I can't really review this film properly as I've seen it several times before. I went to see it again because I think it's great and there was also an introduction by Maggie Hoffgen from the Goethe Institut.
Maggie's introduction was occasionally illuminating but she also for some reason gave us a resume of the film we were about to see. Anyway, despite being shown on the smallest screen in the Cornerhouse, the sound and picture not being the best quality and the picture being at a strange angle all the way through, it was nice to see the film again.
When I first saw it at 17 I was really taken in by the slow-boiling paranoia, the German-ness of it and the slight homo-erotic subtext. And even after several viewings 23 was still intriguing to me.
I am not going to rate it but I still think this is great.
Thursday, September 14, 2006
Crank - 12th September 2006
This film was just as silly and enjoyable as promised. There wasn't really much of a plot just an excuse for Jason Statham to go nuts for a while driving fast cars, beating people up and taking lots of drugs.
While I applauded all the great silliness I did kind of feel a bit lost at some points. It almost felt the script had been written during a particularly drunken game of Consequences: "ok, he beats up some people and then he steals a car and then goes to the hospital..." it didn't really feel like it was going anywhere.
There were also too many sequences of Statham driving a car fast, or riding a motorbike fast, or running fast with obligatory hard rock music, sweeping camera and bizarrely unnecessary effects.
I was also rather disappointed about the lack of innovative prop use, such as melons and fire hoses, like in Transporter 2. Most disputes seemed to be settled by gunfights which was a bit annoying, although the severed hand bit was rather interesting.
Some bits, however, were quite amusing, such as the ridiculous final shootout between the rival gangs and when Statham steals a taxi cab from an Arab driver; throwing him to the ground and shouting 'Al-Qaida', at which point he is set upon by a crowd of onlookers.
It wasn't a bad use of an afternoon but I can't help but feel there were a lot of missed opportunities... I give Crank 2 and a half stars out of 5.
While I applauded all the great silliness I did kind of feel a bit lost at some points. It almost felt the script had been written during a particularly drunken game of Consequences: "ok, he beats up some people and then he steals a car and then goes to the hospital..." it didn't really feel like it was going anywhere.
There were also too many sequences of Statham driving a car fast, or riding a motorbike fast, or running fast with obligatory hard rock music, sweeping camera and bizarrely unnecessary effects.
I was also rather disappointed about the lack of innovative prop use, such as melons and fire hoses, like in Transporter 2. Most disputes seemed to be settled by gunfights which was a bit annoying, although the severed hand bit was rather interesting.
Some bits, however, were quite amusing, such as the ridiculous final shootout between the rival gangs and when Statham steals a taxi cab from an Arab driver; throwing him to the ground and shouting 'Al-Qaida', at which point he is set upon by a crowd of onlookers.
It wasn't a bad use of an afternoon but I can't help but feel there were a lot of missed opportunities... I give Crank 2 and a half stars out of 5.
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
Renaissance - 4th September 2006
I hadn't heard much about this film except it was a French black-and-white animated futuristic film noir. As genres go this one seems fairly niche although it managed to be incredibly original and yet somehow reassuring.
First of all to the film noir part: Renaissance was a brilliant example of the genre; the plot was well timed and had all the necessary ingredients - dark and brooding cop (excellently voiced by Daniel Craig), femme fatale, shadowy corporation, a selection of underworld characters and enough plot twists, car chases and gun fights to keep the viewer interested.
One of the most wonderful things in film noir is the use of chiascuro and the medium of monochrome animation was absolutely perfect - the director could choose exactly what to light up and what to keep in shadow, it really was amazing how effective the black and white was.
Using this wonderful medium the director was able to create a futuristic vision of Paris about 50 years hence. There were of course nods to Metropolis and Blade Runner but this city managed to remain unique. Its multi-layered criss-crossing railtracks provided the perfect noir shadows and the view of a Montmartre swamped with buildings was breath-taking. In fact, the 'locations' were possible the best part of the film. From the imposing offices of uber-corporation Avalon to the baths belonging to the gangland boss to the white-light forest prison, every new location was astounding.
The film also boasts probably the best car chase I've seen all year: a high-speed take-no-prisoners chase through the roads of this futuristic Paris, although I think Citroen can't have done badly out of it... The fight scenes were also magnificent, particularly the surreal slo-mo shoot-out on the rooftop arboretum.
Finally, as a France/Luxembourg/UK (although I believe mainly French) co-production, it was strange to see all the future Parisians speaking English. A further aspect of this nightmarish future dystopia was that the French language had been all but wiped out. Subtle allusions were made to this dead language (the remains of an advert, a copy of Le Monde 2006) but no explanation was given.
This film was, as far as I can say, unique. Each frame was fascinating and it managed to live-up to and surpass all the expectations of its varied genres. 8.5
First of all to the film noir part: Renaissance was a brilliant example of the genre; the plot was well timed and had all the necessary ingredients - dark and brooding cop (excellently voiced by Daniel Craig), femme fatale, shadowy corporation, a selection of underworld characters and enough plot twists, car chases and gun fights to keep the viewer interested.
One of the most wonderful things in film noir is the use of chiascuro and the medium of monochrome animation was absolutely perfect - the director could choose exactly what to light up and what to keep in shadow, it really was amazing how effective the black and white was.
Using this wonderful medium the director was able to create a futuristic vision of Paris about 50 years hence. There were of course nods to Metropolis and Blade Runner but this city managed to remain unique. Its multi-layered criss-crossing railtracks provided the perfect noir shadows and the view of a Montmartre swamped with buildings was breath-taking. In fact, the 'locations' were possible the best part of the film. From the imposing offices of uber-corporation Avalon to the baths belonging to the gangland boss to the white-light forest prison, every new location was astounding.
The film also boasts probably the best car chase I've seen all year: a high-speed take-no-prisoners chase through the roads of this futuristic Paris, although I think Citroen can't have done badly out of it... The fight scenes were also magnificent, particularly the surreal slo-mo shoot-out on the rooftop arboretum.
Finally, as a France/Luxembourg/UK (although I believe mainly French) co-production, it was strange to see all the future Parisians speaking English. A further aspect of this nightmarish future dystopia was that the French language had been all but wiped out. Subtle allusions were made to this dead language (the remains of an advert, a copy of Le Monde 2006) but no explanation was given.
This film was, as far as I can say, unique. Each frame was fascinating and it managed to live-up to and surpass all the expectations of its varied genres. 8.5
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