Saint Maud

 

Written and directed by Rose Glass, Saint Maud is the story of a nurse who has become religious following a traumatic incident as she hopes to save the soul of a patient she is caring for. The film is an exploration of a woman seeking redemption by becoming Catholic as she deals with a troubled patient whom she believes has been corrupted by Satan. Starring Morfydd Clark, Lily Frazer, Lily Knight, Marcus Hutton, Turlough Convery, Rosie Sansom, and Jennifer Ehle. Saint Maud is a chilling yet evocative film from Rose Glass.

The film revolves around a young nurse who becomes a private carer for a revered yet hedonistic dance choreographer who is dying of cancer as she would care for her only to get more than she bargained for as she seeks the help of God to save this woman. It is a film that explores a young woman who had recently converted to Roman Catholicism following an incident that left a patient dead though many feel that she isn’t at fault over what happened. Rose Glass’ screenplay opens with this incident that leaves this young nurse traumatized as it then cuts to a moment sometime later where she’s alone and getting ready to care for a new patient under a private agency. The protagonist in Katie (Morfydd Clark) had changed her name to Maud as she would care for this once famous dancer/choreographer in Amanda (Jennifer Ehle) who is suffering from stage four lymphoma as Maud does a lot to help Amanda physically but also spiritually despite the fact that Amanda is an atheist.

Yet, Maud is dealing with a mysterious presence that she believes is God but is troubled by the presence of Amanda’s lover Carol (Lily Frazer) whom Maud believes is corrupting her. Maud does what she can only to be pushed to the edge where she also contends with her own vices and guilt over what happened to a patient she tried to save. Especially as she was once known as someone who was socially-active and chaotic but she had since become withdrawn and devoted to God where reality and fiction would collide. Glass’ script also plays up into Maud’s own supposed encounters with God as a book that Amanda gave her with religious imagery would only heighten her mission to save Amanda.

Glass’ direction is largely straightforward in terms of her compositions yet there are elements of surrealism that does add to the troubled mental state of Maud. Shot on location in North London and Scarsborough as this seaside town in Britain, Glass doesn’t go for something very stylish early on as her approach to wide and medium shots help play into the locations but also a world that Maud is living in as she’s conflicted by this modern lifestyle that everyone around her is living with a more chaste life in which she sees a lot of things go wrong. Notably in a brief scene where she gives change to a homeless person in a hope to make that man’s life a bit better. Yet, there is something off about it as well as it relates to that homeless man as it plays into Maud’s disconnect with the real world. The usage of close-ups are also prominent throughout the film as it play into Maud talking to God as the film often features a lot of voiceover narration as if she’s having a conversation with God. Even in scenes where Maud is at her little apartment home as it plays into her own disconnect with the real world.

Glass’ direction also play into the drama that looms throughout Maud in her attempts to get the agnostic Amanda to be with God and away from temptation. Yet, she is confronted by the fact that Amanda is hedonistic and likes to party as a way to cope with dying where Maud is forced to face reality. Glass would have Maud attempt to return to the real world but there are scenes that do play into this idea of a spiritual world calling to her whether there’s things in the background vibrating around Maud or a scene where she is convinced that God is talking to her. It all leads to this third act of her wanting to prove her devotion but it would blur the lines of reality and fantasy to herself and those around her. Overall, Glass crafts an unsettling yet riveting film about a young nurse’s devotion to God following a traumatic incident that left her patient dead.

Cinematographer Ben Fordesman does brilliant work with the film’s cinematography with its emphasis on low-key lighting for many of the interior scenes at night as well as some of the scenes outside of Amanda’s house with more vibrant lights for the scenes in the town with more natural yet low-key lighting for the daytime scenes. Editor Mark Towns does amazing work with the editing with its stylish approach to jump-cuts and montages that help play into the drama and suspense as well as blurring the lines between reality and fantasy in Maud’s perspective as it is a highlight of the film. Production designer Paulina Rzeszowska, with set decorator Anna Mould and art director Isobel Dunhill, does excellent work with the look of Maud’s small apartment home as well as the house that Amanda lives in. Costume designer Tina Kalivas does terrific work with the costumes as it has some style in the clothes that Amanda wears to the more demure clothing that Maud wears except in her attempts to reconnect with the world.

