It’s 1969, and the titular hotel – a
novelty establishment that bestrides the states of California and Nevada – has
seen better days. Not so long ago it was the hottest, jumping-est spot in the
Pacific time zone, accommodating and entertaining the biggest A-list stars and
dignitaries. Split by a bright red line running literally right through its
centre, guests enjoyed the gimmick of being able to choose in which side of the
venue they would stay. It was also, according to a prologue, the scene of its
share of shady dealings. Then, for some mysterious reason the renewal of the El
Royale’s gaming license was denied. Now it’s all but deserted, except for sole
employee Miles (Lewis Pullman) – and the four strangers who turn up at almost exactly
the same time, each with their own reasons and secrets.
There’s the elderly and forgetful Father
Flynn (Jeff Bridges), struggling singer Darlene Sweet (Cynthia Erivo), vacuum
cleaner salesman Laramie Sullivan (Jon Hamm), and terse loner Emily
Summerspring (Dakota Johnson). We have a
pretty good idea that most of these people are not who they say they are, but
their real identities and intentions? That, as the genre dictates, is anyone’s
guess
Much mention has already been made of Goddard’s invoking Quentin Tarantino’s
trademarks – the chapter headings, the overlapping points of view, the
verboseness of the characters, jukebox worship – but that’s little unfair. It’s more the case
that Goddard and Tarantino are drawing from the same sources, and both are
doing it well.
It’s a beautifully stylish film thanks to
both Seamus McGarvey’s (ATONEMENT, THE AVENGERS) lush, neon-soaked
cinematography, and the art and productions teams: Martin Whist, Michael Diner,
Lisa Van Velden and Hamish Purdy pouring glorious, swingin’ period detail into
every scene, while the sets themselves cleverly come to represent the themes
(ethical boundaries, lines being crossed, silent witness vs intervention) of
Goddard’s knotted story. Oh, a let’s give another shout out to that gorgeous jukebox
But while the first two acts of Goddard's story are all grimy atmospherics and tense fun, when the storm arrives in the form of Chris Hemsworth’s malevolent
charmer Billy Lee, things begin to unravel. We’re given a
denouement which, for reasons that shall here remain unnamed (but here's a clue: it's to do with a commonality within his previous body of work), isn’t entirely
satisfying. Sure, it’s only one bum note, but it’s the high note, and while that's not the end
of the world it’s just a bit of a pity when the rest has been so much grubby
fun.
BAD TIMES AT THE EL ROYALE is released October 11 in Australia, and October 12 in the US and UK.
To call MANDY strange is obviously understatement - it's been a major selling point since its rather magnificently oblique trailer was released. And true, it is one of those cinematic mood pieces
that is difficult to describe without spoiling – but you should know that despite the giddy fan reaction, at its heart Panos Cosmatos' heart of darkness exploitationer is really rather reactionary. It's very much a film of two halves, the first of which is masterful. But while Cosmatos may yet end up with a place among the greats of sensory
strangeness - Lynch, Jodorowsky, Argento - MANDY doesn't really deserve to be the film that puts him there.
That first half is careful
in its construction, spectacular in its imagination and so confident in its
execution that you feel in very safe hands. It’s 1983, and in the Pacific Northwest
United States, lumberjack Red (Nicolas Cage) and his artist girlfriend Mandy
(Andrea Riseborough) are living a quiet, simple life in the woods. Beautiful,
slow burning scenes establish some pain below the surface of each character,
until a sinister hippie cult arrives, led by Jeremiah (Linus Roache), who from the
moment he sees Mandy immediately wants to own her. Items
with names like “The Horn of Abraxos” are sounded. HELLRAISER Cenobite-like
bikers are summoned. Bad folk rock albums are played, all of which ends in
tragedy and harrowing trauma for the hero couple.
Cosmatos' weird symphony begins like an exciting night-time drive down
an unlit forest back road, with only a spotlight to see both what’s ahead and
what’s whizzing past, but the man at the wheel earns your trust. His
brave stylistic choices – moody animated chapter headings; careful, highly saturated
colour filters over dramatic, stadium concert-esque lighting; excellent, trippy
performances; some wonderful set design, and most of all Jóhann Jóhannsson’s
prog-epic score (sadly, his last) - mix perfectly with his set-up: Reagan’s conservative
black & white morality soundbites, a world in which the good guys wear pentagram
t-shirts and dwell on the fringes of society while the baddies are evangelist nutters, a deranged and byproduct/extension of that same corrupted Christian Right.
