured friendship/romance develops, but Eli is a vampire. Anyway, I won't spoil it for you, but I for one will be queuing up to see this at the cinema when it comes out proper over here (April according to imdb and Empire). It has great performances, stunning cinematography, and the right mix of heartwarming and bloodchilling moments to make this a cult classic. (Apparently Matt Reeves the director of Cloverfield has been signed for a US remake, which has no chance of bettering this version, but we'll see)

Number 2 - In Bruges



I missed this at the cinema, and wrote about it in an earlier blog. This film has stuck with me since I watched it on DVD, and has been my recommendation to anyone looking to rent a DVD whenever they asked me. It is just SO funny, and so unexpected for me. I had pretty much written off any movie starring Colin Farrell after seeing The Recruit (a godawful CIA/FBI trainee gone wrong balls with Pacino) and Phone Booth. I liked him in Minority Report and even Miami Vice, but had just gone off him massively. Over-rated. Until I saw this. But the film doesn't just belong to Farrell, as it features superb turns from Brendan Gleeson, Ralph Fiennes and Jordan Prentice as the most deranged dwarf/midget/little person EVER. If you haven't seen this, seek it out. You won't be disappointed.

Number 1 - There Will Be Blood



Released in 2007 in the States, this was released around the same time as other 2008 classics Juno, The Diving Bell and The Butterfly and No Country For Old Men, which I saw all of on the big screen, but this is the one that has stuck with me the longest, I recently re-watched it on DVD where it did lose some of its power, but still retained the vim and vigour of Daniel Day- Lewis' barn-storming turn as Oil-magnate Daniel Plainview. Plainview, as the films anti-hero, limps through this film with so much passion, rage and sneaky greed, by the time the films comes to it's shocking conclusion, you just wish he would get his comeuppance. Plainview is this years monster of choice for me, which up against the Joker and the Cloverfield beasty is saying something. A deserved Oscar win for Day-Lewis. This filmed is many faceted, deeply textured with layers and layers that bears up to repeat viewings that belie its near 3 hour running time. Time flies when you're wincing through the Oil. PT Anderson is one of the most interesting directors working today in my opinion and can't wait to see what he does next.


So that's 2008 wrapped up. Special mentions for the ones that nearly made the list -

Wall-E

Frost/Nixon (not out until this year anyway)

and

Juno

And the worst films? I wouldn't be that cruel...

Cough***INDY 4***Cough


Two-Thousand-And-Nine

So big films to look out for this year, and remember, i'm a sucker for hype so there's no guarantee these will be any good, but i'm looking forward to anyway...

Crank 2 : High Voltage

What can I say, I heart the Stath. And this trailer is about the stupidest thing i've ever seen.



Kick-Ass

This is a big-screen adaptation of one of the sickest comics i've ever read. It's just a shame it's got bloody Nic Cage in it. Set in a realistic world, a kid decides to take the law into his own hands and turn himself into a hero straight out of his beloved comic books. Looks pretty good.





The official website has gone live here but as yet there's nothing on it, but if it's as good as the comic you are in for a violent treat.

Public Enemies

The new film Michael Mann starring Christian Bale and Johnny Depp, enough said? Check out images of the prohibition era crime epic here.

Star Trek

JJ Abrams (Lost) Trek reboot looks amazing. Can't wait. Never been excited about a Trek film before, and I hope that they show Lucas how not to fuck up an important sci-fi franchise.



Terminator 4

T3 was pants, but Christian Bale is in this. McG don't fuck this up. Check out the huge Terminators. Very cool.



Up

Ok, i'm slightly obsessed with Pixar after treating myself to the box-set for Christmas. So I am suitably excited about Up, though not sure what to expect.



Oh, and because I love it watch this...Presto, the Pixar short from Wall-E. So inventive, so funny.



The Watchmen

Anticipation for this in geek-dom is already at fever pitch. But not long now guys. If you've not read the comic, then now is the time to get up to speed. And if you've never read a comic in your life, this is a good place to start. Just hope the film isn't shit.



So until next time folks...