movie review

Film Review: GOLD (USA 2016) ***

festreviews 2017 movies, movie, Movie Review, Uncategorized , , , , , , , ,

gold.jpgDirector: Stephen Gaghan
Writers: Patrick Massett, John Zinman
Stars: Matthew McConaughey, Edgar Ramírez, Bryce Dallas Howard

Review by Gilbert Seah

GOLD has been advertised as an American crime adventure film. But the film is not that much an adventure film, feeling more like a biopic of Kenny Wells (Matthew McConaughey), an unlucky businessman who discovers and finds gold, but loses it all including his long-suffering girlfriend, Kay (Bryce Dallas Howard). GOLD is in reality, based on the Bre-X scandal. It is indicated at the start of the film that the film is inspired by true events. So, the Wells character is likely made up.

It appears that the entire story of GOLD can be determined from the trailer. But it is not so. Though the story has a twist, director Gaghan, who directs based on a script by himself, Patrick Massett and John Zinman cannot decide what kind of film (satirical or sincere) it wants to be. It is also part romance, crime, a bit of adventure but feels like a biopic of a totally obnoxious (though fictitious) person that the audience is supposed to root for.

The film turns towards sincerity in the segment where Kay angrily warns Kenny of the business wolves. The satire is mainly found in Kenny’s character – for example in the scene with him hugging geologist Michael in his underwear like two gay lovers.

Oscar winner, Matthew McConaughey (DALLAS BUYERS CLUB) looks absolutely horrendous in the movie – intentionally and he flaunts it. He has put on so many pounds that his gut shows. Besides smoking half the time, Kenny spawns a receding hairline, looking half bald with bad skin. It makes matters worse that the guy the audience is supposed to root for is not only obnoxious but ugly.

The film is set in Indonesia where the gold prospecting is being done. Locations in Thailand are used to substitute for Indonesia, for obvious reasons that Thailand is more stable for filming. As far as westerners go, most cannot tell the difference. The film makes sure that the locals in the film including the character of the geologist Michael Acosta (Édgar Ramírez) speak Malay and not Thai.

Of the performances, veteran Stacy Keach as big-shot, Clive Coleman stands out. Others supporting actors like Howard, Ramirez, Bruce Greenwood deliver standard uninspired performances. McConaughey is McConaughey, who can deliver an extremely annoying over-acted performance, as observable in the film’s first 10 minutes. But hand it to him, at least his over-acting keeps the film from being boring.

The film begins with Kay and Kenny talking about gold prospects. The script quickly jumps 7 years into the story with Kenny growing bald and fat. The script also calls for the story to bounce to and from from the States to Indonesia. Director Gaghan also, for no reason, resolves to split screen for a few minutes of the movie and then never goes back to it.

The most interesting segments of GOLD are not the location shots in Thailand. They are the ones involving the business wheeling-dealing – often with Kenny being taken for a rough ride. The best of these is the business conference in which a strategic partner is sought with an impossible conversation.

Does GOLD succeed in telling an entertaining story? The answer is up to the audience to decide but as in the words of Kelly when he first discovers gold: “the ride has begun!”

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdLXPv5NsA4

Watch Winning Best Scene Readings:

TV CONTESTSUBMIT your TV PILOT or TV SPEC Script
Voted #1 TV Contest in North America.		 FILM CONTESTSUBMIT your SHORT Film
Get it showcased at the FEEDBACK Festival
writing CONTEST1st CHAPTER or FULL NOVEL CONTEST
Get full feedback! Winners get their novel made into a video!		 SCREENPLAY CONTESTSUBMIT your FEATURE Script
FULL FEEDBACK on all entries. Get your script

Film Review: AKRON (USA 2016) ***

festreviews 2017 movies, movie, Movie Review, Uncategorized , , , , , , ,

akron.jpgDirectors: Sasha King, Brian O’Donnell
Writers: Brian O’Donnell, Brian O’Donnell
Stars: Matthew Frias, Joseph Melendez, Edmund Donovan

Review by Gilbert Seah

After the gay lifestyle gained acceptance around the world, gay films appear to have exhausted all possible subjects. Issues such as coming out, sex change, gay marriage, teen love, transgender identity, gay bashing, prejudice, gay rights have all been covered in one gay film after another. Filmmakers with gay themed films have to resort to used subjects with a new twist or a new look to succeed. AKRON, a teen mid-western gay love story does just that.

