ZGeek - Movies

Law Abiding Citizen

Haggisboy — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 00:37:57 GMT

There�s no two ways about it, Law Abiding Citizen is a stupid movie. That�s not to say it isn�t entertaining, which it is.

This is the classic case of a film constructed on an implausible premise, making use of ridiculous leaps of faith, to tell a story that is jam packed with popcorn munching entertainment.

I know it sounds conflicted, but if you can buy into premises that the dead can walk or an alien from the planet Krypton can fly and be Earth�s savior, then turning off the brain�s logic switch won�t be a titanic effort to enjoy a movie that delivers such a fun ride. This isn�t to say that Kurt Wimmer�s screenplay doesn�t try to provide a plausible explanation for what transpires, but that it�s a stretch by any leap of the imagination.

The movie tells the story of Clyde Shelton (Butler), a mysterious Philadelphia electronics hobbyist whose life is suddenly torn asunder when his home is invaded by two thieves who murder his wife and young daughter.

Enter Nick Rice (Foxx), a career-minded prosecuting attorney more concerned with blemishes to his conviction rate than actual justice. Fearing acquittal, Rice works out a plea bargaining deal which sees one of the two robbers do minimal prison time, and the other sentenced to death row. Only problem is it�s the thief who did the killing who gets off lightly. Thus is laid the foundation for Shelton�s epic quest for revenge, not merely targeting the killers, but the entire justice system which he sees as corrupt.

Director F. Gary Gray (2003�s The Italian Job) does a yeoman job ensuring there�s a good mix of action and story, and the performance of all involved is capable and adequate. My only reservation rests on the decision to make Gerard Butler speak with an American accent, which makes the Scottish actor at times appear as though he�s got a mouth full of marbles.

If you like things �blowed up real good� and have no trouble with plot devices that stretch credibility, you�ll find Law Abiding Citizen a fun ride. I did.

Directed by F. Gary Gray

Written by: Kurt Wimmer

Starring: Jamie Foxx, Gerard Butler, Colm Meaney, Bruce McGill, Leslie Bibb, Michael Irby

Official Site

Paranormal Activity

Haggisboy — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 02:02:18 GMT

By now you�ve probably been exposed to the hype surrounding Paranormal Activity, a low budget but critically lauded �mockumentary� horror film that chronicles the hauntings that plague a young American couple, and their attempts to capture the manifestations on video.

Instead of showing you key elements of the film, trailers have provided generous footage of audiences squirming in their seats and freaking out at the scares, all of which is true, yet deceiving.

Shot on the shoestring budget of $15,000 over the span of seven days by novice Director Oren Peli, the movie manages to alternate between predictable, boring, and creepy, with the latter being its only redeeming quality.

The story begins midstream, with couple Katie (Featherston) and Micah (Sloat) having been beset by periodic bouts of things that go bump in the night. It opens with Micah turning on a video camera he�s just purchased to try and capture the going�s-on on video. Think of Blair Witch meets suburbia and you�ll get the idea.

They mount the camera on a tripod in the bedroom and set it to night vision mode and let it record each night�s events for examination the next day.

It�s during these evening recordings that the spirit becomes most frisky. Unfortunately, this is also one of the film�s problems. In the interest of imparting a reality feel to the story, Peli devotes far too much screen time to the innocuous, boring and even irritating daytime banter between Katie and Micah, which is largely filler. We�re told early on by a psychic that the entity feeds off �negative energy�, which is inevitably followed by numerous scenes of the couple fighting as if Peli felt the scare factor would be upped by devoting 60 of the film�s 86 minute running time to domestic hell.

The redeeming factor is in the film�s night footage, which is far too short. Peli ably managed to give me goosebumps during the late night video segments, and a few when the couple were awakened as the hauntings were in full swing. While I�m compelled to admire his work in this area, its nothing that hasn�t been done before, often to greater effect, in such movies as 1973�s �The Legend of Hell House�, or 2000�s �The St. Francisville Experiment�, both of which contain more story and similar frights, without the lousy camera work and constant bickering, which in this case may leave you feeling more sympathetic towards Beelzebub than Katie and Micah.

Directed and written by: Oren Peli

Starring: Katie Featherston, Micah Sloat, Mark Fredrichs

Rating: USA: R, UK: 15

Official Site

Inglorious Basterds

Haggisboy — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 02:02:52 GMT

Hi, my name�s Quentin Tarantino. You may know me by my films, Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, Jackie Brown, Kill Bill I and II, and Grindhouse. Like you, I don�t give a shit about history, ok, I give a shit about coolness and badassness � is that even a word? It�s not? Ok, I just made it up because I�m Quentin Tarantino and you eat up my shit like a dog in a kennel without food.

