Boyhood: I Guess This Is Growing Up
Ethan Hawke called Boyhood “Timelapse photography of a human being.” This film directed by Richard Linklater was 12 years in the making and proves to be a beautiful experiment that combines the best of Linklater’s previous films. Boyhood is an incredible experience full of depth, intelligence and wonderful conversations.
Ethan Hawke, Patricia Arquette, Lorelei Linklater and Ellar Coltrane make up the four who we follow for 12 years. Together they make for an engaging foursome who all adapt and evolve as they grow up, get divorced (twice), graduate high school, buy minivans and figure themselves out.
Boyhood has a heart and soul like none other. There are moments that will crush you while others prove to be uplifting. Religion, divorce, alcoholism, art and adulthood are portrayed with maturity and nobody falls into caricature. Texas becomes its own character and its wide open terrain provides a perfect backdrop for philosophical musings. I love the moment when Hawke tells Coltrane the surefire way to attract women. He says “You have to ask them lots of questions, and then you have to listen.”
Linklater is great at creating intriguing characters who engage in wonderful discussions. His films Slacker, Dazed and Confused, School of Rock, Waking Life, Bernie and the Before trilogy are all marvels of dialogue and memorable characters. He creates human beings who are curious about the world and are open to new experiences. Their plights are never earth shattering and nobody ventures into melodrama and because of that their problems feel real.
What I love about Boyhood is how much it respects its audience. There are no markers of time. We understand the time change via songs, Obama campaigns and various new technological devices. The film is inhabited with supporting characters who go out of their way to offer sage advice. Linklater is unrivaled in his ability to make supporting characters endearing. Characters who get several minutes of screen time prove to be more three dimensional than the majority of people who inhabit celluloid nowadays. For instance, Matthew McConaughey is still riding the Wooderson Dazed and Confused bandwagon.
Boyhood is a beautiful achievement and is easily the best film of the year. Watch the film. Promote the film. Appreciate the beauty in front of you. Listen to more Foghat.
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Guardians of the Galaxy: The A-Holes Assemble
Any film that calls its heroes “a-holes” and introduces the main character via a dance sequence is cool with me. Guardians of the Galaxy is a cheeky gamble that has paid off and proves that even people named Drax the Destroyer drunk dial. The tone is light, the characters likable and CGI spectacular. Guardians has a managed (Marvel has films planned until 2026) feel but still brings something important to the Marvel universe. Guardians features characters you want to spend more time with.
Guardians tells the story of five people trying to stop a guy named Ronan the Accuser from finding an infinity stone. Ronan wants to give the stone to the big baddie Thanos who in exchange will destroy a planet for Ronan. However, a genetically modified raccoon, a tree, the adopted daughter of Thanos, a dude named Drax and a guy named Starlord unite to stop the threat. What follows is the obligatory third act space battle, underwhelming fist fights and dancing as a diversion.
I love that a film featuring a drunk tree got a wide release. It is Marvel gambling again and proves a perfect distraction from their Ant Man hullabaloo. The light tone is a change of pace from DC’s dour Man of Steel and self seriousness of The Dark Knight Rises. It wears its nerdiness on its sleeve and constantly reminds you about the power of friendship. It is also the only super hero film where the main character Peter Quill warns the other Guardians about the perils of searching his ship with a black light (the Inbetweeners would be proud).
Guardians has bumps and bruises that I love. The bad guys are nondescript yet I feel like they were meant to be caricatures of other megalomaniacs. The film ends with a stock spaceship battle that is elevated by a CGI raccoon being heroic. Former WWE wrestler Dave Bautista has the best character arc and says things like “Nothing goes over my head. My reflexes are too fast. I’d catch it.” I also love that he gets drunk and dials up the bad guys for a bit of violence.
