Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Bridesmaids


Another cast member from the TV series 'Saturday Night Live' makes the transition from small screen to big. And in a change of pace it is not as a character from the TV series.
One of the curses of being such a fan of movies as I am is that I get to know all the conventions and techniques they use to make movies. Also doing a script writing course a few years ago does not help either. I can find myself over analyzing a film and looking for mistakes or problems. This might be because the film itself is not good enough to keep me involved with the story. I found that to be the problem I had here. I went in expecting to really enjoy the film but I came out not as enamored with it as I'd hoped. Most comedies I feel should stick with in the time limit of 90-100 minutes. Any more than that and they feel like they are over staying their welcome. While I admit there are comedies which can last to the 120 minute mark, these are few and far between. A director who is guilty of the overly long comedy is Judd Apatow. While he did not direct this film he was one of the producers and I think it looks like he has had some influence over the edit. There were a couple of scenes which I felt were not important to the plot and could have been cut. There were also other scenes that should have been re-written to be shorter and not drag on. Part of the problem too is the improvisation the actors do. I do not mind this and can see some funny stuff coming out of it, but it can mean that the scenes look like the actors are searching for something to say and it makes the scenes drag. Another problem I had has more to do with how I saw the film. I did not find it as funny as I had hoped and I think this was because I saw it with a small audience. I got the impression that it would have been better with a larger audience. When I heard a joke I felt like they needed a big laugh from the audience.
One of the good points about the film is that Kristen Wiig has certainly written an excellent part for herself. In the support roles she has had so far we have seen that she is a very gifted comedic actress and she proves she can handle a film on her own too. Kristen is very funny and does not mind making herself look silly for a joke. Something I appreciate in an actor. Kristen has surrounded herself with some very funny women. Rose Byre has not had much of a chance to show her funny side and its great she gets to do that here. She is perfect as the rich bitch. Being a fellow cast member on 'Saturday Night Live' Maya Rudolph means that they have an excellent rapour and so their movie relationship feels real. Melissa McCarthy gets to be more outrageous than she normally is and is brilliant at it. Matt Lucas and Aussie Rebel Wilson make a fine pair of funny siblings.
I'm one of the few people who did not completely love this film. My over analytical movie mind has somehow ruined my enjoyment. You'll probably like it more than I did.

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Super 8


JJ Abrams and Steven Spielberg have an interest in aliens and team up to bring us this tribute to old school film making.
I was very jealous of this film. Many film makers have a story of spending their childhood making films with their friends. But I did not get to do this. While I would like to have made films i did not know anyone who shared my interest. While I could have got a camera and made some I was more interested in making up the stories and writing rather than going out and doing the filming. This is the role I'd prefer to take when I make movies. I would rather write than direct. It is always great to see people who have a passion for film. People who understand the art form and know how to use it. The group of kids in this film certainly have the skills to be great film makers. I know that the alien has been the focus of the marketing campaign for the film but that is not what it is really about. The escaped alien is merely the backdrop for the story of a father and son coping after the mother has died. The son is growing up and learning about the world. As well as falling in love. JJ certainly proves that he can write real human stories as well as action pact sci-fi. Despite the unbelievable part of the escaped alien the story and characters are really rooted in reality and you come to care for them.
JJ has assembled an excellent cast of young characters here. Especially when you consider that this is the first film for many of them. Joel Courtney makes a very fine young hero and he can certainly handle the emotional load his character has to deal with. I was also impressed with Riley Griffiths. He is great as the director of the film. You can really see that as his life long career. Elle Fanning is the more experienced actor of the group and proves it nicely in one particular scene for the film they are making.
Don't believe the hype and go into this film with some low expectations. You will be very surprised by a great human drama with a little sci-fi action on the side.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Tucker & Dale Vs. Evil


