Human Capital (2020)

Human Capital is one of those films that has a strong ensemble cast who all give accomplished performances and play off each other so well they create something fascinating to watch. This interesting story of interconnected lives manages to examine class stratification in a compelling tale. But it is all brought together by the delightful cast. I just wanted to keep watching them interact.

The film makers tell the story through a series of interwoven individual stories layered on top of each other. First we follow one character through events, then another through those same events so we get to see different perspectives. This device isn't new but it is well executed here. Again the strength of the cast really makes it work.

The film sticks to the basics and is fairly economic in the way it tells the tales. It doesn't elaborate or go to far down any rabbit hole. But again I find that works here. Instead of Tarantino like back stories to each individuals we just get the necessary pieces to know who each player is and what they are struggling with. Maybe that choice to be on the efficient side keeps the film from being more than it is but also it keeps it from going off the rails. It plays it safe but in doing so still delivers on a complete story.

For me Human Capital came together quite nicely as a very satisfying package. And within that there is some interesting comments on class and economics and how that affects the humans within those systems. Good performances, an interesting story, worthwhile moral-to-the-story, and efficient story telling make a good rewarding movie.

Human Capital
Starring: Liam Schreiber, Marisa Tomei, Peter Sarsgaard, Maya Hawke, Alex Wolff, Betty Gabriel, Aasif Mandvi
Director: Marc Meyers
Writer: Oren Moverman

Antigone (2019)

Writer/director Sophie Deraspe transports the classic Greek play of Antigone to modern Montreal focusing on an immigrant family, specifically the youngest daughter, and her life as an immigrant and a woman is laid out for her when she chooses to stand up for her principles and her family.

Our initial views of the family are loving. They are shown to be truly caring for one another with familial ribbing and teasing. We are shown hints of the struggle they've been through relocating to Canada as refugees and finding their identities within the western culture. It is all what we have seen before. We are brought into the nature of this family before things go wrong.

When crisis hits the family it is Antigone who stands up and takes the brunt of it. She makes tough choices and never waivers, like her namesake. It is a portrait of human strength. The film does a great job of capturing the way so much of the human struggle in our world falls on the shoulders of women.

Another thing the film does well is show Antigone become an inspiration, the way her example of resistance brings that out around her. She empowers those around her, from those immediately in her presence to those in her community. This is esepcially cogent in light of her relationship to her community as both immigrant and non-citizen.

Ricci as the title character is a pillar of strength, showing how standing up for what she believes is right wears on her yet also strengthens her resolve. Her performance is subtle but rich, embodying that strength and power the film highlights.

Antigone works remarkably well to do all it sets out to do. It is a powerful story of human strength in the face of desperate situations.

Antigone
Starring: Nahema Ricci, Nour Belkhiria, Rawad El-Zein, Hakim Brahimi, Rachida Oussaada
Writer/Director: Sophie Deraspe

The Burnt Orange Heresy (2020)

This film adaptation of the Charles Willeford crime novel has been getting a bit of a bad rap. I felt that's too bad as I found a lot of the film intriguing, from it's deeply flawed lead played magnificently by Claes Bang to its beguiling plot. I found it an engaging pot boiler.

There are some fair critiques. The film mishandles its female lead. This character is missing some of what she needs to be more dimensional and it's not Debicki's performance (which is quite strong) but the structure of the film. And I'm not sure the film earns its ending? It gets a little extreme near the end, not fully crossing the line of believability but pushing right up to it. I'm not sure it quite gets us there but I accepted it for the purposes of the film.

Still despite those critiques I feel the film is quite watchable and its pulpy plot is enjoyable. There is a Talented Mr. Ripley quality to it. And more than that, it asks some interesting questions about art and the meaning of that art which is fascinating. And at the centre of it all Bang gives a truly enjoyable performance that was so enjoyable to watch. So it's the kind of film that if you stumble across it, it wouldn't be such a bad idea to give it a shot.

The Burnt Orange Heresy
Starring: Claes Bang, Elizabeth Debicki, Mick Jagger, Donald Sutherland
Director: Giuseppe Capotondi
Writer: Scott Smith

Into the Grand Canyon (2019)

I haven't been to the Grand Canyon since I was a child. My perceptions of it are likely not based in much reality. I imagine hiking through the Canyon as a leisurely trail through a fairly touristy national park. I also imagine the park to be completely commodified. Watching Into the Grand Canyon showed me just how far off my imagination was.

Film maker/photographer Peter McBride convinced his friend to hike the canyon with him. There is no trail meaning the two had to scale cliffs, walk along ridges, and traverse some very difficult terrain. The adventure of walking the "trail" which is almost as long as the state of California based on the twists and turns you are forced to take is a rigorous trek which, as a film, is completely captivating. McBride captures the true adventure of it all making his film so deeply compelling.

Then he focuses on the issues surrounding the Canyon. He explores the different ways competing interests are working to exploit the canyon in different ways. He isn't unbiased. He definitely takes a position, but the discussions and differing points of view remain as fascinating as the hike.

All of it comes together in a very enjoyable and compelling watch which will open your eyes to a whole new way of understanding this land mark, one famous for being a cliche. Perhaps this is a chance to see it a new for the first time.

Into the Grand Canyon
Director: Peter McBride

Hamlet (1996) TOP 100

I will start by saying this is my favourite Shakespeare film adaptation of all time and one of my favourite films ever. While it started off as a bit of a gimmick, adapting the entire script of Hamlet (from the first folio with additional parts that do not appear there from the second folio), when the tradition is to cut it down to a roughly 2 hour length for film adaptations, it turns into what is one of the more amazing film experiences I've ever seen. What would the whole Hamlet play feel like to watch through? I do not think I have ever seen a complete performance of any Shakespeare play except for this one. There are particular challenges associated with such an undertaking but Branagh has shown that if anyone is up for the task of doing this, it is him. Hamlet is a cinematic triumph in all aspects.

Hamlet is one of the last films to be shot on 70mm film. Branagh films his epic as an epic, and fills the big screen with as much visual spectacular as possible. He has always been a visual director and his Hamlet is no different, perhaps being one of the best examples of that ever. Seeing this on the big screen was one of the biggest treats of my cinemaphile life. But it remains just as beautiful on a home screen as well. From the opening moments of the initial appearance of his father's ghosts and then the iconic grand palace true opening of the film in the middle of one of the most gorgeous sets ever films, Hamlet says to its audience that it is going to show us something remarkable. It is a feast for the eyes with some of the most beautiful art direction and costumes of any film, ever.

And one of the pieces of brilliance of this film adaptation is how he, in the midst of all that grandeur, sets many of the most important interactions and plot moments so intimate. He has characters embrace and whisper to each other. For example Polonias' advice scene is set as a remarkably intimate interaction between him and his children, and when he then turns on Ophelia in the next scene, that betrayal is so much more stark. Branagh oscillates between the large great scenes and some truly intricate personal moments. Then there is the way he creates a palpable energy in other scenes by rushing through lines with kinetic speeds. Yes he has a lot to fit into the run time so this helps, but it also creates urgency and energy. The the scene Hamlet confers with his father's ghost, they rush their lines together to make us feel the desperation of the moment. There is a scene of him running through the castle being chased which is edge of your seat exciting. The shifts in tone between the large, the soft, and the frantic are handled so naturally. 

