Showing posts with label comedy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label comedy. Show all posts

23 March 2015

DVD Review - Traps (1998)

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Genre:
Drama, Comedy
Distributor:
Second Run
Release Date:
23rd March 2015
Rating: 18
Director:
Věra Chytilová
Cast:
Lenka Vychodilová, Lucie Vackárová, Tomás Hanák
Buy: Traps - [DVD]

Věra Chytilová is often considered a feminist filmmaker even though she would always reject being labelled and called herself an “individualist”. Given the fact the Czechoslovakian communist government oppressed her for years, it’s understandable to see her desire to reject Western labels. Chytilová is best known to Western audiences for her psychedelic masterpiece Daisies, which annoyed the powers so much she could only made one film, Fruits of Paradise, in the next 9 years. In the late ‘70s her blacklisting was lifted and she resumed making films.

Second Run, after releasing Daisies (which I assumed is one of their best selling titles), have made it their goal to release more films from Věra Chytilová. The first one to come out is Traps, which is one of her later films, it came out in 1998. It has a decidedly mixed response on release and it’s not hard to see why. It’s a pitch black comedy about a young vet who is picked up by two men and raped, she later gets her revenge on them by cutting off their testicles.

It’s certainly not a subtle statement on the abuse of power; one of the men is a politician for example and the film starts with some pigs getting their balls cut off. It’s also a brilliant statement on male chauvinism banter; before they pick the woman up they talk about how easy it is to just pick a woman etc. The film pulls a near impossible balancing act when it comes to the depiction of the rapists, obviously you don’t, nor should you, feel sympathy for them, but you can feel their pain of losing their manhood. The two men are portrayed as bourgeois fools, which shows the influence of Luis Buñuel who was a massive influence on almost all Czech New Wave filmmakers.

It’s an angry rallying call to sterilize the ruling class of Czechoslovakia; the government may have changed from communist to capitalist, but their intent hasn’t. Traps also plays like an absurdist comedy, with even elements of populist slapstick comedy which may have troubled some viewers at the time. It completely subverts the genres it’s playing with, like the revenge genre and populist comedy, and remains such a startling film.

★★★★
Ian Schultz

16 March 2015

GFF 2015 Review - Clown (2014)

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Genre:
Horror, Comedy
Distributor:
StudioCanal UK
Screened:
Glasgow Film Festival
DVD Release Date:
2nd March 2015 (UK)
Director:
Jon Watts
Cast:
Eli Roth, Peter Stormare, Laura Allen , Andy Powers,Christian Distefano
Buy:Clown [DVD]


Jon Watts’ Clown is an exceptional example of how much fun can still be had in the darkest corners of the horror genre without sacrificing a good story. Playing it straight in the realm of clown horror proves a bit of a tone twister, but actually works pretty perfectly in this Eli Roth produced monster movie.

When the clown for his son’s birthday party doesn’t show up, loving father and real estate agent Kent (Andy Powers) is forced to don a mysterious clown suit he finds at one of his houses. But the suit doesn’t come off, instead altering Kent’s body and behaviour, giving him a taste for child-flesh.

Like Sinister, Clown plays on the old “found object” terror, but by its half way mark, it’s taken on more of a Rare Exports vibe, unearthing the horrific truth behind an everyday icon and letting chaos spark at every turn. Watts is astute not to lose his head amidst the terror and confusion. Keeping the ideals of yester-year’s monsters and camp creature-features alive through kitschy gore details and fabulous practical effects is a wise move. It lends further startling substance to a film that already has so many great ideas, the least of which is to structure itself like a slasher for kids, complete with its own set of rules.

Scribe Christopher D. Ford obviously had a total hoot crafting this sadistic little screenplay, and you can’t blame him. This is the perfect update of the clown horror film, a well-considered venture into social anxiety via a garish and gory display of child mutilation, body horror, bright colours, and total madness. Screw IT, Clown wipes the floor with contemporaries and its entire repertoire of inspirations alike, but still has a great time doing it. Its not just on Watts and Ford though, Powers is integral to the meat of the story, because, after all, there’s still a man inside that foul suit. Peter Stormare shows up as the expert/previous owner fo the suit and seems to be having a ball spouting bonkers sentiments whilst terrifying all the films’ sane characters..

