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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 13 June 2019

More than 200 films were released in Australian cinemas in 2007 and my favourite was The Lives of Others.  It was a riveting drama set in the 1980s that looked at the role of the Stasi, a police organisation that, through its huge army of secret informants, suppressed dissent against the East German communist government.  It’s a fascinating period of history that is seldom covered on screen (at least when compared against the abundance of German movies set during World War II).

The Lives of Others won director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck the Academy Award for best foreign language film (beating Pan’s Labyrinth in an upset) but in the decade to follow, he’s curiously made just one film.  The Tourist, a 2010 English language thriller starring Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie, was a modest success at the box-office but was savaged by most critics (myself included).

In what is his first movie for eight years, Donnersmarck has returned to Germany and delved into another intriguing chapter in his country’s history.  Never Look Away tells the tale of Kurt Barnert (Schilling), a young painter who grew up in a Nazi-ruled Germany and now, following the cessation of World War II, is trying to find his artistic voice.

The story is “inspired” by the life of Gerhard Richter, a renowned painter born and raised in Dresden.  That has created a point of controversy.  The real-life Richter, now 87 years of age, didn’t agree to a biopic and while he shared information with Donnersmarck, he’d done so under the impression that the movie would be heavily fictionalised.  It’s created a humorous, topsy-turvy scenario where someone is unhappy that a movie too closely resembles their life!  Such criticisms are normally the other way around.

The film has a lot to say about art and its value.  Kurt finds himself in a repressed Germany (post World War II) where social realism is pushed heavily by its leaders.  Despite his dislike for the art form, he reluctantly accepts a job painting giant pro-government propaganda murals as a source of income.  He hasn’t given up on his dreams though.  Cinematographer Caleb Deschanel (The Natural) captures some striking moments where Kurt experiments on new art forms in the privacy of his own art studio.

There’s a secondary storyline that may sound far-fetched but it too is based on actual events.  Kurt falls in love with Ellie (Beer), a fashion design student he meets at art school.  Both are unaware of the fact that Ellie’s father, Carl (Koch), was a cold-blooded Nazi doctor who euthanized Germans with disabilities, including Kurt’s aunt, during World War II.  Carl now keeps a low profile but the authorities are closing in on him and others involved.

Never Look Away picked up Oscar nominations earlier this year for best foreign language film and best cinematography (losing both awards to Roma).  If you’re attracted to the era, you’ll be impressed with the mix of visual effects, constructed sets, and actual locations that have been used to recreate Germany in the 1940s and 50s.  The also deserves praise for its performances and the subtle film score provided by German composer Max Richter. 

A few may balk at the lengthy 188 minute running time but Never Look Away is an absorbing drama that looks at the interaction between art and society.

You can read my interview with writer-director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck by clicking here. 

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 03 June 2019

It may sound like a spin-off of Nia Vardalos’s ridiculously successful 2002 My Big Fat Greek Wedding but this Italian film was inspired by a small, off-Broadway play that premiered in New York City in 2003.  It was well received, particularly within the gay community, and it inspired writer Anthony J. Wilkinson to pen two sequels – My Big Gay Italian Funeral and My Big Gay Italian Midlife Crisis.

Brought to the screen by writer-director Alessandro Genovesi, My Big Gay Italian Wedding is intended to be a sweet, simple, light-hearted farce.  It begins on a romantic note though.  Antonio (Caccamo) pulls out a silver ring from his pocket, a surprised Paolo (Esposito) is quick to say yes, and the wedding preparations can now begin.

Every character in the film has self-generated problems and instead of going for the obvious solution, they follow romantic comedy clichés and make life as difficult as possible.  For starters, Antonio hasn’t told his parents that he’s gay.  Living in Berlin has allowed him to avoid their prying eyes but the time has come for him to travel to his home town in Italy and introduce his husband-to-be.  You can sense the nerves as Antonio tip-toes around the subject during the early scenes.

He finally makes the big reveal (it’s about 30 minutes in) and the remainder of the film follows the humorous, messy aftermath.  Antonio’s father (Abatantuono) markets himself as the town’s open-minded, liberal mayor but he’s clearly not comfortable with his son’s sexuality.  Antonio’s mother (Guerritore) is much more accepting but she’s now become a semi-crazed wedding planner who has a “my way or the highway” mentality when it comes to the venue and guest list.

