Review of "Animal Kingdom"

Animal Kingdom is the story of a criminal family living on the edge. As the film begins, the protagonist J (James Frecheville) has just lost his mother to a heroin overdose and has to move in with his grandmother and uncles. Up until this start, he was largely estranged from his extended family, for good reason. As his life with them continues, he experiences drug deals and murder. The body count grows exponentially as the film wears onward.

Animal Kingdom
Directed by David Michôd
Starring: James Frecheville, Guy Pearce,
Joel Edgerton
My Opinion: If you're looking for lovely and deeply disturbing
look no further.

The story is harrowing and illustrates what it takes to be the top of the pack, a lesson that J must learn quickly. However, it's an exhausting movie to watch: terribly depressing with pretty much no pay off, although the cinematography is lovely and the script is deep. The acting is both passionate and chilling and the directing is as solid as a bullet. You will not enjoy this one, however, and it's certainly not for the weak of heart. It's up to you if you want to watch a bunch of Australian trash in a fancy format, but I liked it.

Throwback Shit: "Duel"

Duel is a gripping tale of a car chase in which an innocent businessman, a commuter evidently, becomes terrorized by an anonymous assailant who is after one thing: blood shed. A psychological thriller reminiscent of several Twilight Zone episodes, Steven Spielberg's first feature-length film sets the standard for all of his later works. It's a humble film, little more than a goober of a man in a car and an unseen driver in a rusty truck. However, the angles and cuts that Spielberg chooses proves his ingenuity. The way each frame becomes tighter and tighter provokes the viewer's anxiety, leaving him on the edge of what feels to be their own driver's seat. And that arid desert setting is dismally isolating.

Duel
Starring Dennis Weaver
Directed by Steven Spielberg
My Opinon: Gripping.

The movie barely moves outside of the car, but it doesn't need to venture further. Inside the automobile, we're stuck in this claustrophobic cell that feels so doomed, yet we never quite give up hope.

"Life of Pi" Review

Life of Pi is an incredible story of survival dressed in mystery, thrills and intrigue. Fifteen-year-old Piscine Molitor (Suraj Sharma), nicknamed "Pi", becomes the sole survivor of a shipwreck, forced to share his meager lifeboat with an unaccepted passenger: a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker. The novel reads like a magical but harrowing fairy tale and quickly garnered a large audience. When whispers of a film version rang in the air, however, most of novel's fans were skeptical, if not angered. The ambiguity and the spirituality so vitally entwined in the fabrication of Pi's story caused many to consider the novel "unfilmable."

Well, movie-master Ang Lee showed them.

Life of Pi
Starring: Suraj Sharma, Irrfan Khan & Adil Hussain
Directed by Ang Lee
My Opinion: 3D is vital to fully experience the beauty of this film
but everything is wonderful about it.

Lee adds an extra character to his telling: a writer desperate for a new story. He's told that there is a man who has a story that will "make you believe in God." That man, of course, is Pi (Irrfan Khan), now a grown adult. Although this use of a frame narrative has been done before, it works seamlessly in this film. The adult Pi explains everything, the history of his given name, his nickname and the introduction of Richard Parker, who was the most valuable member of Pi's father's zoo.

I've never been a fan of 3D, but this movie would not be the same without it. As beautiful as Yann Martel's language is, Lee's imagery give the best-selling novel a run for its money. Every scene is absolutely mesmerizing, even the terror-filled thrills of the storm scenes. It's truly breathtaking. Aside from the cinematography, moreover, the way Lee dealt with some of the challenges presented in the novel is nothing short of impressive. For example, a lot of readers find the novel's meerkat island strange - and so did And Lee. However, he uses it briefly and delicately. It feels hallucinogenic in Pi's near-death state, like an otherworldly paradise. It's still weird, but it works. 

Actor Suraj Sharma ensures a career ahead of him with his mind-blowing performance. He draws you in to the experience and, together with the 3-dimensional imagery, makes you feel as if you're on that boat with him. It's really much more of an experience than a movie, but a very enjoyable one. I wasn't bored for a second.

My only qualm is  the end. Whereas the ambiguous ending of the book allows the reader to decide for themselves what they want to believe, the movie doesn't present this opportunity in the same way. The addition of the writer causes this difference,  necessitating a closed interpretation. Nevertheless, it doesn't diminish the value of the experience detrimentally. The film is a work of art and nothing less.

"The Amazing Spiderman" Review

The Amazing Spiderman
Starring: Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Rhys Ifan
Directer by Marc Webb
My Opinon: Too soon but not bad.

The Amazing Spiderman came much too early for a remake, especially after the fantastic films created by one of my all time favorite directors, Sam Raimi. Raimi constructed his superheroe flick trilogy with precision and prestige. His films smashed the box and received immense praise by critics. Obviously the last installment was a deep disappointment, but two out of three is pretty good.  Honestly, I could not watch this movie without constantly comparing it to the superior version. Toby Mcguire was the perfect dweeby-turned-awesome Peter Parker. Honestly, Andrew Garfield looks like the lead singer from Dashboard Confessional and Emma Stone looks at least 10 years his senior. So why fix what isn't yet old and broken?

Spiderman has the basic ingredients: a villain, an unexpected hero, a love interest, one-liners, and special effects. I guess as far as recent comic book films go, The Amazing Spiderman is far superior than The Avengers. It has a solid story and it's pretty fun to watch all the way through. But it doesn't really do anything special or different, so I'm gonna say it's not bad. Although, I can't really accept this movie for what it is. And what it is is a lesser version of Raimi's.

"The Cove" Review

The Cove
Directed by Louis Psyihoyos
My Opinon: Worth the trauma.

I know this movie is like three Oscar seasons ago, but it fucked my mind forever so I have to write about it. I've always thought that dolphins were the most interesting members of the animal kingdom, aside from humans of course. The Cove illustrates the similarities between the aforementioned species and convinces the viewer that dolphins deserve to be treated as something more than a pest.

This is by far the most disturbing documentary I have ever seen, however, it is also possibly the best. The entire layout is flawless and unlike a lot of documentaries, it stays watched. You will not forget a thing, because you will probably have nightmares after. Still, it presents both sides and somehow makes you understand the reason why these creatures are killed. It's just traumatically wonderful.