Catching Up - "Parkland", "The Butler", and "Nebraska"

Here follows a brief overview of some recent films, with Christmas, things have been rather hectic and it has not afforded me much time to get caught up.

"Parkland"

The film looks at those tragic events that occured in Dallas in November 1963. It looks specifically at what happened when President Kennedy was taken to the Parkland Hospital, in a valiant effort to save his life. It looks at how those events affected not only the medical staff, but also those assigned to protect the President and those who came to Dallas to cheer and wave.
The main problem with the film is that it tells us nothing new, the majority of what is documented in the film is well known.
It was a nice idea, but one cannot help but think that the sole purpose of the movie was to cash in on the 50th anniversary of the death of President Kennedy.......6 out of 10.

"The Butler"

Not having seen a trailer, I still thought I had a rough idea as to what this film was about, in that it was based on the true story of Cecil Gaines, who worked as butler for numerous US Presidents. Yes this partly true, but it also looks at the race issue during the 1960's mainly told through the eyes of Gaine's son, Louis. And it is this story that seems to take over the film. I have always had a fascination with the US Presidency, and thought that this is where the bulk of the story would lie, alas this was not the case. The race story is well told, but was not the film story that I wanted to see.
A lot of people have been surprised as to why the film has been overlooked at The Golden Globes. The answer to that is simple. Whilst it is a good film, it is not a great film, and that is its downfall. A nice performance from Forest Whitaker in the title role, but for me the film is dominated by an all too brief appearance by Jane Fonda, on dazzling form as Nancy Reagan. Funnily enough both this and "Parkland" were viewed on the same day, and neither film could find an actress that bore even a slight resemblence to Jackie Kennedy.
Good but could have been much improved with a better look at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.......6 out of 10

"Nebraska"

Woody Grant is the new talk of the town, as he has become a millionaire, or so he thinks. Like so many people of a mature age, they have a flyer coming through the post, promising that they have won a huge sum of money, and they believe it to be true, but sadly this is not the case, but Woody is adamant that he has won, and sets off to collect his winnings, despite the protestations from his Son, Will and his long suffering Wife, Kate.
Wanting to keep a keen eye on his father, son  Will accompanies his Dad on their little road trip, during which they visit their old home town, they meet old friends and acquaintances, and family members all keen to share in Woody's new found wealth, and although Will tries to assure them that he has won diddley squat, they just believe it to be a lie, so to deny what they believe to be their share of the money.
The filkm is wonderfully multi-layered, as mentioned its a road movie, a comedy, a father / son film, and at times is wickedly funny. The reclaiming of a piece of farming equipment is a highlight of the film.
There is a career high performance from Bruce Dern, and equally brilliant is the wonderful June Squibb as his speak it as it wife Kate. A delight to watch the two of them at work together.

Director Alexander Payne seems to have periods of making a hit and a miss movie, this is definitely a hit. If you loved "About Schmidt", then this is one to watch.

A real gem of a movie......8 out of 10

"Gravity"

I had hoped to see this movie on the IMAX, but then it had to make way for "The Hunger Games", boo, but thankfully it has returned to this superior format and this morning I had the pleasure of seeing what is possibly the best film of the year so far.

Dr. Stone has created a piece of equipment, and given that it can be used on the Space Shuttle, her expertise is pivotal for mending said equipment, so she finds herself high above the Earth with Space veteran Dr. Matt Kowalski. All is going well, that is until the Russians decide to destroy a rogue spy satellite. That is not what initially causes the problem, but the debris from the destruction of that satellite crashes into some others, and creates further debris and unfortunately it is heading at a very fast speed in the space crews direction.
They execute an immediate evacuation, but alas time is not on their side, and their craft is hit with the full force of the debris. Naturally there are casualties, and the crew have to work together in order to get to a neighbouring station, and get back to Earth.

As the debris approaches, the tension is really cranked up to a nailbiting level. You are willing the film to move faster so you can find out the fate of the space crew. The combination of the amazing camera work and the score make it one of the most tense scenes I have seen on film.
George Clooney is on great form as Kowalski, the leader of the team, the figureheard, the voice of experience and authority, a role he plays well. The real surprise is Sandra Bullock, whom you would not necessarily peg for this role, but she plays it so well, I would go as far as say that it is a career best performance from her. She excels as Dr. Stone.

Regarding the climax, and lead character Dr Stone has accepted her fate, whatever that may be. The question is, if she has come to terms with her possible impending death, would the outcome be more sentimental if she dies and is reunited with her daughter, or that she survives and lives a full life back on Earth .

