Matt's Blog

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 17 April 2011

Back in late 2009, I wrote a blog about the role of a film critic.  You can check out the full article here but to quickly summarise, the 4 key points were:

Point 1:  Promotion

I’ve never seen a film which was unanimously liked or disliked.  We’re all different people and we’re all going to take something different away from a film.  Even if two moviegoers are similar, they may still see a film differently based on the mood they’re in at the time.

So I do see my role as important in terms of “promotion”.  Through my website and though the ABC, I try to get people interested in going to the movies.  It’s that simple.  There are some awesome ways for the people of Brisbane to experience an art form (movies, plays, musicals, concerts) but they often don’t know they’re on.

Point 2:  Expanding Horizons

Everyone always knows when a big blockbuster is showing.  I’ve said this numerous times before but my review of these films is meaningless.  I don’t think it would stop a single person from seeing it.

I prefer telling people about a smaller film that’s currently in movie theatres which has received little-to-no advertising.  I like to promote low-budget Australian films with blossoming stars.  I like to get people to film festivals as a way of opening their eyes.  So many movies are made and yet we find ourselves drawn to the big action blockbusters through the manipulation of the media and Hollywood studios.

Point 3:  Offer Insight

I sometimes slip up on this point (especially for films I don’t like) but a good review should offer insight.  Given that a critic sees so many films, they should be able to pick up on details which others may not.  When I watch Margaret and David on At The Movies (two incredibly experienced critics), they often say something which leaves me thinking “you know, they’re right, I can’t believe I didn’t realise that.”

In my own movie reviews, I try to include titbits of information and quotes from actors/directors which readers might find interesting.  This can be particularly so after someone has seen a movie.  You can then read back on a review and think – “ah, I didn’t know that’s what the direction was trying to achieve.”

Point 4:  Generate Discussion!

The above three points all lead into what I think is the most important – generating discussion.  Disagreeing about a movie can be really fun.  A good example is Gran Torino.  It was a film I didn’t like but I’ve spent a lot of time debating its merits with other people – some who liked it and others who didn’t.  There’s no right or wrong answer.  It’s great to talk about, to interact with people.

When I wrote the above, there’s one thing I failed to mention.  A critic shouldn’t give away key plot twists, especially if they’re critical to the movie.  You’d think that would go without saying but one person who didn’t get the message was Jim Schembri, critic for The Age in Melbourne.

Last Thursday, I saw a number of fellow critics express their shock and disbelief that Schembri had given away the killer’s identity in Scream 4 in the first line of his review.

Here’s what he said in his carve up of the film (and I’ve taken out the name of the killer)…

“Only the sight of (actor’s name) getting all kill-happy in the frenzied, formulaic final-reel bloodbath makes this totally unwanted, utterly predictable franchise stretcher marginally worthwhile.”

Are you kidding me?  I didn’t like the movie either but there’s no way that I’d be spoiling it for others.  As I noted above in point 1, just because I didn’t like it doesn’t mean that others will feel the same way.  What point was Schembri trying to make by opening which such a huge spoiler?

At just after 6pm, I vented my own dissatisfaction with Schembri by posting this tweet on Twitter – “Jim Schembri's review of Scream 4 in The Age reveals identity of killer in the first line. What's he trying to prove? That he's an a**hole?”  I then turned my phone off and slipped into a preview screening of Mrs. Carey’s Concert at the Palace Centro.

When I got out two hours later, I was stunned with the number of responses that I’d received back.  Most contained profanity so I won’t include them in this blog (need to at least attempt to keep things “family friendly”).  Let’s just say that many people agreed with my comment and the overwhelming answer to the question I posed was “yes”.

I was also surprised by the number of people who had re-tweeted my comment.  When you’ve got the likes of Wil Anderson giving you a re-tweet (with his 87,750 followers), it’s certainly going to help get your message out there.

Here’s a picture to show you the image I had on my phone after getting out of Mrs. Carey’s Concert - http://twitpic.com/4lytaz.  I’d suddenly found myself a Twitter trending topic both in Melbourne and Australia wide.  I was ranking just ahead of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival.

I was happy.  I couldn’t think of a single justifiable reason why Schembri would spoil the film and he needed to be pulled up on it.  I’d made my point and thought that would be the end of it.

Wrong.  Turns out that Schembri has a Twitter account and he fired back the next day with this comment – “We do NOT give away the ending. http://tinyurl.com/42amzo2 And pity on those sad Twitts who think abuse is cool.”

