A black comedy from the US with enough laughs to make it enjoyable.
Shannon is a sex addict, which has resulted in her losing job after job. Hitting bottom, she has returned to her shabby home town to live with her sister Martha, and work with her as a hotel chambermaid. Having supposedly overcome her problems Shannon is reluctant to let Martha know that she is still shagging anyone she can. So when she's found in bed with a hotel resident she cries rape and, in the ensuing struggle, the man is accidentally killed.
The remainder of the plot revolves around their attempts to cover their tracks and dispose of the body. Their preferred route is via a pet crematorium, but that leads to blackmail and they have to get together a large sum of money very fast. The storyline moves along at a decent pace, even if somewhat improbable at times. I mean, would people really donate $12,000 of cash at a bar mitzvah?
This production has 'TV Movie' written all over it, and it somehow feels wrong to be watching in a cinema. Overcome those doubts and you'll find Fresno is a lot of fun, with a few great lines thrown in. (My favourite came from the guy who, on being told of Shannon's addiction, says he thought if was something Tiger Woods had made up.) Martha is the more empathetic character and at times it's hard to sympathise with her sister who seems to destroy all she touches. Redemption does win through though and happy endings of a sort do close off most of the story arcs.
Sex addiction is a taboo rarely tackled in films so it's good to see someone having a go. There will be better movies to come on the subject, but for now this is a decent attempt.
Sunday 28 June 2015
Saturday 27 June 2015
Meet Me in Montenegro, Cineworld, Edinburgh Film Festival
Written, directed and starring real life lovers Alex Holdridge and Linnea Saasen, this is the hidden gem of my 2015 festival. What could so easily have been yet another formulaic romcom has been turned into a movie that's sharp, witty, beautiful and has something important to say about relationships. The writing often felt like something Woody Allen might have turned out three or four decades ago, and I intend that as high praise.
Impoverished film maker Anderson had a brief and passionate affair with dancer Lina, which ended when she suddenly left him on a beach in Montenegro, and the loss has tainted his love life ever since. When he returns to Berlin the two meet again and there is a predictable will they/won't they element to what follows. This is redeemed by the complexities we see in the relationship and the struggles each has to voice their own needs (the premise of the film is based on the tale of how the real life Holdridge and Saasen got together).
Running alongside this is a look into the relationship of the couple Anderson is staying with. She wants a threesome, he says he does too, but who is kidding who? Rupert Friend is excellent as the not-quite-as-up-for-it-as-he'd-like-to-be Stephen showing a real talent for comedy. The cute kitten is a further bonus!
There are faults of course. The 'film within a film' narration by Anderson's professional character can be as annoying as such devices often are, and there is a cartoonish element that seems at odds with the rest of the movie. None of which can quite strip this film of it's charm and sense of involvement.
The film's low budget may have been a bonus, for it forced the directors to use whatever locations they could get, and this adds a layer of seedy realism. There are some gorgeous Montenegro based scenes, but the city of Berlin is a major asset in creating a sense of excitement, diversity and experimentation. It's hard to watch this film and not immediately want to go there.
The film gets a US release next month. It would be good to see it come to the UK too.
Impoverished film maker Anderson had a brief and passionate affair with dancer Lina, which ended when she suddenly left him on a beach in Montenegro, and the loss has tainted his love life ever since. When he returns to Berlin the two meet again and there is a predictable will they/won't they element to what follows. This is redeemed by the complexities we see in the relationship and the struggles each has to voice their own needs (the premise of the film is based on the tale of how the real life Holdridge and Saasen got together).
Running alongside this is a look into the relationship of the couple Anderson is staying with. She wants a threesome, he says he does too, but who is kidding who? Rupert Friend is excellent as the not-quite-as-up-for-it-as-he'd-like-to-be Stephen showing a real talent for comedy. The cute kitten is a further bonus!
There are faults of course. The 'film within a film' narration by Anderson's professional character can be as annoying as such devices often are, and there is a cartoonish element that seems at odds with the rest of the movie. None of which can quite strip this film of it's charm and sense of involvement.
The film's low budget may have been a bonus, for it forced the directors to use whatever locations they could get, and this adds a layer of seedy realism. There are some gorgeous Montenegro based scenes, but the city of Berlin is a major asset in creating a sense of excitement, diversity and experimentation. It's hard to watch this film and not immediately want to go there.
The film gets a US release next month. It would be good to see it come to the UK too.
Scottish Mussel, Cineworld, Edinburgh Film Festival
Billed as an old fashioned comedy that all the family can enjoy, this film hits the old fashioned spot. Director Talulah Riley also stars as Beth, an English conservationist leading a project to protect Highland wildlife. And particularly the freshwater mussel which is being targeted by pearl pirates (yes, really....). Attracted by the possibility of easy money, Govan ned Ritchie (Martin Compston) inveigles his way on to the project team so that his colleagues in crime can get the information they need to carry out their search for pearls. But when (surprise, surprise) he falls in love with Beth there's the possibility that he may see the error of his ways.
You can fill in the gaps for yourself. Because there is very little in the storyline that isn't entirely predictable. Real old fashioned films, Ealing comedies for instance, remedied this by overdosing on charm and a lot of laughs, something this script seems to have omitted. A skinny man in a bright pink wetsuit really isn't much to laugh about in 2015. Compston does his best with what he's given, but it could never be enough. At least there are some stunning views of the Scottish countryside to please the eye.
There are cameo appearances from some familiar faces, the most notable, for all the wrong reasons, being Harry Enfield's cringe-worthy attempt at some form of Scottish accent. I'm guessing he thinks Brigadoon is a documentary.
Old fashioned? Yes. Comedy? Not so you would know. Some families might it enjoy it if they are after an undemanding bit of fun, but for me it was a huge disappointment.
You can fill in the gaps for yourself. Because there is very little in the storyline that isn't entirely predictable. Real old fashioned films, Ealing comedies for instance, remedied this by overdosing on charm and a lot of laughs, something this script seems to have omitted. A skinny man in a bright pink wetsuit really isn't much to laugh about in 2015. Compston does his best with what he's given, but it could never be enough. At least there are some stunning views of the Scottish countryside to please the eye.
