The Neon Demon (Review)

The Neon Demon (Film Review) 2016

Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn
Starring Elle Fanning, Jena Malone, Keanau Reeves
Psychological Thriller

The Neon Demon, visually, is a masterpiece. Every shot is like an individual painting, meticulously coloured and set. If I was to rate the film solely on its visuals I would have give it a 10/10, but a film is more than just visual.

I don't believe the plot and theme are as complex as some choose to claim. A slightly overdone message on the dangers of vanity and industries which obsess over beauty and youth. I don't believe its disturbing scenes are gratuitous, emphasising how far the idea of beauty can influence people. There are some very interesting visual metaphors throughout the film, also.

The performances in the film were solid, but not exactly extraordinary. Elle Fanning definitely has fun in her role, but her given dialogue was bland. The same goes for the remaining cast, no performances really shone through. It is possible that the simplistic dialogue adds to the theme of vanity.

The film has another 10/10 aspect, its score. Finishing with a powerful piece from Sia, the film is littered with haunting and modern pieces which stick with the viewer. The trailer clearly displays the film's mastery of music.

The Neon Demon is an art film. I am in no way surprised by negative or positive reviews, and it seems the negative to positive review ratio seems to be about 1:1. Its visually and musically amazing, but I personally found the theme to be slightly shallow with some less than stellar dialogue. Although, the visuals and score did effect me more than the latter.

8/10.

Rated 18, runtime 117 minutes.

Tale of Tales (Review)

Tale of Tales (Film Review) 2016

Directed by Matteo Garonne
Starring Salma Hayek, Toby Jones and Vincent Cassel

The film is split into three distinct plot lines, an infertile queen longing for a child, two old women longing for beauty, and a king and his flea. I found the ''Two Old Women'' plot line to be vastly superior to the other two. It was the most intriguing and never felt dragged out. The majority of the third act is dominated by the flea story, one which I felt ran overtime, but was the most humorous. The queen plot line also didn't intrigue me to the same extent, having some low-interest moments.

While the acting wasn't the aspect of the film which stuck with me, there are no complaints about any of the actors. Salma Hayek felt so natural in her role, along with Vincent Cassel.

The set design and makeup design was remarkable, completely transforming the film into an authentic middle-age tale. Mixed with the cinematography, Tale of Tales was visually amazing.

Tale of Tales is an eccentric and visually beautiful film, although it drops in intrigue in its finishing act.

7.5/10.

Rated 15a, runtime 134 minutes.

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.

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.

The Witch (Film Review) 2016

The VVitch (Film Review)

The Witch (A New-England Folktale) is a 2016 horror film directed by Robert Eggers (debut) and starring Anya-Taylor Joy.

The film's opening scene follows a Puritan family being exiled from their church due to the father's ''pride''. They attempt to form a normal living on their own accord.

One of the film's highlights is its realism. Impressively, the child actors in the film were on-par with the older actors. The dialogue is entirely in old-English, which I found irritating at the beginning, but I realise it definitely added to the realism of the rest of the movie. The film is shot without black borders to allow full viewing of the forest trees. The cinematography is clearly impressive if they were willing to alter the aspect ratio.

The horror in this film, while minimal, is very haunting. Child and animal possession, along with very disturbing imagery is common. The animal trainer should be congratulated for their work with the goats and rabbit. I felt the hold-back on the horror added impact to the very disturbing scenes.

Possibly a commentary on religious and marital pressures put on women, The Witch is a film which will keep you thinking well after the film's conclusion.

I give The Witch 8/10.

Rated 15, runtime 93 minutes

Night Moves (Film Review) 2014

Night Moves (Film Review)

Night Moves is a 2014 film directed by Kelly Reichardt, and starring Jesse Eisenberg, Dakota Fanning, and Peter Sarsgaard.

The story follows a group of radical environmentalists. Dakota Fanning (Dena) plays the less experienced radical of the group, while Peter Sarsgaard (Harmon) plays the group leader. Jesse Eisenberg (Josh) has just introduced Dena to the group, and has gone into detail of Josh and Harmon's plans to blow up a city dam, as he believes people's need for electricity shouldn't be prioritized over the lives of animals and their habitats. Harmon doubts Dena's sincerity, but Josh convinces him to allow her entrance into their group.

The majority of the film focuses on the journey to destroying the dam. Suspense is built through the use of subtle music and tight shots. All of the actors in the film are very sincere and there is no over-dramatisation. The cinematography is great, the shots, especially around the lake at night-time look brilliant. All of the actors' performances are great, especially Oscar Nominee Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network). 

It's downfall is pacing. It is not free of filler, and the pacing seems slightly uneven. Many sequences are quite monotonous, although these add great realism and grit to the film. I wouldn't say the movie is exciting throughout, but it is definitely filled with some very tense scenes and beautiful cinematography.

I give this film 7.5/10.

Night Moves won a Black Pearl Award and Grand Special Prize.

Rated 15, runtime 112 minutes.