Dark Fantasy

Having been to Comicon yesterday where I let myself become lost in it's mazes of creative genius and waves of artistic talent, I noted that the most prominent feeling I experienced walking along the stands and speaking with the artists (both writers and animation experts) was one of Dark Fantasy.

The world of Fairy Tales, ranging from Hans Christian Anderson's literary works, to the recent flux of films re-interpreting the symbols of such tales, is a constant part of the movie making industry.

The formula is a complex but very educational and entertaining one for audiences: a message of morality packaged within symbols and told through extraordinary characters, such as witches, slayers and helpers. With treasures and magical objects to assist the hero along with his friends during the quest, he/she must defeat the antagonist and reach his/her goal of somehow ethically saving the world and learning something basic along the way.

This is also the journey for the hero in 'The Last Witch Hunter starring Vin Diesel where he must forget the pain of his personal losses and save the world from evil.

His acting skills maybe slightly limited to action hero packed scenes such as previously seen in 'Riddick', but he does have his own individual charm and style, and is a likable qualities as an on screen persona.

In this particular telling of yet another dark fairy tale, he plays the witch hunter who travels through time as an immortal, to defeat the evil resurrected ultimate dark witch who takes on many faces through the decades.

This genre of film is imbued with symbols and poignant images of course but also with themes of salvation, good vs evil and the timelessness and faceless nature of both sides: i.e evil and good can morph and shape shift but it is the essence which counts in both.

Plot and characters are simple enough, ranging from friends to foes, and the close ups and special effects lend the movie a 'games' like aspect where we feel we are interacting with V.D. in a sort of computer game almost (a little like in the movie 'Gamer' but of course on a different level and within a different genre of film).

The moral of this fable is that good can defeat evil of course, as always in such adult adapted fairy tales, and that the journey is worth the risks and pains in order to aid the good against the evil.

Its a film for entertaining and visual/sensory stimulation rather than for in depth thought, but it does offer a few insights into the fairy tale models of writing and story telling, which for instance the Brothers Grimm are famous for- among others.

The movie content does not create a long lasting memory for audiences perhaps, and maybe best seen with popcorn to add to the experience.

The sensational value of the 'anima-tricks', the exquisite character make up/wardrobe and the 'camera-botics' are all equally eye scrumptious.

Sensory enjoyment.

Researched Fiction

One of the most compelling things about writing about films or learning about them generally is the ability to speak with or listen to the film makers first hand about their ideas.

In this case, the director, Roar Uthaug, hints at both the realism and the fiction, in his newly released Norwegian film: 'The Wave'.

Within the aspect of fiction, we note the horror element in one of the more emotionally powerful scenes. It borders on 'science fiction' when the mother (main female protagonist) is forced to kill the 'crazed' man trapped with her and her son under the rubble as water starts gushing into their confined space and threatens to drown them all.

The horror element here is portrayed through an enhanced male voice pitch; through the sound of the man's voice, as he gets worked up about their situation, and before he gets strangled by the boy's mother who is protecting her son.
The man's voice in this scene borders on being an insane Gothic character's voice.
We sense that his tone and pitch change and deepen as the voice vibrates with anger or aggression and as his mind succumbs under pressure.

The film's realism comes through with the research, whereas the fiction is felt because of the play of 'dark' and 'light' in the images on screen.

The research has obviously allowed the director to provoke a powerful image of the possible tsunami in the audience's mind, and it exposes both the scientific as well as the human consequential aspects of such a horrific event unfolding.

From a scientific point of view, the movie gives us a bird's eye view of the chain reaction which would lead to this natural upheaval.

It also makes us feel with the victims who either escape or suffer death because of this.

The director achieves the latter through creating a connection with a heroic family and through allowing the audience to identify with their strong ties to one another.

The film distinguishes itself from that point of view because the family has no internal issues to resolve as would usually be the case with the Hollywood disaster movie scenarios.

The only conflicts to resolve are external ones; essentially dealing with the effects of the tsunami.
The enemy in this case is nature's wildness and unpredictability.

The acting is intense and the close ups are very effective. The performances are made all the more 'real' because the filming takes place mostly in 'real time' with very few digital effects.
There are in fact very few digitalised special effects, which makes the action scenes more difficult but also look more believable.

