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Reviews
Memories of Another (2022)
Fantastic
Excellent film, engrossing from the very beginning! The film is fantastically balanced between different genres, from sci-fi, drama to romance. The different elements of the film blend perfectly together! The influences of films like Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind, Inception and even in my opinion black swan were evident however this film stands firmly on its two feet separate from its influences
The performances in the film are effective however not rammed down the audiences throats, much like the film as a whole there is a subtle nature to each performance
I know for certain we will be seeing more of the director in the future and personally I cannot wait to see what he conjures up next.
The Master (2012)
Wow!
The Master is written and directed by the master of film Paul Thomas Anderson. Starring Joquain Phoenix as an ex navy man struggling to find his way after the war, luckily that's when he finds Lancaster Dodd fantastically performed by Philip Seymour Hoffman.
The war has just ended but it's not sunshine and light for Freddie quell (joquain Phoenix) who spends his time conckoting his own alcohol, subsequently drinking it and being promiscuous, this irrational behavior leads society to reject him. One night Freddie stows away on a boat only to find himself faced with Lancaster Dodd (Philip Seymour Hoffman) the man they call "the master" he welcomes the vulnerable Freddie aboard not only his boat but his religion, "the cause". As time goes by Dodd and his family try to turn Freddie's life around with their unusual techniques as the question rages is he past help.
The master is one of those films you either love or hate, luckily I adore it. Critics are inevitable with this piece of filmaking, the main attack point will be that it has no narrative, while that may be the case to a certain extent that doesn't mean there is no story! There are not dramatic plot twist throughout but there is a message. I believe the message to be that religion is an extremely dangerous thing and the religion prays on the weak and ultimately won't help them. The main focus is the relationship between the two men, there dedication to each other as the world tries to pull them apart. Every detail of the master is expertly put together, from the 1950's design to the fantastically deranged score by Johnny Greenwood. The one thing that makes this film tick however is the acting the two leading men give outstanding performances, they are not the only ones with amy adams portraying Lancaster Dodds straight laced wife perfectly.
I could talk for hours on this brilliant film, it is so full of emotion and meaning. Some people will say it's just weird, perverted and lackluster but if you are a lucky person and see into it you will love it.
Boyhood (2014)
A true great
Ellar Coltrane stars as a young boy growing up eventually into manhood in this piece which was filmed over twelve years by director Richard Linklater.
Mason (Coltrane) starts of as a young boy with his parents split up trying to find his way. As Mason grows up his single mother (patrique arquette) starts to have relationships, that also start to effect mason and his sister (Lorelei Linklater). We see mason growing older and more mature, as well as all the characters around him.
When I first read the synopsis of this film I thought to myself, that sounds very boring! I now pile heaps of shame on myself for that! This film is a collaborative masterpiece by Linklater, who gives this film a powerful life like feel to it, which no other director would have mastered I think. It was such a spectacle for me to see time literally moving in front of my eyes at just the right pace. Mason is clearly the main character in this film but it is fascinating to see the characters around mature with him, not only the characters but the general world, at the start of the film you are greeted with the old red mac computers to then the iPhone at the end of the film. All of the characters give fantastic performances, at what seems like such ease. We all love a bit of heavy drama in films but boyhood seems to just breeze through the story, not going for clichés that would usually happen in a film about growing up, it says this is what life is and it goes on.
I cannot rave enough about this film, it is a beautiful tale of age and one that wipes the floor for me. What a film, a true great!
The Great Gatsby (2013)
disappointing
The newest adaptation of F Scott Fitzgerald's vastly well known novel, is directed by Baz Luhrmann, staring Leonardo DI Caprio as Gatsby, Carey Mulligan as daisy and Tobey Maguire as nick caraway.
Most people will know the plot but for those that don't.....Nick caraway moves to new york trying to become a stockbroker in the mid 1920's but instead of working finds himself caught up alcohol fueled parties that were rife in the city. He moves into his modest apartment next to a huge mansion, who he is told belongs to the mysterious Gatsby. Gatsby throws huge parties often for the general public to enjoy, Nick attends one of these parties and ends up befriending Gatsby. As their friendship grows, Gatsby becomes more trusting in Nick and asks if he can invite his cousin daisy Buchanan round for tea, so he can "bump"into her. It turns out that the married Daisy and the the rather unknown Gatsby fell in love when they were young and have held a candle for each other ever since. The question is does it do justice to the book?
