There’s not much wrong with Kimberly Peirce’s (director of Boys Don’t Cry and Stop-Loss) Carrie reboot. In fact, it’s probably quite an interesting movie if you’ve never seen the original. The real problem facing this venture is that Brian DePalma’s version is SO iconic and timeless, this remake could never match it, let alone surpass it. The script-writer’s stick rigidly to the storyline, making this a near scene-for-scene copy, just with a more expensive-looking paint-job and some annoying modern technology awkwardly lumped in. In fairness to Chloe Moretz and Julianne Moore, their performances are great but that doesn’t justify this unnecessary remake’s existence.
August: Osage County, based upon a very successful play, is one of those talkie American dramas where an ensemble cast of quirks come together and air their dirty laundry. Quite frankly, this has been done far better in Carnage, City Island, Little Miss Sunshine and The Family Stone, just to name a few. Due to its source material, Osage County is filmed in mostly static, sit-down shots which makes for an exasperating and draining watch. The performances are what keep the movie ticking over; Meryl Streep is superb in the central role as a drug-addled raving matriarch and Julia Roberts is equally impressive as her frustrated daughter. Acting aside, Osage County is a bland, unexciting film made for a very specific audience of Meryl Streep enthusiasts.
Almost a full TWENTY years after the fangtastic Interview With a Vampire, Neil Jordan takes another bite into the genre with Byzantium. Filled with sexiness, mystery and a fair share of gore, Byzantium follows two enigmatic females Eleanor (Saoirse Ronan) and Clara (Gemma Arterton) as they try to evade a shady group who’ve been following them for decades. Byzantium is a movie that slowly unravels, teasing and withholding narrative elements to capitalise on the ignorance of the viewer. Sharing many similarities with his former film (most notably the reliance upon period flashbacks) Byzantium is a welcome return to the traditional vampire story but the sometimes ponderous narrative can prove a challenge. Definitely worth a watch for disenfranchised vampire fans though.
Despite there being a lot to love about Her, it doesn’t compare with his past directorial efforts. Firstly, it LOOKS beautiful, like the inside of an Ikea warehouse. The production design is futuristic but in a subtle, clean way. Furthermore, the costumes worn by Joaquin Phoenix and his co-stars are effortlessly fashionable. I much prefer Amy Adams’ natural, cute wardrobe in this film as opposed to her more *ahem* revealing look in American Hustle. My issues with Her stem from my own expectations. Jonze is known for his mind-melting, non-linear narratives but Her is fairly conventional and dare I say, formulaic. Disappointingly, Jonze directs the movie as a straight-up romantic tragedy deciding to leave other themes like society’s obsession with technology and our disconnect from reality as subtext.
Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto walked away with two Academy Awards earlier this year for their colossal performances in Dallas Buyers Club. Both men threw themselves into their respective role, transforming their physicality, their mannerisms and in Leto’s case, his gender. You’d be hard pressed to find more authentic, real performances this year. My problem with Dallas Buyers Club is that it left me wanting more from this world and these characters. About an hour into the picture, the movie stops being an intimate character study about one man’s battle with HIV as an anti-government tone commandeers the narrative and steers it off-course. Subsequently, Dallas Buyers Club is a good film made up of great performances but I don’t feel compelled to watch it again.
Irrerevent, gloriously meta, intelligent, heart-warming, witty – these are just a few of the gushing words I could use when recommending the Lego Movie. For a family-orientated, feature-length advertising campaign, the Lego Movie is far better than it ought to be. With its exemplary cast of voice talents, half of the fun is guessing which voice belongs to who. Even after quickly reading through the cast list before watching, I was pleasantly surprised by some brief voice cameos. Although the protagonists are all made of plastic, there’s a great deal of heart in the writing, which especially surfaces in the final act. Directors, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (21 Jump Street, Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs), have crafted an animation that not only entertains but does so in an intelligent, thoughtful manner, for both children and adults alike.
Benrhayward 