~Warning - Spoilers involved for Revolutionary Road. Sorry, but it was essential for the entry~
Sam Mendes' Revolutionary Road doesn't exactly paint any of its characters with flattering colours, but I thought it was particularly strong when it came to the female characters, didn't you? Oh sure, the men aren't the loveliest creatures but Leonardo DiCaprio's Frank is angry and has violent outbursts are all down to be merely naive and under the desire to give his family a better life. Oh sure, Michael Shannon's John is on day release from the loony farm, but he's "the only one" who actually understands it all. The crazy one is the sanest of them all as they say. And Richard Easton's Mr Givings is nothing more than a result of his tumultuous home life.
The women of the film, however, don't get off so easily. Take Kate Winslet's April Wheeler. She comes off as incredibly selfish, eternally miserable and mentally unstable (but in an unglamourous way, unlike Michael Shannon) in her feverish determination to move to Paris whilst uprooting her entire family due to her unending unhappiness. She portrayed as manipulative and always (deliberately, I felt) misinterpreting the childish defensive arguments of her husband Frank (DiCaprio).
The final scenes of the movie where she performs her own abortion - an act she seems to know will be the death of her - are particularly cruel towards April. Mere minutes after dying in a strangely anticlimactic hospital sequence between DiCaprio and David Harbour, Frank is seen taking dutiful care of the children that he not once even looked at when Winslet was around. It wasn't their suburban life that was keeping him down, but was her!
Or what about Kathy Bates' Helen Givings? Throughout the movie, whenever she sporadically appears, she comes off as loopy and - oh dear - quirky. Even when her son is nearly attacked all she can come up with is a relatively weak "he's not well!" That she was the one who turned her son into a crazy person is underlined in the final scene, I felt. Not even her husband can stand to be around her, tuning her out (literally and figuratively).
Kathryn Hahn's Milley Campbell is a strange character indeed. She is the stereotypical 1950s housewife, much like her husband is the stereotypical 1950s husband, but where they differ is that Milley is laughed at for being a ditzy and hysterical dolt. Her perma-smile fronting the fact that she has no opinion on anything whatsoever. And Zoe Kazan's secretary character of Maureen Grube doesn't come off as anything but a gossiping idiot.
I just found it all incredibly strange. The men weren't portrayed well - Dylan Baker's character comes off particularly bad - but their actions feel like mere shrugs compared to the daftness of the women. Does one of them have any positive aspect about them? I don't think so. Winslet's April doesn't even seem like a good mother and her philandering seems particularly more spiteful than Frank's (surely the point).
You probably think that I didn't like the movie. Not the case. While I think the portrayal of its characters is bizarre and I'm not exactly sure why we're meant to care about any of them in the slightest, I did think Mendes did a good job of somehow making them palatable (well, except for Bates. That was just strange.) The film looks gorgeous - that shot of Winslet disappearing into the forest, and later the shot of Winslet in the window are particularly memorable - and the acting definitely helps the film's cyclical pattern work. I feel positive towards the film, if negative towards some of the aspects that, perhaps, were not the filmmaker's fault. Does that make sense? B-
I'd also like to mention that I saw this in cinema three at Kino in Melbourne. I make special mention of the cinema because I think the speakers are busted. As repetitive and perfunctory as Thomas Newman's score was, it was made worse by the distortion that all-too-frequently crept in during moments of bass. Poor form, Kino!
Today is a nigh on insufferable 44 degrees Celsius (that's equates to something over 110 degrees Fahrenheit I think) around these parts of Australia so my desire to blog is fairly minimal right about now. It's a heatwave doncha know. And for anyone who knows Melbourne, know this - I just walked through all of Royal Park (and then some) because my tram broke down (and I was only on the tram because the trains weren't running). Note to Connex - It negates the point of having a free fare day - only brought on by your incompetence - if there aren't any trains to catch!
Nevermind, here are some posters to while away a few precious seconds of your time.
As we've already established there are actually a few promising Australian titles coming our way in 2009. Taking a break from movies about drug dealers, drug users, wife abusers, crooked cops and philandering husbands (five of Australian film's favourite topics) is Mary and Max, a claymation film from Adam Elliot, the director of Oscar-winning Harvey Krumpet. It debuted at the opening night film at Sundance recently. Wallace & Gromit this is not. From the film's IMDb plot outline:
A tale of friendship between two unlikely pen pals: Mary, a lonely, eight-year-old girl living in the suburbs of Melbourne, and Max, a forty-four-year old, severely obese man living in New York.
And that's just the beginning! It features the vocals of Phillip Seymour Hoffman (as Max), Toni Collette (as adult Mary), Barry Humphries, Eric Bana plus several others that only Australians will recognise (Renee Geyer and Ian 'Molly' Meldrum, anyone?) I, for one, can't wait to see what Elliot does and the trailer (below) looks wickedly dark and funny. I wonder if the animation branch would respond to it like they did Harvey Krumpet or if they would pass by it for, oh I dunno, Lame Dreamworks Cartoon 7.
Cinema Releases for the Week 29/01/09 Can I just point out that JANUARY IS ALMOST OVER! How did that happen?
Milk - Gus Van Sant's retelling of Harvey Milk's life. My full review within the coming days, but it is very good indeed.