Hair/makeup/special makeup effects designer Jacquetta Levon does fantastic work with the look of the characters including Amanda in her decaying state while she also wears wigs as well as the look of Maud who becomes crazier during the film’s progression. Special effects supervisors Scott MacIntyre and Eddy Popplewell, along with visual effects supervisors Nicholas Bennett, Nick Bennett, and Gary J. Brown, do nice work with the visual effects as there’s bits of set-dressing in some scenes but also in some of the weather formation that Maud would see as if God appears to her. Sound designer Paul Davies does superb work with the sound as it plays into the atmosphere of the rooms but also the things that Maud would hear as it adds to the drama and suspense as it is a highlight of the film. The film’s music by Adam Janota Bzowski is incredible for this eerie and brooding score that is largely based on dark-ambient electronic textures along with some low-sounding strings as it adds to the sense of discomfort in the film while music supervisor Jen Moss provides a soundtrack of music that is diverse as it features music from Gang of Four, the Jesus Lizard, Austerity, ESG, Naked Naked, Al Bowlly, Fxckers, Ruby Murray, and an acapella version of Hank Williams’ I Saw the Light that is sung by Maud during a key moment in the film.

The casting by Kharmel Cochrane is wonderful as it feature some notable small roles from Carl Prekopp as a homeless man, Marcus Hutton and Turlough Convery as a couple of men Maud meets in her attempt to reconnect with the real world, Rosie Sansom as a nurse that Maud would meet late in the film, Lily Frazer as a lover of Amanda in Carol who likes to encourage and enable Amanda’s bad habits, and Lily Knight as a nurse in Joy whom Maud used to work with as she knew what had happened and wanted to catch up.

Jennifer Ehle is phenomenal as Amanda Kohl as a revered dancer/choreographer who is dying from stage four lymphoma as she is also an atheist who is baffled by Maud’s beliefs while also trying to be open to it only to later be dismissive of those beliefs as she finds a way to push Maud’s buttons. Finally, there’s Morfydd Clark in a tremendous performance as Katie/Maud as this young woman who has recently converted to Catholicism following a traumatic event as she is hoping to save Amanda’s soul. Clark’s performance brings a lot of physicality to her work as well as being someone that is devoted to God as it plays into her own mental descent as it adds to the chaotic element of her performance as it is a career-defining feat from Clark.

Saint Maud is a spectacular film from Rose Glass that features an outstanding break-out performance from Morfydd Clark. Along with a great supporting performance from Jennifer Ehle, its haunting music soundtrack, intoxicating visuals, and its study of a woman’s devotion to God that would eventually lead to madness. It is a chilling character study of sorts that plays into a woman who is still haunted by trauma and is eager to save a hedonistic woman from herself only to take extreme measures to prove her worth to God. In the end, Saint Maud is a sensational film from Rose Glass.

© thevoid99 2023

The Miseducation of Cameron Post

Based on the novel by Emily M. Danforth, The Miseducation of Cameron Post is about a teenager who is sent to a gay conversion therapy center after her religious aunt learns about an incident where she is caught having sex with another girl. Directed by Desiree Akhavan and screenplay by Akhavan and Cecilia Frugiuele, the film is an exploration of the world of gay conversion therapy centers as it is set in the early 1990s at a time when the LGBT movement was becoming more open. Starring Chloe Grace Moretz, John Gallagher Jr., Sasha Lane, Forrest Goodluck, Marin Ireland, Owen Campbell, Kerry Butler, Quinn Shephard, Emily Skeggs, Melanie Ehrlich, and Jennifer Ehle. The Miseducation of Cameron Post is an evocative and riveting film from Desiree Akhavan.

Set in 1993, the film revolves around a teenage girl who is caught by her prom date for having sex with another girl in a car prompting her aunt to send to a gay conversion therapy center where she is trying to cope with her situations and others who are struggling with their own identity and sexuality. It’s a film that explore the world of gay conversion therapy as the titular character (Chloe Grace Moretz) is sent to the center as she tries to find out what she might be gay but also others at this center. The film’s screenplay by Desiree Akhavan and Cecilia Frugiuele is largely straightforward with bits of flashbacks but also moments that are dream-like as it play into Cameron Post’s own journey as she meets other teens who are living in this camp with some just trying to become straight with a couple of teens who don’t want to play by the rules but act out in secret.