It was very sad when I came to this my final film at this years Sydney Film Festival. I'm a huge fan of the horror/comedy genre so I had very high expectations.
Writers Morgan Jurgenson and Eli craig have created a brilliant comedy that takes the horror concept of college kids being terrorized by hillbillies in the woods and turns it on its head. They have cleverly crafted many hilarious situations that make our heroes misunderstood. You just cannot believe how much bad luck they have. I'm very jealous as I have also had an idea for a similar type of film but mine would not be as good. Most of the humour is slapstick and is a little bit silly but is so funny that you don't mind. I don't think I have ;laughed as much in a film in a long time. Normally these films are seen from the college kids point of view and the killer hillbillies are mostly unseen. But here we get to see it from the supposed 'hillbilllies' point of view. And don't worry because there lots of blood and guts too.
I'm a fan of Alan Tudyk from his work on the TV series 'Firefly' and movies like 'A Knights Tale'. I think he is a brilliant comedy actor. And he is excellent here. He is the straight man of the duo but still gets lots of funny situations. Tyler Labine makes an wonderful comedy partner for Alan. The two of them work so well together. Tyler is so good at bringing out the sweeter side of his character. Katrina Bowden plays one of the best supporting characters in the TV series '30 Rock'. Her character here is less of a dumb blonde but still a great performance. Jesse Moss is excellent as the more troubled of the college kids. He keeps you guessing as to his characters sanity.
I had a hard time deciding if this film or 'The Tree Of Life' was my favourite at the Sydney Film Festival For horror fans this is one of the best comedies ever made. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

POM Wonderful Presents The Greatest Movie Ever Sold



For my second documentary at the Sydney Film Festival I learn about how product placement has become a huge business in film making.
Documentary film maker Morgan Spurlock has had an influence on my life. After his 2004 film 'Super Size Me' I've no longer bought anything from a McDonalds restaurant. It was not because he proved that eating a constant of McDonalds food was bad for you but McDonalds reaction to the film. It was shortly after this that they introduced more 'healthier' options to their menu while claiming that it was not a result of the film. I found that to be a ridiculous. Was it just a coincidence that they decided to change the menu after a film comes out that proves their menu is not exactly healthy? I don't think so. So I decided that McDonalds is a huge multi-national company who does not need my money as they have enough already. I know that my small protest is not going to have any influence on them but it just makes me feel good.
Since 'Super Size Me' Morgan has not had much success. His last film 'Where In The World Is Osama Binladen' was a bit of an overachievement. With this film Morgan moves back to safer territory. But still not as successful. As a film it is very funny. Morgan is a funny guy. But much like his previous film I think he lacks the information to make this a documentary that you can learn from. There is not much here that I did not already know about product placement in films. As a frequent film goer I usually find product placement something that stands out a lot. They usually make it so obvious that I can't help but notice it. Many others may not notice it as much as I do but to me its quite obvious. What I found really interesting is that the film is making fun of the whole concept but companies were still willing to sponsor the film. Morgan notes that they did not have any influence over the film but considering how Morgan treated McDonalds I'm surprised that they spoke to him in the first place. Morgan makes a great deal of fun of ads and advertising to great amusement. Not sure if the companies may have thought people would be laughing with them not at them.
Not as successful as Morgan Spurlock's debut hit film 'Super Size Me' but still a very funny look at advertising in movies and the lengths companies will go to to get your money.