There’s a strong element of cheesy fun at work here, but not quite to the point of outright comedy. Kent’s struggle to remove the haunting outfit is funny, but the resultant body horror genuinely gets under your skin. Once the suit takes hold the film sets on a path of ridiculously confrontational horror and insanity: child abduction, murder, graphic suicide, Stormare’s daft turn, great use of found footage, finger nibbling, kiddy-crunching its all here. A genius sequence of mass-terror at a soft play is arguably the crowning achievement of the feature, delivering every single nightmare you could want from a film about a killer-clown. Watts’ has constructed a perfect mash-up of genre ideals without losing his humour, and he’s done it beautifully.

A funny, but mostly horrifying, monster-flick flaunting terrific scares and a great story. Show your kids, show your wee brothers and sisters. This is the film that fucks children up for life.

★★★★
Scott Clark

19 January 2015

Blu-ray Review - I'm All Right Jack (1959)

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Genre:
Comedy
Distributor:
Studio Canal
Release Date:
19th January 2015
Rating: U
Director:
John Boulting
Cast: Ian Carmichael, Peter Sellers, Terry-Thomas, Richard Attenborough, Miles Malleson
Buy: Blu-ray I'm All Right Jack

I’m All Right Jack is considered one of the great British satirical films, and although it is certainly a good film, it doesn't quite live up to it’s reputation. Back during it’s release it was the highest grossing film of 1959, how times have changed. The film’s highlight is a performance by Peter Sellers as the socialist union shop steward Fred Kite.

The film’s protagonist Stanley Windrush (Ian Carmichael) is an upper class graduate who takes a job at his uncle’s missile factory. However, his uncle plans to have Stanley become the focus of a labour dispute that he plans to profit from. This all goes pear shaped when Kite takes advantage of the dispute for his own agenda.

As is so often the case with Peter Sellers, he completely steals the film from under all the other actors, and according to The Guardian, “it’s a career best performance”. Although that is a ridiculous overstatement, it is definitely considered up there with his finest performances, and Bafta agreed, awarding him Best Actor. British veteran thespians like Dennis Price and the recently decreased Richard Attenborough round off the supporting cast.

Unfortunately the satire is dated and isn't as funny as it should be, but with that being said, it’s still a very enjoyable watch. The film’s 102 running time flies by, and it does have something to say about how the greedy bosses will do anything to make a buck at the expense of their workers. This is certainly an issue that has relevance to today’s political climate. The disc includes a new interview with star Liz Fraser, a featurette on Peter Sellers, and an early Richard Lester short with Peter Sellers.


★★★1/2
Ian Schultz

24 April 2014

Sundance London 2014 Review - They Came Together (2014)

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Sundance London 2014
Genre:
Comedy, Indie
Rating: 15
Location:
Cineworld,O2 Arena, London
Release Date:
26th April, 27th April 2014
Director:
David Wain
Cast:
Paul Rudd, Cobie Smulders, Michael Shannon, Amy Poehler
Buy Tickets: Here

We’re all familiar with the rules of a rom-com by now. Boy meets girl, boy and girl hate each other, boy and girl fall in love, boy and girl fall out, boy and girl get back together and live happily ever after. In fact we’re so familiar with the pattern that we could probably make one ourselves. Well there’s no need to anymore as David Wain has already done it for us in the sniggeringly titled They Came Together.

This skewed version of the genre takes all the conventions of an average rom-com and knowingly lampoons them to send up the formulaic nature with which they unfold. Paul Rudd stars as the “vaguely, but not overtly, Jewish” guy to Amy Poehler’s “klutzy but adorable” gal as the pair describe the story of their relationship to their friends over dinner.

It’s a story complete with all the well-worn traits which leads to a gag heavy 90 minutes, some landing slightly heavier than others. Crammed in are sight gags, slapstick gags, innuendo and nods to countless Meg Ryan, Jennifer Anniston and Katherine Heigl movies not to mention a pre-McConnassaince Matthew McConaughey.

The targets are certainly large and, for the most part, successfully hit but with the volume of jokes coming this thick and fast you’d be forgiven for hoping for a better strike rate. There is too a sense that this could easily have started as an idea for extended Saturday Night Live sketch and merely padded out to stretch to the length of a film to ape the genre that further bit.

Spoof movies range wildly in terms of success, by sending up entire genres they can sometimes have a rather scattergun approach; for every Airplane there’s a Scary Movie 4. Thankfully They Came Together is closer to the former than the latter, helped in no small part by the sheer likeability of the two leads Rudd and Poehler – cast perfectly and just as easy to root for as the characters they mimic.