But as with any adaptation, the cast makes the movie. I believe, like Branagh does, that Derek Jacobi is one of the most amazing actors to ever live, has a particular talent for the Bard's work, and he once again confirms that here. His Claudius is a complicated advisory, not wholly villain, not overly sympathetic. His delicate handling of the character is a tour de force and one of my favourite singular performances ever. And similarly Richard Briers is a revelation here. The film posits his Polonius not as the bumbling fool he is often staged as, but as a truly evil schemer pulling all the levers.

Julie Christie is a complex Gertrude. She is drawn as a woman doing the best to manage all going on around her, balancing her own needs with the needs of her family and her nation. She isn't complicit, nor is she ignorant. She is vigilant in what she needs to do. And a young Kate Winslet does the always under served Ophelia true honour. I find this character one of the most challenging in the Bard's oeuvre. Winslet's decent into madness is truly tragic, and not in a way to serve Hamlet's journey, as it is also presented a bit powerful. Her madness is as viscous as any death on screen.

But then there is Branagh himself giving what in my opinion is the best Hamlet screen performance I have ever seen. The way he introduces us to the Dane, his dress distancing him from the court, as well as his mood. We see him in the shadows until he dramatically steps into the light. He is energized through meeting his father's ghost and by makes a fun fully entertaining ride of playing madness for this uncle's court. But by the time he gets to his soliloquy, brilliantly and beautifully set in a hall of mirrors, he holds us in his hands and we are enraptured.

Branagh, along with Jacobi and Briers, find a way of speaking the lines without making them sound like rhyming iambic pentameter, but as the way someone would speak. Branagh's Hamlet speaks as naturally as anyone. Rarely to film actors pull this off without sounding like they are reading lines.

One of the joys of seeing the entire play enacted is seeing those little moments which are most often cut, such as the fall of Troy in the speech by the player, here played by Heston which is actually visualized with Gielgud and Dench acting out the story as Heston, with his powerful voice, narrates the story. Or the inclusion of Reynaldo for a scene which shows a different side of Polonius. There are a multitude of moments like this which we often skip over and here we get to see how it all comes together in a way that brings out the power of the entire story.

Alright I will finish gushing now. I could go on about this film for hours. I enjoy watching it each time and each time I get more and more out of it. I can't recommend this film enough

Hamlet
Starring: Kenneth Branagh, Derek Jacobi, Julie Christie, Kate Winslet, Michael Maloney, Richard Briers, Nicholas Farrell, Robin Williams, Gerard Depardieu, Jack Lemmon, Judi Dench, John, Gielgud, Billy Crystal, Rufus Sewel, Charlton Heston, Richard Attenborough, Timothy Spall, Brian Blessed, Rosemary Harris
Director: Kenneth Branagh
Writer: William Shakespeare

Superman Red Son (2020)

I love "what-if" stories, telling a familiar tale but switching out a detail to explore what would have happened with the change. In this case this is the story of Superman but instead of the baby Kal-El's ship landing in Kansas after the destruction of Krypton, the ship lands in the Ukraine during the era of the U.S.S.R. Superman becomes a hero of the Soviet Union and communism and the story explores what that world might have been like.

The story of this film is interesting, exploring global politics of the cold war era with the added superhero context. But I found that the film dumbs down a lot of the themes the comic it is based on explores. The story still gets into Superman's nature and the way he responds to the human world and all its problematic nature, and how, raised in a communist context, this nature leads him to try to perfect the collectivist goals of Marxism yet still falling into totalitarian traps. There is the promise at the beginning of the film that it would also be able to point out the failings of capitalism in delivering the American Dream but the film never quite delivers on that despite some early lip service. There is also an added element of feminist critique which is injected into the story but dropped too quickly. The film's failings are mostly in oversimplifying things and heading towards a more re-assuring ending.

The comic it is based on had a more complex story structure and added in some twists in the end this film decided to jettison. This story therefore is more straightforward which is fine but it also makes it a bit less interesting. Still, having said all that, the idea that so much of how we understand the concept of Superman is built on his Americaness, and what would a Superman from another earth culture be like, is a fascinating idea and Red Son still manages to get into that. This Superman remains a hero, although overly flawed, and there is something to that idea, of us imbuing a sense of righteousness into him no matter what his circumstances are.

So from that point of view Superman Red Son remains an interesting watch, I just wish it had gone deeper into this rabbit hole.

Superman Red Son
Starring: Jason Isaacs, Amy Acker, Diedrich Bader, Vanessa Marshall, Phil Morris, Paul Williams, Phil LaMarr, Roger Craig Smith, Tara Strong
Director: Sam Liu
Writer: J.M. DeMatteis

James Bond (1962 - 2021) REVISIT

I have seen all the official James Bond films and have a love/hate relationship to this series. There is a great deal I enjoy about these movies through all their iterations and so much that is just so painfully bad. Throughout all this I have come to appreciate him as a character and have fun playing around in his world. It is a very entertaining series, even the bad ones, and there are bad ones, sometimes the bad ones make for some enjoyable hate-watching. Here are my short thoughts on each film:

Dr. No 1962
The first Bond film sets a tone for the series which hasn't shaken (much) for almost 60 years. The films sets out all the expectations each Bond film will follow for the entire series. From its opening gun barrel introduction, the theme music, to seeing the spy playing cards in a casino, to flirting with a beautiful woman, to his interactions with Miss Moneypenny and M, No sets up just what we have come to see as Bond. Bond’s famous self introduction and his “shaken and not stirred line,” the Bond girl archetype, the colonialist biases, all of it a template for each film to come. The first half of the film starts out strong with its classic and straightforward telling the now expected Bond narrative, enjoyable now mostly for all the famous moments we recognize. But as it reaches it’s climax it descends into the sort of sixties silliness filled with rather racist tendencies that we’ve come to mock in a more post-modern age making it a bit of an ironic pleasure. If you haven't seen it but have seen Austin Powers you will be surprised at how close the films are. Mike Meyers didn't have to stretch his subject very far to get great laughs. Still there are things about No that are classic, the most obvious and memorable being Ursula Andress coming out of the water, and one could argue just for that scene Dr. No is worth seeing despite how painful her character is in the portrayal. But really it is about how the whole phenomenon gets started, a phenomenon which is one of the most influential on popular film culture. There are sillier films in this franchise and more racist ones, not that this is an excuse for the yellow face or cheesiness of the film. There are also much better films in the series which transcend what this film creates. Dr. No remains where it all begins.

From Russia With Love 1963
This film is far more my speed than Dr. No. It’s less over the top, less colonialist, less sexist. From Russia With Love is a more straightforward cold war spy story where the bad guys aren’t the Russians but terrorists who play polarized nations against each other making it feel far more realistic than the average Bond film. It is less flashy than most of this era’s Bond films but I think that’s the appeal for me. It still follows the formula laid out in No but with less kitsch. It is nowhere near the best Bond film and it suffers from a rather anti-climactic ending and some fairly typical and tired queer-coding, yet it manages to establish SPECTRE as a true adversary after only being mentioned in No which setts up future stories. It also starts the tradition of a theme song named after the movie, although this too will be done much better in future instalments. Despite any flaws it has, Russia offers a fun ride, on the Orient Express no less.

