Author Archives: Daniel McCarthy

Game Change Film Review by Daniel McCarthy.

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‘It’s God’s plan’ a calm Sarah Palin (Julianne Moore) announces as she is chosen to become the Republican vice presidential nominee in the historic American election of 2008. The events themselves seem so fresh and vivid in the memory that to describe them as history feels somewhat redundant. We all remember the raised eyebrows and gasps of incredulity as the Governor of Alaska was plucked from relative obscurity to become one of the most recognised faces on the planet. Few could predict the ultimate outcome. Based largely on the political journal of the same name, Game Change tracks the decision by the McCain campaign team to hoist a ‘game changing element’ into the ring of the election. Head organiser Steve Schmidt (Woody Harrelson) believes that a fiery right wing candidate will boost bedrock support whilst her being a woman will cross the gender divide and provide a celebrity counter balance to Barack Obama’s unprecedented popularity. John McCain (Ed Harris) is delighted with the decision especially after her barnstorming opening speeches. However joy soon turns to dread as they discover that Palin is woefully ignorant on America’s key foreign policies. Public adulation turns to mockery and she soon begins to buckle under the strain of the campaign. The rest as they say is history…

The release date of Game Change has not gone unnoticed in political circles with Plain and McCain having accused the film of lies before having even watched it. With a new election looming the timing could not be more noticeable. Of course it is the portrayal and performances that will define such a project. As Palin, Julianne Moore is quite frankly a tour de force. Often critics get caught up in their own adjectives and hyperbole but in all sincerity; there are moments I forgot I was watching Julianne Moore. The physical and vocal ticks are uncanny yet there is a strong parallel between the images of Palin that we recall and the portrayed image that we were not privy to. Moore perfectly conveys the sense of someone desperately out of their depth yet refusing to fold. The media harassment that hounded her and her family is plain to see for all including those opposed to her politics. As much as race and age played a crucial factor in Obama and McCain’s public image, so to do the fact that Palin was a woman and may have forgotten (or overlooked) the frankly misogynistic attitude of many mainstream media outlets towards her at the time of her campaign. These elements are expertly woven by director Jay Roach into the narrative along with archive and interview footage edited to seem that the actors are interacting with their real life counterparts. This includes an incredibly self referential moment when a humiliated Palin watches the now infamous Saturday Night Live sketch with Tina Fey.

But it is in the ultimate treatment of Palin that the film falls short. Whilst casting her in sympathetic light for the opening act the descent into an ‘uncontrollable renegade’ seems to come too fast and comes off as a tad unconvincing, a shame considering the initial scenes. There is a genuine punch the air moment in the third act when Schmidt (a brilliant Harrelson) puts her firmly in place whilst retaining a professional tone but it’s the one subtle moment toward the finale that you can increasingly feel the melodrama creeping in. The film can’t decide to ultimately exonerate her or to condemn her. It doesn’t help that McCain himself is pretty much side lined by the drama. Ed Harris is a magnificent screen presence and though certainly not up to Moore’s pedigree he definitely has McCain’s physicality nailed. Yet he is reduced to watching from the side lines occasionally stepping forward to deliver a bit of sage advice for the ‘young firebrands.’ It’s a waste of a great performer and whilst I normally wouldn’t mind in any other work I severely doubt the actual John McCain swears so much. It passes over from shocking into quite frankly silly.

HBO have maintained a high standard of quality across a range of platforms and to a degree it’s really encouraging to see a television movie draw such talent to it and get such a wide release. I don’t think it’s flawless by any means though I concede that projects like this will always divide opinion in their portrayal of such recent events. The powerhouse performances see it through however and with the election just around the corner who knows; maybe we’ll be back here in four years?

MAD MEN SEASON FIVE PREVIEW

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Well, here we are. After an agonizing seventeen months off the air, Don Draper and his fellow advertising companions of Madison Avenue are set to return to our screens the end of this month as Mad Men enters its fifth season. For a show notorious for its dense plotting and ruthlessly addictive storyline, the wait has been agonizing to say the least. After slow but steady word of mouth building on BBC Four the new season has been bought up by Sky and being marketed to much larger audience more aware of the show’s presence since it suddenly burst onto the TV radar back at 2007. For those who have yet to dip into its stylised world of intrigue and glamour they have quite some catching up to do.