There are cameo appearances from some familiar faces, the most notable, for all the wrong reasons, being Harry Enfield's cringe-worthy attempt at some form of Scottish accent. I'm guessing he thinks Brigadoon is a documentary.
Old fashioned? Yes. Comedy? Not so you would know. Some families might it enjoy it if they are after an undemanding bit of fun, but for me it was a huge disappointment.
Thursday 25 June 2015
Bereave, Dominion, Edinburgh Film Festival
Garvey (Malcolm McDowell) is irascible, insulting and unpredictable. His wife Evelyn (Jane Seymour) is baffled and hurt by his behaviour, especially as today is their fortieth wedding anniversary. Their grown up children despair of the way their parents' marriage is becoming so troubled.
It becomes apparent that Garvey's choleric attitudes cover a secret he is withholding from his nearest and dearest, and that he is deliberately creating distance between them and himself. This is tough on Evelyn and when he runs off for the day she ends up drinking heavily, flourishing a fencing sword, and wandering off into the night. Meanwhile Garvey has recruited a beautiful young woman to stand by the family funeral plot, ready to deliver a eulogy he gives her when the moment is right. Impending death is a constant companion throughout the film.
There is an eccentric performance from Keith Carradine as Victor, Garvey's younger brother, and most of the scenes he's involved in bring little to the development of the
storyline. Other than to show that his sibling, despite his obsession with his own problem, cares enough to help him out when he's in a jam. (Victor gets arrested for, as his driver describes it, "stabbing a door".)
While it's good to see another (still too rare) movie focussing on the lives of older characters, and the ending provides some genuinely moving moments, the overall impression is one of confusion and I ended up unclear what the film was wanting to say to the audience. Except perhaps that that's how families are - confusing, messy and full of uncertainties.
A film that turns out to be less than the sum of its parts.
It becomes apparent that Garvey's choleric attitudes cover a secret he is withholding from his nearest and dearest, and that he is deliberately creating distance between them and himself. This is tough on Evelyn and when he runs off for the day she ends up drinking heavily, flourishing a fencing sword, and wandering off into the night. Meanwhile Garvey has recruited a beautiful young woman to stand by the family funeral plot, ready to deliver a eulogy he gives her when the moment is right. Impending death is a constant companion throughout the film.
There is an eccentric performance from Keith Carradine as Victor, Garvey's younger brother, and most of the scenes he's involved in bring little to the development of the
storyline. Other than to show that his sibling, despite his obsession with his own problem, cares enough to help him out when he's in a jam. (Victor gets arrested for, as his driver describes it, "stabbing a door".)
While it's good to see another (still too rare) movie focussing on the lives of older characters, and the ending provides some genuinely moving moments, the overall impression is one of confusion and I ended up unclear what the film was wanting to say to the audience. Except perhaps that that's how families are - confusing, messy and full of uncertainties.
A film that turns out to be less than the sum of its parts.
Wednesday 24 June 2015
The Incident, Cineworld, Edinburgh Film Festival
THE INCIDENT
Meet Annabel and Joe - young, good looking well off. Beneath the smugly have-it-all surface there are fissures in the relationship, cracks to fall into.
Meet Lily - a young prostitute and petty thief, who convinces Joe to have a quickie with her while he waits for pizza (the least convincing moment of the film, the sullen teenager exhibiting all the seductive charms of an Ann Widdecombe speech....).
When Lily accidentally discovers where the couple live she turns up when Joe is away on business. Knocking back a bottle of champagne from the garage, she sneaks in through an open door, and terrifies Annabel when she appears in the bedroom, before making her getaway.
When Annabel is offered the option of confronting Lily through the victim support programme Joe's guilt kicks into overdrive and he is faced with the choice of revealing his indiscretion, or risking his wife discovering it for herself. When the meeting goes ahead we know the marriage will never be the same again.
What's also clear is that the real victim is Lily herself. Vulnerable, thrust into sexually exploitative relationships, a child at odds with the adult world she has must survive in, making the problems the couple face look trivial and of their own making.
Ruta Gedmintas is excellent as Annabel, forced to confront the problems, and fears, she faces and conveying her inner monologue wordlessly. This a discomfiting film, filled with sharpnesses and angles, awkward moments and painful silences, unsaid truths and hidden lies, and the ninety minutes flew by for this viewer. I hope it can find a way out on to general release.
Meet Annabel and Joe - young, good looking well off. Beneath the smugly have-it-all surface there are fissures in the relationship, cracks to fall into.
Meet Lily - a young prostitute and petty thief, who convinces Joe to have a quickie with her while he waits for pizza (the least convincing moment of the film, the sullen teenager exhibiting all the seductive charms of an Ann Widdecombe speech....).
When Lily accidentally discovers where the couple live she turns up when Joe is away on business. Knocking back a bottle of champagne from the garage, she sneaks in through an open door, and terrifies Annabel when she appears in the bedroom, before making her getaway.
When Annabel is offered the option of confronting Lily through the victim support programme Joe's guilt kicks into overdrive and he is faced with the choice of revealing his indiscretion, or risking his wife discovering it for herself. When the meeting goes ahead we know the marriage will never be the same again.
What's also clear is that the real victim is Lily herself. Vulnerable, thrust into sexually exploitative relationships, a child at odds with the adult world she has must survive in, making the problems the couple face look trivial and of their own making.
Ruta Gedmintas is excellent as Annabel, forced to confront the problems, and fears, she faces and conveying her inner monologue wordlessly. This a discomfiting film, filled with sharpnesses and angles, awkward moments and painful silences, unsaid truths and hidden lies, and the ninety minutes flew by for this viewer. I hope it can find a way out on to general release.
Tuesday 23 June 2015
Manglehorn, Cineworld, Edinburgh Film Festival
Some lonelinesses are forced upon us, some we construct for ourselves.
