When it came to the Oscars this year, there were two women up for Best Actress in roles where they impersonated famous female icons of the 20th century. Meryl Streep (who won) portrayed Margaret Thatcher, the first female Prime Minister of the United Kingdom who was as polarising a cultural and social figure during her tenure, more so than her successors Blair and Cameron. Michelle Williams, played Marilyn Monroe in My Week With Marilyn, the sultry screen siren of Hollywood during the 1950s and 60s. It was a surprise that Streep (who has won two Oscars previously) beat out Williams who failed one her third nomination, as Hollywood usually salute their own history and the passing over of a Monroe imitation came as a shock as the Best Picture was awarded to The Artist a film about the silent era of the silver screen.
The Iron Lady is released on DVD tomorrow (Monday 30th April) and so many will get a chance to examine Streep's dead on impersonation and portrayal of Maggie, she is helped by a sterling turn by Jim Broadbent as her esteemable husband, Denis.
The film is not your typical biopic, and does not follow the generic structure of a biopic movie. Usually you follow the star/idol from humble beginnings through to success via questions of loyalty and trouble to the height of acclaim to the eventual fall from grace ending with a triumphant return and comeback. Much like the life of Elvis but set to film.
Recently biopics specifically Ray (Ray Charles) and Walk the Line (Johnny Cash) used the narrative structure of focusing on the height of those gentleman's success over a 10 year period and only focusing on their earlier life in short flashbacks upon incidents that caused them to be the conflicted characters they became.
The Iron Lady's script by acclaimed author, Abi Morgan, takes the route of meeting the former PM in an elderly state, retired from public life, battling dementia and having visions of her dead husband roaming around the house, which worries her daughter Carol (Olivia Coleman).
The script then goes into the flashback format of the biopic genre, we meet Margaret Roberts - the grocer's daughter - who after an initial loss in a by-election becomes a MP at an early age. Then comes the promotion and a place in the Conservative government and eventual rise to leader of the party before her election as leader of the country in 1979.
The script by Morgan covers all the major talking points of her leadership - Falklands, coal mine disputes, poll tax riots, the Brighton bombing in 1982 - yet it does not do this chronological order instead it uses Margaret's wilting memory and identity as an excuse to skip from one event to the other; so we get the triumph of the Falklands in 1982, happening here after the coal mine riots and social clashes in Brixton and Toxteth which actually occured in 1983. The triumph of the Falklands leads to a business boom in Britain and wonderful international relations with America and a darling of the media.
In actuality, Thatcher was always fighting and always up against it from unions, voters, media and even people in her party which led to the eventual leadership race with Geoffrey Howe (Anthony Head) and Michael Heseltine (Richard E. Grant), a race that actually crosses out the winner and future PM John Major.
The script whilst aiming to be something more akin to Peter Morgan's The Queen which starred Helen Mirren, is somewhat slapdash and attempts to be something greater than it is, and unfortunately does a disservice to the legend of Mrs.Thatcher, a woman who was always on her own in a fight and yet was strict enough to stand by her convictions and beliefs. The direction by Phylidia Lloyd offers nothing in terms of visual panache, although the focusing on hands as a motif of recollection and remembering is a nice touch.
We seem to get a depiction of a famous leader who always had to fight but was shaped more by the events she had to govern over rather than putting her footprint down on her people; although the compassion and companionship between Margaret and Denis is never in doubt thanks to the wonderful performances by Streep and Broadbent.
The Iron Lady is out on DVD from Monday 30th April from Pathe Home Entertainment
Showing posts with label PremierPR. Show all posts
Showing posts with label PremierPR. Show all posts
Sunday, 29 April 2012
Thursday, 22 March 2012
Justice (DVD review)
Starring Nicolas Cage, January Jones and Guy Pearce, Justice is released on DVD by PremierPR on Monday 26th March
Directed by Roger Donaldson (No Way Out, Thirteen Days), Justice tells the story of Will Gerrard (Cage), an inner city high school teacher who is married to a beautiful musician wife, Laura (Jones), they live the perfect life until their world is shattered when Laura is violently attacked and left for dead.
Searching for answers and vengeance, Will is approached by a mysterious man, Simon (Pearce) who promises him justice without the need for an unwanted trial. Simon says they can do away with the killer, and all Will has to do is do a favour for this vigilante group in return at some point in the future.
Whilst Will agrees to the proposal, he soon realises that even justice must come at a price.