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Jane Eyre


The Sydney Film Festival also holds Australian premieres. I attended the premiere of this film based on one of the most beloved books ever written.
I've mentioned before that sometimes I like to read a book when I find out that a film is going to be based on it. I also like to do this when a classic book is being made into a film. I had known of 'Jane Eyre' and the story but until recently not read the book. I must say I was quite impressed with it and can see why many people love it so much. It is very romantic and Jane is an excellently written character. I was very interested to see how they would adapt the book considering its length. Script writter Moira Buffini has condenced the book down to only a two hour film. The book is divided into three stories with the main one being the middle story of Jane and her love affair with Rochester. This has always been the main focus of other adaptations too. As a result the other two stories do not get much of a treatment. For the third story this does not matter too much as a condensing helps this section in the film. However the first section has been shortened and not in a good way. The first third of the film plays like an edited highlights of the beginning of the book. This will not matter to people who have not read the book but for fans it will be a disappointment. For me I would have liked to have seen more of Jane's relationship with her friend at school. Otherwise this is a beautiful film. It looks wonderful with the costumes and scenery really accentuated by the gorgeous cinematography. Director Cary Fukunaga is not afraid to show off the harshness of the landscape that Jane has to endure. He has also played up the spooky gothic themes from the book which works well.
Mia Wasikowska is continuing to make excellent choices for the roles she takes on. Here she is perfect as the downtrodden young women who must endure many hardships before finding happiness. She does not seem happy most of the time but that suits the character she is playing. Michael Fassbender is appearing in many films at the moment and is great in all of them, especially here. He is perfect as Rochester. Michael as Rochester has the sexiness needed to charm Jane and enough mystery to make him all the more alluring. I don't think I've seen Judi Dench play a character from the serving class. She is wonderful as Mrs. Fairfax, proving that she can play any role in any station in society. The one I was most impressed by was Jamie Bell. For many years now he has played characters that were younger because of his boyish looks. This is the first film where he looks more mature and grown up. He is brilliant as John River and plays the stuffiness of his character very well.
While fans of the book will no doubt be upset my the lack of some of the books finer points, everyone else can marvel at this wonderful period film. It just looks so beautiful and has many excellent performances.

Cedar Rapids


Ed Helms has been getting good reviews for his performance in 'The Hangover' films. Now he plays the lead in this comedy I saw at the Sydney Film Festival.
The story of a guy from a small town who goes to the big city is not new. But it provides fertile ground for writers to create characters who are very naive and get overwhelmed by all the trappings in a city. That is very true of Tim Lippe, an insurance agent who goes to a conference and gets into trouble with other agents. While this is similar to Stu in 'The Hangover' films, Tim is a lot more clueless about how the outside world works. This provides most of the great comedy as Tim discovers all the wonders that occur outside his small town. Tim gets involved with people who lead him astray. He also discovers some secrets about his job. This naturally makes the film quite funny.
The film is very much a character piece and one to show off the comedy skills of Ed Helms. As mentioned above he is playing a character similar to Stu in 'The Hangover' films and his character gets into similar situations. The main difference as I said is that Tim is a lot more naive. Ed is an excellent comedy actor as proved by this film. He certainly has the presence to carry a leading role. He is though backed up by an excellent support cast. John C. Reilly is hilarious as Tim's new friend, Dean, who introduces Tim to fun. Anne Heche has been away from the cinema lately so it is good to see her return. She is an excellent comedic actress and has a nice role here that is sweet too. Isiah Washington Jnr. rounds out the team with a great deadpan role. there are some nice references to his work in 'The Wire' too. There are some great smaller supporting performances by Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Root and Alia Shawkat.
An excellent comedy that really showcases the talent of Ed Helms. If all you've seen of him is 'The Hangover' and 'The Office' then make sure you check this out.

