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Tag Archives: Matthew McConaughey

A Time to Kill

08 Sunday Jan 2017

Posted by vinnieh in Movie Reviews

≈ 51 Comments

Tags

1990's, A Time to Kill, Ashley Judd, Brenda Fricker, Charles S. Dutton, Chris Cooper, Courtroom Drama, Crime, Donald Sutherland, Drama, Joel Schumacher, John Grisham, Kevin Spacey, Kiefer Sutherland, Legal Drama, Matthew McConaughey, Oliver Platt, Patrick McGoohan, Samuel L. Jackson, Sandra Bullock

Film Title

A Time to Kill

Director

Joel Schumacher

Starring

  • Matthew McConaughey as Jake Brigance
  • Samuel L. Jackson as Carl Lee Hailey
  • Sandra Bullock as Ellen Roark
  • Kevin Spacey as Rufus Buckley
  • Oliver Platt as Harry Rex Vonner
  • Kiefer Sutherland as Freddie Lee Cobb
  • Donald Sutherland as Lucien Wilbanks
  • Ashley Judd as Carla Brigance
  • Brenda Fricker as Ethel Twitty
  • Charles S. Dutton as Sheriff Ozzie Walls
  • Chris Cooper as Dwayne Looney
  • Patrick McGoohan as Judge Omar Noose

An incendiary and well mounted adaptation of the John Grisham legal/courtroom drama, A Time to Kill ensures that the moral and ethical debates come through strong, thanks to the story, script and cast.

In the town of Canton, Mississippi, a 10-year-old black girl by the name of Tonya Hailey is walking home after getting groceries from the local store. Suddenly, she is targeted by two sneering and utterly vile rednecks who violently rape and attempt to kill her by hanging. a-time-to-kill-movie-posterTonya survives, but the damage to her has been done, which sends shock waves through the community. Tonya’s father Carl Lee is devastated when he discovers what has happened to his little girl and knowing that due to the racism that pervades the town and that the two men may get a light sentence, decides to take matters into his own hands. He responds by gunning down both men on their way to trial, in front of over a dozen witnesses. Arrested, Carl Lee contacts young and idealistic lawyer Jake Brigance to represent him. Jake had previously helped Carl Lee’s brother in the past and feels he must represent him; mainly because he was aware that Carl Lee might have gone through with his retribution after talking with him earlier. Jake is warned that this case will be dangerous and because he doesn’t have that much experience, he is bright and wants to help. Hurdles and stumbling blocks come up as the manipulative district attorney and prosecutor Rufus Buckley, who has his eye on office, decides to seek the death penalty and manages to stir the situation up. jake-and-carl-lee-a-time-to-killThe climate of racism and clashing opposition makes the whole thing a powder keg as Jake finds his life in danger, as well as those closest to him being threatened by a resurgent faction of the Ku Klux Klan, brought out by one of the brothers of the men slain by Carl Lee. Yet with all the hostility and violence being thrown his way, Jake refuses to back down and his resolve is strengthened as he is soon in the courtroom representing his client in a case that could spark even more eruptions of unrest and horror for everyone. He is aided by the young law student Ellen Roark, who is a know it all but very passionate and good friend plus occasional divorce lawyer cynical Harry Rex Vonner. Yet getting a fair trial is going to be anything but easy as tensions threaten to explode.

