Jurassic Park

Tags

1990's, Adventure, Ariana Richards, Bob Peck, Jeff Goldblum, Joseph Mazzello, Jurassic Park, Laura Dern, Richard Attenborough, Sam Neill, Samuel L. Jackson, Steven Spielberg, Wayne Knight

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 magical first glimpse of the towering Brachiosaurus that’s truly staggering , 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.

The Vow

Tags

2010's, Channing Tatum, Jessica Lange, Michael Sucsy, Rachel McAdams, Romance, Sam Neill, Scott Speedman, The Vow

Film Title

The Vow

Director

Michael Sucsy

Starring

• Rachel McAdams as Paige
• Channing Tatum as Leo
• Jessica Lange as Rita Thornton
• Sam Neill as Bill Thornton
• Scott Speedman as Jeremy

The Vow says that it’s inspired by true events, but any hope for something to invest your time in is destroyed by a sappy and schmaltzy approach that hinders just about everything in the film and makes it forgettable. There was a story here, but it just got lost under all of this corniness.

Young married couple Leo and Paige are madly in love and in a very good place where it appears nothing can touch either of them. They are crazy about the other and both are doing well job wise; Leo has recently opened a record studio and Paige, an art student, is currently crafting a sculpture for an important part of her course. But everything takes a sharp turn when they are both injured in a car accident. Leo comes out with only a few bruises, but Paige suffers damage to her brain that she has to be put in a coma. When she does wake up, she can’t remember anything of her time with Leo. It is as if the last five years of her life have been erased and she still believes that she is living in the past. Leo is understandably devastated by this, but being so devoted to Paige he makes it his mission to woo her again. He hopes that this will help her regain her memories and despite the protests from her estranged parents who come back on the scene, he resolves to do whatever he can to get the woman he loves back. This going to be a lot more difficult than he imagined as Paige seems to gravitate more to how she used to be, which includes the reappearance of her ex boyfriend Jeremy. Yet can Leo really win Paige back with his attempts before it is too late for them anymore? Or is any attempt futile for Paige as she is torn between everything she had and what she could have, due to the gaps in her memory?

Michael Sucsy is I’m sure a good director, but his hand isn’t that assured with The Vow. Though having said that, I think most directors would struggle to make this have an ounce of credence. Although inspired by true events, which I’m sure where a lot more dramatic and heartfelt than what was depicted here, The Vow just simply ambles along the rote formula of romance that isn’t the slightest bit credible. If the film makers had kept the film grounded in some feeling of sincere emotion, then The Vow could have been passable. I get that this is a Hollywood version of the story and some of it is bound to be embellished, but I would have preferred a bit more soul to the whole enterprise. Seriously as I’m writing this review, I am struggling to find something memorable in the film, which is proving a losing task as there is nothing really that redeemable. It moves from one cliché to the next within minutes, with barely anything ringing true in my mind. Sure the premise is one that is definitely emotional, but I wasn’t really touched that much by The Vow, only in fleeting moments that I can count on one hand. And it’s so shamelessly manipulative with what it wants you to feel, but even then, it doesn’t induce the misty eyes it strives to elicit. The visuals are bright and glossy which is pleasing enough, but if more attention was given to the story than crass button-pushing, The Vow may have been at least bearable. I found myself wanting something more real and not as predictable as the end result, sticking to the basis of story and not just going for sudsy melodrama might have helped. And not even a sweet score and soundtrack went any way in making this film an easy pill to swallow.

The pairing of Rachel McAdams and Channing Tatum is a nice one, despite the fact the characters are like cardboard cutouts more than people. Both of them are too talented for this sort of film, but try to bring something else. Sadly, that doesn’t come out and even though the chemistry is fine, the writing of the characters undoes any of the attempts made by McAdams or Tatum to make this credible. The blame can’t be put at their door as they at least attempt to salvage the mess, yet the tide of mediocrity from The Vow as a whole is too much against both appealing stars. The same sadly goes for Jessica Lange and Sam Neill, who are both given roles that are one-note to say the least, (that note being nasty and manipulative as Paige’s parents.) Once again, both actors are commendable in their endeavors to save this boring film, but are relegated to underused and not at all given an inch to flex their known skills. I mean, if you are going to hire actors of renown at least give them something to do, that isn’t asking for much is it? Scott Speedman, who has been very good in other movies he’s been in, is also stranded with a role that has no scope, that being the asshole ex of Paige.