You�re gonna love my latest flick, Inglorious Basterds, because I wrote it and you love my shit. It�s got Jews killing Nazis. Hitler, Goebbels and the gang being riddled with bullets, and scalping. Everybody loves a good scalping. As my main character Aldo Raine, played by the ultra cool Brad Pitt, loves to say, killing Nazis is good biddness, and biddness is booming. I wrote those lines, aren�t they cool?

Yeah sure, I�ve heard it from critics who think I�ve messed with history. Some of these cockmongers have even taken me to task because they lived through that shit and think they know what they�re talking about. For fuck�s sake, I�m Quentin Tarantino, do they think I care!

I couldn�t give a Royale with cheese filled dump that people remember history a certain way. I�m going to give them a version that�s more entertaining than a foot massage or Darryl Hanna in a nurse�s uniform.

You want dialogue? I�m going to give you so much that you�ll think I was being paid by the word and was struggling to pay off a high interest mortgage. In fact, I fired the script editor who thought it could be paired down. Pad that shit baby, pad it, that�s my motto.

It�s really great being a big time film director. People laugh at the scene from De Palma�s Scarface where Tony Montana is sitting behind a desk piled high with blow but they should see the shit that goes down in my trailer on the set. I swear Brian ripped me off and undersold me. I can easily afford twice that amount of coke, and don�t need a rocket launcher to protect it. I�ve got freakin� ninjas. So many, in fact, I wrote the two Kill Bill movies just to get the little nip buggers off my back and give them something to do.

So go see Inglorious Basterds, and don�t listen to those critics like that Haggis-whateverthefuck�shisname, and make up your own mind. In the meantime I promise that your hard earned money that you used to buy your ticket will be put to good use.

Ninja boys! Get me some more blow!

Directed and written by: Quentin Tarantino

Starring: Brad Pitt, Eli Roth, Christoph Waltz, M�lanie Laurent, Michael Fassbender, Diane Kruger, Martin Wuttke

Trick 'r Treat

Haggisboy — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 00:23:29 GMT

Just when it looked like the anthology movie was dead, along comes Director/Writer Michael Dougherty�s Trick �r Treat to not only breathe new life into this overlooked format, but also firmly establish itself as one of the best films to keep on the shelf and revisit each Halloween.

Selected to close out Montreal�s Fantasia film fest, Trick �r Treat spins five intertwined tales featuring an assortment of classic critters and creeps, with each interlocking story carrying its own �Twilight Zone�-type twist. The single constant throughout is Sam (Quinn Lord), a mysterious diminutive munchkin dressed in a pyjama jumper and sporting a burlap sack for a head with buttons for eyes, who appears briefly in each segment and takes center stage in the final story.

Borrowing a visual style from the classic EC horror comics, Dougherty deploys vintage on-screen graphic callouts like �Later� or �Meanwhile� to let the audience know which scenes are running in order, concurrently, or previously in the film�s timeline, which comes full circle at its conclusion, ending where it began.

With exquisite art direction by Tony Wohlgemuth and lush visuals by cinematographer Glenn MacPherson (2008�s Rambo, Final Destination) the segments tell the tales of a young wife who can�t wait to ditch the trappings of Halloween, even though the film�s mythology says it�s taboo to blow out a pumpkin before midnight; a sinister school principal and single dad with a nefarious agenda planned for trick-or-treaters; a young virgin nervously seeking her first time with her pack of girlfriends; a group of kids in quest of the truth behind a local urban legend; and an aging recluse with a tortured soul who finds his quiet Halloween night rudely interrupted by Sam.

Dougherty, whose last major credit was as co-screenwriter of Superman Returns, invokes a spirit of childhood fun borne from hours spent burrowing through editions of EC Comics, Warren Publishing�s Eerie and Creepy, and DC�s House of Mystery to create a fun, rollicking ride that is rare in movies today.

After languishing on the shelf for close to two years, the film has finally been given a DVD release. Take it to the bank, Trick �r Treat is virtually an instant classic of the genre, even if its only audience ends up being those that are eagle-eyed enough to spot it in the DVD racks.

Directed and written by: Michael Dougherty

Starring: Anna Paquin, Brian Cox, Quinn Lord, Dylan Baker, Tahmoh Penikett, Leslie Bibb

Trailer:

Click image to play video

Move
Close

Official Site

Orphan

Haggisboy — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 00:03:00 GMT

Every once in a while a film seems destined to slip under the radar either by poor promotion or a trailer that makes the viewer go �meh�. Orphan is one of those flicks that, while benefiting from a decent studio push, simply didn�t impart any compelling reason to check it out based on the trailer, which is too bad because this is actually one tight little thriller.

