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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 31 December 2017

It’s a great, intriguing title for a movie and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri is quick to set the scene.  Seven months ago, the daughter of Mildred Hayes (McDormand) was abducted, raped and killed in a small American town.  In the time that has since passed, the local police, headed by Sheriff Bill Willoughby (Harrelson), have found no tangible evidence and identified no possible suspects.

A frustrated Mildred then walks into the town’s advertising business and rents three old billboards.  They haven’t been used since 1986 and are on a quiet road that almost no one travels down.  The billboards read – “Raped while dying”, “Sill no arrests?” and “How come, Chief Willoughby?”

They definitely make an impression.  It’s not long before local media picks up the story of the billboards and attention is drawn to the inaction of the police officers.  Mildred accused them of being more interested in torturing black folks than solving crimes.  With a tough disposition and an extraordinarily foul mouth, she is dealing with her grief in a rather unorthodox manner.

Those that have seen the last two films of British writer-director Martin McDonagh will know that he has a warped, dark sense of humour.  In Bruges was the story of two hitman who bicker while stuck in the famous Belgian city.  Seven Psychopaths was about a struggling writer drawn into a world of crime after his best friend started kidnapping dogs.  They’re both terrific black comedies that give the Coen Brothers a run for their money.

I cite those films to provide a reference for what to expect in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.  This is McDonagh’s darkest effort yet.  You won't know whether to laugh openly or curl up with horror.  He wants to make us feel uneasy by putting his protagonists through a number of moral quandaries.  There are several twists and your opinion of the characters will change throughout.

You could be confused in thinking this is a Quentin Tarantino flick given the verbal and physical abuse dished out by the cast members.  There’s a great scene where Mildred berates a priest who pays an unexpected visit.  That said, it’s hard to pick a highlight given there are so many examples to choose from.  It seems every character gets a chance to hurl a vicious insult at another.

The film is at its best when it’s trying to be funny.  It’s not as good when it’s trying to be serious.  I think McDonagh has something to say… but I’m not quite sure exactly what that is.  I’ve been stewing on it for a few weeks and it’s still hard to reconcile the actions of certain characters.  This is best illustrated by Sam Rockwell who plays a reckless, racist police officer.

Winner of the prestigious Audience Award at the 2017 Toronto Film Festival, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri may take multiple viewings to fully dissect and appreciate.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 15 December 2017

Paddington Bear is the fun-loving creature from deepest, darkest Peru who was created by English author Michael Bond in the 1950s.  He wears a duffle coat, walks around with an old suitcase, and has a penchant for marmalade.  He’s cute, he’s polite and he’s charming.  He’s one of the nicest characters you’re likely to encounter in children’s literature.

It will therefore come as a surprise to learn that Paddington (voiced by Ben Wishaw) spends half of this new movie in a maximum security prison surrounded by some of Britain’s worst criminals.  It may sound farcical on paper but this film takes a few interesting turns and is better for it.  It’s easily one of the best family releases of 2017.

The first movie ended with Paddington being taken in by the loving Brown family in Windsor Gardens, London.  As this instalment begins, we learn that Mr Brown (Bonneville) has a few work dramas, Mrs Brown (Hawkins) is preparing to swim the English channel, Judy is about to start a school newspaper, and Jonathan is looking for other interests outside his love for steam trains.

As for Paddington, he’s looking to buy a present for his aunt from Peru who is about to celebrate her 100^th birthday.  In an antique shop, he comes across a beautiful pop-up book that features landmarks of London which he thinks will be the perfect gift.  It’s not cheap and so he gets his first job – a window cleaner for commercial and residential buildings in the neighbourhood.

Paddington doesn’t realise it but there’s a sinister individual looking to also get his hands on the pop-up book.  Phoenix Buchanan (Grant) is a washed up actor who now makes a meagre living by starring in dog food commercials.  Realising the book has great value, he steals it from the antique shop and frames Paddington for the crime – hence why our beloved bear has been sentenced to 10 years in the slammer.

Paddington 2 is a delightful comedy that can be enjoyed by anyone of any age.  The storyline is easy to follow and it’s filled with plenty of jokes for both kids and adults to enjoy.  Hugh Grant is a wonderfully cool villain who uses an array of humorous costumes to evade capture (plus there’s a part where he eats dog food).  Peter Capaldi (The Thick of It) is the film’s other grinchy character – a cranky man who doesn’t like bears living in the community.  His inclusion allows writer-director Paul King (The Mighty Boosh) to push the important themes of inclusion, diversity and acceptance.

