The Angels' Share

I couldn’t get to a screening of The Angel’s Share south of the border when the film was on general release, despite the critical praise the movie attracted. Today I finally caught up with the film on DVD and I’m glad I did. The Angel’s Share is a typical piece of Social Realism from the man behind the likes of Kes and The Wind that Shakes the Barley. The plot focuses on a young thug called Robbie (Paul Brannigan) from the rough streets of Glasgow’s East End. After narrowly escaping prison following his latest arrest he is given community service under the guidance of Harry (John Henshaw). Harry tries to get his guys back on the straight and narrow and introduces them to the delights of whiskey tasting, something which Robbie picks up very quickly. When the group discover a valuable cask is about to come up for auction they realise they can use it as a means of escaping the gutter.

The Angel’s Share is a beautiful phrase and is used to denote the 2% of whiskey which is evaporated from barrels each year. Later it is given another, equally poignant meaning. The film is equally as darkly comic as it is rough and Glasgow is depicted as the sort of place that you’d never want to visit. It makes Baltimore in The Wire look like Disney Land. Through the poverty and dirt though emerges hope in the form of Robbie, a man on his final chance. He is inches from prison and has a violent gang on his back as well as a new born baby so decides that now is the time to get out of Glasgow and start afresh. The way in which this is attempted is highly original, entertaining and funny.

Side Effects

I was in America recently and thought it would be a good opportunity to see a movie which won’t be out here in the UK for a while. Unfortunately I was there at a rare time during which there was little in US theatres which wouldn’t be in the UK by the time I got home. So instead I saw Side Effects, a film I hadn’t had a chance to see in England. Side Effects is said to be the final movie by Director Steven Soderbergh, the man behind films such as Erin Brokovich, Solaris and Contagion. Although not a huge fan of his entire back catalogue I think losing Soderbergh to film making would be a shame. He has produced some very fine films over the years with Side Effects being one of them.

We join the story days before Martin Taylor (Channing Tatum) is released from a four year prison sentence for insider trading. His wife Emily (Rooney Mara) is eagerly but nervously awaiting his release. In the days following his return, her mood shifts towards anxiety and depression and when she drives her car straight into a wall she begins to see Psychiatrist Jonathan Banks (Jude Law). Banks tries various methods and drugs before discovering the new drug Ablixa seems to control Emily’s moods. The drug gives her the side effect of sleep walking though, a side effect which turns out to have disastrous consequences for Martin, Emily and Dr Banks. The event destroys Banks’ career and while trying to clear his name he discovers a deeper, seedier plot.

On the Road

Based on Jack Kerouac’s book of the same name, On the Road is a love letter to the Beat generation of the late 1940’s of which Kerouac himself was a founding member. The plot follows various road trips and eventful days in the lives of several young Americans in the late 1940s as they experiment with drugs and sex and attempt to find meaning in the world and their own lives. The central character Sal Paradise (based on Kerouac – Sam Riley) is a young writer in need of inspiration who meets Dean Moriarty, a wild and carefree man for whom everyone and everything should be explored and or fucked. The two embark on several road trips and meet some strange and interesting people along the way.

Although I initially liked the look of the trailer for On the Road and was aware of the Kerouac novel, it was a film I didn’t get around to seeing in the cinema. Now I’ve seen it I think I made the right choice although overall I’m glad I saw the movie. The film has a terrific atmosphere of youthful energy, opportunity and freedom which is expressed through the music, sex and adventure of its young characters and to be honest I was jealous of their lives. Problems lie in the length of the movie and slow pacing which doesn’t match the exuberance of the plot. The acting is also very mixed but following the film I wanted to discover more about the Beat generation and its characters and beliefs.

