Hey, everyone. "Moriarty" here with some Rumblings From The Lab.
Glad to see someone made it over to the AFI Fest. I wanted to at least check out the SPRIGGAN/LAPUTA double feature at the El Capitan today, but alas, it was not to be. X-STATIC checks in here with a couple of reviews for films I'm curious about. Mark Ruffalo chalks up another rave review here. Damn good to see. Couldn't happen to a more deserving guy. Let's see what our new spy has to say...
Hey, everyone, X-Static here with some ecstatic reviews from the AFI film festival that's currently taking place in Los Angeles. The way this works is I only write about films I'm ecstatic about, hence X-Static, and so far I have two films to tell you about, both by new directors. These two films are about as unlike each other as you can get, but both are great. The first is an absolutely fantastic comedy/drama called YOU CAN COUNT ON ME and the second is the british gangster film titled GANGSTER NO. 1. You would have already heard from me about YOU CAN COUNT ON ME, but someone was having email troubles and the beautifully written, detailed review I spent hours writing was lost... so now I'll have to make a long story short.
YOU CAN COUNT ON ME is the directorial debut of Kenneth Lonergan, and it is nothing less than stunning, the best film I have seen this year. Kenneth Lonergan is the writer of ANALYZE THIS and not only is his script for YOU CAN COUNT ON ME extremely funny, but at times it will make you cry, or give you that feeling of despair in the pit of your stomach because you know how real this film is. It is the story of Sammy Prescott (Laura Linney) and her wayward brother Terry (Mark Ruffalo) who comes home for a brief but very emotional stay. Terry and Sammy's son Rudy (Rory Culkin) have a great time together, but there is a huge contrast between the unconditional trust of the eight year old boy and his lost uncle. Meanwhile Sammy is proving to be very unsure of her own identity, finding solace only in having affairs with differnt men, including her boss played by Matthew Broderick. Ultimately Terry exposes Rory to the imperfect and shocking realities of the world and Sammy feels that it's best for Terry to leave.
This simple yet poignant tale is brought to life by excellent performances from all. Lonergan beautifully illustrates the idiosyncrasies of small town life and the quirks that every person has. We learn that Sammy and Terry's parents were the victims of a car crash, but this is understated rather than played out as a huge psychological truama as is often seen. This film well-deserved to be the co-winner of the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance, and the jury prize at the Montreal World Film Festival. There Mark Ruffalo was awarded Best Actor, and I hope he goes on to win an Oscar and the right to a throne or something of the sort. His performance is perfect. I had a ever so brief opportunity to compliment him after the screening, and he was gracious; it perfectly summed up the wonderful experience of this film for me.
The second film, GANGSTER NO. 1, also had one of the lead characters in attendance. Before the movie started, Malcolm McDowell got up and told us a bit about the film's history, how it was adapted from four stage monologues and what not. He also told us how his younger counterpart in the film, played by Paul Bettany, was told to watch McDowell's old movies and be on set during his scenes, in order to mimic his style. As McDowell told us, when his filming was completed, he handed Bettany the script and said, "Don't fuck up." Well, let me tell you, he certainly did not fuck up. Paul Bettany is great, and even outshines McDowell, though it is McDowell's dry voiceover that gives the audience a haunting glimpse into the twisted mind of the young gangster. When Bettany has a close-up and says, "Look at my eyes," he fucking scares you.
GANGSTER NO. 1 is the story of a young gangster who catches a break when he starts working for the top guy in town. The young gangster begins to copy his mentor, Freddie Mays (David Thewlis), to the point of psychosis. When Mays gets out of jail in the late nineties, it proves to be the breaking point of the gangster. First time director Paul McGuigan does an absolutely beautiful job with greater portion of the movie following the young gangster. At times the screen is fragmented into twenty or so frames, and that along with the voiceover pulls the audience into the utter madness of the gangster's urge for power. The modern day part of the film was good but paled in comparison with the 60's portion. Overall though, this film kicks ass.
Depending when this gets posted, those of you in LA can hustle over to the Egyptian to see GANGSTER NO. 1 at 4 pm on Monday.
This concludes our broadcast day.
I promise you more X-Static reviews and news in the near future. Until then...
