The Lego Movie

The Lego Movie might well be the most fun you’ll have at the movies this winter. That was certainly the case with the enthusiastic audience I enjoyed watching it with consisting of as many adults as children.

This is not your parents Lego. This is the new improved think-outside-the-box Lego.  No longer just square bricks that you can build into square buildings, these Legos are for a new generation and the movie goes to fantastic unconventional lengths to show us just how far Lego has evolved.

In the Lego world Emmet is an ordinary construction guy who just wants to fit in and be everyone’s friend. But his eagerness to please is not making him any friends, until a wizard, voiced by Morgan Freeman, tells him that he is the one Master Builder foretold by the prophesy who will save the universe.

Lego can now do anything you can think of but besides the great new advances being made at Lego, the movie is also a wonderful computer animated invention of its own. Its visual style is an eye popping sugar rush of colors and shapes.

Emmet wants to believe that he is special, so he goes on a quest to prove that he is the one who can save the world from the clutches of Lord Business, who is trying to keep the world straight and conventional, where everyone follows strict rules without any strange new wonkiness.

The wacky humor is hilarious with our ordinary generic worker hero, Emmet, in the classic underdog role a la Frodo or Neo from the Matrix. The theme of creativity vs. conformity, instruction manuals versus imagination, rigidity versus change and freedom are universal and especially relevant today in our constantly changing world. 

There is a mix of many popular franchises from Star Wars, Harry Potter, and The Lord of the Rings, and a slew of other pop culture characters including Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman and Green Lantern. The star studded voice cast includes Liam Neeson, Will Ferrell, Morgan Freeman, Will Arnett, and Johan Hill to name a few.

During Emmet’s heroic journey his mission is to take the mystical ‘Piece of Resistance’, find the all-powerful destructive Lord Business and somehow use it to defeat him.  Along the way he gathers a rag tag group of followers who all want to help him and all have their own unique creative ideas and abilities that will play a role in the final showdown.

The film’s creative spirit and humor is infectious and the breakneck non-stop action keeps the fun and the Lego blocks flying at a dizzying pace. 

Visually and emotionally this is the kind of movie that could have been made by PIXAR in their early days and is reminiscent of the recent animated film Wreck-It Ralph (2012), with its collection of characters from different popular video games past and present and its visually distinct themed lands.

Besides being a long advertisement for Lego, The Lego Movie captures the childhood joy of playing and inventing goofy fun toys that can be transformed into anything the imagination can conjure up and will appeal to the inner child in us all, where everything is awesome.

JP

Captain Phillips

The pirate infested waters off the coast of Somalia have been and continue to be the focus of much media attention with the kidnapping of civilians and hijacking of merchant ships by Somali warlords, who force desperate local gangs of fishermen to board unsuspecting vessels and hold them at gun point until their ransom demands are met.

In 2011 there were 176 confirmed piracy attacks in the region. Captain Phillips is based on the true story of Richard Phillips, an experienced and competent captain of an American cargo ship being pursued by ruthless gun-toting pirates in 2009, desperately intent on seizing the biggest potential payload ever attempted.

Paul Greengrass puts us right in the middle of the crisis as we follow armed coastal fishing villagers out to sea and witness their strategic attempts to hijack vulnerable ships, taking us deep into the mindset of the pirates. 

One of the most visually exciting directors of our time, known for pushing the envelope of authenticity and creating some of the most realistic action films of recent years, Paul Greengrass has kept us in thrall and in the tight grip of his ever probing camera with crisis films like Bloody Sunday (2002), United 93 (2006), Green Zone (2010) and the best of the Bourne films The Bourne Supremacy (2004) and The Bourne Ultimatum (2007). 

After taking control of the ship, the hijackers take the crew hostage and make for the Somali coastline to secure their booty, but when the American navy gets wind of the attack they set a bold plan into action and the race is on to rescue the crew before they can reach their destination.

Two things are for sure, Paul Greengrass can’t make a bad movie and Tom Hanks is one of the most dedicated actors when it comes to authentic details. Together they make an unbeatable team the likes of which we haven’t seen since Tom paired with Ron Howard to make Apollo 13 (1995), or Paul Greengrass paired with Matt Damon in the Bourne series.

As the Navy closes in on the pirates who are making for their home base, the captain offers himself up as hostage in exchange for the lives of his crew members. But the question remains, how can the pirates be successfully eliminated without risking the life of Captain Phillips? The captain and crew however have some tricks up their own sleeves to foil their captors. But they must work together if they are to survive this ordeal.

