Review: "3:10 to Yuma" Remake a Superb Modern Western

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 13 (of 2008) by Leroy Douresseaux

3:10 to Yuma (2007)
Running time:  122 minutes (2 hours, 2 minutes)
MPAA – R for violence and some language
DIRECTOR:  James Mangold
WRITERS:  Halsted Welles and Michael Brandt & Derek Haas (based on the short story by Elmore Leonard)
PRODUCERS:  Cathy Konrad
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Phedon Papamichael (D.o.P.)
EDITOR:  Michael McCusker
COMPOSER:  Marco Beltrami
Academy Award nominee

WESTERN/ACTION/THRILLER

Starring:  Russell Crowe, Christian Bale, Logan Lerman, Dallas Roberts, Ben Foster, Peter Fonda, Vinessa Shaw, Alan Tudyk, Luce Rains, Gretchen Mol, and Ben Petry

Director James Mangold’s rousing, edgy Western, 3:10 to Yuma, is a remake of a 1957 film of the same name that starred Glenn Ford and Van Heflin.  Mangold (Walk the Line) isn’t robbing the grave of Hollywood classics; instead, he has fashioned the Western as a modern, suspense-thriller that is as close to an old-fashioned horse opera as a modern film can be.  Both the first film and Mangold’s remake are based on the short story, “Three-Ten to Yuma,” written by Elmore Leonard and first published in the March 1953 issue of Dime Western Magazine.

Rancher Dan Evans (Christian Bale) struggles to support his ranch and family during a long drought.  Desperate for money, Evans agrees to transport the captured outlaw, Ben Wade (Russell Crowe), from nearby Bisbee to Contention, the closest town with a rail station.  There, they’ll wait for the 3:10 train to Yuma, where Wade will be imprisoned while awaiting trial for his numerous crimes, mostly murder and robbery.  Holed up in a Contention hotel, Wade attempts psychological havoc on Evans, offering Evans much more money in exchange for his freedom than he would get for holding Wade captive.  Meanwhile, Wade’s henchmen, led by the vicious Charlie Prince (Ben Foster), storm into town offering money to any man who will shoot Wade’s captors.  Complicating matters, Dan’s son, William (Logan Lerman), has stubbornly joined his father on this deadly mission.

Mangold’s sturdy remake isn’t an exercise in pointless violence, although the film is indeed violent, and while it is more graphically violent than Westerns from the 30’s to the 60’s, this modern version of 3:10 to Yuma heals the wounded heart of the Western genre which has, with a few exceptions, been in steep decline on the big screen.  This is a grand character study, and acting its chief strength, relying on the considerable talents of Russell Crowe and Christian Bale.

The good guy/bad guy relationship between Crowe’s Ben Wade and Bale’s Dan Evans has to be played just right in order to work, or the relationship will seem like a tired old storytelling cliché.  The characters that Bale usually play seem like the everyman as quiet man.  Evans isn’t a hero or even a brave man, as we usually think of bravery, and his son William reminds him every chance he gets, by words, with a stare, or in his sullen expression.  Evans, however, is determined this one time – in dealing with Ben Wade – to be heroic.

On the other hand, Russell Crowe’s Ben Wade is the devil – pure and simple.  Supernaturally wily, he seems faster, stronger, smarter, and more vicious than any other human he encounters.  He has given in to his pure instincts and wants – like an animal, but much more dangerous because he is ultimately a human without the checks and balances of ethics and morals.

The viewer wouldn’t be overdoing it by seeing Evans as the Christ-like sacrifice and Wade his devilish tempter.  The good/bad dynamic, however, is a staple of the Western, and 3:10 to Yuma is rife with the genre standards.  That is how this extremely well-acted and superbly-directed film honors the American Western, and 3:10 to Yuma honors this venerable genre with gusto.

8 of 10
A

NOTES:
2008 Academy Awards:  2 nominations:  “Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score (Marco Beltrami) and “Best Achievement in Sound” (Paul Massey, David Gaimmarco, and Jim Stuebe)

Sunday, March 09, 2008

Warner Bros. Sets "Winter's Tale" for Valentine's Day 2014

Warner Bros. Pictures Announces February 14, 2014 Release for Akiva Goldsman’s “Winter’s Tale”

BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Warner Bros. Pictures has set a winter release date for “Winter’s Tale,” written and directed by Oscar®-winning screenwriter Akiva Goldsman (“A Beautiful Mind”) and based on the novel by Mark Helprin. The film, from Warner Bros. Pictures and Village Roadshow Pictures, will open in North America on February 14, 2014, with international dates to follow. The announcement was made today by Dan Fellman, President of Domestic Distribution, and Veronika Kwan Vandenberg, President of International Distribution, Warner Bros. Pictures.

Stated Fellman, “We look forward to unveiling ‘Winter’s Tale’ as Akiva’s directorial debut. It features a remarkable roster of acting talent and a sweeping, romantic story that’s ideally suited for the holiday play period.”

“With its pedigree and stellar international cast, this epic, moving tale will have broad appeal overseas,” said Kwan Vandenberg. “The February date provides us a strong corridor in which to launch the film worldwide.”

Set in a mythic New York City and spanning more than a century, “Winter’s Tale” is a story of miracles, crossed destinies, and the age-old battle between good and evil.

