Bastnerds Go Raw – ‘The Grand Budapest Hotel’ Review

For the first time since I started contributing to the Inglorious Bastnerds podcast, I met up with host Chris (CinemaTronix) and Ian (i_nesbot) in Liverpool. We decided to check out the latest work from acclaimed writer/director Wes Anderson. The Grand Budapest Hotel at the FACT cinema.

As usual. We do deviate away and talk general movie news etc. Whilst consuming a bottle of rum between the three of us in a hotel room.

Surprisingly. Myself and Ian (whom are both huge Anderson fans), didn’t immediately take to the overtly whimsical fare as we normally would.

Check out the podcast on this page – and don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe! Yarp.

http://cinematronix.co.uk/bastnerds-goes-raw/

#27 ‘Jurassic Park’ (1993)

“SO, HOW D’YOU LIKE YOUR EGGS IN THE MORNING?”

Cast:-

*Sam Neill

*Laura Dern

*Richard Attenborough

*Jeff Goldblum

*Ariana Richards

*Joseph Mazello

Director:- Steven Spielberg

With its recent 3D release I thought I’d mark my return to reviewing with a recap of the 90’s belter – Jurassic Park.

Surprised as many may be, before this past week the last time I saw the movie was back in 1993 in theatre at the tender age of 7 years of age. Possibly being the most immersive and awe-inspiring movie experiences in my entire life. The fact I haven’t seen the movie in its entirety for 20 years gave me slight reservations on how the effects, the performances and some of the film’s plot elements would hold up with time. Well, let’s face it – it’s all nonsense really, huh?

—– As the story goes – zillionaire genius, John Hammond, creates an attraction park boasting real-life dinosaurs. Which he has created through the gift of SCIENCE!!!. Inviting archaeologists, Neill and Dern, Jeff Goldblum, plus his two grandchildren to vet the park during a special tour. And all shit breaks loose.

The great thing about Jurassic Park is that it hits the notes so sweetly, it is simply pure unbridled and crazy entertainment from start to end. At a 2 hour running time, the opening half is an oddly well-matched combination of dread and wonder, as we are taken off the Pacific Coast into Costa Rica via air, captivated by the world Hammond has created. While still feeling the uncertainty of just how much a dangerous game he is playing. Spielberg pulls this off with his own unique sensibilities of creating a real experience that’s palpable and emotionally alluring.

The first appearance of a dinosaur in all its glory is one of the most memorable moments in cinematic history – as Sam Neill’s Grant and Laura Dern’s Sattler almost look catatonic as the prehistoric creatures come into view on their arrival at Isla Nublar – with Hammond’s immortal words “Welcome to Jurassic Park!” soon following. It’s something I think most people seeing this film for the first time would relate to. The stunning work on visual and practical effects were and still are breathtaking, further enhanced by high-definition technology used to transfer the film onto blu ray form. There are some sequences that look slightly off-key but it’s nothing prominent or note-worthy.

The only issues I have with Jurassic Park are to do with its characters – A combination of stereotypical khaki wearing buffs, an old man with a God-complex, the ever-warning maths whizz and a whole host of generic cannon fodder park workers.

Grant and Sattler, while appearing well-intended and passionate about Hammond’s miraculous creations, eventually become an almost reluctant childminder and a constantly wailing unnecessary female lead respectively. Grant, being the prominent of the two, is our eyes and ears of the film. But the obvious awkward undertones of his suggested fear of relationships seem to prove he’s not the generic dashing hero that you’d expect. This is further accentuated through his interaction with Lex and Tim, whom incidentally are probably my favourite characters from the entire movie. And are respectfully portrayed by the actors in the film’s more frantically and dramatically terrifying sequences.

Ellie Sattler, on the other hand, is borderline annoying, stupidly self-assured and rather insignificant for the films narrative other than to be the representation of, what I believe to be, Alan Grant’s personal insecurities. If the character was far more of significant value in the Crichton novel – then I guess it’s a faux pas on the part of the screenwriters. I just couldn’t find anything remarkably likeable or screen time worthy about the character.

