Friday, September 30, 2011

365 Days, 100 Films #57 - Scarface (1932)

Scarface, 1932.

Directed by Howard Hawks and Richard Rosson.
Starring Paul Muni, George Raft, Ann Dvorak, Karen Morley, Osgood Perkins, C. Henry Gordon, Vince Barnett, Edwin Maxwell and Boris Karloff.


SYNOPSIS:

Howard Hawks’ original Scarface from 1932. Tony Camonte is new in town and ambitious. It’s prohibition-era in America, which is great for the illegal liquor business.


It’s easy to forget, with all its influence, that America is still a young country. There’s a lot of history that it’s missed out on. It has no Robin Hoods or King Arthurs. It had to rapidly create its own heroes. Cowboys and gangsters. The Western and the Mobster films. The former were noble, until the Italians got their hands on the genre in the 60s. The cowboys would meet in the middle of town at high noon, whereas the gangsters ran around like animals. Italians again, actually, but back in the prohibition-era. It was a nice little earner for the mobsters.

Tony Camonte (Paul Muni) is new in town. You can tell by his accent and occasional pigeon English. He has a subtle scar along his left check that he got from an “old business”. The war? Nah, some broad in a Brooklyn speakeasy. It makes him look like the Joker from The Dark Knight.

He debuts in a big way, killing Big Louis Costillo, the boss of the South Side, in the opening scene. He was the last of the old gang leaders of the booze business. All in one take, the shadow of a whistling gunman executes Costillo, Noir almost a decade before it took off. It was under the orders of Johnny Lovo (Osgood Perkins). “This town is up for grabs.” That’s called aggressive expansion.

Camonte is ambitious. A neon billboard beams “The world is yours!” at him through his window every night in his American dreams.

After a while, with the help of his good friend Guino Rinaldo (George Raft), Camonte takes control of the South Side from Lovo. Bar owners are forced to buy their liquor from them. Anyone who doesn’t is exploded/shot. Even the hospital isn’t safe. There’s a shot of a calendar having the days ripped from it by the sound of a Tommy gun. It’s an effective way to show how the gangsters, and the film, pass the time.

Problems arise when Camonte tries to expand into the North Side. It gives him heat with both the Micks and the police. The move triggers a gang war in the city. Most scenes have at least one person killed in them. The deaths are very expressive. One body is shot (by the camera) lying beneath an undertaker’s sign, the bars of which cast the shadow of a cross over the corpse.

These X’s are everywhere. The Roman numeral ‘X’ dons Rinaldo’s hotel room door. The woodwork in a barn forms a long row of ‘X’s. The line of ‘X’s for strikes on a bowling scorecard. These ‘X’s always preclude or frame the executions. They follow Camonte around like some Grim Reaper.

It goes well for Camonte for a time. He has the city in his hands. But Scarface is a tragedy, his success undone by the flaws in his own character. Gangsters are tragic figures. They had to be to get past the censorship board. Films at that time couldn’t be seen as glamorising a life of crime.

Everyone wore hats back then, too. They’d hang them up when they entered a room, and put them back on as the exited. These gangsters had manners and a warped respectfulness. It’s the endearing paradox at their heart. Camonte’s fierce protectiveness to his sister, shown in the same motion as he shoots single bullets from his pistol at half the city’s police force gathered outside.

Mythical guys, these gangsters.

RATING *****

Oli Davis

365 Days, 100 Films

Movie Review Archive

Christopher Nolan, Michael Bay and Alfonso Cuaron looking to cross over into The Twilight Zone?

According to a report from Variety, Warner Bros. are looking to push on with their plans for a cinematic revival of the classic TV anthology series The Twilight Zone, with the studio said to be mulling over a shortlist of three potential A-list directors in Christopher Nolan (The Dark Knight Rises), Michael Bay (Transformers: Dark of the Moon) and Alfonso Cuarón (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban), all of whom are thought to be interested. Other names rumoured to be in contention include Rupert Wyatt (Rise of the Planet of the Apes) and David Yates (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2), but it seems all indications point to Warner Bros. favourite Christopher Nolan being the front-runner for the project.

Created by Rod Serling, The Twilight Zone originally ran for 156 episodes between 1959 and 1964 and eventually made its way to the big screen in 1983 with Twilight Zone: The Movie, which was produced by Steven Spielberg and featured segments directed by Spielberg, John Landis, Joe Dante and George Miller. Talk of this latest reboot first began in 2008 when Leonardo DiCaprio's production company Appian Way entered negotiations for the rights to develop big-budget Twilight Zone movie consisting of a single 'VFX heavy' tale, but it is unclear at the moment whether Warner Bros. intend reunite Nolan with his Inception star or move forward a brand new take on the material.

If you ask me, I'd go for the anthology approach again and sign them all up - the thought of Nolan and Bay working on a movie together is already much more bizarre than anything Serling ever cooked up.

Thoughts on... Bronson (2008)

Bronson, 2008.

Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn.
Starring Tom Hardy, Kelly Adams, Matt King, James Lance, Amanda Burton and Jonathan Phillips.

Bronson
SYNOPSIS:

An artistic biopic of Michael Peterson, a.k.a. Charles Bronson, the man who was sentenced to 7 years in prison for robbing a Post Office, but over 30 years on remains behind bars for his violent behaviour.

Bronson Tom Hardy
Despite being placed under the umbrella of ‘biopic’, it is clear that Bronson is in fact Nicolas Winding Refn’s interpretation – focusing not on being completely factually accurate, but instead concentrating on a man’s desire to be known, to be famous. Back in the 70s when the film is set; you couldn’t just file in a Big Brother audition tape to get yourself known. No, Charles Bronson felt the best way to become famous was to cause chaos. By attacking prison guards and taking hostages, Charles Bronson is highly feared, and even just a tiny ounce of respect should be owed to him for being so determined to build such a reputation.

Back to the film itself, there’s a certain detachment from reality with some cuts in between sections of the film where Bronson, played by the excellent Tom Hardy, addresses an audience onstage, often with mime-style make-up, and here is where Hardy is at his best. Performing so theatrically in a way that is utterly convincing but also utterly mad, these sections of the film are particularly interesting, as the audience in the theatre are essentially fans of Charles Bronson, loyal followers who clap and laugh as needed, but once ol’ Charles’ voice is raised, they snap back to silence with adoration and awe.

As a fan of Tom Hardy, having first discovered him in Martina Cole TV drama, The Take, I was so impressed by his performance in Bronson, that it came as no surprise that he had in fact met the man on several occasions. I have huge respect for actors who do their utmost to understand a character, and although it is difficult to know what the real Charles Bronson is like, I’m pretty convinced that Tom Hardy had a damn good idea. His performance is phenomenal and terrifying, and although most of the film concentrates on Bronson as basically a lunatic, when the softer and more awkward side of him comes to fruition, it is utterly believable and gives real dimension to a character that most would assume has only one dimension – a violent one.

