…is for The Raid to get its bad ass out and into a theater where I can see it, stat!
Also, how about Nicolas Winding Refn's Drive on DVD/BD for crying out loud? In this day in age, a four month wait for a home video release is like an eternity, especially for a film of this caliber!
Lastly, I would absolutely love it if Garry Marshall stopped making movies.
"We raised the cross, now we bring the sword!"
Often after I watch a film that either interests me or possibly gives me something meaty to chew on in either a positive or negative way, I'll take a peak at what other people across that vast universe known as the internet think. I like to get an idea of what others like or dislike about a film that I myself either like, dislike or am not fully sure about yet. While this is clearly a mistake as IMDB is mostly a cesspool for idiots (only to be outshined by YouTube), I still find myself checking out a few of their user reviews (both positive and negative), which can be a way of getting the average film fan's thoughts, as opposed to the cult/genre geek who may be too well aligned with my wavelength to get a solid differing opinion.
This would happen most recently with Nicolas Winding Refn's Valhalla Rising, a film that, for me, cements Refn as one of the most visually present and thought provokingly interesting filmmakers working today. Soon after I finished the film and processed my thoughts for a few moments, I took to the net, did some research (interviews with Refn, etc.), then read a few quick reviews. One of the recurring negative complaints about Valhalla Rising that stuck out like a sore dick was the proclamation that the film is all style and absolutely no substance.
Now, in my experience with his work (and I have seen most of his films), I find that Refn is a virtual beast when it comes to what he presents on screen. Refn has an ability create astounding visuals; he commands powerful, next level performances from his actors; he captures a Neanderthalian brutality with a ferocity that simply pummels the audience; and most importantly for the sake of this piece, Refn delivers deep subtext in a way that doesn't stick its ass out at the audience.
As for the film's story, Wikipedia describes Valhalla Rising's plot as such: "The film takes place in 1000 AD and follows a Norse warrior named One-Eye and a boy named Are as they travel with a band of Christian Crusaders in pursuit of a Crusade. Instead they find themselves in an unknown and unfamiliar land."
Valhalla Rising is very simplistic as far as the characters' physical journey goes, yet, it is the intricacies of what lie just at the surface that give it incredible depth. You read that description and you know this band of Christian Crusaders are on a Crusade, but it is what they are Crusading for that brings about the film's connotations; the overbearingly high-handed religious connotations that litter the film from front to back. High-handed religious connotations that greatly reflect many of the biggest challenges faced by mankind in the world in which we live today.
Their Crusade is for one thing and one thing only, to go back to Jerusalem and take back their land in the name of God. Their God.
For as long as mankind has dwelled upon this earth, (some) people have, do and will put themselves in positions of power by sending false messages of superiority. They use faith as a way of gaining trust as well as instilling fear in those who are without the ability to think for themselves. Those who are led to believe that if they follow the flock and fight for their God, they will be ensuring themselves a spot in heaven, safe and happy, while all those that dare to follow the wrong beliefs rot in hell. Or worse, a 9-to-5 job without benefits. Yikes.
These Crusaders are only slightly more naïve than many who comb our Earth in present day and every day between now and the time in which Valhalla Rising is set. Their idealistic beliefs cause them to, deep down, fear those who do not share in their faith, and as the wise old Yoda once said, "Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering" In this case, the suffering is meant for those who do not support, who do not follow and who dare to stand opposed to a certain belief.
The symbolism is as simple as the line, "We Raised the cross, now we bring the sword!," when referring to the strange foreign land in which the Crusaders now inhabit and plan to overtake. Filled with unseen, indigenous natives who must be eradicated because they are not them. They are not Christians. They are not Crusaders of God.
And they wipe with leaves. Gross.
The symbolism is as simple as one character holding up two short swords to form the most iconic of Christian symbols: the cross. Using weapons of destruction as a representation of faith; the very same weapons that are also meant to take down those who oppose their ideology. Brandishing these instruments of death in such a way is reflective of the misguidance and lack of understanding that some people have for religion. They also represent the one choice that is given to anyone who comes within their reach. You're either with us, or against us, and if you're against us, well, we brought the sword if that should answer your question.
The vastly more obvious religious undertones come specifically from the character of One-Eye himself (played with a silent brilliance by Mads Mikkelsen of the Pusher films), as he is presented in a Christ-like fashion. However, while his character is used to represent a specific event for a specific religion, he represents sacrifice in a way that is not selfish, a way that is not driven by fear, greed, power, or a specific belief – but driven by faith, period. His sacrifice is propelled by selflessness, which is what many religions can easily preach, yet, it always seems so difficult for people such as the Crusaders to actually live like those who inspired their beliefs. In fact, they do the exact opposite, and I guess that's just human nature for you.
