Guillermo del Toro’s first foray into the realm of film noir, 2021's Nightmare Alley brings all of the Golden Age classic charm of the Studio System along with a classic pulpy story (based off of the novel of the same name by William Lindsay Gresham... as well as the 1947 movie adaptation), which is then fused with his own unique visual style. Following Stanton Carlisle (Bradley Cooper), a drifter, or is it grifter (after all, this is a neo-noir), with a dark past, he aimlessly stumbles upon a traveling carnival... taking a day’s work, he soon after accepts an offer from owner Clem Hoatley (Willem Dafoe) to join the team – seeing it as the perfect way to disappear from his secret history.
Upon first watching the visually arresting musical drama La La Land, I perhaps unusually thought about the excessive amount of traffic on the road. I surmised, macabrely, that the main characters of the film, who spend several scenes dancing on the streets of Los Angeles, would have likely been killed early on by a speeding car, making the whole motion picture a sort of life flashing before your dying eyes moment. My bizarre sense of humour aside, Damien Chazelle’s follow up to his 2014 drumming drama Whiplash is a mesmerizing story about following your dreams, reaching for the stars and fighting against the major hurtles along the way. Though, just because we chase said dreams, it does not mean that they are always attainable. At one point, our male lead, Sebastian (Ryan Gosling), frustratingly complains of the Hollywood mindset: "they worship everything and value nothing".
The first stand-alone film in the Star Wars universe, Rogue One bridges the gap between episodes 3 (2005's Revenge of the Sith) and 4 (the original 1977 motion picture); it is also a movie that lives in the grey zone more than any other in the operatic space saga – depicting the complexity of the actions executed by the Rebel forces that are our protagonists. What we see is a complicated universe filled with spies, traitors and extremists – a place where no decision is an easy one. Our lead character, Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones), is a perfect example of this, for when she was young, her father, Galen (Mads Mikkelsen), a weapons developer, was forcibly taken by Imperial baddie Orson Krennic (Ben Mendelsohn) to finish work on the Death Star (the planet killer from A New Hope). This leaves the impressionable girl in the hands of a radical, ultra dangerous Rebel fighter by the name of Saw Gerrera (Forest Whitaker), who deserts her at the age of sixteen.
Juxtaposing the horrors of war around a message of peace, Mel Gibson’s 2016 offering, Hacksaw Ridge, is a rivetting piece of film making, capturing a touching love story, a complex family dynamic and harrowing battle sequences, giving us a rich, multi-faceted tapestry. Providing us with an effective window into the upbringing of our main character, Desmond Doss (Andrew Garfield), Gibson is easily able to make us bond with our lead. Each aspect of the first third of the movie, where we see this boy grow into a young adult, is perfectly chosen, as it renders us with a vision of exactly who he is as a human being. Son to a kind mother, Bertha (Rachel Griffiths), and a complicated, abusive father, Tom (Hugo Weaving), who is struggling with demons from his time spent in the military during World War I, he also has a brother nicknamed Hal (Nathaniel Buzolic). Nearly killing his brother after a tussle at a young age, Desmond becomes focussed on the Sixth Commandment: thou shalt not kill.
Soon after Avatar’s release, it became evident that it was not only a movie – it was a worldwide phenomenon that was bringing people together, getting young and old to sit in darkened cinemas for over two hours and forty minutes (promptly making it the highest grossing film of all-time – ending just shy of 2.8 billion dollars). The creative piece of world building, with its vivid, alien landscape and intoxicating mythology (while also ushering 3-D back into the cinematic limelight), also caught the eye of Rudolf Schenker, a founding member (and guitar-god) of the iconic German hard rock band The Scorpions. A master song-writer, the man has concocted numerous classic rock tunes, with catchy riffs, iconic lyrics and impressive solo work. Sharing solo and rhythm duties with co-guitarist Matthias Jabs, Schenker and the band have become known for their unforgettable, high-octane, crowd-pleasing live performances.
With Jack Reacher: Never Go Back opening today, I thought this would be the perfect time to reflect on the original 2012 film. I am sure that most of you have heard the controversy revolving around it, with ardent fans of Lee Child’s ‘Jack Reacher’ novels being discouraged by the casting of Tom Cruise in the leading role. Much like an overzealous carny following the stringent rules and regulations of height restrictions on rides, book lovers were uninspired by the selection of the action superstar, as his five foot seven inch frame did not fit with the character’s description – at a gargantuan six foot five inches tall.
It is rare that a sequel can match the quality of the first motion picture. Whether it is an effort to outdo the original, or simply an attempt to cash in on the popularity of the primary offering, it usually comes off as less original, with the story feeling lackluster – often blandly regurgitated. Yet, one film that is able to match its predecessor is James Wan’s 2016 horror flick The Conjuring 2. Written once again by Carey and Chad Hayes, along with director Wan and David Leslie Johnson, the story picks up with the spectre-hunting married couple, Ed (Patrick Wilson) and Lorraine Warren (Vera Farmiga) dealing with their most famous case, the Amityville house. Lorraine sensed a horrible presence in that home, with the ominous figure resembling some sort of demonic nun. During this vision, she witnesses the death of her husband at the hands of the spook.