Hey folks, Harry here with the first finished film reviews for Robert Altman's THE COMPANY, Lars Von Trier's 5 OBSTRUCTIONS, Jane Campion's IN THE CUT... and a new Ewan McGregor film called YOUNG ADAM. Nice gathering of talent there. And from Shogo's ratings... sounds like they're pretty darn good movies to boot! It is really nice to see THE COMPANY getting the notice it got here... that test screening earlier in the year wasn't all that pretty, nice to see Altman finding his film again! Yippee! Here ya go...
Film Fest Day 5
THE COMPANY
In the Company is the new Robert Altman film about a professional ballet troop and stars Neve Campbell. This film is the day to day working of a professional ballet company. We follow the dancers from practise to practise and in their personal lives. There is a slight focus on Neve Campbell's character who meets a chef and falls in love even though she works two jobs and is with the company. We also see several performances of the ballet company.
Altman again shows why he is such a good director. This film could be another Save the last Dance or something close. It isn't. It has heart and soul. Altman's direction brings you to the centre of the ballet company and everything involved with it. Malcolm MacDowell plays the director of the company with zeal and humor. Neve Campbell is very believeable as a dancer and she did her own dancing. Though I am not fan of ballet the sheer beauty of the dancing and the great performances allowed me to enjoy this film
9/10
5 OBSTRUCTIONS
5 Obstructions is the pairing of Lars Von Trier and documentary director Jorgen Leth. In the 60's Leth made a documentary called "The Perfect Human". In 2002 Von Trier and Leth watched the film again and Von Treir got inspired to remake it. He enlisted Leth as the director but put Obstructions in to the production in order to inspire him. The movie follows not on the production and final product but commentary from both filmmakers
This film is fairly difficult to review. On one hand, it is a very deep and thoughtful look at what being human is. On the other, it is documentary covering the thought process of two well known directors. On both sides it is an interesting film to watch. Leth has a great eye for shooting and is very creative. Von Trier is excellent as someone who will force another to look at something differently. The banter between the two as they watch the final products and introduce the obstructions is not only humorous but entertaining.
9/10
YOUNG ADAM
Young Adam is the story of a man with a mysterious past joining a barge in 1960's Ireland. We follow Joe Taylor (Ewan McGregor) as he joins the crew consisting of a husband and wife. He soon has an affair with the wife which causes a rift between the couple. We also learn of his previous girlfriend who accidently died while trying to reconcile with him.Taylor,
Young Adam is quite a quiet film compared to many at the fest. It has a nice pace and shows off some different places in Ireland along the seaways. McGregor is great as the lead and we see how this person thinks and reacts. Tilda Swinson is also great as the wife who owns the barge Taylor works on. The direction is good but a touch plain. The plot starts off pretty bland but as the movie progresses, it picks up.
7/10
IN THE CUT
In The Cut is the latest film from Jane Campion who directed the piano. Frannie Avery (Meg Ryan) is a teacher and writer. When a person is murdered outside her apartment complex, Frannie falls in love the cop who is investigating the murder. As she becomes closer to the detective her step-sister is murdered leaving her with more questions thans answers.
This film is one of the most erotic thrillers of the year. Campion uses a film noir style along with erotic images to bring the viewer into Frannie's world. Ryan shows a new side of herself in this film moving away from the "nice" girl image to place dark and troubled woman. With the supporting cast of Kevin Bacon and Jennifer Jason Lee, this film has quite a strong cast. The writing is a touch on the weak side and twists a bit predictable. It is though worth the time to watch because of the visuals and the change of style for Ryan.
8/10
Shogo