The film has a personality that Thor 2: Evil Elves Running Amok lacked. It took chances with its casting and hired a guy known for his Troma films to direct. Director James Gunn is responsible for one of my favorite cinematic lines which is featured in the film Slither. It ain’t shakespeare but I love hearing Nathan Fillion say “I can’t get drunk. I have too much muscle mass.” Also, Guardians gives Michael Rooker a showcase scene and proves that raccoons have no problem stealing fake legs. Now that the world is established and Thanos is the big threat I am excited for the group of “a-holes” to quip aplenty in future installments.
What did you think?
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The MFF Awesome Mix: Volume One
Hello all. Mark here.
I love music. I love movies. I love listening to music whilst traveling. I even went as far to burn one CD and listen to it on an old school CD player while going on a solo mission to see the Great Wall of China in 2008. One CD, one backpack and a gnarly beard got me through the unplanned trip and I loved every second of it.
The Guardians of the Galaxy inspired me to think of a set list that I would take into space when I become an intergalactic smuggler against my will. Here is the mix that will be played in the stylish cassette player.
1. Modest Mouse – Float On
2. Rolling Stones – You Can’t Always Get What You Want
3. Men At Work – Land Down Under
4. Metallica – Whiskey in a Jar
5. Cold War Kids – Audience of One
6. Paul Simon – Graceland
7. Dropkick Murphys – Amazing Grace
8. The Format – The First Single (You Know Me)
9. Fun – Be Calm
10. New Found Glory – King of Wishful Thinking (cover)
11. CCR – Down on the Corner
12. Daft Punk – One More Time
13. Bob Marley – Could You Be Loved
14. Chuck Berry – You Never Can Tell
What songs would you take on your intergalactic journey?
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John’s Horror Corner: Cabin Fever: Patient Zero (2014), still fun, but the least impressive flesh-eating virus movie of the franchise.
MY CALL: Although still fun, this was the least impressive flesh-eating virus movie of the franchise. It’s often more than gory and wacky enough to please fans of the franchise though. MOVIES LIKE Cabin Fever: Patient Zero: Cabin Fever (2002), of course it should probably be seen first…okay, it really doesn’t matter. Then Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever (2009). But true lovers of hilariously gory overkill should also hit Evil Dead (2013), The Cabin in the Woods (2012), Final Destination 5 (2011), Tucker and Dale vs Evil (2010), Drag Me to Hell (2009), and of course Evil Dead 2 (1987) and The Evil Dead (1981).
A group of friends embark on a Caribbean bachelor party cruise and come across a remote island research facility and they are exposed to a deadly, flesh-eating virus during a gore-chummed snorkeling expedition.
Simultaneously we switch back and forth with a parallel plot in which researchers have isolated “patient zero” (Sean Astin; The Strain, The Goonies, Lord of the Rings)–the carrier of the original strain of this horrible virus that blessed us with this franchise–moved him to an island lab (yes, that lab) for study and… we’ll just say things get out of hand inside their research facility as well. So we have two simultaneous infections occurring on this normally sleepy, sunny island.
Is it just me? Or has Mr. Samwise been creating an awful lot of apocalypse-plague shenanigans recently? In The Strain he helps the Nazi vampires spread the Nazi vampire zombiism worm virus. Here, HE is patient zero!
If you’ve seen any of these movies, you’ve sort of seen them all. But let’s be clear here, director Kaare Andrews (The ABCs of Death – V is for Vagitus, Altitude) delivers extravagant levels of gore consistent with the franchise. After exposure our early infected cast members have a rash which quickly shifts to symptoms of blisters and…worse.
More advanced victims practically melt away and projectile vomit liquefied gore into the faces of the yet uninfected. Skin sloughs off of bodies, pus erupts from bloated flesh, and–perhaps the most flawed aspect of this sequel–victims eventually become almost zombie-like. Also, like its predecessors, it uses a sex scene to set the tone of the urgency…because after all, and I can’t speak for everyone here, but when my girlfriend’s body is covered with festering sores the first place y mind goes to is “then we should probably have sex!”
“So while we wait for medical care how should we pass the time?”
“Guess what, bro? Her STD test results just came in…she tested positive!”