This is Cage's umpteenth movie in less than two years and whilst he still has that silver screen allure and magnetism you can see that part of him is definitely phoning it in - which is a shame as the possibility of doing a decent thriller with this solid supporting cast and director who has covered this ground previously has been missed.
At times the tension is never cranked up, and some of the set pieces have not been handled effectively. Tellingly, a producer of the film was Tobey Maguire, you can maybe see Maguire playing opposite Jones and being manipulated by someone older than him like Pearce - but here you have to get over the fact of Cage being married to Mrs. Don Draper from Mad Men (a big leap in itself), and Cage sporting another silly piece of facial hair to distract you from his receding hairline.
Justice is out on 26th March on DVD (£17.99) and Blu-Ray (£19.99) from Momentum Pictures.
Directed by Roger Donaldson (No Way Out, Thirteen Days), Justice tells the story of Will Gerrard (Cage), an inner city high school teacher who is married to a beautiful musician wife, Laura (Jones), they live the perfect life until their world is shattered when Laura is violently attacked and left for dead.
Searching for answers and vengeance, Will is approached by a mysterious man, Simon (Pearce) who promises him justice without the need for an unwanted trial. Simon says they can do away with the killer, and all Will has to do is do a favour for this vigilante group in return at some point in the future.
Whilst Will agrees to the proposal, he soon realises that even justice must come at a price.
This is Cage's umpteenth movie in less than two years and whilst he still has that silver screen allure and magnetism you can see that part of him is definitely phoning it in - which is a shame as the possibility of doing a decent thriller with this solid supporting cast and director who has covered this ground previously has been missed.
At times the tension is never cranked up, and some of the set pieces have not been handled effectively. Tellingly, a producer of the film was Tobey Maguire, you can maybe see Maguire playing opposite Jones and being manipulated by someone older than him like Pearce - but here you have to get over the fact of Cage being married to Mrs. Don Draper from Mad Men (a big leap in itself), and Cage sporting another silly piece of facial hair to distract you from his receding hairline.
Justice is out on 26th March on DVD (£17.99) and Blu-Ray (£19.99) from Momentum Pictures.
Sunday, 24 July 2011
Oranges and Sunshine (Jim Loach, UK, 2010)
Out on DVD from Monday 25th July, Jim Loach's feature film debut tells the story about Margaret Humphreys, a woman whose courage to expose a scandal that the British government kept secret for decades.
The scandal concerns the deportation of thousands of children from the United Kingdom to Australia, under the impression that their parents were apparently dead, they were sent to children's homes on the other side of the world, where they were subjected to appalling abuse. When promised oranges and sunshine (an advertising slogan which could still be in place for Australia), the children were given hard labour and life in institutions. Amazingly, this practice was set up in the late 19th century and continued into the 1960s.
The name of the director may look familiar, and yes Jim Loach, is the son of the renowned director Ken Loach; and the social injustice of the storyline and social significance coupled with a stirring main performer defiant in the eyes of the powerful authorities, would well have appealed to Loach Senior in a parallel universe. However, Loach Jnr, does show himself to be more than adept when dealing with the contentious subject matter and difficult narrative plot points.
Helped by an esteemed ensemble cast who lend gravitas and emotional depth to proceedings. Emily Watson plays Ms. Humphreys and the determination is apparent underneath that timid exterior, the fierceness of her intentions seen in her eyes. The ability to take on two national governments, reunite families and gain official apologies from those governments means the story had to be told on celluloid and Watson does more than enough to gain our affections for her character's attempts to overcome overwhelming odds.
In support, are two fine actors, David Wenham and Hugo Weaving (one of my favourite actors), who lend solidity to parts that in the hands of other actors and in lesser films would have been brushed aside by a more formidable lead actress - say if Meryl Streep did her best English accent perhaps. But Weaving, who plays one of those moved children Jack, is quiet and introverted, but the emotional scars he has endured are more than visible, while Wenham's Len hides it under an extrovert brashness which could easily be mistaken for arrogance. These parts are not meant to be showy roles, instead they are there necessary to the journey of self-discovery for Humphreys.
Credit to Jim Loach for showing enough discipline in his filming style, borrowing from his father's template for powerful lead performance mixed with a social conscious narrative and a shooting style that is both accessible and fluent. Loach stands as a director to watch in the future, and as this is his debut feature, the future bodes well.
