Bad Grandpa

Though billed as “Jackass Presents…”, this is pretty much a one man show as Johnny Knoxville dons the make up to star as the 86 year old Irving Zisman. The loose plot has Zisman agreeing to drive his grandson (Billy) from Nebraska to North Carolina and drop him off with his real father. Of course, the plot is basically the MacGuffin that drives 90 minutes of jokes played out on the unsuspecting US public. Again this is also a break from the norm, as the usual MO is a mixture of duping the great unwashed and crazy stunts that the Jackass boys would undertake themselves, whereas here its pretty much just an extended episode of a hidden camera show. This is one of those odd films where unless you are already a fan of Jackass / Knoxville then you won’t be going in the first place. Is it any good though? In effect this is basically the fourth Jackass film and the law of diminishing returns is in full effect. However, if you like Knoxville’s brand of antics and humour then there’s enough cheap laughs here to keep you going. There is also some decent execution behind some of the larger pranks and despite showing up some of society’s odder creations (one person at a delivery company seems more than happy to help Knoxville post his grandson in a massive box) this actually shows a caring and humane side to the general public as they intervene whenever they can to protect Billy from his boorish Grandpa. People might be disappointed that Knoxville doesn’t really put himself in much danger throughout the film (no matter how much of an arse he behaves, no-ones going to punch an octogenarian), but I think its safe to say the guy deserves a break on that front. Kudos though to Greg Harris (as Billy’s father) who puts his well being on the line when acts up in a bar full of miffed bikers. Rating: 6/10. 

American Hustle

Word of mouth was that this was hotter than Death Valley so I sneaked it in before the end of the year anticipating that it was going to be crashing into my top ten best films of the year. Sadly, like all con tricks, the end result isn't quite what you anticipated. This is still decent fare, but its more of a character study as opposed to anything to get the brain cells swimming. When FBI agent DiMaso (Bradley Cooper) catches grifters Irving (Christian Bale) and Sydney (Amy Adams) in a scam, he offers them their freedom if they help him to ensnare some bigger fish. Complications ensue when romance rears its head, especially in the form of Irving's green eyed monster of a wife (Jennifer Lawrence). Director David O. Russell has surrounded himself with talent he has used before, which might explain why the performances here aren't up to what you would expect. Bale gives his weakest performance for a while (he seems unsure as to who his character is meant to be) and Lawrence can't cope in the many improvised scenes (her facial expression is one of thinking about what to say next). Other negatives include the too slow beginning, Adams' English accent (it comes and goes so much that when she "reveals" her real accent at a crucial moment of the film you'll be somewhat confused as to what has just happened) and the short scene following Lawrence dancing around wearing marigolds should never have made it to the final cut. The twist at the end is decent, but hardly earth shattering, especially as only a few minutes previously one of the characters revealed they "have a plan". Two things save this though. Cooper's barnstorming performance as the cop slowly starting to go round the bend is arguably his best work and the script has some nice comic moments (Irving and his wife's confusion and reluctance on receiving their first ever microwave), including a great running gag concerning a family story from DiMaso's boss (Louis C K - confirming his status as one of the best character actors around). This was originally titled American Bullshit, which though clearly tongue in cheek does sum up the frustration you may feel at a film that doesn't deliver as much as it promises. Finally, the 70's set up means it's a competition between Cooper, Bale, Adams, Lawrence as to who can reveal the most chest. Good news boys, Adams is the winner. Rating: 7/10.