Al Pacino is Manglehorn, a Texas locksmith who keeps the world at arms length. He can provide love for his ailing cat, but is unable to engage with his troubled son. On a date with a woman who is clearly falling in love with him he talks at length about the love of his life and his regret at losing her. He can walk past a major car accident and fail to notice the suffering of those involved. Only with his young granddaughter does he allow himself any real emotional connection
Mangelhorn can help people get into their locked cars, or crack into an old safe to which the combination has been lost, but he can't find a way to open up his own feelings and let himself enjoy the life he has. That heavy handed metaphor, and the too frequent use of voiceovers, is partly compensated for by Pacino's performance. The over the top persona he can bring to the screen has been locked away and we get a very human, fallible and morose man who can't, or won't, communicate. A misanthropic tale, but brightened by the possibility for change at the end.
This is no classic movie, but it's enjoyable enough.
Al Pacino is Manglehorn, a Texas locksmith who keeps the world at arms length. He can provide love for his ailing cat, but is unable to engage with his troubled son. On a date with a woman who is clearly falling in love with him he talks at length about the love of his life and his regret at losing her. He can walk past a major car accident and fail to notice the suffering of those involved. Only with his young granddaughter does he allow himself any real emotional connection
Mangelhorn can help people get into their locked cars, or crack into an old safe to which the combination has been lost, but he can't find a way to open up his own feelings and let himself enjoy the life he has. That heavy handed metaphor, and the too frequent use of voiceovers, is partly compensated for by Pacino's performance. The over the top persona he can bring to the screen has been locked away and we get a very human, fallible and morose man who can't, or won't, communicate. A misanthropic tale, but brightened by the possibility for change at the end.
This is no classic movie, but it's enjoyable enough.
Monday 22 June 2015
North v South, Cineworld, Edinburgh Film Festival
An every day tale of psychopaths and star (double) crossed lovers.
Like a modern take on Romeo and Juliet, where the infatuated couple are children of two rival gangland dynasties, each of whom dominates organised crime in the north and south of the country. The attempted rapprochement between the two mob bosses swiftly falls apart when one of the southern acolytes casually slits the throat of a friend of the northern godfather. From then it's just a matter of who will kill and/or frame who, and how quickly.
There are some outstanding performances, particularly from Bernard Hill as the head of the northern clan, and some nice visual moments. But they fail to make any dent on a predictable and unrealistic storyline in which it's hard to empathise with a single character. The violence escalates, there are a few improbable survivals, the odd laugh and - well, that's about it.
In the end the lovers get away together, but by then I was just pleased that it signalled the end of this turgid piece.
Tedious.
Like a modern take on Romeo and Juliet, where the infatuated couple are children of two rival gangland dynasties, each of whom dominates organised crime in the north and south of the country. The attempted rapprochement between the two mob bosses swiftly falls apart when one of the southern acolytes casually slits the throat of a friend of the northern godfather. From then it's just a matter of who will kill and/or frame who, and how quickly.
There are some outstanding performances, particularly from Bernard Hill as the head of the northern clan, and some nice visual moments. But they fail to make any dent on a predictable and unrealistic storyline in which it's hard to empathise with a single character. The violence escalates, there are a few improbable survivals, the odd laugh and - well, that's about it.
In the end the lovers get away together, but by then I was just pleased that it signalled the end of this turgid piece.
Tedious.
Sunday 21 June 2015
Welcome to Me, Filmhouse, Edinburgh Film Festival
Alice Klieg (Kirsten Wiig) has a borderline personality disorder, living a life of obsession with TV, and especially Oprah. When she wins millions of dollars on the lottery she decides to cut loose from her regime of medication and therapy and try to live out her dreams.
She asks a struggling TV station if she can have her own daytime show, to be called Welcome To Me, in which the only subject matter is Alice herself. Desperate for her money, they management agree, despite many reservations. The result is cringe inducing, narcissistic and utterly hilarious. The show is so bad, even by the usual daytime TV standards, that it attracts a cult following. But inevitably the lack of control in Alice's life means she can no longer control her symptoms, something no amount of money can keep at bay. The ending is cathartic, moving and contains some of the funniest moments.
Wiig gives a brilliantly straight performance, ensuring Alice, whilst uproariously funny, is more a figure of tragedy than ridicule. The real target is the low sense of values to be found in so much daytime TV. Although set in the US, it feels just as applicable here.
As an audience we were laughing constantly, and it is humour that dominates throughout. But underneath the comicality there is an angle into our obsession with celebrity that makes this more than just a simple comedy.
The Road Within, Cineworld, Edinburgh Film Festival
An American road movie with issues. Three residents of a clinic for troubled young adults take their doctor's car and head off to see the ocean. Vincent (tourettes), Alex (obsessive compulsive) and Marie (anorexia) make an unlikely trio and there is constant conflict from the unending demands of their conditions. But the pressures of staying a step of ahead of their pursuers force them to bond in ways they could not foresee. While their behavioural problems give rise to a great deal of comedy, their route to greater understanding of one another, and themselves, is often tender and restorative.
Giving chase are the concerned doctor and Vincent's angry father, and they too see the world from very different standpoints. But common cause, and frustration, mean they too start to learn new perspectives.
This is a commercial movie, so towards the end it is no surprise to find a degree of the kind of emotional manipulation that Hollywood so often favours, but that doesn't detract from the performances and the essential message that the world needs to learn, and teach their kids, to look behind the surface behaviour at the people inside. All three characters hate the limitations their conditions impose upon them, and want people to see a person beyond the tics and obsessive behaviour.
A film that's funny, informative and life affirming. Although the transformation of Vincent's (presumably Republican) politician father into an empathetic human being was stretching credulity a bit far!
Giving chase are the concerned doctor and Vincent's angry father, and they too see the world from very different standpoints. But common cause, and frustration, mean they too start to learn new perspectives.
This is a commercial movie, so towards the end it is no surprise to find a degree of the kind of emotional manipulation that Hollywood so often favours, but that doesn't detract from the performances and the essential message that the world needs to learn, and teach their kids, to look behind the surface behaviour at the people inside. All three characters hate the limitations their conditions impose upon them, and want people to see a person beyond the tics and obsessive behaviour.
A film that's funny, informative and life affirming. Although the transformation of Vincent's (presumably Republican) politician father into an empathetic human being was stretching credulity a bit far!