And then…? And then…
That back road suddenly intersects with a
well-lit, well-worn highway back to Tropesville. Cosmatos turns onto it, riding
at full speed where so many of his retro genre influences have ridden before
him, and he never looks back.
The production values remain high, but the story's potential corrodes from beneath the gloss. That period setting loses all meaning and value, exposing it as just a crutch of cosmetic nostalgia.
The slow realisation that MANDY isn’t in fact going anywhere new, that what
could have been an amazing update of the old male revenge fantasy is merely
reverting and regressing back into one, is crushing. All that sending the
Cageometer up to eleven and its accompanying mayhem – Ooh, they’re having a
chainsaw fight! How batshit ker-azy is this?! – is just dressing which can’t distract
from the squandered opportunity Cosmatos was so close to seizing.
There are too many fine small achievements for it to be considered bad per sae, and despite its writing flaws it is an experience deserving of the big screen (and a bigger sound system), but be ready for MANDY to end up as what it is: yet another hollow '80s nostalgia wank.
MANDY is released September 14 in the US and October 12 in the UK. It screens in Australia for one night only (September 21).
]]>
MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – FALLOUT is released
July 25 in the UK, July 27 in the US, and August 2 in Australia and NZ.
You have to
hand it to directors Anthony & Joe Russo – the task in front of them was
monumental, but they and their team have handled it exceptionally well. The
film’s greatest achievement isn’t necessarily to deliver the greatest story
ever told (though it is wonderfully epic, wholly deserving of the biggest screen you can find), but to deliver the most entertaining movie they possibly could relative to the constraints in front of them.
Think of the sheer logistics in bringing together not only the plots and
disparate characters of ALL previous Marvel movies (many of whom haven’t met
each other yet), but also the stylistic choices and design idiosyncrasies of
each separate story, and having to merge them all into a smooth, coherent, entertaining-without-being-too-self-indulgent whole. Well, that’s what has been achieved here. Obviously Marvel has been
putting a LOT of care and thought into this from the get-go, and they've enjoyed such monumental success so far you could try and argue that all they had to do was not get it wrong. But in filmmaking a huge step between planning and execution, and this could all so
easily have gone screamingly tits-up; hats off to all involved for that
simply not being the case, but major props for making it so bloody good.
As with all of these, it’s probably going to be easy to sit in future
viewings and pic at plot threads, moments of rushed exposition and whatnot, but
in the moment, INFINITY WAR works.
Bouncing back and forth between three or more locations at any given time, it’s
two and a half hours of breathless action. To say it never lets up would be a
lie – I think it lets up once or twice. For about a minute. Then we’re back
into the action, often unfolding in several places at once.
My greatest concern going into INFINITY WAR
had always been Thanos himself. Marvel has notched some good wins recently
thanks to interesting villains with a fair point of view (Michael Keaton’s
Vulture in SPIDERMAN: HOMECOMING, and Michael B Jordan’s Killmonger in BLACK
PANTHER being the two standouts), but their purple, scrotum-chinned big bad had
always seemed a bit too disconcertingly vague. He’s brought quickly and
sharply into focus here though: a lesson in economy of storytelling. How much do we
really need to know about him? Not as much as you might think, it turns out.
Behind the camera, the work is second
to none. The budget here is obviously much larger than the ‘individual
adventure’ Marvel movies, and it shows in the finesse of the visuals – most
easily noted in the improvement of the compositing of the Wakanda backgrounds*. I can’t think of a single shot that jars the eye (against for example that semi-trailer being
flown out of shot in AGE OF ULTRON, which stuck out like dog's balls). The film also represents a wonderful amalgam of design styles – the Guardians, the Asgardians, the Wakandans, the world of Dr. Strange
– everything merges smoothly, while of course the Iron Man and Spider-Man suits continue to evolve.
