Monthly Archives: August 2019

Fire in the Sky

27 Tuesday Aug 2019

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Inspired by the alleged alien abduction of Travis Walton, Fire in the Sky paints a mysterious yet very deep story of the impact of truth and whether people believe what is deemed extraordinary. Whether you believe the story or not, this film is bound to have an effect on you.

It is 1975 in Snowflake, Arizona and happy go lucky logger Travis Walton( D.B. Sweeney) has just started working on a job in the White Mountains. He is on the team headed by his more serious friend and future brother in law Mike Rogers, who is the kind of man who tries to keep everything running smoothly in life. Then there is the rest of the group; hot-headed troublemaker Allan Dallis( Craig Sheffer) , trustworthy and religious David Whitlock( Peter Berg) and jokers, Greg Hayes(Henry Thomas) and Bobby Cogdill( Bradley Gregg) . On the night of November 5th, they are travelling in their truck back home when they see a brilliant red light in the distance. Curious, they go to look at it and here is where events get sinister. They come across what looks like an alien spaceship, though they can’t be sure. Travis gets out to examine it and is struck by a light. Fearing him dead as he doesn’t move, the team in terror leaves. Later on, Mike returns to look for Travis but there is no sign of him. Returning to their town, they relay what they saw to the local police officer. The arrival of seasoned detective Lt. Frank Watters( James Garner) coincides with the investigation as he digs into the story. At first he doesn’t believe their tale and believes there has been foul play involved. The townsfolk get wind of events and most people are highly skeptical of what transpired. Yet when after five days, Travis turns up, disorientated and traumatised, it leaves things wide open for interpretation. Especially when he ‘remembers’ what happened to him, much to the shock of others.

Robert Lieberman is at the helm of this film and he effortlessly infuses it with a sense of time and place. He contributes a very human touch to what many will say is fiction by not going overboard with the alien aspects, keeping a certain sense of realism to things that many may sniff at. Fire in the Sky lets you make your mind up on whether the extraterrestrial encounter took place or not. It edges towards believing Walton’s claims, yet leaves a welcome ambiguity and mystery to it. What’s most impressive about Fire in the Sky is how it doesn’t go for an over sensationalised angle and instead concentrates on the pain of losing a friend and how it sends shockwaves through an uneventful small town. The film is pretty character driven, particularly by and is all the more human for it. Naturally, it has filmic elements to add to the story( which I’ll speak about later that are effectively used), and that’s what makes Fire in the Sky a strange beast. It’s a film about s science fiction subject that’s played entirely straight. Now it’s not flawless by any means( I find some parts of it don’t add up and the denouement could have been stronger), but for my money, Fire in the Sky is a very underrated movie that’s worth your time.

And when it gets to the scenes of what what happened to Travis, horrifying is taken up several notches as we witness the torture and dehumanisation of this man. Shot like a chilling horror movie, it’s a scene that genuinely makes you uncomfortable and disturbed. Many will claim that these sequences embrace science fiction too much, but I think it’s just following the story as Walton told it with an obvious bit of elaboration for the movie to chill you. And that’s not a criticism, I mean don’t all movies based on real life take some different avenues in the name of entertainment? If anything, it’s one of the best scenes in the film in terms of what it presents and just how scary it makes it. Up until that point, there has been definitely strange but these sequences that come later on in Fire in the Sky really go for the jugular. The music by Mark Isham, strikes the right chords of emotion, fear and when needed terror, to create something that plays along to the movie’s strength.

The cast assembled here is a very good one that add a lot to the film. D. B. Sweeney, with his likeable face and jovial manner is ideal for the part of the dreamer whose suddenly taken. It’s impressive because his appearance in the film is mainly in the first quarter and then the last parts, the rest of the time focuses on the other characters related to him. Sweeney manages to make Walton a full character in the time he’s on screen with just the right amount of sympathy and belief, especially after his traumatic experience which is where Sweeney really shines. Robert Patrick is given the most material and boy does he act his socks off. Embodying determination, a head full of guilt and being the boss in life, Patrick explores excellently by giving him layers and making him very relatable. It’s stellar acting from Patrick as the heart of the story. Craig Sheffer, Peter Berg, Henry Thomas and Bradley Gregg flesh out the other members of the team, with particularly good skill from Sheffer as the belligerent member and Berg as the one who tries to smooth everything into a positive. James Garner is a huge plus to the cast and he’s obviously relishing the role of old school lieutenant. Still bearing that twinkle in his eye and wit that balances with notes of grim seriousness, Garner is superb.

Involving, emotional and by turns very creepy, Fire in the Sky is an intriguing film that I think deserves a bigger audience, especially for its acting and aforementioned revelations. I think many will enjoy the mystery and very human drama within Fire in the Sky.

Jurassic Park

15 Thursday Aug 2019

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The delightful duo of Gill and Emma invited me to take part in a tribute to the excellent Jeff Goldblum. I’ve always been a fan of his and enjoy whenever he graces the screen. I decided to review the adventure blockbuster that is Jurassic Park.