“You don’t choose who you fall in love with?” Benny challenges his father during a confrontation in one of the film’s key scenes. It is a valid question and one that does not have a single answer. The film poses one big magic question: “Can love conquer all?” And the film, as in many love stories, has an obstacle to the romance. In this case it is a very huge obstacle.

This obstacle is observed in the film’s first scene, which appears at first to have no connection to the rest of the movie. When the connection is made, it generates a powerhouse effect.

A young boy, Christopher is at the supermarket with his mother. In the parking lot, the mother accidentally runs over and kills a boy. It turns out that the boy’s younger brother is Benny, who meets and falls in love with Christopher later on, the coincidence first unknown to both. When the truth emerges, the romance is challenged, first by Christopher and Benny individually, and then by Benny’s well-meaning parents. Sometimes, a secret might best be kept, but this is the movies.
The film is undoubtedly a tear-jerker. There are no scenes that are milked for sentiment, but the effect of the story is a powerful one.

The film clearly reminds one of first love, teen love and innocent love at that – whether gay or straight. The film could very well be a straight love story between a boy and girl, with not much difference in effect.

AKRON works as a film (ignore the 4.2 rating on imdb) for various reasons. For one, it is a sincere story of first love. One can always remember the first time one has fallen in love and thus, one can relate to the characters. The chemistry of the two leads are almost perfect. The two teens playing the leads are also excellent, particularly Matthew Frias, who looks like a younger version of Andrew Garfield.
The two actors portraying the teens are almost too perfect in terms of muscled bodies. The love makng is very erotic aided by the fact that they have almost perfect chiseled bodies and handsome faces. As the film is a teen romance, it is appropriate that no hardcore sex scene is presented – only ones with kissing and foreplay, thought these are erotic enough.

Though this well-made, sincere film should get a theatrical release, it goes straight to video. AKRON will be released February 7, 2016 on DVD and VOD via Wolfe Video. But AKRON is well worth a viewing. Warning, make sure you have lots of Kleenex. But it is good to have a good cry once in a while. At last these will be happy tears.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9p831bjy74

Watch Winning Best Scene Readings:

TV CONTESTSUBMIT your TV PILOT or TV SPEC Script
Voted #1 TV Contest in North America.		 FILM CONTESTSUBMIT your SHORT Film
Get it showcased at the FEEDBACK Festival
writing CONTEST1st CHAPTER or FULL NOVEL CONTEST
Get full feedback! Winners get their novel made into a video!		 SCREENPLAY CONTESTSUBMIT your FEATURE Script
FULL FEEDBACK on all entries. Get your script

Film Review: THE APPRENTICESHIP OF DUDDY KRAVITZ (Canada 1974) ****

festreviews 2017 movies, movie, Movie Review , , , , , , ,

duddy_kravitz.jpgDirector: Ted Kotcheff

Writers: Mordecai Richler (screenplay), Mordecai Richler (novel)

Stars: Richard Dreyfuss, Micheline Lanctôt, Jack Warden

Review by Gilbert Seah

 It has been a long spell (thanks to its recent restoration) since the Canadian classic THE APPRENTICESHIP OF DUDDY KRAVITZ got a release again on the big screen. The film is the autobiography of the author, Mordecai Richler based on his best selling novel of the same name.

The film is the story of Duddy (pronounced doo-dee) Kravitz (Richard Dreyfuss), a brash, restless young Jewish man growing up poor in Montreal, Canada. His taxi driver father Max (Jack Warden) and his rich uncle Benjy (Joseph Wiseman) are very proud of Duddy’s older brother Lenny, whom Benjy is putting through medical school. Only his grandfather (Zvee shows the motherless Duddy any attention. But Duddy rises the ranks.

There is a scene in which an old Jewish bearded man says that a man without land is a nobody. (This scene is seen in both this film and the Woody Allen comedy LOVE AND DEATH). In this film, it is Duddy’s grandfather who tells his grandson the maxim.

Duddy starts a serious relationship with a hotel employee, French-Canadian Yvette (Micheline Lanctôt). One day, she takes him on a picnic beside a lake. Duddy is stunned by the beauty of the setting, and his ambition crystallizes: taking to heart his grandfather Zeyta’s maxim “a man without land is nobody” to heart. The film traces Duddy’s accomplishment, but not without dire consequences. It is a film of both coming-of-age and growing up – and a very effective one at that.

