Garth Davis - Lion

It is not my intention to provide spoilers for the coming film, but rather my purpose is to give an overall flavour as I do not want to spoil this film in any way. Moreover, all of my film blogs are an appreciation of the film's crafted by a wonderful Director and a thorough recommendation to suspend your disbelief and enjoy this brilliant and uniquely different cinematic creation.

Please also feel free to visit my archives!

Lion (2016)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3741834/?ref_=nm_flmg_dr_2

"Saroo, our beautiful boy!"

Based on a true story and more specifically the incredible true life story of Saroo Brierley and adapted from his book "A Long Way Home", Lion was another in a long list of films whose trailer I saw on countless trips to my local picture house and whose release was eagerly awaited in early 2017. Suffice to say my eagerness was rewarded by a remarkable directorial debut from Garth Davis and his big screen vision is a remarkable film that brought me repeatedly to tears on my first viewing and continued to do so on each of the four subsequent occasions I saw this gem of a film at the cinema and recently again on it's initial DVD release. Ostensibly the film is in two halves as it charts the heartbreaking true story of Saroo Brierley from a tender and innocent young boy in the wilds of India through to a strapping young man making a life for himself half the world away in Australia. The story itself begins in 1986 in a remote Indian village and a staggering performance from one so young but for whom acting greatness is surely assured in the coming future.

Commencing in 1986 we see "Young Saroo" (Sunny Pawar) for the first time beautifully captured in a field of butterflies as he surveys his surroundings before joining his brother "Guddu" (Abhishek Bharate) stealing coal from a passing train, their lives immediately apparent as the coal is quickly bartered for milk for his Mother "Kamla" (Priyanka Bose) and younger Sister "Shekila" (Khushi Solanki) which is quickly consumed with gusto in their rundown shack in a remote Indian village. Cheeky and playful, Saroo is also determined to emulate the older brother on whom he dotes, accompanying him on a more adult orientated work detail late into the night, partly to prove he is big and strong beyond his tender years but more so out of a desire to help his family and a Mother and Sister his massive smiles convey so much love and appreciation. Tired from their long journey, Saroo is left to sleep by his brother but after waking Saroo desperately tries to find his brother and in doing so accidentally embarks on a non stop, 1600 mile train journey to Calcutta and finds himself all alone in the teeming, busy and bustling streets of Calcutta. Taken in by a local lady beside the railway tracks before falling into the Indian child welfare system that deals with hundreds of thousands of similarly misplaced and lost children every year, young Saroo is given a chance of a lifetime and of redemption as he's adopted by a childless Australian couple living in Hobart and in 1987, Saroo's young life is about to change yet again. This is but a brief overview of the opening half of the film and there is much left out to keep spoilers to an absolute minimum, but what isn't a spoiler is the absolutely magnificent, magnetic and heartbreaking performance from Sunny Pawar as the young Saroo. His cries of anguish as he struggles to find his older brother are spine chilling, as is his bewilderment at the hectic and overly populated city of Calcutta he now finds himself in, surrounded by grinding poverty at every turn and the hopeless situations of so many thousands of children just like him. Pawar's portrayal of loss, devastation and alienation is incredible from one so young, his huge beaming smile now replaced by fearful eyes, hunched shoulders and wary looks, whether sleeping rough or housed within a huge reform school for young children, Pawar's performance is utterly compelling of an innocent young boy lost in an adult world and a world away from the comfort of his loving family. Almost wordless as he attempts to adapt to his new home in Australia, Pawar's last piece of screen time is just perfection itself, as he comforts and cuddles his adoptive Mother for the first time, a short scene that never fails to bring a tear to my eyes.

