Suburra (Review)

Suburra (Film Review) 2016

Directed by Stefano Rulli
Starring Pierfrancesco Favino and Elio Germano

Suburra is an Italian neo-noir mafia film. The film is set in 2011 in Rome, when a major mob were bribing and threatening politicians to pass a law to convert a traditionally Italian town into a gambling and partying, mafia run, location, focusing on the mafia's control of Italian politics and the Vatican. It also focuses on the rivalries between gangs. ''Everyone can be bought.''

The rain-filled cinematography definitely tells the story's tone. Hyper-violence, political and Vatican corruption, and traditional mafia activity, the film isn't easy to watch. But the film's visuals, even including the violence, are done masterfully. The graphic violence adds the gritty sense that this film required.

I admire that the film went with an intelligent plot, rather than a solely action-filled one. The hard-hitting violence is only justified by the plot. An intriguing plot, at that.

The entire soundtrack was curated by the French band M83, and the music works unbelievably well with the visuals, as made obvious by the trailer. The tracks all sounds very modern, matching what the mafia wish to transform a traditional town into.

I don't have any major complaints, other than that it could have swayed further from the Italian mafia-film stereotype, and feel the film is gritty but visually beautiful.

9/10.

Rated 18, runtime 135 minutes.

The Stanford Prison Experiment (Review)

The Stanford Prison Experiment (Film Review) 2015

Directed by Kyle Patrick Alvarez
Starring Ezra Miller and Billy Crudup

The Stanford Prison Experiement is an independent drama which follows the notorious 1971 psychological experiment carried out by Dr. Philip Zambardo. 15 applicants are randomly assigned the roles of prisoners or guards to participate in a simulated jail setting over the period of two weeks. The experiment, and the film, act as an exploration of the transformation of human nature under negative circumstances.

The film's introduction is a beautifully filmed process of printing the advertisements for the experiment, completely devoid of any human features, already highlighting the deindividuation faced by both the ''prisoners'' and the ''guards'' involved in the experiment.

The cast mainly consists of young men, already established in the acting world. Ezra Miller (We Need To Talk About Kevin, The Perks of Being a Wallflower) stands out as a very strong actor, along with Tye Sheridan (Mud, X-Men) and Johnny Simmons (The Perks of Being a Wallflower). The acting adds a level of needed realism, to drive home the fact that this experiment did actually occur, and that this is definitely human nature.

The film did have a minor downfall with pacing. Some scenes, although many of these were intentional, were very repetitive, and not very interesting to watch. While other scenes, such as the sequence involving ''parole'' should have been prolonged. I personally did not feel 100% interested throughout.

The Stanford Prison Experiment is an intriguing psychological study with stellar acting, but not a consistently engaging film. Although I doubt all viewers will feel the same way, I consider it a negative trait. The film is enjoyable, but disturbing, and I recommend it to those interested in psychology and human behaviour.

7.5/10.

Rated 15a, runtime 122 minutes.

The Nice Guys (Review)

The Nice Guys (Film Review) 2016

Directed by Shane Black

Starring Ryan Gosling and Russel Crowe

The Nice Guys is a 2016 buddy-cop, action-comedy. Action-comedy, a genre I always must be cautious of. The Nice Guys falls short of my approval.

Neither of the genre's points work or flow. The action/thriller aspect of the film failed, due to the fact that the film is simply not thrilling. The characters cannot be described as engaging, and I therefore felt no empathy towards them, or their fate. The ''comedy'' was generally slapstick humour, mostly consisting of feminine shrieks from Ryan Gosling.

Russell Crowe's performance was wooden and constricted by his masculine character. The child actress (Angourie Rice) was unimpressive, and at times, irritating. Though, overall, I found the performances to be quite weak, there were some above-average performances from some side-characters.

The plot wasn't entirely flawed, although the movie did not benefit from withholding the amount of information that it did until the finale. It's introductory scene did utilise withholding of information well, infusing the film with mystery. I felt that the film took a dip following the first act or so.

Overall, The Nice Guys is a buddy-cop film littered with flaws and unimpressive performances. 

5.5/10.

Rated 15a, runtime 116 minutes.

Nola and The Clones (Review)

Nola and The Clones (Film Review)

Directed by Graham Jones

Starring Caoimhe Cassidy

Nola and The Clones is a 2016 Irish indie film, released entirely on YouTube as part of gthe cinematic movement ''Nuascannan''. The film follows a homeless woman fleeing the societal pressures put on women. She begins to meet a series of men ''appearing strikingly similar to each other''.

The city of Dublin is depicted beautifully visually. It was surreal to recognise landmarks and buildings, but presented in such a cinematic quality.

Caoimhe Cassidy's performance is impressive. The feminist statement of her character is definitely intriguing and though-provoking, although marginally exaggerated. Cassidy is a convincing and natural actress.

The film is quite slow-burning, and very stereotypical of an indie. A minimalist plot, and old-fashioned dialogue and camera-work. The music compliments the visuals very nicely.

Although it may not interest everyone, Nola and The Clones is an Indie worth watching for those more inclined, with an interesting political message and metaphorical resonance. It's definitely worth a watch on Youtube. The entire film is available below.

7.510.

Wendy and Lucy (Review)

Wendy and Lucy (Film Review) 2008

Directed by Kelly Reichardt

Starring Michelle Williams

Wendy and Lucy follows the journey of Wendy (Michelle Williams), and her canine companion Lucy to reach utopian Alaska, where labour is supposedly in need. Kelly Reichardt brings another slow-burning introspective film, with a minimalistic plot and stellar acting.