The order of the film does not always appear to be chronological. There is a small confusion when Bronson’s manager (played by Matt King) comes to the decision that his client should refer to himself as Charles Bronson, as opposed to his birth name Michael Peterson, however he has in fact already referred to himself as Charles Bronson earlier in the film. Other than that though, there is little to say in terms of flaws in this film. The orchestral and often operatic soundtrack is fantastic, and truly contrasts the violence of what we see. The whole film is artful, and some may say it is a drawback – but dig beneath the arty graphics that at one point dance across the screen, and dig beneath some of the directorial decisions, and you’ll find a film that is a little bit ‘in your face’ (Hardy’s cursing is as loud and threatening as if he was there with you on the sofa), but very engaging and a profoundly interesting example of one man’s will power and drive to become known in a time where celebrity was actually less important than today.


Cat Fyson

Movie Review Archive

Thursday, September 29, 2011

DVD Review - The Dead List (2009)

The Dead List, (a.k.a. Ultimate Heist, a.k.a. Inside Ring), 2009.

Directed by Laurent Tuel.
Starring Jean Reno, Gaspard Ulliel, Sami Bouajila and Vahina Giocante.


SYNOPSIS:

The son of a gangster looks to escape the family business as rival mobsters and federal agents close in on his father’s empire.


Jean Reno will forever be known for his star turn as the titular assassin in Leon (The Professional), the brilliant Luc Besson film that launched Reno into Hollywood. Since then he’s never quite hit those heights again, but whenever he appears in something, he’s reliable. At the same time, Reno manages to divide his career between American productions as well as maintaining a steady career in French cinema. The Dead List is one of Reno’s recent additions to his French cinematic CV. So is he close to knocking Leon off the throne as king of his achievements? Well, no.

The Dead List (the title makes no sense at all, and doesn’t fit with the films plot in any way), is an efficiently made thriller. The Malakian family are French Armenian gangsters who ply their trade in the south of France. Father Milo (Reno) wants his son Anton (Gaspard Ulliel) to inherit the family business. Anton however grows weary of the life of crime and wants to set up a legit hotel business of his own with his girlfriend Elodie (Vahina Giaconte). Unfortunately things are never easy and Anton needs money to break free from his father, but Milo is unwilling to see his son retreat from his destiny. All the while, the determined cop Inspector Saunier (Sami Bouajila) is closing in on the Malakians. The plot never really threatens to surprise, but it keeps moving at a steady pace.

The cast are good, helping to elevate what could easily have been rote and uninspiring. Reno as ever is solid, even if he’s not really anywhere near his best. Still, he adds star power to the proceedings. Ulliel is okay, but it’s Giaconte and Bouajila who stand out here. As it is, given the plot, this film probably has a straight-to-video American duplicate somewhere, which probably doesn’t have a cast anywhere near as good. I could see Dean Cain headlining perhaps, in something shot cheaply in Eastern Europe. Maybe bad dialogue just sounds better in French, I don’t know, but in any case, the actors are committed to their characters and despite so much familiarity in the subject, it doesn’t feel churned out like an American counterpart may have done.

There’s not much action in the film, even though it might be suggested from the promotional material (and strange title) for the UK-US viewers, that this is going to be something akin to Leon 2: Clusterfuck. However the brief set pieces are pretty well done. There’s nothing too elaborate as budget would clearly not allow it, but the film’s strength lies more in trying to build tension between father and son before the inevitable clash and resolution.

Fans of Reno will enjoy the film, without being blown away, whilst for others it will probably be passable. There just isn’t enough in the film to differentiate it from dozens of other crime thrillers, especially as the action orientated parts, like the heist itself, play second fiddle to somewhat formulaic characterisation. This could have been a lot better, but conversely, much worse.

Tom Jolliffe

Movie Review Archive

DVD Review - South Central (1992)

South Central, 1992.

Directed by Stephen Milburn Anderson.
Starring Glenn Plummer, Byron Minns, Lexie Bigham and Christian Coleman.


SYNOPSIS:

In South Central, Los Angeles, Bobby, a gang member is put away in prison for ten years after committing a murder. During his time inside, he learns that his son is doomed to follow the same gang life as him.


In the film world, Los Angeles seems to be the city of lost hope, rather than the city of lost angels. Unless your looking at the rise of an up and coming star, you're looking at the down trodden ghettos; an extreme contrast to the glitzy Hollywood-land image of the town. Whilst no large city isn't a stranger to the strife of gang warfare, Los Angeles always seems to be one of the first five cities to pop into your head when it comes to the dreaded G word. So what better time to look into the gang problems of LA than the early Nineties?

South Central doesn't paint a glamorised image, nor does it paint an ugly one. From the hazy, sundrenched beginning, this clearly isn't paradise. Freed from a reason prison sentence, Bobby (Glenn Plummer) is reunited with his old gang, Hoover Street Deuces. As it turns out, during his big stretch inside, someone came outside; his new son Jimmy. No sooner than he high fives all his old homies, he's instantly pulled into a murder of a drug dealer. Naturally, the bars slam shut on him for the second time in his life. So far, so downtrodden.

Fast forward ten years and Jimmy is now a streetwise kid with aspirations of running with his father's old gang. Whilst in jail, Bobby has to deal with white supremacist and a worse foe; himself. Whilst there were some shocking moments in the story, there are a few too many moments that play out a little too predictable. Heart-warming, and possibly gripping, but predictable. However, the characters do show some development, even though we only see them ten years later. But they all stay trapped within their own personal prisons.

Bobby is trapped by his own anger, his girlfriend is trapped by her drug habit, the Deuces are trapped in a world of gang violence, whilst little jimmy is simply building his prison around him by getting involved in the gang. The feeling of futility is a constant theme is this movie and nothing appears to be glamorised one bit.

Up to its gripping finale, the film plays out calmly and with little sympathy to most of the characters involved. Don't expect anything too shocking that will blow you away like a drive-by, but don't cast this aside as some generic piece of Nineties nostalgia. South Central is an engrossing gang flick with heart, character determination.

Will Preston is a freelance writer from Portsmouth. He writes for various blogs (including his own website) and makes short films.

Movie Review Archive

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Second Opinion - Red State (2011)

Red State, 2011.

Directed by Kevin Smith.
Starring Kyle Gallner, Michael Angarano, Michael Parks, Melissa Leo, John Goodman and Stephen Root.


SYNOPSIS:

Three boys (Michael Angarano, Kyle Gallner and Nicholas Braun) get more than they bargained when they answer a sex ad that leaves them drugged hostages of the Five Points Church, led by charismatic preacher Abin Cooper (Michael Parks). When the situation escalates into a standoff between ATF Agent Joseph Keenan (John Goodman) and the fanatical religious clan, violence inevitably erupts.


Maybe it was Cop Out, or the low-grossing, critically battered Zack and Miri Make a Porno. Perhaps we’d have to go back as far as Jersey Girl to see when the gears started turning in Kevin Smith’s head – whatever the catalyst, Red State represents a key departure for the irrevocably candid self-described slacker. Smith and now Lionsgate have sold it as a horror film, a description that fits the film just as well as the fish-out-of-water gangster flick did In Bruges. This is a gritty production that features no elements of traditional horror and is steeped in a dialogue that retains Smith’s particular charm. With Michael Parks delivering a magnetic performance as a pastor of a very dedicated flock, Smith has fashioned a film that feels occasionally risky but is let down by an inability to commit to a sustained pace that robs the violent second act of any palpable tension.