Red Dawn

Red Dawn isn’t a film I had any interest in seeing and certainly wouldn’t have gone out of my way to see but as with Cloud Atlas, I took the opportunity to see it on a recent flight. And as with my Cloud Atlas review, this will be half remembered, rambling and make little sense. A bit like the film – who’s with me? No. Ok. The movie’s ridiculous plot is based on the 1984 movie of the same name, a film I remember seeing when I was in my early teens but a film which left no impact on me. The story is set against a North Korean invasion of the USA. When his small Washington town comes under a surprise attack by the North Korean army, on leave U.S. Marine Jed Eckert (Chris Hemsworth) escapes to the woods with a group of teens and begins a fight back against the new regime.

I remember playing a video game with a similar premise to this film about twelve years ago which I really enjoyed. From what I recall you played a plumber in New York City and had to take back the city from the Soviets using guerrilla tactics. It was a lot of fun. Red Dawn isn’t. In 1984 the idea that the Soviets could attack, let alone invade the US was far fetched but you go with it. In 2013 the idea that North Korea could invade the US West Coast is preposterous (famous last words) but the movie makes use of current tensions and enemies to provide an adversary. As ridiculous as the idea that the North Koreans could successfully invade the US is, the idea that all that is left to defend the country are a group of unbelievably attractive teens and Thor is perhaps the most ridiculous part of the entire movie.

Cloud Atlas

Cloud Atlas is a bold and ambitious film that links six stories set in differing time periods which uses actors to play roles in each of the periods as if to suggest that we are all linked, through time, history and space. I saw the film over a week ago on a plane and while I usually try to write reviews within 24 hours of seeing a movie, it wasn't possible with Cloud Atlas. The time between seeing and reviewing as well as the nature of the movie means that I don't feel I can write a proper review so I'm just going to bullet point some of the thoughts I had while watching it. So here we go.

The opening five minutes are incredibly confusing.

An 8" screen in the back of a seat on a plane isn't the optimum medium to watch a movie like Cloud Atlas. 

I experienced character overload.

In the story set in 2012 London, Tom Hanks resembles an angry, mahogany Pirate with a half Irish, half Cockney accent. It's ridiculous.

Korean Hugh Grant doesn't work.

The film is bold for taking the Babel style interconnected stories movie a step further.

A friend from work left after 80 minutes. I don't really blame her.

Sunset Boulevard

Sunset Boulevard is a multi award winning 1950 melodrama which turns the camera on Hollywood and tells the story of a faded silent movie star’s relationship with an ambitious but unsuccessful young writer. Nominated for eleven Oscars it is often regarded as one of the greatest films ever made and appears on numerous Top 10 lists. In 1989 it was selected as one of the first films to be preserved in the National Film Registry and today, over sixty years after its release it continues to stand up thanks to its excellent writing, direction, performances and Noir sensibility.

Joe Gills (William Holden) is a struggling writer in search of a job. He has little success and with debt collectors on his tail he drives into the seemingly abandoned driveway of an old Sunset Boulevard mansion. He soon discovers that the decrepit house is in fact occupied by a former movie star called Norma Desmond (Gloria Swanson) and her mysterious butler Max (Erich von Stroheim). After initially being mistaken for an undertaker, Joe announces himself as a screenwriter and the former star puts him to work rewriting her screenplay with the hope that it will rekindle her career. Desmond, it soon turns out, is living in a delusion and cannot grasp that her time has been and gone while Joe uses his time in the house to further his career.

Rocky

There are certain films which you assume you’ve seen. Rocky was one of these films. I could have sworn that I saw it as a kid but having watched it today, I’m now pretty sure that I’ve never seen it before. The film is so ingrained in popular culture that I knew the central characters and story well and recognised a lot of the iconic music and set piece scenes. I watched Rocky as part of my pledge to watch every Best Picture winning film but had been putting it off for a while. I don’t like boxing and I have no affinity for Sylvester Stallone either. The prospect of Sly and boxing plus memories of the bits of Rocky movies I had seen didn’t have me rushing to seek it out. Before watching I kept thinking to myself, “How on Earth did a film about boxing, written by and starring Sylvester Stallone win Best Picture at the Oscars?” Now I’ve seen it I can understand its appeal and enjoyed it quite a lot.

