Review: Zero Dark Thirty

Year: 2012 (UK Release 2013)
Director: Kathryn Bigelow 
Screenplay: Marc Boal
Starring: Jessica Chastain, Chris Pratt, Edgar Ramirez, James Gandolfini, Jason Clarke, Jennifer Ehle, Joel Edgerton, Kyle Chandler, Mark Strong

Synopsis is here

NOTE: I do not explicitly mention the finer details of the films plot and it's conclusion, the review does talk about the latter moments of the film.

A lot about how I feel about Zero Dark Thirty evolves around how I took it's final moments. Far from being the sensationalized climax that many would think, Zero Dark Thirty's muted raid and aftermath and near anguished final shot do not claim any relief in my eyes. Quite the opposite when placed in consideration of the two hours that came before it. We see a release of sorts but little comfort. Many will argue this point, but the power of Bigelow's film lies with the viewer themselves. The film is so matter of fact, that it takes the form of whomever the viewer is. For me, the film captures something that many wish to forget, that the search for Bin Laden and so called the war on terror may become one of the darkest moments in American History.

A precise and upfront procedural, Kathryn Bigelow's film is the perfect foil for her previous war film The Hurt Locker (2008). Whereas the drug of choice for Jeremy Renner's character was disarming bombs and the danger it entailed, here we follow Maya (played with an unwavering intensity by Jessica Chastain); a no nonsense CIA agent whom is attracted to little more than the task at hand. When asked what else she has done for the CIA in the decade long search for Bin Laden, her response is that she has nothing. Like a Michael Mann film, the job is everything to Maya. She is the "man who does work". It's clear that the act of water-boarding repulses her, but this is the job and morals only seem to get in the way. 

This is not me condoning what I saw. It's also not the film stating that such torture gains results (it doesn't, in fact it only leads to more dead ends). But the films matter-of-fact tone is what makes the film such a difficult watch. The events are taken as is and never glorified. Characters leave the work they do, to do something "normal". What does that suggest? To me it suggests that what they are doing is not working. Such scenes only highlight the ugliness and desperation that is running through the compound. 

The film is a fractured one, both in narrative and moral compass. Along with torturing and wiretaps,  we witness scenes in which Arabs can be brought off with fast cars for information (as long as nothing comes back to them), while true legitimate leads can be turned (or double bluffing) with dangerous results. Nothing is clear except Maya's assertiveness which never wavers over the films ten year time frame. Bigelow and Boal's film eschew more typical plotting, deciding more upon viewing the search as a series of vignettes. Bigelow punctuates some of episodes with amazingly terse set pieces with the tension cranked up to the hilt. By the time we get to the films 18 minute climax (which held a similar tone to Mann's final sequence in Miami Vice), we're primed. I may know the ending, but I found myself riveted at how the incident would occur.  This is where the films muted, realistic approach to proceedings is at its most effective, displaying the finalisation of the search, not as a victory but as an uneasy closure. 

Bringing us back to the films lingering final moments, where it all comes to a head for this character. After all the time we've spent with Maya, the choices she's made, and the effect her decisiveness has had on this situation, it is only now everything "comes together". While The Hurt Locker dealt with the "warriors", here we deal with the "planners". It's telling that Bigelow has found a female protagonist for this role. While similar to many of her previous leads, the simple choice of gender creates another dynamic. We notice how she's positioned in rooms, her relationships with others (including other women) and areas of her life that have been given up for the task at hand. Like The Hurt Locker, we now notice what the drug of war takes away. Bigelow has spent her career taking pieces of her characters souls with varying degrees of success. Here in Zero Dark Thirty we see Kathryn Bigelow at her best, taking away a part of human essence in one of the most intellectually taxing American films of the last decade. Expect no catharsis.

British Film Bloggers Circle: Abusive Movie Comments.

"From racial abuse to death threats, it seems that having a view on a popular movie means personal attacks on your person is fair game. That’s right, you don’t like Transformers then you’re clearly a dumb nigger cunt bitch who should get killed."

