Tag / review

by hutchwp

Film review – Journey to the Shore (Kiyoshi Kurosawa, 2015)

‘Journey to the Shore’ won director Kiyoshi Kurosawa the Un Certain Regard prize at last year’s Cannes Film Festival. It is also the Masters of Cinema label’s latest foray into the new release market; the label is more frequently associated with the restoration of forgotten classic cinematic releases but has enjoyed success with the likes of ‘Listen Up Philip‘ and ‘Life of Riley‘ in recent years.
The film tells the story of Mizuki, a young female piano teacher mourning the death of her husband Yusuke, who we learn has drowned at see three years prior to the start of the film. However, when his ghost appears mysteriously at home one day, she is less surprised at his presence and more annoyed as he has forgotten to take his shoes off.

The reunited couple set off on a journey together as he takes her to visit the people who have helped him journey home from his point of death, with Mizuki’s resulting spiritually cathartic journey being the focal point of the story.


It’s a story that is rooted in Japanese culture, with the human grieving process following the death of a loved one a typical starting point for its fair share of Japanese films in recent years. Where this sets itself apart is in the very blatant separation from reality afforded by the seamless interaction between the living and the dead. There doesn’t seem to be any hard and fast rule about who can talk to whom, nor does there seem to be any surprise or shock experienced by the living seeing a close departed friend or family member. Indeed, Yusuke is portrayed as a living, breathing being with he ability to fully interact with his surroundings. It’s a unique spin on the matter (pun intended).

There are some really effective cinematographic techniques employed to reflect the mood of the scenes, most notably in the dimming of the lights when a darker story is being retold. The credit here lies with director Kurosawa and his cinematographer Akiko Ashizawa. It was subtle enough to have an impact before I realised what had happened, as key characters revealed their darkest of memories, and it added considerably to the picture.


Whether it really works as a whole is something I’m still not totally sure about. Certainly it is delivered with conviction, though the overall effect is something entirely morose. There seemed to be a relentlessness to the depression involved that, whilst perhaps reflective of the mood of the characters involved, seemed to offer nothing in the way of a positive escape for anyone watching looking to be guided by the grieving process.

The film achieves its aims and carries everything off to perfection. It’s just not a very pleasant experience to sit through.

by hutchwp

Film review – 思い出のマーニー / When Marnie Was There (Hiromasa Yonebayashi, 2016)

The latest film released from the Japanese animation powerhouse Studio Ghibli is also the final feature film they will ever release. At least, that’s the line they’re taking. There doesn’t seem to be any indication that this isn’t true, although secretly most Ghibli fans – myself included – hope there will be something else around the corner. 

A glimmer of hope has come in the suggestion that more short films will be produced for the Saturn Theatre, the small cinema that resides inside the Ghibli Museum in Tokyo. Unfortunately for those of us outside Japan, seeing the existing ones is quite the task – you’ll need at least a return plane ticket to Japan and some forward planning to get tickets to the museum itself. Oh, they only screen one film a day and you can only see it once. There isn’t any plan to screen any of them anywhere else in the world, so seeing the sequel to Totoro might not be something to add to your bucket list.

All this sadly leaves us with only one more Studio Ghibli film to enjoy at the cinema, finally seeing the light of day almost two years after its release in Japan. When Marnie Was There is based on the original novel of the same name by British author Joan G. Robinson, with many of the details changed from the original novel. Most notably, the location has been changed from Norfolk in England to Sapporo in Hokkaido, Japan.


The storyline deals with a young girl, Anna, who suffers from anxiety and asthma. A loner at her school and lacking in confidence, she is sent away to live with family friends in Sapporo on the advice of her doctor, who suggests that leaving the city for the clearer air and change of scenery will cure her ailments.

Once there, she struggles to settle until she happens on a mysterious building called The Marsh House, inside which a beautiful young girl name Marnie is living, a girl with whom she strikes up an immediate and very close friendship.

So how does When Marnie Was There fit into the greater Ghibli catalogue? Instantly it will strike you that it’s just as beautifully animated as anything we’ve seen before, with hand-drawn drawings taking us on the typically personal, solitary journey of the main character. Animation has seldom looked this good, and I include Disney’s output in this statement too.

The storyline will be familiar to those fans of previous Ghibli works. A young girl sent away from her comfort zone to new surroundings dealing with a secretive and mysterious occurrence, via an unlikely friendship. It is ground well worn, but that shouldn’t be a reason to dismiss it. 