Mad Men takes place primarily in New York City at the outset of the 1960’s as the country enters what was to be arguably its most turbulent decade. The action centres on the fictional advertising agency Sterling Cooper and its head executive Donald Draper (Jon Hamm), a walking enigma of man who appears to optimise the smooth, fast talking family man with both hands wrapped firmly around the American Dream. But Don is hiding some devastating secrets and his supposedly pristine life is not the Eden it appears. In fact it isn’t for anybody; seemingly all of Draper’s family, co-workers and acquaintances are hiding something from one another (and in some cases themselves as well) and in the world of advertising where a single image substitute’s reality, their infidelities, debauchery and outright deceptions mark them out against a world which is rapidly changing around them and shedding their preset ideals. To recap recent events very quickly, Don has just managed turned the tide of his bitter divorce to Betty (January Jones), his alcoholism and the agencies failing fortunes. He also takes the surprisingly brash decision to propose to his secretary Megan (Jessica Pare) who seems to be the light at the end of the tunnel. But tough times still lie ahead for the agency, the war in Vietnam is escalating and one of Don’s spurned lovers ominously warns him, ‘You only like the beginning of things.’

The world portrayed in the show initially feels like something out of a science fiction drama given the startling contrasts to today’s attitude to social mores. The civil rights movement was just taking off and chauvinism was a firm fixture in the office place. It’s an environment where the men in charge have carte blanche to harass and insult the women that work alongside them. One of the dark joys of the show is seeing these narrow-minded views slowly torpedoed one by one as history changing events foreshadow major plot points; for example Don and his striking yet distant wife Betty facing major revelations about their marriage whilst the Cuban Missile Crisis threatens to engulf them and all around. None of the characters have a chance to be complacent; the world is moving too fast around them. However if the world doesn’t catch up with them first, their frighteningly extravagant lifestyles will. The naivety of the time period also means that all of the major characters smoke and drink to an almost comical degree; the air never seems to be free of smoke whilst a baby shower with flowing martinis provokes laughs and gasps aplenty. Thankfully the substance abuse is not easily dismissed and is shown to have a steadily detrimental effect upon these men who find that they are not as invulnerable as they think.

Draper is a fascinating character; a man who struggles to keep barriers between the lives and worlds he inhabits and is drawn to self-destructive behaviour like a moth to flame. With a main character with so many reasons to potentially dislike them, you better have an extremely charismatic leading man. Thank heavens then for Jon Hamm in what is destined to become an iconic performance; he will have to work very hard to emerge from Drapper’s shadow. His features convey the look of a traditional film or television star of the period yet he lays it with hint of both danger and vulnerability that is utterly compulsive. It’s a role that requires extreme confidence, notably in scenes where Drapper simply dominates sales pitches and board room meetings and Hamm grabs it with both hands and makes it a tour-de-force.

Of course very great T.V. drama needs support for its lead to bounce off of and Mad Men is bursting at the seams with fascinating characters. Listing them all would go on for a considerably long time but I would like to focus on two supporting characters, one of whom arguably stands next to Don as the show’s co-lead. First up is Peter Campbell (Vincent Kartheiser), Don’s astonishingly ambitious and (initially) spineless understudy with a huge sense of entitlement and the need to prove to both his own distant family and his new needy wife and her parents. Both baby-faced and predatory in equal measure, Kartheiser is a joy to behold in the role. He masterfully flits between Pete’s bitter resentment and his comically naive grasp of shifting office politics. It’s in these scenes that we’re reminded that for all of the intense dramatics, the show walks a fine line of humour both subtle and broad. One of Pete’s permanent series storylines is established in the opening episode where he embarks on a fool hardy one night stand with new secretary Peggy Olsen (Elisabeth Moss), who enters Sterling Cooper at the bottom rung and rapidly becomes a vital part of Don’s inner sanctum, both professional and personal. Moss’ performance is simply stunning throughout the series. She conveys the rift between traditional values and bright new ideals without ever falling into cliché or being preachy as we follow her journey and watch her character change and not necessarily for the best. Her initial ‘fish out of water’ scenes are amusing but the dramatics are where the true fireworks fly. The scenes where she butts heads with Pete and later Don are astonishing, most noticeably in the season four episode ‘The Suitcase’ where they gradually reveal themselves to one another over a hectic night and change their relationship permanently. It’s a staggeringly well written episode with both performers at the top of their game.

Mad Men is shined to within an inch of its life. The majority of scenes are filmed in interior Californian studios doubling for New York (presumably primarily for budgetary reasons) though they convince seamlessly whilst also reflecting the claustrophobic underlying theme of many of the storylines. Costume design and soundtrack choices are also impeccable firmly establishing the show as evidence for contemporary American television drama being on a par with feature film production. Mad Men has certainly built up enough hype to rival most major blockbusters and anticipation for the new season is at fever pitch. Personally I cannot recall another show where each season has been better than the one that preceded it so my fingers are crossed that Season Five can deliver the goods. I’ll certainly be waiting, suit cleanly pressed and tumbler of whiskey firmly in hand.