Tom Hanks is known for keeping it real and giving a sincere true-to-life performance by closely collaborating with the actual people involved with the events of the film. His passion and admiration for the astronauts of Apollo 13 produced one of the most accurate film portrayals of an iconic world renowned event with dialogue and events recreated from actual NASA mission footage.

As educational as it is suspenseful to watch, it’s no surprise that under the direction of these towering talents Captain Phillips succeeds in bringing the full scale of these harrowing events to life with genuine emotional impact. 

Also watch the excellent Danish film A Hijacking (2012) which was also released last year and tells the true story of a pirate hijacking of a Danish cargo ship. 

JP

My Annual review of 2013 film year

2013 turned out to be an exciting year for films in which I saw an unusually high number of exceptional films.

We were treated to highly entertaining, significant films by visionary directors like Marc Forster (World War Z), Guillermo del Toro (Pacific Rim), Danny Boyle (Trance), Sofia Coppola (The Bling Ring), Alfonso Cuarón (Gravity), Baz Luhrmann (The Great Gatsby), Lee Daniels (The Butler), Denis Villeneuve (Prisoners), Paul Greengrass (Captain Phillips), Steve McQueen (12 Years a Slave), Alexander Payne (Nebraska) David O. Russell (American Hustle), Martin Scorsese (The Wolf of Wall Street) and Peter Jackson (The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug).

This was also the year of the black history film with many great historical biographical films depicting struggles against racism in America and elsewhere. Movies like The Butler, 42, Fruitvale Station, 12 Years a Slave and Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom.

Since the success of Life of Pi (2012) last year we saw a spate of “stranded-at-sea” stories this year with movies like Kon-Tiki, Leviathan, A Hijacking, Captain Phillips, All is Lost, and Maidentrip.

Black and White films made a comeback this year since the triumph of The Artist (2011) with films like Much Ado about Nothing, Blancanieves, Frances Ha and Nebraska.

Foreign films made an exceptionally strong showing in 2013. I was impressed with the amount of quality films on offer from counties like Denmark (The Hunt | A Royal Affair | A Hijacking), Brazil (Brazilian Western | Neighboring Sounds | Gonzaga), South Africa (iNumber Number | Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom), Spain (Blancanieves), Sweden (Hotel) and France (Blue is the Warmest Color).

Dystopian future visions continue to be popular in a year that saw a number excellent original “end of humanity” films like Oblivion, World War Z, Elysium, Pacific Rim and The World’s End.

Below is a list of my favourite films I saw so far this year categorized by genre and in order of release date.

(Click on the film titles in orange for my full review)

Sci-Fi/Fantasy

Oblivion                                                                        Joseph Kosinski           

World War Z                                                                 Marc Forster

Pacific Rim                                                                   Guillermo del Toro

Elysium                                                                        Neill Blomkamp

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug                              Peter Jackson

Action Adventure/Suspense/Thriller:

Trance                                                                          Danny Boyle                         UK

The Dinner (Het Diner)                                                    Menno Yeyjes                      Netherlands

Brazilian Western (Faroeste Caboclo)                             René Sampaio                      Brazil

iNumber Number                                                           Donovan Marsh                     South Africa

Gravity                                                                         Alfonso Cuarón

Drama:

A Royal Affair                                                               Nikolaj Arcel                         Denmark          

Neighboring Sounds                                                      Kleber Mendonça Filho          Brazil

No                                                                               Pablo Larraín                        Chile/France/US

Kon-Tiki                                                                       Joachim Ronning, Espen Sandberg   Norway/Denmark

The Great Gatsby                                                         Baz Luhrmann

Blancanieves                                                                Pablo Berger                        Spain/France

Fruitvale Station                                                            Ryan Cooglar   

The Hunt                                                                       Thomas Vinterberg              Denmark

The Butler                                                                     Lee Daniels

Pioneer                                                                         Erik Skjoldbjaerg                 Norway

Prisoners                                                                      Denis Villeneuve           

Wadjda                                                                         Haifaa Al-Mansour               Saudi Arabia

Captain Phillips                                                             Paul Greengrass

12 Years a Slave                                                           Steve McQueen

Blue is the Warmest Color                                             Abdellatif Kechiche               France/Belgium

Gonzaga: De Pai pra Filho                                             Breno Silviera                       Brazil

Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom                                    Justin Chadwick                   UK/South Africa

Comedy/Feel Good/Romance:

Hotel                                                                            Lisa Langseth                      Sweden

