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nellyd23
Reviews
Top of the Lake (2013)
disappointing
The things I liked about this series were the interesting location at the mystery of Tui's disappearance and pregnancy. It immediately brought to mind Twin Peaks. The character GJ, whom Iiked, brought a healthy dose of weirdness to the proceedings. So I hung in there to the end in order to see how the story resolved itself.
But that was about all I enjoyed. The dialogue was risible and the plot twists predictable - but the thing that disappointed me the most were the unanswered questions. Why did Peter Mullan's character talk in his native Scottish tongue? Why did he flagellate himself at his mother's grave? Why did he act so weird about his daughter's disappearance? And what was the significance of the plot of land at the top of the lake? And why did Bob think that he would get away with selling the land under Matt's nose. And who owned the land anyway? I could ask another 50 questions that were never addressed during the 7 episodes, but I won't bore you. Top of The Lake has potential, but it was lazily done and without originality.
London Boulevard (2010)
cliché ridden London crime movie
Now there is violence in the real world - and violence in movies. London Boulevard is clearly a movie written and directed by people who know about the movies, but little of the real world.
Farrell's accent is atrocious, Winstone over acts his socks off and Steven Graham & Eddie Marsan are wasted in minor roles. There is nothing in this film that is believable or compelling. I mean what or who is the character played by David Thewlis? And what is eating Knightley's character ?
Now I love a good violent B movie with no pretensions other than to entertain- my problem is with films like this that pretend to be something more than they are. And this clearly has pretensions to be some kind of Scorsese knock off - and with a $25 million budget it should be much much better than it is.
In Bruges (2008)
Being stuck in the cinema with this film was like being stranded in Bruges.
Where to start with this film? In Bruges is a strange little film, combining, as it does, comedy and violence. There is much to like about this film, but a lot more dislike. Colin Farrell is excellent as the guilt ridden hit-man Ray. Much of the dialogue with his partner Ken, played by Brendan Gleeson, is smart and funny and the premise of two hit men stranded in random place has potential. I particularly liked the economy of Ray's opening voice-over that sets the scene for the film. On reflection the things I like about this film are the things that the writer / director Martin McDonagh may have brought from his theatrical background. What I disliked about this film (SPOILER COMING) is what McDonagh does with the film's story that grows ever more preposterous and unbelievable as the movie goes on. What really starts to grate is the reliance on coincidence to drive the narrative and how the director simply brings characters together without explanation. A case in point would be Chloey's psycho boyfriend being present in a scene where Yuri, the (Russian?) gun dealer sells Harry a gun. What is the boyfriend doing here? And low and behold as the movie drifts towards its climax he appears again, quite randomly, to assist Harry in tracking down Ken with the line that goes something like, "he went that a way!" It is desperate stuff and totally unbelievable. And there are many more moments like this. Towards the end they meet Jimmy the dwarf walking to work on a film set already in costume. Jimmy is playing a school boy and so him being in costume allows another totally absurd plot twist to develop. As a film maker McDonagh should know that actors don't walk to work and they certainly don't turn up already in costume. And finally McDonagh's use of cinematic violence is particularly infuriating and rather than recommend Tarantino to McDonagh, to show how it should be done, I would tell him to see Funny Games instead. The violence that McDonagh uses to get a laugh and tell the story is movie violence. It is violence without consequence and pain, the sort that Hollywood has been peddling since day one. But then again perhaps I should have seen it coming....a movie about hit men? Thats bound to lead to gun dealer called Yuri living in a big eccentric house and a beautiful drug dealer /stick up artist living in a gorgeous apartment. Where people pick up and point guns without checking to see if they are loaded - or where you can buy a gun without actually handing over the money. This is the world of movie violence where a woman being punched in the face raises a laugh and where a hit mans first job is to kill a priest. It is totally stupid and, more unforgivably, quite boring. Mr McDonagh, Hollywood awaits.
Going Off Big Time (2000)
rubbish gangster flick
Saw this film on late night TV the other night and was entranced by
its sheer awfulness. Alas it surely must be added to the future
cult movie genre 'bad British gangster films' .
Right from the word go it was terrible, the clichés coming thick and
fast. The strippers, the snorters, the shooters ('did you bring it ?'),
the pretty blond lawyer, the flashbacks, the jail, the bully, the wise
old con, the predatory homosexual, the fights, the rise to the top,
the gay crime lord, the thick coppers........it just went on and on... It
is a crime film where the writer has been influenced by the genre
rather than any real knowledge of - or insight into -criminal
behavior. The end result is a rubbish plot and bad dialogue. The title itself
is a clue. Very poor.
The Football Factory (2004)
nick love's adaptation of the Football Factory
Forget the hype, Nick Love's adaptation of the Football Factory is a grave disappointment. As is usual with these projects, bits have been added on and/or poached from other novels in the series, presumably to add some narrative coherence to the story. This tactic dilutes the power of the novel, which put simply, is the disaffection of the English male. The film does not tackle the issue of why these men fight, in the book its crystal clear. The film is lightweight, eyecandy for those who enjoy celluloid violence and cartoon characterisations. An injustice to a thoughtful and thought provoking novel on what it means to be English and male.
On the plus side Danny Dyer is excellent as Tommy Johnson. The opening scene 'Tottenham away' is very well done but then the film runs out of ideas. Too much is introduced too quickly - the rivalry between Harris and Billy, the old men, Zebedee, Tommy's new enemies, the impending trip to Milwall - all of this is introduced to take us on a standard movie journey. But its all a great big cliché.
The greatest thing from the book - the hooligans anger at society, his behavior and language - have been watered down to make Tommy seem like a nice guy. But Tommy shouldn't be a nice guy, Tommy lives for the weekend, the chance to get p***ed, stoned, laid and the greatest rush of all, the adrenaline that comes from fighting. Thats the heart of the book, but as usual the film maker conspires to cheat us with clichés. Read the book, avoid the film.
La mort en direct (1980)
cult movie shot in Glasgow- Scotland in 1979
This film was shot in my home town, Glasgow, in 1979. Since then it has rarely been seen and indeed I only saw it myself for the first time this year. Our local arthouse cinema, the Glasgow Film Theatre, screened a one off presentation of what was alleged to be the last print in existence. Though the print itself was old and worn the film blew me away with its futuristic storyline, fantastic cast and phenomenal locations. It captures Glasgow as it was in the late 70's just before a period of great changes in the landscape of the city. Tavernier skillfully uses an environment that is full of eery imagery - graveyards, cranes and an industrial landscape that is grinding to a halt. The film also depicts a society fascinated with death. Harvey Keitel is excellent as the human camera that allows society the ultimate act of voyeurism - watching someone die on TV. Awesome. Someone, somewhere please commission