Anna herself is a wonderfully realised creation. The sense of isolation as she sits at school having an asthma-induced panic attack is heartbreaking and as realistic as any live-action portrayal of anxiety I’ve ever seen. This is a critical achievement – get it wrong and we’re dealing with a whiny self-obsessed teenager for two hours.

It is perhaps not as immediate as some of the more celebrated works. It’s a frustrating time to be a Ghibli fan. It’s probably the last film to hit the big screen, but it’s not the best place to start if you’re unfamiliar with the studio. If you can, watch My Neighbour Totoro and Spirited Away straight away, then head to the cinema to catch this before you run out of time.

by hutchwp

Live music review – Elton John at Leicestershire County Cricket Club, 11th June 2016

Setlist:
Funeral for a Friend / Love Lies Bleeding
The Bitch Is Back
Bennie and the Jets
I Guess That’s Why They Call It the Blues
Daniel
Looking Up
A Good Heart
Philadelphia Freedom
Piano Improv
Rocket Man (I Think It’s Going to Be a Long, Long Time)
Tiny Dancer
Levon
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Have Mercy on the Criminal
Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word
Your Song
Burn Down the Mission
Sad Songs (Say So Much)
Don’t Let the Sun Go Down On Me
All the Girls Love Alice
I’m Still Standing
Your Sister Can’t Twist (But She Can Rock ‘n Roll)
Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting

Encore:
Candle in the Wind
Crocodile Rock


Elton John returned to Leicester for the first time in 40 years to play to a packed crowd of eager middle-aged middle-class concert goers. The day was geared towards his fanbase – all tickets were seated and it the whole thing was wrapped up well before 10pm. The main flaw was a vast underestimation of how popular fish and chips would be with a crowd who arrived before 5pm.

Elton didn’t waste any time getting stuck into his biggest hits, blasting into an epic take on Funeral For A Friend / Love Lies Bleeding, before picking up the pace with The Bitch Is Back.

These concerts can always run the risk of such a well-established artist like Elton John just going through the motions. His touring band has been together for a while and have been playing these songs for decades, but it didn’t show. The important thing was that they all looked thrilled to be there, a sentiment that transferred directly to the audience. It wasn’t until he got into the slow-paced A Good Heart from his latest album Wonderful Crazy Night that the crowd died down and took a breather.

The mood was only soured when Elton launched a tirade towards some over-zealous security guards at the front of the stage, who appeared to be forcing the crowd to stay seated. Elton refused to continue until they sat down themselves, and this confrontation caused a slight break in the fun.

It must be difficult to stay in a bad mood, however, when your songs are being sung word-for-word by 1000s of adoring fans, and as the drinks flowed and the night drew in, the crowd fell in love with the superstar all over again. With songs this good, it’s easy to see why.

by hutchwp

Film review – Shane (George Stevens, 1953)

I’ve never been a huge fan of Westerns. It’s a slight bugbear of mine and I hate to be so sweepingly dismissive of an entire genre, but until recently they’ve always seemed so formulaic and lacking in unique characters.

That’s not to say I don’t have many fond memories of Westerns. My grandfather was a huge fan of any films with cowboys in. Growing up, I lived away from most of my family and so getting to my grandparents’ house was a long journey that would usually have us arriving in the early afternoon, by which point my grandfather would often be settling in to watch a good Western. At the time, the subtleties of the character development or the most intense of standoffs was undoubtedly lost on my pre-teen self.

With the trusted Master of Cinema label now lovingly releasing a select few Western films (with the typical smorgasbord of bonus material to help put the films into context), I’m giving the genre a second chance, if nothing else to prove my smarmy little 10-year-old self that he was wrong all along.

shanescreen

Shane tells the story of the titular hero, played by Alan Ladd. As the opening credits play out, he rides into a small isolated town in Wyoming to meet the Starrett family. He has a mysterious past but quickly wins their favour before the father Joe (Van Heflin) invites him to stay on their property to help out on the ranch.

Over dinner, he learns that the entire town is being terrorised by Rufus Ryker (Emile Meyer) and his gang, who are driving out families one-by-one to gain total control over the land in the area in order to better herd their cattle.

Thus, the story plays out with Shane and Joe forming a stern partnership to rally against the gang and save the town for those families already settled. As the conflict escalates, Shane emerges as the classic lone gunman hero in which the whole town’s hopes lie.