Oranges and Sunshine is available on DVD from 25th July 2011 for £17.99RRP from Icon Home Entertainment.
http://www.iconmovies.co.uk/
The scandal concerns the deportation of thousands of children from the United Kingdom to Australia, under the impression that their parents were apparently dead, they were sent to children's homes on the other side of the world, where they were subjected to appalling abuse. When promised oranges and sunshine (an advertising slogan which could still be in place for Australia), the children were given hard labour and life in institutions. Amazingly, this practice was set up in the late 19th century and continued into the 1960s.
The name of the director may look familiar, and yes Jim Loach, is the son of the renowned director Ken Loach; and the social injustice of the storyline and social significance coupled with a stirring main performer defiant in the eyes of the powerful authorities, would well have appealed to Loach Senior in a parallel universe. However, Loach Jnr, does show himself to be more than adept when dealing with the contentious subject matter and difficult narrative plot points.
Helped by an esteemed ensemble cast who lend gravitas and emotional depth to proceedings. Emily Watson plays Ms. Humphreys and the determination is apparent underneath that timid exterior, the fierceness of her intentions seen in her eyes. The ability to take on two national governments, reunite families and gain official apologies from those governments means the story had to be told on celluloid and Watson does more than enough to gain our affections for her character's attempts to overcome overwhelming odds.
In support, are two fine actors, David Wenham and Hugo Weaving (one of my favourite actors), who lend solidity to parts that in the hands of other actors and in lesser films would have been brushed aside by a more formidable lead actress - say if Meryl Streep did her best English accent perhaps. But Weaving, who plays one of those moved children Jack, is quiet and introverted, but the emotional scars he has endured are more than visible, while Wenham's Len hides it under an extrovert brashness which could easily be mistaken for arrogance. These parts are not meant to be showy roles, instead they are there necessary to the journey of self-discovery for Humphreys.
Credit to Jim Loach for showing enough discipline in his filming style, borrowing from his father's template for powerful lead performance mixed with a social conscious narrative and a shooting style that is both accessible and fluent. Loach stands as a director to watch in the future, and as this is his debut feature, the future bodes well.
Oranges and Sunshine is available on DVD from 25th July 2011 for £17.99RRP from Icon Home Entertainment.
http://www.iconmovies.co.uk/
Monday, 6 June 2011
The Mechanic - Review
Jason Statham returns on DVD with another action film with lots of violence, lots of shooting, lots of gun and not a lot of dialogue or theoretical expansion of the geo-political spectrum of arms trafficking. No, this is a Statham film, he is the good guy who shoots the bad guy(s) ad nauseum.
Statham, is the Mechanic, Arthur Bishop (a remake of the 1971 original starring Charles Bronson) an agency assassin who handles and eliminates targets with ruthless aggression and emotional detachment. He is mentored by Harry McKenna (Donald Sutherland), who treats Arthur as more of a son than the disappointment of his actual blood son, Steve (Ben Foster).
After completing his most recent target in Mexico, Arthur returns and finds that his new target is Harry. After meeting his boss, played with atypical malevolence by Tony Goldwyn, who confirms that Harry is the next target due to some embezzling of company funds; Arthur takes it upon himself to seek out why Harry has been set up.
This sort of narrative structure and plot points are by the by on occasion, and once Steve arrives wanting to learn the tricks of Arthur's trade and make his father proud of him. Foster, for so long a bit part player and excellent in The Messengers (with Woody Harrelson), is himself not the most handsome or as muscle bound as Statham, luckily though he can deliver a line - something Statham unfortunately cannot.
But you do not buy or pay a ticket for a Statham actioner for him to talk, you pay for him to kick butt. He has worked very hard on his career, making familiar and generic actioners with homophobic tendencies and a regrettable body count. You could even say that the film is misogynistic, as the only woman in the film is a prostitute who is paid by Arthur, a prostitute who does not even know his name. Cleverly, she asks him for his name and in his rich thick cockney accent, Statham replies, 'Aaar-fur'. She replies, 'No, you look more like a David or a Brad. I will see you around Brad.' Statham smiles that Bruce Willis smile like he does after he says 'Yippee-kayee'.
Statham is the model 21st century actor, he is an amalgamation of other actors - Willis, Stallone, Caine and Bronson - and in this day and age, in this global culture of various cultural icons; Statham is the actor that is both nostalgic, making you yearn for glories and pictures of old - with an embracing of the new and violent world we live in. Statham and Foster put so many bullets into some goon at the end, you think is there much purpose to that or is it just how things are handled; and then there is the cod slow-mo at the end to hark back to the epitaph of Bonnie and Clyde, that started this whole slow-mo gunplay.