Visually the film is of the highest level, from remarkable images of the Earth, to when the shuttle is bombatded by the debris. There is also an amazing shot as we close in on Dr. Stone, as we get ever closer to the visor in her spacesuit, then the next thing we are actually in the spacesuit helmet with her, all done in one take, quite something.
Never has silence been so brilliantly used in a film, especially when in action films there are explosions and loud bangs galore, "Gravity" stays firm to the principle that in space there is nothing to carry sound, and it is illustrated so well in the opening frames of the film, and carries on throughout.
The score is another high point, from Composer Steven Price, in fact it was so good that upon getting home I purchased said soundtrack.

Yes there has been alot of hype about this film, and every word that is positive is true. Every box has been ticked, it delivers on every level. I normally have a Cineworld Unlimted card, and alas left it behind thus having to pay full price, and having watched the film, I did not begrudge one single penny, as it was an absolute delight to watch.

Has everything that you could want from a movie........10 out of 10

"Philomena"

Unwed mothers in Ireland, their parents disown them, they turn to a local order of Nuns for help and support. They know that the time will come when they have to give up their child. But when the child is born, they stay at the convent for a couple of years and naturally, quite an attachment is formed. One cannot imagine the heartbreak that they go through.

One such mother is Philomena, a woman who was parted from her boy some 50 years previous, and now after all that time is keen to see him, and explain her actions. She has remained in constant contact with the convent, but alas they have been unable to provide any information that will reunite her with her son. Through fortune she meets up  Martin Sixsmith, a former BBC news reporter, who had a falling out with the Government, and is now at a bit of loss work wise. Though doing human interest piece is not normally his thing, he decides to help Philomena in her quest to be reunited with her son.

Sixsmith is at a loss as to why the Convent is not being more forthcoming in wanting to help, and how a lot of the records were conveniently destroyed in a fire, then he finds out the reason why. He also finds out that the boy, and another girl, were given to a wealthy couple from the United States. From here Sixsmith is able to use some of his US contacts to see if they can help shed any light.

There are a few surprises along the way, for anyone who is not familiar with the story, and has not done any reading up on it in advance. For that reason it is difficult to go into any more detail about the story without ruining it for potential future viewers of the film.

But rest assured that it is a truly remarkable story, brilliantly written by Jeff Pope and Steve Coogan. And Mr. Coogan is on equally good form as Martin Sixmith, not the usual kind of role that one has come to expect, and though there may be moments of humour within the performance, it is certainly a more serious role for him, and one that he does very well.
But of course, it is Dame Judi who excels as the mother desperate to see her son. Just such a beautiful performance, as one would expect from one of our finest actresses. I would think that an Oscar nomination will come her way next January.

The main thing that struck me was the power of Philomena's religion, in that she was still able to forgive the nuns who deprived her of 50 years with her son. A quite remarkable woman indeed.

Another great example of top quality film making ......8 out of 10

"The Counsellor"

What a combination......an amazing cast, Directing legend Ridley Scott, and a screenplay from Cormac McCarthy, who wrote "No Country for Old Men", surely a match made in heaven........

Alas far from it. And it is the mighty pen that fails here. The story is rather lacking, and whilst being a dialogue piece, what made the Oscar winning "No Country" so successful was that it was compelling viewing, it did not need big action scenes, the sharp words, great characters and brilliant performances are what made it the hit it became. And unfortunately that has not reoccured with "The Counsellor".

The Counsellor works for some dubious characters, especially Reiner, a drug dealer who has many deals in the making. Through  circumstances, the Counsellor is believed to be involved in a heist which sees the theft of a high quantity of drugs. The owners of the drugs naturally assume that the Counsellor is involved, and slowly he sees the world around him begin to fall apart.

Given the talent involved with the film, this should have been a movie to keep you glued to your seat, but it wasn't. There is a great look to the film, compliments to Mr. Scott for that.
There is no doubting the capabilities of the highly talented cast, but they can only be given a chance to shine if the material they are working with is of high quality,The look of the character, Reiner, played by Javier Bardem, had me hooked after watching the trailer, and as one would imagine, he does give a fantastic performance.

Similarly to McCarthy's earlier work, "No Country", it is surprising how many of the lead characters do not make it to the end of the picture, and there are some interesting demises. But on the whole it was a rather disappointing effort.

Ok but have seen far better...............6 out of 10

"Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa"

From the start I want to make it clear that I would not normally watch a film associated with the "Jackass" telelvision series. For me it is just about the lowest form of entertainment on the planet, along with reality tv shows.
Yet there was something about the trailer that appealed, and there was hope that this might be something even remotely entertaining.

