For those who are under the impression that movies are a form of escape, here is a film that will make you reevaluate. Dan Gilroy, who made himself known through his writing credits in THE FALL, THE BOURNE LEGACY, REAL STEEL, and countless others, has finally gotten his directorial debut on the big screen: NIGHTCRAWLER is a gritty story of the underbelly of crime journalism, a film that is sure to get under your skin.
Jake Gyllenhaal plays Louis Bloom, a cool and calculating young man in Los Angeles looking for work in unconventional ways. Lou is a go-getter, and sees everything as an opportunity -- the world is his job fair, and he'll be damned if smooth talking and a hard work ethic will not get him where he wants to be... and to hell with morals if they stand in his way. He finds his calling on the freeway, when a car crash -- and more importantly, the freelance camera crew that get the aftermath on tape -- catches his eye. It is clear that Lou is enamored by this display of "nightcrawling", and pretty soon, he has conned his way into possession of a police scanner and a video camera, and is chasing down crime scenes. Finally catching some good footage of a shooting, he brings it to the local news station to sell it, and finds his place in the news industry.
Lou's work begins to escalate. He names his self-started company "Video Production News" (VPN), and hires Rick (Riz Ahmed), an insecure but hopeful young man hoping for a break, to watch the car as he films. At first you will wonder if Lou is just in it for the passion of entrepreneurism, but his true, sociopathic intentions are revealed as he gradually becomes less and less passive in his attempts to get his footage.
From the very beginning, Lou makes you uncomfortable, from his overly self-selling nature right down to the ridiculously calculated way he chooses his words, but the sense of discomfort begins to grow as his rise to success is accompanied by uplifting, revelatory music... kudos to composer James Newton Howard for accentuating the disturbed atmosphere of the film by contrasting the audience's emotions so drastically. It is common for a film to give you a front row seat to a sociopath's world... it is not so common to try to fit you into his point of view. That is what makes this film so uncanny: there is a tug-of-war between the pull to relate with the main character and the strange revulsion that he brings to the screen.
This is a well-crafted commentary not only on how sociopaths fit into society, but also how news is treated in the media. While Lou is the most disturbing character in the film, his contact at the news station, Nina (Rene Russo), isn't too far behind him. She picks and chooses which footage to show, smiling excitedly as she watches murder and crash victims on the monitors. This is yet another unsettling aspect of the film: we watch Lou spinning his web, and yet we see similar characteristics between him and the woman who represents what we watch every day on our television screens.
The film is definitely a wakeup call, and I've got to hand it to Gilroy for handing the world a perfect topic of conversation in such a thrilling way. NIGHTCRAWLER is now playing at the Midtown Cinema... don't let this one pass you by!
Tuesday, October 28, 2014
Monday, October 20, 2014
Sam's Blog - St. Vincent
"It is what it is." That seems to be everyone's favorite phrase when they have to talk to Vincent MacKenna (Bill Murray). Vincent is a cantankerous old man who spends all his money on trips to the racetracks and jaunts with his favorite Russian prostitute, Daka (Naomi Watts), whose pregnant belly is scaring away her usual clientele. Vincent takes every moment as an opportunity to make some extra cash: when a moving truck hits a tree in his yard and causes a branch to fall on his car, he complains to the new neighbors, Maggie (Melissa McCarthy) and her 12-year old son, Oliver (Jaeden Lieberher), telling them they'll need to pay up... even though the majority of the damage was actually done the night before, when he drunkenly backed his car into his own fence.
Maggie and Oliver have enough problems of their own, let alone having to pay for property damage. Maggie has to pick up extra hours at work to pay for her recent divorce, not to mention making up for the lack of child support from her ex-husband. She wants Oliver to have a good education, so she enrolls him in a Catholic school, despite the fact that they're Jewish (allowing for some delightful scenes featuring Chris O'Dowd as the witty Catholic priest who teaches Oliver's class). But scrawny, delicate Oliver is having trouble adjusting at his new school, surrounded by kids who continually pick on him. And to make matters worse, Maggie can't always finish work in time to pick Oliver up from school, which means that Oliver is in desperate need of a babysitter.
