A review of a really terrible film.

There’s a frequent claim that Hollywood is ruining cinema, but Daybreakers, as far as I know, isn’t entirely funded and produced by Hollywood. It stars Willem Dafoe (among others obviously) an actor whom I quite like. It’s directed by The Spierig brothers, whom I’ve never heard of. It has a premise that’s vaguely intriguing (Vampires have become the dominant species and farm humans for their bloody supply. Unfortunately all the humans are dying and a substitute must be found before the vampires starve) though it is at the same time rather puzzling. The process by which they farm the humans is at best woefully short-sighted – why not breed the humans as well? It’s a principle by which we currently gain our food supply now anyway. Actually maybe they explained why that didn’t happen; I might have missed that bit, I don’t really care, it would hardly have redeemed the film.

The film is ludicrously over the top – there’s a scene near the beginning where Ethan Hawke and his team are testing an attempted blood substitute – not only does the subject break out in boils and all manner of lumps and bumps and projectile vomit on a nurse he then proceeds – after seemingly being saved, to explode.

Why?

Cos it looks cool, I guess. Or is supposed to anyway. It doesn’t though. It looks like a joke – a parody even but I’m not sure it is. The film doesn’t seem to have enough intelligence to be capable of parody.

I’d hoped that Daybreakers would be fun – that it would boast impressive action scenes (it doesn’t), that it’d be funny( it isn’t) and that overall at the end of the one and a half hour run time that it would have been an enjoyable enough experience (it wasn’t). That watching such a short, simple and unsubstantial film began to resemble some sort of masochistic endurance test should hopefully express how much of a failure this film really is. I actually chose to see this film, admittedly after the screening of Un Prophete was cancelled due to the fact that the print that they received was not accompanied by subtitles, and we were offered tickets to any other film (fair shout to Cineworld, the showing of Un Prophete was a free ‘press’ screening yet they still let us see another film). I had this vague memory of seeing a trailer that seemed to point to a good film – though my friend and I deduced that that was probably down to the song accompanying the trailer – the rather excellent cover of Running Up That Hill by Placebo. They could have at least have included it on the soundtrack.

I am perhaps being overall harsh with the film – it did at least fortunately occasionally stray into laughably bad rather than just depressingly awful – and thanks to the penultimate scene Shaun of the Dead will be all the more amusing (think of Dylan Moran getting ripped to pieces by a horde of zombie), but it really is difficult to find things to praise – I’m evidently scrapping the barrel. However for the right audience i have little doubt that this film will be amazing – I’m just not that audience.

Furthermore it’s not exactly given the genre, that is already struggling to be taken to be taken seriously (thanks Twilight) anything to be proud of. It doesn’t do anything interesting with the vampire mythology and it misses a decent opportunity with the underground resistance of humans and a world that can only function at night. The plot is depressingly predictable – at any moment the main characters are in danger you can be sure they will be saved – by seemingly dead characters usually. Films like this are ceaselessly annoying – there’s little point in watching past the first half hour – you can work out the plot from there – there’s no surprises, no mystery, no real sense of peril or concern (not that I would have cared if the characters had died). The ending as well is unsurprisingly limp – a quick v/o that leaves you unsure whether or not anything has actually been solved. At least there’s little scope for a sequel. This film didn’t just bore me it angered me – i was frustrated by how pointless and stupid it was, how it failed to produce anything at all of merit, how it dragged on to a half-hearted conclusion.

Daybreakers definitely takes its prize as worst film of the year thus far – and I expect it to hold that title for some time to come.

On a lighter note the 10 minutes of Un Prophete that I did see before we realised there were definitely weren’t any subtitles looked brilliant, stunning cinematography and a real claustrophobic alienated sense present within the prison. Will definitely try to see it again.

An apology also to the lack of blog posts recently – I’m back at university and exams are looming – blog will likely be a bit ignored till February I’m afraid.

My Top 10 Films of 2009

This is unfortunately by no means a complete list, whilst looking over the year’s release dates I was struck by just how many films I’d missed, and just how many I’d enjoyed. 2009 really has been a tremendous year for cinema, at least in my opinion. Deciding on just 10 is a difficult task, and this may get an update when I get around to seeing more films. The reviews vary wildly in length mainly due to how recently I’ve seen the films; both the Hurt Locker and 35 Shots of Rum are reviews I’d already written for the Film Unit programme (University cinema). For both of them it’s been months since I saw them – but I’ll be seeing both again soon for definite so ideally I’ll write some extended reviews then and update the list. Any conspicuous absences are probably down to me not seeing them, though in the case of Avatar – it’s just not that good ok?