Two other characters have a major role to play.  The first is Camilla (Arnera), Antonio’s ex-girlfriend who can’t accept that he’s now gay and will do anything she can to win back his affections.  The second is Donato (Abbrescia), Antonio’s chatty new flatmate who is battling personal issues and cannot be left alone.  If it’s not already evident, the wedding preps will be anything but smooth!

If the audience response at my preview screening is anything to go by, My Big Gay Italian Wedding is a likeable crowd pleaser with plenty of genuine giggles.  The well-chosen cast do a great job stepping into the shoes of these self-absorbed characters and the screenplay has a nice mix of scenes that balance the craziness with the tenderness.

There are issues with the script.  Certain parts are rushed and you get a sense that not enough has been made of the material.  This is most evident during the quick-fire climax where some of the character transformations lack credibility.  Why not make the finale longer and have more fun with it?  Further, the weird, manufactured-for-laughs relationship between Antonio and his stalker ex-girlfriend hints at a darker style of comedy but feels out of place.

If you missed the chance to see it at last year’s Italian Film Festival, My Big Gay Italian Wedding is now screening in limited release across Australia.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 12 June 2019

The first three films in the Men in Black series (which began back in 1997) saw Will Smith team up with Tommy Lee Jones as secret agents charged with the responsibility of monitoring the many alien lifeforms that covertly reside on Earth.  The producers felt that the Smith and Jones storylines were “emotionally complete” and so to keep the franchise alive, they’ve gone with a quasi-reboot for Men in Black: International.

London is now the main setting and two new characters have been created.  Australian Chris Hemsworth (Thor) is Agent H, a renowned, playful individual who is credited with “saving the world” on his most famous assignment.  American Tessa Thompson (Creed) is Agent M, a fresh recruit who has spent almost 20 years preparing for this dream job and now gets the chance to prove herself.

Directed by F. Gary Gray (Straight Outta Compton), Men in Black: International is a disappointing action-comedy.  In trying to act overly cool and funny, these heroes come off as fake and boring.  They’re rarely put under any pressure and they stumble from scene-to-scene as if they know exactly what’s around the corner.  They try to add depth to Agent M’s character by introducing her as a tormented soul (she’s never had pets or been in a relationship) but all of that seems forgotten when she joins the Men in Black organisation.

Similar criticisms can be levelled at the film’s villains who have weak, unexciting motives.  There’s a cliched, power-hungry alien played by Rebecca Ferguson (The Greatest Showman) looking to get her hands on the world’s most potent weapon.  Also in the mix are two shape-shifting creatures, played by the Les Twins, who keep popping up in the right places but never feel threatening given their incompetence.

The one bright spark comes from an actor we don’t get to see.  Kumail Nanjiani (The Big Sick) plays the voice of a funny alien dubbed “Pawny” who is small in stature but big on personality.  He doesn’t have a huge role to play but his insecure, self-deprecating nature earns laughs.  It’s a shame he didn’t get more screen time.

It’s only mid-June but Men in Black: International marks the 15^th sequel, reboot or remake to be released in Australian cinemas.  Some have underperformed at the box-office (e.g. X-Men: Dark Phoenix, Godzilla II: King of the Monsters) and so it’ll be interesting to see if this one can lure in its previous fans.  I have my doubts.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 31 May 2019

What if you discovered that your sweet elderly grandmother, born and raised in England, was a Russian spy during World War II?  It may sound like something from a fictional John le Carré novel but the story of Melita Norwood is both real and fascinating.

In the late 1930s, a twenty-something-year-old Norwood worked as secretary to the department head of a major research foundation and was able to leak valuable information about Britain’s atomic weapons to the Soviet Union.  Her illegal actions remained a secret until she was finally exposed in The Times of London newspaper in 1999.  It was at that point when an 87-year-old, white-haired Norwood stood outside her home and released a statement to the media explaining her actions.  Her friends, her neighbours and yes, her own daughter, were stunned by the revelation.

