tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-81478818047141455822024-02-06T18:25:52.920-08:00Royale with CheeseRecommendations of classic and contemporary cinema. Enjoy.Sam Lockleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07354190574814788941noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8147881804714145582.post-58559072910901346222012-06-29T18:07:00.000-07:002012-06-30T04:08:55.299-07:0010 Trailers Which Caught My Eye<div style="text-align: center;">
Trailers are a huge part of the movie industry and, as a form of advertising, can make or break the commercial future of a movie. With a good trailer a bad movie can do pretty well, with a poor trailer even a great movie can be financially disappointing at the box office. I strongly believe that you can't accurately judge a movie by it's trailer, after all they only show you exciting and eye catching footage out of context. But I also believe they are more than just the cover of a book; trailers show you glimpses of acting quality, plot structure and a general feel of the movie's atmosphere.</div>
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There are plenty of movie trailers which have caught my attention this year, for various reasons. Here are 10 trailers which caught my eye in a positive way-</div>
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<u>1. The Master</u><br />
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The combination of director Paul Thomas Anderson (<i>There Will Be Blood, Magnolia</i>) and actor Joaquin Phoenix (<i>Gladiator, Walk The Line</i>) is enough to send shivers down the spine of any movie buff. Both are very talented artists that have shown that they can be amongst the best in their respective fields.<br />
The Master is set in the 1950s and charts the rise of a faith based organisation in America (which is likely to have comparisons with Scientology). Phoenix's childish giggling, combined with his eerie stare and the repetitive, tribal background music makes this teaser trailer incredibly ominous and exciting. </div>
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<u>2. Django Unchained</u></div>
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I was a little bit disappointed when I found out about the plot of Quentin Tarantino's latest movie. It's a revenge movie closely linked to a very painful period in history, in which one ethnic group were mistreated by another - sound familiar? That being said,<i> Inglourious Basterds</i> is the best movie Tarrantino had made since Pulp Fiction and this also features the fantastic 'Jew Hunter' himself, Christoph Waltz - so I'm now excited.<br />
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<u>3. The Dark Knight Rises</u></div>
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I don't think I need to say a lot here, I just really liked the latest trailer. I can't wait to see how Tom Hardy does as the new central villain. The Joker was the antithesis of Batman, posing an intellectual and moral challenge; Bane will be Batman's biggest ever physical challenge, a force to be reckoned with (and if the comics are anything to go by, Batman is in for a very painful ride).<br />
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<u>4. The Great Gatsby</u></div>
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Baz Luhrmann, director of <i>Romeo + Juliet</i>, teams up again with Leonardo DiCaprio in this envisioning of an American classic. The styling of the movie looks great; everything looks authentic and Leonardo DiCaprio is at the perfect point in his career for the role of Gatsby. It will also be interesting to see if Carey Mulligan can keep up her amazing streak of movie choices/performances and if Toby Maguire can get properly back on the horse after the <i>Spider-man</i> trilogy...which was just awful.<br />
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<u>5. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey</u></div>
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Again, not much to say here. I loved the<i> Lord of the Rings</i> trilogy, <i>The Hobbit</i> is a great book and judging from production blog videos on youtube, they are putting an incredible amount of effort into developing this. There was some criticism at a preview screening regarding it's 48 FPS frame rate - apparently it looked too realistic and clear cut. Doesn't really sound like a criticism to me but I guess it may lack a certain cinematic feel. I personally can't wait to see how Peter Jackson does with this chapter of Middle Earth's history (particularly with my favourite chapter from <i>The Hobbit, Riddles in the Dark)</i>.<br />
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<u>6. Taken 2</u></div>
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<i>Taken</i> really surprised me when I first watched it; I was expecting a mindless action movie but Liam Neeson's performance elevated it to something more (along with plenty of great action sequences). I think part of its success was also the clever and resourceful ways in which Neeson's character would outsmart (and beat the crap out of) the unscrupulous bad guys. In <i>Unknown</i> he had an equally physical role but it didn't quite work as well. I hope that <i>Taken 2</i> has that same special quality that the first one had.<br />
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<u>7. The Bourne Legacy</u></div>
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I dreaded this movie when I first heard of it's production. I love the <i>Bourne</i> trilogy, it's rare in the fact that it's both exciting and cerebral in equal measure. I really didn't think following it up with another <i>Bourne</i> movie was a good idea - especially one without Jason Bourne in it! But after seeing this trailer and the effort that has been taken to integrate it into the canon of the original trilogy, I'm now quite excited. The addition of Edward Norton to the cast is also a huge bonus.<br />
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<u>8. Brave</u></div>
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Pixar creates an incredible amount of quality animated movies and this one certainly doesn't look like an exception. <i>Brave </i>appears to be along the lines of a Celtic<i> Mulan </i>and could possibly be up there with the likes of <i>Up</i>, <i>The Incredibles</i> and <i>Wall-E</i>. It features an all Scottish cast, including the 'Big Yin' himself Billy Connolly. Should be great.<br />
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<u>9. Total Recall</u></div>
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I'm a pretty big fan of the brutal, Paul Verhoeven original (even with the incredibly dated special effects and over-egged acting). The general concept is based on the short story <i>We Can Remember It For You Wholesale</i>, written by the brilliant and prophetic Phillip K Dick. There are some very big differences between this version and the original, the main one being that none of it is set on Mars. But before you panic, don't worry it still has that prostitute with three boobs in it. Also, Brian Cranston will be playing the role of Cohaagen, which is a very exciting prospect.<br />
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<u>10. Looper</u></div>
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I really like Joseph Gordon-Levitt and in <i>Inception</i> he showed that he was capable of high octane action as well as small indie movie rolls. This movie's concept is interesting, although time travel is a dangerous plot device and often leads to paradoxes and things that don't technically make sense (often forcing the audience to suspend their disbelief). I hope it's done well and I also hope that it explains why future gangsters go to the trouble of sending people back in time to be shot (thereby also changing the future), when they could quite easy kill people themselves.</div>
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There you are, 10 trailers which caught my eye. There were plenty which I missed out, feel free to comment below and let me know which movies you're looking forwards to. I'll be writing some short reviews of <i>Snow White and the Huntsman</i> and <i>Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter</i> soon!</div>Sam Lockleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07354190574814788941noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8147881804714145582.post-7601716203683509272012-06-15T13:40:00.000-07:002012-06-15T14:02:25.467-07:00Prometheus<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I saw <i>Prometheus</i> pretty much as soon as it came out, I could hardly contain my excitement for several main reasons. The first being that it was directed by Ridley Scott, the creator of certain movies which are nothing short of special - <i>Blade Runner, Gladiator, Black Rain</i> and <i>Alien</i> (loosely related to this movie) to name a few. The second element of my excitement was the genre and aesthetic of <i>Prometheus</i> - a slick and profound science fiction movie which explores broad ideas relating to the human condition, exploration and the notion of a higher power. The final reason was the tantalising viral marketing campaign ("Happy Birthday David") which worked a treat on me and made the sci-fi fan within squirm with a heightened sense of anticipation. </div>
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The response to <i>Prometheus</i> was somewhat mixed, generally varying from two star to five star reviews. Many people went into the cinema expecting Alien 5 - a gory and thrilling science fiction horror that would have people watching intently from between clasped fingers, popcorn being flung into the air every time there's a jumpy part. As a result many were left confused and disappointed by what <i>Prometheus</i> actually turned out to be. I didn't make the same mistake. As previously mentioned, I knew what Ridley Scott and the screenwriters intended to create and in many interviews they stated quite clearly that this would be an all together more cerebral experience and <b>not</b> an <i>Alien</i> prequel.</div>
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That being said, I was significantly disappointed by this movie. </div>
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I'll start with the positives. The cast were great in their respective roles - particularly Michael Fassbender who stole the show as David, the polite and well spoken synthetic human with a devious Machiavellian streak (very much in the tradition of Ash and Bishop from the <i>Alien quadrilogy</i>). Fassbender's career has really taken off and he's demonstrated a fantastic range and charisma in recent roles (I will soon be reviewing <i>Shame, </i>the second collaboration between director Steve McQueen and Fassbender). I thought Noomi Rapace was enthralling as the central character Shaw, a religious scientist hoping to meet her maker and find some answers. Shaw is a strong female heroin, not as much through violence like Ripley, but through conviction. I think the dynamic of a scientist with religious faith is incredibly interesting and the internal turmoil that this creates at times is great to watch. I personally also liked Idris Elba as Captain Janek. His Southern drawl and odd one-liner added a comedic element to the movie. </div>
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Prometheus was also very easy on the eyes. The set pieces were stunning and Scott's combination of CGI and old school special effects really worked well. It didn't have that artificial feeling that completely CGI movies usually have, where things look great but they don't look<i> real</i>. The combination of the ship's cold, technological minimalism and the rugged, ancient feel of LV-223 contrasted brilliantly as well. The only visual issue for me was the make up used to make Guy Pearce look like an elderly Peter Weyland. It was so bad it was laughable and it just made me wonder why Scott didn't use an elderly male actor.</div>
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There was one main thing that I didn't like about this movie - unfortunately that thing was the plot. I wont mention anything specific from the movie but needless to say, the plot should be the engine which drives a movie forwards and give it momentum and zeal. Unfortunately this movie was somewhat schizophrenic and couldn't quite make it's mind up about where it was going. One moment it would feel like it was heading down an interesting and thought provoking route, then all of a sudden it would trail off and descend into misplaced science fiction action/horror (never quite doing either well). Furthermore, at certain points in this movie certain characters suddenly lose all intelligence and do the most ridiculous things, putting peoples lives at obvious risk in order to push the plot along. It becomes harder to care about a character's life when they obviously don't. </div>
