Nothing Personal

Too detached ...

After finding herself alone and detached from society, an unnamed woman (Lotte Verbeek), backpacks through Ireland seemingly wanting to lead a solitary existence. With no more than the clothes she has on her back and some utensils like a small tent, the woman discovers an isolated house belonging to Martin (Stephen Rea) who also appears to be living his life alone.

Nothing Personal tells an intriguing story of loneliness and this becomes quite apparent due to the less than normal use of dialogue, minimal use of accompanying music, controlled camera shots and the muted colour scheme which fills every scene. All of these traits slowly increase as the film continues, and from a visual and audio manner it is great to see the relationship between the woman and Martin develops. The narrative uses a linear flow but it becomes quite a shame that it is broken into noticeable chapters: each chapter begins with a black screen and a word, such as 'marriage'. Beyond hurting the flow of the film these wordings do not exactly portray the tangible events about to occur, but rather abstractly feel as if the director needed to guide the viewer into a particular point of thought in regards to the events about to take place. This guidance erodes at the loneliness theme of the narrative and inevitably makes it more difficult for the viewer to truly appreciate the resonance of story and the characters. An aspect which could have gotten a little extra information for story purposes is in regards to the history of both main characters. By the conclusion, the plot ultimately retains an element of uncertainty as it is difficult to truly gauge the strength of the conclusion on characters who the audience knows almost nothing about.

While neither Verbeek nor Rea provide strong acting performances both are adequate in depicting the different means by which people approach a feeling of isolation. Rea's character takes a more traditional approach to the experience whereas Verbeek seems somewhat off-the-wall. This is not a bad thing as this helps to differentiate the characters and make them more unique, but some of her actions can seem rather odd in an almost overly poetic manner.

Nothing Personal marks the full-length feature debut for Urszula Antoniak. Her control on scenes really does allow for some lovely landscape imagery, if muted by the colour scheme and harsh weather that surrounds the film, for the viewer to gaze up. It all works in enhancing the reclusiveness of the characters and the visual aids thus synch nicely with the thematic elements being explored. This naturalness is barred by some odd editing problems which occur infrequently.

The film contains no violence while language is strong but used rarely. One scene could constitute as sexual in nature but otherwise there is none to speak of, yet breast nudity does feature in two or three scenes.

There is an emotionally powerful story to be told within Nothing Personal and this is noted by a wonderful use of minimal music and colour variety, however it never really succeeds as expected. The narrative does a decent job on impressing the experience of loneliness onto the viewer but, it is unfortunate that Verbeek and Rea are unable to find the connection between their respective character and the narrative material, and the story can feel thin when the credits roll. Still, Nothing Personal is not a film which should be easily dismissed.

7/10

Screen date: 24 July 2010

Release date: N/A (Durban International Film Festival)

Sherlock Holmes

Fun yet misguided ...

Sherlock Holmes (Robert Downey Jr.) and Dr. Watson (Jude Law) successfully complete another case when they are able to capture Lord Blackwood (Mark Strong) who is responsible for a series of ritualistic killings. Blackwood is sentenced to death and buried but when it is discovered that Backwood has been resurrected from the dead, Holmes and Watson are compelled to reopen the case.

The story contained in Sherlock Holmes is interesting albeit untamed. Plot development occurs at an almost rapid pace thus making the narrative seem more complicated than it perhaps is. It does not help matters that by the end of the film, almost every single scene seems to play some part in Holme's investigation: it feels forced at times and interactions feel scripted rather than natural. And for a film based on a highly intellectual detective, the logic of some scenes walks on thin ice. Nevertheless, Sherlock Holmes does contain some characteristics that were prevalent to the character in the original novels, such as the ability to fight. What is presented is a Sherlock Holmes who is just as capable physically as he is mentally. At first this may appear to overshadow Dr. Watson considerably, but thankfully Watson is shown to be Holme's equal allowing for a fair exchange in solving their case.

One of the interesting dynamics of the narrative comes from a couple of short segments where the audience is introduced, though loosely, to how Holmes contemplates overcoming an obstacle. This comes about a couple of times but only before he proceeds to completely defeat an opponent in hand-to-hand combat. However, this sort of scene never occurs when you would most want it to: when Holmes is using his intellectual prowess to discover clues for his investigation. Instead, Holmes is left keeping his intelligence a secret, which seems rather absurd at times considering how rapidly he is able to deduce information. It only becomes slightly more annoying when it is taken into consideration that there is very little in aid for the audience in terms of trying to piece together the criminals plan. Sherlock Holmes is less a crime mystery and more an action adventure but regardless of one's preference the film is a fun watch for the most part.

