Film Review: BARTON FINK (1991)

Writers/Directors: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
Running time: 116 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 15

Genre: Mystery/Drama/Thriller
UK Release date: 14^th February 1992

Watched on Sky+ Saturday 3^rd March 2012.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

I make no secret of the fact that I’m a bit of a fan of the Coen Brothers’ films. For the most part I find them very enjoyable, really inventive and they make a nice change from the mainstream. This is no exception, I deliberately didn’t go out of my way to find out too much about it before viewing and it paid off. Great characters and a really crazy storyline combine to make for a really enjoyable film that, I’m sure, I’ll be watching again at some point. But I digress, here’s a very brief summary before I give you more of my thoughts.

Barton Fink is a playwright and after a hit on Broadway he is whisked off to Hollywood to write for a studio headed by Jack Lipnick. He is commissioned to write a ‘wrestling picture’, a B-movie, although Lipnick might dispute that label. Putting himself up in a cheap hotel away from the spotlight, Fink discovers he has a bad case of writer’s block. He strikes up a friendship with his neighbour, Charlie Meadows, who claims to be an insurance salesman. Seeking advice on his writing, he also meets once renowned author, W.P. Mayhew and his lover, Audrey Taylor. This couple have problems, not least Mayhew’s drinking, and Fink finds himself drawn to Audrey. As his deadline nears Fink becomes more and more desperate and as he calls on Audrey for help events are about to take a very dramatic turn! I will not say any more or the Spoiler Police (Coen’s Division) will be twisting my words and making this seem much more complicated than it really is.

I love the Coen’s visual style, the film looks great with, in particular, the long shots down the hotel corridor. I also thought the fire effect towards the end was excellent as well. As far as performances go, well nobody put a foot wrong; John Turturro was excellent as Barton Fink, as was John Goodman as Charlie Meadows. Also worthy of note were; Judy Davis as Audrey Taylor, Michael Lerner as Jack Lipnick, John Mahoney as W.P. Mayhew, Tony Shalhoub as Ben Geisler, Jon Polito as Lou Breeze and last but not least, Steve Buscemi as Chet.

Great performances and a great script are the main features of this rather excellent movie. You never quite know just which direction it’s going to go; all the characters appear to be larger than life and without that the film would fall flat on its face. Even the slightly timid and reserved writer, Barton Fink, reveals the passion he has for his work in a conversation he had with his hotel neighbour, Charlie Meadows. All the best lines are reserved for the studio head, Jack Lipnick, they really go to town with him! It does finish a little open-ended, something the Coen’s have been using a lot recently to varying effect (IMO), but in this case it actually works. There are many unanswered questions and, for me, that just adds to the enjoyment. Definitely worth a look and most definitely… Recommended.

My score: 9.2/10.

IMDb Score: 7.8/10 (based on 44,983 votes at the time of going to press).
http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0101410/

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Tomatometer’ Score: 91/100 (based on 53 reviews counted at the time of going to press).

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Audience’ Score: 71/100 (based on 39,630 user ratings counted at the time of going to press).
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/barton_fink/#

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FAVOURITE QUOTES:
Jack Lipnick: We're only interested in one thing, Bart. Can you tell a story? Can you make us laugh? Can you make us cry? Can you make us want to break out in joyous song? Is that more than one thing? Okay!

Geisler: Look, you confused? You need guidance? Talk to another writer.
Barton: Who?
Geisler: Jesus, throw a rock in here, you'll hit one. And do me a favour, Fink: throw it hard.

Charlie: I pulled off early today. Took your advice, went to a doctor about this ear. He says 'You have an ear infection, ten dollars please'. So I says 'I told you I had an ear infection, you give me ten dollars!' Well that started an argument.

W.P. Mayhew: I close my eyes I can almost smell the live oak.
Audrey Taylor: That's chicken fat Bill.
W.P. Mayhew: Well my olfactory's turning womanish on me, lying and deceitful.

LINKS:
(Note: All were working at the time of going to press)
Trailer:

Film Review: RESERVOIR DOGS (1992)

Co-Writer/Director: Quentin Tarantino
Writers: Quentin Tarantino & Roger Avary (Background radio dialogue)
Running time: 99 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 18

Genre: Crime/Thriller/Mystery
UK Release date: 15^th January 1993

Watched on Sky+ Saturday 14^th January 2012.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

Lauded by many, despised by a few, it’s been a long time since I saw ‘Reservoir Dogs’ and I have to come clean… I didn’t really rate it first time around. So I thought it was time I gave it another shot since it aired on TV (again) recently. How did it fair this time around? Well I’ll tell you after this brief summary.

