Thursday Is Green Guide Day

Roger on Nicole

2011-01-06T13:38:00.000+11:00

The estimable US critic Roger Ebert has provided a(nother) positive and timely comment regarding Nicole Kidman after viewing her latest film, Rabbit Hole.

I was interested in Nicole Kidman's performance. I've always believed her to be talented, since all those years ago when she and Thandie Newton starred in the wonderful "Flirting" (1991). She seems to be two people: the glamorous star of "Moulin Rouge" and "Nine," and the risky, daring actress in "Birth," "The Hours" and "Eyes Wide Shut." Celebrity has clouded her image; if she were less glamorous, she would be more praised. Age will only be an asset to her.

Somewhere movie review

2011-01-04T08:49:00.001+11:00

Sofia Coppola’s latest, Somewhere, is extraordinary because it is hard to see it being made well by almost anyone else.
It is the study of a man who is in crisis and faces a choice to rehabilitate or destroy himself.
For long periods of time the camera just observes its subjects as they go about their business. In the case of our man, movie star Johnny Marco (Stephen Dorff) - battered but handsome – he attends a photo shoot; a press conference; accepts offers from willing admirers; and indifferently drives around in his black Ferrari. He has lost all interest and spark in his profession and 5 star lifestyle.
His 11 year old daughter, Cleo (Elle Fanning) comes to stay after her mother needs “a little time”. While it is clear he has not been a greatly involved father, Johnny loves and respects his child and together they do ‘stuff’ together : go to the ice rink, swim in the pool, play Wii and so on.
And this is what is so extraordinary about this film. There are no frenetic action shots. There are no lame fish out of water jokes. The film just observes these people, albeit in luxurious circumstances as they eat, sleep and play. Coppola has got the right mix between allowing us to get to know the characters by spending time with them yet not overstaying a scene.
I believe that Johnny’s happiest moment in the film is when he and Cleo are sunbaking by the pool. Both are lying on their backs, sunglasses on, eyes closed, fingers barely touching and slowly the camera pulls away to leave them there.
Fanning, as Cleo, is such a natural and she glows in each scene. She radiates that duopoly of little girl/young woman as her body is starting to mature – all arms and legs. And the simple joys of swimming in the hotel pool, preparing breakfast or guitar duels on the Nintendo with her uncle and father. This might be Johnny’s last chance to connect with his daughter while she still wants him around and for the most part he doesn’t disappoint. As she is approaching a change of life, so is Marco.
The film is digitally shot with a slightly washed out look and this creates two effects in my mind. One, it highlights the dishevelled disposition of the star, and two, it creates a documentary mindset that somehow we are observing a family rather than watching a movie about film stars.
4 out of 5.

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A Lifetime Goal

2010-12-08T20:27:00.002+11:00

A lifetime goal has been achieved with the full cast & crew credits listed on IMDB.com for El Heist Grande.

The film has been entered into a number of festivals in 2011 - good luck!

The White Ribbon movie review

2010-12-01T22:21:00.007+11:00

Michael Haneke is, to my mind, the best example of an “artistic” film director working today. Always challenging, never populist and very accomplished are words that apply equally to his Best Foreign Language Oscar winner, The White Ribbon.
So what happens when the drive for a godly perfection becomes an all encompassing and extremist view point with no scope for reason, grace or latitude? Perhaps, reasons Haneke, you raise a generation that simultaneously feels morally superior and through fear acts maliciously towards others.
This film is set in a small German town during the summer before the outbreak of World War 1. The film is narrated by the school teacher, now an old man reflecting back on the events of that time. The first mysterious event concerns the doctor who is felled, while riding his horse, by a wire strung between a tree and gatepost. The culprit is not discovered and after a time, village life returns to normal.
In this paternalistic society the fathers are the driving force of their children’s experience of the world. It is curious to note each character and what example they set their children which leads to the series of mysterious and malicious events, introduced above, which give the film its narrative.
The Pastor is the most telling character. His rigid desire for the people of the village, and his children in particular, is to act in a manner befitting his conservative christian values. His punishments display a fierce loyalty to the old saying, ‘spare the rod, spoil the child’, and while he clearly loves his family, he is unable or unwilling to show mercy and compassion which remain a cornerstone of Christianity. It is through The Pastor that we obtain the name for the film; the white ribbon that the repentant children must wear is a visual reminder of the purity and holiness to which they must aspire.
The Doctor delivers one of the most vindictive speechs ever heard in a movie as he rejects the woman who loves him. He, like the other fathers in the movie, abuses his children, which in his case at least, reveals his own self loathing.
It is the children therefore who deserve the focus as they live out their conflicting desires of comforming to their parents expectations and the frustrations of their childlike natures. Their actions, both large and small, swing between revenge and guilt.
Haneke says in an interview that his desire as a filmmaker is to raise questions, not answer them. This is true of all his films. There is a mystery of sorts in this film. There is also a question of moral ambiguity of greater import that hopefully leads us as modern viewers to question our own fixed ideals to include balance, reason, grace and love. 4 out of 5.

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Paranormal Activity movie review

2010-11-07T19:06:00.006+11:00

Things that go bump in the night,
Should not really give one such a fright,
It's the hole in each ear,
That lets in the fear,
That, and the absence of light!
Spike Milligan

What I particularly liked about Paranormal Activity:

the screenplay was tight with dialogue used to serve the story (not a time filler between scares as witnessed in Blair Witch Project)

the story deftly avoided the input of ‘experts’ allowing our housemates to face the dangers on their own
the dread builds over the course before the pay-off shots of Katie being dragged from her bed and being possessed
the use of sound-effects to create tension and the main characters’ reaction to it meant that the filmmakers could delay actually showing the “monster”; a key lesson from Jaws
by being upfront about shooting the film on a “handi-cam” (as the characters are documenting their own experience) allows the filmmakers to create low expectations regarding overall quality and to create a grainy picture quality (esp during night scenes) which add to overall mood

El Heist Grande movie review

2010-10-03T15:24:00.005+11:00

It was with great anticipation last night that we attended the first ever screening for family & friends^, Farce Miller Enterprises latest comedy, El Heist Grande.
The film opens with a hush. The tension is immediately built with three men sitting around a table. Their faces grim. Two have guns which are pointing at each other’s head. The low synth music builds dread and expectation.
We jump to the jaunty opening credits which is playing the cheeky sax El Heist Grande theme and animated sequence of the main players. Without diluting the tension, this has everyone engaged from the first moment and signals to the audience that they are about to be entertained by this story.
Set in the quiet, eastern Melbourne suburb of Nunawading, friends Alec (David Farr) and Andrew (Darrell Hawkins) are in desperate need of some fast money. This leads them to the shadowy office of Stan Man (Onkar Kale) who offers the pair $10,000 if they steal some very rare Moga-Komo quiche.
Alec becomes The Heistmaster and Andrew, somewhat reluctantly, The Chief of Staff. Together they pull together an unlikely band of specialised skill sets : Daniel (Daniel Mu) as The Guy Who Turns Lights On & Off; Samson (Matthew Laing) as the Master of Communications; Charlotte (Grace Chandler) as The Injury Feigner; Jason (Richard Farr) as The Intimidating Cricketer; and Ivy (Zoe Dale) as The Personal Assistant.
The planning and execution of the heist do not go off without a hitch but each of course bring their unique gift to the operation before the final showdown with Stan Man.
My favourite extended sequence was the introduction of each of The Heist Squad. The gags were thick on the ground as each demonstrated their unique skills allowing us to identify with each protagonist without them overstaying their welcome. A special note of introduction to The Lockpick (baby Genevieve Farr) who did everything asked of her despite her application not being successful for The Squad.
Darrell Hawkins as the disbelieving Andrew was the perfect foil to the naively enthusiastic Alec, David Farr. Hawkins ‘serious’ face expressions (and hilarious double takes) allowed the guileless Farr to hurtle the story to its inevitable conclusion without getting bogged down in actual or real life concerns of how one would actually plan a crime. The dynamic between these two real life friends gives the film its heart with the rest of the action hanging of this pair.
Hawkins, who also wrote the script and directed, must take great credit here for allowing the story to neatly fit together and reveal its humour. Unlike many American comedies which must make obvious references in a bid to make you laugh, El Heist Grande has a British sensibility in allowing you, the viewer, to uncover the joke for yourself. Daniel Mu’s deadpan responses and Farr’s white jumper obsession are two running gags that serve the story well.
I felt the film’s pacing could have been helped by a tighter sequence in Stan Man’s office. The story was at risk of grinding to a halt while the film’s set up was being explained however this was more than put right when The Squad was introduced.
Special mention also to the music that underpins the film. The choice of each musical number was effective at creating the right mood nor did it ever cut across dialogue. Lachlan Barclay (who also played the role of Special Detective Lionel Nielsen) is credited as Sound Mixer as well as contributing the main theme. There are also musical numbers by Hawkins, Laing, Mu and metal band Toehider.
^ Getaway driver Rebecca Farr allowed your humble correspondant to have a small role as her banana eating father. This movie review therefore is entirely without an objective bias. It was a great thrill to be involved.

IMDB.com listing here.

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The Last Station movie review

2010-09-25T20:01:00.004+10:00

The Last Station begs an interesting question. Is “religion” a life killing institution that seeks only to ‘take’ from people ? According to the film, in the latter years of his life, author Count Leo Tolstoy (he of the War and Peace and Anna Karenina fame) – played by Christopher Plummer - sought to implement a place of freedom and truth from his commune that was outside the traditional Orthodox religion of his time.
In a movie twist his followers, led by Chertkov (Paul Giamatti) seek to institutionalise their Tolstoyism which in turn only leads their followers to follow their puritanical rules and thus continue the cycle of one form of oppression. In one of the film’s best lines, when asked if they believe Tolstoy is the Christ, the answer back is “certainly a prophet : God speaks through him; I recognise the cadence in his voice.”

A personal observation follows : In truth, how can one man-made organisation, no matter how well intentioned, give a collection of people absolute freedom when we all have different views about what is acceptable ? Furthermore, how do we counter our very natures which are strongly inclined to take power over others, hide truths, and seek advantages for ourselves ?
It is the Christian belief that only an absolute, outside authority, which they have in Jesus Christ, can claim what is ‘true’ and what is not. It is these rules and ‘guidelines’ that govern how to live. Furthermore, it is the personal relationship that a Christian has with Jesus that transforms their belief from a distant, inanimate tradition into a life changing and personal journey of growth.
True Christian churches avoid the life-killing-religion-tag by having members who are inwardly transformed and challenged by their saviour God, and demonstrate this change by caring for others, continuing to challenge themselves, and by demonstrating a genuine and interested love in those around them.

The film also involves a naive and virginal James McAvoy who has free-love with (a 1910 Russian-style) hippie Kerry Condon; a conspiracy involving the last Will and Testament of Count Tolstoy; and most enjoyably the 48 year marriage of Tolstoy to Sofya (played by Helen Mirren).
Both Plummer and Mirren were Oscar nominated for their roles, but for mine it is Mirren who throws her all into the role with such energy and rage and passion that it makes this otherwise indifferent historical bio-pic into something worth watching. 3 out of 5.

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Zidane : a 21st Century Portrait movie review

2010-08-26T20:23:00.000+10:00

What a curious contemplation Zidane : a 21st Century Portrait is.
As the title suggests, it is a portrait rather than a documentary where viewers are encouraged to sit and absorb this version of conceptual art from directors Douglas Gordon and Philippe Parreno.
Zinedine Zidane (‘Zizou’ to his fans) was for a time world football’s best player and played at marquee club, Real Madrid. His contempories and team mates included Ronaldo, Beckham and Raul. Zidane played in the midfield as the pivot player through whom most advances were coordinated. Like supremely gifted players of all codes, Zidane found space and time, never appearing to be under pressure and making passes with a grace that belies the effort.
This 90 minute film uses over a dozen cameras to focus their attention on Zidane with only short cut aways to the game as a whole. This means you spend a long time looking at the ball at his feet or gazing at his face as he runs forward and back.
Perhaps the filmmakers were hoping to find the meaning of greatness or felt that the enigmatic pull of a superstar would sustain interest. In truth by removing the footballer from the context of the game reveals him to be simply a man rather than a ‘superstar’. I found my interest waning as time moved on.
As a contemplative experience, the accompanying music by Mogwai encourages a meditative response where even minute changes in Zizou’s otherwise impervious game-face is welcome. The shared joke with a teammate late in the game is refreshing as we witness his smile and creased twinkle around his eyes.
The filmmakers attempt at something greater, placing the date of this game, April 23, 2005, in a world’s moment in time, or Zidane’s reflection on his playing life, ultimately feels disjointed and out of place.
The filmmakers also play with the soundeffects to create different moods throughout the match. There are times when we can hear nothing but the roar and sing-song of the crowd, other times the heavy breathing of the players and the thump of the football as it is kicked from player to player. When opponent Villareal score the first goal, all noise is suspended and the hush of the Real Madrid players is palpable.
Ultimately however the film wants you to marvel at Zizou’s greatness. His fans only have to wait for Real’s answer goal as he charges forward, beats his opponent and sets up the perfect opening for teammate Beckham.
2 out of 5.

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In The Loop movie review

2010-08-22T16:12:00.006+10:00

Sardonic is defined as bitterly sneering, ironic and sarcastic. This is an apt description of In The Loop, an Oscar Best Screenplay nominee.
The action centres around a hapless British minister in the lead up to the war in Iraq. Simon Foster (Tom Hollander) makes Jim Hacker from ‘Yes, Minister’ look highly capable and when under pressure in a radio interview, gives a view on the impending war with Iraq, sets up a chain of consequences that he is unable to control.
The action is set in the pollies behind the scenes offices in London and Washington as Foster is sent by the Prime Minister to sit in on the US Future Planning Committee (in truth, the war committee) headed up by the scheming Linton Barwick (David Rasche) and opposed by Karen Clark (Mimi Kennedy). But as always the real work is done by their underlings and the rivalry and byplay between all staffers is where this delicious comedy hits its straps. “Minutes are an aide-memoire for us. They should not be a reductive record of what happened to have been said, but they should be more a full record of what was intended to have been said.”
A recurring gag in the film is the youth placed in key positions of the US government departments. “You know they're all kids in Washington? It's like Bugsy Malone, but with real guns.”
The script involves many set conversation pieces between pairs of key characters and apart from the frequent swearing, is often hilarious because of the shameless narcissism, toadying and bickering. The communication advisers, lead by Malcolm Tucker (Peter Capaldi) are some of the angriest Scots I have seen on screen, who often steal the scenes they’re in because of their fearless put-downs. “Have you ever seen a film where the hero is a builder? No, no, because they never turn up in the nick of time. Bat-builder? Spider-builder? That's why you never see a superhero with a hod!” 4 out of 5.

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The Hurt Locker movie review

2010-08-15T19:47:00.005+10:00

Kathryn Bigelow’s The Hurt Locker is a fine 5 out of 5 movie set in the ongoing conflict in Iraq and a worthy Best Picture winner.
The movie is constructed with a number of set pieces all involving the bomb disposal team, made up of Staff Sergeant James (Jeremy Renner), Sergeant Sanborn (Anthony Mackie) and Specialist Eldridge (Brian Geraghty). The team must defuse bombs that have been left amongst the refuse, locked in the back of cars, and attached to people’s bodies.
Each set piece is tense because we do not know if this action will be their last. The opening scene shows Staff Sergeant Thompson (Guy Pearce) pay the ultimate price and this undertone pervades the rest of the film.
The level of mistrust and aggression between the armed forces and the Iraqis is mutual and ultimately necessary. An attempt at conciliation later in the film has consequences for one of the troops. An idle thought throughout this film occurred to me that perhaps one behaviour begat the next and both sides are in an uneasy circling of each other.
The team count down the number of days left in their active duty before they can leave for home. Sanborn is an experienced and hardened soldier who rigorously follows the processes and codes he knows and trusts to stay alive. Eldridge, still a young man, is clearly a capable soldier and has regular counselling sessions to cope with stress of his occupation. Their desperation to leave is in contrast to the Iraqi people who will not have the option to leave the conflict and rubble after their year is up.
Staff Sergeant James is highly skilled and has defused over 800 bombs. His quest for excitement and adrenalin however places himself in dangerous situations and increases the risks of his team. The film’s coda follows him home to America and reveals his true nature.
The script allows the characters to develop naturally and the action highly believable, not prone to over the top flashy sequences you might see in a James Bond film. Script writer Mark Boal was embedded with troops in Iraq and this intimate knowledge of how troops relate to each other and deal with the tension around them comes through strongly.
The cinematography too is very competently done which gives both time and space but the immediacy of these troops under fire. Of special note is some of the slow-motion film capture at 1000 frames a second.

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MIFF : Little Sparrows movie review

2010-08-03T16:52:00.002+10:00

Little Sparrows is the story of a mother’s love and how her children ultimately grow up to lead their own lives.
The mother, Susan (Nicola Bartlett) is dying from second stage cancer. She only has months to live and makes plans to “die in her own way.” Her estranged husband James (James Hagan) comes home to live as she organises one last Christmas to share with her 3 daughters and their families.
The action of the film centres around the lives of the three daughters and the decisions they make. The emotional highlights of the film is when each daughter has a conversation with their mother, alone, in the hospital ward. Susan gives each daughter some advice, her unconditional love and ultimately closure so that they can move on with the next stage of their lives. Her last gift to her family is to leave them with her peace. Her last gift to herself is revealed in the last frames.
Bartlett as Susan is sensible and loving and not given to hysterics. Her quiet presence fills the deep places of the story while the daughters provide the ‘action’ and the narrative.
The first conversation is with Anna (Melanie Munt), an actress who is cheating on her husband and seems to be making a number of mistakes with her life. Her mother intuits that all is not well. “Its hard to know what to value” she adds. For the daughter who apparantly has everything : looks, talent, husband, career of her choice; her ‘inside’ or ‘hidden’ life is not matched by the outside.
Furthering this inside/outside theme, Christine (Arielle Gray) has a relationship which she has kept hidden from her family. Eldest sister, Nina (Nina Deasley), is widowed and raising her two children, without time to develop her own relationships. The stories of the three sisters reveal some of these hidden internal aspects to their lives and set them on a new path of discovery or recovery.
This is a well made and touching debut from writer/ director Yu-Hsiu Camille Chen. 3 out of 5.

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MIFF : Blame movie review

2010-07-30T23:32:00.004+10:00

It was a pleasure to attend the premiere of Australia’s newest film, Blame.
The Australian film industry has been accused over many years of green lighting films that “no one wants to see”. It is noteworthy therefore that a greater batch of Aussie films in recent years demonstrate that a film’s potential audience is considered at the concept stage and not as an afterthought. Likewise, the limitations of budget were addressed by having a small cast at a fixed location allowing for minimisation of cost without compromising the entertainment of the story, similar in that regard to last year’s Van Diemans Land.
Blame is part of a recent canon of young adult thriller/horror genre films. MIFF alumni The Loved Ones and Acolytes come immediately to mind.
Five former students of music teacher Bernard (Damian de Montemas) visit him at his remote homestead to exact revenge. The students have come straight from the funeral of a class mate who had had a relationship with the teacher and they believe he is responsible for her death.
Their plan is a relatively simple one : force a draught of sleeping pills down his throat in an apparent suicide. The mistakes and errors in judgement begin to mount as the plot develops. Needless to say, their plan doesn’t develop as they anticipated and they are forced to counter obstacles as the plot unfolds.
The script is tight and moves the characters smoothly from one phase to the next. Writer/director Michael Henry spent nine years from idea to screen with the numerous script reviews evident in the quality of the screenplay.
The two female protagonists, Natalie (Sophie Lowe [Blessed]) and Cate (Kestie Morassi) are required to shift their characters points of view as the story unfolds and both convey their change of emotion competently.
The script also delivers the tension and rivalries that exist between the three male leads, Anthony (Ashley Zukerman), Nick (Simon Stone) and John (Mark Leonard Winter) but at no stage is the story held hostage to these male character’s egos. The conclusion too is noteworthy. It allows us to consider the burden of consequence the survivors must carry.
This is a fine effort from first time writer/director Henry. 4 out of 5.

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MIFF : The Tree movie review

2010-07-27T20:49:00.005+10:00

The Tree, a French / Australian co-production, tells the story of a family coming to terms with its grief, set in a rural Queensland town.
Husband Peter suffers a heart attack on his way home from a job behind the wheel of his ute. This occurs at the top of the drive of his family home which he shares with his wife Dawn (Charlotte Gainsbourg) and four children. The ute gently rolls down the hill and comes to rest by the trunk of the enormous Moreton Bay Fig that towers over the house.
The tree in a way is the spiritual centre for the family. The children play in it, it provides shade from the heat and is a literal figure of strength holding the family together.
With the death of Peter, the family must re-adjust the living patterns without him. It is 8 year old Simone (Morgana Davies) who thinks that if she listens very closely, she can hear her father through the tree; the wind blowing through the branches, the dappled sunlight through the leaves and the ants ferrying messages from top to bottom. She creates a small shrine to her father amongst its branches with key mementos such as a picture of him and his watch hanging from a twig.
Simone convinces her mother that he is there and Dawn also finds peace amongst the boughs.
But the tree is not healthy and is becoming a menace. The roots stretch metres and metres from the trunk and disrupt the fence-line, cause a rent in the watertank and crack the sewerage pipes. In one of the funnier scenes, green tree frogs have found the opening and appear in the toilet bowl. No matter how much the children flush, the frogs won’t go down, masters of sticking tightly in damp conditions.
When Dawn meets plumber George (Marton Csokas) and interest stirs, the tree appears to have an opinion of its own. A silent reproach and then a clawing at the window by its branches suggest it is calling out to Dawn. A branch falls and crashes into Dawn’s bedroom and when Dawn denies any culpability, Simone’s 8 year old indignation, “Oh really!” is priceless.
Perhaps it is a reflection of how well this film is made that according to producer Sue Taylor, Australian audiences have reacted to this film by claiming how ‘European’ it is (the strong emotional, sometimes claustrophobic pull of the family). To French audiences however, how Australian the film looks. The location of the film and the space in which it occupies is important to the fabric of the film. The Moreton Bay Fig tree is an actual tree; the family home was ‘built’ around it to complete the film set. The country fields, distant horizon and temperate climate give the film that distinctly Australian look and feel.
Gainsbourg, as Dawn, is a very capable actress but I didn’t fully emotionally engage with her as widower. The timeline of the film, which covered the best part of a year, seemed to progress Dawn’s emotional arc succinctly : from adoring wife to listless grief to renewal.
The children each played their part well and gave the film its heart. Simone’s older brothers react to their father’s passing in different ways. Tim as eldest child feels the burden by leaving school and beginning a trade to aide his mother; Lou a practically minded fellow, waters and feeds the tree to keep it healthy and packs the emergency rations box prior to the cyclone which eventually hits.
Good, without soaring to great, 3 out of 5.

