Tag Archives: Biographies

Hitchcock  (2012)    72/100

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Rating :   72/100                                                                       98 Min        12A

Threading a delicate and careful tapestry of the two main characters and their relationship, ‘Hitchcock’ gives us a behind-the-scenes look at the making of one of the most famous horror films of all time, ‘Psycho’ (60), and an insight into what it may have been like for its even more famous director, Alfred Hitchcock (Anthony Hopkins), and his wife and longtime collaborator Alma (Helen Mirren). Both lead actors do a very fine job, with Hopkins in particular really seeming to relax into the role although his accent falls perhaps halfway between that of Hitchcock and his own. The film plays with the various myths and legends, idiosyncrasies and potential problems, passions and seeds of future sorrows that surrounded the latter part of the life of the director and, in particular, his last fistful of films, a few of which – ‘Psycho’, ‘The Birds’ (63), ‘Marnie’ (64), and in my opinion ‘Frenzy’ (72), have surpassed the test of time to enter into the annals of movie legend, and are studied religiously in film schools the world over.

Danny Huston is in support, with Scarlett Johansson and Jessica Biel playing Janet Leigh and Vera Miles respectively, though neither of the modern day leading ladies are given much to do here other than look pretty, a task which certainly falls well within their artistic purview. During the narrative, small hooks are tied to the real-life killings that ‘Psycho’ was based on, with the killer Ed Gein being played by Michael Wincott (who also portrayed the killer in 2001’s ‘Along came a Spider’), indeed the whole film is based on the 1990 factual novel ‘Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho’ by Stephen Rebello. The release of the movie coincides with a made-for-TV film, ‘The Girl’, which focused on the making of ‘The Birds’ & ‘Marnie’ and Hitchcock’s relationship with the star of both those films, Tippi Hedren. As to who plays the role of Hitchcock better, Hopkins or Toby Jones in ‘The Girl’, that is a pretty tough call to make, and though the differences in budget do make for a more slick final product with ‘Hitchcock’, as you would expect, it arguably also makes for a slightly safer one.

The two films together make excellent companion pieces and any fan of the director, or of film history, would do well to watch both of them, back to back if possible, with ‘Hitchcock’ sequentially first. And then watch his films again of course….

Hyde Park on Hudson  (2012)    0/100

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Rating :   0/100             COMPLETE INCINERATION             94 Min         12A

Vacuous, in love with itself, and dull as hell. This film tells the story of how American president Franklin D. Roosevelt misused his powers to have his way with various women, essentially abusing them in the process. The music, sounding like what would be expected at the end of a ‘Star Trek : The Next Generation’ episode mixed with repetitive T-Mobile esq. plinkety plonk, and the general tone suggest that this is all fine and dandy, and that if you’re the American president, and especially if you are being played by Bill Murray, then you can do whatever you like. The girls in the row behind me at the cinema were so bored they started making out with each other in a not so subtle fashion, it would be interesting to know if they were gay before they went in or not. The constant reference, with a singular exception, to the United Kingdom as England is also not only completely unacceptable, but utterly disrespectful to the men and women from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland who would go on to give their lives defending their country and the liberties of others during the Second World War. Unforgivable.

Lincoln  (2012)    80/100

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Rating :   80/100                      Treasure Chest                      150 Min        12A

A film about one of the most iconic of Americans, directed by Steven Spielberg, and starring Daniel Day-Lewis, kind of had Academy Award nominations written all over it from its very inception (although, originally, Liam Neeson was due to take on the lead role). Happily, it deserves all twelve of the ones it has received for next month’s ceremony. Day-Lewis plays the man himself of course, sixteenth president of the United States Mr Abraham Lincoln, and the entirety of the film is focused on the last few months of the American Civil War and the politics surrounding Lincoln’s attempt to have the thirteenth amendment (concerned with anti-slavery) officially written into the constitution. As such, there is almost no fighting in the film, instead we are treated to an intricate courtroom drama and character portrayal of the president, and if you are unfamiliar with the exact history of the moment this will certainly put it into an enlightening context.