Perhaps this is all just to teach younger viewers that sex might just catch you something deadly. Oh, and bonus, there’s also a flesh-ripping zombie girl catfight.
Part one of this franchise succeeded with a rather serious tone, part two was basically slapstick and goretastically hilarious, and this third installment attempts to re-secure a sense of fear and urgency as the infection advances while maintaining some playful silliness (e.g., having your softened, flesh-eaten skull crushed by a giant dildo).
In my opinion the urgency is long missed and, while this movie is entertaining for the sake of the gore and some most welcomed wackiness, the overall Cabin Fever experience doesn’t measure up strongly to the first two and is, in fact, ranking far below either of them in quality.
The nigh-zombiism of the infected left me feeling a bit derailed and the plot (revolving around getting off the island) degenerates down a dumb path. But kudos for not just “redoing” the movie and “calling” it a sequel as we often see in the horror genre. At least a solid effort was made to make this installment feel different from the others. In that respect, the entire franchise is successful.
I must say I was entertained, though. This flick was a lot of fun and any film featuring a bludgeoning death-by-dildo scene deserves some attention from gorehound goofballs.
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MY CALL: I’d only recommend this to the most adventurous horror-goer with a good sense of humor and low expectations. There’s nothing special here and the tone erratically shifts. But there’s some bonkers humor for those who enjoy such flavor. MOVIES LIKE All Cheerleaders Die: There are far better high school horror movies. Namely Jennifer’s Body (2009), The Craft (1996) and The Faculty (1998).
After the tragic death of the captain of the cheerleading squad, her meek outsider friend Maddy (Caitlin Stasey; Evidence, I Frankenstein)cleans up and goes undercover as an enthusiastic pom-pomer to expose these mean girls for what they really are. Early in her sting operation, during a beer bash Maddy and her close newfound cheerleader friends are wronged by the captain of the football team (resulting in their accidental death) and now she has an entirely new target.
Here’s Maddy. She goes from this….
…to this…
…to THIS!
But wait, Maddy died. So how could she exact her revenge? The answer here is weird little divination stones (or Wicca witch rocks or something, not sure what to call them exactly). A full moon, a little blood and the right cast of the stones seemed to be enough to resurrect three wrongly killed cheer squad members essentially by accident. They basically turn into super strong, zombie succubi and they show up to school the next day with a killer new sexy look and an appetite that is to die for! Cliché.
Co-writer/directors Lucky McKee (The Woods, May, The Woman) and Chris Sivertson (I Know Who Killed Me) don’t really bring us anything special this time around. Their actors are weak and inexperienced (but serviceable, I guess), the effects are mundane, none of the characters develop at all, and the story and execution is weak. Strangest and least consistent is that the tone and direction of the movie change erratically between scenes…shifting from a zombie succubus cheerleader revenge movie to a weird gemstone-eating dude versus a bunch of scared cheer zombies. That sentence probably made no sense–rest assured that neither does the movie
But there were some fun perks. After the resurrection two of the girls accidently switched bodies, there’s a randomly hilarious “cat kill”, we see a lot of girls in their undies, and some bonkers dumb-but-funny things end up happening.
That said, I’ll only recommend this to the adventurous horror goer with a good sense of humor and low expectations.
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MY CALL: The utter bonkersness of this movie, by comparison, makes Snakes on a Plane feel like a perfectly reasonable action movie that could totally happen…and that’s a good thing for the adventurous dumb-movie lover who doesn’t mind a zany flick with a low budget and shamefully abundant past-gen CGI. MOVIES LIKE Sharknado 2: Sharknado (2013), Sharknado 3 (2015; upcoming) and Snakes on a Plane (2006). Also try Deep Blue Sea (1999), Shark Night 3D (2011), Piranha (1978), Piranha 3D (2010) and Piranha 3DD (2012).
