January 11, 2015

Anything Can Happen In The Woods…

By Carrie

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Into The Woods, 2014

Before I write my review I must confess – whilst I am a huge Steven Sondheim fan and have loved this musical since I first heard Bernadette Peters sing Children Will Listen (and had the original broadway cast recording playing in my car for a looooong time) – I have never had the privilege of seeing it performed live. I had no preconceived notions of what to expect, other than the music. However, given the casting choices of relatively popular/well known actors in the lead roles, rather than actors from the musical theatre community, I went in with fairly low expectations.

I have to say straight up, I thoroughly enjoyed this film. I was pleasantly surprised by the majority of the cast – Meryl Streep‘s voice has improved a great deal since I first heard her sing in Mamma Mia, and her Witch was a good blend of tortured and psychotic; Emily Blunt was a delightful surprise as the Baker’s Wife, both her singing and facial expressions; having loved James Corden in Doctor Who, I had no idea what to expect here either and I wasn’t disappointed with him as The Baker, he and Blunt worked very well together; Johnny Depp, whilst not having the greatest voice in the world, was delightfully creepy as The Wolf; and the most pleasant surprise of all was Chris Pine as Cinderella’s Prince. Again Pine’s singing isn’t the greatest, but the way he plays the prince is perfect (in some scenes almost seeming to channel William Shatner), his and Billy Magnusson‘s performance of Agony was hilarious. Whilst I wasn’t surprised by Anna Kendrick‘s performance (having seen her in singing roles before), I did enjoy her Cinderella. The children who play Jack (Daniel Huttlestone – Les Misérables) and Little Red Riding Hood (Lilla Crawford) also gave very strong performances.

Director Rob Marshall seemed to keep special effects to a relative minimum (given what can be done on film these days), keeping it much like a stage production – a great decision in my view. Costuming was also beautiful, as was the use of Sondheim’s typically discordant score. Marshall was an interesting choice for director – whilst he is not a particularly prolific director, four of the eight features he has directed have been film adaptations of musicals (Annie, Chicago & Nine), which met with varied success.

Whilst I did thoroughly enjoy Into The Woods, there were some disappointments. The major disappointment, as is almost always the case with musical theatre adaptations, was cuts to the original score. As is common to many of Sondheim’s musicals, the main themes of this musical are the complexities of relationships and the human condition, as well as the everlasting struggle of good versus evil and right versus wrong. As the majority of cuts seemed to be in Act 2, some of the depth and profundity of this musical seemed to be lost. But for me, the biggest loss was the cutting of the Agony Reprise – especially given the fantastic audience response to Chris Pine and Billy Magnusson’s performance.

If you don’t enjoy the spontaneous singing of musical theatre or the somewhat unconventional harmonies of Sondheim’s scores, I wouldn’t recommend this film. Otherwise, suspend your disbelief and go for it!

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , | posted in 2010's, Drama, Fantasy, Musical Theatre, Nostalgia

June 19, 2014

Anybody Want A Peanut?

By Carrie

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The Princess Bride, 1987

Did I watch the State of Origin (massive aussie sporting event) on telly last night? Nope I chose to relive my youth, and watch one of my all time favorite movies…

Count Rugen: And remember, this is for posterity so be honest. How do you feel?
Westley: Mmm hmm hmm hmmmm
Count Rugen: Interesting.

The Princess Bride is one of the ultimate childhood favorites for many of us who grew up in the 80s, and has become a family favorite for the generations since.  So what is it about this film that makes it so appealing?  Is it purely nostalgia on the part of those who saw it as children or is there more to it?  I thought I might re-watch it trying to take it in with fresh eyes – a difficult task for me, given I hold anyone who can quote it in high regard! So here we go…

Despite being a film about love, family and fighting for what you believe in, this film never takes itself too seriously. It is deliberately camp and cliché – even the sets look like they’re straight out of a fairytale picture book.  In this story within a story based on the book by William Goldman, we are told exactly what to expect through The Grandfather‘s introduction – ‘fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, miracles!’ – and it doesn’t disappoint.  It has all that plus an amazing cast – Cary Elwes, Robin Wright, Chris Sarandon, Wallace Shawn, Mandy Patinkin and André the Giant just to name a few.