Acting is a far steadier factor for the film with Downey and Law putting a lot of energy into their roles. This pays off with both having evident charisma about them and their screen time together is easily among the best in the film. McAdams is not quite as consistent with the rare poorly delivered line yet any fault she may have is never detrimental. Strong provides a formidable villain in theory, but for all his character's intellect he is far too weak a character to ever feel like possibly ousting Holmes. This mainly comes down to a script which does not allow more scope for the character of Lord Blackwood.

19th Century London is portrayed rather extravagantly with some great shots of the architecture and the attached gloomy atmosphere of a society still caught up in the industrial revolution period. Action sequences do not share the same flair and while they are workable they could have been better. Additional, music adds to the Sherlock Holmes experience but it never really enhances it and so feels more of an afterthought in the entire filming process.

The film contains no sex or direct nudity and language is just as mild serving only a couple of profanities. On the other hand, violence does make up a part of the film though it is never gory and hardly bloody as punches are thrown along with gunfire, hangings and explosions.

There is no denying that this new Sherlock Holmes adaptation is all about making the titular character appear more modern and exciting to the audience. The film is enjoyable with solid acting and a commendable story, yet the script has not appeared to have been scrutinized enough with its rapid nature and odd illogical mishap. You'd almost wish that Holme's himself had been asked to look over the script for the one second it would require of him: the film's story would be tighter and better for it.

7/10

Screen date: 26 December 2009
Release date: 1 January 2010

X-Men Origins: Wolverine

A slice of fun, a dice of technicalities ...

Origins: Wolverine gives a glimpse into the history of one the most iconic characters in the comic book industry showing events before the first X-Men film. Brothers James Logan (Hugh Jackman) and Victor Creed (Liev Schreiber) have, with their unique gift to rapidly heal their bodies, served together in countless wars throughout the 20th century until being recruited into a special ops programme by William Stryker (Danny Huston). Logan begins to tire of this group as he opposes the overly violent tendencies of the operations, and eventually he leaves the group. Years later, Logan is approached by Strkyer to help with a task of national security all while Logan's girlfriend Kayla Silverfox (Lynn Collins) is murdered by Victor, which results in Logan seeking revenge.

The origin of Wolverine is a rather intriguing story, especially since Wolverine in modern times suffers from amnesia. Of course the adaptation is not entirely faithful. The introduction begins to quickly settling the arrival of Logan's abilities in a few minutes and then flashing to well conceived opening credits. The story continues this fast pace but once Logan leaves the special ops programme the films pacing begins to slow. This becomes symbolic in the change of lifestyle for Logan but after the first half the film begins to become somewhat fragmented, resulting in a story whereby Logan is forced to fighting another character just to move the story on for a few minutes: the dramatic elements begin to lose their importance as the film develops but thankfully the story's finale synthesizes the action and story in a similar manner to the film's beginning.

Many facets to Wolverines life are kept while others, especially in regards to characters are given certain changes. One such change revolves around Deadpool: it is a change which ardent fans may disapprove of but since this is an adaptation, the film works like a retelling of the overall Marvel universe, a concept synonymous with the comic book industry. In fact, Origins: Wolverine becomes indicative of how adaptations should be perceived as a imagining and not always as a as carbon copy of the original text.

The actors and their respective characters are, for the most part, well received. Jackman continues his excellent form as Wolverine, but is able to portray him as a character filled with an internal struggle to do what is right while having a capacity for evil. Schreiber, Jackman's counterpart, proves a useful adversary and an excellent binary opposite to Jackman; where Logan is conflicted, Creed is bloodthirsty. Huston performs a good job as a subtly menacing and smug official who wishes to wipe out mutants while Collins is delicate, if not underplayed in the film. The remainder of the cast all perform adequately and their respective characters are suitably added to the films plot. However, this does not stop a couple cameos being more fan service then actually being truly relevant to the overall plot.

Another person to be complimented is director Gavin Hood (Rendition) who does a delightful job with his cinematography. Granted, he tends to stay on the conservative side of film making, but this never stops him completing some beautifully shot scenes. Though some of the fight sequences are more muted then they should be and it becomes saddening to think that the film's action, while entertaining, could have been more ferocious. An uncut release could remedy that but hopefully the sequel, if there is one, will allow for the actions scenes to all be equally as enjoyable.

