WHat is it about faux-documentaries that can be so terrifying? Its similar to how when a character breaks the fourth wall on screen it can be unsettling. It removes the imaginary wall that separates the viewer and reality from the the film and fiction. Watching film is essentially a voyeuristic experience. We as the viwer are privy to the professional, personal, and private lives of the characters on screen. We see whast no one on screen other than that character gets to see. SO when a film is shot as as a documentary but really is not, we feel like we are watching real people. We are no longer thematic voyeurs, but real voyeurs.
Paranomral Activoty is a faux-doc about a couple who live in a haunted house. The boyfriend, Micah, decides to tote around a handheld camera to capture everything on video for research purposes. Really, he's just excited. The film mostly consists of static shots of the couples bedroom and what happens at night. For instance, the door moves twice in one night. Another night, the girlfriend Katie gets out of bed and stands for three hours. The occurences start out unsettling and as the characters learn more and more about whats going on, and Micah starts doing things that more or less piss off evil spirits, things get worse. I won't blow it, but there are some genuinely terrifying moments. The keyword is some. While it's an intriguing film, the acting and basic handling of the subject matter is shaky and removes some of the atmosphere. Its a film where as a viewer we wait for some serious scares and get none.
Paranomral Activity is in the same vein as The Blair Witch Project. Whereas that film had solid acting and creates a more defined and scary mythology to pair with, Paranomral Activity falls short in those areas. Still, you have to give the filmmakers credit as they grossed a motherload compared to their budget,
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Brooklyn's Finest
Cops and robbers. It's an age-old story. The cops are traditionally the good guys and the robbers are traditionally the bad guys. As it should be. Well, not necessarily. Sometimes the lines are blurred. Sometimes the cops are also the robbers or vice versa. Sometimes the dynamic supersedes the profession and is a matter of right and wrong. Good and bad. What happens when a cop is a bad person but is not a robber? What happens when a robbers is really a cop but he's a good person? Everything is turned on it's head.
Brooklyn's FInest is a cop tale about when the lines are blurred. Director Antoine Fuqua has come to perfect, or at least own, the law morals story. This is a step above his last similar film, Harsh Times, and a step below his piece-de-resistance, Training Day. Brooklyn's Finest is a story of three Brooklyn cops, a Narcotices officer hard up for cash, an undercover cop who's starting to confuse his allegiances, and a street officer a week from retirement. Their lives are shaped by their experiences in the streets and their paths all lead to a fate of redemption in one form or another. Ethan Hawke is solid as Sal, the narcotics cop, who begins breaking certain laws to get the cash to buy a house to provide for his family. His story is a spiritual one in the sense that it focuses much on family and religion. He's fighting to stay loyal to both but we known which one goes first and thus, in these stories, what type of destination he is likely heading to. Don Cheadle is also solid as Tango, an undercover cop who sees the streets and the people in it as his own. He knows this is happening and doesn't like it but is compelled to. He desperately wants out but we know where his likely destination leads as well. Richard Gere is excellent as Eddie, a poor cop who's mailed it in the last week on the job. He's stuck reluctantly mentoring rookie cops and sees nothing but bleak futures for them and the streets he worked. He's semi-suicidal. His story is perhaps the most important as his destination is the most clear. Does this mean he is set for redemption? The three stories blend together to cerate a seamnless portrait of the job these men do and the world they inhabit. It's not pretty but neither are they.
Cop films are a crowd favorite. Therein lies a problem because most average cinema goers do not embrace hard and gritty films such as this. It's brutal. The streets can be and often are violent and lewd places. SOmeone has to work them. Those people are cops. It's not glamorous and its hard. They deserve better from the people they serve.