This is director Ted Kotcheff’s best film. His attention to detail, which is evident throughout the film is what makes the movie tick. The best example can be seen in the opening sequence where Duddy in military garb marches in a band while goofing around. The military tune “O When the Saints” bookmarks the ilm, while the lyrics also have some meaning in the story.

It is reported that Richard Dreyfuss hated his performance so much in this film that after seeing the film’s final cut, he decided to take the role in JAWS, that he initially turned down. But in my opinion, Dreyfuss delivers an almost flawless performance as Duddy in the film . He captures the juvenility and ambition of the growing Jewish boy. Dreyfuss has proven himself as an actor in the the later AMERICAN GRAFFITI and also in THE GOODBYE GIRL winning an Oscar for Best Actor in the process.

I have a few complaints of the film despite it being a classic. Being a film set in Montreal, I would prefer it being shot in France or at least have more French spoken in the film. The other is the list of Americans playing Canadians and an Englishman playing the American Hollywood director.

The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz screens as part of Canada on Screen on Sunday, February 5 at 6:30 p.m. Beginning in January and running throughout the year, this free programme will present moving-image installations, special events and guests, an extensive online catalogue, and screenings across the country, all based on a list of 150 essential moving-image works from Canada’s history, and compiled through a national poll of industry professionals. Canada on Screen is a co-production between TIFF and three core project partners — Library and Archives Canada, the Cinémathèque québécoise, and The Cinematheque in Vancouver — for Canada’s sesquicentennial in 2017. The Government of Canada and RBC are Presenting Partners of Canada on Screen.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WYkgUm-ImHw

Watch Winning Best Scene Readings:

TV CONTESTSUBMIT your TV PILOT or TV SPEC Script
Voted #1 TV Contest in North America.		 FILM CONTESTSUBMIT your SHORT Film
Get it showcased at the FEEDBACK Festival
writing CONTEST1st CHAPTER or FULL NOVEL CONTEST
Get full feedback! Winners get their novel made into a video!		 SCREENPLAY CONTESTSUBMIT your FEATURE Script
FULL FEEDBACK on all entries. Get your script

Film Review: THE PASSIONATE THIEF (RISATE DI GIOIA) (Italy 1960) **** [The Films of Magnani]

festreviews 2017 movies, movie, Movie Review, Uncategorized , , , , , , , , ,

the_passionate_thief_poster.jpgDirector: Mario Monicelli

Stars: Anna Magnani, Totò, Ben Gazzara

Review by Gilbert Seah

This rarely seen Italian comedy gets a release after its recent 4K restoration.

THE PASSIONATE THIEF (RISATE DI GIOIA) marks the collaboration between dramatic actress Anna Magnani and famed comedian Toto. It is a perfect match as director Monicelli’s film is a perfect blend between drama and comedy. RISATE DI GIOIA literally translates to ‘laughter of Joy’, Joy also being the name of Magnani’s character.

The film follows two friends, Umberto and Gioia (Toto and Magnani) who live by their wits working as comedians and cabaret at Cinecittà (the famous cinema production studios centre in Rome), before being invited to friends’ parties or masked balls during New Year’s Eve in Rome. The two, however, even though they make people laugh all the time in public, live an inner conflict, namely that the two have always to be aware to give a smile to someone, but they can never be rich and happy because they are street artists and with a precarious wage. The meeting with another thief, the well-dressed Lello (Ben Gazzara who appears to speak perfect Italian) throws their relationship into peril. Lello is low-life, classy con-man, while Umberto tries to save Gioia from the wolf’s clutches.

Monicelli captures the plight of the poor. The segment where the trio enter a rich German party complete with ornaments emphasize the indifference of the rich. ‘The rich loves expensive ornaments that are useless,” says Gioia humorously.

Magnani is pure joy to watch – the perfect Italian drama queen. Wearing a gaudy evening dress complete with shiny spikes, her dress only underlines her loudness. The best scene has her screaming aloud when by accident, fireworks are thrown next to her during the New Year’s Eve celebrations.

The film is more drama than comedy. The audience can clearly sympathize with both the characters of Umberto and Gioia as they both grab at straws to escape the drowning from poverty. Gioia is hoping for love in the much younger Lello while Umberto finally goes clean in order to save Gioia from Lello.

The ending of the film is both sad and humorous. The audience sees the two after a major setback in their lives trying still to be happy and to enjoy the good life. They dance and laugh while hailing a taxi with comical results.