So I must say The Vow just wasn’t the film for me. I found myself really disconnecting from it as it walked down the trite road to slush fest.  The story had definite potential, but it never went anywhere for me.

Possession

Tags

1980's, Andrzej Żuławski, Drama, Horror, Isabelle Adjani, Possession, Sam Neill

Film Title

Possession

Director

Andrzej Żuławski

Starring

• Sam Neill as Mark
• Isabelle Adjani as Anna/Helen

Possession has to rank as one of the most disturbing and unusual films out there that I’ve ever seen. A blend of drama and horror, that plays out the disintegrating marriage of a couple with monstrous intent and cloaks of ambiguity, it’s a movie that you won’t forget in a hurry because if the sheer strangeness and horrifying vision at play.

A man named Mark returns to his home in Berlin to see his wife Anna and young son Bob, from a secretive job abroad. Yet nothing can prepare him for what greets him. Anna wants to leave him and quickly becomes hysterical when he tries to question her. Their relationship soon descends into screaming attacks, violence and even bouts of self-mutilation. Also adding to frustration and worrying decline of Mark is the fact that Anna disappears for long times and when she returns home is vague about her whereabouts. Mark continues to grow more worryingly obsessed by Anna and she grows more unpredictable, raging and secretive. He also glimpses a Helen, a schoolteacher for his son who bears a striking resemblance to his wife, but because he is so besotted and slowly slipping into mania, he focuses on his unusual wife. Deducing that she has been having an affair with a smarmy and flamboyant man called Heinrich. Mark takes it upon himself to get answers about his estranged wife and confronts the man, who it turns out hasn’t seen Anna for a long time. Yet what Anna is hiding from Mark is much more twisted and horrifying than anyone could have possibly imagined or fathomed: a tentacled creature that she literally kills for, makes love to and hides away in a squalid apartment. It’s safe to say that obsession, murder and violence explode with hysteria for both Mark and Anna as their relationship is laid bare.

Andrzej Żuławski masterfully constructs this horror/drama with intensity, verve and something quite personal. Some will say that the premise sounds ridiculous, but Żuławski sidesteps this by rooting the majority of the film in the shocking and crumbling relationship of the real world. Emotions are ramped up to eleven between the two main characters and madness ensues as the relationship becomes a brutal war of unpredictability and unfurling horror. The symbolism of doubles and divides is very apparent in Possession; from Anna’s doppelgänger to the Berlin Wall as a backdrop frequently seen, these things burrow into the mind with their well-executed traits. Possession succeeds through its use of ambiguity that never give the audience an easy answer, opening it up to endless possibilities and opinions. Is what we see purely Mark’s interpretation of Anna? Is the monster a symbol for Anna’s self-destructiveness or their failing relationship? These questions only give more life and mystery to the film which is anything but traditional or orthodox. One word of advice when viewing Possession, don’t eat while watching it as there are numerous scenes that will make your stomach turn and induce queasiness. Chief among these scenes and one that is particularly difficult to watch is Anna’s breakdown in the subway. Convulsing violently for what seems like an eternity before bleeding profusely, it’s a horrifying scene for what is shown and the fierce commitment of Isabelle Adjani to the part. Possession isn’t a film for every taste out there, but for those blessed with strong stomachs up for a challenge this is a film to watch. An oppressive and grey cinematography is exemplary at backing up the grim nature of the relationship shown and envelops the experience in gloomy colours. A sparse but creepy score helps add tension and animosity to the film, mirroring the destructive union that is torn apart in disturbing fashion.

Sam Neill is marvellously cast as the obsessed Mark, whose mental faculties slowly fall into decline at his wife’s rejection. Neill portrays the descent into madness with shocking assurance and creepiness. Yet for my money, I can’t quite recall seeing a performance in recent memory of such raw power and volcanic emotion as the one from Isabelle Adjani here. She gives her body and soul to the role of Anna and colours it in manic fury and unbridled ferocity. Even when she’s still, Adjani’s eyes are filled with such terrifying intensity that it’s difficult to look away. Many actresses can play frightening and unusual well, but Adjani seems to genuinely live it crafting a performance of self-destructive craziness, terrifying eruptions of rage and an oddly alluring surface. Both actors are fantastic in their difficult roles, but for me Adjani edges it with a thoroughly committed performance.

