Melancholia (2011) – Lars Von Trier
Lars Von Trier, the once famously outspoken messiah of European avant-garde cinema, has completed his descent into the murky depths of self-indulgent, self righteous nonsense in the form of Melancholia. Antichrist was the warning shot, high quality visuals only served to highlight the worrying lack of direction and ideas at work in this post Dogme95 offering. Melancholia, another ‘style over substance’ examination of a highly abstract subject, proves that Denmark’s most belligerently implacable director has learned absolutely nothing since his last big-budget venture.
Poor editing (will the opening scene ever end?!), nonsensical script (Lead character: “I know things” – enough said), pretentious direction (a naked Kirsten Dunst is Melancholia’s sole triumph), von Trier has become a laughably hollow and irrelevant rewrite of his former self. This visually stunning but essentially listless work of pompous intellectualism is the final nail in the directorial coffin. Long gone are the brilliantly subversive days of The Idiots and Breaking the Waves. Gone too, it seems, are the days when European art-house was thought-provoking and actually entertaining. That this film has garnered mainly positive reviews should hardly come as a surprise given how out of touch the vast majority of film criticism, defender of all things high-brow, has become. 2/10
Come and See (1985) – Elen Klimov
Hollywood has a tremendous sway on the way in which the western world remembers World War 2. When we think of this moment of history, films such as Saving Private Ryan, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, Schindler’s List and Pearl Harbour most commonly spring to mind. As we find ourselves getting sucked into Hollywood’s star-spangled, morally prescriptive, Holocaust-centric vortex, it is films like Come and See that remind us that Americans and Jews weren’t the only victims of the Nazi war machine.
Following a young boy’s plucky survival quest, this bleak claustrophobic, unnerving and fundamentally Russian war memorial attempts to both document the scale on which lives were lost, and reveal the depth of the psychological scars that such a catastrophic act of inhumanity wrought upon the Russian spirit. Needless to say, this is a hugely emotional and heavy going film, anyone who has read Dostoevsky will know that no nation does cathartic ‘entertainment’ better. The visual and emotional intensity of Come and See is undermined only by the awful English overdub, which proves genuinely off-putting for the first 10 minutes or so, but this is only a superficial flaw in a deeply traumatised and hauntingly intense contribution to the genre. This is World War 2 as Hollywood could never show it, for that reason some may feel alienated by its overwhelming gloom, but few films bring you closer to understanding the human cost of war. 8/10
Julia’s Eyes (2010) - Guillem Morales
Off the back of some decent reviews, and with the mastermind behind Pan’s Labyrinth (Guillermo del Toro) on production duties, this thoughtful thriller should have been a sure fire hit. Julia’s Eyes has some really touching moments, and the plot is enough to keep you guessing at least for a short while. However, Morales spends so much time building you up to the big climaxes that by the time you get there, the key moment lacks the satisfying payoff. In fact, the whole thing feels a bit bloated. Scenes tend to rattle on, too many characters are introduced, the plot unravels in a flat, linear, episodic fashion. Most crucially, suspense, lifeblood of any good thriller, is painfully lacking.
Though the cupboards are bare in the thrill seeking department, the film handles some interesting concepts with an impressive delicacy of touch. Lluis Homar and Belen Rueda, as husband and wife respectively, give the Julia’s Eyes a sincere and humble aesthetic. Their ever more strained relationship is an achingly concise metaphor for Julia’s deteriorating eyesight. Indeed, it is their relationship that constitutes much of the film’s appeal, the touching ending proving a suitable climax to their celestial romance. If only Morales had the conviction in his ideas to do away with all the superficial clutter, Julia’s Eyes would have been a much more poignant and well proportioned film. As it stands, it gets 5/10
Drive (2011) – Nicolas Winding Refn
With another dreadfully predictable year at the Oscars behind us, now is an opportune moment to highlight a quite frankly stunning omission from the academy award shortlist. You may remember me panning Bronson in no uncertain terms. Ballsy British brawlers were obviously not Refn’s thing. The same cannot be said, however, about his ability to create stylish, sexy city slickers.