THE PASSIONATE THEIF looks like a simple film on the surface, but is deep in mood, atmosphere, feeling and life under deeper scrutiny.

The Passionate Thief screens on Sunday, January 29 at 2:45 p.m. as part of TIFF Cinematheque’s Volcano: The Films of Anna Magnani, running from January 27 to March 11. Curated by James Quandt, Senior Programmer, this deluxe series celebrates the ferocious Magnani, who was known as “La Magnani” or “La Lupa” (“The She-Wolf”) for her volatility and voraciousness. Equally at home in farce and tragedy, melodrama and comedy, she starred in films by some of the greatest auteurs of all time and won her country’s adoration for embodying characters that regular people could identify with, including fruit vendors, prostitutes, molls, convicts, stage mothers, film extras and (most frequently) long-suffering proletarian wives.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFwFYySSWS8

Watch Winning Best Scene Readings:

TV CONTESTSUBMIT your TV PILOT or TV SPEC Script
Voted #1 TV Contest in North America.		 FILM CONTESTSUBMIT your SHORT Film
Get it showcased at the FEEDBACK Festival
writing CONTEST1st CHAPTER or FULL NOVEL CONTEST
Get full feedback! Winners get their novel made into a video!		 SCREENPLAY CONTESTSUBMIT your FEATURE Script
FULL FEEDBACK on all entries. Get your script

Film Review: MALIGLUTIT (Canada 2016) ***

festreviews 2017 movies, movie, Movie Review, Uncategorized , , , , , , ,

maliglutitDirectors: Zacharias Kunuk, Natar Ungalaaq
Writers: Norman Cohn, Zacharias Kunuk
Stars: Benjamin Kunuk, Karen Ivalu, Jonah Qunaq

Review by Gilbert Seah

 If the English title of this movie sounds familiar, it is because the film is taken from the plot of John Ford’s classic John Wayne western THE SEARCHERS. The Inuk title translates literally to ‘followers’. The simple plot involves an Inuk man searching for his kidnapped wife and daughter.

The film begins with a quarrel as an Inuk man is upset that a man has been fooling around with his wife. The words ‘f***ing asshole’ and ‘***ker’ (in Inuk) are exchanged frequently. It is the omen of what is to occur. The Inuk man has his wife and daughter are later kidnapped by marauders. He and his son set out to find those responsible and rescue the wife and daughter. The revenge plot gives the film, at times the feel of an action flick like TAKEN.

The film is a bit confusing at the start. All the characters are heavily clothed and it is at first hard to tell who is who and which one is the villain. It does not help that the Inuk man and son as well as the maunders take out an expedition at the same time, so that one has to recall the faces to figure out what is going on, in terms of plot.

What is most fascinating about the film is the Inuk culture depicted. The daily routines like making tea, eating and sewing are on display. If one has never seen what he inside of an igloo looks like, the film offers plenty of opportunity to see both the insides and exterior, as well as the brief construction of one. The chopping of frozen food that makes the daily diet, as well as eating of the food frozen.

The cinematography of the real ‘great white North’ is nothing short of stunning. Like David Lean’s Lawrence of Arabia where a lone figure stands in the vast spaces of sand, lone figures are seen in the mountains of snow and ice with no other signs of civilization. One wonders how the filmmakers managed to get all the filming equipment way up to the Arctic.

The film is necessarily violent from the kidnapping to the revenge scenes. The latter is satisfying, seeing how director Kunk has primed his audience for anger and a thirst for revenge. The tracking of the kidnappers, Inuk-style is like nothing anyone has seen before. Suspense is also heightened as the Inuk man has only one bullet left at the end, so that he has to kill two men with one bullet.

Inuk filmmaker Zacharias Kunuk broke into the film scene 15 years ago when his film, the excellent ATANARJUAT: THE FAST RUNNER won the prestigious Caméra d’or for Best First Feature at Cannes. SEARCHERS can nowhere can be compared to ATANARUAT, but the film is still definitely worth a look. The film has also been selected as Canada’s top 10 films of 2016.