Shot on a $4 million budget, Red State has flustered and angered a variety of critics and fanboys since its very inception. Now that it’s finally available to be viewed at will, the first watch brings to mind a question – what was all the hubbub about? Surely it’s a testy film, depicting a cultish clan that rejects modern-day values in favor of the Bible – the problem is, through the lens of Cooper (Parks), the only thing the Five Points Church extricated from the pages of that hallowed book is fear. Fear is the answer to their prayers and the centerpiece of the film is undoubtedly a nearly 15 minute sermon delivered by Parks. It almost feels like real time passes and if Smith had wanted to go all the way, he might’ve shot it in one take – Parks certainly seems capable as a man whose personal morals may be revolting, but whose instincts as a natural salesman are impeccable.

Impressive as that sermon may be, it is more notable for the fact that it appears than its actual content – it does become long-winded toward the middle and grinds the film to a halt. The fate of the boys bound as hostages, and soon to be subjected to a worse fate, is shoved aside for some in-depth preaching. I understand the impulse to drive home the congregation’s beliefs but I’m baffled that it takes so long. By the time Goodman’s ATF agent shows up on the scene, backed up by some serious firepower and a wise-cracking partner (Kevin Pollak), we’ve already resigned ourselves that no one is going to come out of this film clean, and possibly alive for that matter. What’s left is a second act that despite massive firepower unleashed from both sides feels as an afterthought, since you are resigned to passively watching the clan’s numbers whittle.

As for the boys, their plot ties into the firefight but feels largely secondary, which is odd since we’d spent enough time with them during a well-paced opening to care. Also odd is a sheriff (Stephen Root) who’s given plenty of baggage but never seems to account for more than a nuisance to Goodman’s morally conflicted flunky. I will commit to saying that I’ve never seen John Goodman give a bad performance and this film doesn’t break that streak. As Keenan, he’s a more developed character that even Cooper and watching him bark back at his supervisors amidst the firefight is involving – not as involving as the space allotted to Keenan in the final act, where he relates a story from his youth that effectively underlines what it is that Kevin Smith is trying to say.

Some critics have lambasted the third act for backing down from a conclusion that seems forgone halfway through the film – I thought it was an unusual and unique ending and the epilogue with Goodman is only icing on the cake. Now that we’ve heard Smith talk about the original ending (see here), it’s understandable how a rewrite forced his hand to adjust for something more acceptable given the budget, but I am surprised he’s come with something so strange and memorable. Which is to say Red State does coast on a strong ending despite a muddled message that is sure to be debated (or not, maybe I’m just lost as to what Kevin Smith is saying). That said, the film is a curio, a must-see for fans of the director and a strong recommendation for cinephiles. It won’t make a rainy Saturday night considerably better but at the very least you can argue with your friends afterwards.

For more on Red State, check out my podcast It’s No Timecop! Episode 4 – now on Itunes!

Mark Zhuravsky is a prolific writer and podcaster, and a dedicated editor.

365 Days, 100 Films #56 - X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009)

X-Men Origins: Wolverine, 2009.

Directed by Gavin Hood.
Starring Hugh Jackman, Liev Schreiber, Danny Huston, Will.i.am, Lynn Collins, Kevin Durand, Dominic Monaghan, Taylor Kitsch and Ryan Reynolds.


SYNOPSIS:

Wolverine is enlisted in the Weapon X project.


And here was me thinking X-Men: The Last Stand was the worst film ever made. People make claims like that a lot, to the extent where it’s an almost redundant statement. It’s too subjective a criticism, so the immediate reaction is to take claims like that with a pinch of salt. However, Wolverine is the worst film ever made.

That’s evaluated purely on ‘how-much-it-disappointed-me’ criteria. Obviously, there are worse films out there. Cheaply made, plot-holed nonsense. But in subjective terms, Wolverine takes the faeces-stained mantle.

The film starts in Canada in 1845 with a young Logan (who will grow up to be Wolverine), and fast-forwards to the Vietnam War in a five-minute montage credit sequence. You know what might have been better? Care and considerate storytelling. How are you supposed to sympathise with characters introduced this way? The film rushes through various wars in which Wolverine and his brother have fought. The teasing of Wolverine in the Civil War or World War I, even Vietnam, makes the mouth water. Instead we get a present day narrative.

The cool thing about Wolverine is that neither you nor he knows how old he is. It brings a tormented mystery to the character. Yet here’s an answer to that question, the money shot revealed in the first scene. Granted, the name of the film includes the word ‘Origins’, but there are other, more inventive ways to go about addressing such. And this is the fundamental flaw to the entire project – the filmmakers don’t understand their protagonist.

First off, he smiles way too much. Wolverine is a badass. He should smile rarely, if ever. He should not smile at a wiseguy’s jokes. He should not appear at peace with himself at any point. But the filmmakers attempt to tame him, dress him up in one of those humiliating motion capture suits like some wild beast of a man being forced to wear a tie.

Secondly, every scene feels like some terrible cliché, like the film is making fun of itself. After the botched opening montage, Wolverine is shown settled down with a lady in some remote cabin and it’s all perfect and very nice, and you just know that someone’s gonna come along and kill her and make Wolverine do just One. Last. Job. Watching Wolverine could fool you into thinking you’re developing mutant powers of premonition yourself. Each scene can be predicted from the first few seconds of dialogue and/or setting. The lady is a schoolteacher, by the way. Of course she is. You wouldn’t want to waste time by making her a sympathetic character through things like actions and relationships. Nope, just mention she’s a school teacher. It’s as good as the “he had one day left till retirement” routine.

The dialogue is self-effacing. Every line feels forces and cheesy. “Well, well, well – look what the cat dragged in” is an actual line in this movie.

And the reason they do this is because the filmmakers obviously don’t care about any of their characters. That’s why they’re given such throwaway fragments of dialogue. The characters are just filler and models around which action sequences can be built. And that would be fine if it were any other character, but it isn’t. This is Wolverine’s origin story. He’s Marvel’s Batman, and he could have been a huge draw if he were done right. Darren Aronofsky wouldn’t be tempted to superhero films by any old player and it’s a shame he’s no longer involved in the sequel.

There’s so much wrong with Wolverine. It’s a truly appalling film and insults the intelligence of anyone who gives it his or her time. But there’s still the danger that this review might be read and someone will say, “oh, it can’t be that bad. Most of what he’s written is subjective. Perhaps he had a bad day. Perhaps we have different tastes in film. I like X-Men anyways. Surely I’m the sort of guy or girl the filmmakers had in mind when…”

So let us deal in cold, hard facts. Will.i.am is in this film. The guy from Black Eyed Peas. Was he seriously the best person for that role? Did the filmmakers really respect their characters so much that they searched for a great character actor? No. Will.i.am got the role because he’s Will.i.am.

And that sums X-Men Origins: Wolverine up.

Ghastly.

RATING: NO STARS


Oli Davis

365 Days, 100 Films

Movie Review Archive

Quick Shooter: A Clint Eastwood Profile (Part 2)

Trevor Hogg profiles the career of Hollywood icon Clint Eastwood in the second of a five-part feature (read part one here)...

