Review: "The Wolfman" is Surprisingly Very Good

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 5 (of 2010) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Wolfman (2010)
Running time: 102 minutes (1 hour, 42 minutes)
MPAA – R for bloody horror violence and gore
DIRECTOR: Joe Johnston
WRITERS: Andrew Kevin Walker and David Self (based upon the 1941 screenplay by Curt Siodmak)
PRODUCERS: Sean Daniel, Benicio Del Toro, Scott Stuber, Rick Yorn
CINEMATOGRAHER: Shelly Johnson
EDITOR: Walter Murch, Dennis Virkler, and Mark Goldblatt (no screen credit)
COMPOSER: Danny Elfman
SPECIAL MAKEUP EFFECTS: Rick Baker

HORROR

Starring: Benicio Del Toro, Emily Blunt, Anthony Hopkins, Hugo Weaving, Art Malik, Nicholas Day, Michael Cronin, David Sterne, David Schofield, and Roger Frost

Universal Pictures’ new film, The Wolfman, the remake of the studio’s classic, The Wolf Man (1941), was originally supposed to debut in February 2009. The film also missed a November 2009 release date, and missed release dates sometimes means that a movie is probably mediocre, at best, or a disaster, at worst.

The Wolfman was worth the wait. This is one of those movies that puts the big bad monster back in the monster movie genre, and the audience is the better for it. Personally, I want to see The Wolfman again. It starts off slow, but when the monster shows up, The Wolfman proves to be all killer.

As in the 1941 film, The Wolfman focuses on Lawrence Talbot (Benicio Del Toro). Talbot is a haunted nobleman who mostly plies his trade as an actor in the United States. A letter from his brother’s fiancée, Gwen Conliffe (Emily Blunt), lures Lawrence back to his family estate in the sleepy hamlet of Blackmoor. Ben Talbot has vanished, but by the time Lawrence arrives at the family home, Blackmoor Estate, Ben’s corpse, ravaged and torn, has been found.

Lawrence is reunited with his estranged father, Sir John Talbert (Anthony Hopkins), an odd fellow who lives in the dark and musty family home with his assistant, Singh (Art Malik). Lawrence is determined to discover the mystery behind his brother, Ben’s gruesome death. Lawrence learns that a beast with brute strength and an insatiable bloodlust has been killing villagers, but his search for that creature will only lead to a horrifying destiny for himself.

The Wolfman is one of those movies where the argument can be made that none of the primary filmmakers and no one of among the main cast delivers their best work. However, all of them deliver the kind of high quality work and performances for which they’ve gained their good or, in some cases, superb reputations. For instance, Anthony Hopkins won an Oscar for playing legendary villain, Dr. Hannibal Lecter, in The Silence of the Lambs, and, while Sir John Talbot may not be Lecter, Hopkins plays Sir John with enough of Lecter’s menacing glee that people will want to see this new performance. Del Toro won an Oscar for the film Traffic, and he plays Lawrence Talbot with the same tremendous pathos and brooding passion that earned him his Academy Award. Even Danny Elfman presents a lovely gothic score that sets the right tone for The Wolfman.

The underrated and under-utilized Joe Johnston (Jurassic Park III) directs The Wolfman with shifting styles and tones that give the storytelling depth. Johnston weds this film to the 1941 original with class, and he adds visual touches that are similar to the movies of Italian director Mario Bava, which give the violence and gore here a touch of moody elegance. Johnston makes full use of the advances in cinematic science and technology to create a Hollywood blockbuster that offers special effects magic, but still looks, feels, and moves like an intimate horror flick. In spite of the visual splendor of CGI, Johnston makes sure that it feels real and that a viewer will believe that he is alone in a theatre with a terrifying monster.

Of course, six-time Oscar-winning special effects artist/god/maestro, Rick Baker, is also very important to this film. Are his design and makeup talents that transform Benicio Del Toro into the fearsome title character Baker’s best work? Sometimes, it seems as if each film for which Baker does makeup is his best work. The first good look you get at the monster’s face will probably tell you that The Wolfman is going to be a good film no matter what year in which you see it.

7 of 10
A-

Sunday, February 14, 2010

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Scorsese Hopes for a Return to Mob World with De Niro

In Berlin to promote his new film, Shutter Island, at the Berlin Film Festival, Martin Scorsese told reporters that he would like to revive his cinematic partnership with the actor Robert De Niro.  The 67-year-old filmmaker's working relationship with De Niro goes back to Mean Streets nearly 40 years ago.