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Because of all of these higgledy-piggledy and unnecessary parts of the movie, the central questions which are broached upon earlier are barely discussed. This leaves the movie feeling shallow and rushed. I don't like to be spoon fed a movie, but the amount of unanswered questions in <i>Prometheus</i> is nothing short of frustrating (hence the mixed reviews which it has attracted). One of the writers, Damon Lindelof, wrote for<i> Lost</i> - maybe that's why there are so many questions with absolutely no answers. Scott has shown interest in making it part of a trilogy and it often does feel like <i>Prometheus</i> was designed in order to introduce something else and not stand alone. Unfortunately, this movie didn't live up to the promise of the viral marketing used to promote it. Case in point - </div>
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<b>Nowhere near it's potential but worth watching for the performances and visual effects.</b></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>6.7/10</b></span></div>Sam Lockleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07354190574814788941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8147881804714145582.post-28614953994961944302011-11-25T09:39:00.000-08:002011-11-25T10:22:29.083-08:00Iconic Scenes - 'Made in Britain'<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/9yaKIoIEI44" width="420"></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">I've decided to stop referring to these short entries as "scene of the week" because I don't always have time to do them and they tend to be quite sporadic. So from now on they are my "iconic scenes". Knowing me I'll probably end up doing them weekly now.<br />
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Alan Clarke is arguably up there with the most influential British directors to have ever shouted action. He was primarily a television director but his "social delinquent" trilogy - 'Scum', 'Made in Britain' and 'The Firm' - remains some of the most powerful cinema I have (and probably ever will) see. Each one covers a frustrated and violent demographic of Britain in the late 70s and 80s, people who felt left behind in a time of bleak political and economic prospects under the shadow of Thatcher's Britain. His work also broaches upon topics such as the inadequacies of our prison and school systems, racism and the mentality of the mob. Very few directors have ever shown Britain's imperfections in such a truthful light (Shane Meadows is one of these few).</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">The trilogy also features blistering central performances from three young actors who would go on to become some of the most talented and versatile exports that these shores have ever produced - 'the young offender' (Ray Winstone), 'the skinhead' (Tim Roth) and 'the football hooligan' (Gary Oldman). These movies are powerful and so honest that it hurts. Think twice before watching one of those watered down, hollow monstrosities (probably starring Danny Dyer) which try and emulate how raw Clarke's creations are - they always fall embarrassingly short. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">This scene (starring a 21 year old Roth in his first feature) is one of my all time favourites. The neo-nazi is like an animal in a cage, his hatred flows forth like lava as he releases a tirade against the hypocrisy and double standards of a "civilised society" which on one hand, calls for decency and yet casts the vulnerable aside with the other. His reckless hatred and racist vitriol is a stark contrast with the civilised condescension of the authority figures which confront him but, in the end, only prove his point.</div>Sam Lockleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07354190574814788941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8147881804714145582.post-19304680770111251632011-10-18T12:08:00.000-07:002011-10-18T13:26:06.572-07:00Dark City<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUpERqdWonLotmmAbVM562bFvnWfea1ytD9KZphFlMttfMAgOyJYJB7z_uJ6X5eAeDCpwntj8hPEfMK27yODWfIeHLMh523bX8D6Ph5KdSNvqC6cOTniS1KZtSHEMSCmrKL1LH6UY45PA/s1600/dark+city.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUpERqdWonLotmmAbVM562bFvnWfea1ytD9KZphFlMttfMAgOyJYJB7z_uJ6X5eAeDCpwntj8hPEfMK27yODWfIeHLMh523bX8D6Ph5KdSNvqC6cOTniS1KZtSHEMSCmrKL1LH6UY45PA/s200/dark+city.jpg" width="150" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><br />
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</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>"First there was darkness. Then came the strangers. They were a race as old as time itself. They had mastered the ultimate technology. The ability to alter physical reality by will alone. They called this "Tuning". But they were dying. Their civilisation was in decline, and so they abandoned their world seeking a cure for their own mortality. Their endless journey brought them to a small, blue world in the farthest corner of the galaxy. Our world. Here they thought they had finally found what they were searching for."</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><br />
</i></div><div style="text-align: center;">'Dark city' is the creation of Alex Proyas, a man that I have had mixed feelings towards for a while now. On one hand he directed 'The Crow' and 'I, Robot', two exceptionally stylish and exhilarating written works which he brought to the big screen with fantastic precision. On the other hand he also directed 'Knowing', one of the worst movies I have ever seen. (I really can't stress this enough. It's an abhorrent, big budget black hole which managed to be both boring and cringeworthy at the same time. It also features a ridiculous performance by Nicolas Cage, in which he flitted repeatedly from tediously wooden to inexplicably mental. The horror!) It baffles me that Proyas could go from such stylish cinematic zeniths to such a crushing nadir. Thankfully 'Dark City' is of the former category.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">Again, the main strength of this movie is it's rich aesthetic. As mentioned previously I have a soft spot for dystopian science fiction (hence my adoration of masterpieces like 'Blade Runner' and 'Brazil'), 'Dark City' manages to perfectly occupy that surreal corridor between science fiction and film noir. The world here is one of perpetual night and the cityscape periodically shifts and alters like clockwork under a veil of sinister shadow. There is a constant inkling that the central characters are rats in a maze, that they are being specially positioned and forced down avenues in a city which never truly feels tangible. This constant feeling of conspiracy bubbles beneath the surface throughtout.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">Aside from the powerful visual and atmospheric qualities of 'Dark City', the plot is also very engaging. A man wakes up in the bath of a strange hotel room, no name, no memories and no recollection of the city around him. Soon he begins to tumble down the rabbit hole and becomes entwined with murder and manipulation. Faces and buildings keep changing and he knows there is something fundamentally wrong with this place. Proyas demonstrates with great panache an ability to write a screenplay which is fantastical and morbid in equal measure, whilst at it's core being essentially a "small guy versus the state" story. It could almost have been written by Gilliam himself...almost. It also, like all good science fiction, raises cerebral questions along the way - questions surrounding our memories, our individuality and how humans are more than the sum of their parts.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGws5nSMpHwL0aJtuGmgRY5ZNWxaZhSUF98Jb5IrAcD6OHblTqnQkOQIdcws2WcZDpuQ3crG3mKx_2bb5FF4y3F7A0o_PIF3yMRVdoGR-wKgPO_yl9rozlT1gYaPnjt5ZxjhdhXbj_BBk/s1600/dark+city+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGws5nSMpHwL0aJtuGmgRY5ZNWxaZhSUF98Jb5IrAcD6OHblTqnQkOQIdcws2WcZDpuQ3crG3mKx_2bb5FF4y3F7A0o_PIF3yMRVdoGR-wKgPO_yl9rozlT1gYaPnjt5ZxjhdhXbj_BBk/s400/dark+city+3.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">Rufus Sewell is suitably baffled yet rebellious as 'John Murdock', whilst William Hurt and Jennifer Connelly put in characteristically solid performances as the cantankerous detective and sultry love interest. But it is the darker characters which seem to have the most presence. Kiefer Sutherland completely steals the show as 'Dr Schreber', an eccentric and miry psychiatrist with a gasping voice who never seems completely trustworthy. But well judged performances aside, it will be the villains of the movie that linger in the mind.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCsrfM1za7LSxDoqpmJrJt5_P-7FfhHNr-ulWMPwLm95M5GIG3vpfeuOM3LRd7gQVSYqE5F5nxwnZxKnnk7jQige8ayQiqrUxrq3iKy7WnMewKZEiocZzo_42wbSkmZQUpsGPYxryPsNo/s1600/dark+city+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCsrfM1za7LSxDoqpmJrJt5_P-7FfhHNr-ulWMPwLm95M5GIG3vpfeuOM3LRd7gQVSYqE5F5nxwnZxKnnk7jQige8ayQiqrUxrq3iKy7WnMewKZEiocZzo_42wbSkmZQUpsGPYxryPsNo/s400/dark+city+4.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">"The Strangers" are telepathic lifefoms with a hive-mind. They move and talk in eery unison, draped in black trench coats, gliding in and out of shadow and always watching. They are pretty terrifying and the appearance of black leather on cold, white skin is reminiscent of the masochistic bondage imagery employed in 'Hellraiser'. I also believe that the Wachowski brothers owe a lot to 'Dark City'. It may have only come out a year before 'The Matrix' but I find it very hard to believe that the 'Agents' of 'The Matrix' were not heavily influenced by "The Strangers" of 'Dark City'. There is even an 'Agent Smith' like character in 'Dark City' called "Mr Hand". The plots are also very similar in many ways too. It seems that the Wachowski brothers didn't solely plunder 'Akira' and 'Ghost in the Shell' for "inspiration". This is not to say that I don't like 'The Matrix' (I don't like the sequels, but that's another thing entirely). It is a brilliant movie and so much slicker but the thing I like about 'Dark City' is that it's more subtle and thoughtful in the scenes that really count.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV-UVw6eC9oVSrS3mxUVzBtPNUAee6-1PsDGJ6JY4ikuI7uUvhTNwp7BM-RGkL1nT3a6XUfP8HzVjJ7GeojaPPUapPS1AaS0xsHf-IimG9XQ15NdAIoWaa3-4oZt01t8G3DC_4geOHSfY/s1600/dark+city+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV-UVw6eC9oVSrS3mxUVzBtPNUAee6-1PsDGJ6JY4ikuI7uUvhTNwp7BM-RGkL1nT3a6XUfP8HzVjJ7GeojaPPUapPS1AaS0xsHf-IimG9XQ15NdAIoWaa3-4oZt01t8G3DC_4geOHSfY/s400/dark+city+5.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">'Dark City' more than holds it's own against 'The Matrix', it relies more on dialogue and doesn't give you answers on a plate. It's a tremendous backdrop to become absorbed in mystery. I would recommend this movie to fans of science fiction and of surreal and morose fantasy alike. The most concise way that I can describe it is 'Memento' meets 'Metropilis'. It's a potent cocktail of clashing elements which surprisingly accentuate each other and lift the movie to a higher note. This collage of ideas and themes doesn't lend itself to great commercial success (like 'The Matrix') but it will ensure that 'Dark City' continues to be a cult classic. See you at Shell Beach. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/QrGSLMl1XFs" width="560"></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">The following is a great video that I found which illustrates the suspicious similarities between 'The Matrix' and 'Dark City' as well as their unique strengths. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/moW17YHl6B8" width="560"></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div>Sam Lockleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07354190574814788941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8147881804714145582.post-79366469376650232502011-09-15T11:29:00.000-07:002011-09-15T11:29:26.264-07:00Scene of the Week - Rushmore<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/yly2UDQp6fc" width="420"></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">This is the brilliant revenge sequence from 'Rushmore', my personal favourite of the movies written and directed by Wes Anderson. Just like other great Anderson exports, such as "The Royal Tenenbaums" and "The Darjeeling Limited', this movie manages to be hysterical whilst also being apathetic and heartfelt at the same time (as you can imagine, this is an incredibly difficult and contradictory line to walk). There is nobody writing or directing in cinema today quite like Wes Anderson and this scene is very characteristic of his work.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">A peculiar schoolboy (Jason Schwartzman) and a depressive millionaire (Bill Murry) fall for the same woman and they go from being unlikely friends to bitter enemies. The sequence that follows is fantastic, it's absurd the way their one-upmanship escalates to such a serious level in such a short space of time. