Electrick Children: Movie Review

Electrick Children: Movie Review

Cast: Julia Garner, Rory Culkin, Billy Zane, Liam Aiken, Cynthia Watros
Director: Rebecca Thomas

It's back into the world of the weird we go for Electrick Children, written and directed by Rebecca Thomas.

Julia Garner stars as Rachel, a girl turning 15 years old in her fundamentalist Mormon home in Utah - and who finds a cassette tape, hidden in the bowels of her home. She places the tape in a cassette player and has a religious experience, listening to the cover version of Blondie's "Hanging on the Telephone."

Her brother, Mr Will (Aiken) finds her listening to it and following a scuffle, tries to recover it from her. Discovered tussling on the floor by her mother, the pair are separated.

Then, Rachel finds she's pregnant, and believing it's an immaculate conception caused by the tape, she sets out to the nearest town - Las Vegas - to find the singer....and the person she believes is responsible for her pregnancy.


However, her fundamentalist family do not feel the same - and banish Mr Will, threatening Rachel with an arranged marriage...

Electrick Children is the very definition of indie and first time film-making.

Garner gives a bravura performance as the teenager finding her way in the world that she knows scant little about in any shape or form. When she falls in with Rory Culkin's rocker and her brother Mr Will tries to discover himself in the seedier grimier side of Las Vegas, the film finds its groove as it dwindles away from the conception thread. And Garner's frailty and watchable performance grounds a film which demands a lot from its audience.

Culkin is solid as the feckless rocker, Zane is zen-like as the preacher and Aiken gives good solid support (as well as a few laughs) as the Mormon exposed to the not-so-bright lights of Sin City. All in all, the cast offer up sensitive and nuanced performances of subtlety throughout but Electrick Children is not without problems though. There are far too many coincidences which pepper the second half of the film and feel more like deus ex machina moments rather than plotted narrative and reasoning.

And the main thread which makes the film so appealing in the first place (immaculate conception or not) is abandoned halfway through proving maddeningly frustrating to what you've initially invested in. So be warned, if you're looking for answers, they may not be coming.

Electrick Children is quite indie; but it shows promise from Thomas which isn't quite fulfilled as it spills out - occasionally quite dark and murkily - on the screen.

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The Way: Blu Ray Review

The Way: Blu Ray Review

Rating: PG
Released by Vendetta Films

Martin Sheen stars in this film directed by his son Emilio.

Sheen stars as Thomas Avery, a widowed ophthalmologist, who's also estranged from his son, Daniel. Avery's drive these days is his work but one day, his world is shattered when he gets a call from a French policeman telling him that his son's dead.

Daniel had been killed in the Pyrenees, walking the Camino de Santiago, a Christian pilgrim route made by thousands. This news, coupled with the fact Thomas wasn't sure why Daniel was doing the route, throws his world into turmoil.

So, setting out to retrieve the body in France, Tom decides on the spur of the moment to walk the route himself - to try and reacquaint himself with his son and find out why he was doing what he was doing.

But along the way - and despite his many protestations to the contrary, he falls in with three other walkers. Joost, an overweight man from Amsterdam, Sarah, a bitter Canadian and Jack, an Irish travel writer who's trying to beat writer's block.

The Way is a gentle, unassuming and moving film which has an emotional resonance from beginning to end.

Thanks, in a large part, due to Martin Sheen's subtly layered performance; the guy is a powerhouse of an acting talent who takes you through this road movie despite its occasional faults and flashbacks to Tom and Daniel's relationship. His tetchy and grumpy Tom is very relatable and watchable as the film unfolds and his dynamic with the other travellers is perfectly understandable for anyone who's been backpacking.

Estevez does a good job of this writer/ director piece - even if he does occasionally sentimentally over-egg the pudding by inserting shots of Tom seeing Daniel at key moments on the walk. It's unnecessary and heavy handed. But beautiful shots of scenes along the way help to hint at something a little majestic in places.

While The Way is perhaps predictable in plot and denouement, it's simply unmissable as a piece of inspirational cinema- it's the characters' dynamics and relationships which make it so enjoyable and  touching; as a character piece, it's gentle, unassuming, touching, reflective, emotionally satisfying and soulful.
Extras: A great bunch - commentary from Martin Sheen and Emilio Estevez; interviews, taking The Way on the road, behind the scenes, trailer - nice package

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Attack The Block: Blu Ray Review

Attack The Block: Blu Ray Review

Rating:R16
Released by Icon and Roadshow Home Entertainment

On Bonfire Night in the UK, nurse Sam (Jodie Whittaker) is walking home when she's approached by a group of lads, lead by ringleader Moses (John Boyega). Needless to say the group doesn't want to escort the nurse home, but instead set about mugging her.

