Reel Review Roundup

The Grey (MA)

Directed by: Joe Carnahan

Starring: Liam Neeson, Dermot Mulroney, Frank Grillo

Four stars

Review by: Julian Wright

Not since the Antarctica-set The Thing (1982) has a barren, isolated and icy landscape been used effectively to send chills down an audience’s spine. Like that John Carpenter classic, itself a remake, The Grey manages to bury itself under your skin as some fierce critters pick off a group of men one by one. But instead of extra terrestrial beings, this time it is a pack of territorial and hungry wolves.

From the horrifyingly realistic plane crash that puts The Grey’s characters in their terrifying predicament to the ambiguous ending, prepare to make friends with the edge of your seat because you will spend a fair amount of time there.

A team of oil drillers, including depressed loner John Ottway (Liam Neeson), are left stranded in Alaska when their plane goes down in the middle of a blizzard. Once the survivors collect themselves,Ottway takes charge building fires, salvaging materials to keep them warm and safe until help arrives. His efforts are thwarted when a pack of wolves hone in on the vulnerable group.

Realising that staying at the crash site will be pointless after one of them is silently attacked during the night, the survivors begin trekking to nearby forest. Despite their odds against the elements and the native fauna, the men continue the fight to survive. But some are not as lucky as others.

This surprising, taut, stripped down, try-to-survive thriller manages to overcome its script problems to bring one of the most visceral cinema experiences so far this year. Excuse the occasional clichéd character (the one who acts tough and macho is tiresome) and the tried and true civilised-people-turn-animalistic theme and you will be in for a nail chomping good time.

Director Carnahan delivers the film like a blow to the guts, keeping that sense of fear and danger comfortably consistent with flashes of graphic violence but also long, drawn out moments of suspense. You can never tell when another attack will occur out of left field. It is almost unbearable. Your hands will alternate between clutching the arm rests and covering your eyes.

No-one seems to be complaining that Neeson has become the go-to guy for action/thrillers after the 59-year-old has demonstrated his screen presence and athleticism in recent efforts such as Taken, The A Team and Unknown. While they have been pop corn fodder, this is certainly one of his finer projects.

The Vow (PG)

Directed by: Michael Sucsy

Starring: Channing Tatum, Rachel McAdams, Same Neill, Jessica Lange

Two stars

Review by: Julian Wright

In one of the most painful performances to watch since anything Jessica Alba has attempted, Channing Tatum awkwardly works his way through this heart string tugging true story. While his inability to act was never really questioned (I hope), he does demonstrate here a whole other level of bad. Which is a shame because despite this being another overly sentimental entry in the tear jerking genre, it could have been a decent time passer had it not been for his distracting horrid performance.

Insanely happily married couple Paige (Rachel McAdams) and Leo (Channing Tatum) are thrown a curveball in life when the pair, on a romantic, nostalgic car ride, are involved in an accident that puts Paige in a coma. When she later wakes up, she doesn’t remember her husband at all. Her memory stops at a point five years ago when she was a law student (she is now an artist) and engaged to Jeremy (Scott Speedman).

Paige’s doctors recommend she goes home with Leo to get back in to her old routine to hopefully jog her memory, but she is hesitant to live with a man who she only knows now as a stranger. Leo then goes to great lengths to try to make her fall back in love with him so they can pick up where they left off. The problem is, Paige feels more comfortable flirting with the life she remembers – the one she had before she met Leo.

The script and direction take the schmaltzy route to try to appeal to the crowd that lapped up weepies such as The Notebook, but despite the presence of McAdams (who starred in that one) it will not reach the same heights of popularity. It is difficult to get lost in the story when Tatum struggles so desperately with the material, which, lets face it, is not all that complex. If he cannot even carry a sugary film like this, how can we have any confidence in him as a performer?

McAdams is the one saving grace as the confused and frustrated amnesiac. Her appeal outshines Tatum and her capability in conveying basic emotions leaves his in the dust. With so many strikes against this film – Tatum’s bad acting, formulaic script, underused Lange and Neill as Paige’s parents, obvious directorial choices – its entire watchability ends up sitting firmly on McAdams’ shoulders.

This sweet story that had so much potential, and could have been bearable had it not been for Tatum’s miscasting, will have you wishing you could only remember your life before you saw it. It was, indeed, a better time.