However, if Wolverine is to be faulted in area it would be its mixed bag of special effects and CGI. CGI tends to be worse off with the odd action scene looking either too blurry or unrealistic, and even Wolverine's trademark claws appearing far too cartoon-like. The special effects are not too bad with a characters energy beam being very impressive, but another characters defense mechanism being poorly textured. The end result is a mixed bag, and while none of the problems areas truly distract from the overall experience, it is evident that the film required a longer post-production phase.

There is no sex or nudity, with language at a low. Violence is abundant throughout the film but it is never bloody, even with one character being decapitated, though this is never graphic by any means.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine is a highly pleasurable film: the story is engaging; if lacking in depth; the acting is commendable; the directing is workable and the action scenes are fun to watch. It is a pity that the film is not as violent as it could have been and even more so that the technical aspects, something so well polished in other superhero films, appears incomplete. This plus a few slight niggles to the overall film still allows Wolverine to be among the better half of the superhero genre.

7/10

Screen date: 30 April 2009
Release date: 29 April 2009

Changeling

Interesting, if not a simple, example of a mother's desperation...

In 1928, Christine Collins (Angelina Jolie), a single parent and working class woman in Los Angeles,  leaves her son, Walter (Gattlin Grifith), at home to attend a last-minute work schedule. By the time she returns she discovers that Walter is missing and files a missing child's report. Over the next few months Christine attempts to search for her son by any means possible, yet the LAPD discover a stranded boy who they believe to be Walter. Upon being reunited with her son, Christine's joy turns to dismay as she discovers that the boy is not her son, even though he claims to be.

Based upon true events the film automatically gains a shocking realism in conjunction to it's subject matter, which develops into a frightening case as the film progresses. What starts off as a simple case of a child going missing, turns into a complex matter of police incompetence and the desperate struggle of a mother. But this is not to say that the film flows from point to point without any hitches. While the first three quarters are intriguing to watch, especially with the addition of a hint of horror elements adding spice to the drama, the first half the film's final quarter drags the film to a standstill. The main reason for this is that by the time the last quarter starts, you'll already know how the film is going to end, even if you have no idea about the events on which the film is based. It's predictable what will happen to Walter, what becomes of Christine, and what becomes of the LAPD, but the film attempts to drag its run time by making these issues seem suspenseful. This falls directly within the film's major problem, the lack of ambiguity. From the  very outset we know what Walter looks like ,and the boy claiming to be him later in the story only partially resembles him. Clint Eastwood never allows for the audience to question the integrity of Christine,  such as many people at the time would have most likely done as well. The very chance to make the film more believable is never played upon.

But beyond that there is very little to criticize the film except for the fact that Christine never really places any blame on herself for leaving her child alone in the house at a time when many children were going missing. It's a small thing, and her self-blame could be read into her actions, but it appears that she is too willing to blame outside factors and never really accept that she should have done more then just have the neighbours go over to check on Walter, which itself is never played upon because it is never stated whether the neighbours did or did not.

Nevertheless, the acting which is top notch. Every major character does a great job of showcasing their respective character with realism. Angelina Jolie steals the show: her bodily expressions in conjunction with the pure veracity of her emotions and speech is breathtaking. When she is happy, Jolie has a glow to her; when she is desperate and angered at the loss of her child, Jolie is every inch the mother you would expect her to be. Jeffrey Donovan, as Captain Jones, is smug as he should be and annoyed at the constant plea from Christine. Michale Kelly comes across as interested and sympathetic as his character, Detective Ybarra, should have been when investigating the cases of missing children. If there is a little disappointment it would be John Malcovich as Reverend Briegleb, but not because he underachieves but because there is not enough screen time to allow Malcovich to really play with the role. He comes across as a little stifled, but this doesn't stop some good acting on his part.

There is no sex, nudity and minimum language. Violence is kept for the latter half of the film but is performed in flashbacks, occur very quickly and the victim is off-screen, though that doesn't stop them being quite haunting.

The Changeling is a good film, though not quite one of Eastwood's best. Yes the acting ensemble is really good, especially from Jolie, and there is an interesting plot. However this does not stop the film being predictable and not as suspenseful as it ought to be, and the main case of this is the lack of ambiguity. Everything in the Changeling is far too stated which, for the real life events themselves, was not the case.