A jewellery heist has gone wrong and the perpetrators make their way back to a pre-arranged rendezvous, a warehouse. The cops knew about the robbery and they have a traitor in their midst. To keep themselves anonymous, Joe, the organiser of the heist had given them all names of colours. Mr Brown and Mr Blue were both killed during the heist and Mr Orange is injured. He and Mr White are the first to arrive, soon followed by Mr Pink. Later Mr Blonde turns up with a surprise in the trunk of his car… a cop. They start beating up on the cop trying to find out if he knows who betrayed them, but he knows nothing. Nice Guy Eddie, Joe’s son, turns up next and tells them to move the cars; leaving the psychotic Mr Blonde with the injured Mr Orange and the cop. At this point I’ll leave it or the Spoiler Police (Tarantino Division) will have me making films with scenes stolen from just about every film I’ve ever seen (again).

I must admit I do like the rough style with which this film is made, there seems to be a lot of ad-libbing from the actors and, for the most part, it works pretty well. There are flashbacks telling us how some of the major players got involved in the job and these (to me) are more interesting than some of the stuff going on in the warehouse. As far as performances go, well Harvey Keitel as Mr. White - Larry Dimmick, Tim Roth as Mr. Orange - Freddy Newandyke, Michael Madsen as Mr. Blonde - Vic Vega and Steve Buscemi as Mr. Pink all did an excellent job. Honourable mentions also go to; Chris Penn as Nice Guy Eddie Cabot and Lawrence Tierney as Joe Cabot.

As with many of Tarantino’s works there is an awful lot of dialogue (just see my ‘Favourite Quotes’ section below for a taster). This, I find can be both confusing and distracting if not properly choreographed with what the audience is watching. Two talking heads in a room can get pretty uninteresting after a while and this is what you get in some scenes. There is no incidental music, the only music we here is from the radio that always plays hits from the ‘70’s. For me second time around?... Well I can see some good things in there, but not enough for me to rave about it. I will deem it ‘Recommended’ but only for these good points (about three quarters of the way through… the back-story of Mr. Orange… definitely NOT the torture scene).

My score: 7.8/10.

IMDb Score: 8.4/10 (based on 277,019 votes at the time of going to press).
http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0105236/

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Tomatometer’ Score: 96/100 (based on 48 reviews counted at the time of going to press).
Rotten Tomatoes ‘Audience’ Score: 93/100 (based on 381,822 user ratings counted at the time of going to press).
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/reservoir_dogs/

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FAVOURITE QUOTES: (WARNING: Strong Language)
Nice Guy Eddie: Did you see that, daddy?
Joe: What?
Nice Guy Eddie: That guy got me on the ground and he tried to fuck me.
Mr. Blonde: You wish.
Nice Guy Eddie: Listen, Vic. Whatever you wanna do in the privacy of your own home, go do it. But don't try to fuck me in my father's office - I don't think of you that way. I like you a lot man, but I don't think of you that way.
Mr. Blonde: Eddie, if I was a butt cowboy, I wouldn't even throw you to the posse.
Nice Guy Eddie: Of course not, you'd keep me for yourself, you sick bastard. Four years of fuckin' punks up the ass you'd appreciate a piece of prime rib when you see one.

Mr. Orange: What happens if the manager won't give you the diamonds?
Mr. White: When you're dealing with a store like this, they're insured up the ass. They're not supposed to give you any resistance whatsoever. If you get a customer, or an employee, who thinks he's Charles Bronson, take the butt of your gun and smash their nose in. Everybody jumps. He falls down screaming, blood squirts out of his nose, nobody says fucking shit after that. You might get some bitch talk shit to you, but give her a look like you're gonna smash her in the face next, watch her shut the fuck up. Now if it's a manager, that's a different story. Managers know better than to fuck around, so if you get one that's giving you static, he probably thinks he's a real cowboy, so you gotta break that son of a bitch in two. If you wanna know something and he won't tell you, cut off one of his fingers. The little one. Then tell him his thumb's next. After that he'll tell you if he wears ladies underwear. I'm hungry. Let's get a taco.