The basic premise is simple. Knoxville under very heavy make up masquerades as an 80+ year old Grandfather, taking his young grandson to be with his rather unworthy father. Along the way, they get into various situations, which are leashed upon as unsuspecting public. The action is filmed using hidden cameras.
Not exactly the most novel of ideas, but it has been given the "Jackass" spin, and at times is funny. Alas it does suffer from that some of the funniest bits are shown in the trailer. It is a shame that a trailer could not be contsructed to illustrate what the film was about but without having to give too much away. A few of the gags do fall by flat but there are some good laughs, but not as many as there could have been.

The make-up used to age Knoxville is excellent, and there is no doubt why so many were fooled by his appearance. Jackson Nicoll is excellent playing Billy the grandson. He really comes into his own in one the best scenes of the film, when Grandpa enrols Billy as a contestant in one of those young child pageants that the Americans seem obsessed with, and to most of the civilised world are just plain creepy and WRONG.

It was good, but despite the promise from the trailer, cannot get more excited than that......6 out of 10

"Captain Phillips"

From acclaimed Director Paul Greengrass comes the true story of Captain Phillips Phillips and his crew, as they are embroiled in a hostage situation as their cargo carrier is boarded by Somalian Pirates.

These simple fishermen travel the seas in search of a vessel, either to tale their valuable cargo, or in a worse case scenario, they hold the crew hostage umtil a ransom is paid.
All the men on board the Carrier are aware of the treacherous waters that they travel, and this is brought home when an attempt is made to board the vessel. Thankfully for them the attempt fails, no thanks to the Authorities who provide little help. Unfortunately for the Crew the Somalians are a determined bunch, and return, and on their second attempt are more successful.
Phillips jhas instructed the majority of his crew to hide in the lower areas of the Carrier, and try stay out of sight of the Pirates. He in the meantime tries to sort a deal where the Pirates can get some money and be back oin their way home, but they seem to want a far bigger haul for their efforts.

Director Greengrass builds the tension quite nicely as the crew try to evade being spotted by the Pirates and thus becoming additional hostages. There comes a point where the crew may have the upper hand, but things do not go as expected, and Phillips finds himself with the Pirates in an escape vessel. The Pirates aim is to make it to land and offer the good Captain for a ransom. This is where the confinement really builds up the tension.
The military get involved as the US Government does not want to see Phillips reach Somalian land, the stakes are high, as they have to find a way to get him free of his captives, yet it is almost seemingly impossible given the small craft that they are all housed in.

The Pirates are all played by actors with no previous experience, yet this does not show. Many have said how great Barkhad Abdi is in his portrayal of the leader of the Pirates, and yes he is very good but for me it was Barkhad Abdirahman who really did an excellent job, his character seeming rather unhinged, the slightest noise, or something not right and he wants to start shooting, even if it meant killing Phillips and having nothing to bargain with. Whenever he was going off on one, you never knew what might happen next, and it often left one with a sense of unease.
As ever, Mr. Hanks does a first class job in the title role, and many have said he most certainly be Oscar nominated and may even win a third lead actor award. If he does it will be for the final 20 minutes or so, this is when Hanks really is at his very best, as the realisation of what is potentially going to unfold, as the events play out, we feel every emotion with him.

A good film, which boasts a memorable final act.......8 out of 10

"Romeo and Juliet"

One of the greatest stories of all time, a new adaptation from the Creator of "Downton Abbey", and an all star cast.
And yet somehow it does not work sadly.
The story itself needs little introduction, but for those not familiar with the work of Shakespeare, know that the Capulets and the Montagues are bitter enemies, their families constantly at war with one another. But when Romeo and Juliet fall in love, a member from each family, they hope to end the bitter feud. But the Gods seem to conspire against the young lovers.

I think in fairness it may not be totally the fault of the film-makers, in that I was constantly thinking of "William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet", directed by Baz Luhrmann, a film I really admire. And it was difficult not to have images from that movie in my head whilst watching this new version.

I know that there has been some hoo ha about Mr. Fellowes and his dumbing down the words of The Bard to make the material more accessible for the audience, as to how much of this is true I do not know.
The cast have mixed fortunes. I may be wrong but it was hard to concentrate on Damian Lewis as he seems to be wearing a truly awful wig, presumably to disguise his shaven head, allowing him to play 'Brody' in "Homeland".
Alas Hailee Steinfeld just did not work for me as 'Juliet'. She seemed unable to convey any of the main qualtities that associates with the character.
There are some highpoints. As one would expect, Paul Giamatti gives a great performance as 'Father Laurence', and equally the very beautiful Douglas Booth is excellent as 'Romeo'.
But there is one cast member who towers above all others, and he is 17 year old Kodi Smith-McPhee as 'Benvolio', what a remarkable performance, so moving, and one you will not forget in a hurry.

It was an ok production, and there is much to enjoy, but it needed that certain something extra....6 out of 10