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MIFF : Winter's Bone movie review

2010-07-27T20:45:00.005+10:00

Similarly bleak in premise, Winter’s Bone likewise follows the story of a family without a father, while eldest daughter (17 year old) Ree Dolly (Jennifer Lawrence) cares for her ill mother and two younger siblings.
Set in the Ozark mountain range of Missouri, Ree is the embodiment of the capable and independent spirit of the best of its inhabitants. Her self reliance allows her to chop wood, hunt squirrel and deer, and make measured decisions regarding the well being of her family.
Ree’s father is out on bail, has not been seen and the family home is at risk if he skips his court date.
Figuring that she can only care for her family with a house to do it in, Ree sets off to locate her father where the local sheriff has failed. This leads her to the rough world of distant relatives who have had recent dealings with her father.
The mystery/thriller story line of the missing father allows writer/director Debra Granik to authentically explore these wonderfully gruff characters. Uncle Teardrop (John Hawkes) is a scary man who is not afraid of resorting to violent means to make his point (according to Granik he exhibits a “wiry intensity”). He also shows himself to be fiercely protective of his niece.
Ree is at one with the outdoors but also able to display affection naturally (she affectionately teases her younger siblings, “I’d be lost without the weight of you two on my back”).
Granik has stocked her film with Southern actors, both established ‘stars’ and locals with “outstanding facial hair.” This lends the film a strong authenticity. The local music is strongly featured and the property used, a real home used by a local family, ensures that the detail in the film is accurate.
It would be easy for us with our privileged backgrounds to judge these people as poor however they do not think themselves impoverished in any way. They have their property, their family and their self reliance and have no need or interest in the world beyond their borders.
The pervading mood of the film is dominated by the blue lens it is shot through; the frozen mid-winter landscape and the isolation of these families. This film is totally enthralling and Ree Dolly a formidable heroine whom we can admire for her resilience and determination. Easily 4 out of 5.

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MIFF 2010 Begins!

2010-07-23T17:46:00.000+10:00

My workmates are in a buzz. I’m off to see a film over lunchtime. It’s the first day of MIFF and the sun is shining.
Inside the ACMI theatre, the back four rows are filling up. Cineastes are settling in for their first taste of the new festival and everyone is relaxed and chatting amiably.
Japanese pop music plays from the speakers until the lights dim. The rows of school children that have been bussed in for the event, hush.
MIFF’s advertising campaign this year is “It’s a matter of taste” and the lead trailer is a back alley scrap between an oversized popcorn and choc-top. The children laugh appreciatively which probably means the campaign is a winner.
Settle back in the seat. Roll credits. Let the festival begin!

The Princess and the Frog movie review

2010-07-17T15:53:00.005+10:00

The Princess and the Frog transports the majesty of Disney’s glory days into its latest animated release. Who doesn’t remember with fondness, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs or Cinderella from their childhood? What about the more recent Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King ? These films are rich in colour and detail; their stories are sophisticated and characters interesting; and the songs catching.
Its these toe tapping tunes in The Princess and the Frog that instantly awaken within you that giddy, childish joy of being entertained, all the while having either the story transitioned or the character developed, or in the best examples, both.
Set in New Orleans in the Jazz Age of the 1920s, the filmmakers have given themselves a rich well of music from which to draw their inspiration. The incomparable Randy Newman who has scored many, many films, including the successful Toy Story, is at the top of his form here. He provides instantly memorable hits such as “When we’re human” and “Friends on the Other Side” in a range of jazz, blues, gospel and Dixieland styles.
The hard working and practical African-American Tiana (voice of Anika Rose) works two jobs so that she can save up enough money to open “the finest restaurant in all of New Orleans”. She is very much in the spirit of Disney’s other successful, independent female characters, Ariel, Belle and Jasmine.
The care-free Prince Naveen (Bruno Campos) meddles with the black magic of Dr Facilier (Keith David) the easily identified villain of the film, and instead of marrying the blonde princess Charlotte (Jennifer Cody), is himself turned into a frog.
Naveen-the-frog entices Tiana to kiss him through the promise of him a real life prince and instead of the fairy-tale coming true, the unthinkable happens and Tiana herself turns into a frog. This sets up the film’s driving force as both Tiana and Naveen journey through the mystical Louisiana bayous looking for Mama Odie (Jenifer Lewis) who can transform them back into their original selves. On the way they meet anthromorphised characters Louis (Michael-Leon Wooley), a trumpet-toting alligator, and Ray (Jim Cummings), a chilled out and love-struck Cajun firefly.
There is never a dull moment as directors Ron Clements and John Musker have either a song or an action set-piece at every turn to entertain us. The hand drawn animation is just as beautifully rendered as any of the modern computer animated blockbusters however, ultimately, the story works because we have characters we care for and a story that engages us so that children and parents alike can sit back and enjoy.

MIFF : Van Dieman's Land movie review

2009-09-27T22:03:00.000+10:00

The camera sweeps around hills and valleys. They are covered in trees and there is no sign of inhabitants. The land is strange and forbidding. The river is wide and deep. On the shore, 8 prisoners stand to attention awaiting orders to swim out to a long boat. They are to spend the day cutting trees and hauling the logs to the river so they can be transported downstream.
Led by Greenhill they attack their overseer and escape inland. They have a few supplies: a billy, an axe, a knife and precious little else. The band of escapees are English, Scots and Irish; little love is lost between them.
We are treated to the thoughts of one of the escapees, Alexander Pearce (Oscar Redding), in his native Irish. Director Johnathan Auf Der Heide said that the purpose of the foreign tongue in a voiceover throughout the film was to alienate an Australian audience, familiar with the landscape, to better identify with the aliens who have escaped into this wilderness.
So strange in fact is that when supplies run out, they do not see anything which they can hunt and eat. Despite all the rivers they cross, there are no fish. Surrounded by trees, they spy no birds.
Tracking through the bush there are no wallabies, wombats or other native animals. I thought I heard the curious cry of a Devil during one night scene however this was short lived and never referred to again. Perhaps it was the devil himself come to judge them.
Four of the escapees decide to sacrifice one of their band for the common good. After clubbing him with an axe they hang him up to bleed. They mean to use him as food. This, they reason, is their only means of survival.
They continue to wander “east” looking for civilisation and settlement but every step leads to another hill to climb, another river to cross. “By this tree, on this rock, in this place … where are we?”
Two retreat and head back for Sarah Island in Macquarie Harbour rather than participate in this cannibalism. They are dead either way. It is not long before another is taken for the common good. “Four godless men walk to the devil.”
The palate of the film has all the red, all the warmth, removed from it. The blues, greys and dark greens indicate a hardness and a cold which they cannot overcome.
Pearce becomes quieter the longer the march continues, keeping his own council. Instead of the group surviving, the four become two and what common bond they held has been well and truly rent. The two men walk side by side, many metres apart. Neither has slept for fear what the other might do and are nearly asleep on their feet. Their camp at night is now two fires, at a distance. It is when Greenhill finally sleeps soundly that his fate is sealed.
It is curious to note that the longer he travels, Pearce sheds his boots and does not take advantage of a warm coat from one of his fallen comrades. It is as if he is stoking the fires of damnation within his own belly and no longer has need of outer warmth.
The men that play the convicts all appear wiry and tough. They speak and act with a manly familiarity. The fact that all actors have been friends for some years aids how comfortable they are around each other. Even in the context of the story, they have been transported together, lived under the hardship of the penal colony together and slaved in their work together.
The tension of the film builds with each step as they face extinction, one way or another. The reality of the penal settlements in these remote parts of Australia is that they did not need to be excessively guarded. The real prison was the Southern Ocean on one side and the Tasmanian wilderness on the other. The fact that so few escaped and survived in the whole history of convict Australia demonstrates how effective the location was. This story is based on the real life confessions of Pearce who was captured near Hobart around 1822. His tale of cannibalism and murder were considered so extraordinary that the magistrate refused to believe him, thinking that his fellow escapees were still at large. He was sent back to Macquarie Harbour where a year later he escaped again but was found more quickly with some of the remains of his unfortunate fellow escapee in his pockets.
In this film, Van Dieman’s Land, it turned out that the price of freedom was very steep indeed.

MIFF : $9.99 movie review

2009-09-18T13:37:00.000+10:00

Did you know that heaven is just like the Sunshine Coast? This is accoridng to the Angel (voiced by Geoffrey Rush) as he talks with an old man, Albert (Barry Otto).
Tatia Rosenthal offers a whimsical insight into the lives of residents of an apartment block (with architecture typical of Tel Aviv according to Rosenthal) that could in reality be anywhere. She reveals their hopes and disappointments as they each struggle to come to terms with what gives their lives meaning and purpose. The title of the film is the cost of a self-help book, “The Meaning of Life,” for only $9.99 which ironically nobody has time to listen to (there are six meanings in case you were wondering).
The source material is Israeli writer Etgar Keret’s short stories who, with Rosenthal, re-worked his stories so that the narrative threads all complement each other and bring out the themes of longing and yearning. We follow a single father and his two grown sons, one looking for work, the other looking for love; another single father with one young son who loves soccer; a widowed and lonely pensioner; a homeless man desperate for a cup of coffee; and a young couple who can’t commit.
The humour and magical realism of the characters take you beyond the clay models and step-by-step animation where every movement has been painstakingly crafted in front of the camera. The texture and complexion of the models give them character and definition even down to the moisture in their eyes (done with KY Jelly in case, again, you were wondering).
According to Rosenthal very little of the animation was left for post production so virtually everything you see was actually modelled and moved, frame by frame. The water scenes, the lake and the shower, was done via CGI and this takes on a life-like sheen which works well.
But, as always, it is stories that move us and characters we care about. The voices are a veritable who’s who of Australian film : Rush, Otto, Anthony La Paglia, Samuel Johnson, Ben Mendelsohn, Tom Budge and Claudia Karvan with the animation performed in a wharehouse in North Sydney.
Rosenthal has toured this film around all the world’s film festivals and she said that the biggest audience laughs came from this Australian audience (I bet she says that to everyone). But if that’s true, it should not come as a surprise. There is an undeniable Australian wit and charm which the audience did indeed respond very warmly to.
The slightly absurdist and imaginative ‘extra’ characters came in the form of minitature stoner buddies and boneless ex-lovers, used as couches.
The film is cleverly done and economically told, with a running time of just 78 minutes. Note that despite the fact it is an animation, it is not for children, the nude sex scene puts paid to that.

An Andalousian Dog and Salvador Dali

2009-09-13T16:13:00.004+10:00

As part of the Salvador Dali exhibition at NGV, which is finishing soon, is the screening of Luis Buñuel 1929 short film, Un chien Andalou (An Andalusian Dog) upon which Dali collaborated. You can watch the whole film here.

Some observations about Dali’s influence on Buñuel’s film:

• The prologue for the film is a man stropping a razor. He holds the woman’s head back and slits her eye open. This is an infamous and shocking image designed grab our attention. If the eyes are the window to the soul then by opening the eye we are able to gaze deep into our subconscious and discover what our true motivations are.
• The full orbed moon is often a character in Dali’s work (we are reminded also of the moon which becomes the dancers head in Dali’s Disney animation) – here a substitute for the eye, with the trail of cloud an image of the cut of the razor

• A man’s suit is laid flat on the bed but it is empty. Like the drawings of Dali’s skin : there is no heart or body or brain; only the shell which has no substance within it.
• Does the androgynous figure on the road the represent goodness or morality? When she is run down by a car, the man, staring from the window is overcome with lust.
• He is unable to contain himself. He throws himself upon the woman and fondles her breasts through her dress. We see him as he imagines: the breast uncovered, his eyes rolled back in ecstasy and his mouth drooling.

• The woman escapes and as the man lunges at her, he is weighed down by two ropes which he pulls from the wall. The ropes drag two grand pianos, the carcasses of sheep and two priests. The guilt and shame of his lust drag on his conscience which has become rotten. We see his hand caught in the door, grabbing for the woman. This a similar image to the hand found washed up on the beach. Out of the palm of his hand is another familiar Dali motif: there is a rent in his hand with ants pouring out of it, eating his flesh
• The woman observes the new room but it is laid out like the first room and the film has a jump back in time of 16 years. The younger man becomes the older man against the wall and he chooses to turn and shoot the younger man. As he falls in death we see him fall past the woman he once loved but she is a mirage. She no longer has any love for what this man has become.
• The short film ends with the woman escaping to the beach where she meets the young man and asks him the time. He does not answer but shows her his watch. Is this her memory of a happy day many years in the past? Certainly the sunny beach in spring time is a familiar location for many of Dali’s happiest memories as a young boy on family holidays in Cadaqués on the Spanish coast.

MIFF : Blessed movie review

2009-09-10T20:47:00.001+10:00

My Year 12 English teacher thought long and hard about the one word that in any culture, at any time, would provoke a reaction. That word he came up with was ‘mother.’ And it is this sensibility that Ana Kokkinos (Book of Revelation) uses to underpin her new film, Blessed.
Both the affirming “she’s your mother, of course she loves you,” and the reproving “you’re her mother, you take care of her” are the strands that Kokkinos uses to follow children of different families throughout one day and then start that day again from the perspective of their mothers.
The children are all aged around 15, a testing age for the most functional of families, and we follow them run away from home, skip school, drink and steal. Some feel misunderstood while others have been the victims of neglect and abuse. The mothers, by and large, are single and working hard to provide for their kids and make ends meet. All I think, had they been asked, would have agreed that motherhood came with no instruction manual.
The mothers are played by some of this country’s great actresses : Deborah Lee Furness, Frances O’Connor, Miranda Otto (whom you have heard of) and Victoria Haralabidou (whom you probably haven’t) who all portray their characters so faithfully that you will either respect or despise or pity them from the strength of their performance. The cinematic highlight (simultaneously the tragedy of the story) is the overwhelming scream of one mother– a scream to wake the dead but of course in real life that cannot happen.
The kids likewise display a bravado that is really only skin deep. We do not have to spend very long in their company to recognise their vulnerability and deep desire to be heard, understood and respected.
The film stirred in me a series of questions which every generation wrestles with. How does a parent maintain standards of behaviour when their children start to push past those boundaries? How can parents affirm their children so that they grow up safe, secure in themselves and confident? Certainly the parent must take the responsibility for creating an environment at home safe from harm and they must model the behaviour they want their children to live. The film displays how harshly parents can be judged by their children, even into adulthood and a large dose of grace and forgiveness on all sides will aid in building long term, loving relationships.
The opening of the film is of all the children sleeping contently and safely in their beds. “My kids are a blessing, everyone of them.” This is the hope of the film that each day will see the kids sleeping safely in their beds at nightfall.

Defiance movie questions

2009-09-04T23:28:00.005+10:00

Next Friday night (11 Sept), St Marks Mens Group is screening Defiance. You are welcome to come along. Afterwards will be an informal discussion about the film and its themes. I have been asked to kick start the discussions with some questions. I have posted them here.
Have you seen the film? What would you ask a mate, who had just seen the film? What do you think of my questions?

What are the major themes of Defiance?

To what extent is the movie about revenge? Is revenge justified ? What is the cost of revenge ?

In the bible, God says “It is mine to avenge; I will repay.” Also, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” Are these sentiments at odds with the characters in the film?

Were the members of the Bielski Otriad justified in comparing themselves to the Jewish warriors of history (“Bar Kokhba’s spear, Samson’s jawbone, Ehud’s sword, David’s slingshot”), “fighting for their freedom”?

Maslow’s hierarchy describes a human’s priority of needs from survival, to safety, to social, to esteem (respect of self and of others) to self actualization (morality, creatively, lack of prejudice). To what extent does the Bielski Otriad develop along this journey from mere survival toward community?

“Everyone sacrifices for the sake of the collective.” Who or what are things we make sacrifices for today? What do you give up for others?

What does the film maker seek to do by inter-cutting the Jewish wedding in the forest with Zus and the Russian partisans attacking a German convoy?

If the actors playing the Belarussian Jews are speaking in their native tongue to each other (but English for the purpose of the film), why is their accent that of a Russian speaking English?

Does actor Daniel Craig (who plays Tuvia) have the bluest eyes of any male actor in the movies today?

Defiance movie review

2009-09-04T19:57:00.000+10:00

{With this film's release onto DVD I have re-posted my original review from April - GGBlog}
Defiance is a good story that deserves to be told. It tells of a group of Belarussian Jews who survived in the forest for three years, jammed between Nazis who would kill them and the retreating Russians. The forest is a cold and hard place to survive, especially in the dark of winter. The survivors hold on with a grim desperation knowing that the alternative is worse – the fate of their parents, children, brothers and sisters. The fact that 1200 of their number walked out of the forest, alive, at the end of the war is, frankly, incredible.
Daniel Craig plays Tuvia Bielski, the eldest brother and leader of the refugees. They build a village in the forest where each member, men and women, old and young, must contribute either by working, by fighting or collecting food. The women are married off as ‘forest wives’ and comforters and camp rules must be followed; one troublemaker is summarily shot.
Tuvia’s younger brothers, Zus (Liev Shreiber) and Asael (Jamie Bell) help lead the camp until Zus has a falling out with his brother over how the camp should be run. He joins the Russian partisans, fighting the Germans, and comes to the rescue at just the right time in the end.
Holocaust films deserve a certain respect because of their significant storylines. This film avoids the empty, helpless feeling of a lot of similarly themed films however because the protagonists survive their tormentors. As Tuvia says early on, “our revenge is to live.”
Craig plays his role with a rugged sense of purpose (and those still blue eyes made him a shoe-in for Bond) although his dour style lacks charm.
Writer/director Edward Zwick (Blood Diamond) has brought to life a story of an ordinary man who doesn’t give up and proves history wrong. For the many survivors, this film is more than just an entertainment. It is a part of their history. Zwick is quoted as saying that making this film “is a real privilege.”
While the drama kept me engaged for the whole time it was a hard film to love. I found the blue, grey and brown palette of this film wearing and ultimately I didn’t sympathise with the characters enough. 3 out of 5.

Inglourious Basterds movie review

2009-08-29T13:47:00.008+10:00

The last line uttered in Tarantino’s latest action pic, Inglourious Basterds, is, “I think this might be my masterpiece.” Is this the film-maker staking his claim? You bet. And is it justified? Absolutely!
Tarantino demonstrates that he is a fine film maker with his latest offering. After the car wreck that was Death Proof, I personally wondered if we had seen all that he had to offer. Undoubtedly the celebrated, pop-infused dialogue of Reservoir Dogs was meritorious and the extended mish-mash of action in Kill Bill 1 enormous fun but it was all recycled and tired by the time we got to Death Proof. What Basterds offers is a “traditional” unfolding of a story, similar to Jackie Brown or Kill Bill 2, only better.
And so the adventure begins with “Once upon a time ...” This is a fairy story, pure and simple, and the story is imbued with a sense of mischievous fun as the characters set about writing their own version of history. Many times, the actors are given time and space to develop the speech and behaviours of their characters – no shaky hand-cam here or two second jump cuts.
Set during “Nazi occupied France” we are introduced to the ultimate in Nazi badness, Colonel Hans Lander, played to perfection by Christoph Waltz. Waltz, a German stage actor not particularly known outside of Europe won Best Actor at Cannes earlier in the year. His nickname is “The Jew Hunter” as his reputation for detective like routing out of hidden Jews is manifest in a ruthless zeal for the job.
As in previous Tarantino outings, the action is punctuated by ‘chapter’ headings. Rather than them just being quirky or in jest, here they contain each episode and like a good novel, have the audience keen to turn just one more page to find out what happens.
Brad Pitt is about the only ‘name’ Hollywood actor hence his picture appears in all the advertising posters. In truth though, he is just one member of a large cast with many French and German actors playing key roles. Pitt is Lt Aldo Raine, the leader of the Basterds, a Jewish-American band of guerrillas dropped behind enemy lines to dispose of as many Nazis as possible. Their Apache style scalping of their victims becomes the stuff of legend amongst the German army and The Bear Jew (Eli Roth) prefers to dispose of his victims in a more patriotic American way.
The story wends its way toward a movie theatre where the four most senior German leaders (Hitler, Goebbels, Goering and Bormann) will meet for a film premiere of the latest propaganda feature and the Basterds seek to infiltrate the event and end the war by killing them all. What occurs to whom and when is not easily guessed as the narrative does not let a particular character or celebrity survive where it is not reasonable for them to have done so! The cinema owner’s short film that is inter-cut with the main feature becomes a terrifying angel of destruction as it is projected onto billowing smoke is one of many highlights.
I had read that the violence is extreme in this film and I expected it therefore to be a study in excess à la Kill Bill 1. In truth however what violence exists occurs only in bursts and is necessary for the film to remain true to itself. These were frightening and ruthless times and to somehow sidestep the confrontation would have taken something away from the story.
Tarantino’s geeky film knowledge is extensive and his films are littered with asides, references and homage. I would be fairly certain that the young women in my screening who kept looking at their iPhones, showing each other their latest message and who ended up walking out twice (not just once) would have been lucky to have followed any of the story, let alone known who the heck Emil Jannings, Leni Riefenstahl or Georg Pabst might have been. If only they had stayed out. But Tarantino gives a little bit to each film lover and you wish that such intelligence was evident in more Hollywood, plot driven epics.
5 out of 5.