10. 35 Shots of Rum

A subtle yet poignant drama 35 Shots of Rum is deceptively simple. Its characters live mundane lives, yet the relationships between them are anything but. Claire Denis has a unique ability to create a very honest and realistic environment for her actors to perform in. Her direction is aided of course by a superb cast, every one of them convincingly portraying the nuances of their characters. 35 Shots portrays emotions discreetly, things are not made explicit; they are suggested or hinted at. Things happen slowly but never without reason; it is a patient film that allows its characters to develop naturally, allowing you to build an intimate connection – though the events of this film are conventional there is an understated power that is difficult to forget.

9. JCVD

First, a confession, I have never before seen a Jean Claude Van Damme film, perhaps for the best if I am to believe reviews aggregator Rotten Tomatoes (JCVD is his first film to receive a fresh rating). However I do wonder if it would not have been better to have a familiarity with the actor based on more than just what I’ve heard or read about him. Because if there is one thing Van Damme achieves in this film; it’s defying any and all expectations.

The opening scene, a fabulous long shot, is what I imagine to be pure Van Damme as he despatches countless soldiers before rescuing a hostage – but we find ourselves a bit confused – what is he doing here? Who is the hostage? Who is Van Damme even supposed to be playing? The answer to the latter is of course: himself; a down and out movie star, running out of money and luck starring in films he doesn’t want to be in with directors who don’t give a shit who he is. It’s an unusual situation and when we witness him losing the custody of his daughter you’re struck by a curious notion – Van Damme appears to be vulnerable. And Van Damme repeatedly comes across as, well, a nice guy – when he walks past a video store he happily stops to be photographed by the owner

…and then moments later he’s holding up a Post Office and shooting at police officers…

or at least that’s what we’re initially led to believe because again JCVD plays with your expectations. It’s a good technique and the slow reveal of the hostage situation that breaks out and the events that led to it is very well done. There’s real tension too once it becomes clear than Van Damme isn’t going to fight his way out of there – instead the majority of the film is a character piece not an action film. There are noticeable moments of humour too, it’s not laugh out loud stuff necessarily but it brings an extra dynamic to the film. This is of course all leading up the oft praised (and almost famous?) monologue that Van Damme delivers towards the films end. Sitting facing the audience Van Damme and camera slowly rise about the set till level with the lighting rigs -we’re no longer part of the film JCVD– this is about Van Damme and his audience and what he wants to say as himself not as a character. His monologue is surprisingly honest and emotional and he shows much regret and scepticism to what he’s achieved with his life. It’s difficult to know to what extent this is the real JCVD talking but it’s easily to believe it’s him such is the strength of his performance.

The ending itself is suitably downbeat, there’s a sly nod at Van Damme the action hero but the film never lets itself be about anyone else other than the ‘real’ Van Damme.

It’s not an entirely successful film, while it neatly avoids or mocks the Van Damme cliché’s it cheerfully embraces many others particularly with the characters of the criminals, and the director at the beginning is a little overplayed. The choice of music is fairly baffling and sometimes irritating (its traditional music I guess, but doesn’t really suit the film) but none of this detracts from the films charm – it’s easy going in a sense, wryly amusing and yet at times is such a tragic work it’s hard to believe you’re still watching the same film.

8. Moon

It begins positive enough, a promotional video for Lunar Industries explains how global energy problems have been solved by the discovery of vast quantities of Helium 3 on the dark side of the Moon. Then we are introduced to Sam Bell the sole worker on the lunar base, responsible for overseeing the progress of the mining. Only it immediately becomes apparent with the first notes of Clint Mansell’s stunning soundtrack that things are not necessarily as they appear to be. An ominous tone is immediately set that is quickly but gradually reaffirmed. It’s difficult to talk much about the plot without giving things away, suffice to say that things are definitely not as they seem. It is easier instead to talk around the plot, to describe the other elements of the film that combined with the story mark a fantastic return to intelligent sci-fi film-making.

The production design and model work are beautiful, reminiscent of classic sci-fi before everything became flashy and sleek and computer generated. The slow lumbering lunar vehicles and the desperately helpful (and mildly suspect) GERTY are possessed of a wonderful charm, as well as a believable reality. If there was a lunar base on the Moon then this is what it would look like.