The Spirit - Not that you'd know it, but this movie directed by Frank Miller and starring Samuel L Jackson, Scarlett Johansson and Eva Mendes is out this week.
DVD Releases for the Week 29/01/09
er... apparently there are no new releases for DVD this week. What's up? Did they anticipate a heat wave and expect people would rather go to the beach? DOES NOT COMPUTE!
TV Screenings for the Week 29/01/09
29/01/09, Read My Lips (2001), SBS, 10.00PM - French film starring Emmanuelle Devos and Stale Popcorn mistress Vincent Cassel.
30/01/09, Arch of Triumph (1948), ABC1, 12.45AM - Ingrid Bergman film.
31/01/09, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (1988), SBS, 1.05AM - One of those titles that my DVD service just never seems to be able to send me. Last time it aired on SBS my DVR broke so here's hoping it's not cursed!!
31/01/09, The Caine Mutiny (1954), ABC2, 8.35PM - A Best Picture Oscar-nominee starring Humphry Bogart.
31/01/09, Out of the Past (1947), ABC2, 10.40PM - Classic noir starring Robert Mitchum.
05/01/09, Sympathy for Lady Vengeance (2005), SBS, 10.00PM - Such an excellent movie from Chan-Wook Park. Definitely worth catching if you can.
06/01/09, Joe Versus the Volcano (1990), C9, 12.00AM - If you're interested in seeing the only other film that the director of Doubt, John Patrick Shanley, has made then check out this Tom Hanks/Meg Ryan... thing.
What part of that blog entry title do you think gets me more antsy with anticipation? That Jamie Bell is in a movie or that Steven Spielberg is? Hmmm. One look at the blog and you should know your answer. It's fitting that while I had indeed heard the news (I just hadn't had the chance to post about it) I received blog comments, emails and SMS text messages telling me about it. Nice to know I'm so predictable.
Now, don't get me wrong, I'm glad that somebody like Steven freakin' Spielberg likes my Jamie enough to cast him in a new blockbuster, but why oh why did he have to cast him in Tintin? I liked the books and I enjoyed the television series when I was a lil tyke, but... really? They're making a Tintin movie? It's been discussed a lot over the last few years, but I never actually though it would come to fruition. Is there a childhood hero as uncool as Tintin? I know he went to the moon and all, but yeesh. NERD ALERT (/primary school).
It's been filmed in motion capture 3D, which I think implies it will be like Beowulf...? If somebody can be bothered reading about this movie once it gets past the cast (Jamie, Daniel Craig, Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Toby Jones - lovely) and it mentions anything then let me know. If it does follow the path of Beowulf does that mean we should expect Tintin to come out looking like this?
If so, I approve!
And because we can't go through this entry without a picture of the man in question:
Sorry about the sudden disappearance, but my apartment has been experiencing a weirdly slow Internet connection for the last two days and today I had none at all (I'm on somebody else's laptop, lovely) so I'm not entirely sure what's up with it. Hopefully it will be back up within a day or two. When it does return I plan to have write-ups about Milk, Revolutionary Road, Love the Beast and plenty of other goodies. Hold tight my pretties, Stale Popcorn will return soon enough.
As, I imagine, every single Australian has done at least once in their life I got stuck watching Rage last night until 3.30 in the morning. Rage is an all-night music program that runs from around 11pm until some time in the late morning. It plays all sorts of great and not-so-great music, features guest programmers and special theme nights. Occasionally they feature Countdown episodes though, which are a total treat. Countdown itself was another ABC music program that featured the latest hottest music videos, live in house performances (including everyone from The Uncanny X-Men to Divine, no kidding) and countdowns of the music charts from all over the world. It ran from 1874 - 1987, but remains a vital fixture in the landscape of Australian music to this very day.
"Last night I experience the greatest rock and roll concert I have ever experienced ... Last night in front of 20,000 at the Civic Auditorium people I saw Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band put on a concert of rock and roll that just left everyone breathless" - Amen Molly Meldrum!
Rage was kind enough to program the episode from September 30th, 1984 last night, and what an episode it was! To just further prove why the 1980s were the greatest decade known to mankind, some of the video clips they featured were:
Helen Terry, "Now You Are Mine" Cyndi Lauper, "She Bop" Phil Oakey, "Together in Electric Dreams" Tina Turner, "Better Be Good to Me" Deep Royal Blues, "God Save Me" Prince, "Let's Go Crazy" David Bowie, "Blue Jean"
Unfortunately Prince and Cyndi Lauper are unable to attend this party right now, but these five are still amazing. And, by the way, the songs by Phil Oakey (of Human League) and Helen Terry are both from the soundtrack to a 1984 movie I had never of called Electric Dreams, which I absolutely MUST see. If these are on the soundtrack then it can't be all bad. Plus, the plot is described as "a love triangle between a man, a woman, and a personal computer" so what could go wrong? NOTHING!