Goldfinger 1964
For many this is the quintessential Bond film. So many of the series’ most famous moments are here; the murdered girl covered in gold, Oddjob with his killer hat, “no Mr. Bond I expect you to die!”, Bond tied to the table with the laser aimed at his crotch, and of coarse the most famous Bond song of all time. It remains one of the most beloved in the series. But in my opinion the film doesn’t hold up well. The pacing is clunky and it is the least flattering to Bond himself. He’s portrayed as an ass, and not in the way we’ve romanticized him. He actually wrecks a woman’s car so that he can swoop in and save her. It reads as pathetic more than as suave and cool. Also there is a literal corrective rape perpetrated by Bond on Pussy Galore. I’ve always felt Pussy Galore is one of the better Bond Girls, despite the name, which I like to think she took on herself as a descriptor of her own conquests. She’s bisexual, an accomplished pilot, a great fighter who can hold her own with Bond and others, and a self-sufficient mercenary who chooses the right side in the end. I wish the film gave her more due.

While the idea of a millionaire rigging the economic system so he can profit while the world suffers should be timeless, the titular villain often comes off cheap. He starts the movie cheating at cards, hardly a global threat… then again a slobby, dumb, orange, egomaniac with bad hair and the temperament of a toddler has turned out to be one of the worst threats to democracy so maybe Bond was on to something. Maybe spoiled rich white men are the enemies of humanity after all.

Thunderball 1965
Thunderball is the highest grossing Bond film when adjusted for inflation making it the most successful of the series. It is returns to being more straightforward and less over the top than the previous film Goldfinger, yet it is also less memorable. Little in Thunderball is as iconic as the previous films. It does introduce the eye patched villain #2 and really sets the standard for Bond’s wardrobe. But even with all the underwater mayhem (Bond swimming with sharks!) which really does go on for far too long, and lots of Connery beefcake, the film feels a little less important. It is as solid little story but I felt it turned out better when another studio remade it as Never Say Never Again about 20 years later. The saga of all the legal battles over this film and the rights to the story is more interesting than the movie itself. One downside the theme song by Tom Jones is probably the corniest of all the Bond themes, and that’s saying a lot.  

You Only Live Twice 1967
This may be my pick as the worst Bond film ever. The film starts off with a horribly racist scene where Bond contemplates why Chinese women “taste so good.” It doesn’t get much better than that, especially as it adds levels of sexism which were never quite as explicit in previous films as they are here. Shockingly Twice was written by famous author Roald Dahl who threw out the plot of the novel (as do many of the Bond films) and made up a new story featuring Bond and some of the characters from the book. But there is no excuse for the film’s approach to Asian characters. The series has always had racist and sexist elements but never quite as explicit as this film. The plot is also subpar compared to the other movies. Bond finally meets Blofeld, who should be the biggest threat he's ever faced, and the result is rather underwhelming. Sure this is the film that introduces the trope of the evil volcano lair, but that is basically it’s lasting contribution to pop culture. Other than that the whole film feels cringey. No wonder Sean Connery wanted out after this film.

On Her Majesty's Secret Service 1969
George Lazenby proved you could replace the star of a popular action franchise and still have a hit, making future Batman producers very happy. While Lazenby wouldn’t be Bond again and Connery would get a big payday to return to the series after this film, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service remains a solid story while being cleverly snarky and self-aware. Ironically for a film which changed its star, the story here (which sticks closer to the novel’s story than Connery’s often did) attempts to build legacy for Bond (even showing flashbacks to previous films in the credits) building themes running through the series like Bond’s quest for Blofeld, who, as portrayed by Savalas, is the most threatening I think he’s been in the whole series, both as mastermind and as physical advisory for Bond. Service sets up Bond’s great tragedy to help shape who he is, a tactic that doesn’t really return until Daniel Craig’s run. Diana Rigg remains one of my favourite Bond girls, not only because she is a stunningly beautiful woman but because of her character’s darker edge and her desire to get right into the fray. Bond actually turns to her to save him and she does. It’s no wonder she captures Bond’s heart. And this might be Lois Maxwell's best turn as Moneypenny. The film truly shows what makes her invaluable. Overall this remains one of my favourite instalments in the entire series. Also, this is the film where Bond finds out his family motto is “The World is not Enough.”

Diamonds Are Forever 1971
Sean Connery came back for this film to mark his last (well… never say never...) time as Bond. Twice is critiqued for being campy (which it is) but I find it an entertaining story which explores the international diamond trade, an area perfect for a story about evil scheming organizations. Forever appears to be a chance for Connery to have some fun one last time in classic Connery Bond style, wrapping up his battles with SPECTRE, giving us another Shirley Bassey Bond song, fighting classically Bond appropriate villains such as Mr. Wint and Mr. Kidd, as well as classically named Bond girls like Bambi and Thumper. There are Bond girls galore here. My favourite is Tiffany Case, a great early Bond girl who holds her own against Bond both sexually and on the adventure side, but it's Plenty O'Toole who has the most hilarious name. The film also brings back the racism, sexism, and homophobia rampant in Connery's time as the spy but it is all a little muted compared to some previous films. Regular Bond allies Felix Leiter, Moneypenny, M, and Q are all here for the final Connery turn. Forever is a send off of all the things that defined the Connery era, good and bad. Goodbye Sean, it's been fun? Don't let the door hit you on the way out. 

Live and Let Die 1973
Roger Moore’s first turn as Bond starts off boldly, with what many feel is one of the best Bond themes ever (although I have a few I like a lot more), but also with a series of caricatures of African American culture that range from silly to menacing, all of it clearly racist to today’s eyes. Made at the height of the blaxploitation trend, this feels like a strange choice. The film makers wanted to introduce their new Bond and his more irreverent, flippant take on the character, yet also insert him into a trending genre which didn’t really fit. For me the whole thing is a misfire. Especially with how racist the film is with its portrayal of non-white characters. Mr. Big and Baron Samdi are wasted villains with so much more potential than they get to show here. Plus it features one of my least favourite Bond girls, played unfortunately by one of the bigger stars to take on the Bond girl roles, Jane Seymore. As Solitare she does nothing interesting but sit around and wait to be saved. Similarly Rosie Carver, heralded as the first black Bond Girl, is played as incompetent, and is discarded easily for the vanilla girl. Straying significantly from the novel, this film is high on my list of Bond stories which would benefit from a remake.

The Man With the Golden Gun 1974
Moore's second outing isn’t a whole lot better than his first but it has a little more going for it. Christopher Lee remains one of the best Bond villains as the title character and he gives Bond a real run for his money. Maud Adams (who has played 2 different Bond girls) is one of the sexier Bond girls and her appearance in the shower is one of the raciest scenes in any Bond film. Too bad the other Bond girl, Tiffany Case, is such a bumbling moron. The Man With the Golden Gun suffers from the same racist problems with representing Asian culture as most other early Bond films. As Live and Let Die tried to capitalize on the popularity of blaxploitation films, Golden Gun tries to exploit the trend of martial arts films but doesn’t get it right.