Shame (R)

Directed by: Steve McQueen

Starring: Michael Fassbender, Carey Mulligan, James Badge Dale, Nicole Beharie

Four stars

Review by: Julian Wright

Films have explored drug and alcohol addiction and the spiral into hell that accompanies it to the point where audiences are on the verge of desensitisation. We know by now the difficulties in overcoming the addiction and the effect it has on family and friends. But when Sandra Bullock gives it a whirl in the woeful rom-com misfire 28 Days, we know we have seen it all.

It is refreshing that co-writer/director Steve McQueen has chosen to explore an addiction that many may not know exists, or believes exists. And due to a prudish society, is all but swept under the rug. But as we learn in Shame, the effects of an addiction to sex can be just as harrowing as an addiction to any destructive substances.

Brandon Sullivan (Michael Fassbender) appears to be a fairly regular 30-somthing New Yorker with a career and nice apartment. But what he manages to conceal is his addiction to sex. He spends every waking moment thinking about, doing it, looking at internet porn and masturbating.

It is a difficult enough task to keep this dark, shameful secret from his friends and co-workers every day, but when his work computer is taken off for repairs without warning and his sister Sissy (Carey Mulligan) shows up on his doorstep unannounced, he becomes unhinged. Sissy and Brendan have an unspoken troubled past and her presence brings is all back.

Shame explores some daring and fascinating territory as Brandon seeks sexual gratification in a gay club as a last resort and later evoking emotional pain during a threesome. And McQueen films some eloquent dialogue-less moments, preferring to show than to talk about it.

We come to feel great sympathy and empathy for this damaged character, but anyone hoping he may find reprieve or  a light at the end of the tunnel will be sorely disappointed and left as frustrated as Brandon. This isn’t a road to recovery story with a neatly placed bow at the end. This is an example of the hell an addicted person lives in, but a beautifully filmed one.

My Week With Marilyn (M)

Directed by: Simon Curtis

Starring: Michelle Williams, Eddie Redmayne, Kenneth Branagh, Julia Ormond, Dame Judi Dench

Three and a half stars

Review by: Julian Wright

What a splendid idea for a film about iconic Hollywood star Marilyn Monroe. Instead of laboriously charting her life from her troubled childhood to her extraordinary popularity and untimely death, My Week with Marilyn encapsulates it all in a story that took place in (as you may have guessed) one tumultuous week.

Based on the novel of the same name by Colin Clark, about his week-long whirlwind friendship and romance with the curvaceous beauty, this film sheds light on Monroe’s crippling low self-esteem, her addiction to drug and alcohol and her heartbreaking need to be loved.

In 1956, Marilyn Monroe (Michelle Williams) and Laurence Olivier (Kenneth Branagh) came to loggerheads on the set of the film The Prince and the Showgirl. Marilyn was already on to her third marriage and trying to establish herself as a serious actress, complete with her iron fisted acting coach Paula Strasberg (Zoe Wanamaker) in tow. Olivier, on the other hand, a disciplined theatre legend had no patience for Monroe’s erratic behaviour.

The tension on the set was observed first hand by 23-year-old third assistant director Colin Clark (Eddie Redmayne), particularly when he got caught up in the middle of it. As the shoot became more unbearable and Monroe’s drinking and drug problem more apparent, the pair formed a close bond. As Colin got dangerously closer to the renowned heartbreaker, he managed to see what made her tick.

More than just a gossipy look at behind the scenes shenanigans, My Week with Marilyn touches on clashing personalities, the pressure of stardom and one woman’s deep sadness despite worldwide fame and adoration. With a bright script that has some sharp dialogue and amusing moments, mixed with some touching moments of insight into the starlet, there is plenty to take away from this brisk biopic.

However, it doesn’t escape flaws such as shoddy editing and the occasional storytelling oversight – Dame Judi Dench makes a fine impression in her early scenes as Monroe’s co-star Dame Sybil Thorndike, only to be unceremoniously forgotten about for the rest of the film.

Williams captures Monroe’s fragility admirably. While she can switch on the charm and giggly starlet persona like Monroe did so effortlessly, she also demonstrates the harrowing inner pain she felt and hid from her fans. For those of us who, shamefully, have never seen a Monroe film (me included) or followed her career, this is a respectable short hand to catch us up on who she was when the cameras stopped rolling.