Following the mercurial hero of many different professions and talents around a beautifully dangerous urban jungle, the audience is constantly reminded of Drive’s striking audiovisual prowess. Reminiscent of Blade Runner in all its neon lit glory, with an electronica inspired musical score to match, this film is unashamedly retro in its stylisation. Despite the nostalgia, Drive’s substance still outweighs its considerable style. Throwing romance (an angst-fest between Gosling and Carey Mulligan), violence (and plenty of it), gang warfare, even the odd hint of comedy (thanks to a limelight snatching cameo by Ron Perlman) into the bargain, the film represents 98 minutes of all singing all dancing cinema.
However, Drive’s greatest strength is its intoxicating allure, you don’t just watch it, you are enveloped in it, you become part of its very fabric. The key source of this power is Ryan Gosling. Reminiscent of a certain Taxi Driving De Niro as the neo-noir protagonist around which the whole film revolves, he delivers a refreshingly understated performance, sporting the entire spectrum of human emotion whilst maintaining an ultra-cool air of complete indifference. With class acts such as Blue Valentine and The Ides of March on the CV, Gosling will have Di-Caprio and Damon, Hollywood’s golden boys, looking over their shoulder before too long.
Clever, slick, sexy, fun, this takes the best that The Transporter, Taxi Driver, No Country for Old Men and Blade Runner have to offer, and fuses them into a formidable piece of cinema. 9/10
Notable Mentions:
Infernal Affairs (2002) – Sui Fai Mak & Andrew Lau
Something of an institution in its native Hong Kong, Infernal Affairs is a breakneck action thriller reminiscent of the cop dramas so ubiquitous in the 90s. The complex plot is made even more mentally taxing by the punchy dialogues, so be prepared to read at a furious pace. Nonetheless, Infernal Affairs, which inspired The Departed, is a well executed and immensely fun watch which builds to a spectacular crescendo. 7/10
Knowing (2009) – Alex Proyas
And so Nicolas Cage continues to mop up the roles nobody else will touch with a barge pole. In this thankless task, he plays John, a university professor who has uncovered the equivalent of a world disaster almanac. Once you realise that there are events predicted that are yet to pass, you know (pardon the pun) exactly how things are going to unravel. With wooden acting, soggy scripting redeemed in part by some whopping explosions; the sum total is spectacularly dull. 3/10
Rear Window (1954) – Alfred Hitchcock
At its glittering best, cinema transcends the boundaries of time. Though Rear Window is nearly 60 years old, it feels decidedly fresh. Part satire, part thriller, part romance, this is a wonderfully intriguing urban tale about an adventurous photographer turned voyeuristic sleuth thanks to a broken leg. We follow the lives of his neighbours through the zoom lense of his camera (start metafilm discussion here...), whilst ogling over Grace Kelly as she attempts to dissuade her man from any more wild sojourns, and lure him into holy matrimony. Oozing class, style, sex appeal and charm, it is little wonder this is one of Hitchcock’s most revered masterpieces. 10/10
Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011) – Rupert Wyatt
This clumsily titled sci-fi prequel is a modern day morality tale, documenting humanity’s fatal transgression into god’s domain, with the inevitable consequences already revealed in The Planet of the Apes. James Franko, as the leading human, is a real disappointment in this. Looking well out of his depth, he lacks the emotional dexterity required for the role, occasionally breaking the film’s grip on its audience. Fortunately, this lack of humanity is ironically atoned for by CGI. Caesar (Andy Serkis aka Gollum), a flawlessly rendered chimp, is an incredibly engaging character with a particularly moving narrative. Stunning visuals with a real grandstand finish, this is a hugely enjoyable watch with a fair dollop of intellectual cud to chew on too. 7/10