Mr. Pink: Hey, why am I Mr. Pink?
Joe: Because you're a faggot.
Mr. Pink: Why can't we pick our own colors?
Joe: No way, no way. Tried it once, doesn't work. You got four guys all fighting over who's gonna be Mr. Black, but they don't know each other, so nobody wants to back down. No way. I pick. You're Mr. Pink. Be thankful you're not Mr. Yellow.
Mr. Brown: Yeah, but Mr. Brown is a little too close to Mr. Shit.
Mr. Pink: Mr. Pink sounds like Mr. Pussy. How 'bout if I'm Mr. Purple? That sounds good to me. I'll be Mr. Purple.
Joe: You're not Mr. Purple. Some guy on some other job is Mr. Purple. Your Mr. PINK.
Mr. White: Who cares what your name is?
Mr. Pink: Yeah, that's easy for your to say, you're Mr. White. You have a cool-sounding name. Alright look, if it's no big deal to be Mr. Pink, you wanna trade?
Joe: Hey! NOBODY'S trading with ANYBODY. This ain't a goddamn, fucking city council meeting, you know. Now listen up, Mr. Pink. There's two ways you can go on this job: my way or the highway. Now what's it gonna be, Mr. Pink?
Mr. Pink: Jesus Christ, Joe, fucking forget about it. It's beneath me. I'm Mr. Pink. Let's move on.
Joe: I'll move on when I feel like it... All you guys got the goddamn message?... I'm so goddamn mad, hollering at you guys I can hardly talk. Pssh. Let's go to work.

LINKS:
(Note: All were working at the time of going to press)
Trailer:

Film Review: MILLER’S CROSSING (1990)

Writers/Directors: Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
Running time: 110 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 12A

Genre: Crime/Drama/Thriller
UK Release date: 18th January 1991

Watched on Sky+ Tuesday 15th March 2011.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

This DVD was lent to me some time ago and I decided it’s time to get it returned… but I thought I’d better watch it first! I quite like the Coens’ work, but this is one that has escaped me thus far, hence the borrowing of said DVD. It’s very definitely a Coen brothers script with some excellent dialogue and plenty of plot twists. I’ll give you my thoughts later, but here’s a brief summary first (summary haters and those that don’t wish to know anything about the plot please take that guy out into the woods & deal with him while I write the next paragraph).

Tom Reagan is advisor to Leo, the mob boss who runs things around here. Rival boss, Johnny Caspar wants Leo to give him permission to have Bernie Bernbaum killed because he’s making problems for his gambling syndicate. Now Bernie’s sister, Verna is seeing Leo and so Leo is reluctant to upset the apple cart (if you know what I mean). Also, Verna is seeing Tom on the side and if Leo ever found out about that there was gonna be some big trouble for him. Add to this the fact that, Tom is also a bit of a gambler and has run up quite a debt, but insists on paying it off without any help. So, one day Casper makes Tom an offer and, as you can probably guess, this is where all the fun starts… I hope you understand that lot! I’m gonna leave it there so as not to enrage the spoiler police too much.

As I said at the beginning, this film has a truly excellent script with some great dialogue and clever plot twists. It’s a very well made film with a very appropriate soundtrack (you’ll know what I mean if you’ve seen it). All the main cast put in very good performances; Gabriel Byrne as Tom Regan, Marcia Gay Harden as Verna, John Turturro as Bernie Bernbaum, Jon Polito I particularly liked as Johnny Caspar, Albert Finney as Leo and it was nice to see a cameo for Steve Buscemi as Mink.

Although it has a great script, I found it didn’t grab my attention the way other Coen brothers films have. Or maybe films have been made since that do what this does, but better. I don’t quite know what it is, but this one seems to lack the punch that other Coen brothers films have. I felt that, although he is very good, Gabriel Byrne seems very subdued all the way through and this appears out of character for someone in his position. But aside from that, it’s well worth seeing… Recommended (if only for Albert Finney wielding a Thompson Machine Gun to great effect).

My score: 7.5/10

LINKS:
(RT = Rotten Tomatoes)
IMDb Page: http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0100150/
RT Page: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/millers_crossing/
Trailer: http://uk.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi3650486553/

Film Review: YOUTH IN REVOLT (2009)

Director: Miguel Arteta
Running time: 90 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 15

Genre: Comedy/Drama/Romance
UK release date 5th February 2010

Watched on Sky+ Sunday 6th February 2011.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

I was in two minds about watching this one but I had heard a couple of good things about it so I took the plunge. There were some good things about it but there was also a lot that I found very average. More of my thoughts later, here’s a brief summary first (summary haters please invent an alter-ego for yourselves while I write the next paragraph).

