Greetings again from the darkness. When the poster for a new movie compares itself to a genuine classic like JAWS, it immediately evokes skepticism and doubt. The first feature film from writer/director Adam MacDonald is based on a true story and somehow blends elements of horror and man vs. nature into a suspense-filled, gory, survivalist tale of a messy relationship.
Alex (Jeff Roop) has romantic visions as he and girlfriend Jenn (Missy Peregrym) head off into a Canadian Provincial Park for backpacking and camping. Alex can’t wait to show his citified girl his favorite lake lookout … the place he used to hike in his youth. It doesn’t take long for the cracks to start showing- both in the relationship and in Alex’s outdoorsman skills. With the slow build of dread, we know the couple is headed for something unpleasant … thanks to the preview, and the fact that a movie about a relaxing camping trip would be pretty boring.
The Park Ranger (Nicholas Campbell) just shakes his head as Alex refuses his offer of a trail map … a not so subtle jab at men for never asking directions. That combined with Alex poking fun at Jenn’s road flare, bear spray and cell phone usage provide the foreshadowing necessary for any viewers who appreciate being told where the story is headed. After a canoe ride, the couple hikes to the camp site where they encounter their first brush with nature: a rugged Irish guide (Eric Balfour) who offers his catch of the day served with a heavy dose of machismo. We are left to wonder if and when and how this creepy dude might again appear.
Of course, it’s only a matter of time until the couple is lost and we (and they) realize that’s the least of their concerns. See, their lack of communication has landed them right in the middle of black bear country … hungry black bears. A couple’s worst nightmare (a weekend with an incompatible partner) turns into a camper’s worst nightmare (being hunted by a bear). It’s at this point that Ms. Peregrym takes over the movie and we finally have someone to pull for.
Director MacDonald does follow the Jaws template in teasing us with danger and not showing the bear until deep into the movie, but any other comparison would be quite a stretch. Still, there is plenty of tension and we even get that odd line between horror and humor – involving Jenn’s diamond grab in the heat of the moment. Nothing is held back in the fight between man and bear, and we see more than enough in the aftermath.
The park makes for an incredibly beautiful setting and a stunning backdrop for hiking and canoeing and bear fighting. The film could have been titled “Dummies Go Camping”, but really the commentary on modern relationships is probably more telling than the reminder of Nature’s power. Finally, a tip of the cap to Mr. MacDonald for including the Dwight Twilley song “Looking for the Magic” in the initial car trip … great song and fitting to the theme.
Greetings again from the darkness. Sean Penn becomes the latest addition to the AARP action hero club … a very crowded club these days. Unfortunately for Mr. Penn, he lacks the smirky charm of Bruce Wills, the uber-cool of Denzel Washington, and he fails to generate the empathy of Liam Neeson. He simply doesn’t come across as a very likable guy, and certainly not someone we can root for.
Based on the novel of Jean-Patrick Manchette, the movie starts out in the Democratic Republic of Congo where Penn is a mercenary disguised as part of a mining security detail. The first 20 minutes are convoluted and introduce numerous characters and sub-plots that leave us wondering if there are any good guys here … other than Penn’s idealistic doctor girlfriend played by Jasmine Trinca. A sure sign of a weak script is a film that is bookended by “newscasts” to explain both what is going to happen as well as what just happened.
Pierre Morel directed the first Taken movie, and his cast is stellar: Sean Penn, Javier Bardem, Idris Elba, Ray Winstone, and Mark Rylance. Somehow that combination delivers a hokey, over-acted, cheesy dialogue mess featuring absurd shoot-outs and action sequences that try to convince us Penn is some kind of quasi-superhero. His transformation from geopolitical hit-man to humanitarian is tough to buy, and it’s downright chuckle-inducing to see the times he manages to show off his sculpted torso. We can only assume his personal trainer received a bonus for each shirtless scene.
The story bounces from Africa to London to Barcelona to Gibraltar and back to Barcelona. It does include the best use of a live bull so far this year, though the actual bullfighting is somehow one of the least gruesome segments of the entire film. The film isn’t as sneaky as it thinks it is in making a statement about multinational corporations raiding Third World resources. Evidently, the message is that former assassins can be forgiven if they are re-born as committed to humanitarian causes, but capitalistic companies cannot possibly justify their work in impoverished areas.
