Malcolm1980's 2016 Movie Review Thread

[malcolm1980]

1/1

Le silence de la mer (The Silence of The Sea) (Jean-Pierre Melville) ***1/2 - During World War II, a German officer due to a mix-up stays at the house of an old man and his niece in France. The two make their statement by simply not speaking to him. Jean-Pierre Melville is one of my favorite directors and this is one his early works and it's pretty great one. Howard Vernon gives a great performance as the German officer who grows and changes despite the silent treatment given to him by unwilling landlords. I do not wish to give away anything but the ending definitely but quietly packs a punch. This is a pretty good way to start my 2016 movie year.

Anomalisa (Charlie Kaufman/Duke Johnson) **** - A customer service expert feels disconnected and bored with society and most people until he meets a woman whose voice he falls in love with and makes a connection. Trust Charlie Kaufman to make an adult stop-motion animated film. At the very least, you have to say that he's at least interesting. This film is more than interesting. It's a funny, moving and oddly thought provoking little film about what it means to be connected and to be human which is really strange since the film is a stop-motion animated film populated by puppets. I can never hear "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" the same way again. It's truly one of the best of 2015.

[malcolm1980]

1/2

I Shot Jesse James (Samuel Fuller) ***1/2 - This film is about the assassination of Jesse James by the coward Robert "Bob" Ford (Hehe). It's a very different film from the similarly titled 2007 Andrew Dominik film. It's the feature debut of director Samuel Fuller who is of course one of my favorite filmmakers. Even in his first film, you can already tell it has his fingerprints all over it. It's fierce, tense, passionate and rough around the edges yet still manage to be a beautifully and classily made film. John Ireland is a scarier Bob Ford than Casey Affleck but still similarly pathetic. He nails the performance. Fuller would build on this style and produce some of my favorite films of all time.

Trumbo (Jay Roach) **1/2 - This film is about blacklisted screenwriter Dalton Trumbo who suffered under the persecution and investigation of Communists during the Cold War era. On paper, this is a film that I am supposed to love: It has a fantastic cast, the subject matter is of great interest to me (heck, I'm a writer myself) and of course I agree very much with its politics and its message. But unfortunately, despite its obvious efforts, it never rises above middlebrow mediocrity and TV-cable film quality. It's much too self-serious (the film comes alive only during the scenes involving John Goodman) and pounds its message and all its narrative beats as hard as Trumbo pounds on his typewriter. I think a great film can be made about Dalton Trumbo. This is not it.

[malcolm1980]

1/3

Whisky Galore! (Alexander Mackendrick) ***1/2 - A Scottish town situated in an island runs out of whisky during the height of World War II much to the horror of its residents. Then a cargo ship carrying 50,000 crates of whisky gets shipwrecked near their island. Hilarity ensues. This is yet another Ealing comedy classic. One of the things I noticed watching these films lately is that their ensembles are remarkably strong with many actors making an impression and working well off each other. This one is no different. Standouts are Basil Radford as the army captain trying to retrieve the cargo and Jean Cadell as the domineering, ultra-religious woman who overprotects her adult son. This film is a blast.

[malcolm1980]

1/4


Beasts of No Nation (Cary Joji Fukunaga) *** - In an unnamed country in West Africa, civil war breaks out and a young boy from a village gets recruited to become a child soldier. The subject matter of child soldiers in Africa is quite upsetting in and of itself. And indeed, the film is a tough sit and features some harrowing and shocking violence. Cary Joji Fukunaga is one of the best young filmmakers today and he continues to make his mark with this film. Despite all the ugliness, it's still a beautifully made piece of work. It also features a pair of great performances: newcomer Abraham Attah gives a haunting performance as the lead kid and Idris Elba is, non-surprisingly since he is one of the best actors working today, also great. So it is kind of disappointing to say that this had a flawed script keeps that kept it from true greatness. Still recommended though.

[malcolm1980]

1/5

The Small Back Room (Michael Powell/Emeric Pressburger) **** - During World War II, a bomb disposal expert is tasked to find out how to disable a new kind of bomb being dropped by the Germans, all the while struggling to tame his inner demons namely his past trauma, alcoholism and the like. Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger is of course among my list of favorite filmmakers and this is one of those films that often gets overlooked in their canon, and it shouldn't be. It's a pretty darn great one. There is a tense 15 minute bomb sequence in this film is a highlight but it also infuses a lot of character and a surprising amount of humor in it. A huge chunk of the film is devoted to the main character trying to wrestle with his demons which added to the tension of the climactic sequence. Also featuring fantastic performances and of course, the superb black & white cinematography. A definite thumbs up.

[malcolm1980]

1/6

Bitter Rice (Giuseppe De Santis) **** - Oh, my goodness. I loved this movie. Two thieves, a man and a woman, steal a pricey necklace and are on the run from the police. The woman hides out among the women rice workers in rural Italy and befriends both a fellow female rice worker and a soldier. I've never heard of this film until it was announced as a Criterion title and now, I can definitely see why Criterion is lifting this out from relative obscurity. It's a terrific film. It combines elements of Italian neorealism with elements of film noir and it absolutely works. More people should check out this wonderful film. Damn, I'm really spoiled watching two great films in a row.

