Wednesday 5 May 2010

Review: Cemetery Junction

I didn’t grow up in a cold, grey, wet council estate in inner city Manchester in the 80s dreaming of escape. In the world of my imagination, I in fact grew up in a small town in America, in the 70s, far cooler than I actually was, driving round in a souped-up car, smoking Lucky Strikes, pulling girls who wore flares and listening to Led Zeppelin. And so it is for so many of us here in Britain. The world of our youthful imaginations find affinity in the depictions of Americana’s finest coming of age movies, be it the small town of Richard Linklaters’ Dazed and Confused, the rebellious New York nightlife of Saturday Night Fever, the angry, misunderstood cool of James Dean in Rebel Without A Cause, or the mourning of lost childhood innocence and freedom in 80s flick Diner. And of course, the are the high school movies of John Hughes, classics like Ferris Beuller Day Off, the Breakfast Club and Pretty In Pink. Nowadays, there’s Judd Apatow, of course. I could go on, but you get the idea....

We don’t do that here. Youthful rebellion, escapism, struggling to hold onto one’s dreams in the face of a cruel, uncaring world have always been depicted in grim, tragic terms, the “kitchen sink” dramas of the 60s, like Saturday Night, Sunday Morning (think Shameless without the comedy and sense of fun), or, more recently, Shane Meadows’ This Is England. For Americans, growing up can feel good, but on this side of the Atlantic, does growing up always have to be grim?

For the makers of Cemetery Junction, Ricky Gervais and his lanky cohort Stephen Merchant, the film came out of a sense that we could compete on an equal footing with the Americans. Thankfully, the results are beautiful, and joyous. The story revolves around three friends, first of all, Freddie Taylor (Christian Cooke), a handsome, sincere young man whose life is changing as he starts a new job working in door to door life insurance sales, after escaping from the factory his dad (Gervais) works in. Then there’s his friend, good looking bad boy Bruce Pearson (Tom Hughes), an angry young man who is popular with the ladies, quick with his fists, and likes a drink, not unlike his alcoholic father, with whom he often clashes. Finally, there’s Snork (Jack Doolan), the loveable loser of the bunch, who is a big miss with the ladies, and provides a lot of the comedy with his efforts.

While they go out, chasing girls, and getting into fights, their lives are changing, as Freddie realises he needs to leave the larking about and “grow up”, taking his new job seriously if he’s to have any chance of escaping his humble working class background. Things take a turn for the unexpected when it turns out the bosses daughter is none other than his childhood sweetheart, Julie, who is engaged to his new mentor at work, Regional Manager Matthew Goode, an evil misogynist who prays on the fears of the people he sells life insurance to.

As for Julie, she’s trapped in the backwards sexist attitudes of the time, given the old-fashioned values of her parents and husband to be, so when she shares her dreams of seeing the world with Freddie, sparks fly for both of them, and Freddie realises he needs to leave Reading to follow his dreams, rather than spend 40 years in a job he despises.

While the couple provide the romance of the piece, it’s Bruce that provides the heart, as his carefree demeanour hides a great deal of anger. While he spends his days working the factory, outside work his childish antics often take a turn for the worse. He constantly clashes with the local police, regularly ending up in the cells, while constantly taking his anger out on his father, all because he did not standing up to the man who his mother had an affair with.

Bruce dreams of leaving his dead-end life, but never does anything about it until Freddie says he’s had enough. Meanwhile Snork, dreaming of meeting foreign girls who won’t understand his terrible chat up lines, and leaving his job at the local railway station, Cemetery Junction, agrees. But will they, or won’t they find the courage to leave their small town lives behind?

While Cemetery Junction provides these likeable, familiar characters, who we care about, and a plot that feels familiar, there no major surprises or upsets, it’s the experience that makes it worth watching. In the end, Cemetery Junction is like those train journeys on sunny days you experienced as a child. Nothing unexpected or bad happens, the sights are nice, and it leaving you with a warm, good feeling inside. And given that, in Britain, the feelgood movies we do have usually involve the affluent, upper middle class world inhabited by characters played by bumbling toffs like Hugh Grant, to see the lives and dreams of ordinary people celebrated in a joyous, glorious manner, is very refreshing indeed. 



Hack Rating: 4/5

Monday 8 March 2010

Liveblogging :The Oscars, 2010!

Hi People,

It's only the early hours of Monday March 8th here in England, and I may lose interest in this bullshit, but I'm going to do a bit of Oscars coverage.

00.42 GMT: The cunts covering this on E!Online are totally gaying out, and banging on about dresses, styles, and that sort of stuff.

00.44 Ryan Seacrest is talking to some bird from Ugly Betty, who is helping to present. He's dropping a huge, clunking hint that somebody who appears at a lot of awards ceremonies, including one this year, might be making an appearance. My gut instinct says RICKY GERVAIS.

