Tag Archives: Comedy

Apple TV, Articles, music, New Releases

APPLE TV FILM REVIEW : FLORA AND SON (2023)

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APPLE TV FILM REVIEW: FLORA AND SON (2023)

Directed by John Carney

Written by John Carney

Produced by: Anthony Bregman, John Carney, Peter Cron, Rebecca O’Flanagan and Robert Walpole.

Main Cast: Eve Hewson, Jack Reynor, Orén Kinlan and Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

Cinematography: John Conroy

Edited by: Stephen O’Connell

John Carney is a brilliant and honest filmmaker who is attracted to outsiders and people with real emotional turmoil. They tend to be at crossroads in their lives and are struggling with their dreams and relationships. He also loves musicians, flaws and all. In Begin Again (2013), a washed-up musical executive, portrayed by Mark Ruffalo, meets unhappy singer-songwriter, Keira Knightley and their first-world romance is played out to bittersweet consequences. Similarly, in Sing Street (2016), a troubled teenager comes of age through his 1980’s pop band and bittersweet romance with a rebellious and equally-troubled schoolgirl. Notice a pattern? Well, this style of music, gritty city backdrops and salty romances were established in Carney’s breakout hit, Once (2007) and are continued in his current underdog musical comedy, Flora and Son (2023).

Flora and Son (2023), believe it or not, is set in Dublin and centres around a single mum, Flora and her delinquent teenage son, Max (Oren Kinlan). Eve Hewson is the foul-mouthed-council-estate-joker, who uses anger and black humour to hide her feelings of insecurity and loss. A mourning for the loss of youth having brought up a child virtually single-handed. Her relationship with Max’s father, Ian (Jack Reynor) is fractured to say the least and they spit sarcastic barbs at each other as shared custodians of disaffected Max. While leaving her cleaning job at a middle-class household, Flora finds a battered guitar in a skip. Attempting to bond with Max, by giving him the guitar, Flora finds herself shunned. She then opens another bottle of wine, picks up the guitar and gives it a crack herself.

Taking online guitar lessons from charming and chilled American musician, Jeff (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), Flora initially flirts but then knuckles down to learn the plucking instrument. The stakes aren’t particularly high here, but the feelgood acoustic numbers from Carney and co-composer, Gary Clark, certainly breeze along nicely and breath gold onto the screen. Max’s white-rap-Irish-hip-hop tracks are pretty good too and the video he and Flora make is really funny. Thus, you get the theme again from Carney that music helps to connect and heal and provide salvation to the most troubled of human situations. Overall, Flora and Son (2023), is a slight but enjoyable film with enough earthy humour, strumming harmony and kicking beats to please most.

Mark: 7.5 out of 11

Cinema, New Releases, Reviews

CINEMA REVIEW: BARBIE (2023)

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Directed by: Greta Gerwig

Written by: Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach

Based on Barbie by Mattel

Produced by: David Heyman, Margot Robbie, Tom Ackerley and Robbie Brenner

Cast: Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, America Ferrera, Kate McKinnon, Michael Cera, Simu Liu, Helen Mirren, Issa Rae, Rhea Perlman, Will Ferrell, etc.

Cinematography: Rodrigo Prieto

*** MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS ***

I saw Barbie (2023) a few weeks ago but work has been really busy so I am only just getting round to reviewing this cinematic adaptation of a lump of plastic that was moulded into a best selling toy. So, after the critical acclaim received for the excellent rites of passage film, Ladybird (2017), and recently starring in the existential comedic folly that is, White Noise (2022), Greta Gerwig takes the helm for this funny, intelligent, sarcastic and brightly coloured filmic vomit.

Gerwig shares writing duties with Noah Baumbach. These two major talents seem an unlikely duo to adapt a story of about an arguably sexist and outdated doll, that profiled unrealistic body images to the millions of people who owned it. I mean, I have never had a Barbie doll and didn’t really like dolls at all as a kid. I might have had an Action Man, but must admit I did enjoy owning my Star Wars figures. They somehow had more character and worth, despite also being made of synthetic polymer. My point is that Barbie (2023), aside from making money, I do not see any reason for a Barbie film to exist. However, it is to Gerwig and Baumbach’s credit they have crafted a wonderful and funny screenplay to ultimately sell more plastic dolls.

