Out to own today:
Blade of the Immortal
 | “Spoken like a true villain,” Manji (Takuya Kimura) There is no need for BLADE OF THE IMMORTAL to last two hours twenty minutes. The normal rule is the more, the better, but Takeshi Miike's 100th movie is an endurance test. Give me a four hour movie like HEAVEN'S GATE or 1900. These are epics earning the too-oft used epithet. Brimming with fascinating characters, political observations and sophisticated storyteller, more is more. No such elements fill Miike's fantasy samurai pic. Do we get insight into human nature? What about a mirror held up to society? [To read more, click here.] |
The Dinner
 | “It is more selfish to have kids, than not,” Paul Lohman (Steve Coogan) THE DINNER skewers multiple targets, while also being a gripping character study. It may be a four-hander, but this is Steve Coogan’s movie. He effuses first world bitterness and undigested resentment. From a distance the audience can almost admires the monumental chip on his shoulder. From a distance. One would not want to be sucked into Paul’s centre of gravity. That is a world of pain and frustration. His voice is a running disdainful commentary on everything he feels inferior and superior to. Until I got used to Coogan’s American accent, it felt substandard, but actually made the character grate more. Even with heavy hitters like Richard Gere and Laura Linney, character-wise the film is really about him. Theme-wise, so much more. [To read more, click here.] |
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