Best of Black Sheep: THE DARK KNIGHT

THE DARK KNIGHT
Written by Jonathan Nolan and Christopher Nolan
Directed by Christopher Nolan
Starring Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart, Michael Caine and Maggie Gyllenhaal


Alfred Pennyworth: Some men simply want to watch the world burn.

There can only be one Batman and as I sat amongst a full crowd that was silent in awed anticipation at the crack of the film, it is clear that director, Christopher Nolan’s Batman is that one.  In BATMAN BEGINS, Nolan (whom at the time he attempted to revive the franchise had only directed a handful of indie projects) took an icon and made him human.  Batman, and of course his real life persona, Bruce Wayne, was damaged.  He had fears; he had frustrations; he had to find himself.  What he found, with a little push from Nolan, was a flawed figure, but also a man whose heroism was defined by his humility and relentless pursuit of justice for those incapable of demanding it for themselves.  With the arrival of THE DARK KNIGHT, Nolan has finished with his foundation, and taken to the vertigo-inducing heights on the tallest of Gotham’s buildings to analyze the city and all its inhabitants.  Gliding both gracefully and dauntingly through all of it is the dark knight himself (reprised by third time Nolan collaborator, Christian Bale).  What he sees from his unique view, which becomes our privileged spectacle, is a world of delineating lines and order, that is about to be torn apart by chaos and chance.

Gotham City must be pretty far down the list of safest places to live in America.  Not only does there seem to be nightly violence at the hands of common street thugs, but all the crazies seem to end up setting up shop there too.  Enter the Joker (Heath Ledger).  We know nothing of what made him the homicidal maniac he is, nor does he have any regard for human life.  In fact, he has nothing but disdain for it.  Humanity’s rules may disgust him but they also make it possible for him to predict how people will behave, allowing him the chance to throw them off and laugh at their expense. The Joker is frightening enough in concept but Ledger’s performance is down right terrifying.  As he constantly licks his lips with self-assured cynicism, he cuts to the chase in every scenario.  He has no time for any games, other than the ones he orchestrates himself, and commands control everywhere he goes.  His idea of playing always involves the ultimate consequences and the highest of stakes.  In order to win out, you must reject what you know and become everything you denounce.  Only winners will know the rewards of living both sides of the coin and the Joker is counting on fear to prevail so that he can finally have someone to play with.

Along with his co-screenwriter, brother, Jonathan, Nolan has crafted a dark, twisted dissection of duality and morality that is often shocking, unexpected and intricately detailed.  In every superhero tale, everyone always wants to know the man behind the mask.  The mask itself, the creation of another persona other than the one that sits safely behind it, initiates the duality that permeates the notion of the superhero figure. Batman is the dark knight.  He only comes out at night and no one would suspect the man he is by day might be one and the same.  The Joker’s chaos theory ruptures Batman’s controlled existence and forces him to think in a darker fashion than he has ever had to before.  Thinking that darkly though can leave you stranded in that space and this is what the Joker is counting on.  What makes THE DARK KNIGHT so rich is that almost every character has conflict and questions their actions and motivations.  No answer is the clear right one and deceit seems to play a role in even the most well-intentioned decisions.  The greatest irony is that the darkest character actually has the purest of souls while the would be clown seems to have no soul at all.  This is perhaps what makes them such worthy adversaries and why they both almost seem to enjoy the challenge.

When THE DARK KNIGHT feels like it might be ending, the anxiety mounts because you won’t want it to end.  It has an enormous scope but is somehow still subtle.  It is incredibly complex but yet still simple.  The film itself is steeped in just as much duality as its hero. Nolan never loses control of his duty – to create a Batman film that pleases both the masses and the fans, that encompasses the grandness of a blockbuster with the darkness of the independent spirit, and wows without resorting to cheap tricks.  Once again, Nolan has grounded the sensational on a very firm footing by never allowing Batman to be anything other than a man.  We can then stand on the same level ground as the giant bat and feel a satisfaction that is both real and incredible.

BATMAN BEGINS

BATMAN BEGINS
Written by David S. Goyer and Christopher Nolan
Directed by Christopher Nolan
Starring Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Liam Neeson, Katie Holmes and Cillian Murphy


Thomas Wayne: Why do we fall, Bruce? So we can learn to pick ourselves up.

From the terrifying opening shot of countless screeching bats flying across a burning red sky, it is unmistakably clear that Christopher Nolan’s BATMAN BEGINS will be nothing at all like the film incarnations that came before it. I describe it as terrifying because, like the man behind the mask of the titular character, I too am not a great fan of bats. I do however, enjoy movies about men who like to dress up in giant bat costumes quite a bit, and when I first saw Nolan’s reboot of a series that had been run deep into the ground by the previous hack of a helmer, I knew that this Batman would not only be invigorated for a new generation of fans but that it would likely go on to become the definitive incarnation of this iconic hero.

