It's another close week with two movies vying for my attention for the top choice at British cinemas this weekend. In the blue corner is Tim Burton's sixth collaboration with Johnny Depp, the big screen tongue in cheek adaptation of a TV (not-quite-so) classic versus a European musical starring a bona fide legend. Not to mention the exploitation, mumblecore and arthouse fare snapping at the heels of my two top choices. In fact I'd go as far to say whilst this isn't a classic week of releases by any standard it's probably the most interesting and consistent line-up in over a month so definitely worth exploring the options available. For myself I am once again going to champion the film I won't see, showing in just 4 cinemas nationwide - the closest of which is 40 miles away - it's the Runs like a Gay film of the Week: The Beloved.
Last week Avengers Assemble held onto the top spot, slipping an impressive 49%, but surprisingly American Pie: Reunion took only 20% less which seems to indicate the superhero collective is eminently beatable this weekend, and Burton and Depp are in prime position to do this, given the general love out there for their work on both sides of the Atlantic. I expect Dark Shadows to be the number 1 film this weekend - should go and see it to help it on it's way.
The Beloved
Set partly in the late 60's and partly in the modern day - a curious trend for todays releases - this French musical stars Ludivine Sagnier and Catherine Deneuve as a shoe seller who dapples with prostitution and the romantic entanglements she gets into throughout her life.
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Read on for vampires, modern families and boobs as well as all of this weeks trailers. Go on - you know you want to take a peek.
These boots were made for walking, indeed.
Dark Shadows
Depp and Burton are clearly having a ball in part homage part fish out of water comedy that appears to revel in the poor production values of the original TV series, whilst somehow proving Burton is the most style concious director working today. Unsure of tone in the trailer I don't know how many will flock out but I do foresee a cult following of it's own in the future.
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Cafe de Flore
Jean-Marc Vallee's follow-up to the forgettable Young Victoria dissects the romantic construct of soul-mates around a modern day couple struggling in their marriage and a kids with Down's Syndrome in the 60's. Expect the two stories to intersect by the end.
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Jeff, Who lives at Home
The Duplass brothers are almost certainly the most well known graduates from the Mumblecore movement and with Jeff their virtually hitting the mainstream. Jason Segal is the titular Jeff, still living in his Mum (Susan Sarandon)'s basement and waiting for fate to lead him where to go with his life.
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Piranha 3DD
What 4 blobs for this piece of exploitation rubbish that I personally wouldn't go within 100 m of seeing? Well, yes, I realise I'm not the target audience but there are plenty of 15 year old boys who will love it, Kim Newman says it ain't bad, and the cameos include David Hasselhoff, Christopher Lloyd and Gary Busey!
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All in good Time
British comedy (based on Bill Naughton's The Family Way but with a change in the ethnicities) that exploits the obvious comedy of a pair of newlyweds living with the in-laws and how that affects the consummation (or lack thereof) of their marriage. Should please all audiences.
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Faust
Supposedly the fourth of Aleksandr Sukurov's films about powerful men turned to evil - although following Hitler, Stalin and HIrohito it's a departure because of both the fictional character and the setting of Geothe's classic. Bound to get the art-house crowd in a frenzy.
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How I Spent my Summer Vacation
Quick recap on Mel Gibson: still persona non-grata across most of the Western world, so much so that his latest has gone straight to video in the States under the title Get the Gringo. He can still open a film over here and this will probably crack the top ten thanks to a wisecracking trailer showing Gibbo still has the action chops in this film set almost exclusively in a massive Mexican prison.
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Mitsuko Delivers
Japanese movie about the power of positivity and how generally people are too nice, all seem through the prism of a eight and a half month pregnant girl. Which sounds sweet but hardly compelling.
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Charlie Casanova
Long-time Hollyoaks actor Emmett Scanlan finally sees the release of the film he made just before signing with the early evening soap. From the Irish upper classes his character starts to lie his life purely through chance (by picking cards) after the accidental death of girl in a hit and run accident.
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Kalakalappu @ Masala Cafe
Indeterminably long and uninvolving trailer for this latest Tamil language release of which I know nothing about except the trailer music sounds like it's been ripped from a mid 90's Nintendo game.