The film stars Colin Farrell (“Total Recall”), Jessica Brown Findlay (TV’s “Downton Abbey”), and Oscar® winners Jennifer Connelly (“A Beautiful Mind”), William Hurt (“Kiss of the Spider Woman”), Eva Marie Saint (“On the Waterfront”) and Russell Crowe (“Gladiator”). It also introduces young newcomers Ripley Sobo and Mckayla Twiggs (both from Broadway’s “Once”).

“Winter’s Tale” marks the directorial debut of Akiva Goldsman, who also wrote the screenplay, based on the acclaimed novel by Mark Helprin. Goldsman is also producing, with Marc Platt (“Drive”), Michael Tadross (“Sherlock Holmes”) and Tony Allard (Showtime’s “The Baby Dance”). Kerry Foster and Bruce Berman serve as executive producers.

The behind-the-scenes creative team includes five-time Oscar®-nominated director of photography Caleb Deschanel (“The Passion of the Christ,” “The Patriot”), production designer Naomi Shohan (“Constantine,” “I Am Legend”), costume designer Michael Kaplan (“Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol,” “Star Trek”) and editors Wayne Wahrman (“I Am Legend”) and Oscar® nominee Tim Squyres (“Life of Pi,” “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”). The music is composed by Oscar® winner Hans Zimmer (“The Lion King,” “Inception,” “Man of Steel”).

A presentation of Warner Bros. Pictures, in association with Village Roadshow Pictures, the film will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company, and in select territories by Village Roadshow Pictures.

Review: "Broken City" Well Put Together

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 56 (of 2013) by Leroy Douresseaux

Broken City (2013)
Running time:  109 minutes (1 hour, 49 minutes)
MPAA – R for pervasive language, some sexual content and violence
DIRECTOR:  Allen Hughes
WRITER:  Brian Tucker
PRODUCERS:  Remington Chase, Randall Emmett, Allen Hughes, Stephen Levinson, Arnon Milchan, Teddy Schwarzman, and Mark Wahlberg
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Ben Seresin (D.o.P.)
EDITOR:  Cindy Mollo
COMPOSERS:  Atticus Ross, Leopold Ross, and Claudia Sarne

CRIME/DRAMA with elements of a thriller

Starring:  Mark Wahlberg, Russell Crowe, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Jeffrey Wright, Barry Pepper, Alona Tal, Natalie Martinez, Michael Beach, Kyle Chandler, James Ransone, Griffin Dunne, Justin Chambers, and Chance Kelly

Broken City is a 2013 big-city crime drama from director Allen Hughes.  Starring Mark Wahlberg and Russell Crowe, the film follows an ex-cop seeking to unravel a complex political mystery involving a powerful mayor.

Broken City opens by revealing a controversial police shooting.  Seven years later, ex-cop Billy Taggart (Mark Wahlberg) owns a private detective agency that is on the verge of bankruptcy.  Taggart gets a big break when New York City Mayor Nicholas Hostetler (Russell Crowe) offers him $50,000 to learn the identity of the man with whom his wife, Cathleen (Catherine Zeta-Jones), is having an affair.

When the suspected adulterer is found shot to death, Taggart thinks that he may have been double-crossed.  However, Taggart’s path to payback takes him into a complicated political conspiracy involving many elements, including a controversial real estate deal, a contentious mayoral election, and police Commissioner Carl Fairbanks (Jeffrey Wright) who despises Mayor Hostetler.

If you found my summary or synopsis of Broken City unusually vague (compared to what I normally offer), it is because I am trying to reveal as little of this film’s plot and story as possible.  I really enjoyed Broken City.  It reminds me of a smoky old Film-Noir movie from the 1950s that focuses on “the city” (such as John Huston’s The Asphalt Jungle).  Broken City is also the first feature film that Allen Hughes has directed without his twin brother, Albert, with whom he has collaborated on such gems as Menace II Society and The Book of Eli.  Allen rarely falters in this solo effort.

Hughes works from an excellent screenplay by Brian Tucker, although I think Broken City would work even better as a novel or television series.  However, Hughes manages to squeeze every subplot, relationship, conflict, and bit of motivation onto the screen.  The result is a cynical tale of big city politics, cronyism, and murder that delivers surprises as if they were mean left hooks.

Broken City is something of an ensemble film.  The viewer enters the world of the film through Mark Wahlberg’s Billy Taggart.  While this isn’t his best performance, Wahlberg proves once again that he is both a fine actor and a true movie star because he will make you want to follow both Taggart’s investigation and his personal journey.

The rest of the cast takes what they are good at doing and distills it into powerful supporting performances.  For Russell Crowe, that means a meaty, masculine, and menacing turn as the powerful Mayor Nicholas Hostetler, a character which feels like a co-lead, but is more of a supporting player.  There is not enough Catherine Zeta-Jones who is smoky and husky as the bordering-on-fatale First Lady Cathleen Hostetler.  The always-superb Jeffrey Wright makes a pugnacious turn as the police commissioner, but the story also needs more of his character.

So that is the glaring flaw of Broken City.  It needs to be bigger in terms of its scope, and it needs to be longer in terms of length.  If any crime drama deserves to run at least three hours, Broken City is it.  Still, this movie was one of 2013’s first really good dramas, and it is hugely entertaining with a killer last act.