The story finds Margot Robbie’s ridiculously attractive blonde living in a utopian land entirely run by different versions of empowered Barbies. Many of which are played by an energetic who’s-who of an ensemble. Suddenly Barbie is struck by existential dread and a fear of death. Determined to discover why Barbie’s perfect life sucks, she goes on a journey to find the reasons why an anthropomorphic lump of processed oil isn’t going to live forever. Joining her on the trip to the real world is the dopey Ken (Ryan Gosling), who love-stalks Barbie like a pining puppy. Cue Barbie and Ken’s “fish-out-of-water” quest to find whatever in the real world. Yet, after a terrifically imaginative opening series of scenes and sequences, this is where the film starts to unravel.

The opening 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) homage is easily the best thing about Barbie (2023) for me, along with some cracking one-liner gags throughout. Ryan Gosling also steals the show as the dim-witted Ken, whose character arc is ironically way stronger than Barbie’s. Robbie is sparkling as usual but I found the frenzied colours and manic ensemble a little overwhelming for my taste. The film is also way too long with too many unsatisfactory sub-plots, such as America Ferrara’s underwritten real-women-in-crisis narrative. Overall though, Gerwig and Baumbach have great fun satirising the patriarchy and corporate capitalism while at the same time upholding patriarchal values and making $hitload$ of cash in the process.

Mark: 7 out of 11

Cinema, New Releases, Reviews

CINEMA REVIEW: ASTEROID CITY (2023)

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CINEMA REVIEW: ASTEROID CITY (2023)

Directed by Wes Anderson

Screenplay by Wes Anderson

Story by: Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola

Produced by: Wes Anderson, Steven Rales, Jeremy Dawson

Ensemble Cast: Jason Schwartzman, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks, Jeffrey Wright, Tilda Swinton, Bryan Cranston, Edward Norton, Adrien Brody, Liev Schreiber, Hope Davis, Stephen Park, Rupert Friend, Maya Hawke, Steve Carell, Matt Dillon, Hong Chau, Willem Dafoe etc.

Cinematography Robert Yeoman

*** MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS ***

Wes Anderson is a phenomenal filmmaker with an imaginative set of style and narrative conceits. Everyone one of his releases is a rich tapestry containing memorable ensemble casts, adjacent framing, effervescent use of colour, geographical pertinence, intellectual humour and subjects situated in the far-left field of genre cinema. Yet, I do not enjoy ALL his films. Often, they veer too far into eccentric pretentiousness. Indeed, I found The French Dispatch (2021), frustrating and, other than the tremendous story set in the asylum with the mad artist (Benicio Del Toro), disconnected with it overall. While it was another admirable work of cinema, I did not enjoy it as a paying punter.

Asteroid City (2023), however, is a film I enjoyed greatly. The famous actors immersed within the ensemble, the cinematic artifice, the clever meta-narrative structure, symmetrical shot composition, beautiful use of colour, offbeat characters, specific era and geographical setting, imaginative props and costume design, and witty humour are all present as per Anderson’s impressive body of work. But Asteroid City (2023) had a larger emotional heart than his recent films, and is my favourite since the superb, The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014).

A heady combination of genres, one could describe, Asteroid City (2023), as a hyper-sci-fi-Western-retro-romantic-futuristic-comedy and study of grief set in 1950s, America. Despite filming taking place in Spain. Anyway, Anderson establishes the characters through the structure of a film within a play. Bryan Cranston’s narrator introduces us to the various middle-class, working class, military and scientific personalities who become trapped in the town of Asteroid City by a series of unlikely but hilarious misfortunes. Throughout the chapter inter-titles the scenes return us to our narrator as Anderson cleverly comments on the process of creating a story while delivering the narrative events.