Running the camp is Dr. Lydia Marsh (Jennifer Ehle) who is trying to get the kids in line with the help of her brother Reverend Rick (John Gallagher Jr.) who used to be gay until his sister saved him. The script does showcase some depth in both Reverend Rick and Dr. Marsh as well-meaning people who believe they’re doing God’s work yet they’re unable to understand everything as Post begins to ask questions though she doesn’t think they’re bad people. The script also play into this air of temptation but also a struggle with identity as two of the teens in the hippie-raised Jane Fonda (Sasha Lane) and the Lakota two-spirit Adam Red Eagle (Forrest Goodluck) are both aware of who they are as they start to become unhappy with their time at the center.

Akhavan’s direction is largely straightforward in terms of its compositions yet it does a lot in exploring this period in time when gays and lesbians start to have their voices heard and people starting to come out. Yet, it is set in a world where not everyone is embracing this growing sense of change as Akhavan would shoot the film in various parts of Upstate New York. The location adds to the tone of the film where it does play into something where these young people are living somewhere that is almost in the middle of nowhere and sort of cut off from civilization. Akhavan’s direction doesn’t have a lot of wide shots except to establish the locations as she aims for something more intimate in her approach to close-ups and medium shots. Notably the latter as she focuses on what happens during group meetings as well as intimate moments involving Post, Fonda, and Eagle as well as exercises with her roommate Erin (Emily Skeggs). Akhavan also uses long takes to play into the conversations and group meetings in order to maintain the building friendship for Post and others at the center including a scene late in the film with Reverend Rick as it is clear that with all of these questions that Post has.

It is obvious that even someone like Reverend Rick doesn’t have all the answers but is at least trying to help these kids no matter how wrong he and his sister are. It all play into Post not just struggling with the world she’s in that is oppressive not just to herself but also to other teens as well as the people running it as they’re also struggling to connect with what is happening in modern civilization away. Akhavan also showcases Post’s own personal struggles as she’s trying to contact the girl she got caught with but also questions about whether she can come home as it raises her questions about her place in the world at a time when gays and lesbians are coming out yet acceptance is becoming hard to gain. Overall, Akhavan crafts a somber yet mesmerizing film about a teenage girl coping with her sexuality at a gay conversion therapy center.

Cinematographer Ashley Connor does excellent work with the film’s low-key cinematography as it emphasizes on naturalistic yet dark colors in some of the daytime interior/exterior scenes as well as low-key lights for the scenes set at night. Editor Sara Shaw does terrific work with the editing as it is largely straightforward with some jump-cuts to play into a few bits of Post jogging on a track field as well as some rhythmic cuts to play into the drama. Production designer Markus Kirschner, with set decorators John Arnos and Erin Blake plus art director Tori Lancaster, does amazing work with the look of the center and its buildings as well as the rooms that include decorations that teens put in the wall to motivate them getting straight.

Costume designer Stacey Berman does fantastic work with the costumes as it features some uniforms that the teens wear as well as a few casual pieces they would wear in the weekends or time to get out of the camp for a bit. Sound editor Ryan Billa does superb work with the sound as it is largely straightforward to play into the natural atmosphere of the locations as well as how music is heard on a radio or at a live Christian rock show. The film’s music by Julian Wass is wonderful for its mixture of low-key ambient music with elements of folk to play into the air of uncertainty that occur throughout the film while music supervisors Maggie Phillips and Christine Greene Roe create a soundtrack that does play into the period of the early 90s from the alternative music of the Feelies and 4 Non Blondes as well as music from Clarice Jensen, Melanie Ehrlich, Fredda Manzo, Irma Thomas, Wild Yawp with Justin Denis and Jack Reilly, and Timothy Blixseth.

The casting by Jessica Daniels is incredible as it feature some notable small roles from Dale Soules as Post’s grandmother, Christopher Dylan White as a teen named Dane who has a lot of attitude and puts people down over their problems, Melanie Ehrlich as a teen in Helen who is really into Christian rock, Quinn Shephard as the girl Post got caught with before she is sent to the center in Coley, Kerry Butler as Post’s aunt/guardian, Marin Ireland as a math teacher/Reverend Rick’s girlfriend Bethany whom Post dreams about making out with, and Owen Campbell as a troubled teen in Mark who is Adam’s roommate as he offers to help Post out while dealing with the idea that he might not be masculine enough for his father. Emily Skeggs is terrific as Erin as teenage girl who loves the Minnesota Vikings as she believes she’s a lesbian due to spending a lot of time with her dad as she finds herself becoming attracted towards Post. Jennifer Ehle is fantastic as Dr. Lydia Marsh as the center’s head as someone who is trying to help these teens though she is at times strict yet is willing to give people a chance to explain themselves while thinking she might have the answer to help them.

