Cape Fear 1991

Other than a guy I met in Manhattan I have never been so intimidated by a man in a sailor hat.

The film is open/close narrated by Juliette Lewis which would suggest that this is her story to tell but let me take the reigns for a moment.

The film tells a great story and a great story needs great actors and for that we get Robert De Niro,  The bedroom scene with Lori is a brutal display of what he is capable of, The tattoos didn't put her off nor did the handcuffs but the furious punches De Niro delivers also biting a chunk out her cheek  (Which De Niro suggested to do after researching sexual attacks) proves to be a truly devastating scene. Another scene that solidifies De Niro as a psychopath is the one with Juliette Lewis in the theatre where it builds and builds to the point where you want to run away and never see his face again, he plays a maniac so convincingly its hard to believe that at the end of the scene he could just turn it off.

The relationship between Jessica Lange and Nick Nolte is unbelievable and strained at moments but with performances from Juliette Lewis and Robert De Niro stealing the show it doesn’t let the film down.

This is the first Martin Scorsese film where he uses optical FX and you can tell with excessive use of solarisation and filters, he turns the sky into what looks like fire during one scene while magnifying the stars in the next.

The cameos from Robert Mitchum and Gregory Peck are nice and ending the film with a visual metaphor Nick Nolte washing the blood off his hands was a good touch.

Thelma and Louise

Have a nice time….do some murder, Head to Mexico…..This plan is foolproof. 

I only watched this film for the first time the other day and I am surprised I missed it for so long.

Ridley Scott known for his epics does not disappoint with this strong character driven story of two women leaving their lives for a weekend to have some fun, Of course something horrible happens that leads them to a justifiable yet illegal act.

   Through out the film we see a power shift between the two women at first we have Thelma a seemingly dumb innocent woman that is married to a pig of a man played beautifully by Christopher McDonald, Considering she was almost raped by the guy that runs the theme park in Beverly Hills cop 3 she was very trusting of Brad Pitts character, she also doesn’t see the similarities with the two new men in her life, both want the same thing from her one was just nicer about the way he got in her pants. Towards the end of the film though she does become the stronger of the two women, the shift is seen when Thelma goes into the store Louise starts to apply her lipstick, a character trait used previously but throws it away in acceptance of the situation while this is happening the dumb innocent wife we once new is transformed into this gun toting store thief after this scene Thelma has control of the situation.

   The juxtaposition of the male and female characters is shown with the women constantly panicked and in fear of being caught and the men rather jokey and calm, for the women its the end of the world for the cops it saturday, The weather plays an interesting role in this film for the women it is predominantly  sunny only one scene has them in the rain, where for the men it starts sunny but rain starts to creep in when the male partners of Thelma and Louise see the gravity of the situation, A storm cloud is seen chasing the two women throughout the film.

   The music used in this film reveals characters true intentions, strengths and weaknesses, with another brilliant score from Hans Zimmer to have the characters reflect to.

   In all an enjoyable film well worth a watch, The moral of the film?……..Be sweet to your wife.  

Sexy Beast

115 fucks and 21 cunts, plus everything else that was cut from Gandhi.

This is a spectacular piece of British cinema only made better by the lack of Hugh Grant and Richard Curtis.

Ben Kingsley portrayal of a nasty bastard is amazing his delivery is to the point and scary, His character has a slight smile and staring eyes that drill into you and talking himself into a frenzy makes him even more horrible to cope with.

What is shown in this film is very quick editing combined with sound continuity so the cuts are invisible and unintrusive, strong use of colour, using a low key to make even the sun of Spain seem dark and a style unseen before, the lack of cliche ridden cockney slang makes this film even more credible.

When the film first starts we get a dream like underwater shot which you are not expecting, a metaphor for 'living the dream' possibly, but throughout  the film the increasing amount of surrealism adds another layer to this almost perfect British gangster film.

Only God Forgives

If only God forgives then Nicolas Winding Refn better pucka up to kiss the cheeks of the lord himself to beg forgiveness for this film.

Thats a bit strong lets start from the beginning,

The film itself is extremely arty and Refn's use of colour to express emotion and passion is spot on.
At no point in this film did I feel I could get some fresh air, even in the scenes outside I still had the feeling of being trapped in a world that is dirty and close. Gosling showing us a weak side in this film, which he pulls off amazingly well. I can't think of a film where the hard bastard is completely useless to the 'baddy' at the end.

Everything about this film looked like a Drive sequel from the music, style and feel but if thats what you were hankering for then tough titty what you get instead is a very stylised modern day western about revenge and death.

I don't know what I think about this film yet, Part of me would love to say it's brilliant I totally get it but that would be lying, So instead I will say this..... It's alright, acting is strong and believable, setting is ominous and scary, music pulls the whole thing together and as a film it has been made extremely well.
The story would make a great 2nd  plot to another flick.