Martha Marcy May Marlene (M)

Directed by: Sean Durkin

Starring: Elizabeth Olsen, Sarah Paulson, John Hawkes, Hugh Dancy

Four and a half stars

Review by: Julian Wright

Criminally neglected during this awards season, the tongue twister titled Martha Marcy May Marlene is one of those powerful indie gems that wont get a huge audience but will haunt those that see it. With so much talent in front of and behind the camera, it is a shame the Academy has not recognised this near perfect film.

This multi layered effort is more impressive for the fact it was created by a first time feature film writer/director. There are more experienced and seasoned film makers that could take notes from the fresh and evocative storytelling structure of this terrific film.

Martha, (Elizabeth Olsen) as she is known by her biological family, wakes one morning from the room she shares with several other young women in a rural farmhouse and escapes through the woods. Here, she is known as Marcy May, a name given to her by the influential but creepy Patrick (John Hawkes) who leads the mysterious cult in upstate New York where young women are welcomed then made to work and raise his children.

Martha calls her sister Lucy (Sarah Paulson) who she has been estranged and out of contact from for two years, and stays with her and her husband Ted (Hugh Darcy) in their modern and isolated holiday home by the lake. Ted is not as welcoming or patient with Martha and her bizarre behaviour (swimming naked and laying in bed while the married couple make love) as Lucy is.

At this point we are not let in on why Martha decides to flee her other “family” but the events that motivate her are slowly revealed with the help of some stunningly skillful editing techniques, in which we are seamlessly transported between present day and Martha’s memories. What is clear, is that after spending so much time living by their rules, this lost soul has problems adjusting to a more regular and stable life, while constantly in a state of stifling paranoia.

Torn between lifestyles, unsure of her place in the world, racked with guilt over the things she has been seduced into doing and shattered by things that have been done to her, Martha is one damaged young woman. And she is brought to life by the lost Olsen sister no one knew about: Elizabeth. Writer/director Sean Durkin has created a deeply complex character and has drawn some extraordinary talent from this newcomer, who up until this moment, has lived in her twin sisters’ footsteps.

Much has been made of the final scene in which an abrupt ending could drive some audience members into a fit of unsatisfied rage. But think about it for a minute and it becomes another beautiful moment in this impressive film that will have you debating for a long time.

Underworld: Awakening (MA)

Directed by: Mans Marlind, Bjorn Stein

Starring: Kate Beckinsale, Stephen Rhea, Michael Ealy, Theo James

Two stars

Review by: Julian Wright

That corsetted vampire warrior Selene (Kate Beckinsale) is back in the same old clothes, same old plot and same old overblown action sequences. How this franchise keeps going is beyond me. When Beckinsale didn’t even turn up for the last one I was sure that would be the end of it – well, at least at the cinema. A few direct to DVD additions would not have been surprising. But that one little novelty named 3D is apparently enough to keep reviving any dreary action series (another Resident Evil was previewed, but don’t even get me started on that franchise).

After a much-needed catch up sequence – I certainly wasn’t going to go back and re-watch the others just to be reminded of how inane these movies are – we are thrust into Selene’s latest adventure which is brief (humans know about vampires and lycans and have waged war on them, doing their best to exterminate them) before she is caught, frozen and stored in a lab run by Doctor Jacob Lane (Stephen Rhea).

Released 12 years later, the war continues but her lycan loverboy Michael (played previously by Scott Speedman) is dead, or maybe  just conveniently missing, and she has a young mutant girl Eve (India Eisley) in tow. How cute, this installment tries to make us care by giving Selene an ankle biter to look after and bond with.

Selene and Eve, or otherwise known as Subject 1, have a special connection – they can see through each other’s eyes. They also must discover what kind of experiments were carried out on them and uncover Lane’s plan, while on the run from super lycans.

Yet, with all the runnig, jumping, driving and shooting, it is a wonder how they make any revelations at all. I’d love to see some fanboy’s count of how many rounds were fired, lycans killed and cars totalled. This film seems to be aiming for some sort of record. The simpleton dialogue is just a mere excuse to get from one action sequence to the next, which is usually accomplished in about 90 seconds.

No-one expects good performances out of these films, and rightfully so, they are horrible, but the waifish Beckinsale does still impress with her athleticism in such a figure hugging outfit – not that the corset has to be pulled all that tightly – and the way she effortlessly handles the hardware.