Spring forward twenty years and we see Saroo a grown adult and adoptive "Aussie" native in the guise of Dev Patel's Oscar nominated performance in 2017. Best known for his brilliant television appearances in Skins and The Newsroom as well as his big screen performance in Danny Boyle's Oscar winning film Slumdog Millionaire, it is arguable that Patel has never been better than here as the adopted Australian national who may call himself an "Aussie mate" but is still fiercely proud of his Indian roots. Patel was a worthy Oscar nominee in 2017 for his portrayal of an adult Saroo branching out into the world once more but this time under his own steam as he embarks on a career in hotel management and moves from the incredible love and guidance of his adoptive parents "Sue Brierley" (Nicole Kidman) and "John Brierley" (David Wenham). However, his dreams and nightmares continually haunt Saroo even in spite of both his blossoming career and similarly a blossoming love affair with "Lucy" (Rooney Mara) he admits candidly to friends that he's "not from Calcutta. I'm lost" and in a heartbreaking exchange with Lucy "Every day my real brother screams my name". Saroo has been lost for 25 years and he resolves to finally find his real blood family. Patel's performance is sublime at times, heart wrenching at others. He retains the huge beaming smile of his younger days but this barely hides the anguish at his separation from his real family and home.

How to some up succinctly what a joy of a film this is? In addition to the aforementioned performances there are many additional remarkable performances too, from Nicole Kidman as Saroo's adoptive Mother Sue, all big hair and warm smiles in the 1980's through to heart bursting love twenty years on for a son she adores and a performance that garnered Kidman yet another Oscar nomination in 2017, her third in fifteen years. David Wenham is excellent as the understated and quiet adoptive Father John, with Divian Ladwa absolutely outstanding as the mentally disabled adoptive brother of Saroo, Mantosh. Saroo is clearly a golden child of sorts and Ladwa's performance of aggressive resentment mixed with his disability truly broke my heart. As well as the Mother/Son embrace that brings an end to the first half of the film, there is a similar embrace with the older Saroo towards the film's climax, brilliantly book ending this familial drama and ostensibly Mother/Son story. I simply adore Lion for all these reasons and so many more, Hauschka's mournful yet joyous musical soundtrack of simple piano and strings, the soul crushing flashbacks and interludes of Saroo's memories of times past and of a directorial debut from Garth Davis that takes an incredible tale and tells it so simply and yet so very well. It's an astonishing debut film that ranks with the very best of recent years. But it's perhaps the simplest and briefest scenes that got me the most, be they a game of beach cricket with the family, a heartfelt hug from young child to adoptive Mother, a hillside walk with Lucy or a walk into a moonlit sea. Lion is a favourite film of 2017 and I cannot see it being surpassed by many this year as the bar has been set incredibly high here.

Alex Kurtzman - The Mummy

Prolific Screenplay Writer and Producer since 2000, here are my spoiler free appreciations of Alex's two forays into the Director's Chair so far: "People Like Us" in 2012 and "The Mummy" in 2017.

It is not my intention to provide spoilers for the coming two films, but rather my purpose is to give an overall flavour as I do not want to spoil these films in any way. Moreover, all of my film blogs are an appreciation of the film's crafted by a wonderful Director and a thorough recommendation to suspend your disbelief and enjoy these uniquely different cinematic creations.

People Like Us (2012)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1716777/?ref_=nm_flmg_dr_2

"That's how he discovered Kajagoogoo. So he made a major contribution to the human race!"

Inspired loosely by the true events of the Director's own life, Alex Kurtzman's directorial debut is an intriguing and heartwarming familial tale of how one person's duplicitous behaviour can leave a trail of unanswered questions that flow through a family for future generations, but in the hands of Kurtzman and fellow co writers Roberto Orci and Jody Lambert the story is infused with warmth, generosity and with bold streaks of sardonic humour. "Sam" (Chris Pine) is a New York Salesman or self proclaimed "Corporate Facilitator" who with his motormouth, somewhat desperate style flies by the seat of his pants in closing colossal deals that will net him the much needed commission he requires to clear the huge debts hanging over him. He is also the "King of Mistakes" who with a distant and frosty relationship and upbringing from his parents struggles to deal emotionally with the world around him and finds comfort in retreating and running away from his problems. This is shown in ever more focus as he has to return home to Los Angeles to attend his Father's funeral after his unexpected death and in desperate need for some money from his estate is bequeathed his hugely successful Record Producer Father's vast collection of vinyl records and a wash bag. That contains $150,000! And a simple instruction to pass this cash to a boy named "Josh Davis" (Michael Hall D'Addario) and look out for him.

