Why the film Les Lyonnais is re-titled as A Gang Story in English puzzles me. What's wrong with The Lyon Gang ... I wonder. I don't think Casablanca would have done so well as A Nightclub Story.
Anyway, this is a great French film. The story spans many decades but slides gracefully backwards and forwards in time to show us key moments from the lives of the two main characters Momon and Serge.
I say 'story' but this feels more like an illustration of the relationship between Momon and Serge through the ages rather than a story as such. You get insights into their characters without forcing too much narrative onto them... and I think that works really well.
The acting is fantastic. Gérard Lanvin plays a wonderful, brooding, dark, but somehow principled Momon; balanced perfectly by Tchéky Karyo as his colder, tougher blood-brother Serge.
Well worth a watch. In fact, I will probably watch it again soon.
Thursday, 21 November 2013
Monday, 18 November 2013
Trance
There's often a fine line between intrigue and confusion. The film Trance treads not so carefully and just about gets away with it.
We start out with an auctioneer telling us about art thefts. So we immediately expect the film to be about an art theft. Then we are caught by surprise and slapped into wondering what happened. Intriguing. Then we are offered a possible explanation. But that doesn't really seem to make sense. Confusing. We go along with it... and eventually there is a big reveal. And a not unsatisfying conclusion.
I thought most of the performances were good and carried the plot along nicely. James McAvoy is great and Vincent Cassel is a good opponent for him. I wasn't sure what Rosario Dawson was trying to show with Elizabeth but, since she is at the centre of the confusion, I guess that was deliberate.
An enjoyable watch if you don't think about it too much, or too little.
We start out with an auctioneer telling us about art thefts. So we immediately expect the film to be about an art theft. Then we are caught by surprise and slapped into wondering what happened. Intriguing. Then we are offered a possible explanation. But that doesn't really seem to make sense. Confusing. We go along with it... and eventually there is a big reveal. And a not unsatisfying conclusion.
I thought most of the performances were good and carried the plot along nicely. James McAvoy is great and Vincent Cassel is a good opponent for him. I wasn't sure what Rosario Dawson was trying to show with Elizabeth but, since she is at the centre of the confusion, I guess that was deliberate.
An enjoyable watch if you don't think about it too much, or too little.
Saturday, 16 November 2013
World War Z
Sometimes a zombie film comes along that totally changes the genre. In the meantime there are zombie films like World War Z which are just like all the other old zombie films; maybe with a bigger budget and a bigger star.
There's action, a few frights, and lots and lots of zombies. It's not a bad film. It's actually quite fun. And so are many other zombie films that are better than this one.
There's action, a few frights, and lots and lots of zombies. It's not a bad film. It's actually quite fun. And so are many other zombie films that are better than this one.
Friday, 15 November 2013
The Stoning of Soraya M.
Occasionally I make myself watch a film for my own good, rather than because I expect to enjoy it. The Stoning of Soraya M. is such a film. The title doesn't leave you in much doubt that this isn't going to be a barrel of laughs... or have a happy ending.
Living a comfortable life in the West, I think it's worth reminding yourself that life in other countries is significantly harder; particularly for women.
So this film has been on my watch list for a while. Waiting for the right moment. And I eventually started watching last night. But I didn't finish it.
The film opens well and builds some intrigue. Then it goes into a graphic description of the abuse that Soraya suffers before (I assume) her false conviction and stoning. I had to stop watching at about 40 minutes. The depiction seemed to be escalating horribly and was very realistic. Much as I wanted to know why she was killed, I didn't want to see it. Maybe because this is supposed to be based on a true story? It felt like I was a voyeur on the actual real suffering of this woman. I bottled out.
I've just read the wiki page about the film and I'm glad I stopped watching. I can't bear to watch real violence against women. The men who commit these crimes disgust me so much.
Living a comfortable life in the West, I think it's worth reminding yourself that life in other countries is significantly harder; particularly for women.
So this film has been on my watch list for a while. Waiting for the right moment. And I eventually started watching last night. But I didn't finish it.
The film opens well and builds some intrigue. Then it goes into a graphic description of the abuse that Soraya suffers before (I assume) her false conviction and stoning. I had to stop watching at about 40 minutes. The depiction seemed to be escalating horribly and was very realistic. Much as I wanted to know why she was killed, I didn't want to see it. Maybe because this is supposed to be based on a true story? It felt like I was a voyeur on the actual real suffering of this woman. I bottled out.