True to its title, Nolan, along with co-screenwriter, David S. Goyer (BLADE), provide the audience with a truly authentic and well-rounded origin story. What is perhaps most impressive about their take is how original it feels considering its been told so many times before. We are introduced to Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) when he is still just a child. While playing, he falls into a cave and is attacked by a colony of bats. While this scene doesn’t pretend to show that this is where Batman was born, it does, at the very least, show us where his fascination with the winged creature came from. Cut from his first bat encounter to years later, as he takes his first steps toward becoming Batman, fighting, as Wayne in plain clothes, in a Bhutanese prison against a number of opponents, before embarking on an intensive ninja training that leads to his ability to appear invisible and his flare for the theatrical. These choices are so well rooted in believable reality that for the first time I can account for, Batman seems like someone who could actually exist.

The main theme of BATMAN BEGINS is fear. Wayne is afraid of bats; he is afraid that ultimately he is responsible for his parents’ death; perhaps most significantly though, his fear has paralyzed him from participating in life since he was that small child. He learns, under the tutelage of Henri Ducard (Liam Neeson), not only how to face his fears but to have those same fears fuel his fury forward onto his enemies. Having found himself and a way to follow in his father’s footsteps by helping the good people of Gotham City (which is breathtaking in its glory days), Wayne grows up before our very eyes and Bale does a marvelous job at conveying this to his audience. We know he has a great spirit hidden far behind the self-imposed walls surrounding him; his supporters, and our superb supporting cast, from trusted butler and guardian, Alfred (Michael Caine) to childhood sweetheart and current Gotham City district attorney, Rachel Dawes (Katie Holmes), know what he can truly be if he lets it happen; the only person who still doesn’t see it is Wayne himself.

Just like you and I, Batman too has bats in his cave that plague him. Instead of cleaning them out though, he learns how to harness their power for the good of the many. With BATMAN BEGINS, Nolan redefines what it means to make a comic book movie. Unlike some other superheroes, Batman is just man. He just happens to have extensive training, enough money to equip himself with plenty of gadgets to take down his detractors, and a chip on his shoulder large enough to keep him doing it for the rest of his life. Nolan knows that this chip is what bonds Batman to the masses though. His mission to do right by the people of Gotham makes him a hero, but his somewhat selfish motivation to right the wrong that was done to his parents right before his eyes, taints his supposedly altruistic nature and makes him human. Batman has always been conflicted but never before has it been communicated on film in such a relatable way. And, never before, has it been so damn good.

CASA DE MI PADRE

CASA DE MI PADRE

Written by Andrew Steele

Directed by Matt Piedmont

Starring Will Ferrell, Gael Garcia Bernal, Diego Luna and Genesis Rodriguez

Opening announcement: If it sounds Spanish, man, that's what it is; it's a Spanish movie.

From the moment the camera freezes on Will Ferrell staring intensely into the audience, surrounded by painted backdrops and fake set pieces, one knows exactly what kind of comedy they’re in store for. Ferrell, who learned Spanish, or at least the Spanish used in the script, in just one month, plays Armando Alvarez, a coward who must overcome his fears in order to bring down the Mexican drug trade, restore dignity to his family and get the girl in this cheeky telenovela send up. Under the direction of frequent “Funny or Die” collaborator, Matt Piedmont, and co-starring Gael Garcia Bernal and Diego Luna, CASA DE MI PADRE is just plain ridiculous and if that suits your mood, it is also muy comica.

CASA DE MI PADRE is available on Blu-ray and DVD from Alliance Films on July 17, 2012.

SILENT HOUSE

SILENT HOUSE
Written by Laura Lau
Directed by Chris Kentis and Laura Lau
Starring Elizabeth Olsen

Imagine being trapped in a secluded lake house with an intruder and little way to defend yourself. There is no electricity, no phone service and you have no idea where the key to the front door is. Imagine how tense every single minute of that experience would be and you have SILENT HOUSE, a thriller from Chris Kentis (OPEN WATER) and Laura Lau (directorial debut), and remake of the 2010 Uraguayan film of the same name. Well, theoretically you would have the premise of this movie because it is shot to make it look like one continuous shot from start to finish, much like Alfred Hitchcock's ROPE. The effect is supposed to make you feel like you’re there, trapped in that house too. Sadly, the end result is a bit more tedious than terrifying.

Most of the action centers around Sarah, played by the wide-eyed wonder, Elizabeth Olsen (MARTHA MARCY MAY MARLENE). Sarah is spending some time up at the family lake house, prepping it to be sold, with the help of her father and uncle (Adam Trese and Eric Scheffer Stevens, respectively). After her uncle has stepped out to go to the store, Sarah begins hearing noises in the house. She tells her father and he falls down the stairs as he investigates the situation. From there on in, it is her mission to get out of that house but as her ordeal progresses, it becomes clear that there is more to this situation than just a mere home invasion. What is in fact happening is actually pretty fascinating from a psychological standpoint, but unfortunately, the original terror loses its nerve before the real world scares come to light.

Running something in real time, while executed well from a technical standpoint in SILENT HOUSE, can be problematic because of all the time in between actual action. Yes, this is a frightening experience but much of that amounts to Olsen looking petrified as she goes from room to room to find a way out of her personal hell. She proves once again that she has a face that can reveal both unexpected and unnerving layers of emotional depth. Her strength elevates the film to a watchable level but not much further than that. Olsen will shine much brighter some other time, in a film with much better lighting too.

SILENT HOUSE is available on DVD and Blu-ray Tuesday, July 17, from eOne Entertainment.

BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD

BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD
Written by Lucy Alibar and Benh Zeitlin
Directed by Benh Zeitlin
Starring Quvenzhané Wallis, Dwight Henry and Gina Montana


Hushpuppy: The whole universe depends on everything fitting together just right. If one piece breaks, even a little bit, the entire universe will get busted.

Sundance sensation, BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD, lives up to its name in every single one of its frames. Benh Zietlin’s first feature opens with an introduction to a world not unlike our own, but somehow simultaneously, still an entirely different one. This world looks forgotten, abandoned. Discarded keepsakes litter the empty lawns between broken down campers propped up to avoid flooding, while scattered farm animals scurry about their business. The Earth has been divided into two parts - the dry side and the wet side. No, this is not the world we know, but by the time the defenseless inhabitants make their way to their roofs to escape the torrential floods, it is certainly a world we came very close to knowing all too well not too long ago.

Zeitlin has crafted a brave picture that is exhilarating to watch, with moments of genuinely moving inspiration and other moments that are completely debilitating. Stemming from a one-act play, which was written by the co-writer of this screenplay, Lucy Alibar, BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD explores this unfathomable world through the eyes of the most adorable, endearing and engrossing six-year old imaginable. Hushpuppy (played with the utmost poise and ferocity by the now 9-year old, Quvenzhané Wallis) through no choice of her own, stayed behind in an area known to the locals as “The Bathtub”, when most of the people left it behind for the dry side. You don’t get a choice when you’re 6 years old and your daddy doesn’t want to leave the land he’s known his whole life, even if it means eventually being swallowed up by the sea. Her vision of this world is intoxicating, even when things get dire and she starts to believe that she herself broke the world. “If you can fix the broken piece, everything can go back,” she boldly states at one point, when she thinks she has everything all figured out. She may have the mind of a child but she has one beast of a soul.

BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD is without question the best film I’ve seen all year. It is a singularly unique experience that you will not want to end. As bright as Wallis shines in this film - and I assure you, you will be blown away by this little girl - Zeitlin’s direction elevates the picture to instant American classic status. The ideas are fresh and stay with you long after its over; the visual style and technique are superb and quite crafty given the restricted budget; and the statements Zeitlin makes about the environment and America’s handling of Hurricane Katrina are tasteful yet potent. Life in “The Bathtub” levels the playing field for everyone there and reminds us that we are all in fact beasts. Watching young, little Hushpuppy discover that she may be one of the lucky few who knows not only how to let that beast out, but also how to tame it, is an  unforgettable film experience that should not be missed.

CHARIOTS OF FIRE

CHARIOTS OF FIRE
Written by Colin Welland
Directed by Hugh Hudson
Starring Ben Cross, Ian Charleson and Ian Holm


Harold Abrahams: I’m forever in pursuit and I don’t even know what I’m chasing.

The moment you see the cluster of bare feet splashing in the water as they run along the shore of the beach, with the classic Vangelis score almost cheering them along, you know that you are about to watch one of the finest films ever made. It is the unmistakable introduction to the Oscar winning masterpiece, CHARIOTS OF FIRE. A period piece in nature, it is propelled forward by the youthful exuberance that stems from each of its idealistic young male leads. And while director, Hugh Hudson allows just the right amount of time and pace to respect the genre, it is still an incredibly tense race to get to what promises to be an electrifying finish.

In 1919, a young man by the name of Harold Abrahams (Ben Cross) took up attendance at the University of Cambridge. Abrahams is a gifted man. He can run faster than any Cambridge man who has ever come before him, proving this to his colleagues and professors by taking on a running challenge that has never been beaten before and beating it on the first day of school. His unflinching confidence allows him to pursue his every whim and desire, no matter whether that be the love interest of one of his best friends or the coach of a rival runner. And even though he stands at the top of his game, he still feels as though he has something to prove because he is Jewish. Harold even sees his time at Cambridge to be suspect, suggesting that they have led him to the water but they would never let him drink. So, Harold runs. He wants to win in the name of his country and his university but what propels his feet is his deeper need to throw his win in their faces.

Harold has a nemesis. Hailing from Scotland, Eric Liddell (Ian Charleson), runs for a very different reason than Harold. Eric runs because he believes that the very grace of his Christian God guides his feet to glory. “If you commit yourself to the love of Christ, then that is how you own a straight race,” Eric says to a gathering of other believers. Though he believes at first that his racing journey will lead him closer to God by allowing him to honour the gifts he has been bestowed, it appears to take him further away instead. He must postpone his missionary work duties in order to pursue the dream of Olympic gold and as he strays further away from helping others, he begins to question whether he truly is just helping himself. The fact that Eric is devoutly Christian deepens his rivalry with Harold, although not directly by either party. Colin Welland’s beautifully subtle script demonstrates an awareness of the characters’ symbolic elements but also ensures that they each have individual growth to inform their true character.