However, their attack is interrupted by something falling from the sky - together the gang set on a creature which appears to have been what fell from the sky and kill it, before taking it to local drug dealer Ron (Nick Frost).

But when more objects start falling from the sky, the gang arm themselves and set about defending their territory, the Block (a council house) from the invaders...

Attack The Block is a slice of welcome cultural sci-fi - the writers spent a year studying the language of the youthes of the area and it's reflected in every last spoken detail on screen, taking in street vernacular and interplay between kids these days. It takes a little bit of time to get used to - but soon, it starts to become a catchy lingo and you may even find yourself dropping in the odd word from time to time.

For a relatively low budget UK film, Attack The Block is a certainly assured piece of film-making. Director Joe Cornish has the perfect eye for details and shots as well as throwing in some good action sequences as well.

The aliens themselves are kind of novel too - furry like gorillas but with huge glow in the dark teeth (which fade out like batteries dying after the creatures are killed) they're feral, brutal things which are unlikely any other aliens ever committed to screen.

There's something novel about Attack The Block - it's destined for cult status, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't check it out. In the words of the gang themselves - "Believe, bruv, believe."

Extras: The making of

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Margin Call: DVD Review

Margin Call: DVD Review

Rating: M
Released by Vendetta Films

Set in an investment bank, it begins with Eric Dale (the ever brilliant Stanley Tucci) being walked out of his office and made redundant. Right before he goes though, he passes a file to one of his employees, Peter Sullivan (Zachary Quinto) and says that he should take a look at it.

As Sullivan looks into the file, he finds that discovers that trading will soon exceed the historical volatility levels used by the firm to calculate risk. And furthermore, because of excessive leverage, if the firm's assets in mortgage backed securities decrease by 25%, the firm will suffer a loss greater than its market capitalization.

Suddenly, bosses from higher up above are called in and there are emergency meetings taking placeas the implications of what may transpire become clearer....

Margin Call was Oscar nominated for its screenplay - and it's easy to see why. 

This is no flashy film about the excesses of Wall Street - it's a gritty and compelling (if occasinally difficult to follow) film which requires a modicum of intelligence and understanding to keep up with as the keyplayers see it through.
Thanks to a great ensemble cast, it shines; Kevin Spacey, Paul Bettany and Stanley Tucci are the MVPs of the film with each giving their characters a human edge which takes them away from simply being flashy guys in flashy suits. It's suitably talky and tense as it plays out but every once in a while, those in charge of the screenplay remember not everyone is an economics expert and a character will urge them to explain it simply for them, which gives you a level of accessibility to the occasional banking technobabble which is necessary.
Margin Call is one of the more intelligent entries into this year's cinematic crop; the at times complex story won't be for everyone but for those who want to watch a film which takes you into the boardroom back and forth, Margin Call is definitely one of the most interesting dramas about Wall Street to emerge for years.

Extras: Cast Interview

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Cave of Forgotten Dreams: DVD Review

Cave of Forgotten Dreams: DVD Review

Rating: G
Released by Vendetta Films

Originally shot in 3D, this doco sees German director Herzog, along with a select camera crew, heading to France to document the marvels held by a French cave discovered in 1994.

The Chauvet Cave in the south of France is one of anthropological wonder given that inside it's decorated with wall paintings and carvings from some 30,000 years ago.

Herzog was given exclusive access to document the innermost sanctum of the cave by the French government. 

Essentially this film really thrives when it's inside the cave and the camera simply lingers on the shots of the paintings and the full enormity of what's within explodes within your mind.

Skulls of animals long since dead and footprints from creatures 30,000 years old litter the pictures and are simply mind blowing. The 3D gives the depth to the paintings and reveals just how astounding they are.

But then Herzog's dry voiceover takes over and pompous statements like "It's like a frozen flash in a moment of time" give this an air of stuffiness that to be honest, it could do without.

Interviews with scientists and enthusiasts add to the pretentiousness of the piece and detract from the simple fact that sometimes, a picture paints a thousand words.

Those images of rhinos, horses, bison and tigers, bumps and shapes of the walls show a world that is beyond our comprehension and understanding; and in some ways, Herzog's insistence on talking really does mean the film loses some of its impact.

At the end, a montage of paintings and snapshots flash up on screen, accompanied by music - and in that flash alone, the film speaks volumes - and much more than Herzog ever can - of its secrets from thousands of years ago.

