Margaret (2011): stressful cinema you can do without

I watched this film a couple of weeks ago and I still haven’t written up a review for it because I haven’t been able to really bring myself to think about it again - probably because it was more of a stressful experience than sitting and enjoying a movie.  

The cast boasts Anna Paquin (of True Blood fame), Hollywood heavyweight Matt Damon, Jean Reno from Leon and Matthew Broderick.  I’ve got a real soft spot for Broderick because of Election, and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off is one of my favourite films, but even the presence of the righteous dude couldn’t redeem this film for me.  Mark Ruffalo is a favourite of mine too (Shutter Island, The Kids Are Alright, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind).  Ruffalo, Damon and Broderick are scarcely in the film though.

 It’s really all about Lisa: a hormonal teenager who seeks to satisfy her insatiable desire for conflict and drama by pestering all of the people who were involved or affected by a horrific bus accident that she witnessed.  Paquin gives a powerful and convincing performance throughout so you can’t really blame her for the films failure.  You can’t simply blame the fact that the character is especially detestable either – we’ve seen anti-heroes and super villains time and time again in cinema, and they can be some of the most engrossing characters to watch.  

The film’s problem is that it focusses entirely on this high-strung, volatile, bitchy adolescent as she goes about a mundane course of day-to-day life, seeking attention and rubbing people up the wrong way.  There’s no real point to all this.  The conclusion resolves to say nothing more than “she’s probably like this because of her age and she doesn’t get along with her mum” or something.

Margaret is nothing more than a character study of a stereotypically hostile, obnoxious teenager.  There’s no clear controlling idea, it wallows it ambiguity and the attempts to reference Shakespeare are laughably pretentious.  It’s too long, entirely stressful to sit through and has no real payoff at the end.

'Official' TV appearance #3

I made my third official TV appearance on Friday night's Moviejuice.  Check it out (available for a month).  I say 'official' because when I was about 6 years old in primary school, the headmaster took our class on a trip to visit Hercules the bear - a trained bear who had appeared in film and TV as a career.  When we visited him there was a Japanese TV crew doing a feature on him, so I probably unwittingly appeared on Japanese TV about 16 years ago, clapping a bear, eyes wide with wonder and the unrelenting enthusiasm of youth.  Come to think of it, I don't remember signing a release...

Anyway, this 'official' TV appearance was to do a mini review on Hunky Dory, which I've also written up a review for here.  The second time I said a bit about Casablanca - a more substantial list of my thoughts on this incredible film can be read here.  My first appreance was to do a mini review of W.E. which warranted a measly one star in my eyes - my full review can be read here.

Here's a still from the show, I'll see if I can find a picture of me with Hercules too...

Hunky Dory (2011): don't let the critics put you off

People have complained that this film is too formulaic, it’s too glossy and sugar-coated and that it’s so steeped in saccharine sentimentality that it will make the overpriced, syrupy Coke that you bought from the multiplex foyer seem sour and flat. 

While there is definitely truth in the above statement, I think enjoyment of this (and any) film depends on your attitude.  If you go into this film expecting to see some gritty socio-political drama focussing on the oppression of Welsh mining classes, you will be sorely disappointed. You will come out complaining about how populist it is, how it’s so conventionally structured and emotionally sensationalist etc, etc.

If you look at the poster, however, it looks like this:

If you watch the trailer, it looks like this:

If you look at the name it looks like this:

Hunky Dory.

The Collins Dictionary definition is:

Hunky Dory (adj.) informal very satisfactory, fine.

The poster is a lovely snapshot of a group of idyllic young friends having fun the blistering summer of 1976.  It’s all orange and glowing.  The trailer gives a taste of how packed the film is with poppy love songs of the era, how predictable the premise makes the plot, how recognizable the angsty teenage characters are, how petty the conflicts seem in this hazy summer utopia of a bygone Britain and how indulgently reminiscent it is.

The signs are there - everything about the design screams out feel-good mainstream movie.    It is unashamedly populist, unashamedly sensational and is obviously going to be as conventional as any piece of popular cinema.  There’s nothing subtle about the way the film advertises this sense of style.

To know all this, watch the film then criticize it for the glaringly obvious is lazy criticism, at best.  Don’t go and see the film if you know you’re going to suffer an adverse reaction to the sheer amount of light-heartedness going on.  That’s like going into a screening of Shrek with your arms folded for the entire movie then coming out in a huff saying to your bemused/horrified children “the guy’s an ogre but not once did I see a man’s skin being peeled off while he was still alive.”

For those more willing to accept this film for what it so blatantly is, I’d say it’s an easy, feel-good film with and great 70’s soundtrack (from the likes of Bowie and ELO) and superb Welsh accents throughout.  A coming-of-age film set in a specific place and moment in British history, it shares an obvious affinity to Ricky Gervais and Stephen Mechant’s Cemetery Junction as well as Billy Elliot (a couple of the producers made this film too). 

There are a lot of characters so the attempt to squeeze in all of their individual stories is overly ambitious, but the cast are great.  Minnie Driver is easily lovable and I get the feeling you’ll be seeing a lot more of Aneurin Barnard’s face in the future.  The ending is a little bit vague and they try and remedy this by giving a ‘where are they now’ sequence during the end credits – which is a bit half-baked (no reference to the recreational activities of the time intended).

Overall, a likeable film with some nice messages (namely Karl Marx’s sentiment “don't let the bastards grind you down”) and a well-polished style that makes for easy watching.