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">Both actors really shine in 'Rushmore' - Bill Murry is particularly brilliant in his usual dry, stonefaced, man-child sort of way and Jason Schwartzman really made a name for himself in it (they have both featured regularly in Anderson's movies since, including his quirky yet faithful animated adaptation of Roald Dahl's 'The Fantastic Mr Fox'). </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">I'll be writing an entry on the movies of Wes Anderson at some point in the future, he's an acquired taste but one that is certainly worth taking the time to acquire. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</div>Sam Lockleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07354190574814788941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8147881804714145582.post-1814460284622256812011-08-15T09:33:00.000-07:002011-08-15T09:36:21.324-07:00Scene of the Week - La Vita è Bella<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/0Y9aKqawdUQ" width="425"></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">This scene is from the hilarious and tragic 'La Vita è Bella' ("Life is Beautiful"). It's plot centres around an Italian Jew named Guido who is taken, along with his family, to a concentration camp following the spread of Nazism's shadow over Italy. Guido is established early on as a slapstick character that can find the funny side of anything. Once he is in the infamous striped pyjamas he is determined to keep up appearances for his son's sake and turn the concentration camp into a game. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">The juxtaposition of Guido's silliness with the horror surrounding them is a striking contrast. Seeing the holocaust through the eyes of an innocent child is also an extremely effective lens through which to view something so tragic (as also recently shown in 'The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas'). At it's core this movie is about a father protecting his son and insisting that life is beautiful even though everything around them screams the contrary. At first glance some people would say that Benigni's performance is daft and that he overacts, but his entire performance is laced with desperation, fear and anguish (his mouth is smiling but his eyes are often not). This is an incredibly fine line to walk and ultimately why he is one of only three people to have ever won the Best Actor oscar for a role in a non-english speaking movie. Superb.</div>Sam Lockleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07354190574814788941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8147881804714145582.post-62437427710440632822011-08-10T08:16:00.000-07:002011-08-10T09:47:37.684-07:00Scene of the Week - Annie Hall<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/SFu8JRlYGO4" width="425"></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">This is the introduction to what many people believe is Woody Allen's magnum opus, 'Annie Hall'. I could have picked so many standout scenes from this movie but in the end I settled on the superb and very original opening scene. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">In it Woody Allen's character breaks what is known as the "fourth wall" and engages the audience directly, blurring the line between fiction and reality. This is a technique most commonly associated with the theatre - often a soliloquy in which a spotlight appears on the actor as they bare their soul to the audience, giving an insight into their internal monologue. This is an incredibly powerful theatrical tool and I can think of many examples where it has been used to full effect in other movies - e.g. hilariously in 'Fight Club' (splicing pornography into children's movies) and disturbingly in Michael Haneke's incredibly original 'Funny Games' (the wink and the dead dog). </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">The other amazing thing about this introduction is that within the space of about two minutes you already have a very accurate sense of him, a feat which some film makers can't ever really achieve in two hours. He <i>tells</i> you his character. This may sound trivial but only a very gifted comedic writer and actor could do this with any real sincerity and natural flair.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">Woody Allen would be a fantastic topic for a future blog entry, he's an iconic director and one of the snappiest satirical comedians ever. Movies like 'Sleeper', 'Everything you wanted to know about sex*' and 'Manhattan' are all undeniable testaments to this. Anybody who ends a sex scene with "that's the most fun I've ever had without laughing" and "I'll never play the piano again" is obviously something a bit special and worth writing about.</div>Sam Lockleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07354190574814788941noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8147881804714145582.post-53190174035238726702011-08-07T14:28:00.000-07:002011-08-07T14:28:24.248-07:00Scene of the Week - 12 Angry Men<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/gTDhgR3p12w" width="425"></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">This is a scene from 12 Angry Men, a masterclass in character acting and something modern Hollywood could learn a great deal from. This particular scene deals with the issue of prejudice and how society should behave towards those who exhibit prejudiced tendencies. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">In the heat of discussion this juror's true colours show and everybody else becomes aware that his judgment is tainted with reckless hatred. It's an incredibly poignant and symbolic moment when everybody puts their differences aside and are united in their general disgust with this man's views. They turn their back on him and meet his barbed words with a wall of silence, not even dignifying him with a retort. The late, great Henry Fonda is spectacular as the juror defending a man from the electric chair and more importantly the notion that a person is innocent until proven guilty. Absolute cinema royalty. </div>Sam Lockleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07354190574814788941noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8147881804714145582.post-48435447724670985022011-07-27T15:06:00.000-07:002011-07-27T17:00:34.128-07:00Tom Cruise...he's not all bad.<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh84la2Av3glY76SGF9EkX8OJM-Q8AxjPQWb4ejvnlFyCChCAEZdw0QoVzSAjFy6osv_Tv1GTyRQvqXnX0BwGVC08cuz8B7m3gc9MzsoteHa1ZC1j8UcOBRvMmcP2QOGZQITeeip_dnpZc/s1600/scientology.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh84la2Av3glY76SGF9EkX8OJM-Q8AxjPQWb4ejvnlFyCChCAEZdw0QoVzSAjFy6osv_Tv1GTyRQvqXnX0BwGVC08cuz8B7m3gc9MzsoteHa1ZC1j8UcOBRvMmcP2QOGZQITeeip_dnpZc/s320/scientology.jpg" width="226" /></a></div><br />
Let's face it, Tom Cruise is far from the poster boy of Hollywood he used to be. Ever since he went doolally on Oprah's sofa and became an exponent of Scientology (the cult/religion designed by mediocre science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard) people have had trouble taking him seriously - and rightly so. In the eyes of the public Cruise has gone from being Top Gun's 'Maverick' to a bizarre, glassy-eyed caricature you would probably cross the road to avoid. But, after recently seeing the trailer for the next instalment of the Mission Impossible series, 'Ghost Protocol', I was immediately reminded of what it was that made Tom Cruise such a star before his off screen persona took such an unprecedented U-turn.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/V0LQnQSrC-g" width="560"></iframe></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center;">Cruise has always been best at playing energetic, broad-stroke characters, generally avoiding subtle, fine-spun roles. He isn't the strongest character actor ever although he is exceptional at flitting between both serious and playful, portraying both in a very naturalistic way (in this sense I would compare Cruise to actors such as Harrison Ford and the late Dennis Hopper). Cruise has been under the direction of masters such as Oliver Stone, Stanley Kubrick, Steven Spielberg, Ridley Scott, Martin Scorsese, Brian De Palma and...well, you get the picture. You don't work with such an intimidatingly talented array of cinema heavyweights without possessing an acting ability which commands a certain amount of respect. So in an effort to remind you of what Cruise can do on screen (and draw focus from his antics off screen) I have put together a list of my ten best Tom Cruise performances in no particular order. I haven't chosen a lot of his cheesier albeit more financially successful roles (i.e. Top Gun, Days of Thunder etc) - these films are entertaining and hold a lot of nostalgic value but don't necessarily show off what Cruise can really do on screen. You could definitely swap a few of these choices for others, but I personally like this ten.</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><u>1. A Few Good Men</u><br />
Lets open with a wonderfully taut courtroom drama in which Cruise plays a naval defence lawyer working to save two young marines from being unfairly imprisoned, following the death of another. Cruise plays a characteristically cocky and talented individual, who goes from being indifferent to his clients to genuinely caring about them. In the following clip Cruise's character cross-examines the Colonel in charge, who he believes is at fault. This is a classic scene, it's great the way Cruise's determined character clashes with the malevolent, God complex of the Colonel (wonderfully played by the brilliant Jack Nicholson). </div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><u><br />
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</div><div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><u>2. Vanilla Sky</u><br />
Watching 'Vanilla Sky' is an ethereal experience. It feels akin to 'Alice in Wonderland' as Cruise's millionaire playboy character tumbles further down the rabbit hole, experiencing love and horror in equal measure. Themes of unrequited love, dreams, insanity and vanity are beautifully touched upon to the backdrop of Radiohead's "Everything in it's Right Place" (a very fitting song). Cameron Crowe did a fantastic job directing this movie and Cruise is a superb lead.<br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;"><u>3. Rain Man</u><br />
'Rain Man' is a defining movie of the 80s for me. Dustin Hoffman is probably one of the most talented actors of his generation and in this he very rightly won one of his two Oscars for his portrayal of an autistic savant. Although Dustin Hoffman steals the show, Cruise puts in a solid performance as his yuppie brother, who kidnaps him in an effort to steal his inheritance. As usual Cruise is very adept at playing characters that you initially dislike but warm to as the movie progresses.<br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;"><u>4. Magnolia</u><br />
Cruise is only a small piece in a large jigsaw of characters in this quirky Paul Thomas Anderson movie. But his character is a fantastically seedy, misogynistic public speaker that teaches lonely men how to "tame the cunt". This was quite an uncharacteristically distasteful character for Cruise and therefore it showed some extra range within his cinematic repertoire. Very entertaining and also touching when you see the issues and insecurities which underpin his chauvinism. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><u><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;"><u>5. Born on the Fourth of July</u><br />
This is the biopic of Ron Kovic, a patriotic American who is shot and paralysed during the Vietnam War. In this Cruise depicts a man coming to terms with the horrors of war, it's residual physical and mental scars and the hailstorm of bureaucracy and lies surrounding it. The character goes from clean shaven golden boy of the Vietnam War to a misanthropic paraplegic who feels cheated by both God and country. Probably Cruise's most powerful and tragic performance.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><u><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;"><u>6. Minority Report</u><br />
Without doubt this is up there with the best science fiction movies of the last two decades. 'Minority Report' is an extrapolation of a short story of the same name from SF royalty Philip K Dick, in which precognition of murder can now be achieved via a new prophetic technology. Cruise's character is head of this "precog" police force but must go on the run when a murder is predicted where he is the perpetrator. With a wonderful combination of dystopia and polished mechanical futurism, this is a very vivid setting for an extremely original whodunnit. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><u><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;"><u>7. The Last Samurai</u><br />