Huh?  I quickly clicked on the link to pull up his review once again.  He was right.  He hadn’t given away the ending… but that’s because he’d changed his review!  Here’s what it now said…

“Only the sight of (actor’s name) getting caught up in the frenzied, formulaic final-reel makes this totally unwanted, utterly predictable franchise stretcher marginally worthwhile.”

Now I was totally confused.  Why would he change his review and then have a go at the people who criticised him?  Isn’t that a major contradiction?  If you’ve made a mistake, at least admit it.  Don’t try to cover up your tracks.  Luke Buckmaster from Cinetology has also written a nice piece on the whole debacle which you can view by clicking here. 

Can we put this matter behind us?  Perhaps not.  Schembri posted this tweet a few hours ago – “The full story behind the Scream 4 meta-controversy coming soon. Stay tuned next week. And thank you all for playing.”

Is Schembri simply covering his tracks?  Or was there some method to his madness?  I guess we’ll find out but until he proves otherwise, he’s still an a**hole.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 11 April 2011

We’ve reached a Film Pie milestone this week!  On Wednesday night, I’m going to a preview screening of Scream 4.  It officially be the 3,000th time that I’ve dished out a grading to a film.

For those who don’t know my background, my first job out of school was in a video store.  As I was seeing so many movies, I thought I’d start a spreadsheet to keep track of them and my grading for each (on a 9 point scale from A+ to C-).  I kicked off on 1 January 1996 with screenings of Operation Dumbo Drop and Copycat (which I saw while on holidays up the Sunshine Coast).

Over the years, things have expanded somewhat.  In 1998, I started reviewing for Logan 101.1FM.  In 1999, I started up my website (The Film Pie) and an e-newsletter which I sent out to a few friends.  In 2000, I started writing up full length reviews for about 2 films each week.  In 2005, I landed a reviewing gig with Brisbane’s highest rating breakfast show with Spencer Howson on 612ABC.  In 2009, I revamped the website and started up a Facebook group and a Twitter profile.  In 2010, I obtained accreditation on Rotten Tomatoes which helped expand my audience.  Later this year, I’m hoping to attend a big international film festival (plans are in progress).

In my database, I’ve only included films which have had a cinema release in Brisbane since 1996.  Whilst I’ve seen plenty of films from before that time, it’s kind of hard to give them a grade given most of them are already considered “classics”.  I also haven’t included any direct-to-video releases or small films from film festivals because hardly anyone will see them anyway.

I have to admit to feeling a sense of accomplishment having made it this far.  I’m pretty passionate about the things I do but even I’m surprised that I’m still reviewing after more than 15 years.  It’s been a fun ride and the hopefully it will continue into the future.  Being able to see movies ahead of time and interview some actors and filmmakers is a great thrill.

In this week’s blog, I thought I’d reflect back on the past 5,580 days and give you a summary of all the films I’ve seen.  Enjoy!

Total films graded: 2,999 (an average of 4.3 films per week since 1996)

Here’s a summary by grade:

A+ – 44 films

A – 196 films

A- – 424 films

B+ – 537 films

B – 470 films

B- – 450 films

C+ – 418 films

C – 326 films

C- – 134 films

Total films where I’ve written a full review: 1,193 (an average of 2.3 per week since 2000)

Most films seen in a single year:  238 (in 2006)

Total films worthy of an A+:  44

Here’s the list of A+ films by year…

1996 – Fargo, Leaving Las Vegas, Mr. Holland’s Opus, Shine, Romeo & Juliet

1997 – Breaking The Waves, Face/Off, The Ice Storm, Marvin’s Room, The People Vs. Larry Flynt, Titanic

1998 – Jackie Brown, Mulan, Saving Private Ryan, The Sweet Hereafter

1999 – Being John Malkovich, Election, Gods & Monsters, Pleasantville, Snow Falling On Cedars, Thin Red Line

2000 – American Beauty, Billy Elliot, Magnolia

2001 – The Fellowship Of The Ring, Nurse Betty, Requiem For A Dream, Traffic

2002 – Ghost World, Gosford Park, Monster’s Ball, Mulholland Drive

2003 – Chicago, The Quiet American

2004 – Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind

2005 – Million Dollar Baby

2006 – Capote, The Departed, Hidden, United 93

2007 – none

2008 – Juno, Persepolis

2009 – The Wrestler

2010 – Inception

Year with the most A+ films:  1997 and 1999 (see above for a list of films)

