Fatso.co.nz - July DVD Reviews

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NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN
* * * * 1/2 (4.5 Stars)

The Coen Brothers seemed to be faltering for a while there (The Ladykillers, Intolerable Cruelty: no thanks), but they've bounced back with this adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s best-seller, which scored them numerous Oscars nods, including Best Picture win. A gruelling, relentless, expertly crafted exercise in thriller filmmaking, No Country for Old Men is dark, chilling Blood Simple-mode Coens, which is where I like them best frankly. If you’ve read the book, surprises might be few; by all accounts, it’s pretty faithful to the source text. Nevertheless, there’s a hawk-like proficiency to their technical prowess that’s quite breathtaking. The narrative, which has cowboy Josh Brolin stumbling onto some drug money and then subsequently hunted by Javier Bardem’s ice-cold assassin, is stripped to the bone, while the suspense cranked up to unbearable at points. Bardem, who lugs around a cattle-gun as a weapon of choice and sports a weird-looking mop that’s strikingly out of place in the film’s Texan locations, is incredible as Anton Chigurh, simply one of the most memorable psycho-killers in recent film. It’s not all dark - the Coens’ trademark offbeat, Fargo-esque humour pops up on occasion for some relief. Roger Deakins' cinematography is phenomenal as usual.

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STEPHANIE DALEY
* * * * (4 Stars)

Teenage pregnancy, abortion, religion - and especially the intersection of all three - are extremely sensitive, difficult issues to deal with in film, but Hilary Brougher has made a lucid, realistic study of them in Stephanie Daley, an absorbing, exceptionally well-acted drama that was made with the assistance of Sundance’s Writers’ and Fimmakers’ Lab. Amber Tamblyn (from TV’s Joan of Arcadia) stars as a 16-year-old girl who’s accused of killing the baby she gave birth to which she claims to have no knowledge of being pregnant with. Tilda Swinton plays the prosecutor’s forensic psychologist who’s called in to pick her brain to see if she’s telling the truth. Unfolding with subtly handled flashbacks that take us through the events leading up to the baby’s birth (a harrowing scene if there ever was one), the film is hardly feelgood material, but a compelling, throught-provoking watch, with effectively stark Dogme-esque direction from Brougher and tour de force performances by Tamblyn and Swinton.

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THE TREASURE OF THE SIERRA MADRE
* * * * * (5 Stars)
 
More a blistering morality tale than the adventure that it's often sold as, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre is nevertheless a great rollickin' motion picture. Based on a novel by B. Traven - who's a bit of an enigma - the film is one of most potent studies of the corrupting power of wealth, featuring Humphrey Bogart in one of his finest roles. He plays Fred C. Dobbs, an unemployed down-and-outer scraping by Mexico, whom with Tim Holt and Walter Huston (John's father) set out to find gold in the desert. The film initially wasn't a big hit as audiences weren't so taken by the idea of Bogart in a less-than-pleasant role, but his performance, which sees him escalate from edgy and irritable to full-blown paranoia, is a powerful reminder of what happens when greed consumes the soul. Superior script and direction by John Huston, who won Best Director and Screenplay for this film and collaborated with Bogie on a number of classics like The Maltese Falcon and The African Queen. That's young Robert Blake selling lottery tickets to Bogie at the start!

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2 DAYS IN PARIS
* * * * (4 Stars)

You can’t fault Julie Delpy for not trying to make some sort of auteur-worthy impression on her feature directorial debut. In 2 Days in Paris, the French actress not only directed, but wrote, acted, edited, produced AND scored the film. Fortunately, she proves herself more than capable - the film is - unexpectedly, given the self-conscious, slightly affected manner in which it opens - an enjoyably frothy culture-clash charmer. En route to New York after a vacation in Italy, French photographer Marion (Delpy) and her interior designer boyfriend Jack (motor-mouth character actor Adam Goldberg) drop in at her bizarro parents’ (Delpy’s real-life folks Marie Pillet and Albert Delpy) in Paris. For Jack, it’s an opportunity to meet them and visit her native country. However, the trip takes a turn for the worse, with their relationship straining further when Marion bumps into her past lovers. While Delpy is indebted to her fellow New Wave countrymen Godard and Rohmer, her rapid-fire dialogue, sharply dialled into the neuroses of her characters, provides a stream of witty one-liners that’s as good as anything Woody Allen's done in his prime. Much smarter and more astute than your traditional rom-com.

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MY LEFT FOOT
* * * * 1/2 (4.5 Stars)

Actors love playing mentally/physically disabled characters. It gives them ample room to really sink into the role, and besides, it's usually an easy shoe-in for critical accolades and Oscar attention. But to do it well, and with emotional intelligence, is another thing, and something which Daniel Day-Lewis achieves and more in My Left Foot: The Story of Christy Brown. He deservedly won an Oscar for his triumphant performance as Brown, an Irish writer and painter who was born with cerebral palsy to an impoverished working class Dublin family. Based on Brown's autobiography, the film benefits greatly from Jim Sheridan's tough, unsentimental direction, which eschews sentimentality and doesn't gloss over Brown's firey, volatile personality. Regardless of his disability, Brown was a hard-drinking, stubborn, difficult person to deal with. Special mention must be made of Hugh O'Connor, who's similarly amazing as the younger Brown in the early scenes. Brenda Fricker also picked up an Oscar for her wonderful supporting turn as Brown's patient, unconditionally loving mom.

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Published 1st Jul 2008

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