Mad Men Season Five Starts on Sky Atlantic on March 27th

The Muppets {Film Review}

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Over a decade since their last cinematic outing, Jim Henson’s iconic, comedic felt creations face a tough dilemma. Do they put on a spectacular show at the old Muppet theatre to restore their name and glory or do they slip away into the night; icons of a less complicated and cynical time? Whilst that may describe the plot of the movie itself, it also sums up the real world that the Muppet franchise finds itself in at present. Kid’s entertainment is mostly cyclical and yesterday’s fad creates indifference if not complete ignorance. However the care of craft is crucial and it seems to have paid of hugely. After a terrific Thanksgiving opening in the States, James Bobin’s reboot arrives on these shores. As someone who always liked and enjoyed The Muppets yet not a die-hard fan, I approached this with a certain sense of trepidation. Thankfully I was rewarded with one of the smartest, funniest and simply joyful mainstream family films of recent memory.

The central plot revolves around young Muppet Walter and his human brother Gary (Jason Segal, also the films co-writer). Growing up as the only Muppet in the ridiculously idyllic Smalltown, Walter finds comfort and joy through the Muppet Show on television. All grown up the two head to LA with Gary’s girlfriend Mary (Amy Adams in full on charm mode) in tow to see the Muppets Studios. However they find the studio empty and in decline, the Muppets broken up and etching out meagre livings and worst of all an evil oil baron literally named Tex Richman (a game Chris Cooper) planning to tear down the studios and dig up the black gold he has found beneath. It’s up to Walter and his friends to band Kermit and his Muppet companions together for one last show in order to raise funds and save their precious theatre. To be honest it’s a fairly tired and tested plot device yet the creators crucially realise that the journey is what counts and not the destination. For a film that is primarily aimed at a youth market, it’s a surprisingly melancholic experience as the central Muppet characters are forced to face their redundancy. These issues are raised on a more direct level with Walter and Gary who must confront the inevitable distance that grows between them.

As brave a move this is for a kid’s movie, only a fool would believe this would take the route of a Shakespearian drama. Bobin and Segal clearly understand the nostalgic appeal of the characters and play it wonderfully with a firmly tongue in cheek sense of humour that at once ridicules the characters flaws yet is clearly on their side and delights in their antics. Fozzy tells his bad jokes, Gonzo will perform death defying stunts and Animal will be unable to resist the drums. They’re aware their living in a movie world and there are several witty and well placed jokes referencing the confines of the films narrative that work well for both old fans and newbie’s alike. The human cast rise to the task with equal aplomb noticeably during the films playful song and dance sequences penned by Bret McKenzie of HBO’s brilliant Flight Of The Concords. The piece ‘Man or a Muppet’, drifts effortlessly between melancholy and mirth with a great visual pay-off. There’s also the bizarre sight of an Oscar winning dramatic actor rapping about his wealth with dance backing.

Everyone’s up for a laugh in the film, a clear fact from the celebrity cameos associated with the Muppets from their early days. The likes of Alan Arkin and Emily Blunt send up their own images in brief but well timed spots but perhaps in some of the later scenes there seems to be a wary degree of redundancy in the appearances, as though the makers just tried to get as familiar faces in as they could. This is particularly noticeable at the films climax; could they really have not found anyone else to ‘co-host’ the show. It’s one of a few niggling flaws that slightly undermine the film such as particular favourites such as Rolfe and Beaker getting only limited screen time (though understandable due to the brisk running time) and a only creeping sense of infantile humour that feels at odds with the all generations aspect of the original show. But no mind, these are only small flaws with what is otherwise a genuine gem of family entertainment and a glorious return to form for a set of beloved characters. Hell, ever Waldorf and Statler would be cheered up by it.

BOARDWALK EMPIRE SEASON 2

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American cable network HBO’s modus operandi seems reliably similar across many of its shows. A large array of characters interacting on an arresting, gigantic backdrop and slowly building up their story arcs with one another before tying them together in a steadily escalating rush to the end. Those seeking immediate, self contained thrills each and every week should look toward FOX and ABC for such shows. This approach extends to HBO’s current hot ticket Boardwalk Empire; an epic, lavish and violent show set in Atlantic City at the beginning of prohibition in the 1920’s and the explosion of organised crime that followed. Central to the action is Enoch ‘Nucky’ Thompson (played by American indie king Steve Buscemi), the county treasurer with an eye for opportunity and loose morals. He straddles the worlds of both law and crime effortlessly ensuring that he, his corrupt sheriff brother Eli (Shea Whigham) and their cronies come out of a situation with their wallets bursting. As the drama unfolds Nucky contends with both infamous historical figures of the time; Arnold Rothstein (Michael Sthulbarg) and Al Capone (Stephen Graham), and with fictional counterparts such as unhinged war veteran/prodigy Jimmy Darmody (Michael Pitt), widow turned mistress Margaret Schroder (Kelly MacDonald) and zealous Federal Agent Nelson Van Alden (Michael Shannon).