East meets west in this powerful post American Civil War action-drama; Cruise plays a disillusioned soldier who aims to learn from his enemy but ends up falling in love with their culture. Haunted by the ordered slaughter of Native American's during the Great Sioux War, he finds peace in the simple and honourable way of the Samurai. Ken Watanabe and Billy Connolly star alongside Cruise in this beautiful picture which also contains some absolutely breathtaking action sequences.<br />
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</u></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><u>8. Collateral</u><br />
In 'Collateral' Cruise stars as a cold, remorseless hitman that hitches a ride with Jamie Foxx's nightshift taxi driver. The dialogue between the two very principled characters is like listening to the devil and angel on somebodies shoulders. It's intriguing watching Foxx try to become Cruise's conscience - his words fall on deaf ears as the body count rises.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><u><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;"><u>9. Eyes Wide Shut</u><br />
A bit of an unusual choice I'll admit. This is far from one of my favourite Kubrick movies but I do nevertheless think that it's underrated. This was Kubrick's last film and I actually think Cruise's performance is quite measured as his character becomes consumed by paranoia. This was supposedly Kubrick's favourite out of all of the movies that he directed. He died soon after reportedly making that statement so one can only speculate over why he preferred it to movies such as 'The Shining', 'A Clockwork Orange', 'Full Metal Jacket', '2001: A space Odyssey', 'Dr Strangelove...', 'Spartacus' etc. I often watch this movie and try to catch a glimpse of what it was that made him feel this way, but as of yet I'm oblivious.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><u><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;"><u>10. War of the Worlds</u><br />
The remake of the classic Wellsian tale in which Earth is attacked by an alien species with an armada of tripods that are already stationed on earth. As the following passage from the book states, the basis of this story is all about the hubris of mankind and the inevitable and humbling wake up call which awaits us all.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 20px;"><em>“No-one would have believed, in the last years of the nineteenth century, that human affairs were being watched from the timeless worlds of space. No-one could have dreamed that we were being scrutinized, as someone with a microscope studies creatures that swarm and multiply in a drop of water. Few men even considered the possibility of life on other planets. And yet, across the gulf of space, minds immeasurably superior to ours regarded this earth with envious eyes; and slowly, and surely, they drew their plans against us.”</em></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; line-height: 18px;">. </span><br />
-H.G. Wells </i></span></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><u><br />
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This movie wasn't received particularly well by a lot of critics but I actually enjoyed it, especially in the cinema where it's scale could be truly appreciated. <b>No</b> it was never going to win any oscars and<b> no</b> it wasn't that faithful to the original story - but it <b>did </b>maintain the general premise of this modern parable and it <b>did</b> bring it forward successfully from the Victorian era. Spielberg as always is fantastic at creating action on epic scale whilst still keeping a tone of realism and Cruise once again put in a solid and believable performance.<br />
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<div style="text-align: left;">I hope by the end of this I've managed to show Tom Cruise's more positive attributes. Yes he's pretty mental, but a lot of very talented people throughout history have been off their rockers - they're still good at what they do. I thought it was quite interesting to take a look back at a career now overshadowed by ill-repute. </div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_7mKVgL7QBoR34O5ZQ8spn3kOLo10NpR2cky8Rolbz2Ol7dAMg23cLP5skX5YG3eVwBW_M9lUDnFXljOLp00fqM0hMmMdVmLglSYl_jeB21pJ8UQ86k4jmWIzv84cy0exNhFTp0DEcMI/s1600/tom-cruise.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_7mKVgL7QBoR34O5ZQ8spn3kOLo10NpR2cky8Rolbz2Ol7dAMg23cLP5skX5YG3eVwBW_M9lUDnFXljOLp00fqM0hMmMdVmLglSYl_jeB21pJ8UQ86k4jmWIzv84cy0exNhFTp0DEcMI/s320/tom-cruise.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">I hope you enjoyed my best of Cruise recap and any future recommendations for actor/director career recaps are more than welcome. From this point on I will also be posting my scene of the week regularly. In this I will randomly pick an important scene from a great movie and explain why I think it's so wonderful. </div></div>Sam Lockleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07354190574814788941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8147881804714145582.post-55625583494294811572011-02-08T12:36:00.000-08:002011-02-23T09:35:23.803-08:00Great Bad Guys<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://s874.photobucket.com/albums/ab306/DreadAlert/?action=view&current=top10go_stansfield.jpg" target="_blank"><img alt="Photobucket" border="0" src="http://i874.photobucket.com/albums/ab306/DreadAlert/top10go_stansfield.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">I thought it would be interesting to write a blog entry that wasn't about a specific movie but about a cinematic concept. Bad guys seemed like a good place to start because it's quite a fun topic that everybody has an opinion on.<br />
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So what makes a great bad guy? For me a truly great bad guy draws focus and drives a movie. They should be the epicentre of pretty much every scene they're in and the audience should look forward to seeing their dastardly deeds develop. They should be more than just a hurdle for the protagonist to deal with and should linger in the dark recesses of your mind long after the credits roll. I also wanted to avoid the predictable slasher horror bad guys (i.e. Freddy Krueger, Jasons Voorhees and Michael Myers) because they tend to be quite boring and lack substance and charisma. I have also avoided reprobate central characters (i.e. Patrick Bateman in 'American Psycho') because you see the world through their eyes and this compromises things - they are no longer an antagonist for a protagonist, they tend to become a lot more. So without further ado here are ten such bad guys (in no particular order) which came to mind whilst I was pondering this topic.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><u>1. Bill "The Butcher" Cutting (Gangs of New York)</u></div><div style="text-align: left;">Daniel Day-Lewis is probably the best big screen actor in cinema currently; his versatility seems to know no bounds. The Butcher's knife wielding, violent persona and pure hatred for Irish immigrants comes across incredibly well and steals the show in 'Gangs of New York'. You get the impression that there is always an incredibly violent anger bubbling beneath the surface of his sly smirk, his glass eyed stare and his playful persona - this is why he's a constantly fascinating and magnetic character to watch on screen.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;"><u>2. John Doe (Se7en)</u></div><div style="text-align: left;">The clever thing about this bad guy is that you only really see him at the end. The movie is a build up to his arrival - that famous moment when he steps out of that taxi with bloody hands and announces himself at the top of his lungs. Although you don't meet him until much later on, he is revealed in a sense slowly but surely throughout - his voice on the phone, his presence at the end of the corridor, his insanity scrawled on notebook pages and his very actions (in all of their graphic splendour) all reveal parts of his character. In my opinion the scariest thing about him is that he has almost no emotion and truly believes what he is doing is not only right, but God's will.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;"><u>3. Hitcher (The Hitcher)</u><br />
'The Hitcher' is a decent movie but not the best mentioned in this list; none of that matters though because it does exactly what it sets out to do and that is leave an impact. This fright fest follows a young man travelling on the road who, against all better judgement, decides to pick up a hitcher in the pouring rain. This is the single worst decision he will ever make. "The Hitcher" has no motive and this is the most worrying thing - he can't be bargained with or persuaded to stop and he wont stop until one of you is dead. When asked what he wants he replies "for you to stop me". After seeing this bad guy in action I promise you'll never pick up a hitchhiker again.<br />
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<u>4. The Joker (The Dark Knight)</u><br />
The Joker would be on pretty much everyone's bad guy list and for very good reason. Heath Ledger gave his finest performance breathing new life into the character of the Joker and unfortunately passed away not long afterwards. I could probably count the amount of good comic book movies on one hand; 'The Dark Knight' is the best by an absolute mile and The Joker is a fitting bad guy. He is a character without rules, the perfect antithesis to the very moral and self righteous attitudes of Batman. In a way, the fact that you're looking at one of the last performances of an actor only adds to the power and atmosphere of his scenes - although Ledger's Joker is flawlessly enigmatic and charismatic to begin with.<br />
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<u>5. Hans Landa (Inglourious Basterds)</u><br />
'Inglourious Basterds' was a wonderful film and a return to form for Tarantino after the, in my opinion, tiresomely glib and clumsy Kill Bill movies. Christoph Waltz made this movie for me, exhibiting Tarantino's trademark bubblegum dialogue at its best since the scene which inspired my blog title. He was a revelation and definitely deserved the Oscar for best supporting actor. His character, Hans Landa, is both hilarious and terrifying depending on when you look at him. One minute he is the bumbling, grinning, overly polite Hans ("it's a bingo!") and the next he is "The Jew Hunter", ordering Jew executions and strangling women with his bare hands. He flits effortlessly between the two and it's wonderful and terrifying to watch in equal measure.<br />
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<u>6. Keyser Soze (The Usual Suspects)</u><br />
For the benefit of all who haven't seen 'The Usual Suspects' I wont say too much about Soze (for reasons which will be obvious to all who have seen it). All I will say is that his shadow hangs over everything and you get the feeling that he is always ominously watching over the central characters. A wonderful character movie, with a fantastic and iconic ending.<br />
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<u>7. Darth Vader (Star Wars)</u><br />
Ok ok I admit Darth has become a bit of a <span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">cliché and the prequel trilogy didn't exactly do his persona any good ("nooooooooo") but he is and always will be one of the archetypal bad guys. From that very first scene when he stepped into that starship corridor littered with rebel bodies, he had the audience gripped. There will always be something scary about the combination of his expressionless black mask and creepily audible breathing and because of that I decided he had to be on the list.</span></span><br />
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<u>8. Anton Sigur </u><br />
Another very deserving Oscar winner here. Sigur is one of the most frightening characters I have ever come across in a book and Javier Bardem did a spectacular job bringing that character to the screen in the faithful adaptation by the brilliant Coen Brothers. With Sigur, actions certainly speak louder than words and his actions are generally extremely violent (hence the tension which fills every scene in which he features). The scene below is definitely up there with my favorites; you can't help but feel bad for this poor old shop assistant! Watch as Sigur psychologically tears him to pieces for no reason.<br />
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<u>9. Amon Go</u><u>th (Schindler's List)</u><br />
Yet another Nazi, but lets face it Nazis are pretty good bad guys. Ralph Fiennes plays Amon Goth, based on a real life Austrian Nazi who became a concentration camp commandant. I think this character was immortalized by his slick coldness, his use of the phrase "I pardon you" and the following balcony scene where he acts out his very obvious God complex. He executes Jews as if they were literally just rats and is pretty much the personification of Hitler's hatred and disgust. <br />
