Film No. 77 (2024) November 15th. 4:00 PM LUNA CINEMA, Cinema 1, Leederville.
"Don't you think it's bizarre, after all these years, meeting each other here again?" (Edith asks Lucas the question that encapsulates an ultimate irony in a later scene).
WINNER: Peripheral Vision Award (Desiree Norsbusch) Galway FF.
What was the last play, adapted for the screen, that succeeded at the box office? Okay, excepting musicals (CHICAGO)!FENCES, and the pull of Denzel Washington, made a moderate profit. POISON, on the other hand, will not break even.
The fact is, screen adaptations, no matter the quality of the script and cast, are a hard sell. POISON, however, is an acting masterclass. Tim Roth (Lucas) and Trine Nosbusch (Edith) play ex-husband and wife. They meet 10 years after a dreadful tragedy, the aftermath of which drove them apart. The setting, which is a graveyard, and the resting place of their young son, is adjoined by a chapel alongside a small weir, brimming with water. The scene is bleak, but apt. The tension that ebbs and flows between Lucas and Edith as they reflect on what could have been, is palpable in this setting.
As a lover of both film and theatre, I feel POISON (GIF) has it all. Roth and Nosbusch were hypnotic. Portraying such raw grief must have drained them as artists. So, it is not entertainment, and it is a hard sell. I recommend it as a powerhouse, cinematic adaptation of theatre. 10GUMS.
Film No. 76 (2024) November 14th. 4:00 PM LUNA CINEMA, Cinema 1, Windsor, Nedlands.
"It's no use being a skilful pilot if you are not a successful fighter!" (Paddy addresses his Australian command as he sets his leadership standards).
WINNER: Best Narrative Feature (Dominic Higgins) Chicago Indie Film Awards.
If the first words that come to mind after viewing a film are, "when Mills and Boon meet Reader's Digest" is that necessarily a slight on that film? Usually, but in this case, no!
The story of an Irish patriot becoming a squadron leader of note in the RAF's war effort, as Hitler pressed for air supremacy in 1940/41 is a story worth telling. Brothers Dominic and Ian Higgins have created a unique Boys Own style of bringing the heroics of Brendan "Paddy" Finucane to life in, THE SHAMROCK SPITFIRE. An Irishman, the youngest ever (21YO), to rise to the rank of Wing Commander, leading Squadron 452 (mainly Australians) into Battle ofBritain mayhem, is a story worth telling. I'm not sure the lightness of style works here.
TSS was made to a strict budget. It is light and fluffy. Fliers of the time would be rolling in their graves no doubt at such a depiction. But the view the Higgin's have decided to present is unique; highly unique. It didn't suit my tastes! 5 GUMS.
Film No. 75 (2024) November 8th. 4:00 PM PALACE Raine Sq, Cinema 3, Perth City.
"Women like us live by the clock. We serve every day, serving someone." (Gwen, Helen's confidant tells it how it is, in her small town world).
WINNER: Breakthrough Award (Janice Pugh) BAFTA (2024). WINNER: Best Feature/Television Award (2024). BAFTA.
How many feel good feature films have used the Cinderella blueprint as the foundation for wooing an audience? Lots, with maybe PRETTY WOMAN the standard bearer. CHUCK CHUCK BABY (CCB) is the latest addition.
Helen (Louise Brealey) had never left this little, narrow minded, working class, Welsh seaside town. She was trapped. And if you think Cinderella was trapped, Helen's lot has a dead-end quality about it, with a capital D. Consider the fact that she lives in her ex mother in laws home, with her ex-husband and his pregnant girlfriend. Between work shifts, Helen cares for her mother in law, who is terminally ill, she is also Helen's mentor and friend. Complicated, yeah? Then Joanne (Annabel Scholey), comes to town. She and Helen have chemistry. Their slow burn, reignition of past hankerings is the fuel for CCB.
In a slightly unconventional way (including musical interludes), we know what we are getting here. Cinderella story - a bit of a giveaway really. But Brealey and Scholey have a great look together. It's their film. 8GUMS.
Film No. 72 (2024) October 26th. 6:30 PM PALACE Raine Sq, Cinema 6, Perth City.
"Did anybody ask Edison what a lightbulb was before he harnessed electricity?" (Michaels retorts to the media pack after a question about what the audience could expect).
WINNER: Director Award (Jason Reitman) Savannah Film Festival. (2024).
Has Jason Reitman, in SATURDAY NIGHT, just made his best crafted film? Yes, I think so, but JUNOis still my favourite of his.