00.47 US TV is on ad breaks. They keep showing adverts highlighting the tragedy of cervical cancer experienced by women, and advising that people go and see their doctor. What about the 40 million people in the US who don't have medical care cos they can't afford it?

00.48 We're back to the gayfest.Ugly Betty woman and her camp friend are complementing Meryl Streep on her dress. Sanity, in the form of Gerard Butler, prevails as the action switches to Seacrest interviewing him. Butler is explaining what a "moonie" (showing your arse) is to Seacrest.

00.50 Now it's turn for Jason Bateman. I'm off for a piss.


00.52 Finally he's interviewing someone decent. The Dude.

00.54 It's all too fleeting, and we're back with the cretin twins. They have some phone in result, suggesting George Clooney will win over Jeff Bridges for best actor. Having seen Clooney's performance in Up In The Air, I say, furry muff.

00.59 Cameron Diaz is on.  Looking incredible, but she's more than just crumpet, fair play to her. Doing a cheezy skit about the Hollywood extended family of beautiful people, mind.

01.02. Switching now from the celebrity cuntfest on the red carpet stream, to the actual ceremony inside. Hopefully better returns.

01.04 Montage time. Following Sky movies coverage, with Claudia Winkleman. Man, she is hot.

01.05. I am being spoiled. She is joined by comedian / intellectual David Baddiel (not as shit as he is often depicted to be), Ronnie Ancona (just incredibly beautiful, and well spoken, and stuff), and some other cunt I don't know or care about.  Oh no, actually, he does some movie stuff on British telly. He's half decent.

01.07 A VT tonight's Oscars are to be presented by Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin. Both fairly decent blokes.

01.13.The panel are discussing the politics of Avatar vs Hurt Locker, and A Serious Man, etc.

01.15 Another VT, more analysis. Jeff Bridges for best male? My take, the Oscars are so out of touch, it takes them years to get round to recognising people. Jeff should have won for the Big Lebowski, so I think he'll get it now, fucking years later. The Travesty that was Mickey Rourke not getting it last year is mentioned.

1.22 I'm off for a piss again. Angela Griffin is looking hot and is on telly. She is "so in love" with Sarah Jessica Parker. I'd like to see that. Off for a piss. Again.

1.28. Ronnie Ancona does a great impression of a generic young female actress accepting an award in a histrionic style. Everyone around her responds with complete indifference and just moves on. Bloody fools.

1.30. Finally. That annoying, trashy no-business-like-show-business musak. It's showtime, ladies and gennelmen!

1.33 A fucking Song and dance musical theatre number with Doogie Houser MD.  Fucksake.

1.35 End of the dance. The Double Act begins. They introduce each other.

 1.36. Apparently 6,000 members of the Academy are polled for the awards. The duo seemed to be putting on their best Anglicised accents. Why is that?

1.42 The duo introduce most of the main contenders with a series of lame insults. The manage to set up the Cameron vs Bigelow battle, amongst other things. Alec Baldwin keeps putting on a faux English accent, for no good reason. A stream of lame gags, taking in the usual suspects. None of them particularly funny, and all within the accepted Hollywood conventions and parameters.Where is Ricky Gervais when you need him?

1.46. I saw Invictus recently and I can hardly remember it. They're showing the VT. I like Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon, and Nelson Mandela for that matter but it was just not very good. Christopher Plumber is up there at the ripe old age of 80. I like that dude. Give it to him. Actually. I want Christopher Waltz to get it. He must. He will.

1.49 He Does. Surprise.He is incredibly kind and verbose as he thanks everyone else who was in Inglorious Basterds. Then off, according to this new rule limiting time. Fact is, he carried pretty much everyone in that movie, including Quentin Tarantino.

1.54. We're back with the Oscar panel here in England. I've just noticed this bunch are wearing tuxedos and dresses. I guess these award ceremonies bring out the social climbing, try-hards in everybody.

1.56. Steve Carrell, and Cameron Diaz present Animated films, I think. Diaz loses her way with the teleprompter. I shall skip the blonde jokes, as I think Diaz is pretty intelligent, and hell, who wouldn't be a bit flabbergasted by Oscar nite?

1.58. Shit VT with lots of animated pricks going on about being nominated for an Oscar.

1.59. I've seen fuck all of this, movie wise. Up wins. Fair play.There's something vaguely indie movie and alternative and rebellious about this category and the dude and the movie that won it. More of that, please.

2.01. Myley Cyrus is soooo hot. Jailbait.

2.05 It's good to see a VT of District 9, and to see Incvictus nominated, and Christoph Waltz win. Course, Slumdog sweeped the boards last year. It's good to see Oscars reaching out into the world, and go beyond the confines of the US, it makes them more relevant, I feel.