The Princess Bride boasts a script that is arguably one of the most quotable scripts of all time.  It somehow manages to be witty and deliberately trite at the same time – complete with cliché romance and villainy, the delightfully over complicated but witty speeches by Vizzini, the wit/charm/arrogance of Westley and the ever memorable rhyming battles between Inigo and Fezzik – full of puns and tongue-in-cheek humour.  Certain characters have repeated words or phrases making them more quotable and endearing, or irritating as the case may be.  ‘As you wish’, ‘Inconceivable!’ (‘You keep using this word. I do not think it means what you think it means’), ‘to the pain’, and the most famous – ‘Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die’.

This film also illustrates the importance of passing stories along to children, even though they may resist – ‘Is this a kissing book?’.  As the grandson is drawn in to the story so is the audience. We learn life lessons together, “Who says life is fair? Where is that written? Life isn’t always fair.” This fairytale isn’t as straight forward as most, which makes it even more special and likable.

The Princess Bride also makes use of musical themes – common to films of the 80s and something that too many films lack today. The music combined with the performances of the likes of Mandy Patinkin make for some magical moments (Inigo and Fezzik’s search for the man in black).  It also has beautifully choreographed fight scenes, especially Inigo’s last fight (one of the most memorable scenes in the film) which is not only well choreographed and performed but also builds perfectly with the music.

While none of the special effects or sets are particularly spectacular, they generally stand the test of time.  The main exception being the Rodents Of Unusual Size (ROUS’s) which look like people on all fours in rat suits – interesting fact: they actually were people on all fours in rat suits.

Somehow, despite the gumbyness/campness, the romance is believable, the villains are dastardly, and this somewhat backwards fairytale has you barracking for the heros, just as the grandson does.

There are some fabulous minor roles, such as Billy Crystal as the hilarious Miracle Max, Fred Savage as the Grandson, Peter Falk as the Grandfather, and Christopher Guest as the evil villain Count Rugen.

The nostalgia connected with this film is inescapable – I’ve seen the movie so many times that I can remember where the adds came on our betamax copy that we taped from TV – although I was always somewhat perturbed by the somewhat negative reference to Australia. I see references everywhere – while watching Game of Thrones and the battle between Oberyn Martell and The Mountain – Oberyn was definitely channelling Inigo – and in the season finale there was a moment when The Hound really could have shouted ‘as you wish’. It’s been referred to in films (I Love You, Man), Adam Hills dedicated an entire episode of Adam Hills Tonight to it, and when he performs his live concerts, Mandy Patinkin will still occasionally finish the show with his most famous line.

Whilst there is no denying the nostalgia attached to The Princess Bride, there is also no denying the brilliance of the script or the wonderful performances of the fabulous actors (and non-actors) involved. I still think it delivers on all of those promises The Grandfather makes in the opening scene. For me, this movie is ‘twoo wuv’.

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June 8, 2014

There and Back Again, Again…

By Carrie

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The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, 2013

Having been a big fan of the LotR series of films, and enjoying Peter Jackson‘s vision of Middle Earth (despite some somewhat irritating departures from the books). I had been quite keen to see the first installment of The Hobbit.  However, having been thoroughly underwhelmed by the first installment of this trilogy – An Unexpected Journey was unexpectedly clunky with average 3D and an overly convoluted storyline (I know, not my usual positive fare, but I’ve come to expect more from Peter Jackson) – I really wanted to enjoy this film.  The word from those around me was that it was marginally better than the first installment, but still not fantastic.  I lowered my expectations.  So last night, sick in bed with a sniffle, with a glass of red next to me, I settled in to watch The Desolation of Smaug.