7/10

Screen date: 20 February 2009

Release date: 20 February 2009

Ghajini

A faltering tale of revenge...

Sanjay Singhania (Aamir Khan) is a wealthy business man who falls in love with Kalpana (Asin Thottumkal), an up-and-coming model who's popularity is due to her relationship with Sanjay. But during their courtship disaster strikes when Asin is killed and Sanjay is left with serious brain damage which results in him having short term memory loss, and this makes his revenge a difficult task.

Regardless of what Aamir Khan might profess there is no denying that Ghajini is a remake of Memento, though it is more accurately a remake of a Tamil film by the same name which itself is a remake of Christopher Nolan's masterpiece. The similarities are obvious, from the protagonist's condition of short term memory loss, him searching for his lover's killer, the use of photographs and tattoos to help him remember, amongst others. That said it does attempt to tell its story in a different, more logical, way and this works exceptionally well. The film is divided between the modern day and past, both representing the stories of revenge and romance respectively, and for the majority of the film both do work in unison.

The revenge story is presented well enough but is marred in a few ways. Firstly there are elements which are used to deepen the story but are actually unneeded in the greater scheme of things. Then there are the few questionable dialogue choices which come off as out of place. Lastly the film seems to lose track of its own internal logic. In the final arc of the story, Sanjay's short term memory loss, which occurs every fifteen minutes, is thrown out the window for a good period of time until it's needed for a very contrived introduction into the final duel. Sanjay also develops superhuman-like strength out of completely nowhere resulting in him mowing down man after man with no injury becoming him in any form. It's a strange arc indeed for the film, and for a short while catapults the film out of its reality to some fantasy. That said, the love story is truly excellent. It starts off childish and ruins the mature storytelling of the revenge storyline but once in full swing, the romance becomes more interesting and exciting to watch than any other aspect of the film. Thankfully it is the romance section which ends off the film and it is an amazing ending and truly cements the story's example of undying love, and allows the odd lapse of logic which occurs mere minutes before, to appear as a distant memory.

But as a remake it becomes disheartening to see Aamir Khan use his method acting skills because they ultimately develop into nothing out of the ordinary. This is mainly due to the fact that his skills of method acting are not being used to allow himself to become an original character to make the film more poignant, but because he is developing himself into a persona which has been used before. Nonetheless, Aamir is a wonder to watch and he becomes the perfect example as to why the romance story is superior to that of the revenge. When Aamir's character falls in love with Asin's, it is quite evident. The chemistry they share is a highpoint with both complimenting one another. Asin's Bollywood debut is helped by her work in the Tamil movie industry and she is delightful to watch. Her portrayal as the bubbly, happy-go-lucky Kaplana mimics Kajol's Angali in Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham. Though when Khan portrays his present self, he tends to overact and makes his character far more untamed then he ought to be, even making animal growls at one point. Pradeep Rawat continues his experience at playing villains with a character who truly is without a heart. However he does not receive enough screen time and this is partly to do with the portrayal of Jiah Khan's character Sunita. Sunita is a medical student who is interested in Sanjya's condition. However she is completely irrelevant to the main storyline but her character is forced with integral scenes nonetheless, at some points mimicking Kalpana, not in character but in situational context. While this is a good way to create symbolism, Sunita is far too irritating, and distorts what should be a story about fated lovers and a villain. On top of this, Jiah is not a convincing actress and is out of league in a cast of who know what they have to do.

Other disappointing avenues of the film are the musical and action sequences. The music is not exactly the most memorable but does a decent enough job. However there is one too many sequences and they go to flaw the film. In many respects Ghajini should have most likely gone the route of Sarkar Raj and skipped adding music to the production. Yes this might lower the audience intake but would have helped make the film a cohesive package. Action sequences are sadly misfit at times. This is not because they are bad, but because the director, A.R Murugadoss, makes the scenes and the film as a whole, feel far too much like a Tamil film. Tamil films have their own unique feel to them but it is arguable whether this feel is worthwhile. The action sequences in Ghajini are actually very good if it were not for the constant need to slow the fights down by a few frames. This artistic design does not make the fights any better but in fact make them less dynamic, less aggressive, and ultimately less fun to watch.

There is no sex or nudity and language goes by virtually unheard. Violence is not particularly bloody but is quite intense at times.