And so begins the incredibly unorthodox relationship between Vincent and Oliver. This is probably the only moment I couldn't help but roll my eyes: maybe it's just me, but a twelve-year old needing a babysitter -- especially a twelve-year old as responsible as Oliver -- seems a little bit of a stretch, but some kind of ball needs to be rolled to get this film going, so there you have it. After demanding payment, Vincent agrees to babysit, but does not agree to alter his lifestyle... he takes Oliver to the tracks and to the bar; he introduces Oliver to Daka, and teaches him how to fight. But bit by bit, as Oliver and Vincent begin to bond, we begin to see an unexpected side of this old crochety man.
If it sounds like this story has been told a thousand times before, it's probably because it has, but that didn't stop writer/director Theodore Melfi from breathing new life into this recycled idea. Most crotchety old men in stories are just nasty until they connect with someone... But Vincent is nasty regardless. What makes him different from any old Ebeneezer Scrooge or Melvin Udall is that he doesn't like people... but he cares about them. And for that, I applaud Melfi: he doesn't take the easy way out and give us a miserable character who does one good deed and gets a pat on the back, but instead gives us a miserable character who still somehow manages to be worthy of... well, of the conclusion to this film.
The performances in this film are fantastic. Murray plays one of his most complex characters yet, and handles some delicate situations with care. McCarthy takes a break from her more aggressive roles, and the effect is refreshing... she gives a genuine and heartfelt performance. Lieberher will win your heart, in his first feature role no less. And Watts and O'Dowd, though in supporting roles, certainly contribute their own flare to the film.
While ST. VINCENT probably won't make quite a large enough wave to rock the Oscar boat, it is still a fun and heartwarming film. This is definitely something you want to check out. It is now playing at the Midtown Cinema!
Maggie and Oliver have enough problems of their own, let alone having to pay for property damage. Maggie has to pick up extra hours at work to pay for her recent divorce, not to mention making up for the lack of child support from her ex-husband. She wants Oliver to have a good education, so she enrolls him in a Catholic school, despite the fact that they're Jewish (allowing for some delightful scenes featuring Chris O'Dowd as the witty Catholic priest who teaches Oliver's class). But scrawny, delicate Oliver is having trouble adjusting at his new school, surrounded by kids who continually pick on him. And to make matters worse, Maggie can't always finish work in time to pick Oliver up from school, which means that Oliver is in desperate need of a babysitter.
And so begins the incredibly unorthodox relationship between Vincent and Oliver. This is probably the only moment I couldn't help but roll my eyes: maybe it's just me, but a twelve-year old needing a babysitter -- especially a twelve-year old as responsible as Oliver -- seems a little bit of a stretch, but some kind of ball needs to be rolled to get this film going, so there you have it. After demanding payment, Vincent agrees to babysit, but does not agree to alter his lifestyle... he takes Oliver to the tracks and to the bar; he introduces Oliver to Daka, and teaches him how to fight. But bit by bit, as Oliver and Vincent begin to bond, we begin to see an unexpected side of this old crochety man.
If it sounds like this story has been told a thousand times before, it's probably because it has, but that didn't stop writer/director Theodore Melfi from breathing new life into this recycled idea. Most crotchety old men in stories are just nasty until they connect with someone... But Vincent is nasty regardless. What makes him different from any old Ebeneezer Scrooge or Melvin Udall is that he doesn't like people... but he cares about them. And for that, I applaud Melfi: he doesn't take the easy way out and give us a miserable character who does one good deed and gets a pat on the back, but instead gives us a miserable character who still somehow manages to be worthy of... well, of the conclusion to this film.
The performances in this film are fantastic. Murray plays one of his most complex characters yet, and handles some delicate situations with care. McCarthy takes a break from her more aggressive roles, and the effect is refreshing... she gives a genuine and heartfelt performance. Lieberher will win your heart, in his first feature role no less. And Watts and O'Dowd, though in supporting roles, certainly contribute their own flare to the film.
While ST. VINCENT probably won't make quite a large enough wave to rock the Oscar boat, it is still a fun and heartwarming film. This is definitely something you want to check out. It is now playing at the Midtown Cinema!
Tuesday, October 14, 2014
Sam's Blog - Men, Women & Children
When I was a kid and first decided to start writing, I was told to choose my medium wisely. What is the purpose behind your words? I was asked. Is it a broad concept that can be stated with a few poetic words, or is it a more complex issue, that needs facts and research to back it up? Or, is it a concept that is best explored using images and allegories? Choose the right medium, and your idea could take off: people will connect to it, relate to it, be able to play with it... you will reach an understanding with your audience. Choose the wrong medium, and your idea could fall flat: it will be brushed aside, a mediocre contribution to the thousands of other ideas that, though well meant, meld together and fade into the background.
