Friday, September 16, 2011
Directed by Eli Craig
Starring Alan Tudyk, Tyler Labine, Katrina Bowden, Jesse Moss, Philip Granger
The most inspired horror comedy in recent memory. A bunch of high scoolers profile two gentle hillbillies as serial killers and what ensumes is a string of hilarious misunderstandings and gory deaths. The film somehow reminds me of Evil Dead 2 in terms of it's twisted sense of humor and even the quirky execution of the scenes. And that's about as high a compliment one can give to a film of this genre. Labine and the always reliable Tudyk (Firefly, Transformers: Dark Of The Moon) are outstanding as the misunderstood guys on vacation in their summer cottage. Director Craig is definitely a talent to keep an eye on because with Tucker & Dale he has created, seamingly very easily, a working symbiosis of horrible deaths and comedy. A true gem among the countless remakes, boring sequels and reboots the horror genre has been reduced to in the past decade.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Directed by Duncan Jones
Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Monaghan, Vera Farmiga, Jeffrey Wright, Michael Arden, Russell Peters
Holy fuck. This brilliant thriller came straight out of nowhere. I loved this movie. The only reason I don't award Source Code with five statues is the very end of the movie. It's not bad by no means but could've been better in my humble opinion by just cutting it a bit shorter. I think I'm not spoiling the movie to anyone if I say the film should've ended on the frozen moment. It would've ended it on a down note but the movie would've had such a beautiful ending. Look, in the end this doesn't matter so much anyway because Source Code is still a movie that grabs your attention from the get go and keeps throwing enough interesting twists and even solid character development to keep you nailed to your seat. The basic premise alone is fresh and brilliant. Gyllenhaal plays a soldier who, thanks to the miracles of modern technology, has to relive a terrorist attack until he's figured out who is behind it and how to prevent it. Next to Inception and Limitless, Source Code is the most clever action thriller to come out in years. A special mention has to given for Chris Bacon who composed the film's magnificent score. Who is this guy and why the hell hasn't he done more big films?! Listen to the music of this film and give this guy more gigs, stat! Seek Source Code out, now!
Directed by Bobby & Peter Farrelly
Starring Owen Wilson, Jason Sudeikis, Jenna Fischer, Christina Applegate, Nicky Whelan, Richard Jenkins, Stephen Merchant
Well, the Farrelly brothers finally managed to bring up a film that is almost as good as their first films Dumb & Dumber and There's Something About Mary. Granted, Shallow Hal was hilarious as well. Owen and Sudeikis (to whom I've really taken a like into) play two men living in boring marriages until their wives decide to give them "hall passes", the freedom to do whatever they wish for a week without the restraint of marriage. With a lesser duo this might have failed miserably but Wilson and Sudeikis are brilliant and there are plenty of shamelessly hilarious gags to keep you grinning. At least I found myself laughing every five minutes and to me, that's a hell of a good ratio. Plus there's Stephen "UK's The Office" Merchant and Whelan's gorgeous tits. Hey, I'm just a regular guy. Deal with it.
Friday, September 2, 2011
Directed by Ville Jankeri
Starring Eero Milonoff, Niilo Syväoja, Jussi Nikkilä, Marjut Maristo, Veera Tapper, Tytti Junna, Ylermi Rajamaa
It seems to be nearly impossible for Finnish filmmakers to put out a lavish and blatant comedy. Even a film like Pussikaljaelokuva (internationally The Six-Pack Movie) which showcases the day of three out of work boozers just hanging out about town doesn't have the balls to be outright funny. Then again, that may not have been the intention in the first place and I might be wrong but it is just so frustarting that if I want to see a good comedy, I always have to turn to foreign films. The last outrageous comedies in this country were made by Pertti "Spede" Pasanen and his friends and later by a comedy group called Kummeli. Sure their films were dumb and perhaps closesd parallel to early Adam Sandler films but at least they were honestly funny.
