maveric_74 Reviews

Casino Royale (2006)

Bond is back..better than ever!

[8/10 · 15 December 2006]

Thank God for Martin Campbell/Daniel Craig/Broccoli combination..I had been aching to see this and besides a few things, this movie absolutely brought back the Bond franchise to life! I remember seeing the old Bond movies as a kid with Sean Connery and Roger Moore and then seeing the re-invention with Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan..Whilst the old Bond movies are undeniably classics, the re-invention didn't grab by attention. Dalton was too wooden and despite GoldenEye's success, the franchise truly disintegrated into a poor caricature of itself..bottoming out with the truly awful tripe with Halle Berry..can't even remember the name, to be quite honest!

And now, Casino Royale! It's hard, it's brutal and edgy and Bond is not as sophisticated as yet and it shows and that to me is amazing..He's still learning the ropes, making mistakes but shows glimpses of why he's the best MI6 have got! I thought Daniel Craig was fantastic! Probably not the prettiest Bond or the most suave, but definitely realistic, intense and charismatic..But then again, I have been a fan since Enduring Love and LayerCake days, so perhaps I am biased?

Absolutely loved the first half of the movie! The initial black and white opening, the free-running sequence, the airport sequence etc.. were fantastically staged..The lack of gadgets also meant that this time around Bond had to rely on his skills and his street smarts and that gave the movie a realistic grounding. Le Chiffre was also a great character..not menacing, but you knew that Bond had a adversary every inch his equal, at least in street smarts and poker playing skills!

The things I didn't like in the movie: Le Chiffre was killed off but not by Bond, and quite abruptly and simply..I would have liked a better end for Le Chiffre..But then again, I haven't read the book so I cannot really say much about Le Chiffre's death in the movie..

The romantic angle with Vesper Lynd puzzled me at first but as I thought about it more, I realized what they were trying to portray..I may be wrong, but this is my opinion..Bond did really fall for Vesper Lynd, that much is there for all to see. Here he is, a hard-edged, cold-blooded killer and he is probably in love, real love, for the first time ever in a long, long time. He wants it to be real but she screws him over, for whatever reason that it may be..He gets hurt, loses her and probably vows never to love again coz now he knows the pain of losing a lover and in his job, getting close to someone could kill him! You see Bond at the end talking to M and he has a hard look in his eyes when talking about Vesper Lynd..He was betrayed and he's never going to let that happen again..I thought the romantic angle played out too long and the movie was around 20 minutes or so a bit long, but I walked out of the movie theater absolutely amazed! Was this the same franchise that gave us Timothy Dalton and the last two Pierce Brosnan Bond movies that I cannot even remember? Wow! Please don't ruin this franchise..I hope they retain the brutal, edgy, dark undertone running throughout the movie! And Daniel Craig, kudos! If he keeps true to his Casino Royale Bond portrayal, I have a feeling he could be the best Bond ever..after Connery :-) No, no one will ever beat Sean Connery..Too suave, too cool, too sophisticated, too much! Enjoy and prepare to be dazzled!

Candy (2006)

Could have been great, but had some incredible performances

[7/10 · 30 June 2006]

Saw this last night at Greater Union, Tuggerah. There were about 10 of us and only 3 of us loved it..But to put it in perspective, the others were more keen on seeing Click and The Fast And The Furious: Tokyo Drift:-)

I thought it was a good movie, but lacked some character depth in places. Heath Ledger was good, but it was really Abbie Cornish (so exceptional in Somersault as well) and Geoffrey Rush who were outstanding. Abbie Cornish is amazing as Candy, she truly lives and breathes the role, except in the last scene, where I thought her character didn't really match the emotion shown by Heath Ledger's character. That was Heath's finest scene for me, the way he was able to portray so much emotion without saying anything at all.

Tony Martin and Noni Hazelhurst were good in their small time on screen, but again, the relationship breakdown between Candy and her Mum wasn't really explored which didn't really help when she goes off at her Mum and starts screaming at her for ruining her life..

Great direction by Neil Armfield and this was really a movie about Heath and Abbie's characters dependence on drugs and on each other through their ordeal. Some of the things they do to obtain drugs and the money to buy drugs is shocking, but to them just a necessity to obtain ways and means of getting "a fix".

As good as this movie was, if you liked Candy, please take time to see an earlier Australian movie from a few years ago called Head On by Anna Kikkonos (I think that's her name). It stars Alex Dimitraides and is a much better exploration of the drug scene.

Overall, Candy is a worthy addition to the local Australian cinema and I'm glad I was able to enjoy this movie. Definitely worth a look for the performances by Abbie Cornish, Geoffrey Rush and Heath Ledger

The Motorcycle Diaries (2004)

A masterclass in storytelling!

[9/10 · 8 February 2006]

Ahhh..the joys of pure cinema :-) Why is it that most of Hollywood cannot turn out great works of cinema despite having so much money and technology and a great pool of actors/directors to choose from?

The Motorcycle Diaries chronicles the journey that 2 friends undertake from Argentina thru to Peru on a vintage, leaking, Norton motorbike nicknamed affectionately, "The Mighty One". The story is important because one of the travelers, Ernesto Guevera went on to lead the Cuban revolution and became known as "Che Guevera". The movie portrays Ernesto as a quiet, shy medical student as he starts his journey full of hope and excitement with his traveling partner, Alberto Granado, a biochemist. With hardly any money, a dodgy motorbike, the 2 friends eventually travel over 10,000 miles before the end of their travels. In this time-frame, Ernesto finds much injustice in South America, which deeply affects him. He is a changed man upon returning home.

