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It's not surprising that Ridley Scott has made another great film. With a showreel featuring Blade Runner (1982), Thelma and Louise (1991) and Gladiator (2000), American Gangster (2007) is just another notch in his celluloid black belt.
It tells the true story of 1970s Heroin Kingpin Frank Lucas (Denzel Washington) - who, after the death of his mafia boss decides to take over Harlem, by cutting out the middle man in the drug trade. The protagonist's tale is told in tandem and -to its merit- without a hint sentimentality. Russell Crowe plays Detective Richie Roberts - the man who wants to bring Lucas down. In a juxtopositional twist of human nature - Roberts is a man struggling in his personal life (keeping custody of his child, adultery) whilst keeping on the right side of the law at all times, while Lucas gives turkeys to the poor on Thanksgiving and then shoots men that wrong him at point blank range.
What works so well in this picture, despite its stellar performances by Crowe and Washington is its supporting cast - Josh Brolin, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Cuba Gooding Jr, Ted Levine and Ruby Dee (nominated for an Oscar) who provide the backbone of a compelling story.
Oscar attention also went to the films art direction and not surprisingly. Scott re-creates a surreal and very watchable late 1960s - 70s Manhattan and New Jersey - he spares no expense and the result is a truly satisfying cinematic experience.
While most "gangster" flicks are gratuitously violent, American Gangster keeps its head held firmly high and is entirely watchable without "grossing out" its audience. On the flip-side, the plot is predictable and somewhat slow paced.
But at 157 minutes screen time, you wonder just how Scott can sustain his viewers’ interest without waning. The real test? allowing your characters and story to unfurl organically whilst maintaining momentum. This is a filmmaker’s greatest tool and one that Scott has down pat.
The films strongest scene is the two hander between Crowe and Washington at the conclusion - a scene Scott admitted to dreading, but put down its success to having two great actors, well yes, that certainly helps.
I had held off seeing this film after being turned off by its appalling trailer, which looked cheesy and hard-arsed. All wrong - American Gangster is a must see!
I didn’t expect this film to be good, so I had low expectations going in. I walked out completely flabbergasted at just how well James Bond has evolved and excelled on our screens over the past forty years. I cant think of another character who has endured so well, for so long.
You can imagine my unrelenting joy that I was not, in fact, in the least disappointed in the new James Bond film, Quantum of Solace (2008). Not only was it action-packed, entertaining, visually compelling and supported by a strong cast, but it did not attempt to be more than what it is, rely on cliche, nor rest on the proverbial shoulder of its featured past.
Daniel Craig - I should stop right now, because I am about to unleash an amazing amount of joy and love for this man. He has brought so much to Bond, and bless him for it. This is a physically tough role to pull off – I don’t think he stood still for longer than a few seconds. He has it - the wit, charm and ruthlessness of a trained killer and lethal spy.
The film proceeds directly after we left it in Casino Royale (2007) wasting no time in the action stakes. The plot is surprisingly thin, but adequate to keep our interest. Seeking revenge for the death of Vesper Lynd, Bond battles Dominic Greene (Mathieu Amalric), a member of the Quantum organisation posing as an environmentalist, who intends to stage a coup d'état in Bolivia to take control of its water supply. He meets Camille Montes (Olga Kurylenko), who is also on a warpath for other reasons.
Directed by first-time Bonder Marc Forster (Finding Neverland, The Kite Runner), who was hand-picked by Craig, said he wanted the film to be, unlike its predecessor Casino Royale, “tight, quick…like a bullet.” Which, if anything he succeeded in. The film is very fast paced and well edited. Though there is a sense of staleness in direction, like when Mrs Fields comes into shot (which could be just a casting error?) or when minor characters are inexcusably given too much screen time.
Quantum of Solace was shot in six countries - more than any other Bond film; Panama, Chile, Italy, and Austria, and also at the UK's Pinewood Studios. Quantum’s use of location is paramount to its success as the 22nd Bond title.