The soundtrack as previously mentioned is wonderful (scored by Clint Mansell), a quietly dramatic work that rewards further listening and should hopefully itself be rewarded come awards season. The acting again is of a truly high standard – it’s effectively a one man show as Sam Rockwell excels in one of his rare lead performances (though Kevin Spacey’s voice work for GERTY should not go unmentioned). That this film was achieved on a budget of just £5 million is remarkable and should surely be noted in contrast to the budgets of recent blockbusters especially considering the strengths of this film in comparison to those.

A final mention to anyone purchasing the DVD – make sure you watch Duncan Jones’ rather excellent  short film Whistle.

7. The Hurt Locker

Already drawing comparisons with Coppola’s masterpiece Apocalypse Now, The Hurt Locker is undoubtedly brilliant. It offers a glimpse into the lives, and the psyche of some of the U.S Army’s bravest soldiers. Their daily routine consists of disarming all manner of bombs, booby traps and IED’s many of them horrifyingly inventive. It is an essential yet terrifying job. The first detonation we see is magnificent and terrifying at the same time, the sense of danger uncomfortably evident – it’s edge of the seat viewing. The Hurt Locker opens with a simple statement “War is a drug”. It might be, it might not be, but The Hurt Locker certainly is. It’s addictive and heady viewing; a film as tense and exciting as they come.

6. Let The Right One In

There was a deliberate attempt by some of the marketing for this film to portray it as a horror film, it has vampires after all and vampires are easy to sell. It’s not however a horror film, regardless of the horrific murders, the unsettling atmosphere and its fondness for the depth of night. Let The Right One In is, when it comes down to it, a love story; an unusual one certainly, but a genuine one. As Eli and Oskar’s relationship slowly develops it becomes clear that they are prepared to do almost anything for each other. They tease each other as children do, but perhaps because of their isolation from others they both reach an unexpected maturity in their relationship. They accept each other for who they are (a vampire and a bullied, vengeful, lonely child) without question.

It’s a masterstroke of Thomas Alfredson’s direction and John Lindqvist’s adaptation of his own novel that this film is able to explore so many issues whilst keeping the central relationship between Eli and Oskar at the fore. There’s an element of social realism, unusual for a genre film, – the supernatural elements of vampirism are largely downplayed – or at least presented as realistic. It’s very much a case of taking the vampire and placing it into a very real world.

The character of Hakan is perhaps hardest to understand – it’s alluded to at times that he’s an ex-lover of Eli’s, though at first you’d be forgiven for thinking they were father and daughter. She clearly exerts authority over him and he is ruthlessly committed to serving her. It’s an uncomfortable situation to observe and brings an extra dimension to Eli’s character that Oskar is no doubt unaware of. For Eli is not a child anymore – at times it seems that this is all she wants to be but there’s the unshakeable notion that she can’t. She’s trapped in a sense – having never gained the maturity to deal with her situation she walks this irreconcilable path between innocent child and well, murderous vampire. Her actions are forced, she has a blood lust that can’t be ignored, yet is tempered by a naivety she may never lose – witness the scene Oskar asks if they can “go steady” as evidence.

The ending is open to debate; certainly it is up to the viewer as to whether it is a truly happy ending or a bittersweet one that in the long term can have no welcome conclusion. I shall not spoil the ending nor shall I try and influence your judgement, it is powerful nonetheless. Let The Right One In rewards multiple viewings – there are subtleties that you do not pick up on until you know the full story, and it is unmistakably a film to dwell over. See it.

5. Synecdoche, New York

Charlie Kaufman has built a career on surreal explorations of the human psyche and Synecdoche, New York, his first work as director, is his most ambitious and most accomplished yet. It sets its sights on exploring the very nature of human life – how we perceive people, how we understand people, even how we fail to understand people. And it could just be successful in doing so.

I can’t be certain – even thinking about it weeks after I saw it, I’m still not 100% sure of what I’ve seen. It starts simple enough (well for a Kaufman scripted film) theatre director Caden Cotard is overseeing the production of his latest play whilst struggling to keep his marriage going and make the most of his friendship with Hazel who works in the box office. There happens to be a tall bald man following him but he never notices. He doesn’t seem to notice much in fact – he’s often consumed by his thoughts – when his wife leaves he’s surprised in a way – yet they’ve been in marriage counselling. She takes their daughter with her, Caden is alone, at a loss, his play is finished, his family is gone. What’s left in his life? What has he achieved? What can he achieve?

