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Reviews
Cloud Atlas (2012)
Like a 3 hour trailer for what would be 6 incredible movies
Like lots of people who have been to see this film, I am a big fan of David Mitchell's book, and as I such I was nervous about seeing the film. I think that had I not read the book, I would not have had a clue what was going on for the majority of the movie.
My main gripe is with the choice to alter the narrative structure. The way the book is laid out, with the first half of each story coming one after another chronologically, and then the concluding each tale in reverse order, the links between them are subtly drawn out and layered to add new meaning. For the film, the writers have chosen to intercut each story so that they all run parallel, which means that links between the stories are really laboured, rather than coming as subtle references. It also means that you are never able to get absorbed in any one character's journey - as soon as you get back into the swing of this particular era, the film cuts to another.
At nearly 3 hours long, the film is lengthy, but paradoxically each of the six stories is only given around 30 minutes of screen time which just isn't enough for such complex narratives. As a result you only get the very bare bones of the plot - which is why I refer to it feeling more like a trailer than a full film. From the book, there is definitely scope to make each narrative into a full length feature, and I would have preferred a series of 6 films as part of a Cloud Atlas franchise.
Having said this, I thought the performances were fantastic, and although the multi role- playing was a little distracting, I did enjoy watching the same actors in each story. The production design was also superb and managed to capture the strange worlds depicted in the book perfectly.
Django Unchained (2012)
Pleasantly surprised!
I'm not usually a huge Tarantino film. I loved Pulp Fiction, but hated Kill Bill 1 so much I didn't even bother with the second film. I'm not really a fan of 'revenge' as a theme, or senseless, glorified violence. So it was with these apprehensions that I went to see Django... And I am so glad I did!
Tarantino is a genius when it comes to dialogue and characters. Every line in Django is perfectly and precisely executed, and each character completely unique. For me, the stand out performance was Christoph Waltz as Dr Schultz. The juxtaposition between Schultz's gentlemanly demeanour and his violent vocation is brilliant. In fact, the whole film plays on this apparent contradiction between respectability and brutality - for example the horrific sport of 'Mandingo' (basically cock-fighting with slaves instead of hens...) being played in a beautiful, expensive parlour and enjoyed by 'gentlemen'. The constant blending of these ideas meant that I was continually surprised and utterly engrossed.
I won't deny that the the subject matter is uncomfortable, and I'm still not sure how I feel about Tarantino's morality when it comes to slavery, violence and revenge. Overall, however, I did enjoy the film, in the way one might guilty enjoy an extended inappropriate joke...
Looper (2012)
Incredibly crafted, mind-bending thriller
This was my favourite film of 2012. It is a gripping sci-fi thriller, with superb performances and carefully crafted plot that keeps you guessing right until the mind-blowing climax, and yet retains a real warmth and humanity. Essentially it isn't about the special effects and mind- bending notions of time travel. It asks a fundamental question: is evil inherent? And if it isn't, what would you do to stop it appearing?
The pace is incredible, with the intricately woven plot carefully unfolded piece by piece so that we are continually surprised, but never confused. Rian Johnson gives the age old notion of time travel new life by introducing innovative ideas such as torturing a young Paul Dano in order to torment his fugitive future self.
Add to this an array of pitch-perfect performances and you're on to a winner. I'll admit that Joseph-Gordon Levitt makes a visually unconvincing young Bruce Willis, in spite of the painstaking prosthetics (which I found pretty distracting), but no one can deny that he gives a cracking performance as Joe the Looper - a hit man hired to bump off the enemies of the 'bad guys' who are sent back from the future. Bruce himself does what he does best, while Emily Blunt gives the performance of her career as a guilt-ridden young mother determined to do right by her son. Pierce Gagnon is terrifyingly convincing as Blunt's son Cid, displaying a maturity far beyond his years with a performance that rivals Haley Joel Osment in Sixth Sense.
People who want to pick holes in the theory and logistics of time-travel are missing the point of this film. I found the explanations utterly believable, but what really got to me were the characters and performances. It is a taught, intelligent piece of film-making in which every element is perfectly crafted so as to enhance the whole without drawing attention to itself.
Intouchables (2011)
Refreshing, entertaining and frank.
So many movies and TV programmes involving disabled characters are saccharine and patronising in an effort to inspire or hammer home a message of triumph over adversity. Not so the Intouchables. This movie finally gives an honest portrait of disabled man, at once gruesome and humbling, while keeping the focus firmly on his relationship with his carer instead of dwelling on his disability. Indeed this is a story as much about overcoming class divide as it is about overcoming physical disability.
Down and out Driss, part of Paris's disenfranchised and unemployed black youth, applies for a position as millionaire quadriplegic Phillipe's carer in order to get a signature for his jobseeker's benefit. Phillipe, appreciating the young man's honesty and frank attitude towards his condition, hires Driss and simultaneously resolves the Driss's poverty and his own boredom.
The genius of this film, in spite of its dark subject matter and themes of disability, class and race, is that it is genuinely hilarious. Omar Sy as the no holds barred Driss oozes cool and yet is heartbreakingly affectionate towards Francois Cluzet's Phillipe.
I laughed and cried in equal measure - what more can you ask?
Safety Not Guaranteed (2012)
And unlikely and touching romance
I had no idea what to expect from this film, but within about 5 minutes I was hooked. Aubrey Plaza plays Darius, a dry-witted and cynical magazine intern desperate to move up the ranks and write her own articles. When an opportunity arises to assist on an assignment to investigate a man who claims he can time travel, she jumps at the chance. She befriends the man, Kenneth, and plays along with his eccentricities in order to win his trust and be accepted as his time travelling partner.
The characters are excellent - quirky yet humane, with snappy and witty dialogue that reminded me of 'Juno' - which is important with a story as character led as this. Mark Duplass as Kenneth is superb, and somehow manages imbue the character with enough eccentricity for us to question Darius's trust in him, whilst being endearing enough for us to buy her attraction to him.
If it wasn't for my investment in the characters, I think I would have felt the pace lag. There is a lot of repetition as Kenneth trains Darius in preparation for their mission - but I was kept guessing right until the end as to whether Kenneth's time travelling claims would be revealed as a product of a wild imagination or brilliant scientific mind. At the end of the day it didn't really matter. This is the story of two damaged souls who form an unlikely bond and make each other whole, and that in itself was utterly touching.