I've just read the wiki page about the film and I'm glad I stopped watching. I can't bear to watch real violence against women. The men who commit these crimes disgust me so much.
Sunday, 10 November 2013
Seven Psychopaths
Seven Psychopaths is supposedly a British crime comedy. But it is set entirely in Hollywood and has a mostly American cast... plus Colin Farrell, who is Irish. So I'm not sure what Film4 and the BFI were doing funding it.
The film's construction is just as confusing. I didn't find it particularly funny, so I wouldn't class it as a comedy. I suppose there are crimes involved, but I wouldn't call it a crime movie. I don't know what it is, because it isn't really much of anything.
Colin Farrell is unconvincing as a drunk screenwriter. Christopher Walken is wooden. Only Sam Rockwell and Woody Harrelson make the best of the bad parts they have been written.
Overall, pretty much a waste of time.
The film's construction is just as confusing. I didn't find it particularly funny, so I wouldn't class it as a comedy. I suppose there are crimes involved, but I wouldn't call it a crime movie. I don't know what it is, because it isn't really much of anything.
Colin Farrell is unconvincing as a drunk screenwriter. Christopher Walken is wooden. Only Sam Rockwell and Woody Harrelson make the best of the bad parts they have been written.
Overall, pretty much a waste of time.
Saturday, 9 November 2013
Watchmen
Last night ended up being a Watchmen night. I had other things to watch, but wasn't in the mood for them.
I remember being given a copy of the graphic novel (call it a comic if you prefer, I don't mind) when the movie was in production. My friends were big fans and wanted me to read it before the film came out. Of course, they were worried that the film wouldn't do the book justice; and after reading it so was I.
But Watchmen is a great film. It captures the spirit of the book brilliantly. From the alternate 1985, to the very gritty violence and the dilemmas posed by the conclusion. The ending differs in some details from the book but, if anything, I prefer the movie ending, which is more believable than the original.
The brilliance of the story in Watchmen is what makes it interesting. I think the film succeeds because the director understood that. He concentrated on telling the story and didn't get distracted by the fact that the characters happened to be superheroes.
I remember being given a copy of the graphic novel (call it a comic if you prefer, I don't mind) when the movie was in production. My friends were big fans and wanted me to read it before the film came out. Of course, they were worried that the film wouldn't do the book justice; and after reading it so was I.
But Watchmen is a great film. It captures the spirit of the book brilliantly. From the alternate 1985, to the very gritty violence and the dilemmas posed by the conclusion. The ending differs in some details from the book but, if anything, I prefer the movie ending, which is more believable than the original.
The brilliance of the story in Watchmen is what makes it interesting. I think the film succeeds because the director understood that. He concentrated on telling the story and didn't get distracted by the fact that the characters happened to be superheroes.
Tuesday, 5 November 2013
All Superheroes Must Die
As low-budget superhero movies go All Superheroes Must Die is a pretty good effort. The characters are engaging, the acting is mostly good and the sets have some substance compared to the abandoned quarry you usually get when money is tight.
The plot is quite mysterious, from the opening where we meet the main characters, to the end where we... finish. Nothing is given away too soon, and many things aren't given away at all; leaving plenty for the viewer to wonder about during and after the movie.
There are a couple of slips into cliche, and some dodgy dialogue, but all-in-all my complains are very minor.
Well done to everyone involved in making this movie. It looks like a close-knit crew from the credits. I hope they had fun making it. I enjoyed it much more than many of the multi-million dollar hero flicks that are trotted out as so-called blockbusters.
The plot is quite mysterious, from the opening where we meet the main characters, to the end where we... finish. Nothing is given away too soon, and many things aren't given away at all; leaving plenty for the viewer to wonder about during and after the movie.
There are a couple of slips into cliche, and some dodgy dialogue, but all-in-all my complains are very minor.
Well done to everyone involved in making this movie. It looks like a close-knit crew from the credits. I hope they had fun making it. I enjoyed it much more than many of the multi-million dollar hero flicks that are trotted out as so-called blockbusters.
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