This “re-imagining” (yeah, whatever) of the 1969 film is the exact inverse of the original. On the one hand, it doesn’t have the same set of timeless quotes that every movie buff will still be referencing in thirty years’ time. The set pieces are intricate and clever, but they aren’t iconic. On the other hand, it works much better as a film. The revenge-based plot is strong and nicely paced. Mark Wahlberg as Charlie Croker isn’t a patch on Michael Caine, but the peripheral characters are all well-developed and highly entertaining, turning the gang into a true ensemble. It’s not a classic, but I have no doubt which version I would rather watch again.
The Italian Job (1969)
A truly outstanding collection of classic set-pieces, stylish scenes, and memorable quotes, but the film as a whole is rubbish. The story is poor, the pacing is all over the place, and the acting is literally farcical. Michael Caine delivers a workmanlike cheeky chappie performance, but the rest of the cast cringe, whimper, fawn, whine, pomp and strut like they’re over-emoting on stage for an audience that doesn’t have close-ups. It’s easy to see why the film is considered a classic, but it’s equally easy to see why it’s more talked about than actually watched.
The Mussel Inn, Rose St., Edinburgh
Close, cramped atmosphere, and relatively slow service–at least when we were there. (It was a busy Saturday afternoon.) The chowder was no more than competent, and the shellfish linguine was floury and bland. It makes a change from the standard pub grub elsewhere on Rose St., but there is much better seafood to be had elsewhere in Edinburgh, and without even going to a dedicated seafood restaurant.
Maroon 5 – Songs About Jane
After having heard only the single “Harder To Breathe,” I was surprised by the rest of the album. The rock is a lot more funky than I had expected, with some of the wacka-wacka guitar effects harking way back to the late 70s. It’s still an overwhelmingly pop disc, though: in overall feel it’s a bit like Savage Garden with a touch of recent Red Hot Chili Peppers. “Harder To Breathe” is one of the highlights, but there are a few other glorious songs on here, too: “Must Get Out” is a sweet, energizing, sing-along ballad, and “Sunday Morning” is four minutes of pure sunshine. It has its fair share of blandness, but the album makes for a pleasant, undemanding listen nevertheless.
Kill Bill, Vol 2
Vol. 2 is a very strong film, but not as immediately arresting as Vol. 1. The first thing that sets it apart from its predecessor is that it’s not an action film. It contains action sequences, but Vol. 2 is all about exploring the characters it presents–and then ending them in a burst of savage violence. In this regard, however, it is also a very unbalanced film, because the main character revelations come in the last half hour. Taking the two films as a whole, the pacing makes sense: strong build-up followed by a measure of reflection, and concluded with a twisty flourish. Yet however much sense it made for Tarantino to split the film where he did, and regardless of the emotion sting in the tail, this structure inevitably leads to Vol. 2 being the weaker of the two. Having said that, it is a beautifully shot and acted film, filled with the quirky directorial touches for which Tarantino is justly famous. It is crammed with in-jokes, cinematic references, and loving parodies. The core family dilemma that Bill and the Bride have to confront is not original, but Tarantino’s brutal treatment of it is unique and powerful.
Update: Upon reflection, I think this deserves an upgrade to 4.5 stars.
Peter F. Hamilton – Misspent Youth
After spending some quality time with space opera, Peter F Hamilton returns to the near future for Misspent Youth. It’s 2027, and the bio-sciences have advanced to the point where it’s possible to completely rejuvenate someone–but only one person, and at enormous expense. Jeff Baker is the 80-year old scientist chosen to undergo the pioneering treatment. He spends eighteen months unconscious as his body is rebuilt cell by cell, and awakens as a young man. Hamilton builds on this premise by giving Jeff a wife, Sue, forty years his junior, and a son, Tim, who at eighteen is only a few years younger than Jeff’s new biological age. In addition to the personal issues Jeff has to face, he also has to deal with being a celebrity and a figurehead for the policies of a prime minister with ambitions to become president of Europe.
I found Misspent Youth a suprisingly bleak novel. The personal story deals with a broken family that never gets fixed, and with the inevitable victory of base human impulses over rational thought. The future society Hamilton paints is filled with glorious technological advances, but also with desperately unhappy and fearful people. Domestic political violence and terrorism is rife. Europe has pulled away from an insular and impoverished USA, but despite increasingly close political ties, European cultural and fraternal unity is further away than ever. The book ends with twin climaxes that resolve superficial crises, but signal no more than a temporary ceasefire on the battlefield of the underlying political and personal issues. It’s an interesting read, but far from an uplifting or inspirational one.
