VDBC

film reviews. interviews. interesting things and observations.
very dirty bear child

DIY gross-out teen comedy

 

Directed by newcomer Nima Nourizadeh and produced by the director of The Hangover Todd Phillips, Project X (not to be confused with the 1987 film starring Matthew Broderick about chimps) follows Thomas Mann, Jonathan Daniel Brown and Oliver Cooper as three under achieving high school students as they hope to gain popularity by planning the ultimate birthday party.

Producer Todd Phillips re-introduces us to an out-of-control party scenario à la Old School. Incredibly for an All-American teen gross-out movie, it was truly a belly-laugh-a-minute with plenty of “Oh my God” moments along with an all too expected stream of scantily clad girls and bad taste jokes (better remove that stiff upper lip for this one) . Pertaining to the whole intended idea and feel of this movie, there’s no denying I felt like I was genuinely part of the party. I also felt there was a certain level of understanding among the audience in the way that had that unspoken ‘this is shameful but I’m still laughing’ consensus.

Getting young people to act like they’re at a high school blow-out isn’t a great stretch in terms of acting technique and doesn’t make for a riveting plotline but these were actually quite believable albeit typical characters. Thomas (played by Thomas Mann) as the cautious and overwrought birthday boy, JB (played by Jonathan Daniel Brown) was highly memorable as the sad loveable geek and Costa (played confidently and with excellent comedic timing by Oliver Cooper) holds the gang together with his Stifler-like mentality: everything-will-be-okay-once-we-all-get-laid. Project X ultimately wanted to be a movie about a party and I think audiences should take this at face value as there was no depth to the characters or any underlying messages to go on at all; even the unconvincingly enraged Dad (Peter Mackenzie) and his high school praised Thomas for having the party despite the dire consequences. 

If you’re of an older generation and you’ve got a high threshold for comedic profanities or you’re just in the party mood but don’t want to go through the nuisance of a hangover then this movie is most certainly a good escape for an evening. It has enough jokes and an odd enough ending to take your mind off of a generally weak plot and, at times, regrettable soundtrack but it’s definitely not to be taken too seriously; although the ending should be an obligatory watch for parents and police alike…just in case.

Favourite bit: A dog and some helium balloons. Enough said.

SMART FRENCH CINEMA MEETS THE GOLDEN AGE OF HOLLYWOOD

          

