No. 12 (2023) THE WHALE 21st Feb.

 

Film No. 12  (2023)  February 21st.  6:15 PM EVENT Cinemas, Cine 6   Woodlands W.A.

"I think I need to accept that my life is not going to be very exciting" (A line written by one of Samuel D Hunter's students, when he was tutoring in real life, and which sparked him to write the play, The Whale).

NOMINEE : Best Make-up, Best Actor (Brendan Fraser), Best Supp Actress (Hong Chau), Best Director (Darren Aronofski) and Best Adapted Screenplay. Chicago Indie Critics Awards.

I know that when I'm headed to see the latest Darren Aronofsky film, I'm in for a test of the heart. He's a film-maker keen to test your empathetic self.  BLACK SWAN and THE WRESTLER are memorable examples; they ask questions about family, loyalty, regrets and in the end, hope for reconciliation.  

This time Aronofsky adapts a play. Samuel D Hunter's stage play The Whale first played 11 years ago as part of The Denver Arts program. It is, in the main, a little known play, but Aronofsky saw it and felt the need to adapt it. Hunter got the shock of his life when Darren rang him to secure the rights. Samuel could hardly believe what had happened.

Charlie is a morbidly obese on-line English tutor with a plethora of issues, least of all is his eating disorder. Aronofsky, using the nearly forgotten talents of Brendan Fraser, has given Hunter's script a wonderful re-telling. There are a number of reasons that we become invested in Charlie. The prosthetics used to make Charlie a giant figure of morbid obesity is a credit to this industry of make-believe, but here we are revolted initially;  but as all good stories make us  do, we grow to root for Charlie. He's a victim of his own decision making but coping is difficult. He's trying to take responsibility. Is he able to make peace with those closest to him? If you loved THE WRESTLER you will be taken by THE WHALE.

A play enacted for the small screen is a turn off for many. Adventure entertainment it is not, but seriously well written drama it is. That's not to say there aren't defects. Sadie Sink plays a nasty, bitch of a daughter, Ellie, but we never really know why she is like this. Wife Mary (Samantha Morton) appears, rather than evolves. Hong Chau's, Liz, is loved but never fully appreciated by either us or Charlie - and I'm not totally sure why. Oh, and I wish the ending didn't leave me with a WTF moment. But, THE WHALE, is never the less, mesmerizing!  10GUMS.

       

No. 11 (2023) 7 DAYS 15th Feb.

 

Film No. 11  (2023)  February 15th.  8:00 PM  SOMERVILLE Outdoor, UWA  Nedlands.

"I was a little bit worried that you were catching feelings" (Ravi finds Rita with a chicken drumstick and beer in hand.) There is a sense of relief in his voice.

WINNER : JURY AWARD Best Narrative Feature (Rothan Sethi) Coronado Island Film Festival.

Hard on the heels of WHAT'S LOVE GOT TO DO WITH IT? comes 7 DAYS. Romcoms of a very different pedigree. Both with an arranged marriage theme. One made (Working Title) for the masses, the other from The Duplass Brothers; say no more. It was also shot during the COVID crisis and puts the pandemic to good use in the story. 

So, we meet Ravi and Rita, picnicking, both trying to please, in the bizarre confines of a dry weir bed. It's a cute scene where we might be led to believe they are a nice couple who may just have  some chemistry. The prologue to all of this comes in the form of a series of inter-cuts of real couples, later in life, talking to camera about how their arranged marriage has been a godsend. Each couple talking to camera about how hard they have worked together to make life work. We know Ravi and Rita are going to fall in love, but remember this is a Duplass Brothers production, made in COVID times.

Rita soon becomes her slob-like self as they come to terms with their incompatibility. She is in her own abode, so it's a case of Ravi leaving on day two. Job done. Family will need to be told another of their arranged setups fell flat. Ravi can't get away when he'd hoped. Two days becomes three and then there is the virus which takes on a starring role.          

Director Rothan Sethi plays the COVID card reasonably effectively, but I hadn't really been convinced the two had created a  legitimate chemistry. The film's final 30 minutes need us to believe they really had found  common ground before the physical disconnection took place. Don't get me wrong, they both revealed their true, eccentric selves enough. It's the highlight of the film. I just wasn't sure there was enough there for true love to blossom. 

Anyway, plenty of "punters" have enjoyed the irreverence of 7 Days. I look forward to the next Duplass' experience. I'll never grow tired of the new ideas these guys conjure.    9GUMS.

 

No. 10 (2023) WOMEN TALKING 9th Feb.

 

Film No. 10 (2023)  February 9th.  6:40 AM  PALACE Cinema 6,  Raine Square,  Perth City.

"Where I come from, where your mother comes from, we didn't talk about our bodies. We were given 2 days to forgive the attackers before they returned" (The ominous reflection of one of the women of the community where abuse of women was simply an "acceptable" right of their men).

WINNER:  MOVIE OF THE YEAR (Sarah Polley)  AFI Awards U.S.  NOMINEE:  BEST ADAPTED SCREEN PLAY (Sarah Polley, Miriam Toews) & BEST FILM ;  Academy Awards 2023.

Sarah Polley (STORIES WE TELL, AWAY FROM HER) commands a real respect for the emotional power she injects into all her directorial work. At 26 she was first nominated for a Screen Adaptation Oscar (AWAY FROM HER). 18 years on and she is in waiting. This time with TALKING WOMEN, her 2nd adaptation nomination. Presently, she is favoured to lift the small gold statuette later this month. The film is a triumph. She will deserve the gong if the Academy so decides.