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<u>10. Norman Stansfield (Leon)</u><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">Gary Oldman is a British legend and in Luc Besson's 'Leon' (AKA 'The Professional') he plays my personal favorite on this list. He plays Stansfield, a corrupt and eccentric cop who has a love for classical music and killing people. 'Leon' is a fantastic movie and it wouldn't be half as good if Stansfield wasn't the antagonist. You'll love to watch him right up to his explosive final moments. In the following scene Gary Oldman acts opposite Matilda (a young Natalie Portman) - her fear is almost palpable. </div><u><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">Obviously this is not an all encompassing list and, like everything to do with movies, it's all subjective and everyone has their own favorites. Did this list contain all of your favorites or do you think I missed out some obvious ones? (I know I have). Please feel free to add your favorites, I'd love to know which characters you've loved to hate. I've also created a poll to find out which one of the above ten is your favorite, please vote and let me know!</div>Sam Lockleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07354190574814788941noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8147881804714145582.post-49609907398264849242011-01-22T11:07:00.000-08:002011-01-23T07:28:15.029-08:00Black Swan<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-1LGF3c_R9YVs5rhVzkfeqGh5RsQt93LEMSqy5bawQMOONOCShCE6Ceqiji-uiRR8yn2ncEsuDgwX-vgSHRRJsyzK0dG2gpVDOuBesElCEv4_gwbVisQu6lNV42mdp1vXndWQDnQgn0g/s400/swan3.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 272px; height: 400px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565184864366718946" /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">I had been waiting for this movie for some time, I heard rumour of it several years ago in conjunction with Darren Aronofsky's previous creation 'The Wrestler'. In actuality this movie is over a decade in the making but was most certainly worth the wait. As usual it is impossible to talk about a truly brilliant director without comparing and contrasting a recent movie with his previous (after all a director's career, just like any artistic process, is just a learning curve. A style and confidence evolves and each movie is a testament to this advancement). Aronofsky has most certainly developed an assured and idiosyncratic presence behind the camera and I am glad to say that 'Black Swan' definitely feels like his most complete creation so far. This aforementioned confidence was palpable in 'Black Swan', personified by Natalie Portman (who's performance makes her a likely and deserving Oscar winner).</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpir6GA7IfnusaCa_OInICZCqDVgiAZWlLzWg0C1dsFA1Q43YPGoVijli2wm1baHoAxmpHaCw7_O6TVRJtQevqTX7Eydyq6A3Ff3X9CHgVyueYz1Bg-IuVEitgK6uyOkFjCO4amf_5qH0/s400/swan2.jpeg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 207px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565105042795421538" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">'Black Swan' follows the painful ascent of Nina (Natalie Portman), a devoted ballet dancer on the brink of stardom and becoming the face of her ballet company as the Swan Queen in their latest re-envisioning of 'Swan Lake'. During the process of replacing the previous embittered alpha female (Winona Rider), forming a rivalry with a new fiery addition to the company (Mila Kunis) and constantly trying to impress both her flirtatious company director (Vincent Cassel) and suffocating mother (Barbara Hershey) an inner conflict stirs within Nina. As she attempts to embody the dichotomy of both White and Black Swan and transcend her usually virginally restrained performances, a stark and shocking transformation occurs both within Nina and physically. This is a tragically beautiful and nightmarish tale portraying a sexual and emotional transition akin to that of puberty.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">As always Aronofsky's consistent composer Clint Mansell does a wonderful job building an eerie and intoxicating soundscape, complimenting Aronofsky's trademark handycam visual style which mercilessly brings you into the intimate world of the character.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjcEtExEwWTDpqhl4J-tP6l_cZYTP4GQG4YE_Oyt2zPfifaCHUp2twusasXM_811zSzyq0U5NjMmOYpnGoT45o53AghZ3S-8Pd4KBnGwnaV0hCr6WqXnt8scXDP5HK9JkjwkkmyqfYH_o/s400/swan4.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565170661849214386" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">You could view this as the sister movie to 'The Wrestler' and indeed this is what Aronofsky intended-</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>"I've always considered the two films companion pieces. They are really connected and people will see the connections. It's funny, because wrestling some consider the lowest art - if they would even call it art - and ballet some people consider the highest art. But what was amazing to me was how similar the performers in both of these worlds are. They both make incredible use of their bodies to express themselves. They're both performers."</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><br /></i></div><div style="text-align: center;">The contrast between these two worlds is fascinating. Where there is a pirouette in one, there is a clothesline in the other. Where a dancer cripples her feet for her art, a wrestler makes himself bleed with a hidden razorblade. Indeed it would be fair to say that wrestling is in it's own way a dance (choreographed and physically demanding) and at times a dance can be passionate almost to the extent of seeming powerful and savage. I think the line between the two is thinner than it may seem at first glance. Another interesting point is that, behind the scenes, the world of ballet is portrayed as a lot more cut-throat and aggressive than that of the wrestling world (where an atmosphere of camaraderie and respect was depicted). But as mentioned by Aronofsky, they are both performers who put their very being on the line for their art and their audience (right down to the beautifully symmetrical applause laden endings linking both of the movies). </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEAHK2Kiapf2KoocDkQ6PCyvMTj4txfAmDFveDcfSfA7t5Ho3p61zM4VeXZsNs6FCRpBgGgPtvdmD9aPzS7tubX-XOZGr5-Ms96QGUIjuiRYpu14BLXBwy41DIpys4od9X2LvWX551jco/s400/swan5.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 222px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565171345817917346" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Apart from being similar thematically to 'The Wrestler', 'Black Swan' also sees a return by Aronofsky to an earlier visual style and atmosphere (which I am most grateful for). It's worth mentioning that Aronofsky's first movie 'Pi' is probably my favourite movie (and I don't say that lightly). 'Pi' is a stunningly intricate and penetrating piece of cinema which is also deeply philosophical - touching upon religion, mathematics, the stock market and the search for an order within chaos. In 'Pi', a theoretical mathematician called Max Cohen, spirals into a terrifying world of paranoia and hallucination which only intensifies as he approaches his goal. 'Black Swan' makes use of this atmospheric device, making the viewing more intense as you go along and building to a dramatic crescendo.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuTqDHInu8oYhcHFvd5S0PF0j4RqZjwePDJM_FJymV1n49_2wR8ZjmX3LuNEa6bKLxYpO8jXKOeHzu2xMNNNP4pjgsDBkGHK0AdCN7BXbrQIJrjbvKEvjuOcMy_8pK9OTbxpHtGkZbIMY/s400/swan6.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 228px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565199364777192018" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">The other earlier Aronofsky movie I would like to mention in conjunction with 'Black Swan' is 'Requiem for a Dream' - the greatest movie you wont want to watch again (at least any time soon). This is a gut wrenchingly tragic tale of ambition blinding a group of individuals (all regular drug users in their own way) to the pitfalls which lay ahead of them. The suspense, surrealism and desperation of 'Requiem for a Dream' can definitely be felt throughout 'Black Swan' as well as the unsettling feeling that things aren't necessarily going to be ok.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilK8qcxd3p1_AUBd4dgyNBfHLtVDRyL4Mjeu19jPrGGS4-ey6jfxmfkGbMRROw95QzMIpUE3VYNjGE5FD7noZwB6CxujyUGylvvboJ41k3tR_MXAyd3T-RVC4MP3Dh2ZNDvPsN4Sivy2k/s400/swan7.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565208108044433666" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">I think very highly of Aronofsky's first two movies but I also appreciate that they are original and unflinching to the point of being harsh and abrasive to watch. As a result they will always be somewhat esoteric and niche (commanding a strong cult following). The reason 'Black Swan' is so wonderful is because it has the edginess of them combined with the warmth and emotional depth of 'The Wrestler' and 'The Fountain' (hence why I referred to it as the most "complete" movie he has directed so far).</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSN4KYmjofeobUzNHHlkNW5EQLjURxdb1hhFliR0vdLVxn5QAd-_iqmA7EbL2msTWB2ltid8v9vKjS0vVyFRuooY5wCAsewbD52sZGKQUbfSyX2bsB9naCV91wt0B9_85EDRWdaiU_3eU/s400/swan8.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565385418799687154" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Obsession is key with Aronofsky and forms the core of everything he does. Obsession with art. Obsession with substance. Obsession with meaning. You could say he is obsessed with portraying obsession - but nobody does it better. I genuinely believe that Aronofsky shows enough natural flair and versatility to potentially be thought of in the future alongside visionary greats such as Kubrick, Hitchcock and Kurosawa (and again I don't say that lightly).</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe title="YouTube video player" class="youtube-player" type="text/html" width="640" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/5jaI1XOB-bs" frameborder="0"></iframe></div>Sam Lockleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07354190574814788941noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8147881804714145582.post-88770974494410513392010-10-01T11:02:00.000-07:002010-10-03T01:45:19.937-07:00Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdKIpao4U9vubVonTRXpuo5BcTKYo-QSISQOSENyZoEQwlErlaQrMfyR_Z8YMJ9tGXeQWszgAcxhNJIXGsEwG2OTqwmvkGRyS43LAUcGWYlBpQffd9sodq3dervydUUvY-g4fGL2eTKIs/s320/ghibli.gif" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 225px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5523569866660172386" /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">I've been meaning to make a Studio Ghibli related blog entry for a while but wasn't really sure how to go about it. I've been a fan of the studio for a while, particularly the movies overseen by Hayao Miyazaki and it seemed somewhat disrespectful to try and sum them up in a no doubt clumsy fashion. In the end I decided to compromise by discussing a favourite of mine which also happened to be quintessentially 'Ghibli'. This movie was also the first feature film made by the studio, so it carries a certain amount of significance. It was made in 1984 and with it's success the Ghibli dynasty had begun.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4jblgd7nvkTrZiJ7lGKYQR_TxtJfpxUxphezP64I0vXSK9db762rfdJPLMJrEJdXZRa7f-SLrzP7SQ41c3i1qJBDHy-EmAnJ5q29wzH0G46rCR9VNXqaHT661dUDWbxlexPg6QIuZyQU/s320/ghibli+8.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 213px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5523577388172997826" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">The setting is a post-apocalyptic earth which has been changed dramatically following the "Seven Days of Fire"- a great war in which terrifying creatures known as "Giant Warriors" were unleashed leaving a burning planet in their wake. The earth which resulted is one covered in toxic jungles containing giant insects (including the armoured 'Ohmu') and which also emit a pollen poisonous to humans. Nausicaa is the Princess of the Valley of the Wind, a free spirit who has an affinity for the natural world which has come to resent mankind (a very natural reaction in most cases). The Valley of the Wind is the last bastion of the peaceful human world and Nausicaa constantly performs botanical experiments hoping to find the key to detoxifying the jungles. Unfortunately most of mankind haven't learnt from past experience and the Valley of the Wind is caught between the tensions of the Pejite and Tolmekian empires, both intent on obtaining an immature "Giant Warrior". With the help of the swordsman Lord Yupa, a Pejite pilot named Asbel and her trusted glider, Nausicaa must calm the flames of war which are</div><div style="text-align: center;"> threatening the existence of the natural world.