Anderson delves into familiar themes of grief via the story of war photographer, Augie Steenbeck (Jason Schwartzmann) and his four kids, one of whom is a genius, Woodrow (Jake Ryan). He is there for a Junior Stargazer competition amidst the setting of the gigantic meteorite bunker. Again, the theme of prodigious children is mined for great humour and intellectual wit by Anderson. The futuristic inventions created by the children are especially fantastic. The plot strand of the science geniuses being exploited by the military and corporate sharks is deftly done. Yet, the main emotional heft is delivered within Augie and Hollywood actress, Midge Palmer’s (Scarlett Johansson) budding relationship. Johansson is especially compelling in the role, anchoring the film in welcome pathos, amidst the flurry of idiosyncratic absurdities Anderson throws at us. His framing of Augie and Midge between the their chalets is aesthetically memorable, visually augmenting their growing human connection.

Asteroid City (2023) proves once again Wes Anderson is one of the most original filmmakers of this generation. Will he gain some more converts to his particular set of cinematic bag of tricks? Who knows. What I do know is that I was completely immersed in the colour, movement, pace, humour, aesthetics, performances and themes with the film. I must say though, while it was necessary, the “Area 51” style — and I don’t want to give it away — absurd plot-turn halfway through was not my favourite aspect of the piece. But I realise it was narratively integral to the story. The meta-framing also seemed to get in the way at times of the main action effecting the occupants of Asteroid City. But these are minor gripes at a thoroughly artistic, beautifully immersive, and technically impressive cinematic achievement.

Mark: 9 out of 11

Cinema, My Cinematic Romance

MY CINEMATIC ROMANCE #24 – DENIS VILLENEUVE

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MY CINEMATIC ROMANCE #24 – DENIS VILLENEUVE

With the release of Dune: Part Two (2023) on the horizon for November 2023, I thought it may be worth appraising some of Canadian filmmaker, Denis Villeneuve’s amazing directorial work in this occasional strand, My Cinematic Romance. Note, I discipline my choices to only five films.

If you’re interested, I really wanted to like Dune (2021) more. One won’t see a more attractive and technically perfect rendition of a sci-fi world in the cinema in years. But, I could not connect with the narrative or lead protagonist. Seeing the big worms which made me want to watch Tremors (1990); a far superior and shorter version of a hero’s journey.

Nonetheless, award-winning Villeneuve is one of cinema’s surest hands when it comes to intelligent and compelling genre cinema. He has the touch of a film artist and takes certain risks, but not without resorting to indulgences which alienate the audience (take note Ari Aster!) Thus, I consider and list five of his great works, which I recommend wholly if you have not seen them.

*** MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS ***

POLYTECHNIQUE (2009)

This is a harsh watch. Any film about mass shootings is never going to be an easy experience to stomach. Still, it’s nothing compared to the sadness of those whose lives were struck from existence. The 1989 École Polytechnique massacre (also known as the “Montreal Massacre”) is re-enacted here in stark black and white film stock. The wintry setting and the cold-blooded murder of the events combine to create a heightened vision of anxiety cinema. Villeneuve objectively documents the massacre with a distance that paradoxically raises the emotions as opposed to lessening them. A film which you makes us confront the horror of humanity.

NEXT FLOOR (2010) – short film

Created by producer Phoebe Greenberg and directed by Villeneuve during a break from making feature film Polytechnique (2009), this devastating short film with its commentary on the horror of greed, is most likely an influence on grisly Spanish prison film The Platform (2019). One wishes Villeneuve would make a horror feature. I’d prefer to see how that might turn out than Dune.

INCENDIES (2010)

Incendies (2010) is the probably the best film you haven’t seen. If you have seen it then tell more people to see it. Spread the word on this incredible film. Villeneuve directs in an intelligent way, retaining empathy and emotion for both protagonists and antagonists devoured by war. Nawal Marwan’s story is especially heart-breaking and she is given a moving portrayal by Lubna Azabal. Nawal’s story is one of astounding power as the character experiences the hell of loss, war, torture and death. One which will shake you to the core for days and weeks and maybe even years!