The top ten countdown for that week was: 10. Pointer Sisters, "Jump" (literally brilliant) 9. ZZ Top, "Legs" (absolutely brilliant) 8. Dan Hartman, "I Can Dream About You" (well...) 7. Stevie Wonder, "I Just Called to Say I Love You" (how brilliantly retro, an Oscar winner in the top ten!) 6. Bruce Springsteen, "Dancing in the Dark" (by far one of the most brilliant songs ever recorded) 5. John Waite, "Missing" (surprisingly very brilliant) 4. U2, "Pride" (it's U2, okay) 3. Tina Turner, "What's Love Got to Do With It?" (the epitome of brilliant) 2. Ray Parker Jr, "Ghostbusters" (very very brilliant, but not as brilliant as "I Want a New Drug" by the brilliant Huey Lewis & The News) 1. George Michael, "Careless Whisper (brilliant, duh)
Hey guys, I thought I would bump this entry back to the top. It proved to be quite popular - I'm still getting emails from people asking about certain titles - and new information has come to hand in relation to release dates and title changes for certain movies listed below (thanks mostly to immeasurably helpful Inside Film).
At the start of this new year I thought I'd put together a list of the Australian films that may be coming our way (and if they're good enough, your way too!) in 2009. Australian film production is iffy though, and distribution is even worse. Films can be announced and then not a word is heard (Cedar Boys) until they magically get released into cinemas to the cries of "how did it fail?" (2008's The Tender Hook etc), while others are filmed and then not a single word is heard about them for months or in some cases up to a year (Long Weekend, In Her Skin, Beautiful Kate). And then there are titles that just don't get released at all outside of festivals (Corrobboree). It seems that unless you're Rolf de Heer (Ten Canoes) no Australian filmmakers is capable of making more than one film every few years and there's no guarantee even the most successful debut director will be able to get a greenlight for a second picture. Lack of funding is generally a key reason, but there is more to it.
So while a lot of these movies may indeed be finished this year, they could take anywhere up to three years to even see the light of day! I did, however, try and choose titles that are towards the end of production or already in post and have sites that imply they will be coming out soon. You can bet ya bottom dollar that a few will go direct-to-DVD (I'm looking at you Crush), but thankfully there are quite a few promising titles from high profile directors such as Sarah Watt, Fred Schepisi, Ana Kokkinos, Scott Hicks, Bruce Beresford and Adam Elliot while notable Australian performers like Eric Bana, Radha Mitchell, Anthony LaPaglia, Geoffrey Rush, Miranda Otto and Melissa George have all "returned" to Australia to make Aussie films. I routinely say that more "average movie-goers" would be more willing to see the films our industry makes if the filmmakers went to any effort at all to get people to go and getting somebody of relevance in your cast if probably the next best thing to actually having a movie people might want to see. We may just see a few box office hits this year! And, yes, a whole lot of these titles will probably appear next year if I do this list then, too. Oh well. Such is life.
$9.99 (dir. Tatia Rosenthal) - Australian/Israeli co-produced animated title. Already shortlisted for the Academy Awards' Best Animated Feature category. Only an unforeseen distribution disaster could prevent it from being seen in 2009.
Accidents Happen (dir. Andrew Lancaster) - Geena Davis stars in this Australia/UK co-produced comedy. Australians like comedy. Has had test screenings so should be coming out way later in the yeah.
Acolytes (dir. Jon Hewitt) - Aussie teen thriller that is apparently gunning for a March release and has already won prizes at MUFF. I can't see Aussie kids planting down $12 for this, but stranger things have happened. My MIFF review can be found here.
Animal Kingdom (dir. David Michôd) - Sounds like it could be impressive and has a good cast, but will probably not be ready until 2010.
Balibo (dir. Robert Connolly) - One of my regular gripes about the Australian film industry is that it is, for some reason, incredibly reluctant to revisit our history as a means of film ideas. Sure, there have been movies about Gallipoli and Kokoda and Ned Kelly gets repeated again and again, yet for a country that had a hand in so many important moments in history all filmmakers seem to want to do is make yet another movie about miserable lower-class drug users and the like. Hopefully this one is good and a hit and maybe they'll cotton on.
Beautiful (dir. Dean O'Flaherty) - A thriller that I think is being aimed at teenagers, but I'm not entirely sure. I recently loved the poster. Has screened for media and will be out in the first half of 2009.
The Beautiful and the Damned (dir.Richard Wolstencroft) - Based on a book by F Scott Fitzgerald (he's popular lately, isn't he?) this movie stars nobody you have ever heard of and I have no idea about a release.
Beautiful Kate (dir. Rachel Ward) - Has a great cast - Ben Mendelsohn, Bryan Brown, Rachel Griffiths, Maeve Dermody - but the story sounds a bit on-the-nose. It's all very "when i was growing up my family was terrible, but now I must make amends because death is all around us" etc. Will get a release due to the cast and crew pedigree (it is Rachel Ward's first feature-length movie after a few shorts) and has been in post-production for a while now so it should arrive soon.
Belladonna (dir. Annika Glac) - An Australian/Polish co-production that I've been excited about for a while. It's apparently very "different" and will appeal to about five people total and has a sense of the avant garde about it. The official website offers a hint of how beautiful it may be. Screenings begin in February although I am unaware of a general release date as of yet.
Blessed (dir. Ana Kokkinos) - Deborra-Lee Furness, Miranda Otto and Frances O'Connor will probably do their best (and I do await Furness' performance especially) but Kokkinos' films generally aren't my cuppa either way so we'll see if this becomes a critical champ like the queer Head On or the overtly wanky pretentious arty claptrap like Book of Revelation. Kokkinos is one of those directors who will always get her movies released whether or not they're a) any good or b) make any money.