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0n3cA9HRFZdTDd9Pl6tWjHzGKgNDII7jblJfTor5KJLF8evqsN3XlYtaZHNGSqfeNcHcF5xbYtZmppaqR_fCFT2m1CU9T-IniYJw_iHM0-lZ3wR2vOeG3lBnbvQBxRF8C5f9uNa5jCkY/s320/ghibli+3.png" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 177px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5523571746782065698" /><div style="text-align: center;">As mentioned earlier, this movie happens to embody many of the themes which run throughout the Studio Ghibli repertoire. One theme is the juxtaposition of mankind/technology and nature along with the tensions which result. I think that's an important element; it carries the fears and concerns of many relating to our influence on the planet (deforestation, pollution, dwindling resources, endangered species, nuclear weapons and many similarly worrying issues). But it's worth mentioning that all of the movies which feature this theme avoid becoming preachy or overpowering; it generally blends seamlessly with more centric plot lines.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGFKisAn2-Bx7iZ4lci8Wy18oEL2fBAcH4F_sU0XVmSwHzBPHb53MOctvER54GfaQ5jyCnRjtDyai1PbcDx_06WpMczm1apKcx03I1fRyWIOpTNlnLCPdSfkKNN4QTFTJ4k4_voomN6Kw/s320/ghibli+4.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 248px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5523572938442701394" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Another recurring feature is the presence of a heroine lead character in almost all Ghibli movies; a refreshing change to generally male dominated western cinema. In this case the heroine is Nausicaa; a bold and refreshingly intrepid female character who doesn't conform to the vulnerable "damsel in distress" stereotype which Disney (who some would call the western counterpart) generally pander to. Similar characters of the same Ghibli vein include Princess Mononoke, Kiki, Chihiro (Sen), Haru and many others - all of them bold as brass and ready to give any male characters a run for their money.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUV1ehhngKoMvOCrfiUS2qMPOfiubV438fE1JkxWQnr7pM-PWRfOQWw1YlhfSP5hiV3c1m9fpi2hr3MHoYImor6PqggIJFFYgkSOCyIdLgTAHTPcOLyrf0UlVpyRMXDIxBlo4fZwLrd7s/s320/ghibli+5.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 174px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5523574193833006050" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">The last theme I will focus on is flying and Hayao Miyazaki's obsession with aircrafts. In World War II Miyazaki's father helped manufacture fighter planes and Miyazaki couldn't help but draw the majestic machines. Ever since he has looked to the sky for inspiration in all of his artistic endeavours. Indeed this is to the extent that it is hard to find a movie directed by him that doesn't feature a sequence in the air. In this specific movie the main method of transportation for Nausicaa is a glider and there are also some stunning scenes involving fighter planes from the great warring nations. There are plenty of other points to mention about thematic constants, plot structure, western influence in Ghibli anime and the repercussions of Hiroshima throughout but that's an essay in itself; the movies are after all very complex.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGKRHVxSqivOjgpqeSBtJkZWh82w8g6ch3xIFbdvKwj3PyVIEk1QM-1K1OGP_gQOIEk0zzqESGTJFS9dyEYPaX-0SvmumkEjdAaPkdOdX97ChKRpmwcHfJ4DjQ6-SbBzC6Fo5thGmhjxA/s320/ghibli+6.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 181px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5523575347078330690" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Hayoa Miyazaki's time at the helm is coming to an end unfortunately but luckily a new generation of talented animator/directors are emerging. Miyazaki's son, Goro Miyazaki, has shown great potential with 'Tales from Earthsea', exhibiting a different style that is sure to take Studio Ghibli in a fascinating direction. Many (including myself) would compare his style to that of Isao Takahata, another prolific director at the studio who famously directed the harrowing and powerful 'Grave of the Fireflies'. It's also worth mentioning that the next Ghibli release will be an adaptation of The Borrowers by Mary Norton and that this will be directed by another new young director, Hiromasa Yonebayashi.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkXtSD0MefXM4APHzS8m4_0a0cuDHQQ9GoeQ567pqBdbQBUGCGDQJRRI-1LduoGewVqFsdd3QgU50TGZFmY4uFCBrsil17CXeMMVGs0SQRYYa-H4gIo4HVwfCiLvCPc2oqmW2a9uvKLVY/s320/ghibli+7.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 136px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5523576271280111922" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">'Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind' is an example of Ghibli at it's epic best; unfortunately in the US an awful edit called 'Warriors of the Wind' was originally released which completely missed the point of the movie; portraying nature as evil and humans as purely positive. Thankfully western audiences now appreciate "grey area" themes in animation and have really taken to Studio Ghibli and anime in general (it's important to note that there are plenty of examples of wonderful feature length anime outside of Ghibli). After years of child-centric, generally musical western animation, it was hard for a majority of western movie-goers to take more adult aimed animation seriously. Much like graphic novels, they have finally been accepted by the general public. Much to my relief, new talent have shown Studio Ghibli is likely to continue to be important exponents of this art form for many years to come; constantly pushing the envelope and exhibiting originality.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/9_rtIcyqssA?fs=1&hl=en_GB"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/9_rtIcyqssA?fs=1&hl=en_GB" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>Sam Lockleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07354190574814788941noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8147881804714145582.post-51793094975379188492010-09-21T17:38:00.000-07:002010-09-22T05:18:43.538-07:00Gattaca<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyo5bCjtKJVdL3GhvXXwIXBPdVapximTo29UUWT6PpXUVW1Y5M4uBHUa5JRDO_RGpN-esAIpKuEwmbDHdavCbShNL19E-ceHarLpwpEUnJdDSms7P6Z_TyTzw3fRa2WjQvfO31o-j0K_c/s1600/gattaca+2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 222px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyo5bCjtKJVdL3GhvXXwIXBPdVapximTo29UUWT6PpXUVW1Y5M4uBHUa5JRDO_RGpN-esAIpKuEwmbDHdavCbShNL19E-ceHarLpwpEUnJdDSms7P6Z_TyTzw3fRa2WjQvfO31o-j0K_c/s320/gattaca+2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5519533658209100882" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255); "><div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 18px; font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span">Sometimes in cinema a movie takes current developments and follows a line of thought through to an as yet unseen end. These movies are usually of the science fiction genre due to the intrinsic and unique ability of sci-fi to depict a future that has not yet come to pass; acting as a vehicle for intangible ideas and principles. Sci-fi is unfortunately often met with a rebuff of grunting snobbery, but the important thing to grasp is that it isn't about laser beams, robots or space opera dramatics but simply asking the question - what if? The greatest developments made by humans evolve from this question; literature and cinema are no exception. What if totalitarianism took hold on a massive scale? (George Orwell's 1984). What if we could travel through the "fourth dimension"? (H.G. Wells' 'The Time Machine'). What if humans could bestow the spark of life? (Mary Shelly's 'Frankenstein'). Gattaca is of this breed of movie.</span></span></p><p></p></div></span><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBou1W_ZgzNEb2Z-BDZmA64Dz8n13c6xnPdieckauDS5kR1QVFUaREUr_QWmRUo9rTepNjIXK-Gzblr7Wf69CNueBoT6k_Pag1bsDk7U1W7-xDILU9Eh6XrzvQ-YVPXrtnDwqWCikanTs/s320/gattaca+1.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5519532766612300850" /><div><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center">So what if our DNA carried greater social implications? Gattaca is set in a not too distant future in which an individual’s class in society is predetermined by their genetic makeup, whether they like it or not. Gattaca centres around Vincent (Ethan Hawke), an invalid (human of natural birth) who dreams of travelling the stars but is confined to a life of man<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span">ual labour</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span">. H</span>is only hope of changing his fate is to impersonate Jerome (Jude Law), a valid (engineered human) who has not lived up to his genetic potential. When you consider that you can’t enter a building without your thumb being pricked or your hair sample being taken, you realise how much of an ordeal awaits Vincent. A mysterious death weeks before a shuttle launch only amplifies this and jeopardizes his plans.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">“I belonged to a new underclass, no longer determined by social status or the colour of your skin. No, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">we now have discrimination down to a science</b>”.<o:p></o:p></i></p><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxE4WCMyvf7sDJW6Zg-shTkgfSe5__TEs4nJpmsAEinyDF07PgRToAVNBhdjm0HNCEPINzaS0hDDIFokGg4ec_NwWLRB1-9j2-YyZnYBhsD4E8OsbeEwXQxlV2q00-Zn_F5cHcPsxedYM/s320/gattaca+3.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5519532431184583794" /><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center">Gattaca displays another common feature of science fiction movies; it carries a deeper emotional connotation at its core which reverberates through every scene. Gattaca, on its most fundamental level, is about ambition and rising above limitations which have been placed upon you by the surrounding world. Titan (a moon of Saturn which Vincent dreams of travelling to) represents a better life, a future which he has determined for himself. (And why not dream, after all “there is no gene for fate”).</p><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSHG5uT-EeflJUvbjsW7UpbRk8N6PANMkPBn1ZmKbEgx94EI5NWPQE_Qb65mUwHnxx9o9iPHpLOUpOPnLMgO-Kd7bPouUCpzrzQeATRnhaP6sEEBOfH6i1qwJtGiLB1pncwmPyO7Rurhc/s320/gattaca+4.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5519532060554366114" /><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center">An impressive supporting cast of Uma Thurman (as an unwitting love interest of “better” lineage) and the immensely talented Alan Arkin (a detective who is hot on Vincent’s trail) maintain the quality of performance exhibited by Hawke and Law. It is important to also note that style is not sacrificed for substance and there really are some beautiful visual sequences in the movie including my personal favourite; a romantic sequence where Hawke and Thurman walk in a field of mirror solar panels.</p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/6-vHCyWVhNc?fs=1&hl=en_GB"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/6-vHCyWVhNc?fs=1&hl=en_GB" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center">In short this is a hugely entertaining and profoundly thoughtful movie. I recently read an ethical discussion on whether insurance companies should have access to the DNA of customers in order to proofread for “risk regions” and determine costs on that basis. Wow, Perceptive too.</p><p></p></div>Sam Lockleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07354190574814788941noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8147881804714145582.post-10361157472543383312010-08-09T13:11:00.000-07:002010-08-12T17:22:12.930-07:00Quadrophenia<div style="text-align: center;">I saw this film really late on TV the other night for the first time in several years and was reminded how much of a classic it is. For me, the movie is one of the most important 'teenage angst' movies ever made and truly sums up the tensions of working class Britain in the 60s.</div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9lEVLAvdSud-Y1hzCHPleKDaqutplY2JM5YrxaxK3J5OnHHS5jPSkPJ-Ln8MhuLMhlhUjYojGRnlBDWiDtCnk8CO981HgNdySpuKfVQN2xTpBBJ1orwXt5jN3FXiyITW_vAf7dmi2lVU/s320/Quadrophenia_The_Movie.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 226px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5503509645132932402" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">The 60s began a social revolution in Britain. No longer were teens all prim and proper, with bowl cut hair and not a button misplaced. No longer did they listen to friendly, middle of the road camp fire songs. The 60s brought the Mods and the Rockers. On the surface these two gangs couldn't be more different. Mods in their Ben Sherman suits, with their pristine hair, listening to The Kinks and The Who. Rockers with their leather jackets, hair greased back, listening to Chuck Berry and Elvis. But underneath they are the same as every teenager - frustrated with a need to belong, to feel like you're part of something. The 60s had brought about a subculture dichotomy which would both become a scar and an iconic piece of British history.