As bizarre as it sounds, the film’s best moments take place within the walls of the prison.  Paddington finds a way to leave his own mark on the facility and becomes friends with people he may never expect.  First and foremost is the frustrated chef (played by Brendan Gleeson) who won’t be publishing a cookbook any time soon.

Most sequels feel inferior to the original but this is a rare case where that isn’t true.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 18 December 2017

There is a belief by the people of Mexico that you die three times.  The first is when your heart stops beating.  The second is when you can no longer be seen – the point where you’re buried or cremated.  The third, and perhaps this is the saddest, is when there is no one left alive who can remember you or your story.

It’s for this reason that one of the biggest holidays of the year in Mexico is Día de Muertos, better known in English as the Day of the Dead.  It is held each year between October 31 and November 2 and is a celebration of friends and family members who have passed away.  Many set up altars in their homes with are adorned with photos of the deceased as well as food, flowers and candles which serve as an offering.

Coco is centred on this Mexican tradition and writer-director Lee Unkrich (Toy Story 3) admitted to being nervous given he is not of Mexican or Latino descent.  It’s why he engaged a wide range of consultants to make sure it is culturally accurate and epitomises everything that the iconic holiday stands for.

The protagonist is Miguel (Gonzalez) – a 12-year-old loves music and yearns to be a great guitar player.  Unfortunately, his family have a much narrower view of the world.  All forms of music are banned in the household because of silly grudge that’s been passed down from generation to generation.  Rather than follow his dreams, it’s strongly expected that Miguel will follow his parents’ footsteps and become a shoemaker.  It’s the last thing he wants.

Miguel runs away from home and in the process, is magically transported into the Land of the Dead.  It may sound morbid but it’s a sophisticated, fun place where the deceased (who take the form of skeletons) live similar lives as they did previously.  There’s a catch though.  Once the last person who remembers you passes away in the Land of the Living, you disappear from the Land of the Dead and are never seen again.

Miguel’s brief foray into the afterlife puts him on a journey to locate and meet Ernesto de la Cruz (Bratt), a very famous musician who he believes is his great-great grandfather.  He is guided by Héctor (Bernal), a not-so-well known skeleton who knows that he’s almost been forgotten on Earth and that his days are numbered.  In return for his help, Miguel agrees to place a photo of Héctor on an altar when he returns back home to ensure his memory remains.

As we’ve seen with films such as Inside Out, Up, WALL-E and Toy Story, the brilliant writers at Pixar Animation Studios keep coming up with fresh, wonderful original stories.  They don’t follow the mould of other animated features and they don’t flog the same themes again and again.  This is a beautifully touching tale that has a lot of say about celebrating the past and why me must remember those who have come before us.  It’s a creative family film with a strong emotional core.

Unkrich and his animation team also deserve praise for the way they have brought the Land of the Dead to “life”.  This is the first time we’ve seen walking, talking skeletons in a Pixar film and they look really cool (as opposed to creepy).  They make such a distinctive sound as they move around their bones bump up against each other.  The backgrounds are bright, colourful and there’s a great film score from Michael Giacchino (Up) that tugs on the heartstrings when the time is right.

I was struggling to pick my favourite animated feature of 2017 but with Coco sneaking into Australian cinemas just before the end of the year, the choice has become simple.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 14 December 2017

Kids across the globe (and a few adults too) yearn to travel to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida.  If you visit their website, you can plan the ultimate family vacation and “create memories for a lifetime”.  Whether you agree with their tagline or not, the park in Florida and others around the world are widely referred to as “the Happiest Place on Earth.”

Orlando, Florida serves as the setting for this new film from writer-director Sean Baker (Tangerine) but it offers a very different view of life in the United States.  It’s the story of an adventurous 6-year-old, Moonee (Prince), and her unemployed young mother, Halley (Vinaite).  They live a stone’s throw away from the famous theme park but their life is anything but paradise.

With no home and next-to-no money in the bank, they reside in a tacky, rundown motel ironically called The Magic Castle.  The charge is $38 per night which Halley continually struggles to pay on time to the hotel’s manager, Bobby (Dafoe).  Trips to the unemployment office are fruitless and with no viable alternatives, Halley buys wholesale perfumes and hawks them off to wealthier folks on street corners and carparks.  The cash she earns, coupled with free leftovers from a nearby fast food restaurant, keeps her a millimetre above the poverty line.

In the same vein as a great Mike Leigh drama (Secrets & Lies, Another Year), The Florida Project is an observational piece with no clear narrative structure.  There’s no shock twist or huge personality transformation.  We watch these people go about their daily lives and see how they make the best of a bad situation.