John Gallagher Jr. is excellent as Reverend Rick as Dr. Marsh’s brother who used to be gay as he is someone trying to help these kids as well as be a guide to them but eventually finds himself having a hard time when he is unable to give them easy or hard answers. Forrest Goodluck is brilliant as Adam Red Eagle as a two-spirit Lakota teen whose father has converted to Christianity as he has trouble trying to understand what the people at the center are doing while often likes to wear his hair down in a small act of rebellion. Sasha Lane is amazing as Jane Fonda as a hippie-raised teenage girl who sports a prosthetic leg as she is also rebellious but in secrecy as she also grows marijuana outside of the plant as a way to cope with her surroundings. Finally, there’s Chloe Grace Moretz in a phenomenal performance as the titular character as this young woman who is sent to this gay-conversion therapy center as she struggles with the idea of why she’s gay while trying to cope with the therapy itself though she doesn’t think the people running the place aren’t bad but misguided as she also deals with herself and other things at the center as it is one of Moretz’s finest performances to date.

The Miseducation of Cameron Post is an incredible film from Desiree Akhavan featuring a mesmerizing leading performance from Chloe Grace Moretz. Along with its brilliant ensemble cast and exploration of sexual identity during a time when not everyone is embracing the idea of coming out. It is also a film that explore a woman dealing with her situation as well as being in a world that is strict and religious yet with people who have good intentions but don’t have all the answers. In the end, The Miseducation of Cameron Post is a sensational film from Desiree Akhavan.

© thevoid99 2020

Vox Lux

Written and directed by Brady Corbet from a story by Corbet and Mona Fastvold, Vox Lux is the story of a pop singer trying to get her career back on track while dealing her past that included her response to a school shooting that prompted her and her sister to write a song. The film is a study of a woman dealing with stardom and the craziness of it while trying to be a mother to a teenage daughter. Starring Natalie Portman, Jude Law, Stacy Martin, Raffey Cassidy, Jennifer Ehle, Christopher Abbott, and narration by Willem Dafoe. Vox Lux is a riveting yet haunting film from Brady Corbet.

After surviving a school shooting that left her nearly paralyzed and force her to wear a neck brace for the rest of her life, a young girl writes a song with her sister in response to what happened as it would later make her into a pop star where she later struggles with the demands of stardom and motherhood as an adult. It’s a film that is essentially a character study of sorts that showcases this young woman who has been affected by tragedy as she tries to comprehend what had happened. Brady Corbet’s screenplay has an unusual structure in its study of Celeste Montgomery (Natalie Portman) from the time she was a teenage girl (Raffey Cassidy) who created a song with her older sister Eleanor (Stacy Martin) and then becoming a young pop star to being a major pop star who has become full of herself.

The film’s narration by Willem Dafoe provide some context into what Celeste would deal with but also events that would cause trouble in making Celeste lose touch with aspects of reality. Even in the film’s second act where she’s an adult with a teenage daughter in Albertine (Raffey Cassidy) just as she’s about to release a new album and launch a new tour. Yet, there’s still a lot of issues that Celeste is dealing with while is becoming more problematic while being estranged towards her older sister who has been taking care of Albertine. All of the drama as well as chaos that surrounds Celeste forces her to say things through her music although scandals and her own actions are starting to overshadow the music at a time when branding and image becomes more important.

Corbet’s direction is entrancing for his approach into telling the story of a young pop star’s life and her emergence into adulthood as it is shot on various locations with much of the film’s second half shot in New York City and nearby areas. While there are some wide shots of the locations and the film’s climatic concert sequence, much of Corbet’s direction emphasizes on medium shots and close-ups along with home movie video footage. The home movie footage that include Dafoe’s narration play into the innocence that the young Celeste and Eleanor endured where the former is to be signed with Eleanor on board as not just as a songwriter but also someone who is watching over the young Celeste. There’s a looseness to those moments in the home movie footage where the sisters travel to New York City and later Stockholm and London to make Celeste’s debut album with their manager (Jude Law) as it would later devolve into craziness. There are a lot of tracking shots and long-takes such as an early scene of the school shooting where it’s sudden and visceral in its execution.