Study

2009-08-29T13:46:00.004+10:00

In a way it is a surprise and a relief that Study is considered a spiritual discipline in Foster’s ‘Celebration of Discipline’. Having benefited from a good education, to study a book, or a play, or the world around me, has been ingrained as just a normal part of growing up. But Foster continues to challenge us in our Christian living by having us transform and renew our mind.
I am aware that many books or films, for example, that I read or watch are just for that moment. Once finished, I move on to the next (and for the most part, that is quite appropriate and even more than some of them deserve!) If I were intending to create my own film for instance, I would learn my craft by watching a master like Ozu or Hitchcock, scene by scene if necessary and then applying what I’d learnt. In reading Foster’s book, I have read and re-read the same chapters, understanding and interpreting what has been written so that I can better apply his insights into more godly living.
Like all the disciplines, Study is not just an object in and of itself. It is not about storing up great multitudes of knowledge or trying to outsmart the next person. The repetition, concentration, comprehension and reflection of the object of our study merely become the tools to gaining this discipline. The focus remains on knowing who we are through Jesus and living our lives for God. It is through Jesus that we come to know we are saved and are given the grace to live with humility and purpose.

6 The discipline of Confession

Rachel Getting Married movie review

2009-08-22T15:02:00.002+10:00

We are accustomed to seeing Anne Hathaway as a ‘sugar and spice’ sort of actress after The Princess Diaries, Ella Enchanted and ‘Agent 99’ in Get Smart. In Rachel Getting Married she is nominated for a Best Actress Oscar by playing Kym who is anything but ‘all things nice.’
After an extended absence from home, Kym (Hathaway) releases herself from a Sanatorium, 9 months clean from drug abuse. She is home for the weekend for her sister, Rachel (Rosemarie DeWitt) who is marrying Sidney (Tunde Adebimpe). Rachel is barely in the car to come home when the family rivalries and the imperfect self interest begin to impose themselves on her actions and conversation.
In the context of the story, Kym allows the screenwriter to inject a destabilising catalyst into the dynamics of an ordinary family where the histories are tightly interwoven and certain issues have been overgrown and avoided.
As the family “Sheba the destroyer” (‘black sheep’ doesn’t quite capture it) Kym’s nadir comes in the form of the pre-wedding rehearsal dinner speech where any or all of the guests are welcome to say a few words about the happy couple. Kym’s inability to look beyond her own needs makes for the kind of train-crash wedding speech that is so awkward that you can be content she is not your own sister.
When the characters do finally have an honest and open conversation about their repressed feelings of hurt and disappointment, we know this is the first conversation they have had like this for a long, long time. Free of purely self interest, it allows the characters, and the sisters in particular, to hear and respect each other. It is in many ways the film’s high point as we sense that there is a way forward.
Despite all our imperfections and all our failings, we all need the acceptance, grace and forgiveness of those who love us. When Rachel washes the bruised Kym and helps her into her bridesmaid dress, we know an important transaction has taken place beyond the competition and self-interest of the earlier part of the film.
The film's realism of its characters is impressive – the choice of an unobtrusive camera reinforces this sense of a realistic weekend together.
The wedding itself has moments of great sensitivity and joy. The musician friends are both part of the story and beyond it, as they are both wedding guests and the film’s soundtrack evoking mood and turning points in their playing, practising and jamming.
This is a great character study of a whole family exploring both great hardship and incomparable joy. Hathaway is more than just a pretty face who becomes entirely believable in her role and deserved her nomination. I cannot say however that I enjoyed the first half of this film. I find family drama and conflict (and wedding speeches) a difficult set of topics to confront. This whole drama however is rewarding as is its message. 4 out of 5.

MIFF : Bran Nue Dae movie review

2009-08-09T23:03:00.002+10:00

With its blend of toe tapping tunes, acting and voice talents, and beautiful scenery, Bran Nue Dae is great musical fun.
The story itself is a fairly flimsy excuse for stringing the musical numbers together. Set in 1969, aboriginal student and head boy Willie Johnson (newcomer Rocky McKenzie) runs away from boarding school in Perth, back home to his devoutly Christian mother Theresa (“not the Mother Teresa”) and would be girlfriend Rosie (Jessica Mauboy), in Broome, the far north west of Australia. Along the way they collect hippy tourists, Wolfgang (Tom Budge) and Annie (Missy Higgins); the homeless Tadpole (Ernie Dingo); Kimberley girl Roxanne (Deborah Mailman); and steal from Roadhouse Betty (Magda Szubanski). They are pursued by head teacher Father Benedictus (Geoffrey Rush) up the highway as he seeks to return Willie to school.
They all meet on the beach in Broome where family relationships are reconnected and restored.
The highlights of the film, without question, are the show tunes. Drawing on the popular stageshow of the same name, the songs are a mixture of 50s rock, show tunes, Negro spirituals, country & western and one Zorba inspired accordion backing to a traditional Aboriginal dance. Casting Mauboy and Higgins ensures that the numbers they are a part of are performed consummately. The other professional actors sing capably and in between times enjoy their comic byplay with each other.
The desert scapes are beautifully shot by Andrew Lesnie making the most of the unique colours of the Australian bush: the deep turquoise of the waterhole, sunburnt orange of the desert sand, the clean white robes of the gospel choir and so on.
The musical high point for me was the breakout, tapdancing

“There is nothing I would rather be
than to be an Aborigine”

by Willie and the boarding house boys, just as they were to feel the full weight of Father Benedictus’ ‘Thou Shalt Not Steal’ smacking stick.
Director Rachel Perkins previous credits include the acclaimed TV series First Australians and the Paul Kelly musical, One Night the Moon.
This film was great fun and a great way to finish the Festival.

MIFF : The Matilda Candidate movie review

2009-08-09T23:00:00.002+10:00

Curtis Levy is better known as a filmmaker (The President Versus David Hicks) but in his documentary The Matilda Candidate, he becomes the subject in his own film as he runs for a place in the Senate during the last Federal election on a ticket of Waltzing Matilda for the National Anthem. He believes it represents the spirit and history of Australia and wants to re-ignite public debate which will lead Australia to becoming a republic.
It is not surprising therefore that we hear the titular song some 26 different times during the 57 minute running time. It becomes its own highlight as it is presented in a different way each time : by an opera singer, aboriginal women with guitar, on didgeridoo, by Dame Edna, by marching bands, the banjo, a Chinese harp, at a football stadium before a Wallabies game and (my personal favourite) on Levy’s own mobile phone as his ring tone (well, what else would he have)?
The documentary shows Levy campaigning on the streets of Sydney, interviewing some people with a personal story to tell concerning the history of the song, via a re-creation of the events that inspired the song and by utilising old footage (using Dad ‘n Dave’s ‘Rudd for PM’ was a great get). Bruce Petty also chips in with some of his timely cartoons.
Levy said that he was deeply uncomfortable about the potential conflict in making himself the subject of his own documentary (“I broke all my own rules”) and had to make committed promises to his financiers that he would not use their funds for campaign purposes. It is a key reason why his campaign has very little in the way of funds.
The friction and banter between Levy and his friend and volunteer campaign manager, Jo Smith, gives the doco its great sense of fun and mischief even as Levy introduces important ideas and themes about Australia’s identity. His humour is delivered deadpan while the patient Jo endures his criticisms, all the while exposing his own lack of planning and strategy. Her great comeback is that she votes Labour and believes Australia should remain a monarchy!
It is anticipated that this doco will appear on ABC TV later in the year.

MIFF : The Loved Ones

2009-08-08T11:25:00.003+10:00

The Loved Ones is Australian Sean Byrne’s first full length feature. It is a teen horror / comedy and follows the genre rules faithfully. The MIFF audience I watched with were 1) family & friends of the post production crew (who were sponsoring the screening) and 2) the right age. The end result was many loud and enthusiastic laughs which meant it was exactly the right environment to watch it in.
It opens with Brent (Xavier Samuel) driving and his dad in the passenger seat on a country road. He swerves to avoid a figure standing in the middle of the road and ends up crashing into a tree and killing his father. This theme of ‘loss’ lays the emotional foundation for the film as Brent’s future survival becomes more important to us because of it.
His love interest, Holly (Victoria Thaine) does not have a lot to do but bestows the early teen love scene (check) and, along with Brent’s widowed mother, provides the pull for Brent’s return.
When asked to go the school dance by Lola (Robin McLeavy), Brent turns her down as he is already going with Holly.
Lola looks to be the school loner and odd-ball, not quite fitting in. She keeps a scrap book of her school crushes, dresses in garish pink and listens to Taylor Swift : evidence in the film of her slow emotional maturity (my 10 year old daughter loves Taylor Swift which I think is the point – Lola is 17).
Playing in a similar space to last year’s Aussie teen horror Acolytes, Brent is kidnapped and taken to a remote farm house and tied to a chair. There he meets Lola and her father Eric (John Brumpton) who have arranged their own school dance with Brent the special guest. There are plenty of “squirm” moments when the audience can hardly look at the screen and some first rate shock moments. There is also one of the best pantomime “look out behind you” moments I have seen for a while.
While none of the actual horror is witnessed on screen, Byrne soaks up as much tension as he can in anticipation and with the sound effects amped up, every hit, thump and drill bit allows the audience to feel the experience.
The tension of the farm house is off-set at intervals by the first date between Sac (Richard Wilson) and Mia (Jessica McNamee) at the school dance. Byrne delivers plenty of laughs in between however from both settings. While there is a risk is that the comedy will undermine the horror, for the most part Byrne gets it right and viewed in the right frame of mind, there is plenty of fun to be had.

MIFF : Balkan Experience

2009-08-08T11:23:00.003+10:00

This year’s Festival dedicated a section to Balkan Cinema. Unshackled from years of Communism, film makers are expressing a love for their homeland which laments the recent past often accompanied with great humour and irony. Accompanied by Uncle J, we took in two films : Silent Wedding and Zift.
Silent Wedding is an affectionate and funny look back at life before the Communists invaded in rural Romania. The Villagers have their rivalries but all can be forgiven at the local tavern. When Mara and Iancu announced that they’re getting married, the whole village turns out to celebrate. The problem comes when it is announced that the whole country must go into enforced mourning for Stalin’s death. The wedding goes ahead anyway in silence with the larger than life characters and good humour continuing. The tragedy at the end of the film reinforces what was lost. The modern day is portrayed as bleak and dour (and its raining) – the past highlighted by sunshine, vivid colour and a lust for life.
Zift from Bulgaria, hits all the elements of a modern film noir that (I think) is telling us a tall story. The black and white photography is clean and strong (although the white subtitles sometimes hard to read); Ada, a very saucy and fatal femme; the missing diamond, valuable; lead man Moth is tall, strong, handsome and ultimately undone by his loving heart. ‘Zift’ is the word for resin used for sealing roads, or a chewing gum; it is also a slang word for ‘shit’. As in Silent Wedding there is a lot of black-humour although perhaps it would be more accurate to call it (poo) brown-humour. I enjoyed it although Uncle J felt it all amounted to nothing. An illustration of life perhaps? You will have to make up your own mind.

Confession

2009-08-08T11:22:00.003+10:00

Confession as a Christian discipline has a bad reputation these days. We acknowledge our right to communicate directly with God : “there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” Similarly we shun the legalism of confessing either because we have to or as the only means to be forgiven.
Sin is not just doing something ‘bad’ per se. Sin is the thing that breaks the relationship between man and God. Foster, in his book ‘Celebration of Discipline’ constantly reinforces to all Christians the challenge of putting their relationship with Jesus first.
My fears are universal I think: I do not wish to broadcast my failures and shortcomings to others. My brain is very clever however. By remaining mute and unspecific about my actions, I can conveniently forget what I’ve done and justify away any consequences.
Keen to try all aspects of the disciplines Foster writes about, I started with my attitude toward my sinful behaviour. Am I genuinely sorry for having caused a rift in my relationship with God? Am I determined to avoid doing so again?
Then, to a trusted friend and Christian brother, I named specific sins, out loud. Attitudes of the “heart” (such as pride, anger, sloth, gluttony etc) are equal with “things done” when it comes to dealing with sin.
My confessor enunciated that God forgives me (we have the authority : “If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven”)
What a wonderful freedom to be set free from guilt and shame. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” To walk more closely with Jesus is to experience life being fully loved and better able to love others. The challenge remains to continually place God first.

5 The discipline of Study
6 The discipline of Fasting

Anthony La Paglia

2009-08-05T13:36:00.001+10:00

Anthonly La Paglia (in town for Balibo) was also on hand at the Australian premiere of $9.99 to answer questions after the screening (he voices Jim Peck). A question asked from the audience was how different it was to voice an animated characer compared to acting a full role. La Paglia answered the question in a roundabout way but took 5 minutes to say it, distracting himself with many other detail. He then wasn’t sure if he’d actually answered the question and asked for it again.
Given the opportunity for a followup, the young questioner took control of the roving microphone and asked : “What chance Melbourne Victory going back to back?”
The staunch Sydney FC supporter and backer, La Paglia, answered : “Not a chance. SFC will kick some serious butt.”

Milk movie review

2009-08-01T19:39:00.002+10:00

Last December, colleague, friend and fellow cine-lover, Mr T and I saw Mickey Rourke tear up the screen in The Wrestler. We both agreed that it was a fine performance and reasoned that he would have to be favoured for the Best Oscar award. A couple of months later, Mr T announced he had just been to see the winner, Sean Penn in Milk. And so it turned out to be.
Penn plays Harvey Milk, gay rights activist and San Francisco councillor from 1977 and 1978. Based, on actual events, Milk became the campaigner for equal rights for gay people in the face of conservative and fearful opposition. He was assassinated in his office on 18 November 1978 and 30,000 people marched silently through the streets of San Francisco holding candles aloft, to mark his passing.
This is a sensitive performance from Penn where never for a moment do we believe he is not gay. His slight lisp and effeminate movements become a part of the character he his playing so that we do not remark on HIS ACTING or his “presence”. Perhaps we are used to Penn’s intensity on screen but here we see his enjoyment of life – laughing freely with his friends, his empathy for those in need and his great vulnerability with the few loves of his life. In this film we see two of them, played by James Franco and Diego Luna.
Harvey Milk typifies what is best observed about the ‘gay lobby group’; they are typically well educated, eloquent and motivated. Their campaign however goes beyond just ‘gay rights’. It was (and remains) about ensuring that equal rights and mutual respect are not put to the sword by prejudice and bigotry; for all oppressed groups : blacks, Asians, young, old, the disabled and so on. Its about hope he says, to make life worth living.
It is a nice touch I think that 3 actors in the film actually play themselves (albeit 30 years older), such as a union man or political script writer.
I found however that the storyline of tracking through Milk’s life and his rise of influence was not that interesting despite Penn’s fine and moving performance. 3 for the film and 1 for Penn : 4 out of 5.

Fasting

2009-08-01T18:07:00.005+10:00

Small Group is a place where I meet up with some mates from my local church. We pray together, read the bible together and encourage each other in our faith. At the moment we are reading a book together, The Celebration of Discipline, by Richard Foster.
In the chapter on ‘fasting’ we actually tried it out, rather than just read about it. Over the course of a normal work day, none of us ate breakfast or lunch. We met at the end of the day to break the fast; share a meal together and relate our experiences.
The point of fasting of course is not just to go hungry. Nor is there anything wrong with food or with eating. It is after all one of the very tenants of our existence! The challenge of Foster’s book is to put God first; to let nothing come between Him and us. Very easy to say, very hard to do.
During my fast, at times when I would otherwise be eating, I either read my bible or spent the time in prayer. While there was no startling revelation per se, indeed I have read my bible and prayed many times before, just the action of inviting God into times and places where I usually do not, subtly changed my perspective to be more gracious and light of spirit. Inevitably this experience left me wanting to seek God more.
During the day I found my stomach acted as a quiet (rumbly) reminder that this day was a day to seek God. An opportunity to not be distracted by routines and the often selfish living.
Foster says in his book that “fasting reveals the things that control us.” I realised today that I have an obsession with food that is controlling. Jesus says, “hunger and thirst for righteousness, then you will be filled.” I intend to fast again next week.

5 The discipline of Confession

MIFF : Thirst movie review

2009-07-26T20:58:00.006+10:00

Last Christmas, Mrs Blog fell in love with Edward Cullen of Twilight and blogged about it on this site. The great appeal to that story was the unresolved yet undeniable passion Edward and Bella had for each other.
In Thirst, Park Chan-wook’s (Sympathy for Lady Vengeance) own take on vampire mythology, we get a blood gurgling and kiss slurping romance between Sang-hyeon (Kang-ho Song) and Tae-joo (Ok-bin Kim). Sang-hyeon, a celibate and faithful Catholic priest, volunteers to be a subject for medical research. He is infected with a bubonic-plague-like illness that kills off all the test cases except for him, who is given a blood transfusion which contains vampire blood. The vampire blood keeps the plague at bay but he now has an unexpected sensorial sensitivity and a taste for blood.
The story is faithful to most elements of vampire lore and plays faithfully as a vampire movie. Sang-hyeon is forced to reconsider his Catholic vows as he contemplates ways to quench his thirst for blood without actually killing anyone (similar to the moral conundrums of Edward in Twilight). He has a passionate romance with Tae-joo (most dis_similar to Twilight), the wife of a childhood friend who is trapped by both her gormless husband Kang-woo (played with hilarious effect by Ha-kyun Shin) and his overprotective mother Lady Ra (Hae-sook Kim).
Chan-wook uses his very black and bloody humour to take the consequences of vampires to their logical conclusion. What happens if you have super-human strength (and can’t die) but you fight another vampire who also has super-human strength ? How do you feed off a victim you’ve killed and their heart is no longer pumping blood around the body? Sang-hyeon leaps from a tall building with Tae-joo in his arms but realises that they might be a little too high to leap back on to – he carries her up the stairs instead.
I won’t tell you what the Tupperware containers are used for except to say that the manufacturers would (probably) be gratified.
The Catholic guilt however underpins Sang-hyeon’s conscience and he is forced to confront the untenable circumstance he finds himself in : he does not want to kill others for the blood that he needs. In what is a rather touching final scene, Sang-hyeon and Tae-joo ride off into the sunrise (but not before some equally comic byplay from Tae-joo). It is interesting to note that Lady Ra, in her catatonic state, plays the all seeing eye to the lovers every move. God and judgement it would seem is always watching.
Kang-ho Song, who plays Sang-hyeon, is a Park Chan-wook regular but might be most recognised for his performance in the 2006 cult hit, The Host. Even though he is a big man, his manner is gentle and his slightly bewildered expression quite appropriate for the role of Priest.
For Chan-wook, there is an awful lot to like for his fans and the packed MIFF cinema is testament to how many of us there are. For those who abhor the “drama” of Twilight, Thirst is for you.
“Vampires are cuter than I thought.” You won’t hear Bella saying that.

Frozen River movie review

2009-07-19T20:24:00.003+10:00

Ray and her two sons, 15 year old TJ & little Ricky, have been abandoned by their gambling addicted husband/father a week before Christmas along with the final deposit on their new home, a double-sided trailer home. They live in a much smaller trailer with inadequate insulation, up on the Canadian border of New York State. Despite the hardness of their existence Ray does not give up. She continues to demand good standards from her sons and stretches the contents of her purse as far as it goes. A family cannot live on popcorn and Tang alone however.
A chance encounter with Lily, a native American, on the Mohawk reservation sees Ray driving her car across the frozen river of St Lawrence which divides New York from Quebec, Canada. Lily explains that Mohawk land spans either side of the river and that the local police have no jurisdiction on the reservation which polices itself. Once in Canada, Ray discovers that her pop-up boot can be used to ferry two illegal immigrants into the United States and receive $2,400 for her trouble.
Earning this kind of money in a short period of time is a little too tempting and Ray and Lily’s relationship goes from one of suspicion, to convenience and finally to respect and friendship. Ironically, as it is gambling that has Ray in this predicament, it is the gamble of just “one more run” that sets the story up for a tense finish with not quite the outcome you might expect from an American film.
The heart of the story though is played out in one vignette of a Pakistani immigrant couple who lose their baby on the river. A mother’s grief at the thought of losing a child and her strength to protect are strong emotional foundations for this film. Ray is prepared to do whatever it takes to raise her boys and provide for them while Lily has a grief all of her own concerning her one year old son.
Melissa Leo, who plays Ray, was nominated for Best Actress for this performance. She brings a fierce working class dignity to her role where who you are and what you do counts for so much more than status or possessions. You quietly begin to admire how she raises her kids and understand why she doesn’t pursue her husband who has headed south. Its not for no reason that micro-finance lending operations in the third world lend money to the wives and mothers for start up ventures.
Misty Upham (Lila) likewise brings a simple dignity to her role despite being on the receiving end of many of life’s hardships. Note how she snatches her opportunity in both hands at the end of the film.
This is writer/director Courtney Hunt’s first feature.
A 4 out of 5 film where we care about the characters and what becomes of them.