“After Hang ’em High [1968], I acted in several pictures without being actively involved in their production,” recalled California filmmaker Clint Eastwood. “Then I found myself making my directorial debut directing second unit on a picture of Don Siegel’s.” The action crime thriller introduced audience members to the actor’s signature role of no nonsense Police Inspector Harry Callahan. “Don had the flu and I replaced him for the sequence where Harry tries to convince the would-be-suicide not to jump into the void. That turned out OK, because, for lack of space on the window ledge, the only place to perch me was on the crane. I shot this scene, then another one, and I began to think more seriously about directing.” The helmer of Dirty Harry (1971) had a great deal of respect for his leading man. “I found Clint to be very knowledgeable about making pictures, very good at knowing what to do with the camera,” stated Siegel. “He started to come up with ideas for camera set-ups and even if I decided not to use them, they invariably gave me another idea.” Eastwood also played the part of the student with the man behind the camera. “I learned that you have to trust your instincts. Somebody’s always going to find a flaw, and pretty soon that flaw gets magnified and you’re all back to another take.”

“In TV, I saw so much that I wouldn’t do as a director; I was prepared,” remarked Clint Eastwood who made the decision to occupy the director’s chair for a project in which he would also star. “The overall concept of a film was more important to me than just acting.” The rookie moviemaker did not have to look far to find the appropriate material. “One of my friends, Jo Heims, had written a script I was fond of, Play Misty for Me [1971]. I’d even taken out an option on it. I had just been offered Where Eagles Dare [1968] when she called me to ask my advice. Universal was offering to buy her script and to renew the option. Of course, I encouraged her to sell it to them. It was some years later, after I’d signed a contract with Universal for three movies, I could tell them, ‘By the way, you’ve got a project on your shelf I’d like to do. I also want to direct it.’ Because it wasn’t a very costly production, I got the green light.” A brief affair with a female admirer (Jessica Walter) has fatal consequences for a small town celebrity (Eastwood). “The character played by Jessica Walter, which was suggested to Jo Heims by an acquaintance of hers, was familiar to me. It’s someone who fantasizes a love relationship. For the disc jockey, it’s a one-night stand but for her it’s a devouring passion. This misunderstanding interested me; when do you become involved in a love affair? To what extent are we responsible for the relationships we establish?”

Revisions were made to the story. “In the script, the setting was Los Angeles,” explained Clint Eastwood. “But a friend of mine, who had some features in common with my character, was a disc jockey for a Carmel radio station. In a small town like Carmel, a disc jockey has more chances to become a celebrity than in Los Angeles.” There were other alterations beyond the setting. “I brought in Dean Riesner to work on my role, which was a little soft in an earlier version…I thought the problems with his girlfriend needed some motivation, perhaps the fact he gets hung up with a fan now and then.” The screenwriter devised the method used by the disc jockey to pickup female patrons. “Riesner made up the game; it was something Dave and the bartender made up to intrigue women to come over and watch.” The crime drama features the acting talents of Clint Eastwood, Jessica Walter (The Group), Donna Mills (Dangerous Intentions), John Larch (Cannon for Cordoba), Clarice Taylor (Smoke), Don Siegel, Jack Ging (Where the Red Fern Grows), James McEachin (Every Which Way But Loose) and Irene Hervey (Charlie Chan in Shanghai). “The one who was most nervous was Don Siegel. I’d cast him in the bartender’s role and he kept saying, ‘You’re making a huge mistake. You should have gotten a real character actor. I’ll never be up to it.’ To which I answered, ‘Don, you’ll be sensational. And it will give you the chance to better appreciate what actors go through. Besides, if something goes wrong, I’ll have a director on hand to get me out of it!’”

“We shot it in four and a half weeks. We had a five week schedule. We were two and half days under schedule,” said Clint Eastwood. “We rented houses, moved in and shot.” Complications arose with the studio over the selection of music. “I needed a song that was not so old that the present generation would say, ‘Gee. I never heard of that.’ It had to be something that everyone from 18 on would recognize. The studio wanted me to use Strangers in the Night, which they owned, but it’s not a classic. There’s that dooby-dooby do at the end; I just thought it wouldn’t work.” Describing the picture at the time of its release, Eastwood stated, “It’s got a lot of action and suspense, and I used a small crew and a low budget of only $800,000 but I got more than $800,000 on the screen. At least I know if it’s a failure it’s my own fault.” Looking back, the native of San Francisco recalls, “I remember that after I finished I was a wreck. I disguised myself and went and sat in a theatre. There were teenage girls right in front of me. I was sweating bullets and I thought, ‘What happens if they boo?’ and then [actress] Jessica Walter came flying out from behind a screen and everyone screamed and I thought, ‘Hey, this isn’t so bad. It’s working.’” Domestically Play Misty for Me would gross $11 million and Jessica Walter received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress – Drama.

“I decided to do it on the basis of a treatment of only nine pages,” revealed Clint Eastwood as to why he chose High Plains Drifter (1973) to be his sophomore effort. “It’s the only time that’s happened to me. The starting point was, ‘What would have happened if the sheriff in High Noon [1952] had been killed? What would have happened afterwards?’ In the treatment by Ernest Tidyman [The French Connection], the sheriff’s brother came back to avenge the sheriff, and the villagers were as contemptible and selfish as in High Noon. But [we] opted eventually for an appreciably different approach: you would never know whether the brother in question is a diabolic being or a kind of archangel. It’s up to the audience to draw their own conclusions. Tidyman wrote the script from this perspective, but he missed a certain number of elements; I rewrote it with the help of Dean Riesner who had collaborated several times with Siegel.” Comparing the Western to the classic which served as its inspiration, the director and lead actor observed, “High Plains Drifter goes further than High Noon. When the hero helps them to get organized, the townspeople believe they can control him. As soon as he leaves, they fall back into the error of their ways and their failure is obvious; their disgrace is unpardonable.”

A different narrative style was utilized compared to the unconnected vignette technique adopted by Sergio Leone (A Fistful of Dollars). “In High Plains Drifter, all the elements overlap, even though there are several subplots. Everything is related to the protagonist’s nightmare,” said Clint Eastwood who purposely minimized the exposition. “The traditional way of doing it was to just lay everything out. Using the Western as an example: as the guy rides into town he sees a man beating a horse. He interferes, punches the guy out, so you know immediately that’s the antagonist with whom the hero is going to resolve a conflict later on. Then he sees the school marm on the porch and she gives him a stare and you also know that they’re going to be romantically involved. You can almost draw the ending right there, in the first five minutes. The audience should never be able to anticipate that far ahead where it’s going, because otherwise they sit there waiting for the movie to catch up with them.” Adding to the cinematic atmosphere was the setting. “Mono Lake is a dead lake. It has some very interesting outcroppings and the colours almost change moment by moment, so it gave the film an elusive quality.”

“The visuals at the beginning set up the mood of the rider,” said Clint Eastwood. “I took a piece of the heat wave out of the corner of the shot and blew it up so it was the same texture in the whole frame. As it was initially, I couldn’t get back far enough with the lens to get the rider out of sight, so I just started with a blank screen and dissolved through it. With the heat wave you don’t notice the dissolve. Things like that set the tone for the film, but from the very beginning I saw the film clearly. It was the reason I decided to direct it.” Clint Eastwood stars along with Verna Bloom (After Hours), Marianne Hill (Medium Cool), Mitch Ryan (Lethal Weapon), Jack Ging, Stefan Gierasch (Carrie), Ted Hartly (Ice Station Zebra), and Buddy Van Horn (The Deer Hunter). “We built a little town, interiors and exteriors, and shot the picture in five weeks.” High Plains Drifter which is described by the filmmaker as being a “small morality play” earned $16 million domestically.