Saturday 20 June 2015
Makeup Room, Odeon, Edinburgh Film Festival
Shot entirely in one scruffy room, this is a Japanese comedy set behind the scenes of the porn film industry. At the centre of the action is Kyoko, the makeup artist who is the calm centre of a chaotic day of shooting. She ministers to the needs, both visual and emotional, of the women performers, keeps the technicians in line and holds back pressures from the director. A constant stream of characters pass in and out of the room sharing their various states of anxiety, torpor, and excitement, demanding attention or seeking solace. Kyoko is both mother hen and foreman, a sympathetic ear, but remaining the professional who is being paid to help kep things moving.
Played very much for laughs, and successfully so, there is little mention of the darker side of the industry. A couple of the women complain of unnecessarily rough treatment during their scenes, but most love their job and are happy to continue in the business for as long as they are considered employable. One talks of plans to transition into the 'mature' market when the time is right.
Several members of the cast are real life porn stars, which might explain why some of the acting felt amateurish. At 86 minutes it certainly isn't a long film, yet I left feeling it would have benefited from losing ten to fifteen of those minutes as I was losing interest before the end. Funny, but ultimately dissatisfying.
Played very much for laughs, and successfully so, there is little mention of the darker side of the industry. A couple of the women complain of unnecessarily rough treatment during their scenes, but most love their job and are happy to continue in the business for as long as they are considered employable. One talks of plans to transition into the 'mature' market when the time is right.
Several members of the cast are real life porn stars, which might explain why some of the acting felt amateurish. At 86 minutes it certainly isn't a long film, yet I left feeling it would have benefited from losing ten to fifteen of those minutes as I was losing interest before the end. Funny, but ultimately dissatisfying.
Who Am I - No System Is Safe, Cineworld, Edinburgh Film Festival
A German take on cybercrime and the world of the hackers.
Benjamin returns to a hotel room to find his co-conspirators brutally murdered. In terror of his own life he hands himself into the police, saying that he will reveal the identities of some of the most wanted cyber criminals, but only if he can talk to Hanne Lindberg, a discredited senior investigator at Europol. As he reveals his past to his questioner we see his life played out in flashback. The nerdy kid that nobody noticed, discovering that his ability as a computer hacker made him feel like somebody, and his being recruited into a group that specialised in audacious high profile hacking stunts, including physical break-ins.
This culminates in a successful attack on the German Security Service that will bring them into conflict with a group that has links with the Russian Mafia, a group that Hanne has been in pursuit of for years. Promised immunity if he can help to bring down the group, Benjamin cooperates with the authorities.
Fast paced and loud, fun and often very funny, the film is engaging, but offers little originality in the storyline. It is redeemed by the plot twists at the end that manage to spring a few surprises and leave the audience wondering whose truth they have been watching.
Benjamin returns to a hotel room to find his co-conspirators brutally murdered. In terror of his own life he hands himself into the police, saying that he will reveal the identities of some of the most wanted cyber criminals, but only if he can talk to Hanne Lindberg, a discredited senior investigator at Europol. As he reveals his past to his questioner we see his life played out in flashback. The nerdy kid that nobody noticed, discovering that his ability as a computer hacker made him feel like somebody, and his being recruited into a group that specialised in audacious high profile hacking stunts, including physical break-ins.
This culminates in a successful attack on the German Security Service that will bring them into conflict with a group that has links with the Russian Mafia, a group that Hanne has been in pursuit of for years. Promised immunity if he can help to bring down the group, Benjamin cooperates with the authorities.
Fast paced and loud, fun and often very funny, the film is engaging, but offers little originality in the storyline. It is redeemed by the plot twists at the end that manage to spring a few surprises and leave the audience wondering whose truth they have been watching.
Hector, Cineworld, Edinburgh Film Festival
When I booked my tickets for the 2015 EIFF there was one film I was looking forward to seeing more than any other. Because, well, Peter Mullan.
Hector is a road movie with a deeply humane core. Heartwarming is an adjective much overused by film critics, but wholly appropriate on this occasion. Mullan is the eponymous central character, a man who walked out of his own life fifteen years before and has lived on the streets ever since. We see his existence, rough sleeping, the risk of violence, accepting kindnesses from strangers, hitching from place to place. For Xmas he returns to a shelter in London where he is a familiar figure, and through conversations there the trauma and tragedy in his past, and reasons for his homeless state, are gradually revealed.
Along the way he has, for the first time since his disappearance, made efforts to get back in contact with his siblings. Initially rebuffed by his sister (and her priggish husband, a wonderfully prickly Stephen Tompkinson), he meets up with brother Peter in London. (Peter is working as a council recycling operative, or, as Hector calls him, a "conscientious fucking bin man" - there are memorable lines and phrases sprinkled all through the film.) Hector returns to the road and the life he knows, but hope for the future has been restored.
From the off there is some wonderful cinematography, the opening sequence looking down on an M74 car park, following random motorists until Hector limps into shot. The script and performances provide a lot of laugh out loud moments and some genuinely emotional and touching scenes. It is a world few of us know much about other than in passing, a world of brief interactions with myriad others, and where contact with officialdom poses problems. The soundtrack features some beautiful songs from Emily Barker, written for the movie.
But at the heart of it all is Peter Mullan's Hector. A long way from the hard men he so frequently portrays, the character is both warm and distrustful, funny and grumpy, connected and distant. One of his finest performances and a brilliant study of the fragility of the lives we all lead. I walked out feeling elated and humbled, and knowing that this will be a movie that will always find a place in my top ten of all time.
Hector is scheduled to be out on general release towards the end of this year. You really should go.
Friday 19 June 2015
The Chambermaid Lynn, Cineworld, Edinburgh Film Festival
A highy stylised German movie that invites the audience to fill in he gaps in the story. The opening scenes give us various insights into Lynn's life and character. We soon know that she goes to a therapy session every Monday, has impersonal sex with her boss on a Wednesday, and phones her mother at the same time each Sunday. On the surface she is colourless and self effacing, but underneath the structured life she has more complex needs.
Lynn is obsessive about cleaning, which proves a plus in her job as a hotel chambermaid. But she also has obsessions with the hotel guests, sniffing their belongings, trying on their clothes and even hiding under beds to observe them.