7 of 10
A-

Saturday, August 17, 2013

Review: "Man of Steel" Overstuffed with Spectacle

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 41 (of 2013) by Leroy Douresseaux

Man of Steel (2013)
Running time: 143 minutes (2 hours, 23 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence, action and destruction, and for some language
DIRECTOR: Zack Snyder
WRITERS: David S. Goyer; from a story by David S. Goyer and Christopher Nolan (based upon the Superman characters created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster and published by DC Comics)
PRODUCER: Christopher Nolan, Charles Roven, Deborah Snyder, and Emma Thomas
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Amir Mokri (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: David Brenner
COMPOSER: Hans Zimmer

SUPERHERO/ACTION/DRAMA/SCI-FI

Starring: Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Michael Shannon, Diane Lane, Kevin Costner, Russell Crowe, Antje Traue, Harry Lennix, Richard Schiff, Christopher Meloni, Ayelet Zurer, Laurence Fishburne, Michael Kelly, Dylan Sprayberry, and Cooper Timberline

Man of Steel is a 2013 superhero movie from director Michael Bay. Ooops! I mean…

Man of Steel is a 2013 superhero movie from director Zack Snyder. The film is co-produced and co-written by Christopher Nolan, the director of “The Dark Knight trilogy” (yep, that’s what they’re calling Nolan’s Batman films) with a screenplay by David S. Goyer, who co-wrote Nolan’s Batman films. Man of Steel is a reboot of the Superman film franchise and is the first Superman movie since 2006’s Superman Returns.

Man of Steel focuses on Superman living as a young drifter and itinerant worker. He is forced to confront his destiny and secret extraterrestrial heritage when Earth is invaded by members of his race. That sounds warm and dramatic, but the actual film is an over-produced event movie that loses its heart and soul in a tsunami of computer-generated imagery and special effects. Once you see the movie, you might also think that this loud movie looks like something Michael Bay made, especially his Transformers films.

Man of Steel opens on the planet Krypton, where renowned scientist, Jor-El (Russell Crowe), and his wife, Lara Lor-Van (Ayelet Zurer), celebrate the arrival of a son, Kal-El. Their world, however, is dying as the rebel, General Zod (Michael Shannon), and his followers attack Krypton’s ruling council. In order to save Kal-El, Jor-El launches him in a spacecraft bound for Earth. The infant Kal-El lands on Earth in Smallville, Kansas, where he is found and adopted by Martha and Jonathan Kent (Diane Lane and Kevin Costner), who name the baby, “Clark Kent.” Clark’s alien physiology gives him superhuman abilities on Earth, but also causes him to feel confused and isolated.

As an adult, Clark Kent (Henry Cavill) lives a nomadic life. He does not realize that Lois Lane (Amy Adams), a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist for the Daily Planet, is tracking him. Both Kent and Lane discover that Kent’s alien past is about to return in a way that could mean the end of humanity and the world as we know it.

Man of Steel is half-good, half-ridiculous. First, the ridiculous: the movie is all over the place. It jumps back in forth in time from occasionally overly-sentimental flashbacks to over-charged, present-day fight scenes. The characters are either under-utilized or underdeveloped. Henry Cavill and Amy Adams are actually good as Clark and Lois, but every time they seem about to really bond as characters, Man of Steel runs over to action scenes that look like they came out of the Transformers films, Revenge of the Fallen and Dark of the Moon.

Some of the set pieces depict levels of destruction that are practically impossible to fully comprehend. Fight scenes and aerial battles happen in a whirlwind of computer-generated imagery; sometimes, I couldn’t make out much of anything, even the combatants. In fact, much of Man of Steel is one big tornado of special-effects crap thrown at the screen. There is so much destruction going on in Metropolis that it began to annoy me. After ten minutes of this, I realized that the movie had crossed the line of relentless triteness that now defines big-budget Hollywood event movies.

Even this post-human movie offers moments of genuine humanity. The scenes in Smallville, present and flashback, offer some poignant character drama, if not the occasional tedious homily. There is a good moving and emotional set piece with Laurence Fishburne as Daily Planet Editor in Chief Perry White, as he and some of the Planets’ staff fight to survive the destruction of Metropolis. Michael Shannon is brilliantly demented as General Zod, in way that makes the character alluring.

The filmmakers and (more likely) the studio do not seem interested in Clark Kent’s humanity. They seem obsessed with the spectacle of the superhero and his adversaries as videogame wrecking balls, tearing apart the world in visuals created by computers, software, and cinema technology. Sometimes, that looks quite good, as in Marvel’s The Avengers. Sometimes, it looks like a preposterous overstatement, as in Man of Steel. I found this movie to be a mostly unpleasant viewing experience. Is this what future Superman movies are going to look like? I hope the intriguing, interesting character bits that really left an impression on me and are the reason for my “B-“ score can have a bigger place in the next Man of Steel.

