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Reviews
Extract (2009)
Poor
I watched this movie with my wife having no expectations whatsoever. I hadn't seen the trailer and I didn't know who was in it. The initial premise was interesting: a successful businessman in an odd industry wanting to sell up to be able to live a different life and spend more time with his wife. But then things quickly go downhill, both for the main character and for the film. Mila Kunis gets a lot of screen time, but fails to deliver anything meaningful by the end of the film. Jason Bateman was the best actor but this film gave nobody the opportunity to shine. David Koechner as the boisterous and annoying neighbour was allowed the most freedom but even his performance failed to lift his character above the realm of average.
There was real opportunity for comedy here and it was just missed. To top it off, the film can't seem to decide whether it actually is a comedy, or a drama about a couple having problems, or a story about a man getting on in his life, or a study of the cunning and scheming ways of pretty little Hollywood actresses, or a combination of all the above. This film goes nowhere.
Even worse, despite being only 92 minutes long, it still manages to feel boring about half way through.
It's not a horrendous film, it's just not good. Four out of ten.
Labyrinth (1986)
A mid-eighties snapshot
I watched this film for the first time yesterday, which probably makes me unusual in that I am the right age to have seen it as a child. In fact it came out when I was eight years old. I have the advantage, therefore, of watching the film with more mature eyes, without the fear that I will be disappointed.
First of all I should say that I don't dislike eighties music, and I think that David Bowie is a talented and capable performer. I am not, however, a great fan of eighties puppetry despite having consumed a large dose of The Muppet Show as a child.
Labyrinth is first and foremost a fantasy aimed at children and teenagers, and secondly a coming-of-age story. It succeeds in creating a unique fantasy world, helped by the music, creating an unusual setting and ambiance. I really don't think this film could retain any of its charm without the bold eighties electronic sounds, the sort of sound effects which are more closely associated with science fiction rather than fantasy. David Bowie's androgynous style and exaggerated colours add to the general wackiness. The Goblin King spends his time singing silly songs and experimenting with skin tight trousers. It does become clear that Bowie's character is the classic power-hungry ruler driven by a need to control others.
The puppets work well. The directors avoided excessive Muppet Show type "jumping on the spot" which has always irritated me in Henson's puppet animators. A lot of effort has clearly gone into the special effects, with the "heads-off" dance deserving a particular mention. Today the effects of this particular scene look horrible with so many holes in the presentation it is nearly laughable - but it still works within the film framework and the love and care put into it is clear. Other than that, there are some particularly good effects, for example the door knockers and the final staircase scene at the castle.
Jennifer Connoly as the ultra-cute Sarah does her job well, and I think that if asked she could have presented herself as a more mature and able protagonist. It seems to me she was directed to act as an innocent teenager and I think she manages this for the length of the film.
The main weakness is story - or lack thereof. The film is not short for what is essentially a trek across difficult terrain. That said the longest story I know about the same thing is the Lord of the Rings. Labyrinth, like the Lord of the Rings, manages to fill most of its time with interesting non-events, which seem important to give reason for the final evolution of Sarah's character; much as Tolkien's trilogy built up to Frodo's final decision to leave his home and friends behind. But the story remains that of a long trek, with adversity, until the final confrontation with the bad guy. Tolkien's story is, of course, richer in print, but no such thing exists for Labyrinth as far as I am aware.
The second weakness of the film is its submission to Hollywood standards of one-liners and absurd battle scenes. These have been staples of the American motion picture industry for at least 30 years and they are more childish than a talking worm. It was excruciating having to put up with this towards the end of the film.
I struggled with a score for Labyrinth. If I were an adult seeing it in 1986 I probably would have hated it for reasons already put forward by other reviewers. I am being generous giving it 8 out of 10. This score is for a combination of an above average and entertaining film, which is unique and unrepeated, a representative of a time long past, and deserving of a special place in motion picture history.
Bikur Ha-Tizmoret (2007)
Worth watching but flawed
Bikur Ha-Tizmoret is an Israeli/Arab film which tells the story of a classical Arab police music band from Alexandria which visits Israel for a performance. The band ends up "in the middle of nowhere" because of a mix-up in the name of the place they ask to reach. The story then centres on certain band members and their interactions while they stay overnight with Israeli hosts.
To its credit the film manages to steer clear of any detail of politics, with the characters difficulties with each other emerging from cultural differences and a certain wariness of strangers. The writers do not insult us by trying to explain why the Egyptians and the Israelis have difficulty communicating despite their shared border and history. In one scene a band member covers a picture of Israeli tanks with his cap, since he finds it difficult to eat his meal while looking at the picture - which is as poignant as it needs to be.
The cinematography is good and the film does a great job at capturing the arid and unpopulated landscape, and the essential boredom of life in a small town. The music, when allowed to flow, is beautiful and authentic. I was hoping for more of it.
The performance of the actors is very good, and Sasson Gabai shines as the charge of the band. Ronit Elkabetz as Dina is a great choice, and pulls of the independent, rough-yet-gentle young woman very well. The writers realise that in one night people's natures will not change, and so there are no great revelations or big changes, rather the characters behave more or less how we'd expect them to.
In essence, Bikur Ha-Tizmoret is a comedy, a character study, and an exploration of people's behaviour in unusual circumstances. However it just doesn't quite pull any one of these off very well. Parts of the film which should be funny, laugh-out-loud type, are too predictable to work. A good example is the scene where Simon is helping Papi with the shy girl at the skating rink - it's just too obvious what the director is trying to achieve. There are other examples of heavy-handed direction. Characters walk in and off stage in a contrived manner. Too often I felt I was watching people make-believe.
Despite the criticisms I make, Bikur Ha-Tizmoret is still a good film, interesting and unique, and definitely worth watching.
Man in the Attic (1953)
Good film, generally well performed
This is the only version of "The Lodger" films that I have seen, and having not read the original story, I found the premise rather interesting. Jack Palance is the star here as the brooding Mr Slade with his nearly sinister demeanour keeping us suspicious for most of the film. While his emotional outbursts initially feel out of character, by the end of the film it is clear he is unbalanced and emotionally immature, and tormented enough to submerge himself into a river and not resurface.
Frances Bavier and Rhys Williams work well as the Harleys, and their husband/wife banter is nice to watch. Byron Palmer as the Inspector did a passable job. The poorest acting was by Tita Phillips as the maid.
While Constance Smith's performance as Lily Bonner was good, the absurdly out-of-place, overly long, poorly performed, and amateurish cancan sequences really do harm her character and the film in general. They were nearly painful to watch.
The chase sequence at the end, with horse and cart navigating bends at high speed and a broken cart wheel, was an unexpected and entertaining climax.
While not perfect, some bits are excellent while others are the opposite, it is certainly worth watching. It is available for free in the public domain, and a reasonable quality version can be downloaded from the Internet Archive.