Reviews
Frailty
- Details
- Written by Matthew Toomey
| Directed by: | Bill Paxton |
| Written by: | Brent Hanley |
| Starring: | Bill Paxton, Matthew McConaughey, Powers Boothe, Matthew O’Leary, Jeremy Sumpter |
| Released: | January 30, 2003 |
| Grade: | B+ |
Fenton Meiks (McConaughey) is sitting and waiting for Agent Wesley Doyle (Boothe). The two have never met but Adam has some important information to share - he knows who’s responsible for a recent spate of local killings. It’s Fenton’s own brother, Adam. Exactly why is Fenton dobbing in his own brother? Well it’s a long story and he’s about to explain it all to Agent Doyle.
Not yet a teenager, Fenton (O’Leary), his younger brother Adam (Sumpter), and their father (Paxton) lived a standard existence. Until one morning, the dad awoke with a compelling story to tell. He had been visited by an angel sent by God. The angel told him that he had been chosen to destroy “demons” and would soon be given a list of names of people, posing as demons, who needed to be killed.
The influential Adam had no qualms believing his father’s tale but the wiser Fenton did not believe a word. He feared his father was losing his mind and hoped this fantasy would quickly dissipate. Not so. Dad suddenly had a list of seven names and Fenton was soon witness to bloody slayings in their back shed and being forced to dig graves to hide the bodies.
The horror didn’t end. Fenton was told not to tell anyone or something terrible would happen to the family. He considered running away but couldn’t leave his brother behind. He was trapped and his dad was tiring of his reluctance to believe in God’s wishes. Something had to happen... and it did. If you put the pieces together, you’ll think you know how this reflection relates to the current situation with Agent Doyle. But you’d be wrong...
I hadn’t heard of the film prior to last week but Bill Paxton, in his directorial debut, has a dynamite screenplay to work from. It’s very disturbing and the religious undertone increases the unsettling tension. Paxton doesn’t shy away from the film’s troubling moments - the killing scenes are particularly gruesome and there’s some upsetting moments that the young Fenton is forced to endure. His style certainly kept my attention and credit to Paxton, although I’ll admit the direction was a bit rough around the edges.
Paxton also delivers a strong performance. Matthew McConaughey shares top billing but has a minor role compared with the other cast members. This was 15-year-old Matthew O’Leary’s first film (as noted in the credits) despite it being the third film I’ve seen him in. How so? Well the film is two years old and in the time since, O’Leary’s exposure has seen him feature in Domestic Disturbance and Spy Kids 2.
But the real star is the script and another newcomer, Brent Hanley receives credit for it. I’m not convinced the rationale is there but it’s still absorbing. Hanley already has a few other screenplays in the works and I’ll keep one eye open in anticipation of their release. While we’re all waiting, the opportunity has arrived to see Frailty and with it, an agitatingly creepy thriller. Believe at your own peril.
I Spy
- Details
- Written by Matthew Toomey
| Directed by: | Betty Thomas |
| Written by: | Marianne Wibberley, Cormac Wibberley, Jay Scherick, David Ronn |
| Starring: | Eddie Murphy, Owen Wilson, Famke Janssen, Malcolm McDowell, Gary Cole |
| Released: | January 23, 2003 |
| Grade: | C |
The Courier-Mail, Monday, January 27, 2003, page 2. “Police last night defended their response to a bomb hoax at a Brisbane shopping centre. Members of the police service told staff and shoppers at Stafford City, on Brisbane’s northside, there was a bomb. The two-hour alert turned out to be a hoax. ‘We have to treat all matters seriously until our investigations prove them to be otherwise,’ said a spokeswoman.”
I saw scheduled to see the 12:20pm session of I Spy last Sunday. To my “surprise”, the cinema and shopping complex had been closed due to a bomb scare. The police have been unable to identify the perpetrator of this hoax but I fear I may be brought in for questioning in the near future. You see, I am one of the few people with a motive strong enough to resort to such a gutless tactic. I was off to see I Spy.