To adapt a script there needs to be an original story. Miriam Toews wrote the novel of the same name, based on true events. Heinous crimes committed against women and girls in a small Mennonite community in Bolivia. I've not read Toews text. She contributes also to this screenplay.

This humble blog can only dust over the complexities that exist under the crust of this important film. A film which gathers these Mennonite women together to decide on their and their children's future. They either stay and fight, leave, or do nothing. There is not a perpetrator in sight. The only man in frame, August (Ben Whishaw) takes the minutes of this meeting, held in chapters over 24 hours. It's all the time they have to decide what to do. The men are gathering legal council for the charges being brought against them.

For most of us, their discussions, presenting the pro's and con's of leaving or staying represent a "no-brainer" decision. Who stays anywhere knowing that violence and sexual terrorism will continue as a part of life? But what if where they are is all they have known and there is no where else to go? We soon have empathy and understanding for the predicament of these women. We too, soon boil with the same anger these women are festering.

Polley has a reputation for producing, heart-felt, legitimate cinema. With that comes actors screaming to be part of her creations. Jesse Buckley, Rooney Mara, Clare Foy, Frances McDermont, Judith Ivey and Ben Whishaw to name a few, bring Women Talking into the hearts and minds of audiences. The Polley magic is possibly best summed up by the use of Whishaw (August), the sole, adult male character here. The power of his presence in the final moments brings hope. The kind of hope we wish for all who have tugged on our emotions for the last 104 mins.   11GUMS.   

            

 

No. 9 (2023) BROKER (BEUROKEO, Sth Korea) 2nd Feb.

 

Film No. 9  (2023)  February 2nd.  8:00 PM  SOMERVILLE Outdoor, UWA  Nedlands.

"So, you're just brokers? When do we leave?" (So-young has her suspicions verified and wants to join the road trip  in search of a good family for her child).

WINNER : Best Actor (Song Kang ho); Cannes Film Festival 2022. Best International Film (Hirokazu Koreeda); Munich Film Festival 2022.  NOMOINEE: Palme d'Or (Hirokazu Koreeda) Cannes Film Festival 2022.

Can you imagine liking people, in a film, who participate in "baby trafficking?" Okay, so on the surface, that theme doesn't point to us feeling warmth for such characters,  but spend a couple of hours in the hands of Hirokazu Kore-eda with his film, BROKER and your initial thoughts of revulsion will have evaporated. 

Kore-eda brought us SHOPLIFTERS, one of my favourite films of 2018. He  creates characters living on the fringes of South Korean society, who are striving to do the best for family and anyone else who joins their group, as they try to make a better life for themselves. Their activities are mostly dodgy, but the harm they inflict on others is negligible.

So when So-young (Lee Ji-eun) leaves her child near, not in, the local church's baby-box as rain pours, we already sense she is in two minds about her decision. Sang-hyeon and Dong -soo dabble in passing babies onto caring families for a price. They are on hand to erase the CCTV and take possession of the infant. A nice little earner is  impending. But complications arise. So-young (chequered past and all)  returns because she has second thoughts, and unbeknown to Sang and  Dong they are under surveillance from a couple of police detectives who have had their suspicions about their activities.. The detectives are also called to a dead body that had turned up on their patch.         

I liked BROKER equally as much as SHOPLIFTERS. In two hours we are asked to make some moral judgements of our own. Should we respect those who live life on the fringes, with little, who show resourcefulness but who are petty criminals? Are we being coaxed into testing our own moral standards?   Part road trip, part mystery and always a social drama with heart, BROKER is delightful.   11GUMS.

 

No. 8 (2023) WHAT'S LOVE GOT TO DO WITH IT? 1st Feb.

 

Film No. 8  (2023)  February 1st.  3:30 PM  EVENT CINEMAS,  Cine 3,   Innaloo. 

"I used to think I'd be scared of being with the wrong person. Now I'm frightened of being with the right person" (Zoe spills her muddled emotions to Kazim).

Working Title have established a reputation for quality film production in the same way Toyota has for producing quality, reliable vehicles. There are variances in the finish of some, but you can bank on the fact that boxes get ticked. What's Love Got To Do With It, their latest "fairy-tale", is no LOVE ACTUALLY, but it does pose some interesting questions about relationships in the 2020's. It also touches on an interesting concept; that  arranged marriage has been around since well before Apps.  

Lily James is Zoe, an award winning documentary film-maker with great,  girl-next-door (literally) charisma. Our beau is Kaz (Shazad Latif), a doctor and long time friend of, and next-door neighbour to Zoe. Very respectable, indeed. They make a great couple. James and Latif have chemistry, good chemistry; which is important for this franchise film! The trailer gives most of the cues to the storyline  and except for the slightly long but insightful segment set in Pakistan  and the silly scripting for Zoe's (Emma Thompson), skittish mum, it's a thoroughly enjoyable 110 mins. But let me reinforce, if you have bought a ticket to drink in another Emma T performance, then I think it will disappoint.

But hey, it's a romcom that follows that blueprint fastidiously. It's pretty. It's sharply scripted. It's polished and the stars are good (Emma does well with the tosh she has to speak). The trailer gives just enough away to attract the right crowd, and it's currently tallying $40m at the box-office. WHAT'S LOVE ticks the biggest box of all. All credit and a "shout out" to Jemima Khan, ex-wife  to celebrity cricketer and ex-Prime Minister Imran Khan, for her debut script.  

While cinemas continue their crawl back to the halcyon days of crowded foyers and over worked popcorn machines, Working Title makes yet another joyous contribution.  9GUMS.