Sunday, June 19, 2011

The Tree Of Life


I was very excited when I found out that one of the films I had bought a ticket to at the Sydney Film Festival had won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival. So I had very high expectations.
I think this is one of the hardest reviews I've ever had to write. For the simple reason that it is hard to put into words how I feel about the film. And that is why I love it so much. It is one of the most beautiful works of art I've ever seen. While there is a story about a boy and his contentious relationship with his father there is so much more going on. Like some of the best works of art it will elicit an emotional response from the viewer and be different for every person. There is very little dialogue and most of it is just imagery and some beautiful music. The most surprising thing for me is that I don't think I understood what the meaning was behind a lot of what was going on but I did not mind. I will probably need several more viewings to clearly decipher what everything meant. Many will think that it is pretentious and I can see that side. The first third of the film is a series of images about the beginnings of life on earth. What this has to do with the films main plot I'm not entirely sure but it look stunning and I'm sure it had a purpose. But it is the kind of thing I know many people will think is boring. Terrance Malick is a true artist who will let his audience interpret the film however they like.
The actors in this film are only a small part of the larger canvas on which Terrence has created. Brad Pitt gives a nicely understated performance here. He works really well with the young boys who plays his sons. He usually plays nice guys in his previous roles so its good to see him play a character with a bit more of an edge. Jessica Chastain is luminous as the mother. So sweet and beautiful. As I said there is very little dialogue so we have to mostly rely on the actors expressions to interpret how they feel. Jessica certainly does this wonderfully. Hunter McCracken is brilliant as the young boy Jack. This is his first film and he gives such a nice performance. Sean Penn does not have much to do which is the only disappointing thing. He has a small part and I would have liked to see more of him.
If there was ever a case to be put forward that cinema is a visual medium then this is the film to prove it. It is also an excellent example of film being a work of art. As such it is open to interpretation and will not please everyone. I cannot wait to see it again and try to discover more meaning to it.

Thursday, June 16, 2011

The Trip


In 2005 Michael Winterbottom directed Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon in the brilliant film 'Tristram Shandy: A Cock & Bull Story'. He brings his two stars back, as themselves, for a trip around the north of England.
Michael Winterbottom is a brilliantly diverse director. He seems to make so many films and is great at them all. Films like this are really interesting. Steve and Rob are supposed to be playing themselves and you begin to wonder how close they are to playing their real selves. Where does the line of reality begin and end. That is part of the fun for the film for me as you wonder which bits, if any, are true. It is very much a film about the friendship between Steve and Rob. It is part of the new genre known as the bromantic comedy. While they are not entirely friendly to each other they still get along really well. Rob may take a bit more of Steve's insults as he knows Steve is joking. There was a film a while back called 'My Dinner With Andre', this film is much like that except instead of two guys talking in one restaurant it is set in several restaurants. As a result the success rests on the chemistry between the two men and the topics they talk about. Steve and Rob definitely have the chemistry and they talk about some funny stuff. The funniest moments come from their rivalry over who does the best impressions. Rob is clearly the best but Steve tries but is not quite as good and thats where the fun comes from. The other star of the film is the food that they eat at the various restaurants they visit. The restaurants are very posh so the food looks beautiful and could make you hungry.
Another tricky thing about having actors play themselves is that your never too sure how good their performances are. How much of themselves are they playing and how much is acting. Steve Coogan is a brilliant comedy performer and he is hilarious in this film. He also gets a nice subplot about his relationship with his girlfriend which is quite touching. Rob Brydon is equally as funny and is a brilliant impressionist. His 'tiny man in a box routine' is comedy gold.
Two guys on a road trip across the north of England may not sound like a very exciting premise but when you have a brilliant cast like Steve and Rob you have comedy gold.

Exporting Raymond


The Sydney Film Festival is a good place to see documentaries that may not get a cinema release. Last year writer/producer Phil Rosenthal, the creator of the TV series 'Everybody Loves Raymond', traveled to Russia to supervise a Russian version of the TV series.
In 2004 on a trip to the USA I had the privilege of going to a taping of an episode of 'Everybody Loves Raymond'. The show was so cleverly written, performed and is hilarious as well. It is one of those TV series that wonderfully captures the everyday nature of a family and accentuates some moments for hilarious results. The situations Raymond and his family got into were very relatable. I think it was with this thought in mind of his show's family situation being relatable universally that Phil thought it would translate to all audiences. After watching this documentary I'm not sure that is true. Phil was continually slamming his head up against a wall as he tried to make the Russians understand what made his show so good. I began to wonder if the Russians had actually seen the original show they were making because none of the people Phil worked with seemed to understand what they were adapting. It is not a simple matter of translating a script and filming it. There were many changes that the Russians wanted to make to the show that made you wonder why they wanted to make it in the first place. The costume designer they hired was more interested in making the cast look glamorous and not ordinary as the show requires. She could not understand why Phil would want to dress his cast that way when dressing ordinary was what the show was meant to portray. The fact that their head writer was unmarried also added to the problems. But in saying that it is these situations that make the film funny. While I admit that the Russians may not like how they are portrayed, in the Q & A afterwards Phil said he just filmed it how it was. It must also be said that Phil does go to a lot of trouble to understand where his team are coming from and try to work on an amicable solution.
Definitely a film for fans of 'Everybody Loves Raymond' and writers looking to adapt their TV series into a foreign language. Despite the world getting smaller there are still numerous cultural differences.

