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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 14 April 2004

It’s my favourite film title of the year – Dirty Pretty Things.  It creates curiosity and a desire to know exactly what is both dirty and pretty.  You find out in the earlier stages of this film which is well directed by Stephen Frears (Dangerous Liaisons, High Fidelity) and craftily written by Stephen Knight, who earned an Academy Award nomination for his work.

Okwe (Ejiofor) is a Nigerian native trying to elude immigration officers in London.  He never sleeps, works numerous jobs and is looking to build a new life.  By night, Okwe works at the front desk of a posh hotel.  Trying to keep a low profile, the sly Okwe has been living at the apartment of one of the hotel’s maids, Senay (Tautou), who is also looking to avoid the authorities.

At work one evening, Okwe is asked to investigate a problem in Room 510.  The toilet is overflowing but it isn’t a run-of-the-mill incident.  The clog is being caused by a human heart.  Exactly how did a human heart end up in a hotel toilet?  There’s no sign of any other trouble in the room and so Okwe goes to hotel manager, Juan (Lopez), who thinks little of it.  Okwe finds himself is a difficult situation – he knows he needs to call the police but as an illegal immigrant, he’s putting his own head in a noose.  Is there a better way to resolve this situation?  Indeed there is.

Frears has assembled a strong cast to back the worthy screenplay.  I had never heard of Chiwetel Ejiofor before but I now know him as an English actor on the rise.  He works wonderfully with French actress Audrey Tautou who many will remember from the popular foreign comedy Amelie.

It’s a very interesting story filled with memorable characters with an ending sure to please.  It’s a gritty look into a world I know very little of and it brings to light many attention-grabbing issues.  Like any good thriller, you never know what’s going to happen next.  In a week when Harry Potter is dominating the Australian box-office and causing lengthy queues, here is an ideal alternative.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 02 April 2004

These filmmakers would have gotten away with it if it wasn’t for us meddling critics.  Thankfully, those responsible for this monstrosity have been unmasked and will forever see it as a permanent blot on their resume.

I also feel compelled to report Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed to our own Australian Competition & Consumer Commission.  The advertising for the film has failed to disclose that it is suitable only for those between the ages of 4 and 8.  I may also have an action against the cinema as they have taken my money but failed to provide any form of entertainment.

The plot is as incoherent as Scooby Doo’s dialogue.  It’s a far cry from the popular cartoon series I grew up with.  The first film (made back in 2002) at least had the novelty factor.  Watching Sarah Michelle Gellar and Freddie Prinze Jr attempt once again to bring these animated characters to life had me recoiling into the depths of my seat.  Prinze is the worst actor in the business today and I stand by that.

Even worse than the hammy acting and dumb script are the pathetic visual effects.  Could Scooby Doo look any faker?  Could the monsters look less realistic?  Give me a break!

Scooby-Doo 2: Crap Unleashed is just one horror after the after.  I’ll be having nightmares tonight.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 11 April 2004

They’ve become a comedy duo in recent years.  Can you name the films in which Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson have appeared together?  Zoolander will first come to mind but other films include The Royal Tenenbaums, Meet The Parents and even, The Cable Guy.

Cinematic remakes of popular television shows are commonplace today and I feel a natural reluctance towards them.  Why do we need to make them?  Are we trying to relive our past?  Can’t we just rent some old Starsky & Hutch episodes on dvd or something?  Wouldn’t the $60m budget be better spent on about 10 other smaller films with better scripts and more original ideas?

I’ll spare you from my continuing tirade and report the good news on the Starsky & Hutch remake – it’s worth seeing!  Not really for the screenplay but for the comedy stylings of Stiller and Wilson (not forgetting co-star Vince Vaughn who I’m more use to seeing in dramatic films).  As Zoolander showed, they work very well along side each other.

In this film, David Starsky (Stiller) and Ken Hutchinson (Wilson) are partnered together by the chief of police.  Starsky’s the straight shooting officer who does everything by the book and Hutchinson’s the guy who didn’t even read the book.  They may be the odd couple but the chief is fed up with both of them and sees their pairing as punishment for both.

When a dead body washes up on shore, it marks the beginning of a large investigation.  They receive word that a large drug deal is to go down in the coming weeks and they want to make sure they’re the heroes who save the day.  The lead suspect is Reese Feldman (Vaughn) but they just can’t find enough evidence to pin it on him.  Mistakenly they ambush his house (in a very funny scene) and Starsky and Hutch are promptly kicked off the force.  It’s not going to stop them going after Feldman though and the action packed climax has it all (including a cameo or two).