As the entire narrative CHARIOTS OF FIRE builds towards the 1924 Olympics in Paris, France, just as it did in the real lives this film was based upon, the focus on the racing itself distracts these young men from some of the more pressing issues of the day. While they enjoy their privileged pursuit of higher education and world renowned athletic acknowledgement, the generation that came before them was devastated in the first World War. Bigotry and prejudice brew in hushed conversations that are mounting in volume. And even though all these young men come from their own potentially tarnished backgrounds, every single one of them comes from privilege. No matter how fast they can run, they will never outrun the growing unrest coming up behind them. These young men run on a track all their own though and they still leave enough dust in their tracks to keep blindly running forward in pursuit of gold.

CHARIOTS OF FIRE is now available to rent or own on Blu-ray for the very first time, courtesy of Warner Bros. Home Entertainment.

THE BLACK SHEEP INTERVIEW: MORGAN SPURLOCK (COMIC-CON)

THE BIG CON
An interview with COMIC-CON EPISODE IV: A FAN’S HOPE director, Morgan Spurlock

“Wear comfortable shoes; that’s rule number one.” This is the advice, Oscar-nominated documentarian, Morgan Spurlock, has for you if you are going to Comic-Con for the first time. And he would know. He just made the definitive movie on the subject.

COMIC-CON EPISODE IV: A FAN’S HOPE is more than just a geeky movie with a cheeky title. Nerd or not, you must know by now that every year in San Diego, masses upon masses of mad fans make their way to a convention called Comic-Con, where they can delight in all things considered even marginally geek-tastic amidst their most ardent fellow followers. You’ve maybe snickered at the parade of costumed patrons reported on the news but you’re missing out if that’s all you think there is to this massive event.

“I think there are a tremendous amount of people out there with this mistaken view that these are people who don’t have any friends. I think the movie shows you that these are actually incredibly passionate people who do have their shit together,” Spurlock tells me when we meet (for the second time over the phone). “These people aren’t losers who waste their time in Mom and Dad’s basement anymore; these are people who are really creative and inspired and driven.”

Spurlock isn’t kidding either. Over the course of just one week, Spurlock and his 160-person, 25 camera crew, followed around a handful of individuals, all of whom had come to the Con with very specific goals in mind. “Our goal from the beginning was to root it in people who had real stakes. Some of the stakes are of course greater than others but they’re still stakes. Whether that’s getting your hands on a gigantic action figure or whether a comic book dealer will be able to keep his store afloat or not,” describes Spurlock.

It isn’t just fun and games either when your concern is that you’re proposing to your girlfriend in front of thousands of people. “Will she really say yes or will she tell him to take his one ring to rule them all and leave?,” Morgan quips without missing a beat. “The more that we could show a real sense of purpose for going to Comic-Con, the more the movie would be relatable to a lot of people.”

COMIC-CON EPISODE IV also features a number of talking heads, from THE AVENGERS director, Joss Whedon (also an executive producer on the project) to CLERKS director, Kevin Smith. There are also fans and writers and artists and actors but the one person you never see is the one person who is always up front and center in Spurlock’s movies, Morgan Spurlock himself.

“We decided we wanted to get people who live and breathe Comic-Con every single year, for it to completely be about them, about their experiences, about their passion,” Spurlock begins to explain of his decision to leave himself out of his movie for the first time. “I’m a huge fanboy; I’m a super geek. These are all things that shaped me into who I am today but we could much better illustrate the story by showing these people than just me going to Comic-Con.”

COMIC-CON EPISODE IV: A FAN’S HOPE makes its way to DVD and Blu-ray on July 10 and it is a must see for both nerds and the people who love them. Spurlock himself takes you behind the scenes of the demanding shoot and tells a great story about how he and Marvel mogul, Stan Lee, hatched the idea for the movie to begin with. There are extended interviews, as well as interviews that never made the final cut. And depending on availability and where you buy the movie, there are even limited edition action figures of Spurlock, Whedon and Lee sold with the film as a set. Just satisfy your curiosity already and see it.

The truth is, you think you know what Comic-Con is all about but you can’t possibly know unless you go. And until you can do that, there’s this movie. Finally, one last piece of advice from Spurlock if you are fortunate enough to be hitting the Con:

“Don’t be afraid to take a couple of showers a day because it gets very hot in there. Other people also get very hot. You might brush up against someone. You might even get some Wookie sweat on you. Some of those Chewie’s can get a little drippy.”

Be sure not to miss Black Sheep's 4-star review of COMIC-CON EPISODE IV: A FAN'S HOPE, as well as my first interview with Spurlock for POM WONDERFUL PRESENTS THE GREATEST MOVIE EVER SOLD.

Review copy provided by eOne Entertainment.

TO ROME WITH LOVE

TO ROME WITH LOVE
Written and Directed by Woody Allen
Starring Alec Baldwin, Jesse Eisenberg, Ellen Page, Penelope Cruz and Woody Allen


Jack: What’s so great about suffering?
Monica: There’s just something attractive about a man who is plagued by the perils of existence.

Woody Allen remains true to form with his latest international comedy TO ROME WITH LOVE. And by that I mean that he has followed up a genuine hit with a complete misfire. This is Allen’s pattern after all. On occasion, he gets it just right and many people thought he did just that with last year’s MIDNIGHT IN PARIS. The Oscar winner for Original Screenplay is not my favourite Allen film by any means, but it did certainly enchant with its whimsical look at Paris and people from a cross-generational perspective. His latest hopes to achieve that same success in Rome, but it is such a disconnected collage of familiar Allen talking points that I don’t see the masses swooning this time around. And sadly, if history continues to repeat itself, we will be in store for a few more Allen misses before another hit.