Goldblum and Attenborough deliver the token gravitas-laden performances with some clunky and groan inducing dialogue, and questionable motivations. That’s both of them, by the way 😉

Spielberg’s direction is spellbinding. With the looming shots of the island filling us with a sense of foreboding and wonder, to the iconic T-Rex attack shots, this is really a movie that he obviously felt close to his heart. So much passion and attention to detail is apparent here, and with a timeless score from John Williams – I was really swept in with a real adventure ‘feel’ – but I honestly found it lacked a little bit in the adventure side as it blossoms into a survival/thriller/monster movie after the first half. Perhaps it would fair better, in this context, by focussing more on the kids as central characters. Deviating away from the frights and scares – opting for a more classic Spielbergian piece. But this just a major nitpick on my part. The creatures look beautiful, the lighting gives the daytime scenes a lush vibrance and tender tone to the more ‘friendlier’ dinosaurs. While the evening sequences, casted over by heavy storms and minimalistic score up the ante in tension and terror as we come to meet the more less favourable inhabitants. Makes for gripping stuff!

So yes, the answer is Jurassic Park still holds up as one of the greatest pieces of modern cinema. It’s issues are more noticeable these days, but it has not lost that wonderful essence that made us fall in love with the film all those years ago.

 

9/10

‘The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey’ – My Thoughts

“Gard Gard Gard Gard…”

So it’s been a little over a week since the long-awaited adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s much-adored ‘The Hobbit’ (Part 1, mind) was released, and I’ve been itching to give my opinions on Peter Jackson’s return to Middle Earth…….

Spoilers ahead, here are the moments of greatness, and in some cases – shiteness of ‘An Unexpected Journey’…

 

What Was Great.

1. Martin Freeman as Bilbo Baggins

A given, right? After the announcement of ‘The Office’ alum’s casting, I never stopped thinking it was nothing short of genius. His performance is laced with an air of naivety, disengaged charm, and an almost sense of self-preservation at the film’s beginning. Freeman captured everything I wanted to see in this character, and the encounter with Gollum and subsequent conclusion of the movie was some of the most entertaining and highly focal points for me.

2. The Design

A lasting impression of the LOTR trilogy was the design work inspired by conceptual artists Alan Lee and John Howe. Their astounding and beautiful interpretations of the various locales, architecture and characters of Middle Earth are further realised in ‘The Hobbit’, and will receive a whole new audience of fans. Much to thank those guys for.

3. The Trolls Scene

Take Freeman’s Bilbo, throw in a few ponies, add a couple of daft, bumbling Kiwi trolls with a hunger for bearded midgets…. And you get one of the most endearing, faithful sequences in the entire movie. Grinned from ear to ear during this one!

4. Gollum and The Return Of Andy Serkis

How could I do this list without citing Gollum and Andy Serkis in some form…? I’d be lying to myself if I ever did. The show stealer in the LOTR trilogy, and the catalyst of the events that lead up to the epic Jackson saga returns to give us an uncompromising reminder of why he is such a memorable part of modern cinema. It’s weird to think that I will never see Gollum again on-screen in this capacity, so I’ve really taken Serkis’ performance in this film to be somewhat bittersweet. Alas, it’s an amazing reprise from Andy.

5. The Location Shooting

Since the release of ‘The Return Of The King’, the influx of green screen and blue screen has contributed to the exhausting cookie-cutter popcorn flicks that have littered Hollywood for a decade. However Peter Jackson, his team at Wingnut, New Line and WB persevered to keep the grandiose and breathtaking scale that the LOTR trilogy took on. The location shooting vlogs that were posted through the early parts of last year, gave us an incredible insight into the huge amount of work that is put into such a mammoth task. What we see on-screen are the fruits of that labor. Beautiful stuff.