Don Jon                                                                        Joseph Gordon-Levitt

American Hustle                                                            David O. Russell

The Wolf of Wall Street                                                  Martin Scorsese 

Feature Animation:

Monsters University                                                       Dan Scanlon                             

From Up on Poppy Hill                                                   Goro Miyazaki                         

The Croods                                                                     Kirk De Micco, Chris Sanders 

Documentaries:

Call Me Kuchu                                                              Katherine Fairfax Wright        US/Uganda

Muscle Shoals                                                              Greg ‘Freddy’ Camalier 

JP

American Hustle

David O. Russell has done it again. The director of Silver Linings Playbook (2012) and The Fighter (2010) has created another wildly outlandish and suspenseful blend of drama and comedy with brilliantly moving ensemble performances.

Set in 1978 and loosely based on the Abscam scandal, American Hustle tells the story of a small time con-man, Irving Rosenfeld, and his female partner, Sydney Prosser, caught between an overzealous FBI agent looking to make a name for himself, and the mob.

If you enjoyed the disco era style, fashion and music recreated lovingly for the star studded porn industry film Boogie Nights (1997), you will love this exuberant period spectacle of 1970s underworld figures addicted to the art of the con.

A sleazy con-artist (Christian Bale) uses his confident manner and charisma, despite a convoluted comb-over, to scam greedy people out of hundreds of thousands of dollars by implying that he can give them huge returns or loans on their investment.  

David O. Russell is a big admirer of Tarantino and it shows in this movie with many of his signature editing and camera techniques mixed with suspenseful storytelling and hit songs, but without the blood and violence that Tarantino is so fond of.

Using his dry cleaning business as a front, Irving has succeeded so far in staying under the radar for the most part, by keeping things low key, until he meets a talented stripper with an English accent, Sydney (Amy Adams), who he falls in love with, and together they are able to take their con business to new lucrative levels.

With its colorful procession of 70s style seedy people living desperate decadent lives of crime and with plenty of musical interludes that add to the overall funky disco dance mood, this movie is as much fun as a Bootsy Collins concert.

Eventually the couple’s success attracts the attention of undercover FBI agents with equally ambitious goals of catching corrupt politicians. The head of this team, Richie, decides to press Irving’s skills into service to help catch even bigger fish in exchange for a reduced sentence. 

At first, we the audience are completely unsympathetic and even repulsed by Irving’s unscrupulous pot-bellied character, but as his situation gets more complicated and he becomes entangled with even more ambitious and ruthless characters, we start to appreciate some of his better qualities and by the end we find ourselves actually rooting for him.

The story is told through the disparate characters and focuses intimately on these passionate individuals and their changing relationships as they reinvent themselves. When they all come together in a tense filled gathering of volatile egos, the film has us completely enthralled, even as we are totally bluffed by them.

I was kept thoroughly engaged throughout this operatic film as more characters were thrown into the elaborate sting resulting in unpredictable dizzying high-jinx and an emotional and entertaining ride reminiscent of The Sting (1973). 

JP

From Up On Poppy Hill

From Japan’s legendary Studio Ghibli comes a sensitively rendered heartwarming love story directed by Goro Miyazaki, the eldest son of animation maestro Hayao Miyazaki.

Set in the spring of 1963 Japan, the story, co-written by Hayao Miyazaki, is narrated by a school girl, Umi,  on a coming-of-age journey to discover her family’s past while the country prepares for the 1964 Summer Olympics. 

Gone are the fantastical creatures, spirits and fanciful flights of childhood fantasy that have become a hallmark of Miyazaki’s films, replaced here by a straight forward historical biography of two students who meet under serendipitous circumstances and find that they have a surprising connection.

There is a genuine complexity about the characters that is believable and the realistic serious nature of the situations make it feel more like a true-to-life live action drama.

In the aftermath of past wars, construction is everywhere as old buildings are being torn down, making way for the future. One such building is an old rundown school clubhouse being used by teen students who have grown attached to the space and want to save it from being demolished. 

The picturesque, artfully drawn animation is as detailed and lushly realistic as you would expect from a Studio Ghibli film, living up to its world class reputation while we get to see in detail the atmosphere and daily activities of village life in a small Japanese coastal town.

Umi, living with her adopted family in a hillside house overlooking the ocean, still holds out hope that her father, who disappeared during the Korean War, will return one day. Every morning she puts up signal flags for passing boats to see in case he returns. One day Umi discovers that somebody is answering the flags with a cryptic message in the papers. 