2.13 Vaguely mistifying fake Anglo accent from Baldwin, then the yummy Tina Fey comes on with Robert Downey. I refuse to call him Junior. There's just no need for it, frankly.

2.14. It strikes me as I see Brad Pitt's role in Inglorgious Basterds briefly in the VT for nominees that the horror of the violence-hungry character he plays is probably lost on US Audiences. Mark Boal wins for his script of The Hurt Locker. this was the only movie that escapes any moral evaluation of the US presence in Iraq made by Hollywood, and it is a huge critical success. What does that tell you?

2.18 Molly Ringwald and Matthew Broderick introduce and give their take on a memorial to John Hughes. Amen.

2.20. He captured the pain,the anger, the confusion, and the wonder of being young so beautifully. Probably better than anyone before or since. What a waste. Incredible VT.

2.23 Some of his most famous actors get on stage to thank him. MacCaulay Culkin has me breaking up, as he pauses. Wow.

2.24. Samuel L Jackson presents a VT. Maaaayn.. I need me a taaaasty Buuurger.

2.36 Some poor fucker is getting his 45 seconds of fame hijacked.

2.40 Ben Stiller is totally weirding me and everyone else out with his makeup as a Nav'i, with some dialect to match. completely WEIRD.

2.42. Star Trek wins for Makeup and stuff. Who 'king cares.

I am getting the feeling I'm on to diminishing returns. Plus, I've run out of booze. That's it for now.

Saturday 6 February 2010

Should the Brightest Female Star in the Hollywood Sky really be 19?

Emma Watson, star of the Harry Potter movie franchise was yesterday named the highest paid female star in Hollywood, making £20 million including endorsements and advertising. The figure puts her above seasoned such as Angelina Jolie and  Sarah Jessica Parker.

She came 14th in the Vanity Fair list of Tinseltown's highest earners.For me, looking at the list provides a shocking insight into the priorities of the film industry. Looking at the top 5 male earners, it includes Michael Bay ($125 million), and Steven Spielberg ($85 million), and is entirely comprised of producers and directors, men with gray hair, beards and paunches. The top 10 women in the list are incredibly beautiful, all actresses, all have fashion endorsments, and all make a fraction of what the men earn. While I wish the best of luck to the lovely Watson, I cant help but think her star will fade with age, and that is terribly, terribly sad.

If It's a sign of any kind of progress, the fact that Kathryn Bigalow has gained an Oscar nomination for her work as Director on The Hurt Locker, since the it appears the big money is behind the camera, shows that things are changing, albeit painfully slowly, in Tinseltown. Her nomination makes her only the fourth woman in history to gain this accolade, while she won the 2009 Directors' Guild of America's award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures, the first woman to win this prize, a further sign of progress. Here's to hoping that Hollywood goes further down the path of enlightenment sooner rather than later.

Vanity Fairs Top Male Earners in 2009:
1. Michael Bay, producer-director ($125 million)
2. Steven Spielberg, producer-director ($85 million)
3. Roland Emmerich, producer-director ($70 million)
4. James Cameron, producer-director ($50 million)
5. Todd Phillips, director ($44 million)
6. Daniel Radcliffe, actor ($41 million)
7. Ben Stiller, actor ($40 million)
8. Tom Hanks, actor ($36 million)
9. J. J. Abrams, producer-director ($36 million)
10. Jerry Bruckheimer, producer ($35.5 million)

Vanity Fair's Top Female Earners in 2009:
1. Emma Watson, actress ($30million)
2. Cameron Diaz, actress ($27million)
3. Sarah Jessica Parker, actress ($24million)
4. Katherine Heigl, actress ($24million)
5. Reese Witherspoon, actress ($21million)
6. Angelina Jolie, actress ($21million)
7. Jennifer Aniston, actress ($20million)
8. Sandra Bullock, actress ($20million)
9. Kristen Stewart , actress ($16million)

Thursday 4 February 2010

Best Movies Of The Noughties Pt. 1: Films 1 to 25

So, with a new decade stretching before us, and a host of end of decade polls, I figured I'd add my own 2 cents on the subject. After scooting around, and reading various lists of the best films of the noughties (rubbish word for the decade, but it's all we have), I noticed a few glaring omissions.


The Times published a very popular list, which ranks highest in the google search. No 24 Hour Party People? No Igby Goes Down? Ahem. Ok, the latter is my a person fav of mine rather than a general classic, but a British list should surely include a film which documents the most important musical and cultural movement of the past 30 years in the post war UK.


Anyway, this is my list of the best movies from the past decade, and in it I have tried to balance what I think are objectively the best movies, while adding a few of my own personal favourites, and including some of the incredible contributions of world cinema, the likes of City Of God, and Infernal Affairs (though to be honest, I'm still learning and discovering the wonders that foreign language films have to offer, and consider myself an ignoramus on the subject, despite knowing a bit). Bear in mind, this is IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER, and please feel free to let me know what you think, what I've missed and what I've clearly over-rated! Thanks guys...