The story is based on an original idea by producer Michael G. Wilson, and was written with the help of the director and Academy Award winning writer/director Paul Haggis (Crash). The film’s title is taken from the name of a short story in Ian Fleming's anthology For Your Eyes Only (1960), and while literally beautiful somewhat awkwardly worked into the plot. Ultimately Quantum was made the name of the organisation introduced in Casino Royale. Truth is, the title’s pun would have been overtly apparent to the thickest of audiences, and glad it wasn’t pushed. Daniel Craig admitted, “Bond is looking for his quantum of solace and that's what he wants, he wants his closure. Ian Fleming says that if you don't have a quantum of solace in your relationship then the relationship is over. It's that spark of niceness in a relationship that if you don't have you might as well give up…[Bond is] looking for revenge [...] to make himself happy with the world again."
Further, this is a real ‘character study’ of Bond, in his early years. He is a man ravaged by the death of his love and must undergo the conflicting learned reality of revenge and retribution of the soul. Its not an Academy Award winning performance by Craig, but he sure know’s how to sell it.
While Quantum of Solace doesn't hold back with its action sequences and visual effects, Bond is somewhat sexually subdued in this one, which after Pierce Brosnan’s no holds barred, puke-fest romps in The World is Not Enough (1999) and Die Another Day (2001) is refreshingly grounded and ironically alluring. Olga Kurylenko gives a strong performance as a questionable "Bond Girl" and provides a long-awaited, clean slate for future, more realistic Bond conterparts.
“Bond 23” here I come!
If you haven’t seen Pan’s Labyrinth (2006) yet, I am here to tell you you should – regardless of any reservations you may have.
I up until recently thought it was a children’s fantasy film, that I was too grown up to watch. Boy, was I wrong!
Pan’s Labyrinth succeeds in its unique form of storytelling crossing and delightfully weaving the fantasy genre with horror and psychological thriller. It’s a very unsettling film, exploring dark subject matters and grotesque gratuitous images. Which, with some irony, and consequently in stark contrast to my original hesitations to watch this film, actually propelled me to like this film for what it isn’t rather than what it is.
Set in five years after the end of Spanish Civil War 1944, 10-year-old Ofelia (Ivana Baquero) is forced to travel to Navarra with her delicate, pregnant mother Carmen, to live with her cold-blooded stepfather and Fascist, Captain Vidal (Sergi López), who is under orders to rid the territory of rebels. Ofelia, meets an ancient faun who claims to know her true identity and her secret destiny. She accepts a challenge – to complete three tasks before the moon grows full. In the meantime rebel resistance grows stronger, her welfare and that of what’s left of her family weakens and violence and murder are matched with the resilience and ruthlessness of her new fascination – the Labyrinth.
I think that the real craft of filmmaking is the ability to take your audience on a journey without them knowing the slightest intention of where and what will happen, whilst trusting what they see and hear throughout, unquestioning, just awe-inspiring joy of the living the story and the journey. And that’s why Pan’s Labyrinth succeeds so darn well.
Written and Directed by Guillermo del Toro (Hellboy, Blade II), the film received a 22 minutes standing ovation when it premiered in Cannes in 2006, and picked up Academy Award for Best Achievement in Art Direction, Cinematography and Makeup in 2007 (also nominated for best foreign film).
Del Toro stated that, along with Hellboy, this was his most personal project. He has called Pan's Labyrinth a spiritual sequel to The Devil's Backbone (2001), a Mexican/Spanish gothic horror film, also set during the Spanish Civil War, and independently produced by Pedro Almodóvar.
Del Toro says he was "scared shitless" in casting the right actress for the lead role, and that finding the 10-year-old Spanish actress was purely accidental. In his favor, del Toro couldn’t have sourced a better cast, the acting skills in this Spanish-speaking film is top of the ranks. Ivana Baquero is mesmerizing and is strongly supported by a very very talented cast. It’s refreshing to see each and every actor stretched in their roles in this film, and a rare treat. Sergio Lopez especially succeeds in his brutally powerful portrayal as the evil stepfather and ruthless officer.