“It was a very inexpensive picture shot on location [in Los Angeles],” said Clint Eastwood of Breezy (1973). I liked the script by Jo Heims, her second I believe: the regeneration of the cynic, an older man, divorced, who’s a success professionally but who doesn’t have an emotional life anymore. He’s rejuvenated thanks to a naïve teenager who isn’t so naïve after all.” Cast in the leading role in the $750,000 production was Hollywood veteran William Holden (The Bridge on the River Kwai). “Technically very astute as an actor, he understood the role completely so it was easy for him to play.” The actress hired to play the title character was supported by her director and co-star. “Kay Lenz [American Graffiti] was young, so I had to work a little more with her. Holden was very gentle with her, even during the screen test.” Cast along with William Holden, and Kay Lenz are Roger C. Carmel (Gambit), Marj Dusay (Love Walked In), Joan Hotchkis (Ode to Billy Joe), Lynn Borden (Black Mamma, White Mamma), Shelley Morrison (Fools Rush In), Dennis Olivieri (The Centerfold Girls), Eugene Peterson (The Postman Always Rings Twice), Jamie Smith-Jackson (All the President’s Men), and Norman Bartold (Close Encounters of the Third Kind). “The audience follows a story by adopting the point of view of one of the protagonists, whether it’s an adult or a child. If this protagonist learns something, you’ll identify with him all the better if you have an impression that you’re maturing with him. In Breezy, I wanted to say that even a middle class man of substance has something to learn from someone who doesn’t have anything.” Despite being lauded with Golden Globe nominations for Best Original Score, Best Original Song, and Most Promising Newcomer – Female (Kay Lenz), Breezy was a commercial disappointment. “The public stayed away from it because it wasn’t promoted enough and it was sold in an uninteresting fashion.”

“I took a book Universal owned – a bestseller – and I couldn’t figure out what to do,’ confessed Clint Eastwood who chose to cinematically adapt The Eiger Sanction (1975), an action thriller by author Dr. Rodney William Whitaker; a retired professional assassin (Eastwood) seeks to avenge the murder of an old friend. “The book has no ties. In other words, the character who is killed at the beginning has no relationship with anybody else. I just took it and tried to make the guy relate to the hero, so the hero had some other motivations. The way the book was written, he had no motivations for anything. He just went there [to the Eiger], strictly for monetary gain. At the end, he’s not with any of the people he started with – including the girl.” The production presented numerous challenges. “There were three stories in one and it was a difficult picture to make. A good thing our gadgets were limited in number; we were running the risk of heading in the direction of the James Bond movies. The mountaineering sequences posed enormous problems. We had to shoot with two crews, one crew of technicians and one crew of mountain climbers. Every morning, we had to decide, according to the weather report, which one to send up the mountain. The three actors and I had to undergo intensive training. On the seventh day of filming we lost one of our mountaineers, and, believe me, I asked myself repeatedly if it was worth it.” Grossing $14 million domestically The Eiger Sanction features Clint Eastwood, George Kennedy (Cool Hand Luke), Vonetta McGee (Repo Man), Jack Cassidy (The Andersonville Trial), Heidi Bruhl (Captain Sinbad), Thayer David (Rocky), Reiner Schöne (Priest), and Michael Grimm (Heavyweights). “The humour was frankly sardonic but I believe it was inherent in the story. I couldn’t have considered handling it otherwise.”

A hard cover book titled The Rebel Outlaw: Josey Wales (republished as Gone to Texas) about a Missouri farmer who seeks revenge for the murder of his family during the American Civil War, was sent to Clint Eastwood by its author Forrest Carter. “It was written by a Cherokee Indian who had never written a book but was a well-known poet in Indian circles,” explained Eastwood. “My associate, Bob Daley, was so taken by his cover letter that he took the book to read and couldn’t put it down. It was written in a very honest fashion.” The filmmaker bought the screen rights and decided to rename the tale The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976). “I didn’t like Gone to Texas [as a title] because it put it into a specific region. Rebel Outlaw I didn’t like because there were so many AIP pictures about motorcycle gangs.” Another change involved the star of the Western replacing the original director Phil Kauffman (The Right Stuff) with himself. “He shot a week of it and did marvelous work on the script.” Eastwood readily admitted, “I should have prepared and done it myself, but after Eiger, I was kind of weak, mentally and wanted to get somebody else to do it. Then, as I got into it, I began to visualize it differently.”

The Outlaw Josey Wales cost $4 million to make and it took eight and half weeks to complete the principle photography. “Josey was difficult in the sense that we shot in Utah, two different locations in Arizona, and in California – we had to move a lot on that one because it’s a saga – you have to feel the travelling in the land.” The filmmaker was forewarned by the locals about the unpredictable weather conditions. “People there told us that the year before, a film crew had to suspend operations for 17 days, because it rained continuously. I still remember how we examined the sky every day.” The natural elements turned out to be agreeable. “For the opening montage of the war, I didn’t want any sunlight. It gives it a much more somber effect. The first part of the film showed an idyllic light; then all of a sudden it goes to a very somber tone. It gradually gets to a nicer tone as his life gets better when he gets to the ranch and starts winning – going from loser to a winner. That was the way it was planned and fortunately ‘The Head Gaffer Up Above’ stayed with us.”

Featured in the Western are Clint Eastwood, Chief Dan George (Little Big Man), Sondra Locke (The Heart is a Lonely Hunter), Bill McKinney (Deliverance), John Vernon (Topaz), Paula Trueman (Dirty Dancing), Sam Bottoms (Apocalypse Now), Geraldine Keams (Faster), Woodrow Parfrey (Planet of the Apes), and Joyce Jameson (The Apartment). “When I read the book, I knew Chief Dan George was the only person to play that character. He’s got a face you never get tired of looking at.” The director did not regret his casting choice. “I love the last scene where he comes up to Josey; all he says is, ‘You’re up kind of early,’ but he knows Josey is leaving, he reads the whole situation. A lot of pro actors can’t move you that way. He says the simplest thing and it sounds like an important statement; everything has importance.” Eastwood stated, “My favourite line in the movie is when one of the bounty hunters says, ‘Man’s got to do something for a living these days,’ and Josey answers, ‘Dyin’ ain’t much of a living.’ He [Forrest Carter, the novelist] understands the guy completely. A lot of guys have done the Quantrill and the Missouri guerrillas on film, but nobody has ever done the Kansas Redlegs, who were a lot like carpetbaggers. When the winning side of the war came, they were always seen as heroic, even though they were just as much renegades as Quantrill.” Reflecting on the main character, the Californian added, “The irony is that Josey Wales inherits a family. After everything he ever loved has been destroyed, he finds himself picking up these outcasts along his way: the Indian, the grandmother and her granddaughter, some Mexicans and even a dog. This heterogeneous group becomes a community.” The Outlaw Josey Wales grossed $32 million domestically and received an Oscar nomination for Best Original Score; in 1996 the Western was inducted into the National Film Registry.