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSJlB2n-n2vGnPjzNCTB2mVcv9WW77eYNd2LSwIX6_c3JBJIDm5_TUfVCMPVnfTKkFnhR45gd7s_zZEvnpGpSarEifRjuD5J516IlvI6FqWQCBHQO8Koi0bID96dL-VieTfmvWT3odTBc/s400/quadrophenia+2.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">In Quadrophenia we see the world through the eyes of Jimmy (Phil Daniels), a Mod who is frustrated by a dead end job and violent, scrutinising parents. He is a time bomb, just like all of his friends and it's only a matter of time before rockers light the fuse and give them an excuse to blow. Brighton is no longer a quaint, slightly disappointing beach town - it's a battle field for embittered youths. Never has gang violence been so effortlessly cool...and harrowingly brutal. The more Jimmy strives to be an individual, the more he ironically fades in the flurry of violence. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>"I don't wanna be the same as everybody else. That's why I'm a Mod, see? I mean, you gotta be somebody, ain't ya, or you might as well jump in the sea and drown."</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6j6iKy33PVD9k9mvRqltogXhsF0uXrQvRYi-uUTPqp0CNfuAYEg-GI35dM1nTtLNTo_30x6HSztfZI9OfQ72oTZ8BlrkZamWmd9-nREmdYYVANw9I8_37AVuEZURfcQFC5H4048cz8qQ/s400/quadrophenia+3.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: center; ">This movie contains the frank grittiness that British cinema used to embody but now all too rarely features. It shares something with masterpieces such as 'Scum' (with Ray Winstone) and 'The Firm' (with Gary Oldman). There are very few Directors today who can bring that sort of blue collar realism to the screen and who have the vision to see the poetic nature of factories and warehouses and people aspiring to be more than a cog. One who comes to mind is Shane Meadows, who obviously takes a lot from movies like this.</div><div style="text-align: center; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: center; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRnMUYZeZKHKXqx4wlSn3b1ZneFHRa5Wxvs3Zn0om8oeb87bnxb73K1jXrgAmh29y_cJbCEqDz75S-ePyK5LL1mG6ggpFWLGo-SaFxM3EsLOnXYdVPT6zKPHLTIGTWdP6-Dr4RTVhEbdw/s320/this+is+england.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: center; ">Phil Daniels acts wonderfully throughout the film and portrays the confusions, frustrations and folly of youth beautifully. His world begins to unravel and rebelling against the establishment becomes intoxicating. Soon everyone around him becomes the enemy - even those closest to him. Watch how he isolates himself from everyone around him, even when he is at fault and they are just trying to help him.</div><div style="text-align: center; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: center; "><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/pO57N03H3L0&hl=en_GB&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/pO57N03H3L0&hl=en_GB&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object></div><div style="text-align: center; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: center; ">With an amazing soundtrack (composed entirely by The Who) and a wonderful array of unpolished performances culminating in a breathtaking final scene, this bleak 70s gem comes highly recommended. (And the more awful films like 'Green Street' and basically any Danny Dyer movie try and emulate it, the more it shines).</div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div></div>Sam Lockleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07354190574814788941noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8147881804714145582.post-59509595008505457742010-07-17T06:07:00.000-07:002010-07-17T09:46:44.232-07:00Inception<div style="text-align: center;">I saw this movie at the IMAX yesterday, the night of it's release. A lot of hype surrounded it, mainly because of the huge success of Nolan's last release, The Dark Knight. Being a fan of Nolan's, I also had high expectations. I couldn't be more pleased to say I was <b>not</b> disappointed.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYkejFxMAkQe0e7-QXOsf6ggJiCRLloFjF9QBAhIYhdkklsi9_Uw9NaQdGK394YCCMKC004ZF3I7c5m9bjLOui-J7IKYFR0HkXacbr1i85UIkNMeI282qdsPFuESnY-LTXjpkbmzRRPEo/s200/inception+7.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 136px; height: 200px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5494892260221734050" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">The general rule in cinema is that, the bigger a movie gets (in terms of scale, budget and special effects) the more it will sacrifice in terms of intelligence and originality. I would say this is a fairly reliable general rule of thumb (for example Avatar is one of the most expensive film ever made, created with the most cutting edge effects on offer today - but it's plot is basically Pocahontas. Not to say I didn't enjoy Avatar, but it wasn't the most challenging of movies.)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzcfNaugjaLUf7QvQ-gQvVEbom6VjiLbxfAizYHC9T3B8R0ykXEpO_mDXUwj54UC2ii4C7sZrUdPvoYJ53l57Aipi4N4rNAdiSQMGRhCpf36C6x7BVeDNpMfU3lTYLPbDIVjHD3x_Pp9E/s320/avatar.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 192px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5494898900434068674" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">But you know what they say, rules are made to be broken. Inception did it in style! And I don't just mean it had a decent plot, that would be a massive understatement. I can say, without a shadow of a doubt, that Inception is the most cerebral and mind bending film I have seen since The Matrix. Basically, don't take your eye off the ball because it doesn't keep to the conventions of normal linear cinema.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZdbtIRBl1mwaFrSe9vzGMf9HFuTMQoGjb9uh4VcDkwfySt7nR39gsEQOdh721RkBRG9FCe_Vcsw0pZs6XzSiCCjFvB-9NaajS_ncnI4pH5lOK-K7jMxigAWLgVYoMDOgoVaqcKkkSppE/s320/matrix.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 159px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5494898294620651922" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">I wont give away any spoilers because I would hate to ruin this film for anybody, so I'll just lay out the general idea behind the movie. A technology has been developed which allows people to enter a person's mind and either steal an idea (extraction) or plant one (inception.) Enter Dom Cobb (DiCaprio), a man troubled by his past (which literally haunts him) who is the best in the business and is offered the mother of all mind jobs. In order to pull off the mission he will need the help of a specialist team, each with a specialist ability - an architect (Page), a point man (Gordon-Levitt), a forger (Hardy) and a chemist (Rao).</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTcEDtOraBn_ocNuEEQqi2gvyNTMnG3BflMkR30GEjc5p8vdg22RkVpjGv3UwSTHU0RsDFNqeCY2PB0TyklMX0b73_c1tcoN0UsfgLv5EzQzLVX_iiF2kx0cslZ7jaf8IqKVoZDXecFvo/s400/inception+4.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 168px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5494872056545040850" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">The best way to describe this movie is a Russian doll - dreams within dreams and worlds within worlds. The mind is a paradoxical maze - Nolan creates these worlds perfectly and they are a truly beautiful and breathtaking stage for events to unfold upon. This includes a stunning fight sequence in a corridor with shifting gravity, impossible staircases and entire cityscapes which are completely malleable.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi43IlF97bruM5697sF3X7ivenIrK-gn0tXKxvGlxM0fIXd_zJIHF6m7byzdfHfsi6eMQH3UfMJooYOfSCHJIouwCFrht7vZzVy7nlIOAQmishnBi2NKq7NDv32Rnyvl42cEFZ0DdXlbdg/s400/inception+2.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5494883682969771106" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Another special thing about this movie is the ensemble cast which supports DiCaprio - who by the way has really hit his stride as a lead man after Shutter Island. Some of the brightest stars of "future Hollywood" feature in this movie. Ellen Page (Juno, Hard Candy), Joseph Gordon-Levitt (500 Days of Summer, Brick) and Tom Hardy (Bronson, Stuart: A Life Backwards) all provide great performances. I especially enjoyed the banter between Gordon-Levitt and Hardy, it really added a streak of humour to this movie. Nolan regulars Cillian Murphy, Michael Cane and Ken Watanabe also put in solid performances.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdmxoCMHJGI9tfSdlJMsbwSl_GMRGdpICCsYzQjCK_FnWzCyPnRzxXJMYH4cWTxzzpz9rZmV9l_8oThhGGNHMVE05KBSGqiQR8RzyGwMboaBNqifaNT-cyaflJWqRy7k2raeChYzpOMtY/s400/inception+1.png" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Please make the first time you see this movie be at the cinema - the dynamic visuals and Hans Zimmer's epic soundtrack deserve that much. Inception has so much to offer - action sequences, love interests and one of the most original plots you're likely to see for a while. When the credits rolled people actually clapped and we all left the IMAX with massive smiles on our faces - it really was a movie buffs dream (excuse the pun.)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">In a word - slick.</div>Sam Lockleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07354190574814788941noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8147881804714145582.post-79150246101906713872010-07-15T04:01:00.000-07:002010-08-11T10:12:17.868-07:00There Will Be Blood<div style="text-align: center;">This movie is a rarity - it's a 'modern classic'. By modern classic I mean that almost immediately after being made, it had gained the gravitas that the average classic takes years to develop. This is mainly for two reasons - the master class of acting on show by Daniel Day-Lewis (with support from Paul Dano) and the potency of the plot.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIiVfezKoH66hMyU8fwLLKL_3OLSyiYj847eYlXMbjD_vVgAQ3CmEUo7ErDxwFIWYUjvEGbw9nhXhicnfCpQ_MgS8EeJZ_LSlbxUD35C8TyCrdULSw_DxX5xVRvu28BYWVPI-yShq2CvU/s320/there_will_be_blood.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 219px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5494089569457815058" /><div style="text-align: center;">The movie centres around Daniel Plainview (Day-Lewis), a mineral prospector turned "oil man". He begins drilling in a small town called Little Boston - a town where nothing grows but the piousness of it's residents. Eli Sunday (Dano) is the Yin to Plainview's Yang and they clash in a hugely dramatic way. The movie is loosely based on the novel 'Oil!' by Upson Sinclair.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkaTaUSd_vMBUK2pTKlKEvMgdl6Kin4fd02j_QzMc_dskOQ30tM-D5mNi9BmzkOPJ6uzGmgbVV2sRyPNbIijIv4UtJvsMoazebp2Z_3dxFKELth1RQd4-r-C0GxhmlX3dEGXEmj8N19no/s400/there-will-be-blood-baptism-by-faith.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 194px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5494092767947985186" /><div style="text-align: center;">The hugely attractive prospect of this movie is the fact that it centres around mankind's two strongest addictions - <b>God and Oil</b>. Sunday and Plainview are microcosms of these addictions respectively and their constant one-upmanship makes for some thrilling confrontations. The following clip is a prime example of this, watch as they say more with their eyes than with their mouths.</div></div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><object width="640" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Nw32_C1LnWQ&hl=en_GB&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Nw32_C1LnWQ&hl=en_GB&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="640" height="385"></embed></object> </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">With this sort of calibre of acting it's no surprise that there are such powerful performances. Daniel Day-Lewis puts in his best performance since 'My Left Foot' (he received an oscar for both). Dano is a rising star that, after many low budget indie movies, came into the public eye with his wonderful role in 'Little Miss Sunshine'. Day-Lewis is already one of the greatest actors of all time (and I don't say that lightly) and Dano holds limitless potential.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6O_zR557cyXHu3a68FwqB2DH_NedJeSXuOMh9h1-WgUas0Fa-iM120QOkDmCU8zWhMeLjWKfVVnKz82nL2aCPWv_fM1z9MQWWN_lA9qRBdeOxlVVk_jc54ojz4EQj-FH-INs_sqFmVtc/s320/myleftfoot.