The movie is not political or a movie about the making of Che Guevera, the revolutionary. It's a fascinating insight into the travels of two men who see and experience life in all it's painstaking reality and grow up on their journey across the Americas. Gael Garcia Bernal smolders on screen with such latent fury and passion inside of him that you feel he might burst into flames any minute :-) Rodrigo De La Serna is exceptional as the more exuberant of the two, who loves life and a laugh and oh yes!, the ladies :-)

The acting, cinematography, the music was amazing. The characters seemed real, even apart from the two leads, who we know are based on real people. A deeply affecting movie that makes you think about what we can achieve by looking beyond our own selfish fears/needs/desires.

Downfall (2004)

Outstanding, amazing, spellbinding

[9/10 · 7 February 2006]

History tells us that Hitler was a great orator, a charismatic leader who held millions spellbound. Downfall follows that same role model as it paints a gripping, harrowing last few days of Adolf Hitler in his bunker in Berlin as the Russians close in..Still in charge, but barely there in mind or body, it almost seems that as the country collapsed around him, Hitler himself disintegrated. The movie is amazingly real, thanks to an amazing performance by Bruno Ganz as Adolf Hitler. The set detail, the storyline and all the supporting cast of characters is just about perfect. I could not fault this movie at all. You feel as if you are witnessing history unfold before your very eyes. To the end, despite his state of health, Hitler believed in his "ethnic cleansing" policy, appeared delusional in his belief that somehow he could lead Germany to victory over the allies.

The story itself is based on facts recounted by one of Hitler's close secretaries, Traudl Jung who managed to live through the war and survived to tell her account of the story.

This is clearly a great film of an important subject matter and director Oliver Hirschbiegel has crafted an amazing celluloid masterpiece of a man whose all-encompassing hatred and passion for the Jews literally drove him insane and to his ghastly death.

Some emotionally powerful moments in the movie involving mass suicide or murder will mean that the movie may not appeal to all fans. This is a must-see movie for fans of cinema. An absolutely riveting, astonishing piece of movie-making that left me shaking my head thinking I was watching a real documentary even though I knew it was a movie!

Munich (2005)

Wanted to like it, but it had no soul

[6/10 · 27 January 2006]

I really wanted to like this movie! It's a great subject and I thought that a movie that generates so much discussion would at least offer me something to talk about. However, it didn't live up to expectations. I think part of the problem was that Spielberg went for the straight narration of the story, with a strangely weak main character. Eric Bana was good as Avner, but didn't really portray his moral conflict well. The other characters weren't fleshed out well at all. Geoffrey Rush was quite good in his limited time on screen. Ultimately, the most powerful moments in the movie are the documentary-style opening sequence involving the terrorists and their hostages and the end sequence when you see what happens at the airport. Some powerful, gripping images here although the final scenes are cut with Eric Bana (Avner) making love to his wife, which completely didn't resonate with me at all..

The movie is gorgeously shot in the "bleached color" look by Janusz Kaminski. The detail from the 70's is amazing, production wise. I didn't look at the watch once, because I found the subject matter interesting but from an accomplished director like Spielberg, I expected a better movie. Strangely, I felt the same let down after seeing Roman Polanski's "The Pianist" a couple of years ago.

Ultimately, Munich could have been a masterpiece, but Spielberg wasted this opportunity. It's a shame because I think this was a great story and he could have done so much better than what we see on screen.

Dark City (1998)

Awesome, original, challenging sci-fi movie

[9/10 · 22 January 2006]

I absolutely adore this movie. Amazing visuals, great story, perfect casting and it challenges you to think about the story unfolding on the screen, rather than lay it out all for you. I have watched this now about 4-5 times and it still amazes me. Rufus Sewell as the main character (John Murdoch), Kiefer Sutherland (as Dr. Schrieber - very creepy), the always excellent William Hurt (Inspector Bumstead) and the exquisite Jennifer Connelly (Emma Murdoch) are all perfectly cast. I don't want to give away the story at all because I remember watching it the first time and how blown away I was by this sleeper of a movie.

If you like Dark City, I also recommend watching Gattaca, Donnie Darko, Equilibrium, Solaris, Cypher and Code 46

Dark City will acquire a cult status in the years to come, I believe. It already has its fans and it shows how far and few intelligent sci-fi movies are really made

Duel (1971 TV Movie)

Unrelenting classic cat and mouse

[8/10 · 25 December 2005]

I had seen TV listings of Duel in guides with great reviews but it was always on really late at night and I had somehow missed seeing it...until now! For a movie made 20 years or so ago, it packs a mighty punch. I saw it on DVD and then checked out the bonus features as well, which included a conversation with Spielberg. Amazing that this was a "TV movie of the week"! Spielberg insisted on shooting this on location on the long stretch highways of the Palmdale desert, and managed to shoot it in just 12-13 days....his schedule was 10 days! The suspense, the sheer terror, the uneasiness and the scary moments, all hallmarks of Spielberg's JAWS movie, were all there.

The opening scene with the car pulling out of the garage, for me, is unbelievably cool. If you haven't already seen DUEL, do yourself a favor and watch one of the all time classics by a now great director who was honing his craft at that early stage of his career...