5 of 10
B-

Sunday, June 16, 2013

Review: "Cinderella Man" Ignores the Woman Next to the Man (Happy B'day, Paul Giamatti)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 16 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

Cinderella Man (2005)
Running time: 144 minutes (2 hours, 24 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for intense boxing violence and some language
DIRECTOR: Ron Howard
WRITERS: Cliff Hollingsworth and Akiva Goldsman; from a story by Cliff Hollingsworth
PRODUCERS: Brian Grazer, Penny Marshall, and Ron Howard
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Salvatore Totino
EDITORS: Daniel P. Hanley and Mike Hill
COMPOSER: Thomas Newman
Academy Award nominee

DRAMA/BIOPIC/SPORTS

Starring: Russell Crowe, Renée Zellweger, Paul Giamatti, Craig Bierko, Paddy Considine, Bruce McGill, Ron Canada, Clint Howard, and Rufus Crawford

The subject of this movie review is Cinderella Man, a 2005 boxing drama and biographical film from director Ron Howard. The film is based on the life of heavyweight boxing champion, James J. Braddock (1935 to 1937), and the movie’s title is taken from Braddock’s nickname.

In 1928, James J. Braddock (Russell Crowe) was an up-and-coming prizefighter. By the early 1930, Jim Braddock was an impoverished ex-boxer – broken-down, beat-up, and as unfortunate and out of luck as so many Americans were who had hit rock bottom during the Depression. Although his boxing career was seemingly over, Braddock and still had a wife, Mae (Renée Zellweger), and three children to support, and to him they were what mattered most. Braddock was unable to pay his bills and eventually had to seek Public Relief (kind of like modern welfare); he even begged for money when things got that desperate.

However, Braddock never gave up on his dream to be a great boxer, even when the Boxing Commission took away his license to fight, and chance brings him a one-time fight. With his manager, Joe Gould (Paul Giamatti), at his side, Jim grabs the success of that fight and pushes his way back into boxing, each success keeping his family with a roof over their heads, food on the table, and light and heat. Eventually, he gets his dream match – a heavyweight championship fight with the reigning champion, the unstoppable Max Baer (Craig Bierko). Now, Jim, considered too old and finished by many in the boxing community, must face Baer, a man renowned for having killed two men in the ring.

Ron Howard’s biopic, Cinderella Man, based upon the real life of Depression-era boxing hero, Jim Braddock, was one of the best reviewed films of 2005, but considering the reviews and the pedigrees of the filmmakers involved, the film was not well attended. That’s a shame because Cinderella Man is one of those proverbial “good movies” of which many people, especially media watchers, complain there aren’t enough. This is actually Howard’s epic film, an ode to middle class values from a man, who as a child actor, played one of the ultimate Middle American children, Opie Taylor on “The Andy Griffith Show” and later played the teenage version of that in Richie Cunningham of “Happy Days.”

Cinderella Man is a film where you can really root for the hero, Jim Braddock. He’s the (not so) little guy battling against doubters, haters, financial misfortune, poverty, unemployment, etc., but he believes in himself. Though his back is often against the wall, he never quits, and he ain’t too proud to beg – if it keeps his family fed and off the streets. Russell Crowe’s performance embodies that plucky American spirit, but he shows something else we Americans really like – grit – the kind of grit it takes to fight the tough times. In fact, Paul Giamatti’s Joe Gould is like that voice inside our heads that keeps pushing us, and just when we think that the voice has left us, it’s back in our corner when it sees that we’re willing to fight out of the bad times. That’s the acting dynamic between Crowe and Giamatti – the hero and the voice of encouragement.

Cinderella Man actually does a few things to keep from being a perfect film. The lighting and cinematography are too murky; everything looks like an Old Master painting covered in soot. The script by Cliff Hollingsworth and Akiva Goldsman is good, but not great. One reason that it isn’t great is because it takes the easy road of turning Renée Zellweger’s Mae Braddock into the little wife at home fretting away for her man. I can imagine that Mae does as much to hold things together for the Braddocks, and Howard and his writers don’t have the imagination to really show her struggle – what she does to support the family unit. Mae is just a prop the filmmakers use when they need to send Jim home for scenes that don’t involve boxing or work.

Ultimately, this is Ron Howard’s Middle American fable, and he uses the elements of cinema to manipulate the audience as much as Steve Spielberg did in films like E.T. the Extraterrestrial and The Color Purple. However, Cinderella Man has many genuine and honest moments that speak to the American family and of the grit it takes for a family to keep it together. That’s enough to make me ignore the warts.

7 of 10
A-

NOTES:
2006 Academy Awards, USA: 3 nominations: “Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role” (Paul Giamatti), “Best Achievement in Film Editing” (Daniel P. Hanley and Mike Hill), “Best Achievement in Makeup” (David LeRoy Anderson and Lance Anderson)

2006 BAFTA Awards: 1 nomination: “Best Screenplay – Original” (Cliff Hollingsworth and Akiva Goldsman)

2006 Golden Globes, USA: 2 nominations “Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama” (Russell Crowe) and “Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture” (Paul Giamatti)

Tuesday, January 24, 2006

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"Man of Steel" to Get the 3D Treatment

“Man of Steel” to Soar into Theaters Next Summer in 3D

BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures announced today that director Zack Snyder’s upcoming action adventure “Man of Steel” will be presented in 3D in select theaters, as well as in 2D and IMAX®, so fans of the iconic superhero will be able to experience the much-anticipated movie in their format of choice.

Snyder stated, “The film is going to be a visually exciting experience in all formats: 2D, 3D and IMAX. Anticipating how audiences today embrace 3D, we designed and photographed the movie in a way that would allow ‘Man of Steel’ to captivate those movie goers, while respecting fans who prefer a more traditional cinematic experience. We’ve taken great measures to ensure the film and the story come first, and 3D is meant as an enhancement.”