If you really want to get niggley, I’d say I can see the wheels turning just a fraction with the need for comic
relief to diffuse the weight of the drama. The fallback to a funny line at the
end of every heavy scene exposes itself as a device, and the Russo brothers
(who have always seemed more comfortable with the darker tones of action
storytelling) aren’t as deft as a Joss Whedon in making these joins invisible –
or maybe it’s just unavoidable when every other character is a wise-cracking
loose cannon? This is not to suggest the comedy doesn’t work: about 95% of it
does, but I’m trying not to gush here.
INFINITY WAR may just be Marvel’s finest
2.5 hours to date; their GODFATHER PT.2, their EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, their DARK
KNIGHT. Fans may believe the hype: it really is that good - and if you're not a fan by now, you really shouldn't be watching. This is a movie that achieves almost everything
it sets out to, and make no mistake: that is a LOT.
*on a second viewing, I did notice some of the compositing in the Wakanda sequences (particularly the closer shots). I wonder why something so seemingly straightforward is an ongoing problem? If there's any techies out there who know, do feel free to explain in the comments section.
AVENGERS | INFINITY WAR is released April 25 in Australia and NZ, April 26 in the UK and April 27 in the US.
They said it would never happen. Well, I said it wouldn’t happen. Actually I probably never said it would never happen, but anyway it’s now HAPPENING: I am parting with my collection of ex-rental (and some sell-through) VHS tapes, giving them away to anyone who wants to provide any of them a good home.
Before you get too excited, I’ll be totally honest and say I’m pretty sure
there’s nothing overly rare amongst this list. This is really just to make sure there's not some completist fans out there looking to fill a gap in their collection, or fans of particular
covers etc. The next stop for these, heartbreakingly, is landfill.
That said, these are all being stored out of any discernible order in cardboard
boxes, and I frankly can’t be arsed digging into them and taking photos of a
particular cover. If you want the title, you getting it for free, paying only postage
(anywhere in the world is fine).
All tapes are PAL. Any title (at the end of the list) with an asterisk comes in an old blockbuster 'take home' cover
– there is no sleeve artwork with these tapes.
I can’t make any promises as to the playability of some of these, but most are
in reasonable nick – and let’s face it, it’s mostly about the covers.
If you want anything on this list, leave a comment and we'll take it from there. Payment for postage will be sorted through paypal (unless you can pick up for free from the Brisbane metro area).
May your tracking never need adjusting...
12 Monkeys
2001: A Space Odyssey
Aardman Animations Vol. 1
Adventures Of Barry McKenzie, The
Adventures Of Barry McKenzie, The (sell-through)
Affliction
Age Of Innocence, The
Age Of Innocence, The
Akira
Alexei Sayle’s Stuff
Aliens (Special Edition)
Allied Bombers
American Gigolo
American Me
An Audience With Mel Brooks
An Awfully Big Adventure
Antarctica
Apostle, The
Barcelona
Barton Fink
Beavis & Butthead Do America
Beavis & Butthead: Too Dumb For TV
Bedrooms & Hallways
Ben Elton: A Fartie’s Guide To The Man From Auntie
Best Bits Of The Late Show Vol. 2
Best Of The Big Gig
Big Night
Big Steal, The
Biloxi Blues
Bob Roberts
Boys, The
Braveheart
Breaking Away
Breathless (1960, A Bout De Souffle)
Bringing Up Baby!