An ideal release for the Easter holidays, Starsky & Hutch is light hearted entertainment.  An ideal popcorn and coke movie.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 02 April 2004

Robert DeNiro said it best at the 2000 Academy Awards – “Making a documentary feature is the cinematic equivalent of jumping out of a plane.  You start with no script, no actors, and hope that when you pull the shoot, the camera finds its drama.”  For as long as I can recall, documentaries have been a heavily underappreciated art form in the world of cinema.  You’ll catch them when flicking through cable television channels late at night but seldom will you see them on a big screen.  2003 proved a turning point however and the box-office success of Bowling For Columbine and Spellbound has seen documentaries thrust into the spotlight.  The trend looks set to continue this year and I couldn’t be happier having seen the latest Academy Award nominated documentary, Capturing The Friedmans.

In June 1987, police obtained a search warrant for the home of 57-year-old Arnold Friedman.  They believed Friedman had been purchasing child pornography magazines from overseas and during their search found a very large stash in his study.  The police also knew that Friedman taught a computer class to neighbourhood boys out of his basement and also from the search, they obtained a listing of students.  Given their discovery, authorities now suspected that Arnold Friedman had molested some of these young boys.  They immediately went to the homes of these students and from their testimony, laid numerous charges against Arnold and further charges against his son, Jesse Friedman, who was believed to have participated in the acts of sexual abuse.

You may think this is an open and shut look at the horrors of child paedophilia but think again.  This sensational documentary exposes an abundance of problems in today’s society which are too easily swept under the carpet.

The most obvious issue and one close to my heart is that of “hysteria”.  We are too easily consumed today by the media and its sensationalism of a story.  Just look at the recent Canterbury Bulldogs scandal which has been littering front and back of every newspaper in the country.  No charges have been laid, no investigate is complete and yet everyone feels compelled to add their “two cents” as if they know all the answers.  In the Friedman case, the media labelled both Arnold and Jesse as “monsters” and to everyone in the community they were guilty before being proved innocent.

I will let you judge for yourself but Andrew Jarecki’s documentary provides very persuasive evidence as to their innocence.  Since the film’s release, even more alleged “victims” have come forward to say that detectives pressured them to give false evidence.  There’s even a tape of one detective threatening a boy that he could become a homosexual if he did not admit to the abuse.  Is the Friedman case an isolated incident in today’s world?  Something deep down makes me think not and this is of concern.

Andrew Jarecki’s technique uses current day interviews with family members and key individuals mixed with actual footage from the time.  This footage was filmed by another Friedman brother with his home movie camera so we get to see the arguments and disintegration within the family as it happens.  There best of this footage is a montage put together of Jesse in his final 24 hours before going to his bail hearing.

Jarecki’s film also looks at the insanely unethical issue of plea bargaining and the common misconception of a “dysfunctional” family.  Not since the abovementioned Bowling For Columbine will a film promote so much positive discussion on thought-provoking matters.  I have deliberately concealed the results of the trial and its aftermath to maintain the element of surprise for those yet to see it.

The dvd for the film (already released in the United States) features hours more footage on this captivating story.  I strongly urge you not to wait for its release but instead to find a cinema where Capturing The Friedmans is showing and treat yourself to one of the most important films 2004 has to offer.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 11 April 2004

Pirates Of The Caribbean: The Curse Of The Black Pearl rocketed Johnny Depp into the spotlight and there are a lot of new fans who will be checking out his latest, Secret Window.  It’s a film which is typical of Depp – unconventional.  The trailers give it the appearance of a run-of-the-mill thriller but Secret Window does surprise.

What struck me most was its simplicity.  There are so many scenes in which we having Johnny Depp on screen in his log cabin and nothing else.  Boring it is not but rather, intriguing.  Depp plays writer Mort Rainey who recently separated from his wife Amy (Bello).  Working on his latest book, Rainey has retreated to an isolated cabin to clear his mind and put thoughts into words.

Knocking at his door one morning is a creepy man who identifies himself as John Shooter (Turturro).  Shooter accuses Rainey of stealing a story he once wrote called Secret Window.  Shooter says he wrote the story back in 1997 and produces a copy of his script to prove it.  Defending himself, Rainey claims he wrote the story back in 1995 where it was published in a magazine.  Shooter tells Rainey that he has 3 days to produce this magazine or else trouble will befall him...

I did enjoy the way writer/director David Koepp built the tension but was not fully satisfied about the ending.  A scruffy looking Johnny Depp gives a very good performance and I particularly enjoyed the little mannerisms he gave to his character.  It seems he’s always moving his neck, back and arms around. 

Secret Window is worth a trip to the cinema but if you want to see something even better on video, check out director David Koepp’s 1996 thriller, The Trigger Effect, with Elizabeth Shue and Kyle MacLachlan.  It wasn’t liked my many but I found it very interesting.