★★★☆☆

Matthew Walsh


15 January 2014

DVD Review - Computer Chess

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Genre:
Comedy, Independent
Rating:
15
Distributor:
Eureka! Entertainment
BD/DVD Release Date:
20th January 2014 (UK)
Director:
Andrew Bujalski
Cast:
Kriss Schludermann, Tom Fletcher, Wiley Wiggins,
Buy: Computer Chess (Masters of Cinema) (DVD & BLU-RAY DUAL FORMAT)

The year of 1984 proved a seminal time for computer nerds. With Orwell's ideas of the impending doom of the human race becoming more apparent, alongside the release of The Terminator and Revenge of the Nerds, it was certainly a time in history which still conjures nostalgia for those who stayed up into the small hours discussing the future of computer technology and their makers. For Andrew Bujalski's latest work, Computer Chess, revisiting such a time resurrects various hypothesises, pandering to them in a manner which reveals something much more sinister underneath.

Set in a nameless budget hotel over a weekend convention, the film presents a group of obsessive computer software programmers as they attempt to compete for a grand prize for the best computer chess programme. Amongst all the competitive bragging and pot induced ramblings on artificial intelligence, the film reveals a larger frame-work of the relationships and insecurities between its characters and their machines, presenting a surreal de-humanised look of a digital age which has only considered to have been lost as technology advanced over time.

A popular Sundance veteran, Bujalski has usually been seen as the master of the American Indie sub-genre Mumblecore. With film-festival hits such as Funny Ha Ha and Mutual Appreciation within his canon, he has a skilful eye in directing intricate character studies where droll, yet textured, dialogue and interactions from actors prevailed over the main story. Unsurprisingly, Bujalski's idiosyncratic style is regularly compared to that of Cassavetes or Rohmer. However, in a refreshing move, he has broadened his skills, presenting a film that is as nightmarishly unique as anything by David Cronenberg or as complex as Shane Carruth's Primer.

Although the neurotic outsider characters which made Bujalski a significant indie director still prevail, exchanges in dialogue soon create a noticeably more ominous atmosphere once the humorous tone shifts into sci-fi surrealism. Starting off like a mockumentary, the cringe inducing obsessiveness of these characters slowly uncovers a few unsettling ideas once they themselves begin to question the power these machines actually have over them. Having one particular system refusing to operate until its chess skills are actually put towards another human soul, an uncomfortable paranoia lingers over the film. Despite these characters speaking at length about the expansiveness of the circuitry within their computers, their difficulty in emotionally connecting with anybody else - or even understanding what their machines are doing – makes one wonder that while the evolution in artificial intelligence still seems infinite, has the development and intelligence of the human race become more rooted sooner than one would think?

Yet, what turns transforms seemingly standard idea for a character driven piece into a compelling puzzle is in the actual look of the film. Entirely shot on an ancient and cumbersome Sony videocamera (the AVC-3260, incase you were wondering), the fuzzy, black and white footage gives a sense that the film was unearthed from the depths of an old government filing cabinet, deemed completely classified. Amplifying the uneasy atmosphere, the simplicity of the camera movements within the competition, combined with a discreet intrusiveness outside it, works well in creating a secretive knowingness from the man in control behind it. In all its retro simplicity, there is a warped satisfaction in being in on the act. Alongside a 4:3 aspect ratio and an unstable picture quality, it boxes these characters within the claustrophobic labyrinth of the hotel.With no sense of escape from these walls or their (now) imperfect mentality, Bujalski reveals an alternative point of view on the origins and mindset of the 'wired' generation that could still arguably be resonant today. Encouraging the viewer to philosophise over its development and origins from all possible angles, the unsettling conclusion concocts an uncertainty towards the future of these characters. It is not so much that the computer nerds came and conquered, it is just that they unconsciously laid the foundations for a future that is today.

★★★★

David Darley

4 January 2014

Sundance 2014 - Colonel Herzog Is Back! Watch Blood Soaked Trailer for Dead Snow: Red Vs. Dead aka Død Snø 2

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I should have went to Specsavers! How did we miss this one!!!In 2009 pardon the punt just when you thought the Zombie genre was dead Tommy Wirkola's Dead Snow gave hope to the sub-genre. Nearly 4 years on Colonel Herzog  and his legion of undead nazis are back , he's pissed off, enjoy the first trailer for Dead Snow: Red Vs. Dead aka Død Snø 2

If the worst day of your life consisted of accidentally killing your girlfriend with an axe, chain-sawing your own arm off, and watching in horror as your closest friends were devoured by a zombified Nazi battalion, you’d have to assume that things couldn’t get much worse. In Martin’s case, that was only the beginning.