The few long shots are of the huge waves, and those were the only digitalised images according to the director. As the leading actress mentions at the Q and A following the screening: some of the work was 'painful' because of having to be wet and work within the water a lot of the time in order to simulate drowning. The stunts were mostly actual.

This 'real time' acting and the research done for the film, give the production realism.
The sound effects, enhanced voice pitches and tones, as well as the play of 'shadows' with 'light', give it fictional value.

But because the film feels very 'actual', the ending has to be a happy one on some basic level, otherwise the film would be too 'real' or it would feel like the natural disaster has already taken place, and this would take away from the genuine aspect of the movie.

Fortunately, and according to the director, if this were real life, the experts would be able to predict the countdown to the flood earlier on, and thus fatalities would not be a consideration.

This film has certainly taken a majority of it's audience by 'storm', if you will excuse the pun.

'Spider' Scripts

Stories always need to be good in some way in order to deserve being adapted into films, although this is sometimes not the case these days.

A strong script is the infrastructure which all enduring films require and is at the basis of every successful story.

To achieve this, a powerful array of characters is needed along with a believable interaction between them, and most importantly a viable build up of their relationships. Simply put we need to believe in how they feel towards and act with one another on screen.

Nancy Meyers is an old time favourite of many because of her ability to present us with emotionally developed characters through her writing and directing, and she does this beautifully once again in her latest: 'The Intern', starring De Niro and Hathaway.

The characters have emotionally complex profiles and believable relationships with one another, ranging from the decent father figure (De Niro), to the aspiring, ambitious young working mother (Hathaway), to her seemingly emasculated yet ultimately loving, understanding and regretful husband, even to the co-workers at the company which she has established. 

Meyers has a magical way of weaving a web of interplay between characters, in a natural and convincing way, leading them to build real and lasting relationships with one another.
All of this she manages to achieve within just a couple of hours of screen time.

This is a skill rarely found because usually we find the players suddenly moving to another dimension in their interactions, without any real emotional connection previously, or any actual believable build up.That is the successful formula, which makes this film, like many others of hers, a treat to watch. 

It is a production which is both funny and sad at the same time, and although simple as a plot, still extremely enjoyable. It is an 'easy' type of viewing experience, as well as being a genuine film with sincere characters.

The themes explored are: parenthood, role reversal between men and women in the work place and at home, as well as love, relationships and adultery. 

The deeper themes are perhaps linked to concepts of trust and of the boundaries in relationships depending on the individuals involved.

From a filming point of view this is a movie where the camera takes second place to the characters and perhaps this is still how it should be when a real story of emotions is told. 

In contrast to this, films such as: 'The Martian' (previous post) look at the camera as a technical tool and as directly involved in the life of the actors/characters on screen. In such films, as the latter, the camera is seen as a priority tool of the film making process, even to the point of cameras being shown actually rolling in real time within the film itself.
This technique, of showing the camera in action within the movie, reminds us of the power and strength of the film reel as a life giving tool, through its images.

As to 'The Intern', the title gives a feel of the film. The casting is very well executed; the right faces for the right characters, and the feeling throughout is one of teaching and learning, therefore the title. 

Experience really doesn't ever get old, and although De Niro may have aged, he certainly knows how to be cast in the right roles for his time of life.

Lots to learn from 'The Intern'.

  

Stranded

Survival films are a great source of entertainment on the big screen because of their character value.

They allow us to identify with, or root for a strong survivor type character, on the most basic of levels.

These films, with for instance actors like Tom Hanks adapting to and becoming a part of the wilderness and of an unrelenting type of wild Nature, are great classics because they not only create an imaginary world of adventure and obstacles to overcome, but also bring us closer to our most instinctive human needs.

They make us ask ourselves questions such as what are really the most important things in life, ie what are the basic things we require to survive and which make us put our desires into perspective.

These are films about human nature and what unites as a human race against Nature's forces rather than what separates us as nations.

This is the formula repeated, in a way, by 'The Martian', starring Matt Damon as the stranded hero, fighting to stay alive on Mars; in an unfamiliar, harsh wasteland of a habitat, where the only helpful elements are organic ones, as well as his knowledge of numerals and letters for remote communication.