Now heroes, Tara Reid (Sharknado, The Crow: Wickid Prayer) and Ian Ziering’s (Beverly Hills 90210, Sharknado) returning characters are no strangers to the over-exposition that plagues Scy-Fy’s movies-of-the-week, including Sharknado (“the first one”). But fret not, it’s all in good fun and we don’t get five minutes into the movie before paying homage to William Shatner’s (or John Lithgow’s) Twilight Zone short Terror at 20000 Feet! Even using the famous line “There’s something on the wing!!!!” Only now..there are sharks on the wings of the plane! This is basically how I knew this would be worth a watch….that, and part one was bonkers amaze-balls fun!
Director Anthony C. Ferrante (Boo, Sharknado, Sharknado 3) lays on the stupid fast and heavy…and by stupid I mean stupidly awesome! The utter bonkersness of this movie, by comparison, makes Snakes on a Plane (2006) feel like a perfectly reasonable action movie that could totally happen.
Is this movie fast paced? Well, it has plenty of slow parts where we are forced to watch the cast try to act their way through to the next scene. But when the action is happening all is forgiven, lots of funny dumb stuff happens, and festive CGI gore abounds.
Are the effects good? It’s a ScyFy movie-of-the-week…so NO. No they’re not. But the movie is still fun and there were some choice gore effects and the sharks are fun to watch.
Billy Ray Cyrus, everyone!
Is EVERYONE in this movie? Absolutely! Fantastic cameos include The Today Show‘s Matt Lauer and Al Roker, Kelly Ripa, ex-Sugar Ray singer Mark McGrath, scream queen Tiffany Shepis (The Hazing), Judah Friedlander, Billy Ray Cyrus, Perez Hilton, Vivica Fox (Kill Bill Vol. 1/Vol. 2, Independence Day), Judd Hirsch (Independence Day), Jared the Subway guy, Kelly Osbourne and Andy Dick.
Much to my surprise I must say this movie taught me a few things…
1) Based on more than one scene I can safely say that the best way to fight a shark is with a baseball bat. That, and Ian Ziering has an amazing swing whether wielding a bat, chainsaw, fire axe, sword or that wooden thing they use to get pizzas out of a pizza oven.
2) Sharks hate physics and take every opportunity they can to defy its lame laws. As you watch this movie you’d swear the sharks were “aiming” themselves at their victims harnessing the propulsive force of the tornado.
3) Not only is Ian Ziering tougher than a CGI shark, but his butt is so rock hard that he doesn’t even feel it when a baby shark is biting it! He probably taught The Rock how to be tough.
Tough enough to try to defeat a Sharknado with Vivica Fox and a giant slingshot.
4) Judd Hirsch is actually Jason Voorhees! Bare with me for a second. Whenever you don’t see him he transports unreasonable distances almost instantaneously and he’s always where you least expect him. The only real difference is that there are no drug-using, fornicating teens around to trigger his urge to kill.
This movie is pure, mindless fun. Just watch it and stop being so judgy.
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Alan Partridge: The Original Alpha Papa
Alan Partridge! Who the f- Alan Partridge! You know who I am, I’ve not been off TV for that long! Identify yourself.
Alan Partridge has been around a long time. 20 years ago the comedy classic Knowing Me, Knowing You With Alan Partridge (ah-ha!) was released upon the world and it introduced us to an incredibly superficial, narcissistic and insecure ‘wally.’ (Thank you Wiki homepage for Alan Partridge) The show made for some of the most uncomfortable chat show moments in television history and ushered in a new wave of comedy hero (Think David Brent of The Office). His show ended with a gunshot that lead to a spiral of botched Christmas specials, toblerone candy and divorce. His journey has taken him from failing upward on the BBC to hosting an afternoon show on a local radio network called North Norfolk Digital.
The film follows Alan as he becomes the mediator during a hostage situation. The radio station he works for is adjusting to a younger crowd and are looking to sack one of the old school disc jockeys. Alan is a disloyal little turd so he gets Colm Meaney’s character fired and a hostage crisis ensues. Meaney doesn’t know it was Alan who got him fired so he uses his “trusted friend” to meet his demands. Alan uses the crisis to further his brand. occasionally end up without pants and say things like “We’re asking, what is the worst monger? Iron, fish… rumour… or war?”