The Boys are Back in Town (dir. Scott Hicks) - Most likely a 2010 film, although it is being distributed through Miramax and BBC Films and, unlike many Australian production companies and distributors, they know how to get a film out on time instead of having it languish for anywhere up to three years. Stars Clive Owen.
Bran Nue Day (dir. Rachel Perkins) - Another likely 2010 title is this indigineous road trip musical starring Jessica Mauboy, Geoffrey Rush, Missy Higgins and Deborah Mailman. Recently discussed here. No way it won't go theatrical whenever it is available. Should pop up in 2009 thanks to it's place on the MIFF Premiere Fund.
Bright Star (dir. Jane Campion) - A title of great expectation. It's a co-production between Australia, USA, UK and France so it definitely has all bases covered and stars Abbie Cornish with Ben Whishaw, Kerry Fox and the wonderful Paul Schneider. Could be major and it has a cute website.
Cedar Boys (dir. Serhat Caradee) - I remember hearing about this title over a year ago - Rachael Taylor was riding high on the success of Transformers I believe - and yet nothing since. Haven't seen a poster or any promotion at all. Where has it gone? This IMDb forum entry is particularly funny for anybody who knows Australian culture.
Charlie & Boots (dir. Dean Murphy) - Gunning for an October release is this road comedy starring Paul Hogan and Shane Jacobson. Could be huge if it's any good, especially when you consider Hogan's last film was the dreadful Strange Bedfellows and even that was bonza at the box office.
Coffin Rock - Aussie/UK thriller. Sounds ridiculous.
The Combination (dir. David Field) - Sounds like it deals with very similar territory to Cedar Boys - rage-fueled ethnic violence in the Aussie suburbs - but this one is directed by the actor David Field so it piques my interest a little bit more. Has a great poster - even if it does glorify everything people complain about within the industry - and the trailer, below, is actually very good at getting me (at least) involved. And, no, it doesn't explain the title. IMDb claims a late February release so here's hoping they get a move on and crank out some mainstream marketing.
Corroborree - I am still hoping this film, which screened at MIFF in 2007, gets a release of some kind this year. I emailed the producer recently and he said there weren't any distribution plans as of the moment so things aren't looking too good, despite some great festival word-of-mouth.
Crush (dir. Jeffrey Gettison & John V Soto) - Teen-oriented thriller starring Christopher Egan and Emma Lung. It'll nice to see the very talented Lung in full on bunny boiler mode, but I have no idea why anybody would think tae kwon do is a cinematically friendly sport. Could easily go direct-to-DVD.
Daybreakers (dir. The Spierig Brothers) - Aaand yet another horror flick that has been completed filming for well over a year. It'll come out eventually as it has a great cast (Willem Dafoe, Sam Neill, Claudia Karvan, Ethan Hawke and Vince Colosimo). Hopefully the Spierig Brothers (Undead) haven't botched it up big time for their American financiers.
Devil's Gateway (dir. Alexander Herget) - Another one of those done-dirt-cheap horror titles that will most likely appear on DVD at some point with only the barest of theatrical releases if any at all.
Disgrace (dir. Steve Jacobs) - I'm anticipating big things for Steve Jacobs' (La Spagnola) adaptation of JM Coetzee's novel after it screened to great acclaim at Toronto. It could easily turn into a Ray Lawrence-size hit and I'm even going to go out on a limb and predict John Malkovich for an Oscar nomination. That poster, not sure what nationality it is, is gorgeous, isn't it?
Ektopos (dir. Ben Shackleford) - An Australian sci-fi film? I am so there. It's shocking how little the genre has been utilised here outside of Farscape and Rolf de Heer's Epsilon. Not sure when it'll come out though.
Closed for Winter [aka Elise] (dir. James Bogle) - Natalie Imbruglia is apparently impressive in this film, which is yet another title that I've read snippets about for a very long time, yet have never seen a shred of marketing material for. I am a big fan of James Bogle's last movie, the 1998 thriller In the Winter Dark so I look forward to this title. Has since changed it's title to Closed for Winter, the title of the book to which it is adapted from.
The Gates of Hell (dir. Kelly Dolen) - Yet another Aussie horror flick that seems to be languishing about not getting released. This time they all speak in American accents!
Lucky Country [aka Home] (dir. Kriv Stenders) - Director Stenders won me back a bit with Boxing Day after the torturous The Illustrated Family Doctor so I'll be very interested with what he does with this, apparent, western thriller. Screens at AIFF next month. Changed it's title from Home to Lucky Country, a good move I say. One must suspect that at least someone learned a lesson from the mistakes made by The Square.
The Horseman (dir. Steven Kastrissios) - I so hope this film manages to get a release. I definitely think it's worth it. If the film's only virtue was Peter Marshall's astonishing performance then it'd be worth it, but luckily there's more to it.
In Her Skin (dir. Simone North) - It's hard not to think this movie starring Guy Pearce, Sam Neill and Miranda Otto has been shelved. It's definitely been over two years since it was announced and yet not a single shred of publicity. I saw a still over a year ago, that was it. No, seriously!
The Last Confession of Alexander Pierce (dir. Michael James Rowland) - A big step up from the pleasant-but-dull Lucky Miles, Rowland's film detailing the infamous Tasmanian cannibal settler is actually airing on TV this month, but early word suggests it's cinematic in every way. Looking forward to it! Will hilariously go by the title Cannibal Convict in America.