MIFF Meet the Programmers

2009-07-16T21:46:00.003+10:00

Meet the Programmers – a MIFF Members chance to meet MIFF Executive Director, Richard Moore and Senior Programmer, Michelle Carey, face to face, ask questions and hear their experiences in procuring, programming and funding films for the Festival. My thanks to Paul Martin of the Melbourne Film Blog to attend this event as his guest.
If you have perused the film festival guide which was released in last Friday’s Age, you will have flicked through many, many pages listing the nearly 300 films screening at this year’s festival. Given the breadth of what’s on offer at MIFF, Moore and Carey advertise the opportunity for film fans to create their own mini-MIFF that exactly suits their interests and time.
A question was asked how the schedule was drawn up to attract the ‘core’ fan, that of the MIFF Member, versus the younger film goer. Maintaining a balance of appeal was of key importance said Moore. We can witness the many viewing sections of MIFF : in addition to the Australian films and international Panorama, there is the Backbeat (docos on music) and Next Gen (teenage targeted films) sections that invite a wider viewing public. These, says Moore, will hopefully build a loyal following amongst younger folk who will keep coming back to MIFF as they grow.
Building a viable program and maximising the box office, without losing the core viewing strength of the festival, is an economic necessity. Only 5% of the Festival budget is supplied by the government. The rest is from sponsorship and ticket sales.
To that end, the Festival comes hot on the marketing heels of Cannes which occurs in March. Many Cannes films find their way to Australia because MIFF provides one of many convenient stepping stones for releasing films by sales agents, around the world. Cannes in many ways sets the agenda as to what will be discussed in cinematic circles around the globe and having a large contingent of Cannes films in the MIFF program gives the festival added profile and prestige.
Moore and Carey’s “boundless passion and enthusiasm for film” comes through. So to everyone else, program your choices, grab a buddy and get along to this wonderful Melbourne event.

MIFF viewing schedule

2009-07-13T13:17:00.005+10:00

I have locked in my viewing schedule for MIFF and as always you are all more than welcome to join me. Tickets may be booked via their website. If you are thinking of coming then get in fast : the 7pm timeslot is always popular as are the Australian films. Email me for specific dates & times. Precis’ of the films are taken from the MIFF website.

Homegrown Australian films (6)
Blessed – Ana Kokkinos – “A haunting and evocative tale about mothers and children, about being lost and finding your way home.”

Van Diemens Land - Jonathan Auf Der Heide – “In 1822, eight convicts escape the brutal penal settlement of Macquarie Harbour, only to find the wilds of Tasmania a much crueller reality. As the provisions run out and the men fight to stay alive, only one option remains. Delving into Australia's dark heritage, Van Diemen's Land is a retelling of the unsettling tale of our most notorious convict, Alexander Pearce”

$9.99 - Tatia Rosenthal – “This is a striking and entertaining stop-motion animation with elegantly depicted moments of magic realism, artfully interwoven stories and poetically minimalist music.”

The Loved Ones – Sean Byrne – “Set to a scorching soundtrack, The Loved Ones is a vivid, sexy, fun, relentlessly attacking rollercoaster that takes the conventions of the genre and then runs them off the rails.”

The Matilda Candidate – Curtis Levy – “One candidate in the last Australian Federal election who may well have escaped your attention – as he did everyone else’s – was a man on a mission to change the national anthem to Waltzing Matilda when Australia becomes a republic.”

Bran Nue Dae - Rachel Perkins - Filmed in the desert-scapes of Western Australia’s Broome, this exuberant musical road movie is a unique mix of comedy, dance, music and joy”

Neighbourhood watch - Asian films (5)
Thirst – Park Chan-wook (Korea) – “Dubbed a ‘scandalous vampire melodrama' by Park himself, Thirst sees a priest granted immortality when, through a cruel twist of fate, he becomes a creature of the night.”

Action Boys - Jeong Byeong-gil (Korea) – “An endearing, tongue-in-cheek look at the action behind the action in this documenatary about the unheralded heroes/lunatics of Korean cinema who – at the risk of broken bones, broken egos and even death – make the superstars look oh-so-good."

My Magic – Eric Khoo (Singapore) – “Battling alcoholism, portly magician Francis (played by real-life magician Francis Bosco) works at a bar while relying on his young son Rajr to clean up after him, following his regular drunken escapades. As Rajr struggles to better himself Francis decides he has to try and earn more money to support his son.”

Breathless - Yang Ik-june (Korea) – “Dark, brutal and prone to uncontrollable rages, Song-hoon is someone you don't want to run into on the street. His life takes a turn when he meets tough-talking schoolgirl Yeon-hee, with the two forming an unlikely bond that offers the thug a glimpse of redemption.”

Mother – Bong joon-ho (Korea) – “Korean film-and-TV icon Kim Hye-ja turns in the performance of her career as a mother on a mission to clear her mentally challenged son of murder; as the investigation deepens, she finds her own past returning to haunt her.”

New Balkan cinema (2)
Silent Wedding - Horatiu Malaele (Romania) - In 1953, a Romanian village has gathered for a wedding; the happy couple, the guests and the banquet are all ready… Just at that moment, the Russian Army arrives. Stalin is dead and the nation must mourn. Under threat of death, the oversexed couple, their vexatious fathers, the entire town and a muted gypsy band continue the celebration in silence.

Zift - Javor Gardev (Bulgaria) - In the opening moments, Moth is hurtled from a soviet jail into a stylised 60s Sofia underworld. He must steer at breakneck pace through the Kafkaesque communism, the severe architecture and the menagerie of bottom feeders. Zift has the wit and style of the best noir with grim Balkan brawn.”

The Reader movie review

2009-07-12T12:32:00.004+10:00

The Reader is director Stephen Daldry (The Hours, Billy Elliot) and screenwriter David Hare’s (The Hours) adaption of the German novel "Der Vorleser" by Bernhard Schlink. They capture the very German-ness of the story by filming in Berlin and the German countryside and casting all German actors except for leads Kate Winslet and Ralph Fiennes (with the film spoken in English). The story is both about the realisation of 50 year old Michael Berg (Fiennes) that he is emotionally reserved and unable or unwilling to share personal experiences, and the collective German guilt surrounding their actions during World War 2.
This guilt is demonstrated in the 1966 trial of former SS, female prison guards who, during the war, rather than let their Jewish prisoners escape, allowed them to burn to death in a country house. The guards are all found guilty with alleged leader Hanna Schmitz (Winslet) to serve the longest prison term. The crowd and judge are perhaps all too willing to focus their ire on these former guards as the ones to blame for the whole tragedy of that war. As one character observes however there were considerably more officers and guards in action during the war with very few arrests and convictions to show for it.
Watching the trial are law students including Berg as a young man (David Kross) and their lecturer (the always excellent veteran Bruno Ganz). “How we feel doesn’t matter,” says the lecturer. “Its what we do” he says.
Starting in 1958, the 15 year old Berg meets by chance the much older and lonely Schmitz. It becomes clear what Berg is to gain from their series of intimate encounters stretched over one summer. The studious young Berg begins to share his high school literature with Schmitz by reading to her. She prefers to be read to, she says. When Schmitz leaves suddenly it is supposed that Berg suffers an emotional withdrawal that is never dealt with until much, much later.
I did enjoy the scene after Berg’s first taste of love with Hanna. Suddenly the world was more vibrant, each sense more acute and Michael barely able to suppress a smile at the family dinner table.
Many years later Michael demonstrates, it seemed to me, a great act of love by sending tape recordings of him reading to the imprisoned Hanna. It seems an unusual thing to describe but in the context of how the story unfolds it is significant. I am sure his guilt toward her plays a part in his actions too but I will leave that for you to ponder.
Winslet won her Best Actress Oscar for this role and while I find it hard to believe it is her best role the Oscar of course rewarded her consistent performance over many roles. Not that Winslet does much wrong. She is contained in her performance and entirely convincing with the character not allowing her to express a great emotional range. Fiennes perhaps is more accustomed to emotional brevity as all his characters exhibit a similar reserve. The young Michael, Kross, is wide eyed and does not look out of place next to Winslet. It is a struggle to see the same man play both 15 year old and 23 year old but it was the least of my complaints. Overall I enjoyed the second half of the film more as the story and characters progressed through the ages. 3 out of 5.

Auskick at Docklands

2009-07-11T11:29:00.002+10:00

Am I not the proudest dad on the planet? Both my boys, Curly and Spikes, were invited to play an Auskick game during half time of last night's Collingwood Magpies / Western Bulldogs AFL match. I won't deny that this was my childhood fantasy they were playing out however both of them had an absolute ball playing in front of 52,000 people. Good on you lads!

MIFF 09 Festival Guide

2009-07-11T09:11:00.006+10:00

The Melbourne International Film Festival guide was released yesterday and I have had a chance to study it and begin the logistical challenge of working out which films to see and at what time.
At first glance, there are more Australian dramas this year compared to last (a good thing) however they all have only one screening time as opposed to the usual two. This makes being able to see them all somewhat more of a challenge. Perhaps one can console oneself with the likelihood that most will receive a commercial cinematic run later in the year. Certainly some of the directors names will be known to the public : Curtis Levy (previously President versus David Hicks), Alkinos Tsilimidos (Em4Jay), David Caesar (Dirty Deeds), Robert Connolly (The Bank), Ana Kokkinos (Book of Revelation) and "youngest ever sailor solo around the world" Jessie Martin, which will aid their release.
The international drama section is as impressive as it ever was and just as impossible to select a sensible watching program because of its breadth. The Steven Soderbergh / Benicio Del Toro double feature, 260 minute bio-pic on Che Guevara has had good reviews overseas however I can't help but think that DVD release is a preferred way to view. A number of films that screened at Cannes (but none of the winners so far as I can see) and a $50 special event to be in the same 1000 seat stadium with Quentin Tarantino as he waves at the crowd for the Australian premiere of Inglourious Basterds. This film I definitely want to see but as its cinematic release is straight after the festival, I won't "waste" a MIFF selection on it.
A section on the quietly emerging Balkan Cinema looks an intriguing mix of black comedy and irony of life under communism from countries such as Romania, Bosnia, Croatia, Bulgaria and Serbia.
The Asian film section presents an enticing range with a first from North Korea and one-third from powerhouse South Korea, including personal fave Park Chan-wook (Sympathy for Lady Vengeance).
There are many, many other fine films on at the Festival and as always, too many to see and not enough time to see them all. My Festival pass entitles me to 13 screenings only so I will make my selections carefully and post them next week.

Changeling movie review

2009-06-28T16:45:00.002+10:00

Clint Eastwood has made a career out of making the most of minimal emotion. His grim jawed cowboys, cops and hard man made famous, single lines of menace but almost always on the side of the right and oppressed. A most masculine of heroes.
Behind the camera however he exudes a calm and a confidence. With the gentlest of motions he start a scene and allows the actor to maintain their character and step into frame. While his steel eyed squint and muscular frame give the impression of ruffian or rogue, he conveys a very real and honest emotion in the stories he tells and the music he writes.
And so it is with Changeling, a film in which he directs, that allows Angelina Jolie to play single mother Christine Collins. The story is a simple one: Set in 1928 Los Angeles, Collins goes off to work one Saturday leaving her 9 year old son Walter at home by himself. When she returns he is gone.
Jolie is a fine actress who successfully communicates a strong but vulnerable woman without overwrought emotion. A good choice for a director like Eastwood. As Collins, Jolie uses her large soulful eyes to convey a pitiable character that we empathise with and urge onwards in her quest to find her son. She wears a cloche hat during most of the film, a fitted bell shaped hat popular in the ‘20s. Jolie said that her costume allowed her to ‘put on’ her shy character and she often looks up at you from under the brim of her hat as though hiding behind it. But this belies her inner strength as she time and again gets back up to fight the bureaucracy that keeps her from learning the truth. She played a similar role in A Mighty Heart, as a wife who waits to hear of news of her reporter husband, kidnapped by terrorists in Pakistan. She was nominated for a Best Actress nomination in Changeling.
What happens to her son is the narrative that drives the story forward. While we observe corrupt and political police officers and hospital attendants there are good men too that both do their job and champion her cause.
We watch in quiet horror as this “true story” is played out before us. Later in the film, during a court case, a prosecutor articulates our disgust and revolution over what has happened. We are gratified to have someone stand up for the injustices that Christine Collins has received. The story keeps returning us to Collins who earns our respect as a woman who endures in this real life suburban horror. 4 out of 5 from me.

The Class movie review

2009-06-21T18:52:00.001+10:00

Before you realise it in The Class, France’s nomination for this year's Oscar for Best Foreign Film, you are sitting through a French grammar class full of 14 year olds, lead by teacher Francois Marin. And you are asking yourself, how is this film going to take us on a journey from the classroom?
The students represent the many colours and origins of modern Paris : Mali, the Caribbean, China, Morocco and many more. When the teacher uses the every-name “Bill” in a sentence on the blackboard, the students take him to task for not using a name they are familiar with such as Assïata, Fatou or Ahmed.
Director Laurent Cantet and writer Francois Begaudeau (who also plays Marin) have written a broad based script around the relationships between the students in this real life high school and their teacher. By role playing and improvising over the course of one academic year they have refined their ideas and allowed the students to confidently play a version of themselves.
The students are from a poor neighbourhood but the usual school yard experiences apply. Some aspire to a good university; most are struggling with the fact that French is not the language spoken at home; while some appear not to try at all and discipline becomes a problem.
They are a little more outspoken than I recall my classes being but perhaps that is the attitude of the modern student or perhaps they have allowed themselves a little more leeway because they are doing it in front of the camera. One student is reprimanded for a poor attitude. One teacher storms into the tea room, fed up with his students who won’t listen.
The teachers reveal themselves to be concerned about the students welfare, wanting to impart life’s lessons but become frustrated at the students apparent lack of interest. It seems that the school ethos is to respect every voice but this leaves them, to a certain extent, powerless when the students begin to assert their rights by not participating in class, answering back and being undeterred by threats of punishment.
Honestly, who allows 14 year old class reps into a teachers meeting where other students are discussed and are then surprised their motivations are misunderstood? It is from this event that the classroom spins out of control, and events transpire that builds the movie’s tension.
I did wonder a little at the teacher’s handling of the situation who seemed unable to apologise for his actions or better act out the subtlety required. I acknowledge however it is easy to criticise from a distance. Having to actually enter the classroom, impart knowledge and maintain control is a mix of such complex skills that it is a wonder that any attempt the vocation at all, and all the good teachers deserve our respect, thanks and admiration.
But as always, the strength of the story comes from strong characters with whom we identify. We come to realise what these students have going for them and that they have their whole lives ahead of them. We join in the celebration at the end of year because of what they have accomplished. 3½ out of 5.

Doubt movie review

2009-06-14T20:49:00.003+10:00

In his play, Doubt, writer John Shanley said that he wanted the last Act to be the conversation that two people had with each other as they left the theatre. “Did he or didn’t he? ... Did you just see the same production as me?”
The expectations of the average cinema goer is I think different to that of the average theatre audience. I don’t know if its an unwillingness to be challenged, more that we expect a resolution, or at least have the film declare its moral viewpoint.
In adapting for the big screen, Shanley (who also directs) has fleshed out the look and feel of the story by developing ancillary characters, such as other students and nuns, and staging the whole production in the very catholic primary school in the Bronx, New York he attended as a child.
School principal and head nun, Sister Aloysius (Meryl Streep) is the type of school mistress that adheres to the rigid customs of discipline and order, of whom the “students are uniformly terrified.”
Sister Aloysius suspects Father Flynn (Philip Seymour Hoffman) of inappropriate behaviour with the school’s first and only black student, 12 year old Donald Miller. What she lacks in proof, she makes up for in moral certainty. Sister Aloysius asks Sister James (Amy Adams) to watch for any suspicious behaviour and when Sister James observes young Miller’s unusual actions after returning from a visit to Father’s office, with alcohol on his breath, Sister Aloysius’ suspicions are confirmed.
At the halfway point in this film, all three characters meet in Sister Aloysius’ office. Amy Adams plays wide eyed sweetness and innocence better than most, and her role here of the good hearted, naive Sister James is described by Shanley as “the warm centre between two battling giants.” And what a scene it is. Streep just explodes as her character is able to sharpen the blade of her moral outrage on Seymour Hoffman’s whetstone. Every thrust of hers is met with his parry, and her Oscar nomination is justified from this scene alone.
This leads to Sister Aloysius meeting with the boy’s mother, Mrs Miller (Viola Davis) whose attitude and reaction is entirely unexpected and catches Sister Aloysius unawares.
Sister Aloysius is motivated by care and love, even if it is demonstrated in an austere manner. Her dry humour and sharp observations serve to humanise her away from the spotlight of students and peers. In her bid to “outshine the fox in cleverness,” to force Father Flynn to confess, she calls in to question her own integrity, which is one of many ‘doubts’ one has in the watching, which is perhaps the point.
Father Flynn likewise claims to have the student’s best interest at heart but is at odds with Sister Aloysius in his desire to modernise their Catholic customs, schooling and worship. The film is set in 1964, the year of the Second Vatican Council which relaxed some of the strict customs that had been followed up to then; this provides some context to their backgrounds.
The opening line to the film is the start of Father Flynn’s sermon, “What do you do when you’re not sure?” This question hangs in the balance for the duration of the film. Our emotions are swayed by the calibre of the acting and the small glimpses we think we see. As I stated at the beginning, when watching a film, we are “trained” to look for cues that will assist us in unravelling the film. This film tries to absolve itself of this and leave it up to us to make a decision on what to believe. While this may work well in a stage play, I’m not so sure it works well here. The ending just didn’t quite work for me and a key character’s final scene felt out of touch with the rest of the film.
All four actors, Streep, Seymour Hoffman, Adams and Davis, received Best Acting Oscar nominations which gives the film its force. The set design and the behaviour of the characters is entirely believable and helps tell the story. 3 out of 5 for me.

Socceroos qualify for 2010 World Cup

2009-06-08T00:48:00.003+10:00

Well done the Socceroos who have qualified for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Their nil-all draw against Qatar last night earned them the last point they needed to secure a top 2 position in their group to be one of 4 (and a half) Asian region places up for grabs.
Their final qualifying games are against Bahrain and Japan. Japan is the only other country from Asia to have similarly qualified.

The Visitor movie review

2009-06-07T16:59:00.003+10:00

University professor, Walter Vale (Richard Jenkins) is living a wasted life in The Visitor. Emotionally he has shut down, he never smiles and has no empathy or interest in others . Walter is called away to New York for a conference where he has long owned an apartment but has not visited in some time. There he meets Tarek (Haaz Sleiman) and Zainab (Danai Gurira) illegal immigrants from Syria and Senegal who have been living in his apartment thinking they had genuinely rented an empty apartment from ‘Ivan’ - obviously part of some real-estate scam.
Initially intent on throwing them out, Walter allows them to stay until they find a place to stay. Although Zainab is reserved and wary of Walter, Tarek’s zest for life slowly seeps into Walter’s lonely existence. Tarek plays the Djembe, an African drum and the rhythm and beauty of this instrument slowly awakens Walter, as though calling him to life from a long and cold sleep.
The second act, the thawing of Walter comes to an abrupt halt as Tarek is arrested and taken to a correctional facility for illegal refugees. Walter acts as chief go between for his new friend and Zainab, who understandably, does not want to venture inside such a place for fear that she will not be allowed out.
The third act unexpectedly hints at the germination of a new love welling up within Walter as his warming continues. Again, the way the film communicates these experiences for Walter does so economically yet without losing their impact.
The film plays out the harsh reality for refugees in the post-9/11 Western world (where “either you belong or you don’t”). We come to accept many implausible endings from Hollywood productions and it is a testament to writer / director Tom McCarthy that he presents a sensitive film about people and relationships which doesn’t scream MESSAGE MOVIE at any stage.
The film also does not ever tell us what to think or how to feel, another of the typical Hollywood foibles. We do not get a post-film epilogue to let us know that everything turns out alright, for example. The last scene is the most beautiful. Walter takes his drum to an underground railway station and starts playing. The location and the action are significant and it is how Walter plays that gives us the merest glimpse to his (and our) state of mind.
A beautiful and understated film that is all the more welcome as it is unanticipated. Were it not for Richard Jenkins’ Best Actor Oscar nomination it would have passed by altogether. I strongly encourage you to locate it and watch.
4 out of 5.