A full on thrill ride with eye popping effects and Steven Spielberg at some of his best, Jurassic Park is an ageless spectacle with the power to shock, scare and entrance from start to finish.

Dr Alan Grant( Sam Neill), who specialises in Paleontology and Dr Ellie Sattler(Laura Dern), whose field is Paleobotany are romantically linked and currently working on another dig of dinosaur fossils .One day to their Montana dog comes eccentric billionaire John Hammond( Richard Attenborough) who has a proposition for them. He has created a theme park off the coast of Costa Rica which is inhabited by cloned dinosaurs, which his team of scientists managed to create after extensive DNA testing and sampling. Hammond is worried because there have been doubts about the safety of the park and he wants Alan and Ellie to view it and give their opinions. Naturally, they accept the offer and are joined by mathematician and chaos theory nut Ian Malcolm( Jeff Goldblum). Also visiting are Hammond’s grandchildren, Lex( Ariana Richards) and Tim( Joseph Mazzello), who are more than curious about the park. Upon arrival, Alan, Ellie, Ian and the kids are bowled over by the cloned dinosaurs that have been brought to life and in the flesh. And though some of the group have their doubts about how ethical it all is, Hammond’s enthusiasm remains undimmed. Yet all of this will change as danger lurks right around the corner. A disgruntled worker by the name of Dennis(Wayne Knight) has accepted a shady offer to smuggle out dinosaur embryos to a competitor. To do this, he sneakily shuts down the security of the park in order to disguise his theft and leave undetected . The shutdown causes all power to go out but more dangerously, the electric fences that guard the dinosaurs open, setting the scene for chaos as the many carnivorous creatures go on the hunt with humans as their prized dinner. Alan ends up sheltering the terrified kids, while Ellie, Ian, Hammond, plus game warden Robert Muldoon( Bob Peck) and chief engineer Ray Arnold( Samuel L. Jackson) , attempt to restart the power and avert more horror. It’s up to the survivors to make it through the park and to safety before they end up on the menu.

Jurassic Park finds Steven Spielberg at some of his most fun and skilled. He displays sense of wonder at seeing these prehistoric beasts and then cranks the tension up when all hell breaks loose. He knows how to entertain and keep you on the edge of your seat throughout this adventure with sequences of immense excitement and haunting terror existing right after the other. Simply put, it’s one of his best movies which is saying something considering the excellence in his filmography over the years. Memorable scenes abound like the first glimpse of the towering , the terrifying encounter with a Tyrannosaurus Rex and the nasty Velociraptors menacing Ellie in the maintenance shed as she switches the circuit breakers on and the children in the kitchen narrowly escaping being attacked. Many of these moments hold that balance between scary and exhilarating. I like the look at how playing God never ends up well, but it sure can be extremely entertaining to watch. There’s the greedy Dennis getting his comeuppance when attacked by an initially friendly dinosaur reveals itself to be bloodthirsty, Hammond’s growing realisation of what he has created and the chaos that ensues once the prehistoric creatures are let loose. One can’t speak about this movie without mentioning the influential special effects in it. They make the dinosaurs feel so real as if you could reach out and touch them. I mean, we all remember the first time we, like an awe-struck Ellie, witnessed the Brachiosaurus in all its glory, right? Or the first attack of the enormous Tyrannosaurus Rex on the visitors at nighttime? The blend of the then new CGI and animatronics is seamless in execution and so thoroughly convincing at bringing these ancient creatures to jaw-dropping. John Williams is on hand with one of his most suspenseful and alive scores; charting the wonder of the park then plunging us into the terror of fighting for survival against hungry dinosaurs.

Sam Neill has the laconic attitude right for his role, while shading it with a winning curiosity and eventual mellowing of his character’s occasional dour and solemn nature. In fact, he’s  one of the main heroes of the piece as he’s entrusted with two young children to protect against creatures he knows a lot about. Laura Dern backs him up with intelligence and when it’s called for action; her run to the shed and ordeal inside leave you on the edge of your seat as you watch an ordinary woman fighting against a terrifying situation. And of course the man of the hour and resident scene stealer is here by the name of Jeff Goldblum. Portraying the know it all mathematician who drops sarcastic yet ethical  questions, Goldblum is a hoot. And considering for a big chunk of the film he’s incapacitated, he’s still dispensing entertaining one liners among the terror and excitement. It’s the definition of a star supporting turn. In a fine showcase, Richard Attenborough subtly shows the dreams of an eccentric man of money and his realisation that it isn’t the most ideal or safe thing to do. Although his actions are questionable, he just boasts a certain geniality that is hard to fault. Ariana Richards and Joseph Mazzello are thankfully talented child actors who you feel for on this journey. Fine work also comes from Samuel L. Jackson, Bob Peck and Wayne Knight in this adventure, particularly from Jackson as the gruff chief engineer who is never seen without a cigarette.

A simply phenomenal adventure with stellar effects, fine cast, wonderful music and the masterful Spielberg at the helm, Jurassic Park is a film you can never grow tired of.