Peter Pan (2003)
This is a glorious rendition of J.M. Barrie’s classic. It’s a visual feast of colours and scenery, with character portrayals that are believable and engrossing. On the one hand, it plays out as a classic make-belief adventure story, and on the other hand it exploits every metaphorical subtext the Peter Pan story provides: the hardships of growing up, the struggle between age and innocence, the blossoming of first love, jealousy and friendship. The strongest theme, though, is that of the complex relationship between a teenage girl and her father. This is treated beautifully by letting Jason Isaacs play both the uptight, nervous Mr. Darling (Wendy’s father) and a splendidly debauched Captain Hook.
(If you’re into in-jokes, look out for the nod to Jurassic Park late on in the film, with the parrot taking the role of one of the raptors. Hilarious.)
Cypher
Ordinary guy Morgan Sullivan (Jeremy Northam) gets tied up in a complex web of futuristic corporate espionage involving multiple layers of double-crossing and brainwashing. The film is stark and minimalist, both in terms of its visual style (which is reminiscent of Vincenzo Natali’s previous film, Cube), and its milieu. The (near?) future world is left blank and generic, and the two rival corporations, Sunways and Digicorp, are left faceless apart from their heads of security, who bat Sullivan back and forth like an unwitting pawn. When the mysterious Rita (Lucy Liu) offers him a way out, Sullivan has to question not only who he can trust, but also who he really is. The film’s overall pacing is a bit slow and self-indulgent, leaving you too much idle time to predict the final outcome, but the last twist is executed very tidily nevertheless. (Also, watch out for a short but excellent cameo from the mighty Malcolm Xerxes!)
Shaun Of The Dead
Although this sets out to be a spoof of zombie films (especially the original Dawn Of The Dead), Shaun Of The Dead succeeds on many more levels than that. First of all, it completely nails the essence of the horror/zombie genre, with funny and accurate rip-offs of the stereotype characters and plot devices. Secondly, it genuinely is a “romantic comedy–with zombies.” The love story is honest and heartfelt, with even the peripheral characters being well-drawn and sympathetic. And as a horror film in its own right, the film works. In places it is genuinely scary and claustrophobic. The comedy is exquisitely timed to let you experience the thrill of a horror film before breaking the tension with a belly-shaking joke. It really is an extraordinarily well-constructed film.
Update: see also Tagline’s assessment of it.
Dawn Of The Dead (2004)
I don’t watch many scary horror films. I can handle the lightweight, jump-out-of-your-seat stuff, like Scream, Event Horizon, or Cube, but I’m not too good with the films that really set out to disturb and unsettle. It took me months to recover from The Blair Witch Project, and after seeing the 1978 version of Invasion of The Body Snatchers as an impressionable teenager I still can’t deal with having plants in the bedroom. People keep telling me how good Ring and its Japanese original Ringu are, but I have no intention of ever seeing either. Nuh-uh.
So I’m not really sure why I wanted to see Dawn Of The Dead. Maybe I wanted to expose myself to a little zombie culture before catching Shaun Of The Dead, which looks like a blast. Maybe my inner film fan wanted to compensate for never having seen the George Romero original. Maybe it was the only alternative to Starsky and Hutch that Abi found palatable…. Whatever. We saw it last night.
The first fifteen minutes or so are intensely unsettling. Before it all gets really hectic and bloody, there is a period of quiet and uncertainty that you know can’t last. It’s just a question of when the stillness will be punctured. When that moment comes, you’ve spent just enough time building up empathy with the characters that it is thoroughly shocking and disturbing. Especially if you’re a parent whose kids have a habit of getting up and scratching at your bedroom door in the middle of the night. Thanks, Alex. That was a 4am wake up call I could have done without.
Once the zombies break cover, though, the film turns into a more conventional spot-the-survivor thrill ride. A small gang of uninfected people barricade themselves in a mall, and try to figure out how to escape. They have to overcome their own bickering and paranoia, but apart from a few moving scenes, they don’t dwell on their personal losses. Their focus is on action and hope rather than on fear and despair–for which I’m glad, because I don’t think I could have coped with a whole film that was as scary as this one’s opening act.
I’m now also reconsidering my interest in seeing 28 Days Later. I did enjoy Dawn Of The Dead, but one really scary movie every few years is quite enough for me.