And who better to play Lincoln than Daniel Day-Lewis. The Red Dragon considers him to be unquestionably the finest actor of his generation, who’s fanatical devotion to method acting each role is legendary, famously living off the land in the forest before shooting ‘The Last of the Mohicans’ (92) and flitting between Italian and English with cast and crew on ‘Nine’ (09 – he actually worked as a shoemaker for a while in Italy, for 2002’s ‘Gangs of New York’ Scorsese and DiCaprio reputedly had to track him down and go visit him personally there to persuade him to take part in the film). In an interview Gary Oldman once remarked, upon someone suggesting that everyone has a couple of bad movies, ‘hmm, I’m not aware of Daniel Day-Lewis ever having done any!’.

Here, he completely embodies the character once again with an entirely convincing accent and set of mannerisms to boot, aided by some wonderful cosmetics. He really is something special to watch, and my only, slight, criticism would be that the last ten minutes or so could have perhaps been a little more enigmatic, and it does seem unlikely that Lincoln’s advisers would be quite as surprised as they are by his machinations, but rather they are so in the film in order to make him seem all the more grand. It could be this is consistent with the source material – Doris Kearns Goodwin’s ‘Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln’ published in 2005. In any case, this is Day-Lewis’s fifth best actor nomination at the Academy Awards and if he wins, and he certainly deserves to, then he will make history as the only male actor to ever have won more than two Oscars for lead roles.

Despite the dialogue heavy nature of the movie I enjoyed it just as much, perhaps even more so, the second time around. The cast is enormous, perhaps a little distractingly so as it’s easy to spend time thinking ‘hmm, what is that actor’s name again…’ but they unanimously do a great job. In particular Tommy Lee Jones as Thaddeus Stevens, a combative, long time proponent of slavery abolition, and Sally Fields as Mary Todd Lincoln, both of whom are up for awards themselves, and also Lee Pace and Peter McRobbie playing the Democratic opposition. The set design looks rich and authentic, and is aided by Spielberg’s decision to film a lot of scenes with bright light streaming in from the exterior, much like Ridley Scott did with ‘Blade Runner’ (82), which helps to give everything the sense of a sort of schoolboy nostalgia, something that feels well suited for one of the most iconic and oft mentioned personages, not to mention lasting legacies, of the nineteenth century.

Fascinating and well made, this is one of Spielberg’s finest.

For some insightful primary source material, take a look at The Writings of Abraham Lincoln.

The Sessions  (2012)    59/100

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Rating :   59/100                                                                       95 Min        15

The Red Dragon feels a little cheated by this film. The ending delivers a strong emotional punch, one that was felt throughout the audience and had a few in tears. The rest of the film, however, does not do a good job, especially when it tries to be humorous as it does too often and with too little effect. It tells the true story of poet Mark O’Brien, played by John Hawkes, who can move only his head and must spend most of each day in an ‘iron lung’ in order to stay alive, though he can still feel sensation throughout his entire body. He begins ‘sessions’ with a sex therapist, played by Helen Hunt, to explore that which has always been denied to him, and the film follows his sexual awakening and the emotional consequences that follow.

The performances are good, but perhaps the film’s biggest problem is a lack of connection with the main character. Sarcastic humour has too much of an emphasis from the start and it never really comes off well, creating the lack of a feeling of reality and seriousness from the onset, although for the character being upbeat is certainly to be applauded. Similarly, the transition from what is supposed to be a lot of comedy into more serious characterisation and emotional connection also seems loose and ungrounded. A shame because it is a good story. Hunt is up for an academy award for her performance and although it is perhaps merited, The Red Dragon has on occasion mooted a possible correlation between the bravery of actresses baring all onscreen and Oscar nominations.

Interestingly, if the connection between the characters seems a little unlikely, have a look at this recent scientific article on the possible side effects of male sperm on the female reproductive system.

The Girl  (2012)    71/100

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TV Movie

Rating :   71/100                                                                                        91 Min

A curious little number about the relationship between Alfred Hitchcock and one of his leading ladies, Tippi Hedren, perhaps especially so as it comes at the same time as another biopic of the famous director – the aptly titled ‘Hitchcock’. Here, Toby Jones stars as the man himself, looking to cast someone for the now famous role of Melanie Daniels in ‘The Birds’ (63). Enter Sienna Miller as Miss Hedren, a model whom Hitch had seen in a commercial and asked someone to go find ‘The Girl’. He would also use Hedren in his next film ‘Marnie’ (64), which The Red Dragon considers to be one of his very best, ranking alongside ‘Frenzy’ (72) and ‘Vertigo’ (58) – in fact, whenever I think of Hitchcock’s work it isn’t the image of a girl in a shower being brutally stabbed that comes to mind, nor James Stewart being dragged into a whirling vortex, but rather the image of Tippi Hedren walking consciously along a train platform sporting a suggestive bright yellow purse, one which contrasts starkly with the dark shades of grey around her. The story of ‘The Girl’ provides invaluable insight into just why ‘Marnie’ feels so unique, and dangerous; far scarier than ‘The Birds’ or ‘Psycho’ (60).