What Didn’t Cut The Mustard (My opinion…)

1. The Dwarves (SPOILER ALERT)

“Hugh, Pugh, Barney, McGrew, Cuthbert, Dibble and Grub”

Yeah, I know. Old record, old record. Certainly with the amount of characters that ‘The Hobbit’ boasts – it would be pointless to have a gripe about screen time for 13 dwarves. But mine isn’t about that – it’s the execution. Of the Company, with the exception of Thorin (Richard Armitage) – Balin (Ken Stott), Kili (Aidan Turner) and Bofur (Jimmy Nesbitt) are the dwarves with the most screen time/dialogue in the movie. We are also given a slight nod as if to suggest that these characters will be much more prominent and of greater importance in at least the second movie. What actually frustrated me was how forgettable they all were. Next to no characterisation for most of the Company, and when we do see some it’s either far too early in proceedings or just too little too late.

2. Old Bilbo (As Played by Ian Holm)

Love Ian Holm – let me make that perfectly clear. Awesome beyond belief in the LOTR films, and perhaps one of my favourite actors of the entire trilogy. Personally, I really enjoyed seeing him return briefly in his scenes with Frodo (Elijah Wood), which allowed a nice bridging point between the LOTR movies and these new films. But something really bugged me. It’s a small nitpick – but it’s so fucking unbelievably obvious.

It’s the hair.

Ok, yeah – “What the fuck, Scott? Get over it…” – Well I fucking can’t, ok?

It’s been 12 years since we last saw old Bilbo in Bag End. So Weta digital have used their magic to ‘de-age’ the veteran act0r to make him look more similar to his younger self. The hairpiece however, is not Holm’s own hair we can easily assume. So why did they do this….?

Yeah, really… I’m moaning about this

I’m a big continuity buff, and a confessed moaner. But come on, really? The hair is completely different. The reference points are in the DVD cabinets of nearly every single person that worked on the movie!

On the left, a still of ‘Fellowship’, the hair is bushy, almost feathered, also fairly thick and at cheek length. On the right hand side, we see Bilbo as he appears in ‘The Hobbit’. The hair is thinner, lank and also nearly at CHIN length. Bilbo’s appearance in the new movie is one that precedes events in ‘An Unexpected Journey’ – but also takes place in the same time line period as the beginning of ‘Fellowship’… e.g THAT PICTURE ON THE LEFT. Come on, now. It’s a silly mistake that shouldn’t have been made. It’s absolutely glaring.

Meh…. Next….

3. The Seemingly Non-existent Use of Human Actors for Goblins/Orcs/Trolls/Whatever

Looks stoopid

I was excited to see more of the amazing work from Weta’s visual effects and makeup department. But sadly, we weren’t so lucky this time around. The creatures that are featured in the movie are beautifully realised. However it just didn’t have that same magic as having real actors in the performance. It didn’t really tarnish the film on an enjoyment scale, rather just made me question whether Jackson is heading down the same dark path as another certain filmmaker did a long, long time ago.

4. The Film’s Opening Hour

“WE ARE LAUGHING!”

‘An Unexpected Journey’ has a run time which may agitate and even frustrate some theatre-goers. But personally, I didn’t mind it at all. But the first adventure of Bilbo and the Dwarves has such a slow build up, it really did test my patience for the first 45 to 60 minutes. In particular the meeting at Bilbo’s house. Christ… such… a…. fucking…. drag…. Leave already!

5. The Smaug Money Shot

After a successful third act. I really was looking forward to finally getting a glimpse of the dragon, Smaug in all his hellish glory. This was not the case.

With the extreme lengths that Weta went to prevent us viewing folk from seeing the antagonist during the (seriously too long) prologue, I was convinced that we’d get to see him rolling around in his gold like a pig in shit. What we got was an eyeball…. Haha, a great eye. Maybe that was a little joke on their part. Well, you got us. Fuck you anyway 🙂

—————————————————————–

Let’s just be clear on one thing…. I LOVED this movie. Thank you to everyone that worked on it!

Best & Worst Of 2012

 

No filler. Let’s do this.

