Falling Down (1993)

Blu-Ray released July 28, 2009

Michael Douglas sits in a traffic jam in the sweltering Los Angeles heat. He is tired and sweaty and everything that confronts him - the flashing lights of the roadworks signs, people speaking loudly in neighbouring cars and a buzzing fly hovering around his neck - only increases his anxiety. Eventually it becomes too much and he snaps, grabbing his briefcase, stepping out of his car and walking away - to where, he is not sure, all he knows is that the situation is unmanageable, and he must flee. It's a brilliant scene, and a cracking opening to a tense and provocative film.

Douglas' character, only known as "D-Fens", also his car numberplate, thus begins his film-long journey across LA venting his frustration on all the injustices he perceives around him. Many of them have to do with his uncertainty about race: he confronts a Korean shop store owner about charging too much for a can of Coke, and is not afraid to stand up for himself when he impinges on gangland territory. As his actions grow more violent, he gains the attention of Detective Martin Prendergast (Robert Duvall), and his attractive partner, Detective Sandra Torres (Rachel Ticotin). In one of its few nods to convention, it's Prendergast's last day before retirement and he must deflect the wishes of his wife to engage in one last assignment.

D-Fens is not easily likable but he nonetheless hypnotises us with his rage stemming from anxieties about capitalism, consumerism, multiculturalism and other "isms" that define our western society. He represents the urge in all of us at one time or another, to break from our shackles and be free of the systems that constrain us. Even though capable of great acts of violence, D-Fens has a great love for his daughter currently in the custody of his ex-wife, a relationship which helps make his character somewhat sympathetic. The best thing about D-Fens and Douglas's performance, however, is that there is no glee or catharsis in his actions; his anger is matched only by his sadness.

Made shortly after the end of the cold war and inspired by the layoff of staff following the downsizing of America's defence system, Falling Down was very timely and thankfully the Joel Schumacher who destroyed the Batman franchise is absent. Equally as interested in ideas as in tension, he is able to maintain the suspense even through the unsurprising but necessary conclusion.

The film is presented on this Blu-Ray in full 1080P and is of superb quality. The audio however is inexplicably and inexcusably only in stereo rather than Dolby 5.1 or DTS. The special features include a ten minute retrospective conversation with Douglas about the film, of which he speaks of highly, and a commentary by many of the cast and crew including Douglas, Schumacher and screenwriter Ebbe Roe Smith. Unfortunately the commentary consists of pre-recorded individual snippets, which are informative but less entertaining than a group commentary.

I was not familiar with this film before obtaining this review copy, and it's always a joy when something comes from nowhere and surprises you. Falling Down is a great, intense thriller with a provocative central character and one of Michael Douglas's best performances. Check it out.

Bedroom Mazurka Uncut (1970)

Max Mikkelsen is a likeable soul, not terribly bright and awkward around women, but harmless enough. He's a teacher at a public school and is in line to become the new headmaster. The only problem is that school tradition dictates the headmaster must have a wife: Max is not only a bachelor, but a virgin and clueless about sex.

This cheesy but amiable Danish sex comedy follows Max's subsequent journey of enlightenment about carnal pleasures. The students of the male-only school see it in their best interest to help Max on his way - Max is much more progressive than his older, more stuffy superiors, and would gladly allow women into the school - and hire a stripper to those ends. When that fails, it's up to the wife and daughter of the outgoing headmaster to teach, the back of the DVD cover states, "their own private lessons in human sexuality".

The surprise about all this is that while it's cheap, poorly acted and is regrettably presented here in a woeful English dub, it is modestly entertaining and decently plotted. That's right, it has a plot. While billed as soft-corn porn, anyone desperately seeking copious sex best look elsewhere, since bar a number of bare-breasted women and a few tame sex scenes, most remained amusingly clothed in late 60s fashions; this is more a Dainish American Pie than Hot Blondes XI.

Only Ole Søltoft as Max gives anything approaching an entertaining performance, the rest range between awful (the wife), eye candy (the daughter) and forgettable (everyone else). Also curious is an unfortunate subplot about rape accusations and the suggestion that deep down it's what all women really desire. It's a strange addition to the story all the more absurd because of the surrounding frivolity.

