Barcelona, noche de verano

Little to say about this film directly based on the choral story format of Love Actually and other such films.  Set in Barcelona on a summer’s night and featuring tales ranging from shy teenage lovers to two gay footballers in love, to a couple learning they are to have a baby, to cases of missed opportunities, this is a polished film in its photography, well-acted by its large cast, nicely edited and a good start to the career of Dani de la Orden.  Trouble is, is that there is almost nothing new in it – it is predictable and perhaps more tasteful than the British variations. Also clearly designed to showcase the city.  Pleasant enough and that’s about it!

★★+

Woman in Gold

Another of the grand dames of British cinema stars here – Helen Mirren as Maria Altmann, the woman who took the Austrian government to court for the restitution of 5 Gustav Klimt paintings stolen from her family by the Nazis and then conveniently regarded as bequeathed.  Based on a true story this film by Simon Curtis plays out as a fairly standard biopic mixed with a tiny bit of courtroom interaction.  I suppose what works most are the flashbacks to life in Vienna and the emotional baggage that both Maria and her lawyer, a grandson of the composer Schonberg are carrying around with them and how it comes out in the whole process.  Ryan Reynolds is hardly riveting as the lawyer but Daniel Bruhl in Vienna gives a little balance to the usual excellently subtle performance of Mirren.  She has the only smart lines in the film and were it not for her this would be far less of a film.  I guess the other factor of interest is the Austrian reticence to owning up to the past.  A wet afternoon film more than anything else.

★★★

The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

Watchable it is, edifying? Not really.  It tries a little too hard despite the talents of the veterans of the first in this series.  So, I followed it with an almost declining interest.  Maggie Smith and Dev Patel deftly hold the emotional centre of this film and Judi Dench, Bill Nighy and Celia Imrie continue the good work from the first, with Imrie having one of the most interesting stories.  Can’t say that Richard Gere or Tamsin Greig add that much.

John Madden and Ol Parker seem to want to add too many little homilies and stretch the plot to fit it all in, so it comes across closer to Mamma Mia than reality.  By the way, the Indian music and dance is one of the highlights!

★★★

L’Armée du Salut/Salvation Army

One of the saddest movies I have seen in a long time.  Based on the autobiographical novel by Abdellah Taia, it looks at a 15 year-old boy growing up gay in a poor Casablanca family.  Bossed about by his authoritarian mother, teased by his sisters and tolerated by his weak father, he is in love with the only functional male role model in the family – his older brother.  The film captures the repression in the context, not only that of Abdellah but also other members of the family who all have their secrets.  Then there is the dead time, just sitting waiting for a life to pass – so Moroccan.  All that people can do, like older brother Slimane, is to seek refuge in books for the lives not lived.  And apart from the rigid social structures – all sleeping in the same room, there is the role of superstition (in the amulet the mother gives Abdellah to put under his brother’s pillow so he won’t stray and the awkwardness of life when you don’t have experience living it (the brother’s fumbled attempts to chat up a waitress and Abdellah’s experiences in Geneva).

As a film, it is slow moving and probably not to the taste of many and doubtless it could have been done a lot better.  Nevertheless, the merit is in the honesty Taia brings to the story, especially in the last part where it shows how he has hardened his heart to get out of Morocco and seek refuge via a study visa and a lover in Geneva.  Many perhaps cannot understand it but in the last scene we see that Abdellah has not lost his essence.  He has just been through a hell of a life so far and no longer trusts people.  Said Mrini is very good as the boy and the photography of Agnes Godard brings a realism to the whole work.  So, as cinema entertainment it may not be tops but a great work of social conscience.

★★ +

Promised Land

A Gus Van Sant film which has elements of his previous work (a certain dark side) and other less original characteristics.  Set in a poor rural town in Pennsylvania, it features a gas company rep (Matt Damon) who arrives with his sidekick (Frances McDormand) to convince locals to sell up their land for fracking.  He soon finds competition in the form of an environmentalist (John Krasinski) purporting to present the story of someone whose family lost all their farmland due to the pollution that accompanied the fracking.  Somewhat simplistic in its portrayal of the interests involved Van Sant still manages to set the conflict up nicely before it sort of fades out in the last third despite a fairly important plot twist.  A relatively attractive portrayal of small town life and of a crisis of confidence in Damon’s character but not a film that would go down as a memorable classic either.  Always nice to see McDormand in action.

★★★

The Spectacular Now

Unexpectedly effective teen drama about an unlikely relationship between Sutter, a sort of high school party boy and quiet good girl Aimee.  Surprisingly they hit it off when he appears drunk and sleeping on her lawn and a budding relationship emerges.  The trouble is that there are lots of issues under the surface and these start emerging during the film: the departure of Sutter’s father when he was young, his failure at school, the attitudes of their schoolmates and of course, Sutter’s drinking problem that no one is really dealing with.  A bitter sweet movie with considerable talent on show as both Miles Teller and Shailene Woodley bring an honesty and naturalness to their roles.  It’s a slice of life about our teen years, hopes that are already starting to disappear and relationships that last a time until someone moves on.  Good direction from James Ponsoldt

★★★★

Divergent

Starts well and ends rather limply.  Another dystopia flick and first of a series, it reminded me of The Giver but ended up being far more mindless.  The same idea of social selection and factions trying to get the upper hand in the name of “right” runs through the whole two hours.  What does make it bearable is seeing young up and coming Shailene Woodley holding together the movie together with the less compelling but very beautiful actor Theo James.  We also have Ansel Elgort another stalwart of teen flicks and Kate Winslet playing a villain a la Meryl Streep but with less fun.  The thriller aspect of the film, the chases and the tests are quite well done but beyond that it is pretty mindless fare.

★★★

Margin Call

This film passed me by a couple of years back and it is really good.  Perhaps it didn’t have the success it deserved due to the subject matter.  Margin Call is about a firm on Wall Street in 2008 that discovers that it doesn’t have the liquidity to cover its debts so it decides to precipitate the whole crisis by itself and hope to save something in the process.  Lots of people will lose money or jobs but the bosses are determined not to lose.  Based on real events and set in a period of 24 hours, it shows just how ruthless these people can be and just how much they get away with.  The major plus of this movie is the excellent script by J C Chandor.  His direction is perhaps a little less well tuned with one or two slacker moments in the second half but in general he manages to make the situation understandable and tense at the same time.  Most of the characters are not likeable but they are real enough with Kevin Spacey as the tired veteran with a moral code and Jeremy Irons as the cynical boss leading the pack. Simon Baker plays a creepy middle boss, Demi Moore is credible in her role and Stanley Tucci, Paul Bettany and Zachary Quinto all warrant a mention.  A director to watch out for.

★★★★+