Nick Twisp lives with his mother, Estelle, and her current boyfriend, Jerry. For reasons I won’t go into now, they find themselves having to go and stay in a trailer park for a few weeks. Nick is into things like Sinatra LP’s and Fellini films, you know, he’s not your mainstream kind of guy. Of course this makes it very hard for him to meet girls, and being a teenager; of course he likes girls… a lot! Anyway, whilst there he meets Sheeni Saunders who has a lot of the same interests as he does. They begin to get to know each other but eventually Nick has to leave. Determined to see her again, he invents an alter-ego for himself, a suave sophisticated character called Francois Dillinger. He can say and do all the things that Nick can’t and this allows him to, not only, get his father, George, to move nearer to Sheeni, but also get his mother, and new boyfriend Lance Wescott, to send him to live with his father. This is only the start of the trouble for Nick, you see, he had to commit a crime in order to live with his father and now the cops are after him! From here on it gets a little complicated, so I won’t say any more.

First of all, what I liked; I liked the use of slow motion at the beginning of the film and the little animated segments. These were good. Also good were the scenes that included the ‘Francois Dillinger’ character, that was also good… And that about wraps up the good parts. Unfortunately Michael Cera can only play Michael Cera so many times before you ask yourself, is there anything else he can do? Well, he can play Francois Dillinger who I found much more interesting than Michael Cera, sorry, Nick Twisp. I guess I should give honourable mentions to other members of the cast… It’s not all about Cera after all… So, honourable mentions go to; Portia Doubleday as Sheeni Saunders, Jean Smart as Estelle Twisp, Zach Galifianakis (I still don’t think he’s funny) as Jerry, Adhir Kalyan as Vijay Joshi, Steve Buscemi as George Twisp, Fred Willard as Mr. Ferguson and Ray Liotta as Lance Wescott.

So, I’ve mentioned the good things and I’ve talked about Michael Cera playing Michael Cera one time too many for me. I guess the rest of it I found a little predictable and, for a comedy, not very funny. There was only one ‘laugh out loud’ moment for me in the entire film. So, over all, no great comedy, but bearable enough with the scenes featuring ‘Francois Dillinger’ being a highlight. Worth seeing for that alone, but don’t put too a high priority on it.

My score: 6.4/10

LINKS:
(RT = Rotten Tomatoes)
IMDb Page: http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0403702/
RT Page: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/youth_in_revolt/
Official Site: http://youthinrevolt-themovie.com/
Trailer: http://uk.imdb.com/rg/VIDEO_PLAY/LINK/video/imdb/vi3181839385/

Film Review: THE BIG LEBOWSKI (1998)

Writer/Directors: Joel Coen & Ethan Coen (uncredited as director)
Running time: 117 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 18

UK release date: 1st May 1998

Watched on DVD Sunday 29th August 2010.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

I’ll admit I am a big fan of this film; I’ve loved it since I first saw it on a grainy rental video back in 2000. To me the Coen brothers have made two outstanding films, this one and Fargo (1996), and yes, I know there will be some disagreement out there about that, but it’s only my opinion. Now, before I tell you why I think this is such a great film, here’s a little bit about the plot.

Jeffrey Lebowski (a.k.a. The Dude), is disturbed one evening when two heavies break into his house and demand money that his wife owes their boss. One of them urinates on his rug before they realise they have the wrong Lebowski… This one isn’t even married. The next day The Dude complains about this to his bowling buddies, Walter Sobchak and Donny Kerabatsos. They figure out it’s a case of mistaken identity and The Dude goes to see the man they really wanted, another Jeffrey Lebowski - The Big Lebowski, who happens to be a millionaire. Leaving with a replacement rug, The Dude meets the young trophy wife, Bunny Lebowski. A few days later he is contacted by Mr Lebowski’s assistant, Brandt, because Bunny has been kidnapped and they want The Dude to act as the bag man. I won’t say any more, but that’s basically the set-up. Throw in The Big Lebowski’s artist daughter Maude (from a previous marriage) and some crazy German nihilists and you can see there’s plenty to keep the audience amused and entertained.

This is an exceptionally well made film with a great cast, a great score and some really different and enthralling dream sequences thrown in. To me it’s almost the perfect movie, I say almost, because I like to leave a little margin for improvement. Great performances all round from; Jeff Bridges as Jeffrey Lebowski - The Dude, John Goodman as Walter Sobchak, Julianne Moore as Maude Lebowski, Steve Buscemi as Donny Kerabatsos, David Huddleston as Jeffrey Lebowski - The Big Lebowski, Philip Seymour Hoffman as Brandt and Tara Reid as Bunny Lebowski. Oh, and I almost forgot a stellar performance by John Turturro as Jesus Quintana.

As I’ve already said, this is, to me, almost the perfect movie. I say that because I can only find one scene that doesn’t add anything substantial to the story. It’s the one where The Dude confronts the guy in the VW Beetle (for those that have seen it). Apart from that, an almost perfect movie. Very highly recommended.