All of the above could be shrugged off if so many wasted opportunities didn’t consistently frustrate. Penn has scenes with all of the other actors mentioned above, but there is almost no interaction between the others. Why no confrontations between Idris and Javier? How about one sequence with Penn, Javier and Winstone squaring off? So many fun actors, but so little cross-over. Frustration may be the best overall description for this one, and it encompasses everything from script to dialogue to camera work.
Greetings again from the darkness. Imagine if Liam Neeson’s burned out Air Marshall from Non-Stopwas instead a one-time mob hit man who had seen better days. That seems to be the inspiration for director Jaume Collet-Serra’s film (yes, he directed Non-Stopas well). When a guy is a drunken mess with no family who speak to him and only one friend – his old mob boss – a nickname like The Gravedigger tends to conjure better days of yore.
Neeson plays Jimmy Conlon, the has-been hitman whose only remaining friend is boss Shawn Maguire (Ed Harris). These days, Conlon expends more effort emptying a glass than fulfilling a contract. Shawn respects their history and does all he can to protect his long-time friend who seems intent on boozing himself to death. As is customary in these “crime doesn’t pay” films, things get really messed up in the blink of an eye. Thanks to a wrong place at the wrong time moment, Conlon protects his own son (Joel Kinnaman) by shooting Maguire’s misguided son (Boyd Holbrook). Thus endeth the friendship.
The script is from Brad Ingelsby who wrote the original script for Out of the Furnace(2013), but most of it is pretty predictable. Still, with an excellent cast and some wildly creative camera work from cinematographer Martin Ruhe (Harry Brown, The American), this one offers plenty on the entertainment scale. The restaurant scene where Harris and Neeson face off is alone worth the price of admission.
As you might expect, there is plenty of gun play and swagger, but as the title suggests, mostly it’s a game of running and being chased … featuring a crazy car chase. Neeson has an extended public bathroom fight scene with Holt McCallany, and the detective played by Vincent D’Onofrio continues his decades long pursuit of Neeson’s character. Bruce McGill plays Harris’ right-hand man and Common is a steely new age hit man. Kinnaman’s wife is played by Genesis Rodriguez, and the film’s most bizarre scene features a grizzled Nick Nolte – you will find yourself asking “is that him or not?”
Mr. Collet-Serra has directed Unknown and Non-Stop, so Neeson is quite comfortable working with him, and you should certainly know what to expect going in. The friendship between two mobsters ends the way most do, and it’s another take on the blood family vs mob family loyalties. The Gravedigger may have one foot in his own grave, but he also has enough left for one wild night.
Greetings again from the darkness. It is initially a bit disorienting to settle in to watch a Western shot in South Africa by Danish filmmakers with a story based in 19th century America. However, any doubts are quickly forgotten thanks to terrific writing, powerful acting, and creative camera work set to a distinctive soundtrack.
Blood, dirt, politics, true loss and crackling gun play accompany what is, at its core, a story of vengeance … and of course, good vs evil. We open in 1871 America, seven years after Jon (Mads Mikkelsen) and his brother Peter (Mikael Persbrandt) left Denmark after fighting in the war. Today is the day that Jon’s wife (singer Nanna Oland Fabricius) and son (Toke Lars Bjarke) arrive, and the separation has been tough on all. The reunion is destroyed in the most awful manner imaginable thanks to a couple of drunken ex-cons sharing the stagecoach. Of course, salvation and vengeance would not be required if there were no turning point, and Jon’s natural reaction is what sparks the real fireworks in the story.
One of the bad guys on the wagon is the brother of powerful local gangster Delarue (Jeffrey Dean Morgan). We quickly learn he is not a rational man and cares little for anything other than making money and gaining revenge on his brother’s killer. Delarue stands for all the bullies of any era, while Jon and his brother Pete represent the huddled masses incited to action only through gross injustice. There are many details and elements that set this above the traditional western, and one of those is the presence of Madelaine (Eva Green) who was married to Delarue’s murdered brother, and was previously disfigured and muted by Native Americans.