The picture quality is actually quite decent for a film of this age (and quality) and is presented in anamorphic widescreen, despite the full frame claim on the DVD. Also included is the film trailer and a trailer for Gwendoline (1984) which, with its naked chariot ladies and action-fantasy pretense, looks perfect for an extravagant 80s sex adventure night in, and decidedly more enticing than this passably entertaining slice of 1970s Euro-trash.

How the West Was Won (1962)

DVD Released July 27, 2009

Cinerama was a smash when first unveiled to the public in the early 1950s. Cinemagoers couldn't get enough of the giant curved screen that offered a powerful immersive experience. Shot using a special rig containing three 35mm cameras, the first Cinerama films were a “cinema of attractions” designed to give audiences the rush of a rollercoaster ride or of flying low over snowcapped mountains. It was the IMAX of its day.

Despite its potential, only two narrative films were made using the three strip Cinerama process: The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm and How the West Was Won, both in 1962. Thanks to technological advances, for the first time on this three disc special edition, we are able to watch the film without the strip lines visible, though in certain scenes they have not been completely eliminated. An epic by any definition, How the West Was Won boasts no less than three directors, over a dozen major stars including Jimmy Stewart, Gregory Peck and John Wayne, and some of the most breathtaking scenery of any film.

The film is split into five parts over a fifty year period: “The Rivers”, “The Plains”, “The Civil War”, “The Railroad” and “The Outlaws”, each focusing on members of the Prescott family. The quality of each varies greatly, with those directed by Henry Hathaway (the first two and last) easily the strongest, possibly, as revealed in the extensive documentary about Cinerama on the third disc, because he was most comfortable operating with the cumbersome cameras. George Marshall (“The Railroad), and especially John Ford (“The Civil War”) seem far less at ease and unsure of how to best stage sequences to exploit the technology.

Clearly, a small flat television is not the best way to view this film, but even on a small screen, some of the footage still amazes: a shot inside a wagon as it tumbles down a hill during an Indian attack and a visceral sequence as the camera rises up and over charging horses stand out. Without the opportunity for close-ups, conversation scenes should be awkward, but while choices are more limited, many of the compositions and breadth of visual information are still impressive.


Narratively, if you are willing to ignore the blatant white American flag-waving and the broad strokes of Spencer Tracy's narration, many of the sequences are still engaging. The opening sequence finding one of the Prescott daughters Eve (Carroll Baker) vying for the affections of mountain man Linus Rawlings (the great Jimmy Stewart) is endearing, as is the second, where Cleve Van Halen (Gregory Peck) attempts to woo Lily (Debbie Reynolds, whose singing and dancing pedigree is put to good use) who has just come upon the inheritance of a gold mine. The depth of acting talent is just endless, with other roles filled by Henry Fonda, Karl Malden, Lee J. Cobb and Eli Wallach.

Bar the Blu-ray release, which contains the option to view the film in a special letterbox format that simulates the Cinerama experience, this special edition is the best way to view this minor classic at home. While not a masterpiece, How the West Was Won is historically important and a worthy addition to any film buff’s library

Watch it on the biggest screen you can find.

The Baader-Meinhof Complex (2009)

DVD Released September 9, 2009

The title of this German historical thriller comes from the embryonic name for the RAF - the Red Army Faction, a band of communist "urban-gorillas" retaliating against the West German government in 1960s and 70s. Born out of the student protest movement, the film depicts their ideological rise and mobilization into something more radical and violent.

Though there are a dozen or more central characters from different "generations" of the RAF, the narrative focuses on the group's founders, Andreas Baader (Moritz Bleibtreu) and Ulrike Meinhof (Martina Gedeck). They and their underlings, thoroughly convinced that their ends justify their drastic means, justify murder by claiming that their fascist and imperialist government is responsible. When one of their own is shot and killed after fleeing from police, they cry of corruption and cold-blooding killings, even though this blame, arguably, should be reflected back upon them. Through this dilemma, Baader-Meinhof succeeds brilliantly in simultaneously making you both on the side of the revolutionaries and of the system they so violently despise.