Broken Highway
Browning Version, The (1994)
Bull Durham
Carlito’s Way
Carry On Columbus
Catch 22
Chasing Amy
Children Of The Revolution
Chungking Express
Cinema Paradiso
Clean And Sober
Clerks
Club, The
Commitments, The
Coogan’s Run The First Lap/The Final Hurdle
Crash
Crooklyn
Crucible, The
Dame Edna: Back With A Vengeance
Dangerous Liaisons
Day Of The Jackal, The
Day The Earth Stood Still (195
Days Of Thunder
Dazed And Confused
Dead Again
Dead Man
Dead Man Walking
Dead Man Walking
Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid
Dead Presidents
Dead, The
Dealer$
Deep Cover
Dirty Harry
Don’t Look Now
Doom Generation, The
Dr. Who: More Than 30 Years In The TARDIS
Dr. Who: Shada
Dracula (1992)
Drowning By Numbers
Ed Wood
Edge Of Darkness Pt 2
Eight Men Out
Elephant Man, The
Fast Times At Ridgemont High
Fear Of A Black Hat
Fearless
Female Perversions
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
Filthy, Rich & Catflap Vol.1 & 2
Fish Called Wanda, A
Fisher King, The
Five Easy Pieces
Flesh And Bone
Four Rooms
Freeway
French & Saunders Series 3 Pt. 2
Funny Bones
Funny Bones
Funny: The Comic Strip Presents
Gallipoli
Get Shorty
Getaway, The (1994)
Girl 6
Goodfellas
Grapes Of Wrath, The
Great Outdoors, The
Green Keeping
Grifters, The
Grosse Pointe Blank
Groundhog Day
Guiltrip
Hand-picked by Billy
Happy Gilmore
Harry Enfield’s Television Programme: Series 2 Pt. 2
Hear My Song
Henry & June
Henry & June
Henry V (1989)
Henry V (1989)
High Noon
High Noon
Higher Learning
Hoop Dreams
Hudsucker Proxy, The
Human Animal, The
I Was Monty’s Double
I.D.
Idiot Box
In The Soup
Independence Day
Interview, The
Italian Job, The (1969)
Jackie Brown
January Man, The
Jennifer 8
Journey To The Center Of The Earth (1959)
Jungle Fever
Jurassic Park
Kalifornia
Kids In The Hall, Vol. 2
Killer (LaPaglia)
Killing Dad
King Of New York, The
Kingpin
Kiss Me Deadly (NTSC)
Last Exit To Brooklyn
Last Man Standing
Last Of The Mohicans, The
Leading Man, The
League Of Gentlemen, The: Series 1
Leaving Las Vegas
Life And Death Of Colonel Blimp, The
Life Is Cheap, But Toilet Paper Is Expensive
Little Caesar
Living In Oblivion
Lost In Yonkers
Love Serenade
Mad Dog And Glory
Man Bites Dog
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein
Meaning Of Life, The
Mighty Aphrodite
Mission Galactica: The Cylon Attack
Monty Python & The Holy Grail
Monty Python’s Flying Circus (Tape #2)
Monty Python’s Flying Circus (Tape #3)
Mountains Of The Moon
Mr. Saturday Night
Much Ado About Nothing
Mute Witness
My Blue Heaven
Naked
Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult
Naked Gun, The
New York Stories
Omega Man, The
Once Upon A Time In The West
One False Move
Out Of Sight
Pat Garrett & Billy The Kid
PCU
Perfect World, A
Pink Floyd: The Wall
Poor Cow
Prayer For The Dying, A
Professional, The
Proof
Pulp Fiction
Pulp Fiction (Collector Edition)
Quick And The Dead, The
Rambling Rose
Razor’s Edge, The
Red Dragon: The Curse Of Hannibal Lecter
Reluctant Hitman, The (Cold Blooded)
Reservoir Dogs
Revenge Of The Nerds III: The Next Generation
Richard III (Loncraine)
Rio Bravo
Robin Williams Live
Robocop 2
Rocky Horror Picture Show, The
Rowan Atkinson Live
Salvador
Saturday Night Fever (PG cut)
Say Anything
Scandal
Scent Of A Woman
Schindler’s List
School Daze
Searchers, The
Secret Policeman’s Third Ball, The
Secret Policeman’s Third Ball, The
Seven
Shadowlands
Shakes The Clown
Shawshank Redemption, The
Shine
Silence Of The Lambs (no cover)
Six Degrees Of Separation
Smith & Jones
SNL: The Best Of John Belushi
SNL: The Best Of Steve Martin
So, I Married An Axe Murdferer
Sonatine
Spanish Prisoner, The
Spike Milligan: One Man And His Ideas
Spotswood
Stand And Deliver
Steve Coogan Live ‘n’ Lewd
Steve Martin Live (Wild & Crazy Guy)
Straw Dogs (Peckinpah)
Sum Of Us, The
Suture
Swimming With Sharks
Tall Guy, The
Terms Of Endearment
John Belushi, The Best Of (WB release)
Q, The Best Of
Castle, The
Comic Strip Presents, The: The Bullshitters / The Yob
Comic Strip Presents, The: Bad News / More Bad News
Day Today, The: Vol 1 & 2
Ice Storm, The
Thin Blue Line, The (1988)
Usual Suspects, The
The Van / The Money (set)
Things To Do In Denver When You’re Dead
This Is Spinal Tap
Three Colours: White
Time Bandits
Treasure Of The Sierra Madre
Truth About Cats And Dogs, The
Twin Peaks: Episodes 27-29
Twin Town
U-571
Under Siege
Underneath, The
Unknown Marx Brothers, The
Very Brady Sequel, A
Violent Cop
War Of The Worlds, The (1953)
We’re No Angels
West Side Story
White Heat
Whoops! Apocalypse
Wild At Heart
Wild Bunch, The
Wim Wenders: Wings Of Desire / Faraway, So Close!