Mystery Road

If you like slow burning thrillers set in one horse towns, then Ivan Sen's Mystery Road will steadily wash over you like an Australian episode of Morse. With added guns. However, you may be mis-directed mind by the opening scene that sees a trucker discover the body of a young girl in the outback of a remote Aussie town. What with the murky lighting, the eerie music and a great joke concerning the name of the local creek (I won't spoil it), you'd think you were about to watch a cousin of Wolf Creek. All the same, it's a tongue in cheek start for a film from Sen which moves at a glacial pace at times, but is realistic in the sense of how slow and difficult a police investigation can be. Especially when the main detective in question (played by Aaron Pedersen) is returning to his own town after some time away and finds the locals closing ranks and closing doors. This really is Sen's picture, as not only does he direct from one of his own scripts, he also edits and scores. Thrown in the fact he was also the cinematographer as well, you really can say that the final production is one man's vision. Sometimes such a hands on approach doesn't always work, but despite the tempo not being for everyone, this is a stunning film for all you cineastes out there. It's certainly an antipodean effort with it's portrayal of laid back Down Under culture (the casual purchase of firearms like it's a packet of crisps) played out by its Aussie cast which is a mixture of the well known (Weaving, Kwanten) and a collection of other mainstays who's faces you'll recognise if you follow cinema or TV from that part of the world. Somethings do get lost in the mix though. There are plenty of (unintentional) unanswered plot questions come the credits and the race relations faction of the screenplay feels a little forced. However for an independent film maker the movie is a triumph and the final sniper shoot out is the most mano-a-mano stand off you'll see in cinema for quite some time. Rating: 8/10.

The Fifth Estate / Philomena

Time for another double review, this time with the somewhat spurious link that both films concern journalists. Starting with The Fifth Estate, Bill Condon's film tells the story of Julian Assange (Benedict Cumberbatch) and his creation of his WikiLeaks news leaking website along with his spokesperson Daniel Domscheit-Berg (Daniel Bruhl). Despite messing around with some Twilight related business in the past few years, Bill Condon knows his stuff when it comes to dramas. However, he struggles here as the film isn't sure if it wants to be a full blown drama or one with an element of thriller thrown in. As a result its a disappointing production. Though based on a couple of recently released books, the problem with films such as this is that its hard to take anything at face value. Predictably Assange has said it's a load of lies, but it's fairly safe to say his word is hardly reliable. What actual audience there is out there for this anyway I can't think, though if you dip in you can enjoy some smooth cinematography from Tobias Schliessler and a performance from Cumberbatch which may seem a bit odd ("The wurld needs to knau"), but according to people who know Assange it's a great portrayal in respect of his awkward mannerisms and characteristics. Also starring Moritz Bleibtreu's forehead. Much more solid is Stephen Frears' latest, Philomena. Based on the book The Lost Child of Philomena Lee by Martin Sixsmith, Frears' dramedy tells the true life story of Sixsmith (Steve Coogan) who despite looking down his nose at human interest stories, picks up the tale of Philomena Lee (Judi Dench), who has confided in her daughter that 50 years earlier she had given birth to a son in a convent who was subsequently adopted. Emotionally this is a tough storyline, but Coogan and Jeff Pope's screenplay adds a light touch to the precedings, especially in the relationship between the world weary Sixsmith and emotionally repressed Lee. The less you know where the story goes the better and when when further revelations do occur Frears smartly reveals them with little fanfare, though they still provide a gut punch each time. This is Frears best film for quite a while, though it is quite hard to pigeon hole (classic Frears). You could even say its one of the more bizarre road movies you'll ever see. On the downside, though Dench is superb, her character isn't fully believable as she switches between ignorance and sharp intellect from scene to scene and Catholics might be upset by the one sided beating the religion takes throughout. Overall though this is both moving and funny, underpinned with great performances from the two leads. Estate Rating: 5/10. Philomena Rating: 8/10.

The Great Passage

You know that "I really need to see a film about writing a dictionary" shaped hole in your life? Fret no more, as director Yuya Ishii's The Great Passage will see you well. Purposely starting the action in 1995 (when the internet was just about to really kick into bloom) Ishii's film (based on the best selling novel by Shiwon Miura) follows Mitsuya Majime (Ryuhei Matsuda) a shy salesman who catches the attention of a couple of dictionary editors due to his love of reading and eye for detail. He soon finds himself part of an editing team who are determined to produce a new physical dictionary called "The Daitokai" (i.e. The Great Passage), despite their efforts taking place in a time of electronic and social upheaval meaning their work gets less relevant as the years pass. Of course, the film isn't really about just writing a dictionary as it touches of themes of relationships, love, death, society and social class. If you think this all sounds a bit heavy, don't worry it isn't, as Ishii's film has a light touch throughout and even its darker moments are touched with hope. Plus if you're wondering how the film covers such a wide range of topics, lets just say it doesn't take them a week to complete the dictionary. However, that does lead to one of the negative points of the film as it isn't entirely clear what year we're in or how much time has passed as the project progresses (the make up doesn't really work). In addition, for those not used to Japanese humour you'll find a lot lost in translation, especially on the social etiquette front. However, when this does tickle the funny bone, the chuckles are laugh out loud crackers. A charming film, plus this gets an extra point for outrageously cute ginger cat! Rating: 8/10.