The films rapid-fire pace is less successful; many events which deserve a film in of themselves come and go in instant and character development becomes lost in the shuffle. It's frequently infuriating that screenwriter Bernd Eichinger, who also wrote the tremendous Der Untergang, crams so much into the film's 150 minutes, sometimes you wish he took the time to build the intricate suspense sequences like in Spielberg's Munich, which is otherwise thematically a close cousin.

Despite this, The Baader-Meinhof Complex, presented excellently on this DVD but with no special features, is fascinating and meticulously crafted.

The Taking of Pelham 123 (2009)

Released August 27, 2009

While holding the occupants of an underground train hostage seems to contain inherent logistical impracticalities and does not exactly provide the perpetrators with an easy exit route, my first question when I heard of this subway-train hostage film was: why hadn’t I seen this before? I would have, had I seen the excellent 1974 original starring Walter Matthau and Robert Shaw. This updated Pelham, re-imagined from John Godey’s novel is a slick, contemporary action thriller. It succeeds primarily because of Denzel Washington’s likable performance as Walter Garber, an everyman transit dispatcher and makeshift hostage negotiator.

Director Tony Scott however, almost ruins his film by over direction. Before John Travolta as Ryder, subway hijacker and loudmouth, even takes control of the 1:23 PM afternoon train from Pelham, New York, we’re confronted with flickering jump cuts and look-at-me editing, making it difficult to tell what is happening and negating the dramatic content.

Thankfully, it settles down as Travolta and Washington play off each other in an entertaining game of cat and mouse. He and his minions demand that the city mayor, James Gandolfini, transfer $10 million dollars (the most that can be exchanged in one transaction) within an hour before the passengers become collateral. A slimy John Tuturro arrives as a professional negotiator, but Ryder refuses to speak to him, insisting instead that Garber be his intermediary. This central dynamic is nicely drawn out by screenwriter Brian Helgeland, (Mystic River, L.A. Confidential). It becomes obvious that Garber may not quite the noble everyman he appears, and Washington is reliable as usual in bringing out the conflicted shades of his character. Travolta fares less well – his overblown shtick is entertaining but shallow and one-note.



While conventional in its plot development, some elements are awkwardly introduced and then discarded: a young teenager’s laptop’s live webcam feed into the train, a potential mine of information for the authorities, remains curiously unnoticed. The transit control centre though, is a fantastic set modeled on the real facility under Manhattan, and a wonder of busy design and functionality – the flipside of J.J. Abrams' Apple-Store Enterprise.

Denzel is however the star. But unlike Scott’s best film, Crimson Tide, Pelham 123 suffers from his seeming reluctance to allow his actors centre stage, and his tendency to one-up them with overly snappy editing and superfluous directorial flourishes.

Send a Bullet (Manda Bala, 2007)

DVD Released July 15, 2009

This Brazilian-American coproduction is a cleverly constructed documentary about the proliferation of violence in the Brazilian city of San Paolo. With a population of over 20 million, the gap between the rich and the poor has incited corruption amongst politicians and kidnappings amongst those less fortunate. We follow a number of stories concurrently - a woman who had both hear ears cut off during a kidnapping and the plastic surgeon who restored them, a wealthy businessmen's tireless efforts protect himself from crime, a corrupt politician who continues to maintain his innocence and a kidnapper who moved from the poorer rural areas of Brazil to San Paolo in search of wealth. These threads are bound by the investigation of a frog farm, something pivotal to those in power but of which no one wishes to speak.

Producer and director Jason Kohn cleverly interweaves this material, employing slick graphics and deft editing to strengthen material which was already inherently powerful. There is barely a shot that relies on a typical setup - even though he most of his interviewees sit beside their interpreters, Kohn shoots them in erratically framed close and medium shots to the tune of pulsating Brazilian pop. Despite most speaking Portuguese, much of the film is edited to be in English, clearly a clever ploy to its target audience.

In an effort to be entertaining, however, Send a Bullet ultimately doesn't bring together its disparate strands into a singular thesis. Yes, the give-and-take of crime and violence between the upper and lower classes is prevalent and a serious issue, but what can be done to improve the situation? Kohn, who has previously worked with Errol Morris, is undoubtedly talented, but here he brings little of his perspective beyond a distinctive visual style. Nonetheless, Send a Bullet is an entertaining documentary that sheds light on a problem likely not known to many outside Brazil.