[malcolm1980]

1/7

Under Capricorn (Alfred Hitchcock) **1/2 - During the 1800's in a penal colony in Australia, a paroled convict makes a life for himself despite all the harsh circumstances and he has a wife who may or may not be insane. For an Alfred Hitchcock film, I have to say this is quite disappointing. Sure, it's still a well-made and well-acted film but it's kind of bland and a little derivative of his previous, better works. Ingrid Bergman and Joseph Cotten are both good but Margaret Leighton steals the scene as the dubious, obsessed maid who is kind of reminiscent of Mrs. Danvers. The best parts of the film are her scenes. it's not the worst Hitchcock film but it's most definitely not one of his best, not by a long shot.

[malcolm1980]

1/8

The Window (Ted Tetzlaff) ***1/2 - A young boy who is prone to lying and making up stories witnesses a murder by their neighbors but neither the police nor his parents believe him. This is the better Alfred Hitchcock film of 1949 and it's not directed by him. In many ways, it is simply a solid thriller/film noir but done extremely well. Bobby Driscoll is terrific as the young boy who cried wolf. You understand why people are frustrated by him but at the same time he's sympathetic and you root for him. The film will is absolutely gripping. The climax in particular was a real nail-biter. It's a terrific film, a definite must-see.

45 Years (Andrew Haigh) ***1/2 - An older couple living a quiet life in the English countryside are about to celebrate their 45th wedding anniversary when news of the recovery of the body of the husband's former girlfriend (before he met his wife) who was killed in an accident in the mountains during a vacation reach them. This causes some questions to be raised about the nature of their marriage. Count me as one of the admirers of Andrew Haigh's intelligent film about a gay relationship in Weekend. He does a similar-ish thing with an older heterosexual couple in this one. Charlotte Rampling's performance has been much talked about and for good reason, it is outstanding. However, some credit should be made to Tom Courtenay who is equally great. Overall, a very lovely film.

[malcolm1980]

1/9

Legend (Brian Helgeland) ** - This is a film about a pair of notorious gangsters who are identical twin brothers, the Krays, who ruled the crime world in London during the 1960's. It's a a fascinating subject matter fit for a cinematic treatment but for the love of God, I wish filmmakers would quit trying too hard to emulate Goodfellas when it comes to gangster biopics. It's not amusing anymore. It's comes off as second rate. That plus the fact the film is rather unfocused and a bit bloated. Although one reason to see this film is Tom Hardy, who plays both brothers, and he gives an undeniably outstanding performance. He is further proof that he's one of our finest working actors today.

The Peanuts Movie (Steve Martino) ***1/2 - I was excited for the film version of the popular comic strip because based on the trailers, I love the way they blended the style of the animation of the original animated TV specials with the computer animation. Now that I've seen the entire thing, I love that they didn't try to update the story or make it "hip" (i.e. give them cell phones, modernize it, pop culture references, etc.). They kept it as pure as they can. Although one big criticism i would like to say about it is that it's so faithful, it's almost a little TOO faithful and it becomes sort of a Greatest Hits compilation for those who already fans. But that is forgivable since the story is engaging and very endearing enough that newcomers can easily endear themselves to the characters.

Thieves Highway (Jules Dassin) ***1/2 - A young man returns home from abroad and finds out that his father who was a farmer is crippled and the person responsible is a greedy, corrupt produce dealer who exploits truck drivers. He vows revenge by going into the trucking business to get closer to him. This is yet another wonderful discovery. I saw this film solely because I love the director, Jules Dassin and what do you know, it is yet another cracking good entry in the film noir genre. What makes this one extra special is Lee J. Cobb as the main antagonist, a truly morally repugnant character (made frightening by the fact that we all know of people like him). Valentina Cortese is also terrific as the prostitute with the heart of gold. Overall, I do think more people should check this out.

[malcolm1980]

1/10

Tulsa (Stuart Heisler) *** - After her father is killed by the oil rig that has also been polluting their creek and killing their cattle, a young woman decides to go into the oil business herself and gets lost by the allure of it. You know, for a film about the oil industry made in 1949, this is a remarkably progressive one. It has a strong woman in its central role, a sympathetic, fully-realized depiction of Native Americans and even a pro-environmental message. Sure, it's no masterpiece but Susan Hayward's performance as the aforementioned woman is pretty darn great and the third act including the big sequence involving a huge oil rig fire is quite exciting and impressive. A pretty darn good drama, I have to say.

Best of Enemies (Robert Gordon/Morgan Neville) ***1/2 - Netflix has recently become available in the Philippines and this is the first feature film I've seen using this service. This is a documentary feature about the televised debates between conservative William F. Buckley Jr. and liberal Gore Vidal during the Republican and Democratic primaries which is widely seen as the forefather of modern day cable news punditry. Though I am familiar with both men, I have almost no idea about these televised debates so this is largely new for me. The film does a great job of keeping your attention and humanizing both of these men and treating them fairly. No matter what your political affiliation may be, I think you are going to find this film compelling, fascinating and quite illuminating on the state of the media today.