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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 24 October 2002

Now, we go back to the beginning.  Red Dragon is a remake of Manhunter only this time, there’s more money to spend and higher expectations to be met.  There’s also an issue regarding Hannibal himself to resolve.  In Manhunter, Hannibal’s character appeared in only a handful of scenes, but given he’s now what the public wants, he’s practically the star of Red Dragon.

And so on with the show.  FBI detective Will Graham (Norton) was the man responsible for capturing Hannibal Lecter and putting him behind (very secure) bars.  He thereafter retired and moved to Florida with his wife and son.  Obviously though, he’ll be lured back into the game and a link is drawn between two families who were butchered in their own home, Detective Jack Crawford (Keitel) calls Will back to display his expertise.

In was Will’s dissection of the mystery that I found most fascinating about the film.  So often, I see people crack cases with utterly implausible logic and fluke chance.  They look blankly at the screen and they suddenly you see their eyes light up and can almost hear the “click” in their brain.  Whilst there are a few crime solving clichés prevalent here, watching Norton piece the puzzle together is the film’s key.  He makes a few bad calls and reaches a few dead ends but his thought process is realistic.

So where does Anthony Hopkins come into this?  Well, Will goes to Hannibal in his cell to look for assistance in profiling the killer.  These scenes aren’t as enjoyable as those between Hopkins and Foster in The Silence Of The Lambs.  I also question how Hannibal seemed to know so much information about the killer which he expresses to Will through cryptic clues.

The identity of the killer may be unknown to them but it’s not to us. We meet Francis Dolarhyde (Fiennes) early in the film working in a video production store.  As the film follows Will Graham’s pursuit of justice, we also follow Francis courting a blind co-worker (Watson) and plotting his next killing.

Director Brett Ratner seems an unusual choice to direct a film which carries such prestige.  His previous works include Money Talks, Rush Hour, Rush Hour 2 and The Family Man.  He himself was dumbfounded why selected to lead this production.  Ratner does a surprisingly admirable job but a predictably commercial flavour, the film does lack the “scare” factor.

All the performances are awesome with Edward Norton and Harvey Keitel deserving their own special mention.  Norton is up there with the best in the business right now  - will he ever put a foot wrong?  I like Keitel’s portrayal as the detective in charge - he keeps cool and gives his full support to Will in all cases despite the obvious risks in using a retiree.

With publicity abound, posters for Red Dragon are offering us the chance to “meet Hannibal Lecter for the first time”.  I accepted the invitation but wasn’t going to meet the host - the other guests were much more interesting.

Details

Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 10 October 2002

Put simply, Road To Perdition is the story of a father and his son.  In fact, its the story of two fathers and two sons.  12-year-old Mike Sullivan (Hoechlin) loves his dad (Hanks) but has reached the age where maturity and curiosity have raised questions about who his father really is.  Mike knows his dad runs errands for Mr. Rooney (Newman) but what does this mean and how can it provide them enough money by which to live?

Hiding in the back seat of his father’s car, Mike follows his dad and Mr. Rooney’s son, Connor (Craig) on a moonlight mission to see what his dad really does.  The car pulls up at a warehouse and peering through a gap in the outside wall, Mike sees Connor shoot a man in the back of the head and his father blow away a group of armed men.  Horrified with the realisation his dad is a gangster, Mike is discovered and asked not to utter a word to anyone.

Although the aging Mr. Rooney is satisfied with Mike’s promise to keep quiet, his reckless son takes matters into his own hands.  Connor kills Mike’s mother (Leigh) and brother and sets the wheels in motion for Mike and his dad to meet a similar fate.  Fleeing their home, they head to Chicago to find work and make a new start but Connor has hired an assailant (Law) to finish the job.  For the first time in their lives, Mike and his father are finally getting to know each other but one feels the time they have together is going to be severely limited.

Despite the differing storylines, Road To Perdition and American Beauty share many traits.  This is evident from the very first scene in both films where the outcome is implied.  76-year-old cinematographer Conrad Hall (who won an Oscar for Beauty) operates his lens with perfection.  Softly, he moves his camera in, he moves his camera out, he moves the camera to the side - it’s rarely still.  You can see the constructive thought that has gone into every shot and every camera angle.  This is more evident late in the film and I won’t identify my favourite moments but make sure you appreciate the talent of both Hall and Mendes.

Tom Hanks and Paul Newman are impeccably cast in their complicated roles.  Unlike most leading characters, these guys have both good and bad qualities.  The audience must make a conscious decision to evaluate these characters and determine their feelings towards them.  Also note the lack of spoken dialogue in the film, particularly in the latter stages.  The setting and characters expressions do all the storytelling.  As Mike, Tyler Hoechlin displays the acting wisdom of someone much older and feeds off Hanks like a seasoned veteran.  I hope his age doesn’t work against him when the award season kicks off in a few months.

If you have any appreciation for cinema or great storytelling, Road To Perdition will provide the ultimate satisfaction.  It’s two out of two for Sam Mendes.

Details

Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 17 October 2002

After a mind-blowing experience, I exited the cinema with no comprehension of the ending and its significance.  Most everyone else has been left with this same impression and this has resulted in abundant debate.  Some argue the film is a masterpiece while others proclaim it as a load of garbage.

An interesting point the film notes is that in today’s “black and white” world, people have become “brainwashed” into following convention and thinking alike.  As the film’s self-proclaimed life guru, Jim Cunnigham (Swayze) preaches, all there is to life is “love” and “fear”.  Of course this is hogwash but people who write this film off because they don’t get it are thinking just as narrow mindedly.  It is deep, and like another of this year’s great films, Mulholland Drive, even multiple screenings won’t help answer all the questions.