Just to make it clear, I was watching it in 2D, not the intended 3D – the reason being firstly my experience of the first film, and secondly that my hubby is not a LotR fan, so I didn’t end up seeing it at the cinema.  I am generally not overly impressed by 3D anyway. I truly believe that a film should be able to stand on its own in 2D as well, and not totally rely on 3D to impress viewers – if for no other reason than some people can’t watch 3D as it makes them ill. I digress…

The first thing that struck me whilst watching this film is that Peter Jackson couldn’t resist a cameo in opening sequence.  The cameo has become a tradition for Jackson, although it’s usually later in the film. The second thing that struck me was the somewhat childlike/storybook/computer game CGI/animation. I wasn’t sure if this was because it was intended to be viewed in 3D or if it was a conscious decision given the book is often regarded as a children’s book. I don’t remember noticing this in the LotR films.

Once again, the true stars of this film are the sheer immensity of Tolkien’s imagination and the stunning New Zealand landscape.  I don’t think I’ll ever get over just how thoroughly and well conceived the world of Middle Earth actually is – complete with several languages and a long and complex history.

Although this is not what I would consider a brilliant film, it has some very beautiful, magical and even trippy moments.  I have to mention the horses at Beorn’s house.  They are only on screen for about a minute, but these are the most beautiful horses I have ever seen.  I also couldn’t help but think of The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy when the white mice made an appearance.

Special note for arachnophobes – when the dwarves enter Mirkwood you might want to fast forward for a bit.  The first scene in Mirkwood is delightfully trippy, until the giant spiders turn up. 

The connection between Tauriel (the beautiful Evangeline Lilly) and Kili (Aidan Turner), and their first conversation is one of those magical moments. However, Tolkien purists may object to the introduction of a new female character who doesn’t exist in the book at all – I think she’s a welcome addition in a very male dominated film franchise.  The barrel’o’dwarves escape from Mirkwood is another great sequence, and the first appearance of Laketown (Esgaroth) is surprisingly magical.

There are some stand out and somewhat surprising performances in this film.  I feel that without Martin Freeman (Sherlock, Fargo, The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy) this movie would really be missing something – and I think Freeman’s talents are underused.  I don’t know what it is about Lee Pace (The Fall, Pushing Daisies, A Single Man), but he always draws me in. Richard Armitage (Robin Hood, Captain America: The First Avenger) plays a fabulous Thorin, the hero-with-a-slightly-dark-side, and shares some great angry/smoldering looks with Bard – played by the very intense Luke Evans (Fast & Furious 6, The Raven). Stephen Fry was also a pleasant surprise as the Master of Laketown.  And then there’s Benedict Cumberbatch…

If there’s one part of this film that had to succeed it was Smaug.  A massive, fire breathing, talking dragon made immortal, not just by being a dragon, but by a famous work of literary fiction – this has to be bloody fantastic right? Thankfully Smaug doesn’t disappoint. As far as the voice of the dragon is concerned Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock, Star Trek Into Darkness, War Horse) was such an inspired choice – it’s amazing how he oozes charisma just through his voice.  The last third of the film is by far the best thanks to the dragon sequences – The CGI/animation (Weta Workshop) is fantastic even without being in 3D (apparently if a single computer processor had been used, each scale would have taken a whole week to render).
The film ends at just the right point. Although I wasn’t overwhelmed by The Desolation of Smaug, I found myself keen to see how it concludes (even though I sort of know already), and how Peter Jackson interprets the final chapters of The Hobbit in The Battle of the Five Armies (set for release in December).

As a big kid watching a fun adventure film set in a fantasy world I’m very fond of, I enjoyed this film. If you’re not a fan of Middle Earth who can suspend their disbelief/maintain their childlike wonder for almost 3 hours (the credits alone feel like they go for half an hour!), this is probably not a movie for you.

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June 6, 2014

Do you know what a Fugazi is?