PRISONERS (2013)

A superlative crime script written by Aaron Guzilowski has one of the best ensemble casts seen on screen in years, notably: Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Viola Davis, Maria Bello, Terrence Howard, Melissa Leo, and Paul Dano. The story is absolutely compelling with a plot so tightly wound, you’re almost throttled throughout by the mystery and suspense. Jackman is especially truthful, playing a flawed everyman who obsessively, quite understandably, searches for his missing child. Dano plays another convincing outsider as the main suspect, while Gyllenhaal is, as always, brilliant as dogged cop, Detective Loki. Villeneuve proves once again he is one of the best directors of actors working today. Prisoners (2013) is a masterpiece of crime genre cinema.

ARRIVAL (2016)

The intriguing premise, brilliant script, ambient score, stylish effects, subtle cinematography and purposeful direction make this one of the best science fiction films of recent years. It is an intelligent and emotional science-fiction drama with a beautifully constructed narrative which constantly surprised and moved me.  It also asks big questions on the nature of time, existence and love; informing us that not all extra-terrestrial life in movies has to be monstrous and deadly. Above all else Villeneuve, Amy Adams and screenwriter Eric Heisserer gain sheer kudos for creating a beautiful and moving love story.

Cinema, Reviews

CINEMA REVIEW: SICK OF MYSELF (2022)

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CINEMA REVIEW: SICK OF MYSELF (2022)

Written and Directed by: Kristoffer Borgli

Produced by: Andrea Berentsen Ottmar, Dyveke Bjørkly Graver

Cast: Kristine Kujath Thorp , Eirik Sæther, Fanny Vaager, Henrik Mestad, Andrea Bræin Hovig, Steinar Klouman Hallert, Fredrik Stenberg, etc.

Cinematography by Benjamin Loeb

*** MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS ***

Human beings are capable of incredible acts of compassion, creativity, kindness, artistry, charity, care and beauty. But I have to admit there is a flaw, and in some people a sickness, which makes them narcissistic, selfish and image-obsessed with the constant need for attention. Indeed, with the advent of mobile phones and social media anyone with an internet connection can drop a video on YouTube, Facebook, TikTok or Instagram and get instant gratification. Not to mention the plague of TV talent and reality programming which showcase the epitome of this “me-me-me” generation.

Maybe society has always been like this, full of attention seekers desiring to become actors or singers or comedians or artists. But now there is a constant platform for the talented, untalented and arguably mentally unbalanced to post their wares online for an ego hit, likes and if they’re lucky, to “go viral.” But it’s just a bit entertainment isn’t it? A bit of a laugh? Getting a bit of attention and maybe even becoming famous. But there is a dark, horrific side to social media and reality show attention. The internet is replete with stories about people who have killed themselves having found “fame” this way. Sometimes too much attention becomes too much for some.

The Norwegian black comedy, Sick of Myself (2022) written and directed by Kristoffer Borgli, darkly explores the themes of narcissism, art and attention-seeking through the twentysomething characters of Signe and Thomas. The couple live somewhat regular lives in Oslo. Signe is a coffee shop server, while Thomas is an aspiring artist. Two excellent scenes introduce their characters succinctly. Thomas, who it is revealed throughout to be a kleptomaniac, initially gets a hit stealing an expensive bottle of wine from a posh restaurant. While Signe gets a massive adrenaline punch from the attention she receives when assisting a bloodied customer savaged by a dog. These fascinating narrative strands are the foundation for a series of funny, cringeworthy and horrific scenes expertly developed by Borgli.

The film is very much delivered in a believable and realistic style as, Sick of Myself (2022), develops its character and thematic analysis with understated direction. But the actions of the characters are anything but understated. Signe diverts attention away from Thomas’ growing fame in the art world by resorting to more extreme ways to get people to notice to her. The initial comedic situations, such as Signe faking a nut allergy to interrupt Thomas’ speech in a restaurant, give way to constant lying and actual self-harm, as her personality is blighted by undiagnosed Munchausen’s syndrome. With echoes of DeNiro’s and Scorsese’s The King of Comedy (1983), Signe is a grotesque creation reflecting a dangerous side within our society. But whereas Rupert Pupkin had a goal to become a famous stand-up comedian, Signe, as portrayed with muted and natural brilliance by Kristine Kujath Thorp, has no such career desire other than to just be constantly noticed. She is a tragic character, like many in society, who desperately need psychological help.