Perhaps that should be phrased in a different way, because Synecdoche is also a film about potential – what can’t Caden achieve? He receives a grant out of the blue, almost unlimited funds to create something timeless, something profound, something amazing – which is what he (and Kaufman in a sense) sets out to achieve. He builds part of a city, based on his own, in a huge, huge warehouse and hires actors to live as its citizens. He gives them directions every day of what they are to do – each is given a compartment like flat to live in – only we can see in from the outside. I said Caden builds, but what I mean is he gives life to his project. It evolves as he guides it, and then it evolves to include him. The actors playing people are in turn played by actors playing them. The warehouse then contains another warehouse for this second city, and then later a third (and maybe more). It’s confusing and bewildering, the real people in Caden’s life that are being portrayed by actors become actors playing other actors. It doesn’t make sense but it doesn’t need to, this film isn’t about a theatre piece; but it is about actors. Only it’s the actors that participate in your life, my life, everyone’s life, because our perceptions of our friends and families are not who they necessarily are. They’re representations of our friends and families. This is what Caden gives life to – that individual world that you are a part of, it’s not quite the real world – it’s your perception of the real world. This is what Synecdoche is explaining – this is how we live our lives – with projections of the real people we encounter populating a world entirely of our own. We build lives for them that differ from the truth, but that we can see into – just like the compartments in Caden’s ‘city’. We imagine scenarios and events, explanations and motives. We invent…

I do not doubt that this review, if it can be called that, makes little sense, but it’s because this is such a difficult concept to explain – Caden needs a city sized theatre to do it – Kaufman needs two hours and phenomenal talent. The film is a wonder – a marvel to behold. It’s tragic and hilarious and puzzling and awkward and dense and subtle and so much more, it needs to be seen, twice in all honesty, not to be understood but to be experienced. And it’s worth the investment.

4. White Lightnin’

Review already posted in previous post.

3. Encounters At The End Of The World

Werner Herzog is obviously best known for his feature films, particularly his frequent collaborations with Klaus Kinski, I’ll admit to only seeing one of these: Aguirre (a minor disappointment if I’m honest). In fact I am slowly becoming convinced that Herzog’s talents are far better suited to the documentary – an opinion established by Grizzly Man and Encounters At The End Of The World. Herzog’s approach to documentaries is fascinating – as described by Roger Ebert, to whom this film is dedicated, Herzog’s films are not about truth as we know it but “ecstatic truth” – essentially Herzog isn’t afraid to bend the truth a little if it allows him to express his ideas properly. I’m not sure if that happens in Encounters, it certainly does in Little Dieter Wants To Fly and Bells From The Deep. I can understand this bothering people just as I can imagine people put off by his approach to documenting the Antarctic.

They might be different films but thematically Encounters and Grizzly Man cover similar territory, both are concerned with the relationship between man and nature with Herzog himself often outraged by modern society – witness for example his disgust at the McMurdo Station upon his arrival in the Antarctic filled as it is with yoga classes and ATM’s. His narration is one of the great marvels of the film – at turns hilarious, such as when he wonders why “a chimp doesn’t utilize inferior creatures? He could straddle a goat and ride off into the sunset”, and worryingly prophetic as when at the film’s end he explains that humanity is doomed to die out.

There is further wonder at the stunning landscapes and sights that Herzog shares with us – the underwater scenes are like those from another world – alien creatures propel themselves across an unnatural landscape; while the ice caves of Mount Erebus are as dangerous as they are stunning.

The people Herzog interviews are as outlandish as any characters in any of his films, mathematicians working as gardeners in huge greenhouses or a woman who travelled across South America in a sewer pipe. These are people as eccentric and engaging as Herzog himself inhabiting the most hostile of environments yet totally dedicated to their work. It’s an awe-inspiring film that really needs to be seen. There is a point in Ebert’s letter to Herzog where he concludes “I have started out to praise your work, and have ended by describing it. Maybe it is the same thing.” Quite so.