This is a film which not only reminds us of our mortality and vulnerability, as bleeding, ageing humans, but equally, and thankfully, about our strength of mind and resilience when we may be facing death.

It brings the instinct of survival to the forefront as one of the most powerful inherent instincts of any human being, but of course it also points to character being essential to survival.

Matt Damon's character is tailored to be an extraordinary one; an inventive, creative and strong willed person, but the story also shows us on some level, the shared resilient qualities of individuals when faced with life threatening situations.

The scenery is fabulous with the toned down oranges and browns of the landscapes of a deserted Mars; a vast horizon of nothingness but somehow imbued with energy and force.

The elements include the atmosphere's particularities such as strong rain and gusty winds.

These put Matt to to the test and call on his scientific training in order to move back in time, metaphorically speaking, and go back to the basics of how the earth's/soil's own treasures can help him produce food for himself, in order to last a while, and till his 'friends' on earth can come up with a plan to rescue him.

Numerals and letters are used as symbols for communicating and this also takes us back to original means of language and counting, reminding us of how far science has taken us, as well as how we sometimes have to remember to deconstruct what we have created in order to save ourselves.

This is a deep notion worth thinking about, because we in fact do often forget what science has allowed and we end up using technology blindly. These scientific and technological advances make us less aware of Nature and the organic world as the source of it all.

Another concept which was touched upon was the theological one of existence and religion with the use of the cross as a symbol in the film, as well as a being utilised as a wooden object being put to good use by Matt in order to create fire, fuel and energy ultimately for himself.
The idea here is that spirituality can go hand in hand with science. 

The many scientific tools, which the hero presents us with during the film in order to create situations to save himself, are truly fascinating.

Matt Damon's acting is sublime, especially in one of the opening scenes where he has to literally operate on himself alone. 

Of course there are the usual let down facets of the movie, such as an overly enhanced sense of idealism where nations come together to save one man. This maybe realistic on some level because NASA wants to conserve its good reputation by doing saving one of it's own, but equally seems very unrealistic and 'Hollywoodish' because somehow exaggerated. 

We may find it a little hard to believe that nations and masses of people all over the world would be so greatly engrossed with the survival of one stranger, no matter how special and heroic he may be, and even if he is a child of NASA and stranded in the stars

People in real life are slightly more involved with their own personal affairs than that of others.

But for the sake of argument and a hopeful, positive outlook, let us say that the film gives a feeling of unity of all people coming together for this one good cause in trying to save a fellow human being.

This in itself is a lovely thought even if short lived and is mainly found in the world of cinema.

The humour is carried out foremost by Matt in a couple of good scenes, and although the script is not a huge one, this is a lengthy film. It does not feel long though, because of timed editing and the excellent acting abilities of the hero Mr Damon.

Describing the directing seems a mute exercise in this case, as words really could not do justice to the Cinematography. It is Ridley Scott after all, and his name being in the credits, in anyway at all, really says it all and is always enough of an incentive.

 Worth the trip to Mars definitely. Happy Travels! 

      

Oldies and their Goodies

Fresh, refreshing and complex, are the first few words that come to mind whilst viewing the recently restored production of 'Our Man in Havana'.

Sony Pictures' 4K digital restoration of this original Carol Reed (director) and Graham Greene (writer) 1959 collaboration, just months after Castro had overthrown Batista, is a Cinematic treat.

Both visually as an experience on the big screen, but also in terms of its layered exposition of Cuba's (or in this case Havana's) social setting at the time, it offers food for thought on numerous levels.

The setting is beautifully presented through use of wide shots of the backdrop of Havana, it's nightlife and club scenes, as well as it's street energy and colourful inhabitants.



The music lends itself to this dual atmosphere of  happy go lucky 'joie de vivre' at the same time as a menacing threat of crime and death.

We find a band of musicians following a few characters around, and appearing at the drop of a hat out of no where, to surround them with loud energetic Cuban music, symbolizing this split in the daily life of Havana during those times. We see here a pretense of joy, coating the underlying reality of corruption, which the characters navigate through, whilst surrounded by music, dancing and alcohol.

