March 1st

Blackbird

Boss Level

JIFF - Incitement

Trial of the Chicago 7

Transitions Film Festival  - online now

It's all happening this week. Golden Globe awards happen today, films are being released hand over fist, and festivals are coming thick and fast. Plenty of good viewing is reviewed today. 

Blackbird
Dir: Roger Michell

Length: 97 mins

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9kb6ZJre78

© Icon - choosing the time of your exit
is no easy thing. Sorting out your family
may be even harder!

Lily (Susan Sarandon) is terminally ill with a neural degenerative disease. She decides to bring her family together before taking the step to end her life while she still can. This is a remake of the Danish film Silent Heart. You know I don't like comparisons, but I find this one stands pretty well on its own two feet. With power actors like Kate Winslett and Mia Wasikowska as Lily's two daughters, not to mention Sam Neill as husband Paul, this is a very moving story, as much about family relationships and reconciliation, as about the ethics of ending one's life on one's own terms. The film's low-key approach is a strong point, and it manages to avoid sentimentality in favor of authenticity and a generous treatment of all the characters, despite their foibles. However, you may need several tissues.

3.5 - well recommended

Boss Level
Dir: Joe Carnahan

Length: 100 mins

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mkiY-37OG4

© Rialto - how many times can they kill him?

Ex-special forces operative Roy Pulver (Frank Grillo) relives the day of his death over and over. Trapped in a time loop, he must uncover a secret government project headed by Col. Ventor (Mel Gibson), and try to save Gemma (Naomi Watts), a scientist who has worked on the project and who is mother of his child. (And of course prevent the end of the world!) I didn't expect to enjoy this as much as I did. But being a major fan of Groundhog Day, I love the way this film is inspired by that iconic film; it is GD on steroids, and the crazy fun is enhanced by the director's visual framing of some scenes like computer action games. There are plenty of amusing nods to well-loved movies, including the Indiana Jones series and Chinese martial arts films (with special appearance by Michelle Yeoh). Grillo and Watts make a good couple, acting is uniformly good, fast-paced action and stunts exceptional, and along with slapstick moments, there is a surprising intensity and moments of true emotion. All in all, jolly good fun.   

3.5 - well recommended

The Trial of the Chicago 7
Dir: Aaron Sorkin

Length: 129 mins

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVb6EdKDBfU

© Netflix - top courtroom drama capturing
a seminal moment in history.

In 1968 the US was embroiled in the Vietnam War. Many student activists took to the streets and protested. One such protest led to seven students being indicted for inciting a riot outside the venue of the Democratic Convention. This is the story of their trial. With writer/director Sorkin at the helm, and a killer cast, great things happen with this movie and we'll know soon how many of its five Golden Globe nominations come through. The revelation is Sacha Baron Cohen who inhabits his role as high-profile activist Abbie Hoffman. The themes are scarily resonant for events in the very recent past, and even if you have no interest in political history, this is a film to draw you in from go to whoa.

4 - highly recommended

JIFF . . . continued

Incitement
For times, films, and everything you need to know go to www.jiff.com.au

Dir: Yaron Zilberman

Length: 128 mins

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4TQgVW_smQc

© JIFF - terrorism, religion  and 
fanaticism - a lethal combo

Awarded Best Film by the Israeli Film Academy, Incitement follows one year in the life of the man who assassinated Israeli PM Itzak Rabin.  Yigal Amir (Yehuda Nahari) is handsome and charming, but a religious fanatic who sees Rabin's attempts to broker peace with the Palestinians as a betrayal, and finds justification in the scriptures for murdering him. The film gives insight into the lives of the ultra-religious, and the sub-plot of hunting for a suitable marital partner is fascinating. The tension in the film is unrelenting, and the unsettling vision of how devotion to religious ideals can also create total irrationality is ever-present. Yigal's more moderate father is the only vague voice of reason in the community in which he moves. The careful integration of historical footage with the re-enactment of actual events is seamlessly crafted, and this important movie is a reminder of the cyclical nature of violence and counter-violence, and why the world is in the state it is. 

4 - highly recommended

Transitions Film Festival
Streaming online Feb 26th - March 15

https://www.transitionsfilmfestival.com/

How do we get the message through to naysayers that the planet is in a precarious position? Well, we strap them to a chair and make them watch the wonderful documentaries that are past of the Transitions Film Festival. And this year it is easy - all the films are streaming online throughout Australia. These fabulous and important docos highlight environmental issues, social and technological innovations, revolutionary ideas, and the people who are trying to make the world a better place. I've previewed several:

© Transitions FF 

Borealis: Not the northern lights but the forests in the frigid north of the planet - an ecosystem consisting of mainly coniferous trees, which are a storehouse for vast amounts of carbon on planet Earth. These wildernesses up in Canada and the polar regions are under dire threat from global warming. This intensely complex and layered doco is beautiful to look at, with exceptional cinematography of wilderness and its plant and animal inhabitants. Critically, there is also much irrefutable evidence on the dire effects of climate change, not just on these forests, but the implications for the planet as a whole. Vital viewing!

© Transitions FF

Invisible Hand: It's no surprise that Mark Ruffalo was involved in producing this film, after starring in Dark Water. The doco is partly  about citizens' rights to clean water, and the battle waged by a small township against corporations wanting to dump waste that will drastically affect their water. It also reveals, shockingly, how the agencies formed to protect environment, actually end up legalising the harm that corporations do. Now many countries are demanding "Rights of Nature" be added to the constitution, so that legal battles can be fought better to protect further ecological damage by greedy corporations. Including important dire predictions from First Nations people and their wisdom, this film is yet another vital weapon in the fight to save our planet. 

 

The Walrus and the Whistleblower:

© Transitions FF 

 If you remember the doco Blackfish from 2013, you'll know people have been protesting for years about keeping such mammals as dolphins and whales in captivity. This tense doco features the battle waged by Phil Demers, a former trainer at Marineland Niagara, Canada, who became a sort of surrogate mum to an orphaned walrus pup, Smooshi. Phil eventually realised many creatures were suffering (abused, neglected, mishandled - whatever you want to term it) at the facility, and decided to mount legal action against the owners of Marineland. The legal ins and outs of the case are great for law buffs, but it is the remarkable and moving relationship between Phil and Smooshi that makes this doco well worth seeing. 

© Transitions FF

Beyond Zero: Carpet-tile manufacturer Interface was founded by CEO Ray Anderson. One day he had an epiphany about how the processes involved in his manufacturing plant were so damaging to the planet, and decided to commit himself and his company to the concept of totally sustainable industry. This is a riveting documentary, and inspirational beyond belief. The many employees who worked with Ray bear witness to the man's enduring legacy, and how he imbued others with his enthusiasm and vision. The historical look at an industrial process, moving from energy consumer through to current day sound ecological practice is also way more fascinating that I'd expected. But it is the achievement of this one special man that moved me beyond words. Industry needs more of his type, willing to see how making money can be married with looking after the planet. 

The Transitions Film Festival is highly recommended.