This film really blew my mind. It was so much better than the ‘Dark Knight’ films and much better executed than ‘Inception’ (2010). There were definitely elements of ‘Inception’ scattered throughout the film but with Interstellar, Nolan seemed to have redefined those elements from being a cinematic novelty few have seen before to an interesting concept that fits seamlessly into the story line yet still stands out as a defining feature.
I did not have high expectations going in to see one of the least-anticipated movies of the year. Nevertheless I told myself I would be content with the slightest ounce of originality or believability (asking for both is a bit much). Needless to say, it fell short of even my lowest of low expectations and hence the result in the list below to summarize the issues that constantly pop up in these kinds of movies in recent times and why John Wick was no different and really did not even try to be.
“Chaos is order yet undeciphered.”
Without a doubt one of the most shocking movie endings you will never see coming. This is one of the few films that left me completely clueless and feeling as though I were a 6-year-old whose parents had unknowingly taken to see a horror movie at the cinema.
History professor Adam Bell (Gyllenhaal) stumbles across his doppleganger, actor Anthony Clair (also Gyllenhaal) whilst watching a movie and becomes obsessed with finding him. Interesting concept, but believe me when I say this is just the beginning of the mind-boogling ride that is Enemy.
If you’re looking for an easy breezy feel-good movie, then Enemy is probably not the movie for you.
Set in the not-too-distant dystopian future where humanity’s efforts to ‘solve’ global warming resulted in a second ice age of sorts. This resulted in all of earth’s inhabitants being frozen in popsicles with the sole survivors on board a train with a self-sustaining engine and no destination. The train is divided into distinct classes which are physically separated by their respective carriages. The lowest class (the ‘tail end’) live in squalid poverty and a diet of ‘protein’ bars that resemble blocks of blood jelly while the first class enjoy a life of luxury and excess with a night club, sauna and sushi bar.
*Disclaimer: I know very little about the original comic so please don’t expect any references to or comparisons with the comic or you will be bitterly disappointed. You have been warned.*
This movie was not a highly-anticipated movie of mine because simply-put I didn’t see how a film with a group of misfits including a talking Raccoon and a Vin Diesel-voiced tree thing could have any appeal to anyone but children and comic geeks (and I say that with the utmost affection as I have many friends in both categories).
I know this kind of alluded to a but-boy-was-I-wrong opening for the next paragraph but it would only half tick that box. Most of the movie was as expected including a very simple plot and a few warm fuzzy moments of camaraderie and belonging. I did enjoy the back stories to each of the characters although only Quill’s (Chris Pratt) was really fleshed out which was a shame but also understandable due to the risk of deviation from the main plot. Also, the relationship between Quill and Gamora (Zoe Saldana) was very shallowly developed and there wasn’t enough basis in my opinion why Quill would risk his life to save hers after sharing only very brief moments with her.
I have never been a fan of the Planet 
of the Apes franchise and didn’t have high expectations for this film. The movie turned out to be rather predictable; not saying that it wasn’t still enjoyable.
Firstly I felt that the film placed focus on the right areas. There was potential for the film to get lost in the whole disease back story and individual human back stories of the genetically-immune survivors of the disease. Usually I despise films that just run with it with no explanation (In Time 2011), however since the film was not about the disease and the human sob-stories, the movie allowed minimal time to be spent on it. Continue reading
As Projectreel’s first Throw-back Thursday, I’m writing about one of my all-time favourite films, Mr. Nobody, which was released in 2009 starring Jared Leto and Diane Kruger.
This is the only film to date that I refuse to impose my meaning onto and a film that should be left to simmer in our individual minds and appreciated for what it is no matter what level you are viewing it from. On the surface, you are presented with a very old man who is recounting to a reporter in the year 2092 about his life. However, his story seems somewhat convoluted as he recounts various separate journeys with contradicting choices that confuses and even frustrates the reporter. On a philosophical level, Mr. Nobody challenges us to feel emotions we never thought we had and lets us easily understand seemingly complex characters and relationships. And of course, on another level it is just a masterpiece of understated minimalist music and the most beautiful cinematography you will ever see.
