Showing posts with label Woody Harrelson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Woody Harrelson. Show all posts

Saturday, August 10, 2013

Review of the Week: Now You See Me

0 comments Posted by Katina at 8:00 PM


Now You See Me (M)

THE CLOSER you look, the less you see. A concept that plays on the perception we read too much into a situation, overthinking unnecessarily to solve a problem. It’s an interesting analogy applicable to many things in life, and as a running motif in this film from Louis Letterier becomes something of an epiphany.

The mystery of the unknown is something that enraptures humans as we believe there is something greater than our own existence. Much of that curiosity is satisfied in the simplest of ways by people who try to make us believe they can dance on the rope between what is real and fantastical.

We really want to reassure ourselves these people are the real deal. And some do take their act to a heightened level for your amazement. But there are those who exploit people for their own benefit, or perhaps for what they think is the greater good.

Daniel (Jesse Eisenberg), Merritt (Woody Harrelson), Henley (Isla Fisher) and Jack (Dave Franco) don’t know what their greater good is. But from their work as street performers, they know believing is their best chance at success.

A year after they were brought together by an unknown enterprise, their game has reached Las Vegas as quartet The Four Horsemen. In front of a live audience at their first show, they rob the regular local bank of a Parisian tourist.

Photo: thedailycougar.com
Sceptic Thaddeus (Morgan Freeman) is in the crowd, and is called up by the FBI to help agent Dylan Rhodes (Mark Ruffalo). While he refuses to help them, Dylan is assisted by French Interpol agent Alma (Melanie Laurent). They find out along the way the first display was part of a bigger plan.\

The smart script by writers Ed Solomon, Boaz Yakin and Edward Ricourt continually raises doubt about who is trustworthy. Everyone is being played in the game of perfecting the big crime, just as when we watch a trick.

The story moves quickly as the team progress with their plan and the authorities fall behind in their attempts to catch them. It’s no surprise really, when they have, as they say, nothing up their sleeve to battle the likes of these guys.

Why the Four Horsemen do what they do is not explained as the plot thickens, and you can’t help but question whether their leap of faith is out of desperation. There are small instances where their bond from completing the task is evident, but otherwise the team come across as smooth operators.

Eisenberg plays the cunning ringleader with attitude similar to that in his breakthrough role in The Social Network. Harrelson is amusing as a mentalist with a bit of cheek, while Fisher and Franco are somewhat relegated to taking a backseat. Ruffalo has the most to contend with as Dylan faces opposition, uncertainty and unexpected romance.

Letterier presents the story well, handling the twists in the script with deft care. The magic continues to the final act, where all is neatly revealed. Or is it?

Rating: 3.5/5

*Published in the Daily Liberal (Dubbo), Western Advocate (Bathurst), Parkes Champion Post and Midstate Observer (Orange) and Rotten Tomatoes from Saturday 10/8/2013
MISSED LAST WEEK'S REVIEW? See what I thought of The World's End.

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Thursday, March 22, 2012

Review of the Week: The Hunger Games

0 comments Posted by Katina at 10:46 PM

For anyone who noticed I've had a bit of a hiatus, I'm back! A holiday come and gone and now back to reality. You will read a bit about that in due course, but I thought I would give you guys an earlier look at my review of the week. While you normally have to wait until Saturday night, because of the big hype surrounding The Hunger Games I thought I'd be nice.


The Hunger Games (M)

Living in a post-apocalyptic world is something this planet does not know. It’s often portrayed through the likes of novels and films, but never truly understood. So in the year that some believe the world as we know it might end, the idea of post-apocalyptic and unaffected communities essentially living side by side is intriguing in its own right.

It’s not the first time this idea has been presented, nor bringing teens into it as the heroes. But when the kids have to kill each other to survive primarily for viewing pleasure, the idea becomes a little more sickening. And so creates the Hunger Games, played for 74 years by 12 districts that rebelled in war as a reminder that sacrifice is the ultimate reparation.

Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) lives on the outskirts of newly-formed Panem in North America in district 12. She becomes their first volunteer after swapping places with unluckily selected sister Primrose (Willow Shields), and leaves the special Gale (Liam Hemsworth) behind to fight for her life with Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) against 22 others from the 11 districts.

With training and guidance from Haymitch (Woody Harrelson) and Cinna (Lenny Kravitz), Katniss is a strong contender going into the games. But as soon as they’re all on the field everything she thought she knew is sorely tested.

Clearly, no-one is thinking of the children.

Suzanne Collins’ beginning to this trilogy is not for the faint-hearted. The adaptation of her first novel moves quickly once it’s every boy or girl for themselves, but a lot of the potential gore, or horror in general, is left out in focusing on a friendlier rating to catch a younger audience.

Watching Katniss’ strategies is entertaining as Lawrence is extraordinary as she learns to comprehend her thoughts. But as she and Peeta continue to survive they seem to become more obvious; changing circumstances alter her position.

There are great performances from Harrelson, Stanley Tucci as television host Caesar Flickerman and Donald Sutherland as the Capitol’s unlikable president. Third-time director Gary Ross has a lot of big names to handle but still very much brings the focus to the underdogs in their fight for district glory. Oh and life.

Cato (Alexander Ludwig) of district 2 appears menacing at first but isn’t allowed time to develop as any sort of real Hunger Games villain. That title is given to both Snow and show manager Seneca Crane (Wes Bentley, sporting a most devilishly wicked beard). But while they call the shots on the conditions of the game, that also comes across as slightly unsatisfying. That could be because the entire notion of the plot is a bit inhumane.

Immaturity may get the better of some younger viewers, but the film really does its best to include a bit of everything. There are laughs here and there, a scare or two and an opportunity for tears. It’s another instance of whether die-hard fans of the novel trilogy will accept it as faithful, but regardless it’s definitely an entertaining watch that will leave viewers anticipating film number two.

Rating: 3.5

*To be published in the Daily Liberal (Dubbo), Western Advocate (Bathurst), Parkes Champion Post and Midstate Observer (Orange) from Saturday 24/3/2012

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