Jazzy songs from the 1960s and French bistro music gives the film an added layer of authenticity and a nostalgic melancholy feel typical of Miyazaki’s films.

While the male students are organizing protests to convince the school board that their clubhouse is worth preserving for future generations, Umi finds herself suddenly caught up in the enterprise when she meets one of the passionate young organizers, Shun, and volunteers to help the cause.

Having recently announced his retirement after completing his last project The Wind Rises (2013), Hayao Miyazaki’s last film, being releases soon in cinemas, is similarly a biographical account and a love story that takes place in Japan just before the start of W.W. II. 

As Umi and Shun work together they become close as they get to know each other. But their attraction for each other is complicated when they make a surprising discovery about their families.

Working together, father and son have created a mature heartfelt story that hits all the Miyazaki noted traits. If From Up on Poppy Hill is any indication, Studio Ghibli appears to be in good hands as its legacy is passed on to a new generation.

JP

Moonstruck

Moonstruck (1987) is as satisfying as a big pizza pie; a charming ode to typical Italian American family values and eccentricities steeped in nostalgic longing for romance set during a magical full moon in Brooklyn’s Little Italy, New York.

When a new production arrives at The Metropolitan Opera, it brings a magical air of romance to an Italian neighborhood that will change the destiny of a lonely widow and her traditional Italian family.

The film sets a warm inviting tone from the opening credits with bustling early morning New York traffic scenes as the Opera production trucks pass by working class Italian businesses opening their stores and set to Dean Martin’s iconic love song ‘That’s Amore’.

A young widow, Loretta Castorini (Cher), with few marriage prospects after her fiancé was killed in a car accident and living at home with her parents while working as a book keeper, decides after seven years to accept a marriage proposal from her late fiancé’s best friend Johnny Cammareri, a person she likes but does not love. 

Cher is absolutely wonderful in her Oscar winning role as the practical widow resigned to her fate, who finds love unexpectedly at the most inopportune time. This heartwarming comedy is one of my all-time favorites and never ceases to be thoroughly enjoyable. 

Much like Woody Allen’s Manhattan (1979), Moontruck shows us an intimate view of a family and the many romantic relationships that co-exist between people from all walks of life in the city that never sleeps. All the characters have their own musical theme and the full moon plays a big part in the magical atmosphere of the film.

Loretta begins to plan her wedding while her new fiancé leaves for Italy to visit his dying mother. He makes only one request of Loretta while he is away; to invite his estranged younger brother Ronny (Nicolas Cage) to the wedding because he wants to mend the long standing rift in their relationship. 

The story by New York playwright John Patrick Shanley, was inspired by some of his own experiences with Italian families while growing up in New York.

Loretta is in for a surprise when she eventually goes to meet with her fiancé’s brother and discovers a bitter person still holding a very big grudge towards his older sibling.  While trying to resolve his personal issues, they discover that they both have strong pent up feelings of resentment stemming from the tragic events of their past.

Canadian director extraordinaire Norman Jewison, who was recently awarded the Technicolor Clyde Gilmour award from Toronto Film Critics Association, is not afraid to allow the characters their time and space to develop and he finds great chemistry that pays off during the hilarious climax of the film. 

While exposing their unresolved emotions, Loretta and Ronny discover that they have much in common and sparks start to fly when they both come to the realization that they’ve started the healing process while in each other's company.

As we follow the personal stories of several family members throughout the film, they eventually intersect and come together in a touching climax you won’t soon forget at the kitchen breakfast table.  Don’t miss this delightful romantic comedy and homage to love and family.

JP

Blue is the Warmest Color

Or The Life of Adèle: chapters 1 and 2, as it is known in France, the Cannes Film Festival Palm D’Or winner is an intimate and intense sexual awakening story of a young student named Adèle, as she becomes the muse, inspiration and sexual partner of a budding new gay artist Emma, who is on the verge of being discovered in the art world.

This is very much a love story where the physical sensual love making is central to the story. While exploring and coming to terms with her sexuality, Adèle experiments with various people who come into her life, when she begins to suspect she may be attracted to women.

Filmed in tight close-ups, the story plays out on Adèle’s face and those of the people around her as she goes through an emotional journey of self-discovery. One woman in particular becomes an immediate and powerful attraction that could be termed ‘love at first sight’. 

Surprisingly honest in their performances by the two lead actresses, especially Greek/French actress Adèle Exarchopoulos as Adèle, are so natural and subtle, we immediately sense that we are getting a peak into a very private and personal inner life of a young teen as she deals with her emotions.