One day her voyeurism leads her to watch a professional dominatrix ply her trade. Intrigued, Lynn notes her number and books a session. This leads to an unlikely relationship, initially sexual, but increasingly intimate and tender. Perhaps the nearest thing to love Lynn has experienced. It cannot last, but may have provided Lynn with some of the self confidence she has always lacked.
Moving through a world that feels one step removed from reality, is Lynn a victim of circumstances, or can she become the hero of her own story? Judge for yourself.
Lynn is obsessive about cleaning, which proves a plus in her job as a hotel chambermaid. But she also has obsessions with the hotel guests, sniffing their belongings, trying on their clothes and even hiding under beds to observe them.
One day her voyeurism leads her to watch a professional dominatrix ply her trade. Intrigued, Lynn notes her number and books a session. This leads to an unlikely relationship, initially sexual, but increasingly intimate and tender. Perhaps the nearest thing to love Lynn has experienced. It cannot last, but may have provided Lynn with some of the self confidence she has always lacked.
Moving through a world that feels one step removed from reality, is Lynn a victim of circumstances, or can she become the hero of her own story? Judge for yourself.
45 Years, Cineworld, Edinburgh Film Festival
Kate and Geoff (Charlotte Rampling and Tom Courtenay) live a comfortable retired life in rural England. She is active and sharply intelligent, he, a few years older and slowed by the heart bypass op which had forced cancellation of their 40th anniversary celebrations, seems more ponderous in mind and body.
A few days before the big party to celebrate 45 years since their wedding, arranged to make up for that 40th disappointment, Geoff receives a letter from Switzerland informing him that the body of a girl has been discovered in a glacier and he is next of kin. This comes as a major surprise to Kate who was unaware that he had had such an intense relationship prior to theirs. Geoff shrugs it off as all in the past, revealing little, but in the days that follow the memory of that time is obviously occupying his mind, and Kate feels forced to question him, and do a little snooping of her own, to learn more of the truth.
Out of the blue the world she felt sure of has been undermined and secrets and suspicions fracture the relationship that had seemed so secure. Had all their lives together been based on lies?
There is reconciliation, a determination that the long planned party should go off well. And it is at the party that the film ends. Geoff, flooded with emotion and convinced all will be well, Kate unable to quite shake off the conviction that all has changed. The viewer is left to make up their own mind as to what may happen next, and, if the marriage can continue, on what terms?
The pace is slow, the anxiety builds gradually, and there is real tension in anticipating how the party will unfold, as well as posing questions we all recognise. How well can you ever know the person you share your life with? How little does it take for the cracks to appear? Can we sometimes invest too much of our own identity in our relationships? And just how much does your partner's past, from before you knew them, have relevance to your own life?
Visually there is nothing much to get excited over, this is all about the writing and the acting. Rampling is outstanding as a the woman unsettled when her foundations crumble, and her eyes reveal a character taken unawares by her own reactions and uncertain of which way she will turn. A humane and deeply emotional film.
A few days before the big party to celebrate 45 years since their wedding, arranged to make up for that 40th disappointment, Geoff receives a letter from Switzerland informing him that the body of a girl has been discovered in a glacier and he is next of kin. This comes as a major surprise to Kate who was unaware that he had had such an intense relationship prior to theirs. Geoff shrugs it off as all in the past, revealing little, but in the days that follow the memory of that time is obviously occupying his mind, and Kate feels forced to question him, and do a little snooping of her own, to learn more of the truth.
Out of the blue the world she felt sure of has been undermined and secrets and suspicions fracture the relationship that had seemed so secure. Had all their lives together been based on lies?
There is reconciliation, a determination that the long planned party should go off well. And it is at the party that the film ends. Geoff, flooded with emotion and convinced all will be well, Kate unable to quite shake off the conviction that all has changed. The viewer is left to make up their own mind as to what may happen next, and, if the marriage can continue, on what terms?
The pace is slow, the anxiety builds gradually, and there is real tension in anticipating how the party will unfold, as well as posing questions we all recognise. How well can you ever know the person you share your life with? How little does it take for the cracks to appear? Can we sometimes invest too much of our own identity in our relationships? And just how much does your partner's past, from before you knew them, have relevance to your own life?
Visually there is nothing much to get excited over, this is all about the writing and the acting. Rampling is outstanding as a the woman unsettled when her foundations crumble, and her eyes reveal a character taken unawares by her own reactions and uncertain of which way she will turn. A humane and deeply emotional film.
Thursday 18 June 2015
The Gulls, Filmhouse, Edinburgh Film Festival
From the small and little known south Russian republic of Kalmykia, comes the story of a woman trapped in a futile life.
Elza is married to Dzhiga, a fisherman with whom she shares little. He is controlling, taciturn, unemotional. The opening scene shows Elza packing her case and walking away, but she never gets past the bus stop, realising that she has nowhere to go and this is her life.
Lacking money for a family event, Dzhiga embarks on an illegal fishing expedition, but ends up trapped in fast developing ice and frozen to death. Elza is left pregnant, rejected by her mother in law, even less sure of her future.
That sounds like there isn't much of a storyline, and this is certainly a film in which very little actually happens. Yet the hour and half passes swiftly, with far less tedium than you might think. In part because the window into Kalmkian culture is so intriguing, a society where the ubiquity of mobile phones jars with the observance of traditional custom and practice. While the cinematography, and musical score, are designed to convey the slow pace of life and bleakness of the surroundings. There is considerable use of long, fixed angle shots, with the action taking the eye from one side of the screen to the other. This brings a calmness to the film that we are unused to nowadays.
Not a movie for anyone who demands a bit of action, but fascinating for the slice of the alternative life it offers. And the gulls of the title? In Kalmyk culture they represent the souls of deceased fishermen.
Elza is married to Dzhiga, a fisherman with whom she shares little. He is controlling, taciturn, unemotional. The opening scene shows Elza packing her case and walking away, but she never gets past the bus stop, realising that she has nowhere to go and this is her life.
Lacking money for a family event, Dzhiga embarks on an illegal fishing expedition, but ends up trapped in fast developing ice and frozen to death. Elza is left pregnant, rejected by her mother in law, even less sure of her future.
