★★★☆☆ Harry Patramanis' Fynbos (2012) is an enigmatic parable for modern South Africa's evolution away from its troubled past. A tense and atmospheric thriller-of-sorts, Patramanis' assured debut captivates through its hypnotic rhythm, yet remains a strangely unsatisfying experience - a great pity. Stood on a run-down street corner, Meryl (Jessica Haines) disposes of the contents of her bag and purse in a trash can before calling the police to report a mugging. This curious exposition introduces us to our weary protagonist's peculiar manner and leads us to the obvious conclusion that all is not quite right in Meryl's world.
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- 2/11/2013
- by CineVue UK
- CineVue
Chicago – One of our best living actors, John Malkovich, drives the very good drama “Disgrace” with the subtlety of his decisions as an actor reflected back in a complicated script based on the acclaimed, Booker Prize-winning novel by J.M. Coatzee. This is a rare film willing to leave some questions unanswered and to be content with the knowledge that life is full of gray moral areas more often than black and white.
Blu-Ray Rating: 4.0/5.0
Malkovich plays the supremely cocky David Lurie, a Professor at the University of Cape Town. We meet David sleeping with a prostitute and watch as he later beds a gorgeous student named Melanie (Antoinette Engel), a girl literally less than half his age. David is one of those men almost proud of the fact that he does as he chooses. He doesn’t literally rape Melanie, but her reaction to their sex together makes it...
Blu-Ray Rating: 4.0/5.0
Malkovich plays the supremely cocky David Lurie, a Professor at the University of Cape Town. We meet David sleeping with a prostitute and watch as he later beds a gorgeous student named Melanie (Antoinette Engel), a girl literally less than half his age. David is one of those men almost proud of the fact that he does as he chooses. He doesn’t literally rape Melanie, but her reaction to their sex together makes it...
- 5/5/2010
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Since Moses brought the tablets down from the mountain, lists have come in tens, not that we couldn't have done with several more commandments. Who says a year has Ten Best Films, anyway? Nobody but readers, editors, and most other movie critics. There was hell to pay last year when I published my list of Twenty Best. You'd have thought I belched at a funeral. So this year I have devoutly limited myself to exactly ten films.
On each of two lists.
The lists are divided into Mainstream Films and Independent Films. This neatly sidesteps two frequent complaints: (1) "You name all those little films most people have never heard of," and (2) "You pick all blockbusters and ignore the indie pictures." Which is is my official Top Ten? They both are equal, and every film here is entitled to name itself "One of the Year's 10 Best!"
Alphabetically:
¶ The Top 10 Mainstream Films
Bad Lieutenant.
On each of two lists.
The lists are divided into Mainstream Films and Independent Films. This neatly sidesteps two frequent complaints: (1) "You name all those little films most people have never heard of," and (2) "You pick all blockbusters and ignore the indie pictures." Which is is my official Top Ten? They both are equal, and every film here is entitled to name itself "One of the Year's 10 Best!"
Alphabetically:
¶ The Top 10 Mainstream Films
Bad Lieutenant.
- 12/30/2009
- by Roger Ebert
- blogs.suntimes.com/ebert
The Box (12A)
(Richard Kelly, 2009, Us) Cameron Diaz, James Marsden, Frank Langella. 116 mins
Will Kelly ever make another movie as good as Donnie Darko? There are signs here that he might, but he hasn't this time. The Twilight Zone plot – press the button on this box and you'll get $1m, but someone will die – opens up more moral/conspiracy/sci-fi elements than the film can handle. Still, too much is better than not enough, especially when it's as smoothly sinister, visually sophisticated and borderline bonkers as this.
Me And Orson Welles (12A)
(Richard Linklater, 2008, Us/UK) Zac Efron, Claire Danes. 114 mins
Efron graduates from High School backstage to Welles's 1930s theatre troupe in this sweet coming-of-age flick, holding his own against Christian McKay's rakish, bombastic Welles – even when they fall for the same girl.
Cracks (15)
(Jordan Scott, 2009, UK) Eva Green, Juno Temple. 104 mins
Set within the confines of a posh girls' boarding school,...