Last Ride (dir. Glendyn Ivin) - Director Ivin won prizes at Cannes and the AFI for the short film Cracker Bag (although I really didn't like The Desert) and now moves into features with this film starring Hugo Weaving, who at least doesn't have to worry about too many people remembering his terrible performance in The Tender Hook since barely anybody even saw it. The trailer looks hypnotizing and it's looking promising. I believe this premieres at AIFF considering it was made through their development fund.
Long Weekend (dir. Jamie Blanks) - Having seemingly been in production for eons, surely Jamie Blanks' second Aussie horror flick in as many years will (after Storm Warning went direct-to-DVD in 2008) get a release of some kind.
Love the Beast (dir. Eric Bana) - Bana somehow gets Dr Phil and Jay Leno to talk about his car in this documentary that is set to come out in the first half of the year. Could give Bra Boys a run for its money in the Highest Grossing Australian Documentary stakes. Opens on March 12.
The Loved Ones (dir. Sean Byrne) - Horror flick with a great tagline - "You Don't Have to Die to Go to Hell" - and starring Victoria Thaine, who along with Emma Lung and Saskia Burmeister is one of this nations best up-and-comers, and Xavier Samuel, one of my favourite rising male talents. I guess it helps that he's definitely nice to look at, ey? Set to be released at the end of the year, but with so many fright titles popping up on this list it's not hard to realise some won't be making it. At least not theatrically, anyway.
Mao's Last Dancer (dir. Bruce Beresford) - Could be popular, an Australian production set in China by well-known director Bruce Beresford. Stars Kyle McLachlan, Bruce Greenwood, Joan Chen and Amanda Schull. Will probably be out towards the prestigious end of the year.
Mary & Max (dir. Adam Elliot) - Let's hope Adam Elliot gets a hit out of this Sundance-approved claymation effort featuring the voices of Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Toni Collette, Geoffrey Rush, Eric Bana and Barry Humphries. Out in April and I can't wait as it's been getting some stellar reviews at Sundance.
My Year Without Sex (dir. Sarah Watt) - This will be a title I'll be paying close attention to. Sarah Watt's feature debut was the excellent Look Both Ways - one of the finest Australian films of the decade - and this sophomore effort stars Sasha Horler (who was great in her tiny Look Both Ways role - and Matt Day, but no word yet on when we should be seeing it on our screens, but it premieres at AIFF.
No Through Road (dir. Sam Barrett) - See Devil's Gateway and Gates of Hell and... and...
Offing David (dir. Jeff Bays) - Still seeking distribution as far as I'm aware so might randomly pop up at some point... or maybe not.
Playing for Charlie (dir. Pene Patrick) - This GLBT-themed (I think, did I read that right all those months ago?) sport film played at MIFF as well as Sydney and was in competition at the Rome Film Festival. It is set for release in mid 2009. It's a "coming of age" tale, which is horrifying to say the least.
Prey (dir. Oscar D'Roccster?) - Yet another movie that has seemingly been in the news for a very long news and yet doesn't seem to be getting released. That the film's director has changed (at least on the movie's IMDb profile) from well-known George Miller (of Man from Snowy River fame, not Mad Max) to somebody called Oscar D'Roccster (surely a fake name) with no other credits to his name is probably indicitive of studio wrangling and unhappy producers. Why can't they release it? Don't they realise Australia wants to see Natalie Bassingthwaighte chainsaw a man's face in half? DON'T THEY?!?
Prime Mover (dir. David Ceaser) - Has screened at previews to yawns. I'd say it would go direct-to-DVD if it weren't for the impressive cast (Emily Barclay, William McInnes, Andrew S Gilbert, Lynette Curran) and that David Ceaser seems to get his movies released despite them not being any good.
Samson and Delilah (dir. Warwick Thornton) - Award-winning short director and cinematographer Thornton directs this indigenous-themed drama. Yet another Aussie film to premiere at AIFF.
Storage (dir. Michael Craft) - Thriller starring Robert Mammone and the ever-improving Saskia Burmeister. Has had special screenings so should be out in one form or another this year.
Subdivision (dir. Sue Brooks) - It will be very interesting to see what Sue Brooks does with her first film since Japanese Story. It stars Brooke Satchwell, Bruce Spence, Gary Sweet, Denise Roberts and Aaron Fa'aoso so it sounds good right there. Will be released in August.
Three Blind Mice (dir. Matthew Newton) - The best Australian film I saw in 2008 was actually this movie that is being released in 2009. Matthew Newton (becoming one of this country's finest multi-hyphenates) stars, writes and directs this tale of three war-bound men on their last night in Sydney. It's really stunning and apparently has distributors circling like they oughta be.
Triangle (dir. Christopher Smith) - Most likely a more high-profile horror title compared to the others on the list. The director of well-liked British horror comedy Severance takes the reigns on this Melissa George-starrer. The poster is good and could post some solid figures when it is released later in the year, unless it proves to be a total dud in terms of quality in which case it'll go direct-to-DVD.
Two Fists, One Heart (dir. Shawn Seet) - It probably won't be hard for this film to improve upon 2008's boxing disaster The Tender Hook, but this is the Australian film industry we're talking about here and the trailer's penchant for sickening title cards like "FAMILY" and "LOYALTY" don't illicit much enthusiasm. It's set for release in March.