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">In conclusion, this is one that everybody should have in their collection. It would be easy to just focus on the acting but everything is pitch-perfect - the cinematography is great, Johnny Greenwood's soundtrack is oscar worthy and the screenplay is wonderfully audacious (there isn't any dialogue in the film for the first 20 minutes, which requires a lot of confidence.) Give it a watch and you'll be hooked right up to the legendary "milkshake" finale. </div><div> </div>Sam Lockleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07354190574814788941noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8147881804714145582.post-58662480987454159992010-07-14T16:16:00.000-07:002010-07-14T16:59:48.202-07:00Wendy and Lucy<div style="text-align: center;">This is just a quick entry to show that I wont just be going into detail on classic movies. I'll also be giving quick reviews on movies that I happen to catch on TV or at the cinema that leave a strong impression on me. So stay tuned because I'm going to be seeing Inception at the imax on friday (I'm going to go out on a limb and say it's probably going to be really good because Nolan hasn't disappointed yet.)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnZZfl0-t132nSKyQNQ7JRqzO6GjJpx9ONo5XJ1QxcpnnPzDQqZPAhwFeSGwG4vbxkRuTufx9uZSiiGhfckqV5aluWPCy-oi9InCv6jkNRlKkWQDmvpOJyJEC7YV2I6cwvm-eCJ4y8wfM/s320/wendy-and-lucy2.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 217px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5493905818891361314" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Wendy and Lucy is an indie movie that I caught on Film4 last night and I was very impressed by how brave and original it was. But by brave I don't mean it's controversial because it isn't. The reason Wendy and Lucy is brave is because it is a minimalist movie - by which I mean there is no soundtrack, little dialogue and a very simplistic plot. Sometimes being brave is to say "I'm not going to add any more, I'll leave it alone and let it speak for itself." As a result this film almost entirely relies on the stunningly understated and subtle performance of Michelle Williams as Wendy. The filming and editing of the movie is great as well - the only movement of the shot is when one clip is edited into another. This creates a stillness which only complements the purgatory of the Pacific Northwest .</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://img2.timeinc.net/ew/dynamic/imgs/081203/wendy-and-lucy_l.jpg" /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">The movie centres around Wendy and her dog Lucy travelling north to Alaska to find work. Money is short and with only a bust up car for shelter and Lucy for company, Wendy is on the brink of complete homelessness. Williams really portrays a woman down on her luck so well, sometimes you can even hear a slight quivering in her voice when she speaks, as if she's about to break down.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><object width="640" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/7QXEK64ba08&hl=en_GB&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/7QXEK64ba08&hl=en_GB&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="640" height="385"></embed></object></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Check it out, a truely remarkable movie.</div></div>Sam Lockleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07354190574814788941noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8147881804714145582.post-44420440781951414142010-07-01T17:28:00.000-07:002010-07-17T05:58:56.838-07:00Blade Runner<div style="text-align: center;">Welcome! This is my first ever blog so I thought it would be best to start with a classic and a favourite of mine (and also arguably the greatest science fiction movie ever made.)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCXRmwU3etFiVFWiY0k219keLlQt4YR5PQX5cCFD-vgKCFgQewFLOtYuXHGYDIjPrfHE9OaOt3t8NqlUM4FHenex70ziAoXbbWnSciOfiAYkpz-wp6hnJsrtKk0xmsmnKFQ7VoQqyFlgI/s400/Blade-Runner.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5489101733847276754" /><div style="text-align: center;">Blade Runner was directed by Ridley Scott in 1982 and starred Harrison Ford and Rutger Hauer. The film is based (fairly loosely may I add) on a science fiction novel called "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" by the brilliant Phillip K Dick. Dick was a visionary author who has inspired many on screen adaptations over the years, such as Minority Report, A Scanner Darkly, Total Recall and Screamers (but the less said about the last one the better).</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjobWBuhHMr-W-unuCgsAqD0jQtZ88i4VcdQb0W9t0y2Hqvitfwnm8D1Uk4g5omoUD2lFcelr8mfVw41E159QiGXWFY5RkBxabByap8QPvY4Y1O_IGgvaoMfTMrSJcLI82SetDlasiGAAg/s320/scanner-darkly-5.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 213px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5489287887505718770" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">The story (set in the November of 2019) centres around Rick Deckard (Ford), who's occupation is a Blade Runner. A 'Blade Runner' is basically a bounty hunter for androids (or as they are referred to in the movie "replicants" or even more informally "skin jobs.") There are four replicants on earth who have escaped from an off-world colony and have returned for certain reasons, unbeknownst to Deckard. Finding them is no simple task as, at this point in the future, manufacturers can painstakingly make replicants "more human than human."So begins Deckard's journey to find four slightly different needles in a stack of needles...only these needles are intelligent and scared replicants. They are led by the most enigmatic and intelligent amongst them, Roy Batty (Hauer.)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheq8nvFEpABolOprvKtkoy1kYAV42nVS0DCkUC8HHR-lzE2FUyVCRsAdTs0qwGOIf9DjiN8XpyAmqHMxnaiRSmjG7ploBVm6D27zcMaQG9eDHG3eBe1DXCEyUDQ2CPFH3x8o-xPrAJXEc/s320/roy-batty.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 206px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5489119657272532946" /><div style="text-align: center;">Blade Runner carries some interesting and thought provoking themes such as what it is to be human (are we just the sum of our parts or more than the flesh and bone from which we are made) and also coming to terms with ones own end ("the candle that burns twice as bright, burns half as long.") The whole story is wrought with uncertainty - even Deckard's own humanity is questioned at several points (HINT - look at the eyes of the replicants and Deckard in the final cut.)</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_yFpftDRoneD7hvdqAKLkCVICqRYK0Tl3gg7Yb7XwvmihRlPgShtErW_TkJvwFY_M2Be4UMipRHRS8o0kBZ004OSY9lU8MN8VCw7QJyjJqtrdoh29i6JBnrMoWAoR_rn45mQh6gG7Urs/s400/blade+runner.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5489117734134284898" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">The book is also definitely worth reading, as it not only covers the themes of the movie but also touches upon issues of social status and religion (the main religion in the novel is a Sisyphean religion called 'Mercerism', in which people all share consciousness with a man perpetually walking up a hill whilst being hit with rocks. They do this via contraptions called empathy boxes - which I guess can only be described as a virtual link to one's own deity.) People can also "order" an emotion using a gadget on their wrist which secretes various drugs and neurotransmitteres into the wearers blood stream. Such concepts are typical of Phillip K Dick's novels, which tend to put a bleak cyberpunk twist on contemporary issues.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyKYg_jAdxRCnNUIhwx3n7ptmXBtUPICnGOphPZuCfTgg73grK_LMf66dzjEVtRmoHPdkqDII2EZXFr_P8RElOy7y1jnj6rW0Crv0jej2ACQ2qlfjttxUPbZTcERGu6OxIXOYccXI7o04/s320/do-androids-dream-of-electric-sheep.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 199px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5489118403945151570" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">There have been three main cuts to this movie - the original cut (complete with awful, unnecessary and quite patronising narration), the director's cut (a rough diamond) and the final cut which was recently released. The final cut is really a masterpiece, it realises the full potential of the movie and brings it to the forefront with remastered picture and sound quality along with certain extended and added scenes. The added scenes are in no way integral to the plot of the movie, being mainly of the tarnished, polluted cityscape or panning shots of it's patchwork, melting pot society. But I do believe the added footage assists the flow of the movie and adds to it's brooding atmosphere. Basically, if you're going to buy it then this should be the version you choose - it really is a treat for the eyes.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnzof5aOhjc547-oJd9gse-650P_CX-aSQRo9SIkGb8oZbxa6LE4hHSMkzEdsTquz0G_7NuhUn12BoQsQC0T6gAP7aKMc11Upg4YtKdCNE_0IbbYAS00ItJlkFuvyCMX2_zpaQEF0-kCE/s320/eye.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 212px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5489341341023820466" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">The thing that I personally love about this film is it's combination of styles. What I mean by this is that Blade Runner is essentially a detective, film noir piece - smokey, dimly lit bars, ambient background jazz music, Deckard even has one of those stereotypical, brown, 1930s detective trench coats! Yet this is seamlessly juxtaposed with a dystopian, futuristic, polluted and drab earth. Perhaps it is the brown and teal tones of this drab world which allows other, rather old fashioned elements, to merge so well with it. Either way I have never seen it done as well in any other movie. Visually the dystopia described by Dick and brought to the screen by Scott is beautifully complex and imperfect, without a doubt being hugely influential on movies ever since (Battle Royale, Children of Men, Brazil and Akira to name a few). I would also say that more realistic, or even pessimistic, views of the future are far more rich and interesting than polished, chrome plated ones.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGrBbxtAEuPv7YevJiqF9NGgJmJ3AFQUB6meAQ17qOnlWz_644Hxg6w6FqfW2Rg3dsZkjLQw2XcBk6lBHSg_uiLIFeG5GfAG0Y_qD1RURbEOioaQdZ0sMB23H1UMgMeF5B07uQlTbr698/s320/akira0122.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5489138044697008530" /></div><div><div style="text-align: center;">In fact, Blade Runner's future earth of socioeconomic turmoil was created so well that it is often thought of as the origin of bleak, futuristic styles in cinema (although it most definitely wasn't - movies such as Soylent Green, Escape from New York and Fahrenheit 451 come to mind.)</div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8oREeFOY0S4JhF8648LHWThmvIHntFLWka8JN1pcK38KUYOD_9CHunFbb7_y9GTX_qZV4qeEDOVgR1EetxLf2TubVDjlcryLb1QXsFnI-hoipu2iU_IJKCbvKA-wmsyHwVqiimRrKTiI/s320/soylent-green.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 253px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5489139800575672722" /></div><div style="text-align: center;">So in summary Blade Runner was revolutionary in it's own unique way, utilising styles and themes well established in previous films. Harrison Ford manages to bring that humerous yet slightly bitter, world weary edge to Deckard, which is exactly what he is famed for and good at (although I would say that Deckard is more of the latter than either Han Solo or Indiana Jones). The dialogue in the movie is effortlessly cool and alluring, certain quotes really stand out - e.g. "replicants are like any other machine - they're either a benefit of a hazard. If they're a benefit it's not my problem", "if only you could see what I've seen with your eyes" and Roy Batty's "tears in rain" monologue near the end. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">This film has managed to avoid becoming dated even though it is almost thirty years old and, although I have seen this film more times than I can remember, it has never lost it's mystique and charisma. There are literally whole books on the movie's visual style and philosophical connotations, so it would be impossible for me to really do it justice in a blog. But needless to say it comes highly recommended, especially to fans of thought provoking science fiction.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><object width="640" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/J_hYs1jBy8Y&hl=en_GB&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/J_hYs1jBy8Y&hl=en_GB&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="640" height="385"></embed></object></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Thanks for reading my first ever blog! Any thoughts or comments would be most appreciated. Also, any ideas for further movie blogs will be taken on board.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">See you soon</div><div style="text-align: center;">Sam.</div>Sam Lockleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07354190574814788941noreply@blogger.com5