Mark: 8 out of 11

Cinema, Netflix, Reviews

NETFLIX SPRING FILM REVIEWS – PART TWO! Including Pinocchio (2022), The Wonder (2022), White Noise (2022) and more. . .

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So, here’s PART TWO of my Netflix spring film reviews. PART ONE is HERE if you are interested.

Happy Holidays everyone!

THE PALE BLUE EYE (2022)

Scott Cooper and Christian Bale combined to brutal and intense impact with the dark Western, Hostiles (2017). Their follow-up is an equally bleak, but not so riveting character study, based on the detective novel by Louis Bayard. Bale portrays a world-weary detective, during the 1830s, tasked with solving the suspicious deaths of cadets at military school, West Point. Moody, murky, and dour in performance, production design and plotting, The Pale Blue Eye (2022), is a draining experience. Further, Bale’s Augustus Landor is not the most charismatic of protagonists and only Harry Melling’s eccentric rendition of a young Edgar Allen Poe, occasionally raises the gloom. There’s some terrific cinematography in this cold thriller and a great story in there. I especially enjoyed the Edgar Allen Poe elements too. But, the film is suffocated by the slow pacing and lack of empathy for the victims or lead characters.

Mark: 7 out of 11

PINOCCHIO (2022)

I have to be honest, but I have never really had a big emotional connection with the story of Pinocchio. It’s great to have goals in life, but the desire to ascend to a higher plain of humanity and be “real”, whether you are made of wood or machine (see Artificial Intelligence (2001)) is a desire I cannot align too. Maybe I am too dumb or privileged? However, I think that is probably the point of the writer Carlo Colludi’s classic tale. Because it is all about finding peace within yourself whatever you are made of. Indeed, it is a fantastic rites-of-passage, journey of discovery narrative and deserving of classic status. Let’s not forget that Disney, Kubrick, Spielberg, Garrone, Zemeckis, and now Guillermo Del Toro have produced versions of Pinocchio (2022). But how many more do we need? Del Toro, Mark Gustafson and their genius production team’s stop-motion version is a stunning rendition though. Setting it during World War II darkens the flavour and colour, with Del Toro breathing fresh life into this overfamiliar fairy story.

Mark: 8.5 out of 11

THE TRIP (2021)

Norwegian genre movie director, Tommy Wirkola, unofficially remakes Haneke’s Funny Games (1997), with this bloody hilarious live-action cartoon comedy. Noomi Rapace and Aksel Hannie are Lars and Lisa, a couple whose marriage is crumbling. Both decide that divorce is not the best way to end their relationship. A trip away is not an attempt for the couple to reconcile, but to destroy each other. Before you can say War of the Roses (1989), the film takes a violent twist as their unromantic getaway descends further into destruction with the introduction of a surprising criminal element. I won’t give it away, but I was thoroughly entertained by the gory and bone-shredding silliness of it all. Noomi Rapace is always brilliant too!

Mark: 8 out of 11

WHITE NOISE (2022)

Kubrick is quoted as saying, “If it can be written, or thought, it can be filmed.” But does that necessarily mean it should be filmed? So, when you read a literary classic is apparently unfilmable, and then discover that it is being filmed, you wonder how they have filmed it. Well, in the case of Noah Baumbach’s adaptation of postmodern classic, Dom DeLillo’s White Noise (2022), I genuinely wonder why they bothered. Perhaps, the apparent $100 million spent will allow Noel Baumbach and Greta Gerwig to develop more interesting projects in the future, but this really is an over-expensive 1980s set cinematic folly. Having said that Gerwig and Adam Driver light up the screen and Baumbach’s witty script had some genuinely delightful dialogue exchanges between the energetic and intellectual ensemble. However, overall the film was too self-consciously eccentric and over-long. I’m glad the filmmaking team got a grand payday, but arguably the book should have remained unfilmed and on the page. Sticking it out to the bitter end is well worth it though. It has a fantastic final credits sequence.