Van Diemen's Land [aka Hell's Gate] (dir. Jonathan Auf Der Heide) - The third film in a short period to deal with the tale of Alexander Pearce (after last year's Dying Breed and the upcoming TV movie The Last Confession of Alexander Pearce) is actually a feature-length adaptation of the 21 minute student film that Heide made - or at least that's how I think it works. Was previously titled Hell's Gate. I'd recommend everybody go check out the teaser trailer at the official website. It. Is. a. Bloody. Corker. That final image - and that amazing tag line - are absolutely going to appear in my nightmares. I've already watched it several times. I also love the shot of the men appearing out from the edge of the frame, running towards camera. Great stuff!
The Waiting City (dir. Claire McCarthy) - Another movie likely to still be in post-production come 2010, I am looking forward to this already as it sounds good just from the initial news that has come out about it. Stars Joel Edgerton, Radha Mitchell and Isabel Lucas as a couple (Edgerton and Mitchell) travel to India to get their adopted child.
Yes, I do plan on saying something about the nominations (50% meh, 25% terrible, 25% actually very good, thank you), but they were announced at 12:30AM my time last night and I've been at work all day and when I got home I had threads and threads to read at other far more Oscar-entrenched blogs so I haven't had time to write about them as of yet.
But, honestly... how did the best performance (male, female, lead, supporting) of 2008 miss out? How could the acting branch be so smart as to nominate Melissa Leo and then snub poor bless-her-lil-cotton-socks Sally Hawkins? Very bizarre.
I am well aware that Sex and the City: The Movie is far from being the most well-written film of this or any other year, but I personally ADORE this quote (spoken by Candice Bergen in the film). I distinctly remember being the only person in the entire cinema who laughed at it - and I saw it on opening weekend with a sell out crowd in a large cinema - but I don't care.
Also, as I'm sitting here rewatching the movie (the mother bought it on DVD, i borrowed) I realise that Patrica Field's costume work really is spectacular. Not even just the clothes that the actors wear, but the clothes hanging in the closets and on racks, they all add so much. Even the outfits that I think are quite ugly to look at (such as the hibiscus dress to the left) are so filled with personality that they work. Could Field really pull off a second surprise Oscar nomination (after The Devil Wears Prada two years ago)? Here's hoping.
It's that time of January, folks! Time to finally put those crystal balls to work and predict who will end up with an Oscar nomination (or two). I've decided to go with some surprises - Kate Winslet, for instance - and some left field selections - Best Costume Design has a history of that - but, generally, I am merely toeing the company line. So many of these seem like foregone conclusions. As many have already noted there were apparently only five films released this year worth nominating for Best Picture by the Academy. Funny how that works, hey?
BEST PICTURE The Curious Case of Benjamin Button The Dark Knight Frost/Nixon Milk Slumdog Millionaire
If anything out of the regular happens here I think it will be Wall-E in the place of either Milk or The Dark Knight. A shame that it couldn't have replaced Frost/Nixon, yet that movie seems solid as a rock.
BEST DIRECTOR Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Ron Howard, Frost/Nixon Christopher Nolan, The Dark Knight Gus Van Sant, Milk
I can see Van Sant or Fincher actually missing out here... but for who? Stephen Daldry has never missed a nomination (er, from two movies) but he's not getting in for The Reader and Andrew Standon directed an animated movie so, in their eyes, he didn't direct anything at all. No, if there is a lone director this year (obviously, I don't think there will be) I'm sure it will be either Darren Aronofsky for The Wrestler, Mike Leigh for Happy-Go-Lucky or - and I very VERY nearly put this prediction down in typeface - Woody Allen for Vicky Cristina Barcelona. That one is one I really do think could come to pass.
BEST ACTOR Clint Eastwood, Gran Torino Richard Jenkins, The Visitor Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon Sean Penn, Milk Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler
Obviously, I would not be surprised to see Brad Pitt (Benjamin Button) or Leonardo DiCaprio (Revolutionary Road) in there instead of Eastwood of Jenkins (I hope not in relation to the latter.)
BEST ACTRESS Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married Sally Hawkins, Happy-Go-Lucky Melissa Leo, Frozen River Meryl Streep, Doubt Kate Winslet, The Reader
I fully expect to go 3/5 in this category, but I've have the Winslet hunch for a while now so I feel like I have to go with it instead of Winslet for Revolutionary Road and I am entirely aware that it's probably foolhardy to dismiss Angelina Jolie (Changeling) in favour of the much smaller Melissa Leo, but I'm doing it. I sense more passion behind Leo and that her fans will be trying hard to get her cited over somebody like Jolie who hardly warrants (or, apparently, deserves) it. Of course I could be entirely wrong and people like Kristen Scott Thomas or Cate Blanchett could waltz in and grab a nomination.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR Josh Brolin, Milk Robert Downey Jr, Tropic Thunder Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight Dev Patel, Slumdog Millionaire
It pains me to include Patel on here, but doesn't it just feel inevitable? Ugh. The likes of James Franco (Milk), Eddie Marsan (Happy-Go-Lucky) or Michael Shannon (Revolutionary Road) could sneak in, but I doubt it.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS Amy Adams, Doubt Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona Viola Davis, Doubt Taraji P Henson, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler
Because I've put Winslet in Lead for The Reader that means I didn't have to think about who to include out of Adams or Henson.
