Wow I've been slack in updating this. Possibly because my brother damaged my fragile ego in criticising my grammar (I'll probably develop a complex now you jerk). I'm still not going to proof read these entries though. Got a few to write about. They'll probably be a bit short because I watched these films a little while ago now and can't remember enough to go into detail. Oh well.
Captain America: The First Avenger
This is the last movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe before The Avengers movie next year (so far we have Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man 2 and Thor). Unlike the others, which are set in present day, this one is set in the 40's during World War 2, and the Americans are looking for a candidate for their experiment to turn someone into a super solider. Enter Steve Rogers, a weak, skinny bloke who can't pass the medicals to get enrolled in the army, however has enormous amounts of courage and a selfless attitude which fits the criteria the scientist dude, played by Stanley Tucci, is looking for to turn into, wait for it, CAPTAIN AMERICA.
So ah, yeah, dweeby Steve Rogers becomes the unstoppable CAPTAIN AMERICA (I'll stop that now) by going through some kind of procedure, the danger of which is well highlighted with dramatic music and such, and stars kicking Nazi arse. I've never read a Captain America comic book in my life but it seems like the character was either introduced as a WWII propaganda tool or to satirise WWII propaganda tools. Either way, it's the satirical nature of the situation that's on display here, as Rogers is used to promote war bonds and becomes the poster boy of the American Army, especially after liberating a bunch of POWs single handedly (remember, he had the procedure, so it's believable.)
I really enjoyed this movie, mainly due to the well developed sympathetic character of Rogers and numerous over the top but relevant-and-draw-you-in-with-one-scene-logically-following-the-other-take-note-Michael-Bay action scenes. Alot of it is very silly of course, but the serious approach to Rogers character, not to mention the good performance from Chris Evans, grounds the silliness. It's probably the best of these Marvel Cinematic whatever you call it movies since Hulk, and I've got high hopes for Avengers next year.
**** out of *****
Hanna
I think a movie is a lot like a house. No wait, that makes no sense, I'll start again. There are some movies which are like a home cooked meal. They're warm, inviting, don't require much of you, and depending upon the quality of the food can be satisfying or leave you wishing you'd eaten KFC instead. Then there are some movies which are like house work. They require attention to details, can be an effort to get through, and depending on the quality of the er, house (no, I couldn't think of a better analogy, shut up) can be either either very rewarding or just leave you exhausted an annoyed.
In the case of these two action movies, Captain America is the meal, Hanna is the housework. Directed by Joe Wright, whose previous films include Pride and Prejudice and Atonement, Hanna is something of an artsy action drama the feels like a cross between the Born Identity and Lost in Translation (stylistically, there's no implied adultery on display here.) Hanna tells the story of Hanna, surprise surprise, a 16 year old girl who has been raised in the wilderness by her father since she was little, and trained to become a resilient fighter as the government is after her for "some reason" (spoiler free zone here).
Like Captain America there's plenty of action and the character of Hanna is well developed, however in this case I actually preferred the more warm, inviting approach to storytelling of Captain America over the somewhat detached approached here. The film is beautifully shot, however at times the artistic nature of the film bordered on pretentious. I read a quote from Joe Wright regarding his film making style where he said something along the lines of "Basically, I'm showing off." Whether he meant that as a joke or not, it really feels like he is at times.
***1/2 out of *****
Foxtel Box Office - Hall Pass
As the title says, I got this as one of my free Foxtel Box office films, as I figured it probably wasn't worth the rental fee, yet I was still curious to check it out. The premise of this comedy, being the wives of two friends give them a week off marriage to do whatever they want, feels like it's borrowing from one of those old frat house or American Pie films. However, what actually eventuates from this is a little unexpected and somewhat funny. In fact I'd call the whole movie "somewhat funny", and despite being incredibly stupid I found the storyline oddly engaging. Like most gross out comedies the jokes sometimes work, and are sometimes just gross for the sake of gross. I don't want to spend much time talking about this movie as there's not much to say other than Hall Pass gets a pass (HA!), however only just.