2. 500 Days of Summer

500 Days of Summer’s marketing was incredibly misleading; it’s not an anti-rom-com it’s just that what distinguishes this film from say anything with Hugh Grant in, is that it’s a movie unafraid to be honest about love, which admittedly does make it seem like the opposite to most rom-coms. But that isn’t true because for once 500 Days is a rom-com that feels truly romantic in an honest down to earth way. It does wonders in making Tom seem like an everyman – it’s tempting to say that he could be anyone because of how relatable he is for just about every member of any audience; but that discredits Joseph Gordon Levitt’s performance. He may be playing a role that we all at one time or another play out ourselves but he appropriately makes it his own. Tom’s the person who falls in love with someone so completely and utterly that it feels only right that his life is described in terms (days) of her (the Summer of the title, played by the beautiful Zooey Deschanel). The first day he sees her sets the standard for the next 500, thinking about her, wanting to be with her, being with her, and then not being with her and then back to wanting to be with her; they’re all about her. I’m not giving anything away telling you things don’t work out between them – it’s in the tagline “Boy Meets Girl. Boy Falls In Love. Girl Doesn’t”. I’m not giving anything away either to say it’s not a nice break up – we see that in the beginning (the film delights in playing with time and so it should, we don’t remember things chronologically and nor does Tom) – they actually break up on Day 290 –the next 210 are still about Summer – he doesn’t move on just yet – the relationship was too passionate, too recent to be forgotten so quickly (know the feeling?) and Tom too persistent in hoping he can salvage their relationship. There’s a tragic scene when he’s invited to her party not long after the break up that’s played out in split screen – Expectations Vs. Reality. It’s brutal in a sense but very, very accurate.

500 Days of Summer has a wonderful ability to provoke just about any emotion it wants to, what I’ve described thus far no doubt gives the film a sense of negativity, of sadness and loss and it definitely does, but that’s not all it evokes. For the time in which Tom and Summer are together, or when they are moving towards that point is the opposite of what comes later – it’s happy, its fun, its romantic its exactly what you want it to be. Tom takes Summer around downtown LA pointing out his favourite architecture and she’s genuinely interested, they share a taste in music (the soundtrack is a delight) and she in time opens up to him – there’s a beautiful moment when she informs him “I’ve never told anyone that before”.

There is much to enjoy and admire about this film – the song and dance number, the artistic title cards, the fantastic chemistry that Zooey and Joseph share and so on. What’s important about this film is two things, how honest and truthful to life it is and how it makes you feel, because I enjoyed 500 Days of Summer more than any other film this year – high praise indeed.

Actually it’s notable for 2 more things – it made me fall in love with Zoeey Deschanel and  it made me fall in love with Regina Spektor.

1. Il Divo

You’re never going to understand Italian politics in Il Divo’s two hour run time so don’t expect to. It’s not that this film isn’t concerned with the political intrigue of Italy’s governing parties because it is; it’s just that somehow it doesn’t matter if you’re confused or lost or bafflwed. Enjoy the bewilderment; it’s probably good for you. You don’t want to know too much about Italian politics, it’s too violent, chaotic and corrupt; in fact it deserves Giulio Andreotti.

An elusive figure Andreotti is an enigmatic and a complex. He’s cold and distant and weirdly inhuman (in this film at least); for the most part he doesn’t seem to possess a single emotion except perhaps an instinctual drive for power. Yet Toni Servillo’s performance is among my favourites of the year, he brings a quiet intensity and assurance to the performance, until in one scene, most certainly fictionalised, Andreotti admits his crimes in a bravura speech that is surely among the year’s finest in cinema.

Andreotti is no ordinary figure and it is therefore only right that this is no ordinary film. Il Divo is directed with flair and imagination, it’s at times wilfully absurd before veering into tense politics and graphic violence but it never jars. It’s difficult to pin this film down; it is essentially a cross-genre piece, a comedy, thriller, and drama melded together with such craftsmanship that it’s almost impossible not to admire this film.

It is in fact my favourite of the year, though unfortunately it has been a few months since I last saw it (hence a shorter review that it deserves). It confounded all my expectations; I’d gone in expecting something serious and perhaps difficult. I’d been inspired to see it after Gomorrah (which incidentally makes an interesting companion piece), so I was surprised to discover just how much fun it is. There’s an argument that films should entertain more than anything else, and though I don’t agree I do acknowledge its importance. So it is a relief to discover a film that works on numerous levels as this does– it is a complex thriller, it is relevant, informative and thought provoking but it’s also entertaining and this is the sign of a truly great film.