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY Woody Allen, Vicky Cristina Barcelona Dustin Lance Black, Milk Jenny Lumet, Rachel Getting Married Tom McCarthy, The Visitor Andrew Stanton, Wall-E
Don't rule out Mike Leigh (Happy-Go-Lucky) or Robert Seigal (The Wrestler) here, although wouldn't it be lovely to see Martin McDonough score for the only chance In Bruges has at the Oscars?
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY Simon Beaufoy, Slumdog Millionaire David Hare, The Reader Peter Morgan, Frost/Nixon Eric Roth, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button John Patrick Shanley, Doubt
Interesting that Beaufoy and Roth are the frontrunners since, at least what I thought, the screenplays for their respective films were by far the weakest aspects. The only spot that doesn't seem locked and loaded for a nomination is Hare for The Reader, who could easily be overtaken by The Dark Knight or Justin Haythe's work on Revolutionary Road.
BEST EDITING Kirk Baxter & Angus Wall, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Chris Dickins, Slumdog Millionaire Elliot Graham & Gus Van Sant, Milk Daniel P Hill & Mike Hill, Frost/Nixon Lee Smith, The Dark Knight
I'm really tempted to throw Claire Simpson (The Reader) or Dan Libental (Iron Man) in here at the expense of Milk or Benjamin Button, which I think could be a surprise exclusion.
BEST COSTUME DESIGN Johnetta Boone, Cadillac Records Deborah Hopper, Changeling Catherine Martin, Australia Michael O'Connor, The Duchess Jacqueline West, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
I could easily take out Martin or the never-nommed Boone and replace her with Albert Wolsky (costume legend for Revolutionary Road), Patricia Field (Sex and the City), Ann Roth (The Reader or Doubt), Danny Glicker (Milk) or - scarily - Suttirat Larlab for Slumdog Millionaire. Although I kind of hope they nominate Lindy Hemming for The Dark Knight's iconic duds.
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY Anthony Dod Mantle, Slumdog Millionaire Chris Menges, The Reader Claudio Miranda, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Wally Pfister, The Dark Knight Mandy Walker, Australia
Perhaps I'm being foolish ignoring Roger Deakins for Revolutionary Road, but maybe - just maybe - they feel like those two nominations last year was enough to tie him over for another year. Of course there is also Harris Savides for Milk or Eduardo Serra for Defiance.
BEST ART DIRECTION Brigitte Broch, The Reader Donald Graham Burt, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Nathan Crowley, The Dark Knight Bill Groom, Milk Catherine Martin, Australia
I'm remembering that the Academy nominated Martin for Romeo+Juliet, which makes me think they like her, but she could very easily miss (duh) since the film was so poorly received by industry types. But, then again, something just doesn't feel right about this category. Too many lower-rung movies that I can easily see missing (see also Changeling and Revolutionary Road).
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS The Curious Case of Benjamin Button The Dark Knight Iron Man
If it is not these three then I'll be incredibly surprised, won't you?
BEST MAKE-UP The Curious Case of Benjamin Button The Reader Synecdoche, New York
While it seems odd to have three serious-minded films in the running for a category that tends to favour fat suits (no such films made the shortlist) I almost think they'll throw a nomination to Tropic Thunder, what with the make-up being so character defining. I'm personally hoping for The Wrestler though because gory blood work just doesn't get enough respect here, ya know?
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE Alexandre Desplat, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button Thomas Newman, Wall-E AR Rahman, Slumdog Millionaire Hans Zimmer & James Newton Howard, The Dark Knight John Williams, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
AAAGH! John Williams!!! Gross.
BEST ORIGINAL SONG "Jai Ho" from Slumdog Millionaire "Down to Earth" from Wall-E "The Wrestler" from The Wrestler "Once in a Lifetime" from Cadillac Records "I Want it all" from High School Musical 3
I'm predicting they will cull this category down to three this year. And while it would be quite a story for "Trouble the Water" to score here, I don't think the music branch will dig that deep to be honest.
BEST SOUND MIXING The Curious Case of Benjamin Button The Dark Knight Iron Man Slumdog Millionaire Wall-E
Standard stuff it would seem.
BEST SOUND EDITING The Dark Knight Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull Iron Man Tropic Thunder Wall-E
Ack! How boring.
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM The Baader Meinhof Complex (Germany) The Class (France) Everlasting Moments (Sweden) Revance (Austria) Waltz with Bashir (Israel)
I don't have the faintest idea, honestly.
BEST ANIMATED FILM Kung Fu Panda Wall-E Waltz with Bashir
I can totally see Bolt stealing a spot, which is depressing, although it'd be nice if the Aussie film $9.99 surprised everybody, wouldn't it?
BEST DOCUMENTARY At The Death House Door Encounters at the End of the World I.O.U.S.A. Man on Wire Trouble the Water
Anything could happen, honestly. Can you imagine if Man on Wire missed the cut? It'd be Hoop Dreams all over again.
~-~
And that's that, folks. We'll see how I do at about Midnight tonight. Hope something you really want to get in gets in. It's always nice to wake up (well, for you international folks) to a nice present in your Oscar swag.