I can see not enjoying Valhalla Rising because it's not what you want from a Viking film, but if it were just what you wanted, it would be no different from what has already been done in other Viking movies. If someone were to say to me they do not enjoy Valhalla Rising because it's too slow (and it is very slowly paced), or that they just aren't into any of this underlying, and possibly pretentious to some, subject matter that I have gone over here, then that's certainly fine by me. To each his own, and that is what subjection is all about. On the other hand, to classify Valhalla Rising as having no substance is completely and totally off the mark, as there is much more substance than one can easily see on the surface, if only they bothered to focus on something other than what is directly in front of them.
Oh snap, it's time for trailers! I know I'm excited, are you excited? No? Ugh, you are so rude, but that's why I love you…it's like a game of cat and mouse trying to win your affection. I was going to post the Paranormal Activity 2 teaser and the Let Me In trailer, both of which are pretty good, especially the PA one, but that shit is all over the net of inter, so I'll stick to the lesser known films. They deserve the love more, and I shall give it to them. Unless you want to talk Scream 4 rumors? That's always interesting.
First up is the full trailer for Bitter Feast, a film that has a celebrity chef kidnap and take revenge on the (blogger!) food critic that deals the final 'bad review' blow to his already waning career. I've been following this one for a while, as the idea behind it is pretty funny, and I can imagine that a chef will be able to deal out some interesting ways to create pain for his victim. Directed by Joe (Di?) Maggio, Bitter Feast is also produced by Larry Fessenden's Glass Eye Pix, which has been a solid independent horror company, putting out quality cinema offerings for some time now, so that certainly bodes well for this film. Check out the trailer, but don't do so on an empty stomach. Unless you're going swimming in the next hour or something, then do watch it with an empty stomach. I don't want you to drown.
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Next trailer up to bat is Eugenio Mira's Agnosia, a Spanish film that focuses on a women who suffers from agnosia, a neurological illness that keeps the brain from correctly processing senses like hearing and sight. After her father passes away, she becomes the victim of some 'less than stellar' folk that would try and use her illness against her, to learn the industrial secret that her father shared with her before his death. This is a film that Todd Brown from over at Twitch has been jizzing about recently, and I certainly trust his opinion. It's an interesting idea, and I am sure the use of sensory confusion will play out in a nice way visually (kinda-sorta like The Cell, maybe? Kinda?). The teaser is brief and doesn't really give off very much, but it does look quite nice.
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Last, but certainly not least, here is the newest trailer for, Nicolas Winding Refn's, Valhalla Rising. Set in 1000 AD, the film follows a one-eyed Norse warrior named One Eye, naturally, and his young companion (not named young companion) as they travel with a group of Vikings who come face to face with a bloody fate as they discover a new land and One Eye discovers himself. It's like a coming of age tale - but with a one-eyed adult that hangs with Vikings and has a knack for jacking dudes up.
This trailer is as manly as it gets, and to top it off, there are a few brief shots of wicked violence, which is more than enough to catch the eye of most genre fans. While some might see his films as somewhat pretentious in their artistic endeavor, Refn is an amazing director, and his films will stick with you well after you see them. Oh, and one of the genre tags for Valhalla Rising is Science Fiction, which really makes things a whole lot more interesting. Grab a stein, a massive turkey leg, kick up your fur skin boots, and check out the trailer for yourself.
Bronson follows the true story of Britain's most dangerous prisoner, Michael Peterson aka Charles Bronson. He was a man who just wanted to become famous, a man who wanted to make a name for himself, but his idea of fame and notoriety was found by being the baddest dude in the cell block. Well, more like the baddest dude in any cell block to be exact and Peterson had no problem achieving that status as he beat the shit out of anyone that he felt like at anytime he felt like. His biggest targets were often police officers and prison guards, but no one was ever really safe from his spontaneous attacks of violence. While doing some street fighting to earn a little cash during a very short-lived stint spent free and outside of prison, Peterson adopted the moniker Charles Bronson as his fighting name. There was very little time spent out of prison for Peterson, as he was in jail for 34 years, 30 of which was spent in solitary confinement. Oh...and he was originally sentenced to only 7 years! So that tells you something about his behavior right there.
Each "set piece" is a balls out, visual tour de force of well-crafted shots. An array of camera movements, angles, and a multitude of colors are used to compliment the mood in each scene. These narrative and style choices are a major departure from Bronson's director, Nicolas Winding Refn's previous work, namely the Pusher trilogy. The Pusher trilogy is more akin to documentary film with an intimate and close up look at Denmark's underground crime world, where you feel like you are right there along with the characters in those movies. Though, as with Bronson, you are pretty much only following one singular character throughout the film...it is one person's story. I love how the fight scenes are handled, and they aren't over the top as they are more realistic in how they are handled in a visual sense, but still very well done. There are a few times where some sass is tossed in to make the fighting scenes stand out over the average movie brawl, like one fight in particular, the hitting sounds are replaced by the sounds of lasers. Punches that sound like lasers must really hurt...