This madman DVD release contains both a Dolby 2.0 and 5.1 audio track, deleted scenes and an audio commentary by Kohn and fellow producer Jared Goldman.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

For years I swore that I would never see this movie. The very idea of it was frightening enough. I didn't like horror movies, I don't like gore, and a just didn't see the point of subjecting myself to 90 minutes of torture for no concievable purpose. But recently I've been mining the horror classics that had previously been off-limits due to self-censorship. Some of them have been enlightening - the original Halloween is a masterpiece - others (Friday the 13th, for instance) have not. With my gin and tonic in one hand and ice cream in the other (now there's a combination) I eagerly awaited what director Tobe Hooper had in store for me.

Thankfully, he did not disappoint: this is the scariest movie I've ever seen. Like most truly scary movies, it scares you by what it implies more than what it shows. Instead of the later, more gore-centric slasher flicks of the 80s or the recent torture porn trend, little is explicitly shown. What is implied, though, is truly frightening.

Five twenty somethings are travelling cross country in a van and pick up a hitchhiker. He turns out to be a psychopath who relishes knifing his own hand and raves about his work at the nearby slaughterhouse. They sensibly loose him quickly, and head towards a house in the countryside owned by the father of one of the characters. Unfortunately, a nearby house is home to a lunatic family including the iconic chainsaw killer of the title, known as Leatherface. Amazingly well-designed, the house lures many of the characters to their deaths, each scene masterful constructions in building terror. Ultimately, the heroine Sally and her wheelchair-bound brother venture in after them. The chase scenes that follow are some of the best of their type, and remarkably avoid most of the stereotypes that would later become cliches.

While the skill with which it's been put together is undeniable, the material is still inherently replusive - especially in the last fifteen minutes where Sally's screams of impending death are so incessant no amount of technical skill (including a cool Repulsion-style montage of her eye) can disguise it. It was at this point I was thinking, enough already, I don't have to watch fifteen continuous minutes of misogynistic violence for no purpose other than itself. And then Hooper pulls out a cracker of an ending and a brilliant, iconic final shot.

The movie succeeds - and is somewhat refreshing - because it doesn't feel like a "horror" movie. Beginning with a voice-over narration fortelling events to come, it feels like a documentary, and is realistic enough to convice us of its authenticity (though, despite the film's claims, there is no "real" Texas Chainsaw Massacre). Some complain that there is no point to a film like this and that characters only exist to create terror and to be terrified. That may be true, but when its constructed with such skill and provokes such a strong response in the viewer, I can't help but be impressed.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is a true classic of the genre.

Appaloosa (2009)

DVD Released July 16, 2009

Like many westerns before it, Ed Harris' second film as director is a study of two men: lawman Virgil Cole (Harris) and his trusted side-man Everett Hitch (Viggo Mortensen). While possessing a close friendship developed over many years, a healthy distance between them is maintained through their differences - Everett is wiser and savvier than his steadfast elder who has knows little of life outside his chosen profession. That is, until Renee Zellweger, as Allie French, arrives.

Virgil finds himself falling for this city girl from the East, dressed in her fancy outfits and able to play smooth tunes on the piano. This is a first for Virgil, it seems, and a distraction from the responsibility of protecting the New Mexico town of Appaloosa from roving criminal Randall Bragg (Jeremy Irons), who is wanted for the murder of the previous town sheriff.

Traditional in structure, and featuring the requisite gunfights, stand-offs and train journeys, the film is refreshing in its lack of urgency, frequently pausing for Virgil and Everett's meditations on life, relationships and gunslinging. Harris is simultaneously imposing and endearing as Virgil, a man who reads Emerson yet stumbles over complicated words. Mortensen, obscured under his wide-brimmed hat, is unflappably cool as always and ready to intervene when Virgil becomes blindly out of his depth.

Adapted from Robert B. Parker's 2005 novel, Appaloosa is neither a well paced thriller like 3:10 to Yuma, nor a revisionist piece like Unforgiven and suffers from being a little too routine. While the narrative wanders in its latter third, it nonetheless impresses through its understated photography and the well realized central relationship.

