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April 23, 2007

Fracture

By Chris Beaumont

So, Gaspard Ulliel failed to give you that old time Hannibal itch that needed scratching. Well, you may now be able to satisfy that itch. No, this is not a a new entry in the Hannibal series, but it does feature Anthony Hopkins in a deliciously twisted role that has him facing off with the forces of good. No, it is not a horror movie, but it does deliver murder and an ingenious way of covering it up. Fracture is an effective crime thriller featuring strong performances by its two leads. It is a filled with tense drama, surprising humor, and is one of the best thrillers so far this year.

Ryan Gosling stars as Will Beachum, a sly, cocksure assistant district attorney whose impressive conviction record has allowed him to rise through the ranks in a short period of time. His rising stock has attracted the attention of a high powered private firm that brings the promise of big money and a whole new lifestyle. Before he can leave his public job behind, he has one more case to try, and it promises to be the toughest one he has faced yet, putting his future in jeopardy.

Anthony Hopkins is the defendant, Ted Crawford, an engineer of some sort with an intelligence level that is off the charts. He is in a union that is merely the semblance of a marriage, so he decides to end it. The trailers show Crawford pulling a weapon and shooting his wife in the head. What follows this event is Hopkins facing off with Beachum in a battle of wits, the old guard taking on the new guard.

This is a thriller that doesn't rely on twists and shocks. All of its shock cards are played in the marketing; the film itself follows the unfolding of the criminal case. It is a play of words, a tale of facts unfolding in a straight-up manner that allows the actors to ply their trade to sell the story.

When Hopkins and Gosling are the featured players the tale soars, but when the interaction is between Gosling and a few choice others, it falters through some poor character chemistry, in particular Gosling and Rosamund Pike, who plays Gosling's private sector boss and love interest. There is just a very poor connection between the two and their scenes together fall flat, having little impact. Likewise, I was not sold on the character of David Nunally, played by Billy Burke; his role of the adulterous detective isn't terribly strong outside of the requisite plot points that he is there to divulge. The ending isn't quite the big reveal hoped for, but I still found it to be rather satisfying.

Those flaws could be more than enough to sink a lesser film. However, Fracture survives on the wonderful performances from the two leads, Hopkins in particular. Hopkins brings dark menace and sly humor to the role, born of a confidence in his craft. Few actors can portray the menace that he can; his mere presence on the screen is electric and commands attention. Gosling has an interesting arc himself, dealing with the ego and his drive for success, perfection, and, eventually, redemption. He does a fine job of bringing this character to life and his face-offs with Hopkins are fantastic. The movie features old smarts against an up-and-coming sharp mind. In a way it mirrors the actors in these roles, with Hopkins as the reliable old guard and Gosling as the up and coming star of the future.

The film was directed by Gregory Hoblit, who gives the film a dark feel yet doesn't try to do any crazy gymnastics, rather letting the actors carry the tense drama. The screenplay by Daniel Pyne and Glenn Gers has a nice pace and is filled with great lines, dialogue driven tension, and unexpected humor, allowing the actors to really dig in and have a little fun with it.

Overall, Fracture is a satisfying thriller that manages to succeed in spite of its flaws. It features fine performances, nice art direction, and a welcome straightforward delivery. I found it to be involving and much more enjoyable than I had expected. It is one of the better thrillers to reach cinemas so far this year.

To comment on this and more reviews go to Blogcritics.org.

Posted by lmckay at 01:25 PM

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April 23, 2007

Hot Fuzz

By Kaonashi

The brilliant folks who brought you Shaun of the Dead have returned. Whereas their last film was a clever parody of the zombie movie genre, director Edgar Wright and his leading men Simon Pegg and Nick Frost have turned their sights on the cop genre in their newest film, Hot Fuzz.

Nicolas Angel (Pegg) is the best cop in London. He's so good at his job that he makes the other officers look bad. As a result, Nick's superiors promote him to Sergeant and reassign him to the boring, sleepy little village of Sandford. Naturally, the tough city cop has a difficult time adjusting to his new life. Instead of chasing dangerous criminals, Nick finds himself chasing after underage drinkers and an errant swan. Furthermore, he has to put up with his new partner, the doltish but lovable Danny Butterman (Frost), who's also the son of Sandford's Chief Inspector (Jim Broadbent). A huge fan of action cop movies such as Bad Boys and Point Break (both of which are heavily referenced in the film), Danny considers Nick a real-life action hero and idolizes him.

When a series of horribly violent "accidents" start occurring, Nick decides to investigate. However, his efforts are impeded by the lackadaisical attitude of his fellow officers, who refuse to believe there's anything sinister behind these "accidental" deaths. After all, what could possibly go wrong in the cheery, friendly, close-knit village of Sandford, which hasn't had a murder in 20 years?

Much like Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz elicits a knowing, "wink-wink" mentality from its audience, as they play a game of Spot the Action/Cop Film Reference. And indeed, there are dozens. The Matrix series, the Die Hard Series, the Lethal Weapon series, and John Woo's films are only the tip of the iceberg. What's great is that Wright doesn't just borrow lines or plot points from those films; he uses some of the camera shots and music featured in them. Even the Hot Fuzz poster is a parody of the Bad Boys II poster.

Unlike Wright's previous film, the action in Hot Fuzz doesn't really pick up until almost halfway in the film, when the "accidents" start to happen. However, it's important to establish the setting and Nick's new life in Sandford as being very dull and unchallenging. In short, the audience needed to feel as bored as he was. In addition, like the partners in the various buddy cop movies it parodies, it was necessary to allow the friendship between Nick and Danny to grow.