That sounds like there isn't much of a storyline, and this is certainly a film in which very little actually happens. Yet the hour and half passes swiftly, with far less tedium than you might think. In part because the window into Kalmkian culture is so intriguing, a society where the ubiquity of mobile phones jars with the observance of traditional custom and practice. While the cinematography, and musical score, are designed to convey the slow pace of life and bleakness of the surroundings. There is considerable use of long, fixed angle shots, with the action taking the eye from one side of the screen to the other. This brings a calmness to the film that we are unused to nowadays.
Not a movie for anyone who demands a bit of action, but fascinating for the slice of the alternative life it offers. And the gulls of the title? In Kalmyk culture they represent the souls of deceased fishermen.
13 Minutes, Filmhouse, Edinburgh Film Festival
From the director of Downfall, the film that launched a thousand Hitler parodies, a look at a lesser known incident in Nazi history. Georg Elser built and planted a bomb in a Munich beer house, timing it to go off when the Fuehrer was making a speech there. The bomb went off as planned, but missed Adolf who had left thirteen minutes earlier. This took place shortly after the beginning of the Second World War, and it's impossible not to indulge in some 'what if?' speculation.
Director Hirschbiegel was introduced to the audience before the screening, and would do a Q&A session afterwards. In his introduction he told us that much of the dialogue was derived from Gestapo files and interviews with primary sources. He also warned us that we wouldn't be getting many laughs.
The opening scene shows Elser planting the bomb and attempting to make his getaway, only to be arrested at the Swiss border. From then we have two stories running in parallel. The interrogation and torture of the prisoner once captured and his life leading up to his decision to make his assassination attempt.
The latter thread paints a very sensory picture of life in rural Germany in the 1930s, and how dangerous life under the Nazi regime became. Georg starts out as an advocate of non-violence, and we see the events which shape his conviction that he must bring about Hitler's death to save Germany from destruction.
Prisoner Georg is subjected to beatings and torture, but it is the threats of violence towards his former lover which convinces him to cooperate. He admits responsibility and explains how he sourced the materials for the bomb, and designed it. His interrogation is led by two senior SS officers, Arthur Nebe and the infamous Gestapo chief Heinrich Mueller. Eventually they believe his story, only to be told by their superiors that there must have been a conspiracy, so the torture of Elser continues even after he has revealed the whole truth.
For most of the film the pre-bomb narrative acts as a respite from the intensity of the Gestapo scenes, but as his preparations start to fall into place this part of the story winds up the tension. The inhumanity and fear combine to bring a sense of heightened anxiety.
So the irony of the ending is unexpected. Nebe is hanged, by Mueller, for his part in the near-miss 1944 plot to kill Hitler. And we find Elser in Dachau, days before the end of the war, being summarily executed.
Georg Elser is little known to history, even in Germany. As Hirschbiegel explained, he was only a poor, country carpenter, operating alone, belonging to no grouping which might campaign for his recognition, as would have happened had he been a communist or aristocrat. A remarkable tribute to a remarkable man. Highly recommended viewing.
Director Hirschbiegel was introduced to the audience before the screening, and would do a Q&A session afterwards. In his introduction he told us that much of the dialogue was derived from Gestapo files and interviews with primary sources. He also warned us that we wouldn't be getting many laughs.
The opening scene shows Elser planting the bomb and attempting to make his getaway, only to be arrested at the Swiss border. From then we have two stories running in parallel. The interrogation and torture of the prisoner once captured and his life leading up to his decision to make his assassination attempt.
The latter thread paints a very sensory picture of life in rural Germany in the 1930s, and how dangerous life under the Nazi regime became. Georg starts out as an advocate of non-violence, and we see the events which shape his conviction that he must bring about Hitler's death to save Germany from destruction.
Prisoner Georg is subjected to beatings and torture, but it is the threats of violence towards his former lover which convinces him to cooperate. He admits responsibility and explains how he sourced the materials for the bomb, and designed it. His interrogation is led by two senior SS officers, Arthur Nebe and the infamous Gestapo chief Heinrich Mueller. Eventually they believe his story, only to be told by their superiors that there must have been a conspiracy, so the torture of Elser continues even after he has revealed the whole truth.
For most of the film the pre-bomb narrative acts as a respite from the intensity of the Gestapo scenes, but as his preparations start to fall into place this part of the story winds up the tension. The inhumanity and fear combine to bring a sense of heightened anxiety.
So the irony of the ending is unexpected. Nebe is hanged, by Mueller, for his part in the near-miss 1944 plot to kill Hitler. And we find Elser in Dachau, days before the end of the war, being summarily executed.
Georg Elser is little known to history, even in Germany. As Hirschbiegel explained, he was only a poor, country carpenter, operating alone, belonging to no grouping which might campaign for his recognition, as would have happened had he been a communist or aristocrat. A remarkable tribute to a remarkable man. Highly recommended viewing.
Tuesday 16 June 2015
The Driver's Seat, Lyceum
Based on a 1970 novella by Muriel Spark, which was advertised as a 'metaphysical thriller', it's a tale with a dark centre.
Lise is a thirty something office worker, alienated from her colleagues, cracking under the pressures of her job. She decides to take a holiday of adventure, swaps her drab work wear for a garish, look-at-me outfit, and flies off to the sunny south. Her origins and destination are never fully revealed, and the play is very much about what is seen, and heard, rather than known.
From early on the storyline keeps breaking off into a crime investigation with detectives commenting on the evidence they have gathered and questioning witnesses. We quickly gather that they are attempting to solve a murder case. And that Lise is the victim.
In the course of a day spent in the city Lise encounters a range of characters and to each it seems she is someone different, although to most of the men she is an object of lust and desire, a conquest to be made. On the surface her actions look to be the result of increasing mental anguish. The greatest strength of this production is the underlying suggestion of ambiguity, the sneaking thought that Lise's dramatic personality changes may largely be a reflection of the wishes and fantasies imposed on her by others. How much responsibility should she be accorded for her own tragic end?