Directed beautifully by Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist stars Jean Dujardin as reputable silent film actor George Valentin and Berenice Bejo as the plucky and good hearted young rising star, Peppy Miller. The film focuses on their relationship as the “talkies” are replaced by silent film in Hollywood.
After having won an extensive amount of awards this season, The Artist more than lives up to it’s widespread acclaim by showing us a fantastic display of nostalgic sentiment and a fairly simple but effective plot; staying true to a vintage format by ironically telling us without words that silence definitely is golden.
THE POSITIVES
With a lead that looks like and has an exciting a screen presence and an uncanny resemblance to as, dare I say it, the immutable Gene Kelly, it’s hard not to like Dujardin (who is now been dubbed as the French George Clooney) in this role. Having been relatively unknown in mainstream cinema, this film will certainly seal a positive career for him. Bejo is so refreshing as the upbeat and aptly named Peppy Miller whose ever present empathy and love for Dujardin is shown through their mutual passion for dance and of course, who could forget Uggie as the talented and adorable Jack the dog.
THE NEGATIVES
Not many. The only thing to be wary of is that the film is most definitely SILENT. Many a movie goer has been put off by this but in the bigger scale of things this is a wholly irrelevant fact. However, the plot and storyline was missing that little bit of ‘je ne sais quoi’ so to speak, with a drawn out and slow narrative development.
Ultimately, the whole hype around this movie, it’s actors, directors and costume makers is just about right as it’s truly an unforgettable production. I would recommend owning this beautiful piece of cinema that will certainly go down in history as one of the most pleasant and respectful pieces of cinema. Hazanavicius restores faith in filmmaking. Sitting in the cinema watching this is like being quite literally taken back to those movies of the Hollywood golden era of the 20’s. Costumes are exquisite with every detail taken care of and spectacular award winning black and white reminiscent cinematography and authenticity bring this film to life.
VERDICT
If you’re a fan of old movies or just want to see what the all fuss is about, The Artist is a timely little cinematic gem that’s more than worth the watch.
CHRONICLE SHAKY CAMERA SUPERHERO SCI-FI From the minds of Max Landis (son of John) and Josh Tranks’ comes a new ‘found footage’ sci-fi film starring Alex Russell, Dane De Haan and Michael B. Jordan as three high school students who form an unlikely friendship after acquiring telekinetic powers from an alien life form in a hole in the ground. Andrew (De Haan), an emphatic loner who begins documenting his melancholy (and quite often violent) existence using a expensive but second-hand camera. Aware of his apparant struggle and desperate for him to fit in, his jock and somewhat slacker cousin Matt (played by Alex Russell) persuades him to go to a rave at a nearby isolated barn. It is there he is lured by the popular star quarterback Steve (Michael B. Jordan) into the woods claiming he has discovered something strange. The three boys then start documenting thier new found powers, using them only for their own personal juvenile amusement until trouble of epic proportions brews when one of them starts using his powers for more sinister puposes. The Positives Newcomer and young Leo Dicaprio-esque De Haan displays a fantastic portrayal of a solitary teen with complex bitterness and angst, mainly due to his alcoholic and volatile father (Michael Kelly). His performance leaves viewers with a strong feeling of understanding and empathy towards him even during his worst self depricating moments which is fairly complex to convey. Russell was convincing as the doting and concerned cousin who finds a new lease of life thanks to his powers and Jordans confident performance as the much loved all-star favourite makes for a character that is highly memorable. The plot was well thought out with very intricate special effects. The Negatives Being shot in the cult found footage format which has had a surge of popularity in recent years, the film will seem a bit Marmite to skeptical viewers however as with similarly made films like Cloverfield or even Paranormal Activity, that very same format is what lends to it’s unique quality. If it was done in any other way, it would be just another Hollywood churn out. Despite a slow introduction to the film and a unimaginative plot there were a lot of genuinely surreal and refreshingly unpredictable moments brought to life by engaging viewers into a curiosity and mystery into the newly transformed lives of the three teens with young audiences relating to the very modern adolescent issues. The most noteworthy aspect of this film is the fact that it gives the viewer an insight into what any desperate teenager would realistically do with telekinetic abilities. VERDICT A surprisingly good watch with enough twists and unexpected moments to keep even the most indifferent movie-goer on their toes.

CHRONICLE

SHAKY CAMERA SUPERHERO SCI-FI

From the minds of Max Landis (son of John) and Josh Tranks’ comes a new ‘found footage’ sci-fi film starring Alex Russell, Dane De Haan and Michael B. Jordan as three high school students who form an unlikely friendship after acquiring telekinetic powers from an alien life form in a hole in the ground.

Andrew (De Haan), an emphatic loner who begins documenting his melancholy (and quite often violent) existence using a expensive but second-hand camera. Aware of his apparant struggle and desperate for him to fit in, his jock and somewhat slacker cousin Matt (played by Alex Russell) persuades him to go to a rave at a nearby isolated barn. It is there he is lured by the popular star quarterback Steve (Michael B. Jordan) into the woods claiming he has discovered something strange. The three boys then start documenting thier new found powers, using them only for their own personal juvenile amusement until trouble of epic proportions brews when one of them starts using his powers for more sinister puposes.

The Positives

Newcomer and young Leo Dicaprio-esque De Haan displays a fantastic portrayal of a solitary teen with complex bitterness and angst, mainly due to his alcoholic and volatile father (Michael Kelly). His performance leaves viewers with a strong feeling of understanding and empathy towards him even during his worst self depricating moments which is fairly complex to convey. Russell was convincing as the doting and concerned cousin who finds a new lease of life thanks to his powers and Jordans confident performance as the much loved all-star favourite makes for a character that is highly memorable. The plot was well thought out with very intricate special effects.

The Negatives

Being shot in the cult found footage format which has had a surge of popularity in recent years, the film will seem a bit Marmite to skeptical viewers however as with similarly made films like Cloverfield or even Paranormal Activity, that very same format is what lends to it’s unique quality. If it was done in any other way, it would be just another Hollywood churn out.