I’m not really sure where to begin with TO ROME WITH LOVE. Alec Baldwin plays an architect vacationing in his former stomping grounds and Jesse Eisenberg is, what I interpret as, a younger version of himself. Baldwin revisits his past by observing Eisenberg (the character Allen himself said he would have liked to play, y’know, if he was fifty years younger) as he waffles between passion (Ellen Page) and stability (Greta Gerwig). Alison Pill referees between her new fiancé, Michelangelo (Flavio Parenti), and her parents (Judy Davis and Allen, making his first film appearance since SCOOP, another real winner), as Allen tries to make Antonio’s father (famed tenor, Fabio Armiliato) into a famous opera singer by staging him in shows where he sings in a shower. Meanwhile, Penelope Cruz plays a prostitute who is mistaken for the new wife of a young businessman (Alessandro Tiberi). They parade around the city with his family while his actual wife (Alessandra Mastronardi) remains perpetually lost in Rome. And then, as if the rest of it wasn’t absurd enough, Roberto Benigni plays a nobody who suddenly and inexplicably becomes an overnight sensation, his every move, from breakfast to bedtime, becomes public fascination. As individual parts, they are more or less amusing and occasionally very witty, but as a whole, they never cohesively come together to mean anything substantial.

TO ROME WITH LOVE was originally called, “Nero Fiddled”. The name change itself exposes what I believe to be the only major selling point about this movie. Clearly, the hope was that those who fell in love with Allen in Paris would do the same in Rome, which is, of course, just as picturesque. The reality is that there will certainly be more interest in this film as a result, but once those patrons get there, I doubt very much they will feel the warmth and charm they are expecting. Before long, everyone who celebrated Allen last year after years of denouncing him as over, will probably find themselves wondering if his late in life romp through Paris, was just a fluke.

THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN

THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN
Written by James Vanderbilt, Alvin Sargent and Steve Kloves
Directed by Marc Webb
Starring Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Rhys Ifans and Denis Leary


Spider-Man: Hey! Watch it! I’m swingin’ here! I’m swingin’ here!

My guess is that calling the new Spider-Man reboot, “The Occasionally Amazing but Mostly Just OK and Reasonably Redundant Spider-Man” might not have been a slam dunk, marketing wise, so I get why they went with the shorter, THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN instead. The fact is, this latest film incarnation of everyone’s favorite web slinging superhero exists for one reason and one reason only. If Sony didn’t put out another film before a certain date, they would lose their rights back to Marvel, and one of their most successful film franchises would be finished. So they took a gamble and decided to start from scratch on a series that only finished five years ago, hoping that just enough time had passed for the next generation to claim Spidey as their own. As to whether that gamble pays off financially, which is of course the only way that really counts, that remains unseen. As for its critical success, my opinion is still swinging from side to side.

Under the direction of (500) DAYS OF SUMMER helmer, Marc Webb, who incidentally loses all trace of originality and personal voice as part of this massive machine, THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN takes us back to when our lovably geeky hero, Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield), was still in high school. It isn’t long before he is bit by a radio active spider when he breaks away from the group at a laboratory focused on cross-species genetics. And not long after that, Peter can just tell; something is not right from his spider bite. The problem here is that this whole spider bite bit has already been done, and not so long ago. Sure, everyone is entitled to their own different take on the tale but Webb’s doesn’t feel all that different than Sam Raimi’s 2002 version. You can’t really mess too much with an origin story, unless you want to enrage the fanboys (and girls), but that doesn’t leave today’s viewer, whose memory may not have entirely faded after just ten years, to feel like they’re watching something they haven’t already seen. By the time Parker loses his Uncle Ben (Martin Sheen) in a senseless mugging, it feels like a plot point we just had to get past rather than the pivotal moment it truly is.

To overcome the more plodding details of the plot, Webb must differentiate his Spider-Man visually and through character. Garfield is a great Peter Parker. In his teenage form, Parker is very shy and befuddled around others. He has a strong moral compass but he hasn’t yet figured his whole self out so his motivations can occasionally be heavily influenced by his ego. And once he’s flying through the air as Spider-Man, Garfield continues to soar in the part. He is a more aggressive, more raw, more fearless Spider-Man than Tobey Maguire ever was. His cunning often caught me off guard and Spidey’s rumbles with The Lizard (Rhys Ifans) are some of the film’s more exhilarating moments. When it comes down to it, if you’re a fan of Spider-Man movies, THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN can be an incredible ride. I for one love flying through the air on nothing but a web and a prayer, but when this ride comes to its inevitable end, some may feel like they’ve already been on it before.

MAGIC MIKE

MAGIC MIKE
Written by Reid Carolin
Directed by Steven Soderbergh
Starring Channing Tatum, Alex Pettyfer and Matthew McConaughey


Brooke: Entrepreneur/Stripper or stripper/entrepreneur?
Mike: Either one.
Brooke: I was hoping this was all a joke.
Mike: It is pretty funny.