The most famous Scorsese-De Niro pairing may be Raging Bull (1980), for which De Niro won a "Best Actor" Oscar,  According to Reuters (via ABC), Scorcese says "the project will be related to the mobster world."  Previous Scorsese mob films starring De Niro include Good Fellas and Casino.

Review: Oscar Nominee "Zelary" is Simply a Wonderful Film

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 18 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

Zelary (2003)
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Czech Republic/Slovakia/Austria; Languages: Czech/Russian/German
Running time: 148 minutes (2 hours, 28 minutes)
MPAA – R for violence and some sexual content
DIRECTOR: Ondrej Trojan
WRITER: Petr Jarchovský (from the novel by Jozova Hanule)
PRODUCERS: Helena Uldrichová and Ondrej Trojan
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Asen Sopov
EDITOR: Vladimír Barák
Academy Award nominee

DRAMA/ROMANCE with some elements of war

Starring: Anna Geislerová, György Cserhalmi, Jaroslava Adamová, Miroslav Donutil, Jaroslav Dusek, Iva Bittová, Ivan Trojan, Jan Hrusíinský, Anna Vertelárová, and Tomás Zatecka

Zelary earned a 2004 Academy Award nomination for “Best Foreign Language Film” (as the official entry from the Czech Republic). The film tells the story of a clash between two different worlds, and it also tells the story of the odd pairing of two different people who fall in love because of the circumstances forced upon them. It begins in Czechoslovakia 1943. Eliska (Anna Geislerová) is a nurse in a city hospital, and she and her surgeon lover are part of the Czechoslovakian resistance movement against the Nazis. The arrest of a fellow fighter exposes their identities to the Gestapo, and her lover flees the country leaving Eliska to find her own way to safety.

The day before that disaster, she’d donated her blood to save the life of a mountain dweller injured in a mill accident. Members of the resistance send her with the mountain dweller, a man named Joza (György Cserhalmi), back to his home in the remote mountains, Zelary, a place where time seems to have frozen 150 years earlier. The only way to hide in safety is to become Joza’s wife, a move Eliska bitterly resists, but one to which she must ultimately submit. She takes a new name, Hana. A strong bond and eventual love forms between the simple peasant villager and the city sophisticate, but always looming over their heads is that if discovered, the Germans will kill Joza and perhaps his fellow villagers for hiding Hana, a former member of the resistance.

Zelary may seem especially familiar, and that’s because its observations and depiction of rural live aren’t original. In fact, Zelary has that lived-in feel. We might not see something like this very often at the local theatre, but rustic utopias are a staple of cable television networks such as the Hallmark Channel or even TV Land. Still, it is the execution of the film that makes this few of simple peasant life unrelentingly engrossing and powerful cinema. In spite of the danger that the characters face, either from fellow villagers or outsiders such as German soldiers and partisan fighters, this is a heartwarming film. Star-crossed lovers from different worlds, a remote mountain cottage, and a pastoral setting – add that to a gripping, evocative, and emotionally charged score by Petr Ostrouchov and cinematography that transforms the seasonal colors of the Czech countryside into glorious eye-candy and Zelary is an epic romance. However, it is the surprises that come around every corner and the gentle shockers around the edges that make Zelary a refreshing perspective, although the plot, setting, and characters have that instant familiarity.

Director Ondrej Trojan turns the recognizable into something special; like a playful ringmaster, he correctly measures the right ingredients for a film that is a heart-warming romance and tragic war drama. The film does tend to bounce back and forth between too many characters, and because all of them are good, I found myself wanting more time with each. This is especially true of the leads; there is not enough of their story. Anna Geislerová and György Cserhalmi sell this unlikely romance. Geislerová is a radiant beauty with the kind of evocative face the serious actress must have. György Cserhalmi is pitch perfect as the rough-hewn, salt-of-the-earth Joza. While a beauty like Geislerová is expected in such a movie, György Cserhalmi is the one who makes the romantic inside the viewer desperately want to believe Hana and Joza’s love could really happen. Zelary speaks directly to the heart.

