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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 02 July 2014

Father James (Gleeson) opens the confessional window.  On the other side is an unknown man who reveals that he was repeatedly molested by a priest, when he was just 7 years old.  Father James asks what he can do to help but the man isn’t interested in suggestions.  While the priest involved has since passed away, this man is looking to send a very strong message to the Catholic Church.  He reveals that he intends to kill Father James in one week’s time.  He’s only providing advance notice so that Father James can get his affairs in order.

It’s an explosive opening scene.  This all takes place before the opening titles have had their chance to impress.  If that was all I told you though, you may expect this to be some kind of “whodunit” thriller.  Trust me, it’s not.  Father James isn’t trying to track down the identity of the soon-to-be assassin.  While it’s not revealed to the audience, he knows exactly who it is.

So what is this film about then?  In essence, we follow Father James as he interacts with an assortment of folk in his small Irish town.  It’s a rather odd place.  Everyone acts like they’re hiding something.  They also seem intent on putting Father James to the test.  They bombard him with questions about God and hope that he’ll slip up and say the wrong thing.  He’s too good for that though.  He’s a sharp, experienced individual who knows when to answer… and when to not.

Over the course of the week, he tries to make peace with his middle-aged daughter (Reilly), who he knows he hasn’t spent enough time with.  He administers the last rights to a French man on the verge of death after a terrible car accident.  He talks to an unrepentant prisoner serving a life sentence for a series of murders.  He investigates a domestic disturbance that has left one of his parishioners with a black eye.

This may sound a contradiction but Calvary is a wonderfully uncomfortable film.  Despite the heavy subject matter, there are clearly moments where writer-director John Michael McDonough is looking for laughs.  This is a black comedy with heavy emphasis on the word “black”.  There some moments during my preview screening that were greeted with a mix of stunned silence and shocked laughter.

McDonough was response for one of my top 10 films of 2011 – The Guard.  It too starred Brendan Gleeson and was the comedic tale of a disenchanted Irish police officer forced to team up with an American FBI agent to solve a murder.  This isn’t quite on the same level but it’s still a very good thought provoker.  You’ll have to work hard to get inside the head of each character.  I’m keen to see it again.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 18 June 2014

A question I’m often asked – what’s an example of a film that was just as good, if not better, than the novel on which it was based?  I could come up with a few examples but one that’s permanently stuck in my mind is The Talented Mr Ripley.  Directed by the late Anthony Minghella and released back in 1999, it was a brilliant thriller about a sinister individual (Matt Damon) who stole the life of someone else.    

I make reference to this fact as The Two Faces Of January is based on a novel from the same author, Patricia Highsmith, and has been brought to the screen by an Oscar nominated writer, Hossein Amini (The Wings Of The Dove, Drive).  It doesn’t delve into its characters quite as deeply as in Ripley, but it’s still an intriguing mystery that feels a lot more realistic that what we’re used to from Hollywood.

The story is set in Greece 1962 and begins by introducing us to Rydal (Isaac) – a young American who makes a meagre living as a tour guide.  An economics graduate from Yale University, Rydal could easily slip on a suit and make more money back home… but he’s not interested.  He’s escaped from his overbearing father and he’s content with the new, independent life that he’s crafted for himself.

At a small café in Athens, he befriends two Americans, Chester (Mortensen) and Colette (Dunst), looking for a guided tour.  He learns that they too are trying to hide from their past.  Chester is a World War II veteran who once ran a successful brokerage firm.  He and his wife were forced to flee the country after he lost the money of several influential clients.

A single event will forever change their lives.  Chester is confronted in his hotel room by an armed goon seeking money on behalf of his begrudged clients.  They fight and the goon accidentally hits his head on the bathroom tiles.  He is killed instantly.  It’s a clear case of self-defence but Chester realises that counts for nought.  He can’t afford for the authorities to become involved as it will expose his own dodgy past.  Dragged into the mess is Rydal who unwillingly finds himself hiding the body.

What follows is a seductive tale that will leave you wondering about everyone’s motivations.  Is Chester a genuine guy going through a rough patch… or is he a cunning, devious character who thinks only of himself?  Is Rydal helping because he’s sympathetic towards their plight… or is a shallow man looking to make some cash and sleep with a beautiful woman?  What about Colette?  Is she loyal to her husband… or is she thinking about getting out while she still can?