The film stars Henry Cavill in the role of Superman/Clark Kent, alongside three-time Oscar® nominee Amy Adams (“The Fighter”), Oscar® nominee Michael Shannon (“Revolutionary Road”), Academy Award® winner Kevin Costner (“Dances with Wolves”), Oscar® nominee Diane Lane (“Unfaithful”), Oscar® nominee Laurence Fishburne (“What’s Love Got to Do with It”), Antje Traue, Ayelet Zurer, Christopher Meloni, Harry Lennix, Michael Kelly, Richard Shiff, and Academy Award® winner Russell Crowe (“Gladiator”).

“Man of Steel” is produced by Charles Roven, Emma Thomas, Christopher Nolan and Deborah Snyder. The screenplay was written by David S. Goyer, from a story by Goyer & Nolan, based upon Superman characters created by Jerry Siegel & Joe Shuster and published by DC Entertainment. Thomas Tull, Lloyd Phillips and Jon Peters are the film’s executive producers.

Warner Bros. Pictures presents, in association with Legendary Pictures, a Syncopy Production, a Zack Snyder Film, “Man of Steel.” The film is slated for release on June 14, 2013 and will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

www.manofsteel.com
 

Review: "Master and Commander" Was One of 2003's Best Films (Happy B'day, Russell Crowe)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 82 (of 2004) by Leroy Douresseaux

Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003)
Running time: 138 minutes (2 hours, 18 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for intense battle sequences, related images, and brief language
DIRECTOR: Peter Weir
WRITERS: John Collee and Peter Weir (from the novels by Patrick O’Brian)
PRODUCERS: Samuel Goldwyn Jr., Duncan Henderson, and Peter Weir
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Russell Boyd
EDITOR: Lee Smith
COMPOSERS: Iva Davies, Christopher Gordon, and Richard Tognetti
Academy Award winner

WAR/ADVENTURE/DRAMA/ACTION/THRILLER

Starring: Russell Crowe, Paul Bettany, James D’Arcy, Edward Woodall, Chris Larkin, Max Pirkis, Jack Randall, Max Benitz, Lee Ingleby, Richard Pates, Robert Pugh, and Richard McCabe

The subject of this movie review is Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, a 2003 historical war drama. Much of the film’s plot comes from the 1984 novel, The Far Side of the World.

One of the best films of 2003 is Australian director Peter Weir’s film, Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World. It was also one of the most honored films of the year, earning many award nominations and capturing quite a few critical prizes, including wins of two Oscars (for Russell Boyd’s cinematography and Richard King’s sound editing). It’s on my very short list of best pictures of the year, and it’s one of the best films of the last half-decade.

Based upon an outline in the tenth book of Patrick O’Brian’s series of 20 novels about Lucky Jack Aubrey (Russell Crowe), the British Royal Navy’s greatest fighting captain, and his ship’s doctor, Stephen Maturin (Paul Bettany), Master and Commander is set during the Napoleonic Wars. The brash Lucky Jack pushes the crew of his ship, the Surprise, in pursuit of a formidable French frigate, the Acheron. The Acheron launches a sneak attack on the Surprise near Brazil. Although his ship is heavily damaged, Lucky Jack, the “Master” of the Surprise and the “Commander” of his men, chases the Acheron around South America, all leading to a daring showdown near the Galapagos Islands.

As an expensive film production by three of the biggest film studios in the world (Fox, Miramax, and Universal), Master and Commander is blessed with a big production budget that guaranteed that the film would look brilliant and the technical aspects of the film would be quite good. But what makes this film is that the basics are topnotch. First, the story is a rousing sea adventure, something that is sure to please the male audience – there’s something to the lure of the sea. When a sea adventure movie is done well, we have a memorable film on our hands.

Secondly, the Peter Weir, one of the great directors of the last three or so decades (and one of the most underrated and under-appreciated in proportion to his talent and work) simply makes this a grand movie: a brilliant tale of fighting men, camaraderie, brotherhood, and old-fashioned adventure that is the superb and perfect vicarious experience for those of us that have never had to run from a cannonball or live through the hardships of naval life during wartime.

Last, but not least, is a collection of excellent performances. It goes without saying that Russell Crowe was good. Can he ever be bad? In the tradition of old Hollywood stars, Crowe allows his film personality to shine through every performance. There’s a basic template that we recognize no matter how disparate the roles he takes. Still, he’s the great method actor who can also bury himself in a part.

However, I must also give shout outs to Paul Bettany as the ship surgeon, Dr. Maturin. He well plays Maturin as both confidant and foil to Crowe’s’ Aubrey. A child talent to watch is Max Pirkis, as the young Lord Blakeney, Midshipman. I think Pirkis’ character is the one the audience lives through, as we, like him, are novices. Pirkis’ performance is open and invites us in to suffer the hardships, enjoy the good times, and learn from his experiences. His performance is so good and plays such an important part in the film’s success that it can be considered a gift.

I heartily endorse Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World. Not only is it good drama, it’s also an adventure film likely to stand the test of time, and if it doesn’t, it’s still damn fine for the here and now.