Unfortunately, some people don't choose the right medium. Additionally, some people take an idea that was using the right medium, and force it into another medium because it's the medium they're most comfortable with. Take Jason Reitman, for example, with his latest film, MEN, WOMEN & CHILDREN. Reitman has a few great films under his belt, some of which he wrote and some of which he simply directed (THANK YOU FOR SMOKING and JUNO immediately come to mind). But MEN, WOMEN & CHILDREN, originally a novel written by Chad Kultgen, falls short of his previous successes. The idea does not lend itself to an image-driven medium, and therefore feels heavy-handed and pretentious.
The first image in the film is of the Voyager spacecraft floating around in space. And what a clever way to start a film that revolves around social media and the Internet... after all, everything that goes through Facebook or Twitter has to transmit to a far off, distant place before popping up on our neighbor's feed. Might as well show how we are connected to our surroundings by something out of reach, right? How very representative of the way technology has permeated our lives.
Almost immediately you can see where this film is headed: it is a reminder that we lose a sense of closeness and detach from others when we immerse ourselves in technology, leading to dissatisfaction. It is a reminder that we are being dangerously shaped by technology and conditioned into reliance on it, especially when it comes to love and sex. Unfortunately, Reitman decides to add about two hours of plot to this reminder. Perhaps the novel is less blunt, but on film, the effect of the message is crippled by its redundancy.
There are many interweaving storylines, which will make your head spin: Don and Helen Truby (Adam Sandler and Rosemarie DeWitt) have a lackluster sex life, and both turn to the Internet (read: strangers) to meet their needs. Meanwhile, their son, Chris (Travis Trope) is pursuing Hannah Clint (Olivia Crocicchia), who is pursuing a career as an actress and has her own website, covered with photos -- often inappropriate photos -- that her mother, Donna (Judy Greer) took to help boost her modeling resume. Donna begins dating Kent Mooney (Dean Morris), whose wife left him for another man a year ago, and only keeps in touch via Facebook... Kent's son, Tim, still glum about his mom leaving, has quit the football team and immersed himself into an online video game, only surfacing to spend time with Brandy Beltmeyer (Kaitlyn Denver), whose frighteningly protective mother, Patricia (Jennifer Garner) monitors her every movement by tracking her social media accounts and her phone. Then there's Brooke (Katherine C. Hughes), who suffers from anorexia and is part of an online group of people who encourage each other not to eat.
All of these storylines point in the right direction, and I have no doubt that there are good intentions behind the overarching plot... but those good intentions could have been portrayed in a ten minute short. I grasped the concept in the first few minutes of the film, and quickly got bored with it as it kept forcing itself on me in the following two hours. Perhaps if the characters had been given room to breathe, those two hours would have felt worth it, but not one of them ever surpassed the generic stereotypes that have been ingrained into that "technology = bad" mantra. The way that the film spoon-feeds you these countless one-dimensional characters, instead of allowing you to explore an idea through one or two fleshed out characters, is frankly patronizing. The ensemble cast just seemed to weigh down the plot, spreading thin the audience's ability to relate.
Needless to say, this isn't one of Reitman's best films. Hopefully it's not a reflection of what's to come... For now, I'll chalk it up to a momentary lapse, and will cross my fingers that he'll return to his old style and focus. But maybe you disagree... MEN, WOMEN & CHILDREN is now playing at the Midtown Cinema. Check it out and let me know what you think.
Unfortunately, some people don't choose the right medium. Additionally, some people take an idea that was using the right medium, and force it into another medium because it's the medium they're most comfortable with. Take Jason Reitman, for example, with his latest film, MEN, WOMEN & CHILDREN. Reitman has a few great films under his belt, some of which he wrote and some of which he simply directed (THANK YOU FOR SMOKING and JUNO immediately come to mind). But MEN, WOMEN & CHILDREN, originally a novel written by Chad Kultgen, falls short of his previous successes. The idea does not lend itself to an image-driven medium, and therefore feels heavy-handed and pretentious.
The first image in the film is of the Voyager spacecraft floating around in space. And what a clever way to start a film that revolves around social media and the Internet... after all, everything that goes through Facebook or Twitter has to transmit to a far off, distant place before popping up on our neighbor's feed. Might as well show how we are connected to our surroundings by something out of reach, right? How very representative of the way technology has permeated our lives.
