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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 27 March 2019

Few filmmakers in the past decade have made as big an introduction as 40-year-old Jordan Peele.  Get Out was a low budget horror film (shot for just $4.5 million USD) that wasn’t even advertised when it premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2017 (as it was part of a secret midnight screening).  Released in cinemas a month later, the film made an astounding $255 million USD at the global box-office and Peele became the first African American to be nominated at the Academy Awards for directing, writing and producing in the same year.  He took home an Oscar for best original screenplay.

Expectations have been high for Peele’s follow-up and that in itself comes with challenges.  Having already made one of the great horror flicks of all time, what could he possibly craft that will be just as satisfying to audiences?  He’s decided to stick with the same genre.  Inspired by an episode of The Twilight Zone that he’d seen as a kid, he’s come up with another fear-inducing journey that, based on the early box-office from the United States, will make a lot of money.

It’s easy to scare people with blood, gore and violence and while there’s an element of that in Us, it’s clear that Peele wants to use other techniques to generate an emotional response.  The opening few scenes include information about tunnels, a Hands Across America commercial from 1986, a biblical reference, a young girl lost in a theme park, and a lengthy opening title sequence involving a caged rabbit.  These strange events, coupled with an unsettling music score from Michael Abels, will leave you feeling quizzical and uncomfortable.

Us is a film littered with twists and turns and so in providing a plot overview, I’ll stick to what’s already been revealed in the film’s trailers and other promotional material.  It’s the story of a 4-person family on a summer vacation in California who find themselves terrified by… themselves.  A clone family arrive on their doorstep who are dressed in red and are carrying large, gold scissors.  Where did they come from?  Who created them?  What do they want?

Peele’s latest will hold your attention throughout and I loved the way in which he’s infused comedy within the thrills.  He’s also provided a platform that allows Lupita Nyong’o to showcase her incredible talent.  This is Nyong’o’s first leading role (hard to believe given she won an Oscar five years ago for 12 Years a Slave) and she dominates the film through her performance as the fierce, passionate Adelaide and as her creepy, emotionally stilted clone.

There’s a powerful climax which, without giving anything away, will take some time to process and digest.  Just as he did with Get Out, Jordan Peele has something important to say here.  That said, there are a large number of deliberately unanswered questions that frustrate as much as they create intrigue.  It feels like the narrative is over-manufactured in places so as to fit with a particular metaphor.

Us is a hot mess – a lot of great ideas but it doesn’t flow as smoothly as it should.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 15 March 2019

Two weeks ago, there was an interview doing the rounds on social media with Adam Silver, the chief executive of the National Basketball Association in the United States.  He said that the outside world sees all the “fame and money” associated with professional sport but in his one-on-one conversations with basketball players, many of them felt unhappy and isolated.  They have the same problems as everyone else (e.g self-confidence issues, family issues) but with the added pressure of the public’s continual interest (complete with taunts on social media).

Based on a true story, Fighting with My Family delves into this subject through the eyes of a young girl, Saraya (Pugh), trying to forge a career in the sport of professional wrestling.  In the film’s first half, she’s a feisty teenager from Norwich, England who is falling in love with the sport and simply having fun.  It’s how it so often begins with young kids.  They’re not thinking about celebrity and fortune.  They’ve engaged with the pastime purely because they enjoy it.

It helps that Saraya is from a family who has a similar admiration for the sport humorously described as “soap opera in spandex”.  Her parents (Frost and Headey) run a small gymnasium and provide wrestling lessons to other kids in the area to help keep them off the streets.  Her older brother, Zak (Lowden), trains religiously and has dreams of making it professionally in the WWE.  Together, they all ride around in a rundown van putting on shows for small, passionate crowds in the local community.

The tone shifts significantly in the film’s second half when Saraya is discovered by a talent scout (Vaughn) and gets a life-changing opportunity to travel to the United States and train with the next generation of WWE athletes.  It may sound like the stuff of dreams but Saraya, now going by the stage name of ‘Paige’, quickly discovers the downsides of being a professional athlete.  She’s exhausted by the training, she’s missing her family back home, and she’s grappling to make friends given the intense competitiveness of coaching sessions.  The sport which once made her so happy… now makes her sad and lonely. 