Directed by Spain�s Jaume Collet-Serra (House of Wax), it tells the story of Esther (Isabelle Fuhrman), a 9-year old Russian orphan who is adopted by Kate and John Coleman (Vera Farmiga and Peter Sarsgaard), a decision motivated in part by the stillborn birth of their third child.

An oddball from the start, Esther at first charms the Colemans with her personality, artistic flair, and independence, however it�s apparent that there�s more going on with Esther than meets the eye. She quickly forms a bond with Max (Aryana Engineer), the couple�s deaf daughter, by learning sign language, but is resented by their son Daniel (Jimmy Bennett) who views her with contempt. All of which forms a basis for familial tension, further compounded by the skeletons of Kate�s history of alcoholism and John�s past infidelity.

Telling a surprisingly layered story that strays into uncomfortable territory given how it deals with children in peril, the shiniest gem in this entertaining nugget is that of Isabelle Fuhrman, upon whose performance the movie succeeds or fails. While acting is uniformly top notch throughout, Fuhrman spectacularly establishes herself as one of the most remarkable young talents currently working in cinema, and that�s a statement not to be taken lightly. This 12-year-old, who had only one prior film credit on her resume, simply blazes her way across the screen in a performance that ranges from sweet to seductive to psychotic. This is her movie and she makes the most of it, and if she doesn�t mature into one of Hollywood�s premier stars, I�ll be most surprised.

Orphan won�t win any awards (despite Fuhrman�s impressive performance) and might well get passed over by many based on the trailer, all of which is too bad because this is one stray that movie audiences would do well to adopt.

Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra

Written by: David Johnson (screenplay) Alex Mace (story)

Starring: Isabelle Fuhrman, Vera Farmiga, Peter Sarsgaard, Aryana Engineer, Jimmy Bennett, CCH Pounder, Margo Martindale

Australian Official Site

Vampire Girl vs Frankenstein Girl

Haggisboy — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 23:56:06 GMT

Like an outsider looking in, clearly there are aspects of Japanese cinema that elude me on both a cultural and artistic level. Classic examples are the recent spate of unrestrained, over-the-top, implausibly ultra violent grade B (or less) fare such as 2008�s Machine Girl and Tokyo Gore Police. Now comes the �imaginatively� titled Vampire Girl vs Frankenstein Girl, billed as an action/comedy/horror co-directed by Yoshihiro Nishimura, the twisted mind behind Tokyo Gore Police.

With a plot that can be charitably described as stream-of-consciousness, it left me feeling as if I�d just experimented with high octane hallucinogenic drugs. Screened at the 2009 edition of Montreal's Fantasia film festival, it tells the story of Monami (Yukie Kawamura), a pretty, centuries-old, perpetually teenage vampire who falls for heartthrob Mizushima (Takumi Saito). Conflict arises as the prissy Keiko (Eri Otoguro), daughter of the school�s vice-principal/science professor, has already claimed Mizushima as her steady, leading to the inevitable clash between the two, and a duel the mortal Keiko is doomed to loose.

Fortunately (or unfortunately) for Keiko, her father moonlights as a kabuki-clad mad scientist bent on trying to reanimate corpses, going so far as to kidnap and kill students, with the aid of the school�s nymphomaniac nurse, in order to try and bring them back to life. So when Keiko is killed during her initial confrontation with Monami, she becomes the latest candidate for her all too delighted father to revive, thus becoming Frankenstein Girl out for a second battle of revenge against Monami.

Co-directors Yoshihiro Nishimura and Naoyuki Tomomatsu spray the screen enema force with blood, gore and unbound preposterousness. They also resort to cringe-inducing parody that would likely embroil them in a hurricane of trouble had they made their film anywhere in the west as they take shots at the local ganguro subculture, which involves Japanese girls who use makeup to appear black. Just think of Al Jolsen in blackface and you�ll get the picture, however here parody takes the form of a clique of girls who wear absurd theatrical makeup to give themselves grossly stereotypical features such as huge lips, grotesquely wide noses, huge afros, nose bones, lip discs, Zulu spears and shields and the like. It�s enough to make the NAACP, Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton collectively go apoplectic.

Everything from dialogue, to action, through over-the-top gore (one scene involved a girl�s flesh being peeled away in a continuous string like the unraveling of a mummy) broaches the bizarre. And while I did catch myself chuckling once or twice at the absurdity of it all, those moments were eclipsed by the amount of times I found myself cringing at the offensive, generally saying �what the hell?�

There isn�t much coming out of Japan that surprises me anymore, at least not since I found out there are vending machines that sell soiled school girl panties, but Vampire Girl vs Frankenstein Girl successfully managed to make me exit the screening scratching my head and wondering just how much damage those two bombs the Americans dropped wrought.

