This is a notably disturbing film, in no small measure due to the fact that it is based on a true story and pretty much follows events as they occurred in a Kentucky McDonald’s restaurant in 2004 (click here for some of the details). Indeed, if it hadn’t been based on real events then it would be very tempting to cry ‘as if that would happen in real life’, and although the film focuses on the people within this store, the full impact of the story doesn’t hit home until some way toward the end. It’s well acted to the point that we feel like we’re watching a documentary, and it aptly demonstrates just how pervasive the concept of authority is as we see one employee accused of robbing a customer, and how the chain of command deals with the accusation – purportedly coming from a trusted source and yet with a distinct lack of any real evidence. With Ann Dowd and Dreama Walker as store manager Sandra and the accused Becky respectively.
Tag Archives: Drama
The Best Man Holiday (2013) 70/100
Malcolm D. Lee’s comedy sequel to his 1999 film ‘The Best Man’ sees the return of the entire talented cast as we catch up with their lives more than a decade on. This is a situational comedy, with the majority of the film taking place at the rather lavish house of Lance (Morris Chestnut), which looks pretty great onscreen, and although there is little of any striking originality, the story is nevertheless heart warming and at times genuinely funny.
Thankfully, it does a good job of engaging the audience before the really cheesy elements are put on display, but if you don’t mind a touch of melodrama then this is a worthy little Christmas film. As well as Chestnut, the returning cast include Monica Calhoun, Terrence Howard, Sanaa Lathan, Taye Diggs, Melissa De Sousa, Regina Hall, Harold Perrineau, and Nia Long.
Saving Mr. Banks (2013) 79/100
There was nary a dry eye in the house by the time this biographical tearjerker ended, and despite slightly over egging the pudding at times, it has set itself up nicely for multiple award nominations over the coming months. The plot focuses on the behind the scenes storyboarding and scriptwriting of ‘Mary Poppins’ (64), or, to be more exact, Walt Disney’s (Tom Hanks) invitation to P.L.Travers (Emma Thompson) to come work with his team in California to oversee that her Marry Poppins novel was being treated respectfully, in order to gain her signature on the rights to make the film – which Disney had been seeking for two whole decades. This task, however, would not prove to be easy.
Initially, Thompson’s Travers is far too ruthlessly curt and acidic to be likeable in any emotionally tangible way, but over time we warm to her and to the heart of the story as we learn that the titular Mr Banks (the father of the family in Mary Poppins) is in fact based upon Travers’ memories of her own father and her childhood in Australia – and we relive those memories via flashbacks, and great performances from Colin Farrell as her father and Annie Rose Buckley as her younger self.
Hanks is good as always (he grew his moustache to meticulously mirror Disney’s) but it is really Thompson that gives both a transformative and genuinely evocative performance – and so far she and Cate Blanchett for ‘Blue Jasmine’ are The Red Dragon’s top two contenders to take home the coveted best actress award at the Oscars next year …
Carrie (2013) 68/100
The remake of the 1976 classic horror film (based on Stephen King’s 1974 novel) does a pretty convincing job, but unfortunately loses its way toward the end. Chloë Grace Moretz takes on the titular role of Carrie White (originally immortalised by the wonderful Sissy Spacek) a shy and bullied young girl in high school who discovers she has telekinetic powers, and who also has to contend with her unhinged religious zealot of a mother (Julianne Moore). Moretz is convincing throughout – not an easy role for her given the existing iconic status of Carrie, and also the fact that her character here is in many ways the opposite of her own immensely popular onscreen persona of Hit-Girl in the ‘Kick-Ass’ franchise. It’s just a shame there isn’t a more rewarding release of all that tension that is successfully built up in the first two thirds of the film. It should mostly satisfy, but is unlikely to either delight, or overtly offend.
Blue is the Warmest Colour / La vie d’Adèle (2013) 51/100
I don’t think any film has ever made me feel so bored for such an extended period of time – watching this feels like an experience I’ve survived rather than one I’ve gained any pleasure or cause for reflection from. It’s the French language Palme d’Or winner from this year’s Cannes film festival, which in many ways has pretension written all over it – even the choice of English language title (although it is taken from the comic) typifies so much of modern French cinema, moody art house fare where, by necessity, everyone smokes, stares into space for ages, and is inherently miserable, or ‘blue’ – the French title is actually a much better one.