Emmy winning writer-director Stephen Merchant (The Office) didn’t know much about the world of professional wrestling but that changed when Dwayne Johnson sent him a copy of The Wrestlers: Fighting with My Family, a 45-minute British television documentary that first aired in 2012.  He was drawn in by the story’s varied emotions and after immersing himself in the world of WWE, he came up with this worthy screenplay.  It’s a fitting tribute to the source material and features a well-balanced mix of comedy, drama and suspense.  I was surprised by the number of genuine laughs (Merchant helps with his own cameo).

You could know next-to-nothing about wrestling and still be enthralled by this eclectic group of characters.  23-year-old Florence Pugh (Macbeth) does an outstanding job illustrating the contrast between Paige’s tough, confident exterior and her doubtful, insecure interior.  It’s a subplot that could easily have been overlooked but Jack Lowden (Dunkirk) is equally impressive as the older brother who struggles to watch his sister succeed while his own dreams dissipate.

I have to smirk when looking at the poster for Fighting with My Family and seeing Dwayne Johnson feature as the most prominent character.  The reality is that he only makes a small cameo (as himself) but given his broad box-office appeal, it’s hard to blame the distributors for trying to use his presence to sell tickets.  Given my admiration for the film, I can only hope it works!

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 25 March 2019

Cystic fibrosis is a genetic disorder that affects one in every 2,500 babies born here in Australia.  Instead of having thin, slippery secretions (such as mucus, sweat and tears), cystic fibrosis causes them to become thick and sticky.  This creates issues with blocked passageways in the human body and with no known cure, the average life expectancy is less than 50 years.

It’s a condition seldom depicted on screen and so Five Feet Apart provides insight through its leading character – a clean-freak teenager named Stella (Richardson).  She comes across as a normal, smarty, chatty person but there’s one huge barrier.  While her friends go outside, party hard and travel the world, Stella is confined to a sterile hospital ward where she must follow a strict regime of medication and treatment.  If she we were to be afflicted by something as simple as the flu, the effects could be life-threatening.

It’s why the “six feet apart” rule has become a critical piece of advice for those with cystic fibrosis.  When people talk, laugh, sneeze, or cough, tiny droplets are made which can travel up to 6 feet through the air before falling to the ground.  You therefore need to remain a safe distance apart to help avoid the spread of germs in these droplets.  Oh, and if you’re wondering why the film is called Five Feet Apart instead of Six Feet Apart, it’s not because it wants to give out dodgy medical advice.  Rather, it’s referencing the fact that Stella is prepared to push a few boundaries.

If there’s one key takeaway from this story, it’s the way in which the internet and social media can be used as a positive tool for those with cystic fibrosis or similarly troubling conditions.  Stella has created a popular YouTube channel where she posts regular video blogs and interacts with people across the world.  It gives her a sense of value and purpose.  She also uses her phone to FaceTime friends and family and while it’s not the same as being with them in person, it’s a worthy substitute to help shake off the effects of boredom and loneliness.

While keeping tabs on events outside, the reality is that Stella’s world revolves around those inside the hospital.  She enjoys the banter with a spirited, take-no-nonsense nurse (Gregory) who watches over her like a loving mother.  She’s quick to open up and dispense advice when chatting to a gay teenager (Arias) who is battling the same disorder and resides in a neighbouring room.  There’s also an intriguing piece involving Stella, her mother and her older sister.

All of these subplots are interesting but the problem with Five Feet Apart is that it chooses to focus on the weakest narrative – a dull, sappy romance that is heavy on melodrama and light on realism.  Stella falls in love with Will (Sprouse), a fellow cystic fibrosis sufferer who loves to draw and do things his own way.

First-time writers Mikki Daughtry and Tobias Iaconis continually drum home the same point – these two really love each other but they’re sad/frustrated by the fact they can’t hold hands, hug or kiss like a regular couple.  It reaches the point where they get closer and closer (from a physical point of view) and they’re prepared to risk their lives in pursuit of love.  I just didn’t buy into their actions and the clumsy, corny finale added to my confusion.