The film begins with our introduction of the Darko family.  In his final year at high-school, Donnie (Gyllenhaal) is the eldest but an extremely troubled individual.  He takes medication for his depression and sees a therapist on a regular basis.  With his imaginary friends, the line between reality and fiction is permanently blurred.

On the evening of October 2, 1988, an engine from a jumbo jet plummets from the sky and crashes into the Darko home.  Donnie isn’t at home.  He woke up in the middle of the night and followed an imaginary 6-foot bunny to the nearby golf course.  The bunny told him the world was to end in 28 days.  Miraculously, none of the sleeping family were injured but surprisingly, the National Aviation Authority has no idea where the freak incident began - no planes had reported a lost engine.

Over the coming four weeks, Donnie’s life becomes upbeat when he meets a girl (Malone) and exposes serious flaws in his school’s curriculum.  He also begins an intriguing quest to learn the theories of time travel.  But the bunny is still there and is soon asking him to trash the school and burn down houses.  October 30 is soon approaching...

Jake Gyllenhaal (October Sky) gives an amazing emotional performance - one of the best of the year.  He mixes both comedy and drama - you’ll laugh at him but feel sorry for him simultaneously.  Despite being just 27 years of age, writer-director Richard Kelly has rocketed to notoriety with the intricate nature of this, his first script.  Hypnotically revolutionary.

The odds on understanding the film’s message would be equivalent to that of solving an unsolvable riddle.  To provide a example and a small glimpse into the exploration of Donnie Darko, I ask the following - is it possible to go back in time and kill one’s self?  If you kill yourself in the past, then you don’t exist in the future, so you can’t go back to kill yourself, so you keep on living.  Does the past dictate the future or does the future dictate the past?  Confused?  I am - and it feels great!

Details

Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 10 October 2002

With a budget under $10m, Polson was given a cheesy script and some inexperienced actors.  In an effort to steer away from the unoriginal, Polson brings style to the production.  During key scenes, he stutters the camera and cuts-away quickly.  It seems so simple but it does add to the suspense and overall enjoyment.

The story revolves around the star of the high school swim team, Ben Cronin (Bradford).  He’s got a great relationship going with his girlfriend Amy (Appleby) and college scouts are soon coming to the school to check him out.  Now that we know Ben is the ultimate nice guy, it’s time to feel sorry for him in the mayhem that follows.

Arriving at the school is Madison Belle (Christensen) and on her first day, introduces herself to Ben in a conveniently staged moment.  This is only the beginning.  Setting up another coincidental meeting, the two wind up in the school pool and the two make love.  The film makes the obvious distinction of course that none of this is Ben’s fault and it’s all Madison’s manipulation.

Now that she has leverage, Madison moves into phase two.  Ben regrets his actions (of course) but Madison plans on using his mistakes to drive a wedge between him and Amy.  Ben can see what she’s playing at but it seems no one else can.  His life turns to shit but Madison is unrelenting - all she wants is him and she’s prepared to stop at nothing to have him.

I know it’s designed only for cheap teen thrills, but after an interesting opening, the film loses all track of plausibility.  Following a scene where one of Ben’s friends winds up dead in a pool, I could only laugh and mock the lunacy of almost every scene.  But I’m not really in the target audience and since the film is performing rather well in the States, maybe my judgment is flawed?  Nah.

Having not seen her since Traffic, Erika Christensen gets the best role and is very good.  Jesse Bradford is decent too but not given the same opportunities.  Shiri Appleby (from the short-lived TV series Roswell) is wasted but good eye-candy.

Certainly above most teen films of today, Swimfan still doesn’t climb too highly on my approval chart.  It’s silly entertainment, and nothing more.  I like something more.

Details

Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 17 October 2002

We meet Slim (Lopez) working with her friend Ginny (Lewis) in a dinner.  She meets a really nice guy named Mitch (Campbell) who saves her from a sleazy guy (Wyle) who’d made a bet with his friends that he’d sleep with her.  The film then slips about 10 years into the future where Slim is now married to Mitch and they have a young daughter, Gracie (Allen).

You sense things aren’t the same between this couple and this is validated when Slim intercepts a call between Mitch and one of his mistresses.  Slim tells Mitch they’re through but he retaliates with violence and promises there will be much more to come (for both her and her daughter) if she leaves him.  It’s a lose-lose situation but she gets the courage to leave and with Gracie, she escapes in the middle of the night with the help of Ginny and some other friends.

Now comes the part where everything goes nuts.  Mitch sends goons to find Slim and Gracie and she’s now on the run - being chased all across America.  Don’t ask me how he keeps finding her.  Meanwhile, Slim meets her estranged father who initially tells her to get lost but then seeing the trouble she’s in, gives her a wad of money and some advice - to do some self-defence training.  So she starts training, toughens up and prepares for the encounter to finally take on her husband “man-to-man”.

If you’ve seen the trailer, you’ll know all the above anyway.  However, the part where Slim begins the training doesn’t occur until 80 minutes in.  I knew what was coming up the whole time and yet had to wait over an hour for it.  Not acceptable.  Also not acceptable is the film’s 114 minute length.  If there’s anything worse than a bad film, it’s a long bad film.

This truly pathetic script was penned by Nicholas Kazan who also wrote Bicentennial Man and Fallen.  Had I known this before I saw this movie, I would have at least been prepared for something underwhelming.  The director is Michael Apted who directed the last Bond film, The World Is Not Enough.  Both films share similar elements of realism and curiously share the word “enough”.

Enough said.