Here, the story follows both the sapphic and straight erotic adventures of Adèle (played by Adèle Exarchopoulos) as she discovers a taste for carpet munching – largely through studying French philosophy in class. Probably not the intended outcome of the curriculum, but certainly visually entertaining – though this film is so long I found myself salivating more over the scenes where everyone was eating pasta rather than the explicit images of young nubile girls grinding away at each other. Indeed, the sex scenes will shock some (although I don’t know who really, Daily Mail readers who aren’t aware of the concept of sex for fun perhaps) but I wouldn’t say they were out of place with the narrative and style (the majority of the camera work is used to show off the eroticism of the leads, such as a close up of Adèle’s mouth as she’s sleeping for example, though reports that many of the cast and crew refuse to work with the director again after what they termed an abusive shoot, does throw a somewhat darker shadow over things) – they do however exhibit a peculiar trait in that they are at once very immersive, we see faces coming up from a spot of muff diving covered with juice for example, and yet the actresses have very obviously been told to keep their butt cheeks firmly clenched, as if the sight of a sphincter will someone blow people’s minds. So the scenes are at once honest, and dishonest (rumour is fake genital shots were also used).
This reminds me of John Ruskin, the famous 19th century writer and artist who of course married his wife Effie Gray (who was due to be played by the hypnotic Keira Knightley in a big-screen adaptation of the story slated for release next year, but Dakota Fanning appears to have taken over the role for one reason or another) and, so the story goes, having only seen the nude female form through works of art, was so horrified at the discovery the apple of his eye had pubic hair that he was unable to ever have sexual intercourse with her, and the marriage was later annulled unconsummated. Thankfully, modern, young, arduous males and females alike need not suffer the same pitfall of sexual ignorance thanks to the internet, and perhaps films like this …
In any case, nothing of note really happens during the course of the film other than very standard coming of age and relationship issues that will be familiar to everyone, and some moments are unintentionally laughable. Directed by Tunisian filmmaker Abdellatif Kechiche and adapted from the French graphic novel by Julie Maroh – with even Maroh distancing herself from the final product, it at times does feel like we’re being allowed to get closer to the central characters and empathise with them, but this feeling never lasts very long. The performances are brazen and very good (the main love interest is Emma – the girl with blue hair played by Léa Seydoux), and perhaps if an hour and a half had been axed then it would have worked, as it is, it’s simply a self indulgent meandering waste of time. Expect lots of girl on girl action, extensive pasta eating scenes shot in a slightly dizzying manner, and ‘arty’ shots of people kissing with the sun shining between their mouths.
The Twilight Saga : Breaking Dawn Part One (2011) 60/100
The penultimate member of the five film Twilight Saga and generally hailed as its worst instalment, although I actually enjoyed this to some degree – largely because SOMETHING ACTUALLY HAPPENS in this one. It remains cheesy, with bad dialogue and ropey effects, but this has been well established as one of the series’ trademarks so it doesn’t grate quite as much as before. The dire love triangle antics have been toned down somewhat with the advent of Bella and Edward Cullen’s wedding, which looks suitably impressive and matches the tone of the previous films. Bella decides to forgo her perverted hunger to become one of the undead until sometime after their honeymoon, thus allowing them plenty of time to engage in all sorts of inter-species sanguine shenanigans. Unfortunately, this releases unforeseen biological consequences (not particularly surprising ones) driving the rest of the story forward as everyone in their home town releases a collective groan at the latest predicament Bella’s wanton lust and stupidity have landed them all in. The scene with the audible ‘crack’ in it is particularly memorable, some of the music isn’t bad, and this actually had me looking forward to seeing what was to happen in the next one – which is more than can be said for its predecessors.
Parkland (2013) 55/100
Released in the UK on the exact 50th anniversary of John F. Kennedy’s assassination, this film appears to simply highlight that memorial – there really is no other point to the film whatsoever as we watch a dramatisation of the events surrounding that fateful day from the point of view of his staff, the medical professionals at Parkland hospital where Kennedy was taken, and the brother and mother of Lee Harvey Oswald who shot him (officially, at any rate). There’s lots of weeping, shouting, fake tension for events we already know the outcome of – all in all it’s an uninvolving soporific affair that barely adds anything at all to the plethora of other takes on the event. Indeed, simply rereleasing Oliver Stone’s ‘JFK’ (91), which is a real film, would have been a much better idea, if a somewhat controversial one. An impressive cast: Billy Bob Thornton, Marcia Gay Harden, Paul Giamatti, Zac Efron, Jacki Weaver, but each of them are given very little screen time, and just as little dialogue to work with.
Don Jon (2013) 69/100
Joseph Gordon-Levitt chooses a very interesting subject for his directorial debut – pornography. Also written by Levitt and starring him as central character Jon (nicknamed Don Jon by his friends on account of his pulling prowess with girls) we watch as he works out on his body at the gym, keeps his flat immaculately clean, and works his way through a succession of young hotties – and yet still finds jacking off to pornography more pleasurable than the real thing. Then he meets knock out blonde Barbara Sugarman, played by Scarlett Johansson, and becomes convinced she is the one – but will even her curvaceous figure and sublime features be a match for the infinite and easy choices available online?