Due to the delayed release of season one in the UK, we had the pleasure of both seasons only being separated by a few months. At the outset of season two Nucky and Margaret are living together seemingly contented. Yet this is shattered when Eli and Jimmy, the latter spurned on by his domineering mother Gillian (Gretchen Moll), lead an open rebellion against Nucky’s leadership with the alcohol flowing into the city proving the key factor. Battle lines are drawn, blood ties are broken and bodies drop like flies as both sides struggle to hold onto what both believe are theirs.

The most easily recognizable aspect of Boardwalk Empire’s quality is its look and design. Every scene, every location and arguably every frame are immaculate to a tee and the cinematography and visual effects weigh up just as much. The show is produced by master filmmaker Martin Scorsese (who also directed the pilot episode) and his influence and sway clearly show and not just in the visual department. As a whole the show engages with the love/hate relationship between America and the almost mythic figure of the organised criminal. There is nothing as trivial as good and bad in this world; the viewer has to use their own moral compass to determine who is the least evil. The theme of betrayal and mistrust runs throughout this season as protégé’s turn against mentors and families against their own. This comes to a head particularly in the penultimate episode where we discover the cause of the friction between Jimmy and Gillian as their story takes a turn similar to Oedipus Rex. The tension is practically unbearable as…well let’s just say things get Freudian. Very Freudian…

The performances of Boardwalk Empire are frequently cited as its major draw. Indeed any show with Steve Buscemi at the helm is worthy of all attention. As well as playing to the strengths of confidence and arrogance that have permeated through many of the characters he has played in the past, there is a vulnerability to Nucky that allows Buscemi to tap into emotional depths that perhaps he has not had the chance to truly reach in previous roles. His roles opposite his brother, from both fisticuffs to graveside revelations, are nothing short of heart-breaking. Michael Pitt proves an almost perfect foil, his youthful charm and handsomeness are a sidestep diversion to Jimmy’s brutality and crumbling psyche under the pressure of demon parents and gangster dealings. His eyes are deep and expressive but there is an underlying darkness that is sometimes genuinely terrifying. Pitt has utilised similar skills on the independent circuit and it’s a pleasure to see them demonstrated on a mainstream outlet. There are equally impressive turns amongst the supporting cast, most underrated amongst them being perhaps British actor Jack Huston as disfigured veteran turned hitman Richard Harrow, a role that despite being delivered beneath a prosthetic mask rings with tortured emotion.

Unfortunately it is in the initial portrayal of its female characters that the show falls down. Model turned actress Paz de la Huerta is saddled with an inconsequential role as Nucky’s former mistress Lucy, a role that could have more impact if it were not for de la Huerta’s inert performance; every line reading is as flat as the Ferns’. Her poor performance would be less distracting if the shows maker didn’t insist on her being nude in the majority of her scenes. Aleksa Palladino fares a little better as Jimmy’s unsatisfied artist wife Angela. Her performance is fine yet she is given little material to work with which makes a particular end of game plot revelation lack the gut punch it deserves. Thankfully there are two roles for women in the show that stand tall and proud; Kelly MacDonald and Gretchen Moll. When we meet Margaret Schroder in season one she appears initially as an oppressed victim who slowly but steadily reacts with confidence and assuredness to her changing circumstances. Ranging from deceiving lawman to fending off attackers via shotgun, MacDonald is a tour de force of vulnerability and uncertainty; her later scenes as she grapples with her personal guilt never lapse over into sentimentality. On the flip side of this Gretchen Moll inhabits the role of Gillian with such chilling venom (‘You will not be disrespected!’) with moments of breathtaking clarity into her characters inner torment. An early scene where she confronts the invalid man who violated her as a child is perfectly paced; drawing in with allusion, steady reveal and a final devastating explosion in violence. A sympathetic villain if there ever was one.
All in all Boardwalk Empire has played like crafty card shark. It knows exactly when to show its big hand yet also feels like its holding a lot of tension back. Every jaw dropping set piece or character moments is bookended by copious amounts of exposition and the sense of characters moving into place though on a large chess board. It is these moments of sheer muscular strength that make the show a force to be reckoned with and earn the patience during its quieter moments. It has been renewed for a third season and after its powerful final seasons there is the strong hope that these two first seasons have laid the groundwork for the true fireworks. Even still below par HBO is miles ahead of the competition and with Buscemi and MacDonald at the helm, anything is possible.