Co-directed by: Yoshihiro Nishimura and Naoyuki Tomomatsu

Written by: Naoyuki Tomomatsu (screenplay) and Shungiku Uchida (original manga)

Starring: Yukie Kawamura, Eri Otoguro, Takumi Saito, Takashi Shimizu

Rating: Not yet rated

Official Site

Smash Cut - World Premiere

Haggisboy — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 00:35:32 GMT

For a porn actress seeking to cross over to the mainstream, taking a role in a B-(or less)-movie might seem like a heaven-sent opportunity, but if your name�s Sasha Grey (real name Marina Ann Hantzis), you might want to think twice about appearing in a Lee Demarbre flick.

For the uninitiated, Demarbre is a Canadian film maker whose credits include the cult film Jesus Christ Vampire Hunter, which was shot on a budget of $45,000.

His latest offering, Smash Cut, which made its world debut at Montreal's 2009 edition of the Fantasia Film Festival, is an equally low budget nod to schlock impresario Herschell Gordon Lewis (Two Thousand Maniacs, The Wizard of Gore). While such a film would seem like a natural opportunity for someone from the adult film realm to use as a segue into the mainstream, a later production � Steven Soderbergh's "The Girlfriend Experience" also starring Grey - was released well before Smash Cut, making this look like her second mass market role, when, in fact, the reverse is true. All of which is too bad for Grey, who is the only member of the cast who displays anything remotely approaching acting talent.

The story, such as it is, is thin, and one can suppose that Demarbre was merely looking for a vehicle for tongue-in-cheek humor and gore. A down on his luck director by the name of Able Whitman (played by veteran shock horror actor David Hess of original Last House on the Left fame), dismayed by the critical reception to his cheap films special effects, decides to use real human body parts to impart realism. His first victim turns out to be a relative of April Carson (Grey), a reporter for a local television station. With the backing of her station manager (H.G. Lewis) she sets out to infiltrate Whitman�s production by responding to a casting call.

None of this really matters, though, as the film�s true mission is to emulate the low budget schlock of Lewis� films, which it does admirably and is about the only critical compliment I can give this film.

Overall the story is poorly executed trash. In keeping with the Lewis factor, everyone involved with the exception of Grey seems to be trying to outdo each other on the bad acting scale. Lines appear to be not merely improved, but takes are used that show actors struggling on the fly to think them up.

Grey, whose acting is wildly uneven, is the only cast member who shows any potential of being able to believably take on a role, whether or not this was by choice or accident, given the atrocious performances turned in by the rest of the cast, is a matter for further debate.

What�s unfortunate, however, is that this movie will be released after Grey�s performance in Soderbergh�s �The Girlfriend Experience�, and look like a step down from a promising debut.

What�s not in question here is Grey�s acting ability, but the projects she chooses to appear in from here on in. Some of this may not be within her control, given her ongoing career in the adult realm, but choosing to appearing a mainstream film that has all the look, feel, and production values of a porn film (minus the sex) can hardly be taken as a wise career move.

Official Site

Directed by Lee Demarbre

Written by: Ian Driscoll

Starring: David Hess, Sasha Grey, Jesse Buck, Michael Berryman, Ray Sager, Meghanne Kessels, Guen Douglas

Director (with cast) discusses H.G. Lewis flicks:

Click image to play video

Move
Close

Sasha Grey talks gore @ Montreal's Fantasia film fest:

Click image to play video

Move
Close

Dread - World Premiere

Haggisboy — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 00:33:09 GMT

Based on the Clive Barker short story, Dread, which made its world premiere at the 2009 edition of Montreal�s Fantasia Film Festival, is remarkable on two fronts: Barker�s striking departure from his traditional macabre storylines, and Anthony DiBlasi�s impressive directorial debut.

The story unfolds with two college students, Steve (Twilight�s Jackson Rathbone) and Quaid (Shaun Evans), agreeing to work together to create a documentary of people�s innermost fears. The two put out a call for candidates and document their interviews on video.

An expert manipulator, Quaid is able to coax these troubled souls into revealing their innermost demons; deeply personal revelations they would otherwise never dream of discussing in public, much less on camera. Meanwhile Quaid harbors deep seated psychological scars of his own, having been a childhood survivor of the brutal home invasion axe slaying of his parents at the hands of a mysterious psycho.

Espousing the belief that by confronting one�s ultimate fear an individual will either overcome their phobia or be consumed by it, Quaid convinces the more demure Steve, and friends Cheryl and Abby to participate in the study. Unknown to everyone involved, however, is Quaid�s desire to take things to the next level, progressing beyond mere interviews to the actual physical and psychological nightmare of tackling their fears head on.