By Carrie

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The Wolf of Wall Street, 2013

Mark Hanna: “Nobody knows if a stock is going to go up, down, sideways or in circles. You know what a Fugazi is?”
Jordan Belfort: “Fugazi, it’s a fake.”
Mark Hanna: “Fugazi, Fugazi. It’s a wazy. It’s a woozie. It’s fairy dust.”

I had heard so many conflicting reviews of this movie that by the time I actually watched it last night, I had no expectations of what this film was going to be, which is really how I like to go into films.  The Wolf of Wall Street is like Wall Street, Mad Men and The Hangover combined and then on steroids (or crack to be more appropriate). It is a how-to manual on getting caught up in all the excesses of stock broking in the 80s and 90s – the money, the women, and the drugs.

It clearly shows that power and money are true corruptors – Belfort started out starry eyed and wanting to make money for both broker and client. How rapidly things changed when he saw an opportunity to make some big bucks.

If it wasn’t so obscene and disrespectful towards the clients, women and human beings in general, I’d recommend parts of WOWS for sales training in all kinds of industries, not just the financial sector – which is what Belfort ended up doing for a living after his ’empire’ collapsed. Belfort is clearly a born salesperson – he understands the basic principle of getting the customer to see value in what you’re trying to sell, and he does it whilst oozing charisma.

Some people have said that WOWS glorifies the behavior of brokers during these decades, but I don’t agree.  This movie clearly illustrates to me the debauched behavior, the consequences that some (not all – we have to have realism folks) faced, and why the GFC happened.  Martin Scorsese achieves this with a sense of humor – without the comic aspect you’d just want to cry at what awful human beings these characters are. I’m still not sure how they all functioned given just how many drugs were in their systems – but I guess if you’re taking uppers and downers it levels you out in a way – surely their cognitive function was compromised.

There are definitely some stand out performances in WOWS – Leonardo Dicaprio hits the mark yet again as Jordan Belfort.  He is charismatic, engaging and headstrong, making it easier to understand how he had so many people eating out of his hands. Jonah Hill is also surprising in this largely non-comic role as Belfort’s second in command, Donnie Azoff.  Margot Robbie is brilliant – her command of the Brooklyn accent is an achievement in itself.  She is a stunning, just plain hot young woman, but she is much more than a pretty face, playing Naomi Lapaglia with strength and confidence, absolutely shining in a role that can’t have been easy surrounded by such powerhouse actors.

Even the smaller, almost cameo roles are played brilliantly. Matthew McConaughey plays the off the wall inspiration for Belfort’s career, Mark Hanna. McConaughey is getting better and better, he is so much more than the pretty romantic lead that he was in his early career. Joanna Lumley plays Naomi’s Aunt Emma and one of Belfort’s partners in money-laundering crime. And star of The Artist, Jean Dujardin plays Belfort’s Swiss Banker with his unique brand of charm and charisma.

Overall, if you enjoy films/shows like Wall Street, Mad Men and The Hangover that fully display the obscene, debauched dark side of humanity but treat it with a bit of humor, you should enjoy this film. If you like your movies to leave you feeling good and seeing the bright side to humanity – I don’t think this film is for you.

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May 26, 2014

Philip Seymour Hoffman 1967 – 2014

By Carrie

MV5BMTQ0NTA1NTg3Ml5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzkxNzgxNw@@._V1_SY317_CR8,0,214,317_AL_The death of Philip Seymour Hoffman in February this year came as a huge shock for everyone. In a career spanning more than 20 years, Hoffman’s contribution to film is unmistakable and unforgettable. For many of us, the first time Hoffman really registered was in his Oscar winning role as Truman Capote in Capote. He was an actor who truly immersed himself in each character that he played, and one of few who could portray both like-able and despised characters with equal verve and believability. Whatever the first movie was that brought your attention to Hoffman, I feel as though I’m constantly coming across films that I’ve enjoyed in the past and remarking that ‘I never realised he was in this!’

Other than Capote, he was most well known for his supporting roles, just a small selection of which include:

Twister, 1996 – Hoffman plays the rather rough but totally lovable Dustin Davis in this fun action film, and it had a whole generation of kids wanting to become storm chasers.