As mentioned earlier, there's a good deal of violence in Hot Fuzz. After all, it parodies the action/cop genre, so expect a lot of guns blazing, mainly during the last half hour. And while overall the violence isn't nearly as bad as say, 300 or Sin City, there are a couple of quick, nasty moments that would make the audience retch and go "OHHHHHHHH!"

Although Hot Fuzz was very, very funny and clever in its parody of the cop film genre, it doesn't quite measure up to the brilliance that is Shaun of the Dead. Then again, it's tough to recreate a genius work of art. Part of it had to do with its slower pace during the first half of the film, but part of it was simply that it wasn't as silly and outrageous as Shaun. At the same time however, the supernatural aspect of Shaun makes it easier for it to be rather over-the-top. Corny and farfetched as most of them are, action films are supposed to be serious and dramatic, leaving slightly less wiggle room for parody. But only slightly; after all, movies such as Die Hard, Bad Boys II, and Commando deserve to be mocked.

That being said, Hot Fuzz is an awesome film. It's clever and funny, and the cast does a stellar job. Pegg and Frost have great chemistry and perfect comedic timing, while Dalton is terrific in portraying a creepy but suave supermarket owner. Shaun of the Dead fans will no doubt love it, as will fans of action and cop films. I look forward to Wright's next film parody.

FUN FACT: Cate Blanchett and Peter Jackson appear in the film in uncredited roles. Blanchett plays Nick's ex-girlfriend Janine, a forensic investigator. Jackson plays a deranged Father Christmas, and appears in a photo within the first five minutes.

To comment on this and more reviews go to Blogcritics.org.

Posted by lmckay at 01:20 PM

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Vacancy

By Iloz Zoc

Norman Bates' mom would have approved of the Pinewood Motel. Nestled off the Interstate — way off — it's the ideal place to get away from it all, and have it all put you away: permanently. The noisy late night room service and decrepit amenities are simply to die for, too.

Vacancy is a refreshingly gory-free excursion into terror with classy, mood-setting Bernard Herrmanesque music, a stylish opening credit sequence, and Hitchcockian tension-building suspense with ordinary people caught in extraordinary circumstances, and incompetent police not prepared for what actually goes on at the quiet motel.

Amy and David are the two ordinary people whose failing relationship is in need of some serious bonding. There's nothing like a bunch of psychos trying to kill you to work out the kinks in a rocky marriage and bring you closer together; at least if you can't live together, you might as well die together.

The barbs start flying when Amy wakes up to find they're lost on an empty, winding road; David's shortcut to nowhere. Empty except for that cute little raccoon in the middle of it—hey Dave, watch out! The car skids off the road and breaks something in the process, forcing them to stop at the creepy, desolate, gas-station-stuck-in-time that appears in many horror movies these days.

The attendant pops up, all smiles and giggles—at two in the morning—and gladly helps them out as he pops the hood, does something, then sends them on their merry way with confusing directions to get back on the Interstate and a lit sparkler. Now maybe I'm just naturally paranoid, but I would never trust any overly nice gas station attendant who refuses to be paid and insists on giving you a lit sparkler near flammable gas tanks at two in the morning.

No sooner do they get going when the car breaks down again, forcing them back to the gas station. The attendant is gone now, but say, there's that nice Bates, oops, sorry—Pinewood Motel over yonder. Better rent a room for the night and worry about the car in the morning after a good night's sleep, right?

The screaming and crying they hear when they enter the registration office should have clued them in right away, but David, intent on hitting that annoying bell on the desk, isn’t swayed. Mason, the motel manager, pops his head out to see who it is. He quips about boring nights when they mention the ominous sounds, and he goes back into the office to turn whatever he's watching off.

When you finally get a good look at Mason, you realize he's stuck in time, too. Seventies, I'd say. He's an oily type of creepy, and there’s something sinister behind those beady little eyes of his and that snake-like tilt of the head. He insists on giving them the guest suite that has hot and cold running cockroaches, stiff bed linen that could fold itself, and a wonderful mix of banged-up videotapes filled with lots of screaming, pleading people being horribly killed by Michael Myers wannabes. This is some guest suite.

With nothing playing on the TV, David shuffles through those videos and pops one into the player. As Amy tells him to tune it down, he slowly recognizes the "set" in the tape looks awfully like their guest suite. Bingo! Vacancy now shifts into gear and the hairs stand on the back of your neck just as his do.

The fight to stay alive begins, and while Vacancy is not a blockbuster, it does have its share of shocks and nerve-wracking mayhem to make it all worthwhile. No wimpy victim-fodder here, either. Even as Amy and David panic and bicker and scramble to find a way out of their dire situation, they suck it up and work on staying alive. Horror film victims that actually don't want to be victims is another refreshing change of pace from the usual "hurry up and slowly die" fare inundating us these days, don't you think?

Ironically, as they struggle to find a way out of their terminal accommodations, they invariably find themselves scrambling back into them, again and again. They can't run and they really can't hide for long. Will they survive? And who can they trust? Who is involved in the deadly room service that goes on at the Pinewood Motel?

An interesting twist has David and Amy alternately take the lead in saving their necks, and director Nimrod Antal goes against horror movie type by playing with our expectations toward the end as the small body count goes higher.

Vacancy is an entertaining homicidal psycho-buddies along the "road less traveled by" scenario often used in horror. What helps it stand out are the performances by Frank Whaley, Luke Wilson, and Kate Beckinsale that provide tense moments of terror, anguish, and momentary triumph in a straightforward and suspenseful mix of classic horror elements.

And I like rooting for the would-be victims: payback can be so very entertaining, after all.

To comment on this and more reviews go to Blogcritics.org.

Posted by lmckay at 01:13 PM

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