I've posted a new article on abusive movie comments on the British Film Bloggers Circle. Click the quote above to view.

Review: Haywire

Year: 2012
Director: Steven Sodenbergh
Screenplay: Lem Dobbs
Starring: Gina Carano, Micheal Douglas, Ewan McGregor, Micheal Fassbender, Antonio Banderas

Synopsis is here:

Haywire is a film, which I found easier to like more than love. I can sense that many; expecting something a little more conventional, will find it extremely easy to hate. But let me say one thing, it's a Steven Sodenbergh film, one should expect something a little different. Take away those Ocean films and even his more mainstream features still can feel like a round peg in a square hole. Despite how that sounds, I do mean that is a good way.

Lean, mean and tightly crafted, Haywire is a volatile piece that doesn't outstay it's welcome. During it's stay however, we do get to jump and jetset around a variety of different locales to a retro 60's David Arnold soundtrack. All this while we follow Mallory, an ex-marine cum private sector special trying to find out (violently) who double crossed her, during her last job and why. To quote Bad Boys 2: "shit just got real".

Looking for anything too in-depth in a film like this; is much like eating a dry cracker to rehydrate yourself. My second paragraph has told you nearly everything that happens within the movie. This comes at a price however as the film does hit anything past the superficial. The film just doesn't give us enough to get a hold of. I found myself comparing the film to The Limey (also scripted by Lem Dobbs), a genre exercise which is equally as straight edged as this. However, despite Sodenbergh's 1999 feature being more experimental than this (non liner editing and the like), it still manages to have a solid emotional centre through Terrence Stamp's amusing yet strikingly sad performance.

The only strikes that land here are from the fists of the hard hitting Gina Carano whose one note performance is understandable considering the tightness of the script and lack of acting experience but struggles if the film even sniffed at trying to hit a station above ass kicking. The story is very typical spy affair, while it's difficult to find anything within the character of Mallory that stands out other than the obvious.

Is the first time casting of the MMA/Former American Gladiator a piece of stunt casting? Yes and No. In comparison to the likes of Brittany Spears (Crossroads), Christina Aguilera (Burlesque) or Mariah Carey (Glitter) Carano has not got the inbuilt fan-base to lie back on, nor does it feel like an expansion of a brand (although considering her maxim spread I may be wrong). Carano has a certain look and build that fits the character she plays. Having an known actress could have been distracting, particularly as the fight scenes are edited and shot in such a way to emphasise Carano's talents. However Gina is no Thespian and it shows, making it feel at times that Sodenbergh hired her because, why not? With this said, none of the acting really rises above a certain level.

Despite this the film is gorgeous to look at, happily hops from place to place in an amusing James Bond fashion and the fight sequences are expertly put together in long, unflinching, unbroken takes. There is a gimmicky feel to having Carano in the part but it is amazing to watch her in full flow. While the linked photoshoot may cause fapping within the teenage boy sector, Sodenbergh takes away the blatant sexuality. This gives us a character who can be looked at in the same way as any male figure if they were placed in the same position. It would be nice if the character, performance and story could catch up with the gender politics.

Note: Head to Movies.com for a an interesting article on Carano's role within the movie and in the action movie dynamic.

Woman in a lead role? You better Warner Brother

It's been two days after this article and blogs everywhere are rife with outrage. Much has been said about the article and here will be no exception.


It's been two days since the first blogs reported this and it seems that now the WB is on damage control stating that its president did not say such terrible things. Lets be honest with ourselves right now. It may be a blogger taking a statement out of context or an oafish head of a studio (see smug picture) with a very shorted sighted and imbecilic viewpoint of why a few average looking movies didn't make the grade but I do believe something dumb must of been said.

We as bloggers write for many reasons but one of them is simply to get read and to get seen. Now in looking at the Deadline Hollywood Daily and it's blogger. I don't think Nikki Finke has to do to much to get read. She's not like stragglers like me who'd love to get just ten readers a day. So if she was to make something like this up Warner could take her to cleaners easily. But they haven't.