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Taur Mittran Di
Bollywood thriller about two friends who fall out, presumably over a girl, and then seem to want to kill each other. Seems quite dramatic but I don't know why this fairly high profile option doesn't have an IMDb page yet?
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Saturday, 12 May 2012
Foot fetishists heaven (Out this week - 11/05/12)
Friday, 22 July 2011
Starting Over Again (Out this week - 22/07/11)
Considering the date there's a surprisingly few releases this week. What's the date I hear you ask? It's the first weekend of the school summer holidays - the traffic forecasters are predicting hell on Earth on the motorways that roughly head toward the beach so what better way to spend the evening than going to the cinema. For the kiddies there's Potter week 2 or a sub-standard Pixar, but if I had to choose - and of course I do - I'd pick, as film of the week, gay dad romance Beginners.
Beginners
I'm probably not as keen on this quirky relationship drama as I'm making out, but I hear Christopher Plummers performance as an Octogenarian coming out for the first time is exquisite and MacGregor and Laurent make a lovely couple so I'll give it a try.
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Big Picture
If you fancy a thriller this week your only option is this French effort starring Romain Duris as a lawyer who kills his wife's lover in a fit of rage (I thought that was fine in France) then runs away to start a new life. Catherine Deneuve also stars.
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Cars 2
After last years critical and commercial super success with Toy Story 3 it can probably be said that Pixar are coasting with the return to the merchandise friendly automobile franchise. Oddly this is also an example of stunt casting with Owen Wilson and Larry the Cable Guy joined by Michael Caine, Vanessa Redgrave (as the Queen) and Lewis Hamilton. Or you could watch the German Grand Prix on Sunday!
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Horrible Bosses
So so looking comedy that will probably play well to fans of the central conceit - it's OK to slaughter your boss if they're despicable human beings. Kevin Spacey, Jennifer Aniston and Colin Farrell gleefully ham it up as the worst practitioners of management skills with Jamie Foxx as hit man Motherf**ker Jones - probably the best joke in the movie.
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Singham
Our lone Bollywood release this week is hard to get a handle on the plot, other than it's a Hindi action drama and appears to have been in post production for years (I'm sure I've seen that title before). Good early buzz on IMDb.
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Break my Fall
Very low budget British LGBT interest indie, following a young Lesbian couple as they negotiate their hedonistic lifestyle (they appear to be in a band) ans decide what it is they really want out of their relationship. Heavily influenced by the mumblecore movement.
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Violent Kind
Tired looking yokels gone crazy US horror with the usual cut-out characters being scared witless and panicking in uninventive ways. Don't worry this is getting the tiniest of releases.
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Friday, 17 June 2011
Modern Telegrams (Out this week - 17/06/11)
It's tough to predict what will happen to box office figures this week. With this years second green superhero squaring off against a very well publicised Cameron Diaz comedic video there's plenty of choice for the less discerning cinema goer (although of those I'd probably go for Diaz). Of course neither option comes close to my film of the week, which is the absorbing and poignant Messenger.
Messenger
Oren Moverman's superb evocation of the daily process of informing forces families of the death or injury of their loved one is a heartfelt and truly honest movie (I have already seen it) which comes as a great shock to see it's been nearly 2 years since it's US release.
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Bad Teacher
Cameron Diaz, who memorable burst onto screens in The Mask, has spent much of the last ten years avoiding comedy, but it's a shame as she's a delightful comedic presence. Here she is using a flimsy plot to snare Justin Timberlake. Jason Segal and David Paymer also co-star.
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Beaver
Controversy overload meets film as therapy with Mel Gibson playing a depressed executive who turns his life around with the aid of a Castoran hand-puppet with the voice of an East-end barrel boy. Jodie Foster directs her old pal, in an attempt to rehabilitate his tarnished image. Jennifer Lawrence also gets a co-starring role.
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Potiche
Catherine Deneuve and Gerard Depardieu together in one film! From Francois Ozon! About the demise of union bragaining and the rise of feminism in 1970's France. Actually this comedy, literally translated as "Trophy Wife", looks like a gem and should be well worth looking out for.
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Green Lantern
The proliferation of CGI, all the desperate seeming TV spots and fantastic cast (Ryan Reynolds, Peter Sarsgaard, Blake Lively, Angela Bassett, Tim Robbins, Mark Strong and Michael Clarke Duncan and Geoffrey Rush in voice roles) can't hide the faint whiff of Turkey coming from this Comic Book adaptation.