DiBlasi displays a remarkably talented hand at spinning a yarn that incorporates introspective, character-driven drama and some spectacularly jolting and emotionally moving sequences. While deviating out of necessity from the plot structure of Barker�s original story, which didn�t provide much �meat� for a feature length film, Barker equally deserves kudos for providing DiBlasi with a twisted tale that is firmly rooted in the real world, where human cruelty is infinitely more tangible and terrifying than anything the supernatural can invoke.

Led by Rathbone and Evans, the young cast turns in uniformly strong, nuanced and intensely emotional performances not typically found in this genre. Among the standouts is Hanne Steen, who plays Cheryl, a friend infatuated with Steve who bears the curse of a disfiguring skin pigmentation that covers a third of her face and body. Steen deftly manages to convey her character�s sensitivity and long held pain in a manner that the viewer can readily attune to, earmarking her as a future talent to watch.

As debuts go DiBlasi�s Dread is as solid, slick, engaging and thought provoking as it is terrifying, making this a must see, not merely for fans of the genre, but anyone with untold skeletons in their closet.

Directed by Anthony DiBlasi

Written by: Clive Barker (based on his short story) and Anthony DiBlasi

Starring: Jackson Rathbone, Shaun Evans, Hanne Steen, Laura Donnelly, Jonathan Readwin, Carl McCrystal

Promo Reel/Trailer @ Trailer Addict

Click image to play video

Move
Close

Director DiBlasi discusses the challenges of translating Barker's work to the big screen at Montreal's Fantasia 2009

Click image to play video

Move
Close

Dread Director DiBlasi answers questions about adapting other Clive Barker projects

Grace

Haggisboy — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 22:40:14 GMT

Screened at the 2009 edition of Montreal's Fantasia Film Festival and based on his critically lauded horror short of the same title, Grace sees Director/Screenwriter Paul Solet expand his nightmarish ode to motherhood to feature length with unfortunate results.

Evil babies aren�t new to the horror genre, but those quick to assume Grace is yet another knock off of 1974/2008�s �It�s Alive� would largely be wrong. Eli Roth prot�g� Solet valiantly tries to steer the story into nuanced territory that combines pathos with dark humor as he spins his yarn about a young couple desperate for a child only to find themselves beset by tragedy and circumstance. Jordan Ladd (the daughter of former Charlie�s Angel Cheryl Ladd) and Stephen Park play Madeline and Michael Matheson, a prototypical yuppie pair of granola crunchers who are nominal vegans, drink soy milk, scrupulously compost and generally pay lip service to being environmentally friendly.

They�re also desperate to start a family but have only been rewarded with broken hearts as two previous attempts ended in miscarriages. Like the old clich� goes, however, three�s a charm as Madeline�s third pregnancy sails smoothly through the most dangerous gestational periods and things look like their dreams will finally come true. That is until fate throws them another curveball forcing Madeline to make the emotionally crippling choice of aborting or bringing to term a stillborn infant.

There�s some interesting themes being explored here; more than you�d expect from the horror genre, and to his credit, Solet delivers several unexpected non-gratuitous hair-raising jolts along the way � sure signs of an up and coming talent. Unfortunately, he drops the ball by the third act, resorting far too often to the use of gratuitous quantities of blood (although the movie is surprisingly gore free) to the point where Madeline is perpetually doused with the stuff.

He also lets things slip by the way he scripted the character of Madeline�s intrusive, manipulating and obsessive mother-in-law (Gabrielle Rose), which never seems to work. As a foil, she�s needed to push the plot along, but instead brings to the story a disconcerting element akin to stumbling upon twisted Internet porn. While the mother-in-law character is the vehicle for the movie�s darkest humor, the squeamish ooh�s and ahh�s mixed in with the laughter during its Fantasia Festival screening confirmed my suspicions that, like myself, much of the audience found this an unnecessary and inappropriate portrayal of a motivationally needed character.

While Grace can be lauded for aiming high, it ultimately misses its mark quite low, slipping by film�s end to "It�s Alive" territory which is all too unfortunate, given the promise it initially held.

Directed and written by: Paul Solet

Starring: Jordan Ladd, Gabrielle Rose, Samantha Ferris, Malcolm Stewart, Stephen Park, Serge Houde, Kate Herriot

Moon

Haggisboy — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 04:10:31 GMT

While book racks are brimming with thought provoking, high concept science fiction, the movie genre tends to be populated by invading aliens, intergalactic wars, and adventure, which makes Director and co-writer Duncan Jones� Moon that much more of an oddity.