1. The Departed: Scorsese directs, and an ensemble cast of amazing actors compete for his affections in a brilliant remake of the original Jap flick 'Infernal Affairs'. The result finally got the veteran moviemaker his first Oscar, after 3 decades of trying. Watch out for a prequel in the pipeline.


2. Training Day: Denzel Washington gives an Oscar-winning performance as corrupt LAPD narcotics detective Alonso, uttering the immortal lines "King kong ain't got shit on me", and, my person favourite, "this shit ain't checkers, it's chess". With a man shouting lines this good, it's surely a Scarface for the 21st century?


3. The Beach. Essentially flawed, but I couldn't help fall in love with this movie, as it captured a beautiful moment in the early noughties, when lots of young western people were discovering the wonders of South East Asia, and trying to capture a dream. I was one of them, so it meant something to me...


4. The Wrestler: It came late on, but Mickey Rourke's career-reviving portrayal of a washed-up wrestler was both tragic and moving, with excellent supporting performances including Marissa Tomei as an ageing lap dancer with a heart. It was robbed at the Oscars.


5. Avatar: Not much needs to be said about this billion dollar epic, which came right at the tail end of the decade, and will probably go onto define Hollywood aesthetics and special effects for some time to come, in the way that the first Matrix movie did a decade earlier. 


6. LOTR Trilogy: Another special effects extravaganza, Peter Jackson's epic retelling of the J.R. Tolkien classic combined wonderful storytelling with compelling performances, and, erm, a little fella called Gollum. you'll never look at New Zealand the same way again.


7. Amores Perros. 3 cleverly intertwined stories taking place in Mexico city, exploring the manifold ways that love is indeed a bitch, and including a wonderful performance by a young Gabriel Garcia Bernal. 


8. Igby Goes Down. A personal favourite of mine, Kieran Culkin, Macaulay's brother, in a brilliantly caustic social satire on the East coast upper classes, it has quite a resemblance to Catcher In The Rye, and a brilliant soundtrack. A cult classic of the decade, and one that it bound to be revived in the years to come.


9. In the Loop. Last year's first cinematic effort by Armando Iannucci and the team behind BBC's The Thick Of It. This has to have an award invented especially for it, for Best Swearing In A Movie Ever.







10. Bowling For Columbine. The noughties was surely the decade of the documentary, and Michael Moore's contributions were exceptional. Never less than highly polemical and partial, they drew criticism and praise in equal measure, but you could never doubt his sincerity.







11. There Will Be Blood. Young director Paul Thomas Anderson produced one of the greatest movies of the late 20th century when he made Magnolia, for me, and so it was always going to be a difficult job to top that achievement, but he managed it with this critique of American capitalism in the Wild West goldrush of the nineteeth century, with a brilliant performance from Daniel Day Lewis, and an approval rating of 91% on Rotten Tomatoes. 


12. Pan's Labyrinth. Guillermo Del Toro produces an exquisitely beautiful, dark fairytale of a movie, which works on so many levels, telling the story of a young girl who discovers a fantastic parallel world while in desperate circumstances after the Civil War in Franco's Spain. 


13. Ratatouille. A Pixar movie about a rat who dreams of being a Parisian Chef. It sounds insane, but as a story, it's perfect, winning a near-perfect score of 96 on Metacritic. 


14. City Of God: This 2002 movie took me to a world I'd never seen before, it's gritty documentary style and gripping narrative reveals how desperate and dangerous life is in the favellas of Rio De Janeiro. Based on a 1997 book by Paolo Lins, it won several international film awards, and for me, it's one of the best films of all time.





15. The Lives Of Others: This German-language thriller about life in Cold War East Germany deservedly won the 2007 Academy Award for Best Foreign Film. Based on a true story, it tells the story of playwrights, actors and creatives living under the scrutiny of the Stasi in East Berlin. Any resemblance that Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds has to it is purely coincidental, ahem.


16. Anchorman :The Legend Of Ron Burgundy: The tale of a pusillanimous 70s TV news anchorman played by the delightfully idiotic Will Ferrell, whose world it turned upside down when the first ever female news reporter (Christina Applegate) joins the team in the macho world of News. 


17. 28 Days Later: Danny Boyle may have come to the attention of much of the world with his Oscar smash Slumdog Millionaire in 2009, but he was building a reputation well before that. This 2002 zombie / post apocalyptic movie became a sleeper hit, and was famous for it's opening scenes, which show a deserted inner city London, and it's pioneering use of digital video cameras.