Boardwalk Empire Season 2 finale was broadcast on Christmas Eve. Boardwalk Empire – Season 1 (HBO) [DVD]

Top Five Films Of 2011

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Well okay, maybe that title is somewhat inaccurate. These are my top five films of the year; the ones that moved me, thrilled me, chilled me and left me bowled over by the endless power of the movies. Obviously I didn’t get a chance to see everything that came out though I like to think I gave as much effort as I could to see stuff from across the spectrum of releases. I don’t expect everyone to agree with my choices; one of them I know has incensed arguably more people than it has awed. But like I say it is my humble opinion. Agree or disagree to your content…

1) THE TREE OF LIFE

Terrance Malick’s fifth and most ambitious feature to date, feels like something that we may never see again; a $30 million mainstream film that unashamedly confronts the meaning of life, the cruelty of death, the absence of faith and belief in the divine. Audiences today are so used to having narrative drip thread to them that the astonishingly loose and flowing construction of The Tree Of Life led to outright hostility from many critics and audience members. Despite my initial bewilderment at it through, it stayed with me through the months and on repeat viewings has grown into a profound and deeply moving work. Brad Pitt and Jessica Chastain are extraordinary as a married couple bestowing their differing views on life to their children. What follows is overwhelming vision of the minutia of family life compared with nothing less than the birth of life itself. For me The Tree Of Life does what cinema should do; it takes the most intimate, recognisable aspects we understand and contrasts them against something unfeasibly epic, powerful and ultimately incredibly moving.

2) DRIVE

Roaring out of Cannes like the greatest Michael Mann film that Michael Mann never made, Nicolas Winding Refn’s sleek, blood splattered romantic fairytale captured the hearts of minds of critic and audiences alike. Ryan Gosling truly cements his star status with a near mute role as a stunt driver by day and getaway driver by night who goes up against the LA underworld (personified by a spectacular and unexpected villainous turn by Albert Brooks) when he falls for troubled Carey Mulligan. The two worlds of the story smack head into each other in a spectacular climactic scene in an elevator. The scenes of extreme violence could have been too alienating yet Refn directs with such flair and panache that nearly every scene makes you hairs stand on end. Throw in the best soundtrack of the year hands down and you have an instant cult classic. I walked out of it like i was walking on air.

3) MELANCHOLIA

It could have been overshadowed by director Lars Von Trier’s poor taste in humour at this year’s Cannes Film Festival but thankfully his intimate apocalyptic drama is strong enough to stand on its own feet as an astonishing singular vision of brilliance. Kirsten Dunst and Charlotte Gainsbourg are terrific as two frigid sisters both thrown together by a disastrous wedding and then the arrival of a rogue planet on a collision course with Earth. Filmed in a woozy, dream like palette with very deliberate framing and hauntingly beautiful compositions it takes the difficult subject of depression and manages extraordinarily to turn into a transcendent and oddly uplifting experience.

4) WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN

Arguably the boldest novel adaptation of the year, British director Lynne Ramsey makes a stunning return to screens with a disorientating and devastating tale of a women living in the shadow of her monstrous son and terrible crime he has committed. Tilda Swinton is reliably brilliant conveying both the mother’s dawning horror at steadily disturbing events and the guilt that she feels for not showing the love she should have for the child. It’s a role that most actresses would have balked at yet Swinton plays it with such mesmerising confidence. As good as she is though the film arguably belongs to Ezra Miller as the teenage Kevin who beneath a seemingly innocent, sweet veneer chills to the very bone. Hopefully we won’t have to wait so long for Ramsey to release her next work.

5) CAVE OF FORGOTTEN DREAMS

Having dragged a steamer over a mountain, travelled to the furthest reaches of the Amazon and Antarctica acclaimed German filmmaker Werner Herzog goes into the depths of the Chauvet Cave in southern France to document not only it’s astounding geographical presence but also the oldest cave paintings known to man, perhaps they are the beginning of art itself. Shown in 3D at cinemas, I caught up with the film in 2D and was still floored by the beauty and skill with which Herzog examines these paintings as well as the brilliantly dry wit in his unmistakeable Bavarian drawl as he spends time with the familial team of scientists living in the shadow of the caves and simple yet deeply profound musings on the passing of time and the origins of these extraordinary drawings. When it comes to the vision of nature itself, Herzog is rarely topped.

Moneyball Film Review

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Baseball, perhaps the most American of all sports, has served up the basis for many films from Bill Durham to The Love Of The Game. It seems to encapsulate all the positive attributes of the American dream, the underdog who overcomes insurmountable odds with a band of seeming
outsiders.