Patch Adams, 1998 – This is one of my favorite of Hoffman’s roles – he plays sour stick-in-the-mud so well. If Patch practiced excessive happiness, then Hoffman’s Mitch practiced excessive taking-himself-too-seriously-ness. But even Mitch isn’t immune to Patch’s charms.

The Talented Mr Ripley, 1999 – Freddie Miles is the only character in this film that is smart enough to know not to trust Tom Ripley. Again, not an overly likable character, but he has you wishing people would just trust his instincts.

Charlie Wilson’s War, 2007 – Gust Avrakotos is a maverick CIA agent who helps Charlie Wilson recognize the plight of the Afghan people. Together they use somewhat unconventional methods to help Afghanistan defeat the Soviet Union.

Doubt, 2008 – This film is brilliant and disturbing – Hoffman plays a charismatic priest who wants to shake things up a bit at St Nicholas in the Bronx. Meryl Streep plays Sister Aloysious Beauvier who is very resistant to change – she will stop at nothing to keep things the same. This film leaves you in doubt even after it’s conclusion.

Mary & Max, 2009 – Hoffman provides fantastic voice work for this touching claymation about an unlikely friendship between an eight year old Melbourne girl named Mary and a 44 year old New Yorker with Aspergers named Max.

The Boat That Rocked (Pirate Radio), 2009 – Almost every Richard Curtis film has ‘the American’ – Four Weddings and a Funeral has Andie MacDowell, Notting Hill has Julia Roberts, and Love Actually has Laura Linney. Hoffman fills the role of ‘the American’ in this one, and he fills it well. This is one of my favorites – fabulous cast, fun story, and unbeatable soundtrack.

The Ides of March, 2011 – An intriguing political drama in which Hoffman plays the senior campaign manager for Governor Mike Morris (George Clooney).

 

The film industry has lost one of its brightest stars, in my opinion. Not a star for the sake of being a star, or famous for being famous – he was a genuine and charismatic talent who’s been lost far too soon.

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May 25, 2014

To Horrify or Not to Horrify That is the Question…

By Carrie

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The Rite, 2011

Another exorcism film based on real events (is it just me or are there a troubling number of these?!) directed by Mikael Håfström.

I was mostly drawn to this film because I have a bit of a crush on Colin O’Donoghue (Captain Hook/Killian Jones in Once Upon a Time) and I’m generally a fan of Anthony Hopkins.  While it wasn’t entirely what I was expecting, it was a somewhat intriguing and entertaining film.

Colin O’Donoghue plays Michael Kovak, the son of an undertaker (Rutger Hauer).  It doesn’t bode well for him that Michael has one of two career choices ahead of him – undertaker or priest. He chooses what he considers to be the lesser of two evils – becoming a priest. After 4 Years of training as a priest, Michael is thinking of quitting, but Father Matthew (Toby Jones) recognizes his potential and encourages him to travel to Italy to do a course in exorcism.

A keen student of psychology, Michael is clearly sceptical about demonic possession and isn’t overly secure in his faith in general. He is running away from his past into a future that he’s not so sure about either.

Michael is not convinced of the presence of demons and deep down thinks that believing in them gives ‘them’ (the victim’s psychosis) power.  However, he is introduced to an experienced exorcist by the name of Father Lucas Trevent who proceeds to show Michael how exorcisms are performed.  Hopkins plays the wonderfully tormented ‘less conventional’ priest Father Lucas, and Ciarán Hinds is suitably severe as the ‘exorcist trainer’ Father Xavier. 

I must admit I watched this film expecting to be scared in the usual exorcism horror movie way.  This film is less a horror film and more a film about a young man rediscovering his faith and it just happens to involve some very clichéd possessed people and exorcisms.  As a non – religious person I enjoyed Michael’s skepticism even in the face of things that looked clearly supernatural to the audience.  He manages to explain almost everything that happens using psychology. He is skeptical to the point that even I was thinking “Come on! It’s clear she’s possessed, just deal with it!”.  However, I was also a bit disappointed by how quickly and drastically his views changed.