Joel Schumacher impeccably displays a flair for the material; making it both extremely gripping and equally as powerful in what it brings to the table. A Time to Kill raises many moral questions in a series of ways that delve into the quagmire of what is deemed right and wrong, and how there is a difficult grey area in between. There are those that will say that the movie is more in favour of one view than the other, but even if that is true, A Time to Kill deserves credit for presenting issues like justice, fairness and racism with many degrees of thought-provoking effectiveness. I believe that the film tries to show both sides of things. While Carl Lee did kill the men who raped his daughter, you can understand many of the reasons why he did it. matthew-mcconaughey-and-sandra-bullockA Time to Kill asks us to consider what we would do in that situation, which allows the film to get under the skin deeply. The difficulty in the topic of morality and justice is best summed up by a speech given by Donald Sutherland’s character. He says, “If you win this case, justice will prevail, and if you lose, justice will also prevail”, which perfectly and simply reflects the complex issue at hand. The legal nature of A Time to Kill is pretty compelling to watch as the ethics of lawyers and the inevitable courtroom examinations of whether someone is guilty are put under the spotlight. The build up to the courtroom is equally as excellent, showing just how dangerous a case of this magnitude can be in a climate of uncertainty and intolerance. Yet when the courtroom drama hits, the fireworks really start to occur. The testimonies and confrontations have rippling consequences that influence the society around them, that is already at boiling point on account of racism and violence. The dignified and quick-moving script makes the legal terminology easy to digest, yet doesn’t forget the battle going on between many things within the fabric of the story. And speaking of quick-moving, A Time to Kill runs for two and a half hours, yet interest is kept in check and held throughout most of it. Sure some moments could have been expanded on, but the atmosphere and climate of the piece brings immediate attention and confronting intent to the viewer, that will get them to look at the ethics of the trial intensely. The music provided by Elliot Goldenthal is dynamic and matches the escalating emotions and tensions within the story.

A Time to Kill was the movie that really launched Matthew McConaughey to stardom and it isn’t difficult to see why. matthew-mcconaughey-a-time-to-killWith his charming yet astute persona, he naturally plays Jake as a man put through the difficulties of the case, yet spurned on by what he sees as just cause. The gravity of the situation dawns on him after realising how complex events will turn out, but he won’t give up on this case and soldiers through it with unwavering determination. McConaughey is the right fit for the part and his closing speech in the film is powerful stuff that shows just what an excellent actor he is. Samuel L. Jackson is particularly memorable as the man on trial, evoking the self-possessed man whose temper was pushed to the edge by the brutality his daughter endured. Jackson’s work is very subtle and while he has two scenes of outburst( the first when he kills the men and the second in court) he is largely a modulated presence, though behind his eyes the fury and hurt is there as clear as day. samuel-l-jackson-a-time-to-killThis performance impressed me as I usually think of Jackson as manic and loud, yet he delivered a finely tuned performance as the avenging Carl Lee that reveals another side to him. We have Sandra Bullock portraying the over-eager and brainy Ellen with a good mix of sass and smarts, while Kevin Spacey can be discovered slithering his way across the screen, inhabiting the egotistical and ambitious prosecutor. Oliver Platt provides some levity from the intense drama in the sidekick role of being a cynical wise ass with questionable morals, yet also with surprising depth to match. Kiefer Sutherland is appropriately nasty and shocking, starring as the angered brother of one of the slain who riles up the Klan once more and delights in causing horror to all in order to get what he perceives as his own justice. His father Donald also makes a hell of a mark, exuding the wily silver fox persona ideal for his part of Jake’s former mentor, who despite being disbarred from court, manages to aid his young charge. It is interesting to note that Donald and Kiefer never share a scene in the film. Ashley Judd and Brenda Fricker have less to do in the film, but each is good in their respective roles of concerned wife and long-serving secretary. In smaller roles, Charles S. Dutton, Chris Cooper and Patrick McGoohan add their expertise to various people involved in the case and make the most of the time they get to be shown.

A Time to Kill emerges as an engaging crime drama that explores culpability, legality and racism in a powerful way, benefiting from confident direction and a star-studded cast.

Frailty

04 Wednesday Jan 2017

Posted by vinnieh in Movie Reviews

≈ 38 Comments

Tags

2000's, Bill Paxton, Frailty, Jeremy Sumpter, Matt O'Leary, Matthew McConaughey, Powers Boothe, Psychological Thriller

Film Title

Frailty

Director

Bill Paxton

Starring

  • Bill Paxton as Dad
  • Matthew McConaughey as Fenton Meiks
  • Powers Boothe as Agent Wesley Doyle
  • Matt O’Leary as Young Fenton
  • Jeremy Sumpter as Young Adam

A film that practically radiates a creeping sense of dread and shock yet keeps it in a plausible prism, Frailty is a dark and haunting psychological thriller marking the directing debut of Bill Paxton, that examines the destruction of a family through fanaticism and the relationships between father and sons.

