As I mentioned in last week's post, I went to see Jeremy Saulnier's newest film, Green Room at Cinemapolis. I've been a fan of Saulnier since I saw his previous film Blue Ruin. Blue Ruin was a slow burn revenge flick that was both beautiful and brutal. You can check out the trailer right here.
Based off of Blue Ruin I knew that this film would be intense, but holy shit, was it brutal. The movie follows a punk band called the Ain't Rights who do a gig at a skinhead bar where they witness a horrific act and find themselves trapped in the bar, fighting for their lives. Check out the trailer here.
Never before has a movie both enthralled me and made me very uncomfortable. The film is graphically violent, but the violence isn't your typical over-the-top action movie violence, it's not played for laughs as it might be for a Tarantino film. The violence is brutal and realistic. There is an arm breaking scene early on in the movie that head let out an audible yelp in the theatre. Hands are mangled, throats are slashed, throats are ripped out by dogs, As the film progresses we become more and more uncomfortable with what we're seeing on screen.
Where I give the film so much credit is that it manages to have authentic characters who stand out, something that doesn't tend to happen in films of this sort. Each member of the band has a distinct persona that we see develop through the situation they find themselves trapped in.
Those expecting a non-stop action film may be somewhat disappointed as the film takes its time, slowly building up to the horrific acts that will take place. Even after Green Room explodes into a violent chaotic cacophony, it still crawls along, slowly feeding us the violence, keeping us in a constant state of unease. We are trapped, just like our protagonists.
The film is playing at Cinemapolis and I highly recommend you see this brutal and brilliant film that will stick with you long after you leave the theatre.
If you haven't seen Room, you should stop reading this blog post, turn off your computer, drive down to Cinemapolis, and see Room. Here, I found the showtimes for you. Oh look, it's playing at 9 tonight, why not head down, grab a big bucket of popcorn, and cry your damn eyes out for two hours?
If you've never even heard of Room, here's what you need to know: it's about Ma (Brie Larson) and her five-year old son Jack (Jacob Tremblay), who have been held captive my a man only referred to as "Old Nick" for the past seven years. All that they have, their entire life, is now currently contained in the confines of one single room. A fridge, a stove, a bed, a wardrobe, a TV. The film is nothing to write home about, technically speaking, but it presents a scarily convincing, character driven story that focuses on the relationship between a mother and a son and how your environment can shape your entire world view. Plus the acting is phenomenal.
Let's talk about that acting for a second - specifically, Jacob Tremblay, who was only 8 years old when the movie was filmed and for all intents and purposes deserves to be nominated for best lead actor in every single awards show there is. He was that good. Sometimes, it can be hard for child actors to play a convincing enough version of a normal child, and we tend to let this slide. It almost feels like a given, at least among viewers, that kids can't really act. I've personally run into this problem a few times; the first was when we shot that godawful "Kitchen Council" last year, and again when we needed to bring in not one, but two child actors for "Syndicated." Unless you're really good with kids and know exactly what to tell them to get a point across, they can be a nightmare to work with.
Which is why it's impressive that Tremblay - again, only eight years old - was able to perfectly capture the essence of a kid who's spent his whole life in one single 14''X14'' room. He goes toe to toe with Brie Larson (who, don't even get me started, is phenomenal in everything she does) and steals every single scene that he's in. Which is almost all of them. This nuanced, beautiful performance, all coming from someone whose response to the question "what made it (the wig that Tremblay had to wear for most of the film) so bad?" is "I didn't like it. I looked like a girl."
A good portion of getting great performances from children, however, comes with the directing. There were a few really interesting tidbits that I took away from this interview with Lenny Abrahamson, the director, many of which seem like they could be useful if I ever have to work with kids again. For starters, they didn't introduce Tremblay and Larson until right before the shoot (they casted Tremblay at the last minute, since kids change so rapidly), and even then, they started things naturally: the two would play legos and hang out in the actual Room set for long chunks of time before they would film. It was in large part thanks to this relationship that the two were able to have such great chemistry in the film.
Last fall I ventured to Cinemapolis to see The Skeleton Twins (directed by a film starring former SNL cast members Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader. Before entering the theater, I knew very little about the film except that Kristen and Bill were the two main characters (that was reason enough for me). It was a truly powerful performance; I left the theater in a stunned silence.
The premise of the film is about a set of twins reunited after having near death experiences on the same day. Maggie (Kristen Wiig) and Milo (Bill Hader) were estranged for ten years, but Milo's attempted suicide forced Maggie to take him in. There is a lot of back and forth between them that uncovers some of why they became estranged in the first place. The film ends on a very postive note, but I don't want to spoil the ending!