“It was written by Dennis Shryack [Turner and Hooch] and Michael Butler [Flashpoint],” remarked Clint Eastwood of the action thriller The Gauntlet (1977). “It was in good shape. There was a minor amount of rewriting, a lot of it deletions.” Summarizing the story, the director stated, “A cop starts out to fly an extradited witness from Vegas back to Phoenix for trial. Everything goes wrong – there’s this group of people who don’t want him to get back. She’s a hooker and he’s a cop who hates hookers, but they grow together as they go – via car, foot, motorcycle, train, bus, you name it.” Reflecting on the character of Ben Shockley, who lacks the slickness and decisiveness of his signature character of Dirty Harry, Eastwood remarked, “The cop of The Gauntlet is a guy who just follows routine, not very sharp, easy to manipulate. All he expects from life are simple things: to do his job well, find a wife, settle down. When he confesses his longings, it happens that he’s talking to a woman he would ordinarily have treated like a whore but who’s much more clever than he is. She’s the one who opens his eyes because he’s too regimented to understand what’s going on; he can’t imagine that his superiors could deceive him deliberately.”

Starring in the $6 million production are Clint Eastwood, Sondra Locke, Pat Hingle (Batman), William Prince (Network), Bill McKinney (Deliverance), Michael Cavanaugh (Red Dragon), Carole Cook (Sixteen Candles), and Mara Corday (The Black Scorpion). “The girl’s part is a terrific role, not just token window-dressing like in so many action films,” observed Clint Eastwood. “Her part is equal to the male part. It’s in The African Queen [1951] tradition: a love-hate thing that turns out to be a love story. It’s a bawdy adventure, too.” The director purposely avoided going for the predictable. “He never goes to bed with her even though she plays a hooker; that would have been the obvious thing to do. It’s a relationship built on another plane. For a cop who’s had a lot of disappointments, never had a personal life that reached any heights – it becomes a pure love affair, with great friendship, and great regard for one another. “

“They run the gauntlet at the end. Their bus travels down through town and is ripped to shreds, hence the title,” stated Clint Eastwood of the over-the-top conclusion which was based on a infamous real life incident. “I had seen on television the barrage of gunfire that followed the abduction of Patty Hearst by the Symbionese Liberation Army – a tremendous barrage, in the middle of the city. Bullets flew in all directions and at least three buildings caught fire. I imagined what would occur in a city of middling importance like Las Vegas; a city where almost nothing happens, where the police don’t have anything to do but arrest a drunk from time to time. If it were suddenly announced that Public Enemy Number One had seized a bus and taken a police officer hostage all the cops in town would want to be in on the strike and it’s predictable that their reaction would be excessive.” The Gauntlet earned $26 million domestically and was given a loose remake with Bruce Willis in 16 Blocks (2006).

Clint Eastwood returned to Western genre to play a gunfighter who struggles to remain part of a quickly fading era.

Continue to part three.

For more on the legendary actor and filmmaker, visit Clint Eastwood.net and ClintEastwoodSite.com, along with the Dirty Harry fan-site The-Dirtiest.com.

Five Essential Films of Clint Eastwood

Trevor Hogg is a freelance video editor and writer who currently resides in Canada.

Win tickets to see Steve McQueen's Shame at the London Film Festival - NOW CLOSED

The 55th BFI London Film Festival gets underway on October 12th and to celebrate, Flickering Myth have teamed up with Jameson - the 'Official Spirit of the BFI London Film Festival' - to offer one of our lovely readers a pair of tickets to see Shame, the latest film from the BAFTA Award-winning British director Steve McQueen (Hunger).

An erotic drama, Shame stars Michael Fassbender (Inglourious Basterds, X-Men: First Class, A Dangerous Method) and Carey Mulligan (An Education, Never Let Me Go, Drive) and will be showing on 14th October at 8:30pm at the Vue cinema in Leicester Square.

To be in with a chance of winning all you need to do is make sure you like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter, then send a quick email with your contact details and the subject heading "SHAME". Be sure to include your postal address, along with your Facebook / Twitter username.

The competition closes at 5pm on Thursday, October 6th. UK entrants only please.
Jameson, the “Official Spirit of the BFI London Film Festival” will be evoking the spirit of the 1920s with a pop-up cinematic speakeasy called the Jameson Apartment. Accessed via a secret door on Greek Street in London’s Soho, just off Leicester Square, the Jameson Apartment will open to the public on Wednesday 12th October for the duration of the Festival.

The Jameson Apartment will give film enthusiasts a unique and unforgettable cinematic experience whilst enjoying a selection of Jameson’s best loved cult cocktails. A different concept will be on offer every night, from bespoke cocktail master classes with leading mixologists to film inspired quizzes and premieres of short films plus regular speakeasy parties.

On arrival at the hidden entrance, visitors will be invited to say a secret password into a phone to gain entry. Once inside, guests will be welcomed by a modern day dandy as they enjoy the intrigue of speakeasy in the heart of London. With low seductive lighting setting the scene and vintage tunes flowing from a gramophone or celebrated DJ, guests will be transported to another era as they experience classic 1920s cinema and sip exclusive cocktails designed by Jameson mixologist Ed McAvoy.

As a long term backer of film, including the creation of the Jameson Cult Film Club and sponsorship of the Jameson Empire Awards, Jameson is proud to be the “Official Spirit of the BFI London Film Festival” for the third consecutive year and the official sponsor of the ‘Film on the Square’ screenings of the most anticipated new titles from around the world.

For more information on the LFF, visit the official site. The Jameson Apartment will be open daily from 12th – 27th October 2011, from 5.30pm until late and is located at 39 Greek Street, Soho, London. More information on the Jameson Apartment, including full details of the schedule and secret password can be found at www.jamesoncultfilmclub.com or www.facebook.com/jamesoncultfilmclub.

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Lionsgate to adapt zombie video game Dead Island into a movie

Dead IslandLionsgate have secured the movie rights to the first-person zombie-fighting video game Dead Island, from its developers Deep Silver. Released earlier this month, Dead Island sees a group of survivors at a beach resort threatened by an undead plague ravaging the outside world.

The teaser trailer for the game is the “primary creative inspiration” for the film. After being released online it became a viral sensation and won various industry awards including a Golden Lion at Cannes. Lionsgate president Joe Drake said: “The film Dead Island will be an innovation of the zombie genre because of its focus on human emotion, family ties and non-linear storytelling. Like the hundreds of journalists and millions of fans who were so passionate and vocal about the Dead Island trailer, we too were awestruck. This is exactly the type of property we’re looking to adapt at Lionsgate – it’s sophisticated, edgy, and a true elevation of a genre that we know and love. It also has built in brand recognition around the world, and franchise potential.”

Sean Daniel (The Mummy franchise) will be producing the movie, along with colorist Stefan Sonnenfeld (Sucker Punch, Fright Night).

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Special Features - Keeping it in the family at the 55th BFI London Film Festival

Whoever said it was all about who you know, they certainly weren’t wrong as this year’s BFI London Film Festival sets itself up as a truly family affair...