A surreal and extremely stomach churning movie, Possession won’t provide comfortable cosy viewing, but it will imprint itself on you with its disquieting story and ferocious performances.

Event Horizon

Tags

1990's, Event Horizon, Horror, Jack Noseworthy, Jason Isaacs, Joely Richardson, Kathleen Quinlan, Laurence Fishburne, Paul W. S. Anderson, Richard T. Jones, Sam Neill, Science Fiction, Sean Pertwee

Film Title

Event Horizon

Director

Paul W. S. Anderson

Starring

• Laurence Fishburne as Captain Miller
• Sam Neill as Dr. William Weir
• Joely Richardson as Lieutenant Starck
• Kathleen Quinlan as Med Tech. Peters
• Jason Isaacs as D.J.
• Sean Pertwee as Pilot Smith
• Richard T. Jones as Cooper
• Jack Noseworthy as Justin

Although negatively received upon release, Event Horizon has seemingly grown into something of a cult film. Clearly influenced by Alien and Hellraiser, it may not be in the same league as them but it sure as hell will leave an impression due to bizarre visuals and sense of dread that it gives us.

The year is 2047 and a rescue ship is sent to look for the Event Horizon, another ship that disappeared seven years before but has recently appeared out of nowhere. The rescue ship is headed by the calm Captain Miller and also comprises of Lieutenant Starck, Med Tech. Peters, trauma doctor D.J, Pilot Smith, technician Cooper and engineer Justin. The crew is joined by Dr. Weir, who designed the Event Horizon and explains the properties of the missing vessel. The ship contains a strange gravitational property that enables it to create a black hole, thus making travel quicker to the desired destination. Along with the rest of the assembled crew, Weir’s job is to figure out where the ship has been for seven years. They eventually set foot on the ship yet discover that things that transpired where very grisly indeed. The former crew appears to have mutilated one another to death after being driven insane by an insidious force. Soon enough, Weir and the crew begin to experience strange events on the ship. Their deepest fears and regrets manifest as vivid hallucinations, the sphere at the core of the ship sends a pulse that rips apart almost everything and one by one, the crew are systematically driven to the brink of madness by the haunting force that the Event Horizon brought back from its unspecified journey. Who will make it out of the grisly chaos and malevolent grip of the eponymous ship?

Derivative and clichéd as it may be, Event Horizon is not as bad as some people make it out to be. Sure it’s far from perfect, but it gets the job done in a stylistic and violent manner that is hard to shake once you’ve seen it. Paul W. S. Anderson is very much a stylistic and visual director and his skills in this area are in clear abundance in Event Horizon. Production design is of a high quality, with whirling spheres of sharp serrated metal and spikes forming a visual highlight as well as the pulse of the ship that brings a dark force with it. Bizarre images abound that give the film a trippy and very disturbing quality. This is very apparent in the hallucination scenes that prey on the fears of the crew and bring with them chaos and destruction. If you have a strong stomach, I’m sure you can survive the grisly splatter content. But be warned if you don’t, as Event Horizon is the kind of film that will no doubt bring plenty of nightmares. While the pace may be lacking at times and too fast in other areas, Event Horizon definitely brings a nightmarish quality to the proceedings that is both highly disturbing and strikingly done. A dissonant score of electronics will know doubt cast an eerie aural spell on viewers.

The script may be the least impressive part of Event Horizon, but the talented cast manage to inject interest into their rather thinly written characters. Laurence Fishburne excellently plays Captain Miller as a figure of calm and strength that is tested against the evil forces of the ship. Sam Neill is great as the off kilter doctor who is the worst affected by the ship as it shows him visions of his dead wife with her eyes gouged out. This in turn sends Weir slipping into a gradually building psychosis that poses as much danger as the ship itself. Joely Richardson gives a certain assurance to her Lieutenant character, while Kathleen Quinlan displays wrenching vulnerability as the med tech. Jason Isaacs infuses D.J with a grave outlook on life and knowledge. The ever-reliable Sean Pertwee is wise ass and cynical as the pilot who just wants off this mission, his remarks are offset by the comic timing of Richard T. Jones portraying the technician. In the smallest role, Jack Noseworthy plays the youngest member of the team who is the first to encounter the sadistic intent of the ship.