Prisoners

If you managed to catch Denis Villeneuve's Incendies from a few years ago it'll give you a fair indication as to what to to expect from this, his major studio debut. The main thread running through Incendies was a search for the truth capped off by a stunning twist in the last few minutes. Prisoners follows a similar tact, though any twists come more through gradual reveals as opposed to anything that will make you fall off your cinema seat. Talking of the twists the less said about the plot the better, though the film concerns Keller Dover (Hugh Jackman) a father who's daughter and her friend go missing following a Thanksgiving dinner. Detective Loki (Jake Gyllenhaal) takes up the case, but as soon as it appears the police are running into a dead end Dover, agitated with the police's lack of success, takes drastic action to attempt to move things along. This is one of the more thought provoking drama / thrillers of the year and addresses the classic human question of just how far would you go to protect someone you love. The moral question aside the film also doubles up as a cracking mystery with Villeneuve wisely using the M.O where plot revelations are made to the audience at the same time as the characters. Talking of the characters, despite this having a strong ensemble cast it is the two leads that demand the attention with arguably both Jackman and Gyllenhall giving the best performances of their careers. Jackman holds nothing back, laying down bare emotion and leaving little in the tank, so much so that in a scene where an enraged Dover is going nuts with a hammer you can clearly see Paul Dano break character as he attempts to avoid some real damage. Despite playing things lower key (and despite still looking around 20 years old), Gyllenhall is even better. Little is told of Loki's back story, but just from the look in Gyllenhaal's eyes you know that there are some serious demons in there and that solving cases is pretty much the only thing that keeps him going. On that note, this is certainly a dark film in terms of subject matter which Villeneuve augments with a sense of dread pretty much from the word go utilising murky filters and a menacing score. One of the few black marks to be held against Incendies was that it was held together by a number of somewhat credibility pushing coincidences. Prisoners is similar in the fact that the plot probably won't held up to forensic scrutiny. However, I suppose the old answer to that is what films screenplay would? Despite being in his late forties, Villeneuve is certainly one for the future. His films are not for everyone, but his talent cannot be denied, shown here by one of the gasp inducing moments of the year following the simple act of removing a sack from someone's head. Rating: 8/10.

Blue Jasmine

Though seemingly fixated with Europe for the past number of years, Woody Allen occasionally dips his feet back into the US, though this new production comes from the west coast as opposed to his beloved east coast. It stars Cate Blanchett as Jasmine Francis, previously a loaded New York socialite, who has fallen upon hard times and so arrives in San Francisco to live with her sister Ginger (Sally Hawkins) while she attempts to piece her life back together. Hello, A Streetcar Named Desire I hear you shout! Comparisons to that material are fair enough, but it's safe to say this won't become a long term classic. There's actually nothing that wrong with the film per se, the acting is great and the use of a flashback structure to explain Jasmine's circumstances works well. It's more a case of why would you want to watch this? Blanchett herself has described Jasmine as an "anti-heroine", but that's far off the mark. Her character is basically horrible and garners little sympathy from the audience, especially as her downfall is due to dodgy financial dealings (hardly the best way to elicit audience concern in this current climate). Much praise has been given to Blanchett, but to me her performance is a case of "I can see you acting", whereas the rest of the cast give a perfect example of playing it as natural as possible. Hawkins gives her usual solid performance, there's additional able support from Peter Sarsgaard (as a potential lover for Jasmine), Louis C K and Andrew Dice Clay, though it's Bobby Cannavale who steals the film giving a storming performance as Ginger's lovable lug fiance Chili. Overall, Allen's comments on social class are as subtle as a sledgehammer and there really isn't much point in seeing this unless you really are an Allen completest. Though having said that, it might be worth a watch just so you can see Sarsgaard looking like an early seasons Frasier Crane. Bizarre. Rating: 6/10.