Trishna (Michael Winterbottom, 2011)

Among contemporary cinema’s more versatile and prolific directors, one of the few sources of inspiration Michael Winterbottom has repeatedly returned to is the work of Thomas Hardy. Jude, his 1996 adaptation of Hardy’s Jude the Obscure, was effectively his breakthrough film; 2000’s The Claim, meanwhile, was loosely based on The Mayor of Casterbridge, applying content from that novel’s Victorian England setting to an American western. Winterbottom’s latest Hardy adaptation, Trishna, has more in common with that latter film in that it transfers the source material of Tess of the d’Urbervilles to a different setting and culture. Set in India, Trishna differs from both of the director’s previous Hardy adaptations in that it tries to apply the source’s themes and narrative to the contemporary version of its setting. The result is not very successful…

Full review at Reel Time

In Time (Andrew Niccol, 2011)

Among the works of writer-director Andrew Niccol in the last fifteen years, his science fiction efforts, if not always great films, have at least been consistently interesting to some degree; his debut Gattaca and the Peter Weir directed The Truman Show stand as particularly strong efforts. In his latest dystopian film, advances in genetic technology mean that no one ages past twenty five, and people are given only one year after reaching that age to live. The premise bares some similarity to the 1976 film Logan’s Run, though In Time has death as something that can be deferred, additional time in one’s life being a currency that can be earned or taken from someone else…

Full review at Reel Time

GFF 2012: The Raid (Gareth Evans, 2011)

The Raid is an action thriller with unmistakable, specific influences, but one that combines them with its own unique qualities to provide a particularly potent collection of thrills. Made in Indonesia but directed by a Welshman, the simple but effective plot of Gareth Evans’ film is almost like a mix of two of its clear influences, Die Hard and Assault on Precinct 13. A derelict apartment building in the heart of Jakarta’s slums acts as a seemingly impenetrable safe house for a ruthless gangster and an array of killers and thugs. Tasked with raiding the fortress and capturing the vicious drug lord who runs it, an elite police team enters the building while under the cover of pre-dawn darkness and silence, only for an unexpected witness to reveal their presence to the criminals in charge. The members of the unit, protagonist Rama among them, suddenly find themselves stranded and easy targets on the sixth floor. With the lights cut off, all exits blocked and a hive of the city’s most deadly criminals looking to exterminate them, the team must fight their way out to survive…

Full review at Sound on Sight

My Month in Films: February 2012

24 films, 19 first time viewings

Best first time viewings
1. A Night to Remember (Roy Ward Baker, 1958, UK)
2. When Harry Met Sally… (Rob Reiner, 1989, USA)
3. This Is Not a Film (Mojtaba Mirtahmasb/Jafar Panahi, 2011, Iran)
4. The Raid (Gareth Evans, 2011, Indonesia/USA)
5. Tales of the Night (Michel Ocelot, 2011, France)
6. The Muppets (James Bobin, 2011, USA)
7. This Must Be the Place (Paolo Sorrentino, 2011, Italy/France/Ireland)
8. Your Sister’s Sister (Lynn Shelton, 2011, USA)
9. Carnage (Roman Polanski, 2011, France/Germany/Poland/Spain)
10. Play (Ruben Östlund, 2011, Sweden)

Best rewatches
Singin’ in the Rain (Stanley Donen/Gene Kelly, 1952, USA)
It Happened One Night (Frank Capra, 1934, USA)
Princess Mononoke (Hayao Miyazaki, 1997, Japan)
Deep End (Jerzy Skolimowski, 1970, UK/West Germany)

Worst
The Iron Lady (Phyllida Lloyd, 2011, UK/France)

GFF 2012: Jeff, Who Lives at Home (The Duplass Brothers, 2011)

The Duplass brothers’ fourth feature length effort opens with its protagonist Jeff (Jason Segel), wielding a voice recorder, discussing how rewarding he finds M. Night Shyamalan’s Signs. Heavily relating to that film’s themes of fate and purpose, Jeff also expresses admiration for how various seemingly superfluous elements in its narrative come together to provide a particularly potent conclusion. Jeff, Who Lives at Home has something of a similar narrative structure to the way its lead describes Signs, with fate and purpose being particularly prominent concerns, and various seemingly unrelated elements cumulating and crossing paths in the film’s finale. The result, however, is not quite so strong…

Full review at Sound on Sight

GFF 2012: This Must Be the Place (Paolo Sorrentino, 2011)

“Something’s wrong here. I don’t know exactly what it is, but something’s wrong here.” Repeated by its protagonist throughout This Must Be the Place, the line captures the baffling quality of Paolo Sorrentino’s English language debut. An erratic merging of different forms and tones, it is a difficult film to describe and one even harder to discuss in regards to why much of it succeeds. It is certainly schizophrenic conceptually and stylistically, but it also never feels disjointed or packed with too many strands.