Despite feeling like I was being beaten into submission from the get go by the endless action and overbearing soundtrack that would threaten to upset the Richter scale, the action scenes are a tolerable enough distraction. Just skip the 3D version – the effects are barely noticeable – and wait for the DVD. But keep the volume down for the sake of your neighbours.

The Artist (PG)

Directed by: Michel Hazanavicius

Starring: Jean Dujardin, Berenice Bejo, John Goodman, James Cromwell

Three and a half stars

Review by: Julian Wright

Much like the recent Hugo, The Artist is a love letter to a particular period of film making. Hugo gushed when it came to the pioneering days, while The Artist wears its heart on its sleeve for the time when silent films were edged out by the talkies. While the addition of sound revolutionised the industry, it is no secret many were affected and hit hard by it-namely the silent film stars. Those whose popularity was not based on what they sounded like.

It was a scary transition for some, but especially for Hollywood star George Valentin (Jean Dujardin), who made a successful career out of mugging for the camera. But when the technology to record sound came along, coupled with the Great Depression hitting in 1929, it was trying times for the charming performer.

Thinking sound in films was a joke and seeing his audience and fan numbers drop, George decides not to adapt to the changes but to try his hand at directing. The failure of his over-produced action romance sends him into a spiral of depression.

When day player and former co-star Peppy Miller’s (Berenice Bejo) star rises to the point where she becomes a Hollywood sweetheart, George becomes inconsolable. Her screen presence and mega watt personality bring her a lot of attention, the kind George once had. The fact they fancy each other just makes it even more unbearable.

What begins as a cheery, utterly delightful and deliciously authentic silent film – film goers be warned, there is no sound, dialogue is written across the screen and it retains a 4:3 aspect ratio – it soon loses its cool. While a fascinating study of how the golden era of cinema took a hit and recovered, it takes itself far too seriously in the second half. Forty-five minutes of a moping George is not so much fun.

The Artist means well, is technically well made with some stunning sequences (a favourite is the montage that tracks Peppy’s rise to fame by following the placement of her credit in each film she appears in) and contains terrific comedic and dramatic performances, but the tonal imbalance is a hindrance. It is no surprise the Academy has slathered oscar nominations on Hugo and The Artist – they tend to love it when films are about their own industry – but in my mind, one outshines the other.

The Darkest Hour (M)

Directed by: Chris Gorak

Starring: Emile Hirsch, Olivia Thirlby, Max Minghella, Rachael Taylor

Two stars

Review by: Julian Wright

You may raise an eyebrow at the generous two stars given to what is already one of the most unfavourably reviewed films of 2012. Admittedly, we are still in the very early stages of the new year, but The Darkest Hour will undoubtedly stick in our memories until the end for all the wrong reasons. And yet, while it deserves its spot as one of the worst films of the last 10 years, sitting nicely alongside The Room, it was a hoot.

Just hours after two young software inventors Sean (Emile Hirsch) and Ben (Max Minghella) touchdown in Moscow on a business trip, they are thrown together with a couple of tourists Natalie (Olivia Thirlby) and Anne (Rachael Taylor) and a dodgy Russian businessman when invisible aliens invade.

After spending four days locked up in a heavily stocked nightclub storeroom during the initial attack, where they eat all the food and emerge with coiffed hair, they find themselves running around the abandoned streets of Moscow looking for anyone who may have survived. The two survivors they do find, a young woman and mad scientist type,  have admirable adaptation skills. In less than a week, they have already managed to figure out how to evade the aliens and build a special home-made gun to kill them.

With dreadful dialogue like “I keep my freak-out on the inside”, illogical scenes like when the group fall off a boat and one ends up miles away from all the others in the blink of an eye, and misjudged moments such as when the characters run around with light bulbs around their necks, this is certainly not high brow entertainment.

So why two whole stars? Because it is hilariously dreadful. I haven’t laughed so consistently at the cinema in a while. This is the kind of film that makes you laugh more than many supposed comedies. This is the kind of film that gains a cult following and screens at midnight where the audience is invited to throw things at the screen.

This horrible film already has a secure place on my worst of 2012 list, but just you wait for the DVD where you can watch it with a bunch of your mates and make a drinking game where you take a shot  every time there is a dumb moment, like bad CGI, when the girls run in heels, or when the invisible aliens are clearly visible. But then again, you may end up having your stomach pumped.