Wendy and Lucy acts as a frighteningly honest portrayal of capitalist America. ''You can't get an address without an address. You can't get a job without a job.'' This piece brings a new perspective to homelessness and poverty. Wendy is not a run-of-the-mill impoverished drug addict, she is a person with real emotions and issues, a character beautifully performed by Michelle Williams. She could simply be summarised as an unlucky person, being completely cheated by the cruelty of the American economy. It's also ironic that the addition of the dog brings more humanity to the story. There isn't much emotional release throughout the film, the constant negativity builds up in the viewer, and the character. Along with a minimalist plot, Williams' acting can be described with that exact word.

The film manages to capture the mundane landscape of the area, and create beautiful colouring and shots. Reichardt's mixture of close-ups (such as the one displayed above) and long-shots works brilliantly throughout the film. Some shots linger, and some shots are cut quickly. Overall, the film is quite slow, but I feel that this is a positive aspect to this particular film. I found the pacing to be quite strange, much like how I felt with Night Moves, but, again, this wasn't a negative. The film definitely holds back in all aspects. From the drama, plot, and the short runtime of 80 minutes.

Wendy and Lucy focuses on the reality of life. As stated, the situation which Wendy finds herself in is a realistic portrayal of the United States. Wendy's struggle stems from unluckiness, and a lack of monetary support from family. The film also highlights the realism of financial problems, and the sacrifices people must endure due to them. In this system, money is always prioritised.

In conclusion, Wendy and Lucy is a brilliant indie drama portraying the difficulties of capitalist America. Michelle Williams portrayed her intriguing character in her sleep, holding back on emotion for a final heartbreaking release.

9/10.

Rated 15, runtime 80 minutes.

We Need to Talk About Kevin (Review)

We Need to Talk About Kevin (Film Review) 2011

We Need to Talk About Kevin is a 2011 drama film directed by Lynne Ramsay, and starring Tilda Swinton, John. C Reilley, and Ezra Miller.

Eva (Tilda Swinton) lives in social seclusion following her son, Kevin's (Ezra Miller) monstrous crime. This crime against humanity is revealed near the end of the film. This puts emphasis on the aftermath of crime, rather than the crime itself, focusing solely on the psychological impact it had on Eva, and the events leading up to it. The narrative is mixed with a reverse-linear series of flashbacks leading up to the reveal, Kevin, from infancy to mid-teenage years.

The cinematography is extraordinary. The colours red and blue dictate the mood of every scene. Many colour cues are present all throughout the film, leading to very interesting analysis. The introduction scene is entirely red, a very interesting visual choice, but one that beautifully introduces the film. 

An outstanding performance from Tilda Swinton. Her character seems so genuine, and so genuinely psychologically disturbed. Likewise with Ezra Miller and Kevin. The child-actors for the flashback narrative are also great, very rare for serious films such as these. They all even look and act similar. I had no issues with John. C Reilly or any of the other cast.

The plot is skillfully constructed, along with being overall very intriguing and captivating. The film has a definite focus on psychology, exploring the reasons why Kevin committed such acts, along with the psychological damage of Eva. The question nature vs. nurture is explored throughout. Was Kevin born a psychopath, or socially excluded?

In conclusion, We Need to Talk About Kevin is a technically and visually superb film. Its exploration of psychology should intrigue those interested. The film is perfected by the performances of Tilda Swinton and Ezra Miller. Overall, an excellent film.

I give We Need to Talk About Kevin 10/10.

Rated 15, runtime 112 minutes.

The Conjuring 2 (Review)

The Conjuring 2 (Film Review) 2016

The Conjuring 2 is a 2016 horror film directed by James Wan, the director of its predecessor, along with Saw and Insidious. The film stars Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, and Frances O'Connor.

The film opens with a sequence following the well-known Amityville case, which the stars of the film, the Warrens, acted as exorcists to. The sequence is interesting stylised, but lacks major creativity, repeating well-known cliches and cheap sound effects. Following this, the movie portrays a working class British family being terrorised by a ghost of a 72-year-old man.

I really enjoyed The Conjuring, The Conjuring 2, likewise, but not to the exact same extent in some ways. The number of jump-scares was upped, increasing the audience's flow of adrenaline when compared the The Conjuring, but the amount of actual scares remained constant. The film displays James Wan's ability to terrify an audience, though, at times, through the use of slightly cheap means. A specific sequence involving a ''crooked-man'' comes to mind, a poorly animated and ridiculous villain. I found the sequence involving the portrait to be very creative and well-done. James Wan can clearly influence an audience. The film has a very dark and stylised look, which I really enjoyed. The feeling of anxiety is built from the beginning sequences.

The addition of romance to the film felt forced and unnecessary. I also felt that the amount of religious references (although I acknowledge how the film is very religiously based) was excessive. At times, it was reminiscent of a God's Not Dead film.

There were impressive performances from both Vera Farmiga (Lorraine Warren) and Madison Wolfe (Janet). The two son characters were extremely similar, and I actually forgot that they were two different people. Their defining features were boy-who-stutters and boy-who-does-not-stutter. The characters of the children other than Janet were very under-developed, seemingly acting solely as people to scream when the audience is supposed to replicate. I felt that the more minor characters in the original were more developed.

In conclusion, The Conjuring 2 is an enjoyable and terrifying horror film, although it can be ridiculous at times. Overall, I believe it's quite a strong sequel to the original.

I rate the film 7.5/10.

Rated 15a, runtime 135 minutes.