This concept serves the backbone of Moneyball, an adaptation of a factual account, penned by Michael Lewis, of the Oakland Athletics unorthodox rise to baseball history in the season of 2002. It is directed by Bennet Miller who has waited six years since his critically acclaimed debut Capote to pick up the directing reins again. Brad Pitt stars as Billy Beane, a former player whose young hopes have long been dashed, is now the Oakland’s manager fighting a losing battle against teams with more funds at their disposal and as a result better players. A chance encounter with a Yale economics graduate Peter Brand (Jonah Hill) presents Beane with an unusual solution; using a statistics model drawn up by Brand, Beane plans to recruit players whose skills are undervalued due to trivial reasons such as age and personal habits, signing them up within the team’s limited budget. Together Beane and Brand stand by their actions despite the theory being untested and the growing disapproval of the veteran members of management and the existing team members lead by Captain Art Howe (Philip Seymour Hoffman). Can they overcome the odds and earn the respect of their comrades? Take a guess…

Lewis’ account has been adapted by Aaron Sorkin, best known for television milestone The West Wing and last year’s award heavyweight The Social Network. If you’re familiar with Sorkin’s work then you know the score; machine gun speed dialogue, razor sharp wit and facts and figures fired out with such pace and panache the audience have no choice but to keep up and stay there. The sense of audience participation is confirmed with the heavy use of jargon and the refusal to stop the action to define what everything means. Anyone unfamiliar with baseball (including myself) may initially find these scenes impenetrable though the refusal to talk down to the audience grabs attention and creates an engagement with such scenes. The best parts of Moneyball play to these strengths very well indeed. Pitt and Hill’s scenes together spark with a playful yet mature weight to them; they deliver the jargon heavy dialogue with tremendous energy and verve whilst still finding room to inject humour and character development. An actor who in my opinion often swerves between excellent and bland quite erratically, Pitt is thankfully on quite excellent form here. He portrays the weary and bitter part of Beane’s personality very well, his sudden outbursts of anger coming out of left field and sending up the idea of a performer who must keep a grinning handsome face on an incredibly unstable empire. Hill in particular is extremely charming in a role that requires him to bypass the bawdy, frat boy style of humour that has marked out his film roles so far. It’s a classic fish out of water style role braced with moments of surprising dramatic clarity such as a brilliant moment when Pitt jokingly guides him through the tactics of firing players before ordering him to do it for real. It marks what hopefully will prove to be an exciting period in his career.
Director Miller takes the unusual and quite effective idea of taking us away from the pitch to focus on the background details of the sport. Beane refuses to watch matches in person fearing he may jinx the outcome so all of the actual playing for the most part of the film the game of baseball itself is confined to archive footage, televisions playing quietly in the corner and snatched radio reports. Miller sticks to the boardrooms, the changing rooms, offices and corridors of the stadium framing the characters within a world of closed in interior spaces juxtaposing against the wide open playing fields of the game. The film is shot by Wally Pfister, Christopher Nolan’s regular cinematographer, bringing a surprisingly cinematic feel to the back room proceedings including one elegant tracking shot that follows Pitt from his office through the various hallways to the dressing room. Accompanied by a minimal yet stirring score by Mychael Danna, such scenes take on a fascinating edge providing a glimpse of a world that most sports based movies choose to ignore.

Yet as the action wears on the cracks begin to appear within Moneyball’s own formula. Compared with the astonishing pace of some of Sorkin’s previous material, there are moments when the action does unfortunately drag. The first two thirds spend too much time on the resistance Beane faces from his fellow team members and management. Such scenes do allow the incidental pleasure such as Pitt locking horns with Seymour Hoffman, Hoffman comfortably holding onto his title as one of America’s great character actors. Yet there are also distractions such as scenes touching on Beane’s relationship with his ex-wife (a wasted Robin Wright) and daughter. Clearly meant to cement the emotional connection with Pitt’s character but that has already been established in the scenes portraying his regret and disappointment with the game. It does manage to wring out an amusing cameo from Spike Jonze as Pitt’s spineless romantic replacement but the whole framing device feels rushed and forced and in the case of a wrap round sing-a-long narrative device, overly sentimental and a tad trite. Unfortunately Miller also looses confidence in his approach to the material as the third act succumbs to the obvious clichés that it had previously managed to steer clear of. The traditional turning of the tide montage is certainly to be expected but the last minute decision of Beane to attend a crucial game and watch it live is a step too far. We know exactly what to expect as players make their final, desperate stand against the odds and attain glory and this sudden ham-fisted finale can’t help but feel like a betrayal of what has gone before it. Some may argue that Miller and Sorkin manage to retain a bittersweet outlook of the closing scenes but for my money the damage had been irrevocably done.

How exactly a film about such a particularly American subject will be embraced here in the United Kingdom is uncertain. The sheer slew of information and sometimes sluggish is a barrier that may limit its appeal outside the State’s but Pitt’s charisma, Hill’s charm and the verve of many of the early scenes do make Moneyball a worthy if somewhat drawn out watch.