Young Adult (M)

Directed by: Jason Reitman

Starring: Charlize Theron, Patrick Wilson, Patton Oswalt

Four stars

Review by: Julian Wright

Remember that hot girl at high school who every guy wanted to date and every girl wanted to emulate? Well, according to Young Adult, she turns into the kind of girl you glad you lost touch with and should avoid at the reunion. According to this film, she became a hateful, spiteful witch. We know that doesn’t always happen, but let’s be honest, it is the most interesting scenario.

While no one really wants to see a film about the hot high school cheerleader who got married, had a successful career and popped out 2.5 gorgeous children, it is almost as unbearable to watch her carry on the way she does in this movie. Almost.

Former high school beauty turned professional ghost writer Mavis Gary (Charlize Theron) has hit rock bottom. She is divorced, the once popular teen series she writes is coming to an end and her so-called glamorous big city life consists of little more than drinking herself into a stupor on a regular basis. Not exactly the way she thought her life would pan out.

Out of the blue, she receives an email of a new-born baby that belongs to her old high school boyfriend Buddy Slade (Patrick Wilson).  She promptly packs up some clothes into a suitcase and her cute little puppy into her handbag Paris Hilton style and heads back to the dreary small town she came from (leaving her one night stand still asleep in her bed).

Mavis’ goal is to win buddy back so they can have the life together that she believes they were supposed to have back in the city and to hell with his wife and baby. Oh yeah, this one is a real charmer.

Everything that Mavis does from here on in is rude, selfish and downright despicable. Why would we want to sit through her hurtful shenanigans? We are given more than what just appears on the surface. We might not like what she does but the writer, director and actor make sure they give her enough reasons for it to be believable.

Theron turns in another layered performance, once again, never afraid to look and be ugly on film for the purpose of creating a challenging character who is clinging desperately to her past. But it is not all doom and gloom with some comedic relief with a handful of lighter moments, particularly in scenes with her physically disabled former school mate Matt (Patton Oswalt). One thing is for sure, you wont look at that hot chick you went to school with the same way again.

Hugo (PG)

Directed by: Martin Scorsese

Starring: Asa Butterfield, Chloe Grace Moretz, Sacha Baron Cohen, Ben Kingsley

Four and a half stars

Review by: Julian Wright

It can be easy to lose faith in film making when Hollywood seems to be more interested in churning out money makers rather than stories and characters with substance that linger. With so many soulless, special effects driven, one-liner laden blockbusters, sometimes we need a nice little reminder of the power of films and why we love movies in the first place.

Enter legendary director Martin Scorsese, who up until now, has often delved into the darker side of life in his career with Taxi Driver and Goodfellas. But with Hugo, he has held back on the graphic violence and vulgar language to bring us a new, lighter side of his artistic ability.  Catering to a whole new demographic here, such as children and families, rather than film goers with strong stomachs, Scorsese celebrates film making with a sense of adventure.

Hugo (Asa Butterfield) is an orphan who lives at a Paris train station in the 1930s. He was close to his father, who was killed in a fire leaving Hugo to live with his alcoholic and slave driving uncle who keeps the clocks at the station running on time.

Hugo keeps up a project he and his father began, which is to fix an automaton (found abandoned and collecting dust in a museum vault) and make it work once again. There is just one missing piece – a key in the shape of a heart – which he finds hanging from the neck of his new-found friend Isabelle (Chloe Grace Moretz).

The young pair try to solve the mystery of who created the machine (all the while trying to evade the station guard played with relish by Sacha Baron Cohen) which leads them to make all sorts of fascinating discoveries about the pioneering days of cinema.

To go from a heartfelt, moving story about a boy trying to maintain the one connection he has with his deceased father to a tip of the hat to cinema and film making sounds like quite a leap, and at times it is. The link between the two is a bit of a stretch but the journey is half the fun and it is a joyous journey these two young ones take. And by the end, it wont just be the hard-core cinephiles that will be giddy with nostalgia.

While not quite as viscerally thrilling as child driven adventure films such as The Goonies, or more recently, Super 8, Scorsese has his finger on the pulse of what draws in and fascinates an audience. His sweeping camera movements and overhead shots not only help tell the story but allow the 3D technology to be used to its highest potential. He has also created one of the most detailed worlds seen on-screen, from the costumes and props to the sets – we are utterly immersed in this world.

Go and see Hugo and be reminded why film, which one character mentions was expected to be a short-lived fad, has lasted so long as one of the major storytelling devices and continues to have the power to inspire, fascinate, surprise and awe us.