Watching The Mechanic on DVD is a better way to watch it, I would have been disappointed to pay to see this film at the cinema as the ending is a little bit cod but it ends with Statham jumping into a new car and driving off into the sunset to his next role of similarity.
Much like that other B-movie star, Randolph Scott, a star who was eclipsed by contemporaries like John Wayne and Henry Fonda; Statham is like that Scott character - an outlaw who does his business in a city or town, and then leaves to pop up in another city or town playing the same role.
Yet the reason a film like this, with its $40m budget, is produced and with technical sheen is because Statham is a DVD icon - guys love to buy the films, watch it with a beer and a smile as those memories of Rambo and Commando reappear on the brain.
Is it worth reviewing a Statham film, when you know what you are going to get. This is not his best film, that remains Chaos; but this is a worthy second thanks in part to the continual growth and aura of Statham on film and the excellent support of Foster.
The Mechanic is released on Monday 6th June by Momentum Pictures and is available at £15.99(DVD) and £19.99(RRP), check out the website http://www.themechanicmovie.co.uk/ for more details on the title.
Statham, is the Mechanic, Arthur Bishop (a remake of the 1971 original starring Charles Bronson) an agency assassin who handles and eliminates targets with ruthless aggression and emotional detachment. He is mentored by Harry McKenna (Donald Sutherland), who treats Arthur as more of a son than the disappointment of his actual blood son, Steve (Ben Foster).
After completing his most recent target in Mexico, Arthur returns and finds that his new target is Harry. After meeting his boss, played with atypical malevolence by Tony Goldwyn, who confirms that Harry is the next target due to some embezzling of company funds; Arthur takes it upon himself to seek out why Harry has been set up.
This sort of narrative structure and plot points are by the by on occasion, and once Steve arrives wanting to learn the tricks of Arthur's trade and make his father proud of him. Foster, for so long a bit part player and excellent in The Messengers (with Woody Harrelson), is himself not the most handsome or as muscle bound as Statham, luckily though he can deliver a line - something Statham unfortunately cannot.
But you do not buy or pay a ticket for a Statham actioner for him to talk, you pay for him to kick butt. He has worked very hard on his career, making familiar and generic actioners with homophobic tendencies and a regrettable body count. You could even say that the film is misogynistic, as the only woman in the film is a prostitute who is paid by Arthur, a prostitute who does not even know his name. Cleverly, she asks him for his name and in his rich thick cockney accent, Statham replies, 'Aaar-fur'. She replies, 'No, you look more like a David or a Brad. I will see you around Brad.' Statham smiles that Bruce Willis smile like he does after he says 'Yippee-kayee'.
Statham is the model 21st century actor, he is an amalgamation of other actors - Willis, Stallone, Caine and Bronson - and in this day and age, in this global culture of various cultural icons; Statham is the actor that is both nostalgic, making you yearn for glories and pictures of old - with an embracing of the new and violent world we live in. Statham and Foster put so many bullets into some goon at the end, you think is there much purpose to that or is it just how things are handled; and then there is the cod slow-mo at the end to hark back to the epitaph of Bonnie and Clyde, that started this whole slow-mo gunplay.
Watching The Mechanic on DVD is a better way to watch it, I would have been disappointed to pay to see this film at the cinema as the ending is a little bit cod but it ends with Statham jumping into a new car and driving off into the sunset to his next role of similarity.
Much like that other B-movie star, Randolph Scott, a star who was eclipsed by contemporaries like John Wayne and Henry Fonda; Statham is like that Scott character - an outlaw who does his business in a city or town, and then leaves to pop up in another city or town playing the same role.
Yet the reason a film like this, with its $40m budget, is produced and with technical sheen is because Statham is a DVD icon - guys love to buy the films, watch it with a beer and a smile as those memories of Rambo and Commando reappear on the brain.
Is it worth reviewing a Statham film, when you know what you are going to get. This is not his best film, that remains Chaos; but this is a worthy second thanks in part to the continual growth and aura of Statham on film and the excellent support of Foster.
The Mechanic is released on Monday 6th June by Momentum Pictures and is available at £15.99(DVD) and £19.99(RRP), check out the website http://www.themechanicmovie.co.uk/ for more details on the title.
