I win

Two posts in two days. I'm impressed with myself.

Contagion

How's this for ensemble cast; Matt Damon, Jude Law, Laurence Fishburne, Marion Cotillard, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kate Winslet, Elloit Gould and Bryan Cranston? Yep, it's pretty darn good. Contagion is the new film from director Steven Soderbergh (who seems to be only rivaled by Gus Van Sant for his mix of arthouse and mainstream films) about an outbreak of an extremely deadly disease killing crap loads of people. With the ensemble cast it's pretty much a given that the plot is executed using the multiple storyline approach seen in Soderbergh's other film Traffic, and also in Magnolia, Love Actually, Crash, Babel etc.

The movie begins on day 2 of the outbreak of the virus, which creates a sense of being thrown right in the thick of things from the get go, and the tension never lets up, with the narrative moving at a rapid pace and a chaotic and distressing atmosphere being prevalent for much of the movie.

While the multi narrative approach means  that the character development suffers (some characters aren't given much screen time at all) it allows multiple different attitudes toward the situation to be explored, from Jude Law's conspiracy theories, Matt Damon's ultra paranoia, Marion Cotillard's mercy and selflessness, Laurence Fishburne's self serving antics, and also the various political responses. At under 2 hours it's a very efficient movie and there's hardly a boring moment. An early winner to emerge from the post Summer blockbuster season.

**** out of *****

Drive

I heard two responses from people in my cinema after this movie finished. One was from a guy in his early 20's, who remarked to his girlfriend/wife/defacto/arm candy "Well it was certainly different." The other was from a gal, possibly in her late teens, who said something to her friend along the lines of  "I only came because you said it was meant to be good." Also, about half way through the movie someone in front of me said "Finally something happened." I mention these statements as they all say something about the film, it certainly is different, it requires a patient viewer, and teenage girls wont like it, despite the presence of Ryan Gosling.

Drive is about Ryan Gosling's unnamed character (apparently a nod to Clint Eastwood's man with no name character in the dollar trilogy) is mechanic and Hollywood stunt driver by day and a get away for hire driver by night. The film opens with the driver going on one of his late night getaway drives, a brilliant sequence which is undoubtedly one of the best pieces of filmaking I've seen this year. The next hour or so is then dedicated to his developing relationship and possible romantic interest in his female neighbour, played by Carey Mulligan. The remainder of the film then turns into one of the most violent action films you're likely to see. Yes, it was "certainly different."

On the one hand this is a bold, original and well crafted piece of filmaking that doesn't let up on the thrills and tension toward the end, and Ryan Gosling's performance is brilliant as usual. On the other hand the approach to character development leaves a little to be desired and the odd mix of genres leaves a little too much of a WTF taste in my mouth for my liking. Still, Driver comes with a strong recommendation from me.

**** out of *****

Real Steel

Yep, a movie about robot boxing. Where to next for the creative geniuses known as mankind? The writers obviously went through a checklist of every action and sports movie cliche, as they're all on display here. The film even has the same ending as another famous fighting movie (name of movie withheld to avoid spoilers). Perhaps by having robots fighting instead of people they hoped no one would notice (or care)? The movie follows a basic and well worn formula, so it's blatantly obvious where the story is going at every single turn. However, the robot fight scenes are kinda cool, Hugh Jackman's performance is solid, and the characters make you care. So err, sit back and enjoy robots pummel each other, if that's your cup of tea?

*** out of *****