Wind In The Willows: Masquerade
Wind In The Willows: Spring Follies
Wind In The Willows: Winter Tales
Wind In The Willows: Winter Tales
Witches Of Eastwick, The
Withnail And I
Yellow Earth
Young Americans, The
Zed And Two Noughts, A
Zulu (photocopied cover)
The following have only blockbuster 'take home' covers:
*Before Sunrise
*Brady Bunch, The
*Coming Home
*Flirting With Disaster
*Hard Target
*JFK
*Little Big Man
*Lorenzo’s Oil
*MacBeth (1979, Ian McKellan)
*My Left Foot
*Naked Gun 2 ½, The
*Naked Lunch, The
*Nixon
*Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead
*Saturday Night Fever (PG cut)
*Scent Of A Woman
*Secrets And Lies
*Short Cuts
*Sirens
*Third Man, The
---END OF LIST---
]]>
THE COMMUTER is released January 18 in Australia, NZ and the US, and January 19 in the UK.
]]>
BATTLE OF THE SEXES is released September 22nd in the US, September 28 in Australia and NZ, and November 24 in the UK.
]]>
THIS
REVIEW CONTAINS VERY MINOR SPOILERS
James Cameron’s gargantuan sequel blazed so
many trails and set so many records on its release, it still requires virtually no introduction 26 years(!) later. Little surprise then
that it’s been tuned up and turned out for the 3D treatment.
As with virtually everything Cameron puts
his stamp on though, this is no mere gimmick. Anyone who remembers the film in
any detail would consider that between its shooting style and the VFX technology
of its time, T2 lends itself very kindly to stereoscope: looking through the
hole in the head of Robert Patrick’s T-1000 at the characters who put the hole
there; the truck crashing towards us through a bridge barrier, down into a
storm drain; the T-1000 walking through
a set of iron bars.
What’s surprising is the gentleness of the
effect overall. As with TITANIC’s similar treatment a few years back, this is a
very subtle remix – the objective (like the wise application of all visual
effects) seems to be if not complete invisibility, at least to remain mostly
unnoticed.
Elsewhere, there’s a few touch ups to the
film itself – a hitherto notoriously visible stunt-double has been surrendered
to CG mapping of Schwarzenegger’s face (although now I think of it, was this done for the IMAX re-release a few years back?), and doubtless the eagle-eyed will find
some others upon future viewings. The print, despite now being a digital
release, retains its pleasing celluloid grain, and the soundtrack (played at
thunderous volume in my session) keeps a trebly ‘90s mix.
The film’s original tiny irritations will
forever remain (Cameron’s tin-ear for anything but the hammiest of dialogue,
poor Edward Furlong’s maddeningly breaking voice), but they’re really not worth
mentioning against the generation-defining achievement that is EVERYTHING ELSE
about the film. If you’ve never seen T2 on the big screen before, now’s your chance. And if you have, you know you're going again.
T2:
3D is released August 24 in Australia (seven day limited run), from August 25 in the US and August 29 in the UK.
THE TRIP TO SPAIN is released August 3 in Australia, August 11 in the US and August 17 in NZ.
MONSIEUR CHOCOLAT is released June 29 in Australia and NZ.