Brooklyn's FInest is a cop tale about when the lines are blurred. Director Antoine Fuqua has come to perfect, or at least own, the law morals story. This is a step above his last similar film, Harsh Times, and a step below his piece-de-resistance, Training Day. Brooklyn's Finest is a story of three Brooklyn cops, a Narcotices officer hard up for cash, an undercover cop who's starting to confuse his allegiances, and a street officer a week from retirement. Their lives are shaped by their experiences in the streets and their paths all lead to a fate of redemption in one form or another. Ethan Hawke is solid as Sal, the narcotics cop, who begins breaking certain laws to get the cash to buy a house to provide for his family. His story is a spiritual one in the sense that it focuses much on family and religion. He's fighting to stay loyal to both but we known which one goes first and thus, in these stories, what type of destination he is likely heading to. Don Cheadle is also solid as Tango, an undercover cop who sees the streets and the people in it as his own. He knows this is happening and doesn't like it but is compelled to. He desperately wants out but we know where his likely destination leads as well. Richard Gere is excellent as Eddie, a poor cop who's mailed it in the last week on the job. He's stuck reluctantly mentoring rookie cops and sees nothing but bleak futures for them and the streets he worked. He's semi-suicidal. His story is perhaps the most important as his destination is the most clear. Does this mean he is set for redemption? The three stories blend together to cerate a seamnless portrait of the job these men do and the world they inhabit. It's not pretty but neither are they.
Cop films are a crowd favorite. Therein lies a problem because most average cinema goers do not embrace hard and gritty films such as this. It's brutal. The streets can be and often are violent and lewd places. SOmeone has to work them. Those people are cops. It's not glamorous and its hard. They deserve better from the people they serve.
Sunday, April 4, 2010
9
Since they're introduction, animated movies have been a childrens genre. They look nice and conveys an innate innocence that live action doesn't. In addition, its humble beginnings consisted of very bright primary colors which appeal to young children. The modern day animated films are CGI-based and generally utilize the same basic principals - they're bright, light-hearted, and innocent. Unlike virtually every genre, the audience it appeals to hardly changes from generation to generation. Making animated movies a staple in film and a highly bankable genre.
9 is the story of a post-apocalyptic future in which machines (naturally) have conquered the earth and eradicated human beings. The only life that exists is in the form of small doll-like creatures who each bear a number marking on their backs. The film kicks off with our titles character, 9, coming to life. He quickly meets 2 and when 2 is captured, 9 feels responsible and with the help of a number of the other characters seeks to save him and stop the machines. Keep in mind that this isn't a childrens movie. There is action and violence (granted, it's innate object on innate object action so gore is relative). Its a mature subject matter. Not many kids would find a desolate future world appealing to their simple enjoyments. While the narrative is basic, it excels in its simplicity. This isn't a hard film to follow nor understand. In this sense, the theme gets across quickly and easily. Some will criticize the fact the film doesn't fully explain when it takes place or what made the world or why, but it doesn't matter. It makes you wonder and ask questions. This is not a film that relies on those elements to be successful. Did Stanley Kubrick have to explain A Clockwork Orange? This is a passable film. It's not boring but it doesn't indulge.
Animated films are simple in their execution. Make attractive characters, make attractive places, make attractive story and dialogue and BAM, you have a hit. The glorious thing about it is that unlike any genre, that's all it requires to work. Yet they affect the viwer in much the same way as a live-action film. At the end of the day, it may be the simplest to execute but the most powerful in practice.
9 is the story of a post-apocalyptic future in which machines (naturally) have conquered the earth and eradicated human beings. The only life that exists is in the form of small doll-like creatures who each bear a number marking on their backs. The film kicks off with our titles character, 9, coming to life. He quickly meets 2 and when 2 is captured, 9 feels responsible and with the help of a number of the other characters seeks to save him and stop the machines. Keep in mind that this isn't a childrens movie. There is action and violence (granted, it's innate object on innate object action so gore is relative). Its a mature subject matter. Not many kids would find a desolate future world appealing to their simple enjoyments. While the narrative is basic, it excels in its simplicity. This isn't a hard film to follow nor understand. In this sense, the theme gets across quickly and easily. Some will criticize the fact the film doesn't fully explain when it takes place or what made the world or why, but it doesn't matter. It makes you wonder and ask questions. This is not a film that relies on those elements to be successful. Did Stanley Kubrick have to explain A Clockwork Orange? This is a passable film. It's not boring but it doesn't indulge.
Animated films are simple in their execution. Make attractive characters, make attractive places, make attractive story and dialogue and BAM, you have a hit. The glorious thing about it is that unlike any genre, that's all it requires to work. Yet they affect the viwer in much the same way as a live-action film. At the end of the day, it may be the simplest to execute but the most powerful in practice.
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