It’s impossible not to notice the similarities and influences of John Ford, Sergio Leone and the classic High Noon(cowardly townspeople, morals corrupted under duress). Director Kristian Levring even superimposes the very familiar vistas of Monument Valley into some shots, and it’s done so well that our eyes simply accept the landscape. Mr. Levring also presents us a uniquely lit stagecoach in the moonlight scene that was beautiful to look at, despite the violent nature of what was happening. Composer Kasper Winding (brother to director Nicolas Winding Refn) adds a distinctive guitar that recalls the haunting effects of Ennio Morricone’s soundtrack to Leone’s classic Once Upon a Time in America… a very effective complement.
The lead actors are superb and well cast – though Jeffrey Dean Morgan goes 180 degrees against type as the evil-to-the-bone Delarue. Eva Green speaks volumes with her fiery eyes, and Mikael Persbrandt (who was so great in In A Better World) adds to the quiet-wild feel of the film. The bulk of the action falls to Mads Mikkelsen, who thanks to Casino Royale, The Hunt, and TV’s “Hannibal” has become one of the finest actors working today. His facial tics and emotional depth convey much with few words, and his character’s expert marksmanship with a Remington rifle is a welcome shift from the spraying automatic weaponry too common in film these days.
The politics of taking advantage of the unaware weak runs throughout the films, especially with the methodical “land grab” occurring so that the rich can capitalize on the “sticky oil” spoiling the water wells. You may not be a fan of Westerns, but there is much going on in this excellent script – and the visuals combined with expert acting should allow you to appreciate what expert filmmaking this is (especially given the low budget).
Greetings again from the darkness. If only drive-in theaters were still the weekend hang-out of choice for teenage boys, this latest from director Joe Lynch would be the perfect second feature after some horror or slasher designed to generate oohs and ahhs through gross-outs (elevators and grenades are not a good mix).
After beginning with its most unsettling scene – gang abuse of a female (fortunately via black screen and sound effects) – the rest of the film plays just like an ultra-violent, hyper-speed video game. The two main distinctions here are that all of the action takes place inside a loft apartment, and the lead character is played by Salma Hayek. Having appeared in Desperado and From Dusk Til Dawn, Ms. Hayek is no stranger to wild action sequences, but here she carries every carnage-filled scene … all while slinking around in a silk slip or her favorite yoga pants.
Gun, knives, swords, grenades, chemicals and various other implements of destruction are brandished by Hayek, masked killers, greedy hookers, a SWAT team, and Hayek’s ex-pimp/kidnapper. We even get a character called “The Sadist” (Togo Igawa) in one of the most straight-forward character names in movie history. There is even an attack dog named Bonzai that is well-trained in everything except the difference between a ball and a grenade. And therein lies the saving grace here … the movie has some absurd humor that prevents the ultimate tone of dread by such films as Saw. The humor isn’t so much clever as it is outrageous … and it helps offset the gruesome and blood-filled body count (at least 20 in the first 20 minutes!).
Director Joe Lynch is more comfortable with horror films than action films, but it’s clear he has a love with B-movies, and he is fortunate enough to have Salma Hayek front and center. The only way to watch this is with your brain shifted to neutral. The level of ridiculous is off the scale and includes too many “that makes no sense” moments to recap here. On top of all that, the action occurs around Christmas, and use of six traditional Christmas songs adds to the twisted humor that will probably keep you tuned in, despite your knowing better.
**NOTE: For those in the Dallas area, this will be playing at the Texas Theatre
Greetings again from the darkness. Writer/Director Ruba Nadda likes to explore human nature and unexpected romantic attraction. She did this in Cairo Time(2009) and does so again here in this excruciatingly slow-moving “thriller” with an interesting beginning, muddled middle, and a final act that reminds of wet fireworks … a dud. On the bright side, actress-extraordinaire Patricia Clarkson never allows us to lose interest.
I’ve often written of my enjoyment of slow-burns and slow-builds for thrillers, and the best manage to generate a sense of caring from the viewers as they move towards the climax. Unfortunately, this one offers little more than an intriguing premise that places one ridiculous development on top of the next.
Patricia Clarkson plays a doctor whose beloved husband has recently passed away and she heads to their lake cottage for some peace and quiet. Not long after, an injured Scott Speedman shows up in her living room. Being a doctor, she performs bullet-removal surgery with needle-nosed pliers, and then of course, finds herself attracted to the young gunshot victim who is being hunted by the father of a guy Speedman killed.