18. Children Of Men: Clive Owen and Julianne Moore inhabit a London of the near future where there has been a world crisis of fertility, and the populace live in a totalitarian state, when an illegal immigrant suddenly, mysteriously becomes pregnant. This film is worth watching for the way it looks alone, with the constantly moving documentary-style camera work and rich detail of a dilapidated England of the future, as well as a mean-ass cameo from Michael Caine as a weed-growing hippie. 


19. The Dark Knight: Heath Ledger won all the plaudits for his disturbed, brilliant portrayal of The Joker in this Batman Begins sequel, but the film is so much more than that, including an interesting allegory with the War On Terror, and excellent direction from Christopher Nolan. 


20. Lost In Translation: Romantic comedies are notoriously uncool, but Sofia Coppola's dreamy story of 2 very different strangers who fall in love in Tokyo was entrancing and enchanting, and it was the film that turned Scarlett Johansson into a worldwide star.


21. Gladiator: Blade Runner director Ridley Scott revived his critical fortunes with this "swords and sandals" historical epic, which harked back to a golden age of movie making. Oh, and Russell Crowe shouts a lot and looks scary. 


22. Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kaazakhstan: Sacha Baron Cohen's comic creation Borat exposes bigotry and anti-semitism in this documentary-style comedy which was followed by a trail of lawsuits and controversy, which just added to its' huge box-office success. 


24. Casino Royale: Daniel Craig's ruthless, steel-eyed Bond swapped campness for killer instinct in this brilliant reboot of the indefatigable James Bond franchise, with a captivatingly seductive performance from Eva Green, though the follow up, the disappointing Quantum of Solace was more a coda than a movie of its' own.


25. No Country For Old Men: the Coen brothers sucked hairy balls with their comedy Burn After Reading, but more than made up for it with this cat-and-mouse chase across the desert, with cold-blooded Javier Bardem managing to be menacing, despite having a silly Emo Philips haircut.

Wednesday 3 February 2010

Oscar Nominations 2010

So, the nominations for this years' 82nd academy awards have been announced, and as usual, there are few surprises. Not much in the way of comedy, and there is a preference for worthy, preachy movies with lots of hammy acting (you know who you are The Blind Side and Precious). But the odd decent film, like Armando Iannucci's caustic political satire In The Loop has thankfully managed to sneak through. 

Reaffirming Hollywood's ability to win stuff on it's own turf after last years' big shock with Slumdog Millionaire, I predict a big sweep by James Cameron's Avatar. As previously predicted by myself, The Hurt Locker's gritty documentary style portrayal of life on the front line of bomb disposal in Iraq has won fans in the Academy, setting up a rather juicy confrontation for director Kathryn Bigelow with her former husband James Cameron. And of course, there's a big noise going for Sandra Bullocks' performance in The Blind Side. 


I'm glad to see Austrian Christoph Waltz in there for his show (and heart) stopping performance as Colonel Landa in  Inglourious Basterds, and District 9, with its' South Africa location taking it outside the usual Academy Award territory.
Here are the nominations in full, with a 'H' for my Hack bet for who will win:


Best Picture      
Avatar 'H'
The Blind Side
District 9
An Education
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
A Serious Man
Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire
Up
Up in the Air

Best Director
Kathryn Bigelow – The Hurt Locker 'H'
James Cameron – Avatar
Lee Daniels – Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire
Jason Reitman – Up in the Air
Quentin Tarantino – Inglourious Basterds 

Best Actor          
Jeff Bridges – Crazy Heart as Bad Blake
George Clooney – Up in the Air as Ryan Bingham
Colin Firth – A Single Man as George Falconer
Morgan Freeman – Invictus as Nelson Mandela
Jeremy Renner – The Hurt Locker as Sgt. William James 'H'

Best Actress
Sandra Bullock – The Blind Side as Leigh Anne Tuohy 'H'
Helen Mirren – The Last Station as Sofya Tolstoy
Carey Mulligan – An Education as Jenny Miller
Gabourey Sidibe – Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire as Clarieece "Precious" Jones
Meryl Streep – Julie & Julia as Julia Child

Best Supporting Actor  
Matt Damon РInvictus as Fran̤ois Pienaar
Woody Harrelson – The Messenger as Capt. Tony Stone
Christopher Plummer – The Last Station as Leo Tolstoy
Stanley Tucci – The Lovely Bones as George Harvey
Christoph Waltz – Inglourious Basterds as Col. Hans Landa 'H' (pictured)

Best Supporting Actress
Pen̩lope Cruz РNine as Carla Albanese
Vera Farmiga – Up in the Air as Alex Goran 'H'
Maggie Gyllenhaal – Crazy Heart as Jean Craddock
Anna Kendrick – Up in the Air as Natalie Keener
Mo'Nique – Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire as Mary Lee Johnston

Best Original Screenplay             
The Hurt Locker – Mark Boal
Inglourious Basterds – Quentin Tarantino
The Messenger – Alessandro Camon and Oren Moverman
A Serious Man – Joel Coen and Ethan Coen 'H'
Up – Tom McCarthy, Bob Peterson and Pete Docter