Not since Steven Soderbergh�s much overlooked 2002 rendition of Stanislaw Lem�s Solaris has a movie firmly rooted in the sci-fi realm delivered reflections on the human condition, which Moon does deftly.

It tells the story of Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell), the only inhabitant of an automated lunar mining base extracting Helium-3 from lunar rocks to be shipped back to Earth to fuel the energy starved planet.

Sam�s isolated three year posting is about to come to an end and he longs to return to Earth to see his wife. His only company throughout this sojourn has been that of Gerty, the base�s HAL-like robot voiced by Kevin Spacey. Unfortunately, the final weeks and days are proving to be the most difficult, and Sam finds himself going a bit squirrelly, leaving both he and the audience to wonder if what�s unfolding is actually happening, or merely a drama taking place in his addled mind.

That�s about as much plot detail as I�m going to deliver, for to delve any deeper into the story would give too much away. Be prepared, however, for a thought provoking narrative that touches on issues such as scientific ethics, corporate greed, human identity, and compassion.

There are no aliens, lasers/phasers, wormholes, warp engines or jump drives here, just a lonely space age concierge, an unflappable monotone robot, and a whole lot of fodder for your brain to chow down on.

This is what science fiction was meant to be.

Directed by Duncan Jones

Written by Duncan Jones and Nathan Parker

Starring: Sam Rockwell, Kevin Spacey

Official Site

Whatever Works

Haggisboy — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 23:41:52 GMT

If ever a movie could be described as an allegorical rendition of a director�s life, Whatever Works just might top the list.

Marking Woody Allen�s return to his native New York City after a four picture hiatus in Europe, the movie tells the story of Boris Yellnikoff, played by Larry David (Curb Your Enthusiasm), the only actor working in Hollywood today who most closely approximates Allen himself in look, mannerisms, and philosophical outlook. Afflicted by numerous neuroses, Boris has become the ultimate pessimist, seeing life as one long waterslide ride into an eventual cesspool. So bleak is his outlook that he becomes convinced that suicide is the only option, but even that cheap out fails him.

Fed up with the world, Boris turns his back on much that society has to offer, instead spending his days teaching chess to kids while publicly humiliating them at every opportunity. Yes, Boris isn�t a happy camper, and takes pride in it. The fact that he�s managed to maintain a core of four friends is a miracle in and of itself.

Then one day fate causes him to cross paths with Melodie St. Ann Celestine (played by the delightful Evan Rachel Wood), a country bumpkin runaway from the backwoods of Louisiana. She is Jethro Bodine to Yellnikoff�s Einstein. A complete intellectual and generational opposite. Love at first sight it isn�t, but given the axiom that opposites attract, Boris soon finds himself falling for the much younger siren (cue the Allen parallels).

While some critics have complained that much of the dialogue comes across as stilted and unnatural (which it does), Whatever Works unravels more like a stage play than real life, which, I think, is how Allen meant it. As writer and director, he has lots to say here and refuses to allow such trivialities as natural delivery stand in the way. This isn�t to say that the performances are wooden, but rather that nobody talks like Yelnikoff in real life, and I�m good with that. What�s important here are the ideas, constructs and situations that Allen infuses in his characters.

Interestingly, while much of the movie�s theme focuses on the serendipity of life, and thumbs its nose at the divine, the film can easily be viewed from both the atheistic and spiritual viewpoint, particularly given how events unfold in a seemingly manipulated manner.

While not Allen�s finest work, Whatever Works will appeal to those who enjoy a light romantic comedy, particularly one that provokes a few sparks from our grey matter, while delivering its laughs.

Directed and written by Woody Allen

Starring: Larry David, Evan Rachel Wood, Patricia Clarkson, Ed Begley Jr., Conleth Hill, Henry Cavill, Michael McKean

Official Site

Public Enemies

Haggisboy — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 01:04:21 GMT

Public Enemies reaffirms Michael Mann as one of the true auteur directors of this generation. Easily duking it out with 2004�s Collateral for second place in the Mann canon, it falls short of his 1992 masterpiece Last of the Mohicans, which I hold in regard as one of the five best movies ever made.

While Mohicans has left Mann with very large shoes to fill, Public Enemies sees Mann return to elements which worked to perfection in the earlier film, seemingly using it as a template to re-attain past glory.

Based on Bryan Burrough's non-fiction book �Public Enemies: America's Greatest Crime Wave and the Birth of the FBI, 1933�34�, it tells the depression-era tale of the virtual blood feud between FBI special agent Melvin Purvis (Bale) and John Dillinger (Depp), and to a lesser extent other gangsters like Baby Face Nelson (Graham), Pretty Boy Floyd (Tatum) and Alvin �Creepy� Karpis (Ribisi).