Picking up immediately where the original left off, Dead Snow; Red vs. Dead wastes no time getting right to the gore-filled action, leaving a bloody trail of intestines in its wake. Director Tommy Wirkola returns to the helm with a vengeance, coming up with more inventive ways to maim and dismember than you ever thought possible. Combining wry humor with horrific worst-case scenarios, this follow-up to the 2009 Midnight classic is sure to shock the weak-of-heart and delight even the most hard-core fans of the horror genre. Colonel Herzog is back, and he is not to be fucked with.

After a mediocre Hollywood feature debut with Hansel And Gretel: Witch Hunters, Wirkola will be keen prove his cult breakout film was not a one hit wonder. This trailer is thankfully with English Subtitles as it's to promote not it's cinematic release but the films World premier at this month's Sundance Film Festival. No UK release date has been set yet but do expect that to change after the festival with the film possibly playing the festival circuit. The trailer delivers a glimpse at the blood soaked snowy  carnage Film's Nazi Zombie will deliver.



Dead Snow: Red Vs. Dead stars Vegar Hoel, Stig Frode Henriksen, Martin Starr, Ørjan Gamst, Ingrid Haas, Jocelyn DeBoer. [Offical Sundance Festival Page]

source: Shocktilyoudrop

3 December 2013

Review - Nebraska

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Genre:
Drama, Comedy
Distributor:
Paramount Pictures UK
Release Date:
6th December 2013 (UK)
Rating:
15
Director:
Alexander Payne
Cast:
Bruce Dern, Will Forte, Bob Odenkirk, Stacy Keech, June Squibb


Nebraska is the latest film by Alexander Payne and quite possibly his finest film to date. It stars the always wonderful Bruce Dern stars as Woody Grant who falls for the age old winning $1,000,000 letter scam and wants to go all the way to Lincoln, Nebraska to get the money. The role was originally intended for Jack Nicholson but turned it down and in many ways that’s a good thing cause it would have became a JACK movie.

Woody is an alcoholic grumpy old man with Alzheimer’s who realises he has wasted his life. The letter comes though the door and it’s one thing he can put some hope on even though he knows somewhere it’s all a scam. Woody annoys his long-suffering wife with the letter and other relatives. His son David (Will Forte) eventually agrees to drive him all the way to the return address on the letter. They meet relatives, old friends and grow closer on the way in a sentimental level but not in a sugary sweet way.

The film is in many ways similar to Payne’s previous films especially About Schmidt and to a lesser extent his last film The Descendants. Both films are about a man in the twilight years of their life and both films face morality. It however works a lot better than both of those films due to the surprise casting of the Bruce Dern in the kind of role he never gets. It’s also it’s just paced better than both of those films which has been a problem for Payne in the past especially About Schmidt.

The film full of great characters actors not just Bruce Dern in a rare starring role but Stacy Keech and everyone’s favourite Sleazy Lawyer Bob Odenkirk from Breaking Bad as Woody’s other son. Nebraska harkens back to the old days of character-based films of the 1970s, which is evident in the way the story is told as is the casting of Dern and Keach. It’s a one of the year’s finest films and it was one of the highlights of the Leeds film festival.

★★★★★

Ian Schultz





12 November 2013

Wes Anderson's New Castello Cavalcanti Short Honours Fellini

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As the world awaits the arrival of Hotel Budapest, Wes Anderson treats us all with a 8 minute short Castello Cavalcanti.Comissioned by Italian fashion house Prada the short film time warps us back to 1955 and stars Jason Schwartzman who plays an American racing car driver. Whilst out with his cars driving through the Italian countryside during that years Molte Miglia when he crashes his car into a water fountain in a small rural town when a turn of events turn his troules into something he never expected.

Castello Cavalcanti is aesthetically what you expect from Wes Anderson film, quirky, vibrant as well as a chance for Anderson to pay homage to his cinematic heroes. Federico Fellini is honoured in this film with the Fellini's Amarcord the biggest source of inspiration, even the film's title is homage to one of Anderson's heroes Brazilian director Alberto Cavalcanti.

This not fashion film the closest  you'll see Prada in Castello Cavalcanti is probably the labels on the clothes the cast wore when this as shot, but this is one luxury item from the house of Prada everyone can afford to enjoy. This no ordinary film, it's an Wes Anderson short film, need I say more?