This superb single-disc DVD contains an excellent array of special features including a commentary track, behind the scenes documentaries and deleted scenes.

Halo 3: ODST Press Junket

Microsoft sure know how to put on a good show, and how to make their guests happy with an overload of good food. On Thursday August 6th, XBox Australia hosted a VIP event on Sydney's Cockatoo Island in preparation for the release of Halo 3: ODST. An expansion which has evolved into stand-alone product, it marks a departure from previous Halo titles by introducing non-linear gameplay and a new less heavily armed playable character - the Orbital Drop Shock Trooper.



After barely making it to the ferry that was to take us to Cockatoo Island in Sydney Harbour, I was greeted by by a boat full of geeks eagerly playing with their iPhones and ignoring the beautiful harbour in front of them. Upon arrival at the dilapidated industrial island that was at various times an imperial prison, industrial school, jail and shipyard, we were led through a 150 m long tunnel in darkness, save for the distant rat-tat-tat of gunfire and Nathan Fillion's (who voices "Buck" in the game) distinctive tones. Eventually we arrived at the presentation site: large flat screens under a green fluorescent glow fronted by the life-size replica of a Warthog built by the WETA Workshop in New Zealand (of Lord of the Rings fame).

WETA general manager Tim Launder was in attendance and gave the first presentation describing the "cool shit" (TM) his company is responsible for. Originally built for the proposed Halo movie to be produced by Peter Jackson, the Warthog is a fully functioning four-wheel-drive multi-terrain vehicle and the star of the live-action Halo short films floating around on the net. A custom WETA design from the Bungie brief, it is fitted with a turbocharger, roll cage and has the ability to withstand a fall of 20 feet. It can switch between two wheel and four wheel drive, and has a special "crab" mode where it is able to drive sideways and diagonally. Reportedly it drives in real life much like it does in the game, which means it's a tricky, slidey little sucker (as anyone who's seen the You Tube video of the low speed crash into the of side of a warehouse would attest). Unfortunately, the event was at night and we were not able to see the machine in action.

After Tim, Bungie's Curtis Creamer took to the stage and made a presentation much the same as the one given at E3, demonstrating the early stages of the game's campaign. Halo 3: ODST finds you as "The Rookie", a UNSC soldier in New Mombasa. Unlike Master Chief, ODSTs more lightly armoured and players hence have to be more cautious about engaging multiple enemies at once - health and shields, for one, do not automatically regenerate though you do posses more advanced navigation systems. Dropped into the city, you become separated from your teammates. As you find evidence of their whereabouts, you control their characters in flashback. This gives the player the power to let the narrative unfold in an order they see fit. This branching structure and the open planned city makes the game much less linear than its forbearers.



Aside from these two elements and the addition of new weapons including a powerful pistol reminiscent of the original, the gameplay remains largely the same as earlier Halos. The AI seemed predictable - sure, they jump away from grenades and take advantage of rudimentary cover (diving behind walls, etc.) - but exhibited little in the way of autonomy. An extensive map system aids players in navigating the open world environment and is especially useful in the cooperative mode to set waypoints for teammates.

Following the brief presentation attendees were allowed to test out this cooperative "firefight" mode. Played with up to 4 teammates through a system link, players face endless ways of random enemies of increasing difficulty. With no defined endpoint, players can continue until they exhaust their allocated number of lives. While most of the attendees seemed impressed, many were more interested in snapping pictures of friends in the Warthog and indulging in the culinary treats on offer. After a mere 45 minutes or so of gameplay, the night had come to an end and we were ushered back towards the ferry.

While the original Halo was undoubtedly a landmark, I confess to never really been much of a fan of the series, and this new incarnation which draws upon the sandbox style of shooter done so well in Farcry 2, does little to change that. Nonetheless, while ODST could hardly be considered innovative it at least appears like a polished product that should offer fans more content than just a mere expansion pack.

Halo 3: ODST will be released on September 22, 2009.