Whilst the story itself is quite familiar, befitting of any good cowboy or samurai film, director George Stevens gets away with the over-idolisation of Shane as the all-American hero by the inclusion of the young Joey Starrett (Brandon deWilde). It is through his eyes that we see everything happen. This has one of two effects. Firstly, it allows Shane to be as formulaic as he needs to be by virtue of the fact that the story can be considered as a retelling of the tale through Joey’s memory of the fact. If that doesn’t sit well as an interpretation, then at the very least the saintly actions of Shane can be seen as a means to leave a positive impression on the child – which he certainly does.

He is clearly a man wrestling with the wrongs of his past, and spends most of the film trying to hide this from the Starrett family. When he finally reveals his gunslinging credentials in front of the Joey, he decides it’s time to move on, presumably to the next place he stumbles upon that needs rescuing.

Whether he makes it to that next town is open to interpretation. Indeed, in the final shootout, he does take what looks like a fairly serious wound to the torso. He plays this down for his final leaving speech for Joey, but as he rides off I couldn’t help but wonder whether he was going to survive. After all, he’s spent the best part of two hours putting a brave face on for every other aspect of his life – he certainly wouldn’t let on to Joey that he was about to die.

shanescreen2

The romantic subplot between Shane and Joe’s wife Marian (Jean Arthur) adds an interesting subtext to the situation. Clearly she is pining for him, and her interest is underlined in every scene they share. It feels a little shallow, and does nothing for Marian as a character as she follows every stereotype in cinematic history. Alas, it was typical of the time and her only purpose is to add some sex appeal to Alan Ladd’s handsome hero.

Shane may be a typical Western, but it is a fine and pure example of the genre that is rightly being held up as one of the best of its kind.

[Note 1] The second screenshot in this review is how the film should look on your widescreen television, with black bars down the left and right sides of the picture. This is due to the aspect ratio used (1.37:1). There is a second aspect ratio available on the disc, though as Adam Naymar explains in the booklet note “Don’t Fence Me In” this is a controversial version of the film. I’ll let you read it for yourselves should you make the purchase.

[Note 2] Below is the theatrical trailer for Shane. It is proof that cinema goers in 1953 cared not for spoilers, as the critical climax of the final scene of the film is included. Quite why this was done is a mystery to me as it completely ruins the entire film, but since the film is now 63 years old I don’t feel it is fair to be angry towards me for including it in this article. After all, I’ve given you fair warning…

by hutchwp

Film review – The Program (Stephen Frears, 2015)

In the midst of the Lance Armstrong doping scandal, Sunday Times journalist David Walsh published his book Seven Deadly Sins. The sole purpose of the book was to blow the cover on Lance Armstrong and reveal the truth about the complex doping program he was involved with during his supremacy in cycling, specifically the Tour de France. Whilst Armstrong was banned for life from cycling in October 2012, two months prior to the release of the book, vindicating David Walsh and the contents of his book.

The Program re-tells this story, with Chris O’Dowd as David Walsh and Ben Foster as Lance Armstrong.

There are narrow margins in its portrayal of Armstrong. Frears gives a fair portrayal of the man, allowing room within the character to justify his actions. It doesn’t shy away from the fact he spearheaded this complex program of systematic doping, on a level so widespread that USADA (U.S. Anti-doping Agency) referred to it as “the most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program that sport has ever seen“. However, to fully represent him, it must also be shown that he used a significant amount of his own time alongside the money earned to aide cancer research. The Program just about lands perfectly in the middle without feeling like it is sitting on the fence, only tipping into an out-and-out negative portrayal when he loses sight of his goal to beat cancer and instead gets addicted to winning at all costs.

When a massive scandal such as this is at the forefront of the public eye, it is easy to forget how successful and inspiring Lance Armstong was for both cyclists and cancer sufferers. It must be remembered that Lance Armstrong started doping, like most cyclists, because he couldn’t win a race without it. In this version of events, he was driven by the fact that doping was already widespread in the sport when he first considered it. It doesn’t strike me that Spears was condoning his actions; he wasn’t the first, nor was he the last. He was simply the most successful.


In hindsight, it was a win-win-win situation for everyone involved. Lance Armstrong won medals and tournaments every season, cancer research programs gained a lot of money and the profile of the sport was raised due to the success story playing out in the public’s eye. The only real losers were the honest cyclists who were unable to compete on the same level.