With the exception of Nelson, Mann relegates the others to little more than filler material to illustrate the world in which Dillinger moved. Capone henchman Frank Nitti (Camp) even makes a few appearances for good measure. None of this amounts to much as it�s the manhunt involving Purvis and Dillinger which takes center stage.

Facing mounting pressure by nascent FBI director and architect J. Edgar Hoover (Cudrup), Purvis, whose entire career is on the line, revolutionizes detective practices by calling upon the latest technological advancements (archaic by today�s standards) such as wiretaps, vinyl recordings of telephone conversations, early forensics and the like to track the nation�s criminal prey.

Depp�s Dillinger is portrayed as a principled gangster who eschews robbing the common man in favor of large banks, and restrains from excess violence, unlike fellow gangster Nelson who is portrayed as an unhinged psychopath.

Dillinger�s Achilles Heel in this story is former coat check girl Billie Frechette (Cotillard), his love who is exploited by the FBI in their quest to track the charismatic hood.

Under Mann�s guidance, Depp is allowed to bring his full range of talents to bear in his portrayal of Dillinger, alternately showing the character�s ruthlessness, gentlemanly, egalitarian, brazen and egotistical nature. It�s a tour-de-force by Depp that doesn�t for one second come across as an actor pulling out all the stops.

In keeping with the gold-standard artistic template Mann first established with Last of the Mohicans, he makes copious use of a hypnotic orchestral score by Elliot Goldenthal, which evokes strong similarities to the Randy Edelman and Trevor Jones opus that drove Mohicans. And, like many of Mann�s films, the film is populated by several extended sequences with little dialogue, copious violence, and entrancing orchestral music � all Mann trademarks, and all signs that you�re watching a movie created by a truly talented director who knows how to deliver the perfect cinematic blend between artistry and commercialism.

Directed by: Michael Mann

Written by: Ronan Bennett (screenplay) and Michael Mann (screenplay). Based on the book by Bryan Burrough

Starring: Johnny Depp, Christian Bale, Marion Cotillard, Jason Clarke, Stephen Dorff, Billy Crudup, Giovanni Ribisi, Bill Camp, Stephen Graham

Official Site

Eden Lake

Haggisboy — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 00:35:03 GMT

In 2006 the French directorial and writing duo of David Moreau and Xavier Palud delivered Ils ("Them in English). It told the story of a young French couple working in Romania who find themselves terrorized by a group of kids. Leaving aside a few minor details, Eden Lake follows essentially the same plot, with the setting transplanted to the British Midlands and the couple on a camping trip, as opposed to being attacked in their own home.

Whereas the similarities between the two movies are striking, with both delivering a bleak, nihilistic story that flips the bird to those in quest of satisfaction, Eden Lake, unlike Ils, proves ultimately dissatisfying on a profound scale. This isn�t to say the movie isn�t engrossing. In fact, it sucks the viewer in and holds you in its mesmerizing grip throughout. It�s just that whereas Ils held back on the identity of the mysterious group of attackers providing the viewer with a measure of revelation at the end that dampened and skewed the outcome, Eden Lake doesn�t cache any secrets, and even foreshadows several surprises.

The tale revolves around Jenny and Steve, a young couple out for a weekend of camping at a secluded lakeside spot Steve�s known about for years. When they get there, however, they find their tranquility disturbed by a group of chavs from the local town. Things quickly escalate to the point where the couple are hunted like animals by the teens.

There�s much to like about Eden Lake. The acting throughout is top notch, as are the production values, editing and pacing. In fact, if it weren�t for the similarities with the earlier French film, I�d probably rank this higher on the scale. Both movies tell a grim tale, yet the way the story unfolded in Ils made the ending easier to swallow. With Eden Lake you�ll find yourself wanting to drive a spike through the heads of numerous little bastards, but don�t hold your breath for that to happen.

Directed and written by: James Watkins

Starring: Kelly Reilly, Michael Fassbender, Jack O'Connell, Thomas Gill, James Gandhi, Thomas Turgoose, Jumayn Hunter, Finn Atkins, James Burrows

Official Site

Drag Me to Hell

Haggisboy — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 22:35:27 GMT

I admit it, I�ve got a soft spot for horror movies, and because of this I tend to be more forgiving than most when it comes to this much-maligned genre. Yet, in spite of all this, I can find nothing redeeming to recommend in Sam Rami�s Drag Me to Hell.

Garnering a stunning consensus of positive praise from both Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic websites, I have to wonder if perchance I was screened an alternate print from which all quality had been stripped?