There are many moments of the film that are unforgettable. There’s the scene that always brings a tear to my eye – I’m talking about the scene where Nemo runs after the train when his parents get divorced. It is literally one of my favourite movie scenes ever due to it’s originality, emotional fragility and just the empathetic quality of a child faced with the impossible task of choosing between two loving parents. Watch it and see for yourself.
It’s really impossible to fault Mr. Nobody so I’m not going to. Below is a pictorial summary of some of my other favourite moments. What do they mean?? You’ll have to watch it to find out.
IMDb: 7.9
Rotten Tomatoes: 69%
My rating (As I said, in my eyes, the film is faultless):
When: 29/05/14
Who: Seth MacFarlane (Director), Charlize Theron, Liam Neeson, Neil Patrick Harris, Amanda Seyfried, Giovanni Ribisi, Sarah Silverman
What: A satire of The Good, The Bad and the Ugly with a lot more expletives and blood.
Sheep farmer falls in love with new mystery woman in town and must overcome his fears, ALL of his fears (“The American West is a terrible place and time. Everything that’s not you wants to kill you. Angry drunk people. Hungry animals. Outlaws. Diseases. The fucking doctor.”) to duel Clinch Leatherwood, the deadliest outlaw in the West, to earn her love and affection.
Why: Written, directed by and starring the highest paid television writer in history, and the creator of Ted, Family Guy, American Dad and The Cleveland Show.
When: 29/05/14
Who: Robert Stromberg (Director), Angelina Jolie, Elle Fanning, Juno Temple, Vivienne Jolie-Pitt
What: Sleeping beauty retold from the perspective of the villain.
Why: To see Angelina Jolie’s cheekbones as the sharpest objects on screens since the Miracle Blade III. But more seriously to find out that Aurora actually had interests and hobbies outside of sleeping and being beautiful.
This was the first comic adaptation film I was actually excited to see and overall I was pretty happy with it.
I loved the beginning and the whole setting up of why they had to go back and change the future. The logic behind it was decent, in fact, for the most part, the storyline was logical (what didn’t make sense comes later).
Coming into this I pretty much had 3 expectations of transcendence:
Now the reality.
To be honest my expectations were pretty spot on with this movie.
The idea of being able to copy the electromagnetic patterns that are unique to every human brain really is pretty cool.
The film poses the question of what it is that makes us human – are we simply a series of electrical impulses that dictate our emotions, thoughts and desires?
There are questions throughout of Will’s humanity. Is it human nature to seek to grow and expand? What I found interesting was the subtle turn towards the end that suggests it was him all along. As easy as it is to blame the evil machines that want to take over the world, the film reminds us that just like Adam was created as an image of God, AI was modelled on humanity itself. Perhaps it isn’t robots that we should be fearing but the people who build them and allow them to exist in the first place.
Now onto my issues with the film.
My biggest problem with it was the lack of character development. The beginning scenes felt a little too rushed and although we are introduced to Will and Evelyn Caster (Rebecca Hall), I struggled to connect with them and to feel like I cared about their fates at all. While the special effects certainly help to convince the audience that this future may not be too far away, the movie just didn’t pull me in via the vehicle of the characters. The completely unnecessary love triangle that was hinted at throughout the story felt like a weak attempt to inject some much needed emotional empathy.
I did feel that the film took the concept of a supercomputer with limitless applications and ran a whole marathon with it. While I get that the supercomputer may be smart enough to revolutionise nano technology which has great implications for medicine, isn’t the whole point of nano technology that it’s umm kind of small? And ok, I also get that it might be slightly challenging to visually represent this amazing development, but black balls – really?! And not only were they being injected out of mechanical arms but the ground just happened to be filled with them, conveniently allowing them to rise up into the air as strings of black beads.
Finally, of all the roles they could’ve offered Morgan freeman, they chose the role of the old man who refused cake?!
Like a nervous date who spills coffee on your shirt, the film had good intentions but it’s hard to remember what those intentions were when all you can see is the coffee stain.
p r o j e c t r e e l 