The Spy Who Loved Me 1977
This is the first James Bond film I ever saw (at a sleepover as a tween on VHS) and remains a high point in the series for me. In many ways it is this film that defined Bond for me for many years and has remained my favourite Moore Bond film. It has so much going for it that put it above and beyond his other outings. It features one of the best Bond songs and the first not to share a title with the film itself, a feature which would be characteristic of many of my favourite Bond themes. It has one of my favourite Bond girls ever, codenamed Triple X, a spy who is an equal to Bond in every way, including her exploits in the bedroom. It has the Lotus Esprit submarine/car which is just effin cool. Stromberg is a great (if silly) villain complete with underwater villain lair and threatening henchman, Jaws. Has all the campy joy of early Bond but without the blatantly over the top racism of previous Bond films (just little dashes of hit here and there). Plus this is the first time Bond’s sexism is pushed back against. Progress! A lot of Bondish assumptions are challenged here. There is good cold war attitude critique throughout. Bond has attempted to modernize itself over the years. This is the first attempt and probably the reason I didn’t give up on the series entirely.

Moonraker 1979
Many of Roger Moore’s Bond films feel like attempts to capitalize on trends. Martial arts films, blaxploitation films, and now the sci fi kick most notably the huge success of Star Wars. This leads to what is truly one of Bond’s silliest outings. The plot is truly ridiculous.  It includes skydiving, octopus attacks, speeding gondolas (both the boat and mountain kind), hang gliders, snakes… and then Bond goes into space! They throw everything at us AND the kitchen sink. CIA agent Holly Goodhead, intended to be an equal rival to Bond like XXX from the previous film, is dull as can be, as is the theme song. The return of Jaws, a cool henchmen in the last film, here is played for silly comic relief that just feels pathetic. Moonraker isn’t that offensive like some previous Bond films; it’s just on the dumber side.

For Your Eyes Only 1981
Due to legal wrangling, the Bond films couldn’t use Blofeld and SPECTRE any longer. So they chose to kill him off quickly without officially naming him. The opening sequence to this film is unfortunately a rather poorly handled send off for the villain, intended to be so important to the series. I think I would have preferred they just didn’t mention it all. Perhaps including this reference was signalling the series’ move back to its roots. For Your Eyes Only is more like traditional Bond than most of Moore’s run. It is a more old fashioned Bond spy story without too much of the kitsch we’ve become accustomed to. However for me there isn’t a lot that stands out in For Your Eyes Only. Despite the great title song performed onscreen by Sheena Easton it remains one of the less remarkable takes on Bond.

Octopussy 1983
Perhaps because this film was coming out around the same time as a rival Bond story (Never Say Never Again) which was exploring the idea of an aging Bond directly, Octopussy also takes a stab at addressing Bond getting older but does so in the series’ usual cheeky, wink wink manner through his interactions with women (Moneypenny specifically) dismissing his aging as irrelevant. But that fits the tone of Octopussy, one of the sillier Bond films which has most of the cheesy hallmarks of the Moore era. Octopussy herself is a bit of a conundrum as I find Maud Adams' portrayal (her second Bond girl) weak for a character that should be stronger. She is the lesbian leader of an organization of women agents but ends up needing to be saved by Bond and succumbs to his charms??

Never Say Never Again 1983

This is a remake of Thunderball, sort of. The story behind the making of this film is long and interesting, but I won’t get into that now. While not officially part of the Bond series, personally I enjoy this telling of the tale better than the first take. It’s also my favourite Connery Bond film. I like its more serious take on the Bond mythos, its exploration of an aging icon and his struggles to remain relevant, and director Irvin Kershner’s (The Empire Strikes Back) more artful direction than we’re used to in a Bond film until the next millennium. Most often I find the portrayal of SPECTRE and the comic bookish Blofeld to be trite but here Max von Sydow makes him a real threatening villain, as is Klaus Maria Brandauer’s Largo, a truly vile man. And Never features Rowan Atkinson so that in itself makes it worth a watch. While I find Basinger’s version of Domino rather bland, Carrera’s Fatima Blush is full of dangerous femme fatal glee who exceeds her Thunderball counterpart by being a true match for Bond. Pamela Salem’s Moneypenny doesn’t hold a candle to the classic Lois Maxwell but Bernie Casey is the coolest Felix Leiter ever, and my second favourite version of the character after Geoffrey Wright. While it suffers from some of the same clichés the mainstream Bond movies do, it remains, for me, one of the better Bond films until later in the series.

A View to a Kill 1985
This is Roger Moore's last outing and I can’t say I’m sad to see him go. He is pretty much my least favourite Bond (despite how much I love The Spy Who Loved Me). The film starts with a ski chase (already done in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service and The Spy Who Loved Me) and focuses on horse racing (already done in Goldfinger) so a lot of this film feels tired. But on the other hand it bursts into the most 80s Bond film ever with a black light title sequence featuring Duran Duran, Grace Jones in her new wave glory, a boombox, and a microchip/computer plot. Overall the film is over the top, cheesy, and indulgent, from Jones diving off the Eiffel Tower to Bond driving over buses and boats while chasing her, to Christopher Walken having so much fun as a megalomaniac, he’s almost as good as he is as Max Shreck in Batman Returns. Bond is to take a serious turn after this but silly Bond had one more shake of the martini, and it’s a ridiculous doozy.

The Living Daylights 1987
This was the first Bond film I saw in cinemas but I was too young to enjoy it. I certainly remember from the adults I was with that there was real excitement about a new Bond, perhaps a more modern one. At this point Bond was perhaps beyond his expiration date and needed a rejuvenation. Despite not being a reboot they recast a younger Moneypenny and Felix Leiter to go along with the younger Bond. But in the end audiences maybe weren’t ready for Timothy Dalton's take on Bond which was criticized for being humourless and dull. But watching it now it doesn’t appear too different from previous Bond films, remaining a bit over the top and much of the action is still on the silly side. What the film does do is bring less overt sexism and racism to the role, especially in the jokes. Maybe that’s what the audiences were missing but just didn’t want to say it. For me The Living Daylights does feel rather average and almost generic, not finding a way to make what people find special about Bond in his new iteration.

License to Kill 1989
Considered one of the least Bond films, I actually think License to Kill shows Dalton coming into his own as the famous Spy. This instalment takes Bond in a new direction by making Bond less chauvinist and focuses on (somewhat) more realistic action sequences. It also connects to the film series' history by focusing on Bond's relationships like his friendship with Felix Lester and his dead wife in a way Bond films before had tended to avoid.  It starts out with a rather bad opening sequence, but picks up after that. The problem is it feels somewhat cheap. The story takes some short cuts, the set pieces feel smaller. A young Benicio Del Toro appears as a villain but his character is a bit thinly drawn. Bond girl Bouvier starts out good as a strong agent but her schoolgirl jealousy turned me off. Still, between Dalton's two appearances, I think this one is actually the strongest. It still isn’t where the Bond series should get to but it feels like it is on its way. Instead they give up on this take and get there with Brosnan.