For this screenplay, which I believe was written on three pieces of one-ply toilet paper, Eddie Murphy and Owen Wilson are the outspoken boxer, Kelly Robinson, and classy secret agent, Alexander Scott. Scott has been assigned the mission of tracking down and returning to the United States, a top secret invisible plane which has fallen into the wrong hands. Gundars (McDowell) is a wealthy Belgian, who also happens to be a huge boxing fan, who is rumoured to be holding a large party as a cover to invite bids on the plane. Scott needs to get into that party and the agency has arranged for Robinson to team up with Scott to save the day. Yadda, yadda, yadda.
It’s pitiful at the very best. The whole story is structured around a predefined conclusion and lame jokes. Logic takes a back-seat to mayhem. There are too many examples and I’m too tired to go through them all. Take my word for it - it’s garbage. Eddie Murphy’s only made two good movies in the last ten years - Bowfinger and Shrek. If I was a casting agent, I’d be making sure I watched Showtime, Pluto Nash, Dr. Dolittle, The Nutty Professor, Life, Holy Man, Metro, Vampire In Brooklyn... before making any decision to offer him employment.
I spy with my little eye, an absolute piece of crap.
Two Weeks Notice
- Details
- Written by Matthew Toomey
| Directed by: | Marc Lawrence |
| Written by: | Marc Lawrence |
| Starring: | Sandra Bullock, Hugh Grant, Alicia Witt, Dana Ivey, Robert Klein, Heather Burns |
| Released: | January 1, 2003 |
| Grade: | B |
With hundreds of films released every week, it’s hard to develop a distinctive poster to promote a movie. Usually, it comes back to the same familiar designs. Knowing very little about the movie itself, the intriguing poster for Two Weeks Notice wet my appetite for a film I’d usually pass over. If you’ve seen it, Sandra Bullock’s face is featured in the left foreground with Hugh Grant’s face, to the right, looking over her shoulder. Hugh has a beaming smile whereas Sandra looks forlorn and disinterested. Why? I may be the only one, but it’s a distinctive poster to promote a romantic comedy.
Having seen the film, I can tell you that Mr Grant plays George Wade, a multi-millionaire living in New York City. His companies, which he owns with his brother, are a city leader in construction. He lives in a luxurious suite atop The Grand Hotel, which he also owns. His business success seems inversely related to his romantic successes. Divorced more than once, he has a habit of hiring female staff purely on looks. This formula has forced him to let many staff go due to incompetence (but not before sleeping with them).
Ms Bullock is Lucy Kelson, an attorney who likes fighting for social causes. She’s always performing legal aid but gets little financial reward herself. Lucy also fights to keep many of New York landmark buildings and save them from demolition. Most of these buildings have been bought by Wade’s corporations and redeveloped into apartments and other such inferior replacements.
When the local community centre is marked for destruction, Lucy heads to George’s office for a confrontation. But it so happens, that George has just fired his legal adviser and on his brother’s advice, is looking for someone with intelligence this time. Two and two come together, George convinces the reluctant Lucy to work for him and in return, he guarantees the community centre will remain intact.
Working for George turns out to be much more demanding than Lucy anticipated. It’s not that he’s a slave driver, but becomes increasingly reliant on Lucy’s advice for everything. He’ll call at 2am in the morning for a chat. He’ll call her out of a best friend’s wedding to ask what clothes he should wear. He’ll use her to write all his speeches. It’s a “seven days a week, 18 hours a day” job and something’s gotta give. So Lucy hands in her two weeks notice and the subliminal romantic tension between them looks set to boil over.
Overall, it’s a bland romantic comedy that is difficult to become deeply involved in. Despite the obviously intentions to have the audience like him, I found George Wade to be nothing more than a snobby rich playboy. There’s little leeway in Lucy’s character either – she’s the ultimate nice-girl who we are forced to feel sorry for because her lack of trust has seen her remain single. It’s very black and white.