Best Adapted Screenplay
District 9 – Neill Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell
An Education – Nick Hornby
In the Loop – Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Ianucci and Tony Roche
Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire – Geoffrey Fletcher
Up in the Air – Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner

Best Animated Feature
Coraline – Henry Selick
Fantastic Mr. Fox – Wes Anderson
The Princess and the Frog – Ron Clements and John Musker
The Secret of Kells – Tomm Moore
Up – Pete Docter 'H' (pictured left)

Best Foreign Language Film
Ajami (Israel) in Arabic and Hebrew – Scandar Copti and Yaron Shani
El Secreto de Sus Ojos (Argentina) in Spanish РJuan Jos̩ Campanella
The Milk of Sorrow (Peru) in Spanish and Quechua – Claudia Llosa
A Prophet (France) in French, Corsican and Arabic – Jacques Audiard 'H'
The White Ribbon (Germany) in German – Michael Haneke

'Moon' Review (Dir Duncan Jones) 2009




There's nothing like a bit of old-fashioned futurism. Back in the 70s and early 80s, cinema produced a series of science fiction movies that not only excited the eyes and ears of the public, but captured their imagination, dealing with powerful, challenging issues raised by the anticipated shock of man's mastery of the physical and biological universe, environmental disaster, and the rapid advancement of technology. Whether it was Alien, Kubrick's 2001 or Ridley Scott's poetic visual masterpiece Blade Runner, moviemakers were capturing a golden (space) age of cinema. Sadly it wasn't to last.

Roll on today, to the execrable crashes and bangs of Michael Bay's Transformers, and people, or at least movie executives that call the shots, prefer pure spectacle to being challenged to ponder the big questions of mans' place in the big scheme of things. James Cameron's Avatar being the billion-dollar exception that proves the rule, of course.


Child of the 70s Duncan Jones (and son of the Man Who Fell to Earth and original space cadet, David Bowie) has created what in many ways is a love letter to that lost age of sci-fi. The action sees Sam Bell (played by Sam Rockwell, pictured), an employee of Lunar Industries alone working a 3 year contract on the far side of the moon, extracting a rare, precious mineral required for clean energy back on earth. His only company is the a robot voiced by Kevin Spacey, whos reassuring voice nannys Sam like Red Dwarf's Kryten, while at the same time appearing to manipulate him, like 2001's Hal 9000. What is he hiding?

The story begins with Sam coming to the end of his time on the moon. He is like a spacebound Robinson Crusoe, having forged a life for himself building matchstick models to entertain himself and occupy his mind, when he begins experiencing a series of visions, which raise his suspicion, causing him to investigate matters, and, well, I can't share much more without giving the story away, but suffice to say, the situation, and indeed, he himself, is not who he thinks he is.

A recurring theme of movies this type is the corrosive effect corporate greed can have, rejecting the sanctity of life for the cold comfort of the financial bottom line, and in this sense, Moon is very much reminiscent of flicks like Blade Runner, and Alien : large economic forces are at work, abusing technology at the expense of social norms, forcing people to act in ways that are contrary to their human instinct, and regardless of the cost of human life. in Blade Runner, Deckard is made to "retire" replicants despite emerging understanding that they are capable of something approaching humanity, in Aliens - corporations want to capture and use the aliens for biological warefare, as a product to be researched, harnessed, and sold, irrespective of the expense of human lives lost in the process. Here, minerals from the moon must be mined at minimum cost to the business, even if it means repeatedly (*****PLOT SPOILER HERE***) cloning the one individual trained and capable to do the job.

There's little in the way of overt "action", but Moon still manages to be completely engaging for its' entirety. The on screen interest lies not in explosions and effects, but in an incredible performance by Sam Rockwell, which must surely be worth of an Oscar nomination. He has hitherto ploughed a furrow in indie flicks (he pops up in Blow and Frost/Nixon), and the odd big budget movie (remember Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles?), but largely as an unremarkable, but excellent character actor in secondary roles. Here, he is the movie, and what he achieves is incredible. (***MORE PLOT SPOILING***) Through his exploration of the various iterations of the character of Sam Bell, he explores brilliantly the nature of the human experience, provoking existential questions. What makes us who we are? Is it our memories? Our emotions? Our relationships with other people? Or our experiences?

In conclusion then, Moon is a truly wonderful movie, and though I suspect the Oscar interest this season will go the way of movies like The Hurt Locker, Up, and Up In The Air, for me this is by far more superior to any of the obvious candidates.

