Author Archive

I Love You Phillip Morris

Initially I love you Phillip Morris came across as The Grifters meets Brokeback Mountain with elements of  the hit TV series Prison Break thrown in. An inventive film which clearly does not shy away from the truth of the picaresque tales of a con man and who gives a whole new slightly skewed definition of going off the straight and narrow. Jim Carrey plays Steve Russell who after a car accident dumps his religious Southern wife, a lovely performance by Leslie Mann and flings open the closet doors and moves to Key West, getting a boyfriend in tow. Discovering that gay lifestyles are expensive, Russell becomes a conman, whose childhood memories of identity are shattered by his parents breaking the news that he is adopted, hence not really knowing or worrying about his true identity or sense of self.

Russell lands up in prison due to a series of felonies and in Texas of all states. There he meets and falls in love with Phillip Morris a mild, naive and slightly muted performance by Ewan McGregor whose understated  role matches the flamboyance and colourful character of Russell played with panache and relish by Jim Carrey. The fact that they have met in a prison is indicative of the type of relationship which is both trapped by personal circumstances and the larger social system, filled with repression, occasional violence masking as homoeroticism. Fun is made of the relationships of male prisoners and sometimes of the issues of exchange and bartering within that confined environment, both sexual and physical.

What really makes I love you Philip Morris so compelling as a film is that it is a true story which took place entirely during the Bush administration, whilst also proving that Jim Carrey can take on more complex characters. The downside is that this remarkable piece of cinema is lacking in any uniformity of vision co-directed by John Requa and Glen Ficarara, who are certainly not the Coen brothers. So the visual style lacks in moments which could emphasize the dramatic and downplay the outrageous element of the narrative. To label this as a gay film would be incorrect for that would do injustice to such masterpieces as Tom Ford’s stylish A Single Man and Ang Lee’s Brokeback Mountain.

This is more a film about gay men who try to buck the system in a state as notoriously conservative as it is equally contradictory, Texas and the bizarre consequences that follow.

As the tagline suggests The Conman that wouldn’t go straight is apt and while this is no classic is it is definitely an entertaining if not slightly disturbing piece of cinema and not for those easily offended. It fills the gap between The Grifters and the possibility of there being a Gay sequel to that brilliant Stephen Frears film sans Annette Bening.

Becky’s sharp rise to Fame and Fortune

Vanity Fair

William Makepeace Thackeray is best known as the author of the seminal novel about British life during and following the Napoleonic Wars in the wonderfully descriptive, incisive and popular novel Vanity Fair. Published in 1877, the novel remains as relevant today with language and style which is as accessible in the early 21st century as it originally was in the 19th century. Vanity Fair was not a Dickens or an Eliot novel, all social realism and stark morals but light, sharp and ironic with Thackeray weaving a vast plot with a huge collection of characters with flair and dexterity always keeping the reader in his sardonic sights, whilst remaining poignant, acerbic and darkly entertaining.

Vanity Fair follows the fortunes of Becky Sharp, the heroine a governess who becomes an artful social climber and marries into the wealthy Crawley family, illustrating how unscrupulous and brilliantly wicked and willful a heroine can be. The novel is episodic by nature and weaves many tales surrounding Becky’s rise and fall and rise again in the colourful and notorious Regency period in England, when as a nation, the British were establishing themselves as an Imperial power to be reckoned with.

Renowned Indian film director Mira Nair who brought the colourful and joyous Monsoon Wedding to international cinema, was at the helm of the film version of Vanity Fair, featuring the surprising but clever casting of American sweetheart actress and star of Legally Blonde and Cruel Intentions, Reese Witherspoon as Becky Sharp supported by a vast sea of British actors from Oscar Winner Jim Broadbent to Jonathan Rhys-Meyers of The Tudors fame to a lesser known Robert Pattinson, now famous as Edward Cullen in the Twilight Saga.

Whilst novel and film are two entirely different mediums both can be appreciated the first being a great social commentary of the emerging British Empire and the film as a sparkling and lavish period tale with exotic settings from Belgium and Bath to Baden-Baden ending with a vibrant colourful elephant ride in India.

Rereading Thackeray’s Vanity Fair certainly reveals how little has changed in high society over the centuries with nations still as obsessed with wealth, pride, status and ambition while stronger individuals take advantage of the weak for the benefit of securing more power and fame.

Carrie and the Big Apple

It was inevitable that the hit HBO television series, Sex and the City, about the adventures of four young and hip New York women based on the book by Candace Bushnell, be turned into a slick and stylish big screen adaptation. The sensational series, which originally aired from 1998 to 2004, was a weekly dose of risqué 30-minute episodes consisting of the sexual and social tribulations of four single New York career girls, which become the benchmark for all that, was chic, stylish and witty.