My score: 9.3/10

LINKS:
IMDb Site: http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0118715/
Trailer: http://uk.imdb.com/rg/VIDEO_PLAY/LINK/video/screenplay/vi4018733337/

Film Review: G-FORCE (2009)

Director: Hoyt Yeatman
Running time: 85 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): PG

UK release date: 31st July 2009

Watched on Sky+ Monday 2nd August 2010.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

Maybe it’s because I’m male and still connected with the child inside, I don’t know, but I just like movies made for children. There’s something about a simple plot, uncomplicated characters and a happy ending that just appeals to me for some reason. But I digress; we’re here to talk about a bunch of CGI rodents.

A crack team of specially trained guinea pigs, Darwin, Juarez and Blaster, along with their tech guy, a mole called Speckles are on a mission. They have to infiltrate the home of electronics magnate Leonard Saber and steal secret files from his computer. The files reveal that there is a real threat to national security and the clock is ticking. When they go to show the information to the FBI, things go wrong and it all culminates in the withdrawal of funding for the program. This leaves the head of the program, Ben, a human, trying to persuade the FBI about the treat as the animals escape. They make it to a pet shop where they meet another guinea pig called Hurley and a hamster with an attitude called Bucky. Can the animals escape capture and make it back to Ben in time to save the day? Well, you guessed it; I’m not going to tell you right now.

Quite a well made film with some nice CGI creatures. I find that giving human attributes to animals never really works, but it’s something Disney has been persisting with for many years. Honourable mentions to the voice talents of Sam Rockwell as Darwin, Jon Favreau as Hurley, Nicolas Cage as Speckles, Penélope Cruz as Juarez, Steve Buscemi as Bucky and Tracy Morgan as Blaster. And the humans, Bill Nighy as Leonard Slater, Will Arnett as Kip Killian, Zach Galifianakis as Ben and Kelli Garner as Marcie.

There were one or two good jokes, but not a great deal to make the adult audience laugh. I thought the best scenes were in the pet shop. It’s one of those kind of OK films that you could quite happily have on in the background to keep the kids entertained, but not one I’d go out of my way to see again. Over all, not really recommended, but maybe a bargain bin DVD purchase to entertain the youngsters.

My score: 5.3/10

LINKS:
IMDb Site: http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0436339/
Official Site: http://disneydvd.disney.go.com/g-force.html
Trailer: http://uk.imdb.com/rg/VIDEO_PLAY/LINK/video/imdb/vi3233022489/

Film Review: IGOR (2008)

Director: Anthony Leondis
Running time: 85 mins (approx)
Certificate (UK): PG

Watched on Sky+ Monday 17th August 2009.

PLEASE NOTE: POSSIBLE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

I like animated films that are witty and clever and this one hit both criteria pretty much bang in the centre. Everything from the story line to the cast was spot-on. I can’t really understand why it didn’t do so well at the box-office, but I guess I’m partly to blame as I’m one of those who didn’t go and see it at the cinema. Anyhow, let’s have a bit about the plot.

Igor lives in the land of Malaria, a dark place where the ever-present clouds bring a gloom to the people. Because he has a hunch on his back, it’s Igor lot to be an Igor, an assistant to an evil scientist, Dr. Glickenstein. Igor dreams of being an evil scientist, but is stuck in a bit of a rut. He has created two creatures, Scamper, a rabbit that can’t die and Brain, basically a rather dumb brain in a jar. An accident kills Dr. Glickenstein and Igor takes the opportunity to complete his ultimate evil plan, to create life! The team work together and create Eva, who turns out to be not quite as evil as anticipated. Meanwhile, Dr. Schadenfreude, another evil scientist has plans to take Eva and claim her as his own invention at the Evil Scientists Fair. Also, King Malbert is suspicious because he hasn’t seen Dr. Glickenstein in a while. Can Igor keep Eva safe from Dr. Schadenfreude while keeping the secret that Dr. Glickenstein is actually dead from King Malbert?

I really enjoyed this film, great animation and great performances from the voice talents of John Cusack as Igor, John Cleese as Dr. Glickenstein, Steve Buscemi as Scamper, Sean Hayes as Brain, Eddie Izzard as Dr. Schadenfreude, Jay Leno as King Malbert and Molly Shannon as Eva. Over all, a great one for the youngsters with plenty of jokes for the adults, a really likeable evil genius of a movie!

My score: 7/10

LINKS:
IMDb Site: http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0465502/
Official Site (UK): http://www.igormovie.co.uk/
Official Site (USA): http://igor-movie.com/