Goldeneye (1995)

In many ways Goldeneye does what The Living Daylights was trying to do, reestablish Bond for a new generation. Goldeneye is like James Bond 101, employing all the elements set to introduce exactly who this character and his world is for a new audience, doing so quite successfully. Brosnan sets himself up as classic Bond, all that Connery was, he is a sexy cad but well meaning, a “dinosaur” from another era who may still have relevance, his motivations feel far more fleshed out than had been attempted before, making him feel more like a real character than a superhero. He says all the famous lines and goes through the typical Bond style adventure all to the sounds of one of the most classic sounding Bond songs ever (written by Bono and The Edge, sung by Tina Turner channeling Bassey). Judy Dench is introduced as M making the adventure feel more modern and act as a foil for the return of the classic Bond. Also classically timed, Goldeneye is set right at the end of the cold war and is obsessed with that change in world dynamics. Goldeneye does all it can to bring back the golden age of Bond and succeeds.

Tomorrow Never Dies (1997)

With the cold war over, Bond needed a good new villain and a corporate media type was perfect for this era. Jonathan Price is delightfully over the top, so far over that he's up there with Goldfinger, and he’s a bit too on the nose for my tastes. In the intervening years we’ve seen his villain is actually fairly prescient and didn’t need to be as cartoony as he is here.  In fact if he wasn’t so Snidley Whiplash the movie would be one of the best Bond films. The story and action are good and the film features one of the best Bond girls of all time, Michelle Yeoh as the remarkable Wai Lin, who could kick Pussy Galore's ass. Despite all the modern trappings, Brosnan continues to pay tribute to the Bond of the past.

The World is Not Enough (1999)
For me Enough should have been a lot better than it is. The story idea is good, Renard is not a bad villain, and introducing John Cleese as the new Q is a great idea. But for some reason much of the execution just isn’t up to snuff. Christmas Jones and Electra are some of the worst Bond girls in any film, bad choices for actors cast in the roles making them almost intolerable. Poor pacing and eye rolling jokes makes the film rather dull. Enough is less than enough for me. It is my least favorite of Brosnan's episodes.

Die Another Day (2002)
Die Another Day takes a lot of flack but I actually enjoy it quite a bit. It has a grittier plot than previous films (perhaps foreshadowing the direction Daniel Craig’s take on Bond would lead the franchise), but maintains the fantastic elements of the series such as incredible gadgets and remarkable locations/lairs. It has a cool villain in the diamond studded Zao, and Graves who is one of the better megalomaniacs who have taken on Bond. There is a fun, cheeky cameo featuring Madonna (who also provides the Bond theme, a techno infusion which is one of the fresher songs to feature in these movies). Halle Berry as Jinx and Rosamund Pike as Frost are two of the best actresses to ever play Bond girls (Oscar nominees both). Sure there is some poor CGI but for me it’s the story focusing (again) on the older Bond adapting to a new world, a device I enjoy quite a bit. After multiple viewings Day ends up being my favourite of Brosnan’s Bond films. It ends up being a goodbye to the original world of Bond and it does this by being devoutly reverent to the series and all it was, references to all 20 films included. Day sums up so much about what we've come to know about Bond and sends out this version, overblown and stylish, out with a bang.

Casino Royale (2006)
For me the approach taken with Bond during Daniel Craig’s run (commencing here) is the most compelling. By finally adapting Ian Flemming’s first Bond novel, the producers used this as an excuse to “reboot” the character, rebuilding him from the ground up for a 21^st century audience. Craig plays Bond as an ambitious and bold but less experienced agent, cocky but uniquely talented. Bond cuts his teeth here, both professionally and personally. The film doesn’t actually get to the novel’s story until after an hour in, but director Campbell and his screen writers have embellished an origin story not only true to the book but fleshed out to make a spy character modern audiences can believe, explaining who Bond is and why. His womanizing, his gadgets, his arrogance, his capabilities, are all given background. He isn’t fully formed (as in Dr. No), we see him becoming. This is the first time I had seen Bond as a compelling character. The theme You Know My Name by Chris Cornell is my favourite Bond song ever, bar none.

Quantum of Solace (2008)

Quantum gets a bad rap and is often dismissed unfairly. It has some of the best action set pieces of any movie, starting off with two masterful, edge of your seat sequences (a car chase then a foot chase) and there is another in the middle juxtaposed with an opera scene that is stunning. The most violent film in the entire series, that violence is well used not only to drive the plot but to build the characters. Quantum does world building, setting up that Bond becoming a 00 and Vesper’s revelations have tipped off MI6 (and subsequently the western world’s intelligence community) to a large conspiracy organization which we’ll learn more about over the next few films, but here are still left wondering about. We witness Bond building the scar tissue that makes him the uncontrolled yet purposeful and detached protagonist we know him to be. M is shown to be brilliant with a history and her relationship with Bond is tested and built. Camille Montes is one of the most kick ass Bond girls and there is no need for her to have a romance with Bond which is refreshing. Instead the two share a journey through revenge seeking catharsis which develops both of them. Oh, and Jack White and Alicia Keys perform another one of my personal favourite Bond themes.

Skyfall (2012)
For me Skyfall is the perfect Bond film. It is the culmination of everything I would want in a Bond movie. This is the reason I am a fan of the series, despite all the worst. What Royale and Quantum built is executed here to deliver the kind of action movie that has a richness and gravitas to it that few films of its ilk manage. It encapsulates all the characters, plots, and references and Bond-ness I want in these movies from the relationship between Bond and M to introducing dynamic and fascinating versions of characters like Q and Moneypenny who are so much more than the two dimensional cameos they were before.  But besides that it simply a remarkable film. It is gorgeously filmed, astutely written, and features some of the best action sequences in any film series. It is filled with layered and developed performances and a story that is both entertaining and leaves you feeling its impact. If this was the only Bond film, I would be happy with it, but it is even better with the lead in from Royale and Quantum, and the history of the series behind it.

Spectre (2015)
I don’t know if it was planned from Casino Royale, but by the time we get to Spectre all Craig’s movies have built up to this. The interconnectedness of the Craig films culminate in a story that reveals everything that happened was part of a long plan, a larger story, one that is inspired by the classic Bond lore of the past. While Spectre gets some bad press, for me it is both the best kind of fan service in how it ties in ideas, characters, themes, from across the Bond oeuvre but also pays off the specifics of the plots woven through the last three films.  It is visually and narratively riddled with references to the series, train ride like From Russia, the alpine spa like in Secret Service, Bond tied and tortured like in Goldfinger, and of coarse Spectre and Blofeld himself. While repeating these themes has felt tired in the past, here I find them quite well used to evoke the right amount of nostalgia without compromising story. The themes built in this arc touch on how world events and power can be shaped by personalities and their relationships. Dave Bautista’s Mr. Hinx is reminiscent of Oddjob. Lea Seydoux’s Dr. Swann is the first Bond girl doctor I believed to be an actual scientist, and she kicks butt too! I do wish Blofeld’s story wasn’t compressed as much as it was here but I liked just how much this film attempts to bring everything together.

No Time To Die (2021)

Daring in its ending but bogged down in its attempts to tie up all the loose ends and complete a single narrative, No Time To Die is intense and truly scary with a nice emotional punch at the finale, but often feels like it is cramming everything in. I have appreciated Craig's run in what it does for the series but this isn't the strong ending I'd hoped for. Still it gets more right than wrong and the theme is one of the best songs of the bunch. 