Wow. MAGIC MIKE is one heck of a surprisingly great time! Perhaps I’m still in my post Channing Tatum shaking his incredibly hot stuff all over the place haze but still, who knew you could take a movie about a handful of male strippers and turn it into an insightful and oddly charming film? Steven Soderbergh and his new bro, Tatum, did, that’s who. By loosely adapting Tatum’s own experience getting wrapped up in the sexy world of all naked male revue, Soderbergh strips away all the pretense that has weighed down some of his more recent works. If Soderbergh had hair, this would be him with it down. Way down.

Alex Pettyfer plays Adam, the character who is supposed to be Tatum and who would later come to be known as The Kid. He is 19 years old, living on his sister’s (Cody Horn) couch in Tampa, Florida, and uninterested in any work that has him answering to any authority or wearing a tie. In other words, he’s lost. He meets Mike (the magic one himself, Mr. Tatum, who impresses with way more than just his perfect pecs here) on a construction site and before he knows what’s happening, he’s being shoved on stage and taking off his clothes for screaming women aplenty. Naturally, with all the ladies hooting, hollering and constantly shoving dollar bills down his G-string, The Kid takes to the lifestyle pretty quickly. Mike takes him under his wing, like a little stripper prodigy, and the two embark on a summer unlike any one I’ve ever had. You can’t have this much fun without consequence though (unless you’re just watching MAGIC MIKE, that is) and summers always inevitably turn to fall.

The beauty of Soderbergh’s work in MAGIC MIKE is that it is entirely effortless. The guys are up there having a good time and we are having just as much fun watching them. While the film does inspire plenty of cat calling from the audience though, Soderbergh is smart enough to remind us ever so subtly that it isn’t really a party if it happens every night. The Kid is only 19, after all, and even Mike has bigger dreams he’s long put on hold while chasing the easy money he makes on stage. Before it’s over, there is a shift in tone that has been slowly building the whole while, only we were far too distracted to notice. This fantastic world is exposed to be one that can free your mind but trap your soul in the process. Before you know it, you’re 30 years old, the fresh faces are gunning for you and you got nowhere else to go. This isn’t necessarily revelatory but that doesn’t matter because Soderbergh makes it feel real. And damn, it sure was fun while it lasted!

TED

TED

Written by Seth MacFarlane, Alec Sulkin and Wellesley Wild

Directed by Seth MacFarlane

Starring Mark Wahlberg, Mila Kunis and Seth MacFarlane

Ted: (Dressed in a suit) I look stupid.

John: No, you don’t. You look dapper.

Ted: John, I look like something you give to your kid when you tell ‘em Grandma died.

The opening sequence to TED, Seth MacFarlane’s (FAMILY GUY) first live-action feature film, tells you everything you need to know about whether you’re going to enjoy yourself or not. In it, a narrator (voiced by AMERICAN DAD regular, Patrick Stewart) tells us the story of how, one Christmas, a little boy’s wish brought a stuffed bear to life. The twosome will go on to become the bestest of friends until inevitably one day when a woman will come between them and threaten their very special relationship. It isn’t long before jokes are made about Jewish people and obscure pop culture references or even before the narrator himself takes a decidedly dirty direction with his tone. This is the story of a boy who doesn’t want to grow up, as told by a man who has made a fortune playing directly to boys who don’t want to grow up, the world over. Sometimes, I question whether MacFarlane has ever fully grown up himself. The question he poses to us is whether that’s actually a bad thing or not.

I think it would be fair to say that if you enjoy MacFarlane’s humour on his animated Fox shows (including THE CLEVELAND SHOW, in addition to the previously mentioned examples), then you will most likely laugh it up throughout TED. I actually do like MacFarlane’s humour quite a bit and I did a fair amount of hearty chuckling throughout his film debut, but not enough to see through all of his laziness. As much as I enjoy FAMILY GUY (and I do often enjoy it over and over again), I have found that he has learned to coast a bit on what he knows works well already. In TED, MacFarlane plays it safe, bringing on a number of people he’s already familiar with, from co-star, Mila Kunis, to composer, Walter Murphy. Heck, there’s even one foreigner character who knows the English language well enough to get by but misses all the nuances. (If you watch FAMILY GUY, you’ll know what that refers to). It almost felt to me at times that not only was MacFarlane playing it safe but rather surrounding himself with the familiar so he too would feel safe in this unchartered territory.

I would be remiss not to mention as well how similar Ted the bear sounds like  MacFarlane’s quintessential character, Peter Griffin. They are so similar at times that MacFarlane even calls himself out on it in one scene when Ted quips about how he does not sound exactly like Peter Griffin. Just because MacFarlane is in on the joke though does not make us forget that TED is, on many levels, just FAMILY GUY crammed into a cuddly bear. And while this does entertain on many levels, it only does so to a point. What it does past that is expose without question MacFarlane’s limitations as a writer and director.

PS. I really do like you, Mr. MacFarlane. I guess, I just want to see what else you can do, where else you can go.