We know the showdown is coming, but it seems to take forever to arrive, and then is pretty anti-climactic despite the presence of Tim Roth as the revenge-seeking father. The romantic attraction is pretty far-fetched and plays like a Nicolas Sparks story, or even a 1990’s Tom Berenger or Ashley Judd thriller.
The focus on death could have gone much deeper, psychologically speaking, and there is a brief scene where Roth tells Speedman “You always think there’s going to be more time” that leads us to believe things are going to get really interesting. Instead more attention is given to the unlikely romance and the kinda hokey manhunt. Fortunately, the cinematography around beautiful Georgian Bay helps offset the story and the manipulative score, and of course watching Patricia Clarkson and Tim Roth work is always somewhat satisfying.
Greetings again from the darkness. The financial crisis-manslaughter-class warfare-thriller from novelist Stephen Amidon shifts from Connecticut (in the book) to just outside of Milan for director Paolo Virzi’s look at class and character. A term used by insurance companies to calculate the value of a human life in settlement cases, “human capital” carries even more meaning in this twisted tale of greed and broken dreams.
After an opening sequence that shows an off-duty waiter getting knocked from his bicycle by a swerving SUV in the dark of night, the story is divided into chapters that provide the various perspectives of different characters affected by this hit-and-run. Dino (Fabrizio Bentivoglio) is a middle-class real estate business owner whose girlfriend (the too rarely seen Valeria Golino) is pregnant with twins, and his daughter Serena (Matilde Gioli) is dating a private school classmate Massimiliano (Guglielmo Pinelli) who comes from the upper crest Bernaschi family that is living the dream thanks to the dad’s (Fabrizio Gifuni) hedge-fund success.
It’s easy to see how the lives of these two families become intertwined, and how a few other characters are also affected, but the real joy here is in getting to know each through their own actions. Dino desperately wants a taste of the finer things in life, and risks everything by fraudulently obtaining a bank loan in order to buy into Bernaschi’s hedge fund. His wife Roberta is a trusting and pure-hearted woman who accepts her place in society and warmly looks forward to being a new mom. Their daughter Serena proves to be the best judge of character and soon enough boots the spoiled kid Massimiliano to the curb, while connecting with the artistic and misunderstood Luca (Giovanni Anzaldo), though even Serena’s moral compass shows its cracks.
Bernaschi is a smooth operator and the perfect face for a hedge fund so dependent on the financial collapse of its own country. His wife Carla (Valeria Bruni Tedeschi) is a lost soul … enjoying the perks of a wealthy lifestyle, but still holding on to her artistic dreams of youth. Life as a trophy wife is evidently not so fulfilling for those with their own aspirations. Their son Massimiliano, as you might imagine, is unable to live up to the expectations of his father, and frequently handles his perceived lack of parental attention by over-boozing at every opportunity.
This film was Italy’s submission to the Academy in the Best Foreign Language category, but unfortunately did not make the final cut. It is rich in texture and remarkable in its ability to convey depth in so many characters. The basic story has some similarities to the film 21 Grams, in that we witness the many ways in which people handle crisis. In this case, the mystery of the initial sequence is left unsolved until near the end, but there are so many personal “fork in the road” moments, that solving the case of the cyclist death somehow doesn’t monopolize our thoughts.
Excellent acting throughout allows us to connect with each of the key characters, and especially worth noting are Valeria Bruni Tedeschi and Matilde Gioli. Ms. Gioli is a newcomer with a bright future. She brings believability and strength to a teenager role that would more typically be over-the-top or one-dimensional in the hands of a lesser actress. Even more impressive is the performance from Ms. Bruni Tedeschi who perfectly captures the heartbreak of a woman living a life others can only dream about, while her own dreams are but shadows from the past.
With source material from a U.S. novelist, and subject matter involving the 1% and crisis of conscience, it’s not difficult to imagine an American remake, but this version is highly recommended for those who enjoy a multi-faceted dramatic thriller.