Here are my Top 10 Worst films (viewed by me) released in the United Kingdom over the last 12 months. My review of the movies (if applicable) can be found at the link after the title/director

 

1. ‘Resident Evil: Retribution’ (Paul W.S. Anderson) http://boxd.it/uIU3

2. ‘Friends With Kids’ (Jennifer Westfeldt) http://boxd.it/j4Hh

3. ‘Twilight – Breaking Dawn Part 2’ (Bill Condon)

4. ‘Hotel Transylvania’ (Genndy Tartakovsky) http://boxd.it/uxt1

5. ‘The Five-Year Engagement’ (Nicholas Stoller) http://boxd.it/j4FP

6. ‘Prometheus’ (Ridley Scott)

7. ‘A Thousand Words’ (Brian Robbins)

8. ‘Snow White & The Huntsman’ (Rupert Sanders)

9. ‘Paranormal Activity 4’ (Henry Joost/Ariel Schulman)

10. ‘Dark Shadows’ (Tim Burton) http://boxd.it/ebrb

 

With the proverbial turds flushed down the commode. Here are my favourites 🙂

Celluloidical’s Top 10 Films Of 2012

1. ‘Moonrise Kingdom’ (Wes Anderson) http://boxd.it/eMBH

2. ‘The Avengers’ (Joss Whedon) http://boxd.it/btpr

3. ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ (Christopher Nolan) http://boxd.it/jSSp

4. ‘The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey’ (Peter Jackson) http://boxd.it/BvJZ

5. ‘Looper’ (Rian Johnson)

6. ‘Dredd’ (Pete Travis) http://boxd.it/rLKz

7 ‘Silver Linings Playbook’ (David O.Russell)

8. ‘End Of Watch’ (David Ayer) http://boxd.it/zzsT

9. ‘Skyfall’ (Sam Mendes) http://bit.ly/ZLxnIf

10. ‘Chronicle’ (Josh Trank)

#26 ‘Skyfall’ (2012)

Cast:-

*Daniel Craig

*Judi Dench

*Javier Bardem

*Naomie Harris

*Ralph Fiennes

*Ben Whishaw

Director:- Sam Mendes

(Not much plot retread, only my thoughts)

Skyfall is undoubtedly one of the biggest revelations of the year for me. Ignoring the reviews and opinions of the many users on Twitter – I went into this with a horrible taste in my mouth left by the sleep-inducing entry that was Quantum Of Solace. And with expectations low, i was conpletely won over.

By almost literally going back to basics, and learning from convoluted mess made by the last few Bond films, Sam Mendes has effectively brought the elements of vintage James Bond – and seamlessly integrated them into the modern broken and fallable incarnation of the spy.

Sure, this film is ‘big’, but it’s only in small doses, and does more than compensate. The action is story driven, and actually plays out for audience and character reaction. Something sorely misused and underplayed during previous films (sorry, Brosnan). The direction of action is steady, crisp and not rushed (unlike others) – which makes the film all the more enjoyable and doesn’t affect the run time negatively.

Daniel Craig’s Bond is a lost soul more than ever but it’s this dark, deep-rooted pain that encapsulates him that makes him probably the most interesting and connective Bond that we have seen on screen. The suave, sexy, cool facade is all there, however Craig conveys the apparent tumultuous internal conflicts of 007 quite effortlessly. He is far more comfortable in the role.

At the films opening we are diverted away from the quote on quote – typical Bond opener. As a shadowed Craig walks through a dimly lit walkway, eventually meeting the camera with his trademark icy blue stare. It’s instantly memorable and a testament to the old adage ‘less is more’ – and indeed it is.

Though the story is generally reminiscent in some parts to ‘Goldeneye’, the exposition clearly takes the motives of the film’s principal villain, ‘Silva’ (Javier Bardem) to a sinisterly twisted level. Adopting a sadistic, perverted lust for revenge against former ally ‘M’ (Judi Dench). The character is also unquestionably a stark reminder of what James Bond himself could become if he continues down the path he treads. Conclusively, Skyfall is what I’d call Bond’s ‘crystal ball’ movie.

Saying that, however – the film is also 007’s story of resurrection and redemption – both literally and figuratively. All tying up at a showdown at Bond’s childhood home. Leading to an extremely familiar set up at the close of the film – a promising and exciting prospect. Coupled with a tag line of ‘James Bond Will Return’ – it gets you frenzied with anticipation.