But while only a few of the giants really
delivered, the year was peppered with
great things in small packages, which has produced two notable results: 1) it’s
been really hard to cull my list to ten favourites this year - so many of my listed honourable mentions could easily have had a spot on the final list. 2) This phenomenon has made everyone else’s lists really diverse, which is far more interesting.
As ever, there’s a long list of films that
either I didn’t see, or which weren't (legally) released in this part of the world prior to Dec 31. Obviously there’s dozens of these, but off the top of my head, among
some of the most popular and oft written about are:
WEINER DOG
AMERICAN HONEY
MILES AHEAD
OTHER PEOPLE
HELLO, MY NAME IS DORIS
A MONSTER CALLS
DON'T BREATHE
CHRISTINE
MANCHESTER BY THE SEA
THE WAVE
KUBO & THE TWO STRINGS
SWISS ARMY MAN
ELLE
PETE'S DRAGON
TRAIN TO BUSAN
TONI ERDMANN
THE GREASY STRANGLER
CAPTAIN FANTASTIC
HIGH RISE
THE EDGE OF SEVENTEEN
MIDNIGHT SPECIAL
MOONLIGHT
DEEPWATER HORIZON
HACKSAW RIDGE
RED DOG: TRUE BLUE
PASSENGERS
Moving onto those which could quite easily have made my final list on a different day, it's (VERY) HONOURABLE MENTIONS:
GREEN ROOM
BAD NEIGHBOURS: SORORITY RISING
POPSTAR: NEVER STOP NEVER STOPPING
SPOTLIGHT
I, DANIEL BLAKE
CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR
MOANA
SING STREET
WEINER
DEADPOOL
SHERPA
HELL OR HIGH WATER
ROGUE ONE
THE WITCH
Which leaves the final list. The big enchiladas (mmm, enchiladas); my FAVOURITES FOR 2016:
ARRIVAL
BONE TOMAHAWK
EVERYBODY WANTS SOME!!
THE LADY IN THE VAN
THE HATEFUL EIGHT
13TH / HYPERNORMALISATION
GOLDSTONE
EYE IN THE SKY
45 YEARS
HUNT FOR THE WILDERPEOPLE
The second(?) song - the one where Stone's Mia and her friends are getting ready to go out to a party doesn't fare much better, and everything begins to feel a bit like it's trying too hard, but things pick up thereafter, and the moment the comedy elements really get going, pace and structure perk right up and it never looks back.
Finally, a huge technical concern: focus. It feels like a good 20% of the film isn't sharp, and I'm not just talking about all of the complex tracking shots in the musical numbers. This includes simple, static close-ups, and it drove me to distraction. I've since heard from a friend that this is due to the film being shot in Cinemascope (which on the other hand is for me one of LA LA LAND's big pluses), which is an incredibly difficult format for a focus puller to work with. But if the eyes aren't sharp, why take the risk? Was THE HATEFUL EIGHT using the only old school focus puller in town?
So the colours are nice, and the central performances are fine, but let's not kid ourselves: the bars set by the great Hollywood musicals - both in front and behind the camera - aren't in any danger of being toppled by Chazelle's creation. It's a nice enough way to pass a couple of hours, but there's not enough here for me to believe LA LA LAND is the masterwork everyone's making it out to be.
LA LA LAND is in cinemas now in Australia, New Zealand and the US, and is released January 12 in the UK.
Pitt is sorely miscast here, in a role that plays to none of his strengths; he's aiming for a George Smiley-esque unreadable introvert, but too often comes across as wondering if he's left the iron on. Which leaves the heavy lifting to Cotillard, who is thankfully wholly able to carry any scene she appears in - but even she can only do so much in a plodding storyline which is only occasionally punctuated by any intrigue or excitement.
Zemeckis, master craftsman that he is, seems to be going through the motions, more interested in the period details that the story's romantic core. Is it Steven Knight's script? Possibly, although all of the ingredients are seemingly there. It's just simply be that no-one except Cottilard is on their A-game. Consequently an early set piece made of pure Hitchcock is a highlight, but beyond that everything - including what ought to be a bit of third act derring-do - feels a bit flat and pedestrian. It looks the part, but lacks heart - which, as you can imagine for a romantic thriller, is a bit of a problem.