It’s worth nothing that Red Joan is only loosely based on the story of Melita Norwood.  Many details have been changed including the name of the lead character.  She’s known in the movie as Joan Stanley with the 1930s version played by Sophie Cookson (Kingsman: The Secret Service) and the 1990s version played by Oscar winner Judi Dench (Shakespeare in Love).  I’m not sure what’s behind the major revisions (the original story is already a good one) but another key change is the introduction of a lawyer son who aides his mother when interrogated by British police.

The oppression against women in the workplace over the last century has been well documented but the irony is that such discrimination helped Joan succeed with her work as a mole.  There’s a humorous scene where she’s convinced by a fellow female spy to continue on with her great work – “No one will suspect us.  We’re women.”  That was certainly the case.  The British military were paranoid about their “super bomb” research being leaked to the enemy and whilst they performed thorough audits and background checks, they foolishly turned a blind eye to the secretaries who were responsible for filing valuable documents.

Brought to the screen by Tony Award winning director Trevor Nunn (Cats, Les Misérables), Red Joan lacks pace and energy.  It’s a largely ho-hum drama that gets bogged down in detail with Joan’s college years at Cambridge and her on-again-off-again relationship with a German Jew (Hughes) who helped indoctrinate her within communist circles.  An additional romantic storyline involving her boss (Campbell Moore) adds little in terms of substance and character development.

Despite the film’s limitations, there are some layers which achieve their purpose.  She’s not exactly Ethan Hunt but it’s interesting to see the techniques used by Joan to smuggle photos and research material outside of the well-guarded office.  The most surprising, thought-provoking layer sees the older Joan explain and justify her criminal actions to her middle aged son.  She’s a woman of strong conviction who shows little sign of remorse.

It’s an intriguing true story but Red Joan isn’t the slick, gripping thriller you might expect.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 09 June 2019

We’ve already had several interesting biopics released this year about a variety of subjects including British royalty (Mary Queen of Scots), dodgy politicians (The Front Runner), Supreme Court justices (On the Basis of Sex), Dutch painters (At Eternity’s Gate) and troubled musicians (Rocketman).  We now turn our attention to an acclaimed author.  Born in South Africa and raised in England, J. R. R. Tolkien is regarded by many as one of the great writers of the 20^th Century.

It was across the 1930s and 40s that Tolkien wrote his most famous works, The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.  Rather than delve into that period of his life, screenwriters Stephen Beresford (Pride) and David Gleeson (Cowboys & Angels) take us back to the early 1900s and focus on his schooling years.  He attended the King Edward’s School in Birmingham before going on to study classics, English language and literature at The University of Oxford.

If you’ve read The Lord of the Rings, you’ll know that one of its strong themes is friendship.  In the first book, nine individuals from Middle-earth formed a “fellowship” with the singular goal of destroying the One Ring before it fell into the hands of the evil Sauron.  That same theme is highlighted in Tolkien… well, except without the ring which could destroy the world.

It was at high school that Tolkien met three fellow students who would become his best buddies – Geoffrey Bache Smith, Robert Q. Gibson and Christopher Wiseman.  They were an eclectic, knowledgeable bunch who shared a love for good conversation, literature and tea.  The interaction between these four characters is the soul of the movie.  Tolkien is a beautiful told tale that shows the value of strong, supportive friends and how they can shape our lives, our decisions and our personalities.

It’s unfair to single out one performance (they’re all terrific) but it’s great to see 25-year-old Anthony Boyle in his first major feature film role.  I had the chance to see Boyle’s Tony Award nominated performance (as Scorpius Malfoy) in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child when visiting New York City last July.  He’s a talented, versatile actor from Northern Ireland who seems destined for a long career.  The part comedic, part heartfelt banter he shares with star Nicholas Hoult (The Favourite) is another of the film’s worthy attributes.

The other key layer to Tolkien involves the writer’s romantic relationship with Edith Bratt (Collins), a young woman he first met at a boarding house in Birmingham.  It’s hard to depict an artist’s inner psyche on screen but Finnish director Dome Karukoski (Tom of Finland) skilly illustrates Tolkien’s fast-thinking, creative mindset during a fun sequence where he and Bratt bounce ideas off each other in a fancy restaurant.

The intermittent wartime scenes are clumsy and protracted but for the most part, Tolkien is an engaging drama.  The reflective film score from composer Thomas Newman (The Shawshank Redemption) adds to its impact.