As a plus, it is a nice choice of role for Sandra Bullock. Always criticised (by me), she gives some life to her cardboard character. The dialogue is written by Marc Lawrence, who has written for Bullock before in Miss Congeniality and Forces Of Nature. In the director’s chair for the first time, Lawrence makes sure we don’t miss the New York setting with many (probably too many) glorious fly-overs and panoramic background vistas. If you can’t tell, we’re leaning towards schmaltzy chick-flick territory. Perhaps the poster might have been more appropriate if it was Bullock was smiling and Grant was disinterested. A more realistic impression of an audience’s reaction.
Spy Kids 2: The Island Of Lost Dreams
- Details
- Written by Matthew Toomey
| Directed by: | Robert Rodriguez |
| Written by: | Robert Rodriguez |
| Starring: | Antonio Banderas, Carla Gugino, Alexa Vega, Daryl Sabara, Steve Buscemi, Matt O’Leary, Emily Osment |
| Released: | January 9, 2003 |
| Grade: | B |
Directed by Robert Rodriguez, Spy Kids was a stunning box-office success and you know what that means, don’t you? Sequel! The original was good fun and despite not fitting into the studios target audience (i.e. kids), I’m still happy to report the follow-up is equally as good, if not better.
The enjoyment factor comes from the largely young cast. No adults wasting precious screen time. In addition to our two small heroes, Carmen (Vega) and Juni (Sabara), we have two new kids who serve as their arch rivals, Gary (O’Leary) and Gerti (Osment). It all leads to a more expanded plot with better adventure.
This time around, a powerful weapon known as the transmooker device has been stolen from the president’s grasp. The device can disenable any technological instrument and is a vital tool for anyone wishing to take over the world. Because their father is the head of the OSS, Gary and Gerti are given level 1 priority and the mission to rescue the transmooker. Carmen and Juni aren’t impressed and crack the OSS computer system, swap missions, and head off themselves on this daring assignment.
They travel to a mysterious island inhabited by dangerously mutated animals. There they meet Dr. Romero (Buscemi), the mad scientist responsible for the island’s creatures, but he’s not the man they’re after. Learning they have been deceived, Gary and Gerti soon reach the island themselves and it becomes a battle of two spy teams seeing who can crack the case first. The answer is a lot closer to home than they imagined…
The special effects are second-rate, and the storyline lacks the depth of a Harry Potter, but it’s definitely an action-packed adventure ride that kids will eat up. There’s plenty going on and things are kept funny and simple. It’s like a miniature version of James Bond (without the scantily clad women).
For adults being dragged along by their kids to this movie, Steve Buscemi adds comic relief. He’s funny everytime I see him on screen and whilst this isn’t a film you’ll see in a “best of” collection, it’s vintage Buscemi. There are quite a few second-tier stars that you’ll also recognise but this film is about the kids and they deserve the attention with their youthful fun-loving attitude. Note also that the actress playing Gerti, Emily Osment, is the younger sister of Haley Joel Osment who wowed us in The Sixth Sense and Artificial Intelligence.
With a few weeks of the school holidays remaining, there’s no need to groan too loudly when the kids ask to see Spy Kids 2. You may not be as running up and down the aisle, but at least your kids will.
The Quiet American
- Details
- Written by Matthew Toomey
| Directed by: | Phillip Noyce |
| Written by: | Christopher Hampton, Robert Schenkkan |
| Starring: | Michael Caine, Brendan Fraser, Do Thi Hai Yen, Rade Serbedzija, Tzi Ma, Robert Stanton |
| Released: | January 16, 2003 |
| Grade: | A+ |
There are two stories in The Quiet American and both are told with uncompromising honesty and precision. The depth of characters is evident and the essence of Graham Greene’s novel (upon which the film is based) has been retained.
Set in Vietnam 1952, Thomas Fowler (Caine) is a journalist for the London times who reports on Vietnam’s plight to be liberated from France. He enjoys his work but seems more interested in his much younger mistress, Phuong (Hai Yen). Fowler wants to take Phuong back to London when he completes his time in Vietnam but his wife, waiting back in London, is refusing to give a divorce. Phuong’s sister sees there’s no hope in their relationship and begs for her to find a younger, more eligible man.
