Review : The Kingmaker

Film documentaries have grown so much over the past decade. They have certainly helped me learn more about the world, both today and in the past.

This one was no different as it covered one of the most powerful women to have ever lived.

The structure of the documentary was simple linear story-telling. So it was up to the content to give us an informative and entertaining piece. I was constantly engaged in pure fascination of this woman along with their family controlling not only the country they were politically leading, but with many other political figures around the world.

This was a highly informative and fascinating film documentary that was executed well to make it a good piece of entertainment at the same time. It didn't quite go the extra mile as some of best documentaries have. But nevertheless, it was worth my time.

It certainly opened my eyes to that part of the world and its history. It also continues to prove how corruption is everywhere and the lengths people will go to stay in power for generations.
It was like watching a South East Asia version of Citizen Kane and I feel this can be enjoyed by pretty much everyone as the elements involved are topical and very relatable to all.

Rating: 7/10

Review: The Irishman

I've always had an odd relationship with Martin Scorsese's films. He deserves all the high praise that he has ever got and he is most definitely a fantastic film-maker. I just don't quite have a lot of his films high up in my all-time list.

I seem to mainly give his just very good ratings. But never that extra bit to be an all-time classic for me. It's mainly his gangster films that I can rarely seem to get that extra bit of magic that a lot of others seem to get. I think it's to do the characters we're supposed to root for but are doing these despicable things. Films that involve someone's rise through the gangster rankings or involve heavy drug use just never seems to be working for me. Films like Goodfellas, The Wolf Of Wall Street, Gangs Of New York, Mean Streets, Raging Bull, Silence and The Last Temptation Of Christ I just seem to appreciate more than anything else. The craft is there for all to see. The only exceptions that I do fully engage with the story and the characters are Casino, Taxi Driver, King Of Comedy, The Departed and Hugo where the two latters films are firmly in my all-time top 100 list.

While a new film of his always gets me excited, the premise and cast involved just had me feeling it would fall under the same bracket as the majority of his back catalogue.

In a nutshell, it did. But as I said, I still fully appreciated the craft and there is a lot to praise about this 3hr 30mins gangster epic.

The story for a start was very interesting. Especially when it plucked bits of true history into its story. Seeing the development of our central character always had me interested for the entire duration especially for the surprisingly poignant finale.

As with all Scorsese films, the production design is tip-top and the cinematography is very well executed including a few signature long single takes that is always a crowd-pleaser.

Plus, there are some really good performances in here. It was great see gangster acting hall-of-fame take the helm in the form of Robert DeNiro, Al Pacino and Joe Pesci who came out of retirement to do this.

DeNiro controlled the leading role with such effortlessness that you could feel that this type of character is in his wheelhouse. He does everything you associate with DeNiro and it will please all of his fans.

Pesci was more subdued that a lot of his previous roles. But as he's been out of the game, some leniency is understandable. However, the subtle nature of his character was very effective and it was great reminder how Pesci was more than just good in gangster films in his heyday.

But stealing the show was Pacino. He made the most of having the best lines and gave us a larger-than-life character that produced most of the laughs in the film.

It wasn't just about the big three, as some of the supporting cast had their time in the sun.

Ray Romano was a particular highlight in the opening act. Stephen Graham surprised by giving an impressive American accent and bounce off well with the main characters.

It was also great to see Harvey Keitel, Jesse Plemons and Anna Paquin enhance the star power of the casf despite being in very minor roles.

With this story spanning over a few decades, de-aging technology is being used. While you know the technology is being used, it looked very seamless. It continues to scare me how close we are to struggle to tell what is CGI and what is live-action.

I did enjoy this. But like I said, I'm not going nuts over it. The performances are very good, it moves at a good pace to never let the long duration feel largely noticeable and it looks great.
But it's my personal taste that is getting in the way of me giving it a higher rating. Big Scorsese fans will probably consider this another one of his classics and it wouldn't surprise me if it gets noticed in the major awards. For me, I can't see it ending in my top 10 at the end of the year. But it is definitely needs to be experienced at least.

Rating: 8/10

Review: Fire Will Come

Not much to say about this film as it offered me very little to talk about.

It does have an eery opening with I hoped set the tone for the film. Then after that, it was a bit of a slot for me.

It added little helpful hints to the story. But it wasn't until the final act where my interest returned with some striking imagery.

What this film does have going for it was the cinematography and music. They certainly made the most of its location and made it a character in itself.
Plus the music really enhanced the atmosphere and gave you that sense of unsettlement which I found to be very effective.

But even with the lovely cinematography and evocative score, there wasn't that much of a story.
I can see it was more about 'show don't tell' into how it was telling the story. But there was still very little content for me that could give even us a narrative that I could explain.
When the plot synopsis gave me more info then what the film, you know something didn't work.

Rating: 6/10

Review: Luce

Apart from a strong looking cast, I knew nothing about this film going into my screening.

This film really surprised me in so many ways.
Firstly, it covers topics that are only very topical and highly debated, but in some circles are taboo. So this for me was a very brave choice of story to go for.

But as the film went on, it was more than just social commentary on race, there was also perception, the power of lying.
I really liked the cat-and-mouse element that are characters were playing, and it also tries to fool the viewer. There are definitely times in the film where you have no idea who is telling the truth.
By the end I was seeing similar themes from films such as 'Disconnect', the revenge element of 'Nocturnal Animals' and the mind games of 'Gone Girl'.

The performances on the whole were great. Kelvin Harrison Jr. was a surprisingly strong lead, felt very authentic and believable as this prodical student that could also be a masterful tactician just looking out for his friends.
Naomi Watts gave us her best performance for at least a couple of years. Octavia Spencer was great as ever and gave us a character while hard to know if you were supposed to root for them or not, was constantly engaging.