Sarah Jessica Parker’s fame was secured when she brought to life the lead character of New York columnist, Carrie Bradshaw’s trials and musings on love, life and looking for the eternally elusive Mr. Right. Instead, she found herself with Mr. Big while her friends were also grappling with the feminine challenges of balancing successful careers, hot relationships and a fabulous social life, set in the ever-inspiring backdrop of New York’s affluent Manhattan, that densely populated and exclusive enclave of high-fashion, infidelity and just sheer opulence.

Sex, a basic human right, as essential as food and survival coupled with the City, the phenomenal urbanization of the planet’s economically active cool trendsetters, as symbolized by the deliciously incandescent and scrumptious Big Apple, the city that never sleeps. The series, intelligently written and punctuated with scandalous scenes of outrageous nudity, gorgeous clothes and designer living, was a sure-fire success and defined a generation of style. Secured in this witty and lavish tradition, the film version of Sex and the City is a fashionable fable of the four far from virginal forty-year old women, with the original actresses reprising their roles as Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte and Miranda, who not only take on New York City, but the Mexican Riviera, Malibu and Beverly Hills, as they all in turn battle with the challenges of managing relationships with men, impending marriages, maternity and maintaining a wardrobe from the essential Manolo Blahnik shoes to Prada purses and fabulous outfits by Dior, Vivienne Westwood and Gucci.

With Patricia Field, the costume designer of the equally spectacular The Devil Wears Prada, responsible for the outfits, Sex and the City is a slightly over-long, but nevertheless fashion-frenzied feast of style, femininity and refreshingly raunchy, air-brushed film version of the fabulous four, written and directed with strong literary and filmic references by Michael Patrick King, elevating it above the average barrage of chic-flicks, that have hatched from Hollywood in the past decade.

So, will men enjoy it? Yes, I think the quality of the film coupled with its sophisticated tales of urban relationships set in one of the world’s richest city, will certainly appeal to anyone with a mature sensibility. All I can hope for is a film version of the male equivalent, the Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning series, Entourage, about a band of thespian brothers attempting to make it make big in Hollywood.

For the price of a movie ticket and a couple of hours, Sex and the City will indulgently transfer you to a world of sophistication, desire and elegance, that most people only aspire to and merely wish for, while whetting your appetite for luscious bodies and the slick designer clothes that cover them.

Sex and the City 2

Besides the hype, the clothes and the glamour, Sex and the City 2 is a Feminist Film about the rights of Minorities all over the world from Connecticut to the Middle East and equally important the right to a freedom of expression…

The Fab Foursome set free in the Desert

As for Sex and the City 2 being a Feminist film… definitely… there is a rather comic scene when the foursome from Manhattan are riding camels in the Arabian desert. This signifies the power of woman owning the screen in an expansive horizon and inverts any traditional stereotypical images of men riding across blazing deserts as seen in Hidalgo and Lawrence of Arabia, there is a pun in the film, discreet but hilarious!!!

Rights of Minorities.

When a film starts off with a gay wedding in Connecticut and ends with the veiled women of Abu Dhabi assisting Carrie and friends, you cannot ignore the director making light of serious issues and more importantly the rights of minorities from gay men and women who are not allowed to marry in 45 states in the US to women under strict religious rule in the 7 emirate states of the UAE. From Liza Minelli doing a number at the gay marriage of the year, swans and all, to Samantha Jones, barelegged and voluptuous being hounded in the Souk by a mob of Angry Arab men… Sex and the City 2, despite its veneer of glamour is making some significant and controversial statements about the rights of minorities and those frequently persecuted, not to mention that the allure of wealth is always as temporary and illusive as that of fame. That moment on the red carpet with Samantha Jones and Miley Cyrus is priceless!!!

Sex and City 2 emphasizes the variety of human relationships and how society should not govern those relationships for all are as unique and complex as the individuals which comprise them. What works for some, does not work for others. Most relationships make up the diversity of 21st century society, so lets respect the individuality of all to enjoy an equal and free society.

In between the telling issues, the jokes and the diluted sex scenes compared to the first film, there are of course the fashions. Patricia Field costume designer outdoes her talents with some great creations particularly Samantha Jones gold and silver creation at the premier and Miranda’s revealing cocktail dress in the opening sequence.

Sex and the City 2 is for the liberated, the free and more importantly the open minded who love to enjoy the essence of being fabulous whether in New York or Abu Dhabi, Omaha or Bloemfontein, Sao Paulo or Barcelona. The winning point on this sequel, though difficult to achieve is the witty dialogue which is to the point, smart and sophisticated. Lets hope Michael Patrick King can get the girls together for a third installment to make up a delicious and fantastic Trilogy set in even more exotic cities like Cape Town, Hong Kong or Paris.