Suitably polished off by the reintroduction of ‘Q’ – portrayed eloquently by Ben Whishaw and a particularly impressive turn of ‘will he, won’t he’ from Ralph Fiennes’ Gareth Mallory, chairman of the Intelligence & Security Committee and somewhat overseer of MI6. Fans of new and old will find something to sate their appetites.

Beyond that, there is so much to behold with Skyfall. I implore any film fan to give this a watch.

;

8/10

‘The Shining’ (1980) – Screening Reaction

“Are we there yet?”

So last week I was fortunate enough to get tickets to a special screening of Stanley Kubrick’s ‘The Shining’. Here are my thoughts after my first rewatch since buying the DVD.

An undeniably perfect example of pure terror and the degeneration of the human psyche. Jack Nicholson carries the weight with conviction and ease. Littered with allusions and unanswered questions – it’s a testament to modern horror. It instills fear, it instills dread. With an absorbing, but blank setting that in itself becomes characterised through the unravelling of events – The Shining culminates in one of the most memorable climaxes I’ve witnessed in any movie. Giving audience perspectives of the 4 main characters without losing any sense of atmosphere or tension of whats to come. Simple, but effective editing and cinematography used intelligently.

Beautifully photographed and amazingly acted. A Kubrickian classic.

9/10

‘Movie Talk On Sunday’ #MTOS 21/10/2012

So after nearly a whole year since my last chance, I am finally hosting ‘Movie Talk On Sunday’ on Twitter for Sunday 21st October 2012! And my subject will be Award-winning directing duo – The Coen Brothers, Joel and Ethan.

For information on #MTOS, and how you can get involved – Check further down for a direct link.

From the noir-style thriller of ‘Blood Simple’, to the absurd and off-beat ‘The Big Lebowski’, to the incomparable ‘No Country For Old Men’ – The Coens redefined genre filmmaking in the late 80’s, the 90’s all the way through to this decade. Combining elements of dark humour, high tension, eccentric characters and grisly violence that has become a formula for some of the most highly praised films of the modern era.

The Coen Brothers Wikipedia Page

The Coen Brothers Filmography

Find out more about ‘Movie Talk On Sunday’ (#MTOS) and see how you can get involved!

Also, you can follow the creators of #MTOS on Twitter – @raghavmodi and @askimrach

Here are my questions for #MTOS for Sunday 21st October. Kicking off at 8:00pm GMT!

Hope to see you all there!

—————————————————————————————————————————

Q1.Let’s start with the classic…. What are your favourite Joel & Ethan Coen films, and what makes them so? #MTOS

Q2.What are your least favourites? What didn’t work? #MTOS

Q3.Is there a quote or line from one of their films that you have a fondness for? #MTOS

Q4.Have the frequent collaborations with Roger Deakins (cinematography) and Carter Burwell (score) been pivotal in their success? #MTOS

Q5.Which character from a Coens film do you mostly associate with them, and why? #MTOS

Q6.Create a dream ensemble cast from existing Coens films (i.e Male lead/support,female lead/support) #MTOS

Q7.Be it positive or negative. Is there a defining moment in a Coens movie that had an effect on you as a film fan? #MTOS

Q8.Which story/existing material would you like to see the Coens put their unique spin on? #MTOS

Q9.Best performance? In any capacity (i.e particular scene, entire movie) #MTOS

Q10.In an era where CGI/action flicks dominate Hollywood – Are the Coens still relevant to modern cinema? #MTOS

The Pianist (2002 dir. Roman Polanski)

Pop Peelings

Excessively nostrilled musician gets evicted several times.

4/5

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#25 ‘Prometheus’ (2012)

Fass obviously saw his future wang endowment after gazing into his cosmic crystal ball

Cast:-

*Noomi Rapace

*Michael Fassbender

*Charlize Theron

*Logan Marshall-Green

*Idris Elba

Director:- Ridley Scott

MILD SPOILER ALERT!