Alden Pyle (Fraser) then arrives as an aid worker from America. He meets Fowler at a cafe and the two become friends and draw from each other’s experiences. But Pyle too has become smitten by Phuong and is not afraid to hide his affections. The softly-spoken Fowler is having his world shaken. He get a call from the London office asking him to return home, a letter from his wife refusing a divorce once and for all, and a close friend is walking off with his true love.
In a last ditched bid to stay in Vietnam, Fowler gets word of trouble in the north. Using his experience to uncover this story, he hopes London will grant him an extension of time to stay (and fight for Phuong). They allow his request but Phuong will become, at least momentarily, a lesser priority as Fowler’s realises the importance of the story he is exposing. Trouble is brewing in Vietnam...
The Quiet American is actually the first mainstream Hollywood film to be shot in Vietnam. Directed by Australian Phillip Noyce (Rabbit-Proof Fence), it immaculately captures the setting and feeling of the time. Michael Caine digs deep and delivers a career-defining performance which already has everyone talking. The underrated Brendan Fraser will admit to making a lot of garbage, but as both this film and Gods And Monsters showed, he can pull it out when he has to.
Bottom line, it’s great storytelling. The love triangle between Fowler, Pyle and Phuong is unconventional yet seems more realistic. The destinies of these characters are not trivialised by a typically drawn-out ending. Importantly, it doesn’t preach nor praise any actions of Americans. In fact, there’s very little that’s “Hollywood” about The Quiet American and therein lies the appeal.
The film is lucky to have been released. Financed by Miramax, studio head Harvey Weinstein didn’t feel appropriate to release the film so soon after the September 11 terrorist bombings. Having seen the film, Weinstein should be institutionalised for coming to such a conclusion. After lobbying from Noyce, Weinstein backed down but was aiming for an early 2003 release date so it wouldn’t clash with other Miramax Oscar contenders such as Gangs Of New York and Chicago. Sigh. Critics then intervened. Columnist Jeffrey Wells saw the film and launched a huge campaign for it to be released in time for the Academy Awards. Miramax finally conceded, the film has been released, and regardless of whether Oscar glory awaits, at least people now have the opportunity to see a very important film.
One of the most engrossing films of the season, one should be anything but “quiet” about spreading the word for The Quiet American. Powerful.
The Hot Chick
- Details
- Written by Matthew Toomey
| Directed by: | Tom Brady |
| Written by: | Tom Brady, Rob Schneider |
| Starring: | Rob Schneider, Rachel McAdams, Anna Faris, Matthew Lawrence, Sam Doumit |
| Released: | January 1, 2003 |
| Grade: | C |
Rob Schneider seems to be doing just enough to keep in the business. Relying solely on his childish humour, Schneider has managed to steal from Americans, $65.5m for Duece Bigalow: Male Gigolo and $55.7m for The Animal. To the Happy Madison production studio, this equals profit and based on this, The Hot Chick was made.
In case you’ve been living in a cave, the concept of a guy and a girl switching places ain’t new. Jessica (McAdams) thinks she’s one of the most popular girls at school with her cool friends, expensive car and vast wardrobe. In fact, most everyone hates her snobby persona and would do anything to get back at her. Clive (Schneider) is a bum with no money. He’s just robbed a service station for $18 and is on the run from authorities.
In a long-winded series of coincidences (which I won’t bore you with), the two switch bodies. Jessica wakes up one morning to find she is Clive and vice-versa. From here, The Hot Chick focuses on Jessica in Clive’s body and little is told of the other tale. You can pretty much guess the jokes. If you can’t, just watch the trailer.
Newcomer Rachel McAdams is the only spark in this burnt-out effort. She plays the snobby rich bitch in a deliberately over-the-top sarcastic style. Unfortunately for us, little else is seen of her after the first 20 minutes. As a friend of Schneider, Adam Sandler pops up in a marginally funny role as a weed smoking shop attendant. Usually, it’s Schneider making the cameo in Adam Sandler’s movies ala The Waterboy, Little Nicky, Big Daddy and Mr. Deeds.
The Hot Chick has the honour of being the first film I’ve seen in 2003. I’ll probably bring it up again at the end of the year when reflecting back on the year’s… worst.