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Tag Archives: Martin Sheen

Firestarter

19 Tuesday Apr 2022

Posted by vinnieh in Movie Reviews

≈ 8 Comments

Tags

1980's, Art Carney, David Keith, Drew Barrymore, Firestarter, Freddie Jones, George C. Scott, Heather Locklear, Louise Fletcher, Mark L. Lester, Martin Sheen, Moses Gunn, Science Fiction, Stephen King, Thriller

Based on the Stephen King novel, Firestarter is something of a mixed bag when it comes to it. A thriller with some science fiction leanings, it generates some suspense and has a good cast, headed by a young Drew Barrymore. It just has a few inconsistencies that stop Firestarter from rising to a level of major greatness

Andy McGee( David Keith) is on the run with his young daughter Charlie( Drew Barrymore) from a nefarious government agency known as The Shop. We learn that when Andy was younger and a student, he met Charlie’s mother Vicky(Heather Locklear) in an experiment conducted  by the mysterious agency. After being injected with a dose of a hallucinogenic compound, they developed strange powers. Andy can manipulate people through mind control to do what he wants, while Vicky is telepathic . When Charlie was born, she too had powers. In her case, she can cause fires with her mind, often brought on by stress and anger. Andy’s power also weakens him because it uses up so much of his brain function and needs to be controlled as often as possible . With the government onto them and observing them, Vicky was murdered and Charlie was briefly kidnapped . Following his retrieval of his daughter via mind control, Andy is now wanted and on the run. Andy wants to tell the papers about what they’ve been through and expose the nefarious organisation that won’t let them rest. This in turn puts him and Charlie in dangerous territory as they can never really trust anyone. The Shop wishes to use Charlie’s powers for their own ends and are headed by the slippery Hollister(Martin Sheen).  He sends crazed and extremely dangerous assassin John Rainbird ( George C. Scott) on their trail. The assassin has his own disturbing agenda for wanting them captured, in particular little Charlie . Once captured, Andy and Charlie are experiments on by Hollister and sinister Dr. Pynchot(Moses Gunn) . But it’s only a matter of time for as Charlie’s powers continue to grow,  no one is going to be safe from what she will unleash.

Mark L. Lester does a pretty decent job of adapting the Stephen King material and sprinkling memorable moments in there. Yet his control over timing and other areas is less assured. The decision to start the movie in medias res causes Firestarter to loose steam as it continues into the story. Though it is redeemed by a rather eventful and truly explosive finale , Firestarter shoots itself in the foot with its decisions and contrivances that make you scratch your head. The opening half is watchable and has tense moments , but the middle part sags because it wants to have its cake and eat it . Which brings me onto the pacing of the film. I find that Firestarter looses some steam in the middle section  because the story gets repetitive and could have been tighter. As the film goes on we are gifted to moments that do generate some considerable suspense . I’ve seen people group into the genre of horror but I’d put it more as a thriller of paranoia and in the realm of science fiction in some areas Where the movie does score high point is on the effects, which still hold up for their age and just how explosive they do get. For reference, check the climactic scene if you wish to see a lot of fire and destruction .  It’s pretty fantastic and truly memorable stuff and it’s a blast seeing practical effects too. The score by electronic band Tangerine Dream is pretty wonderful; evocatively though a pulsing soundscape evincing danger, hope and action with a lot of style. It adds to the atmosphere of the piece and raises Firestarter up a few notches on the watchability scale.

What sparks Firestarter into life is the main cast. A pint sized Drew Barrymore brings strikingly mature conviction to a role that is quite challenging for someone of such young years. Barrymore gets across the feeling of trying to control something she never wanted, while also showing just how powerful she can be when pushed to the limit. In the emotional stakes she doesn’t miss a beat and is immediately sympathetic to the audience. A lot of Firestarter hinges on Barrymore and though the film is a mixed bag, Barrymore is incredibly impressive and does the heavy lifting of conveying innocence and danger with ease. David Keith is a little  histrionic as her father,  but once he settles into the part he is great and finds a certain groove to play. Kieth has a weariness and intensity about him that shows the fatigue and his “gift has caused him but how deeply he also cares for his daughter . Barrymore and Keith work well together and you do believe in the father daughter bond they share, which I find goes a long way. George C. Scott who I find always delivers, is on sensational form as the extremely creepy assassin who tries to win Charlie over. Scott is as slippery as a reptile and cunning as a fox; you can tell he’s relishing playing a nasty piece of work and he plays it for all it’s worth. Also on slimy duty is Martin Sheen who is reliably villainous and like Scott, having fun being nasty here. Rounding out the villains is Moses Gunn, who has a level of charm and niceness that really disguises cruel and unusual intentions. Evil when it’s presented with a smily face is rather unnerving and Gunn definitely understands the assignment. Art Carney makes the most of his role of man who takes Andy and Charlie in and risks his life in the process. It’s Louise Fletcher and Heather Locklear who are shortchanged with roles that don’t often much in the way of memorability. Both women are good actresses so it would have been nice if they’d be gifted with something to work with. And the same could be said about Freddie Jones, who is only really there to show that some in The Shop have become disillusioned with the practice and to suffer a rather grisly death.   