This approach from director Sean Baker won’t satisfy everyone as evidenced by the number of walk outs at the preview screening I attended.  I guess some would prefer a lightweight action blockbuster as opposed to this harsh dose of reality that highlights the widening gap between rich and poor in the United States.  Whilst these characters are far from perfect, it’s hard not to feel empathy for their plight.  Desperate people do desperate things.

7-year-old actress Brooklynn Prince has been showered with praise for her amazingly natural performance as Moonee.  She’s a kid acting like a kid.  It looks entirely improvised and so I was surprised to learn that most of it was scripted (she has a great ability to learn lines).  Bria Vinaite is unrelenting as the emotional mother.  An intriguing element is the way the film delves into child psychology with Moonee closely imitating her mother’s vocabulary and personality – often to a fault. 

I saw someone remark on Twitter that the motel deserves a nomination for best supporting actor given it has such a strong, distinctive presence in the film.  You’ll know what I mean once you’ve seen the film.  The bright purple paint masks the troubled lives of the motel’s residences.  Rightly or wrongly, the hotel is likely to lose to Willem Dafoe who has already picked up a slew of awards for his subtle performance as the hotel manager.  He has a tough exterior but there’s a softer, protective side that comes through when the time is right.

Ending on an unusual note, The Florida Project may take a little time to sink in but it’s a commanding character study that will hopefully open eyes.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 17 December 2017

Ten years ago, acclaimed Italian director Luca Guadagnino (A Bigger Splash) was approached by long-time friend Peter Spears and asked for advice.  Spears had recently acquired the cinematic rights to the novel Call Me by Your Name but was struggling to work out where the film should be set.  Events clearly take place in Italy but author André Aciman provides no further information about the location of the towns and landmarks referred to throughout.

Guadagnino read the book, loved it immensely and realised it was set in Bordighera – a town in north-western Italy which lies along the Mediterranean coast and is a short drive from the French border.  He wrote a report back to Spears and moved on to his next directorial project – the gorgeous drama I Am Love.  It earned a Golden Globe nominee for best foreign language film and was of my “top 10” releases of 2010.

Unfortunately for Spears and his producing partners, Call Me by Your Name sat in “development hell” for several years.  They couldn’t settle on a workable script and find a director with the right vision.  It wasn’t until 2014 that Guadagnino came back on board to help Oscar nominated writer James Ivory (The Remains of the Day, Howards End) with the screenplay and he was ultimately convinced to take on director duties as well.  By shooting the film in his home city of Crema, an added perk for Guadagnino is that he could sleep in his own bed each night.

Now that we can enjoy the finished product, Call Me by Your Name is a stunningly beautiful drama set in 1983 and centred on Elio (Chalamet) – an introverted 17-year-old trying to make the most of the summer holidays in a quiet, relaxing, sleepy Italian town.  He reads books, listens to music and swims in the river but there’s not much else on offer.  When asked “what does one do around here?”, Elio’s response is simple – “wait for the summer to end.”

That answer changes with the arrival of Oliver (Hammer) – an extroverted 24-year-old American student who has been invited by Elio’s father (Stuhlbarg), a renowned archaeological professor, to stay at the house for six weeks to assist with his studies.  Oliver has a natural, endearing charm that lights up a room.  He can walk into a bar or café and make friends with anyone.

It’s clear that Elio has both a physical and intellectual attraction to Oliver.  He’s an incredibly smart, well-read kid but he confesses to knowing very little about “the things that matter”.  To break it down as simply as possible, he yearns to experience love and intimacy but his shy nature has always held him back.  Oliver detects that vibe in Elio but is unsure how to handle the situation.  Is it appropriate to seduce the son of his college professor when staying at his house?

Luca Guadagnino’s direction is faultless.  He makes the most of the idyllic Italian setting and draws incredible performances from his two protagonists.  As we have seen from previous works like I Am Love and A Bigger Splash, Guadagnino perfectly captures both the exterior and inner beauty of his characters.  You know what they’re thinking by looking into their eyes or observing their body language.  Dialogue is used sparingly.  Guadagnino has also created a film that is sensual and erotic but whilst never feeling exploitative.

Timothée Chalamet (Lady Bird) gives the performance of a lifetime and is destined for a long career in Hollywood (as well as his first Oscar nomination).  He’s so relaxed and natural throughout.  His powerful final scene is impossible to forget.  Armie Hammer (The Social Network) impresses with his supporting role but it is Michael Stuhlbarg (A Serious Man) who almost outshines them both as Elio’s astute, laidback father.  He delivers a monologue in the later stages that will be quoted for many years to come.

If there’s been a better film released during 2017, I haven’t seen it.