Overall I enjoyed the film as more of a study in human nature and what motivates our decisions, than as a genuine horror movie. Don’t expect big scares in this one.

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , | posted in 2010's, Drama, Exorcism, Horror

August 21, 2013

A Place of Perfect Bliss or One of the Seven Levels of Hell?

By Carrie

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Elysium, 2013

*Warning* – slight political rant ahead…

All I knew about Elysium upon walking into the cinema was that it was written and directed by the same director as the alien ‘apartheid’ film District 9 – South African born Neill Blomkamp – and stars Matt Damon. I hadn’t read or heard many reviews or seen many previews for it – but that was enough for me to get out and see it, even whilst trying to fight off a head cold. I have no regrets at all.

The film is a terrifying and beautiful depiction of the best and worst aspects of human nature, and where we could end up if we don’t learn from our mistakes quick smart.

Kick your imagination into gear for a moment – no matter how over or underused it is. Imagine, if you will, that you have nothing but the clothes on your back. The single room ramshackle hut that you live in is built from whatever materials you can find, and has minimal amenities or basic conveniences such as water, electricity or plumbing.

Try to imagine a place where no matter how hard you work, no matter what you do, you will never achieve a better quality of life. You will live in that hut, and possibly suffer from various illnesses or disabilities that cause serious pain, discomfort or eventual death. You are surrounded by brutality, violence and an utter disrespect for human life.

Now imagine that you’ve heard of a place where all of your illnesses could be cured easily, where people live in large comfortable homes with lawns and swimming pools and landscaping. Where all your fears of violence, famine, sickness and death would be a thing of the past. What would you do? What would you give to get to that place? Would you save up every cent you earn, give it to some dodgy looking guy with an equally dodgy looking ship, so that you could get your family to that place, where they might – just might – have a chance at a better, happier and possibly longer life? Answer honestly now…

If I stopped the description there, it could be describing the existence of countless people in war torn and famine ravaged countries in the world right now. However, in this film…

This is the position that the citizens of Earth in the year 2154 find themselves – the Earth is diseased and polluted beyond recognition and the wealthy have deserted the planet for an idyllic space station in the sky. A space station called Elysium (from Greek mythology meaning ‘any place or state of perfect happiness; paradise’) where they can keep their perfect way of life close and the filthy diseased, poor at more than an arms length. On Elysium they have med-bays that can cure anything from broken bones to leukemia to reconstructing a grenade damaged face. There is no sign of poverty, unhappiness or disease. There is, however, an undercurrent of unpleasantness brought about by Minister Delacourt played by Jodie Foster, a staunch anti-immigration politician who will go to appalling lengths to ‘stop the boats’.

To me, as an Australian suffering in the intellectual void that is Australian politics at the moment, this really hit close to home. For those readers who are not Australian, or who may have been living under a rock, asylum seekers/refugees/boat people have been a hot issue during the current election campaign. If you are undecided about the issue, or if you have difficulty understanding why a person might risk their lives and the lives of their family by getting on a leaky boat only to end up dead or if they’re ‘lucky’ in a detention centre on Christmas Island – I would recommend seeing this film. It’s a slightly more extreme situation, but effective nonetheless.

Even bigger than the refugee issue is that of the future of this planet that we call home. It seems to me that Neill Blomkamp has a very clear vision for where the world is headed if we don’t change our ways very soon, and it isn’t pretty. Abandoning the planet because we’ve made a mess of it is not an option folks – we need to seize the best side of our humanity with both hands, and pull together as the Human race, rather than fighting amongst ourselves and destroying our own future.