The answers to these questions aren’t exactly clear cut which is part of the charm of The Two Faces Of January.  We’ve all got a bit of good in us.  We’ve all got a bit of bad in us.  That comes through loud and clear when you get to know these characters.  Viggo Mortensen, Oscar Isaac and Kirsten Dunst have all been well cast.  You’re also likely to be wooed by the location.  Shot in both Athens and Crete, it’ll edge you a few steps closer to dusting off the passport and heading that way (if you haven’t already).

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 01 July 2014

Based on the Tony Award winning musical that has been performed across the globe, Jersey Boys chronicles the life of the iconic pop band, the Four Seasons.  It begins in 1951 when Frankie Valli (Young) was a just young guy working in a barber shop in New Jersey.  He knew there were only three ways to get out of town – join the Army, join the mob or get famous.

Valli decided to go with options 2 and 3.  He befriended a mob boss (Walken) and teamed up with good friend Tommy DeVito (Piazza) to start a small band.  It was nothing big at first.  They simply performed in front of a few dozen people in small clubs.  It wasn’t until 10 years later and the arrival of a talented singer-songwriter named Bob Gaudio (Bergen), that the doors finally burst open.

Over a ridiculously fruitful 5-year stretch, they recorded a string of hits including “Sherry”, “Big Girls Don’t Cry”, “Walk Like A Man”, “Rag Doll” and “Bye, Bye, Baby”.  However, that’s not the reason why their story has been adapted for the big screen.  There were a string of bands in that era (headlined by The Beatles) who were equally, if not more, successful.

What makes the tale of The Four Seasons so compelling are the numerous backstories.  Frankie struggled to come to grips with his overnight stardom and his family life back in New Jersey took a back seat.  Tommy battled a huge gambling addiction and became indebted to the mob.  Bob wanted to step away from the stage and devote himself solely to song writing.  The more successful they became, the harder it was to stick together.

I’ve been fortunate enough to see the stage show on two occasions – on London’s West End back in 2010 and here in Brisbane in 2012.  It’s immensely entertaining – devoting just the right amount of time between the dialogue-driven narrative and their ever popular music.  I can still remember the crowd in London.  Old women were on their feet and joyously signing along to the final song “Oh, What A Night”.

This cinematic version, directed by 84-year-old Clint Eastwood, isn’t quite as engaging.  For starters, I don’t really know if it can be classed as a “musical”.  Writers Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice, who were also responsible for the stage show, have trimmed the songs to go with something more dramatic, more dialogue-heavy.  It’s not the right approach.  The film culminates with a huge musical number (during the closing credits) and my first thought was – “that’s what that whole film should have been like.”

Despite the lack of pizzazz, the terrific performances from the cast give the film a much needed boost.  Vincent Piazza (Rocket Science) is sensational as Tommy DeVito – the band’s controlling leader who slowly starts to lose his grip.  John Lloyd Young is also superb… but that’s to be expected.  He played Valli in the original Broadway show back in 2005 and won a Tony Award for his efforts.  The most recognisable name amongst the cast is Christopher Walken who has fun with his role as a powerful mobster.

I’d always take the live stage show if given a choice but if you’re a fan of The Four Seasons, there’s probably nothing I can say that’ll stop you from seeing this.  You’ll like it too.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 17 June 2014

22 Jump Street has two things in mind.  Firstly, it wants to poke fun at the sequel genre.  In the film’s opening scene, we are reintroduced to police detectives Schmidt (Hill) and Jenko (Tatum).  They’ve earned a promotion and are now trying to bust a heavyweight criminal (Stormare).  Things are a lot more serious and it would appear that the film’s writers want to let these characters evolve and move in a different direction.

Wrong.  When their assignment goes pear shaped, they are informed by their boss (Ice Cube) that they’re clearly not ready for extra responsibility.  They need to go back to what they’re familiar with.  He’s going to put them on a new case that will require them to go undercover, pretend they’re college students, and figure out who is behind a major drug dealing operation.  In other words, it’s the exact same premise of the original film (except for the fact that they’re in college as opposed to a school).