In time, this film won’t prove to be the definitive biopic on this subject, but with the media pursuit of truth as the approach it offers a unique angle on the situation. One wonders whether its success wasn’t hindered somewhat by the similarly-themed Spotlight, which was busy on the festival circuit at the same time as this. Spotlight may have not been everyone’s favoured choice for the Best Picture Academy Award in January, but it was certainly a more powerful film than The Program.

by hutchwp

Film review – Mustang (Deniz Gamze Ergüven, 2016)

First-time director Deniz Gamze Ergüven’s Mustang is an astonishing debut. Dealing directly with women’s rights and the oppression of women in Islamic states, it’s bound to court controversy in many areas of the world, not least the country in which it’s set: Turkey.

The story revolves around five sisters. The central character Lale (Güneş Şensoy) is the youngest of the five and serves as the innocent viewpoint through which the story is told, a storytelling method reminiscent of Scout from To Kill A Mockingbird. Her sisters -Nur (Doğa Doğuşlu), Ece (Elit İşcan), Selma (Tuğba Sunguroğlu) and Sonay (İlayda Akdoğan as Sonay – are living with their traditionalist uncle Erol (Ayberk Pekcan) and fearful grandmother (Nihal Koldaş). After an incident at a beach that Erol deems to be too risqué, the five are effectively held on house arrest, taught to be “proper wives” and must wait their turn until a suitor is found.

The premise of the plot is one that brings out dormant anger towards the premise of pre-arranged marriages. The idea of this still happening to so many women in the modern world is an alien concept to those outside the most conservative of countries. Whilst it is known that this happens, Mustang manages to drive home a powerful message by focusing on just one tight family unit, in this case a close-knit group of girls who will likely never see each other again once they have been paired off. Perhaps it’s easier to pretend it doesn’t happen, or perhaps it’s easier to forget on a day-to-day basis as it is so uncommon in the Western world. All this just results in Mustang being a more shocking film.

It is hard to watch the storyline unfold without being reminded of Sophia Coppola’s 1999 indie flick ‘The Virgin Suicides’. Both films deal directly with the psychological effects of a group of five attractive teenage sisters being held under house arrest at the behest of their overbearing parents/guardians. I can’t see a situation where Ergüven hasn’t been influenced on some level by that film, but the repositioning of this basic plot makes it different enough to not dismiss its achievements.

Güneş Şensoy is a revelation in the lead role, playing perfectly the inquisitive innocence that the character demands. At such a young age and this being her debut performance, she is certainly one to watch in the future.

Mustang is a powerful film deserving of he widest of audiences. It’s at times heartbreaking, but there can never be enough attention shone on such a pressing humanitarian matter.

by hutchwp

Film review – Zootropolis (Byron Howard and Rich Moore, 2016)

Zootropolis is the latest in the Disney Animated Studios classics range that certainly holds its own alongside its older brothers and sisters, with a well realised universe and some extremely likeable characters. It may not have the staying power of the greatest films of the studio, but serves as a fun way to entertain children for a couple of hours in the earl summer.

The film stars Ginnifer Goodwin as Judy Hopps, a tiny rabbit that has aspirations to go to Zootropolis to become a police officer. Driven on by a childhood incident, she finally reaches her goal via a fairly snappy montage sequence. Dsappointingly assigned parking duty by her new boss Chief Bogo (Idris Elba, providing a voice that doesn’t really match the character), she sets out to prove she is more than a small fish in a big pond. Striking up an unlikely love-hate friendship with sly fox Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman in an impressive role), she uncovers a clue to solving one of the city’s biggest mysteries: the location of a missing otter and a growing number of other missing predator mammals in the city.

Goodwin’s portrayal of Judy Hopps is delightful. Her voice is perfect and brings some distinctive characterisation to life. There’s clearly a lot of chemistry between her and the well-cast Bateman. When they fall out midway through the second act, you feel it, and the target audience will too. She has an unmistakable likability in her voice that’s hard to pin down – perfect for this kind of role.

The film excels in its underlying messages of racism and stereotyping, making it a timely release. Each main character’s driving force is as a result of some kind of prejudice they’ve had to fight against. Make no mistake – there is little effort to hide it, to the point of it feeling a little ham-fisted. Anyone who wants their cinematic experiences compartmentalised by separating pure entertainment from thought-provoking commentary may need to double-check the age rating on this film. 

Where it falls down is its lack of foresight in terms of future generation’s appreciation of it. The greatest animated films have been enjoyed for almost a century by parents and children alike. They always have a timeless quality to them, much like fairy-tales, allowing a Snow White or Cinderella to be picked up now and not feel of-its-time. For Zootropolis, one has to wonder how the children of 2040 will feel about the overused phone apps that are featured, or indeed the Breaking Bad and Frozen references that are thrown in for cheap laughs.