I really enjoyed this film, it is visually stunning – both the scenes on Earth and Elysium – and the performances from all the cast are excellent, especially the ‘villains’ who are wonderfully chilling in their disregard for the lives of the poor – special mention to Sharlto Copley who plays an absolutely insane assassin/mercenary to perfection. However, it does miss some potential opportunities for more depth to the story line. I would have liked to see more detail of the lives of the citizens living on Elysium – but the lack of information does seem to add to the mysterious, illusive, and unattainable nature of the paradise that is the space station. A bit more character development wouldn’t have gone astray either – however there are time restrictions. Not every director wants to make the audience sit through 3-4 hours of sometimes unnecessary detail. A quick note for those reviewers who whine about not seeing much of Elysium itself or its people, do you think it’s possible you may have missed the fact that Bomkamp was possibly keeping it at a distance to help the audience develop empathy for those remaining on Earth, rather than encouraging the audience to covet life on a pretty space station? Just a thought.

If you enjoyed District 9, chances are you’ll like this film. It’s a dark and bleak vision for the future, but it’s hopeful as well.

2 Comments   |  tags: , , | posted in 2010's, Action, Drama, Future, Sci-Fi

July 24, 2013

Finally the Return to Old-school Horror!

By Carrie

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The Conjuring, 2013

*Warning* – if you’re not a fan of horror, if you don’t love to be bat-shit scared, DO NOT see this film.

Finally a decent return to the real horror genre. With tastes from classics like The Exorcist and Amityville Horror, this film will scare the pants off you!

As with most of the best horror classics, The Conjuring is set in the 1970s when exorcisms seemed to be slightly more commonplace (?) and houses in Connecticut were über isolated and surrounded by woods (oh hang on they still are!). The story centers around two families, the Warrens and the Perrons. The Warrens are a couple of demonologists with a young daughter, who spend their time investigating paranormal/unusual phenomena and occasionally assist with exorcisms. The Perrons are a family of seven (5 daughters) who have just moved to their new home in a beautiful wooded area in Connecticut – beautiful, isolated and haunted.

Again, as with most great horror films, this one opens with the simple newsprint type pre-amble telling us about the Warrens, and that this is based on true events that were so terrifying that they’ve been kept secret for many years.

This film is brilliant for several reasons – including the scares, the casting, and the filming/editing. The scares are what separates this movie from the basic “scary movie” and brings it into the horror genre. There isn’t any over reliance on CGI , they simply rely on your fear of things that go bump in the night, that something behind the door, or under the bed. They begin subtly, and for the connoisseur of the genre, just when you think you know there’ll be a scare, there’s that false sense of security, and then BAM they hit you when you weren’t expecting it. As always, the sound track is integral to the success of horror.

Patrick Wilson plays Ed Warren, the only non-priest demonologist to be recognised by the Catholic church. Wilson plays a character who could come across as tortured with great strength. Vera Farmiga plays Lorraine Warren, the talented clairvoyant wife of Ed and an important part of their team. Farmiga is stunning as always with a gentleness and tenderness yet a strength to her character. The Perrons – especially Lili Taylor as Carolyn Perron – were perfect. Even the skeptical cop was just right.

The filming/editing make a massive difference to how a movie can come across. The use of unusual camera angles during particular scenes allowed the audience to empathize more that usual with the feelings of fear and disorientation that the characters were experiencing.

I was expecting to be scared by this movie, I enjoy being scared by horror movies – I was not disappointed. Take a friend or loved one along to see this movie, you’ll need someone to cling on to!

1 Comment   |  tags: , | posted in 2010's, Drama, Horror

June 24, 2013

Yippee Ki-Yay Mother F**ker

By Carrie

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A Good Day to Die Hard, 2013
Let me start by saying that I am a huge fan of the Die Hard franchise. I feel that they have the ultimate action film blend of down-trodden hero, dastardly villain, unlikely sidekick, and awesome (albeit unlikely) action sequences. The truly dark motives of the villain would threaten to drown out the film if it wasn’t for the perfectly timed and sometimes unexpected (although no longer) comic moments. These comic moments are delivered by both villain and hero at times, but are especially superbly delivered by the often underrated Bruce Willis.

