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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 29 October 2018

I’m going sound terribly naïve but as someone who isn’t a huge music devotee, the first takeaway from Bohemian Rhapsody is the quantity and quality of songs written by Queen through the 1970s and 80s.  It would be hard to name them all in a single breath but the list would include Bohemian Rhapsody, Somebody to Love, You’re My Best Friend, We Are the Champions, We Will Rock You, Don’t Stop Me Now, Crazy Little Thing Called Love, Another One Bites the Dust, Under Pressure, I Want to Break Free and I Want It All.  Most artists would be happy to have just one of those songs on their resume let alone the whole collection.

A fair chunk of time in this biopic is dedicated to celebrating the songs of Queen and the artistry of the four band members – lead vocalist Freddie Mercury (Malek), drummer Roger Taylor (Hardy), and guitarists Brian May (Lee) and John Deacon (Mazzello).  It’s a little over-romanticised in places but we go behind the scenes and learn how some of the songs came to be written and first performed.

As an example, there’s a great backstory behind the high pitched notes in “Bohemian Rhapsody” and the many attempts it took to perfect – “If I go any higher, only dogs will hear me!”.  There’s also a humorous scene with a music executive who has serious concerns about the song’s length and radio playability (although it’s noted this character never actually existed and is more an amalgamation of Queen-doubters).

The concert re-enactments are also energizing to watch – particularly during the film’s huge musical climax which takes place at the Live Aid concert at Wembley Stadium in July 1985.  It’s hard not to feel a tingle down the back of your spine as you watch Freddie Mercury sing the very best of Queen’s collection in front of 72,000 screaming, adoring fans who are singing straight back to him.  The visual effects teams deserve praise for making it look so real.

The other side of the film is a deeper, darker exploration of Freddie Mercury as a person.  It’s a life-changing role for actor Rami Malek (Mr. Robot) and it’s easy to see why he’s being touted as a possible awards season contender.  It’s not solely his voice during the singing scenes (Malek has said they used an “amalgamation of voices) but he mirrors Freddie’s look and mannerisms.  Above all else though, he has created an interesting character.

I was particularly intrigued by the contrast in Freddie’s professional and personal lives.  As a singer/songwriter, he was supremely confident in his talent and ability.  He wasn’t afraid to take risks, buck convention and be “more outrageous” than anyone else.  His personal life was very different.  He struggled to come to grips with his sexuality, felt insecure when left alone, and yearned to be loved as part of a “family”.

The film does enough to provide us with the “essence” of Freddie but is weighed down by the breadth of material.  It feels like it’s only scratching the surface when it looks at his relationship with his parents and his long-time boyfriend, Paul, who becomes an overly simplistic villain.  Further, several events are rushed such as an argument between Freddie and his manager (Gillen) over his option to pursue a solo career.

Bohemian Rhapsody endured a troubled production in that director Bryan Singer (X-Men) was fired and replaced by Dexter Fletcher (Sunshine on Leith) part way through the shoot.  Singer still gets the official credit as director given he was there for about two-thirds of principal photography.  Despite all the problems and rumoured on-set arguments, the good news is that Bohemian Rhapsody still provides comedy, tragedy and a killer soundtrack.

You can see my chat with star Rami Malek by clicking here.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 14 October 2018

A remake of a 1937 film starring a woman with limited acting experience and a director who has never made a movie before?  Nope, I’m not talking about a 5-minute short film from a first-year college student.  This is the latest big-budget release from Warner Bros. Pictures.  Of course, I’m being mischievous with that simple overview and there are many reasons why this terrific project, which has started well at the U.S. box-office, is in line for multiple Oscar nominations.

A Star is Born is a proven story with audience appeal.  You’d think it was written by William Shakespeare given the desire by studios to retell it again and again.  The 1937 original starred Janet Gaynor and Fredric March and that was followed by the 1954 remake with Judy Garland and James Mason and then the troubled 1976 version with Barbara Streisand and Kris Kristofferson.  Bollywood even gave it a crack in 2013 with an Indian adaptation starring Aditya Roy Kapur and Shraddha Kapoor.

Bradley Cooper, in addition to his lead performance, pulls on the reins as the film’s director and while this marks his debut, he’s hardly an unknown quantity.  He’s a three-time Academy Award nominated actor who has worked under the guidance of directors including Clint Eastwood, David O. Russell, Cameron Crowe and Susanne Bier.  He’s also familiar with the subject matter.  Cooper has previously discussed his addiction to drugs and painkillers during his 20s and how it almost destroyed his promising career.

The casting of a renowned pop star as co-lead may sound like a “cash grab” to lure her millions of music fans but again, you can push those cynical thoughts to the side once you’ve seen her outstanding performance.  Lady Gaga has created a delicate, likeable character who serves as the film’s emotional barometer in that as her feelings change, so too will those of the audience.  Her work also goes far beyond what’s seen on screen as she co-wrote most of the original songs.  It’s her film as much as it is Cooper’s.