Dancing is provided by the beautiful women in the clubs, whilst Daiquiris -the protagonist's favourite drink (main character played by Alec Guinness)- among other drinks such as whiskey, are offered and drunk continuously at bars and meals and homes throughout the film.

Drinks even figure in a chess game as the pawns or the means to an end, as well as possibly carrying poisons and affecting the lives of the 'players' in more than one way. We have killer drinks, threatening drinks, drinks as tools to get to an end result or simply to numb any pain.

A very effective image of a Daiquiri glass, presented to an Alec Guinness turning away from it just seconds after he orders it, is very telling of the role of alcohol both in the film and in Cuba at the time. No prohibition there, and as one of the characters says: nothing is illegal in Cuba where drinks can be taken for granted.A dig here at how any forced prohibition can cause a reaction in people.

This idea of 'anything goes', is emphasized through the objectification of women in the film, as semi naked dancers, strippers, and call girls.

One particular silent woman appears everywhere and often in the background throughout, and even with her back to us at times, she pops up as the representation of forbidden fruit made accessible to all men.
She is in fact in the opening sequence as the credits roll, standing at a balcony in a very inviting but unhappy way, as a man looks up at her. This still shot of her then restarts with actions once the film begins and the first credits end. This cinematic ploy portrays a continuous or ever present offer of women who are openly sold to men in Havana at the time.

Money, as a commodity is much needed, as we learn from the way the main character Alec will do just about anything to get his doe eyed, pretty daughter the fleeting things she wants to own in life.

Thus, the themes of crime and corruption are presented to us throughout but with  an attractive coating of fun and joyful gaiety,

Underneath all the glitz and glamour, we find drunkenness, prostitution, greed and crime as inherent parts of the existing Cuban society, inherited from Batista by Castro at the time.

The film is loaded with complex symbolic images reflecting the themes of crime and corruption but also of love, and of the utility or lack of, of  the 'policing' agencies at the time.



American and British intelligence are portrayed comically in how futile they appear to be. They seem to be organisations filled with bumbling characters, who can easily confuse a vacuum cleaner with a bombing device and who for instance don't seem to know the difference between what carries sound and what doesn't. In one scene, an agent closes a hole ridden gate door in order to give himself and Alec privacy, when in fact said door he shuts is more like an open window whether it be closed or open. This latter analogy is a hint at the 'leaks' or holes in the secret services as institutions; i.e: when you think they are secure and safe, they actually are transparent and not so at all.



The recurring and funny play on words in dialogue, gives beautiful touches to the film, adding folds to the cleverness of the script and how it takes us into the convoluted but almost ridiculous world or secret services. For instance: 'creates a vacuum in' or 'a clean sweep of', here refer to Alec's cover job as a vacuum salesman, whilst the conversation which takes place is in fact about the actions or plans of the secret service.

There is a mention of pan American airlines giving out fading orchids to people, as a stab perhaps at the fading or superficial power of US influence at the time.
From a totally different perspective, we notice a British Airways flight race across the skies, and we perhaps wonder at advertising for the film at the time of the making of the movie.
But coming back to this idea of a fading or non consequential US influence, we see this repeated in an image of a pharmacy sign in a darkened street of Havana, where a close up of Alec allows the camera to shade the top of the word 'Farmacia' from the audience's view. We are thus left with: 'CIA' as a word in the backdrop.
We wonder as to whether this is a clever trick by Reed to show that such an intelligence agency is 'ill' or 'unwell' and needs medical or pharmaceutical attention.

Love is seen through cynical eyes in the film, with Beatrice (interesting choice of name reminiscent of Dante's Beatrice) tries to save Alec, firstly by splashing his daughter's unwanted male pursuant with water at a bar, and then through her caring for him and advice.
She is apparently married of sorts -in a way- to a man who hasn't come back, and the dialogue in the scenes where she explains it to Alec's daughter is exquisite.
In fact she explains her view of love beautifully when she says to Alec that her estranged husband was too confident about love and that in fact love is never that sure; that when in love, people are usually frightened to lose it.

A few gems like this one can be found in the script and dialogue, but then the whole story is gorgeously written.

The scenes in the male bathrooms where homosexuality is hinted at heavily, are both funny and serious at the same time, and riddled with meanings about relationships and identity.