I have one simple gripe with the film which, if I outlined it, would give away a fairly substantial plot spoiler so I won't, but although it's also a huge through line of the film I also felt it was too contrived and could've been resolved in a far different way. This would of course have resulted in a far different film and as the film is loosely following or inspired by true events this isn't or couldn't be possible. A contrived central through line or not, I loved the film as a whole with its eclectic mix of characters combining with the frenetic editing of Robert Leighton and cinematography from Salvatore Totino that really energises and propels a film that never feels baggy or drawn out. It is also well supported by some wonderful music tracks from the likes of The Clash and Bob Dylan, as well as a music composition that always inspires light and hope from the acclaimed composer AR Rahman, for it is a familial drama that should inspire hope in all of us to conquer adversity, anxiety, grief at the passing of a parent or loved one, or simply to inspire us to stand tall and stop running. Which is what the film's central character Sam has done all of his life and it is entirely through his eyes that we see the film and way before his brilliant performances in the Star Trek franchise or his outstanding role in Hell or High Water, this is a wonderful character portrayal from Chris Pine. As Sam, Pine really injects a conflicted sense of self to the character, one of seemingly helping (or trying to help) others and their problems but never resolving his own and this is mirrored in a way by another wonderful performance that really impressed me from Elizabeth Banks as "Frankie". A streetwise, sassy and attractive young lady, Banks' portrayal of a recovering alcoholic and single mother to son Josh is another of the film's shining lights, as is the performance of her son by Michael Hall D'Addario in only his second outing in a feature length film. Impressive cameo performances abound, whether it's Michelle Pfeiffer as Sam's frosty amateur artist Mother "Lillian", the ever dependable Philip Baker Hall as Attorney "Ike Rafferty" or Olivia Wilde as Sam's girlfriend "Hannah". Wilde's brilliant performance in particular injects a moral heart and soul into the story.

Aside from the somewhat contrived plot device that will remain unrevealed for spoiler reasons, I was particularly impressed by People Like Us for a variety of pleasing reasons. The entire story itself could have become lost in a reverie of the music of the 1960's, 1970's and 1980's but cleverly uses this device (and many classic songs of the period) whilst firmly rooting the film in an everyday present of angst, personal recovery, revelation and the warmth of family reconciliation. There is a delicate balance drawn between melancholia and acerbic humour, with neither dominating and the balance between the two just about right. The well drawn characters each have a life story arc, given the screen time to do so and are brilliantly realised by a well cast set of actors who are placed narratively in some impressive and beautifully lit and created locations, be it a late night stroll high above a city teeming with lights or watching the sun set from the beach. I remain mightily impressed with People Like Us and it's without a doubt a very worthy directorial debut film from Alex Kurtzman.

The Mummy (2017)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2345759/?ref_=nm_flmg_dr_1

"The past cannot remain buried forever"

"Welcome to a new world of Gods and Monsters" and welcome to Alex Kurtman's second directorial outing and the latest re-boot of a classic film and the first of Universal Studio's "Dark Universe" franchise. Beginning with an Egyptian prayer of resurrection before propelling the audience from England 1127 AD to a present day of opportunist tomb raiders in Iraq, The Mummy commences at a breakneck speed that truly never lets up throughout as we experience glorious set piece action time and again but the film's huge flaws reside inside and indeed everything else that surrounds this, sorry to say, clunker of a film. I take no pleasure in stating this as I had eagerly awaited it's release for many weeks and was particularly taken in by it's action packed and enticing trailer, however the film as a whole never matches the promise of the trailer and this is even more disappointing considering the stellar cast of Tom Cruise, Russell Crowe and Annabelle Wallis, directed by Kurtzman and a screenplay credit from Christopher McQuarrie.