Alfred Hitchcock’s work is studied in film schools the world over, indeed it has been claimed more so than any other artist in the history of film. Yet, the details of this film are revelatory to say the least, not to mention highly controversial, with several of his previous leading ladies decrying the piece as false. None of those actresses, however, can really speak about the events mentioned here themselves, and the screenwriter Gwyneth Hughes spoke extensively with Tippi Hedren herself (as did Sienna Miller) and several surviving members of Hitchcock’s crew. Indeed, Tippi Hedren has publicly endorsed the film as accurate in its portrayal of events and persons. This fact alone makes it an absolute must see for fans of Alfred Hitchcock and indeed for anyone with an interest in film history.

Both leads are very well cast, and interestingly just as here Toby Jones, an extremely versatile and talented actor, is playing a role for which someone else (Anthony Hopkins in the aforementioned and yet to be released in the UK ‘Hitchcock’) may very well get an Academy Award nod, so too did he play Truman Capote in 2006’s ‘Infamous’, hot on the heels of Philip Seymour Hoffman’s Oscar winning 2005 interpretation.

Lay the Favorite  (2012)    53/100

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Rating :   53/100                                                                       94 Min        15

In all honesty, the trailer featuring Rebecca Hall gaudily showing lots of flesh was what first attracted The Red Dragon’s attention to this film. Wondering if this was quite merit enough for him to sit and watch it, he was further intrigued by the fact that her accent and entire demeanour were both entirely contrary to anything she has done before. It’s from director Stephen Frears (‘Dangerous Liaisons’ 88, ‘High Fidelity’ 2000, ‘The Queen’ 06) and Ms Hall plays the central character of Beth Raymer, whose autobiographical novel of the same name the film is based on. It follows her story, from casual sex industry dabbler in Florida to professional bookie in Vegas and Central America.

Hall’s performance is a very convincing one and she deserves a lot of credit for daring to take on the role in the first place. Her American accent is unwavering and markedly different from her natural English one, as she fully inhibits the free spirited and talented with numbers Ms Raymer. Indeed, her performance would by itself rate very highly, although some may be put off by the character and the film’s heavy and unfair reliance on her to carry the whole, as it meanders through the story in a fairly messy way. We aren‘t really invited to invest in her as a character as, right from the offset, too much emphasis is placed on her as an object of sexual attraction, almost to the point where she‘s cinematically fetishised. Interesting that this follows on the back of Frear’s ‘Tamara Drew’ (10) and there too a highly sexualised main character, played by Gemma Arterton.

The film does pick up a bit, before degenerating into dull, dangerously close to day time soap opera territory. Bruce Willis is OK in support, and Catherine Zeta-Jones gives a much needed injection of comedy and drama. Indeed, perhaps making more of her character would have added something of more interest to that of the film. In general very average, and probably best left for fans of Rebecca Hall and/or Stephen Frears.

The Imposter  (2012)    69/100

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Rating :  69/100                                                                        99 Min        15

Very interesting. Always remember when you are watching a documentary that you are often being manipulated, both in terms of character and narrative, just as with a work of fiction. The film tells the true story, through interviews with the actual people involved, of how a Frenchman living in Spain was able to pass himself off as the long disappeared son of a Texan family. Gets off to a slow start but worth sticking with it. Also features someone who may be the worst FBI agent ever….

Worth remembering too whilst you watch this that when someone looks up and to the right with their eyes they are accessing the imaginative part of their mind, as opposed to up and to the left, which means they’re accessing the visual cortex and long-term memory (that is, according to Samuel L. Jackson in ‘The Negotiator’ {98}. Which I’m told is a simplified version of the truth …).