———

And finally a separate prize for Scene of the Year which curiously isn’t featured in any of the top films though there is no shortage of great scenes in any of them. Instead the prize goes to the introduction of Pontypool – comprised of just Stephen McHatties voiceover and the film’s title it is a masterpiece of writing and delivery. Chilling and tense whilst carefully exploring the film’s key themes (even though you won’t realise this at first) this monologue is just about perfect. There’s something to be said for any actor that is able to turn dialogue about a missing cat into a foreboding premonition but McHattie does it with style.

And that’s it for now. There are a number of links and videos related to these films that I will share at a later date, for now I hope you enjoyed the list – and feel free to offer your own thoughts/lists in the comments below.

The rot runs deeper…

It would appear that the last post was a little pre-emptive and a little too focused on the British Film Industry. Mere moments after posting it I came across the news that John Hillcoat, director of the phenomenal Ghosts of the Civil Dead and The Proposition, has been unable to secure funding for his new film The Promised Land.

Now it is by no means unusual that a film is cancelled shortly into its production but this film had such potential that it is more tragic than it might otherwise have been. Furthermore the reason for its loss of funding is cause for concern. But first a little about the film…

The Promised Land was the adaptation of Matt Boundurants novel The Wettest Country In The World, described by publishers Simon & Schuster as:

Based on the true story of Matt Bondurant’s grandfather and two granduncles, The Wettest County in the World is a gripping tale of brotherhood, greed, and murder. The Bondurant Boys were a notorious gang of roughnecks and moonshiners who ran liquor through Franklin County, Virginia, during Prohibition and in the years after. Forrest, the eldest brother, is fierce, mythically indestructible, and the consummate businessman; Howard, the middle brother, is an ox of a man besieged by the horrors he witnessed in the Great War; and Jack, the youngest, has a taste for luxury and a dream to get out of Franklin. Driven and haunted, these men forge a business, fall in love, and struggle to stay afloat as they watch their family die, their father’s business fail, and the world they know crumble beneath the Depression and drought.

It certainly sounds like prime material for a director such as John Hillcoat to work with, especially considering the script has already been written by frequent collaborator Nick Cave (of Bad Seeds fame). Cave has demonstrated his vivid and provocative writing ability not only with the script for The Proposition but also his debut novel And The Ass Saw The Angel. The cast was beginning to fall into place with Shia Lebouf and Ryan Gosling already named, and Amy Adams rumoured to be interested. But today Hillcoat has announced that the film has been cancelled, he writes in The Telegraph:

My own new project – with a much-loved script by Nick Cave and a dream all-star cast – has fallen apart. The finance company that we began The Road with has also fallen apart, having to radically downsize to one remaining staff member. The great divide has begun, with only very low-budget films being made or huge 3-D franchise films – the birth of brand films such as Barbie, Monopoly: The Movie – who knows what’s next, Coca-Cola: The Movie? I end the year appropriately – gazing into the apocalypse of my own industry.

I’m reluctant to agree completely with Hillcoat’s assessment of the Hollywood film industry but then he is in a better position than me to comment. Certainly it is worrying that Millennium Films has fallen apart, one less company prepared to back diverse yet not hugely commercial films such as these. This story brings back memories of the closure of Warner Independent Pictures and ‘consolidation’ of Paramount Vantage, it isn’t necessarily the end of American mid-budget cinema, independent or otherwise but it could be an indicator of a further polarisation between the big budget Hollywood blockbusters and, well, everything else. Millions upon millions of dollars are being invested into big budget film-making which admittedly often have even bigger returns but there is an obvious point here. Consider Avatar –in the weeks leading up to its release speculation was rife that Avatar might not live up to its expectation, it might not dominate the box office, it might even flop. Imagine if it had –with an estimated budget of $300 million a flop for a film of this size is disastrous for the financiers. A film like The Promised Land? I’d be surprised if the budget would have capped $30 million. Surely a film like this could be worth the risk? You could make 10 of them for the cost of 1 Avatar…it’s an interesting thought.

Fortunately this isn’t necessarily the end for The Promised Land though its prospects aren’t currently good. Perhaps if The Road proves to be a success it will get snapped up. Till then though I’d recommend trying to get hold of Ghosts of the Civil Dead – it’s not available on DVD anymore but the internet provides (hint). And here is an amusing interview with Nick Cave about his role in the film:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I1ZPo_abXvQ

Review of Dominic Murphy’s White Lightnin’ and Brief Discussion on the British Film Industry

The following review was intended to form part of my forthcoming Top 10 Films of 2009 post, but ended up longer than intended and inspired a further discussion on the unfortunate state of the British Film Industry. The discussion is by no means complete, and is only really given in reference to 2 films, but I felt it worthy of a post nonetheless. This will likely be the first of many posts on the Film Industry in general. Comments are appreciated.