And it leaves me unable to wait to see what is going to happen next...

Red Snow (2020)

I knew early into watching Red Snow that it would likely end up as one of my favourite films of the year. It was just how all the pieces came together. There was a poetic beauty to writer/director Marie Clements' vision. She sets us immediately into a powerful and gripping story, and tells it both backward and forward from that point in a way that fleshes out her main character and the people around him so beautifully. I was hooked from the first scene and riveted for the whole ride.

Red Snow is the story of Dylan a young Gwich'in (a Canadian First Nation) man who, as a Canadian soldier during the Afghanistan war, is taken hostage by the Taliban. As this happens he remembers back to his childhood in the North West Territories, remember his love who killed herself as a youth, his grandmother who raised him, and his brother. Also during this story he befriends an Afghan family who are also struggling with the Taliban.

Red Snow is remarkably beautiful to watch. Clements finds incredible beauty in the snow covered arctic and the deserts of Afghanistan (although I understand B.C. stood in for the middle east here). She also films her subjects so beautifully. She is a remarkable film maker if this is any indication. I am eager to see what she will do next.

She also finds layered and fascinating ways to tell the story. As I said her narrative is not linear yet it all plays out in a very honest way. It isn't laid out like this to trick us or deceive us, but for details about who everyone is to ripple outward as our understanding of character and place becomes richer and deeper. Her cast is strong as well. The legendary Tantoo Cardinal gives a career topping performance and breakout star Asivak Koostachin is stunning in a difficult demanding part.

There are so many beautiful little moments in this intense film. From one character's desire to mock westerner presuppositions of the Inuit by coming up with as many words for snow as possible, to the way the film explores the way nation states fail their own people. The film is an exploration of how our identities intersect across divisions and how our nationalities both drive us apart and bring us together. There is a desperation here, for survival, for something better. It is about bringing out the worst in us and the best in us.

Red Snow is a stunning film and a beautiful story and shows the promise of a film maker and a new star.

Red Snow
Starring: Asivak Koostachin, Shafin Karim, Mozhdah Jamalzadah, Tantoo Cardinal, Kane Mahon, Miika Bryce Wiskeyjack, Ishaan Vasdev
Writer/Director: Marie Clements

The Hunt (2020)

Bloomhouse clearly isn't all magic. For every Invisible Man they put out there is a Fantasy Island or The Hunt. It's almost like they just throw out whatever to see what sticks. Even a stopped clock is right twice a day, right?

Their latest complete misfire is more interesting for the marketing than for the actual film. When the film was first going to be released it got some bad press and the film was quite falsely painted as political propaganda. The studio rethought their advertising strategy and rebranded themselves, trying to make themselves seem cool for all the controversy. Well it sure got people talking. Too bad the film is so shitty in the end.

The film is absurd from the first moments. Everyone is a cliche. The film isn't anti-"deplorable" or anti-"liberal-elite." It is that sort of cynical "everyone is bad and we should all just get along" BS that falsely equivilates being a racist with being an anti-racist. The film's characters are silly caricatures of red necks or campaign liberals.  It revels in its jokes about snowflakes and political correctness and climate change denial and anything that one side uses to demonize the other. It turns it all into a joke. To The Hunt, everything is a joke. The film basically shoves these cliches in our faces then has them comically shoot at each other as if that is some sort of smart social satire.

But it's not. It's a cheat. Not taking sides isn't a strong intellectual position. It's gaslighting. It is standing outside of real problems and choosing to do nothing.

But it's not even the sketchy politics of the film. It's just how bad the film is. The jokes are sadly predictable and lazy. The story is boring. The violence is cartoony. Everything about the film just feels cheap. There is a way to do this sort of satire. Last year's Ready or Not showed up how to make this sort of a film in a smart and entertaining way. The Hunt shows us how not to.

The Hunt
Starring: Betty Gilpin, Ike Barinholtz, Emma Roberts, Hilary Swank, Sturgill Simpson
Director: Craig Zoble
Writer: Nick Cuse, Damon Lindelof

Bloodshot (2020)

With all the success comic book movies have been having lately it's not surprising a comic publisher other than DC and Marvel would also try to get their characters on to the big screen. Yes there are comics from companies other than the big two, and Valiant Comics is one of the bigger of the "rest of" comics publishers and Bloodshot is one of the more well known characters outside of Marvel and DC.

The film takes the tried and true route, setting up the basic premise of the character, a revived super-soldier brought back from the dead who starts to remember that his past may not be what he thinks it is. It's a good hook, if not overly original, and the film just sticks to it, telling its story in a straightforward but effective way. Vin Diesel is well cast emoting just as one would expect a super-soldier who lost his family to. I think what makes Bloodshot work is that everyone sticks to the plan, tells the story earnestly, without doing anything too radical. Don't expect any surprises here. This is fairly straight forward stuff. But for what it tries to do it does it.

It certainly likes its special effects. A self-healing hero may not be that novel these days so the film manages to find a way to make it seem new, with quite beautiful visuals of Vin Diesel repairing himself. And the stunts are top notch too. Excellent work here. Again, what Bloodshot does well it does well.

This shows there is room beyond Marvel and DC. While it's not overly ambitious it does please a crowd with a decent story and solid film making.

Bloodshot
Starring: Vin Diesel, Guy Pierce, Eiza Gonzalez, Sam Heughan, Toby Kebbell, Lamorne Morris
Director: David S.F. Wilson
Writers: Jeff Wadlow, Eric Heisserer

A Midsummer Night's Dream (2017) REVISIT

Modern retellings of Shakespeare are fun for me. As the stories are often timeless in their sensibilities I enjoy when theatrical productions and film makers find ways to tell the stories in our current context. This one is pretty bold and takes some daring turns, stumbles a bit a few times, but mostly ends up taking this story and making it into something that feels very today.

This Dream is set in Hollywood, the star crossed lovers being players in a movie studio, the mechanicals are film students, and the fairies are hippie surfers. The film borrows a bit from Baz Luhrmann's school of Shakespeare but not quite as stylish or outlandish. They use some establishing title cards to make sure our audience knows who is who and why they are doing what they are doing. But they find a way to make it all come together and make sense. Honestly this is the sort of adaptation that even those intimidated by the language could follow and enjoy.

The film works in famous lines from other Shakespeare work at funny junctures making it especially fun for Bard fans. Generally this is a bit of a film maker's love letter to Shakespeare, working in the ways film making discipline can be used to bring this fantastic story to life.

It doesn't all quite work. One idea which I think perhaps doesn't work as well as it should, is that when Bottom is turned into an "ass" he isn't made donkey-like as is usually the expectation, he is literally made into an ass. His head becomes a backside, a bum. And while there is a great deal of poetic justice in that interpretation and so much potential, the film sort of fumbles it. It becomes almost too absurd and takes us out of the film. The fact that his name is Bottom and his head is a literal bottom (as well as the play on words of the sexual position) is just ripe for meaningful interpretation, but the film doesn't do it justice.

In fact the film's biggest downfall is not taking it's conceit seriously enough. It feels half assed at times (pun intended). I think if they had truly embraced all the absurdity and beauty of the idea it could have been even better. 