Rocky is a classic rags to riches story of a down and out semi-pro boxer/loan collector who is considered a bum by most of the neighbourhood. Early on it is made clear that Rocky ‘the Italian Stallion’ Balboa (Stallone) had talent but a lack of discipline and fell into the trappings of the mean streets of his home town of Philadelphia. Heavy Weight Champion Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers) decides his next fight will be in Philly to celebrate America’s Bicentennial. When his opponent drops out he looks for a replacement and decides to invite a local boxer to challenge him for the title. That challenger is the seemingly down and out Rocky.

Oz the Great and Powerful

Oz the Great and Powerful is a film which feels like it’s snuck up on me. I was aware of its development and saw a billboard the other day but other than that it has had very little promotion for a $200 million movie. Still, while looking for something to watch at the cinema on a Friday night we found the movie was opening and risked a busy Friday screening to see the film blind. By blind, I mean without trailers and reviews etc. Not actually blind. That’s best saved for the Twilight movies.

Oz is based on the novels of L. Frank Baum and is a sequel of sorts to 1939’s The Wizard of Oz. The film is set in the same world and features many of the characters found in the MGM classic but is updated in tone and effects and focuses on the story of the Wizard of Oz – how he came to Oz and how he became who he was when Dorothy dropped in years later. The movie begins in beautiful monochrome black and white and 4:3 aspect ratio as we find ourselves in Kansas in 1905. The arrogant but charming circus magician Oz (James Franco) is having yet another disastrous appearance on stage and is booed off. Back in his caravan he spies a weightlifter coming for him after Oz interfered with his woman. Oz escapes aboard a hot air balloon and ends up in the eye of a tornado which transports him to the brightly coloured (and widescreen) Land of Oz. In Oz he meets the Witch Theodora (Mila Kunis) who asks for help in defeating the wicked Witch Glinda (Michelle Williams) in exchange for a place on the throne as King of Oz.

This is Not a Film

In March 2010 Jafar Panahi, one of Iran’s most internationally known and award winning film makers was arrested for committing propaganda against the Iranian Government. The staunch anti regime director was banned from film making and scriptwriting for 20 years and as of 2011 was under house arrest, awaiting the appeal of a six year jail sentence. While wasting his days at home, Panahi gets the idea to ask a fellow director to visit him and pick up a camera. Mojtaba Mirtahmasb films Panahi in his high rise apartment as he watches TV, takes phone calls and runs through his most recently rejected screenplay, careful all the while to avoid making a film.

Jafar Panahi isn’t a film maker I’d previously come across and in a strange twist of fate, had the Iranian government not imprisoned him, it is possible that myself and many others would have lived out our lives without knowledge of the man or his films. What Panahi does with This is Not a Film is to give the viewer a fascinating insight into the mind of a tortured man as well as the mind of a film maker. Panahi often explains his predicament through the use of film clips and draws on his back catalogue to provide parallels between himself and his characters. The film is truly absorbing.

The Mothman Prophecies

This 2002 supernatural thriller is based on the true events of a 1967 disaster that struck a small town in West Virginia. It wasn’t a film I’d ever heard of and had read nothing of it before seeing it. The DVD was leant to me by a friend at work. I have serious problems with the idea, plot, direction and acting but my enjoyment increased the longer I stuck with it. Despite finding little pleasure for most of the two hours, by the end I was satisfied that I’d seen a fairly gripping and occasionally interesting thriller.

Two years after his wife’s death, newspaper columnist John Klein (Richard Gere) is driving south from Washington DC to Richmond, Virginia when his car breaks down. To his shock he discovers that he has broken down far west of where he thought he was and is in fact on the West Virginia – Ohio border, in the small town of Mount Pleasant. The town is home to some unexplained apparitions and premonitions which mirror those that plagued his wife in the hours before her death. People even begin drawing pictures that look like her own and when the predictions begin to come true, Klein attempts to track down the strange Mothman who is spotted all over town.