Screenhead

With the summer usually filled with entertaining blockbusters that focus more on fun than anything deeper, it comes as a surprise to see this month see the release of Public Enemies, the story of infamous gangster John Dillinger. But is the film a real insight into a criminal whose reputation lasted far beyond America’s 1930’s, or just another forgettable gangster flick?

The film sees two of Hollywood’s biggest names face off against each other. Johnny Depp plays Dillinger, as we follow him for a year or so of his violent life. He is being pursued by Agent Melvin Purvis (played by Chrsitian Bale), recently assigned head of the FBI, under pressure to catch the criminal due to the FBI’s need to prove itself to gain further funding. Dillinger hooks up with moll Billi Frechette (Marion Coutillard) but finds himself in a changing world, in which his speciality of bank robberies is no longer the priority of the gangster underworld, while the Feds close in.

Directed by Michael Mann, the film feels like either an overlong and restrained action film, or a dramatic thriller that lacks depth. As the former, the film only succeeds in part. Mann has a habit of obsessing over the minutiae of shoot outs while avoiding huge explosions or slow-motion (see Heat). One scene in particular works, in which Dillinger and his cohorts try to flee from the Feds through a forest at night. But most of the time they drag on, the clacking of tommy-guns soon wearing our patience thin. And as a drama the film completely fails, for it is unable to provide any sense of life beneath any of its characters. Read the rest of this entry »

No one really sees a movie like Terminator: Salvation coming.

I know, that’s a baffler—who didn’t see this one coming? Hollywood’s frantic and desperate for cash in the worst economy since the seventies, quite possibly since the Great Depression itself. Of COURSE they’re going to exploit every single property they have in their arsenal in the insane search for More Money.

But where the unexpected part is when one of these insane cash grabs actually turns out to be good. That’s just unaccountable. Downright unfathomable, even.

In this installment, we’ve gone ahead to the not-too-distant future (nine years away, folks!) of 2018. A military installation called Skynet, an artificial intelligence designed to run the military has become self-aware and decided that humanity may be the greatest threat to its existence. So, with its control of the vast American nuclear arsenal, Skynet took care of the problem the only way it knew how—it enacted the Bush Doctrine and freed the hell out of us.

Now, a ragtag human resistance wages a continuous war against the machines, Skynet’s android soldiers, each a part of Skynet’s vast network. A series of time travel efforts and such have put us to the ultimate position where Skynet’s out to kill a thirteen year old boy before he can be sent back in time to have sex with a waitress in the 1980s so that she can give birth to the greatest military figure the world has ever known. Yeah, I know—it’s a bit confusing, but factor out the time travel and things work out a LOT better, trust me. To that end, Skynet’s out to kill both John Connor, the greatest military figure guy, and Kyle Reese, the thirteen year old time traveler and Connor’s daddy by using an android so sophisticated that it seems to leapfrog all of Skynet’s current advances (the prototype is the superior model? Huh?) that it manages to even keep its android nature a secret from itself.

I’m personally glad to see a Terminator that’s actually set in the future. Usually all we get to see of the future war is brief, and dark (like at night dark) before they jump back to present-day Los Angeles. Though looking at the movie leaves me with a whole lot of questions—why the massive technological disparity between Skynet’s forces and human forces, for one? Humans are basically using twentieth century tech whilst Skynet’s running around with superhuman vertol aircraft with hover capabilities, giant robotic soldiers easily four times the height of a Seven-Eleven, and plasma cannons. Meanwhile, humans have…um…machine guns? Unusually small grenade launchers? Nothing that wouldn’t have already been found in the Gulf War?

Wow…we SUCK. Seriously, didn’t anyone even think to grab one of those Terminators they shut down and try and at least figure out how they’re so clearly bulletproof?

And don’t even get me started on how Marcus Wright is the first significant Terminator infiltrator, but he’s clearly superior to even Skynet’s latest version despite the fact he was made BEFORE SKYNET ITSELF.

But when I ignore the massive array of downright impossibilities that this movie represents, and all the weird plot holes, what I get is a fun little action movie / popcorn romp that’s fairly watchable when taken by itself. This is downright tailor-made for summer movie season, and even though it represents a canon-wrecker on par with anything we’ve ever seen, it does at least prove entertaining.

I remember back in high-school, when my friends and I “discovered” cinema after watching Pulp Fiction and Reservoir Dogs. We were so besotted by Tarantino’s pop-culture sensibilities that we grasped onto his world by attempting to write sequels to Reservoir Dogs. Surprisingly, none were optioned by Hollywood studios. And since the internet reigned supreme since then, the concept of fanfiction has found and a home and even some acceptance. Every major film and book has spurred writing from people who want to keep that world alive, but of course generate status-quo-maintaining slop. Yet you can’t criticise it for its lack of innovation, as it doesn’t aspire to be anything beyond someone’s fantasy. You can however, criticise it when it’s given 150 million dollars and continues one of cinema’s most potent franchises, which is exactly what Terminator Salvation is.