From present day Iraq we bounce to London, England and here the majority of the film is set whether it's the surrounding countryside and the scene of the spectacular aeroplane crash alluded to in the trailer and The Natural History Museum, home to and overseen by "Henry" (Russell Crowe) a brilliant scientist desperately seeking a cure to personal and worldwide evil impulses as well as acting as a mentor and guide to "Jenny Halsey" (Annabelle Wallis), a headstrong field archaeologist. After stealing pointed correspondence between Henry and Jenny, "Nick Morton" (Tom Cruise) a Sargeant in the US Army persuades his erstwhile partner and Army Corporal "Chris Vail" (Jake Johnson) on a tomb raiding adventure, of sorts. Morton is a selfish, self centred but heavily motivated renegade and self titled "Liberator of precious antiquities" and all outside of his army purview. Their antics however unearth something far larger than any of them imagine or could have conjured in their wildest dreams and they are thrown together with both the aforementioned Jenny Halsey as well as "Ahmanet" (Sofia Boutella), the titular Mummy, reborn and back to unleash the dark spectre of evil and hell on the world. For Jenny, their find is her "life's work" and for her boss Henry, a chance of personal redemption as well as a possible cure for the ills in the world.

So far so blockbuster type spectacular eh? Well, yes and no! The film's true highlights are the set piece action sequences, be it the much vaunted aeroplane crash, the raid of Iraq or the brilliantly realised chase and escape from the countryside inside an ambulance. These are all true highlights but the film quickly becomes one set piece action sequence after another and in between is some horrendous, clunky and frankly boring dialogue as well as totally superfluous additional dialogue that is included for comedic purposes but never really lands to any effect. My other main gripe of the film as a complete whole is the repetitive use of exposition, telling the audience constantly what is happening, why and for what purpose, and then introducing another character who simply repeats the exact same process! Even worse is the use of repeated scenes from earlier in the film, with the Director almost saying to the audience "Here, remember this?", but on so many occasions that it began to grate and rather than suck me into the film, actually took me out of it.

Of the five main character roles on display, there are accomplished performances from Jake Johnson, Annabelle Wallis and particularly so from Sofia Boutella as the titular Mummy but the same cannot be said for Cruise and Crowe. As you will see from my blog posts (do feel free to delve into my archives!), I am a huge fan of both of these actors and consider them to be genuine, old fashioned movie stars as well as actors of their generation but they fail here spectacularly and are equally spectacularly let down by the Director and the six (six!) credited screenplay writers who compiled this plodding story and dull script. Rarely does a film succeed when written by more than a singular voice but six? As above, the film repeats itself, is far too exposition heavy and has a dialogue that just fails horrendously to hit the mark. The same can be said for the comedic interludes that fall flat, the jumps and scares that fail to materialise and you have Crowe continually "blocked" out of the screen during his dialogue (his best scenes are in the trailer) and Cruise simply runs a lot, then runs some more and when stationary has that perfected quizzical look on his face as well as a look of complete and utter confusion. I'm tempted to wonder whether this is his Tom Cruise performance these days or a reflection of the film as a whole. And all this criticism from a genuine, life long fan of his. 

So much anticipation and yet such an anti climax and clunker of a film that draws such inspiration from the classic of old as well as the Indiana Jones franchise, Tomb Raider, the PlayStation behemoth game Uncharted as well as an American Werewolf in London but The Mummy really fails to live up to these inspirations and I left the cinema today feeling what a letdown and clunker this film is.

Patty Jenkins - Wonder Woman

American born writer and director, Patty Jenkins is best known for her directorial debut film Monster in 2003 and her more recent venture back into the Directors Chair with Wonder Woman in 2017. Both are fully appraised here and spoiler free, as are all of the films reviewed in my archives. Do feel free to take a peek!

It is not my intention to provide spoilers for the coming two films, but rather my purpose is to give an overall flavour as I do not want to spoil these films in any way. Moreover, all of my film blogs are an appreciation of the film's crafted by a wonderful Director and a thorough recommendation to suspend your disbelief and enjoy these uniquely different cinematic creations.