9 of 10
A+

NOTES:
2004 Academy Awards: 1 nomination for “Best Foreign Language Film” (Czech Republic)

2004 Czech Lions: 2 wins for actress (Anna Geislerová) and sound; 9 nominations including film, director, actor (György Cserhalmi), supporting actress (Jaroslava Adamová), art direction, cinematography, editing, music, and screenplay

Thursday, January 26, 2006

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DreamWorks Animation and NBC Promote Upcoming "How to Train Your Dragon"

Press release from Paramount Pictures:

DREAMWORKS ANIMATION AND NBC JOIN FORCES IN FIRST-OF-ITS-KIND PROMOTIONAL PARTNERSHIP DURING NBC’S BROADCAST OF 2010 OLYMPIC WINTER GAMES


DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. (Nasdaq: DWA) and NBC today announced that they have joined forces in a firstof-its-kind televised promotional partnership that will debut on Tuesday, February 9th, just three days before the commencement of the network’s broadcast of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games.

With an eye toward audiences of all ages and promoting both NBC’s broadcast of the Olympics and DreamWorks Animation’s upcoming theatrical release of its 3D animated feature film, HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON, DreamWorks Animation has produced a series of seven winter sports-themed custom, CG animated vignettes tied to the film, which opens nationwide on March 26th. The vignettes will be fully integrated across all NBC platforms, including the “Today” Show, CNBC, USA and MSNBC as well as during the network’s regularly scheduled telecasts of the Vancouver Games.

The entire series is narrated by Emmy Award-nominated late-night talk show host, Craig Ferguson and directed by Tim Johnson, Executive Producer of HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON. Featuring the characters from the feature film as they compete in humorous variations of the “Dragon/Viking” sports from the mythical Viking Games of 1010, the custom vignettes include competitions such as snowboarding, speed skating, bobsledding and ski jumping.

“We were inspired by the Nordic-like setting of this year’s Winter Games in Vancouver and tied it to our imagined story of burly Vikings on a desolate island we call ‘Berk,’” said Chris Sanders, one of the Directors of DreamWorks Animation’s HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON. “The result is a series of fun vignettes that take our characters to the 11th century as they compete in Viking Games of their own kind… with the added pressure of fire-breathing Dragons constantly on their tails!”

DreamWorks Animation’s HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON is set in the mythical world of burly Vikings and wild dragons. Based on the book by Cressida Cowell, the action comedy tells the story of Hiccup, a Viking teenager who doesn’t exactly fit in with his tribe’s longstanding tradition of heroic dragon slayers. Hiccup’s world is turned upside down when he encounters a dragon that challenges him and his fellow Vikings to see the world from an entirely different point of view. HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON stars Jay Baruchel, Gerard Butler, Craig Ferguson, America Ferrera, Jonah Hill, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, T.J. Miller and Kristen Wiig. The film is produced by Bonnie Arnold and directed by Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois. It is being distributed by Paramount Pictures. This film is rated PG.


About DreamWorks Animation
DreamWorks Animation creates high-quality entertainment, including CG animated feature films, television specials and series, live entertainment properties and online virtual worlds, meant for audiences around the world. The Company has world-class creative talent, a strong and experienced management team and advanced filmmaking technology and techniques. All of DreamWorks Animation's feature films are now being produced in 3D. The Company has theatrically released a total of 18 animated feature films, including the franchise properties Shrek, Madagascar and Kung Fu Panda. [END]

Review: "Werewolf of London" a Precursor to "The Wolf Man"

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 192 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

Werewolf of London (1935) – B&W
Running time: 75 minutes
DIRECTOR: Stuart Walker
WRITERS: John Colton; from a story by Robert Harris
PRODUCERS: Stanley Bergerman and Carl Laemmle, Jr. (neither credited onscreen)
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Charles Stumar
EDITORS: Russell Schoengarth with Milton Carruth (no screen credit)

HORROR

Starring: Henry Hull, Warner Oland, Valerie Hobson, Lester Matthews, Lawrence Grant, Spring Byington, Clark Williams, J.M. Kerrigan, Charlotte Granville, Ethel Griffies, Zeffie Tilbury, and Jeanne Bartlett

Botanist Wilfred Glendon (Henry Hull) traveled to Tibet in hopes of finding the marisphasa lupina lumina – the phosphorescent wolf flower – a rare flower that only blooms by moonlight. Exploring a mysterious valley, Glendon finds the flower, but a strange hollowing creature attacks and bites him while he is excavating the flower from the earth. Glendon survives the attack and returns to his home in London, Glendon Manor, where he has a laboratory, and where his lovely wife, Lisa “Lee” Glendon (Valerie Hobson) awaits him. Studying the marisphasa takes up much of Glendon’s time, leaving his poor wife to entertain alone… that is until an old flame, Captain Paul Ames (Lester Matthews) of Scotland Yard, arrives.

