Details

Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 14 February 2002

From Hell is a fictitious interpretation of Jack’s story.  Inspector Fred Abberline (Depp) has been called upon by Peter Godley (Coltrane) to investigate the first killing.  Fred has a unique ability to see into the future and with police left stunned by the killer’s ferocity, he may be their strongest chance to crack the case.

Hunting for clues, Fred meets Mary Kelly (Graham), a prostitute working the night streets.  Some of her friends have been victims to the Ripper and her insight is valued information.  Further, Mary keeps appearing in Fred’s visions - perhaps a sign she is to become a victim...

Johnny Depp has a genre to himself.  Perhaps the only similarity in his choice of roles is that they are all dissimilar.  Contrast his works in Edward Scissorhands, What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, Ed Wood, Dead Man, Donnie Brasco, Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas and Sleepy Hollow and you’re looking at one of the world’s most under appreciated actors.  He can take on any character and his accent in From Hell is ideally suited.

The era is amazingly captured by directors Albert and Allen Hughes (Menace II Society).  They have strong support from cinematographer Peter Deming.  It’s a gloomy setting and the violence is disgustingly grotesque (bordering an R-rating) but their artistry makes it hypnotically interesting.  There’s a wonderful use a shadows and concealing camera angles to keep the killer’s identity hidden.  Further, they tease the audience with brief glimpses of the mutated corpses (sounds charming I know).

An unfortunate flaw of the flick is that the identity of the killer in the film is too obvious.  A friend recognised the voice of the killer from the trailer and pinpointed exactly who it was.  So as it turned out, I knew who Jack The Ripper was (at least in the film) all the way through.  Hopefully others won’t pick it quite so easily.

I have to chuckle quietly having seen this film on its day of release which also happened to be Valentine’s Day.  You’d think the studios could of offered something with a lesser body count.  Oh well, to hell with those who aren’t interested.

Details

Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 07 February 2002

Take something old and make it new again.  What would ordinarily be an overworked coming-of-age story has been transformed with the simple adding of a new dimension.  Based on a novel by Stephen King (The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile) and adapted by dual Oscar winner William Goldman (All The President’s Men, Misery), Hearts In Atlantis is an absorbing story told with immaculate precision.

The past can come flooding back when you least suspect it.  Successful photographer Robert “Bobby” Garfield (Morse) is married with two children.  Out of the blue, he receives news that Sully, one of his childhood friends, has passed away.  As a child, Bobby, Sully and the final member of the trio, Carol, were inseparable.  They spent weekends and holidays together in search of adventure.

The sudden news causes Bobby to reflect back on their last summer together - back in 1960 when he was just 10-years-old.  Since his father died at the age of five, Bobby (Yelchin) has lived a tough life with his mother (Davis).

On his 11th birthday, a stranger arrives to take residence in the upstairs flat of their rented home.  Revealing little of his past, Ted Brautigan (Hopkins) develops a connection with Bobby who hungers for an adult male influence.  With his eyesight failing, Ted offers Bobby $1 a week if he’ll read the daily newspaper for him.  Further, he asks Bobby to keep his eye out for “lowmen”.  When quizzed, Ted speaks of those who hunt him - mysterious men in big cars who leave calling signs and cast long shadows.  Bobby thinks Ted’s “lowmen” to be a figment from a senile imagination but he’s soon to find there’s more to his story and more to the man himself...

One always reflects on one’s past with sentimentality and the regret of great times gone by.  Hearts In Atlantis begins with a teary nostalgic feel but becomes harder to predict and even more engrossing as it develops.  Hopkins’ character is the key and the mystery surrounding him leaves you searching intently for any minor detail that can explain him.  He also touts some wonderful lines like when he predicts that Bobby will soon kiss Carol - “You will and it will be the kiss by which all others in your life will be judged... and found wanting”.

Director Scott Hicks (Shine, Snow Falling On Cedars) adds to the mystique with great settings and delicate camerawork.  Very much like his style in Cedars, his panoramic locale and soft colouring consume us in a 1960s world.  He is currently the best director in the business.  As a small criticism, the film wanders at the midway point and the emotional imprint wavers.  The heartfelt conclusion does restore credibility though and its open-endedness is valuable in maintaining the mystery.

It’s nice to see quality stories and when you mix Stephen King and Scott Hicks you’re know going to get a damn good one.  A beautiful story I could watch repeatedly and still find new nuances to appreciate.

Details

Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 07 February 2002

Seeing Hallstrom was an expert in producing a “prestige” picture, they signed him to make The Shipping News - a “prestige” book written by E. Annie Proulx.  They signed Oscar winning “prestige” actors Kevin Spacey and Judi Dench and had the film ready to release in December, the “prestige” time of the year.  Sadly, there’s only so much “prestige” one can take and The Shipping News has been a disappointment at the box-office and with critics.  It’s no surprise that Miramax has abandoned its marketing for the film and is pumping everything into In The Bedroom to give the studio it’s 10th consecutive nominee.

It’s difficult to translate a respected novel onto the big screen.  It’s not impossible (see Lord Of The Rings) but it doesn’t happen very often.  The adaptation is the problem here.  The film plays like fragments of multiple stories that don’t gel.  There’s little character development at the beginning nor little resolution at the end.  Despite being beautifully shot in the snow-covered lands of northern Canada, my feeling for the film was equal to that of the weather - cold.

Kevin Spacey is Quoyle, a slow and simple man with a 6-year-old daughter, Bunny.  His wife, Petal (Blanchett), has no respect for him and travels around the country sleeping with other men.  When she is killed in a car accident, Quoyle packs his bags and travels with his long-lost aunt, Agnis (Dench), to Newfoundland where his ancestors once lived.  He finds a job as a reporter for the local newspaper, makes new friends and finds a new love, Wavey (Moore), who operates the day care centre.  Quoyle slowly finds himself enjoying life but he’s still battling the demons that haunt his past...