Mark: 7 out of 11

THE WONDER (2022)

Is there a better actor around than Florence Pugh? I am not so sure. She is formidably brilliant in every role I have seen her in. I think that Pugh is so clever, emotional and magnetic in her screen performances, none more so than in this intense period drama directed by Sebastian Lelio. The Wonder (2022), an adaptation of a novel by Emma Donoghue, is set during 1862 in rural Ireland shortly after the Great Famine. Pugh’s English nurse, Elizabeth Wright, is summoned to attend a young girl who apparently has not eaten for months. Is it a religious miracle or are there supernatural forces at play? Such themes are intelligently explored in this atmospheric and brooding drama which had me gripped throughout. The subtext of religious control, Catholic guilt and the English stranglehold over Ireland also exist between the dramatic lines in an intimate epic, anchored by Pugh’s dominant force-of-human-nature performance.

Mark: 9 out of 11

Netflix, Reviews

NETFLIX SPRING FILM REVIEWS – PART ONE! Including: All Quiet on the Western Front (2022), Glass Onion (2022), Passing (2021) and more . . .

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Having not been too impressed by Netflix’s summer 2022 blockbuster releases – see my reviews here – I questioned the amount of money spent on big budget productions which had very average scripts and indifferent storytelling. Well, Netflix have certainly redeemed themselves of late, because the majority of the films I have seen on the platform recently have been excellent.

Indeed, I have watched so many Netflix films since the turn of 2023, I have decided to split the reviews into two parts. I have been so busy at work that I just don’t have time to review them all separately. Many of these films are so impressive they do deserve longer critical pieces, but there you go. I have even passed over reviewing John Wick 4 (2023) and Scream 6 (2023). While they are decent genre films, they offer nothing new to The Cinema Fix reviewing realm.

Ultimately, I hope you enjoyed these films as much as did. All power to Netflix – keep up the amazing work!

ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT (2022)

The German war film adaptation of the classic novel by Erich Maria Remarque has been made twice before. This big budget version is directed by Edward Berger and certainly has a powerful and spectacular visual style, allied to some formidable filmmaking expertise. I fear the television screen was not the right medium to witness the muddy majesty on show as it can barely contain the crunching metallic and bloody horrors of the first World War. The film has unsurprisingly been nominated for and won many awards, and benefits from a brilliant debutant screen performance from Felix Kammerer. Personally, I still feel that the original 1930 film adaptation has more human emotion to it, as the characters in this version aren’t as well set-up from the start in comparison. A phenomenal achievement in sound and vision though nonetheless. The cinematography and soundtrack are as good as gets.

Mark: 8.5 out 11

ATHENA (2022)

Imagine taking the anger and social commentary within La Haine (1996), and adding vivid colour, pyrotechnics, kinetic cameras, long takes, and turning it all the way up to eleven? If so, then you have an idea of what Roman Gavras’ socio-political-action-thriller, Athena (2022) delivers. The death of a youth at the hands of police brutality kicks off rioting from the underclasses on a French council estate. What follows is a stunning group of frantic and explosive action set-pieces as fraternal loyalties are tested between the main protagonists with police, youth and gangsters at each other’s throats. Arguably though, the fast pace and fireworks dampen the sociological message in an otherwise breath-taking directorial and cinematographic achievement.

Mark: 8.5 out of 11

GLASS ONION: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY (2022)

I really enjoyed the first Knives Out (2019) reviewed here. It was one of my films of the year. I also absolutely love Agatha Christie’s model of ensemble characters being investigated by a brilliant detective, with complex plotting and surprise twists and dark secrets being uncovered as a “whodunnit” is solved. Rian Johnson’s brilliant screenwriting abilities also breathed fresh air into a well-worn subgenre. He attempts to capture lightning in a bottle again with Glass Onion (2022), and while the famous cast, notably Dave Bautista, Janelle Monae, and Kathryn Hahn stand out among the over-actors, the devilish plot concerning rich people trying to out-do each other just did not connect and make me care. Also, am I the only one who still thinks Daniel Craig is miscast in this role? Even though I really enjoyed the cleverness of the script, his appalling “Foghorn Leghorn” accent still grates me.