Greetings again from the darkness. In 2010, writer/director Matthew Vaughn turned the superhero genre on its ear with the hit Kick-Ass. With this most recent film (back with co-writer Jane Goldman), he has done the same thing to spy-thrillers. We get the well-tailored look made famous by Roger Moore’s James Bond, the fanciful and lethal gadgets from early Bond films, the ever-present umbrella (put to new uses here) of “The Avengers” John Steed, and the ultra-suave and debonair manners of Napoleon Solo from “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.” We get all of that in a surprisingly effective and fun action performance from Colin Firth.
Fun is the operative word here. It’s clear all parties involved are having a great time, especially Mr Firth going drastically against type. There are two action-packed and pretty humorous (in a demented way) fight scenes. One is early on inside a London pub, and has Firth flashing his particular set of skills against a group of thugs. The other (and even more raucous) fight occurs inside a church and is set to Lynryd Skynyrd’s “Free Bird”. The body count piled up as fast as the guitar licks.
As spectacular as the fight scenes are, the real fun here is in the characters. The old guard of the Kingsmen includes Firth as Galahad, Mark Strong as Merlin, Jack Davenport as Lancelot, and Michael Caine as Arthur. This long-standing group is one part international spy, one part Knights of the Round Table … and these gentlemen are extremely well trained and impeccably well dressed. When one of their agents dies on the job, the recruitment boot camp kicks into gear. Made up of a group of relative newcomers to the movie world, the two most interesting are Roxy (Sophie Cookson) and Eggsy (Taron Egerton). Adding to the intrigue, Eggsy is the son of a former Kingsman, and has some skills that aren’t initially apparent.
Of course, what would a spy-tribute movie be without a colorful villain? Samuel L Jackson plays lispy megalomaniac Valentine, who has a quick gag reflex when it comes to violence. Fortunately his henchman Gazelle (Sofia Boutella) is equipped with razor sharp leg prosthetics and some ultra-crazy fighting skills. We even see Mark Hamill as Professor Arnold … fans of the Mark Miller/Dave Gibbons graphic novel will appreciate the irony.
Firth and Egerton play off each other quite well in the mentor-pupil relationship, and Egerton is clearly set up for the franchise sequels … as is his friend and fellow Kingsman, Ms. Cookson. For those who think the Daniel Craig Bond films are too dark and serious, this provides a flashback to lighter Bond fare (minus the misogyny). Many hot topics are touched on: class warfare, domestic abuse, racism, etc, but mostly this can be taken as a rollicking good time because “it’s not that kind of movie”. It does, however, remind us that “manners make the man”.
Greetings again from the darkness. Most of us know what to expect when we hear “it’s a Jason Statham movie”. However, when you add to that “written by two-time Oscar winner William Goldman”, it generates a bit more excitement and higher expectations than normal. This becomes slightly complicated when the Jason Statham part stretches his acting, but it’s the script that is essentially a letdown.
The film is a remake of the 1986 film HEAT with Burt Reynolds, and both movie versions are based on Goldman’s novel of that title. This time it’s Jason Statham as Las Vegas security expert Nick Wild, who possesses a particular set of skills … to go along with a drinking and gambling problem. Known for such films as CON AIR(1997), THE MECHANIC(also with Statham, 2011), and THE EXPENDABLES 2 (also with Statham, 2012), director Simon West is no stranger to action sequences and cool guys with baggage. There are a couple of outstanding fight scenes that capitalize on Nick Wild’s preference for non-traditional weapons, including a huge finale at The Silver Spoon Diner where he utilizes, well, silver spoons.
Statham gets an opportunity to do something besides fight and drive, as he is cast as the emotionally handicapped warrior with a big heart. He protects his friends and does favors for those who are weaker. In fact, the banter between he and Michael Angarano (as Cyrus) is some of the best work of Statham’s career. The noir-speak dialogue allows Statham to have some fun with vocabulary words, but the script never really lets him connect with anyone other than Cyrus. Instead we get too many scenes of guzzling vodka and an extended blackjack scene that is so predictable, it’s actually kind of annoying to watch.
The biggest downside to the film is the steady stream of recognizable and pretty well-known actors who pop up for only a brief scene or two. The list includes Sophia Vergara sporting a sweater that flaunts her assets, Max Casella as her conniving boyfriend, Jason Alexander as an office-sharing attorney, Hope Davis as a blackjack dealer, Dominik Garcia-Lorido (Andy Garcia’s daughter) as Nick’s call girl friend in need, Milo Ventimiglia as bad guy Danny DeMarco, Anne Heche as the supportive diner waitress, and a wonderful, but all too brief, Stanley Tucci as a hotel/casino owner modeled on a few real life owners and mobsters.