(Richard Kelly, 2009, Us) Cameron Diaz, James Marsden, Frank Langella. 116 mins
Will Kelly ever make another movie as good as Donnie Darko? There are signs here that he might, but he hasn't this time. The Twilight Zone plot – press the button on this box and you'll get $1m, but someone will die – opens up more moral/conspiracy/sci-fi elements than the film can handle. Still, too much is better than not enough, especially when it's as smoothly sinister, visually sophisticated and borderline bonkers as this.
Me And Orson Welles (12A)
(Richard Linklater, 2008, Us/UK) Zac Efron, Claire Danes. 114 mins
Efron graduates from High School backstage to Welles's 1930s theatre troupe in this sweet coming-of-age flick, holding his own against Christian McKay's rakish, bombastic Welles – even when they fall for the same girl.
Cracks (15)
(Jordan Scott, 2009, UK) Eva Green, Juno Temple. 104 mins
Set within the confines of a posh girls' boarding school,...
- 12/5/2009
- by Steve Rose
- The Guardian - Film News
Actor Jessica Haines reckons her Bosch blender is the handiest piece of tech ever
What's your favourite piece of technology, and how has it improved your life?
My handheld Bosch blender, which has made things in the kitchen faster, smoother and more delicious.
When was the last time you used it, and what for?
Every day for Nigela Lawson's "go get 'em" smoothie.
What additional features would you add if you could?
Nothing, really – possibly more attachments, like bigger and stronger blades for example.
Do you think it will be obsolete in 10 years' time?
New and improved, but definitely not obsolete.
What always frustrates you about technology in general?
It can't tell you what's wrong with it when it breaks.
Is there any particular piece of technology that you have owned and hated?
A Sagem wireless box that would never connect – the little green lights would be in a perfectly...
What's your favourite piece of technology, and how has it improved your life?
My handheld Bosch blender, which has made things in the kitchen faster, smoother and more delicious.
When was the last time you used it, and what for?
Every day for Nigela Lawson's "go get 'em" smoothie.
What additional features would you add if you could?
Nothing, really – possibly more attachments, like bigger and stronger blades for example.
Do you think it will be obsolete in 10 years' time?
New and improved, but definitely not obsolete.
What always frustrates you about technology in general?
It can't tell you what's wrong with it when it breaks.
Is there any particular piece of technology that you have owned and hated?
A Sagem wireless box that would never connect – the little green lights would be in a perfectly...
- 12/4/2009
- by Stuart O'Connor
- The Guardian - Film News
Theo Tait on the transition from page to screen of Coetzee's novel
It's often said that good novels make bad films: they're too nuanced, too complex, too long to fit into a slot two hours long. Readers don't thank film-makers for trampling on their treasured mental visions of a book – for making Sebastian Flyte shout "All you ever wanted was to fuck my sister!" at Charles Ryder, as in last year's film of Brideshead Revisited, or for casting Demi Moore as Hester Prynne in The Scarlet Letter or Nicolas Cage as Captain Corelli. The resulting adaptations tend to be, at worst, a travesty (Bonfire of the Vanities, Love in the Time of Cholera) and, at best, faithful and bloodless (Atonement, Revolutionary Road) – weighed down by the desire to do justice to a big reputation.
Few contemporary novels have a bigger reputation than Disgrace, Jm Coetzee's chilly, shocking 1999 tale of post-apartheid South Africa,...
It's often said that good novels make bad films: they're too nuanced, too complex, too long to fit into a slot two hours long. Readers don't thank film-makers for trampling on their treasured mental visions of a book – for making Sebastian Flyte shout "All you ever wanted was to fuck my sister!" at Charles Ryder, as in last year's film of Brideshead Revisited, or for casting Demi Moore as Hester Prynne in The Scarlet Letter or Nicolas Cage as Captain Corelli. The resulting adaptations tend to be, at worst, a travesty (Bonfire of the Vanities, Love in the Time of Cholera) and, at best, faithful and bloodless (Atonement, Revolutionary Road) – weighed down by the desire to do justice to a big reputation.
Few contemporary novels have a bigger reputation than Disgrace, Jm Coetzee's chilly, shocking 1999 tale of post-apartheid South Africa,...
- 11/28/2009
- The Guardian - Film News
Chicago – In a stark and compelling tale of naked vulnerability, John Malkovich becomes the centerpiece of the continuing battle for territory and humanity within the country of South Africa, in the newly released “Disgrace.”