Monday, 17 January 2011
CERTIFIED COPY
Palme D'Or winning director Abbas Kiarostami, returns to film with 'Certified Copy' a film that is set over one day in Tuscany and follows the chance meeting of a respected English author, James Miller (played by opera singer, William Shimell) and a gallery owner (Juliette Binoche), who remains unnamed. After being mistaken for a married couple, the woman insists they keep up the pretence. However, soon enough it appears there is more to the relationship than we first thought.
Kiarostami has always had this theme of truth and fiction running through his work, look at his script for 'Close Up' and 'Ten', where the question regarding reality and its display are questioned by him as well as the audience. And here he plays on that scheme and winks at his own work, Miller's book he is promoting is about art and the lecture he gives to accompany the promotion, is judging the value of original works versus copies. In his speech Miller mentions the title of his book, which some critics have deemed controversial, he apologies blaming the editors who require controversial titles to sell more books. Is Kiarostami having a dig at people who do not get his slowburn works in comparison to other auteurs who have found favour? The auteur should be commended for never deviating from his career's work, his work can be thought of more as art than cinema, is there a difference between the two, or is that another discussion he wants us to engage in.
Himself lifting a premise not too dissimilar from Richard Linklater's 'Before Sunset' but on this occasion you do not know if this is a married couple playing a game to stimulate a failing marriage, or a couple who have just met - the audience have to stick with the film and make a judgment for themselves, and at the end still not sure if it is true or false.
Binoche illuminates the screen as always and Shimell has a real presence on the screen in his first major feature film role, his work in another form of the media giving credence to his role. Kiarostami loves to mix in different medias to his work; an English opera singer plays an English author, a French actress plays a gallery owner in Italy. In one sentence I have mentioned opera, literature, film and art. Kiarostami makes no excuses for his love of all culture, and this attempt to tick all the boxes may smack of reaching too far by others, on this occasion he gets the balance just right.
The film is well acted and tightly scripted, expertly directed. The opening monologue by Shimell is a great opening, you have him giving a lecture but more often than not the camera is on his audience and a young boy trying to get Binoche's attention. So in fact you get a speech of no relevance, with some tidbits but there is a lot going on; you get the results if you pay attention. Patience is a profitable virtue with Kiarostami's films.
Recommended viewing for all people who eat up European auteur cinema (yes I know the director is from Iran) but this work owes a huge debt to the legacy of Antonioni and Bergman. Kiarostami carries the torch those two have left behind.
Available from Artificial Eye on Blu-Ray (£19.99) and DVD (£15.99) from January 17th 2011
Kiarostami has always had this theme of truth and fiction running through his work, look at his script for 'Close Up' and 'Ten', where the question regarding reality and its display are questioned by him as well as the audience. And here he plays on that scheme and winks at his own work, Miller's book he is promoting is about art and the lecture he gives to accompany the promotion, is judging the value of original works versus copies. In his speech Miller mentions the title of his book, which some critics have deemed controversial, he apologies blaming the editors who require controversial titles to sell more books. Is Kiarostami having a dig at people who do not get his slowburn works in comparison to other auteurs who have found favour? The auteur should be commended for never deviating from his career's work, his work can be thought of more as art than cinema, is there a difference between the two, or is that another discussion he wants us to engage in.
Himself lifting a premise not too dissimilar from Richard Linklater's 'Before Sunset' but on this occasion you do not know if this is a married couple playing a game to stimulate a failing marriage, or a couple who have just met - the audience have to stick with the film and make a judgment for themselves, and at the end still not sure if it is true or false.
Binoche illuminates the screen as always and Shimell has a real presence on the screen in his first major feature film role, his work in another form of the media giving credence to his role. Kiarostami loves to mix in different medias to his work; an English opera singer plays an English author, a French actress plays a gallery owner in Italy. In one sentence I have mentioned opera, literature, film and art. Kiarostami makes no excuses for his love of all culture, and this attempt to tick all the boxes may smack of reaching too far by others, on this occasion he gets the balance just right.
The film is well acted and tightly scripted, expertly directed. The opening monologue by Shimell is a great opening, you have him giving a lecture but more often than not the camera is on his audience and a young boy trying to get Binoche's attention. So in fact you get a speech of no relevance, with some tidbits but there is a lot going on; you get the results if you pay attention. Patience is a profitable virtue with Kiarostami's films.
Recommended viewing for all people who eat up European auteur cinema (yes I know the director is from Iran) but this work owes a huge debt to the legacy of Antonioni and Bergman. Kiarostami carries the torch those two have left behind.
Available from Artificial Eye on Blu-Ray (£19.99) and DVD (£15.99) from January 17th 2011
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