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The Devil's Double (2011)
Harsh but fair
I did not expect to enjoy this film. I decided to give it a go as a way of increasing my knowledge of the world and recent past events (or rather decreasing my ignorance), but then got so much more out of it.
The basic premise reminded me of The Parent Trap. Not so surprisingly, however, Cooper does a much better job than Lohan of keeping each character distinct. Our warmth towards Latif grows in the same measure as our disgust towards Uday.
The only difficulty characterwise is in understanding why Uday behaves the way he does. But I guess this is what makes us hate him rather than pity him. The fact that he's a complete mamma's boy is a nice touch, however, and adds a little bit more texture to the character.
Like The Parent Trap, there's some mild humour running through. Unlike The Parent Trap, the violence is anything but mild.
So by the end of the film I have fulfilled my objectives of learning more about the world (Iraq-Kuwait war, Hussein family) and seen a moving film with good characters in the bargain.
A Boy Called Dad (2009)
Sounds like a baby
This film kept getting pushed down to the bottom of my 'to watch' list, but I'm really glad that I got to it in the end.
It was refreshing to see a teenage pregnancy story that took us out of grimy (sub)urban life, instead offering expansive views of country and coastline. So although many of the themes were difficult and at times harrowing, these extreme wide shots gave us a bit of room to breathe.
This film also took us away from the female, or more accurately, the mother, which again is unusual for a story dealing with teenage pregnancy. Robbie's mum is always kept at a distance and behind a barrier, such as at the end of an unanswered phone. Subsequent to his rapid conception and birth, baby Elliot's mum is only seen walking in the background now and again. This allowed the film to effectively focus on father-son relationships spanning four generations.
However, this focus on the father figure almost left me craving a little feminine input, if only for the sake of balance. Luckily, the film delivered on this through the initially mute character, Nia, who has a story to tell and eventually manages to tell it.
Another interesting aspect to do with storytelling is the portrayal of the media. The newspaper headlines and TV snippets paint the picture of a dangerous, possibly armed menace. The film will then cut to young Robbie lovingly taking care of his child, thus undermining this face-of-evil built up by the media. We're reminded that this is about an individual on a journey.
After recurring references to drowning and water, Robbie's journey unsurprisingly culminates in a cliff edge. As with all ambiguous endings, I have an ambiguous response. Half of me applauds the film for ending with such suspense. The other half just wants to know what happened...
Les Misérables (2012)
From stage to stage
Les Mis is a reminder of how well musicals work on screen. Screening a musical allows every actions and expression to be slowed down, exaggerated and repeated. Les Mis takes fully advantage of this in squeezing that extra tear out.
And the tears do flow. Death features early, cutting Anne Hathaway's surprisingly moving performance short. There are some laughs too, albeit tiny ones, thanks to the unlikely comic duo Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena Bonham Carter. Meanwhile, the main story between Hugh Jackman's Valjean and Russel Crowe's Javert comes through nicely, a story of revenge left unfulfilled and duty left uncertain, demonstrating emotion and intent that does not rely entirely on the music to convey.
The most convincing musical performances of course come from the women of the cast, simply because the more impressive and better known songs are written for them. The camera holds on to the intensity of Samantha Barks' 'On My Own', taking an unremitting view of her from above as she rises to a crescendo, as if we the audience are seated in the Royal Circle at the Queen's Theatre.
I haven't yet made it to see Les Mis in the theatre, but I could certainly see that this is where the film had come from, which would actually be my one main criticism of the film. There were a few great Parisian and Alpine views, but why not show us more of this when you can? Similarly, by restricting our view of the story's main action to this one barricade with the actors assembling furniture like props on stage, the film gives the impression that the entire June Rebellion consisted of about twelve men and a little cockney lad.
Perhaps in an effort to stay close to musical theatre, by asking the actors to sing 'live' for instance, Tom Hooper occasionally forgot that he was making a film.
Blossoms in the Dust (1941)
A story that you'd find on 'True Movies' except nicely acted and put together
A good film for a Sunday afternoon, or any other time if you're busy on Sunday.
None of the scenes are dragged out, even the death scenes are treated briefly. Nothing is going to get in the way of the narrative, beginning with a woman overcoming bereavement by taking in the unwanted children an orphans of Texas.
The film then goes on the challenge the very language we use when it comes to these children, with Edna Gladney rejecting the words 'orphan' and 'illegitimate'.
'There are no illegitimate children, only illegitimate parents', she boldly announces to the Texan senate.
And so Gladney's local endeavour becomes a political, state-wide one, and though she never falters in her moral drive, her initial loss is evoked once again in the most cherished of her foundlings.
Fast-paced, fade-outs and an all round good story.
Flashbacks of a Fool (2008)
Moving in what is left unsaid
Going back to my Music GCSE, I'd describe the structure of this film as having a simple ternary form - A-B-A' - standing aptly in this case for Adult-Boy-Adult'.
The limitations of this 'song form' are plenty and frustrating for a viewer looking for a story - what happens between A and B, or more significantly, between B and A? Are we just looking here at a story of guilt? Are we supposed to draw a link between what happens in B as a way of explaining Joe's (CRAIG) behaviour in A? I'm not sure we're able to make such assumptions.
So instead I could only take each of the film's three sections as self-standing, but that doesn't mean that I didn't enjoy the film as a whole.
Indeed, a film that resists a coherent narrative and prevents identification with its characters is perfectly suitable structurally for such themes of guilt and escape.
That is what makes this film moving. Not for the on-screen emotion, but for what is left out, unseen and lost in the hyphens of the film's structure.
My Sister's Keeper (2009)
Cloudy
It was difficult to appreciate the beauty of this film for the cloud of a single tear in each eye threatening to drop.
But the beauty was definitely there. Each scene was crafted to trigger an emotional response. Playing with the chronology of the story helped to juxtapose moments of sadness and joy, the latter always tinged with the former in light of the difficult themes of the film.
Fortunately, the film does not get obsessed with any one theme or ethical message. Indeed, the ethics regarding the 'cultivation' of the younger sister (Breslin) as a means to saving the life of the older (Vassilieva) are called into question inside and outside of the court room. However, like a good funeral, this film chooses to celebrate the life of Kate Fitzgerald.
We see a love story emerge from a hospital bed (and on a hospital bed), leading to charming scenes between mother (Diaz) and daughter that take us away from the illness and closer to coming-of-age 'normality'.
And the film, most importantly I'd say, plays carefully with focalisation, changing between its characters and reminding us always that this is a family journey, and a solid family drama.
The Black Balloon (2008)
Thoughtful, not indulgent
I found this film on BBC iPlayer, reading the setting in the description as 'South Wales' and disregarding the 'New'.
So expecting a slightly earlier rendition of 'Submarine', I was disappointed and then thrilled to be taken to a story down under.
Thrilled because the story was moving and the story moved. The film does not get obsessed with its own themes of disability and otherness, but rather uses these to good effect as a backdrop for a more general coming-of-age journey.
Sudden changes in tempo and dynamics between and within scenes make this journey a turbulent one, from quite lengthy chase scenes to placid family dinners culminating in difficult-to-watch violence. Human strength and weakness battle it out, struggling for balance.