The casting of two relatively semi-well-known actors in their mid-20s, Haley Lu Richardson (The Edge of Seventeen, Split) and Cole Sprouse (The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, Riverdale), helps pitch the film to the younger demographic.  I took a fellow teenager to the preview screening and his eyes were both red and moist as the credits started to roll.  Perhaps I wasn’t part of the target audience.  Perhaps I’m just too cynical and cold-hearted.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 13 March 2019

Losing a child is one of the greatest tragedies for a parent to endure.  That grief is further extended and magnified when there are unanswered questions about their child’s death.  These emotions are explored in Sometimes Always Never, a slow-burn British drama from 53-year-old filmmaker Carl Hunter who, after a series of short films and TV documentaries, is directing his first feature film.

Veteran actor Bill Nighy (Love Actually) steps into the shoes of Alan, a semi-retired tailor who has never fully come to grips with the disappearance of his son, Michael, roughly two decades ago.  Michael stormed out of the family home after an innocuous argument over a game of Scrabble (strangely enough) and was never seen again.  The presumption is that he met with foul play but it remains just that – a presumption.

The crux of the film is spent watching Alan, complete with his offbeat sense of humour, interact with an assortment of characters across several days.  He goes on an unexpected road trip with his other son, Peter (Riley), to visit a morgue and inspect an unidentified body.  He befriends and then hustles a long-married couple during a game of Scrabble while staying at an old hotel.  He spends time with his grandson (Healy) and helps him impress a girl by fitting him out in his first suit.  

Sometimes Always Never is best described as a dark comedy.  It sounds like a heavy, depressing premise but screenwriter Frank Cottrell-Boyce (Hilary and Jackie, The Railway Man) attempts to inject comedy into most scenarios.  There are times when it works and times when it doesn’t.  As an example, the references to Scrabble words and scores win early laughs but it becomes tiresome and repetitive during later scenes.  It’s a “hook” that’s relied too strongly upon.

It’s hard to fault the casting of Bill Nighy in the leading role since we’ve seen him take on similarly quirky, forlorn characters in the past.  It’s a suitable performance but given the sluggish nature of the material, it’s hard to say it’s a memorable one.  Newcomer Louis Healy will win fans with his scene-stealing performance as the awkward grandson looking for love.

It’s the interaction between the characters that should serve as the film’s heart but given some scenarios are so odd, Sometimes Always Never isn't as effective as it could have been.

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Written by Matthew Toomey

Created: 18 March 2019

She’s not totally unrecognisable but it’s clear from the opening scene that Destroyer features a stunning physical transformation from Oscar winner Nicole Kidman (The Hours).  She’s got scruffy hair, a misshapen nose, cracked lips, bags under her eyes and stained teeth.  Make-up designer Bill Corso was inspired by the look of aging, weathered rock stars who had done nothing to take care of themselves.

It’s certainly not the stereotypical look that you’d expect for a cop.  Kidman is playing Erin Bell, a member of the Los Angeles Police Department who has had a tough decade battling an assortment of addictions and other self-inflicted problems.  An early sequence at a crime scene highlights that she’s become the “office joke”.  Her fellow officers ask if she’s been drinking (an easy assumption to make given her dishevelled look) and then they firmly encourage her to stay out of their way.

Destroyer offers up a number of subplots that revolve around two main questions.  Firstly, what happened in Erin’s past that caused her sad transformation?  Writers Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi provide answers in a slow, methodical manner through a series of flashbacks.  Secondly, what is her connection to a bank robbery in Palm Springs?  It took place 15 years ago but the recently delivery of a package to Erin’s office confirms that the final chapter of the robbery tale is yet to play out.

Directed by Karyn Kusama (Girlfight, The Invitation), Destroyer is a little uneven when balancing up the two timeframes but it’s still an intriguing piece of cinema thanks to the strong performance of Kidman (who earned up a Golden Globe nomination for the role).  She’s a great character – a police detective who ignores all advice (even when it’s good advice) and does things in her own unique way.  This is emphasised in a humorous scene where she interacts with a cancer-suffering criminal (McNairy) who has valuable information to offer.

Pulling in a paltry $1.5 million at the US box-office, it’s a shame that Kusama’s film has struggled to find an audience.  A few subplots are not explored as deeply as they could have been (such as Erin’s relationship with her 16-year-old daughter) but this still more interesting than a lot of the safe, formulaic blockbusters coming out of Hollywood.  Hopefully Australian audiences will give it a chance given the star power of our own Nicole Kidman.