Each character in the movie carries at least one strong message.

Other than Beatrice and her ideas about love, we also have the policeman character as a relaxed semi- corrupt officer, who gives us a pragmatic look at poverty and injustice, as he makes a few comments about torture not being for the rich, and as he hints at the poor being the recipients of all things unfair.

The daughter's character is intriguing as an innocent protected woman, but also as a 'chained' female in a world where the options for women are either: be sold or be bought. The image of her with the horse's harness around her neck is very telling. In this scene her father Alec gently places the harness protectively and lovingly around her as he promises her that she she can keep the horse he bought for her.

Finally, Alec, the main character with his humour and comic facial expressions, as the agent who isn't one at all but a simple vacuum cleaner sales man with talent and guts, is also one which presents us with the theme of the self fulfilling prophecy.
This is a very good device in the story and brings to mind the fact that often when we say that something fictional is real, even if we do not believe it is, it ends up being very real indeed.

Very existential.

There is even a mention of Science Fiction writing, which becomes an inherent part of the story of the hero. Writing is presented as a creative and almost positively manipulative tool, allowing the imagination to see and make believe whatever it wishes.

Alec's images as a writer end up convincing even the prime minister of something which in fact doesn't exist.

The message here is this: there is great power in words, writing, and images. They hold Truth, but also create fiction made to be reality, as is the case with film making.

A lovely painting of a film, with powerful themes and intelligent visual and verbal language.

The oldies are always full of these goodies which we scarcely find in other more recent film productions.
These kinds of authentic older films give the audience layer upon layer of messages and symbols to unravel.
This sense of mystery is attractive to the mind since -as the German doctor in the film hints at, although not in these particular words- secrets are always a good means to pull one in to any story.
  

Fab Vamp

Here is a list of  the super ingredients that make Hotel Transylvania (2) successful, fun, entertaining and all in all fabulous!

Listing the numerous successful aspects of the film is as much of a pleasure as watching the movie itself frankly.

Let's start with the humour. This is a script partly written by Adam Sandler, and which reflects his usual good mood, sarcastic, dry comedy style, shaken together with a grumpy, cynical outlook on life. A laugh a minute-almost.

Both papa and 'gram pa' vamps are this way in the film, or perhaps I should say both 'Vampas' are imbued with this kind of humour.

The sense of innocence isn't lost in the dialogue, which mixes this renowned Sandler cynicism with a pinch of naivete, making the characters a melange of awesome scary personages, as well as approachable lovable ones.

The characters, ranging from the original 'gram pa' vampire (voice of Mel Brooks) to the papa vampire and his minions or army of ghouls and monsters, are definitely outside the box, but also endearing although supposedly frightening in appearance.
These include: the Mummy, Frankenstein, the Invisible Man (and his imaginary girlfriend), 'Blob' (one of my favourites because extremely funny in situation comedy as a non speaking but very versatile 'shape shifter' of a character), the wolves or Ware Wolves, and of course the hundreds of bats.




The third ingredient which works perfectly- other than the script/dialogue and the characters- is the setting. The visuals are digital yes, but more importantly very atmospheric in effect; a preparation for Halloween night and camp stories by the fire.

In fact, one of the scenes is in a vamp camp, which is heavy with the promise of all things 'scary' but also fun.
The forest is a great setting too as part of the big journey and the adventure for little 'Denis-ovitch'.



The hotel itself, as the main setting for the film, is a reminder of the promising first glance we had at it in the original 'Hotel Transylvania' production, where we anticipate the wildness from the start.
With its party mood, family atmosphere and numerous crazy props and wacky characters it does not disappoint.



The imagination boggles at the possibilities and scenarios, and this is in fact a hugely creative piece of work from all aspects, including dialogue, image and plot.

The story also counts as a successful ingredient, with its blend of twists, and buildups to the conflict between father and daughter vamps, as well as for the characters themselves in terms of coming to terms with their own identity as either hybrids or pure bloods.



The messages in the movie are aimed at both children and adults alike and are delivered well: grow up being who you are and not who others want you to be, and be proud of who you are no matter what.
Parenthood is explored, as well as growing pains and social emancipation, social tolerance and acceptance.