When the film shifts towards the second half as it is set more than 15 years after the events where the young Celeste is making her first album. The film does have a different tone where does feel more polished in its camera movements and compositions. Most notably a diner scene between Celeste and Albertine as they talk where the former goes off on the diner’s manager all because he politely asked for a picture. The climatic concert scene that includes choreography by Benjamin Millipied is definitely extravagant yet it also play into this persona that Celeste has created as a way to escape from the horrors of the world despite the fact that she is indirectly connected to a recent event of violence. Still, it does reinforce the role of the pop singer and how they use music to heal despite their own flaws and artificial world they live in. Overall, Corbet crafts an evocative yet harrowing film about the tumultuous life of a pop singer.

Cinematographer Lol Crawley does excellent work with the film’s cinematography as it is largely straightforward in terms of the visuals with some unique lighting for some of the interiors as well as the film’s climatic concert scene. Editor Matthew Hannam does fantastic work with the editing as it utilizes a few jump-cuts and montages with the latter for the home movie footage. Production designer Sam Lisenco, with set decorators Kendall Anderson and Olivia Peebles plus art director Julia Heymans, does brilliant work with the look of Celeste’s stage set as well as the scenes in the school and at Stockholm such as the recording studio and hotel rooms. Costume designer Keri Langerman does amazing work with the look of the clothes that the adult Celeste would wear that would play into this larger-than-life persona as well as be this idea of cool while everyone else looks a bit casual with Albertine sort of dressed up as a Goth.

Visual effects supervisor Asaf Yeger does nice work with some of the visual effects as it’s mainly set-dressing for some parts of the film including exteriors of 2000-2001 NYC. Sound designer Leslie Shatz does superb work with the sound in creating some effective sound mixes such as the sounds of gunshots as well as how music sounds in a venue or the atmosphere of a hotel room. The film’s music by Scott Walker is wonderful for its usage of ambient and classical-based pieces that help play into the drama while the original songs by Sia are effective and catchy as its approach to electro-pop have something that is engaging with the rest of the music soundtrack by music supervisor Margaret Yen include a couple of tracks by Sunrise in the Desert.

The casting by Cassandra Kulukundis is incredible as it feature some notable small roles from Matt Servitto and Meg Gibson as Celeste and Eleanor’s parents, Maria Dizzia as Celeste’s music teacher early in the film, Daniel London as a preacher early in the film, Leslie Silva as Celeste’s stylist, Micheal Richardson as a musician the young Celeste meets in Europe, and Christopher Abbott as a journalist who interviews the older Celeste and eventually piss her off. Jennifer Ehle is fantastic as Celeste’s publicist Josie who is trying to ensure Celeste’s career is going well as well as being realistic to the point that she is also protective of her during the latter parts of Celeste’s career. Jude Law is excellent as Celeste’s manager as a man who would handle the business aspects of Celeste’s career but also try and get her to be reasonable later on while he would unknowingly help cause the rift between Celeste and Eleanor.

Stacy Martin is brilliant as Eleanor as Celeste’s older sister who would be her collaborator in writing the songs they create as well as introduce her to all sorts of things that would later play into their rift with Martin displaying a restraint as someone who feels mistreated by the person she’s caring for. Raffey Cassidy is great in a dual role as the young Celeste and Celeste’s daughter Albertine where Cassidy displays an innocence and charm as the younger Celeste who is also aware of what happened to her and the need to connect which would be something Cassidy would delve into as Albertine as a young girl trying to understand her mother’s state of mind. Finally, there’s Natalie Portman in a spectacular performance as the older Celeste Montgomery as a pop star that is trying to make a comeback with a new album and tour where Portman is unleashed in displaying someone who can really bitchy and mean but also someone who is quite fragile as she needs to escape from the realities of celebrity by just singing as it’s a tour-de-force performance from Portman.