Without question, Prometheus is the most anticipated movie of 2012 – argue with it what you will.. But it’s a cold hard fact. Namely because it heralds the return to the sci-fi genre of one Sir Ridley Scott – one of the greatest filmmakers of our time. And after over 30 years since his first sci-fi feature, Alien, Mr Scott returns to the franchise that chained one of the greatest film series of our time. But has he, and such a wonderfully talented cast delivered what we’ve eagerly been anticipating?

In a nutshell – Prometheus is a sci-fi spectacle that delves into one of the most posed questions by the human race. Where do we come from? After discovering ancient markings courtesy of ancient civilisations that have a striking parallel – Doctors Elizabeth Shaw (Rapace) and Charlie Holloway (Marshall-Green) lead a 17-strong expedition paid by the Weyland Corporation to investigate a distant planet literally written in the stars, in the hope of finding the answers they seek to the beginnings of human life.

On a production standpoint – Prometheus is visually astounding. Seamlessly blending physical sets with amazing computer generated imagery. Landscapes and beautifully shot vistas are undeniably epic in their scale, beauty and atmospheric effect… And give the film an extremely grandiose aura, harkening to some of Scott’s more recent work. It certainly gives credence to the frequent statement from various medias that Prometheus is a BIG film, in all its aspects and ideas. Building a whole new blueprint to work from (Yes that’s a minor spoiler, this film does bait for sequels). With a production on this scale and a superb bout of timely effort by the designers, the performances and stunt work in some external action scenes are lifted to a higher plane – far away from the craptastic green screen factory line that Hollywood have churned mile after mile of uninspiring bloke flicks on a continual cycle. A very refreshing and welcome shift for a big budget production. No doubt Ridley has set a benchmark here.

Unfortunately, that is where the film’s positive notes end. Because the film, as an entire package, is extremely disappointing.

Prometheus’ running idea of challenging opposing beliefs is highly abundant throughout the film’s first half. Irrevocably, it does nothing to drive the plot or premise of the film – leads to absolutely no character development or actual culmination, and certainly does not make for memorable, or even notable dialogue between the crew mates. A strong aspect of Scott’s ‘Alien’, was the camaraderie between the team aboard the Nostromo. As opposed to this film – With what is a rather extensive crew,  are barely even given arm’s-length to stretch their characters and are, as predicted, merely just lambs to the slaughter. Shaw and Holloway’s relationship is kind of a surprise(?)… we get a teeny bit of insight on their past during one scene midway through the film – but as a whole, the exposition police are still at the station eating donuts.  Shaw, individually, is actually given a few brief flashback moments thanks to some nosey digging of synthetic bod ‘David’ (a pitch perfect Fassbender). But it only amounts to more questions surrounding the Doctor’s ‘faith’ and ‘belief’ of there are really answers out there for what she’s looking for. It’s a real shame, as these ideas surrounding the subject are logical and reasonable – but it’s not constructively or appropriately developed. Rapace borders from passionate scientist come religious optimist (notably pitted against her partner Charlie – who is more privy to the scientific theory of humanity’s origin), to a reasonably small-scale heroine. In perhaps one of the closest scenes to Kane’s chestburster surprise in Alien, Rapace’s Shaw is subject to some pretty gut wrenching stuff. Subsequently stepping over that border aforementioned. For me, Noomi Rapace doesn’t really excel here – more a case of what she was given to work with.

Elsewhere there’s an impressive performance from Charlize Theron, as Weyland overseer, Vickers. Using her icy attributes and pragmatic nature to carry the film’s more ‘diplomatic’ moments and rather channelling franchise poster-girl Ellen Ripley. Idris Elba was a major surprise as perhaps another throwback to the early Alien movies, playing the ship’s captain – Janek. There’s a definite attitude, a groove that he runs on – engaging in some interesting sequences with the two female leads. Though his screen time was small at best, he was perhaps one of the more characterised crew members of Prometheus.

Michael Fassbender, is on another level as the ship’s caretaker/android ‘David’, who oversees the operation of the Prometheus for the two years that the crew remain in stasis. Our introduction to David is probably my favourite sequence in the entire movie. Fassbender almost seems like he’s fresh out of the mould – the mannerisms, a cold and disconcerting tone and quite often humourous nature really notches up some points. Really something. Proving yet again that he is one of the most versatile and talented actors working today.