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

X-Men: First Class


After two financially successful but not well respected films Fox have decided to re-boot their X-Men franchise by going back to the beginning.
The one thing that this film proves is the positive influence that Bryan Singer has on the series. He made two brilliant films with the first two X-Men movies then declined the next two which were not as well received. Now he returns in a writing and producing capacity and has significantly improved things. Bryan and his team have cleverly woven an historical event into the comic book mythology. The use of the Cuban Missile Crisis as a catalyst for a battle between humans and mutants is very well done. Setting the film in the 1960's also gives it a fresh look and feel like your seeing a whole new aspect to the series. Director Matthew Vaughn has proved himself an excellent director on another comic book style film 'Kick Ass' so has proven he is competent at action films. There are certainly some great sequences here that are wonderfully realized. One thing I did love was the very James Bond feel Matthew has given the film. The early scenes with Erik/Magneto searching for Sebastian Shaw are very reminiscent of Sean Connery in the early James Bond films. When Daniel Craig gives the job up I'm sure Michael Fassbender would make an excellent replacement.
Matthew has definitely assembled the best looking group of mutants he could find. Part of the problem with ensemble films like this though is that not everyone gets much screen time. However the ones that do are excellent. James McAvoy makes a good younger Patrick Stewart. I do think that the hair makes it hard to see the resemblance though. He does give a good performance and does not make his ability look stupid. The same can be said of Michael Fassbender. His character his given a better story to work with so has more to work with as far as emotion is concerned. Jennifer Lawrence hits the big time and proves she too can handle the action. Kevin Bacon makes a great villain as usual. The rest of the cast are excellent in their minor roles and help flesh out the story.
For those who were not too pleased with the previous X-Men film, you don't need to worry any more. Byan Singer has returned and injected a much needed boost of class to the franchise.

Saturday, June 11, 2011

The Beaver


For my third Festival film I chose a movie which I was most looking forward to seeing at the festival. A couple of years ago when they announced that this movie was being made and the talent involved I got really excited.
The premise of this film is an interesting one and something that is ripe for comedy. But also pathos as well. Jodie Foster had proven herself to be a very skilled film maker not only in front of the camera but behind it as well. Here she once again demonstrates that great skill. It is one of those situations that can be hard to pull off and Jodie has some success but not quite. Maybe my high anticipation of the film may have patched over some of the problems the film has. The biggest problem though is how Walter became depressed in the first place. We are not told what lead to his depression we are just told he is depressed. I do not know much about depression and how it occurs but I would have liked a better explanation as to how Walter became depressed. Despite that I thought the film was very well made and the story a very sweet one. We must admire Walter for trying something to help get over his depression. as sill as it may seem that he now talks through a ratty old puppet of a beaver, it is still something which seems to work for him in reaching out to the wider world. Considering he had just about shut himself off. There is also an excellent subplot involving Walter's son, Porter and his relationship with a girl at school. I found that an interesting story and one that works well in tandem with the main plot.
It is one of those disappointing things when outside influences can affect peoples judgement. One thing I predicted when this film was first announced was that Mel Gibson would win an Oscar for his performance. I had enough faith in him to believe that it would come true. However certain events in his private life have prevented that prediction from ever coming true. This is probably one of Mel Gibson's best performances ever. He has the excellent skill at being able to move from the drama to the comedy of a situation. If the events of his life had not occurred and the film had been released last year, I think Colin Firth would have had some serious competition. Jodie Foster is a generous enough performer to let her star take centre stage. Jodie takes a step back to let Mel shine and in the process gives a wonderfully understated supporting performance. Anton Yelchin is quietly emerging as an excellent young talent. While he plays the insolent young teenager he is able to steer clear of too much cliche. Equally as good is Jennifer Lawrence another young performer who is an emerging talent. I also found Riley Thomas Stewart wonderfully sweet at the youngest son of the family.
I admit that while it may not be as completely perfect as I may have hoped story wise, I still think this is an excellent film with a great deal of emotion and humour. If you can forget what you hear in the tabloids then I encourage you to see this for one of Mel Gibson's best performances.