Review: Inglourious Basterds (2009)

Released August 20, 2009

So last Monday (August 3rd) I attended the Gala Premiere (TM) of Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds at the Sydney State Theatre. In attendance was one of his leading ladies, Diane Kruger, who looked pale and rakish in an arresting red dress, and Christoph Waltz, who plays the likable but very evil villain, Col. Hans Landa. The applause for Waltz was the weakest of the three, but I am sure things would have been different if he were introduced after the film; the attention directed towards his insidiously-hilarious performance across four languages is well deserved.

Film aside, what people had really come to see was a glimpse of geek-hero Tarantino himself. David Stratton introduced proceedings with a few anecdotal stories about QT, and is so much of a film nerd even made me feel a bit embarrassed at all the references he was making that 98% of the audience (me included) didn't understand. He then introduced the man himself, to the thunderous applause of the partisan crowd. His usual rambunctious self, Tarantino was regrettably brief as he introduced his actors and the film itself.

What strikes you most about Basterds is it is unmistakably a Tarantino film, a post-modern, anachronistic, violent, talky and beautifully directed revisionist history of World War 2. He makes you giddy at the possibilities of cinema and the great relish he clearly takes with the possibilities of every scene - it's the same feeling I felt while watching Kill Bill Vol 2. Admittedly, this feeling was amplified by sitting in a sympathetic crowd in a "fucking beautiful theatre", as Quentin put it, a crowd with great anticipation for the expected quirks, distinctive characters and amusing dialogue.

Told using his favourite narrative device of "Chapter" cards that come up at regular intervals Basterds tells parallel stories in a mostly linear fashion. The Basterds themselves are a group of Nazi-hating Jews lead by Lt. Aldo Raine (Brad Pitt) and include Til Schweiger as Sgt. Hugo Stiglitz and Eli Roth as Sgt. Donny Donowitz - the infamous "Bear Jew", known throughout the Weremacht for brutally beating soldiers to death with a baseball bat. On a mission to instill fear within the German army by scalping and executing soldiers (all seen in graphic detail), Hitler (Martin Wuttke) is none to pleased with their war of intimidation. Concurrently, we follow the story of Shosanna Dreyfus (the excellent and very pretty Melaine Laurent), who's family was murdered on the orders of the "Jew Hunter" Col. Hans Landa (Christoph Waltz). Attempting to keep a low profile, she now runs a cinema in Paris which has unexpectedly been chosen as the venue for the premiere of propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels' (Sylvester Groth) latest film "Nation's Pride", extolling the exploits of war hero Fredrick Zoeller played by Daniel Bruhl, who is now a celebrity and romantically interested in Shosanna.

If that seems like a lot of characters - and I haven't even mentioned Diana Kruger as actress and double-agent Bridget von Hammersmark or Mike Myers in a hammy cameo as a blimpish English officer- then that's because there is. An ensemble piece, the basterds themselves are merely supporting players. All of the subplots converge in an epic finale at the film premiere where much of the German high command - including Hitler, Goebbels, Goering and Bormann - are in attendance.

As always though with a Tarantino film, the plot is secondary to the dialogue and the characterization, though in Basterds it's almost to its detriment. It lacks the drive of Kill Bill, for instance, whose dialogue scenes were balanced by extended action. The action in Basterds, little though there is for World War 2 film, is sharp, chaotic and over in a moment. In its place are extended dialogue scenes which begin inauspiciously but continue with rising tension. The opening scene on a french farm, where Landa "interrogates" a farmer who may me hiding Jews, and a later scene in a basement bar - which lasts for almost 20 minutes - are genius constructions of dialogue, character and unpredictability.

I haven't even mentioned that more than half of the movie is subtitled - in German, French and even a little Italian, that Ennio Morricone graces much of the soundtrack together with anachronistic flashes of David Bowie (for instance) and that cinematography by Robert Richardson is stunning. The climax is also exhilaratingly excessive and was met with great applause from the audience mid-film.

After the misfire of Death Proof, Inglorious Basterds is a return to form for Tarantino, not as tight as Reservoir Dogs or Pulp Fiction, but with frequent moments of brilliance that allow you to share in his passion for cinema. I may not quite agree with Lt. Raine's assessment in the last line of the film, but it's damn-near close