The Ides of March Film Review

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With the re-election Barack Obama next year looking increasingly unlikely, George Clooney’s fourth film as a director feels more like a bitter lament for the political hope of 2008 than a standard thriller, a noble intention of which it just falls short. It is based on a play named Farragut North by Beau Williamson that was produced at the same time as Obama’s election drive. Not one for hiding his liberal credentials, you could be forgiven for expecting that Clooney would airbrush the portrait of Democratic candidates as crusading do-gooders. Yet here, while there is focus on many topical issues blighting American society today, it is viewed through disillusioned and almost sad eyes.

Clooney appears in front of camera as well as behind it as Mike Morris, a charismatic Pennsylvanian senator and contender for the Democratic presidential nomination in a fictitious U.S. election. He is neck and neck with his party rival and with the Republicans lacking a strong contender the White House is within striking distance for both men. Fighting in Morris’ corner is his chief aide Paul Zara (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) and junior press secretary Stephen Myers (Ryan Gosling). Meyers is a young idealist who is truly inspired by Morris’s policies and determined to see him in the Oval office. Zara is the older and more jaded of the two men, the experience to Meyers’ innocence, yet together their plans of attack have Morris on a seemingly unstoppable course.

Meyers’ is then approached by Tom Duffy (Paul Giamatti), Zara’s opposite in the enemy camp who is determined to have Meyers work for him and promises to reveal the secrets behind Morris’ glowing reputation. What then follows is a descent into moral confusion, corruption and betrayal as Meyers’ attempts to keep his head above water and survive in a world of cut throat political ambition.

From its opening dissection of the inner workings of a televised candidate debate, it is clear the The Ides Of March is concerned with what lies underneath the tarp of 21st century politics. If Senator Morris is the general of an army then Meyers and his colleagues are the soldiers down in the dirt fighting hand to hand for victory. Clooney confidently cuts back and forth between debates and television interviews with scenes of aides and interns working tirelessly away behind the scenes with laptops, cell phones and cups of coffee rarely out of reach. In certain scenes he places television sets within the frame of the more intimate moments of drama creating a seemingly inescapable world where everyone’s careers (i.e. lives) are out on the line. It’s very well made indeed with Clooney keeping most of the showy direction to a minimum with one or two notable yet well done exceptions. The merciless vibrating of a mobile phone with all other sound drowned out is a particularly effective moment.

It would also appear as though Clooney’s experience as an actor has left him with the strong ability to get strong performances from his ensemble. Along with Drive and to a lesser extent Crazy, Stupid, Love, Ryan Gosling deserves firm establishment as an A-Lister star. Blessed with astonishingly handsome looks, Gosling delivers on the idea of a youthful idealist steadily crushed under the pressure of back-stabbing and corruption. Meyers is a man desperate to do right for the cause he believes in yet his selfless and single minded vision ultimately blinds him and he becomes everything he has detested in the older characters at the stories outset. It’s an old idea that Gosling manages to make alive through his sheer charisma and penetrating gaze summed up perfectly in the films elegant and haunting final shot. On the seasoned front, Hoffman and Giamatti get to relish in weighty, meaty dialogue set pieces that tie in with the movies theatrical background and could be dismissed as sheer awards season bait were they not so well done. Hoffman hints at years of pent up paranoia and resentment in a powerful monologue about his need for loyalty where Giamatti rallies against the Democratic lack of ruthlessness on the playing field (‘We need to get down in the mud with the donkeys!’) It’s a scene that speaks for the whole movie, with the Republicans given no time on screen and only alluded to it is left to the one side to fight each other and it is given riveting conviction by two character actors at the top of their game.

Unfortunately it is Clooney’s handling of another key character that is the films major downfall. With masculinity running rife through the major plot lines, Evan Rachel Wood has to work very hard to make her character of a confident yet out of her depth intern a voice to be heard. She does a good job with what she’s given; her early scenes with Gosling have an undeniably sexy and arresting charge to them. Yet she is then underhanded by a plot revelation feels so trite and forced that it threatens to capsize the proceedings. Clooney clearly needs a shattering plot device to mark Meyers’ turning point yet it is so out of place and stands out that he feels terribly fumbled. I can’t possibly spoil it yet it’s impossible to miss and reduces Wood to a bland and unconvincing cipher rather than a rounded out character.
Ultimately The Ides Of March feels as though it aspires to something revelatory and worthy yet it can’t help but fall back onto some very typical thriller tropes that hold it back from something more special. It’s a shame really as Clooney elicits some really cracking performances and attempts to take a far more scathing and world weary view of the American political spectrum. If you’re looking for something more substantial then I strongly recommend you revisit Clooney’s Good Night and Good Luck, still his best film by far. This is still fine work and worth watching but you can’t escape the feeling of close but no cigar.