The staging is cleverly thought out. A wide open space with the cast constantly shifting furniture and props to create new scenes, there's never a doubt about where we are at any moment, even when the police investigators are watching and commenting on the action as if watching a replay. There are multi media aspects too, with static talking heads, or live action from handheld cameras, being projected on to the backdrop. The close ups add to the intensity of the later scenes. But it is also, despite the black subject matter, very funny at times, so that the build up in tension finds several release valves along the way. The frantic stop-star taxi ride was memorable, and I loved the cheeky creation of an escalator.
Other than Morven Christie, who is excellent as the disturbed and disturbing central character, the cast all take on multiple personas. With not a single weak link amongst them. Tonight's performance was billed as a preview, but it looked like the finished article to me.
The most intriguing aspect of the staging was the character who sat at an outer desk throughout most of the play, working with what appeared to be listening or recording equipment. He has no lines, little interaction with the other players, and is not even credited as a member of the cast in the programme. We are all being watched. And judged.
Not one to watch if you like definitive answers from your drama, because you'll leave this production with more questions than you had when you came in.
Lise is a thirty something office worker, alienated from her colleagues, cracking under the pressures of her job. She decides to take a holiday of adventure, swaps her drab work wear for a garish, look-at-me outfit, and flies off to the sunny south. Her origins and destination are never fully revealed, and the play is very much about what is seen, and heard, rather than known.
From early on the storyline keeps breaking off into a crime investigation with detectives commenting on the evidence they have gathered and questioning witnesses. We quickly gather that they are attempting to solve a murder case. And that Lise is the victim.
In the course of a day spent in the city Lise encounters a range of characters and to each it seems she is someone different, although to most of the men she is an object of lust and desire, a conquest to be made. On the surface her actions look to be the result of increasing mental anguish. The greatest strength of this production is the underlying suggestion of ambiguity, the sneaking thought that Lise's dramatic personality changes may largely be a reflection of the wishes and fantasies imposed on her by others. How much responsibility should she be accorded for her own tragic end?
The staging is cleverly thought out. A wide open space with the cast constantly shifting furniture and props to create new scenes, there's never a doubt about where we are at any moment, even when the police investigators are watching and commenting on the action as if watching a replay. There are multi media aspects too, with static talking heads, or live action from handheld cameras, being projected on to the backdrop. The close ups add to the intensity of the later scenes. But it is also, despite the black subject matter, very funny at times, so that the build up in tension finds several release valves along the way. The frantic stop-star taxi ride was memorable, and I loved the cheeky creation of an escalator.
Other than Morven Christie, who is excellent as the disturbed and disturbing central character, the cast all take on multiple personas. With not a single weak link amongst them. Tonight's performance was billed as a preview, but it looked like the finished article to me.
The most intriguing aspect of the staging was the character who sat at an outer desk throughout most of the play, working with what appeared to be listening or recording equipment. He has no lines, little interaction with the other players, and is not even credited as a member of the cast in the programme. We are all being watched. And judged.
Not one to watch if you like definitive answers from your drama, because you'll leave this production with more questions than you had when you came in.
Saturday 13 June 2015
Keara Murphy's Law - An Uplifting Show About Failure, Woodland Creatures
The Leith Festival began today, but, unlike previous years, there appears to be very little in the programme to get excited about. But this gig stood out as we've seen Keara before and always enjoyed her stuff.
Others obviously felt the same for the room was almost full and the crowd looking forward to the night. What we got was clearly a work in progress, a routine that has yet to be fully formed and given the polish of the finished article. Keara seemed nervous at the off and did try hard to get a bit of audience participation going. But this is Edinburgh, where audiences sometimes find it hard to shake off their collective reserve, and tonight's group must have felt like hard work to Murphy at times.
She's a real pro though, and got better as the hour and a bit went by. There was a lot of reliance on her notes, and appeared to be editing her material as she went along, so the performance felt stilted at times. But there's some good stuff there and when it came together it worked well. I enjoyed the tales of her Irish mother, and there's not many shows where you get a direct comparison between a rampant rabbit and a statue of the virgin Mary. Keara is at her best showing off her acting and impersonation skills and the moments where she assumed other characters showed just how confident and fluid a performer she can be.
But Murphy is such a likeable personality, and is naturally funny, so that it's easy to forgive her a few shortcomings and tonight certainly won't put me off wanting to see her again. Indeed it would be good to see a reprise of this show - once it's had the practice and polish it so clearly deserves.
Others obviously felt the same for the room was almost full and the crowd looking forward to the night. What we got was clearly a work in progress, a routine that has yet to be fully formed and given the polish of the finished article. Keara seemed nervous at the off and did try hard to get a bit of audience participation going. But this is Edinburgh, where audiences sometimes find it hard to shake off their collective reserve, and tonight's group must have felt like hard work to Murphy at times.
She's a real pro though, and got better as the hour and a bit went by. There was a lot of reliance on her notes, and appeared to be editing her material as she went along, so the performance felt stilted at times. But there's some good stuff there and when it came together it worked well. I enjoyed the tales of her Irish mother, and there's not many shows where you get a direct comparison between a rampant rabbit and a statue of the virgin Mary. Keara is at her best showing off her acting and impersonation skills and the moments where she assumed other characters showed just how confident and fluid a performer she can be.
But Murphy is such a likeable personality, and is naturally funny, so that it's easy to forgive her a few shortcomings and tonight certainly won't put me off wanting to see her again. Indeed it would be good to see a reprise of this show - once it's had the practice and polish it so clearly deserves.
Friday 12 June 2015
Dean Owens and the Whisky Hearts, Thomas Morton Hall
The Leith Theatre complex is a beautiful set of buildings dating back to the 1930s, including Leith Library and various performance spaces. Sadly the main theatre itself has been unused for a quarter of a century and needs a lot of work doing to restore it to it's former self. The Leith Theatre Trust has been set up to generate the funds required to bring the complex back to life and put the buildings back into the heart of the Leith community.
Tonight's gig was one element in their fundraising activities and featured Leith's finest musical export, Dean Owens, who was brought up just around the corner. There was a big Leither crowd, and the bar provided a fine ale produced by the nearby Pilot microbrewery.