The Class - French film, which was the winner of the Palme d'Or at Cannes earlier in the year. I keep hearing absolutely stellar things about this movie and I intend to see it... but I need to see The Wrestler first, okay?!
Gran Torino - *grumble grumble* Do I have to see this? Answer: No!
Underworld: Rise of the Lycans - Two thoughts strike me about this movie. First, does anybody actually realise that Kate Beckinsale has been replaced by Rhona Mitra (Doomsday). Beckinsale, it would seem, is too busy trying to regain her acting career in movies like Snow Angels and Nothing but the Truth to make movies about vampires. And secondly, why can't they just call them "werewolves" like regular people?
Valyrie - Tom Cruise with an eye-patch fighting Nazis. Meh. The second film this week to star Bill Nighy (after Underworld). Random.
Children of the Silk Road - A mildly interesting and well-intentioned drama that ultimately fails due to uninspired direction and the performance of Jonathan Rhys Meyers, who is perhaps worse here than he's ever been before (and that's saying a lot).
Eagle Eye - Am I wrong for actually quite liking this action thriller starring Shia LaBeouf and Michelle Monaghan? I thought it far more playful and inventive with it's concept than so many other so-called "high-tech" movies.
Step Brothers - I hate knowing that this movie exists.
TV Screenings for the Week 22/01/09
24/01/09, 20 Centimetres (2005), SBS, 12.30AM - A Spanish tranny musical. No, seriously! And it's not that bad, actually.
24/01/09, Quo Vadis (1951), C9, 1.00PM - Nominated for eight Academy Awards (including supporting actor for Peter Ustinov and Leo Genn plus Best Picture) is this Roman epic. Stars Deborah Kerr
24/01/09, Superman III (1983), C9, 7.30PM - Yes, Superman III is screening in prime time! That almost warrants a viewing purely for the chutzpah of it all. Or, ya know... not. Either way.
25/01/09, Inside Man (2006), C9, 8.30PM - Spike Lee's quite excellent heist thriller that deserves to be seen, even if you find yourself not liking any of his movies. I found it interesting that The Dark Knight look a big page from this movie (which, in turn, had stolen it's twist from the brilliant Quick Change) in regards to a sequence towards the end.
25/01/09, The Last Confession of Alexander Pearce (2009), ABC1, 8.30PM - From director Michael James Rowland (Lucky Miles) comes this hour-long film about infamous Tasmanian convict and cannibal Alexander Pearce.
25/01/09, In the Winter Dark (1998), ABC1, 11.40PM - A dark and misleading Australian film from James Bogle, which stars Brenda Blethyn, Richard Roxburgh, Miranda Otto (who is fantastic here) and Ray Barrett. It's part domestic drama, part thriller, part horror.
26/01/09, Glass: A Portrait of Philip in Twelve Parts, SBS, 8.30PM - For Australia Day prime time viewing SBS offers up Scott Hicks' documentary about Philip Glass. Was shortlisted for the Best Documentary Oscar. We'll find out later tonight if Hicks earns himself his his first Oscar nom since directing Shine.
27/01/09, Macbeth (1948), ABC1, 12.30AM - A version of Macbeth directed by and starring Orson Welles.
28/01/09, Invaders from Mars (1953), ABC1, 11.35PM - More shlocky b-movies on ABC1. Always a treat for fans of this genre.
29/01/09, The Magnificent Ambersons (1942), ABC1, 12.50, 12.50AM - I love this movie - directed by Orson Welles - so much. Agnes Moorehead sure is stunning in it, isn't she? Such a shame that we'll never get to see Welles' original full-length version (the one that was chopped up by the studio, it's remnants burnt to ashes). Considering how great this 90-minute version is, I can only imagine how great the full version was.
As I was watching Barack Obama's inauguration speech this evening (I recorded it during the night as it aired live at 3am and I had to get up for work at 6am - lovely) and there was a moment when he was discussing the men who founded the nation where my mind immediately went straight to Terrence Malick's 2005 film The New World, and how that's such an apt connection to Obama.
What a beautiful film it is, isn't it? To this very day I continue to not be able to come to a definitive answer as to whether The New World, Brokeback Mountain or Mysterious Skin is my favourite film from that year. It's such a hard choice. So while I sit here and try to decide (a pointless task, really) here are some of the beautiful images therein.
And when it that extra-ultra-super-extended edition supposed to be coming out, eh Mr Malick?
Or what about Kathy Bates' Helen Givings? Throughout the movie, whenever she sporadically appears, she comes off as loopy and - oh dear - quirky. Even when her son is nearly attacked all she can come up with is a relatively weak "he's not well!" That she was the one who turned her son into a crazy person is underlined in the final scene, I felt. Not even her husband can stand to be around her, tuning her out (literally and figuratively).
You probably think that I didn't like the movie. Not the case. While I think the portrayal of its characters is bizarre and I'm not exactly sure why we're meant to care about any of them in the slightest, I did think Mendes did a good job of somehow making them palatable (well, except for Bates. That was just strange.) The film looks gorgeous - that shot of Winslet disappearing into the forest, and later the shot of Winslet in the window are particularly memorable - and the acting definitely helps the film's cyclical pattern work. I feel positive towards the film, if negative towards some of the aspects that, perhaps, were not the filmmaker's fault. Does that make sense? B-