Ghajini is a film of many things but it fails to reach its potential of being a truly excellent title. The story has some inconsistencies even though it tells an amazing tale of love and revenge. The acting is likewise very good, but some performances damper the whole affair. Sadly the music lets the film down and the questionable action sequences don't help either. Ghajini will not be the best Aamir Khan film you'll ever see and is definitely not the best Bollywood film for the year, but it is a treat to watch, even if only for the romance.

7/10

Screen date: 24 December 2008
Release date: 26 December 2008

Quantum of Solace

A disappointing second leg after an amazing start...

Beginning very soon after the events of Casino Royale, James Bond (Daniel Craig) has kidnapped the notorious Mr. White (Jesper Christensen), only to learn that there is a secret organization which has infiltrated various levels of social order around the world. Seeking revenge for the death of Vesper and more information on this organization, Bond goes on a rampage and discovers an interesting connection to philanthropist Dominic Greene (Mathieu Amalric).

Continuing off the intriguing storyline left from Casino Royale, it was expected that Quantum of Solace would continue to showcase quality story telling. With a run time that is 40 minutes less and with more action sequences, it becomes painfully obvious three quarters through the film, that the scriptwriters had no real intention of telling a cohesive story, and even less desire to create any characterization, the most prominent perhaps coming from Felix Leiter (Jeffrey Wright) but even then its only because we knew so little of him from the previous film. All Quantum of Solace ends up showing is that there is indeed a bigger organization of villains. The events which are undertaken in the story are interesting to a point yet instead serves more as a backstage for the side story of Camille (Olga Kurylenko), which itself is very unimportant to the greater scheme of things, though it's nice to see a Bond woman get a more fleshed out story then in previous incarnations. Even the story arc that relates back to Vesper seems unimportant until the films end: it was a major arc going into the film but is somewhat underplayed. Another slight problem comes from scene advancement being inadequate a times. In one scene Bond will have no access to any money, and in the next he'll be driving a new vehicle with a new suit. While this is not exactly what happens, the description is not far off: there are just too many scenes which don't gel logically. But there are a few noteworthy additions to the story. M and Leiter seem more important to the story this time around, M a little too much perhaps. Leiter's character is more ambiguous this time and has a story arc of his own; in fact it should be said that lesser characters are given some story time but neither of them truly affect the plot much. On another positive note there is more humour in the story this time around, especially involving the expected Bond quip after a dispatch. It is just a pity that the film doesn't use up more time to flesh out the story more. However it is very possible that the film is merely a bridge to the third entry. If this is the case, then Quantum of Solace serves it's purpose as the action story that connects the two more story focused entries. However this will only work if the next film brings back the intrigue of Casino Royale and allows for some character development. 

Thankfully the action sequences are bigger and better then those in Casino Royale. While the chase scene feels awfully ripped from the previous film, there is more variety in what is shown, such as the various vehicle scenes. Though at times the action does seem somewhat muted. It looks good most of the time, but it feels like the director is trying to much to make Bond feel like other modern spy flicks, such as the Bourne trilogy, instead of trying to make Bond feel like Bond. So while the many action sequences are fun to watch, they do not help give the film a distinct feel. There is no major problem to the Bourne-like makeover Bond has gotten, especially for the character at this time in his career, as it allows him to come across as more brutal, but this nonetheless takes away from his charm. Even the recently released Taken with Liam Neeson proves more viable at this type of action then James Bond.

Sadly the staple intro sequence of the film is underwhelming, both with its music and animation, which had far too much of Craig holding a gun, but thankfully had the female silhouettes missing from Casino Royale's intro.

On the acting front, Quantum of Solace is adequate. Dench is once again amazing as M, and Craig portrays his Bond well. But aside from the minimal character development his character has towards the end of the film, it is still debatable whether he could pull off a traditional Bond instead of a normal action hero as he is currently doing: problematic since the currently written Bond feels nothing like James Bond, and hasn't developed from his prior outing. Giannini and Wright are as good as they were before. Kurylenko is an interesting addition and her character, Camille, gets a lot of time to be developed as a feasible character in the Bond universe. Her motivations in the story are somewhat clichéd and forced, and Kurylenko is not the best actress for the role, but she does a decent enough effort to make the character passable. Her most intriguing aspect is her somewhat similar situation to Bond. There is a nice scene shared by the two, mimicking a scene between Bond and Vesper a little too much, but it helps develop Bond as still having some form of humanity. Mathieu Amalric as the villain Dominic Greene, is also another decent affair. He is no where near as villainous as Le Chiffre and as such there's little for Amalric to do with the character except play him out as more of a caricature, and in this sense, he succeeds.