10 of 10

NOTES:
2004 Academy Awards: 2 wins: “Best Cinematography” (Russell Boyd) and “Best Sound Editing” (Richard King); 8 nominations: “Best Picture” (Samuel Goldwyn Jr., Peter Weir, and Duncan Henderson), “Best Director” (Peter Weir), “Best Art Direction-Set Decoration” (William Sandell-art director and Robert Gould-set decorator), “Best Costume Design” (Wendy Stites), “Best Film Editing” (Lee Smith), “Best Makeup” (Edouard F. Henriques and Yolanda Toussieng), “Best Sound Mixing” (Paul Massey, Doug Hemphill, and Art Rochester), and “Best Visual Effects” (Daniel Sudick, Stefen Fangmeier, Nathan McGuinness, and Robert Stromberg)

2004 BAFTA Awards: 4 wins: “Best Costume Design” (Wendy Stites), “Best Production Design” (William Sandell), “Best Sound” (Richard King, Doug Hemphill, Paul Massey, and Art Rochester), and “David Lean Award for Direction” (Peter Weir); 4 nominations: “Best Achievement in Special Visual Effects” (Stefen Fangmeier, Nathan McGuinness, Robert Stromberg, Daniel Sudick), and “Best Cinematography” (Russell Boyd), “Best Film” (Samuel Goldwyn Jr., Peter Weir, and Duncan Henderson), “Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role” (Paul Bettany)

2004 Golden Globes: 3 nominations: “Best Director - Motion Picture” (Peter Weir), “Best Motion Picture – Drama,” and “Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama” (Russell Crowe)

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Review: "A Beautiful Mind" is Beautiful

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 24 (of 2002) by Leroy Douresseaux

A Beautiful Mind (2001)
Running time: 135 minutes (2 hours, 15 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for intense thematic material, sexual content and a scene of violence
DIRECTOR: Ron Howard
WRITER: Akiva Goldsman (based upon the book by Sylvia Nasar)
PRODUCERS: Brian Glazer and Ron Howard
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Roger Deakins
EDITORS: Dan Hanley and Mike Hill
Academy Award winner

DRAMA with elements of mystery and romance

Starring: Russell Crowe, Ed Harris, Jennifer Connelly, Christopher Plummer, Paul Bettany, Adam Goldberg, Josh Lucas, Anthony Rapp, Jason Gray-Stanford, and Judd Hirsch

A Beautiful Mind is based upon the real life story of John Forbes Nash, Jr. (Russell Crowe), a math prodigy, who goes on to win the Nobel Prize after years of struggling with schizophrenia. The handsome and arrogant Nash made an astonishing discovery early in his career and also meets his wife Alicia (Jennifer Connelly). On the brink of international fame, his world falls apart when he succumbs to mental illness. With the help of his wife, he struggles to regain his career and his social life and to be a husband and father to his wife and child.

Directed by Ron Howard, A Beautiful Mind is an engaging and riveting biopic that runs the gamut of emotions from elation to revulsion and from despair to hope. It is earnest and intense, playful and romantic, heartbreaking and life affirming. Not a biography in the art house mold, but a wonderful sort of middlebrow picture with a feel-good resolution for the masses, or at least those who are interested in Hollywood product that doesn’t involve SFX and titillation.

The artistry here is the performance of Russell Crowe. Increasingly a controversial figure hounded by the tabloids and infotainment news organizations, he has replaced Kevin Spacey as the actor of the moment. Here, he combines the best of his performances in The Insider (for which he earned an Academy Award nomination) and in Gladiator (for which he won an Academy Award) to portray John Nash – the paranoid hero of the former and the never-say-die leader of the latter. Since Romper Stomper, Crowe has been a mesmerizing screen presence, and he is at full wattage here.

He sells us on this movie, and we buy asking for more. When Nash is the shy boy, we yearn for him to get a woman. We thrill and laugh at Nash’s clumsy arrogance, and we enjoy his success. We cringe at his illness and hope against hope for his recovery. And who couldn’t, at least, almost shed tears when Nash’s peers and the Nobel committee honor him.

Ron Howard does good work here, and Ms. Connelly is pretty good as Alicia Nash, but this is Russell’s show, he can win the audience over. Since the twilight so-called Golden Age of studio pictures in Hollywood, there have been so few real, masculine men in movies. Some of them, post Golden Age are not great actors, and some that are, don’t have the box office draw. Crowe is all man, a fine actor, and a box office draw.

He’s an artist. He attracts the audience to Nash using every part of himself – in his gestures and the way he moves his body. We can believe Crowe is Nash in the way it seems that Crowe really loves mathematics. His face is a tapestry of emotions that are so convincing and so important to selling the scene, so layered and three-dimensional that were transported into the movie. We live and suffer vicariously with Crowe’s Nash.

For the haters out there, the best is yet to come. Things about the real Nash’s past that were left out of this film don’t matter one wit in respect to Crowe’s amazing performance. No disrespect to his collaborators, but A Beautiful Mind is all his.