Skeleton Twins tackles a myriad of social issues that are relevant today, such as homosexuality, cross-dressing, and suicide. At times the darker parts of movie were upsetting but I think they tackled the issues with proper sensitivity.
Everything about this movie was stunning. The acting was superb, which does not surprise me one bit since these two are obviously great.
Everything felt very real, which is the most important thing. It was actually very refreshing to see them in serious roles such as these ones--I'm used to seeing them in ridiculous SNL sketches so it was very cool to see them be so serious.
Overall, it was a truly lovely film and I would highly recommend it to anyone.
This weekend down at Cinemapolis is the release of the highly anticipated film Whiplash. The film starring the upcoming star Miles Teller is about a young drummer who with the help/pressure of his instructor hopes to be a legend. The star of the film crazy enough is only two years younger than the writer/director, Damien Chazelle is only 29 and Whiplash is his first feature length film. A year ago Chazelle created a short under the same name in hopes to pitch the feature length film. Little did he know is that the short would make it into Sundance and the feature adaption would be there a year later.
When creating the film and the characters Chazelle started from what he knew best, his own life and his own experiences. Chazelle grew up playing the drums and over time he found out that he was quite good, he knew he could never make it all the way but he did the next best thing, he wrote about it. In an interview he talks about being stuck on another script and decided to start on something else that would help clear his block. He became so invested that he left the original script behind and started his journey with Whiplash. Chazelle says that the main instructor, played by J.K Simmons was inspired by many different instructors he's had over the years but morphed into one. What I really take from this is that writing from what you know is a great start and will help you tell a story that no one else can.
This can be seen in other films as well. My hero Kevin Smith started by making a film in a convenience store about convenience store clerks in the same convenience store he worked in. Now what I'm saying is to not make a film about your life story cause honestly who can relate to that but to play off of that. Take experiences, feelings and lessons you have learned and mold that into any film, and that film can be about anything! If you look at Smith's last film Tusk, about a man being turned into a walrus but whats under the blubbery flesh of the film is way deeper. The film through the sharp writing is about storytelling and what it means to be a storyteller and if there's really a unique story out there. Or even Christopher Nolan's new film Interstellar is about a family man on a mission to save Earth by exploring other galaxies. But under the spectacular visuals is a film about leaving a legacy behind and how as a parent you can't help but look at the world through the eyes of your children.
No it lies in your heart!
So go out there guys! Write about what you know and love. We all have an interesting story to tell.
Last night I went with my friend to Cinemapolis and saw the documentary '51 Birch Street' by Cornell alum' Doug Block. I thought it was really good and so insightful into what we really know and don't know about our parents. The film opens with the director interviewing his mother and asking her questions about both her marriage and his own upbringing. After she dies, Block discovers her diaries and learns of her discontent within her marriage. Not only does Block gain insight about his parents' marriage but also his own. In addition, he grows closer to his father. It was really cool after the documentary Block was at the screening to answer questions and talk about the process that went into creating his work.
A colleague from the Cinema Department asked me to relay these casting needs in case you know someone who might fit the bill based on casting you have already done:
George (20’s, M): A college student could fill this role. He is an intelligence operative in the company. In his discussion with Veronica, he is trying to deceive her into dropping her pursuit of the truth.
Jensen (20’s, M): I am looking for someone who is built like a track runner for this part. He initially toys with Veronica in the interrogation scene. As soon as a weapon is introduced to the scene, he becomes terrified. It doesn’t take long for Veronica to break him.
Vlad (30’s M): His role in setting the trap is to entice Veronica into falling into the trap. He slyly gives up bits of information until he has her hooked. Once he has Veronica in his bag, he sends Veronica on her way.
If you can help post a comment mentioning for what character you are suggesting someone and I will relay the information to the director.
Although I am a TV-R major and know I want to do TV in the future, I've always loved film...especially the watching movies part. As all film lovers know, award season is upon us and you know what that means? It's cram time! Time to watch all the best picture nominees before the big show, the Academy Awards, on February 27th! Last weekend I went to Cinemapolis and saw 'The Kings Speech.' This is the fourth of the nominated films I have viewed and definitely one of my favorites. The muted lighting of this film greatly enhances the mood that the director, Tom Hooper was trying to convey. During the tense moments when Colin Firth's character is faced with both internal and external conflict, the lighting had a greater contrast between light and dark. Overall the lighting had a great impact on the mood and further the audience's reaction to the story.