Almost immediately you can see where this film is headed: it is a reminder that we lose a sense of closeness and detach from others when we immerse ourselves in technology, leading to dissatisfaction. It is a reminder that we are being dangerously shaped by technology and conditioned into reliance on it, especially when it comes to love and sex. Unfortunately, Reitman decides to add about two hours of plot to this reminder. Perhaps the novel is less blunt, but on film, the effect of the message is crippled by its redundancy.
There are many interweaving storylines, which will make your head spin: Don and Helen Truby (Adam Sandler and Rosemarie DeWitt) have a lackluster sex life, and both turn to the Internet (read: strangers) to meet their needs. Meanwhile, their son, Chris (Travis Trope) is pursuing Hannah Clint (Olivia Crocicchia), who is pursuing a career as an actress and has her own website, covered with photos -- often inappropriate photos -- that her mother, Donna (Judy Greer) took to help boost her modeling resume. Donna begins dating Kent Mooney (Dean Morris), whose wife left him for another man a year ago, and only keeps in touch via Facebook... Kent's son, Tim, still glum about his mom leaving, has quit the football team and immersed himself into an online video game, only surfacing to spend time with Brandy Beltmeyer (Kaitlyn Denver), whose frighteningly protective mother, Patricia (Jennifer Garner) monitors her every movement by tracking her social media accounts and her phone. Then there's Brooke (Katherine C. Hughes), who suffers from anorexia and is part of an online group of people who encourage each other not to eat.
All of these storylines point in the right direction, and I have no doubt that there are good intentions behind the overarching plot... but those good intentions could have been portrayed in a ten minute short. I grasped the concept in the first few minutes of the film, and quickly got bored with it as it kept forcing itself on me in the following two hours. Perhaps if the characters had been given room to breathe, those two hours would have felt worth it, but not one of them ever surpassed the generic stereotypes that have been ingrained into that "technology = bad" mantra. The way that the film spoon-feeds you these countless one-dimensional characters, instead of allowing you to explore an idea through one or two fleshed out characters, is frankly patronizing. The ensemble cast just seemed to weigh down the plot, spreading thin the audience's ability to relate.
Needless to say, this isn't one of Reitman's best films. Hopefully it's not a reflection of what's to come... For now, I'll chalk it up to a momentary lapse, and will cross my fingers that he'll return to his old style and focus. But maybe you disagree... MEN, WOMEN & CHILDREN is now playing at the Midtown Cinema. Check it out and let me know what you think.
Wednesday, October 8, 2014
Sam's Blog - The Skeleton Twins
If you were to see a poster for THE SKELETON TWINS, you might guess, due to the cast, that the film is a comedy. After all, the film costars Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader, who are both predominantly known for their comedic roles and run on Saturday Night Live. However, the first few minutes of director Craig Johnson's second feature film will set you straight: the story begins with Milo (Hader), and Maggie (Wiig), on opposite sides of the country, Milo attempting suicide and Maggie about to attempt it. Luckily, the phone call following Milo's botched attempt interrupts Maggie in her own attempt, and we finally find out the link between these two characters: Milo and Maggie are twins. And though they seem to be in sync emotionally, they have had nothing to do with each other for ten years: Milo moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in acting, though is now floundering with his job as a waiter, while Maggie stayed in New York, became a dental hygienist, and got married.
Unfortunately, suicide is not an unfamiliar idea in the twins' lives: their father met with a similar end when they were younger, and it becomes increasingly clear as the plot progresses that depression runs in the family. Maggie offers to let Milo crash at her house for a while, and the two finally have a chance to catch up... but both try to hide their discontent in life from each other, each battling their depression in different ways: Milo tries to revisit a controversial flame from the past, and Maggie struggles to remain faithful to her extremely pleasant husband (Luke Wilson).
It's a serious story sprinkled with hilarious moments (cue "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now" by Starship), and the characters are far from two-dimensional, popping off the screen in their complexity. Wiig and Hader have excellent chemistry onscreen: the relationship is believable right from their first interaction. And the rest of the cast (including Boyd Holbrook and Ty Burrell) fleshes out Milo and Maggie's world wonderfully.