This is a film that is most definitely open to interpretation, but in a very accessible way for a mainstream audience to get involved. It covers topics and themes that are very topical and relatable for so many.  This will shock you, intrigue you and you will want to instantly see this again to make sure your interpretation of it was the right one. I think everyone should check this out as I can see this being a heavily discussed film once it's out on general release.

Rating: 8/10

Review: Miles Davis: Birth Of The Cool

Firstly, I know very little of Jazz. I've always loved the sound of it. But I've invested time to properly delve into the history of it and listen to the big pioneers of this genre on heavy rotation. But one name I do that many see as the greatest jazz musician not all-time, is Miles Davis.

I know his career has spanned many decades. But I don't think I've ever knowingly heard one of his songs.

After now seeing this fully biographical documentary, it certainly made me want to at least dip my toe into his back catalogue, as I felt this to be very entertaining and highly engaging throughout.

For me, it perfectly portrayed his genius, his unique approach to a new project, his flaws, his arrogance, his no-nonsense style of humour and his power-hungry style with his colleagues.
It was interesting seeing how the music of jazz reacted to the changing of the times and also how Davis was never afraid to evolve and work with a younger generation of musicians.

The people being interviewed during the film that worked closely with him enhanced certain stories really well and made it highly amusing but also heart-breaking.

This felt to be the perfect crash-course to non-fans of Miles Davis and will still entertain the hardcore fans. I didn't feel it went into a lot of depth, which made the experience not as impactful as I feel it could've been. But it remained a highly satisfying watch.
Jazz is certainly a genre of music that everyone should experience and seeing  the this aboutdocumentary best in the business certainly convinced me.

Rating: 7/10

Review: Joker

The hype surrounding this particular project has been polarising to say the least.
The initial announcement of this certainly had me not really interested as Jared Leto's portrayal of the titular character in Suicide Squad was still fresh in the mind of many people. Plus, any Joker performance after Heath Ledger's award-winning and iconic performance in 2009 will probably never be topped.

But with the trailers suggesting a new approach to the character, and a surprising win of the prestigious Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival, that's when it got me thinking "maybe this is as much of a masterpiece as the hype is suggesting it is".
With the anticipation well over boiling-point for so many, I was definitely up for this checking this out.

What I got was something was definitely refreshing in its tone as well as a strong leading performance. The structure, pacing and tone was more like watching one a hard-boiled 1970's feature or one of Martin Scorsese's earlier films such as Mean Streets, Taxi Driver and most notably King Of Comedy.
I liked how it covered several topics such as mental disability and the class system and even bringing in some nods to the source material that will please the comic book fans.

But it's first and foremost a character study, and the way it developed it to a strong finale with one particular scene that was wonderfully engaging and unsettling at the same time made it for a satisfying experience.

Joaquin Phoenix really transforms himself in more ways than one into one of the most iconic movie and comic book villains. He's not quite a full-on method actor. But when the occasion calls for it, he can become a totally new person and commit to it.
Despite his character portraying a villian, you can feel sympathy and empathy towards him and find a lot of relatable aspects that I feel a lot of demographics will see as well.
I'm not sure if I would personally give him an Oscar nomination just yet. But I wouldn't complain if he did when the major awards season arrives.

I know a lot of people may find the level of violence unsettling and upsetting. While I do agree with the former, I was never upset by it as the execution and timing of it felt right in the moment. It definitely shocked me. But I admired that it never felt afraid to hold back in order to help develop the story and the character.

I'm really pleased that director Todd Phillips and his crew set out on to do something different and all of it coming together into a very strong piece of work.
I may not be in the 'masterpiece' bracket of rating this film. But I am probably the next one down. It's a very good watch, has strong rewatchability and Phoenix's performance was worth it for all the hard work. I can't quite see it make my top 10 of the year. But it's certainly a film like I would like to own and watch again and again.

Rating: 8/10

Review: Ad Astra

I feel this film had a rather strange build-up to its release.

Any sci-fi film that has a plot synopsis that looks to be more of a thinking-mans sci-fi with heavy themes on existence and the human condition has me instantly booking a ticket.

However, I felt there was little buzz surrounding this and its September release date had me somewhat worried as this felt like it was more of a summer release. Especially with Brad Pitt in the leading role.

It's also directed by James Gray, who despite beginning his career with crime films and a couple of romantic dramas gave us the massively under-rated biographical epic The Lost City Of Z.
So if everyone involved can bring their A-game to this project, this has the potential to be one of the years best.

For me, it ended up being a bit of a missed opportunity. I know James Gray usually has a slow-burning style, and it worked for the most part in this film. But for a film that's about 2hrs long, there were moments where it dragged. I think that came down to the content. While it did cover the themes I expected it to, the film felt like it was a lot more physical then it actually is. It never felt it either went into enough depth or was just not executed well as well as it has done by similar films.
I don't even think the performances were that exceptional. There was nothing wrong with them. But when Brad Pitt's character felt similar to Will Smith's character in After Earth, you know it's not going to work with audiences. If you've seen After Earth, you'll know what I mean.

Now onto the good stuff. It's shot beautifully, the colour palette worked very well with its environment, the visual effects just enhanced the imagery so well and the dreamy score fitted well with the tone.

So from a technical standpoint, it's high-quality. The story didn't quite work. You can feel there's a good story in there. But not everything quite fitted into place.
If you want the better version of this tory, then you might as well watch Event Horizon. It's almost identical, and it's execution felt fully utilised.

While there was enough positive aspects to give this a respectable rating, there are still a number of noticeable drawbacks.
I would still recommend it as I know it has found an audience that have rated it highly. Not quite with me on the whole. But I wouldn't say no to a second viewing in a few years time and I might find something the execution of the story and characters that I can get on board with.

Rating: 7/10