So overall, Firestarter is a film of good and bad.  But it can be commended for its evocative score, some standout sequences and wonderful cast, especially Drew Barrymore as the eponymous girl with Pyrokinesis

The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane

11 Thursday Aug 2016

Posted by vinnieh in Movie Reviews

≈ 24 Comments

Tags

1970's, Alexis Smith, Jodie Foster, Martin Sheen, Mort Shuman, Mystery, Nicolas Gessner, Scott Jacoby, The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane, Thriller

Film Title

The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane

Director

Nicolas Gessner

Starring

  • Jodie Foster as Rynn Jacobs
  • Martin Sheen as Frank Hallet
  • Scott Jacoby as Mario
  • Alexis Smith as Mrs. Hallet
  • Mort Shuman as Officer Miglioriti

An unusual thriller/mystery, The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane benefits from building direction that slowly reveals darkness and a mature performance from a young Jodie Foster.

In the seaside town of Wells Harbor, Maine, a young girl named Rynn Jacobs celebrates her thirteenth birthday alone in her father’s large house. The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane PosterRynn is an independent and extremely mature girl who is self-reliant( she regularly collects money from a safe deposit box and learns from home) and is regularly seen without any parental figure. No one knows where her father is and Rynn when asked tells them that he is either away or busy with his poetry writing. These suspicious action surrounding Rynn, who appears to enjoy being by herself and providing for herself, arouse the interest of many people. Chief among these is Frank Hallet, the adult son of the landlady, who is a predatory man with a sick fascination for young girls. He pesters young Rynn who drives him away with her excuses. Soon enough the bossy and snotty Mrs. Hallet comes knocking and is desperate to know where the girl’s father is. Wanting to be alone and angry at those who intrude, Rynn tries to get rid of the woman who won’t leave. Mrs. Hallet wants to collect something she left in the cellar and despite the warnings of Rynn enters it, only to find something shocking and accidentally knocks the wedge that keeps the door open and fatally injures herself. Rynn just goes about her business, but soon realises that she must get rid of evidence that could put her in trouble with the authorities. The Little Girl Who Lives Down The LaneLuckily, she encounters teenager Mario, an amateur magician who takes a liking to the mysterious girl. Helping her dispose of evidence and the body, Mario is puzzled but entranced by Rynn, and she despite always being alone, likes his company. Yet Rynn is guarding a much bigger secret than anyone imagined and as the neighbours become more curious about her( in particular the creepy Frank and inquisitive officer Miglioriti), we see just what she is willing to do to retain her solidarity and the depths of her capabilities.

On the directing front, Nicolas Gessner balances both intrigue and mystery in an unfussy yet beneficial way that draws you into the strange little story at play. He adeptly and astutely doesn’t play to mystery clichés too much and successfully throws in moments of unexpectedness that you don’t see coming. Gessner knows when to reveal just enough to keep us dangling, before keeping us at a distance to further the enigma surrounding Rynn and her secret. Mario and RynnAs much as The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane is a mystery, it’s also something of an unusual coming of age. Rynn is a girl who thinks and acts like she’s a lot older, yet is not there yet and still doesn’t understand certain things that a grown up would. This in turn adds to the dichotomy of the character as she is oddly innocent during various parts, and then complicated and perhaps not there emotionally in others. There are a few stretches that may have benefited from a bit of trimming, but all in all, The Little Girl Who Live Down the Lane has good pacing that keeps us invested and startled by what we discover. The often bouncy score purposely acts in opposition to the creepy nature of the film to marvellous effect. And when the sparse score isn’t present(which is for quite a few important parts) the film gains an upper hand on the viewer as without the music, we are made to be more curious about what unravels and in particular what Rynn is really up to.

Making a huge impression and one of the film’s best assets is a young Jodie Foster as the self-reliant Rynn, who is much more than what she seems. Jodie Foster Little Girl Who Lives Down the LaneWith her angelic face and mature demeanor, Foster strikes the perfect balance in the role: Rynn appears so innocent yet mysterious and we never quite know what to make of her as she continues to assert that her father is away in order to keep her independent living. Foster never lets us forget that the character is still a child, despite her grown up actions and that somewhere in her mind she isn’t emotionally mature for adulthood. The sense of ambiguity in her work lends itself well to the performance and Jodie Foster even at a young age, shows the depths of her talents with a complex, strangely sympathetic and strikingly mature portrayal of a girl who isn’t as wholesome as her looks would have you believe. Martin Sheen as Frank HalletIn the part of the sexual predator who takes an interest in Rynn, Martin Sheen makes your skin crawl with his performance that really knows how to unnerve you with a twisted grin here or a sleazy glance there. It shows off his talent as an actor and how damn effective he can be. Scott Jacoby makes for an amiable companion for Rynn who she starts to trust, even though he doesn’t quite know what to make of the girl and her actions. In the small but memorable part of the ill-fated Mrs. Hallet, Alexis Smith is cutting and opinionated before her eventual demise due to her nosiness. Mort Shuman is probably the only other person in the film that really has a caring side as he watches out for Rynn yet can’t shake the feeling that something is very wrong.

A mystery that takes quite a few different paths and knows when to wrong foot the audience, The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane is strange yet intriguing film making that fills the screen with tension and confined space, while showcasing the exceptional talent of Jodie Foster.

 

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