To describe the plot as basic is being kind. Filled with claptrap and predictability (things are telegraphed to the audience so far in advance as to be insulting), it tells the story of Christine Brown (Alison Lohman), an insecure and somewhat timid loans officer at a bank. In an attempt to portray herself as worthy of a managerial promotion she�s in contention for, she snubs a request from an elderly gypsy woman (Lorna Raver) who�s seeking an extension on her mortgage payments. Denied, the woman places a curse on Brown in which an invisible demon known as a Lamia will torment her for three days before ultimately dragging her and her soul to Hell for eternal torment.

While much of the accolades for this film focus on Raimi�s return to the humor-infused approach he used in the latter two installments of his Evil Dead trilogy, Drag Me to Hell�s �humor� is largely of the gross-out variety. If your idea of funny is the sight of the old woman slopping out her disgusting goo-covered dentures, or puking green embalming fluid down Brown�s throat, then no doubt you�ll find this a laugh riot.

The problem is that while Raimi has learned to restrain himself over the years and become a commercially viable go-to choice for big, largely non-demanding Hollywood projects (Darkman, The Quick and the Dead, The Spiderman franchise), he hasn�t really broken through and elevated himself to auteur status. At his core he�s still a hack � albeit one with a love for comics, slapstick and parody � but a hack nonetheless. At a moment when Raimi should be stepping up and claiming the mantle of horror maestro, he�s instead regressed and churned out a product that is puerile, simplistic, and gratuitous. Still, if the positive reviews keep flowing his way (this one excepted), Raimi will no doubt follow things up with a sequel, likely titled Drag Me Laughing to the Bank.

Directed by: Sam Raimi

Written by: Sam Raimi & Ivan Raimi

Starring: Alison Lohman, Justin Long, Lorna Raver, Dileep Rao, David Paymer, Adriana Barraza, Reggie Lee

Official Site

Up

Haggisboy — Sat, 30 May 2009 23:40:05 GMT

Sadly, there aren�t enough superlatives in the English language with which to laud Up, the latest offering from the folks at Disney/Pixar. This is quite simply the best movie of any genre to emerge thus far this year. No small praise considering how I�ve long been adverse to �kids movies�, pegging them as being shallow, vapid, and simplistic - a personal preconception which Pixar mercifully shattered with 2004�s The Incredibles and 2008�s WALL-E, which proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that for all their acclaim as an animation studio, they are equally brilliant story tellers

Up tells the story of Carl Fredricksen (voiced by Ed Asner), who as a child meets Ellie, later to become the love of his life. Carl and Ellie find they share a common dream � to one day visit Paradise Falls, a mysterious tropical oasis in South America made famous in vintage newsreels chronicling the exploits of explorer/adventurer Charles Muntz (Christopher Plummer). Life, however, manages to get in the way as the two grow up, get married, experience the pain of miscarriage, and eventually grow old, so much so that father time catches up on Ellie, leaving Carl a widower. All of this is conveyed with little dialogue in a masterful sequence that had the audience, old and young alike, sniffling throughout.

If you�re thinking this isn�t the usual stuff you see in �kids movies� you�re right. But all credit is due to Pixar and the directorial and writing team of Pete Docter and Bob Peterson for realizing that children aren�t idiots, and can handle complex, often tragic stories, if conveyed in the proper manner. It�s a refreshing change from the over-protective mentality that once saw all hints of violence edited out of Warner Bros/Looney Tunes cartoons.

In Up, characters bleed, there�s implied murder, and it�s all counter-balanced with some of the most delightfully twisted humor that�s as inspired as anything the Zucker brothers ever came up with. The story literally had me careening from being misty-eyed to laughing heartily, frequently in the span of minutes.

Faced with forced relocation to a retirement home, Carl opts for one final gambit, to fly his house down to Paradise Falls with the aid of a multitude of helium-filled balloons affixed to the roof of his house. Along for the ride is Russell (Jordan Nagai), a Wilderness Scout seeking to add a merit badge to his collection. Eventually the duo are complimented by Dug (voiced by co-director and writer Bob Peterson) a dopey derelict dog equipped by the now aged Muntz with a translator collar that converts dog thoughts to English.

Like WALL-E, Up manages to imbue its characters with depth and humanity, while at the same time tell a story that is mature, delightful, and most of all, terrifically funny. In an era when Hollywood seems only capable of re-boots and do-overs, Up is not merely a refreshing stroke of original brilliance, it is likely the best movie you will see all year�. or until Pixar emerges with their next effort.

Directed by: Pete Docter & Bob Peterson

Written by: Bob Peterson

With the voices of: Edward Asner, Jordan Nagai, Christopher Plummer, Delroy Lindo, Bob Peterson, John Ratzenberger, Elie Docter

Official Site