Although the film skips the traditional Statham car chases and love-making, we do get many flashy shots of him driving a classic Pontiac GT. The old school Vegas setting is a welcome diversion from the glitzy new Vegas we more often see in movies. Keeping with the retro feel is Dean Martin crooning “Blue Christmas” in the opening moments, and other classic songs carefully coordinated throughout the story. Statham’s struggles with alcohol and gambling, and his stated intent to leave Vegas forever provide the film with an incredibly disjointed and lightweight story from the pen of someone as decorated as William Goldman. It’s nice to see Statham sport a bit of emotional depth, but the film likely doesn’t offer enough fight scenes for his true fans. The dark and humorous moments provide enough entertainment to encourage those fans to give it a shot, but please be careful with those spoons.
Greetings again from the darkness. One of my first favorite TV shows as a little kid was “Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea”. Each week I sat wide-eyed in front of the tube (yes, it was actually a cathode ray tube back then) anxiously awaiting underwater adventure. It wasn’t until later that I discovered Irwin Allen’s 1961 movie of the same name, and more importantly, Jules Verne’s novel “Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea”, which featured the wild exploits of Captain Nemo and the Nautilus. Since then, count me in for just about any movie based aboard a submarine (Down Periscopebeing a rare exception).
Director Kevin MacDonald is best known for his excellent 2006 film The Last King of Scotland(with Forest Whitaker’s Oscar winning performance as Idi Amin). This time he works with a script from playwright Dennis Kelly to deliver a gritty, tense thriller that is lacking any traditional Hollywood fluff … it’s a down and dirty look at greed, desperation and the survival instinct.
Inherent to a story based aboard a submarine is the immediate and constant threat of claustrophobia and death. This one adds another element of danger by blending a crew of Russians and Brits with the goal of bringing back millions of dollars in gold locked away on a sunken German U-Boat in the Black Sea waters. Lest you think the Russians are just another group of southern California actors faking the accent, director MacDonald confirmed that he cast actual Russian actors – including Grigoriy Dobrygin (A Most Wanted Man), Konstantin Khabenskiy (one of the most popular actors in Russia), and three others named Sergey, which MacDonald acknowledged contributed to on-set confusion. This decision elevates the onboard tension between adversarial characters to an armrest-gripping level. Yet another slightly psychotic Ben Mendelsohn (Animal Kingdom) role doesn’t hurt, either.
Jude Law continues the second phase of his career – far removed from his pretty boy early films – as a tough, revenge-seeking sub captain fired by his long-time employer. Should you doubt Law’s acting range, I would recommend not just this film, but also last year’s Dom Hemingway(a raucous ride). Law’s performance here is very strong as he transforms from a p.o.’d former employee to an eye-on-the-prize, win-at-all-cost treasure seeker. The onboard tension mounts every time there is interaction between the Russians and Brits, and Law’s character attempts to mediate. The progression of this three-way dynamic is fascinating to watch as it unfolds.
To provide that true underwater feeling, MacDonald filmed some scenes onboard an old Soviet submarine that is moored in the River Medway in Kent (UK). We never have that feeling of Hollywood soundstage; instead we as viewers share in the tight space and constant dread. This combination of characters, setting and mission deliver an intense thriller that is sure to please, and feels uncommonly welcome this early in the year.
The pinnacle of submarine movies is Das Boot(1981), a must-see for any movie lover. Other popular sub films include Crimson Tide(1995), The Hunt for Red October(1990), and K-19: The Widowmaker(2002), and for those of us who are fascinated by life (and possible death) under the sea, we gladly welcome a new entry to the sub-genre, especially one as well made and tension-packed as Black Sea.
Greetings again from the darkness. When the poster for a new movie compares itself to a genuine classic like JAWS, it immediately evokes skepticism and doubt. The first feature film from writer/director Adam MacDonald is based on a true story and somehow blends elements of horror and man vs. nature into a suspense-filled, gory, survivalist tale of a messy relationship.
Posted by David Ferguson 
Movie Reviews from the Dark 