I probably won't go to the cinema this weekend. It's a oddly downbeat selection, none of which are really drawing me in spite of the far reviews and interesting subject matter involved in some of them. Oddly the film with the best looking trailers has had the worst reviews so I won't be seeing that. Film of the week is Norwegian Wood.
Norwegian Wood
Period Japanese movie about a student (Kenichi Matsuyama) establishing his identity in a cold but rapidly changing culture whilst falling for the ex-girlfriend (Rinku Kikuchi) of his best friend who recentl commited suicide. Gorgeously filmed adaptation of Haruki Murakami's seminal novel.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●●●○○○○
Company Men
Ben Affleck (continuing to shakeup his filmstar persona) leads an all-star cast in this unemployment drama focusing on white collar workers with nowhere to go in the recent financial meltdown. Tommy Lee Jones, Chris Cooper and Kevin Costner are all feeling the pinch.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●●○○○○○
Fair Game
The Valerie Plame story, as interpreted by Bourne director Doug Liman. Naomi Watts plays the CIA agent suddenly left out in the cold with Sean Penn as her noble husband standing by her in the wake of dodgy dossiers and the Iraq invasion.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●●○○○○○
Hall Pass
The Farrelly brothers used to be box office gold, their gross-out comedy of the Nineties was able to attract top performers as well as audiences. This latest, about two marrieds getting a week off, barely hit the box office champ against Gnomeo and Juliet's third week of release. Richard Jenkins has a small role, so there must be something worthwhile about it.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●○○○○○○
Heartbeats
Canadian sexual drama about two friends (one male, one female) falling for the same stranger, competing for his desire and the knock on effect on their friendship. Feted on the estival circuit for it's crisp design and urgency.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
Life Goes On
British Hindi film about a widow coming to terms with losing the love of his life. Looks a bit cloying and over-emotional.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
The Resident
The resurrected Hammer studios are going back to their roots with this horror with Christopher Lee in a supporting role. Hilary Swank rents a surprisingly cheap apartment only to find all is not right with her neighbours.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
All American Orgy
The clue's in the title. Three couples go on a sex retreat to reinvigorate their relationships in the sub-American Pie farce.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
Battle: Los Angeles
Disappointing reviews for ths Alien invasion pic have destroyed allthe good will the thumping trailershad built up. I hear it's like World of the Worlds meets Saving Private Ryan, only nowhere near as good as that sounds.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
Legacy: Black Ops
I don't care if Idris Alba was brilliant in "The Wire" he's going to need to pick his game up if he wants to break into movies, and avoid this part-Nigerian-funded psychbabble about hallucinating soldiers.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
Last week I actually missed five new releases, but given that four were limited release low-budget interchangable American horror movies I'm not going to give individual summaries of those. Suffice to say, having watched the trailers, that Prowl, Scream of the Banshee, Seconds Apart and The Task all deserve a Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○.
Lion of the Punjab
Faring slightly better, but only because I'm generous to non-English movies is this Bollywood enigma with plenty of action in the short trailer, but not much to indicate a plot.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
Saturday, 12 March 2011
A song to remember (Out this week - 11/03/11)
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.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
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.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●●●●○○○
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.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●○○○○○○
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.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●○○○○○○
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.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●○○○○○○
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.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
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.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●●○○○○○
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.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
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.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
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.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●●●○○○○
Friday, 23 April 2010
Out this Week (23/04/10)
With the summer silly season nearly upon us (Iron-Man 2 opening in 7 days) it's the last chance for the studios to give us some interesting arty fare before th multiplexes are block booked, so whilst this week is far from being classic there are some minor gems to be had. Film of the week goes to Agora, although Dogtooth runs it a very close second.
Agora
Fresh from the news she's playing Jackie Kennedy, Rachel Weisz also opens another biopic about a tragic heroine. In Agora she plays the titular Roman philosopher who is eventually assassinated for her secularism. Director Alejandro Amenábar is constantly on the verge of brilliance so this should be one to watch.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●●○○○○○
Centurion
More Swords and Sandals as Michael Fassbender's Centurion (natch) has to run the length of Britain escaping a marauding group of Picts. From Neil Marshall so it will be bloody and repetitive, I should imagine.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
Cherrybomb
Little Ron Weasley from the Harry Potter films has all grown up, and to prove it he'll take his top off and get a bit rebellious in the Northern Ireland based teenager drama.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
Dance with Me
The coveted one star excitometer is given to this British set Revolutionary Road rip off, with a couple of unknowns giving it all screaming at each other as their relationship blows apart.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●○○○○○○○○○
Date Night
I really liked the trailer, for this comedy abut a middle aged couple (TV supremos Tina Fey and Steve Carell) trying to respark their relationship with it all going wrong, but apparently it's less than the sum of it's parts. Although the parts include Taraji P. Henson and lots of shirtless Mark Wahlberg so maybe it's worth seeing after all.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●●○○○○○
Dogtooth
Very highly praised Greek film about a repressive family who have kept their children fully isolated from the outside world up until early adulthood. Explores the nature of freedom and social understanding of others.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●○○○○○○
Extract
There was a time when people were really talking up expectations for this essence factory set black comedy with the talented Jason Bateman in the lead, but a middling US release at the end of last year has pretty much scupperd it's chances. Maybe it'll grow on DVD.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
It's a Wonderful Afterlife
Gurinder Chadha hasn't yet managed to top her achievements with the break-out multicultural hit Bend it like Beckham and it doesn't look like this is the film to do it either. A Hindu mother obsessed with marrying off her frumpy daughter starts poisoning people who get in her way of that perfect wedding.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
The Joneses
Commercial satire about a fake family who are paid to do product placements in the community. Trailer lacks some bite as the make believe world crosses over into the lives of the protagonists, but it's a nice idea that deserves some investigation.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●●○○○○○
Life During Wartime
Todd Solondz returns to the themes and characters of his 1998 arthouse hit Happiness only with a completely different cast filling out the roles of the sisters the film revolves around. Not as uncomfortable as the original, Solondz doesnt aim the mirror right back at us this time. Bizarre cast includes Charlotte Rampling, Michael Lerner and Paul Reubens.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●○○○○○○○
Sky Crawlers
Japanese animation, from the people behind Ghost in the Shell, about a group of permanent adolescents living life to the full as they are pitted in wars as a form of entertainment. Sounds complex enough. Rinko Kituchi is one of the key voice performers.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●●●○○○○○○
And missing from last weeks rundown was
In Ghost House Inn
Ashokan reprises his signature role of Thomas Kutty and buys a bungalow in Ooty; the property is believed to be haunted by the ghost of a woman who was killed 70 years before. This is a Malayaman film from India. I'd never even heard of the Malayaman language.
Runs like a Gay Excitometer: ●●○○○○○○○○
Tuesday, 6 January 2009
Rinko Kikuchi
Happy Birthday to
Rinko Kikuchi
28 today
Rinko first burst onto our screens as death mute Cheiko in Babel, and immediately stole the film from Brad and Cate. She has plenty of intresting projects coming up, including the Japanese remake of Sideways, so I'm sure we'll be keeping an eye on her.