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Stake Land
The trailer makes this low-budget horror flick seem like The Road with Zombies, but decent reviews and clever plotting could lead to this breaking out. Although I've heard it suffers from a lack of point to the story.
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Always Khabi Khabi
The first of the three Bollywood releases seems to be the most obvious to categorise, it's High School Musical in Mumbai (possibly), with the usual collection of teenagers stressing about their love lives and studies whilst breaking into song.
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Avan Ivan
Confusing Tamil release which describes itself as a comedy but the trailer is full of high-octane action beats. Let's face it I'll never "get" Bollywood.
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Bheja Fry 2
Sequel to the 2007 comedy hit starring Vinay Pathak as a naive holiday-maker who brings chaos in his wake on a cruise holiday in the sun. I actually giggled at some of the slapstick on display in the trailer.
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Round Up
European cinema has huge trouble moving away from the Holocaust. Of course it's a horrendous chapter in history but haven't enough interpretations been made? This time Jean Reno is a doctor questionning humanity as the Jews of Paris are arrested.
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Got to Run
I should be behind this independent British movie which snuck out in limited release earlier in the week as the combination of local independent fare and a central character addicted to jogging. However the thought of watching a girl run around the coast of the UK in a ill-fitting pair of shorts to escape from her abusive relationship just pushes me away.
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Putty Hill
Not quite mumblecore, but clearly influenced by the hand-held, off-the-cuff aesthetic, this low-key American release looks at the minutia of life in a small-town community recovering from the sudden death of a well-known young man.
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Swinging with the Finkels
Tired looking British sex comedy about a couple (Martin Freeman - proving The Hobbit couldn't come at a better time - and Mandy Moore) who decide to spice up their dreary personal life by joining the swinging circuit. Probably not as many laughs as it should have.
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Friday, 22 October 2010
Catherine Deneuve
Happy Birthday to
Catherine Deneuve
67 today
Iconic French Diva known for her many lovers, her impeccable style as well as her superb performances. Good notices from the festival crowd for her upcoming Potiche, right, look out for that red tracksuit to be labelled stylish soon.
Friday, 4 June 2010
Out this week (04/06/10)
Unbelievably, out of nowhere, this is a really exciting week. Honestly the overall standard of releases is really quite good, and I didn't see it coming. If you ignore the first film (so I list alphabetically, who can blame me) and read the rest of the post you'll find thrillers, comedies and dramas. I've been trying to second guess which film will be the box office champ and frankly I'm stumped - feel free to guess in the comments but the film of the week, and there must be a choice for film of the week, goes to The Brothers Bloom. 
Bear
As the trailer starts we're told that Grizzly bears, the largest land mammal in North America, will attack when it's territory is being invaded. Then four annoying looking late 20's start screaming and panicking. I don't think the bear just wants a cuddle.
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Brothers Bloom
Rian Johnson's follow-up to the amazing neo-noir Brick is a far less sober affair, with con-artist brothers Adrien Brody and Mark Ruffalo trying to pull the wool over Rachel Weisz's eyes, only to find the set-up is a little too close to believable. Also starring Rinku Kikuchi and Maximillian Schell.
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Death at a Funeral
You might ask what the point of remaking the middling Frank Oz comedy from just 3 years ago is? Could it be because you can take the exact same story with a cast of African-American stars and make it more profitable? The US box office receipts may not totally agree with that but I sniggered during the trailer so that's something.
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4.3.2.1
Noel Clarke has made a couple of very successful, very respected struggling British youth movies, where the mostly male characters are surrounded by escalating violence and sink estates. Here he's trying to appeal to the ladies with four leading female protagonists, with the underwear fetishes and obligatory lesbianism in the trailer I suspect it'll be the lads that go for it in a big way.
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Girl on the Train
Respected French drama about a girl who reports a fictitious anti-Semitic attack on a train and how her life is transformed. Catherine Deneuve plays her torn mother who know the truth.
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Kicks
As a Liverpool football star is about to leave for Real Madrid two obsessive female fans bump into him one night and invite him home to say goodbye. There are pluses and minuses to their way of saying it. Odd timing as Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez leaves the city today - unlikely the same will happen to him.