Monster (2003)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0340855/?ref_=nm_flmg_dr_8

"I was beautiful, like a diamond in the rough"

Patty Jenkins debut feature film as a Director is based on the harrowing, heart breaking yet brutally violent true story of serial killer Aileen Wuornos, one of the earliest known female serial killers in the United States who, in the late 1980's and early 1990's murdered seven men in the surrounding area of Daytona Beach, Florida. Written for the screen by Director Jenkins, the film begins with old style cine film footage of "Aileen" or "Lee" (Charlize Theron) as she is commonly known in the film, growing up and backed by a running narration from Lee "I always wanted to be in the movies", the screen extends to full cinema scale and brings her story up to date. Lee has just $5 left in the world, drenched, bedraggled and dirty she sits alone underneath a motorway overpass and with only a gun for company she has resolved to take her own life as soon as she's spent these last remaining dollars. A prostitute since the age of 13, a teenage mother and violently, horrifically and repeatedly raped and abused since her earliest years, Lee has nothing left to lose and nothing more to give before a chance meeting with "Selby" (Christina Ricci) reignites her passion for living again. Lee has gone from nothing to "everything" with Selby as she resolves to go "straight" and live a fulfilling life with the much younger woman with whom she quickly falls in love with. Principally covering the the turbulent months at the end of 1989 and the beginning of 1990 , Monster is a graphic portrayal of ostensibly a love story, albeit a horrific one, of two disparate characters caught in a violent whirlpool that ultimately neither can control.

Ably supported in minor cameo roles by the ever dependable screen presence of Bruce Dern as Lee's only true, independent friend in the world "Thomas" and Annie Corley as Selby's overbearing guardian "Donna", the film falls to two immense central performances from Charlize Theron and Christina Ricci who both produce thunderous and eye catching portrayals in a film they both dominate but for entirely different reasons. Ricci's performance is often overlooked as it's cast in the shadow of Theron's Oscar winning portrayal but she holds the heart and soul of the film in many ways as the youthful, naive wannabe rebel from the parental guardians smothering her. She receives this in spades from Lee's reckless behaviour and soon begins adopting and mimicking her style and way of being although initially unaware of her horrific background, falls completely in love with her. Whereas Ricci's performance is shy and timid, Theron's is pure brute force, blunt, aggressive and utterly distasteful of a sociopath that once she has gained a semblance of revenge following a horrific and graphic rape begins to thrive on the idea of premeditated killing. Whilst there is very little sympathy for Theron's character, her portrayal of Lee as a manic staring, off kilter and schizophrenic killer is disturbingly electrifying and whilst difficult to comprehend, you cannot escape from her glare or take your eyes away from her grotesque performance. "All you need is love and to believe in yourself" she says in the film's constant narration and for a few short months she had the former but seemingly never the latter.

Monster is an incredible debut film from Patty Jenkins and clearly a passionate project for her and Executive Producer Charlize Theron. I originally watched this in early 2004 soon after it's release on DVD and was utterly mesmerised and blown away by this horrific real life story and watching again 13 years later for the purpose of this blog those feelings have resurfaced again. The central performances remain incredible forces of nature but after re-watching I have a fuller appreciation of the film's immersive music score from BT and the film's more tender and light hearted moments shared by the two doomed lovers and especially the roller disco scene accompanied by some particularly apt choices of music from Blondie, INXS and Journey. 

I have nothing but praise for this film and after reading Aileen Wuornos' self penned book "Monster - My True Story" and watching the fascinating Nick Broomfield documentary "The Life and Death of a Serial Killer" back in 2004, re-watching this film recently reminded me just how well Patty Jenkins has depicted a horrific true life tale on film and 13 years on from it's initial release it remains visceral, violent and an utterly horrific story of one of America's first female serial killers.