There are subplots.  Scott Glenn is the newspaper’s owner who gives Quoyle his big break.  Pete Postlethwaite and Rhys Ifans are Quoyle’s work colleagues who teach him a thing or two about life in the small community.  Jason Behr is a handyman helping repair Agnis’s old house.  All of them have their own troubles but are secondary to those of Quoyle.

The performances cannot be questioned.  Spacey is a little over-the-top with his subdued personality but he’s still the guy you want to root for.  Dench is great in her supporting role and it only adds to the amazing Hollywood resume (including Shakespeare In Love, Mrs. Brown and  Chocolat) she has compiled late in her career.  Of the crew, Christopher Young’s score is wonderful and a film highlight.  Hallstrom’s direction was a tad disappointing - perhaps I’m tired of him directing these slow-paced mushy dramas.  It’s the same soft camera movement appreciating panoramic surroundings.  Perhaps he needs a good action flick to get it out of his system.

The headline is in - “The Shipping News is good but not great.”  It ain’t page one material.

Details

Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 31 January 2002

These are ordinary people which makes what happens to them all the more extraordinary.  What transpires, I cannot tell you.  In a sudden twist, a tragedy strikes the Fowler tragedy.  Then, just when you come to grips with the changed scenario, a second twist takes the film on a tangent much removed from the way it started.

As the parents, Tom Wilkinson and Sissy Spacek deliver unbelievable performances.  Spacek now has a trophy cabinet full of awards (including a Golden Globe) but Wilkinson is equally as good and hopefully will receive admirable acclaim before the award season winds down in March.  They play a long married couple for whom the communication process has completely broken down.  They still love each other but there’s too much water under the bridge and something has to give.

Marisa Tomei is an easy target amongst film buffs.  Many consider her the worst Oscar winner in history (she won for My Cousin Vinny) and that presenter Jack Palance read her name by mistake on the award podium.  After almost a decade in the wilderness, she returns with a strong role and perhaps the urban legend can be put to rest with another Oscar nomination when announced in two weeks.

These characters are real which is why the film is so passionate and moving.  Expecting another strong Thomas Newman score, I was shocked to see such minimal music in the film.  Aside from the opening and closing credits, the film has a very quiet backdrop and with many scenes containing little dialogue, the silence is literally deafening.  It makes an awkward situation even more awkward and some scenes were very difficult to watch.

Actor turned director Todd Field has broken out with beautifully subtle direction.  He doesn’t fall victim to Hollywood commercialism and is happy not to rush the story or use familiar techniques.  I must be careful not to reveal too much but the story doesn’t preach the lessons it tells.  It’s a simple story and it’s up to you to decide whether right or wrong has been done.

In The Bedroom arrives in Australian cinemas during peak award season and deserves to be seen by any serious filmgoer.  It’s a reinvigorating look at how movies can have value and leave you thinking emotionally.  With Mulholland Drive also released this week, it’s a pleasant change from the standard “popcorn and coke” flick.  So what are you waiting for?

Details

Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 07 February 2002

I’m probably going to spoil most of the film from here but it must be done to have a full appreciation of just how senseless it really is.  Just as Rick is about to say “I do” at the wedding, an old friend, Ray Coleman (Buscemi) appears on the scene.  It turns out that Ray has been in jail and has come to claim his share of the loot that Rick ran off with.  A few weeks after the wedding, Rick agrees to give Ray a large cash sum to settle the ledger.

That same night, Susan comes home to tell Rick that she’s pregnant.  Danny overhears the conversation and is upset.  When Rick says he’s going into town to do some work, Danny hides in the back seat of Rick’s car to sneak a ride into town to see his bad.  But it turns out Rick isn’t “working”.  He picks up Ray (who’s waiting for his money), kills him and then burns the body in the oven of an old warehouse.

At the warehouse, Danny manages to sneak out of the car undetected and runs to his dads house where they call the police.  However when the police arrive at the warehouse, there’s no evidence of any murder and everyone believes Danny is just causing trouble because he’s upset at his mother’s new marriage.  Of course Frank still believes him and with the police not helping, begins an investigation of his own to find out who Rick Barnes really is.

I’ve done a rough calculation in my head and I think the odds of this happening is about 400 billion-to-one.  Let me look at some of the striking coincidences that occur for this to take place.  (1) Ray arrives just as the wedding takes place; (2) Frank sees Ray at the wedding and introduces himself - and hence he knows his name; (3) Frank runs to Ray in a restaurant a few weeks later and asks why he’s still in town whilst at the same time, Rick sees them having lunch; (4) Susan tells Rick she pregnant the same night he’s going to murder Ray; (5) Danny decides to sneak the ride in Rick’s car and somehow goes unnoticed; (6) just as Ray realises Danny is in the back seat, he is killed, (7) the police somehow find no evidence of Ray’s body or whereabouts and don’t seem to care.

I’d go and talk about the second half of the film but I couldn’t be bothered.  Let’s cut right to the chase then.  Frank discovers the truth about Rick months later when he does a simple internet search using the name “Ray Coleman”.  How weak is that?  Just how dumb are these people?

The only saving grace for the film are decent performances from the cast.  Without excelling, they at least look interested even if their scripted lines and reactions are completely illogical.  Very poorly written and directed, Domestic Disturbance is unworthy of cinema release and should have been seen straight off the video shelf.  Then again, it shouldn’t have been seen at all.