Rating: 4.0/5.0 Based on a novel by J.M. Coetzee, Malkovich portrays David Lurie, a Cape Town university professor who gets caught up in a career-ending scandal involving an affair with a mixed race student. Forced out of his realm, he takes up residence with his estranged daughter, a frontier practitioner living off the unyielding but beautiful country far from civilization.
Reduced to menial labor and an ascetic lifestyle, the professorial Lurie is useless when a gang of rebels raid the modest house, attacking him and raping his daughter. Forced now to deal with both his weakness and the lack of justice in the harsh territory, Lurie must come to terms with his own perceptions and face the...
Rating: 4.0/5.0 Based on a novel by J.M. Coetzee, Malkovich portrays David Lurie, a Cape Town university professor who gets caught up in a career-ending scandal involving an affair with a mixed race student. Forced out of his realm, he takes up residence with his estranged daughter, a frontier practitioner living off the unyielding but beautiful country far from civilization.
Reduced to menial labor and an ascetic lifestyle, the professorial Lurie is useless when a gang of rebels raid the modest house, attacking him and raping his daughter. Forced now to deal with both his weakness and the lack of justice in the harsh territory, Lurie must come to terms with his own perceptions and face the...
- 9/26/2009
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
A lethal look at the after-shock of apartheid. Tough to watch but bearing a powerful message Emerging director Steve Jacobs pulled one out of the hat with this soon to be indie hit starring John Malkovich, Jessica Haines and Eriq Ebouaney. Unlike Malkovich.s previous performances this one has not a hint of comedy. Those in the theatre who laugh at first seeing him cast as a college professor have another impression coming. He is as serious as armed assault in this dramatic thriller set in post apartheid South Africa. One has to wonder if his past casting awards foreshadowed Director Jacobs great fortune in getting Malkovich signed up for this part. In any event the result is fantastic. This...
- 9/23/2009
- by Ron Wilkinson
- Monsters and Critics
Translating great works of literature to the screen is a daunting task; filmmakers open themselves up to comparison, and do not usually measure up to readers' standards. (Notable exceptions: The Remains of the Day, To Kill a Mockingbird, and a few others come to mind.) In the case of Disgrace, however, the elegant and chilling film opening this week is a testament to the care and respect paid to the novel by producer Julio DePietro, director Steve Jacobs, writer Anna Maria Monticelli, and stars John Malkovich and Jessica Haines. J.M. Coetzee's novel Disgrace caused quite a stir upon its publication in 1999. On the surface, the story is of a snobbish Cape Town literature professor who falls from grace after an affair with a student, visits his daughter on her farm in the country, and suffers as the victim of a horrible crime. Readers who dug a little deeper, however,...
- 9/15/2009
- TribecaFilm.com
With the Venice Film Festival having just concluded and Toronto now underway, the award season's wheels begin to roll with big name players, both indie and arthouse, making a showing, with Steven Soderbergh and Jennifer Aniston keeping things light at the multiplex.
Download this in audio form (MP3: 20:11 minutes, 18.5 Mb) Subscribe to the In Theaters podcast: [Xml] [iTunes]
"35 Shots of Rum"
While Claire Denis' latest film, "White Material," is in the midst of a prestigious festival run that will take in Venice, Toronto and soon London, fans of the French filmmaker's work can enjoy this delicate domestic portrayal of tenderness and devotion from last year that begins a small theatrical run here in New York. Set in a nondescript Parisian neighborhood, Denis' film casually unfolds the dynamic of unspoken trust and mutual support played out between a stoic widower Lionel (Alex Descas), his daughter Joséphine (Mati Diop), and the...
Download this in audio form (MP3: 20:11 minutes, 18.5 Mb) Subscribe to the In Theaters podcast: [Xml] [iTunes]
"35 Shots of Rum"
While Claire Denis' latest film, "White Material," is in the midst of a prestigious festival run that will take in Venice, Toronto and soon London, fans of the French filmmaker's work can enjoy this delicate domestic portrayal of tenderness and devotion from last year that begins a small theatrical run here in New York. Set in a nondescript Parisian neighborhood, Denis' film casually unfolds the dynamic of unspoken trust and mutual support played out between a stoic widower Lionel (Alex Descas), his daughter Joséphine (Mati Diop), and the...
- 9/14/2009
- by Neil Pedley
- ifc.com
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