The movie goes broader than the television shows yet still delivers the Alan you’ve grown to love because he is such a sad little man. Alan is not a likable fellow and his back catalog of quotes proves he can be described as articulately dumb. What I love is that Coogan has had 20 years to fine tune the character and it has been fun to watch his semi-evolution.
We don’t get many creations like Alan Partridge. We’ve been able to watch him fail for twenty years while he still holds on to his self-importance. His will has been tested but he has overcome obstacles like his bare foot drive to Dundee. He has lived in travel lodges, caravans and posh five bedroom homes while chasing fame. Aside from one panic attack he still has his ambitions and with news of the sequel we will get more adventures.
You need to know Alan Partridge. Start from the beginning and you’ll understand why he is the Alpha Papa.
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A Long Way Down: Chemistry Trumps All
A Long Way Down is the happiest film about potential suicide you will ever watch. It is tonally odd and bounces all over the place yet remains likable due to the chemistry of the cast. As the proceedings bounce around you remain engaged because of the all-in performances. I really liked what Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle had to say about the film.
As British comedy sometimes will, “A Long Way Down” has an occasional attack of the cutes, but the actors’ commitment keeps the movie on the plus side. I enjoyed the velocity of Poots’ assault on every line, as well as Paul’s sensitivity – that vibe he has of being a good guy.
The film doesn’t care much for being subtle. The characters sing I Will Survive and Tragedy while the conflicts are resolved swiftly. Time doesn’t matter, side plots are ditched and they all have undefined backstories. Gone is the classy humor from Nick Hornby’s other book adaptations About a Boy and High Fidelity. What we get here is four people having a great time together. So, the plot and subject matter are thin yet you really like the actors involved.
The plot revolves around four people who meet on top of a roof on New Years Eve. They all planned on committing suicide but decide to sign a pact (on the back of a suicide note) that will keep them alive until Valentine’s Day. Pierce Brosnan is a formerly famous morning host who went to jail for having sex with a 15-year-old. Aaron Paul is a sad musician. Toni Collette is a single mother who takes care of her disabled son. Imogen Poots is the daughter of a politician who lost her sister and needs to learn impulse control.
I understand all of the complaints made about the film. However, I was able to roll with A Long Way Down. The director Pascal Chaumeil is known for cheeky, fluffy and goofball films that don’t take themselves too seriously. He doesn’t capture drama well but he manages to get believable chemistry from his cast. So, the proceedings might be fluff but the performances are game and the actors are enjoying themselves. The happiness was infectious and the chemistry real in A Long Way Down. Poots and Paul were wonderful together in Need For Speed (A guilty pleasure of mine) and in this film you can tell they really enjoy each other.
There are moments in the this film that make it all worth it. It has a cheeky ambition that manipulates emotions well. It is fun watching Brosnan act like a grouch while Toni Collette once again proves she is a chameleon. The four actors are really trying and it makes the film enjoyable. I do wish it could have reached the comedic/drama heights of High Fidelity or About a Boy. However, it makes for a fun romp that should not be over analyzed.
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Filth: James McAvoy and the Truthful Title
There hasn’t been a more self-explanatory title since Snakes on a Plane. Filth is a nasty little film that is based on a wonderfully nasty Irvine Welsh book. It features drug use, nudity, murder, rape, infidelity, abuse, profanity, phone sex and more drug use. It is depravity buoyed by a demented yet likable performance by James McAvoy. He owns the screen and you can tell he enjoyed every moment of it.
I don’t know how I could recommend Filth to non-cinephiles but I will fully praise McAvoy’s performance to everyone. McAvoy navigates the world with a mixture of angst, anger and feigned bluster. Mentally, he has gone off the rails and as the film progresses you begin to feel bad for the guy as his story becomes rather tragic. McAvoy juggles the mental collapse well and remains sympathetic even as he is doing terrible things. This isn’t a stylized bad guy who is evil to be cool. He is a sad man who needs help and will never get it. I’m happy that McAvoy nailed this role after trying something different with Welcome to the Punch and Trance.