Trailer: http://www.isuma.tv/Maliglutit/Teaser

Watch Winning Best Scene Readings:

TV CONTESTSUBMIT your TV PILOT or TV SPEC Script
Voted #1 TV Contest in North America.		 FILM CONTESTSUBMIT your SHORT Film
Get it showcased at the FEEDBACK Festival
writing CONTEST1st CHAPTER or FULL NOVEL CONTEST
Get full feedback! Winners get their novel made into a video!		 SCREENPLAY CONTESTSUBMIT your FEATURE Script
FULL FEEDBACK on all entries. Get your script

Film Review: 20th CENTURY WOMEN (USA 2016)

festreviews 2017 movies, movie, Movie Review, Uncategorized , , , , , ,

20th_century_women_poster.jpgDirector: Mike Mills
Writer: Mike Mills
Stars: Annette Bening, Elle Fanning, Greta Gerwig

Review by Gilbert Seah

Mike Mills hit it big with his coming out movie BEGINNERS based on his father who came out of the closet at the age of 75. Mills continues his personal films with 20th CENTURY WOMEN based on his upbringing by both his mother and her sister. The film has clout since, it is based on his life. This is a heartfelt feature.

The story is set in 1979, Santa Barbara, California. Single mother, Dorothea (Annette Benning) seeks the help of Abbie (Greta Gerwig) and Julie (Elle Fanning) to raise her son, Jamie (Lucas Jade Zumann). Abbie and Julie rent the rooms upstairs of Dorothea’s house.

Despite the film title, 20the CENTURY WOMEN is not solely about women. It is also about a boy being brought up by three women, only because the mother deems she needs help in his upbringing. So, the film should cater to a male audience though the ads and trailer do not make this point known. It is quite clear where the film is leading. Not only is the boy learning from the women, but the women are slowly influenced by the boy – by the boy’s reactions and deeds.

Mills demonstrates that minimal dialogue can also be used to highlight the drama in a confrontation scene. This is evident in the one where the boys argues with his mother after she chastises him on the ‘choking stinge’. The boy just walks away. The tactic of not using lengthy flowery arguments or screaming matches heighten the credibility of the story.
Mill’s film emphasizes details the characters indulge in that help the audience understand them. Dorothea smokes like a chimney – because it is stylish. But she smokes Salem menthols believing the harm is reduced. Julie sleeps with Jamie, sneaking into this room each night, but there do not indulge in sex.

A lot of effort seems to be put into the hairdo of the characters. Jamie and his mother have very curly hair while Abbie and daughter Julie noticeably straight hair. Abbie’s red hair symbolizes her desire to be different as she is.

The film is put into perspective by titles as well as Jamie’s voiceover. Still, one wonders where the film is leading to, and whether there is some hidden message.

Annette Bening shines in her role as the unsure mother. I am not really a Bening fan as she usually undertakes roles of unlikeable women like in AMERICAN BEAUTY and RUNNING WITH SCISSORS. But this sympathetic role suits her. Elle Fanning has been taking roles of and doing well with weird characters lately (LIVE BY NIGHT and THE NEON DEMON) and her role in this film will add to the list.

It would be interesting to see what kind of film Mills will be involved with next – after he has used up all the stories in his family and personal life.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JnFaltqnAY

Watch Winning Best Scene Readings:

TV CONTESTSUBMIT your TV PILOT or TV SPEC Script
Voted #1 TV Contest in North America.		 FILM CONTESTSUBMIT your SHORT Film
Get it showcased at the FEEDBACK Festival
writing CONTEST1st CHAPTER or FULL NOVEL CONTEST
Get full feedback! Winners get their novel made into a video!		 SCREENPLAY CONTESTSUBMIT your FEATURE Script
FULL FEEDBACK on all entries. Get your script

Film Review: BOTTICELLI – INFERNO (Germany/Italy 2016)

festreviews 2017 movies, movie, Movie Review, Uncategorized , , , ,

botticelli_inferno_posterDirected by Ralph Loop

Up next in Event Cinema’s In the Gallery series is Botticelli – Inferno. The documentary takes audiences on a journey to discover the secrets behind Botticelli’s iconic “Map of Hell” painting.

The hidden stories behind some works of art are the most exciting, fascinating and engaging, so much so that they can even surpass any world-renowned, best-selling thriller. When one merges the style of one of the undisputed masters of the Renaissance, Sandro Botticelli, with the dark circles of Hell in Dante’s Inferno, the result is an intriguing plot made up of deadly sins, detailed investigations, inaccessible vaults, and seemingly unsolvable enigmas. Even after many centuries Botticelli’s works continue to engage and excite. Every year his most famous paintings draw thousands upon thousands of visitors to museums and exhibitions all over the world. However one of his most intimate and mysterious drawings – perhaps one of the most significant if we are to achieve a deeper understanding of him – lay locked up for years in the climate-controlled vaults of the Vatican. This is the drawing that Botticelli dedicated to Dante’s Inferno , and which has now taken the leading role in an original, exciting documentary film.