The Duchess movie review

2009-06-06T17:51:00.005+10:00

The Duchess, starring Keira Knightley as Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, desperately wants to be an historic bio-pic that fetes the life of a “modern” woman, repressed by 18th century English culture. “Based on true events,” the real life Duchess was apparently a celebrated beauty and a socialite who gathered around her a large circle of literary and political figures (thank-you Wikipedia).
The film, The Duchess, by way of one or two scenes tries to suggest this great social character. It starts with Keira Knightley as the 17-year old virginal girl, married off to The Duke (Ralph Fiennes) by her mother, Lady Spencer (Charlotte Rampling). His sole goal in marrying her is to breed a son. She naively thinks that her marriage might be one that builds a relationship.
The movie then skips 6 years and low and behold The Duchess has become this socialite who “expresses herself through her dresses.” The development of this outspoken and charismatic woman might have been interesting. Instead the film fails to build any tension of its own. It relies on us identifying with the moral conundrum faced by the women by their miserable husbands : pursue happiness on their own terms or lose access to their children.
The unsympathetic, emotionally-handicapped Duke is well portrayed by Fiennes. It is said that “he is the only man in England who is not in love with his wife” as he chases other young women to be his bed companions. His relations with his wife extends only as long as it takes to sire a son. His conversation is virtually nil, his interest in his wife minimal and then utters the most redundant line in the film, “I’m not particularly adept at expressing myself when it comes to matters of a more personal nature.” Thanks Duke - I think we worked that out. The film failed to tell a cohesive story and this is but one small instance.
The film won Best Oscar for Costume Design and it is perhaps best to enjoy it from this perspective. There’s nothing like a romping period drama with a large budget to go all out with. The backdrop of spacious manor houses and luxuriant living allows Knightley to act with poise and grace as she models these voluminous, multi-layered dresses made of the finest silk, taffeta and satin. Her wigs are the most stupendous creations, with feathers or flowers to accent them impressively. Alternatively a hat and parasol extols her virtue when venturing outside. Her makeup is impeccable : the slightest rouge to highlight her cheekbones, and either a “natural” red for lips that must pucker, or auburn for a subdued expression. Knightley is the perfect model for the artists behind the scenes and the film is a worthy winner.
2 out of 5.

Vicky Cristina Barcelona movie review

2009-05-31T17:40:00.002+10:00

Is it just me or is Woody Allen’s latest film, Vicky Cristina Barcelona a tepid bowl of Match Point leftovers, which wasn’t that good to start with ? I admit I was in a bad mood when I started this film and it didn’t improve as Woody’s fantasy sex-life took over. I concede you would be hard pressed not to like at least Scarlett Johansson, Penelope Cruz or Javier Bardem were they to make a move on you (or all 3 at once), and to finish off with Rebecca Hall for dessert, but really. Come on Woody. Challenge us! Give a story to care about.
Two American friends, Vicky (Hall) and Cristina (Johansson) get away from it all in Barcelona. For Vicky who is writing a thesis on Catalonian culture it is a chance to experience Barcelona first hand : Gaudi’s church, the cobblestone streets, the old carousel, the hidden jewel of Oviedo. What a mysterious place to visit, experience romance and fall in love. For Cristina, she is running away from the pressure of everyday life although as we witness, life can be just as complicated in Spain as in New York and towards the end, she runs off to France. I wonder if life is any different there?
The women meet Juan Antonio (Bardem) who oozes charm and has these girls spinning circles within no time. He speaks with reverence and love about his ex-wife, Maria Elena (Cruz) who is both alluring and dangerous all at once. Thank goodness she turns up. Cruz brings energy, passion and fury to this story and keeps it going. Going that is until Woody capitulates to his fantasies and the actors are forced into the quality of Debbie Does Dallas.
I think Woody is trying to tell us that life is what you make it : the good, the bad, what you do as much as what you don’t do. As one character says, “I’m looking for a magical solution [to my life].” Good luck. I stopped caring.
1 out of 5.

MIFF 2009

2009-05-29T18:49:00.003+10:00

The publicity booklet was mailed out this week for Melbourne International Film Festival 2009. There are still 6 weeks to wait before the Festival program is published and another two weeks after that before the Festival begins. The impatient waiting is now on countdown. My season pass has been paid for ... the wait continues.

Waltz With Bashir movie review

2009-05-22T23:17:00.004+10:00

Ari Folman, writer, director and producer of this biographical, animated documentary about his experience of the Israel/Lebanon war in 1982, has no memory of what happened to him. Some 24 years later, in 2006, his friend wakes him in the middle of the night. He has been having the same dream over and over again. 26 rabid dogs are chasing him through the streets of Beirut and he can’t escape them. Just as he confronts them, he wakes up. Why can’t he move on with his life?
This sets Folman on his own journey uncovering repressed memories of his own experience. He interviews soldiers he served with and others who were there, asking them, “was I there too?”
His one memory is floating in the sea, looking toward the city, while a massacre of innocents takes place. With the assistance of an analyst he begins to realise that the sea represents his empathy and feelings. His proximity suggests that he saw something horrific or disturbing but was unable to act.
To animate a documentary might seem an unusual choice however it allows us as viewers to be drawn into the story – allowing us to distance ourselves from the immediate horror of war in a way that real footage does not. The conversations between these old friends is relaxed and honest. Two blokes sharing a coffee while the kids play on the floor, for example. Not the usual talking head with a black background.
It will not surprise you to learn that I was reluctant to watch this film. War films can be especially harrowing however it was nominated in the Best Documentary category at the Oscar’s (which was won by Man On Wire) and won a number of other film awards, including a Golden Globe. It is therefore regarded highly.
The tension builds as Folman, and us, move closer and closer to uncovering his memory of the Sabra and Shatila massacre, where a whole refugee camp of men, women, children and animals were killed. And then with less than two minutes to run, the animation flips to real, colour news footage of that time. Women are loudly mourning and strewn about them are bodies left to rot in a bombed out city. What we have been watching is not a dream. It is not an animation. It has been a documentary all along and my blood runs cold. I have been engaged with this story the whole way and am inevitably moved and saddened by these destructive actions and impulses of our fellow humans.

"Whether an eternity or just a minute, there was Frenkel at the junction with bullets flying past him in every direction. Instead of crossing the junction, I saw him dancing, as if in a trance. He cursed the shooters. Like he wanted to stay there forever. As if he wanted to show off his waltz amid the gunfire, with the posters of Bashir above his head. And Bashir’s followers preparing their big revenge just 200 yards away. The Sabra and Shatila massacre."

4 out of 5.

Sunday Night Sermon

2009-05-22T23:13:00.014+10:00

I was invited to give the main talk at our once-a-term Sunday night church service, at St Mark's Anglican, Forest Hill. I used the doco Man On Wire as my jumping off point. Here's a transcript of what I said.

Philippe Petit, a French tightrope walker, was 17 years old in 1966. He was sitting in a dentist's waiting room in Paris when he sees an artist’s impression of the World Trade Centre in New York, construction for which is about to commence. The WTC or the Twin Towers are most infamously remembered as terrorist targets on 9/11. A long time before that however, before they are built, they will become the highest buildings in the world. Young Philippe Petit sees this picture and is captivated by them. He wants to walk between these towers. He must have this picture, this memento. But how? There is a room full of people. He sneezes, and rips the paper and runs out of the waiting room. Sure, he will have a toothache for a week, but what is pain now that he has acquired his dream?
Man On Wire, won Best Documentary at this year’s Oscars and it recounts Petit’s story. Petit has decided to conquer beautiful stages. His first is to walk between the Notre Dame towers in 1971. “Its against the law but not wicked or mean” he says. As he walks, his friends call it “a dream”
In June 1973, they break into the pylons of the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
Meanwhile, the Twin Towers are completed. Petit takes a number of trips to New York to spy out the Towers. He sends his friend a postcard of them, and cheekily draws a wire between them. His friend recalls, “that is why they are there, for Philippe to walk across.”
After much planning, on 7 August 1974, they haul 100s kilos of equipment up 110 floors, disguised as architects and builders. It takes all night to evade guards, haul the wire between the buildings and secure it.
They are exhausted but Petit remains focussed. He says, “if I die, what a beautiful death, to die in the exercise of your passion”. He steps out onto the wire, “his face became an ageless mask; a sphinx” and he reflects : “in the middle of this madness I suddenly had hope and joy.” Over 45 minutes, Petit crosses 8 times between the Towers, 417 metres above the ground.
His friends, watching from the ground, are in raptures. His girlfriend remembers:“I saw Philippe up there, it was extraordinary, it was so, so beautiful. It was like he was walking on a cloud.” Another friend recalls : “it was magical. It was profound”
Extraordinary. Perhaps you might say, you expect this kind of reaction from your friends. They have, after all, been the whole journey with you and are experiencing an exultation of relief.
What is most striking for me in this whole story is the reaction of the Police sent up to get this crazy man off the wire, arrest him, and bring him down. These are hard-bitten New York cops. Not prone to flights of fancy. Listen to the report of Sergeant Charles Daniels, Port Authority Police : “Officer Meyers and I observed the tightrope dancer, because you couldn’t call him a walker, approximately half way between the two towers. And upon seeing us he started to smile and laugh. When he got to the building we asked him to get off the wire but instead he turned around and ran back into the middle. Everyone was spellbound in the watching of it.” “I personally figured I was watching something that somebody would never see again in the world. I thought it was once in a lifetime.”
Another policeman said, “the rigging outfit itself, its magnificent the way he did it”
Astonishing. The very men sent to arrest him, become advocates. They have nothing to gain. They simply report what they see, and are moved by it.
I highly recommend this documentary to you. You will find it in your local DVD store.

This reminds me of Jesus’ story. In Mark’s gospel, we are assaulted by an astonishing list of feats and wonders. A real boys own adventure : Jesus drives out evil spirits; he heals people; crowds follow; he calms a storm; people are raised from the dead; he feeds 5000; he feeds 4000; he walks on water.
Surely these feats means that everyone will listen to him, understand him, want to follow him? Jesus asks his friends who people think he is : some say “John the Baptist; others say Elijah; still others, one of the prophets” Peter announces him as The Christ. They know he is a great man. But do they recognise him? I don’t think so.
The folks in his hometown certainly don’t understand. “They took offense at him”. What about the Romans – the soldiers beat and mock him. The Jewish authorities want him dead. All the way through the gospel story, people are fascinated; in awe of; enraged by; and yet they never quite ‘get it’ even after his hints. “He [Jesus] began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and that he must be killed, and after three days rise again. He spoke plainly about this and Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him”
So how do we recognise Jesus? How do we claim to have a different experience? Unlike the disciples during Jesus’ lifetime, we have the benefit of the whole story.
Let me read some edited highlights of the end of Jesus’ life; his friends have fled; Peter has denied him; [15] "And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him out to crucify him.
With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last.
The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, heard his cry and saw how he died, he said, "Surely this man was the Son of God!"
For the first time in Mark’s gospel : after 15 chapters!, it is a Roman Centurion who exclaims : "Surely this man was the Son of God!" He has nothing to gain by this revelation. He is just reporting what he sees. You see, I think it is not until we see Jesus, on the cross, do we recognise who he really is. It is not, it seems, the miracles that convert us to Jesus but recognising the kind of death that he dies.
So why does Jesus need to die? It is part of God’s rescue package for all of mankind : for you, for me, for all of our friends and family. Paul, an apostle, who comes a little time later in the bible story, says this [Rom5:6f]: “You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this : While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
People have turned their back on a holy and perfect God. We do it from the moment we are born and have no means of turning and facing God by ourselves. Jesus willingly gives himself up on behalf of all people, and takes our judgement on himself. “While we were still sinners”, at our furthest from God, that is when God loved us the most : “Christ died for us”
On the cross, Jesus cries out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”. God has turned his back on Jesus, the perfect sin offering, because he cannot look upon such a fallen creature. Jesus dies in our place, alone, separate from God.

Here is the great miracle of God’s rescue plan however.
[16] When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus' body. Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb and they asked each other, "Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?"
{They have no expectation that something different has occurred.}
"But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe. He said. "You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him."
Jesus, the human, is alive ? How is this possible. They all saw him die. It is this last, most significant act, that means that you and I can have faith in Jesus as our own personal saviour. By defeating death, we no longer have any fear of dying and becoming separated from God – Jesus has done this for us.
Firstly, God has paid for our sinfulness and secondly, [1Jn 5] "God has given eternal life, and this life is in his Son."
Philippe Petit, our French tightrope walker says : “the fact that the wire walking activity is framed by death is great, it means you have to take it very seriously”
Perhaps we could requote him and say : “Living is an activity framed by death, it means we have to take it very seriously”
What actions, what decisions do we make which will shape our future? What about our eternal future? Choosing Jesus, the creator of the universe to be our personal guide, saviour and instructor is the most crucial, the most important step we must make in living our life. What steps are you making as you consider your life? Do you choose Jesus ?

Miller movie review

2009-05-17T22:13:00.003+10:00

I had the distinct honour of attending the global premiere of Miller, a local 30 minute production, the brainchild of Darrell Hawkins and David Farr. The 30-strong, partisan crowd laughed heartily at every raised eyebrow, “I’m on the toilet” joke and the now mandatory “boiiing” special effect.
The four band members, Darrell, David, Daniel Mu and Matthew Laing, talk to camera in documentary style about their respect for each other and their band’s unity. The documentary is intercut with vision of petty rivalries and musical egos. This leads to Darrell’s excited announcement that he has a date, his first.
The date, as expected, goes terribly. The amour does not appreciate conversation starters on Keynesian economics it would seem. His friends sit at a table nearby and offer encouragement. In truth, more could have been done from a ‘joke’ perspective during this middle period.
The movie highpoint for me was the Jesus Christ Superstar inspired song finale which had unlucky-in-love Darrell pleading with his friends for understanding. This played to the quartet’s strengths with their mischievous sense of humour, musical abilities and quick word plays. It was a pity therefore that the rest of the film didn’t offer more along this line.
Some of the story threads didn’t develop, such as Daniel’s ongoing encounters with a pair of Triad (is that a contradiction?) gang members but most likely a victim of originally pitching a feature length story line and cutting back to its current length. The initial scene of escaping from the toilet block via a shoulder bag was a good gag as was the car parking-to the rescue sequence. The music choice during this scene was a good one.
The thread of the story is one of mateship and looking out for one another. We should all be so lucky to have a group of friends to stand by us.
The production values were quite acceptable given the resources available to the crew. The editing enabled the story to develop in a linear fashion and the dialogue readily understood. Overall a good first effort with much to look forward to from these very funny guys.

The film has now been posted to YouTube.

Duplicity movie review

2009-04-05T20:04:00.004+10:00

We all know what secret service agents are like, don’t we? I mean, we’ve grown up on a diet of James Bond where the men have hairy chests, the women love it and neither complain when dirty tricks are played on each other. In fact, they come to expect it. You don’t see Mr or Mrs Smith snivelling that their spouse is shooting at them. No, you see them get over it and move on.
Ray (Clive Owen), supposedly, is the best undercover agent, probably ever. He seduces Claire (Julia Roberts) who drugs him, takes off with his secret documents and never calls him again to say “thanks.” Poor Ray can’t handle the fact that he has been duped AND dumped until a chance meeting in some foreign, exotic locale has them smouldering once more. By the end though, all of this “I don’t trust you,” “you don’t trust me” carry on becomes a little tedious.
Both secret agents are working for rival healthcare manufactures, run by competitive and ruthless CEOs : Tom Wilkinson and Paul Giamatti, who both enjoy the freedom to ham it up a little.
The plot though in who is playing whom is a little convoluted as we keep jumping from present day into the past to explain it all.
It all just seems a little try hard. It desperately wants Owen and Roberts, reunited from Closer in 2004, to ignite like Brad and Angelina, but it doesn’t quite get there. Not that it isn’t fun in places and there are enough smooches between the leads to give it every chance.
I enjoyed the ‘heist’ half of the movie more than the ‘romance’ half but even the big reveal at the end left me somewhat nonplussed. Beforehand I thought this film would be a happy compromise for Mrs Blog and myself which made its failure to deliver all the more disappointing. From both of us, only an average recommendation I’m afraid. 2 out of 5.

Man On Wire movie review

2009-03-29T15:42:00.010+11:00

This is the first on a new series of movies nominated for Oscars from earlier in the year. As these films are released on to DVD I will review them here. Films I have seen in the cinema that have already been reviewed are : Benjamin Button, Frost/Nixon, Revolutionary Road, Slumdog Millionaire and The Wrestler.
Man On Wire won Best Documentary for its account of Philippe Petit’s breathtaking and daring high wire act between New York's twin towers in 1974.
He crossed between the towers 8 times over 45 minutes. The policemen waiting to arrest him did not describe him as a tightrope walker, but as a dancer. Petit performs as he crosses : he lies prostrate in the middle of the wire, he salutes the crowd. The policeman goes further : “we were watching something once in a lifetime”.
Photographs and film footage taken that day, both from the ground and from the top of the tower, next to the wire, show Petit’s face as “an ageless mask of concentration : a sphinx.” “I need complete detachment,” says Petit. “A castaway on the desert island of my dreams”
It evokes a mood that is “magical, profound.” His girlfriend, watching from the ground calls people’s attention to the highwire walker. “It was extraordinary. It was so beautiful.”
His lifetime friend who helped rig the wire from the other tower is watching Petit step out onto the rope. They are exhausted, it having taken all night to evade the guards, haul the wire across and secure the tightrope. Petit’s face is tense as he steps on the rope. As he crosses about one-third of the way, he sees “relief ... he’s secure, he’s good.” His friend cries at the memory as his fears throughout the planning and of what might go wrong, go unfounded as Petit succeeds in this one audacious act.
Petit recalls that “in the middle of this madness, I had hope and joy.”
And this is the effect this documentary has on the viewer. Petit has such impish enthusiasm that it infects you from through the screen. He lives “everyday as a true challenge - living his life on the tightrope.” His artistic flair draws you in to re-live his tale, some 35 years after it occurred. “If I die what a beautiful death. To die in the exercise of your passion.”
At the end, the American press cannot believe what they have witnessed. “Why?” they ask over and over again. Petit simply answers, “I have done something beautiful and mysterious. There is no ‘why’"
5 out of 5.

Green Guide Blogs will go into hiatus for a couple of weeks as I am away over the school holidays.

Things I Like #8 - Breakfast

2009-03-28T19:31:00.013+11:00

While it would be true to say that ‘food’ in general is a thing that I like, especially if you are buying me lunch or my beautiful wife is cooking a loving tea. Is there a better way to start they day though than a warm, nutritrious and sweetened bowl of porridge ?

The process is simple. One cup of rolled oats, one cup of water and into the microwave for 3 minutes.

A spoonful of brown sugar and milk on top to finish if off.
This breakfast has the lowest fat / highest “fill me up” ratio of all of the cereals. Something to look forward to, every single day.

Unfinished Sky movie review

2009-03-22T08:33:00.006+11:00

It takes less than 5 minutes into this film, Unfinished Sky, before we see this woman come staggering up the country road; dirty, covered in bruises and with cuts about her face, arms and legs. She does not speak English and is having wild hallucinations.
She finds herself at the remote farm property of John Woldring (William McInnes). He is a lonely, single farmer who has shut himself off from his community and has been happy to remain so since his wife died in a farm accident some years before. He is not looking after himself particularly well and does not communicate with others beyond mono-syllables.
John takes in the foreign woman where he bathes her, attends to her wounds, and allows her to rest. He discovers her name is Tahmeena, an illegal immigrant from Afghanistan. She has found her way to Australia to locate her daughter who she gave up to another family who immigrated earlier, ‘for a better life.’
The next hour of this film, John and Tahmeena slowly build a trust for each other. John discovers who is looking for Tahmeena, what has been done to her and hides her from those who wish her harm. Both people have experienced hurt and isolation and have to learn to be around another person they can relax and share with.
Tahmeena shares an uncanny likeness to John’s wife – the same body size, long dark hair – and despite experiencing some discomfort at discovering this, the story does not take this issue further.
Although it touches on some of the same themes as The Jammed, it is not as hopeless as that film was. While the ‘relationship building’ phase of the movie is believable – it does not feel rushed or forced – it struggles to maintain tension.
The last quarter of this film changes pace and is a little at odds with the preceding hour. It is the ‘action’ component and the inevitable conclusion to the story line. In truth, you probably cannot keep an illegal immigrant at home and have no one notice!
This film won the "other half" of the "Best" awards at last year's AFI Awards, winning Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Cinematography, Best Adapted Screenplay etc.
A 3 out of 5 film.

Things I Like #7 - the Gym

2009-03-22T08:32:00.004+11:00

Four years ago, at the ripe old age of 35, I wanted to play football again. As part of that decision was the desire to improve my fitness level. Mostly that meant running and sit-ups. After one full season, the next obvious step was to join a gym. Nunawading Aqualink was an appealing choice as membership includes the use of their 50m pool and gymnasium. I now have the choice of exercising indoors, in the pool or continuing to run outside.
My aim is to do 3 aerobic sessions (of 30 min each) and two weights sessions per week. By simply "turning up and doing it" I have noticed a gradual and positive improvement to my fitness level, strength and body shape. I am measured 3 or 4 times a year and it is always pleasing to know that progress has been made.
What has taken a little longer to realise is that one of the benefits of being fitter includes keeping (a physical form of) depression at bay. Instead of feeling life is getting on top of me, I can approach my life positively and interactively.
Since my last measure, at the start of summer, my aerobic fitness has improved from 1.79 to 1.92 (watts per kg). What does this mean? I don't really know except that its better! Go boy!