ALLIED is released November 23 in the US, November 25 in the UK and December 26 in Australia and NZ.
]]>
BAD SANTA 2 is released November 23 in the US and UK, and November 24 in Australia and NZ.
]]>
FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM is released November 17 in Australia and New Zealand, and November 18 in the US and UK
LOVE & FRIENDSHIP is released May 27 in the UK, June 3 in the US, and July 21 in Australia.
]]>
We’re halfway through 2016, but let’s just
call it: you’re not going to see a better Australian film this year than Ivan
Sen’s massively entertaining contemporary Australian Western, GOLDSTONE.
Aaron Pedersen returns as detective Jay
Swan, and the intervening years since 2013’s MYSTERY ROAD haven’t been kind to him.
He’s been sent to the titular, deeply isolated outback mining community (to call it a
town would be overstating the case) to investigate the
disappearance of a Chinese migrant, but soon finds more.
Almost immediately, he’s locking horns with
Josh (Alex Russell), Goldstone’s local cop with problems of his own – the kind
that get slid across desks in brown paper bags. Doing the sliding is Johnny
(David Wenham), head honcho of the all-powerful mining operation, who needs
some obstacles in the form of Aboriginal land rights (represented by David
Gulpillil’s Jimmy, and Tommy Lewis as the head of the local indigenous land
council) worked around – at any price, and he’s already got the whole-hearted
support of Jacki Weaver’s local mayor Maureen (although exactly what she’s
mayor of is anyone’s guess).
What makes it all so unnerving though, as Jay's and Josh's cases begin to inevitably coincide, is the palpable sense of isolation. This sequel's setting makes even MYSTERY ROAD’s township seem like a
bustling metropolis – and it’s this which only strengthens GOLDSTONE’s ties to
the Western. It may be the 21st century, but out here it’s still
very much ‘anything goes’. There’s rule of law in theory, but if anything bad goes down, the cavalry's not getting here any time soon. More than that, private security forces have total
sovereignty over their borders; the power of life and death over
anyone who trespasses.
Writer/director/cinematographer/editor/composer
Sen is at the top of his game here, barely putting a foot wrong in any of those
key roles. GOLDSTONE carries over certain thematic shots central to MYSTERY ROAD's exceptional look (vast exteriors and God's eye view) and expands on them - the neon-soaked interiors are strikingly beautiful in their own right. His minimalist,
atmospheric score is beautiful, and once again he finds a new and interesting way to film a shootout. His screenplay taps into a myriad of ugly undercurrents
bubbling just beneath the surface of Australian culture (contemporary and
historical), and it’s this area more than any other that GOLDSTONE outshines
its predecessor. The conflicts extend beyond the obvious – white on black, black
on black, white on white – and for the most part, they’re played out with
delicious, noirish hints and allegories. As Jimmy sagely points out, “everyone
who comes here ends up worshipping the same god.”
It’s not quite perfect – at least one minor
character feels underused, while there’s occasionally too much(!) subtext beneath the interactions of main players, so that the superficialities of the scene feel unnatural/unbelievable. The most obvious minor oversight is in failing to sufficiently
reign in Wenham’s penchant for over-egging his characters (in this case his
VERY LOUD costume)*, but these are very minor misgivings against a very long list of achievements.
A supremely confident film from a filmmaker who has hit full stride, we rarely get half
of what is served up in GOLDSTONE; to see it all wrapped so elegantly
in such thrilling and engrossing genre entertainment is a mighty gift. Gripping from the first frame, this
isn’t just Australia’s finest film of 2016, it's one of Australia's finest films.
* In fairness, I initially had similar feelings about Hugo Weaving’s character in MYSTERY ROAD which on repeat viewings I no longer have a problem with.
GOLDSTONE is released July 7 in Australia.
]]>
Writer/director/"third Conchord" Taika Waititi returns to the fertile comic territory ploughed so effectively by BOY and WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS for this all ages adventure comedy, adapted from the legendary Kiwi author Barry Crump's novel. That territory is gang/gangsta life, and Waititi just can't stop laughing at the inherent absurdities of everything about it, especially when it's being emulated and idolised by the confused men of semi-rural New Zealand.