The Painted Veil

This beautiful film gorgeously directed by John Curran and based on the novel by W. Somerset Maugham is set in China in the 1920’s is a sumptuous tale of seduction and salvation told with an ironic eye about a young woman who marries a micro-biologist and bacterial specialist featuring superb performances by Naomi Watts and Edward Norton.

The young scientist needs a wife and the young woman needs to escape the confines of her suburban Chelsea family. Initially the young couple live in the exotic city of Shanghai and then due to an indiscretion on the wife’s part, as punishment the Doctor takes her to a cholera infected village in rural China, where she learns with humility about atonement and the true sacrifice involved in staying married at whatever the cost. The Painted Veil is shot in gorgeous colours making the most of the dramatic Chinese landscape and with a beautiful score by Alexandre Desplat (who was hailed for his original music for the Oscar winning Stephen Frears film, The Queen.) and consequently won a Golden Globe award for Best Original Score for this film.

Most notable is the strong performances by the two leading actors, both entirely underrated, Edward Norton playing the brutal and slightly calculating doctor who learns to treat his wife as more than a personal assistant, and Naomi Watts who plays Kitty the naive young Englishwoman who finds salvation in the most unlikely locations and with the assistance of Mother Superior, a wonderful cameo by Diana Rigg.

This 2006 film surely did not get all the praise it was worth upon release but will remain an undiscovered cinematic gem. The Hollywood Foreign Press described The Painted Veil as one of the most beautiful films ever made. The cinematography and the mesmerizing music by Alexandre Desplat withstanding, this film is well worth watching and could easily be considered a 21st century classic.

Robin Hood

Ridley Scott’s Epic and muscular retelling of Robin Hood is better than expected. With Scott’s usual visual panache, 12th century England gets a grand and lush veneer along with a muscular and slightly jocular Robin Hood, played by Russell Crowe who teams up with an equally feisty Lady Marion, played with all the haughtiness of a woman trapped by her grand situation by Oscar winner Cate Blanchett.

The action is swift, gritty and visually compelling without dwelling on the gore but hinting at the brutality of the times. Robin Hood, which surprisingly opened the 2010 Cannes Film Festival and is devoutly English in its version of the pending invasion by King Philip of the brittle and precarious English realm of King John in 1199.

Supported by a wonderful cast including Mark Strong as yet another evil villian in the role of the allegiance shifting Godfrey, Eileen Atkins as the delicate but influential Eleanor of Aquitaine played by Eileen Atkins and Max von Sydow as Sir Walter Loxley, Robin Hood is Ridley Scott back in the style of Gladiator with similar themes of an empire on the precipice of change, a slightly demented ruler and an anti-hero who leads the battle and starts a myth. Robin Hood also known as Robin Longstride is a brawny and hairy Russell Crowe who is forced to delve into the idealism of his youth where his father prophesied the Magna Carta and the saying Lambs become Lions….

Scott’s trademark elements of water and shadow are skilfully used to enhance a much larger and bolder canvas of a Kingdom ravaged by a ten year crusade to the Holy Land, rebellious noblemen and coffers which are far from full. The ever-menacing relationship with France is tested by the betrayals and ambitions of Godfrey and King Philip along with his niece Queen Isabella who is married to King John, younger brother to King Richard the Lionheart, a brief but great turn by Danny Huston brother of Angelica Huston.

Crowe and Blanchett make a fine team, both experienced actors with the right amount of gravity to pull off these mythic roles with depth and sensitivity without resorting to cliche. Had these roles been cast to lesser known stars the force of the film would have been lost. Robin Hood is an epic Historical tale which hints at the popular story of Robin Hood and his merry men, Friar Tuck and his beekeeping and the Sheriff of Nottingham, gorgeously underplayed by Matthew Macfadyen of Pride and Prejudice fame. William Hurt also makes an appearance as William Marshall to add weight to the already Oscar-laden cast. This film version is certainly not flimsy, but muscular, brawny, dark and partly comical without dwelling too much on the political intrigue, the costumes or the bloodletting of medieval England.

Robin Hood‘s arrow has the perfect shot and Ridley Scott’s film is superb, engaging and visually rewarding more as an historical epic than a special-effects laden blockbuster and will surely be noticed when awards season comes round next year. What would one expect from such an experienced film maker who has brought audiences such classics as Blade Runner, Thelma and Louise and the Oscar Winning Gladiator, which made Russell Crowe an international star.

With a sword he conquored Rome…

As for the French, Robin Hood did open at Festival du Cannes, so perhaps all that cross-channel animosity has slightly cooled! Watch Robin Longstride and his rise to iconic anti-hero and savior of the outcasts and the free…

Gran Torino

Don’t mess with my Torino!