Friday, June 10, 2011

Sleeping Beauty


Each year I try to see at least one Aussie film at the Sydney Film Festival. This year I chose this film which had a very mixed reaction recently at the Cannes Film Festival.
If there was ever a film that could be considered a work of art then this is it. Much like a work of art it is open to interpretation and your opinion of it is a personal thing. I'm very open minded about subjects that most films explore however I think this film explores ones which are just plain weird. I think the problem is that you can tell this is writer/director Julia Leigh's first film. I found the script to be very under developed. Most of the dialogue was very badly written and seemed amateurish. Julia is however a good visual director and composes scenes with quite an interesting style and in an artistic manner. It would have been better if maybe Julia got more advice or at least another writer to write her dialogue. There is also the supporting characters in the film. They are not explored very well and we are not given much information on who they are and their relationship to Lucy. I got the feeling that it was one of those films with a lot of symbolism that you may need several viewings to fully interpret. The is also no musical score which makes it even more harder to interpret. Music at least would give you some expectation on how to feel in a scene. But maybe that was Julia's intention.
Emily Browning recently starred in 'Sucker Punch'. This film is a more art house version of that. But instead of dancing to earn her pay she has to sleep. I think she is a very brave actress to do a film like this considering some of the things her character has to do. This is especially true in the sleeping scenes where she has to pretend to be in a very deep sleep. It is certainly a very revealing role in more ways than one. The support cast we do not get much from. Rachel Blake play the blandness of her character very well. Ewen Leslie is good as a friend of Lucy and Michael Dorman seems to be the only one to show much emotion as a character.
I'm not sure if I can recommend this film or who to recommend it to. While I appreciate it as a work of art it was not much to my liking. More work was needed on the script too.

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Trollhunter


This is probably my favourite time of the year. The Sydney Film Festival. Each year I choose 10 films to see from the hundreds on offer. There is always great difficulty in narrowing down to my final 10 but that is part of the fun.
The first film I'm seeing at this year's festival is 'Trollhunter'. A Norwegian film about three college students who venture into the forest to film a movie about a legendary bear hunter. However they uncover a much bigger story, literally and figuratively.
This film comes falls into a recent genre of the 'found footage documentary'. The set up is very similar to the classic of this genre 'The Blair Witch Project' but goes in a different direction and is much better. The one thing it proves though is that European film makers can take a genre that Hollywood has driven into the ground and inject it with new blood. Writer/director Andre Ovredal has crafted an excellent story that takes a fairy tale legend and gives it a horror twist and plants it into the real world. Andre brilliantly creates a scary mood with the way it is filmed. It is incredibly spooky and creepy. But its greatest achievement is how funny it is. There is lots of black humour as well as many funny lines and situations. While the characters are played as being in a serious situation, they are not above knowing how absurd what they are doing is. Andre is also willing to give you the money shot early in the film but still manage to keep you on the edge of your seat as far as what will happen.
The Trollhunter is brilliantly played by Norwegian comedian Otto Jespersen. He is a mysterious character who has been doing a thankless job for many years but is just now had enough and wants to spill the beans about what he does. Over the coarse of the film we get to know this man and come to respect him. Otto plays him so well that we become sympathetic to his plight. His team of film makers are a good group of young actors. Glenn Erland Tosterud, Johanna Morck and Tomas Alf Larson do not have all that much to do except look frightened and surprised by all the wonders they see but are still very effective at being our eyes into this strange situation.
This film may not come to the cinemas in Australia but if you find it at your local video store then you should check it out. A new and clever twist on a genre that has been exploited a bit too much recently.