Best of Black Sheep: THE ARTIST

THE MEN BEHIND THE ARTIST

An interview with THE ARTIST director, Michel Hazanavicius and star, Jean Dujardin

As is ordinarily the rule during the holiday season, film audiences are inundated with grandiose family fare and a slew of prestige pictures designed to use the power of words to move people to both laughter and tears. One notable exception this year falls somewhere in the middle of this spectrum but does so without uttering a single syllable.

THE ARTIST, French director, Michel Hazanavicius’s ode to an era of cinema that has long been forgotten, will most certainly differentiate itself from the glut of awards season contenders this year, simply by being the charming delight of a film that it is. There is one other factor that will likely get everyone talking about it though; it’s silent.

As I’m sure you can imagine, getting THE ARTIST made was no easy feat. “At the very beginning, I felt very lonely because nobody wanted to make this movie,” Hazanavicius tells me when we meet at the Toronto International Film Festival, one of the many carefully chosen festival stops THE ARTIST made on its path towards tentative Oscar gold. “Now, to see so many people delighted to see the film, it’s very gratifying,” he concludes, with sincere and evident appreciation.

The idea to make a silent movie was one Hazanavicius tossed around for years and one that he is certain he is not alone in having. “It is a fantasy that I think many directors have,” he claims.  “A lot of us would love to at least try to do it. Maybe I wanted it a little bit more.” It was not until after he found success with his OSS 117 spy film series that anyone took his idea seriously though. “Once you have some success, people don’t see you the same way,” he admits. “Suddenly, something that could be insane becomes doable.”

Hazanavicius, watching the magic happen.

And so Hazanavicius enlisted the help of his OSS 117 stars, Jean Dujardin and Berenice Bejo (who is, incidentally, also his wife), to take on the leads in his crazy dream project. According to Hazanavicius, Bejo was on board from the start, but Dujardin was somewhat concerned when he first heard of the idea. “Yes, I thought he was crazy but Michel is incredibly hard working,” Dujardin confided to me, when we too met at this year’s TIFF. “Michel’s preparation ahead of time made everything go smooth though and he has advanced his career ten years with this film.”

Hazanavicius’s research included screening several silent films, his favorites being the American examples from the final years of the silent era (1924-1929). “I watched a lot of silent films to understand the rules and there are more rules than in a usual movie,” he explains. “In many ways though, it was more freeing. You can go places you usually don’t go because it does not have to be so realistic.”

Despite all his well researched knowledge on the subject, Hazanavicius knew that selling THE ARTIST  to mainstream audiences would not be so simple. This awareness directly influenced the story of the film. “I thought that to tell a story about a silent actor would make things easier for the audience to accept it was a silent movie,” he says of the story’s origins. In keeping with that, Dujardin plays a successful Hollywood star who falls out of favour when he refuses to acknowledge the “talkies” as anything but a passing fad.

Modern audiences might find the shift in pace to be an adjustment at first, but what makes THE ARTIST  so successful is its inherent celebration of the cinema itself. By scaling everything back, Hazanavicius reminds us what true movie magic is. The fact that he and his incredibly talented cast, which also includes John Goodman and James Cromwell, do so without any dialogue, begs the question, do today’s movies talk way too much?

“Language is very practical but it is usually just information,” Hazanavicius responds. “It’s so rich to communicate in other ways and it is too easy to just use words.” This is a sentiment that Dujardin also agrees on. “The overuse of dialogue in modern movies is just a sign of not trusting the actor’s performance. Many things can be expressed without words.”

Whether general filmgoers embrace THE ARTIST remains to be seen but at this stage, that almost seems beside the point. “The arch of this film’s journey is such a nice story,” says a very proud, Hazanavicius. “And it’s still barely beginning.”

THE ARTIST

Written and Directed by Michel Hazanavicius

Starring Jean Dujardin, Berenice Bejo, John Goodman and James Cromwell

George Valentin (on a title card): I won’t talk. I won’t say a word!

Some critics would be hard pressed to find genuine artistry in the film industry today, but they needn’t look any further than THE ARTIST, French director, Michel Hazanavicius’s homage to another era. It is a fine celebration of the cinema and the art involved in making the movies feel magical. True to the period in which it is set (Hollywood, 1927), the film is black and white, shot in the more box-y 1.33:1 aspect ratio and, perhaps most notably, the film is silent. Somehow though, without a single word uttered throughout, THE ARTIST keeps you hanging on every frame.

George Valentin (Jean Dujardin), the artist in THE ARTIST, believes the introduction of sound into film to be a gimmick, a passing fad. You and I both know how very wrong he was but he held true to the cinema’s authentic and humble origins. His refusal to grow and change with the times finds him falling out of favour with his studio and subsequently continuing to fall, only this time on hard times. Meanwhile, the woman he is in love with, actress Peppy Miller (Berenice Bejo, Hazanavicius’s wife) is being swept up in the emerging success of the “talkies”. Valentin must essentially adapt or die; he must find his voice again in order to finally be heard by his public and the woman he loves. As simple as the plot is, it is its refined execution that makes the whole exercise seem effortless, allowing nothing but great warmth and passion to emanate from the screen.