In terms of the narrative, Cooper steps into the shoes of Jackson Maine.  In the opening scene of the movie, we see him do two things – sing in front of thousands of adoring fans at a concert and then drink hard liquor in the back of a limousine.  That pretty much sums him up.  He’s a successful singer-songwriter but his love for alcohol threatens to permanently derail his career and destroy his relationship with friends and colleagues.  It’s a story that’s been seen countless times in real life within the music industry.

It’s through a chance encounter in a bar that Jackson meets Ally (Gaga), a struggling singer who is yet to catch her “big break” and who lacks the courage to perform her own songs.  I’m not sure which carries more weight but it’s clear that he is attracted to both her beauty and her talent.  He also enjoys her frank nature and the way in which she doesn’t fawn over his celebrity status.  Within a matter of days, the pair have become inseparable with Jackson dragging Ally up on stage to introduce her to the world and showcase her amazing voice.

The first half of A Star is Born is jaw-droppingly good as we watch Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga interact and write songs together (highlighted by a scene outside a convenience store).  It’s not a musical but the song lyrics still serve a valuable purpose as they allow the characters to express their feelings.  The second half isn’t quite as strong.  Ally has valid problems of her own (e.g. a manager trying to change her style) but these are pushed into the background as the film focuses more on Jackson and his increasing issues with alcohol.

Great performances mixed with great music.  A Star is Born is a must-see!

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 26 October 2018

In 2008, two members from the same family published a book.  Journalist David Sheff wrote a non-fiction account of his efforts to connect with his drug-addicted son and how it affected their relationship.  It made such an impact that David was named one of Time Magazine’s “Top 100 Most Influential People” in 2009.  His son, Nic, also penned a memoir that looked at events from his perspective.  It provides insight into his mindset of a drug user and the difficulties of beating the addiction.

Both books are credited as being the source material for Beautiful Boy but it’s clear the focus of the movie is on the father (played by Steve Carell) as opposed to the son (played by Timothée Chalamet).  The film occasionally picks up Nic’s timeline but for the most part, we see the world through the eyes of the forlorn, helpless David who seeks answers to unanswerable questions.

The narrative is spread over a number of years but David first realises his son is a habitual drug user when 18 years of age.  Nic is a budding writer who has been offered a place in 6 different colleges but all of that unravels because of addiction to crystal meth (amongst other things).  Nic is somewhat reluctant but David convinces him to spend 28 days in a rehabilitation centre which offers a dubiously wide success rate of between 25% and 80%.

It’s hard not to feel sympathy for David as he struggles with how to respond.  There’s self-doubt as he wonders whether he could have raised his son differently to produce a better outcome.  There’s hope after he sees Nic make substantial progress and naively think his addiction has been cured.  There’s worry after Nic relapses and goes missing for lengthy periods of time.  There’s even an element of acceptance as David comes to grips with the reality that perhaps he will never be able to help.

It’s an important subject matter but the fast-paced nature of the screenplay doesn’t allow the emotional impact to sink through.  There are many flashbacks as the film slips back-and-forth between Nic as an adult and Nic as a child.  It’s designed to show the contrast in his actions and personality but the technique is used so many times that it becomes a distraction.  There were even a couple of moments where I was unsure of the timeline.

This could have been a more powerful film if the emphasis was placed on just a handful of days in David’s and Nic’s respective journeys.  The decision to include events over several years gives it a fragmented feel.  We skip quickly between events and we don’t get an appreciation of what happened in the middle to fully understand each character.  I wasn’t sure about a few of the song choices either and the way they fit with the material.

All of that said, Beautiful Boy deserves praise for the performances of its two leading men.  Steve Carell began his career in comedy but his performances in films such as Foxcatcher, The Big Short and Last Flag Flying highlight his ability to easily change genres.  There are lengthy dialogue-free sequences where Carell’s body language is left to do the talking.  Timothée Chalamet rocketed to stardom with his Oscar-nominated performance in Call Me by Your Name and he proves that he’s anything but a “one hit wonder” as the confused, fidgety Nic. 

Co-written by Australian Luke Davies (Lion) and directed by Belgian Felix Van Groeningen (The Brocket Circle Breakdown), Beautiful Boy has lofty goals but is a touch disappointing.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 10 October 2018

There are plenty of recognisable names on the film’s poster but the real star of Bad Times at the El Royale is the hotel itself.  Inspired by an actual hotel that once existed, the El Royale straddles the border between California and Nevada.  Each guest is given a choice – they can enjoy the “warmth and sunshine” of a room located in California or the “hope and opportunity” that comes with a room on the Nevada side.