Wonder Woman (2017)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0451279/?ref_=nm_flmg_dr_1

"It's like the world is going to end"

It's been a long fourteen years for Director Patty Jenkins since her directorial debut and Oscar winning first film Monster (see above) but her return to the big screen here is a glorious and fun one in a barnstorming take on the origin story of DC Comics Wonder Woman. Aided by an all star and stellar cast including Gal Gadot (Batman v Superman - Dawn of Justice, Triple 9), Chris Pine (Star Trek, Hell or High Water), Connie Nielsen (The Devils Advocate, Gladiator), Robin Wright (Forest Gump, Everest), Danny Huston (The Proposition, Children of Men), David Thewlis (Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban, Anomalisa), Ewan Bremner (Trainspotting) and Lucy Davis (Shaun of the Dead, The Office) amongst many, many more, Wonder Woman truly is a fun and entertaining telling of her origins and roots which although is slightly overlong, a couple of missteps with some CGI and a typical crashing, smashing comic book style finale' still easily overly achieved my expectations after weeks of anticipation on watching today's UK release at my local picture house.

"I used to want to save the world" so says "Diana Prince" AKA "Wonder Woman" in her opening narration as the film settles into the present day and her receiving a gift from a certain Bruce Wayne of Wayne Enterprises at The Louvre in Paris where Diana currently works. Inside the packaged gift is a 100 year old photograph and we quickly go back in time to even before this photograph is to be eventually taken and to an idyllic, remote island where we find a very young Diana, the only child on an island surrounded entirely by Amazonian fighting women who are all raised on the Greek myths of old, of War, Creation, Gods and of defending their island paradise (and indeed the world) from outsiders and the Greek God of War, Aries. Fiercely protected by her Mother "Hippolyta" (Connie Nielsen), she simply wants her daughter Diana to enjoy a beautiful and idyllic childhood and upbringing away from the pressures of growing into another Amazon Warrior but her Sister "Antiope" (Robin Wright) can see the drive, determination and the special qualities in her niece Diana and pushes her through a rigorous training regimen from a young age. Ever wary of the myths of the past and of Aries spreading War throughout the world, the war, "The Great War" of World War I finds it's way onto their idyllic island paradise as "Steve Trevor" (Chris Pine), a spy for British Intelligence crash lands, bringing with him hoards of chasing battalions of Germans and with it a clash of cultures as the two worlds collide, the guns of brawn of the early 20th Century versus the skill and prowess of swords and shields of the Amazonian Female Warriors, one of whom is Diana who resolves to save Steve and join the Great War as she protects the world from the force of Aries.

The film as a whole is a real and genuine triumph and excels in so many areas, from Director Jenkins' direction to a poignant and often laugh out loud funny screenplay from Allan Heinberg, Zach Snyder and Jason Fuchs and the well rounded and invested characters they draw, be it Gal Gadot's central performance as the Amazon Warrior with supernatural powers through to the more deadpan yet extremely humourous portrayal of Chris Pine as the World War I British spy. There are more than hints and echoes of the Superman/Lois Lane partnership about them, however the film is rich in even more well drawn characters, be it David Thewlis as "Sir Patrick", Danny Huston's excellent as always screen presence as German General "Ludendorff", Lucy Davis brilliant comic turn as "Etta" through to a ragtag bunch of confidants and aids to Steve Trevor in the War, be it Ewan Bremner suffering from shell shock and dealing with it the only way he can by singing his way through the war as sharpshooter "Charlie", Eugene Brave Rock as "The Chief" and Said Taghmaoui as a master of disguise and secret agent "Sameer". Every setting too is brilliantly realised, be it the paradise island or it's direct juxtaposition the muddy and horrific trenches of the Great War and although I do have misgivings surrounding some of the CGI effects (some are sketchy at best and some just disappear in a blur) and the twenty minute battle finale' that is seemingly de rigueur in today's comic book movie adaptations, Wonder Woman is a treat, playful, ironic and although not entirely taking itself too seriously really does treat the comic book, DC Universe, story and characters seriously and with respect. A highly recommended gem of a film.