Still, the film does succeed at being truly accessible and very entertaining. I think it is a very enjoyable adaptation and one that brings the story to pretty much anyone who will watch it. It's ideas are truly modern and its context is effectively and cleverly born out mostly. Besides a few times it winks at us a bit too much.

A Midsummer Night's Dream
Starring: Avan Joria, Fran Kranz, Saul Williams, Mia Doi Todd, Lily Rabe, Finn Witrock, Hamish Linklater, Rachel Lee Cook, Ted Levine, Charity Wakefield
Writer/Director: Casey Wilder Mott

William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999) REVISIT

The 1999 film of A Midsummer Night's Dream is delightfully playful and star studded. It is easy to sink into and accessible for audiences which may find Shakespeare a bit daunting. As I watch it I enjoy it immensely, I laugh and sigh. But it always makes me wonder what is possible with Midsummer Night's Dream, as it is an incredibly cinematic story yet this production feels very much like a filmed stage play. This is a fantasy of epic proportions and a film with visual effects and art direction could do so much with the spectacle of it all.

That isn't to sleight this film, a film which isn't trying to be anything more than it is. It is very light hearted and leans into the romance and silliness and away from anything too upsetting (such as the idea of drugging people into loving you). Klein as Bottom with his jubilant zest for life and love is exactly what this film is about, making its audience smile and forget for a couple of hours. It is just "a weak and idle theme, no more yielding than a dream." The film doesn't take itself too seriously, giving us the lovely perfect half nude bodies of its cast, and a slimmed down script that captures just what is needed to make it all lovely.

But whenever I watch this film I always wonder, what would a full on spectacular, that fully created not only the world of classic Athens but also the forest of fairies, look like? What if the film truly tried to explore the complicated romantic problems raised in the story? What if we were to create a world of fairies that felt as real as the worlds of Middle Earth or or Hogwarts? Perhaps someday we'll get that film.

And until then we have this lovely little pleasure and that isn't so bad. 

William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream
Starring: Christian Bale, Kevin Klein, Michelle Pfeiffer, Sam Rockwell, Stanley Tucci, David Strathairn, Calista Flockhart, Dominic West, Anna Friel, Sophie Marceau, Rupert Everett, Bernard Hill
Director: Michael Hoffman
Writers: William Shakespeare, Michael Hoffman

Guns Akimbo (2020)

Guns Akimbo wastes no time in getting to it's very high concept conceit. The film very quickly sets up its story about Radcliff forced into internet death matches watched online with guns strapped onto his hands. It's not a new idea, folks walking death matches on social media is an update of folks watching them on TV which is an update of people watching them on a stage. It's been done a million times before and will be done a million more times. So the idea needs something new. In this case its the social media wrinkle, how it turns us all into monsters who cheer on the deaths of strangers.

While I think there is something interesting there to be explored I also think it requires a lot more nuance and examination than Guns Akimbo is up for. It's more interested in the cliched "people are so aggressive online" than in exploring the way our online interactions play into our in person interactions, the way connections can be created through different mediums, and how class and economic circumstances affect which avenues we have for our interactions.

Instead Guns Akimbo stays in its oh so cool Purge meets Tik Tok aesthetic. It errs on the side of funny and irreverent instead of facing up to the horrific ideas it wants to exploit for entertainment value. And in doing so it looses most of what could have made it interesting. The film seems to think Radcliff figuring out how to get by with guns strapped to his hands is far more entertaining than it is. The film seems to think almost all of what it is doing is more interesting than it is.

Guns Akimbo can be enjoyed for its hip cool humour, fairly surface level stuff. I guess I just hoped it would work on a deeper level too. 

Guns Akimbo
Starring: Daniel Radcliff, Samara Weaving
Writer/Director: Jason Lei Howden

The Way Back (2020)

In so many ways The Way Back has a very meta feel to it. Affleck's career had careened out of control, partially due to addiction related issues, and he chooses to make a film about a recovering addict who had gone through a divorce and needs to hit rock bottom. His character is super sympathetic despite all the poor choices he makes and how honestly it shows him letting down everyone around him. In some ways The Way Back feels more like PR than a movie.

But despite most of that The Way Back is generally a good movie and Affleck is generally pretty good in it. He teams with The Accountant director Gavin O'Connor, another choice which feels really calculated as that film was generally well received without having been a phenomenon. It has the sort of vibe that is perfect for rebuilding a career on. O'Connor is a competent director who knows how to tell a good story who makes pretty good films but nothing that has blown me away. Affleck eschews giving big "Oscar moment" scenes and instead restrains himself for a rather touching and interior sort of performance. It generally all comes together rather nicely.

But The Way Back never reaches great heights. It is formulaic and predictable. The ending is rushed and not really earned. We see Affleck's character do all the stumbling through addiction and some half-hearted attempts at sobriety and then all of the sudden he's in a program and on the road to recovery. The characters around him are all stock characters that go through their rather stock arcs and end up just where we expect them to.

But O'Conner gets the sports movie stuff right. Watching his basketball team play is energizing. Riding the roller-coaster of their sport season is exhilarating. The Way Back is at its best when we see the team win, loose, and do what they love.

Will this be the ticket for Affleck's return to the A-list? It feels like a very good attempt.

The Way Back
Starring: Ben Affleck, Al Madrigal, Michaela Watkins, Janina Gavankar, Glynn Turman, Brandon Wilson
Director: Gavin O'Conner
Writer: Brad Inglesby

Onward (2020)

It's been since 2017's Coco that Pixar made a film that wasn't a sequel to an already established film of theirs. Before that it was the Good Dinosaur in 2015. Lately Pixar has been in the business (like most American animation studios) of just recycling their ideas from old movies. This is especially disappointing since Pixar made its brand on coming up with truly original films that were nothing like what we had seen before. From Inside Out to Monsters Inc. to Ratatouille to Up Pixar films were wholly original... or used to be.

Well we have finally returned to Pixar's gold.

Onward is not only a completely original idea with a story that doesn't fall into cliches. It is also the sort of story that is best told through animation. The fantasy world morphed into a modern suburban life is something that likely wouldn't have felt as real in live action or in a heavily CGI'd film. And, like the best Pixar films, it is a story about our most personal qualities. Onward reaches into a truly beautiful place in our hearts and creates a wonderful adventure from it.

Onward is one of those films that is best to go into without knowing much of the story. But I will say that it explores what family means and gets us to rethink that in a beautiful, more inclusive way. Like the best genre films Onward takes something fantastic to get us to look at our real world and our real lives, and see something remarkable there, something fantastic and magical.

Onward reminded me what made me a fan of Pixar in the first place and why I hope they keep coming up with original stories.

Also kudos to Pixar for casually including LGBTQ content much to the chagrin of the million moms out there. 