Bronson is a film that rarely comes around - not to say that there aren't plenty of amazing independent or foreign films floating the waters of the cult cinema wasteland, it's just Bronson has a bit more...pizzazz than your average cult film. Maybe the perfect way to describe Bronson would be...art house cult film?! I think so, not sure if that would be the general consciences or not though. There is a film that is magnificent in Bronson, but there is also a part of the film that lay in a vat of off beat confusion and over doneness...too much artistic flair maybe? I have heard the word pretentious used to describe Bronson, and it is to a certain extent, however, the movie would probably not reach the highs it does with out a little bit of pretentiousness.
One thing that makes me think Bronson will be in my long-term movie rotation, is one great scene in particular that for some reason stuck with me. It happens when Peterson/Bronson is trapped in an insane asylum that was meant to keep him from feeding his hunger for prison notoriety through the use of violence. The scene itself is set to the awesome Pet Shop Boys song, It's A Sin (which is the tune found in the trailer) and there is a sort of dance party (like those Freddy ones?!) going on. With all of the mental patients grooving and moving, a drugged up Bronson is trying to figure out a way out of the asylum, but it isn’t gonna happen. I love the way it's shot, and I find it so telling of the character that even while being subdued by medications, he still has the thought in his mind to try get out of the asylum. He stumbles around almost like an infant, trying to get what he wants, and even his reactions to the orderlies are that of an infantile mind. The song itself just adds to what is an oddly haunting and entertaining scene, with some of the best dance moves by mental patients I have ever witnessed.
If one thing about Bronson is true, it's that I was completely captivated and gripped by the character of Michael Peterson/Charlie Bronson, with a performance by Tom Hardy that is simply mesmerizing, and proving the lack of credibility the Academy has. Hardy is perfect as Peterson/Bronson, and that is what makes Bronson fantastic. It's a make or break role and Hardy makes that shit all the way. I am most recently familiar with Hardy as Handsome Bob in the wonderful Guy Ritchie film, RocknRolla. Hardy was pretty good in that film too, but his role in Bronson could not be any more different, and he is almost unrecognizable as the films titular character. One of his more stand out moments is when he reenacts a conversation between himself and a nurse while on stage in front of the before mentioned audience...I won't go into detail, but he is phenomenal in what is a strange, yet interesting way to handle a portion of the film's story.
This character transforms from Peterson to Bronson, where by the end of the film there is almost no sign of the slightly more sensible Peterson left to be seen. This is all pulled off with Hardy's stellar performance, this transformation is also captured in a visual way with an array of stylistic, and artistic choices with the look of the character via things like nudity and paint used to cover his face and body. It really works well at the end of the film, where all of this comes together with the obvious choice Peterson makes in how he shall live the rest of his life...as Michael Peterson, or Charles Bronson.
Of course there have been the comparisons to the Stanley Kubrick masterpiece, A Clockwork Orange, in which Bronson is referred to as that film for the 21st century. I'm sure many would argue that Bronson is nowhere near Kubrick's milestone film, but there are very few films that could be quite as comparable. I have sat with the images and characters of A Clockwork Orange for over 16 years and seen the film at least a couple dozen times, so we'll see where Bronson stands in another 10 or so years, before I can discredit it as not being a masterpiece along the lines of Clockwork. It's just way to soon. As I said, it is comparable in the intense stylistic imagery and the way the story is told right down to the great musical choices that are found throughout Bronson. Personally, I would call it A Clockwork Orange meets Hard Times, which incidentally stared Charles Bronson...the filmmakers of Bronson may use that blurb if necessary!
When watching the film a few days ago, I felt slightly disappointed in it at times, but really only during the second act of the movie where things get a bit confused and feel over thought. However, after having Bronson sit in my cranium for a few days, and even writing about it now, I know this film is more than worthy of multiple looks. There is so much intelligence and talent that is laid out before the viewer, and there will be a lot to appreciate and take out of this film over multiple viewings throughout my movie watching lifetime. In addition, I should add that my "copy" of Bronson kicked the bucket, and much to my anger, I could not watch the last 5 minutes of the film. I get the gist of what was going to happen, and I understand the point of the ending, but it is a finale that I am not happy to have missed as the film and character of Bronson are truly completed by this eruption of an ending. Therefore, I am reviewing this movie incomplete, but it does give me another excuse to watch it again.
