I know I say this every week but it truly is an excellent week for new cinematic releases. The winner of Best Animation at this year's Oscar's is unmissable, Ralph Fiennes returns as Odysseus, horror lurks in a care home, de Niro plays two roles in a mobster movie, and your heart will soar and break with Bob Trevino.
Flow
Dir: Gints Zilbalodis
Length: 85 mins
 |
© Madman - sublime, unmissable - speaks
to us all without words |
It's not often that an animation speaks to a universality of experience and understanding, cutting straight through to everyone, without a single word being spoken. That's how it is with this film, which just won Best Animated Feature at this year's Oscars. It is set in a world where some sort of cataclysm has occured and water has submerged much of what human society has created. A cat, being chased by a group of dogs, jumps onto a passing sailboat, inhabited by a sleeping capybara (a sort of giant South American guinea pig). Eventually the little group is augmented by a lemur, carrying a basket of precious trinkets, a friendly labrador, and a large white bird. Together this motley crew of diverse species must learn to cooperate and adapt to survive. The amazing merging of handpainting with CGI work captures exactly the idiosyncratic movements of each animal, while their sounds have apparently been created from recordings of the actual creatures themselves. We see elements, parable-like, of our own personalities in each of the creatures, and while the plot itself is deceptively simple, there is also a huge depth of what could be perceived as philosophy, or even spirituality, somehow commenting, wordlessly, upon the state of every being on the planet. If that's all sounding too amorphous, simply know that this film is quite sublime and like nothing you have ever seen. Just marvellous. 5 - unmissable
Bob Trevino Likes It
Dir: Tracie Laymon
Length: 102 mins
 |
© Rialto - friendship, reconnection and
sheer goodness |
Lily Trevino (Barbara Ferreira), abandoned by her mother at age 4, is constantly at pains to please her disapproving, neglectful father, (French Stewart) whose behaviour is like that of an overgrown child. She lives in as a carer to wheelchair-bound Daphne (Lauren 'Lolo' Spencer). One day, while looking up her father's name on Facebook, she finds a Bob Trevino (John Leguizamo) and contacts him. Bob is a hardworking construction manager, whose wife Jeanie (Rachel Bay Jones) makes scrapbooks to ease the pain of a child they lost. Bob has no friends, until the unexpected Facebook message turns up, changing his life. Winner of more than a dozen audience awards, this film is a total crowd pleaser, but not in a mawkish or manipulative way. It is the simplicity and kindness of the story that wins hearts. What's more, it is based upon the director's true experience. As she explains, her meeting with Bob in real life, and the establishment of a beautiful friendship, helped to heal them both. For Lily (and director Layton), it is about finding a place to belong, a chosen family where acceptance and love take pride of place, rather than the rejection of her biological father. Long-established actor Leguizamo captures the essence of a truly kind and generous-spirited human being, as does new-comer Ferreira, whose fresh-faced Lily captures one's heart. A small and unassuming film, this is a true gem. 4.5 - wholeheartedly recommended
The Return
Dir: Uberto Pasolini
Length: 116 mins
 |
© - Fiennes slims down and muscles
up for Odysseus |
A mainstay of classical literature is the The Odyssey, the legend of Odysseus, the mythical Greek king who fought the battle of Troy then returned home to his wife ten years later. Homer's tale is full of such Greek characters and gods as the Cyclops, Poseidon and the Sirens. Not so in this starkly realistic retelling of the story. Odysseus (Ralph Fiennes) washes up on a beach, emaciated and naked. Eumaes (Claudio Santamaro) nurses him back to health, and tells him of what has been happening in his absence. Odysseus' wife Penelope (Juliette Binoche) is besieged by suitors wanting to steal the kingdom and wealth, but she wards them off, desperately hoping for the return of her beloved husband. Meantime son Telmachus (Charlie Plummer) is alive only because his mother has not yet remarried. Battle-weary and sick of killing, Odysseus must regain his strength and try to retake his place as King of his beloved island Ithaca. Rather than celebrate an epic action tale in all its mythological glory, Pasolini chooses to tell a more sombre and psychologically compelling story of human ambition, rivalry, power-grabbing, and loyalty; all issues alive and well, still relevant to today's political scene. Central to it are the performances from two of today's top actors, and Fiennes especially is jaw-dropping in his commitment to becoming wiry and lean, totally convincing us of what the world-weary king has been through. Some viewers will be looking for more overt action; I loved the understated approach. 4 - highly recommended