Hack Rating 5/5

Sunday 31 January 2010

Best Films of 2009 : Moon (Dir. Duncan Jones)

There's nothing like a bit of old-fashioned futurism. Back in the 70s and early 80s, cinema produced a series of science fiction movies that not only excited the eyes and ears of the public, but captured their imagination, dealing with powerful, challenging issues raised by the anticipated shock of man's mastery of the physical and biological universe, environmental disaster, and the rapid advancement of technology. Whether it was Alien, Kubrick's 2001 or Ridley Scott's poetic visual masterpiece Blade Runner, moviemakers were capturing a golden (space) age of cinema. Sadly it wasn't to last.

Roll on today, to the execrable crashes and bangs of Michael Bay's Transformers, and people, or at least movie executives that call the shots, prefer pure spectacle to being challenged to ponder the big questions of mans' place in the big scheme of things. James Cameron's Avatar being the billion-dollar exception that proves the rule, of course.

Child of the 70s Duncan Jones (and son of the Man Who Fell to Earth and original space cadet, David Bowie) has created what in many ways is a love letter to that lost age of sci-fi. The action sees Sam Bell (played by Sam Rockwell, pictured), an employee of Lunar Industries alone working a 3 year contract on the far side of the moon, extracting a rare, precious mineral required for clean energy back on earth. His only company is the a robot voiced by Kevin Spacey, whos reassuring voice nannys Sam like Red Dwarf's Kryten, while at the same time appearing to manipulate him, like 2001's Hal 9000. What is he hiding?

The story begins with Sam coming to the end of his time on the moon. He is like a spacebound Robinson Crusoe, having forged a life for himself building matchstick models to entertain himself and occupy his mind, when he begins experiencing a series of visions, which raise his suspicion, causing him to investigate matters, and, well, I can't share much more without giving the story away, but suffice to say, the situation, and indeed, he himself, is not who he thinks he is.

A recurring theme of movies this type is the corrosive effect corporate greed can have, rejecting the sanctity of life for the cold comfort of the financial bottom line, and in this sense, Moon is very much reminiscent of flicks like Blade Runner, and Alien : large economic forces are at work, abusing technology at the expense of social norms, forcing people to act in ways that are contrary to their human instinct, and regardless of the cost of human life. in Blade Runner, Deckard is made to "retire" replicants despite emerging understanding that they are capable of something approaching humanity, in Aliens - corporations want to capture and use the aliens for biological warefare, as a product to be researched, harnessed, and sold, irrespective of the expense of human lives lost in the process. Here, minerals from the moon must be mined at minimum cost to the business, even if it means repeatedly (*****PLOT SPOILER HERE***) cloning the one individual trained and capable to do the job.

There's little in the way of overt "action", but Moon still manages to be completely engaging for its' entirety. The on screen interest lies not in explosions and effects, but in an incredible performance by Sam Rockwell, which must surely be worth of an Oscar nomination. He has hitherto ploughed a furrow in indie flicks (he pops up in Blow and Frost/Nixon), and the odd big budget movie (remember Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles?), but largely as an unremarkable, but excellent character actor in secondary roles. Here, he is the movie, and what he achieves is incredible. (***MORE PLOT SPOILING***) Through his exploration of the various iterations of the character of Sam Bell, he explores brilliantly the nature of the human experience, provoking existential questions. What makes us who we are? Is it our memories? Our emotions? Our relationships with other people? Or our experiences?

In conclusion then, Moon is a truly wonderful movie, and though I suspect the Oscar interest this season will go the way of movies like The Hurt Locker, Up, and Up In The Air, for me this is by far more superior to any of the obvious candidates.

Hack Rating 5/5

Sunday 17 January 2010

Best Movies of 2009

So, 2009 was a fascinating year in the movies. It ended spectacularly with Avatar, with some light relief from In the Loop there in the middle, and so much fun with Funny People. Notice I deliberated didn't mention summer turkey Transformer 2. Oh balls, I did. With my eye on the Oscars and the Golden Globes (to be presented by our very own Ricky Gervais, pictured), here's my top flicks for the last year of the noughties....