Sean Penn plays a wealthy former rock star of around 50 years of age, Cheyenne, bored and jaded while in long-implemented retirement in Dublin. Perpetually slathered in the make-up and attire of his goth rock career, as well as frequently wielding cat eye glasses and a shopping trolley, Cheyenne visually resembles a curious blend of Penn’s own inescapable looks, The Cure’s Robert Smith and a grandmother; his camp vocal intonations alternately bring to mind Truman Capote, canine cartoon star Droopy and a John Waters character. Residing in a palatial estate with his fire-fighter wife and emotional anchor Jane (Frances McDormand), the disconnected Cheyenne spends much of his time investing in stock shares and attempting matchmaking with a young Irish girl he has a tenuous connection to (Bono’s daughter, Eve Hewson). Upon hearing that his estranged father is dying, he makes the journey to New York in an attempt at reconciliation, only to find he has missed his chance. Never really knowing his father, Cheyenne discovers the extent of the man’s experience in Auschwitz at the hands of a particular SS officer, and with some guidance from a Nazi hunter (Judd Hirsch), sets off on a journey across the United States in order to track down the former officer, who had since moved to the country and may still be alive…

Full review at Sound on Sight

GFF 2012: Your Sister’s Sister (Lynn Shelton, 2011)

Lynn Shelton’s follow-up to her “mumblecore” hit Humpday retains frequent collaborator Mark Duplass and a focus on the dynamic between a small group of people, the trio of Your Sister’s Sister being Iris (Emily Blunt), Jack (Duplass), and Hannah (Rosemarie DeWitt). Humpday’s character exploration was the heart of a quite high concept premise: two straight male friends decide to make a porn film together for an art project, testing their boundaries. Your Sister’s Sister’s storyline is not so easily definable, but does eventually reveal some similarly extravagant, outlandish developments. A thankful avoidance of any sitcom-like tendencies is achieved through not relying on the farcical narrative developments themselves, the film being bolstered by grounded, engaging characters that are very enjoyable to spend time with…

Full review at Sound on Sight

GFF 2012: Play (Ruben Östlund, 2011)

Play is a frequently harrowing and thoughtful film about manipulation, bullying, identity, race and customs. Primarily rooted in uncomfortable ambiguity, it is based on a series of real cases of bullying and robbery that occurred in Gothenburg, Sweden a few years ago. Set against the inner city backdrop of that city, the main narrative details an elaborate scheme known as the “little brother number”. Involving elaborate role-play and rhetoric rather than threats of pure brute force, the con of a gang of youths, like the film itself, is reliant on subtle, implied menace…

Full review at Sound on Sight

GFF 2012: The Loves of Pharaoh (Ernst Lubitsch, 1922)

Ernst Lubitsch is best known for his work in Hollywood, operating as a master of comedies until his death in 1947. He left behind a legacy of films that includes the much beloved likes of The Shop Around the Corner, To Be or Not to Be, Cluny Brown, Ninotchka, Heaven Can Wait, and Trouble in Paradise. Prior to making the transition to American filmmaking, Lubitsch operated in his native Germany. He enjoyed a great deal of international success, though some of this was for large-scale productions and dramas that would not be a prominent feature of his Hollywood career. One of these films was The Loves of Pharaoh, or Das Weib des Pharao, a historical epic rivaling Metropolis in terms of ambitious German silent cinema, and Lubitsch’s last film made in the country. Incomplete prints of the film have existed for years, but the recent restoration now available is as close as preservationists have yet come to piecing together the full product…

Full review at Sound on Sight

The Muppets (James Bobin, 2011)

James Bobin’s reboot of The Muppets provides another contribution to the trend of 2011 films rooted in nostalgia for cultural staples of the past, alongside the likes of Hugo, The Artist and Midnight in Paris. Opening with outright adoration for the original The Muppet Show, this new outing for Jim Henson’s puppet creations features an array of elements from their televisual and cinematic offerings of the past. 1984’s The Muppets Take Manhattan contained a very similar plot strand involving the group reuniting to put on a big show, while the much beloved song “Rainbow Connection” from 1979’s The Muppet Movie makes an appearance here. That latter film’s self-reflexive postmodern comedy based around breaking the fourth wall, as well as its road movie leanings and cameo based comedy, are prominent features of Bobin’s film, which is written by Nicholas Stoller and the film’s human lead Jason Segel…

Full review at Reel Time