Black Pond (2011): hilarious independent black comedy surely set for cult status

An incredibly impressive debut film from youthful newcomers Will Sharpe and Tom Kingsley.  Black Pond is a delightfully grim black comedy about the Thompson family, who’re embroiled in a tabloid scandal about the death of a new family friend.  They say that truth is stranger than fiction and, while this IS fictional, it has a realistic plausibility and a documentary style which makes the almost farcical events seem hilariously absurd in contrast with the repressed sobriety of the upper-middle-class English milieu.

It’s one of these films that will have you grinning like a Cheshire cat all the way through, giggling and snorting like a child who’s just heard an old man fart during a quiet church service and eventually letting out a proper belly-laugh every now and then.

Colin Hurley, Amanda Hadingue, Simon Amstell, Will Sharpe (writer/director/actor) and the whole cast are excellent and Chris Langham makes a long-awaited return to film (with the controversy of his own personal ordeal with negative publicity perhaps adding its own somewhat dark undertone to the film – almost definitely NOT a conscious effort by the producers though!).

It’s a fine example of typically British satirical wit and exemplary of the potential of indie cinema, considering it was made on tiny budget of £25,000.  The lack of money means this film will only be seen by few people on its limited release, but as it gathers rave reviews and serious respect, it will no doubt earn cult status by the time it’s out on DVD.

More like this and more from Sharpe and Kingsley please!

(I saw Black Pond at the Glasgow Film Festival and wrote a version of this review for STV's entertainment website: http://entertainment.stv.tv/film/299187-black-pond-micro-budget-black-comedy-indie-at-its-best/ )

Vincent Wants to Sea (2011) review from GFF 2012

Here's my short review for Vincent Wants to Sea, which I wrote for STV's Entertainment website after seeing it on the last day of the Glasgow Film Festival 2012:

http://entertainment.stv.tv/film/299184-vincent-wants-to-sea-provides-some-guilty-laughs-at-glasgow-film-festival/

I didn't really think much of it.  I felt as though they were exploiting characters who had mental health problems for the sake of comedy alone, whilst trying to hide behind a pretense of emotional sensitivity.  I get the whole "oh, it's fine, people with behavioural, social and mental disorders are entitled to be funny protagonists in films too, don't be so politically correct, that's worse than not representing them at all!" argument, but this was an almost slapstick comedy that set out to make people laugh, not a poignant social drama that set out to break down prejudice and change people's attitudes.

Tyrannosaur (2011): an unsuspecting, deeply affecting social drama

I had absolutely no knowledge or expectations for this film before watching it and I think this probably augmented the shock that came with its viewing. 

To sum it up in one word, I’d say this film is unsuspecting.  The characters, plot and action are all totally plausible and the realist style lulls you into a sense of suspended disbelief which makes the impending violence all the more shocking.  When I say violence, I don’t just mean a Hollywood-style orgy of blood and guts everywhere.  This isn’t sensationalist torture porn like the Saw films.  Tyrannosaur’s violence is real and conceivable, like it could actually happen.  But it happens when you least expect it and by those whom you least expect it from.  The resultant effect is a shock that stays with you well after the film is finished.

The cast are incredible.  Peter Mullan gives authenticity to a character so filled with rage it would seem impossible for people like him to really exist.  Eddie Marsan is one of the most provocative villains I’ve ever seen on screen and Olivia Colman’s performance immediately tricks you into forgetting what Peep Show is, much less remembering that she was in it.

I left this film thinking Paddy Considine HAS to make more films.  The direction if faultless – it has the same oppressive grey landscapes as you would expect from any social realist film and focusses more on faces, expressions and economic storytelling than superficial flare.  His writing is top notch too.  He has a way of clearly highlighting the issues and themes (domestic abuse, anger, lust and love) and presenting them in a fresh, engaging, inspiring and shocking form.

Tyrannosaur is a damn good film but it’s not enjoyable in the conventional sense of the word.  It’s affecting more than anything.  You're moved, frightened and shaken by the things you see.  You physically and emotionally react and this, I think, is what makes a good film.

Glasgow Film Festival reviews

Glasgow Film Festival 2012 finishes up tomorrow night.  I'll be going to see a few films throughout the course of the day and writing up more reviews for STV.  It's been a busy week for me with work and various other commitments, so I haven't really had time to post the reviews I wrote last week until now.  So, without further ado, here they are:

In Darkness justifies its Oscar nomination at Glasgow Film Festival
Poland's revered filmmaker Agnieszka Holland's Academy Award nominated holocaust film In Darkness is a harrowing look at the blood-stained past with a hidden message of hope.

Sleepless Night does exactly what it says on the tin
Glasgow Film Festival's European Cinema collection is given a raw edge with low-budget action thriller Sleepless Night.

The Kid With a Bike: a poignant tale from simple storytelling masters the Dardennes
The Kid With a Bike offers Glasgow Film Festival a touching drama about the folly of youth and the challenges of fostering.

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel wins over the crowd at Glasgow Film Festival 
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel is a feel-good British comedy that offers plenty to entertain both the golden oldies and younger film fans.

Time to Spare at Glasgow Film Festival
Glasgow Film Festival balances out its more challenging films with Time to Spare, a sickly-sweet populist comedy.

Black Gold is a rich-looking poor film
Glasgow Film Festival’s Arabian epic Black Gold is visually rich but pretty poor otherwise.