Gran Torino Clint Eastwood’s 2008 film was suitably impressive with a solid and mean performance by Clint Eastwood in a story which has a lot more depth than it first appears with references to inter-cultural and generational differences in suburban America. What a cinematic feast  about the differences that divide and the similarities that bound us all…

A circular narrative whilst maintaining its thematic strength. One of Eastwood’s best films since Unforgiven and as a starring role since The Bridges of Madison County. Clint Eastwood stars as Walt Kowalski a Korean war veteran who has to deal with the onset of having new immigrant neighbours in Detroit and the attempted theft of his 1972 Gran Torino. Bee Vang stars as Thao and Christopher Carley stars as Father Janovich. Recommended viewing!

Iron Man 2

Whilst it banks on the originality of the first Iron Man, the sequel is every bit as quirky, brilliant and action-packed with characters and fantastic settings. Robert Downey Jnr and Mickey Rourke rock!!!

The Monaco Grand Prix Sequence is spectacular and so is the wonderfully ironic script by Justin Theroux and of course a solid performance by Robert Downey Jnr. Watch out for Scarlett Johansson’s great transformation scene at the end – slinky in a catsuit!!! No more demure Girl with a Pearl Earring! There is a wonderful supporting cast including Sam Rockwell and Don Cheadle. If viewers enjoyed Iron Man and loved the anti superhero antics, then Iron Man 2 will definitely not disappoint especially with the ever charismatic Robert Downey Jnr back in the lead role as flamboyant billionaire playboy and arms industrialist Tony Stark taking on Mickey Rourke’s aggressive and slightly unhinged villain Ivan Vanko.

No Country for Old Men

It is a difficult nut to crack. No Country for Old Men initially purely for its shock value, then for Joel and Ethan Coen’s take on morality in border town Texas. Even the second viewing was hard to contemplate. From its relentless scenery to its unrelentless take on the Mexican-Texan drug trade, the Coen brothers never compromise of their  vision of an America without any heroes and essentially its Superb!

Rich in imagery and dark in imagination coupled by great performances from the cast from Javier Bardem to Josh Brolin and Kelly McDonald. The Coen brothers seminal work is a masterpiece in psychological immorality and genuine disconnectedness of the main characters. From Tommy Lee Jones’s cynical police chief to the cold blooded ruthlessness of Javier Bardems psychopathic killer Anton Chiqua the film betrays a sense of ruthlessness and immorality little before seen on the big screen. Panoramic visions of Texas and neighboring Mexico make little t0 assuage the view. To make the viewer feel better.

Not for the faint-hearted

Even in the second viewing the Coen brothers disturbing point of view is fascinating and simultaneously appalling for those who watch it, but in a true Cinematic tradition, their film is both a masterpiece and a harrowing account of the cost of greed and revenge. Its a tough showdown but ultimately rewarding tale of disillusionment, disgrace and courage faltered in a land ravaged by death and destruction.

Javier Bardem’s performance is intimate and contained, rich in evil and retribution, filled with that abysmal sinister quality of a man which clearly operates outside the law. He is a non-conformist, who is bound by his own sense of justice and revenge. A sense not grounded in reality but pure evil, unadulterated.

Josh Brolin is equally brilliant as a man who makes a conscious decision not to redeem himself in any way possible and accept the consequences however grotesque for  a man who crosses a moral boundary with no way of turning back.

Tommy Lee Jones mirrors the path of the psychopathic killer, from drinking the same milk to staring at the same emptiness of a TV screen not quite tuned into the world. A cynical sheriff, a man who has becomes speculative, a watch on all the macabre episodes, not realizing the gravity of the events, but only its significant consequences…

Utlimately, there is no sense of redemption in a film like No Country for Old Men, no cathartic assurances, just a deep valued sense of tragedy which its dark vision never compromises on, leaving the viewer wasted, but realizing that they have watched a film exceptionally profound. No Country for Old Men won four Oscars for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay from the novel by Cormac McCarthy and of course Best Supporting Actor for Javier Bardem’s spine chilling portrayal of a hitman.

The Wolfman

Beware The Wolfman, Director Joe Johnstone’s retelling of this classic horror transformation is not for the faint-hearted.

Featuring an all star cast including Anthony Hopkins, Emily Blunt and Benicio del Toro, The Wolfman is a 21st century Gothic Horror at its gripping edge of your seat best. Set in the exquisite ancestral location of Blackmoor in Victorian England, this Gothic tale of murder, intrigue and horrifying destiny is more horror than action and del Toro is perfectly cast as Lawrence Talbot aka The Wolfman with Hopkins playing his ruthless father Sir John Talbot.

Watch out for the particularly scary transformation scene at Lambeth Asylum with a guest appearance by Anthony Sher… dark, hairy and sinister! Not recommended for any viewer that does not like extreme violence or horror films.