Review

A savage, twisted and diabolical take on the life of infamous mountain dancer Jesco White, director Dominic Murphy and screenwriters Eddy Moretti and Shane Smith take the facts and run wild with them. It’s a startling film that follows Jesco’s descent into madness as a result of poverty, drug abuse and the death of his father. We get Jesco White the addict, the murderer, the dancer and the disciple all brilliantly portrayed by Edward Hogg. His soft spoken narration happily describes an unhinged personality, frequently giving into the evil in his veins. It’s worth noting that White Lightnin’ is directed with unique confidence, for his debut feature Murphy is unafraid to use all manner of unconventional techniques. As Jesco becomes increasingly disturbed scenes become grainy bringing to mind the video nasties of the 1980’s and the extended fade to black that ends many of the shots reinforces the fractured narrative.

It is not only in its exploration of Jesco’s psyche that this film succeeds, the poverty and destitution of the Appalachians is frequently at the fore, emphasised by the severely bleached and colourless cinematography; but it is the contrasting moments of compassion and honesty that demonstrate the true nature of Jesco’s character and community – and just how far he falls. There are further times when the narrative is foregone altogether where instead we witness the beauty of the Appalachian mountains accompanied by ominous preaching, the Old Testament brought to impatient life by an unseen speaker. It all ties together in the films horrifying conclusion, as the film takes one final step into insanity.

A final word to the soundtrack – the use of Hasil Adkins towards the end of the film is perfect, it ratchets up the tension until Adkin’s feral wailing finally echoes the fury and violence onscreen – it’s a powerful combination that you will not forget, whether you want to or not.

Discussion

White Lightnin’ is not only a stunning debut it is also one of the best British films I’ve seen this year (the best would be Hunger but that was first released in 2008) yet it’s release in this country was minimal and almost entirely un-promoted. Shown at a handful of festivals during 2009 IMDB lists just two countries where it has received a cinema release – the U.K and the Netherlands. During its release in the U.K I could only find two cinemas showing it – one in London and one in Leeds. Upon the week of its release it was in fact shown in 4 cinemas (http://tinyurl.com/yj5c3lt) and just one the following week. By any account it was a drastically limited release. It is fortunately now widely available on DVD but that’s not the point. There are numerous Independent cinemas in this country which should give more time to promoting and showing British films – it is widely regarded that our indigenous film industry is in decline but that situation isn’t helped when it becomes so difficult for people to actually see these films. White Lightnin’ is a powerful film, it is breathtaking cinema and I can only wonder how it would have been to see it on the big screen.

There is of course great risk for a cinema to show independent films such as these – there is never going to be a guaranteed audience, and no matter how good I think White Lightnin’ is I still acknowledge that it won’t appeal to everyone. Even Dominic Murphy admits that it was never going to be easy to convince financiers to back such a film, especially from a first time director.  But it doesn’t change the fact that it’s such a disappointment for any British filmmaker to see such little hope for their films to gain any funding/ success unless a major (most likely Hollywood) studio steps in. And even then the outlook isn’t always great.

Moon, another favourite of mine for 2009 similarly announced the arrival of a major British talent and secured distribution from Sony Pictures which led to a decent release and even distribution in the U.S. Unfortunately however such support for the movie hasn’t been sustained. In the run up to the Oscar’s regardless of the grassroots campaign already behind the film, Sony are doing precisely nothing to push either the film, Duncan Jones, Sam Rockwell or Clint Mansell for a nomination. As discussed by /Film’s Brendon Connelly there are numerous ways which Sony could promote this film to Academy voters at little or no cost (the soundtrack for example is widely available for free on Spotify or even youtube) but there is as yet no indication that this will happen.

Every British Feature Film 2009 (http://everybritishfilm.wordpress.com/) highlights a surprising fact – 20% of the films released theatrically in 2009 in the U.K were British, a total of 90 in fact. Yet how many of these were shown at your local cinema? I certainly was unaware that so many British films had been released, but unsurprisingly the majority received very minor releases.