1. The Hangover: Not quite as good as it could have been but nevertheless one of the most fun movies of the year, a Vegas caper tale with lots of hi jinks thrown in.
2. In The Loop : Malcolm "shouty bloke" Tucker wonders round Whitehall tearing his hair out at Minsterial incompetence, with the bonus of a stateside cast including James Gandolfini in the run up to a fictional war somewhere in the Middle East. Lots and lots of joyous, emphatic and wonderful swearing.
3. Avatar: Special effects extravaganza from James Cameron turned out to not suck despite looking like a giant turkey in the trailer. He didn't scrimp on the script either, and the result is probably going to be the biggest grossing movie ever, beating the record he set with Titanic.
4. Funny People: Surprisingly insightful character drama described as a comedy, with a bit of satire on Hollywood thrown in, all about a hit Hollywood comedian-actor, who's life is turned upside down when he is diagnosed with cancer. No, it's not depressing, but Judd Apatow is going to have to stop going over familiar ground soon......
5. State Of Play: Classy US remake of the brilliant BBC drama minseries, turning into a movie on the grand tradition of Washington-based political conspiracy movies.
6. Taking Of Pelham 123: Somewhat underrated by reviews, this actually didn't suck, and John Travolta made a pretty good, scary baddie.
7. The Wrestler: a bravura acting performance from a broken down ol' piece of meat.
8. The Damned United: Sheen Does it again, this time with a quip-perfect Brian Clough, in movie of Dave Peaces' novel about Ol Big Ed's disasterous spell as manager of Leeds United.
9. Up In The Air: George Clooney satirises his off screen persona in this recession comedy about an executive who loves corporate loyalty cards, air miles and travellling first class more than he loves people. Quite likely to win something in this awards season....
10. Frost/Nixon: Michael Sheen plays slippery, lightweight David Frost in out of his depth, in this Ron Howard directed flick that was described as being "Rocky" for journalists, giving "Tricky Dicky" the trial he never had.
11. Moon: Brillant throwback sci-fi movie, harking back to the likes of 2001, Blade Runner, Alien, and Dark Star, directed by Duncan Jones (son of David Bowie), and with a truly incredibly performance from Sam Rockwell, who carries a whodunnit/ghost story/character drama. Totally different from anything else that came out this past year, and refreshing for it.

I also enjoyed Star Trek, The Hurt Locker, Inglourious Basterds, Gran Torino and District 9. My money's on Up In The Air, The Road, Up, and perhaps Inglourious Basterds. I'm also now realising that there's a distinct lack of foreign movies in my list, something I shall endevour to rectify this year! Anyway, best of luck, especially to Ricky Gervais with presenting the ceremony tomorrow, despite the fact that The Invention Of Lying sucked....

Saturday 2 January 2010

Best Films of 2009: The Hurt Locker (Dir. Kathryn Bigelow)

The Hurt Locker is the most recent attempt at capturing events in the current US / Allied occupation of Iraq, following the toppling of Saddam Hussein from power in 2003. Depicting war is a tricky and difficult task, always raising questions of authenticity: It takes years, sometimes decades, for an accurate appraisal of the war as a political, moral and historical event, and perhaps we're too close to events in this recent middle east altercation to really get to the truth.

What I've been hoping for, if I'm honest, in relation to this current conflict, is an angry portrayal of  it as the poorly thought-out, badly executed, and morally vacuous action it is, leading to the death of over 100,000 Iraqis. It would be good to finally see the implicating of political leaders like Bush and Blair as power-hungry Neo-Con meglomaniacs, and the true motivation being a cash bonanza for oil companies and defence contractors, the old military-industrial complex that was at fault for Vietnam, not the non-existent "weapons of mass destruction".

The Hurt Locker isn't that movie. One of last year's most critically acclaimed movies was written by freelance writer Mark Boal, who spent time emedded in an American bomb disposal squad in war-torn Iraq. The result is a mixture of action thriller and cinema verite. It follows a bomb disposal unit as they are sent out each day to diffuse bombs, praying to come back intact, and counting each minute until make it to the end of their tour of duty. When their much admired leader (a brief, excellent cameo from Guy Pearce) dies on a disposal mission, Lt James (Jeremy Renner, pictured above) is drafted in to take over as their leader and disposal expert. But James is unstable, and rather than wanting to stay alive, he's a "wildman", more intent on going for glory, and living off the heady intoxication of enemy contact, and the dangers of being blown up. His wreckless ways put him at odds with his team, and Sgt JT Sanborn (Anthony Mackie) in particular, as they put themselves at risk with each mission, coming closer and closer to death each time.

While there are stabs at putting the actions of these aggressive, macho grunts in a political context (Lt James arrives to base to discover it has changed names from Camp Liberty to Camp Victory), it is the madness of humanity in these insanity-inducing conditions that becomes the point of focus, the kind of stuff well-captured in Apocalypse Now. War is seen as a dangerous lark for boys, an exciting rush, "fun", as one soldier calls it on the one hand, but the reality of constant fear, mistrust of every foreign face, and death is never far away. It's a disturbing but exhilerating experience, and the attention to detail by Boal and Bigelow is to be applauded, as the personalities of the actors ring true as they clash, as risks are taken, tempers fray, and people die.

However, The Hurt Locker ends in an unsatisfactory manner for me, incomplete, one that would not satiate the publics' desire for a jingoistic action thriller, nor mine for a moral inventory of the conflict. Having said that, it's the most compelling, authentic portrayal of the Iraq war and its' aftermath to date, to be viewed as experiential rather than moral, and for that reason, it warrants viewing, and if predictions are to be believed, it's certainly worth watching out for at this years' Oscars.

Hack Rating: 3.5/5