Following in the footsteps of his father, the late, great Dennis Hopper, Henry Hopper makes his acting debut in indie flick Restless, starring next to up-and-coming Hollywood star, Mia Wasikowska. At just 21 years old, Henry is taking centre stage at the same age his father was when he starred in classics Rebel Without A Cause and Giant, but with critically-acclaimed director Gus Van Sant behind him, there’s no doubt he’ll be able to fill his big shoes.

Also stepping into the star-studded limelight like her father is Eve Hewson, daughter of U2’s front man, Bono. Despite taking a slightly different creative direction to her Dad, Eve is set for big things, starring in the Film on the Square feature, This Must Be The Place, alongside Oscar-winners Sean Penn and Frances McDormand.

Taking a more behind-the-scenes role is producer, Amy Gilliam who, as daughter of Monty Python creator and renowned director, Terry Gilliam, leads the production of her father’s own film, The Wholly Family. Terry himself features twice in this year’s festival: voicing a character in the magical Monster of Nix, as well as writer and directing The Wholly Family in partnership with his daughter.

It’s not just dads that are inspiring their offspring to take on the big screen though, as Joely Richardson stars alongside her mother, Vanessa Redgrave in Roland Emmerich’s tale of conspiracy and deceit, Anonymous, with Rhys Ifans and Davis Thewlis. Featuring in the Galas & Special Screenings strand, Joely Richardson plays a young Queen Elizabeth I, with her mother adopting the same role in later years.

Siblings are also making their mark, as Elizabeth Olsen steps out of her sisters’ shadow to take the lead role in psychological thriller Martha Marcy May Marlene, whilst directorial sibling duos Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne (The Kid With A Bike) and Delphine and Muriel Coulin (17 Girls) also feature in the line-up.

Finally, the late Mrs. Alfred Hitchcock, Alma Reville, features in the Galas & Screenings strand posthumously. Writer of The First Born, Reville’s words have been restored by the BFI National Archive, including reinstated missing footage, offering a great opportunity to see this classic.



The 55th BFI London Film Festival (in partnership with American Express) runs from 12th to 27th October. Ticket booking info: www.bfi.org.uk/lff (the box office is now open to the public).

Video: The BFI highlight the London Film Festival's opening and closing night films

The British Film Institute are gearing up for the launch of the 55th BFI London Film Festival next month, which runs from October 12th - October 27th and looks set to showcase a grand total of 204 feature films with highlights including The Ides of March (dir. George Clooney), We Need to Talk About Kevin (dir. Lynne Ramsay), Shame (dir. Steve McQueen), A Dangerous Method (dir. David Cronenberg) and Carnage (dir. Roman Polanski).

Meanwhile, the festival will get underway with the world premiere of 360 - a romantic drama from acclaimed director Fernando Meirelles (City of God) that stars Anthony Hopkins, Jude Law, Rachel Weisz, Ben Foster and Eminem. Take a look at the following video, in which the BFI spotlight their opening night film...


Bringing the festival to a close is director Terence Davies' The Deep Blue Sea, which also stars Rachel Weisz alongside the likes of Tom Hiddleston, Simon Russell Beale, Karl Johnson and Anne Mitchell. Check out the BFI's special preview here...


Be sure to check back next month for all of our coverage from the 55th BFI London Film Festival.

The BBFC won't let us watch The Human Centipede 2, but here's the latest trailer anyway...

We might not get to see it here in the U.K. thanks to our watchful guardians at the British Board of Film Classification, but our American friends are gearing up for the release of the horror sequel The Human Centipede II (Full Sequence) from writer-director Tom Six, with the controversial shocker getting its first full trailer courtesy of Yahoo Movies.

The film, which premiered at Austin's Fantastic Fest earlier this month, is the follow-up to 2008's The Human Centipede (First Sequence) and made headlines in June when the BBFC refused it a classification over concerns that ""there is little attempt to portray any of the victims in the film as anything other than objects to be brutalised, degraded and mutilated for the amusement and arousal of the central character, as well as for the pleasure of the audience".

The Human Centipede 2 stars newcomer Laurence R. Harvey as the antagonist, a disturbed loner called Martin, and also features Ashlynn Yennie, Dominic Borrelli, Georgina Goodrick, Lucas Hansen and Bill Hutchens. Take a look at the trailer...


Can't help thinking the BBFC have dropped the ball with this one. By effectively banning The Human Centipede 2 from these shores, they've created a load of publicity for something which the majority of the population would never have even heard about. In all honesty, if it wasn't for the fact the BBFC have refused a certificate, I'd probably not be posting this trailer and now - with all of the hype surrounding a film that The Guardian says is a piece of shit anyway - illegal downloads are bound to end up going through the roof. Way to go, BBFC.

Regardless, The Human Centipede II (Full Sequence) will look to repulse North American audiences when it hits cinemas on October 7th.

Warrior taps out as Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy retains the UK box office crown

UK box office top ten and analysis for the weekend of Friday 23rd - Sunday 25th September 2011...

Tomas Alfredson's critically acclaimed espionage thriller Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy holds onto the UK box office crown for the second consecutive week, pulling in £2.1m to see off the challenge of newcomers Crazy, Stupid, Love and fellow Tom Hardy effort Warrior - the two new releases banking £860k and £808k to take second and third respectively. As a result, the Brit comedy The Inbetweeners Movie falls two places to fourth, while another new arrival - the actioner Drive from director Nicolas Winding Refn - claims fifth with an opening weekend £607k (and sees Ryan Gosling making his second appearance of the weekend after Crazy, Stupid, Love).

Moving into the bottom half of the chart and the Mila Kunis / Justin Timberlake raunchy rom-com Friends with Benefits slips three places to sixth, one place ahead of the week's only other new entry, the action thriller Killer Elite, which stars Brits Jason Statham and Clive Owen alongside Robert De Niro. The latest adaptation of Jane Eyre falls four spots to eighth, quickly followed by The Smurfs in ninth (down three from last weekend), while comedy The Change-Up plummets from fifth place to prop up the chart in tenth.

Number one this time last year: The Other Guys




























































Pos.FilmWeekend GrossWeek
1Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
£2,104,7622
2Crazy, Stupid, Love
£860,1121
3Warrior
£808,4101
4The Inbetweeners Movie£754,2266
5Drive
£607,4541
6Friends with Benefits£580,6413
7Killer Elite
£481,1431
8Jane Eyre£445,4553
9The Smurfs£410,8177
10The Change-Up£378,2262

Incoming...


The final Friday of September sees a number of films arrive in UK cinemas, with the likes of Taylor Lautner espionage thriller Abduction (cert. 12A), rom-com What's Your Number (cert. 15) and 'blood-and-bikinis' effort Shark Night 3D (cert. 15) likely to fare a little better at the box office than spy drama The Debt (cert. 15), Kevin Smith horror Red State (cert. 18) and Lars Von Trier drama Melancholia (cert. 15).

U.K. Box Office Archive

Monday, September 26, 2011

DVD Review - Shiver (2008)

Shiver (Spanish: Eskalofrío), 2008.

Directed by Isidro Ortiz.
Starring Junio Valverde, Mar Soupe and Blanca Suarez.


SYNOPSIS:

Santi has a serious case of photophobia, to improve his health him and his mother are forced to move to a shadowed village in the Spanish mountains but not all is quite right about their new hometown.