It was once “Tahoe’s best kept secret” but the El Royale has fallen on hard times following the loss of its gaming licence.  With next-to-no guests, they have just a single employee, Miles (Pullman), who collects the money at the front desk and cleans the rooms when he has time.  He’s not particularly motivated as evidenced in the film’s introduction.

With the hotel completely empty, Miles is surprised by the arrival of a string of unrelated guests.  Jeff Bridges is a priest from Indiana on official business.  Cynthia Erivo is a struggling singer on her way to an unpaid job.  Jon Hamm is a busy appliance salesman who loves a chat.  Dakota Johnson is a young woman looking to keep a low profile.

Written and directed by Drew Goddard (The Cabin in the Woods), Bad Times at the El Royale is the kind of movie where the less you know going in, the better.  It’s an entertaining thriller where it’s clear that every character is hiding something and it’s up to the audiences to put the pieces together.  The performances are top-notch and there are some great one-on-one conversations.

Goddard has structured the film in a way that creates maximum intrigue.  It’s split into chapters where the focus is on a different person.  Just when you think you’ve got your head around a particular character, the film is quick to throw in an unexpected twist and change perspective.  A great example is the first major transition between the Jon Hamm and Cynthia Erivo narratives.  The fluid timeline will also keep viewers on their toes as the film slips back-and-forth between different periods of the day.

My only minor quibble was the arrival of Chris Hemsworth who, showing off his perfect abs at any opportunity, has a key part to play during the final act.  I could understand the motives of everyone in this ensemble but the Hemsworth character, without giving too much away, is too much of a goof.  The film wants to portray him as a tough, cunning individual but his poorly thought out plans don’t fit with that image.

The 140-minute running time might sound off-putting to some but Bad Times at the El Royale is fun stuff.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 24 October 2018

There’s no shortage of long-running film franchises but one which ranks highly (in terms of output) is Halloween.  The original was one of the highest-grossing films of 1978 and was followed by 9 sequels between 1981 and 2009.  There was a problem though.  Given there have been 7 directors and 16 credited writers, the series has struggled when it comes to continuity.  If you watched all the movies back-to-back, many plot developments wouldn’t make sense.

For that reason, the screenwriting team behind this new Halloween flick have pressed the “reset” button and gone back to the beginning.  It’s a little odd given they share the same title but Halloween (2018) is intended to be a direct sequel to Halloween (1978).  You can forget about the other movies and ignore the fact that Jamie Lee Curtis’ character has died twice previously!

To provide some quick background information for newcomers, the original Halloween was about a mute, mask-wearing serial killer named Michael Meyers who escaped from a sanatorium and brutally killed a bunch of people in a small American town on Halloween night.  This sequel picks things up 40 years later and we learn from the pre-credits sequence that Meyers has spent all of that time in a maximum security prison.  More than 50 psychiatrists have tried to diagnose Meyers but the general consensus is that he’s “pure evil”.

A plot twist is required to accelerate the drama and it arrives when a prison bus, escorting Meyers to a new facility on the night before Halloween (not exactly a great idea), unexplainably crashes into a ditch on the side of the road in the middle of the night.  Meyers escapes and the bloody mayhem is about to begin again.  As you’d expect given the genre, don’t get too attached to the characters as many will not survive.

Halloween (1978) was the first on-screen role for a then 19-year-old Jamie Lee Curtis and, after a lengthy and successful career, it’s nice to see her reprising the role of Laurie Strode.  Laurie was a naïve babysitter in 1978 but we now we see her as a very different person – a paranoid grandmother who lives in constant fear of Meyers’ return.  She’s created secret hiding spots in her well-fenced home and her front door has at least three locks.  Some see her crazy but her 40 years of preparation have value during the film’s big climax.

Characters are always going to make dumb decisions in horror movies to help prolong the story but those in Halloween lack credibility.  Audiences at my packed preview screening were laughing at the stupidity of some scenes and the incompetence of local police officers.  I won’t spoil too much but as an example, I don’t know why Laurie doesn’t reveal her strong suspicions about Meyers’ return when she breaks into the house of her daughter (Greer) to complain about her lax security.

Despite the not-so-perfect screenplay, Halloween still delivers as a cinematic experience.  It pays homage to its predecessor through its unsettling opening titles and the unforgettable film score created by John Carpenter.  It’s also not afraid to be gruesome and gory.  There are a few sequences that will catch audiences off guard as Meyers makes his move on unsuspecting prey.

Director David Gordon Green (Pineapple Express) is a newcomer to the genre but he’s clearly done his homework.  He makes great use of light and camera angles to heighten tension at just the right moments.  Considering the movie just had the second biggest box-office opening for an R-rated horror film in the United States (it made $76 million in 3 days), you’d like to hope that Green will be involved for more instalments to come.