I actually don’t have anything negative to say about this film, but will light upon dubious reviews I have heard since watching the film. While the hardest part in storytelling, I think, is concluding the story satisfactorily, there are mixed feelings about whether Pan’s should have ended the way it did. Keeping in the theme of the story, I do not think it could have ended differently, and sometimes it’s a brave move to go against commercial decision-making. In some ways, its ending is quite triumphant.
I guarantee you will enjoy this film. It’s a unique, poetic masterpiece.
3:10 to Yuma (2007), directed by James Mangold (Kate and Leopold, Walk The Line), is indeed a very watchable film. It exceeds mostly due to its original score by Marco Beltrami (Hellboy, The Omen) whom was nominated, not surprisingly, for an Oscar this year. As a remake of the 1957 classic (of the same name) starring Glenn Ford and Van Hefflin, the film doesn’t live up to any grand expectations. But then, do we really expect so much of remakes?
The story is a simple one, and not as cliché as make-do spaghetti westerns. Down and out rancher, Daniel Evans (Christian Bale), comes across outlaw Ben Wade (Russell Crowe), who is captured after the heist of a stagecoach. Evans offers to escort the cold-blooded killer to the city of Contention for trial, by placing him on the 3:10 PM train to Yuma, in return for much needed money for his wife and children. During their journey, both men are drawn together, while Wade’s gang of criminals follow to rescue their boss
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Very few films can pull off satire without it being shoved in your face. The mockumentary has become a popular format for the lazy filmmaker.
Little Children (2006) is a rare exception. It excels as a modern day tale (complete with narrator) about the hum-drum existence of suburban life and the emotional complexity of the adults within it
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I realize this is a popular blogging topic, so I will offer both succinct and specific personal review of this film. For those that are huge fans of Spielberg’s Indiana Jones films; Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989), you will no doubt have already seen the film at the cinema giddy with anticipation. You no doubt left shaking your head.
For those, like myself, who didn’t rush headlong on opening night to see Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008), was wondering whether or not it’s worth a night in at home. Well, let me put it this way, unless you are a DEVOTED Indiana Jones fan, or subscribe to the belief that Lucas and Spielberg ‘ can do no wrong’, you may in fact actually LIKE this film. But the rest of the general movie going public, unless they’ve had a recent lobotomy or still wear nappies, will not. I can guarantee it
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Best known as the longest-serving James Bond, Sir Roger Moore is a true Hollywood star.
Yesterday, on the eve of his 81st birthday, he told the media he would have preferred playing the villain in the famous Ian Fleming screen adaptions. "I would have loved to have been a villain, they had wonderful speeches like, 'The end of the world is about to come'. Bond just listens but doesn't really get to say anything
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On paper, Jane Austen’s biopic Becoming Jane (2007) is a guaranteed success. On paper.
Its 1795 and the one of the words greatest literary minds, Jane Austen (Anne Hathaway), is struggling against the social requirements of marriage. With a well-to-do suitor, who (surprisingly) has an evil mother pulling his strings, Austen meets loveable Irish rogue Thomas LeFroy (James McAvoy), and (surprisingly) falls in love. But can their relationship survive the financial and social restrictions of the time? Can Austen actually marry for love
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I don’t know why I resisted watching Blood Diamond (2006) for so long. Perhaps it was the violence, perhaps it was Jennifer Connelly’s relentless doe-eyed expression…oh, no – I’m pretty sure I was put off by DiCaprio’s turn at a lackadaisical South African accent….and boy was I wrong!
DiCaprio was very deserving of that Oscar nom, I must concede. He gives a brilliant and believable performance as hard-arsed diamond smuggler and ex-mercenary Danny Archer, who cunningly befriends a local fisherman and rebel-captive, Solomon (played by Djimon Hounsou), founder of a hidden extraordinary rough diamond
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Comment by Raquelle
on American Gangster (2007) - watch it!
Raquelle