What will happen? A few statements stating that the comment weren't said will arrive this week. Warner Brothers will still release pictures with female leads for the time being and wait for the situation to blow over. And of course, like all big studios, they will be far too important to do anything to make them appear more caring to anyone offended.

But lets look two of the main supposed failures in question. The Brave One and The Invasion.

The Brave One

To be completely honest. After watching this trailer the film looks a lot like an retread of Micheal Winner's Death Wish. To add to this, the film also had to do battle with the eerily similar Death Sentence which came out two week earlier. The trailers do nothing to try and show any differences between the two films other than one has a woman in the lead and one has a man.

To add to this. Observing as many opinions as I could in the short amount of time before having to go to bed and then back to work. both critics and film goers didn't mind the film depending on where you go. If you go to the rotten tomatoes web page you get a middling average, while the imdb gives off a different picture. same with metacritc....actually hang on a minute....go back one. the imdb......yes NORMAL PEOPLE are enjoying the film....isn't that what a studio wants?

In fact the film reviewed better than Death Sentence but flopped....well after watching a revenge movie that didn't work, not everybody may want to see another in such a short space of time....even if they love Jodie Foster.

The Invasion

The FORTH remake of Invasion of the Body Snatchers. A film which went through a massive rewrite (The Wachowskis) and a new director (their mate James McTeigue) re-shooting much of the film. Now this reminds me of when a studio wanted to bring The Exorcist up to date after it's successful re-release in 1999. Remember? When they got a director (Paul Schrader) to make a prequel. Then they didn't think it was bloody enough for the backers and hired another director (Renny Harlin) to shoot the same film but "different".

Now look at who the producers hired first Paul Schrader the guy who made films like Blue Collar and wrote the seriously twisted Taxi Driver. For him to make a horror film it's going to be a more more grounded look at horror. No...no good fire him and get in the guy that lost a shit load of money with Cutthroat Island and bankrupted a production company....but that's another story.

Schraders film was limited release while Harlin's flick went widespread and only made it's money back with it's overseas box office.

Now who owns The Exorcist series....yes.....thats right FUCKING WARNER BROTHERS. The dudes that got a fuck load of money from The Exorcist...twice. A film that earned it's two main female stars Oscar nominations (not that awards are important two these people but the money sure is).

Back to the point. Original director: Oliver Hirschbiegel. Director of the Somber Downfall detailing the last hours of Hitler.

New Director: James McTeigue director of comic book adaptation V for Vendetta and assistant director For The matrix films.

Lets look at it like this. I want a picture of a domestic cat. I get someone who doesn't mind drawing cats but would rather draw dogs to draw it for me. He draws a cat which isn't to my liking. I get someone who likes cats but I want him to draw I tiger over the first cat....you get a mess. That's my overlong metaphor and I'm sticking to it.

Er....Byron...the point?

Point being (sorry) in looking at the high hopes of these movies on the back of a load of shoddy summer blockbusters, bad marketing, naff planning...your not going to get much. It doesn't help by placing solid actresses in bog standard films. Both Kidman and Foster have won Oscars, both like to diverse into projects that suit them and both aren't your usual Hollywood fodder.

If you want place Jodie Foster in a revenge movie. Don't place her right next to another revenge movie. Especially if that other revenge movie has a director that has come of the back of a very successful horror series. Death Sentence is directed by James Wan who is partly responsible for the Saw Series (forth one on its way). Death Sentence also has that fact plastered on it's advertising. Now no offence but not that many people in middle America are gonna watch the brave one because "the guy who did in the company of wolves did it" and hell...I own that movie.

Nicole Kidman is not really the woman that I'd pick for a film like The Invasion. But like fuck it's her fault that the film can't pick a writer, let alone a director.

No matter what, something was said and it has been broadcast. To be honest Warner Brothers will be fortunate enough not to lose half of their Harry Potter sales on a boycott. But hey, we still have to watch movies at the cinema in a regime in where if your actor whose name isn't Morgan Freeman, Will Smith or Denzel Washington your black ass ain't getting no leading role....unless you can rap.