Meanwhile, Glendon receives a visit from a mysterious scientist, Dr. Yogami (Warner Oland), who insists upon seeing the marisphasa. Glendon refuses to share the object of his intense analysis, but Yogami leaves him with vague warnings about the marisphasa’s connection to “werewolfery.” Glendon dismisses that as superstition until a series of werewolf attacks occurs in London, and Glendon realizes that he is the werewolf. The only thing that can cure Glendon is the rare Tibetan flower he found, the marisphasa, but will it bloom before he takes more lives? And will he learn why Yogami wants the plant so badly?

Werewolf of London was Universal Pictures’ first foray into the werewolf movie, predating their classic flick, The Wolf Man, by six years, and Werewolf of London is certainly a template for the later flick – including the basis for the iconic image of Lon Chaney, Jr. as the “Wolf Man.” In fact, the wolf man make up that Lon Chaney, Jr. wore in his seminal role was created by Universal Pictures makeup designer Jack P. Pierce for Henry Hull in Werewolf of London. However, Hull reportedly didn’t want to wear it because it was too time-consuming to be applied to his face, and Pierce designed the more streamlined and less hairy “wolf man” look that Hull wore in Werewolf of London.

Although this movie has some good moments, it is thoroughly a B-movie with professional acting, but no standout performances, except for a few roles that act as comic relief. The best things about Werewolf of London are the werewolf transformation scenes and monster makeup, which gives the film a more tragic Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde tone.

5 of 10
B-

NOTES:
Writers not receiving screen credit: Harvey Gates and Robert Harris on the adaptation and Edmund Pearson as a contributing writer.

Monday, September 04, 2006

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Review: "Black Sunday" Remains a Chilling Mario Bava Masterpiece

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 126 (of 2007) by Leroy Douresseaux

La Demonio del Maschera (1960) – B&W
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Italy
Running time: 87 minutes
CINEMATOGRAPHER/DIRECTOR: Mario Bava
WRITERS: Ennio De Concini and Mario Serandrei, with English dialogue by George Higgins (based upon the short story “The Viy” by Nikolai Gogol)
PRODUCERS: Massimo De Rita and Lou Rusoff (U.S. version)
EDITOR: Mario Serandrei

HORROR/THRILLER

Starring: Barbara Steele, John Richardson, Andrea Checci, Ivo Garrani, Arturo Dominici, Enrico Olivieri, Antonio Pierfederici, and Tino Bianchi

Acclaimed Italian horror director Mario Bava made his directorial debut with the film, La Demonio del Maschera, which first received a U.S. release in 1961 under the title, Black Sunday. Previously, Bava had finished other directors’ films, but did not receive a screen credit as a director until Black Sunday. The story is based upon a Russian folktale, and Bava also co-wrote the film, but did not receive a screen credit as a writer.

Condemned to die as a witch in the 17th century, Princess Asa Vajda (Barbara Steele) returns two centuries after her execution to wreak vengeance on her executioners’ descendents. Those descendents are Prince Vadja (Ivo Garrani), his son, Prince Constantine Vajda (Enrico Olivieri), and Katia Vadja (Barbara Steele), who looks just like Princess Asa. Two men, Dr. Thomas Kruvajan (Andrea Checci) and his young companion, Dr. Andre Gorobec (John Richardson), traveling through the countryside, stumble upon Asa’s grave and unwittingly reawaken her. Soon, Dr. Gorobec and a local priest are in a race against time to save Katia from becoming the sacrifice that will allow Asa to walk the Earth again and unleash Hell’s undead demons.

Simply put, this is a masterpiece of black and white gothic horror filmmaking. Steeped in rich atmosphere and lush shadows, Black Sunday is truly frightening. (It had me with my back pressed against the sofa.) Filled with a hellish sexual yearning and sadism, Black Sunday’s production values are worthy of a Hollywood historical epic. Black Sunday is pure visual dark poetry – a horror film that refuses to be forgotten.