Longest drought without seeing an A+ film:  553 days (between seeing The Wrestler in January 2009 and Inception in July 2010)

Year with the most C- films: 2003 (Anger Management, Ballistic: Ecks Vs. Sever, Final Destination 2, The Four Feathers, Half Past Dead, Hollywood Homicide, Horseplay, Legally Blonde 2, The Lizzy McGuire Movie, The Master Of Disguise, The Real Cancun, Tomb Raider, Trapped)

Time taken to grade 1,000 films:  2,181 days (I saw Vanilla Sky on 20 December 2001)

Additional time taken to grade 2,000 films: 1,746 days (I saw the Devil Wears Prada on 30 September 2006)

Additional time taken to grade 3,000 films:  1,657 days (I will see Scream 4 on 13 April 2011)

Best film I’ve seen since 1996:  Billy Elliot

Worst film I’ve seen since 1996:  A Sound Of Thunder

Most number of films seen in a single day:  6 (on 7 August 2004 which started at the Palace Centro at 10am and finished at BIFF at the Regent around 1am).

Longest drought without seeing a movie:  22 days (from 28 June 2004 to 19 July 2004 while I was off on a holiday in Europe)

Total review shows done for 612ABC Brisbane:  approximately 245

Total review shows done for Logan 101.1FM:  approximately 585

Total Film Pie e-newsletters sent out:  approximately 640

Total best and worst lists combined:  15 (you can check them all out here).

It’s kind of nerdy to have all of these statistics but hey, I’m an accountant by day so you should expect nothing less.  A big thanks to everyone who reads my reviews on a regular basis or tunes in on 612ABC, Logan 101.1FM or ABC Southern Queensland.  I do love talking about movies and hopefully I’ve been able to provide plenty of helpful advice on what to see and what not to see.  May the good times continue!

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 04 April 2011

	10.  Josh Hutcherson Best Recent Performance:  Bridge To Terabithia (2007) Other Great Performances:  The Kids Are All Right (2010), Winged Creatures (2008), Zathura (2005), Little Manhattan (2005)
	9.  Ryan Phillippe Best Recent Performance:  Flags Of Our Fathers (2006) Other Great Performances:  The Lincoln Lawyer (2011), Stop-Loss (2008), Breach (2007), Crash (2004), Igby Goes Down (2002), Gosford Park (2001), Antitrust (2001)
	8.  Clive Owen Best Recent Performance:  Closer (2004) Other Great Performances:  Duplicity (2009), The International (2009), Children Of Men (2006), Inside Man (2006), Sin City (2005), The Bourne Identity (2002), Gosford Park (2001)
	7.  Christian Bale Best Recent Performance:  The Fighter (2010) Other Great Performances:  The Dark Knight (2008), I’m Not There (2007), 3:10 To Yuma (2007), The Prestige (2006), Batman Begins (2005)
	6.  Matt Damon Best Recent Performance:  The Bourne Supremacy (2004) Other Great Performances:  Green Zone (2010), The Bourne Ultimatum (2007), The Departed (2006), Syriana (2005), The Bourne Identity (2002), Ocean’s Eleven (2001)
	5.  Robert Downey Jr Best Recent Performance:  Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang (2005) Other Great Performances:  Due Date (2010), Sherlock Holmes (2009), Tropic Thunder (2008), Iron Man (2008), Zodiac (2007), A Scanner Darkly (2006), Good Night, and Good Luck (2005)
	4.  Leonardo DiCaprio Best Recent Performance:  Catch Me If You Can (2002) Other Great Performances:  Inception (2010), Shutter Island (2010), Revolutionary Road (2008), Body Of Lies (2008), Blood Diamond (2006), The Departed (2006), The Aviator (2004), Gangs Of New York (2002)
	3.  Russell Crowe Best Recent Performance:  A Beautiful Mind (2001) Other Great Performances:  The Next Three Days (2010), State Of Play (2009), Body Of Lies (2008), American Gangster (2007), 3:10 To Yuma (2007), Cinderella Man (2005), Master & Commander (2003)
	2.  Philip Seymour Hoffman Best Recent Performance:  Capote (2006) Other Great Performances:  Doubt (2008), Charlie Wilson’s War (2008), Before The Devil Knows Your Dead (2007), The Savages (2007), Cold Mountain (2003), Owning Mahowny (2003), 25th Hour (2002), Red Dragon (2002), Punch-Drunk Love (2002)
	1.  George Clooney Best Recent Performance:  Michael Clayton (2007) Other Great Performances:  Fantastic Mr Fox (2009), Up In The Air (2009), Burn After Reading (2008), Leatherheads (2008), Syriana (2005), Good Night, and Good Luck (2005), Intolerable Cruelty (2003), Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind (2002), Ocean’s Eleven (2001)

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 29 March 2011

I’m back on deck after illness and a very busy week.  Plenty of things to do and plenty of movies to see.