**1/2 out of *****
Friday 19 August 2011
Tuesday 2 August 2011
The Tree of Life
It's way too early to be calling this but I'm doing it anyway, The Tree of Life is the best film of 2011. If a better movie comes out I'll happily eat my words, but I just cannot see it happening. That being said, this isn't a movie for everyone. If you were excited about seeing the new Transformers film then this most likely isn't for you. If you found Black Swan to be too weird or "Arsty" then this isn't for you. If you want to see this film because it has Brad Pitt in it then this DEFINITELY isn't for you. I don't say this for the sake of sounding arrogant or pretentious, but rather to ram home the point that The Tree of Life wasn't made with the general movie going public in mind, and alot of people will hate it with a passion. And that's fine.
It appears that many people who dislike this movie have been quick to praise the film for it's visuals and artistic merits (as who can deny the amazing cinematography? If it doesn't win the Oscar in that field then we may as well declare the whole ceremony a sham) but have also heavily criticised the storytelling devices used or, more specifically, the lack of a storyline. Usually I will be first in line to slam a film for lacking a good narrative, however it wasn't director Terrence Malick's intention to tell a well crafted story. He had something much more ambitious in mind.
Beginning with an amazing sequence showing the formation of the universe and early life developing on Earth, and ending with a sequence that could only be interpreted as the afterlife, Malick attempts to, in a way, explore the whole human journey in one 130 something minute film. The bulk of the film in between focuses on a typical American middle class family in the 50's, with father (Brad Pitt) mother (Jessica Chastain) and three young boys. The oldest boy is shown in the future, played by Sean Penn, looking back over his childhood whilst trying to make sense of the death of one of his brothers.
It's here that we see Malick explore through this family as many elements of life that mankind deal with that was humanly possible to fit in under 2 and a half hours. Birth, death, marriage, growing up, loss of innocence, lost dreams, greed and ambition, search for meaning, search for and relationship with God, parents relationships with their children and the effect this had. It's all covered.
Viewing this film wasn't just a regular trip to the cinema for me, it was an almost transcendent otherworldly experience. As a Christian I saw this film as being a 130+ minute appreciation of God and life. I came out thinking that you would have to be at least agnostic to enjoy this film, however that was just what I took out of it, the film is open to interpretation and I'm sure atheists can enjoy it immensely based on their own take on it. I've already seen the film twice, and if I heard of anyone wanting to see it I'd jump at the chance to see it again in the cinema. If you immerse yourself in the experience instead of driving yourself crazy trying to figure out every single symbolic element of the film, this is a very moving and powerful film for those open to it.
***** out of *****
It appears that many people who dislike this movie have been quick to praise the film for it's visuals and artistic merits (as who can deny the amazing cinematography? If it doesn't win the Oscar in that field then we may as well declare the whole ceremony a sham) but have also heavily criticised the storytelling devices used or, more specifically, the lack of a storyline. Usually I will be first in line to slam a film for lacking a good narrative, however it wasn't director Terrence Malick's intention to tell a well crafted story. He had something much more ambitious in mind.
Beginning with an amazing sequence showing the formation of the universe and early life developing on Earth, and ending with a sequence that could only be interpreted as the afterlife, Malick attempts to, in a way, explore the whole human journey in one 130 something minute film. The bulk of the film in between focuses on a typical American middle class family in the 50's, with father (Brad Pitt) mother (Jessica Chastain) and three young boys. The oldest boy is shown in the future, played by Sean Penn, looking back over his childhood whilst trying to make sense of the death of one of his brothers.
It's here that we see Malick explore through this family as many elements of life that mankind deal with that was humanly possible to fit in under 2 and a half hours. Birth, death, marriage, growing up, loss of innocence, lost dreams, greed and ambition, search for meaning, search for and relationship with God, parents relationships with their children and the effect this had. It's all covered.
Viewing this film wasn't just a regular trip to the cinema for me, it was an almost transcendent otherworldly experience. As a Christian I saw this film as being a 130+ minute appreciation of God and life. I came out thinking that you would have to be at least agnostic to enjoy this film, however that was just what I took out of it, the film is open to interpretation and I'm sure atheists can enjoy it immensely based on their own take on it. I've already seen the film twice, and if I heard of anyone wanting to see it I'd jump at the chance to see it again in the cinema. If you immerse yourself in the experience instead of driving yourself crazy trying to figure out every single symbolic element of the film, this is a very moving and powerful film for those open to it.
***** out of *****
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