Prometheus – though with its stunning visuals and fairly strong cast. Massively falters on its most important aspect – the story. With a very intriguing premise, and being overwhelmed with anticipation being such a huge Ridley Scott fan – I was disheartened to see such a promising start keel over near the half way hurdle. It spills out of steady hands into a structure that is fragmented and a very loosely ended narrative. Seriously dampening the efforts from the cast.

Without speculating about sequels – there’s an immediate brain wave after watching the film that not enough back story or development is given to the planet-dwelling (sort of) antagonists. Rendering the film’s last 20-30 minutes nose-pinchingly redundant. Additionally, one of the film’s most important and key moments – unfortunately destroys the entire idea of this being an Alien prequel, completely blowing one of the most mystifying aspects of the franchise’s history out of the water. Fact is, yes it is an Alien prequel, regardless of what’s been reported (sharing ‘strands of Alien DNA’ is a double-entendre, people). Even though some of the references to the franchise are incidentally misplaced that it almost seems less ambiguous and more ‘here look at this little easter egg we tacked on’.

Undoubtedly, opinions will be split right down the middle for Ridley Scott’s return to science fiction, and though the film sets out to ask the great question. We are left asking ourselves a shit load more by the end…

6/10

#24 ‘La Vita è Bella’ (1997)

“COME TO THE CABAREEEET!”

Cast:-

*Roberto Benigni

*Nicoletta Braschi

*Giorgio Cantarini

Director:- Roberto Benigni

Co-written and directed by Italian actor and comedian, Roberto Benigni. The much acclaimed Holocaust-set fable – La Vita e Bella (Life Is Beautiful), stretches far across the plain of contemporary Wartime motion picture. Bringing us a story of real beauty during horrific adversity – inspired by Benigni’s own father’s internment at a Nazi concentration camp.

Benigni portrays the lead, Guido, a Jewish man with an extremely light-hearted view on life and an imagination that bears no barriers. Who falls for a young aristocrat, Dora (Benigni’s real-life partner Nicoletta Braschi) whom is to be married off to a pompous idiot by order of her overbearing family. Dora eventually falls for the charismatic Guido, and they later marry and have a son, Giosue (Cantarini).

Though such a delicate subject matter, the Holocaust has been a popular topic of narrative for many films. Most notably dramas or thrillers. Here, in a rather unexpected turn, the film opens as a more comedic, slapstick affair. With our lead ensuing in some laugh out loud high jinx from literally the get-go.

The movie had received a widespread seal of approval and accolade on release, however there were a minority of critics that were completely alienated from its detour into unfamiliar territory. With such a well-documented historical event of genocide being skimmed with a humour-laden first act. It would be remiss to not take these opinions into heart, although this certainly gives creedence to what I believe to be, the film’s true message. That hope, love and optimism will conquer all.

Guido is a man who truly loves life and his family, and during the films early parts he lavishes his ‘Princess’ with charm and poetic tenderness throughout their courtship. Becoming transfixed on his physical performance as well as his dialogue, his comedic exploits are cleverly controlled and timed perfectly, and its heightened even more so by his very caricature like features. After their eventual separation into internment by the Nazi’s. Guido is forced to protect the purity of his young son, by claiming the war is merely a competition, with the eventual winner being awarded a brand new tank.

Giosue, played by the very talented Cantarini, is in awe of his father and is blissfully unaware of the true nature of circumstances. I did find an immoral sensibility to this plot point – as there is a distinct lack of on-screen violence that would typically transpire in such a film, and Giosue’s exposure to this would have adjusted his emotions toward his father’s stunts. Therefore dampening some of the film’s aesthetics.

In terms of atmospherical and tonal points, La Vita e Bella is truly marvellous in its first and second acts in particular. With some amazing composition accompanying a few wonderfully played-out scenes, and a gorgeous visual setting. And though I can foresee many viewers becoming slightly alienated by the film’s harrowing and unnerving latter parts, I still strongly found that this change in the narrative does in fact glaze the story with real heart and true sacrifice for the people a man loves

8.5/10