Vox Lux is a sensational film from Brady Corbet that features tremendous performances from Natalie Portman and Raffey Cassidy. Along with its supporting cast, study of trauma and escape, and an incredible music soundtrack from Scott Walker and Sia. It’s a film that explore the mind-set of a pop star who has been affected by tragedy forcing her to create a bubble that disconnects itself with reality with music being her saving grace. In the end, Vox Lux is a phenomenal film from Brady Corbet.

Brady Corbet Films: (The Childhood of a Leader) - The Brutalist

© thevoid99 2018

Zero Dark Thirty

Directed by Kathryn Bigelow and written by Mark Boal, Zero Dark Thirty is the story about a CIA officer who goes on a long search for Osama Bin Laden as it takes many years until he is finally captured. The film is an exploration into one of the great manhunts in American history and what it took to finally bring down the man who orchestrated the 9/11 attacks. Starring Jessica Chastain, Jason Clarke, Joel Edgerton, Edgar Ramirez, Jennifer Ehle, Mark Strong, Kyle Chandler, and James Gandolfini. Zero Dark Thirty is a haunting yet gripping film from Kathryn Bigelow.

The film is essentially the story about one of the greatest manhunts in American history concerning Osama Bin Laden as it the story spans eight years into the search for the man who orchestrated the attacks on 9/11. Leading the pack is a CIA officer named Maya (Jessica Chastain) as she arrives to Pakistan in 2003 where she witness interrogation tortures and all sorts of things while being part of a team trying to find out where Bin Laden is. Through some trials and tribulations where she sees people come and go. Maya becomes intent on finding Bin Laden after a prisoner she interrogates reveals information about a courier. It is through this courier known as Abu Ahmed where Maya believes that he is the link to finding Bin Laden where it would take some guess work and determination to finally find and kill Bin Laden.

Mark Boal’s screenplay doesn’t play to a lot of conventions in terms of what is expected in a thriller with some action as a lot of the story takes place inside embassies, interrogation rooms, and military bases. While the story does take place largely from 2003 to the night Bin Laden was finally killed in May of 2011, the narrative does jump from one year to another to establish the long work it took for Maya and many to find Bin Laden. Even as the narrative plays to key moments in history such as the London bombing in 2005, the Islamabad Marriot Hotel bombing in 2008 that Maya and her friend Jessica (Jennifer Ehle) survived, and the 2009 Camp Chapman attack.

These events as well as the departure of friends and colleagues would eventually drive the very timid and naïve Maya into a determined woman who is willing to do whatever it takes to find Bin Laden and have him killed. While she does become a target where she survives a shooting in Pakistan, she doesn’t give up easily as she becomes obsessed with finding the courier. While her determination does have those questioning whether they’ll find something or just feel like they’re wasting their time. After the first two acts approached the narrative slowly where it does like they’re not going anywhere due to false information and such. It’s the film’s third act that becomes the payoff as it’s momentum is heightened as it leads to the film’s climatic moment where a group of Navy SEALs raid Bin Laden’s compound.

Kathryn Bigelow’s direction is truly mesmerizing in the way she explores a world where it is about what is happening behind the scenes where a group of American officials are trying to find out where Bin Laden is. Notably as she maintains an air of intimacy in many of the scenes that take place in the board room while it’s also tense at times due to the fact that information is unveiled or something bad is happening. While part of the film does take place in embassies and buildings where Bigelow always have a camera moving around whenever characters are walking. She always stop to create some fantastic images that includes a scene where the American embassy in Pakistan is surrounded by protestors as officials watch from the inside.

With a few second unit shots around parts of the Middle East including Kuwait, many of the film’s exteriors were shot in India including its deserts in order to not gain issues from shooting on actual locations. Yet, it does manage to present a world that doesn’t seem to enjoy the idea of Americans prying into their world. There’s some intense action scenes involving a few bombings where Bigelow knows how to stage something that is intense while the torture scenes reveal how graphic things are without going over the top. One part of the film that is really interesting is the way Bigelow opens the film where it’s just a blank screen where audio recordings of the 9/11 attacks are happening to establish why people were intent on this manhunt for Bin Laden.