Everyone is intrigued by the unknown. And if the unknown is scary, interest will be picquet even more. So, Botticelli’s painting of hell has fascinated admirers from the past to the present. The recent Ron Howard thriller INFERNO with Tom hanks is an example of Hollywood banking on Botticelli’s Inferno.

But it is Dante’s Inferno. The Renaissance master Botticelli spent over a decade painting and drawing hell as the poet Dante (his vision of the Underworld) described it. The film takes us on a journey through hell with fascinating and exciting insights into Botticelli’s art and its hidden details.

The film is shot all around Europe in exclusive locations such as the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, the Vatican Library and more.

The voiceover is in the first person, as Botticelli, talking about his paintings and of his life in Florence. Director Loop also enlists an expert, an Italian historian who knows the city of Florence in the Rainnasance era to narrate part of the film. It helps that he is an extremely spirited (and knowledgable) person, who brings some humour and spirit to the film. As a result, the film would cater was well to the interest many who have limited knowledge of Bottlicelli. The film is also brought into the present with its restoration. The shots of the digital image scanning that reveals the detail of Botticelli’s details are remarkable – the benefits of modern technology.

The most interesting segment of the film is the illustration of modern drawings in contrast to what were done in the age of Botticelli. Now paintings are created using virtual ink on virtual materials using computer software. The film sidetracks too on the Scots influence. The Duke of Hamilton acquired a substantial amount of Botticelli’s manuscripts.

The film will run in participating Cineplex theatres January 18 and 29, 2017. For theatres and showtimes, please visit
cineplex.com/Gallery

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lobp5HK-TmA&feature=youtu.be

 

 

 

Watch Winning Best Scene Readings:

TV CONTESTSUBMIT your TV PILOT or TV SPEC Script
Voted #1 TV Contest in North America.		 FILM CONTESTSUBMIT your SHORT Film
Get it showcased at the FEEDBACK Festival
writing CONTEST1st CHAPTER or FULL NOVEL CONTEST
Get full feedback! Winners get their novel made into a video!		 SCREENPLAY CONTESTSUBMIT your FEATURE Script
FULL FEEDBACK on all entries. Get your script

Film Review: NELLY (Canada 2016)

festreviews 2017 movies, movie, Movie Review, Uncategorized , , , , , ,

nelly.jpgDirected by Anne Émond

Starring: Mylène MacKay, Marie-Claude Guérin, Catherine Brunet

Review by Gilbert Seah

Quebecois writer/director Anne Émond impressed cineastes with her first two features NUIT #1 and LES ETRES CHERS for their complexity and honesty. There is more of the same in her latest feature called NELLY which is based on the works and life of controversial writer Nelly Arcan (born Isabelle Fortier).

The film is bookmarked with Nelly’s performance on stage of the catchy well-known song “Those Were the Days” in French. At the start of the movie during the rendering of the song, the camera lowers to the front row of the audience where Nelly is signalled to lower her voice. It is a scene that impresses, that shows how details like these can capture the attention of a director’s audience.

Fortier published Putain (Whore) in 2001, causing a sensation in literary circles with a tale of prostitution based on her own experience in the trade. But with the success of that debut novel came crushing anxieties, all of which found their way into her work.

Émond portrays the onscreen NELLY as a composite of Arcan’s many personas and her fictional characters, bringing her to life in an astounding, kaleidoscopic performance by Mylène Mackay – and an excellent almost faultless performance at that. Émond blurs the line between the real and the fictitious character so that he audience is unaware what is happening is real or imagined. In this way, as the film moves from one striking passage of the author’s oeuvre to the next, from elating highs to desperate lows, the audience is immersed in her lush and punishing world. The character Nelly would do things in real life to test out for her characters in the book to do. There is a segment involving rough sex that is as sexy as it is deadly.