Despite a slow introduction to the film and a unimaginative plot there were a lot of genuinely surreal and refreshingly unpredictable moments brought to life by engaging viewers into a curiosity and mystery into the newly transformed lives of the three teens with young audiences relating to the very modern adolescent issues.

The most noteworthy aspect of this film is the fact that it gives the viewer an insight into what any desperate teenager would realistically do with telekinetic abilities.

VERDICT

A surprisingly good watch with enough twists and unexpected moments to keep even the most indifferent movie-goer on their toes.

Tonight I witnessed Gary Oldman’s face. Sullen, unforgiving and habitually dour. Just wonderful to look at in extreme close-up on a cinema screen for two and a half hours. Just wanted to put that out there.

Look, I know what you’re trying to do Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, espionage and spy “thriller” and I know you’re adapted from an acclaimed book but I’m a bit skeptical. Maybe it’s because I’ve never even heard of the book let alone read it but the storyline could have been a tutorial on how to make cheese and I would have been none the wiser.

The positives: This fine looking piece of British cinema was well thought out, I appreciated the all round stylishness of the film, from the costumes to extras, everything was meticulously thought out and disciplined to compliment the 1970s era. This created a raw environment for the actors to do what they do best and I have to say, the acting is just impeccable in this film. Performances from great and trusted British actors such as the Oldman himself and Colin Firth lived up to their reputations and both Tom Hardy and Benedict Cumberbatch’s refreshing authenticity and heartfelt execution were a joy to watch. It’s like, you know these guys are talented but this film really sorted the men from the boys in terms of acting talent.

The negatives: I do think however that this film was made just to savour the Brits’ rep as filmmakers. The appearance brings everything back to basics with no over-the-top special effects, no fight scenes and gets rid of all the elements that distract you from the storyline which is great but that, unfortunately was the problem. The heavy and dirty pauses in the dialogue and general slow pace forced me to listen in with sheer dumbfoundedness and half-hearted intrigue which made it a hard watch for me. I would personally only recommend this film to hardcore fans of the book or just so you can say you’ve watched it because of it’s high acclaim and Oscar hype. Or for Gary Oldman’s face.

I think, like The Sixth Sense and Inception, it deserves another watch as I didn’t quite get there the first time.

Favourite bit: Errrrrrrrmm…

Kurt Russells acting…

is actually pretty good in this remake of the 1951 classic b-movie, The Thing. I tuned into this film not expecting much in the way of acting skill and was expecting to be fairly amused at the visual effects (ketchup as standard) but surprisingly I found myself cringing and cowering in my blanket like a little schoolgirl. I’m not kidding when I say I was mopping my brow profusely half wondering if The Thing was going to burst through the door. I’m not quite sure why this remake isn’t considered by the general consensus with as much hype as similar films like Alien but I definitely tell you this is one of the best 80’s horrors I’ve ever seen. With surprisingly classy dialogue (no one-liner/pun shame) and incredibly well done and frightening special effects, as far as remakes go, it’s hard to beat.

Favourite bit: THE WALKING HEAD. You’ll know when you see it.

the HORROR!

I haven’t really been a big fan of horror movies, in fact, they scare the shit outta me and I’m not afraid to admit they give me nightmares. The only thing I can tolerate in them however is Werewolves, Witches and Vampires. I’d been listening to a lot of TOBACCO at the time so I thought I could handle it when I heard a fucked up noise coming from the TV one night. I ended up watching the first scene of Suspiria late at night (and alone) before I had to change the channel and wuss out. I had no idea what it was at the time so I was cacking my pants flicking the channel to and from the movie so I only saw parts of it but the bits I did see were…fucking…genius…the low budget, vibrant 70s feel to the whole thing, not to mention the immensely eerie soundtrack, almost made me spontaneously combust. The film is from a talented Italian director called Dario Argento…

and I think he should start making comedies.

Alexandra Sewell is a flamboyant and passionate individual, who, apart from taking snaps enjoys galleries, libraries and impromptu parties. She also likes writing about films, tv, music and whatever takes her fancy. She is quite partial to learning a bit of quantum physics every now and again. Her greatest feat was finishing the book Moby Dick and can be found at any given time with her head in the clouds. Contact: alexandra.sewell@hotmail.com

This blog is a product of my observational nature.

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