Reitman lives this showbiz nightmare; a fictional version of the very first airing of SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE, through its creator, Lorne Michaels (Gabriel LaBelle). A great move indeed. On October 11, 1975 NBC prepared to broadcast live a new comedy show, Saturday Night. For Lorne Michaels it's time for an out with the old, (Carson, Berle) and in with the new, entertainment idea. A Sketch show performed in front of a live audience, using the new wave of New York comedians. The film represents the 90 minutes of mayhem prior to LIGHTS UP!
Reitman knew most of the real-life performers. They were family friends. He has it on good authority that most of what's depicted did happen. It's a tight, brilliantly written rendition. I loved his theory! 10GUMS.
Film No. 74 (2024) November 1st. 4:00 PM LUNA CINEMA, Cinema 6, Leederville.
"Even if I hated you for telling me, I'd forget soon enough!" (Knox answers his doctor as best he can after receiving some very bad news).
NOMINEE: Local Team of the Year (Michael Keaton & Crew) California On Location Awards.
Are we seeing less and less of these concept yarns? Yarns like MEMENTOand KNOX GOES AWAY (KGA), which give us a challenge, a puzzle to solve? Certainly in cinemas', I think we are.
Michael Keaton directs his second feature. THE MERRY GENTLEMAN, his first, is an edgy drama. So too is KGA. Keaton should direct more often. The fact he also plays the lead in both, adds to the licence he seems to have in creating a moody grit in each scene. His Knox (Keaton) is a hitman. He is dying. Only weeks to live. His condition; dementia, his mind is in a rapid decline. He has a final job. A job which will give closure to a regretful past. Combining strict notetaking and a trusted confidant (Pacino) has Keaton juggling a recipe with an ingredient or two missing, but the dish is tasty.
Knox is a compelling character. Keaton and Pacino are a couple of stars who should work together more often. The yarn has a B grade aura, but it's A grade entertainment. 10GUMS.
Film No. 73 (2024) October 28th. 6:30 PM PALACE Raine Sq, Cinema 6, Perth City.
"I've been harassed by people all day. I'm sick to death of it!" (Pansy explodes at husband Curtley as he maintains his trance like silence).
NOMINEE: Best Film (Mike Leigh) San Sebastian Int. Film Festival. (2024).
Is Pansy (Marianne Jean-Baptiste) of HARD TRUTHS (HT) simply too hard on those around her (including us) to be taken seriously? Yes, but as the complexity of her mental state is revealed, we need to take her very seriously.
Mike Leigh (HAPPY GO LUCKY) is back. He has as much to say here, as he did in SECRETS AND LIES. But while the 1996 classic attracted 5 Oscar nominations, HT will not. Perhaps over 28 years, the questions Leigh asks about connection and chemistry within families, and his pessimistic approach, has meant that his cinematic genius has diluted. Or maybe there are so many other techniques for presenting hard hitting social drama. Pansy is a gusher of negative "bile". Early on, there is humour in her rants. Gradually Leigh reveals her core. We are sad for Pansy, and all around her. She demands our attention.
Mike Leigh, like Ken Loach (I, DANIEL BLAKE) has been wondrously transfixing for over 50 Years. Classically, Leigh's creations bear fruit in his final scenes. No dialogue, three static camera shots of Pansy, husband Curtley and brow-beaten son Moses. His question: Surely there is hope, even some happiness, for this family? Maybe. 9GUMS.
Film No. 71 (2024) October 24th. 3:45 PM EVENT CINEMAS, Cine 3, Innaloo.
"I believed in glasses half full and silver linings. Life was so full and so precious. (Grace explains in voice over how she saw life).
WINNER: Best Feature Feature Film (Adam Elliot) London Film Festival.
Can an artist using stop-motion technique, create a feature film to be compared with those of Aardman's,Nick Park? When it's Australian, Academy Award winner, Adam Elliot, he most certainly can.
Grace (Sarah Snook) tells her story with such beauty here in MEMIOR OF ASNAIL. The overwhelming darkness in her life fades as her glass half full attitude gradually prevails. Elliot (MARY AND MAX) is notoriously dark in tone and narrative, but things are not always BLACK. With every shot there is a lighter reference to something. Melbourne's Bitter (a top, a pub) or Schnitz n'Tits (Pinky's workplace) examples of the smiles we get as we "slide" along with Grace. "Every film is a miracle", who said that? Shooting 5 to 10 seconds a day for 33 weeks, definitely qualifies MEMIOR for this category.
Maybe the narration is over played, but the pleasant tones of Sarah Snook are consistently sweet. Adam Elliot, you are a marvel. You place a mirror in front of us all. And while there is an anger here, you always leave us with HOPE! 10GUMS.