NELLY is not a biopic in the normal sense. NELLY is not portrayed from child to her death in her early thirties. In fact the cause of her death (an early one at 34) is not even mentioned in the film, illustrating the fact that, that fact is not the important point in the film. The film traces just the window of her life within a year where everything that takes place establishes the writer for what she is. Her relationship with her lover is also displayed in all its complexity. The one scene in which an argument ensues for the fact that he refuses to share a line of coke with her explains the volatility of their relationship, as also hinted in the disturbing scene in the swimming pool change-room. Here, Nelly is shown mentally unstable, writhing on the wet floor of the change room screaming at her lover. Nelly does spend some time in a sanatorium (which she describes as a rest house) which she deeply resents.

NELLY has been deservedly chosen as one of Canada’s Top 10 films and it sits as one of the better ones. It is a small budget production, efficiently made, effective and like her other works, complexed but honest.

Trailer: https://vimeo.com/177441312

 

 

 

Watch Winning Best Scene Readings:

TV CONTESTSUBMIT your TV PILOT or TV SPEC Script
Voted #1 TV Contest in North America.		 FILM CONTESTSUBMIT your SHORT Film
Get it showcased at the FEEDBACK Festival
writing CONTEST1st CHAPTER or FULL NOVEL CONTEST
Get full feedback! Winners get their novel made into a video!		 SCREENPLAY CONTESTSUBMIT your FEATURE Script
FULL FEEDBACK on all entries. Get your script

Film Review: LIVE BY NIGHT (USA 2016)

festreviews 2016 movies, movie, Movie Review, Uncategorized , , , , , , , , ,

live_by_night_movie_poster.jpgDirected by Ben Affleck

Starring: Ben Affleck, Elle Fanning, Brendan Gleeson, Chris Messina, Sienna Miller, Zoe Saldana, Chris Cooper

Review by Gilbert Seah

Ben Afflecks’s fourth film (after ARGO, THE TOWN and GONE BABY GONE) is based on the 2012 novel of the same name by Dennis Lehane which like BURN,BABY, BURN is a novel that contains a lot of plot. But LIVE BY NIGHT contains too much plot dealing with as many issues as there are plot turns. Unfortunately, Affleck’s script is unable to cope and the film fails despite worthy efforts.

Set in the 1920s and 1930s, the story follows Joe Coughlin (Affleck), the prodigal son of a Boston police captain (Brendan Gleeson). Joe is a World War I veteran of Irish decent who is in love with Emma Gould (Sienna Miller), mistress of the notorious gangster Albert White (Robert Glenister), the boss of the Irish Gang of Boston. Joe’s father disapproves of Emma. Joe and Emma decide to move to California escaping the wrath of White, but to their misfortune the head of Albert’s rival Italian Mafia Maso Pescatore (Remo Girone) finds out about their affair and blackmails Joe to kill Albert. The story goes on, leading Joe to finally work for Maso and rising in the ranks. Success comes with a price with a lot of casualties in the process.

The best thing about LIVE BY NIGHT are its impeccable performances. Gleeson at his growling best, plays Joe’s chief of police, who unfortunately dies 20 minutes into the film. The gap, fortunately is filled by Chris Cooper as Irving Figgis, another chief of police, who is as pious as he is crazy. The other supporting cast members are uniformly good from Matthew Maher (as a creepy Ku Klax Klan member) and Anthony Michael Hall as an overconfident lackey for a crime boss.

Affleck’s script is all over the place and tries to handles too many issues like father/son relationship; romance; crime; good vs. evil; racism and loss of innocence just to name a few. The dialogue also includes a fair amount of ‘f’ words including the ‘mother f” words that are out of place in a film set in the roaring twenties.

The handsome mounted production from the vintage cars (in the robbery car chase) to the wardrobe, music and props make the film a memorable period piece. Affleck dresses himself very sharply, always in pressed white suits and hat.

As the story deals with war between crime families, LIVE BY NIGHT will inevitably be compared to Francis Ford Coppola’s GODFATHER films. Joe keeps his criminal activities from his wife, Gracilea (Zoe Saldana) reminiscent of how Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) hid his crime duties from his wife played by Diane Keaton. This is when one can detect the inferiority of of LIVE BY NIGHT. The power and bite are just not there.
LIVE BY NIGHT is well paced with a good speed in the first third of the film. The varying pace from the highly edited car chase to the slow paced meeting a a tea shop between Joe and Loretta Figgis (Elle Fannng)
.
The film also contains dialogue with heavy Irish accent (from Gleesona nd Miller) which is occasionally hard to understand.