The most defining aspect of fan-fiction is that it usually tries to generate new stories but without having to alter the characters or environment so much as to disrupt the feel of the source material. And this is done by having a new scenario but recreating the defining moments of the original. So on to McG’s vision of Terminator Salvation, the first Terminator film to be set in the future, during the war between men and machines. The film attempts to scare with a batch of new and unseen machines, from the skeletal robots we all know, to giant harvester robots and tiny water-based snake-like bots, and even motorbike robots (more on that later). But what strikes you about the film is how deeply unambitious it is, especially the third act. As our hero John Connor finds himself deep in Skynet territory, escaping a terminator factory, he finds himself being chased around. The scene almost completely recreates the climax of The Terminator, with Kyle Reese being chased around a robotics factory. The metal foot ascending the grated steps, the metal bar as a weapon, it all feels like we’ve seen it before. And there’s also a molten lava scene as well, just like in T2’s climax. There’s even a few references to Aliens in the set design and characters (spot the new Newt). Read the rest of this entry »

Michael Man is one lucky filmmaker to have Johnny Depp and Christian Bale in the same movie.  With Bale coming off the success of  Terminator Salvation gives Public Enemies even more exposure to the Bale’s fans. I am curious if Mann will sensationalize Dillinger or portray as an evil menace.

Number 4 Trailer for Terminator Salvationlooks awesome.  Who is Blair Williams kissing? Sam Worthington or Christian Bale.  I am guessing Worthington, who is a robot?!.  Anyway, this movie going to combust the movie theaters.  Summer movies are here!

Christian Bale stars as John Connor, the man predestined to lead the human resistance against Skynet and its army of Terminators. The future Connor was raised to believe by his mother is altered by the appearance of Marcus Wright (Sam Worthington), a stranger whose last memory is of being on death row. Connor must decide whether Marcus has been sent from the future, or rescued from the past. As Skynet prepares its final onslaught, Connor and Marcus both embark on a journey that takes them into the heart of Skynet’s operations, where they uncover the horrific secret behind the possible total destruction of mankind.

The greats just keep dropping these days. After the saddening news of playwright behemoth Harold Pinter, fans of the written word will be saddened by the news that this week saw the demise of author JG Ballard. He died at the age of 78 of prostate cancer.

Ballard’s career as a writer started in the 60’s, where coming from an avante-gard mentality, began writing sci-fi books, such as The Drowned World (envisaging the melting of the ice caps, a concern still felt today by the likes of Al Gore). Ballard quickly became associated with rather educated depictions of dystopian futures. Ballard went on to delve into the pshychological and physiological effects that our increasing reliance on tehcnology had, especially in the powerfully written Atrocity Exhibition. His controversial novel Crash, was adapted into a film by David Cronenberg, an adaptation that sadly took a distanced approach to the subject material and left a bad taste in the mouth of the viewers.

Ballard’s big break was his fictionalised account of his early youth, in which he attempted to escape the Japanese assaults on Shanghai and China. Its power and heart was enough to prompt Steven Spielberg to adapt Empire of the Sun, which started the career of Christian Bale.

Ballard continued writing novels about the present and future into his later years, mostly to critical acclaim. He left behind him a style of of storytelling and subject matter that would inspire everything from Blade Runner to the Matrix to Minority Report. Indeed, I’ve always been surprised that more of his novels weren’t adapted into films, something which Hollywood should rectify if they’re searching for intelligent, engaging science fiction stories. One of his novels, High Rise, is currently in pre-production.

Mark Wahlberg has continued to train for the movie The Fighter, and he is in fighting shape to be joined by Christian Bale and director David O. Russell.  Production plans to start in July. 

Variety reports that the story is based on Boston fighter “Irish” Mickey Ward and how he was helped to the world lightweight championship by half-brother Dicky Eklund. Eklund once decked Sugar Ray Leonard and went the distance against the boxing legend before forfeiting his career to drugs and crime. He redeemed himself by training Ward through his Rocky-like run to the title.

Wahlberg is set to play Ward, a fighter who was losing bouts and was ready to hang up the gloves when his brother came back into his life. Bale is set to play Eklund, whose drugs and robbery spree drew him a 10- to 15-year sentence in state prison. There, he kicked drugs, became a model prisoner and emerged as a changed man who helped his brother reach the glory that eluded him.

Other actors have considered playing roles in this movie, but it looks like Wahlberg and Bale have nailed it.

I read at First Showing that Christian Bale is set to star with Mark Wahlberg in Prisoners. Now the Hollywood Reporter is saying the same thing, but more of a speculation, with the fact that Bryan Singer is interested in directing the film, though, it’s not official yet.

A Bale and Wahlberg movie would drive the financing and fast track production easily; especially if Singer comes aboard, too.  

The script is pretty awesome as well.  Small-town carpenter’s 6-year-old daughter and her friend are kidnapped; he comes head-to-head with a young, arrogant detective in charge of the investigation.  The father is a Bible-reading, deer-hunting survivalist. The cop drive, basically, is to get to the city. Feeling failed by the law, the father captures the man he believes responsible and begins to torture him in a desperate attempt to find out what he did with the girls, whom he’s convinced are still alive.

The story, casting and direction speculation means a great opportunity for all three to have sure fire hit.