Precious: Based on the Novel 'PUSH' by Sapphire
Labels:
47th New York Film Festival,
Reviews
December 26, 2009
December 11, 2009
December 04, 2009
October 05, 2009
October 04, 2009
October 03, 2009
October 01, 2009
September 25, 2009
September 19, 2009
September 04, 2009
August 22, 2009
August 20, 2009
August 13, 2009
August 07, 2009
A Perfect Getaway
Labels:
Reviews
Reviewed by Martin Tsai
A whodunit involving a pair of serial killers preying on honeymooners in Hawaii, A Perfect Getaway has its fair share of requisite plot twists. But the biggest surprise in store is perhaps that the flick turns out to be pretty decent after getting off to a rocky start. Writer-director David Twohy reveals early on that this is a Scream-esque meta-movie, indirectly cautioning filmgoers about the red herring to come via Steve Zahn’s character – who is conveniently a screenwriter. Couple tongue-in-cheek smugness with exotic locales, a corny soundtrack and scantily-clad Milla Jovovich and Timothy Olyphant, and the film might well have your eyeballs rolling.
After the telegraphed mindfuck finally takes place, A Perfect Getaway jettisons any pretensions and basks in its B-movie trashiness, recalling Wild Things without completely going bonkers like Orphan. Twohy daringly cuts away from the climax to some expository stuff, and it works miraculously to shift point of view and spectator identification in the third act. Come to think of it, the film has a plethora of logistical holes, but none are gaping enough to distract from the manipulations that Twohy has promised from the get-go.
© Copyright 2009 Martin Tsai. All rights reserved.
July 31, 2009
June 26, 2009
May 22, 2009
May 21, 2009
April 23, 2009
April 21, 2009
April 17, 2009
April 08, 2009
April 04, 2009
The Escapist
Labels:
Reviews
Reviewed by Martin Tsai
“The Escapist” is a British indie thriller in the tradition of “Shallow Grave,” “Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels” and “The Descent,” in the sense that filmmaker Rupert Wyatt has clearly fashioned a film with the aim to impress so he can follow in the footsteps of Danny Boyle, Guy Ritchie and Neil Marshall all the way to Hollywood. By casting the estimable Brian Cox along with a solid group of where-have-we-seen-them-before character actors, Mr. Wyatt succeeds in grabbing our attention from jump street. The soundtrack even features an original song by Coldplay.
Mr. Cox plays Frank, who is serving a life sentence in a prison so ancient it’s almost medieval. Upon learning that his daughter is gravely ill, Frank determines to break out. He recruits a crew of very capable accomplices such as the unrecognizably bulked-up Joseph Fiennes, Liam Cunningham of “Hunger” and Dominic Cooper of “Mamma Mia!” Meanwhile, the fearsome inmate ringleaders, played by Steven Macintosh and Damian Lewis, stand squarely in their way.
The film works for the most part thanks to Joe Walker’s crafty editing. It creates a lot of smoke and mirrors to distract moviegoers from shortcomings in the script co-written by Daniel Hardy and Mr. Wyatt, such as gaping plot holes and expository back stories not fleshed out. They have given the cast so little to work with, that even a seasoned pro like Mr. Cox at times has that deer-in-the-headlights look on his face. The biggest problem, though, occurs when Messrs. Hardy and Wyatt try their hands at a climactic twist designed to be clever, but which comes off as totally contrived. Given the way things are in Hollywood though, Mr. Wyatt has quite a bright future ahead.
© Copyright 2009 Martin Tsai. All rights reserved.
April 01, 2009
March 30, 2009
March 18, 2009
March 06, 2009
March 05, 2009
February 27, 2009
February 11, 2009
January 09, 2009
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