Monday, June 6, 2011

The Hangover Part II


A couple of years ago the world was blown away by the brilliant comedy 'The Hangover'. Due to the economic principles of Hollywood we now get another adventure.
Making a sequel can be a tricky business. You need to give the audience something familiar to remind them of the joy they felt in the first film. But you also have to give them something new and fresh so they stay interested and don't get bored by seeing the same thing. This film runs dangerously close to being in the second category. The plot and its twists are identical to the first film with the only changes being that it is a new setting a a couple of new characters. I would be interested to know Todd Phillips thinking about this. Was he not confident that his loyal audience could handle something different. They could have at the very least included Doug in the new story to make it a bit more fresh. However judging by the success of the film no one seems to mind. As long as the film is funny then most people don't care. While I did not find the film as funny as the first one there are still many amusing moments. I'm one of those that would have preferred a story that was a bit more different so that better jokes could be developed. I must say though that the film is very well directed and looks spectacular. Todd loves to show off his sweeping helicopter shots of Thailand.
The cast pretty much forfil their roles like they did in the first film. With their characters going through pretty much the same situations then there is very little scope for them to stretch their characters. Bradley Cooper and Ed Helms play the cool guy and the nerd really well. It is however Zach Galifianakis who shines. He is so brilliant at playing this child in a man's body. The first film was his breakout role and now he shows how that wasn't a fluke. Ken Jeong was the most popular character in the first film so naturally he gets a bigger role here. Which he nicely runs with. They do recycle many of his jokes which is disappointing.
A sequel for those who are not too discerning about their sequels. Fans of the first film will no doubt have fun revising these familiar characters in the exact same situation. But if you like your sequels to have a bit more difference then maybe this is not for you.

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Get Low


This film is allegedly based on a legend. A hermit who comes out of hiding to organize his own funeral while he is alive so that he can find out what people think of him. Be warned that this review contains spoilers so only read after you have seen the film.
I quite enjoy the premise of a hermit or a person who is often talked about in rumour and innuendo holding a gathering to find out what people really think of him/her. In this day and age most famous people can just check the tabloids and internet to find this information. But in the 1930's you would have to go out and ask everyone. Or else gather everyone together for a party and ask them all to tell stories. The problem with this film is that it does not follow through on that promise. The self imposed hermit Felix gathers the town together to get them to tell stories but doesn't let anyone tell a story. While I understand that due to his personal journey through out the film he no longer needs to know what people think and the party is more of a way for him to confess his reason for being a hermit, I would liked to have heard a few of the obviously outrageous stories people would have come up with. Otherwise this is an excellent film about a man carrying a huge secret that he cannot let go of. The personal pain he feels has meant that he's placed himself in a self imposed prison.
Robert Duvall is perfect as the hermit Felix. Robert is a natural as the grumpy old man who everyone hates. The casting maybe fairly obvious as Robert comes across that way in most of his films but as we discover over the film this grumpiness has an inner meaning. While he is grumpy we come to understand it and feel sympathy for his character. Bill Murray is delightfully witty as the funeral director. Bill's role is great at not letting his character over shadow that of his client. Sissy Spacek is sweet as the only person who really knows and understands the recluse. The real delight for me is seeing Lucas Black. I have long admired this young actor and wish we would appear in more films. Here he is excellent as the steadfast young man who wants to investigate the hermits mystery.
An excellent adult comedy/drama that while not following through on its promise as far as the story is concerned still has great characters and excellent performances.