For now, however, Disney will sit back and count this as a huge success. It is now the highest-grossing film of 2016 and the 28th of all time (as of 16th May 2016).

by hutchwp

Film review – Zinnia Flower (Tom Shu-Yu Lin, 2015)

I’m going to kick-off before I say anything else and let you know that if you’re looking for a film that will make you feel immediately happy, then Tom Shu-Yu Lin’s latest isn’t for you. If, however, you’re willing to invest the smallest amount of emotional sympathy with the characters then you’ll find yourself on a deeply effective journey as two characters deal with the mourning process of losing their loved-ones.

The film opens with a devastating multi-car crash. Yu Wei (Stone) loses his heavily-pregnant wife and their unborn child but escapes with just a broken arm. Shin Min (Karena Lam) also loses her fiancé in the same incident. They begin their traditional Buddhist mourning period of 100 days. Shin Min goes on the honeymoon to Okinawa she will never be able to have with her fiancé and Yu Wei turns to alcohol and anger to forget his sorrow.

 

The film is boldly intimate in its portrayal of grief, and its success is secured by two excellent performances from the lead actors, whose lives are intertwined but yet are dealing with almost identical situations in entirely different ways.

It is painful to watch at times, though I was unaware on first viewing that director Lin was drawing on personal experiences as inspiration for the story – he lost his wife in a car accident in 2012. Had I known this I would have viewed it through entirely different eyes.

Indeed, the film itself is representative of Lin’s journey through grief. Just as the two leads take their journey through the internal resolution of their losses, it appears as though Lin has used this to rationalise the pain he went through. I summise that each character represents a different part of his journey, neither of which is portrayed as a correct or incorrect way to deal with the death of a loved one. Simply, how can you possibly say what’s a right or wrong way to cope in such devastating circumstances? Lin intelligently doesn’t make that decision for us either; the film he is made is provocative enough to not need to spoon-feed its viewers on such a complex issue.

There is also a starkness in the portrayal of the juxtaposition between the pair attending their Buddhist mourning ceremonies and their mindset behind closed doors. In my opinion, this was done to underline the façade that those in the throes of grief assume in public, perhaps indicating that this defined method of grief is wholly outdated. I certainly didn’t feel like they were at the end of their grieving process by the end of the film. Perhaps Lin is in the same place?

This is essential viewing for anyone coping with grief and loss. A beautiful but heartbreaking picture that deserves wider coverage.

by hutchwp

Film review – The Peanuts Movie (Steve Martino, 2015)

Before I start, I must confess that I’m a closet Peanuts fan. The comic strip wasn’t something I grew up with and outside the odd Snoopy t-shirt or pencil case, I wasn’t particularly affectionate towards the series.

Sometime during my university years, I discovered the brilliance of the comic strips first, then the films and TV specials. I don’t think it was something I was particularly vocal about, but I was secretly picking up compendiums of the originals strips and box sets of the films that I still watch to this day.

There is something wholly endearing about the characters that has somehow stood the test of time. I’m sure studies could be conducted on why it remains so popular despite most definitely being most definitely of the era it was created in.

I wasn’t overly thrilled when I saw the trailer for this franchise reboot, with the brilliant colours and perfectly rendered faces seemingly betraying the source material. However, I was willing to give it a chance and see what direction the estate was happy for it to go in in 2015, some fifteen years after the death of its creator Charles M. Schulz.

Thankfully, for the most part, the film is a success. The use of modern graphics doesn’t really detract from the fact that it genuinely sits well next to any other instalment. Indeed, the storyline could well be a rehash of an older film, with Charlie Brown spending the entire film trying to win the affections of the Little Red-Haired Girl whilst Snoopy lives in his imaginary world as a fighter pilot in World War II. This is a smart move – taking these familiar characters out of their comfort zone and attempting something unusual can be saved for another time.

When efforts are made to openly appeal to the younger demographics, the film does lose its way somewhat. When Meghan Trainor’s ‘Better When I’m Dancing’ kicked in and the kids started dancing away, the sudden urge to turn off came over me. Heck, even Snoopy! The Musical didn’t stoop this low.

Peanuts aficionados will also berate the fact that Charlie Brown talks to the Little Red-Haired Girl. Then they will be positively irate when she responds and we hear her speak for the first time ever. Or was it just me?

There have been better interpretations of Peanuts in moving pictures and there have been worse, but this should place the characters in the minds of at least a few children for the next few years and, in that sense, the film has achieved what it likely set out to. Just don’t watch it expecting it to wow you.