It’s difficult to suggest a solution to this problem, for a British film to compete with the big name Hollywood films is always going to be a struggle. An Independent British film will never be able to generate the same publicity particularly when our own media is so obsessed with American stars and culture (though look out for the obligatory headlines celebrating British talent should they ever win an Oscar). There is of course the occasional film that will be widely celebrated and promoted, but they’re often safe bets – Nowhere Boy for example. There is an argument that British films would find a more willing and larger audience on TV rather than in the cinemas where costs are inevitably higher for uncertain audiences, but as mentioned previously I believe there is no alternative to a proper cinema experience. A quota system such as the one in South Korea is certainly a controversial claim but it no doubt works. Perhaps the best hope lies in digital projection – it reduces the costs of distribution massively but is unfortunately not yet particularly common in cinemas given the initial investment a cinema must undertake for a digital projector. And finally of course there is good old word of mouth – or blogs such as these that will in their small way hopefully encourage others to seek out independent films.

For those who are interested, Little White Lies had a recent issue dedicated to British Film which is available online for free, of particular note is the article ‘Criminal! The State of the British ‘B’ Movie’ by King Adz and of course the interview with Edward Hogg (currently working in a pub). It also happens to be the same issue with the review of White Lightnin’, convenient that.

http://www.littlewhitelies.co.uk/the-magazine/issue-25/

And finally here is a good little interview with Dominic Murphy on youtube, amusingly enough filmed at the Dinard Festival of British Film. As well as discussing the production of White Lightnin’ he also mentions his forthcoming films including A Gift From The Culture the first film to be adapted from an Iain M Banks story. Colour me excited.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ywE4glIgdo

To Begin…

This is copied verbatim from my blog I started on Tumblr yesterday before realising it wasn’t really what i was after in terms of a blog. So here I am on WordPress.

A book review, because it is the only productive thing I’ve done today.

Senselessness – Horacio Castellanos Moya (2004)

Thereafter we live the time of distress…

Plot

A writer finds himself employed by the Catholic Church, an institution he despises, to copyedit a report of “one thousand one hundred pages” about the massacres of Indian villagers. Gradually he becomes obsessed with his job and fails to function properly.

Review

The narrator is a man consumed by paranoia, exacerbated but not generated by his unenviable task. An exile and a stranger in a hostile city it is perhaps no surprise that he feels constantly hunted and endangered, but it is the extent to which his paranoia interrupts his life that haunts the reader – lunch with a friend becomes a frenzied speech about anything but the organisation his friend has so causally mentioned, mortified as he is by the possibility of informants overhearing. Later he is distracted from the pleasures of the flesh he is motivated towards by the way his lover asks his preferences. His mind jumps again and again to increasingly doubtful conclusions until once again he becomes convinced of his imminent murder at the hands of her jealous boyfriend. There are similarities with Hunger in the way the narrator is obsessed and captivated by the smallest of things, a turn of a phrase or a passing action. However Hunger is far more successful in creating a sense of unease and horror, Senseslessness never quite gets across the same level of desperation and futility. That is not to say that there aren’t moments of horror and revulsion just that they come not from the mind of the narrator but from the testimonies he reads. They are chilling, repulsive and startling – disturbing enough to make anyone grateful that we are never privy to them in great detail. There are however moments of great wonder – as the narrator reads more and more of his report he becomes insistent with trying to share the poetry of these testimonies with anyone he can. Short extracts permeate the novel, abrupt sentences that not only reveal the extent to which the survivors are scarred by their memories but also the curious manner in which they talk and describe the events. The phrases are often possessed of a kind of rhythmic beauty disguised by the brutality they’re expressing but which the narrator is entranced by. Sensslessness can be awkward to read given Moya’s fondness for long drawn out sentences frequently a page or more in length, punctuation rarely consisting of more than an occasional comma. It suits the form of the novel – it’s closest to a stream of consciousness than anything else – though the gaps between chapters can be up to days at a time. It takes a while to get into, unfortunate given its short length and I expect I’m not alone in wishing more detail had been given to the book’s conclusion.

Verdict

Senselessness is by no means a masterpiece, though it has moments of brilliance – there are points where you will be taken aback by the power of what you are reading but these moments are too infrequent. I do feel however that this novel is an unfortunate victim of my own expectations, and its brisk length means I will likely return to it. I would be reluctant to recommend it, but only because of the harsh nature of its content – there are times when it is difficult to stomach. It is however an admirable effort at conjuring the experiences of a man losing touch with reality and succumbing to his fears.