Adèle is an attractive young woman with a vacant aimless expression that seems to draw in the viewer.  She appears to float through life without any plan and is happy to just have someone in her life that will fulfill her sexual needs. 

Be aware, the film features some extremely explicit sexual content. French/Tunisian director Abdellatif Kechiche, who also directed the excellent award winning film The Secret of the Grain (2007), doesn’t shy away from showing us the Kama sutra of lesbian love making full on, leaving little to the imagination. 

Based on a graphic novel and told completely from Adèle’s perspective, we the audience feel as if we are living the experiences with Adèle as the camera follows her documentary style and we slowly become immersed in her emotionally tumultuous life while she navigates teenage sex and high school peer pressure. 

The camera technique used can sometime be a little disorienting as we are pressed up close to every nuanced emotion playing on Adèle’s facial features with minimum amounts of the environments shown in which she finds herself. 

We follow Adèle in a passionate relationship with Emma, played by Léa Seydoux, an older artistic woman, who exposes her to the fine arts world as they are influenced by prominent literary and philosophical works. Playing out over a number of years, we see the relationship as it goes through several stages to its emotional conclusion.

Steven Spielberg commented about the jury members’ unanimous decision to award the film top honors at the Cannes film festival that they were all under the spell of the film and its two actresses. And there is definitely a mesmerizing quality about the film and the performances that draws one in and keeps our attention as we are witness to a girl’s unspoken diary of inner feelings.

Blue is the Warmest Color may not be for everyone and is considered quite controversial, but it may be one of the most enthralling love stories in recent years.

JP

Faroeste Caboclo (Brazilian Western)

More a tragic love story than a western, this film resembles a Brazilian version of Scarface (1983). It’s a surprisingly ambitious and mature film from first time director René Sampaio, just out of film school, who was inspired by Brazilian folksinger Renato Russo’s popular 80s song ‘Faroeste Caboclo’ that he grew up with, to make this cinematic adaptation. 

The song tells the incredible story of a poor black kid from the sticks, João do Santo Cristo (Fabrício Boliveira), whose father is murdered by a corrupt policeman. Raised by his mother, he eventually leaves his home town in Salvador, Bahia, after she dies, to make a living as a carpenter in the big city of Brasília, with his cousin. 

The film is shot in spaghetti western style in the Brazilian outback and moves along at break-neck pace keeping the viewer engaged as we follow João’s fateful journey to the big city where he meets and falls in love with Maria Lúcia (Isis Valverde), an architect student from a wealthy family. As we see their relationship blossom while he aspires to make a new life for himself, we want to see the underdog succeed and win the heart of his girl, but João is destined to suffer more than most for his love. 

Taking place in the 1980s, the film doesn’t shy away from the brutal racism and class system that still exists today in many parts of Brazil and the lawlessness and corruption that people with few resources face. The violent gritty graphics are reminiscent of Tarantino’s camera style, and visually emulates City of God and Pulp Fiction (1994).

When João discovers that there’s a lack of good quality marijuana in the community, he puts his carpentry skills aside and decides to put his farming skills to use, growing his own quality weed. His burgeoning enterprise goes over well with the locals, but he soon gains the attention of the local drug dealer, who also happens to be his girlfriend’s spurned ex-boyfriend.

The real revelation in Brazilian Western (2013) is the intensely riveting performance by lead actor Fabrício Boliveira as João, who easily carries the film and keeps our attention as a man full of childlike wonder and enthusiasm, but with the reckless courage to take on anyone who wrongs him. His passionate portrayal is what keeps the audience hooked into the film.

When Maria’s father, a government official, discovers her relationship with João, which she’s been hiding from him, she is immediately disowned. The jealous local drug dealer also catches up with João at this point and he’s put in jail, where he’s tortured to force Maria into a relationship with her drug dealer ex. Now abandoned by her father, Maria must make a deal with the devil to save the one she loves from further pain.

The chemistry between João and Maria comes through with tenderness and passion. Their fateful love affair is palpable and when they are shown making love it’s often in secret, with dangerous consequences for both if they’re caught.

In typical Brazilian melodramatic fashion, this powerful love story is a classic tale of two people reaching across racial, social and economic divides, risking everything for happiness. 

Brazilian Western premiered at the TIFF (Toronto International Film Festival) this year and surely ranks up there with some of the best films to come out of Brazil in recent years such as Behind the Sun (2002), City of God (2003) and Elite Squad (2008). 

JP