Extras: Image Gallery

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F1 2012: Game Review

F1 2012: Game Review

Released by Codemasters
Platform: PS3

Formula One - it's all about racing around in circles, right?

Not exactly in this latest annual outing from Codemasters, who've been given the job of updating the racing title on an annual basis and keeping the masses happy.

So, with this latest update, there's been a few tweaks and changes, but it's pretty much business as usual as you'd expect from the franchise. Once again, you're in the driver's seat but you'll need to take time out to learn the ropes before you get fully started.

Over two days of drivers' testing, you get to learn the basics of handling, using KERS and DRS and generally how to rewind time if you blow a tyre on the track (I kid you not - one of the features allows you to rewind the screw up and press a button just before to avoid it happening in the first place). If you've played before, this easily presented menu of reminisence will prove to be something of a brief chore but for all others, it's a handy and not too long intro to driving.

From there, it's on to the campaign trail and the hard task of actually doing a good job. It's quite a difficult game to master and may take even the die hard fans of F1 games a little time to build up a decent performance on the track as well as shave a bit of time off your laps. But it's a fully immersive experience with techs talking to you, emails flying around and commentary which is quite supportive as opposed to being a distraction.

Graphically, the game is slick and well-produced; backgrounds fly by in a well defined blur but show there's been plenty of work put into them and the cars themselves are polished and look good on the screen (right down to the sponsors' logos). With a new champions mode giving you the option to race head to head with some of the best, there's new content as well for those who may be wavering on whether to reinvest again in what's essentially the same concept.

I guess at the end of the day, how much you enjoy F1 2012 will really depend on how much you already enjoy the concept and franchise.

There's plenty of tension with the racing and also many chances for you to up your game and the simulation from its screeching tyres and howling engines is pretty top notch. The chance to go online and take on others extends this game's life a little longer (or until next year's update) but I think, unlike previous F1 games I've played before, this one feels more like a chance for newbies to jump in and get involved without getting lost in the intricacies and skills of the game. You will need real skill to progress but unlike previous titles, you'll get to earn that skill and if you're willing to invest a fair whack of time, see its benefits.

Hopefully, F1 2012 will garner a new audience of fans - because while Codemasters is doing a very good job of keeping the franchise fresh for its core fans, the casual gamer is still the key demo it needs to tap into to extend the franchise's reach even further.

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Delicacy: Movie Review

Delicacy: Movie Review

Cast: Audrey Tautou, Francois Damiens, Bruno Todeschini, Pio Marmai
Director: David Foenkinos

The hazel eyed French fondant Audrey Tautou returns in this latest romantic outing, guaranteed to leave you misty eyed by its end.

Tautou plays Nathalie, a woman deeply in love with her perfect husband Francois (Marmai) and their perfect live together- however, one day when Francois heads out on a run, he doesn't return. Nathalie is woken by a phone call, urging her to head to the hospital - but she is too late.

Mourning Francois, she throws herself into her work and three years pass. Suddenly, one day, and on a whim after a throwaway comment that she's not living her life, she kisses colleague Markus (Damiens), a Swedish schlub who's about a million miles away from her perfect previous husband in looks, charm and social grace.

But Markus is entranced by the kiss - and gradually, the pair begin to bond....Nathalie may once have found and lost the one, but is she now on the verge of finding another one.

Delicacy is as romantic a film as you'd expect from the hazel-eyed Tautou - it's also likely to garner the words sweet and charming. Not that those are bad things to aim for - and will certainly ensure a series of bums on seats for its release.

And yet, it's all froth and very little substance.

Once the film gets over its initial vein of sadness, there's little else for it to go except into ever-so-slightly quirky and lightly humorous territory as it explores the possibility that a fatter, balder Swedish man rather than Nathalie's original husband, who's chiselled to perfection, could offer some salvation to her extended mourning.

Tautou is as watchable as ever and the script is certainly peppered with humorous moments scattered throughout but the whole film, overall, feels slightly insubstantial. She certainly brings the emotion to the fore in her character but there's never any real depth which will deeply engage the audience. Damiens is a good foil to Tautou's good looks; his slightly scruffy, unkempt and jumper loving Swede is exactly the tonic which is needed to punctuate this romantic fluff - and his awkwardness will strike a chord with many watching on.

Overall, Delicacy has charm and humour - but the romantic swirl does exactly what you'd expect it to do and if that's what you're in the mood for, then dive on in - it's perfectly pleasant and diverting for a couple of hours in the cinema.

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