Onward
Starring: Tom Holland, Chris Pratt, Julia Louis-Dreyfuss, Octavia Spencer, Mel Rodriguez, Kyle Bornheimer, Lena Waithe, Ali Wong, Grey Griffin, Tracey Ullman, Wilmer Valderrama, John Ratzenberger, Dave Foley
Director: Dan Scanion
Writers: Jason Headley, Keith Bunin, Dan Scanion

Emma (2020)

First time director Autumn de Wilde is known for her photography and Emma shows off that skill set. Emma is a gorgeous film and de Wilde both frames her shots in a compelling manner but uses that shot to create beautiful moment after beautiful moment. Also she doesn't, as one might expect of a photographer, restrict herself to stillness. She uses quite a bit of movement in her shots, imbuing the film with a kinetic energy which is all appropriate for this whimsical tale.

Because Emma is whimsical. Yes it is a critique of social norms and stratification but this film's approach to the tale is on the lighter side, using charming humour to take the piss out of early 19th century English society, a critique that holds up well to today. From de Wilde's joyful approach to the endearing score and the cast's clear enjoyment of their work, this Emma is a fun and beautiful romp and not nearly as tongue in cheek as the last Hollywood adaptation. In many ways it feels like she strikes just the right balance for this tale.

Anya Taylor-Joy, who I often find is great even when the film isn't, embodies the title character very well, full of sweet arrogance. The story of Emma can be a problem as we need to remain sympathetic to Emma while also seeing through her careless cruelty. Yes, her behavior is well meaning, but that's part of the novel's critique, the way her status and privilege make her think she should wield her power despite its effects. It is easy to either downplay just how bad her interfering is or to give up on her. Taylor-Joy finds the way to keep us invested in her complicated, flawed character.

But I'm not sure I felt any chemistry between her and Mr. Knightly. In many ways Knightly is our way into Emma, as we often see her similarly to his experience, we are frustrated with her but also are drawn to her. Without this essential piece the film flounders a little. Their banter doesn't fail but also doesn't light up the screen as much as I would have hoped. I'm not sure I ever was fully into their romance arc and it's such an important part of the story this pulled me out a bit.

The film most succeeds in the it lets Emma discover her faults and remake herself. Taylor-Joy's presence and gravitas helps with this. Despite all the levity, Emma does find its heart and makes it worth watching.

Emma
Starring: Anya Taylor-Joy, Johnny Flynn, Bill Nighy, Callum Turner, Josh O'Connor, Rupert Graves, Mia Goth, Miranda Heart, Gemma Whalen, Amber Anderson, Tanya Reynolds, Connor Swindles
Director: Autumn de Wilde
Writer: Elanor Catton

Disappearance at Clifton Hill (2020)

Disappearance at Clifton Hill quickly gives you a sense of unease as you watch it. This is partially from writer/director Albert Shin's somewhat chaotic narrative style, which jumps around a bit and imbues a sense of dread into each scene, but also due to the fact we see our central character may not be being very honest with us. She lies a lot and there are clues that her memories may not be overly accurate. But the film keeps us with her, not distancing us from her, so we are tied to her and her experience of the events.

This story is of a young woman who remembers witnessing a crime as a child and her pursuit of the truth of that crime. Set in the Vegas-lite area of Niagara falls frequented by tourists, Clifton Hill has a sense of phoniness to it which fits with the mystery element of the film, as in what is real? Shin pulls all this together quite effectively as does Middleton who plays the complicated heroine with grace.

The mystery suffers a bit from the reliance on a number of coincidences that many of these sorts of mysteries rely on. But when the end comes and the twists and turns come to their conclusions it all makes sense in a way I appreciated, especially in light of how much the film tries to pull one over on us. The ending leaves us asking more questions, which is something I appreciate in a mystery.

Cronenberg is at home in his off-kilter film, that has an air of one of his own films. His quirky character is slyly entertaining.

Disappearance at Clifton Hill 
Starring: Tuppence Middleton, Hannah Gross, David Cronenberg, Marie-Josee Croze, Noah Reed, Conner Jessup
Director: Albert Shin
Writers: James Schultz, Albert Shin

Wendy (2020)

"All kids grow up, but some, the wild ones, escape."

Wendy is gloriously chaotic. Writer/director Zeitlin applies his handheld constant movement (as in his breakthrough Beasts of the Southern Wild) and a narrative that jumps from moment to moment to infuse his film with lived in feeling of childhood emotions, experiencing the world in a more childlike way, a manner that has less control and understanding of convention. The film therefore feels strongly random while managing to tell a cohesive narrative. In this the film finds a true place of honesty.

Wendy is the story we are more familiar with as Peter Pan. But it is different. It is told in the present day and told from Wendy's point of view. Wendy and her brothers escape their lives, not because Peter comes to the room, but because they see their chance and run for it. And where they end up, and island where they are kept from aging, they are given a choice, and it is that choice we are all faced with as we age.

As with all adaptations of Peter Pan, Wendy is the story, at it's heart, of a young woman coming of age. Most versions, including the famous Disney version, are about Wendy's becoming ready to set aside her girlhood and move into being a woman. Wendy is no different. In Zeitlin's beautiful, fantastic film Wendy is given the chance to live without responsibility forever. Peter is here, and as always, he is a force of temptation, one that Wendy must overcome to move on with her life. I actually didn't find Wendy to be as much of a diversion from it's source material as many have described it. It sticks to the idea of the struggle with letting go and growing up.

The film gets fairly muddled in the middle but it remains a beautiful, reckless thing that is rather mesmerizing. Zeitlin clearly lays out the bittersweet and melancholy spirit of coming into your own and films it all with his signature chaotic style. I think we often forget what Peter Pan is about and Wendy is a good reminder.

Wendy
Starring: Devin France, Yashua Mack
Director: Behn Zeitlin
Writers: Eliza Zeitlin, Behn Zeitlin

Portrait de la jeune fille en feu/Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019)

Everything about Potrait de la jeune fille en feu should feel cliche. It is a romance between two women of two separate classes in the late 18th century in an age where they had little to no power over their own destiny regardless of their class, yet writer director Celine Sciamma's story finds a compelling centre which is riveting. Perhaps like the painting referred to in the title, a truly lovely piece by artist Hélène Delmaire, the film captures a searing passion within a fairly familiar scene.

At first Portrait felt to me like many of the queer films I saw as a younger film goer seeking out representation in a sea of hetero-normative movies. Forbidden love across cultural divides, doomed to be separated by the end because "that's how things were" blah blah blah. They even work in a a feminist touchstone as the pair help a young pregnant servant end her pregnancy, again shuffling off the expectations of their womanhood. But despite how loaded with predictability the story was, as I watched I couldn't help but be overwhelmed with the loves story.

Stars Noémie Merlant and Adèle Haenel, often through quite a bit of intense staring, infuse their characters' falling in love with a very palpable passion, so much I felt my heart racing at times. Sciamma eschews showy camera work for a more personal and quite beautiful approach to filming her star crossed lovers. Each frame is quite gently beautiful, making us fall in love as well. By the moment in the poster, when Héloïse's dress accidentally catches on fire for a moment, we have built up a very lived fire inside of her, perhaps a recognizable relatable fire, and the whole things comes together. And the ends with a beautifully long but heartfelt moment that was breathtaking. 

So despite how many times we've seen this before, and despite how much we knew what was going to happen, Portrait inspires us and ends up being quite lovely.

Portrait de la jeune fille en feu/Portrait of a Lady on Fire

Starring: Noémie Merlant, Adèle Haenel

Writer/Director: Céline Sciamma