We Need To Talk About Kevin Review

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Nearly a decade after her astonishingly assured debut Ratcatcher and its enigmatic follow-up Morvan Caller, acclaimed British filmmaker Lynne Ramsey has made a striking return to screens with an adaptation of the controversial 2003 bestseller by Lionel Shriver. It comes after a failed attempt by Ramsey to bring another bestseller, The Lovely Bones, to the big screen. However futile that effort may have been Ramsey need not worry for where Peter Jackson’s adaptation of that story was met with a lukewarm reception, We Need To Talk About Kevin was regarded as one of the highlights of this year’s Cannes Film Festival and is being poised for awards glory with very good reason indeed.

The ever watchable Tilda Swinton plays the central character of Eva, a former travel writer introduced to us crowd surfing along at Valencia’s La Tomatina festival. Her face drenched in red and euphoria she lies with her arms outstretched in a Christ like pose, a grimly ironic foreboding of the hardships she will come to endure. We next meet Eva confronted by another incarnation of red; paint splattered across her crummy bungalow by a vengeful community who also glare at her in the street, openly threaten her and at one point physically assault her. It is clear that they hold her responsible for a heinous crime committed by her teenage son Kevin (Ezra Miller). He is only a child so the parent must surely be responsible right? Wallowing in self guilt, Eva remembers back to her relationship with husband to be Franklin (John C. Reilly), the birth of Kevin and their seemingly unavoidable resentment of one another as she wrestles with the difficult question: Was Kevin’s crime an act of nature or nurture?
Taking a hammer to Shriver’s literary device of Eva’s letters to an estranged Franklin, Ramsey and fellow screenwriter Rory Kinnear offer up a fractured progression of Eva’s downfall. She initially appears every bit the victim of a thoroughly unpleasant child with a thousand yard stare that would unnerve Damien. Kevin seems to take an instant resentment to his mother, refusing to communicate with her and rebuking her attempts at motherly love at each turn. Yet as the blanks are steadily filled in Eva’s saintly nature quickly dissolves. She clearly resents Kevin for the end of her outgoing life and directs her anger at him in increasingly irresponsible ways from cruel baby talk (‘Mommy was happy before you came along!’) to an unforgivable loss of temper resulting in injury.

Ramsay observes the family tug of war with increasingly unnerving close ups, most noticeably of her actors’ faces and minuet details of Eva’s ever increasing sense of social entrapment. Repeated shots of characters eating take on a strange and otherworldly effect as though we’re prying into an intensely private act. The colour red becomes increasingly clear in the frame as events progress, representing both Kevin’s impending crime and Eva’s guilt. At one point there is an incredibly blunt shot of her washing blood from a sink with her bare hands. Such symbolism could be too unsubtle for its own good where it not so tremendously uncomfortable and frightening, a feeling accentuated by Jonny Greenwood’s score whose fractured creeping tones accompanied last decade’s masterpiece There Will Be Blood. Nearly every scene is laced with a fascinating combination of familiarity and utter dread. Working closely with cinematographer Seamus McGarvey, Ramsey isolates Eva within the frame of domestic docility making her world appear ever more large and alone, building surely but steadily to a shattering climax.

Swinton is magnificent as Eva pulling off a delicate tightrope act of making us sympathetic towards Eva whilst still boldly acknowledging her shortcomings as a mother. She commands with the simplest of expressions including one devastating moment when on the brink of emotional recovery she is rebuffed by a drunken work colleague. Yet despite all of the indignity Eva must endure, Swinton never lets the emotional dam break. It could have been easy to have the big break down, to cry out all the guilt and pent up feeling yet Swinton refuses to play it that way making the scenario all the more believable and dramatic particularly with her scenes opposite John C. Reilly. Still best known for some admirable yet unremarkable comedy films, Reilly continues to establish himself as one of America’s finest character actors bringing a haunting tragedy to what could have been a bland stock role of the clueless husband. For all of Swinton and Reilly’s gravitas through, the film belongs to Ezra Miller as the teenage Kevin. Disconcertingly charming and handsome yet cold and innocent, Miller perfectly sells the idea of American youth gone horribly wrong yet refuses to pinpoint the exact cause of Kevin’s horrific actions. It’s a terrific play on both part of the performers and filmmakers.

Ultimately We Need To Talk About Kevin confronts issues that will be challenging for mainstream audiences and touches on the frightening idea of things that go unsaid between parents and children. It’s reflection of a post Columbine era America never feels forced or phony despite the incredible stylistic flourishes and symbolism. It’s certainly not an easy watch but it’s near impossible to ignore or overlook. Hopefully come the awards season, people will still be talking about Kevin.