At FBI headquarters, seasoned agent Wesley Doyle is surprised when a haunted looking man by the name of Fenton Meiks enters the building wanting to speak with him. frailty-posterOnce he has established who this man is, Fenton reveals that he has knowledge regarding a notorious serial killer, referred to as God’s Hand who has been of large for a long time but has never been caught. Fenton claims to know this because the killer was his brother Adam, who he tells Doyle committed suicide this very night. Doyle begins to listen to the story that Fenton relays to him. Back in the 70’s, Fenton and his younger brother Adam were growing up in a small Texas house with their widowed father. He was a good father who looked after his kids and made them feel safe. That is until a fateful night when the father speaks of having being visited by an angel who appoints him as a divine force to seek out demons and kill them. Fenton as the older brother is extremely resistant to the idea of what he considers nonsense, while Adam as the younger sibling who idolizes his dad believes what he says. These claims by the father become very dark and twisted as he sets about attempting to find these demons who look like humans. The two children are then subjected to watching and helping him kill people who are on the list he acquires from an allegedly celestial source, slowly warping the way these boys see their father. frailty-axeEvents came to a head when young Fenton couldn’t cope with standing by and watching these events unfold and his younger brother become as fanatical as his father. Yet as Fenton continues his recounting of the events that shaped his traumatised childhood, Doyle begins to question parts and gets the feeling that there is indeed more to the story than at first appears.

Bill Paxton directs with an assured touch and respect for the source material; playing scenes out in a natural way and bridging the gap between the thriller elements and the disquieting and stark drama at the centre of it all. Paxton doesn’t go for predictable here, cleverly employing various twists and turns that are jaw-dropping to witness and . The story could have easily slid into utter absurdity, but Frailty is delivered with precision and unsettling command that make sure any such fears are quickly allayed. Frailty often gets described as a horror movie and while there are certain references to this, I personally place it as a psychological thriller rather than outright horror. frailty-movieFor starters, the main bulk of the film is charting the ways that family is accountable for shaping us and the implications of what we see can survive for a lifetime. There is precious little gore in Frailty, with Paxton excellently employing the less is more approach and leaving a lot to our own imaginations, with a healthy dose of ambiguity thrown in. If this film had gore galore, it would have destroyed the psychological drama at play as well as cheapened an intelligent story. The film is chilling from start to finish mainly because there is an air of possibility and reality to it, tempered with allusions to something metaphysical that are best embodied by the drained cinematography that steeps this exercise in a spooky atmosphere from the get go. Perhaps the most disturbing thing in the film is watching as the patriarch becomes so enveloped by his obsession and supposed visions, that he can’t face reason and becomes a force of disquieting unraveling. The film undoubtedly has a depth and layered feel to it, functioning as both a creepy evocation of a family forever altered and a mysterious thriller that conceals as much as it reveals. I mean I think everyone can relate to the feeling of the two kids in Frailty, as we all as children have usually looked up to our parents and obeyed them. No family is perfect, but the susceptibility of children plays a large part of this film, following the kids as they are forced to endure their father’s deranged ways and be party to his madness. There are those in the audience who will find some of this film hard to digest, yet it never sets out to be a comfortable watch and firmly establishes this from the start. The low hum and staccato ambience of the score perfectly match the gradual unearthing of the past and the shocking impact of it.

As well as being on directing duties, Bill Paxton successfully leads the cast with a memorable performance. bill-paxton-frailtyEssaying the role of the father whose actions ultimately changed and traumatised his children, Paxton brings out such a steadfast belief that the character believes he is really doing the work of God and not actually harming anyone. This is probably the most effective thing about Paxton’s work; he doesn’t play the part as a horrible father who is a brute and outright monster, at the start he is a very amiable and relatively calm person. As the movie progresses, you can still see that he loves his children but is so obsessed by the alleged visitation and message that it harms them in the process. Paxton makes the role his own and displays great command of the work, both in front of and behind the camera. Matthew McConaughey marvellously conveys shell-shocked and haunted trauma as the man retelling his story, yet gives off a hint of elusive mystery to deepen the proceedings a plenty. In a supporting turn, Powers Boothe is rightly understated listening to the shocking story with both a trepidation and the feeling that something is not quite right there. He is essentially an extension of the audience and how we react to hearing this tale. The two boys(Matt O’Leary and Jeremy Sumpter) playing the kids whose lives are altered by their father’s blind devotion and zealous beliefs are both incredibly convincing, especially Matt O’Leary as the older and more mature Fenton, whose caught between the care for his father and his shock at the atrocities that occur.