The choice is freedom over fear during one's self discovery, no matter what one's identity may be. The choice is tolerance of others and acceptance of their differences.

The end credits are also genius, not only in the 'cartoon-ish' drawings themselves, which are very colourful, but also in how one cartoon feeds into another continuously in order to get us smoothly from one name to the next. I noticed that very few people left till the very last credit roll.

This is a fab Vamp film and makes you think of language in terms of word meanings and puns on words.
How many films make you reflect on the notion of identity, as well as on language, and entertain you all at the same time? Not many, animation productions or not.

Adam Sandler obviously knows what he is doing and which films to take on.

The Edge (of your seat)

A Spanish fiesta of mystery, mayhem, and marvellously wicked human antics are the main ingredients in the dramatic dark satire titled: 'Happy 140th' or 'Happy 140' or ironically just: 'Happy'.

It is slightly reminiscent of Woody Allen's story scenarios, but a little less happy-actually.

This elaborately designed film exposes the grey facets of human nature through wonderfully complex and colourful characters.

It examines, in a very entertaining and intelligent way, the choices which individuals make, their complex emotions, and the consequences of their choices and actions.

This is all beautifully presented in a film about a strong, wilful, humorous and independent woman who decides to host a 'get together' for her closest and dearest, in a remote mansion by the sea, to celebrate her 40th birthday.

But, as the title sequence suggests -through a visual play on numbers and letters through the way the names of the actors and film makers are written and listed on screen, before the start of the movie- the number 40 is not just used in reference to the protagonist's age, but also in connection with a surprise announcement which she plans to make at the gathering.

We are presented with a wide spectrum of characters, ranging from the conscientious and loyal, to the demanding and distrustful, to the frightened and unhappy, to the innocent and hopeful, to the ambitious and confident, to the wilful and volatile, to the mercenary and calculating.
These include school friends, an old lover and his girlfriend, a sister, her husband and their son.

A melange of individuals with differing past experiences and psychological profiles are thus all thrown together in an isolated mansion, were tensions become high and old hurts fester and come to a boil.

The tension escalates beautifully as the plot unfolds, and we discover that there is more to this than petty bickering.

The crux of the story revolves around the heroine's attachment to an ex lover who shows up with his wife to be, and the twists bring us to a climactic incident, which then unlocks the darker nature of our characters. Each is tested and faced with his or her own turmoils and tribulations, and has a choice to make in order to resolve a very complicated situation.

Although the film repeats main familiar themes such as greed, jealousy, love and choice of ethics, it still manages to entertain because of the plot escalation and the consistency of both the characters and the story line. It satisfies our emotions of sorts and we nod in agreement because we expect the behaviour we witness from most of the familiar type cast characters.

This is a film about testing the boundaries of human emotions and morality. How far would each of us go when faced with a life changing situation, to either be selfless and moral or selfish in order to survive?

The darker side of the human intellect is exposed with candidness and transparency. This honesty- even to the point of admitting to moments of insanity in each human being when faced with an overwhelming circumstance- is refreshing.

The only feeling of 'wrongness' about the film, is in relation to how far these characters are willing to go to get to an end result.

The Machiavellian question of: 'does the end justify the means', comes to mind immediately, but the film has a slightly overly negative view of human nature in general.

It pushes the 'dark side' to extremes, when in reality (and although pragmatically people may behave insanely generally about certain things) it would be hard to believe that a majority in fact would go mad, or that ethics are in fact a thing of the past.    

On the contrary, and even with a realist's view point, ethics are still an integral part of humanity and a majority of individuals are capable of very strong moral decisions when faced with challenges.

Although this film could be a reflection of certain people in extreme situations, it is not a mirror image of society or reality in general.

We have all seen strangers helping someone in need on the street, as well as witnessed selflessness through amazing acts of kindness which shine through like beacons in the shadows.

The darker side of humanity certainly exists, but is not the overriding reality.

Extreme behaviour may be called for in certain cases, but being on the edge is a state most of us experience and come through successfully.

Falling off the edge is not necessarily the outcome. In fact, 'falling in' is often the result, where challenges we overcome make us stronger, even if they dramatically alter us or change our perspective on life.    

This film will have you on the edge of your seat at times, as well as thinking about the edges of reason, emotions and ethics.