A grisly and chilling sci-fi/ horror flick, Event Horizon is far from the greats but certainly memorable.

 

 

 

The Piano

Tags

1990's, Anna Paquin, Drama, Harvey Keitel, Holly Hunter, Jane Campion, Romance, Sam Neill, The Piano

Film Title

The Piano

Director

Jane Campion

Starring

• Holly Hunter as Ada McGrath
• Harvey Keitel as George Baines
• Sam Neill as Alisdair Stewart
• Anna Paquin as Flora McGrath

A stunningly realized tale of passion, sexual awakening and music from Jane Campion, The Piano is a film that slowly burns itself deep into the memory with its mix of mystique, sensuality and atmosphere.

Set in the mid 19th Century, The Piano follows the character of Ada McGrath, a mute Scottish woman who hasn’t spoken a word since the age of six. No one knows why she stopped speaking, let alone Ada. Her father has her married to Alisdair Stewart, a landowner living in New Zealand, on a windy, rain-drenched and misty frontier. Along with her precocious young daughter Flora, who often acts as her mother’s translator, Ada travels to New Zealand to marry a man she has never met before. She immediately takes a dislike to her uptight new husband when he refuses to transport her treasured piano to his home. Alisdair is taken aback by Ada, and because of his attitude towards his workers, which consist of a Maori tribe, he is disliked by many. For Ada, the instrument is an escape and she yearns for the prized piano. George Baines, an illiterate worker for Alisdair who has immersed himself in the Maori culture, agrees to buy the piano from him. Baines has seen Ada’s love for the piano and the passion with which she plays. Ada doesn’t take to kindly to Baines purchasing her treasured piano and goes to see him. It is here that Baines strikes a strange deal with Ada, if she gives him lessons on the instrument, she can regain the instrument. The other part of the deal is that he can do what he likes while she plays, which culminates in advances towards her. Although she is hesitant around him at first, Ada soon comes to care for Baines and the lessons become a string of highly charged passionate encounters as unspoken desires rise to the surface with unusual consequences.

Jane Campion directs with a passionate but objective eye. As well as this, she wrote the screenplay, which delves into the complex characters and shows both their good and bad sides. No character in The Piano is easily identifiable as the hero or villain as they are drawn in such a way that gives them mystery. Campion also manages to successfully incorporate a commentary on burgeoning sexual awakening from a woman’s point of view. Ada is mute in a society in which men are the respected one’s and women are beneath them, this gives her character a certain stubbornness in the way she isn’t conventional of the time in which the movie is set. Striking imagery is ever-present throughout the film, engulfing the characters in dark blues and misty melancholy as passion unfolds from beneath the bonnets and braids of Ada and the uncouth but tender Baines. Eroticism seeps from many a frame as Ada forms an illicit but understanding relationship with Baines. I previously wrote about my love for The Piano’s stunning score in a previous post, but I will do it more justice in this review. Michael Nyman builds his score with beautiful skill, as the music becomes the voice for the silent Ada and engrosses us with its evocative crescendos and lilting lullabies.

Holly Hunters turns in a tour de force performance that deservedly garnered her the Best Actress Oscar. Almost wordlessly, Hunter conveys joy, pain, anger and passion as Ada with adroit intelligence and keen understanding. She forms the beating heart of the romantic drama and is just amazing in her delivery. Harvey Keitel is also highly effective as the rough-hewn but caring Baines, who becomes entranced by the passion of Ada and her piano. Sam Neill is subtle as Alisdair, and interestingly plays him as not just a villain but as a conflicted man not used to the surroundings and with no time to communicate with his wife. A young Anna Paquin also scooped an Oscar win for her excellent performance as the mischievous Flora, who often makes up fanciful tales and dances like a sprite among the misty splendor of the forest. There is a refreshing maturity to Paquin’s performance, as she manages to convey very intense and serious emotions far beyond her young years.

Visually arresting, sonically enthralling and excellently acted, Jane Campion’s The Piano is a passionate and sensual film that is very hard to forget once you’ve finished watching it.