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The Killer inside Me
Michael Winterbottom's latest movie may be generating headlines for the alleged misogyny and uncomfortable violence it's fair to say there are few directors who could craft such a beautiful looking movie from it's pulpy source. Casey Affleck is perfectly cast as the serial killing deputy with Kate Hudson and Jessica Alba as two of his victims.
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Rajneeti
Bollywood epic surrounding a major political election (oddly I'd jump at this if it were English language) with a selection of unlikely candidates fighting for public support. Inspired by the Mahabharata, one of the major sanskrit epics of Ancient India.
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She's out of my League
Jay Baruchel, who you probably don't remember being in a bunch of films, gurns his way through this film with the tag line: How does a guy, who's a 5, keep a girl, who's a 10? How will this sell any tickets.
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Shrink
Kevin Spacey, oh how we've missed you from serious films, play a celebrity psychiatrist on the verge of an emotional and physical breakdown. The trailer is stuffed with cliches, but it looks smart and pacey enough to get away with it. Celebrity cameos include Robin Williams, Robert Loggia and Saffron Burrows.
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Sunday, 22 June 2008
Indochine
1992. Dir: Regis Wargnier. Starring: Catherine Deneuve, Vincent Perez, Linh Dam Pham, Jean Yanne and Dominique Blanc. ●●●●○
Each week in this blog I will be offering a film review. If I'm sufficiently excitied about a new release I'll see that and review it. Other weeks I will simply randomly draw a film from my collection to review.
This afternoon I made that selection and my heart sank. It's not that Indochine is a bad film. It's just that this first selection will say a hug amount about me more than the film, and I've picked a long, sedate french language film. However to select another film would be cheating so here goes.
Indochine - the French name for their territory in SE Asia now Vietnam - opens during a funeral procession. Camille (Linh Dam Pham) has lost her parents, Eliane (Catherine Deneuve) her closest friends. Eliane has inherited thier estate, expanding her sizeable rubber plantation and has adopted their child. When Camille has grown Eliane enters a short but passionate affair with Jean-Baptiste (Vincent Perez), a French naval officer. Camille also falls in love with Jean-Baptiste after he saves her life. To protect her daughter Eliane pulls some strings to have Jean-Baptiste transferred from Saigon. All this comes out in a decadent party to celebrate Camille's graduation.
This would be enough of a film in itself but we're only about one third through and therein lies the major problem with Indochine. It is very very long, 2hours 40 according to the sleeve notes. It's never boring mind although the pace is occasionally glacial. There is just so much plot and story to get in it would be difficult to isolate anywhere it could be sped up or even where some judicious cutting may help.
The performances from Catherine Deneuve and Linh Dam Pham are absolutely superb, but it's the technical elements of this film that really carry it. From that opening funeral you made fully aware of a gorgeous score by Patrick Doyle, Pierre-Yves Gayraud and Gabriella Pescucci's superb costumes and Francois Catonne's precise cinematography. Catonne's art is especially keen when shooting water, in all it's forms.
In fact water is regularly used to signify the emotions of Eliane or Jean-Baptiste, this is underlined in an early auction scene where they bid against each other for a french landscape. For Eliane it's just a painting - she keeps her feelings buttoned up - for the more expressive Jean-Baptiste it's a coast he remembers almost ebing alive. And so Eliane is often surrounded by stagnant or still waters - the mist around the rubber trees, ceremonial ponds the day before Camille's engagement, Lake Geneva at the end. For Jean-Baptiste the water is always flowing; an outpour as he chases Eliane's car, the waterfall where he baptises his son, the sweat on his face after a nightmare.
Whilst we're talking about him sweating I have to point out that whilst we see other characters semi-naked or acting provocatively Jean-Baptiste is the only character who appears to be sexualised. Vincent Perez is mighty gorgeous though and it's difficult not to sexualise him.
Finally this film probaly gives a better understanding of Vietnam, and the conflict, than any American film. Showing as it does the background to the creation of Vietnam, the terrible acts of violence that had been imposed on the Vietnamese people, just the inhabitants of a colony. It's no wonder they fought so hard to keep their independence later.