A film that engages the brain as it unsettles and keeps you on your toes, Frailty is superbly executed with perceptive direction from Bill Paxton as well as a cast that he heads.

Which Actors and Actresses Seem to Get Naked A lot on Film?

08 Friday Jul 2016

Posted by vinnieh in Movie opinions and thoughts

≈ 100 Comments

Tags

Ewan McGregor, Helen Mirren, Julianne Moore, Kate Winslet, Matthew McConaughey, Nudity

I recalled the other day that my last post on movie nudity got a lot of attention and interesting opinions. So I decided it would be good to delve into the subject of cinematic nudity once. This time around, I’m asking which actors and actresses appear to strip off a lot in their movies? If I had a body like some of the top stars, I’m sure I’d be fine getting naked on screen. But I digress, I will now mention the stars that in my opinion, seem very comfortable in taking it off for the screen.

Ewan McGregor:Ewan McGregor

This guy appears very at ease with his body and is more than willing to be seen on celluloid in the buff.

Julianne Moore:Julianne Moore

The beautiful and hugely talented Miss Moore is also comfortable on doing nude scenes with a tastefulness and honesty.

Kate Winslet:

Kate WinsletElegance, supreme acting chops and confidence fill Kate Winslet, who has done many a nude scene and had no difficulty shedding clothes for the camera.

Matthew McConaughey:

Matthew McConaughey PictureI’ll admit if I had a body like this guy, I wouldn’t feel the need to wear a shirt ever. I mean just look at the guy.

Helen Mirren: Helen Mirren

A classy lady and marvellous actress, Helen Mirren has never shied away from going nude, only recently saying she’s retired her body from the screen.

So do you agree with my choices? Or do you think there are other stars who parade on screen in the buff.

Love Your Bum

11 Tuesday Aug 2015

Posted by vinnieh in Gif Posts

≈ 148 Comments

Tags

Jennifer Lopez, Love Your Bum, Matt Bomer, Matthew McConaughey, Melissa George, Michael Fassbender

Another gif post has arrived and this one is about bodies. Or more precisely bums. I’ve always heard a lot of people say that they’re least favourite part of their body is their bum. So I thought, wait a minute, everyone should embrace their bum no matter what. Have confidence with your money maker. I hope this post gives people inspiration to love their behind.

And here are some sexy gifs for you people to shake your bums to.

For Eric, we have Melissa George’s pert rear and his man crush Matthew McConaughey with his ass on show.

Melissa George gif

Matthew McConaughey gif

For the wonderful blogging sister of mine Emma, here’s a bit of Michael Fassbender.

Michael Fassbender gif

For the exemplary Kim, we have her beloved and very peachy Matt Bomer.

Matt Bomer bum gif

And as it wouldn’t be a bum post without her, here’s Jennifer Lopez.

Jennifer Lopez gif

 

 

 

The IPC’s Ladies

24 Tuesday Mar 2015

Posted by vinnieh in Movie opinions and thoughts

≈ 85 Comments

Tags

Diora Baird, Marley Shelton, Matthew McConaughey, Olivia Wilde, Ron Swanson, The IPC's Ladies, Timothy Olyphant

With my Ladies posts currently proving popular, I’ve been asking people who they would like featured in these posts. As I was chatting to Eric over at the IPC, he enlightened me on some of the women he wanted to see featured, and also a few man crushes.  So I decided to feature a post of them.

Diora Baird First up we have the seductive Diora Baird for Eric, and it’s not hard to see why he likes her, she is stunning.

Olivia Wilde

The absolutely gorgeous Olivia Wilde is another feature on Eric’s choices of beautiful women.

Marley SheltonIt’s clear to see that Eric is bewitched by the stunning beauty of Marley Shelton, especially in this photo.

Now for Eric’s man crushes, which I’m sure everyone viewing this post can appreciate. We have Matthew McConaughey, Ron Swanson and Timothy Olyphant.

Matthew McConaughey

Ron Swanson

Timothy Olyphant

 

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