It’s the first of many references to the predictable nature of sequels and their reluctance to take chances.  The concept is continued all the way through to the closing credits where we’re given a glimpse of future instalments may look like if they stick with the same formula and milk it for all it’s worth.

The film’s second major theme is its mocking of the homoerotic nature of so many buddy comedies.  It’s filled with double-entendres.  Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum are supposed to be professional police officers but you’d think they were long-time lovers when you hear the way they speak.  Things get even stranger when Tatum befriends one of the high-profile players on the college football team.  It leaves Hill’s character rather jealous.

22 Jump Street opened strongly at the U.S. box-office last week and is getting the thumbs up from most critics.  It’s easy to see why.  This is a film that is creative enough… to mock its own lack of creativity.  It’s designed for filmgoers (myself included) who groan about the increasing number of sequels, reboots and remakes.

That said, I’m not fully convinced on the execution of this idea.  Some jokes hit the mark while others fall flat.  There’s also a problem with repetition.  The homoerotic banter between Hill and Tatum is funny the first time but it gets tired in the later stages.  You kind of hope that it might lead to a surprising punch line (e.g. they are actually gay) but that sadly doesn’t eventuate.

Despite its flaws and drawn out running time (almost two hours), 22 Jump Street is an easy-to-enjoy comedy.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 24 June 2014

There are times in life when it is critically important to follow a strict formula.  If I need someone to build my dream home, the construction workers need to be millimetre-perfect with their measurements.  If I need someone to produce a drug for my nasty flu, I need the chemist to be precise with the mix of ingredients.  If I need to borrow money for my start-up enterprise, I need the bank manager to calculate the correct amount of interest for the repayment schedule.

It’s not often I use the terms “millimetre-perfect”, “precise” and “correct” when describing the work of a filmmaker.  This is because the world of cinema is a hugely creative medium.  Every director needs to put a finished product up on the big screen… but how they get there is completely up them (or perhaps a meddling producer).

The concern I have with Transformers: Age Of Extinction is that it’s all so tiringly unoriginal.  Aside from the stellar efforts from the visual effects team (who must have received the majority of the film’s $165m budget), it feels like an amalgamation of action clichés.  It’s so extreme, so over-the-top that it makes The Fast & The Furious franchise look like an episode of the Golden Girls.

To set the scene, Age Of Extinction is a mini-reboot in the sense that it’s dumped the original cast (Shia LaBeouf, Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson) and gone with a clean slate.  The story is set five years after Dark Of The Moon (released back in 2011) and shows the world to be a very different place.  A top-secret, heavily funded government department, that doesn’t even report to the U.S. President, has taken it upon themselves to rid the world of the friendly Transformers – known as the “autobots”.

Why would they do this?  It turns out the department’s head, played a laughably “sinister” Kelsey Grammer, has grandiose plans.  He wants to use the Transformers technology to create an army of robots that will forever defend the United States from its growing list of adversaries.  It’s not just a power trip though.  He’s also got shares in the company (run by Stanley Tucci) so stands to make tens of millions of dollars.  I guess he forgot to note that in his “conflicts of interest” register.

The only person (seemingly) who can save the day is Cade Yeager (Wahlberg) – a penniless technician who can’t catch a break.  He’s six months behind on his mortgage payments and the bank is about to foreclose.  His 17-year-old daughter (Peltz), who somehow has enough money for beauty products, has missed out on a college scholarship and now sees her future in doubt.  Oh, and there’s the issue of her 20-year-old, racing car driver boyfriend (Reynor).  Cade has been crafted as an over-over-overbearing father and so screenwriter Ehren Kruger uses it to insert a tiring number of jokes where he and the boyfriend antagonise each other.

The film clocks in at an unnecessarily long running time of 165 minutes.  It’s surprising how little story there is given the length.  It doesn’t have the complexity or nuance of a top-notch superhero flick.  There’s no blurry line between good and evil.  Transformers: Age Of Extinction provides action with zero tension.  That’s it.  You’ll see exploding cars, exploding boats, exploding buildings – complete with actors running in slow-motion away and some really cheesy dialogue.

If they’d have taken the 22 Jump Street approach and designed this more as a spoof, I’d have been much more agreeable.  Instead, director Michael Bay has created an overly serious piece that wins points for its sheer spectacle… but not much else.