There is some sexual content, along with some language and violence. The latter involving vehicle crashes, gun fire and melee combat, but none of which is overly violent.

Quantum of Solace is a fun film to watch but don't expect to hold the same level for depth as Casino Royale. The film is a disappointment since it had so much to expand upon but ultimately doesn't. The action is great, if unoriginal at times, and the acting is solid. But the film fails in the story and character departments, two elements which made Casino Royale so refreshing, though there are a few facets which make Quantum of Solace a better title such as the added humour and extra action sequences. As a standalone, the film does not quite not work, feeling seemingly out of place, but as a bridging film it does, and hopefully it is. But this will only work if the third film can correct the mistakes in this title, either via technique or narrative, and thus allow a potential trilogy to be solidly sound.

7/10

Screen date: 19 November 2008
Release date: 21 November 2008

Mirrors

A little old school, a little modern, though not entirely complete...

Ben Carson (Keifer Sutherland) is currently undergoing marital problems with his wife, Amy (Paula Patton), who is not showing much interest in his wellbeing. As an attempt to stabilize his life, Ben lands a job as a nighttime security guard for an abandoned, yet important, department store. However Ben comes across some mysterious circumstances when it appears that the mirrors in the building are reflecting an alternative reality to his own.

The story seems like a simple affair at first: man goes around some dark and mysterious place, discovers something he shouldn't, and all hell breaks loose. For the sake of everyone, the film does attempt to be more then that. Director Alexandre Aja does a good job at meshing both the supernatural elements of the mirrors with the reality of Carson's married life. The former is tense with some some great moments marred by some which are clichéd. The overall result is hardly mixed however, and proves to serve horror in a good dose, and as well has a nice hint of Asian horror. Like the horror, the social elements either work or do not. The conflict between both Ben and Amy seems rooted in reality and can be related to. But the film does little in the beginning arc to help attach the viewer to Ben's social life circumstances and so there are a few scenes which don't quite gel well enough to be entirely believable. The overall story moves at a decent enough pace, slowly bringing to light new point for the viewer. But after the two-thirds mark, the story not only picks up speed but content as well to the point where the last third of the film has enough story to be told in the first two-thirds. The problem is that too much happens towards the end that its difficult to justify cohesion in the films plot. It really needed to be a few minutes longer so that some of the plot could get more fleshing out.

But what is presented, Aja does a great job directing. The cinematography is not exceptional by any means, but is still a wonder to watch. The best of the lot easily goes to the death sequences, with the first being an excellent prologue into the story, and another which is truly numbingly evil: you'll want to keep watching due to its uniqueness but at the same time turn your eyes away. Sadly not all scenes are well thought through, mainly due to the story. The ending, for instance, was rather surprising but apt. However there is no underlying logic to link the events to any tangible truth expressed through Aja's direction. And this is easily the films greatest fault: Aja appears to hope the audience will not question how the film progresses. Even the explanation for the mirrors is still left shrouded, and not because its all expected to be a big mystery, but because Aja does little to use his directional cue to help give more explanation when its needed.

Acting is commendable with a few solid performances but none of them are truly able to be anything but good. Sutherland pulls the film along and is fairly believable throughout as a confused security guard going through marital problems, while having to cope with the mystery that surrounds the mirrors. The only downside is that his performance does, at times, bear a slight resemblance to his role in 24. It's nothing major, and will perhaps only be available to ardent fans of the series. Other characters are minor, though Patton does get a nice little chunk and is adequate enough to support Sutherland, but when the script seems to falter with her character, so does Patton. Thankfully her acting is not unbearable.

No sex, and some slight nudity, the film is loaded with scattered with swearing, though not always hard. The violence does get gory with two particular scenes, shown in the red-band trailer, being excessively so. And the camera lingers on the bodily wounds and accompanied blood. Beyond this there is nothing exceedingly graphics about the scenes, with the worst being the images of people on fire but this is achieved with poor CG and so lessens its effect. In fact, fans of Aja's work will possibly be a tad disappointed that the gore level never reaches his previous efforts, notably The Hills Have Eyes, but that doesn't stop it from being powerful images nonetheless.