27 October 2013

Creepshow (1982) Blu-Ray Review

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Rating:
15
BD Release Date:
28th October 2013 (U)
Distributor:
Second Sight
Director:
George A Romero
Cast:
Hal Holbrook, Leslie Nielsen, Adrienne Barbeau, Fritz Weaver
Buy: Creepshow on Blu-ray [Amazon Link]

Creepshow is one of Romero’s few “studio” films because he mostly works with independent financers. It came out after Knightriders which one of the strangest films Romero has ever done, it’s about a travelling group of knights in modern times. Romero was slated to direct Salem’s Lot but eventually it became a TV movie but he was friend and fan of Stephen King (he was a admirer of Romero’s films as well) so they decided to collaborate on something together. King in 1982 was probably the hottest writer in America after books such as Carrie, The Shining, and The Dead Zone etc. (all made into great films as well) so he had carte blanche to do whatever he wanted. They decided to collaborate on a film inspired by the horror comic books of the 50s and 60s that they both grew up on.

They are all short horror stories all about 20 minutes in length. The shorts are all pretty fun comic book inspired horror stories and a bit of the The Twilight Zone thrown in. It’s neither Romero nor King’s finest work but it’s a lot of fun, it’s goofy, weird even though it’s never really scary. The Crate is probably the best story of the film.

The different stories include performances from everyone from Hal Holbrook, Ted Danson, Ed Harris, Leslie Nielsen and even King himself is a deliciously over the top performance as the title character in “The Lonesome Death of Jordy Verrill”. The film has great practical special effects but that is expected with Romero. It uses extensive use of comic book inspired special effects, which can get a bit tiresome but it’s amusing even though that effect works much better in Hausu.

Overall it’s a fun romp though the minds Romero and King. It’s not Dawn of the Dead but you could send a much worst 2 hours of your time. Characteristic of Second Sight the blu-ray includes a great transfer, a feature doc, commentaries, doc with special effect maestro Tom Savini and more.

★★★½

Ian Schultz


2 September 2013

FF2013 Review - 100 Bloody Acres

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Rating:
15
Release Date:
23rd August 2013 (FF)
Director:
Cameron Cairnes, Colin Cairnes
Cast:
Damon Herriman, Angus Sampson, Anna McGahan

Australia and New Zealand have a fine tradition of mixing comedy and horror to superb effect. Be it the early work of Peter Jackson such as Bad Taste and Brain Dead, or more recent efforts such as Primal and The Loved Ones, horror from down under always seems to walk a very fine line be laughs and scares, and 100 Bloody Acres is no different.

The Morgan Brothers’ “Blood and Bone” fertiliser has been a huge boon to their business but there’s a catch to its production – they’ve been using dead car crash victims in the mix! However it’s been months since their last find and an important new customer is waiting on a delivery. When Reg Morgan, the junior partner in the business, comes across three young people stranded on a remote country road, he sees a radical solution to their supply problems, and a way of finally gaining the respect of his bossy big brother, Lindsay. But things don’t quite go to plan when Reg starts forming an attachment with one of their captives, Sophie. Reg must now make a decision: go through with the plan and finally win Lindsay’s approval, or save the kids and destroy everything the brothers have worked for.

The debut feature from the Cairnes brothers, 100 Bloody Acres is a strange film. Filled with oddball characters and off-kilter comedy, the film manages to evoke similarities to the backwoods hillbilly horror seen in the 70s and early 80s US cinema, most noticeably The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (with which it shares the idea of humans as “meat). But at the same time the film also shares the streak of black humour found in the work of the Cohen brothers – especially the likes of Blood Simple and Fargo. So why is the film so damn dull?

It’s not hard to put a finger on why 100 Bloody Acres doesn’t work. The cast are uniformally excellent – the two “villains” of the piece are particular standouts. Damon Herriman, as the younger of the two Morgan Brothers, gives a manic performance, walking a fine line between complete lunatic and complete idiot. Meanwhile Angus Sampson, as older brother Lindsay Morgan, is one of the scariest “straight” men in horror, showing zero emotion, in the total psychopath sense! The pair bounce well off each other and the script gives them plenty of witty one-liners – in fact the script is filled with some truly black humor, be it the banter between the brothers or the outburst between their captives. However there are huge gaps of where nothing much happens – chases scenes, walks around the farm, phone calls etc. This slows the pace of the movie right down. And that’s where the problem lies…

With some tighter editing and an increased pace 100 Bloody Acres could have been yet another neo-classic from down under; as it stands now it more of an also-ran. If you want to see black humor at work in a great Aussie horror, check out The Loved Ones instead.


★★☆☆☆


This film was reviewed by Phil Wheat of Nerdly.co.uk