The two Die Hard films that really stand out for me, in terms of the winning formula, are Die Hard and Die Hard: With A Vengeance (the first and third installments). Interestingly these two were both directed by John McTiernan (Predator, Last Action Hero, The Hunt For Red October). Although Die Hard 4.0 (also known as Live Free or Die Hard) wasn’t directed by McTiernan, he produced and it still had an awesome villain in Timothy Olyphant, and brilliantly funny sidekick Justin Long.

This most recent installment was neither directed or produced by McTiernan, which doesn’t bode well in terms of adhering to the beloved formula. However…

As a stand alone it makes for a good action film. It has all the big budget, high adrenaline action sequences that we have come to expect from these films. Car chases (mostly involving Mercedes interestingly enough…), explosions, helicopter crashes, Chernobyl (don’t ask), it has them all.

If you were expecting our usual John McClane misadventure, unfortunately this film misses a few key targets. It seriously lacks in the comic department, the first funny moment is more than half way through. It opens feeling very maudlin and bitter, and that feeling doesn’t really lift throughout. The entire first half feels like one long opening sequence, and who the villain is and their motivation is rather more muddled than it should be for a Die Hard movie. I get the feeling that Willis still has what it takes in terms of comic timing and that he was seriously underused. It was great to see Australian Jai Courtney playing McClane’s son, but again I think his skills were also underused.

Overall this was a fun action film full of explosions and gun fights. But for the die hard Die Hard fan, it didn’t quite hit all the right notes. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be off making fists with my toes…

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June 20, 2013

28 Days Later & 28 Weeks Later

By Carrie

Well here I am, sick in bed. What could be more appropriate than snuggling up with a couple of horror movies that I haven’t watched in a while…

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28 Days Later, 2002
This is a very eerie and unusual film in the zombie movie category, far from what has become the typical Hollywood approach to the genre. Despite the violence of the opening scenes, the rest of the film is uncharacteristically non-violent. This gives what violence there is much more intensity and shock value – a fact often seemingly forgotten by film makers. It also features very little in the way of a sound track, and what little there is ads to the lonely, helpless feeling of those alone in a world full of ‘infecteds’.

There is, of course, the obligatory frolic in the supermarket which you will find in a lot of zombie movies – tapping in to our desire to go on an unlimited shopping spree with very few consequences.

It is the behavior of the uninfected people that is most disturbing. What a bunch of soldiers will do when left with no hope and nothing but rank and orders to hold them together, instead of friendship, family, and free will.

Directed by Danny Boyle (The Beach, Trainspotting) and starring Cillian Murphy in his break-out role (Batman Begins, Inception), as well as Naomie Harris (gorgeous in Skyfall and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest), a nasty Christopher Eccleston (Doctor Who, Elizabeth), and lovable Brendan Gleeson (In Bruges, Braveheart).

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28 Weeks Later, 2007
Now this is a completely different film. This is an example of what happens when Hollywood gets their hands on a low budget horror film and make a sequel – and it’s not a terrible example, just very different from the original. They clearly have a higher budget, and are going for a very different audience. The violence is far more extreme and constant, and the soundtrack is far louder.

We find ourselves in post-infection England. ‘Infecteds’ have died of starvation and the survivors are being reunited and rehoused with their families. However, to use a much beloved Jurassic Park quote – Life will find a way – or in this case the rage virus will.

The violence is far more gratuitous, thus losing a lot of the shock value. It is much more typical of the modern Hollywood zombie slash-fest (think Resident Evil). But the action is decent, even if the storyline has some flaws. As an aside, I love the reference to FUBAR (f**ked up beyond all recognition) which is an acronym dating back to WWII.

Stars Jeremy Renner, a year before his big break in The Hurt Locker, Aussie Rose Byrne (Damages, Troy), Robert Carlyle (The Full Monty, Trainspotting) and Harold Perrineau (Romeo + Juliet, Lost)

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