The Jammed movie review

2009-03-17T13:00:00.002+11:00

Has there been a more powerful Australian film starring so many talented female actors ? Dee McLachlan (writer, director, producer) has conjured such a strong, moving and disturbing drama, The Jammed, that to simply give it a moniker of “message movie” is to entirely under-sell what she has accomplished.
Insurance clerk, and ‘ordinary’ every-girl, Ashley (Veronica Sywak) is implored by Chinese visitor and mother, Sunee, to find her daughter Rubi (Sun Park). Reluctantly at first, Ashley starts making phone calls, putting up “missing” posters, and visiting seedy addresses. As she becomes more involved in the search, her own safety threatened, Ashley desperately tracks down every lead to uncover the whereabouts of Rubi. Her bravery and goodness is the narrative thread of this story and our ‘way in’ to the events on screen.
The other half of the story follows Rubi, Crystal (Emma Lung) and Vanya (Saskia Burmeister) – how they are tricked into slavery with the promise of jobs and employment in Australia, how they are locked in their room during the day, and how they are forced into prostitution during the night. Their performances are disturbingly powerful and show all too plainly how slavery, abuse and loss of self esteem is often not about chains or bars on the window.
The last film I saw that had this many talented women was Almodovar’s Volver and that required the experience and talent of ‘name’, Penelope Cruz to work as well as it did. In The Jammed, the young, and mostly inexperienced actors, produce characters that are raw and believable.
Most at contrast is the men in the film. While not large parts, they impose themselves so strongly that the women believe they do not have a choice. These characters are so well developed that at no stage does the screenplay slip into caricature of “bad guy”. Perhaps the ‘bad guys’ in the film are the men who visit these brothels?
What was most frightening to me about this film is that I recognised so much of the background. This was not some unidentified northern European town (as in Lilya 4 Ever), some vast American city or foreign Asian streetscape. This is Melbourne. My home town. This is happening under our very nose and we know nothing about it.
The film is inspired by “true events”, that is, as many as 700,000 women and girls are trafficked around the world each year. This could be three of them.
Recommended? Absolutely, but beware, some scenes are disturbing. 4 out of 5.
Post Script, Mrs Blog did not plan to watch this film but once started, didn’t stop. While she could not claim to “enjoy” this film, she was compelled to know what happened to these women.

Things I Like #6 - Pearls Before Swine

2009-03-11T21:59:00.008+11:00

Dilbert creator, Scott Adams, has written his "formula" for what makes a really funny comic strip. He claims that achieving a minimum of 2 out of 6 makes for an "amusing" strip, but obviously the higher the matches, the more successful it becomes. His rules:
1) Make it cute (as in kids and animals)
2) Naughty
3) Bizarre
4) Clever
5) Recognizable (ie, you've been there)
6) Cruel

{Adams himself laments that his own comic strip Dilbert frequently only breaks even at 2 out of 6, and marvels at the conversion rate of Calvin & Hobbes, 5 out of 6, "virtually unheard of," or The Far Side, 4 out of 6, "no wonder he sold a trillion calendars"}
On this scale, Pearls Before Swine by artist Stephan Pastis consistently rates 4 out of 6. It has cute animals, some cruelty that's definitely cruel enough, some bizarre behaviour and often a clever or recognisable theme. It ranks as my favourite comic strip. You can read it here.

Meet some of the characters:
Rat is malicious and cynical and perpetually taking advantage of the naive and simple Pig.

Next door neighbours, the Crocky-diles, are dense and all the funnier because of their inept hunting of prey.

And occasionally the jokes are just sick plays on words.

Finally, sometimes Pastis breaks the “fourth wall” and inserts himself into his cartoons, often at his own expense.

The Square movie review

2009-03-08T16:08:00.017+11:00

The point is, if you want to steal the money, escape the bad guys and get the girl, then for heaven sakes, get going. Don’t wait for them to come and get you!
Such is the fault with brothers, Joel and Nash Edgerton’s crime thriller, The Square. The truth is however our ‘heroes’ in this film, Ray (David Roberts) and Carla (Claire van der Boom) seem to frequently make the wrong choice in what to do next. This of course helps keep the drama contained, that is, all the protagonists are kept legitimately within the Sydney suburb it starts in. And what a tangled web of self-serving interests it becomes.
Ray and Carla are having a an affair and when Ray can steal enough money via kick-backs from his cement supplier, they will each leave their partners. Carla discovers her partner, Smithy (Anthony Hayes) hiding a bag full of cash. What if Ray steals the cash and trashes the house to make it look like an arbitrary robbery? In steps Billy (Joel Edgerton), professional arsonist and willing to assist, for a fee. Things like this never work quite as well as one hopes, a complication arises and suddenly everyone is suspicious that everyone else knows something and is hiding it.
Most Australian films in recent years are either knock-about buddy comedies (Strange Bedfellows) or tragic family dramas (Somersault, Little Fish). To have a film that follows a “genre” storyline in an Aussie accent is welcoming. The acting is fine, the direction feels accomplished and the setting “works” as the story criss-crosses between respectable suburban ordinariness and the deceitfulness of those on the take.
At times this film evoked the unsettling mood of Lantana but unfortunately the inconsistent steps in the plot left me wanting more. Recommendation : Okay. 2½ out of 5.

Things I Like #5 - things starting with V

2009-03-08T16:08:00.015+11:00

I picked up these limes from the Vic Market for 20 cents each (bargain), juiced them, and stored them in the freezer. They form a perfect base for my drink of choice : Vodka.
(Oh yes, I also like Victoria!)

(The kids and I had some fun with our photos. He he.)

The Black Balloon movie review

2009-03-01T15:44:00.007+11:00

This week, and over the next three weeks, I will write a review about each of the Australian Film Institute’s Best Film nominees from the end of 2008 : The Black Balloon, The Jammed, Unfinished Sky and The Square. They are out on DVD now.
In Black Balloon, Thomas is nearly 16. His dad’s in the Army and so they move around a lot; this is already his fifth school. Mum is pregnant with their third child and suffering from high blood pressure as she nears full term. Oh, and his older brother, Charlie is autistic – the body of a 17 year old and a mental age of toddler. All Thomas wants is a normal adolescence.
Thomas is a mass of contradictions. He deeply loves his family and does his share of caring for his brother. He is also highly embarrassed by his brother and goes to great lengths to ‘hide’ him from his classmates, the girl he likes and the neighbours.
This AFI Best Film winner from 2008 draws a lot of experiences from writer/director Elissa Down who has an autistic brother. A lot of the situations of the household in this film either happened to her or are borrowed heavily; such as the funny : Charlie running down the street in his underpants and invading a stranger’s house to go to the toilet; or the mortifying : Charlie conducting a tantrum in the supermarket.
This pressure in Thomas builds as he struggles with the expectation of helping to look after his brother and the guilt of resenting him every step of the way. The ‘explosion’ within Thomas toward the end of the film is both expected and shocking. It is compounded by the fact that it occurs in front of new girlfriend, Jackie (Gemma Ward).
All roles are played with great affection and believability : Rhys Wakefield as Thomas pulls of the difficult role of dutiful son, awkward teenager and boyfriend material. Luke Ford by all accounts spent a great deal of time studying and observing autistic men, his portrayal never falters, nor does it feel forced or a caricature. Toni Collette is superb as always as mum and Erik Thomson balances the dual responsibility of military officer and loving and supportive husband and father.
This is an affectionately told drama that captures the highs and lows of family life. It is very well put together and an Australian film we can be proud of. Recommended. 3½ out of 5.

Things I Like #4 - Crumpler bag

2009-03-01T15:37:00.003+11:00

Sure, it makes me totally hip, trendy and modern, and sure, it highlights the blue in my eyes, but what I really like about my Crumpler messenger bag is that I can carry it over my shoulder, keep my hands free while I walk, and carry whatever I need to easily. The shoulder strap is broad enough to be comfortable, the flap is safely secured by Velcro and may be further secured by clips and the bag sits in place on my back by a simple yet ingenious third leg. I have “accessorised” it further by purchasing a wee mobile phone pocket which sits on the outside for convenient access. Totally Happening!

Mourning - Flags of our Fathers, Letters from Iwo Jima

2009-02-22T20:55:00.003+11:00

Today is a National Day of Mourning in Australia. We remember those 200+ people who were killed by the rampant bushfires that swept many parts of the State two weeks ago; we mourn the loss of home, town and belongings to the hundreds and thousands; we remain on alert as fires continue to burn and men and women continue to put themselves in harms way to protect others.
(Mark Knight, editorial cartoon, Herald Sun)
The devastating effect of these fires has had not only a very real impact on many of our countrymen, but a psychological impact on everyone else. The day the fires started in earnest was the hottest day in Victoria’s history : 46 degrees C. This hot, dry onslaught was not easier to accept just because it came by natural means.
Australians pride themselves on “helping a mate in need.” Within a week of this disaster, millions upon millions of dollars had been raised for the Red Cross and others. Food, clothing and household items have been donated in such vast supply that the agencies literally cannot accept any more. They have enough goods to help the needy for years to come.
It is little wonder then that the ferocity and devastation of the fires has been likened to a war zone. We had booked to go camping in Marysville at Easter. The aerial photographs of this country town, set in the once green hills of a State forest, show that the whole town has been razed to the ground. Black stumps by the score show where trees used to grow. Dark shapes outline where buildings stood.
In Clint Eastwood’s companion films, Flags of Our Fathers, and Letters from Iwo Jima, he tells the stories of the men who fought on each side of the battle for the tiny volcanic island Iwo Jima in the Pacific.
The black volcanic rock of this island means that very little grows here. In the latter days of WW2, the American Marines landed there in their thousands to take the island. The Japanese, holed up in their rock hewn bunkers, kept them out for days before the greater numbers overwhelmed them. The fighting was fierce and ruthless.
Flags of Our Fathers tells the story of the iconic image of the raising of the flag on the top of Iwo Jima. Some of the young men who were on the island at that time were sent home to rouse a public into buying war bonds. They were marked as heroes in the press and in the public consciousness despite the men’s protestations that they were only doing their bit, neither great or glorious. Eastwood poses the question, for whom do we create heroes ? Is it for the men who served and gave their lives ? Or is it for everyone else who desperately need someone or something to believe in.
Letters from Iwo Jima is a more intimate tale of the Japanese men who are forced to leave their families to defend this island. If the Americans captured it, then their planes would reach the Japanese mainland. They also know that they will die there. The Japanese Navy has been destroyed by the Allies, and reinforcements are being deployed elsewhere. There is no back-up.
In this film, Eastwood portrays what it means to have honour. The traditional Japanese version of honour is to commit suicide if you fail in your mission. The officer in charge, played with dignity and reserve, Ken Watanabe, prefers to see honour in remaining true to yourself, to your family and to your mates.
On this unique day of mourning across Australia, we try to shut out the invasive and insensitive commercial news reporters who like to build up every sentiment and create heroes of ordinary people facing incredible odds. Instead we pray for the families in distress, for comfort and peace. For the volunteers who risk their lives and are the only ones standing between the next town and the fire, we ask for courage, resilience and stamina. For the public we ask for ongoing sensitivity, generosity and respect.

Things I Like #3 - The Borek Stand

2009-02-22T20:50:00.003+11:00

What makes Thursday the best day of the week? Reading the Green Guide certainly. But what else? On Thursday I buy fruit at the Queen Vic Market, to feed the hungry monkeys at my house for the next week. For lunch I buy simply the best lamb kebab souvlaki (with garlic sauce) from the Borek stand, in the Deli. And for only $6.
The Turkish ladies who serve are the toughest and most hard working vendors on the site. They are constantly serving boreks ($2.50 each) to a pressing crowd, often 6 wide and 5 deep. They know who is next in line, who has ordered what and how much each owes. (I do not eat the boreks simply because the chilli is no good for me. Otherwise I love them too).
Having feasted there every week for a year or more, I am now greeted with a knowing smile. “Lamb garlic ?” “Yes, thank-you.” No more needs to be said. Happiness awaits.

Things I Like #2 - Risk

2009-02-04T21:42:00.002+11:00

Another of the activities I enjoy is playing the game of global domination, RISK. A board game that combines strategy with the roll of the die. Best played with four or more, the downside to this game is the infrequency with which that number of like minded fellows can be organised in the one location to play. As such one must enjoy the opportunities as they arise and makes victory even sweeter. The attached picture is half-way through the most recent battle; my green army is amassing in North America for its eventual rout through LB's South America and on to Africa and the world! Bwahahahaha.

Holiday House

2009-02-04T16:23:00.003+11:00

Fancy a break from it all ? Want to take a holiday along the Great Ocean Road ? Interested in a special Valentines Day ? Then head for Apollo Bay and stay in a "neat and tidy house with partially fenced yard [at] such a great location" !
Link here for full details.

Hockey debut

2009-02-03T21:58:00.002+11:00

At age 38 I have proudly made my hockey debut for Hawthorn in the summer comp. I played out on the wing to do as little damage as possible since my actual hockey skills are low-to-non-existent. I played alongside my brother who has played hockey since age 6 and he ensured I kept running to the right spot. My legs are a little sore, not having done much hard running since footy season last year. All in all though I enjoyed the outing and may play again ! Oh yes, and we lost 5-2. Que sera sera.

Things I Like #1 - Podcast

2009-01-30T13:15:00.002+11:00

My favourite podcast is News Radio’s Star Stuff, hosted Stuart Gary. While I don’t really know my quarks from my dark matter, the technical segments (such as on gamma ray bursts, or GRBs for those in the know) are always very well explained from either Gary himself or any of his ‘go to’ experts. The program also spends a lot of time on the latest rocket launch from all round the world, whether it’s the first ever (very wealthy) tourist into space, Chinese tests, or American trips to the international space station. I find it endlessly fascinating and Gary’s enthusiasm makes for invigorating listening.
The link to the podcast is here.

Slumdog Millionaire movie review

2009-01-29T21:07:00.007+11:00

In cricket, who has scored the most first class centuries? Is it, A) Sachin Tendulkar, B) Ricky Ponting, C) Michael Slater, or D) Jack Hobbs ?
If you know the answer then you could win the million dollars in India’s ‘Who Wants To be a Millionaire?’ At least, that’s the million dollar question for Jamal in Danny Boyle’s Slumdog Millionaire.
This film is an almost perfect mix of comedy, drama, romance and action and my pick for Best Picture winner at this year’s Oscars(*).
Some of the early scenes of this film reminded me of Fernando Meirelles’ City of God, a very fine picture that follows the youths of a slum (in Rio de Janeiro) and their inevitable descent into gang life. Slumdog Millionaire is similarly set in the slums, of Mumbai, but rather than follow the path of violence and destruction, it allows itself to be leavened by the impish behaviour of brothers, Salim and Jamal. That is not to say however that this film ignores the reality of their impoverished circumstances or the susceptibility to criminal behaviours. It does however follow the life of Jamal who escapes from these pitfalls.
Narratively the story is a series of flashbacks as Jamal answers questions on the gameshow and we see how he came to know the answers. At the end however you come to realise that the emotional thread that holds this film together is Jamal’s love for Latika, and his continuous search to be reunited with her.
The highlight of the film for me was the Bollywood dance scene involving the whole cast run during the credits. It had the feel of a cast party – unexpected but joyous. It had nothing whatsoever to do with the telling of the story but because we had come to know these characters, ridden the emotional wave of ‘will they/won’t they’ : to break out into dance seemed the most appropriate way to celebrate the end of the film.
Highly recommended. 5 out of 5.
(*)This does not mean I think it will win, although it might. I simply have no idea who will win. As you all well know, Oscar winners have only a little bit to do with how good they are and a lot to do with other things.

Gran Torino movie review

2009-01-28T21:30:00.007+11:00

So tenderly your story is
nothing more than what you see
or what you've done or will become

There are moments in my life when I reflect and wish I had been a little braver, a little more forthright, or alternatively, wished I’d demonstrated a little more wisdom and just shut up. Last year I had an opportunity to do the right thing.

standing strong do you belong
in your skin; just wondering

Last year I was travelling home on the train a little later than usual. The train was about half full, so plenty of spare seats. Everyone was minding their own business. An inebriated man got on and started talking to a year 7 boy (13 yo) with a Melbourne Grammar School uniform on, who had his head down reading a book. This man was not being threatening as such but the young boy was intimidated and embarrassed. The man tried to be ‘humourous’ by imitating the boy’s Vietnamese heritage with the schoolyard classic, ‘slanty eyes’.
At this point I asked the man to sit down like everyone else and to stop disturbing the young fella because he was scaring him. I spoke in a respectful but firm way, taking the focus off the boy and on to me. “I was just trying to be friendly” said the man. He sat down though, somewhere else. I think he recognised he had acted foolishly.

gentle now the tender breeze blows
whispers through my Gran Torino
whistling another tired song

Walt Kowalski (Clint Eastwood) is at the end of his life. He has seen death through his involvement in the Korean war and carries those images inside his head. He knows he’s not perfect – he’s not proud of the disconnect between him and his two sons, and their families.
But he doesn’t regret much in his life – he has only three things to confess to the priest. This is not hubris so much as knowing that rightly or wrongly, he has lived his life, knows where he comes from, and knows what he can do.
He is the last remaining white man in the neighbourhood, as the original inhabitants have slowly packed up and moved away. In their place many immigrants from South East Asia : Vietnam, Laos, China, have moved in.
Walt is the archetypal grumpy old man – he just wants to be left alone, drinking beer on his porch with his dog for company. The area has gang trouble however and Walt finds himself standing up to these bullies to protect his younger and more vulnerable neighbours. This draws him into the world of his neighbours.
The Gran Torino in the title is Walt’s prized 1972 Ford motor car. This is not a ‘car’ movie but does provide a starting point for how Walt becomes an unlikely mentor for his young neighbour, Thao. In return, Walt finds friendship with Thao and his sister Sue. Walt teaches Thao that being a man involves having a vocation, providing for your family, and ultimately making your own way in life, that is, thinking for yourself and not following the pack.
This is a very fine picture by Eastwood. Hopefully it is not his last although rumours abound (he is 79 years old after all). It is similar in style to his Oscar winning Million Dollar Baby although I prefer this one, albeit without the acting presence of a Hilary Swank or Morgan Freeman.

engine hums and bitter dreams grow
heart locked in a Gran Torino
it beats a lonely rhythm all night long

My headmaster at school implored us to “be our own man.” This is Eastwood’s message to young men everywhere. 4 out of 5.

'Gran Torino' music by Jamie Cullen, vocals by Clint Eastwood

Revolutionary Road movie review

2009-01-23T14:05:00.004+11:00

Have you ever felt trapped by life? Is your marriage everything you hoped for? Do you fight often, or have you moved passed that into a sullen silence, covering intimacy with a blank smile and finally to indifference?
For April Wheeler (Kate Winslet), the “perfect” life – successful husband, big house in the suburbs, two kids – is a perfectly constructed prison which she and husband Frank (Leo DiCaprio) have fashioned for themselves, in Revolutionary Road.
In deconstructing films like this where a key relationship is in focus, it is helpful for the filmmaker if the script writer contrives to have the reality of everyday life muted or better still, removed. This film is set in the 1950s and yet we do not see any of the extra-curricular activities that occupied the housewives of the day – the church groups, the tennis club, the whatever else that could give a woman a sense of purpose and prestige in the community, outside of cleaning house and raising children. The children, of which Frank and April have two, are absent for long stretches, presumably staying over at “friends houses.” Naturally this hard headedness misses the point of the film and so, by removing these realities, allows the tense, incommunicative relationship to disintegrate before our eyes.
Their relationship experiences a reprieve for the summer. April decides they could move to Paris in the fall, in September. April could work as a secretary, she thinks, and Frank would have the time to discover what he really wants to do. Their dream of a new start replaces the fights. Passage is reserved on a steamer. Boxes are slowly packed. They tell their friends, who can’t understand why anyone would give up their perfect life in the ‘burbs.
But this dream is just a dream. Frank is offered a promotion at the office and this allows him the chance to slip back into the comfort zone of the familiar. For April, unable to find freedom and unable to break the marriage or leave her children, descends into an desperate hell.
The men in this film are ‘typical’ of their time and do not know how to give emotional support or even perceive when its necessary. This imbalance, the woman trapped by circumstance and the man blinded by it, leads to the irretrievable breakdown. It is a literary touch I think that names the main character “April”, while placing her dream in faraway September while Frank is anything but.
Kate Winslet won the “Best Actress” award at the Golden Globes for her troubles here and she brings a maturity to her character. She is married and had children in real life (to director of this film, Sam Mendes) and this adds depth to her performance.
Mendes previously won Best Director for American Beauty and this film shares some similarities – the “American” dream of pursuing the house / the wife / the car by way of a “better” job is an empty pursuit if meaning and purpose are forfeit.
While not a ‘happy’ film, it is well made, well acted and worthy of those who enjoy a serious, relationship drama. 3 out of 5.
Many thanks to ABC radio for the preview.

Post script
Scanning the Oscar nominations, which have just been announced, the only mention for Revolutionary Road (of the “big 6” awards) is that of Best Support for Michael Shannon.
Shannon plays John Givings, a neighbour who plays Lear’s fool to Frank and his rationale for firstly agreeing to move to Paris, and then not. He sees Frank and April as we, the audience do, and pushes and challenges them, often in colourful language, which serves the dual purpose of releasing the tension by amusing us for a moment and providing a counterpoint to the words that they don’t say to each other.
Revolutionary Road has also been nominated for Best Achievement in Art Direction and Costume Design.

Frost/Nixon movie review

2009-01-11T20:26:00.003+11:00

[There are spoilers of sorts within this review]
The most compelling character in Frost/Nixon is none other than Richard M Nixon himself. With the most to hide and the most to tell, Frank Langella is a convincing Nixon. His mannerisms, deep throaty voice and cocksure attitude embody the spirit of the man.
The story follows British talk show host, David Frost, played by Michael Sheen and his team of researchers (Matthew Macfadyen, Sam Rockwell and Oliver Platt) as they prepare a list of “no holds barred” questions to ask Nixon in an exclusive series of interviews in March/April of 1977. This type of movie is very similar to The Queen, which also starred Sheen, where a series of facts is known and the ‘behind the scenes’ is speculated upon. The characters represent real persons and the actors do their best to represent their mannerisms and personalities.
While the story of Frost - securing the interview, wooing the impressive looking Rebecca Hall, pleading with network execs - drives the story forward, it is Nixon himself that captures our attention. It is well known that Nixon was forced to resign from office because of illegal activities of which he participated in and covered up (Watergate the headline issue), he escaped trial because of a full pardon from successor Gerald Ford. This interview became his public trial.
Nixon agrees to the interview in the hope it will provide him with an intellectual challenge. Having a purpose in life, he announces, is how to stay young. In the first of the interviews it is Nixon who retains the upper hand as Frost allows Nixon to restore his battered image as a strong and bold leader.
It is make or break for Frost also as each of his television shows is cancelled by the networks around the world and he personally finances the production of this interview.
On the question of Watergate however, and his own admission of guilt and remorse, Nixon seeks an opportunity to come clean and own up to his part in it. He has betrayed his own “standard of excellence” he has always held for himself and seeks to be rid, once and for all, of the constant calls by the media for an admission.
An excellent insight into the ending of this film has been written by Jim Schembri from The Age, which can be accessed here.
Kevin Bacon plays the president’s aide, and displays the largest man crush in recent movie history.
This film is highly recommended, with Langella deserving of a Best Actor nomination.