Mirrors is very much like a mirror in all honesty. There is the real, tangible film, but then also the diluted image which is created from the reflection: as much as the film seems to promote substance, it inadvertently at times does not. The story is interesting, though inconsistent. The acting is good, though not entirely exclusive. The horror has some excellent moments, though there probably is not enough. Regardless, Mirrors is not a poor excuse for a film. On the contrary, its a good attempt and quite enjoyable. If anything, Mirrors proves an excellent introduction for those who have not accustomed themselves, or are not willing to do so, to the excessive gore of modern horror.

7/10

Screen date: 29 August 2008
Release date: 29 August 2008

I Am Legend

Little to remember...

In the year 2006, a miracle breakthrough, the KV virus, is created and toted to be able to cure the likes of cancer. However, in no time whatsoever, this cure mutates into a deadly virus which changes its host into a grotesque creature. Three years after the outbreak, Robert Neville (Will Smith) is the last human left alive due to his immunity to the virus, and he is continuing work on a vaccine to help change those who are no longer human, dark seekers, back to their original selves, while they attempt to hunt him down during the night.

With an interesting post-apocalyptic story, I Am Legend comes as one of many adaptations of it's source material, but is arguably the closest in it's rendition. However this is not to say that it doesn't take any liberties it's in story telling so fans of the novel might be disappointed. Even as a moviegoer, it's difficult to understand why certain elements of the novel were changed. While the novels soul remains in most of the film, such aspects as the locale change, Neville's population group and even the concept of the creatures themselves, are altered. These are minor issues, but more important story elements are changed as well. The worst of these being the difference in time line as it seems strange that Neville attempts to contact other survivors by means of a radio system. The film goes onto a vast array of symbolic themes such as heroism to , and importantly, religion, and these help heighten the story's depth. This is well assisted by few moments of reminiscence on Neville's part, where he accounts the last few moments he had with his deceased family. The story also lacks a firm buildup going from a calmness to franticness in the blink of an eye, bringing up a major problem with the film: length.

Closing in on the two hour mark, the film goes from a slow restrained manner for three-quarters of its length, only to spiral into a uncontrollable mess. This cinematic experience works best with Smith is absorbed in his isolation and more of these scenes would have really helped heighten the emotional impact. As well, not enough time is dedicated to his experiments on finding the cure and worst yet, the director completely disregards this part of the films essence towards the end, which itself is a real letdown. Firstly the ending is sort of Hollywood-like in it's execution and would have worked far better if it were more ambiguous instead of being stated. The other problem comes from the films skewed concept of the theme of being a legend. Instead of using the heavily metaphorical designation from the novel, the cinema version falls into a heap clichés. This could be partly due to the rushed filming of a new ending merely weeks before release, but this should not be an excuse. If anything, it does give an incentive to pick up the DVD release, just to see how the original ending worked with the rest of the film, how it compared to the novel's ending, and how effective it would have been for a movie.

The acting is solely dictated by Will Smith for virtually the entire film, and praise must be given to him for his portrayal of the last remaining human alive. Acting itself is not easy, and it's even harder when you are performing a solo effort. Smith has the ability to shows his character' s aged loneliness with his only companion being his loyal dog, Samantha, and how this affects his everyday ability to function in a society of normality. His performance is also emotional and so when moments of sadness are dripped onto the screen, they are powerful enough for the viewer to care.

An important aspect of the film is it's computer generated images, but these range from excellent to dull. The introductory scenes, and those which follow, of an abandoned New York City, are superb in it's realism. It's a real highpoint in the film and really sets up the atmosphere to follow, but it's a real shame that another important aspect to the film' s CGI, the dark seekers, are painted in a bland and non-realistic manner. From their skin textures to their awkward movements, the dark seekers are noticeably misplaced in a film that does so well to contain it's believability.

A relatively clean film as only violence makes any appearance. It comes in various forms of shooting, explosions and attacks from the human-turned-creatures. All of these scenes are never bloody , yes blood itself is seen staining the floors in a couple of scenes.

I Am Legend has had a strange development period with it's origins back in 1994, and various other attempts to get the film into production.. Thirteen years later and it appears that Warner Brothers has finally got their act together and finished the film albeit its marketing was not exactly up to scratch.. Regardless, I Am Legend is a remarkable title with some classy acting and an intriguing storyline. It's a shame that it has visible shortcomings, such as length and CGI issues, because it is one of those few films that you really want to succeed, to prove that the final product is better then originally believed. Sadly, no matter how you view it, I Am Legend is merely a good film, lacking in reams of potential.

7/10

Screen Date: Wednesday 26th December 2007
Release Date: Friday 28st December 2007