The answer unfortunately is a resounding no! i have seen this film 4 or 5 times and each time my dislike of it has grown. It's hard to know where to start with this film, there are so many negative views i have on it. The film is made with huge house, big parties and fancy clothing, in true baz Luhrmann style that is all the substance you get. Carey mulligan is mind numbingly boring as daisy and not interesting at all. However the performance i have the biggest problem with is Tobey Maguire who narrates the story and it is seen through his eyes, i spent the entire film wanting to knock him out as i felt he was nothing more than a "scrape" and a bit annoying. There is no sense of the time period at all, with a bizarre modern day soundtrack booms out, which are good songs but not for The Great Gatsby, this makes the film feel like it is set in a club in the 21st century. Luhrmann goes for deeply emotional scenes and completely fails in my opinion. The one very dimly light shining light is Di Caprio in his Disney themed mansion, who gives a performance far better than anyone else
This fantastic piece of American literature has been attempted as a film many times and success has not really been found as of yet. This is an extremely hard book to make into a good film you can give Luhrmann that but not much else. This isn't the worst film i have seen but because of how well known it is and expected it was, this bad piece of filmaking will never be forgotten!
Requiem for a Dream (2000)
Superb
Darren aronofsky directs Jared Leto, Ellen burstyn, Jennifer Connelly and marlon wayans in this disturbing spiral of a film.
The story centerers around four "drug addicts" the characters played by Jared Leto, Jennifer Connelly and marlon wayans are all teenagers who start off dabbling in heroin, until it stars to dominate their life and starts to get out of control, the two boys start to get into very dangerous situations and Jennifer Connelly starts to get into prostitution. The key character however is Ellen burstyn, mother of Jared Leto who lives by herself sat in her armchair all day watching a day time television show. She receives a letter one day claiming that she has won a competition to be on television, of course she is over the moon but unfortunately she can't fit in to her old red dress. she comes to the conclusion that diet pills are the way forward but to her peril, she soon finds out that the pills are addictive and unhealthy. Her life starts to go the same way as her sons life.
This film is one of the best examples if not the best of modern society and culture. Aronofsky will get a Lot of stick from some people about this film but he doesn't pull any punches and why should he? There is such a deep meaning here, even if it isn't finding nemo (great film) but aronofsky is saying that don't have a go at kids for drugs, because it is ingrained in our society he shows this by using Ellen burstyn, she is an innocent old lady and she becomes a drug addict, burstyn portrays her sweet innocence well but also the characters deranged side. What is very clever is for most of the film we know that the younger three are on heroin but we don't see them use it exactly until Jared Leto uses it in his infected arm. Perhaps the most chilling scene is where Jennifer Connelly "performs" in front of a crowd, just for some drugs, Jared Leto her boyfriend encourages her to do this but she doesn't seem to even hesitate with it.
I'm not surprised that this film didn't win any Oscars etc this isn't a film that the "higher powers" would vote for but that doesn't take anything away from it.This film is a huge statement about our culture and one that some people won't like but as a teenager myself I would find requiem for a dream as a greater warning, as opposed to the kind of films they show you at school about drugs, this is nowhere near government propaganda as some of the others are but a realism story about how harmful drugs really are.
Shame (2011)
A piece of art
Steve McQueen gives us only his second feature film and what a masterpiece it is, this film is not necessarily meant to be enjoyed but it is more effective this way.
Brandon (Michael Fassbender) lives in a nice New York apartment and has a stable and what seems like a well paid job but he is hiding his sexual life, which is picking his life apart. His life is turned upside down by his sister, sissy (Carey mulligan) who has problems of her own. their taught relationship comes crashing down during the course of the film.
This film is beautifully made, McQueen directs this extremely well, he gets great performances from both Fassbender and Mulligan. Brandon who has clear issues with committing to a relationship, struggles with his relationship with a co-worker, his pain with his sexual life is subtely portrayed by Fassbender. On the opposite side sissy has no boundaries what so ever, mulligan shows us her vulnerability issues perfectly. The relationship is doomed from the start of the film. McQueen allows the two actors two work around the camera which gives them both freedom, Sean bobbit the cinematographer also does a great job by providing a real life feel through the camera. The sex scenes are shot with no eroticism but brutality.
Overall this film is an great piece of filmaking, this is not the feel good film of the year but it shows you not only the medical side of a sexual addiction but also a believable human story. Much recommended, a great watch.