Mark: 7.5 out of 11

THE HOUSE (2022)

From the leading voices in independent stop motion animation – Emma de Swaef & Marc Roels, Niki Lindroth von Bahr and Paloma Baeza – The House (2022) is a triumph of eccentric imagination, artistic talent and surreal vision. But the three bizarre tales contained within this anthology, while kind of enjoyable, were just TOO weird for me to thoroughly enjoy in a conventional sense. File under impressive avant-garde and experimental genius, rather than safe popcorn entertainment, and that is probably what the filmmakers were aiming for.

Mark: 7 out of 11

PASSING (2021)

I wish I’d seen this amazingly powerful film on release as it would certainly have been in my top ten films of the year. It’s a low budget, intimate and yet emotionally resonant adaptation of Nella Larson’s novel. Set in 1920s New York, the heartfelt drama juxtaposes the lives of two black women, portrayed by Tessa Thompson and Ruth Negga, with the latter passing herself as white within the racially charged era of the time. As their friendship develops their respective life choices are explored with subtlety and intensity by the impressive cast and director, Rebecca Hall. The choice to employ black-and-white cinematography, while often an over-used artistic indie-film trope, is absolutely the right choice. Lastly, Tessa Thompson is wonderful, but Ruth Negga is quite sublime in a complex, pathos-laden and unforgettable tragic screen personification.

Mark: 9.5 out of 11

Cinema, Reviews

CINEMA REVIEW: COCAINE BEAR (2023)

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CINEMA REVIEW: COCAINE BEAR (2023)

Directed by Elizabeth Banks

Written by Jimmy Warden

Produced by: Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, Aditya Sood, Elizabeth Banks, Max Handelman and Brian Duffield

Main Cast: Keri Russell, O’Shea Jackson Jr., Christian Convery, Alden Ehrenreich, Brooklynn Prince, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Margo Martindale and Ray Liotta

*** CONTAINS SPOILERS ***

Every now and then a film title hooks you in immediately. Snakes on a Plane (2006) anyone? Now, another beast driven movie comes along and says, “Hold. . . My. . . Bear!” Enter based-on-a-crazy-true-story Cocaine Bear (2023)! Yes, incredibly, the B-movie comedy-horror film is based on the real-life events in 1985, when a drug smuggler chucked themselves, and over forty bags of cocaine, out of a mechanically flailing aeroplane. When his parachute failed to open the smuggler plummeted to his death. The raining coke fell into Georgia forest terrain, only to be found by a black bear who, thinking it was food perhaps, tucked into the white powder.

Cocaine Bear (2023) imagines what happened next to this bizarre but somehow tragic series of unfortunate events. Let’s just say that P.E.T.A would certainly not approve of what happens to the bear in this film. Although they may enjoy the many grisly and bone-crunching deaths that occur to the mostly two-dimensional human characters on show. But while the cast, notably Alden Ehrenreich and Keri Russell, do their best with the material, the film lacks the wit and ensemble acting strength of a far superior movie involving an apex predator gone rogue, Lake Placid (1999).

Safe to say that Cocaine Bear (2023) is a pretty terrible movie. It is, however, very entertaining in a stupid way. It is deliberately intended to be that way by the writer, Jimmy Warden and director Elizabeth Banks. The flimsy characterisation, over-acting and half-witted plotting place the film on the verge of parody, without reaching the richly, gag-heavy scripts of say the Naked Gun series. There are some fantastically funny scenes involving the kids finding the cocaine and the realistic CGI bear causing carnage killing dumb teenage gang members and bickering gangsters. So, go into Cocaine Bear (2023) with low expectations and you will be rewarded with a funny and bloody B-movie monster flick. Ultimately, it has a great trailer and clickbait title, and contains enough crowd-pleasing carnage and dumb fun to make it worth a trip to the cinema.

Mark: 6.5 out of 11

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CINEMA REVIEW: THE MENU (2022)

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CINEMA REVIEW: THE MENU (2022)

Directed by Mark Mylod

Written by: Seth Reiss, Will Tracy

Produced by: Adam McKay, Betsy Koch, Will Ferrell

Cast: Ralph Fiennes, Anya Taylor-Joy, Nicholas Hoult, Hong Chau, Janet McTeer, Reed Birney, Judith Light, John Leguizamo, etc.