The Alto Knights
Dir: Barry Levinson
Length: 120 mins
 |
© Universal - de Niro show his acting chops
in the two lead roles |
Robert de Niro has starred in plenty of movies featuring the Italian-American mafia. And this time he stars twice, playing both lead roles! This latest film is based upon the true story of two 1950s New York crime bosses, Frank Costello and Vito Genovese, firm friends since childhood. But now, after rivalries and jealousies, they are locked in fierce conflict. Vito wants to do the things like in the old days of prohibition, paying off cops and politicians, while Frank is more aware of the changing times, and the threat of prosecution, and presents as alamost a "respectable" mobster. The train of action he sets in motion will radically change the New York mobster crime scene. The biggest problem for me with this film is having de Niro in both lead roles. While he is, as always, simply superb, I let my concentration lapse too much studying the make-up to see how his face had been transformed to play Vito. Once I overcame that hurdle, I settled into deep engagement with the plot and the main characters, and really enjoyed Levinson's directorial style, which includes intermittent use of vintage film footage and photos from the era. The settings are impressively recreated, with stylish old mob-style cars, scenes of street life in the Italian quarter, and of course the social clubs, meeting grounds for crime bosses to discuss their nefarious exploits. (Alto Knights is in fact the name of one of those clubs.) A fellow critic lamented there wasn't enough violence, and too much talk, but I liked this approach. Frank's voice-over narrates much of the story, which highlights the different personalities of the two men, and of course showcases de Niro's talent in creating such divergent characters. There are more hard-to-differentiate mobster bosses than you can shake a stick at, but the main supporting cast are strong, with Cosmo Jarvis (recently in Aussie film Inside) memorable, as are Deborah Messing as Frank's elegant wife Bobbie, and Kathrine Narducci as Anna, Vito's wife. The soundtrack is most fitting with a mix of early rock'n'roll and old big band swing, plus a strong base score which heightens the tension throughout. A strong film to add to the mafia mob catalogue.4 - highly recommended
The Rule of Jenny Pen
Dir: James Ashcroft
Length: 104 mins
 |
© Rialto - creepy psychopath is terrifying
other aged care residents |
As if nursing homes and the like are not nightmarish enough in themselves (probably not all, but there are plenty of horror stories around), imagine if a psychopathic resident prowls the corridors, terrorising residents with a hand puppet! Judge Stefan Mortenson (Geoffrey Rush), an arrogant man very much in charge of his own life, suffers a stroke and is sent to a care home for his recovery. There he encounters long-term resident Dave Crealy (John Lithgow), a sadistic creepy guy who delights in intimidating other residents, making them declare that his nasty little hand puppet, Jenny Pen, rules the roost. Stefan is in a nightmare, patronised and disbelieved when he complains of the horrific things that are happening to him and his roommate Tony (George Henare) every night. The setting is depressing and claustrophobic, with the residents' mental disarray etched large in every scene. The film deftly exploits all our fears of incapacity, old age and having no control of our lives or bodies. Stefan will finally take Crealy on, even within the confines of his now disabled body. This is truly an acting tour de force from two titans who dominate the screen. Lithgow is perfectly cast as this frightening man, and it's great to see Rush back in top form. But there are some serious plot holes, the biggest being that we are expected to believe the staff would have no idea of what Crealy is up to. The film could also have been more tightly edited, but despite these flaws its basic premise is incredibly chilling, and the two leads are well worth watching.3 - recommended
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