The execution of the material at hand and the portayal of the characters mirror the whole piece unintentionally bad since the three guys are not particularly interesting (with the exception of Milonoff who really goes all out with his loser Henninen) and more criminally nothing really happens in the film. I can see why people here are most likely going to like this film and make it a hit domestically, but I personally was left hoping for more. Of everything. Especially sincere laughs which this film tries to offer but fails for the most part because the punchlines are calculated and obvious and thus often hollow. Still, I'm in no way pissed for having seen this. Pussikaljaelokuva is just a typical Finnish effort which sadly once again means that it's good but not great.
KITEYTETTYNÄ SINIVALKOISILLE
Pussikaljaelokuvalla olisi ollut niin mehukkaat mahdollisuudet olla ensimmäinen oikeasti räävitön komedia sitten Kummeli Kultakuumeen (Napapiirin Sankarit oli edellinen yritys ja se tuli lähemmäs onnistumista, mutta senkin elokuvan ainoa oikeasti hauska suoritus tuli Kari Ketosen sivuroolista ja se oli aivan liian vähäinen valo sen kokoisessa filmissä), mutta jokin kotimaisten elokuvantekijöiden pakkotaiteen hakuisessa psyykkeessä kai vain estää sen toteuttamisen. Komedia on toki hankalin osa-alue, sillä ihmisten huumorintaju on niin radikaalisti yksilökohtaista. Se mikä on vilpittömästi huvittavaa yhdelle aiheuttaa vain haukotusta toiselle. Toki räävitön komedia ei välttämättä ole ollutkaan se haluttu lopputulos tässä projektissa, mutta itseäni ainakin usein turhautti tätä leffaa katsoessa, sillä paljon siihen on kumminkin tungettu huvittavaksi tarkoitettuja skenaarioita ja dialogia, mutta kun ne vain eivät toimi kunnolla. Tilaisuuden haaskaus on se ärsyttävin elementti Pussikaljaelokuvassa. Ikään kuin ideoita olisi ollut, mutta sitten pupu olisi loikkinut pöksyyn. Ei myöskään auta että leffan kolme päähahmoa eivät ole järin kiinnostavia (lukuunottamatta Milonoffia, joka aidosti saa ajoittain Henniseensä välinpitämättömyyden riemua ja rehellistä mulkkumaisuutta) kuten eivät ole sivuosatkaan. Tässä on kaikki jäänyt vähän puolitiehen, sillä ajatelkaapa elokuvaa jossa kolme työttömyyskorvauksilla pussikaljaa vetävää lusmua olisivat joutuneet oikeasti räävittömään seikkailuun täynnä hölmöä huumoria ja riemukkaita käänteitä ilman sen suurempaa filosofoimista. Se olisi varmasti ollut älykkyysosamäärältään vähäisempi tekele, mutta ainakin vilpittömän todennäköisesti hauskempi ja viihdyttävämpi. Itse ainakin olisin nähnyt jälkimmäisen paljon mielummin. Pussikaljaelokuva tippuu siihen samaan lokerikkoon kuin niin monet kaltaisensa, eli se on hyvä olematta loistava.
Pussikaljaelokuva at IMDb
Directed by Neil Burger
Starring Bradley Cooper, Abbie Cornish, Robert De Niro, Anna Friel, Tomas Arana, Johnny Whitworth
Easily one of the perkiest and freshest thrillers I've seen in a while. A clear step up for De Niro as well who has really let his legendary standards down in the last decade or so. Seriously, what happened? The guy was known for having impeccable taste when it came to picking out good projects. Then came misfires like Showtime, the Meet The Parents sequels and Righteous Kill. Meh. Just wondering. Anyway, Limitless is the latest vehicle for Cooper to showcase his natural talent and charisma. He plays Eddie Morra, a down on his luck writer and a borderline loser who gets a hold of a mysterious pill which allows him to access the entire potential of his brain. He finds himself being capable of doing practicly anything but since nothing good in this life comes for free, Morra soon notices there are other interested parties and huge, dangerous powers to be in the game. For a guy named after fast food, Burger keeps the whole thing well in hand and the film is visually interesting and inventive almost to the point where you'd expect it to have been directed by Nevaldine/Taylor (Crank). A firework of a film and most likely the most interesting concept you're going to see for a while.
Limitless at IMDb