greene-1 Reviews

Silence (I) (2016)

A cinematic meditation on the nature of religion and religious ideology

[10/10 · 5 January 2017]

For those of you who go to movies with the expectation of being 'entertained' you may come away disappointed. As others have indicated, the themes in this work are repetitive, disengaged and monolithic.

What this film does do is point to the nature of Spirit. And how man's ideological impositions are, in the words of Shakespeare, "a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing".

What we witness is the huffing and puffing of Christian zealots attempting to 'support the faith' in Japan. Apparently, without any real understanding of the nature of the established religion, Buddhism, and by extension, no great depth of appreciation of the core of their own faith.

The remorseless churning by way of persecution of the non-apostates is in itself a message of consistency. And those of you who have practiced any kind of meditative system will appreciate the value of repetition for its power to disengage the mind from quotidian vicissitudes.

Thus was the experience of this reviewer. Om tat sat.

Bridesmaids (I) (2011)

Laugh out loud in a London movie house

[8/10 · 5 July 2011]

As a British guy I am glad to report that this 'chick-flick' made me laugh out loud several times in the normally reserved arena that is the London film circuit. Understated performances by the ensemble cast really bring out the humour and largely avoid the in-your-face obvious gags which can be a let down to a sophisticated audience. Not that this film is without elements of quite medieval grossness, but these are played straight which actually adds to the comedic element and furthermore they do not dominate the film. Wisely they have avoided stereotyping the characters and you actually come to care for them warts and all, this has the added bonus of sustaining interest during the 'serious' moments also. Bridesmaids has a multi layered comedic approach which will appeal on many levels. There are a few weak scenes but these are more than compensated for by the overall work. In conclusion this film manages to wrap up a meditation on the nature of friendship and love whilst ladling out the laughs, go see!

Bridge to Terabithia (2007)

A moving and wholesome story

[8/10 · 11 May 2007]

Most detractors of this film seem to focus on how they've been deceived by the promotional material, which lead them to believe they were going to see a re-hash of Land of Narnia (or something like that).

Critising something simply because 'it wasn't what was expected' simply exposes the prejudices of the observer, and indicates that the reviewer's objectivity is compromised.

Where this film scores highly is that it portrays children's worlds in a very immediate and powerful way without being mawkish or sentimental. It deals with real issues, such as bereavement, bullying and family life very directly. More importantly, however, it goes on to show how these issues and their associated difficulties can be transcended, by reaching for higher causes and considering the welfare of others.

The other great thing about this film is that it encourages consideration of art, imagination, and philosophy. It ponders the nature of life and divinity in a simple, inquisitive and ultimately positive way. Furthermore, it deprecates the practise of excessive TV viewing, which is to be applauded.

The performances reflect pure emotions not only because children's emotions are generally purer than adults, but also many of the actors do an outstanding job.

I heartily recommend this film to all children between the ages of 6-106. And to those detractors I say "open your mind" (see film for details)

Sunshine (2007)

Overreaches itself and burns up in the corona

[5/10 · 13 April 2007]

Just as the ill fated Icarus of Greek legend flew too close to the sun and ended up getting his wings burned and falling to earth, so this film, by an amazing coincidental analogy, burns itself out in the latter stages out by over-stretching credibility in terms of plot, screenplay and scientific plausibility.

As many have already commented, the film starts off well enough, and we are treated to many fine CGI sequences which are truly works of art.

Come to the later acts, though, and the film begins to unravel. It's not that there's anything particularly wrong with them in their own terms it's just that they are completely at odds with the baseline already set in the initial part of the film. The film ends on a sort mad Wagnerian symphony with many disjointed scenes, as if someone had said, "well I can't think of a way to end this film properly so lets just phase the audience with loads of rapidly cut explosions/slasher scenes/running scenes and hope that they'll all be so awed that they won't notice what a hotch potch I've made."

*** Spoilers ahead ****

OK What really annoyed me about this film, is that yes, a lot of effort had gone in to give it some scientific credibility, like the design of the spaceship, the spacesuits (which yes some reviewers have lambasted for their archaic/bulky look), but think about it if you were going near the sun, then big thick spacesuits would be necessary for thermal protection.

But then it is all thrown away, with scenes in which people with no spacesuits are floating around in space and expected to survive. Hello space is a near vacuum and if you haven't already frozen solid then you're going to explode due to the lack of external pressure.

Then we have the slasher guy, as if somehow Freddy Krueger had wondered onto the set, once again credibility is stretched because how does a guy covered with third degree burns manage to survive on his own for seven years ? Also, when they are messing around in the payload section, how come that's kept oxygenated? it's not like it needs to be aerated for a nuclear explosion to occur.

In the final scenes we see Capa standing serenely having detonated the payload while enormous plasma flares are licking inches from his face, not withstanding the fact that they are now practically on the surface of the sun, how come he doesn't feel (or die from) the heat ? Are physicists somehow immune from the laws of physics ?