I saw a couple of films last week that had me thinking “wow, she’s a great actress”.  I was referring to Rosamund Pike in Barney’s Version and Carey Mulligan in Never Let Me Go.  It has prompted me to update the list I keep of my favourite actresses.  The last time I did an update was back in October 2008.

This week, I’ve scoured through my reviews to come up with a current list of my 10 favourite actresses working today.  I started with a shortlist of about 25 and worked my way down from there.  It wasn’t easy.

When I create such a list, I’m looking at two key criteria – (1) the actress has a history of strong performances in great movies over the past 10 years, and (2) any new film starring this actress is likely to grab my attention.

New inclusions in this year’s list are Patricia Clarkson, Amy Adams and Rachel McAdams.  They sneak in at the expense of Laura Linney, Reese Witherspoon and Jennifer Connolly.

Honourable mentions this year have to go to Rosamund Pike, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Sally Hawkins, Carey Mulligan, Michelle Williams, Helen Mirren, Marisa Tomei, Zooey Deschanel, Ellen Page, Marion Cotillard and Marcia Gay Harden.

With that said, here then are my 10 favourite actresses.  For each, I’ve listed my favourite performances over the past decade.  Enjoy!

10. Rachel McAdams

Favourite Performances:  Morning Glory (2010), State Of Play (2009), Wedding Crashers (2005), Mean Girls (2004), The Notebook (2004)

9.  Natalie Portman 

Favourite Performances:  No Strings Attached (2011), Black Swan (2010), The Other Boleyn Girl (2008), V For Vendetta (2005), Garden State (2004), Closer (2004), Cold Mountain (2003)

8. Amy Adams

Favourite Performances:  The Fighter (2010), Doubt (2008), Sunshine Cleaning (2008), Charlie Wilson’s War (2007), Enchanted (2007), Junebug (2005)

7.  Nicole Kidman

Favourite Performances:  Rabbit Hole (2010), Australia (2008), Margot At The Wedding (2007), Birth (2004), Cold Mountain (2003), Dogville (2003), The Hours (2002), The Others (2001), Moulin Rouge!  (2001)

6. Patricia Clarkson

Favourite Performances:  Easy A (2010), Cairo Time (2009), Elegy (2008), Good Night And Good Luck (2005), Dogville (2003), The Station Agent (2003), Pieces Of April (2003), Far From Heaven (2002)

5.  Julianne Moore 

Favourite Performances:  The Kids Are All Right (2010), Chloe (2009), A Single Man (2009), Children Of Men (2006), The Hours (2002), Hannibal (2002), Far From Heaven (2002)

4.  Kate Winslet 

Favourite Performances:  Revolutionary Road (2008), The Reader (2008), Little Children (2006), The Holiday (2006), Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind (2004), Finding Neverland (2004), Iris (2001)

3.  Meryl Streep 

Favourite Performances:  Julie & Julia (2009), Doubt (2008), Mamma Mia! (2008), The Devil Wears Prada (2006), A Prairie Home Companion (2006), Lemony Snicket’s A Series Of Unfortunate Events (2004), The Manchurian Candidate (2004), The Hours (2002), Adaptation (2002)

2.  Cate Blanchett 

Favourite Performances:  I’m Not There (2007), Babel (2006), Notes On A Scandal (2006), The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou (2004), The Aviator (2004), Veronica Guerin (2003)

1.  Tilda Swinton 

Favourite Performances:  I Am Love (2010), Burn After Reading (2008), Michael Clayton (2007), The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe (2005), Broken Flowers (2005), Adaptation (2002), The Deep End (2001)

I hope some of your own favourites made the list.  Next week, I’ll unveil my 10 favourite actors.  It’ll be an equally difficult list to put together.

In case you were interested, I updated the list of my favourite 10 directors in October last year.  You can check it out by clicking here.