Support was provided by Caroline Gilmour, on guitar and lead vocals, backed up by Lorna Thomas on bass and backing vocals. Gilmour has a powerful voice with great range, like a Scottish Joan Osborne. An engaging performer, with some decent chat between songs, it was an enjoyable set. But I couldn't help feeling that those superb vocals were let down by her material. the songs are workmanlike, and there's a good variety of tempos and themes, but there were none with the kind of killer punch that really grabs an audience's attention. How much better might she sound if she spent some time working with one of our best songwriters, perhaps the likes of Boo Hewerdine?
No such problem for Dean Owens, who has written some true classics in his time. The likes of Raining in Glasgow and Valentine's Day in New York are songs that stay with the listener long after the evening is over.
There isn't much I can say about the man that I didn't already put into my review of his gig a few weeks ago. This was more of the same, with the added benefit of a Leith crowd to cheer him on. The first set ended with a few technical problems on stage (signalled by a very loud electrical bang!), but all was restored for the endgame.
Which Dean launched with a couple of solo numbers, and much emotion when he talked about the recent death of his sister. He's a man with a lot of passion for life and that comes across fully in his music. As do his rock and roll credentials and he finished off the night with a few blasters that had plenty of those Leithers up and dancing like they were at their nephew's wedding. It was that kind of a night.
Tuesday 2 June 2015
Far from the Madding Crowd
I was prepared to have to ignore all thoughts of the original Hardy text, and the 1967 John Schlesinger classic starring Julie Christie and Alan Bates, but this new version stays reasonably faithful to both plot and events, and recreates the essential elements of the story. Which is as it should be.
This is a beautiful film to watch, with great period feel and some lovely attention to details. I loved the passing shot of two men sniffing out the mysteries of a pineapple. There is a strong sense of the civic mores and hierarchic nature of Victorian rural society, and the acceptance of 'knowing your place' within the structure. The tale unfolds in straightforward fashion, with no use of flashbacks and minimal narration. Bathsheba's relationships with her would-be lovers ebb and flow against the seasonal background of farm life and a feeling for how precarious was the line between success and failure.
If I had any quibbles it was with some of the casting. But certainly not that of Carey Mulligan, who creates a superb Bathsheba. Headstrong, confident and independent, but revealing of the pressures put upon a woman trying to make her mark in a strongly patriarchal milieu, Mulligan's character is a nineteenth century feminist meting the world on her own terms.
What of her three suitors? Michael Sheen excels as the socially awkward man of property, Boldwood. (But, let's face it, that sentence could have stopped after the first three words and made perfect sense!) He combines the confidence and arrogance of a man who is secure in his position, with the diffidence and gaucheness of the inexperienced admirer. Simply watching his facial expressions change is a joy.
Then there's Tom Sturridge as the dashing Sergeant Troy, sweeping our heroine off her feet and into a catastrophic marriage. He certainly gets the bullying aspects of the character right, and swiftly becomes a deeply unpleasant presence. But the charm that could win over a spirit of such independence is lacking, and it's hard to see why Bathsheba should be swayed by his puerile efforts to impress her. Even more so if you recall that in '67 the part went to Terence Stamp, who could do roguish so effortlessly. (I did wonder if this was just down to me looking from a male perspective, but it was the first thing Barbara said to me when we emerged into the light.)
Finally there's Matthias Schoenaerts as the solid, dependable Gabriel Oak. It's not that Schoenarts is a bad actor, nor that he gives a poor performance here, far from it. But, like an ill advised attempt at product placement, all I could think when he was on screen was 'Hollywood beefcake'. 'Dorset farmer' wasn't in the running. Of course we all know that box office concerns will often take precedence over art, and the syrupy nature of the closing scene reflects this, but I couldn't help thinking that Matthias would have made a much better Troy then the one we got. And the character of Oak benefited from an actor who could do 'rustic'.
A special mention to Jessica Barden as Bathsheba's companion, Libby, who brought a cheeky insouciance and humour to her role.
Worth watching. But no classic.
This is a beautiful film to watch, with great period feel and some lovely attention to details. I loved the passing shot of two men sniffing out the mysteries of a pineapple. There is a strong sense of the civic mores and hierarchic nature of Victorian rural society, and the acceptance of 'knowing your place' within the structure. The tale unfolds in straightforward fashion, with no use of flashbacks and minimal narration. Bathsheba's relationships with her would-be lovers ebb and flow against the seasonal background of farm life and a feeling for how precarious was the line between success and failure.
If I had any quibbles it was with some of the casting. But certainly not that of Carey Mulligan, who creates a superb Bathsheba. Headstrong, confident and independent, but revealing of the pressures put upon a woman trying to make her mark in a strongly patriarchal milieu, Mulligan's character is a nineteenth century feminist meting the world on her own terms.
What of her three suitors? Michael Sheen excels as the socially awkward man of property, Boldwood. (But, let's face it, that sentence could have stopped after the first three words and made perfect sense!) He combines the confidence and arrogance of a man who is secure in his position, with the diffidence and gaucheness of the inexperienced admirer. Simply watching his facial expressions change is a joy.
Then there's Tom Sturridge as the dashing Sergeant Troy, sweeping our heroine off her feet and into a catastrophic marriage. He certainly gets the bullying aspects of the character right, and swiftly becomes a deeply unpleasant presence. But the charm that could win over a spirit of such independence is lacking, and it's hard to see why Bathsheba should be swayed by his puerile efforts to impress her. Even more so if you recall that in '67 the part went to Terence Stamp, who could do roguish so effortlessly. (I did wonder if this was just down to me looking from a male perspective, but it was the first thing Barbara said to me when we emerged into the light.)
Finally there's Matthias Schoenaerts as the solid, dependable Gabriel Oak. It's not that Schoenarts is a bad actor, nor that he gives a poor performance here, far from it. But, like an ill advised attempt at product placement, all I could think when he was on screen was 'Hollywood beefcake'. 'Dorset farmer' wasn't in the running. Of course we all know that box office concerns will often take precedence over art, and the syrupy nature of the closing scene reflects this, but I couldn't help thinking that Matthias would have made a much better Troy then the one we got. And the character of Oak benefited from an actor who could do 'rustic'.
A special mention to Jessica Barden as Bathsheba's companion, Libby, who brought a cheeky insouciance and humour to her role.
Worth watching. But no classic.
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