***** End of spoilers

In summary then this film, starts off promisingly enough, but then jettisons its own values at an exponential rate, leaving us with the impression that somehow madness has taken over in the artistic process. One wonders if Danny Boyle isn't stuck on some sort of drug induced trip as a hangover from Trainspotting

Gone (VI) (2006)

A study in psychotic behaviour

[6/10 · 11 March 2007]

In this film a UK couple travelling across Australia, pal up with an easy-going American who turns out to have a 'dark-side'.

This film scores in the respect that the way the American gradually reveals his hidden character is quite subtle. He manipulates the couple into turning against each other and then uses the chasm he creates to perform a divide-and-conquer type operation.

The film falls short in as much the female, as the easily duped girlfriend, isn't quite believable, and seems so gullible that if you told her with a cute smile that her panties were on fire she'd probably go and jump in a lake. Although I think this can be accounted for by the script.

Also the ending is quite silly.

Notes on a Scandal (2006)

I cringed all the way through

[7/10 · 4 February 2007]

I guess it speaks volumes for the quality of this film that the character portrayal is so believable and yet the situations rendered are so gut-wrenchingly awful that one sits in disquiet and unease through most of the length of this sleazy, unhappy, existential and ultimately barren piece of cinematography.

There is no redemption for any of the protagonists and we, the audience, are drawn slowly and inexorably into the world of Barbara and Sheba, rather like Jews on our way to Auschwitz. Sheba's seedy relationship with the pubescent oik is bad enough, but when Barbara starts to try to use her knowledge to achieve her ends, the sheer awfulness of the experience descends upon us like poison gas from a shower head.

At this point, however, we are so far drawn in that there is no escape, and we are left to writhe in the agonies of all concerned while the whole miserable debacle unwinds, slowly and painfully. A satisfactory-ish ending is hinted at for Sheba, while Barbara looks condemned, lecter-like, to continue her pursuit of 30-something women in the hope of attaining a nymph to care for her in her dotage.

In the end I was left wondering, what was the point of this film? If to entertain, then I would suggest it is aimed at those who are so bitter and twisted that somehow they gain some sort of mundane gratification from the misery of others. Is there some kind of moral message here ? Well I suppose it just hammers home a wearisome and oft-illustrated point: don't play away unless you want to hurt yourself and/or those close to you.

Smokin' Aces (2006)

Borin' Aces

[6/10 · 24 January 2007]

A little while ago there were commercials on UK TV for ebay in which the first word of the following scene became the last word of the current scene. Very snappy it was too. Although the technique works well when trying to sell a service in 90 seconds, in applying it to a movie the makers seem to have overlooked the fact that they are supposed to be telling a story. In fact what we are left with is a device for quickly, shuffling through a large number of plot points without really engaging the audience (unless they're on some kind of illegal stimulant). As a result we find ourselves unceremoniously dumped in the middle of movie and expected to pick up the numerous threads, concerning characters which have had scant development and for which we have little interest. In fact the whole raison-d'etre for this cinematographical hotch-potch is to quickly get us to the complicated gore-fest in the dying seconds of the show.

A better approach would have been to hand out briefing-leaflets before the movie, explaining what all the motivations of the various characters are. At least then the film could have been dedicated to entertaining the audience, rather than breathlessly attempting to pump them full of information so as to justify the intensity of the ultimate scene.

I quite liked Alicia Keys though.

Pan's Labyrinth (2006)

Moving and powerful

[7/10 · 9 December 2006]

del Toro interweaves the mundane and the magical in this account of a girl whose mother has married and been impregnated by a Fascist army captain during the Spanish civil war. The Captain has decided that the progeny will be a son, and that the son should be with the father. Therefore the heavily pregnant mother, with the daughter in tow, is carted into an army camp in the middle of the countryside deep within guerrilla territory. This gives the backdrop to the film, not only in terms of locale, but also the character played by Sergi López, whose portrayal of a cold blooded man with an appetite for gratuitous brutality is positively chilling.

In this situation, the girl, Ofelia, becomes drawn into a parallel world, totally alien to the various domestic and military issues which envelop the camp, but which nevertheless has an impact on those close to her. As events spiral seemingly out of control in both arenas, Ofelia is faced with intractable choices in which principles in one world or the other will be compromised.

While the inventiveness and poetry of the mystical aspect positively transports the viewer into a magical dimension, it has to be said that the 'normal' aspect is as harsh as can be and provides an uncomfortable juxtaposition, a bit like offsetting the Chronicles of Narnia against Apocalypse Now.

At its core this film is about sacrifice. It's about just how much people will endure, what they will go through, what dangers they will face, in whatever world, to stand by their principles and those they love.