In case you hadn’t gathered by now, Shiver is a Spanish horror film. My experience of Spanish horror is somewhat limited, but I expected more from this movie.

The film opens with Santi, the titular character, running across an open space which is lit heavily by the sun. As he runs, his skin begins to sore, and as he is about to reach his destination, he bursts into flame. Quite an opening, huh? Shame it’s just a dream sequence then. Dream sequences are used several times in Shiver, and they are a technique which I personally cannot stand. So to start the movie this way was a bitter disappointment at the offset.

We quickly discover that Santi is allergic to sunlight, but we also find out his front teeth are growing to look like fangs. Groan, not another vampire movie! Well, it isn’t quite – or at least it’s not presented as one other than the touches of Santi’s appearance and health. It’s odd to toy with such an idea, but not expand upon it. Anyway – Santi is bullied at school, and so when his doctor tells him and his mother to move somewhere with less sunlight, it’s hardly a bother for him to uproot. His mother is initially sceptical, but soon warms to the idea for her son’s safety.

As soon as they move to the isolated village, all does not seem right. The mother receives some odd advice from a local, and Santi hears bumps in the night. Soon livestock end up being gutted, and a couple of murders occur – both of which Santi has been around to witness the aftermath – i.e. the corpses with their throats ripped out. Naturally, the townsfolk are suspicious of him but not all is as it seems.

The problem with Shiver for the most part is that it throws in some odd twists and turns, some of which do not seem feasible. Of course, I’m not expecting realism here, but I am expecting a sense of the believable in terms of captivating me as the viewer, but I’m left wondering why things are happening, rather than your typical horror response of “Oh no, that person is about to die!” or other such phrases which run through your mind when there’s some sort of creature on the loose. Seeing as I’ve given a fair bit of the film away already, it hardly seems fair to dwell on this without revealing a mass of the plot.

Having only watched the film last night, it’s almost entirely forgettable. It has some interesting plot points, and at times I was admittedly a little creeped out, for example when the ‘creature’ (not giving too much away here…) is in Santi’s house, but from early on the film has some embarrassing directorial flaws which include flicking from one shot, to a completely irrelevant shot, which I can only assume is meant to be ‘artistic’.

Shiver, really should have taken some more guidance from Pan’s Labyrinth, seeing as the artistic director of Shiver also worked on that film. Sure, the two films are completely different in almost all aspects, but a fantastical element to Shiver could have made it a more pleasurable watch. Failing that just a tidier, more engaging storyline would have clinched the deal and made this an enjoyable horror, as opposed to one that gathers a response that is little more than ‘meh’.

Shiver is released on DVD on October 17th.

Cat Fyson

Movie Review Archive

365 Days, 100 Films #55 - Win Win (2011)

Win Win, 2011.

Directed by Thomas McCarthy.
Starring Paul Giamatti, Amy Ryan, Bobby Cannavale, Alex Shaffer, Burt Young and Jeffrey Tambor.


SYNOPSIS:

Mike Flaherty’s loss-prone high school wrestling team picks up a new star athlete. The means by which Flaherty acquires him, however, are morally dubious.


Win Win opens on Mike Flaherty’s (Paul Giamatti) morning jog. “Where’s daddy?” his daughter asks, as the film cuts back to his wife waking up in bed at home. “He’s running”. “From what?” she innocently replies.

It’s easy to sympathise with someone being short on money during these strained times. It’s even easier when Giamatti plays that someone. He’s the ultimate down-on-his-luck everyman. He’s even better than William H. Macy, because Giamatti has a backbone. A slightly curved and hunched backbone, maybe, but a backbone nonetheless.

You know how you have leading men? Well, Giamatti is a leading man, but for a specific kind of film. He’s a leading broken man. He has the demeanour of an oft-punched pillow. His hunch nears obtuse angles because of the weight on those chunky, ungroomed shoulders.

Money is tight. The boiler at his legal practice bangs and screams like an unruly toddler. It’s one of the jobs Flaherty has been putting off, along with a tree in his front garden. It could fall into the house if a strong enough wind hit it. But it remains there, like an ulcer in his mouth.

Probably to take his mind off things, Flaherty volunteers as the head coach for the local high school’s wrestling team. Stephen Vigman (Jeffrey Tambor) and Terry Delfino (Bobby Cannavale) make up his deputies. Vigman works with Flaherty, and is a reliable, if a little dull, assistant coach. Vigman shows no interest in the team until some new kid shows up.

To ease his financial burdens, Flaherty houses Leo, an elderly client of his who suffers from Alzheimer’s disease, in a home to receive the council’s monthly maintenance rewards. This is against Leo’s wishes (he wants to remain in his own home), but Flaherty deceives him enough to keep him quiet. He has lied, but Leo is in comfortable accommodation and has the proper care. Flaherty receives an extra thousand bucks a month for little work. It’s a grey moral area.

But then one day some kid turns up at Leo’s house. It’s his grandson, Kyle (Alex Shaffer). Flaherty lies to him, too, and takes the kid in. He’s there because he has run away from his mother. A dark bruise on his eye is enough exposition there.

Alex Shaffer was a successful amateur wrestler in real life, and this is his debut role. He’s befittingly monosyllabic for a teenager and has a voice devoid of all inflection. Wooden, some might say. Perhaps. But this is a characterisation impossible for an actor. Robert Bresson never used ‘actors’. Weren’t real enough, he’d say. He used ‘models’. Real people who repeat the actions he tells them to so much that it becomes automated. Shaffer looses his footing a little with the more emotional stuff, but for pure teenage indifference, he’s perfect.

So Kyle comes along one evening to wrestling practice. Nobody’s seen him wrestle in these parts yet. The team are green and wrestle like wet towels. Kyle’s turn comes around, and he body slams his opponent into the mat after a neat reversal of a hold. “W-would you mind telling the team what you did there, Kyle?” Flaherty asks, stunned. Kyle says that he imagines he’s drowning, and that his opponent is the guy that’s keeping his head underwater, so to throw him off, he does whatever the fuck it takes. “Whatever the fuck it takes,” Flaherty repeats in awe and admiration. It becomes the team’s unofficial motto, and sums up the pragmatism vs. principle debate that runs through the film.

The crux of Win Win is that bad deeds can have good outcomes, if done with the right intentions. In fact, the occasional bad deed might help us along becoming better people, for they are rarely without their consequences. You learn from them.

Flaherty, when we meet him, has stalled and life is overwhelming him. His boiler makes a racket. His chest is succumbing to stress. Money is tight. There’s that tree that tilts dangerously over his house. Flaherty needs this bad deed, this reboot, this darkest hour, to overcome his debilitating pressures.

Really, he just wants to be in control again. Financial problems have a way of making you feel like that. You don’t have a handle on things anymore when you’re in debt.

But he sees this kid, this champion amateur wrestler from another state, who’s in complete control of his craft. He may have fled his mother, and his grandfather has Alzheimer’s, but when he’s on the mat, he’s in control. “This is your place,” Flaherty screams at him during one pep talk, shaking, on the verge of tears “this is your place. You control it. Remember? You control it.”

Whatever the fuck it takes.

RATING ****


Oli Davis

365 Days, 100 Films

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