8 of 10
A

NOTES:
2002 Academy Awards: 4 wins: “Best Picture” (Brian Grazer and Ron Howard), “Best Actress in a Supporting Role” (Jennifer Connelly), “Best Director” (Ron Howard), and “Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published” (Akiva Goldsman); 4 nominations: “Best Actor in a Leading Role” (Russell Crowe), “Best Editing” (Mike Hill and Daniel P. Hanley), “Best Makeup” (Greg Cannom and Colleen Callaghan), and “Best Music, Original Score” (James Horner)

2002 BAFTA Awards: 2 wins: “Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role” (Russell Crowe) and “Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role” (Jennifer Connelly); 3 nominations: “Best Film” (Brian Grazer and Ron Howard), “Best Screenplay – Adapted” (Akiva Goldsman) and “David Lean Award for Direction” (Ron Howard)

2002 Golden Globes: 4 wins: “Best Motion Picture – Drama,” “Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama” (Russell Crowe), “Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture” (Jennifer Connelly), and “Best Screenplay - Motion Picture” (Akiva Goldsman); 2 nominations: “Best Director - Motion Picture” (Ron Howard) and “Best Original Score - Motion Picture” (James Horner)

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Review: "American Gangster" is Gangsta, Though it Falls Short of Greatness

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 28 (of 2008) by Leroy Douresseaux

American Gangster (2007)
Running time: 157 minutes (2 hours, 37 minutes)
MPAA – R for violence, pervasive drug content and language, nudity, and sexuality
DIRECTOR: Ridley Scott
WRITER: Steven Zallian (based upon the article “The Return of Superfly” by Mark Jacobson)
PRODUCERS: Brian Grazer and Ridley Scott
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Harris Savides (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Pietro Scalia
2007 Academy Award nominee

CRIME/DRAMA

Starring: Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Josh Brolin, Lymari Nadal, Ted Levine, Roger Guenveur Smith, John Hawkes, RZA, Ruby Dee, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Carla Gugino, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Armand Assante, Idris Elba, Common, Warner Miller, Albert Jones, J. Kyle Manzay, T.I., and Clarence Williams III

In the late 80’s, a critic (I don’t remember whom) said, in reference to Joel and Ethan Coen’s Miller’s Crossing, that every American director who wanted to achieve greatness had to make at least one epic crime film (like The Godfather or Mean Streets). Ridley Scott was born in Great Britain, but the majority of his work has been for American movie studios. It seems only right that, in the tradition of great crime movies by such uniquely American filmmakers as Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorcese, Scott tackle a great American crime story. Scott’s Oscar-nominated 2007 film, American Gangster, chronicles the rise of Frank Lucas, the real-life Harlem drug kingpin who left segregated North Carolina and eventually started a heroin ring in the late 1960’s that netted him over a quarter of a billion dollars in assets by the time he was brought down.

After the death of his mentor, Elsworth “Bumpy” Johnson (Clarence Williams III), Frank Lucas (Denzel Washington) slowly, but gradually takes his place, building an international heroin ring that begins in Asia’s Golden Triangle. With the help of his cousin, a military officer named Nate (Roger Guenveur Smith), Lucas smuggles the heroin through the military back to the east coast of the U.S. Under the name, “Blue Magic,” Lucas sells a product that is twice as pure as other heroin on the street, but at half the price.

Meanwhile, Detective Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe), a New Jersey police detective, is finding that his unwillingness to steal money and drugs like many of his crooked colleagues has made him an outcast. His fortunes change when he’s pegged to start his own special investigative unit that will focus not on small time dealers, but on the major players, which puts Frank Lucas squarely in his sights. However, Roberts’ shadowy hunt might land him more than just another crime boss.

American Gangster is an engrossing story that is smoothly and efficiently told, considering that its epic scope seems too large for a single film that runs under three hours. [American Gangster’s DVD release has a longer version of the film.] As well told as this film is, it seems to be missing a lot, thus, making it seem like a shadow version of classic 70’s crime dramas that are also set in the gritty, crime-ridden metropolis that was New York City then. This is certainly a juicy period piece, in which everything: the clothes, cars, sets, and furnishings feel like the 1970’s. Even the members of the cast seem caught in a malaise of poverty, crime, and corruption, as if they were caught in a 70’s time warp.

Still, although the mood is right, the heart of this movie is the duel between Washington’s Lucas and Crowe’s Roberts, and much of that is relegated to the film’s last half hour. Ridley Scott and his screenwriter, Oscar winner Steve Zallian (Schindler’s List), certainly create an engaging story chronicling both Lucas’ rise and Roberts’ reinvention of himself and resurrection of his career. Washington plays Lucas as if he were a cool big cat, a predator stalking the room – seen and unseen. He’s the smartest guy in the room and the most dangerous man among many bad men, because Lucas knows when to use violence and how much. Like many of Washington’s performances, it is a blast to behold and so good because he gives so many layers to Lucas – many of which we only glimpse. Crowe reveals Roberts to be a man of honor and integrity in his professional life, but woefully pathetic in his personal life. In that way, Crowe keeps Roberts as interesting as the alluring bad guy, Lucas. That we know Roberts is so pathetic as a family man balances the Boy Scout cop side of him – which by itself is not entirely interesting.

This film is ultimately missing the meat of the confrontation and larger relationship between these two men. American Gangster, Scott’s film, is mostly about Lucas building his empire, and that story is attractive. However, a complete story about a great gangster recounts both his rise in the criminal underworld and his fall at the hands of a determined lawman (or men). American Gangster is a fine film, but it shorts us on the epic battle between criminal and detective and thus, shorts itself of greatness.