For the film’s climatic raid that would unveil the death of Bin Laden, the action is definitely gripping from the use of night vision footage and hand-held cameras without being overly shaky. There’s definitely an element of suspense and terror over the fact that anything could go wrong as the soldiers themselves act very cautiously. Notably as they don’t want to kill innocent people while a few outside of the compound are aware that neighbors are looking at them. It is truly a moment in film that is just entrancing due to what will happen and its result. Overall, Bigelow creates a provocative yet captivating film about the greatest manhunt in American history.

Cinematographer Greig Fraser does brilliant work with the film‘s photography from the sunny look of some of the film‘s exteriors and interior settings to the more stylish array of lights for scenes at night including a key moment at Area 51. Editors William Goldenberg and Dylan Tichenor do incredible work with the editing by employing lots of methodical cuts for some of the film‘s suspense along with a few montages to display moments of news and such in some of the more chilling moments. Production designer Jeremy Hindle, along with supervising art director Rod McLean and set decorators Lisa Chugg and Onkar Khot, does amazing work with the design of the embassies and its offices to the look of the military camps.

Costume designer George L. Little does nice work with the costumes as a lot of it is casual though the officials wear suits as well as veils for the women. Visual effects supervisors Chris Harvey and Mike Uguccioni do terrific work with some of the film‘s minimal visual effects that includes the film‘s climatic raid involving the helicopters riding over the mountains. Sound designer Paul N.J. Ottosson does excellent work with the sound from the film‘s opening moments through the layers of mixing of phone taps and other intimate moments as well as the action scenes. The film’s music by Alexandre Desplat is superb for its low-key yet ominous orchestral score to play up the suspense and drama that occurs throughout the film while incorporating Middle Eastern music to help establish the world the characters are living in.

The casting by Mark Bennett, Richard Hicks, and Gail Stevens is fantastic for the ensemble that is created specifically for this film. In small but memorable roles, there’s Joel Edgerton, Chris Pratt, Frank Grillo, and Taylor Kinney as the Navy SEALs who hunt down Bin Laden, Reda Kateb as a man interrogated and tortured early in the film, Fares Fares as an Arabian CIA specialist who helps track down the courier, Edgar Ramirez as a CIA specialist operator who goes on the look out for the courier in Pakistan, Harold Perrineau as a CIA official Maya works with, and James Gandolfini in a small but amazing performance as then-CIA director Leon Panetta. Kyle Chandler is excellent as Islamabad CIA chief Joseph Bradley while Mark Strong is great as CIA official George who is furious over the lack of progress.

Jennifer Ehle is amazing as Maya’s colleague Jessica who helps Maya with finding out the mysteries while being her friend as they go out together. Jason Clarke is superb as the CIA officer Dan who specializes in tortures while helping Maya out in her search as he would do unconventional things to get information. Finally, there’s Jessica Chastain in an outstanding performance as CIA officer Maya. Chastain’s performance is truly eerie to watch as a woman who starts out as this CIA officer who is new to her job as she later becomes determined and obsessed with capturing Bin Laden where she is willing to display her confidence in the belief that he is there somewhere as it’s definitely one of the year’s best performances.

Zero Dark Thirty is a magnificent yet chilling film from Kathryn Bigelow that features an incredible performance from Jessica Chastain. Armed with Mark Boal’s eerie script and a strong supporting cast that includes Jason Clarke, Jennifer Ehle, Joel Edgerton, Mark Strong, Kyle Chandler, and James Gandolfini. The film is definitely an intriguing dramatization into what it took to find Osama Bin Laden. While it’s not an easy film to watch at times due to its unconventional structure and slow build-up. It is still a film that is compelling for the way it reveals how one person was willing to find one of the most wanted men around the world. In the end, Zero Dark Thirty is a tremendous film from Kathryn Bigelow.

Kathryn Bigelow Films: The Loveless - Near Dark - Blue Steel - Point Break - Strange Days - The Weight of Water - K-19: The Widowmaker - The Hurt Locker - The Auteurs #29: Kathryn Bigelow

© thevoid99 2013

The Ides of March

Based on the play Farragut North by Beau Willimon, The Ides of March is about a junior campaign manager working for a presidential candidate on the campaign trail. When approached by a rival campaign manager, the young manager beings to ponder about the world of politics. Directed and starring George Clooney with a script written by Clooney, Willimon, and Grant Heslov, the film is political drama that uncovers the dirty world of politics and how one man‘s belief is shattered by that world. Starring Ryan Gosling, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Evan Rachel Wood, Jeffrey Wright, and Marisa Tomei. The Ides of March is an intriguing yet chilling film from George Clooney on the world of politics.