As she drops the thoroughly hip hop-outfitted Ricky Baker (Julian Dennison) off at his new home on a remote farm, child services officer Paula (Rachel House) informs fresh foster parent Bella (Rima Te Waita) that the 13 year old is "a real bad egg." She then goes on to list Ricky's dangerous qualities: "graffitiing, littering, smashing stuff, burning stuff, breaking stuff, stealing stuff, throwing rocks and running away." Clearly public enemy number one. Nevertheless, Bella is delighted to have him, even if her loner husband Hec (Sam Neill) isn't keen on company of any kind.
Soon enough though, a strange series of events will have the two males on the run together, hiding out in thousands of hectares of mountainous terrain, pursued by the relentless, petty Paula and a lot of cops. At first they're a bewilderment to one another, united by a common language but culturally poles apart, but of course the relationship warms, despite injuries, hunger, and the odd wild animal attack.
Once again, Waititi makes his gift for comedy seem effortless. As the chase escalates, the laughs continue to land often and accurately, mostly at the expense of Ricky's insistence that he is destined for the 'skux life.' His biggest win though, comes in finding a kid who can carry the film, and in that respect Dennison is a revelation, even when he's getting typically strong support from Neill, Rhys Darby as a nutty hermit, and even Waititi himself.
Though they feel similar, WILDERPEOPLE is a zanier film than BOY, and with its vaguely '80s retro vibe (though it's set in the present), all the better for it. Not all of the choices work, and it feels just a fraction overlong (breaking the narrative into chapters doesn't help), but otherwise it's a hundred or so of the more joyous and hilarious minutes you'll spend in a cinema this year. And no, you're not going to be able to get the birthday song out of your head for days.
HUNT FOR THE WILDERPEOPLE is released March 31 in NZ, May 26 in Australia, June 24 in the US and September 16 in the UK.
Despite the obvious unfortunate timing for
a film set in Paris involving terrorism, James Watkins’ BASTILLE DAY seems like an
exciting proposition on paper. Watkins has enjoyed a reputation for making the
most out of his projects – both EDEN LAKE and THE WOMAN IN BLACK were pleasant
genre surprises full of smart choices, so this modestly budgeted Bourne-a-like
could easily have been expected to follow suit.
Sadly that’s turned out not to be the case,
and even the mighty shoulders of Idris Elba can’t prop up a too-daft,
heard-it-all-before script. Richard Madden’s down on his luck pickpocket
catches the attention of Elba’s CIA agent when the thief steals the wrong bag,
which contains a bomb that was supposed to be planted in the offices of a right
wing political party by an unwilling novice extremist (Charlotte LeBon), who
lost her bottle when she discovered innocent cleaners were still in the
building. The blast instead occurs in public, creating carnage and chaos for
all sides.
It’s a promising start, but despite a pacey
running time, BASTILLE DAY gradually dissolves into inanity. Watkins shares
writing credit with Andrew Baldwin (who clearly wrote this as an audition piece
for his forthcoming Jeremy Renner Bourne spinoff sequel), but it lacks any of
the ingenuity of Watkins’ earlier screenplays; his main achievements here are as
director, where he does at least manage to notch up some impressive set pieces
(bringing a few new tricks to the ‘rooftop chase’ and ‘fight in the back of a
moving vehicle’ staples), even if film’s connective tissue remains lacking.
Elba acquits himself perfectly well, even
though he’s way above the material here, and doesn’t really need to prove his
action credentials (maybe the promise of allowing him to sing the theme song
over the end credits was the appeal?), but he’s hindered by a wooden Madden,
who just can’t bring any energy to what should be a supremely charismatic character.
Le Bon is fine, while Kelly Reilly dutifully fulfills a thankless expositional
role.
It’s tight, it’s punchy, and it doesn’t
drag on – if BASTILLE DAY could just have been smarter, we could have been
looking at a minor classic, but it is lacking less than je ne sais quoi.
BASTILLE DAY is released April 22 in the UK, and May 12 in Australia and NZ.
]]>
(THE BROTHERS) GRIMSBY is released February 24 in the UK, March 10 in Australia and NZ, and March 11 in the US
]]>