The film could have done with some script doctoring. Affleck taking the co-producing, writing, directing and lead acting duties has obviously got his plate full in this $65 million production.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CtFZcAuH-qI

 

Watch Winning Best Scene Readings:

TV CONTESTSUBMIT your TV PILOT or TV SPEC Script
Voted #1 TV Contest in North America.		 FILM CONTESTSUBMIT your SHORT Film
Get it showcased at the FEEDBACK Festival
writing CONTEST1st CHAPTER or FULL NOVEL CONTEST
Get full feedback! Winners get their novel made into a video!		 SCREENPLAY CONTESTSUBMIT your FEATURE Script
FULL FEEDBACK on all entries. Get your script

Humphrey Bogart’s Top 10 Films

festreviews actors, movie, Movie Review, Uncategorized , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

humphreybogart.jpgby Jason Gordon

American Film Institute in 1999 as the greatest male star in the history of American cinema, Humphrey DeForest Bogart was perhaps the greatest star of Hollywood’s Golden era. When you start a debate on who the greatest actor of all-time is to a young group of people, it is doubtful the great Bogart’s name is mentioned. They will probably rattle off the great actors of the 90s and today, such as Leonardo DiCaprio or Tom Hanks. Appearing in 75 feature films, these actors don’t hold a candle to Bogart’s filmography. Bogart played primarily grizzled and dark characters, often acting in an understated manner. Any of the following films will showcase one of the world’s finest actors at the height of his talents.

  1. Casablanca

Generally considered Bogart’s greatest film, not much needs to be said about said about it as virtually all movie buffs have seen the story of bar owner Rick Blaine who operates the Rick’s Café Américain nightclub in the Moroccan capital of Casablanca during the early years of World War II.

  1. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre

Bogart was never darker as an actor than in his role as Fred C. Dobbs. Bogart’s character is the most venal of the three treasure hunters in this film, which is considered to be the precursor of crime-based morality tales.

  1. The Maltese Falcon

This film marks Bogart’s best portrayal of a private eye with the character of Sam Spade in an adaptation of the book by Dashiell Hammett. It’s also one of the rare occasions when a remake of a film is better than the original.

  1. In a Lonely Place

In a Lonely Place is the third film produced by Bogart. He plays Dixon Steele, a fading screenwriter who is a drinker with a dour personality, but who also is a perceptive judge of character. The film is also an attack on the darker side of Hollywood during the McCarthy era.

  1. The Big Sleep

The plot of the The Big Sleep is convoluted and somewhat unintelligible, however it’s a great atmospheric work, thick with intrigue. It’s the second of the Bogart-Lauren Bacall collaborations, with the latter acting as an equal to Bogart’s Philip Marlowe.

  1. The African Queen

Shot on location in the Congo and Uganda, The African Queen pits Bogart’s drunken boat captain Charlie Allnut against prim missionary Rose Sayer, played by Katherine Hepburn. This adventure classic proved to be the only time in his career where Bogart would win a Best Actor Oscar.

  1. Key Largo

Based on the play of the same name, Key Largo is the “hurricane movie” where Bogart’s character, Frank McCloud, is trapped inside a Florida hotel by Edward G. Robinson’s gangster, Johnny Rocco, as a tropical storm approaches. This work is considered one of the great classic film noirs of the 1940s.

  1. The Caine Mutiny

Made on a tight budget, The Caine Mutiny has become one of the all-time classic war dramas with the script exploring the mental health of Captain Philip Queeg. His performance of the neurotic Navy man, filled with fear and contradictions, may be the greatest work of the latter part of Bogart’s career.

  1. To Have and Have Not

Capitalizing on the success of Casablanca two years earlier, this film is a classic in its own right because of the number of Hollywood heavyweights who worked on this story of Harry Morgan, captain of a fishing boat in Martinique in 1940.

  1. Sabrina

This classic romantic comedy shows Bogart’s character actor skills pitting his Linus against the title character, played by Audrey Hepburn.

Watch Winning Best Scene Readings:

TV CONTESTSUBMIT your TV PILOT or TV SPEC Script
Voted #1 TV Contest in North America.		 FILM CONTESTSUBMIT your SHORT Film
Get it showcased at the FEEDBACK Festival
writing CONTEST1st CHAPTER or FULL NOVEL CONTEST
Get full feedback! Winners get their novel made into a video!		 SCREENPLAY CONTESTSUBMIT your FEATURE Script
FULL FEEDBACK on all entries. Get your script