The story is beautifully crafted (kudos to Johnson and co-writer Mark Heyman), from the clever balance of humor and solemnity on the surface of the story, to the deeper, interwoven symbolism of water in the twins' lives (Maggie is taking scuba diving lessons at the local pool, and Milo leaves behind two goldfish when he comes to New York... details which seem thrown in, but wrap up quite nicely by the end of the film). Don't miss this poignant film... now playing at the Midtown Cinema.
Unfortunately, suicide is not an unfamiliar idea in the twins' lives: their father met with a similar end when they were younger, and it becomes increasingly clear as the plot progresses that depression runs in the family. Maggie offers to let Milo crash at her house for a while, and the two finally have a chance to catch up... but both try to hide their discontent in life from each other, each battling their depression in different ways: Milo tries to revisit a controversial flame from the past, and Maggie struggles to remain faithful to her extremely pleasant husband (Luke Wilson).
It's a serious story sprinkled with hilarious moments (cue "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now" by Starship), and the characters are far from two-dimensional, popping off the screen in their complexity. Wiig and Hader have excellent chemistry onscreen: the relationship is believable right from their first interaction. And the rest of the cast (including Boyd Holbrook and Ty Burrell) fleshes out Milo and Maggie's world wonderfully.
The story is beautifully crafted (kudos to Johnson and co-writer Mark Heyman), from the clever balance of humor and solemnity on the surface of the story, to the deeper, interwoven symbolism of water in the twins' lives (Maggie is taking scuba diving lessons at the local pool, and Milo leaves behind two goldfish when he comes to New York... details which seem thrown in, but wrap up quite nicely by the end of the film). Don't miss this poignant film... now playing at the Midtown Cinema.
Thursday, October 2, 2014
Sam's Blog - The One I Love
Ethan and Sophie are having marital troubles. The spark is gone from their relationship, and Sophie is still upset by a former infidelity on Ethan's part. So when their psychologist gives them a brochure and suggests they go for an isolated weekend retreat, they jump at the opportunity. But the little cottage in the mountains is not exactly what they expect: strange things begin to occur, things that revolve around the Guest house, things that they cannot explain...
I honestly don't want to give you any more of the story than that, because the surprise of what occurs in this hour and a half will be much more worth it if you are experiencing it with as little knowledge as possible. But suffice it to say that, as Ethan points out early on, things get a little bit reminiscent of "The Twilight Zone". As Ethan and Sophie try to figure out the odd nature of the Guest house, taking quite different roles in their investigation, they find that they are taking a very unorthodox route to fix their relationship... If that is, in fact, what is happening at this weekend retreat.
This is a film that is always one step ahead of you, keeping you on your toes both intellectually and emotionally. For one thing, you'll think you know what's going on at one point in the story, only to have your theory flipped on its head moments later. It is completely engaging, forcing you to pay attention to slight details and make guesses about what has happened and what will happen. And not only does it throw out plenty of twists and turns, but its protagonists are incredible realistic: the way Ethan and Sophie clash in one moment and complement in the next salutes many a relationship, serenading the beauty of mixing instead of matching. The characters alone draw you into the film, setting you up to be caught in the trap of the odd circumstance they find themselves in.
This is a mind-bending film, a hidden gem amongst the Blockbusters. It's only at the Midtown Cinema til Thursday, so definitely check it out now!
I honestly don't want to give you any more of the story than that, because the surprise of what occurs in this hour and a half will be much more worth it if you are experiencing it with as little knowledge as possible. But suffice it to say that, as Ethan points out early on, things get a little bit reminiscent of "The Twilight Zone". As Ethan and Sophie try to figure out the odd nature of the Guest house, taking quite different roles in their investigation, they find that they are taking a very unorthodox route to fix their relationship... If that is, in fact, what is happening at this weekend retreat.
This is a film that is always one step ahead of you, keeping you on your toes both intellectually and emotionally. For one thing, you'll think you know what's going on at one point in the story, only to have your theory flipped on its head moments later. It is completely engaging, forcing you to pay attention to slight details and make guesses about what has happened and what will happen. And not only does it throw out plenty of twists and turns, but its protagonists are incredible realistic: the way Ethan and Sophie clash in one moment and complement in the next salutes many a relationship, serenading the beauty of mixing instead of matching. The characters alone draw you into the film, setting you up to be caught in the trap of the odd circumstance they find themselves in.
This is a mind-bending film, a hidden gem amongst the Blockbusters. It's only at the Midtown Cinema til Thursday, so definitely check it out now!
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