Cinematography Peter Deming

*** MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS ***

I love cinema and films like The Menu (2022), as much as I love food and drink. Wow, some of the food shown on screen looked absolutely delicious, while some of it was that weird cuisine so gorged on by the pompous moneyed folk of this world. I must admit that I have had an unhealthy relationship with food. I have been an overeater and also overweight. I am a food addict, notably sugar and alcohol. I have attempted to control it with various dietary ventures. Low calorie, low carbohydrate, low sugar, running, gym, fasting, temperance and other (un)successful attempts at moderation have ensued. Presently, I am pretty fit from a cardio perspective, and twenty kilos lighter than I was ten years ago. But I could do much better.

I’ve always strived to eat healthily, but fine dining was never really for me. It was only when I met my wife eight years ago that I was introduced to gourmet dining and the dreaded tasting menu. Aside from the over-priced food, I just find those posh restaurants too pretentious for a working-class boy from Battersea. Yet, I would go out with my wife for a treat and eat at some wonderful restaurants in Edinburgh, Copenhagen, Cornwall, London and many more. Some were amazing and some I found were not really value for money. The personality cult of the celebrity chef continues to thrive also. Aside from enjoying Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares they’ve never really interested me. Yet, I was onboard while imbibing the skewered satire of The Menu (2022). Because it’s a sharply scripted horror film which comes to the boil slowly before delivering a killer set of courses throughout.

It’s best to experience The Menu (2022) without knowing too much. The surprises in the inventive script are a constant joy. The setting is an exclusive and expensive restaurant on a remote island called Hawthorne. The host, menu architect and epicurean is celebrity chef, Julian Slowik. Chef is portrayed with intense control and focus by Ralph Fiennes. Slowik finds himself worshipped by his kitchen acolytes, who adhere to his every demand. He is brilliant and to be feared, like many a charismatic cult leader before him. Eat your heart out, Gordon Ramsay.

Arriving by boat to the blighted isle are twelve restaurant-goers such as a team of rich finance guys, a once famous Hollywood actor (John Leguizamo) and his PA, a wealthy middle-aged couple, a food critic (Janet McTeer) and her yes-man assistant, plus the mis-matched couple, Margot (Anya Taylor-Joy) and Tyler (Nicholas Hoult). Tyler is a sycophantic fanboy of Slowik’s food and career, something that later comes to horrifying catharsis. Indeed, as well as the mysterious menu, many of the guests are harbouring a secret that this hell’s kitchen is more than prepared to burn.

Structured, unsurprisingly, around the courses of a tasting menu with titles separating each dish, the food delivered is both imaginative and beautifully presented. Margot’s character pushes back on what she considers to be both ostentatious and insubstantial food, much to Tyler’s annoyance. Their conflict intersperses the rising suspense that derives from Julian’s menu, which raises the stakes gradually, before events truly reach boiling point. In Slowik’s restaurant the customer is definitely NEVER right. Similar to Ready or Not (2019), The Menu (2022) is a fantastically twisted and funny genre film. Fiennes, Taylor-Joy, Hoult and Hong Chau are on terrific acting form. Further, the production design and cinematography make the visuals succulent and palatable. Ultimately, for those who love food, fear and vengeance, this film is certainly best served hot!

Mark: 8.5 out of 11

Cinema, Comedy, Five Reasons - Film Preview, horror

FIVE REASONS THIS COULD BE GOOD: COCAINE BEAR (2023)

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FIVE REASONS THIS COULD BE GOOD: COCAINE BEAR (2023)

Every now and then a film title hooks you in immediately. Snakes on a Plane (2006) anyone? Now, another beast driven movie comes along and says, “Hold. . . My. . . Bear!”Enter the thrill-a-second trailer for – Cocaine Bear (2023)!

So here are five reasons, Cocaine Bear (2023) could be good!

  1. The title of the film is Cocaine Bear (2023)!
  2. It has a kill crazy bear high on cocaine in it!
  3. It is amazingly inspired by a TRUE story!
  4. It’s Ray Liotta’s R.I.P, final film.
  5. The trailer is amazing – check it out here:

Cocaine Bear (2023) releases on February 24th 2023 in the US, UK and most of the world exclusively in movie theatres.