Roger Ebert defends Nicole

2009-01-10T21:57:00.004+11:00

Roger Ebert, America's premiere movie critic and my personal hero, has posted a blog piece that criticises show biz journalism which is entirely apt and defends Nicole in the process.

Why do we thirst for movie stars to fail? Why are so many showbiz journalists like hyenas circling a crippled prey? Why do so many gossip columnists behave like jilted lovers or betrayed investors, livid with anger at what they once valued so highly? Why are a few stars singled out like the victims of school bullies? Why do the box office receipts of "Australia" appear in almost every news outlet, but an actual review of it appears in so few?

Read the full piece here.

My defence of Nicole and Australia is here.

Twilight movie review by Mrs Blog

2009-01-08T20:09:00.006+11:00

Hi there Green Guide Day followers, this is the Good Lady Wife of the frog! I have decided to hijack his blog to sprout some reflections about a movie I know you are all dying to see : Twilight!
I have had a lovely Christmas break reading the four books in this series : Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse and New Dawn, all written by Stephanie Meyers.
At the heart of these books is a love story between two people that defies common sense and logic as love grows uncontrollably between them.
I loved these books. They swept me somewhere else between their pages and their words left me bewitched, wanting more every time I begrudgingly had to put them down. I fell “in love” with the main characters and their world.
Now because I got onto the Twilight bandwagon really late (not being a teenage girl anymore!!), The first movie was out before I even had started reading about the Cullen family.
This “review” stems more from my love of the books and the nearly always terrible adaptations that come in the form of movies. Fabulous books often make their way to the screen because they have been so loved by millions of dedicated readers. The idea of seeing your favourite characters pictorially is irresistible but the movie makers so often disappoint. Directors often feel the need to artistically push their ideas on already well formed plots and manipulate stories lines to “fit” the movie format!! All the while destroying what the audience had been so looking forward to seeing.
I went to Twilight On Wednesday expecting the story to be mutilated, major plot deviations, missing characters and holes everywhere (ie like when I saw The Spiderwick Chronicles) but found that I could intoxicate myself with love, vampires and of course “Edward Cullen” my desires satisfied.
Amazingly this movie captured the mood, the heart, the colour and the characters of Meyers novel. Maybe the subtle details of the story wasn't there, some character development was missing but no movie can ever portray all the detail that a book contains, if they did we would be watching movies that lasted for 10 hours or more and nobody wants that!
So if you have read Twilight I think you are going to enjoy this movie and as for Robert Pattison who plays Edward, FINE FINE FINE!!

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button movie review

2009-01-08T19:58:00.002+11:00

The first thing I wanted to do after watching The Curious Case of Benjamin Button was to hug my children. To love and be loved is the greatest of human treasures and not one to be taken for granted.
As I am sure you will all know by now, Benjamin Button (Brad Pitt) is born as an infant who has the body of an 80-year old and eventually dies as an 80 year old, looking like an infant. In between he ages backwards, peaking in his 50s, 40s and 30s before the inevitable decline of reverse-childhood.
A consequence of this peculiarity however is that Benjamin finds himself alone at many times in his life. His mother died giving birth to him. His father, from rage and grief at losing his wife and gaining an abomination, abandon’s his son on the steps of an old folks home, run by Queenie.
It is here that Benjamin experiences his first and sustaining life force, the love of a mother. Queenie raises him as his own son, “he’s one of the Lord’s children, after all” she declares. Being a boy in an old man’s body Benjamin does not look so out of place amongst the residents of Queenie’s home. Years later after Benjamin is reunited with his birth father, he resolutely maintains that she is his mother and cares nothing for his real father’s business or family history.
His second significant relationship occurs with Daisy – a granddaughter of one of Queenie’s residents, who comes to visit during school holidays. She recognises that Benjamin is a fine playmate, despite his appearance, and it commences a long and lasting love and chase that sustains the film.
The strength of this movie is not the curiosity of an elderly man who ages in reverse. It is the subtly and nuance of two people who age and change and make choices in their life. Choices that will benefit them, and others that will hinder. We are each faced with opportunity to make what we will of our lives. There are moments when we must take risks either in love, or in business or a myriad of other interactions. The net result is two characters for whom we care for and the end of their lives is a moving one for us because we have invested so heavily in their experience.
It is an interesting reflection for me that as Benjamin and Daisy’s ages ‘meet’ in their 40’s, their relationship is robust and strong and passionate. Perhaps in the prime of our lives we all only have a certain number of years to enjoy before other interests or priorities or the inevitable infirmities of age take us away from this time.
Benjamin Button is telling us in no uncertain terms to make the most of what life we have. It won’t last forever - it never does.
Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett play their roles well as do all other support roles. Pitt is entirely convincing as a naïve, child-like old man as he is a wise and experienced young man. Blanchett similarly is apt as a carefree artiste in her early years and a bittersweet mature woman in her latter years.
The makeup and prosthetic team associated with this picture deserve a special mention also; expect to seem them listed in Oscar nominations next month. 3 out of 5.

The Wrestler movie review

2008-12-16T23:01:00.005+11:00

The Wrestler is Mickey Rourke’s movie. A big time wrestler in the 80’s, Randy “The Ram” Robinson is now in his 50s and still wrestles, hoping for one more shot at the big time. Its the one thing he can do well and he lives for the roar and adulation of the crowd.
Yes, we all know that wrestling is “fake”, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t real or it doesn’t hurt. Each time you hit the canvas, or get hit with a fold-up chair, or any of the other creative ways the pros use to entertain you, the wrestler still has to take the blow, get up, and do it again. And the strains of this entertainment are starting to show. The Ram's body is scarred from ring mishaps of years past; the muscle tissue is starting to weaken and tear from years of abuse; and the drugs to repair the damage, build the muscle and eat the fat, are common place. Back stage, its not a glamorous lifestyle and the pay for his efforts is solely dependent on the gate – often not a lot of reward for his effort.
Rourke is such a physical actor. His body is as much a part of the role as any words he has to say. His big shoulders, square jaw and scarred brow all play the role. And you know too, or at least deeply suspect, that Rourke is doing all his own stunts. Each crunch is hurting.
The other notable performance, also a physical role, is stripper/friend Cassidy, played by Marisa Tomei. Striking to look at, 44 year old Tomei puts her body on the line. She is every bit as gutsy and compelling as Rourke, in a support role.
The director is Darren Aronofsky (Requiem for a Dream) who revels in the dark hallways or crowded change rooms that twist and turn before leading out onto the glittering pole-dancing stage or the brightly lit wrestling ring.
The story tracks The Ram through the final stage of his wrestling life as he tries to reconnect with his estranged daughter and make something of his relationship with Cassidy. It is straightforward enough. There is some humour, especially in the early wrestling scenes where each opposing pair works out their moves beforehand.
The power and appeal of this film however is in the dominating hulk that is Mickey Rourke and is worth every cent watching him strut his stuff. 4 out of 5.
The film is due out in Australia in January. Many thanks to Hopscotch Films for the preview.

James Bond Quantum of Solace movie review

2008-12-13T18:38:00.003+11:00

I must confess to finding some of the detail of this latest Bond jaunt a little confusing. As such I won’t try and write a complete review. I will leave that for the more distinguished members of the Bond alumni such as old friend Veejay.
Some reflections then: Daniel Craig has ushered in a new Bond and with it none of the cool charm of previous incarnations. Gone are the scrapes but no bruises, the witty asides that cause the girl to go weak at the knees and the fawning of Miss Moneypenny and Q. This Bond faces a series of assaults that are anything but fun. He doesn’t sleep for days on end, is covered in welts from the various beatings, and manages to over compensate the level of force required by killing each possible lead, one after the other.
Apparently there is some international terrorist group called Quantum although we don’t get many insights into this throughout the movie. I assume they will rival Goldfinger when its all said and done but that must be for the next movie.
The Americans just want the oil and don’t care who they get it from. The Haitian coup leader is a nasty piece of work, and the French business man (Mathieu Amalric) will extort any or all. No wonder there’s trouble in the Home Office with M (Judi Dench) wanting to believe that Bond can sort it all out before the Minister outmanoeuvres her and closes their operation down.
I must say though, if nothing else, you must admire his “can do” attitude. Handcuffed in a lift surrounded by Secret Service goons? No worries. Just knock them out and away you go. Caught in a gas fired inferno with the roof crashing down around you? Don’t panic. Say a few quiet words to the girl your protecting, aim your gun at a cylinder and “Pow!” the wall explodes and out you jump. Apparently you don’t have to worry about the odd little thing like machine gun bullets too, either from a moving speedboat or motor vehicle. They can’t shoot straight anyway.
All the action sequences were filmed by “shaky hand Steve” with 2 second cuts. This made watching any of the chase or fight scenes very disorientating. My deeply held belief is that this kind of “kinetic”, “adrenaline charged” camera work is merely covering poorly choreographed action and they don’t want you to realise it! The rest of the film, you’ll be pleased to know, was shot perfectly normally.
It is also a great thrill with these modern action type films when they shoot on location, around the world. In Quantum, you have a little of Italy, Austria, Chile, Panama and Mexico.
Broadly I got what I expected out of a Bond film. Lots of big action and one superhero who can take them all down. The Bond franchise desperately needed a re-boot. Each Bond film was becoming a cliché of itself. This new series with Craig has given fans a gritty agent who really only wants to do it for “God, Queen and country.”

In the Garden, in the Rain

2008-12-13T18:28:00.005+11:00

On the wettest day in Melbourne in the whole of 2008 and close to the wettest day in December, ever, young Curly and I weeded under the play equipment and moved one cubic metre of tan bark to cover the ground. Timing!
The remaining two cubic metres of mulch will go on the front garden beds tomorrow afternoon, after they have had a good soak.

In Defence of Luhrmann's Australia and Nicole

2008-12-09T22:26:00.005+11:00

There is an abundance of negative publicity surrounding Baz Luhrmann’s latest film, ‘Australia’.
Tall Poppies
Criticism of ‘Australia’ seems to be strongest from the high brow movie watcher who appear guilty of a local cringe factor. It puts me in mind of the national consciousness in the lead up to the Sydney Olympics opening ceremony where a similar negativity was leapt upon by a waiting media, always happy to push any measure of bad news. And with headlines that scream “Australia disappoints at box office”, who can resist a knowing nod?
With a reported cost of $130m to make and promote the film, there is no doubt that this one film has cost more than any other Australian film. Coupled with a calculated business drive to promote the film heavily, which is unusual for Australian films, the nation’s “tall poppy syndrome” has been quick to set in.
Luhrmann’s use of Australian actors is welcome and his portrayal of outback landscapes is appealing. It is no wonder that Tourism Australia were keen to align themselves to his vision.
Despite the high price tag and popular nature of this film it has been far from a failure. In its first week alone its box office takings were in the order of $10m in Australia alone. It will run for a few weeks yet into the summer holidays and that figure doesn’t take into account any overseas takings either.
Contrast this with the Australian films nominated in the Best Film category at last weekend’s Australian Film Institute awards : The Black Balloon, The Jammed, The Square and Unfinished Sky. Have you heard of any of these films? Let alone actually watched any of them? Perhaps you have heard of The Black Balloon (which won best picture) or Joel & Nash Edgerton’s The Square, and that because they were advertised in some way more than the others. Their combined box office takings however are $3.9m. Total.
Furthermore their themes are broadly consistent with many Australian films of recent times, darker in tone and more serious in nature. By all accounts they are very fine films but do I, as a potential audience member, get excited about the prospect of seeing something dour and downbeat? To be sure, I will be watching these films as they hit our DVD shelves, if for no other reason than because they are Australian films, but don’t tell me that somehow they are success stories (other than the actual success of getting them made which is no small feat in and of itself) while ‘Australia’ is a failure. In every way ‘Australia’ outpoints these other films: in its profile, its popular sensibility and its takings.
The Nicole factor
The other reaction against ‘Australia’ is that of Nicole Kidman. For some reason she is ‘on the nose’ of Australian audiences and that is counting against the film.
As you all know, I am a fan of Nicole and have been for a long time and I don’t back away from that now.
I think the reasons for this anti-Nicole sentiment is two fold. The first is her tabloid profile and regular folks are heartily sick of seeing her mug on the cover of every women’s magazine. Being married to Tom Cruise placed her in the echelon of uber-celebrity and she has been a target ever since.
As an adjunct to that, facial surgery in early 2000s, initially (I believe) to reshape her nose and since then, who knows what else, has resulted in a face with no blemish or wrinkle. Certainly the absence of any “laughter lines” or the like give opportunity for people to complain of an expressionless, “plastic” face. Ironically she has the appearance of a Stepford Wife, a role she played in 2004.
Secondly, the movies in which she has played a part in recent years have not been either critically or popularly acclaimed.
Kidman’s great film roles occurred around the time of her break up with Cruise and which garnered a Best Actress Oscar : The Hours, Dogville, The Human Stain, Cold Mountain and Birth. The dark subject matter was more than met with the dark moods of her personal life. They were powerful and serious storylines.
Since then, lighter tones and more popular offerings that sadly have been less impressive: The Stepford Wives, The Interpreter, Bewitched, Fur, The Invasion and Margot at the Wedding.
All I will say in defence of Kidman and her choice of roles is that she takes risks. I can only imagine that an actress with her profile would be offered countless roles in blockbuster, ‘James Bond’ type movies. The fact that she has done very few of those types of films, and none recently, should be marked as a credit but it is not recognised.
For example, with Fur, she took the opportunity to work with director Steven Shainberg whose previous success was with the controversial and independent film Secretary. Fur turned about to be a bit too quirky for its own good.
Margot, to work with Noah Baumbach whose previous success was with The Squid and the Whale. Margot was a hard script to work through and would have sunk irrespective of the cast.
I believe that the opportunity to work on an Australian film and support the local industry was behind her motivation to work on ‘Australia’ and before that ‘Happy Feet.’
I tend to judge the success of an actor very simply. If, at the end of a movie, I am satisfied that I believed what I was seeing, then it’s a ‘pass’. It is my opinion that Kidman remains a fine actress although not every film she has appeared in, has worked.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I comfortably rate ‘Australia’ as a 3 out of 4 star movie. The fact that it is an Australian film that highlights our history and addresses some of our current day issues is to be celebrated and enjoyed.

You can read my review of 'Australia' here.

Movie Reviews : A-K

2008-12-09T22:23:00.025+11:00

My Top 12 movies of the 2000s
$9.99
All The President's Men
An Andalusian Dog (La chien Andalou)
Aussie Rules

Australia

Bad Boy Bubby
The Ballad of Narayama
Bangkok Hilton
Birth
The Black Balloon
Blame
Blessed
The Book of Revelation
Borat
The Bourne Ultimatum
Bran Nue Dae
Capote
Changeling
The Class
Cold Mountain
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Defiance
Doubt
The Duchess
Duplicity
Flags of Our Fathers / Letters from Iwo Jima
Flushed Away
Frost/Nixon
Frozen River
Ghost Dog : The Way of the Samurai
Gosford Park
Gran Torino
Happy Feet
El Heist Grande
Howls Moving Castle
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
In The Loop
The Jammed
JFK
Jim Jarmusch retrospective
Kill Bill Vol. 1

Movie Reviews : L - Z

Movie Reviews : L-Z

2008-12-09T22:22:00.029+11:00

Lady Vengeance

The Last Station
Letters from Iwo Jima / Flags of Our Fathers
Little Sparrows
The Loved Ones
Man On Wire
Marie Antoinette
The Matilda Candidate
Milk
The Natural
Paranormal Activity
The Passion of the Christ
The Princess and the Frog
Punch Drunk Love
James Bond Quantum of Solace
The Queen
Rachel Getting Married
The Reader
Requiem for a Dream
Revolutionary Road
Romper Stomper
Hitchcock's Sabotage
Slumdog Millionaire
Somewhere
The Square
Superman Returns
Team America
Thirst
Tideland
Time
The Tree
Tristan + Isolde
Troy
Twilight
Unfinished Sky
Van Dieman's Land
Vicky Cristina Barcelona
The Visitor
Volver
Waltz With Bashir
The White Ribbon
Winter's Bone
The Wrestler
Zidane : a 21st Century Portrait

Movie Reviews : A - K

Bad Boy Bubby movie review

2008-12-05T12:07:00.002+11:00

Rolf De Heer is one of Australia’s most talented and diverse filmmakers. From the race conscious Tracker, to the silent-era homage Dr Plonk, De Heer utilises local talent to make Australian films crossing genre and style. Ten Canoes is set exclusively in the Northern Territory and tells a coming of age story about passion and respect amongst a tribe of indigenous Australians; Alexandra’s Project is a revenge thriller set in the suburbs.
And then there’s Bad Boy Bubby.
I am not so easily horrified by films. Indeed, only last weekend I watched an Asian horror film about evil spirits that barely flickered above the ho-hum. The first half hour of Bubby however made me repulsed by the squalor and abuse and I questioned whether or not I would make it to the end of the film. I could sense however that in a perverse way, De Heer was having some fun with us. It is as though he said to himself, “Now, just how putrid and disturbing can we make this scene?”
Bubby, played by Nicholas Hope, is an idiot savant who has been locked in a one bedroom cell for 35 years by his mother who shares the room, her bath and bed with him. Her psychological abuse is unrelenting and her slaps and punches leave him cowering. She prevents him from leaving by wearing a gas mask and telling him the air outside will kill him. The cell is dirty and sweaty and bare save for a few pieces of furniture.
With nothing to do and no one to talk to, Bubby keeps a ‘pet’ cat locked in a cage which he antagonises with a stick.
His brain slowly rationalises how the cat could survive outside if it didn’t wear a gas mask.
His mother answers, “it survives by holding its breath.”
“What’s holding your breath?” he asks
She grabs him from behind, blocking his airway.
Now he knows. He experiments on the cat only to find the cat doesn’t care for having its airways closed. He wraps its body in cling wrap. It still finds a way to breathe. Breathing is a little harder through the plastic and he is somewhat surprised that the cat dies.
When his father turns up, this proves the last straw for Bubby who eventually cling-wraps his parents. He stumbles into the outside world for the first time and sadly this is where the film loses some of its impact. As gross as the first Act was, the claustrophobia and tension was becoming compelling.
Bubby stumbles from one group of welcoming strangers to the next. They all take care of him in some way which I didn’t find wholly believable. He gets by with a few phrases he has learnt from his mother or picked up along the way. This alternately gets him into trouble or endears him to the next audience.
Eventually he meets Angel, a nurse at a disabled person’s home, who has breasts like his mothers. He demonstrates affection toward her and she welcomes him. Angel has experienced abuse at the words and attitudes of her judgemental and self-righteous parents. In a moment of dark humour, the cling wrap killer dispenses some movie justice.
Nicholas Hope when left alone on the set, ably plays the simpleton who discovers and reacts to the world around him. He does not pre-empt the consequences of his actions and appears bewildered but nonplussed when things do occur. When he interacts with others however we sense a spark in the actor that belies the reality of the character.
It is easy to see why Bad Boy Bubby has become a cult favourite since its release in 1994 and is an important stepping stone in the life of an intriguing and talented Australian filmmaker.

Pearls - my favourite comic strip

2008-12-02T20:12:00.005+11:00

Pearls Before Swine

Baz Luhrmann's Australia movie review

2008-12-01T20:57:00.005+11:00

Baz Luhrmann, writer, director and producer of Australia, promised an ‘epic’ and epic is what he delivers. Starting pre-war in 1939 with the arrival of Lady Sarah Ashley (Nicole) on a Qantas flight from England, it finishes with the Japanese bombing of Darwin in 1941. In between time we drove 1,500 head of cattle from Faraway Downs station onto the ship in Darwin harbour with The Drover (Hugh Jackman), have the boy, Nullah (Brandon Walters) taken to Mission Island, as was the experience of many coloured and native children, have The Drover and Lady Sarah fall in love, be separated and then reunited, all the while compete with the voracious and avaricious King Carney (Bryan Brown) and his son in law Neil Fletcher (David Wenham), rival cattle barons and acquisitive land owners.
The thread of the story however belongs to Nullah, his ties to the land and his people. When his mother dies, he is left in the care of Lady Sarah who adopts him as her son.
The opening Act, that of Lady Sarah coming to Australia and to her property at Faraway Downs, is filled with vaudeville as Luhrmann plays up much of the Australian larrikin sense of humour. The Drover (whom we first meet looking up from under his hat a la Clint Eastwood) is centre stage for a brawling fist fight outside the hotel; Lady Sarah’s English ‘tourist’ is excited by her first sighting of a kangaroo; Jack Thompson’s inarticulate entrance.
The film really represents two distinct story arcs : the drove, and war-time. The Drover, clearly a white man, is a friend of the blacks and is seen as “black” by white society, and therefore shunned. Nullah, born of a white father and black mother, is seen as neither one nor the other by each race. The film goes to some pains to incorporate themes of the stolen generation, black dreaming and segregation but it is a testament to how well the story is told without it ever feeling like a ‘message’ movie. There is even an acknowledgement that the most sympathetic of white fellas, The Drover (and even, by inference, the filmmaker) doesn’t always fully understand. Take for example the confrontation between The Drover and his best mate, Magarri, after Nullah is taken by the Police. Even with the best of understanding, a child remains a child and should be protected and cared for by loving parents, not left to their own devices where they can unwittingly get themselves into trouble.
Nicole is fine as an English lady staring down a strange and remote environment. That English resolve is demonstrated here which founded a whole Empire. Hugh Jackman is a little too ocker (one too many “crikey’s”) but otherwise entirely believable as a hairy, sweaty, manly cattle drover who believes in mateship but is fearful of expressing his emotions. There is chemistry between these two and thankfully Luhrmann doesn’t throw in a gratuitous love scene just to please the formula writer. What is shown on screen is quite appropriate.
Brandon Walters is the real find of this film. He is such a handsome boy who is able to look into the camera with such innocence and openness. His manner, and the character he is playing, is so assured however he does not lose that vulnerable and childlike manner.
David Wenham does menacing better than most and the rest of the support performances are great : David Ngoombujarra (as Magarri), Jack Thompson (as Kipling Flynn, Lady Ashley’s accountant), plus old favourites, Barry Otto, Ben Mendelsohn, Bruce Spence and David Gulpilil.
While Australia is not a complex story, it is entertaining, takes us on a fun and dramatic journey and is most assuredly recommended.