Alien Autopsy (2006)

Film Autopsy

[4/10 · 7 April 2006]

As we cut into the putrid flesh of this cinematographic carcase, what do we find? A collection of organs which never quite function together well enough to produce more than a vague titter from the audience. What was anticipated to be rip-roaring fare from the ubiquitous duo, turns out to be little more than a mildly amusing yarn. Can we learn anything from this dissection? Well the film's heart is in the right place, but as for it's brain; there appears to be a lack of wit. The vital juices that should have been coursing through the vessels of the body of this movie were weak. Is there any hope of resuscitation? No, although a TV presentation at some stage might cause a mild blip on the life monitoring equipment. Failing that, intake of a large amount of intoxicating substances might give the observer the impression that this production had life in it. In conclusion then, the 90 minutes of this film's life were less funny than the 3 minute trailer for Scary Movie IV that preceded it.

Hostel (2005)

And now a word from the Slovakian tourist board...

[5/10 · 5 April 2006]

Three young backpackers eager for sexual encounters in Europe are guided to a hostel near Bratislava. Unfortunately the hostel turns out to be a collection point for 'elite hunting', a club for well to do psychopaths who pay substantial amounts of money to realise their fantasies on hapless individuals using a variety of surgical, building and other industrial tools.

Amongst other implements our friends are subjected to the business ends of: A cordless drill, Bolt cutters, Scalpel, Scissors, Chain saw, Nasty spiky things

All of which leads to a profusion of severed limbs, blood and other body fluids. It has to be said that scenes in which this takes place are mercifully short and dark.

While the film scores highly in terms of gratuitousness, it does not not really have any moral or humanitarian theme and as such lacks character. There are also some directorial non-sequitors. Nevertheless, it is quite engaging and will provide anyone who enjoys seeing likable characters being sliced and diced after getting their oats with an entertaining 90 minutes.

Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)

Less is more

[10/10 · 2 April 2006]

This film is a masterpiece which excels in many areas. Its crowning glory is the way it handles elemental human themes like love, hate and the desire for justice. It also follows an intelligent script which doesn't patronise the audience, but leaves them to work out key points.

The four main protagonists Fonda, Bronson, Robards and Cardinale each deliver outstanding performances and of course all the supporting actors are superb as well. But for me, the show stealer is Harmonica (Bronson) whose performance of a man driven by an other-worldly sense of injustice is absolutely mesmerising (the music score helps with this).

In all, the performances, directing and music come together for a fantastic two plus hours, which, despite the unhurried pace of the film, keep you riveted to the screen.

The Story Makers (2002–2004)

What's happened to Shelley Wordsworth ?

[11 March 2006]

The only redeeming feature of this show is occasional appearance of Shelley Wordsworth played by Lauretta Nkwocha, who is definitely eye candy for guys. Of late she has not been making an appearance. I fear this is because she moved to holby city or some other show.

The thing that bugs me about this program is: That at 6pm after the library has closed the clock is seen to advance from 6pm to midnight, fair enough. But at the end of the show the protagonists see the sun start to rise, but then the clock is shown to move from midnight to 9am. So my questions are a) The program lasts 15 minutes approx so why doesn't the clock move from 00:15 to 9am at the end of show? b) If it's still midnight how come the sun is rising? Are they based in the arctic circle during the summer solstice or what ?

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005)

a travesty

[4/10 · 17 September 2005]

I can't help feeling that the last set of comments were there to bolster sales of the upcoming DVD.

This film nods to the letter, but not the spirit of the original Hitchhikers radio series.

It's full of non-sequiturs, rapid cutting (for people with a 5 second attention span) and leaves you with the impression of having watched some vacuous fluff rather than the thoughtful and amusing oeuvre that was HGTTG.

What the producers failed to notice about the radio show was that amongst other things, the effect was greatly enhanced by the effective use of SILENCE.

If your work is punctuated with points of stillness it accentuates the drama that occurs in between the spaces, and gives audiences time to absorb and appreciate what has been experienced.

If however your work is one blurred mish-mash of butchered phrases and frantic disjointed scenes, the final result is a grey soup which pleases only the most superficial spectators.

It would be fine if this film had some charm in it's own right, but it doesn't. It has one (small) foot on the end of a long atrophied leg somewhere in the ethos of the original HGTTG. The other foot is planted firmly in the commercially expedient sausage machine that is modern CGI film-making.

Anger Management (2003)

Goosfaba ..... goooosfaaaabaaaaa!

[27 August 2003]

I don't know why this film has had so many negative reviews.

I saw this movie several times while flying between Europe and Asia. On each occasion it had me laughing at the zany gags and characterisation.

Maybe it was the altitude!

Yeah there are weak points e.g. some of the plot.

But Sandler and Nicholson et al had the right 'chemistry', if you can call it that, to bring regular doses of spicy humour to the film.

If all else fails, try watching it at 45,000 feet.