The subject matter has been treated very well here by the man at the helm (no pun intended) dealing with it head on (ditto), and by mixing in a lot of good comedy. It is thematically reminiscent of Steve McQueen’s ‘Shame’ (11) but I would argue this is in many respects better as it ditches the prevalent moralising tone which permeated that film, and in many ways it does actually represent the differences between a British and American treatment of the topic, one prudish and judgmental – the other forthright and more fun. Indeed, the very idea of porn is often still hugely divisive between the sexes – the next time you’re in a group scenario just throw in the subject of masturbation over your friends facebook pictures and you’ll quickly see the dichotomy that exists generally (you can google that particular aspect of the debate for a plethora of very humorous threads – also something which works quite well is the timely interjection during a game of ‘I’ve Never’, which is normally used as an excuse for people to show off their real or exaggerated sexual exploits, of the line ‘Never have I ever … masturbated whilst thinking about anyone in this room’. This never fails to issue forth a blanket of silence over the sophistic podium, and you can usually tell by the extremely sheepish faces who indeed has done exactly that. Most amusing).
Both Levitt and Johansson sport very convincing accents (it’s set in New York City) and give really good performances, as does Julianne Moore in support. Although Levitt has done a couple of short films prior to this, for a first feature this is a sterling effort – and kudos definitely has to be given for opting to write about difficult subject matter with originality. The alienating problems with intimacy that Jon suffers from will strike a chord with many viewers, some of which will be surprised by the resonance – so seldom is any light shone on this area in a way that audiences can relate to. The only real criticism would have to be there are many aspects of a more traditional resolution to the movie, and although it makes sense for the story and what he’s trying to do, it nevertheless feels a little too black and white – the shades of grey are conveniently, and swiftly, removed from the equation…
Dom Hemingway (2013) 31/100
Jude Law plays the titular Dom Hemingway – a crook just released from prison after a twelve year stint in the clink, and now on a mission to make amends with his estranged daughter. It’s a black comedy, but its primary faults are that it’s simply not that funny and Law convincing us he’s a hard-ass, cockney geezer (despite his commitment to the role) is just asking a bit too much from the audience. It’s like the film is trying to emulate the laughs from ‘In Bruges’ (08), whilst evoking Tom Hardy’s performance in ‘Bronson’ (08), and it doesn’t come close to being as good as either of them – in fact for the first third it is difficult not to want the main character to get killed, with him coming across as repulsive rather than endearing or comedic as he either hits/fucks/or insults everyone he meets (I’m making this sound more interesting than it actually is) and demonstrates how hard he is by lighting up a cigarette in a pub in defiance of the anti-smoking law – send him back to prison! There are a couple of nice moments, the support form the likes of Richard E. Grant and Demian Bichir is fine and the central character becomes a bit more palatable as the film progresses, but the whole film feels too forced and amateurish. From writer/director Richard Shepard (‘The Matador’ 2005, ‘The Hunting Party’ 2007).
Lee Daniels’ The Butler (2013) 68/100
The true story of Eugene Allen – or at least it should have been. This is a heavily fictionalised account of Allen’s life, so much so they changed the central character’s name to Cecil Gaines (played by Forest Whitaker). I won’t list the principal story elements which were invented for the film as it will to no small degree ruin it, but their inclusion is ameliorated by the material at least arguably being representative of real experiences for African Americans at that time. In any eventuality, Allen served several of the American presidents, from Eisenhower in the 50’s right up to Reagan in the 80’s, as one of the White House’s butlers (Cuba Gooding Jr. and Lenny Kravitz play two of the others). With his occupation as an anchor for the story, what unfolds is an uncompromising reflection on the Civil Rights Movement in America, as we see the murderous brutality Gaines witnesses in the deep south as a child and the struggle his own son (played by David Oyelowo) goes through when he becomes an activist in the movement, mirrored with his unique employment and the very real effect he and his co-workers most certainly will have had on influencing the perspective, thoughts, and decisions of the presidents themselves.
It’s the latest film from talented director Lee Daniels, after last year’s ‘The Paperboy’, and it’s interesting that even the very difficult and harrowing brutality of racism, is still seemingly more palatable to audiences than the, ahem, touchy area of onscreen masturbation that was evident in that film (which I liked incidentally {the film that is, not John Cusack masturbating}), although some of the less effective after effects used there to make the film seem a little dated do also crop up here, giving early periods of the film a decidedly pallid feel to them. His latest movie is an emotive, strong piece that is well acted by its principal cast and its equally strong, and extensive, supporting cast members. I won’t spoil the long list of big name actors who appear as the various presidents throughout the film, although one was particularly surprising as he’s British, and another has played a president before … If so much of the screenplay hadn’t been mere invention, and if it wasn’t still being billed as a biography, then this would be a fantastic film – as it is, it’s still pretty good.