Blog Re-design

2008-12-01T20:50:00.003+11:00

I have been fiddling with the design and functionality of my blogsite over the past few days. I have changed some of the link features on the sidebar, down the right hand side, including a scrolling photo board. In honour of the new film release Australia, I have started with a Nicole Retrospective. Can you name each of the movies she appears in? I expect I will change the content of the slide show every now and again as time and ideas allow.
I have also added a counter down the very bottom of the page. I know every website has them, and clever programmer people add them in with ease, but I was very excited to find this bit of code, linking back to WebTracker.
Finally, I have changed the look of the site. I haven't totally settled on the final colour combination but I think a black background is an improvement over the white. I am far from happy with the header, so expect changes there.
Let me know what you think. Are the colour combinations working for you? Do you use, or are you likely to use, the links?

Op + 2

2008-11-28T10:06:00.002+11:00

Two days after the Op and the swelling around my jaw is worse. It feels swollen in my gums too. Somewhat uncomfortable. The Neurofen however is doing a top job and the codeine is on hand (although does have an unfortunate side effect of blocking one up). Didn't sleep that well last night so will look forward to a nap this afternoon.
Darling daughter is off to her op this afternoon and she is getting a little anxious. At least she will have her mother with her to keep her company. Am applying all my distraction skills to keep her mind off things!

JFK

2008-11-27T22:50:00.003+11:00

Oliver Stone loves a big story that flirts with controversy, think Natural Born Killers, Platoon and this year’s W, a life story of George W Bush. With JFK, Stone has Kevin Costner as New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison investigate the assassination of John F Kennedy.
Garrison mounts a case over the first 2 hours of the film that disproves the lone gunman theory, ie, that Lee Harvey Oswald could have been the only gunman that shot Kennedy. He further states that the entire government and security forces conspired to kill the President and keep the truth from being made public. As Hitler said, “the bigger the lie, the more the people will believe it.”
The final hour of the film is Garrison retelling the story you have just seen unfold, in the courtroom.
Costner is indefatigable as the prosecutor in this case, the only case ever tried in the United States regarding the death of Kennedy. His support characters all demonstrate the intelligent and legal thinking that went into the script while the government, Mafia and intelligence forces are all played by known actors, enjoying their roles as ne’er do wells : Tommy Lee Jones, Joe Pesci, Donald Sutherland, John Candy, Kevin Bacon and Gary Oldman as the unfortunate Oswald.
This is an interesting piece of history, not something that I lived through and as such does not have the same resonance as I imagine it would had you some memory of that time in 1963. It is always said that people remember where they were when JFK was shot, similar perhaps to this generation’s reaction to the death of Lady Diana.
The film raises a number of issues which question the heart of a government that condones war in another country and will silence critics who speak out against it. Let us hope and pray that the new governments of Obama and Rudd have sufficient conviction and fortitude to lead with honesty and integrity.

Surgery - one quarter of my wisdom, gone

2008-11-27T13:36:00.004+11:00

Yesterday (Wednesday) I had one wisdom tooth removed (lower, left side) which was impacted, that is, it was growing sideways into the other teeth. As my dental surgeon said, "it won't get any better by itself and it will get infected." With that advice I elected to have it removed.
Thankfully they only operate at civilised hours so my Good Lady Wife dropped me off at Monash Medical Centre at 1030am where, with newspaper in hand, I sat down to wait my turn. I hadn't had any breakfast, let alone morning tea or drinks of water (except for one) and was more concerned at that than anything else. Thankfully (?) the nerves kicked in and it felt like the preamble to a football match. The usual worries circulated, "how much is this going to hurt?", "what if I don't wake up from the anaesthetic?".
Reading my newspaper managed to distract my thoughts and before long I was changed into my operating gown and a name tag on either wrist (in case they chopped one off?). It was another hour before I was called to the table whereupon the anaesthetist inserted a needle into the back of my hand, told me I was going to feel relaxed and a little drowsy before he sent me off to sleep ... and I don't remember another thing.
I woke up about an hour later in the recovery room. The muscles in my jaw were (are) stiff and sore and the throat dry and coarse. That is from the breathing tube so I am lead to believe. The operation itself was straightforward and is now complete. My gum was split to allow access to the tooth and I have stitches in there now to help them heal. Anti-bios and salty mouth-washes are on the diet. Last night I was quite tired and worn out and enjoyed 9 hours sleep with no interruption.
Today the swelling around my jaw is slowly getting bigger even though I am icing it every hour (see pic, left). I haven't felt nauseous from the anaesthetic (thank god) and have managed to eat 'soft' foods, ones that don't require too much chewing on my part. Thankfully I love breakfast cereal and weet-bix and rolled oats are perfect foods.
I have the rest of the week off and as much of next week as I need. I have borrowed a number of DVDs and look forward to watching as many of them as I can take plus the crick is starting again tomorrow (Aust v NZ, test #2 from Adelaide) which will no doubt aid recovery!
Diverse titles such as Fritz Lang's 1927 sci-fi classic, Metropolis (by the way I have seen a couple of Lang's other pics recently : 'M' and 'Dr Mabuse, the Gambler', and they are excellent. He has become my 'silent-era' hero along with Buster), Oliver Stone's JFK, Wim Wender's 1987 Wings of Desire and a couple of Asian shoot-em-ups, my fave HK director, Johnnie To : Exiled, and three short films packaged together : Three Extremes 2. The first one was appropriately weird and scary. This one promises no different.
My darling 10-year old daughter is having an op tomorrow to have grommits inserted into her ears and so we will be quite the pair over the weekend. We have Footrot Flat's, The Dog's Tale, to help us through. Cue Dave Dobbyn, 'Slice of Heaven, yeah".
Have you seen any of these? Let me know what you thought of them.

Blogging Resumed

2008-11-27T13:32:00.003+11:00

Its been quite a lay-off between blogs however with the success of my Good Lady Wife's micro-bag-business, I have been inspired anew. Check out her latest creations and compliment me for marrying into talent.

The Emperor - GG

2007-12-13T12:58:00.001+11:00

The Emperor and the Assassin (SBS Wed midnight) is an earlier (1998) Chinese epic in the spirit of Hero or House of the Golden Flower. Directed by Kaige Chen whose other key credit is Farewell My Concubine, not only mines the great and rich history of tribal China, but perhaps “tells the world that China should not be ignored, and indeed feared. The narrative is gripping, the performances large and the action scenes filled with more extras than can be imagined.”

And with that rather meagre offering in this week’s bottle green newspaper, now is a good time to walk away from 2007. Many thanks for your readership, I hope you have found the posts interesting. I have covered as many weekly GG spots as time and quality has allowed; added a goodly number of movie reviews (of sorts); some personal reflections; blow by blow accounts of the hapless Eastern Rovers; and a few gags as well. I will ponder the off season for a new gimmick and speak to you all in the new year. Merry Christmas!

3rd Annual GG Awards - Winners

2007-12-11T12:40:00.001+11:00

Thank you one and all for your nominations for the 2007 GG Awards.

The nominations for the 2007 GG TV Award are :

* American Dad

* Chasers War on Everything

* Extras, series 2

* Family Guy

* Futurama

* The Mighty Boosh

* Sad Love Story – a Korean mini-series, “I howled all the way through it”

* Sopranos – final season "The last couple of seasons were patchier, than those that preceded, but there was quality still. The final season this year reminded us in the closing that this has been one of the best dramas ever produced for the small screen."

* Sopranos – final season (yes, it was nominated twice, must have been good! – Ed.)

The nominations for the 2007 GG Movie Award :

# The Sea Inside (Spanish drama), honorable mention : Black Sheep, NZ horror comedy

# Hot Fuzz, British comedy, from makers of Shaun of the Dead

# Blood Diamond, “it will challenge your thinking about the diamond trade”

# The Lives of Others, German, winner of this year’s Oscar for Best Foreign Film

Independently witnessed, said monkeys (one’s children will do anything for their father’s attention) pulled one nomination from a bag-like-barrel for the winners for the 2007 GG Awards. And the winners are …

2007 GG TV Award : Futurama

2007 GG Movie Award : The Sea Inside

Ghost Dog - Jarmusch

2007-12-11T12:22:00.001+11:00

You will need to have gained some semblance of my thematic response to the Jarmusch films I watched in succession last year, for this post to make the most sense.
I recently watched Jarmusch’s 1999 film, Ghost Dog : The Way of the Samurai and was intrigued at how it fitted into the Jarmusch canon … and how it differed.
Only with the benefit of some hindsight do I wonder if most (or all) of Jarmusch’s films are meditations on death, or life. Certainly Ghost Dog, and its predecessor, Dead Man, most obviously are.
Ghost Dog is Forest Whitaker as a hit man who follows the code of the samurai, that is, one who meditates on death, daily, amongst a great many other things we learn from extracts of his book, Hagakure : The Way of the Samurai. He is at heart a peaceful and thoughtful soul whose code of behaviour is one of respect toward his master and humility toward others.
Certainly the film fits Jarmusch’s broad pattern of a man on a journey, in this case, dispensing death with an array of high tech gadgets and pistols, as he steps inevitably toward his own death.
His French speaking, ice-cream selling Haitian friend, Raymond (Isaac De Bankole), is the “comic relief” that is very reminiscent of Roberto Benigni’s Italian babbling taxi driver in Night On Earth. It is Jarmusch’s own preference (and sense of humour?) to use the same actors and music in many of his films creating a sometimes surreal overlap that makes you wonder if he doesn’t see all his films as just one big one. De Bankole was the Parisian taxi driver in Night on Earth.
RZA (in Coffee & Cigarettes) supplies the music in Ghost Dog; Gary Farmer has a walk-on, walk-off role in Ghost Dog which reprises his character, Indian guide Nobody, from Dead Man (never mind the different city, different era … that’s just detail) in which he utters his famous line, “Stupid white man;” along with the stylistic closing and opening of chapters via a black out, in this case with the next extract from Hagakure as an interlude.
Ghost Dog is by far the most “mainstream” of Jarmusch’s films. It is almost a revenge/action type film and the meditative silences are not as long (and drawn out) as some of his other films. Personally, I still rate Dead Man as my favourite of his however this would easily come in second.

3rd Annual GG Awards - Reminder

2007-12-06T13:05:00.001+11:00

Nomination entries for the 3rd Annual GG Awards close tomorrow (Friday 7/12) so if you have not contributed, now is your chance to do so !

We require nominations for :

2007 GG Movie Award

2007 GG TV Award

Please email them directly to myself, here

Thankyou to those faithful readers who have done so already. {Formal Neil, we are waiting for you!}

Winners will be posted next week along with the final GG for 2007.

American Psycho - GG

2007-12-06T13:02:00.000+11:00

A modern take on the Western condition or a gratuitous hack and slash film ? American Psycho (10 Sat midnight) stars Christian Bale as the mentally flawed, physically perfect Patrick Bateman, driven to destroy those around him. Based on Bret Easton Ellis’ novel of the same name, the “Wall Street excesses of the 1980s were just the beginning and the legion of wealthy young traders were interchangeable designer drones, with anti-hero Bateman distinguished only by his capacity for brutal depravity.”

Pledge - GG

2007-11-29T13:26:00.000+11:00

Bad Santa (9 Sat 1030P) is the kind of irreverent and inappropriate send up of Christmas movies that should make it very funny indeed. Billy Bob Thornton plays the main man. This is preceded by Elf (9 Sat 830P) which is more of a child’s movie although the gangling and vacuous Will Ferrell makes the most of his oversized, fish-out-of-water, elf.
Sean Penn’s latest film in the cinemas, Into The Wild, is generating a lot of critical interest, and, not knowing much about his directorial style, will watch The Pledge (9 Sun 1030P) with interest. I expect there will be ‘intensity,’ something for which Penn himself is famous, and this may or may not be good thing !
Breaking News (SBS Mon 11P), is from my favourite Hong Kong action director, Johnny To (Election). This one has the police tracking down a gang of thieves, meanwhile dealing with its public credibility. Expect an above average action film from the HK-triad genre.
Don’t forget the AFI Awards (9 Thu 930P) and for those desperate for every nuance, the Euro 2008 Final Draw (sans England) is being telecast (SBS Sun 1040P).

3rd Annual GG Awards

2007-11-28T13:43:00.000+11:00

Its Award season again and your chance to nominate entries to the 3rd Annual GG Awards !!

Please send via email (click here), your nominations in the following catergories :

2007 GG Movie Award

2007 GG TV Award

Simply put, anything that you have seen this year (whether a movie or a TV show) can be nominated. Nominations close next Friday 7th December whereupon a monkey will pick the winner out of a barrel.

disclaimer:no monkey or barrel will be hurt in the making of this statement.

Top 12 - 3,2,1

2007-11-27T13:09:00.000+11:00

My Top 12 movies of the 2000s builds to an exciting climax.

#3 Kill Bill Vol. 1 (2003) Dir Q Tarantino (US)
Known for his rapid fire dialogue in Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction, writer/director Quentin Tarantino demonstrated his flair for style in Kill Bill Vol. 1. Originally conceived as one movie, the Weinsteins felt that for length reasons, it be split into two parts (and no doubt the lure of double box office takings). Ostensibly a revenge tale by the Bride (Uma Thurman) to kill Bill (David Carradine), her former lover and mentor, it was a vehicle for Tarantino to lovingly embellish the best of the Hong Kong martial arts films he enjoyed as a youth. While Vol. 2 is more traditional in its structure, including the Bride’s back story, it is in Vol. 1 that Tarantino can cut loose with his wild sword fights, excessive blood spurting from severed limbs, an energised soundtrack, including a live performance by The 5, 6, 7, 8’s and dynamic change ups in presentation, from colour to black & white, anime and silhouettes. Kill Bill Vol. 1 is an exercise in exhilarating style.

#2 Lord of the Rings – Return of the King (2003) Dir P Jackson (NZ/US)
It would seem that the best battle sequence in movie history was to last only one year. When Return of the King was released, one year after its prequel, The Two Towers, the best battle sequence was passed by the best battle sequence ever! The attack by the foul fiends of Mordor on the city of Gondor is compelling for its ability to reveal the large picture without losing sight of the individual stories we have invested so much time in. The heart of the film is Frodo and Sam who stagger up the steep incline of Mt Doom to destroy the One Ring in its fiery pits. It is their total devotion to each other, and indeed the selfless goodness of the allies in their fight to “save the world” that make this so much more than just a dumb, special effects laden action movie. And after travelling this epic journey over three films and 10 hours, the ending which runs for over 20 minutes, gives us sufficient time to say goodbye as our timeless heroes take the boat to the Grey Havens.

#1 Lord of the Rings – Fellowship of the Ring (2001) Dir P Jackson (NZ/US)
This is a road movie of sorts where our heroes commence a journey unawares of what lies ahead and what toll it will take. They meet fantastic beasts and pass through unimagined lands. The Fellowship is a collection of nine including humans, a wizard, an elf, a dwarf and hobbits. Their mission is to take the One Ring to Mordor and destroy it. Unlike the subsequent two films that necessarily take on a darker tone, the Fellowship is full of wonder, mystery and innocence. The friends are bound together by their mission with each dark turn of events binding their dependence and loyalty tighter.

MOvember - end of month

2007-11-27T13:07:00.001+11:00

So, the MO had to go. Allergies mid-month put paid to a hairy lip as one less thing to aggravate and worry about. Never mind. We at least made it half way and upset the GLW (Good Lady Wife) immensely.
You are welcome to make a donation toward the issue of men's health, if you wish

Ghost Dog and Galaxy - GG

2007-11-22T09:21:00.001+11:00

Its almost too hard to go past Wombling Free (ABC 430A Wed night/Thu morning), the 1977 “live action” feature of the Wombles of Wimbledon (“...Common are we”) who “pick up the things that we find.” Too many nostalgia memories I’m afraid. I don’t pretend for a minute it would be any good !
Lame-o comedy Christmas with the Kranks (9 Mon 830P) seems to be the most recent offering to make it to free-to-air TV (could explain why its on a Monday night), with Jamie Lee Curtis and Tim Allen. Slightly less lame-o, but still pretty lame, and not as good as its predecessor (Get Shorty), Be Cool (9 Fri 830P) with John Travolta, Uma Thurman and Vince Vaughan. I won’t be rushing.
One of the very few Jarmusch films not on the Teev last year was Ghost Dog : The Way of the Samurai (SBS Wed 1030P), starring Forest Whitaker. Will watch to round out my education. Expect a thoughtful movie that follows the journey of its characters. Don’t expect it to be about you, the viewer ! Jarmusch has been getting better the longer he is in the business. My personal fave of his is Dead Man (1995) and Ghost Dog followed in 1999.
The other highlight of the week is the A-League Club Challenge (10 Tue 830P) between Sydney FC and uber-celebrity David Beckham (oh, and his new football team, LA Galaxy) at Telstra Stadium in Sydney. Is the Becks playing SR ? No doubt he will be on Rove on Sunday, if he his in Australia.

Top 12 : 6, 5, 4

2007-11-22T09:14:00.000+11:00

#6 Amelie (2001) Dir J-P Jeunet (France)
Released at the Toronto film festival, days before 9/11, this super-saturated, whimsical French romantic comedy took audiences away from the fear and drama of the real world and made it an international hit. Audrey Tatou stars as Amelie and her elfin looks gives her character the slightly mischievous and naïve traits needed to pull off the role. Unlucky in love, Amelie tries to play Cupid to those around her, and in the process finds the man of her dreams, a photo booth repair man. As with other Jean-Pierre Jeunet films (Delicatessan, City of Lost Children), he delights in the off beat and eccentric while delivering warm and funny stories.

#5 Shrek (2001) Dir A Adamson (US)
The giant green ogre, voiced by Mike Myers, is, in my opinion, the pinnacle of the early computer animated features. As with the early Disney’s (Snow White, Pinocchio) this “new” medium was full of imagination and verve and the colour and humour promised something that a “real life” drama can’t deliver. Pixar are unlucky not to be included here as their golden run of Toy Story, Monster’s Inc. and Finding Nemo all presented through the mid 90s raised the bar on what to expect from “children’s” entertainment. But it was Dreamworks’ Shrek that married the elements of animated absurdity, “mum & dad jokes,” well rounded characterisations and a credible storyline, the best. Suffice to say they haven’t got close with Shrek II or III. The production values are first rate and Eddie Murphy (as the Donkey) and Cameron Diaz (as the Princess) give great supporting performances.
Japanese great, Hayao Miyazaki, likewise should mentioned for his artistry in continuing to produce hand drawn, animated features, the pinnacle of which was Spirited Away in 2001.

#4 Lost in Translation (2003) Dir S Coppola (US)
So what does Bill Murray’s Bob Harris whisper to Scarlet Johansson’s Charlotte ? If you think it matters then you have probably missed the point of the whole movie. So what is the point ? Bob is a fading film star, promoting whiskey in Tokyo for a vast sum of money, further isolating himself from his wife, back home in the US, and forgetting his son’s birthday. Charlotte has been married two years, has finished University and doesn’t know what to do with the rest of her life. Her husband is a celebrity photographer and is off on assignment in Japan. The setting of Japan is a convenient means to demonstrate their isolation. Neither character speaks or understands Japanese and so all of the other ‘noise’ in the picture is incomprehensible to us and them. Of course both characters would be equally lost were the film set in New York or Sydney, but those settings would have distracted us from the core of the movie. Bob and Charlotte strike up an unlikely friendship during their stay at the Tokyo Sheraton and this leads to the sharing of their lives where they feel that life is passing them by. Despite some of the more obvious set-ups for Murray to perform his “comedy,” such as the TV show appearance or the “Rat Pack” photo shoot, it is when Murray sings Roxy Music’s “More Than This” at a karaoke bar, does he deliver an awkward moment of self realisation.
Johansson plays her character with the right mix of maturity and playfulness. Writer and director Sophia Coppola won the equivalent of the Oscar’s encouragement award for Best Original Screenplay as the two characters contemplate the changes that lie ahead in their lives.
Bob’s whisper at the end of the film allows viewers to apply their own closure while the characters themselves step tentatively forward to address the next phase in their lives.