8 of 10
A

Thursday, September 13, 2007

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Review: "Zathura" is an Excellent Sci-Fi Adventure

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 73 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

Zathura: A Space Adventure (2005)
Opening date: November 11, 2005
Running time: 101 minutes; MPAA – PG for fantasy action and peril, and some language
DIRECTOR: Jon Favreau
WRITERS: David Koepp & John Kamps (based upon the book by Chris Van Allsburg)
PRODUCERS: Michael De Luca, Scott Kroopf, and William Teitler
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Guillermo Navarro
EDITOR: Dan Lebental

SCI-FI/FANTASY/ACTION/ADVENTURE/FAMILY with elements of comedy and drama

Starring: Josh Hutcherson, Jonah Bobo, Dax Sheppard, Kristen Stewart, Tim Robbins, and (voice) Frank Oz

After discovering a mysterious game called “Zathura” in the basement of their father’s (Tim Robbins) house, two brothers, 6-year old Danny (Jonah Bobo) and 10-year old Walter (Josh Hutcherson) find their home flying in space, after Danny begins to play the game. The brothers realize that they must finish the game by reaching the planet Zathura, or they’ll be trapped in space forever. If that weren’t enough, their doubting sister, Lisa (Kristen Stewart), is trapped with them. The bossy Astronaut (Dax Sheppard) is eating all the food they have in the refrigerator, and a vicious alien race of flesh-eating lizards, the Zorgons, is trying to destroy everyone and the house.

Zathura: A Space Adventure is the third film based upon a book by children’s storybook author, Chris Van Allsburg, following Jumanji and The Polar Express. In fact, Zathura was a kind of follow up to Jumanji, as both books dealt with children finding enchanted board games that send them on perilous adventures. Director Jon Favreau (Elf) also made a point of using practical effects as much as possible over computer generated images (CGI). In a way, Zathura is Favreau’s nod to the sci-fi and fantasy films of the late 1970 and the 1980’s that used miniatures, puppets, on-set pyrotechnics, superbly crafted props, makeup, and creature effects (suits and prosthetics) because there was no CGI to create fantastic worlds, creatures, and situations. Favreau’s film especially seems to reference Steven Spielberg’s early work (Close Encounters of the Third Kind and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial), in particular the Spielberg’s use of light and sound to create the presence of otherworldly creatures.

In fact, the film has an old-timey charm to it. It’s not the grand, testosterone, CGI extravaganza’s like the Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings franchises or The Chronicles of Narnia that have come to define big, family-oriented, event fantasy films. Favreau relies on a savvy crew of craftsman, engineers, technicians, artists, etc. that use its collective hands and wits to build on-set special effects. There is some CGI, and it is almost never as impressive as the non-computer stuff. Everything seems so real and earthy. The perils are dangerous, but not so dangerous that two resourceful boys couldn’t survive it. Favreau’s real effects have a way of making the viewer feel that he’s in that house with Walter and Danny, racing to find a way home.

In telling this story of sibling rivalry, children of divorce, and brotherly love and bonding, Favreau leans heavily on his leads, Josh Hutcherson and Jonah Bobo. They are wonderful and have superb screen chemistry. They create a big brother/little brother dynamic that is uncannily genuine. Hutcherson’s performance as a pre-teen boy is excellent and, ironically, beyond his years. He’s definitely a pro, and he acts more than he pretends (still a problem with some child actors). Bobo as Danny is surprisingly emotive. His performance comes alive in his facial expressions and in his wide, expressive eyes. He buys into Zathura’s scenario and has fun. Kristen Stewart is also fun in a woefully small and underutilized part as the sister, Lisa. I found Dax Sheppard’s performance as The Astronaut to be a mixed bag; sometimes he was good, and other times he wore his performance on his sleeve by overacting.

A flop when it was released in early fall of 2005, Zathura: A Space Adventure is a throwback film aimed at an audience (particularly young boys) that is more familiar with wide open CGI films than it is with old-fashioned sci-fi yarns that recall the golden age of juvenile sci-fi: rockets, boy astronauts, and reptilian aliens. They weren’t even born when miniature props and puppetry made hits of films like Gremlins and The Last Starfighter. Zathura’s tale of brother’s working together and of discovery has a sense of fun that is as wide-eyed as Jonah Bobo’s Danny. It’s a simple adventure film that may find a long, deserved life on TV.

7 of 10
A-

Saturday, April 15, 2006

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