Thursday, March 31, 2016

The Awakening (2011) - 8 stars out of 10

The Awakening (2011) - 8 stars out of 10

“The Awakening” is psychological horror at its finest.  All of the acting is beyond the expectation of a scary movie.  The film is terrifying but the quality of the acting and completeness of the story make it feel more like a drama with supernatural content a la "Signs" and "Let Me In."  You don't walk away from the film having nightmares because there is so much more to the story than ghosts.  The Post-WWI setting is unique for a horror film and the camera filter makes the entire film feel like you are watching an old, sepia photograph.  Its atmospheric cinematography elevates it into a horror film for a more sophisticated movie audience.  If I had to compare it to other films, I would say that it is like “The Sixth Sense” with more jump scares and an overall scarier tone.  These help to blur the line between horror and drama as it incorporates the best elements from both.  I wouldn’t put its quality on the same level as “The Sixth Sense,” which managed six Oscar nominations and changed the horror film industry forever with its mind-bending conclusion, but that is mainly because it will be a long time until any horror film reaches that level again.  The movie continually toys with you, building suspenseful music and following it by silence, but deciding at random whether there will be a jump scare or nothing at all.  And then amidst quiet, innocent music, a face bursts through a pillow and scares the crap out of you.  The film uses suspense so well that you spend the majority of the film filled with dread and a pounding heart as the next scare lies around the corner.  And that dollhouse scene!!!  The dramatic musical score enhances every moment.  A lot of the scares come from what our imagination.  The less that we see, the scarier the moment.  And it keeps you on edge the entire time because you start seeing images out of the corner of your eye every time that you gaze away from the screen.  Aside from a few moments of brief sexual content, the film is very clean and something that parents can feel comfortable watching with their teenagers to make sure that they don't get too scared.  The acting is great with Rebecca Hall in the lead role and Harry Potter fans will love seeing Dolores Umbridge in a less pink role.  Imelda Staunton puts on a great performance, particularly towards the end.  I love the utilization of the terrifying technique of unexplained people appearing in the background of photographs.  The story is amazing and this imagery sticks with you the entire film.  Just when you think that the twist is good, it becomes great, and then incredible.  And then the ending makes the film magnificent.  All of the clues are there but the pieces don't fall into place until the very end.  “The Awakening” is a very underrated film whose story will keep you guessing until the very end (…which then forces you to continue guessing).

[Pictured: I will never look into a dollhouse again]

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Swordfish - 3 stars out of 10

Swordfish - 3 stars out of 10

“Swordfish” is a very average heist film.  I am hyper-critical of this genre because it is my favorite, and this film made the mistake of being released in the same era as the superior “Ocean’s Eleven” and “The Italian Job.”  Unlike these mindbenders, “Swordfish” is unoriginal and its shock-value sexual content and profanity fails to mask the stereotypical plot and characters.  The highlight of the film is John Travolta’s opening monologue.  It gives us some perspective into the peculiar brain of his character while providing a glimpse of the bank robbery, only to halt the story’s climax with a flashback.  If you watched the first ten minutes of the film then shut it off, you would assume that it is a classic.  You would also be very lucky.  Unfortunately, the other ninety minutes of the film (and more of Halle Berry than we need to see) undo the magnificent setup.  The discussion of “Dog Day Afternoon” is great for film fans and prepares us for the theme of misdirection, but the execution of this theme is farfetched and unimpressive.  Most of the issues with this film come from the script.  The story lends itself to a PG-13 rating but they tried to make it edgy with excessive f-words, Berry deciding that she wanted to use this role to feel comfortable being topless onscreen (and it awkwardly doesn’t fit into the story at all), and throwing in other unnecessary moments just to make sure that it felt like a “real” R-rated movie.  Don Cheadle and Hugh Jackman are always entertaining and this is one of Travolta’s best performances in years, but giving great actors a smutty script will only result in a smutty movie.  “Swordfish” is an interesting throwback to the dawn of the internet age and an idealized view of computers, but as far as heist films are concerned, you can do better than this.

[Pictured: With this cast, "Swordfish" should have been amazing]

Monday, March 28, 2016

Amistad - 5 stars out of 10

Amistad - 5 stars out of 10

“Amistad” is the American slavery story that made its way to the Supreme Court and yet, you have probably never heard about it.  Steven Spielberg brings this story to life in a slow-moving but compelling courtroom setting.  I expected much more from this film but that’s probably why it is relatively unknown.  It competed for four Oscars in the year that “Titanic” swept the event but I don’t find any of the noteworthy pieces of this puzzle to be that impressive.  The obvious one is Sir Anthony Hopkins and his nomination for Best Supporting Actor as John Quincy Adams.  It is very apparent that the nomination is based solely on his impressive patriotic court monologue because the remainder of his role in the film is just average.  I also found the performances by big names like Matthew McConahy, Morgan Freeman, and one of my favorite character actors (Pete Postlethwaite) to be underwhelming.  The saving grace for the overall acting of this film comes from a young Chiwetel Ejiofor and the non-English-speaking role by Dijmon Hounsou.  These two actors draw attention from the rest in every scene.  It may be worth watching this one just for those two.  The greatest fault of this film is its long-windedness.  I understand that this is mainly the story of a court case but the court case relies on our compassion for the slaves.  The strong imagery drives the story, rendering the 2 1/2-hour runtime unnecessary.  Each excess minute in the courtroom takes away from the poignancy established through the film's introduction and the graphic, heartbreaking flashback.  I credit the screenwriters for humanizing the slaves instead of making them into faceless victims; still, the language barrier and extensive dialogue causes the story to plod along until you stop caring about the slaves.  Another Oscar nomination was earned by John Williams for his scoring of the film but I find it to be average in comparison with many of his other film scores.  It never reaches the heartbreak of “Schindler’s List,” the driving suspense of “Jurassic Park,” or the period-enhancement of “The Patriot.”  There are a few moments but not enough to make this a masterpiece like many of his other films.  Even in a year that was not swept by “Titanic,” I can’t see this film winning any of its Oscar nominations.  “Amistad” is worth seeing for a few memorable performances and the story that it tells, but it is offensive to see Morgan Freeman underused.  Not to mention that in the world of courtroom dramas, you are better off spending your time with a second viewing of “A Few Good Men” or “Runaway Jury.”

[Pictured: This screenshot makes it appear that the courtroom scenes are much more compelling than they actually are.]