The film revolves around McAvoy’s character doing every bad deed in the book whilst angling for a promotion to become Detective Inspector. He has a beautiful family (whom you only see in dreams or hallucinations), suffers from bipolar disorder and is haunted by flashbacks of a young child. Something has gone mentally haywire and he becomes a drug addled Shakespearean villain. He manipulates, lies and coerces in order to get what he wants but his tenuous grip on reality seems to be going down the tube with each line of cocaine he snorts.
The supporting cast is wonderful. Eddie Marsan, Jamie Bell, Jim Broadbent, Shirley Henderson, Joanne Froggatt and Imogen Poots all play various foils and marks who inhabit the drug hazed world. They journey with McAvoy down a rabbit hole of insanity that makes Edinburgh, Scotland seem like a layer of hell. In one of the my favorite scenes Imogen Poots uncovers McAvoy’s true character and you are able to look back at the rest of the film with new eyes. It is a solid moment that shows how versatile the two actors are. It also helps you understand why he does what he does.
Filth is a daring and old school film. There is a darkness to it and there is nothing likable about the main character. It is tragedy mixed with dark humor that is made palatable by James McAvoy’s performance. This film isn’t for everyone and becomes very bleak. However, if you appreciate Irvine Welsh (Trainspotting) and brave performances check out Filth.
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Under the Skin is a mesmerizing film that captures Scotland’s dreary beauty while blasting us with the most sensory film of the year. I love that there is zero backstory or expository hand holding. It is a remarkably simple movie that still leaves many questions unanswered. It is a pure and unadulterated experience that could be vivisected or simply appreciated. My advice is to turn off the lights, turn up the volume and allow yourself to fully appreciate a spellbinding experience.
Under the Skin tells the story of Scarlett Johansson’s unnamed character driving around Scotland on the prowl for men/victims. She takes them back to uninhabited homes where they are doomed via black goop quicksand. The scenes are slightly improvised and all lead to hyper stylized endings. As her journey progresses she seems to become more self-aware and curious. This doesn’t bode well for her because she is out of the protection of her motorcycle riding assistant/boss/owner.
The journey her character takes is a wonder of cinematic prowess and natural beauty.
Little is said yet you understand what is going on. The director Jonathan Glazer had this to say about the film:
When you’re choosing to tell a story from an alien point of view, you’re really creating a rod for your own back, because you’re trying to make something feel truly alien. The experience needs to be inscrutable, unfathomable. Something you don’t recognise, that you feel but you don’t see. We didn’t want to make a film where that’s explained away somehow. It had to be outside our understanding.
Under the Skin is a truly alien film that is too easy to make complicated. Much like Tree of Life, Springbreakers and Upstream Color (Enemy is really confusing though) people add symbolism and theory where it isn’t needed. Under the Skin is a tragic journey of somebody experiencing earth for the first time.
The film has become notorious for the Johansson nudity. However, it feels organic to the film and is part of the character’s self-awareness. As the film unfolds you understand why she is becoming more aware of her body. Her performance is a wonder to behold as she seems genuinely curious of her prey and the world around her. She must have trusted the director because in lesser hands this could have become an exploitative piece called Naked in Scotland.
Glazer made a wise decision to shoot the film in Scotland. When I visited Scotland it seemed like I could close my eyes, put my camera behind my back and still take a beautiful photo. The rainy and misty country provides perfect vistas to explore.
Under the Skin does a great job of creating an alien world. The trust between Scarlett and the Glazer is evident and the movie works as a sensory blasting experience. It most certainly isn’t for the mainstream because of the vague subject material and lack of information. However, if you appreciate great looking films that take daring journeys Under the Skin is for you. Also, it makes you really want to ride a motorcycle through the windy Scottish coastal roads.
Movies, Films & Flix 