7 of 10
B+

NOTES:
2008 Academy Awards: 2 nominations: “Best Achievement in Art Direction” (Arthur Max-art director and Beth A. Rubino-set decorator) and “Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role” (Ruby Dee)

2008 BAFTA Awards: 5 nominations: “Best Cinematography” (Harris Savides), “Best Editing” (Pietro Scalia), “Best Film” (Brian Grazer and Ridley Scott), “Best Music” (Marc Streitenfeld), “Best Screenplay – Original” (Steven Zaillian)

2008 Golden Globes: 3 nominations: “Best Director - Motion Picture” (Ridley Scott), “Best Motion Picture – Drama,” and “Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama” (Denzel Washington)

Sunday, June 01, 2008

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Russell Crowe and The RZA, Again

Both Russell Crowe and The RZA were in American Gangster.  They reunite in Crowe's just-came-out-flick, The Next Three Days.  The duo give a joint interview to BV on Movies.

Review: Braveheart + Gladiator = Russell Crowe's (Pre) Robin Hood

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 87 (of 2010) by Leroy Douresseaux

Robin Hood (2010)
Running time: 140 minutes (2 hours, 20 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for violence including intense sequences of warfare, and some sexual content
DIRECTOR: Ridley Scott
WRITERS: Brian Helgeland; from a story by Ethan Reiff and Cyrus Voris and Brian Helgeland
PRODUCERS: Russell Crowe, Brian Grazer, and Ridley Scott
CINEMATOGRAPHER: John Mathieson
EDITOR: Pietro Scalia

ACTION/DRAMA/HISTORICAL

Starring: Russell Crowe, Cate Blanchett, Max von Sydow, William Hurt, Mark Strong, Oscar Isaac, Danny Huston, Eileen Atkins, Mark Addy, Matthew Macfadyen, Kevin Durand, Scott Grimes, Alan Doyle, Douglas Hodge, Lisa Seydoux, Jonathan Zaccai, and Jack Downham

Back in 2000, Ridley Scott unleashed his Roman costume drama/action movie, Gladiator. The film was a big box office hit and turned its lead, Russell Crowe, into a major movie star. Gladiator went on to win several Academy Awards, including “Best Picture” and a “Best Actor” Oscar for Crowe. Scott and Crowe have worked together since then, but those films have not been as successful as Gladiator.

Scott and Crowe distilled the manly man of honor essence of Gladiator and put it into their recent film, Robin Hood, but this movie is not like other Robin Hood movies. The Scott/Crowe Robin Hood isn’t a reinvention or re-imagining or anything like that. It is a kind of prequel, essentially asking the question of what would have turned a man into an outlaw like Robin Hood. This is the story of how, when, and why Robin Hood came to be, and the story goes like this…

It is 1199, and as the Third Crusade comes to an end, Richard the Lionheart (Danny Huston) continues his war against Philip II of France (Jonathan Zaccai). In the siege of Chalus Castle, Robin Longstride (Russell Crowe) is a common archer. Following the death of Richard, Robin and two other common archers, Alan A’Dale (Alan Doyle) and Will Scarlet (Scott Grimes), and the soldier Little John (Kevin Durand) make an attempt to return home to England after 10 years away. The quartet arrives at the site of an ambush of the Royal guard. There, Robin makes a promise to a dying knight, Robert Loxley (Douglas Hodge), to return a sword to his father, Sir Walter Loxley (Max von Sydow), in Nottingham.

Impersonating Loxley, Robin returns to England to find the land beset by the ill rule of Richard’s brother, now King John (Oscar Isaac). Robin and his companions travel to Nottingham where he meets Loxley’s now-widowed wife, Lady Marian (Cate Blanchett), and Sir Walter, who is old and blind. Walter asks Robin to continue to impersonate his son in order to keep his family lands from being taken by the crown for taxes. In fact, Prince John sends his henchman, Sir Godfrey (Mark Strong), an English knight secretly aligned with the French, across England to collect taxes from everyone by any means necessary. Robin fights back, but soon discovers that England has bigger problems than out of control tax collectors. Now, Robin Longstride must lead the fight to save the country.

Robin Hood is a rousing adventure combat movie. It isn’t Ridley Scott’s best work (or anywhere near that), nor is it Crowe’s best work. Neither, however, seems on automatic. Crowe is a superb actor and consummate craftsman; it may seem as if he is in cruise control mode here. Crowe just makes it look easy, and perhaps, Scott does the same in this movie. The truth is Robin Hood is very well made and quite entertaining, except for a small dry spell in the second hour of the movie.

Perhaps, it is easy to take this film and the people behind it for granted. I marveled at the high-quality performances throughout. Cate Blanchett gives a strong turn and fashions a forceful character out of the well-worn, almost stock character, Maid Marian. Mark Strong is, as usual, strong as the villain – in this case, the conniving Godfrey, and Oscar Isaac is award nomination-worthy for his creation of the unashamedly jealous King John.

I thought of Gladiator and Braveheart while watching this new take on Robin Hood. I certainly like its depiction of how lowly, common men sacrifice their lives and spend years away from their families to fight wars started by a small circle of vain royalty. After expending so much blood and sweat, they get nothing in return and even have to fight to find a way home on their own. That much is relevant to our modern times. Scott, Crowe, and screenwriter Brian Helgeland get it right. That injustice is reason enough to turn a man into an outlaw, and reason enough for me to enjoy Robin Hood.

7 of 10
B+

Friday, October 29, 2010

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