It’s funny how we take things like dialogue for granted and it’s hard to believe that the movies really were like this at one point in time. As demonstrated in the film’s opening sequence, elegant theatres would be filled to capacity with patrons decked out in their finest wares, anxiously awaiting the latest screen adventures of their favorite Hollywood stars. An orchestra would not only fill the room with music but it would also fill the silence between the actors on the screen. Emotion and intention needed to be clearly communicated without speaking in order for the film to be successful. And while it may at times come off as exaggerated or false, the point was usually made. By honouring the silent film and doing it such great justice, THE ARTIST almost renders the usage of words completely pointless.

Best of Black Sheep: TAKE THIS WALTZ

TAKE THIS WALTZ
Written and Directed by Sarah Polley
Starring Michelle Williams, Seth Rogen, Luke Kirby and Sarah Silverman


Geraldine: Life has a big gap in it. You don’t try to fill it like a fucking lunatic.

Canadian darling, Sarah Polley’s latest directorial effort begins with such great promise. The enigmatic, Michelle Williams, with her round face and gentle demeanor, comes in and out of focus in a quaint Toronto kitchen. The sun beams in and all you can hear is the clicking of the fan rotating in the corner and a soft folk song filling the soundtrack. It’s one of those perfect mornings; her muffins are rising slowly and the whole day awaits her. As she sinks to the floor by the oven and a man’s legs brush past her, the tone is set for a truly great film. Unfortunately, it is at this point that mouths are opened, awkwardness and discomfort come out of them and TAKE THIS WALTZ begins to step all over its own feet.

Williams plays Margot, a 29-year-old writer living in Toronto. She has been married to Lou (Seth Rogen, who continues to grow and show more depth as an actor) for six years now. The two clearly love each other but their relationship has never matured from its youthful beginnings. As a result, they resort to cutesy baby talk and childish games where they each come up with creative ways to kill the other person whenever there is potential for intimacy between them. Neither one seems to notice their relationship is stinted until Margot meets a man on Prince Edward Island, of all places, while on assignment. Daniel (the charming Luke Kirby) not only ends up sitting next to her on the plane, where Margot has the chance to spill some fairly overwrought dialogue about how she fears missing connections at airports and maybe really fears fear itself, but as it turns out, Daniel also happens to live a few doors over from her in Toronto as well. It’s crazy how life can line up like that, I mean, especially when it is being written that way.

Margot’s heart becomes torn between the love she’s known for years and the possibilities presented by something new, something potentially more adult. Ordinarily, I am drawn into every emotion Williams gives us but in TAKE THIS WALTZ, I just wanted to cut in, grab her by the shoulders and shake her. Margot is an unhappy sap, who sees her marriage to a supportive man as a true burden and who portends that the path she has taken holds her back without admitting it was of her own making or doing a single thing to change it. To watch her debate the greener grass across the street from her is an exercise in great patience as she comes off as unappreciative, immature and unaware. Granted, yes, people just like Margot exist in real life but the sympathy with which Polley demands for Margot is too much to ask and Margot never does one thing to deserve it. As far as I’m concerned, Polley can have her waltz back because I don’t want it.

YOUR SISTER'S SISTER

YOUR SISTER’S SISTER
Written and Directed by Lynn Shelton
Starring Emily Blunt, Rosemarie DeWitt and Mark Duplass


Jack: You’re out of the cage now, my friend. If you’re gonna fucking fly, you’re gonna start with a steak!

Have you ever been out to a lake? It’s peaceful, simple, and often so tranquil that you can just let your mind drift away into a rare state of relaxation. Heck, you might even learn a thing or two about yourself, if you’re open to it. This is the exact tone that independent film director, Lynn Shelton, strives for and achieves with great success in her latest insightful laugher, YOUR SISTER’S SISTER. Well, the simplicity, she gets; the tranquility, not so much. Either way, an engaging and endearing experience, much like a weekend away from the busier and louder mainstream fare we’re all accustomed to. In many ways, it is also a necessary break as well.

Reportedly made for just $125,000, YOUR SISTER’S SISTER was conceived as an improvisational experiment of sorts. Three people, all with varying degrees of issues with themselves and each other to work out, end up at a quaint cottage unexpectedly all at once. Two of these people are sisters, Iris and Hannah, played by Emily Blunt and Rosemarie Dewitt (who replaced Rachel Weisz when she had to drop out of the project). One of these people is Jack (Mark Duplass, who also rocks the indie scene in SAFETY NOT GUARANTEED). Jack lost his brother, who incidentally happened to be Iris’s ex-boyfriend, a year prior and has yet to reenter the world of the living. After Jack drunkenly sleeps with Hannah, who happens to be a lesbian just out of a 7-year relationship, it becomes as clear as a lake at dawn that matters have become fairly complicated for this trio.

YOUR SISTER’S SISTER is as contemplative and as rustic as you’d expect a movie about a trip to the lake to be. Shelton captures a candid intimacy that is increasingly rare these days. The video aesthetic may not always do the picturesque nature full justice but it also doesn’t let the actors get away with anything either. True to the essence of improv, these three actors cannot let there be silence for too long and inevitably fill the spaces with whatever comes to mind. Their combined talent is undeniable and without their finely honed instincts, this film would be the worst weekend away ever. And while the complexities that surface throughout their time away may be too easily worked out in the end, this does nothing to detract from what a fascinating exercise in introspection the time away provides.