Stephen Meyers (Ryan Gosling) is a junior campaign manager working for the president campaign for Pennsylvania governor Mike Morris (George Clooney). Under the supervision of senior campaign manager Paul Zara (Philip Seymour Hoffman), Meyers’ job is to make sure things are going well as they compete against Arkansas Senator Ted Pullman (Mike Mitchell) in the upcoming Ohio primary. While Morris is seemingly on his way to win, Pullman’s campaign manager Tom Duffy (Paul Giamatti) approaches Meyers about a job while claiming that Morris won’t win. Meyers doesn’t take Duffy’s offer while deciding not to tell Zara thinking that Zara will get Senator Thompson (Jeffrey Wright) to endorse Morris.

Meyers befriends a young intern named Molly (Evan Rachel Wood) as they start to have a liaison while Meyers later reveals to Zara about Duffy’s offer after Zara revealed that he couldn’t get Thompson on board. With Morris’ campaign in trouble without Thompson’s endorsement, Meyers learns a horrifying secret during a night with Molly. Meanwhile, journalist Ida Horowicz (Marisa Tomei) reveals to Meyers that she knows the meeting he had with Duffy causing more problems. With Meyers suddenly in trouble, Zara makes a big decision that would put another campaign associate in Ben Harpen (Max Minghella) to take over for Meyers. Realizing the consequences of what he knows and what is really going on, he decides to confront the man whom he had hope to put all of his ideals into the world of politics.

The world of politics is one where the objective is to get yourself into the White House by any means. It’s a world where it’s very dirty and any ideas for good that anyone hopes for the world of politics doesn’t exist. It’s a film about a young man whose belief in good is shattered by the world of dirty plays and corruption in order to go after the presidency. During this journey, he’s offered something that would ascend him into power while he also uncovers a secret that wouldn’t just ruin everything he believes in the man that is supposed to be about those things.

The screenplay is a compelling study about the world of politics where it is all about what it takes to make it in that world. Particularly in the characters that Stephen Meyers interact with as they all would provide some idea of what he’s facing. There’s Mike Morris, the man he’s campaigning for who is trying to find a way to advance in the political game without getting his hands dirty. There’s the two differing campaign managers that are pulling Meyers about the game as well as a journalist that is looking for a story. Finally, there’s an intern who shares his idealism but finds herself in a situation that would threaten everything. It’s all about setting a man’s descent into idealism and how he is forced to realize that what it takes to survive in the world of politics where that person has to get his hands dirty.

George Clooney’s direction is quite straightforward for the way he presents the film as it’s mostly intimate for the conversations that take place throughout the film. There are a lot of great shots in the way Clooney present the scenes such as the lone conversation between Morris, Meyers, and Zara in a room while there’s more raucous moments in the campaign office for the way things operate. Yet, Clooney’s direction is quite potent for the way he creates an element of suspense where it all comes to the climatic third act where Meyers finally faces all of the things he believes in. While there’s some parts of it that doesn’t entirely work, it does lead to a fitting end about what happens as Clooney does create a solid and engaging film.

Cinematographer Phedon Papamichael does an excellent job with cinematography where a lot of the daytime exterior settings are straightforward while presenting some amazing shading for some of the interiors including some gorgeous nighttime exterior shots for some of the locations in the film. Editor Stephen Mirrone does a nice job with the editing as it’s presented in a straightforward manner while playing with the film’s pace to build up some of the suspenseful elements for the film.

Production designer Sharon Seymour, along with set decorator Maggie Martin and art director Chris Cornwell, does a very good job with the look for the hotel rooms, campaign offices, and public speaking forums to emphasize the broad world of political primaries.. Costume designer Louise Frogley also does a good job with the costume design from the suits the men wear to the more casual yet conservative clothing the women wear in their jobs. Sound editor Elmo Webster does an amazing job with the sound to convey the atmosphere that goes on during the speeches to the way conversations are presented to maintain the intimacy of the film. The film’s score by Alexandre Desplat is wonderful for its more somber yet soaring score that features some playful cadence drum fills in a few parts while delving into heavier themes for some of intense moments of the film.

The casting by Ellen Chenoweth is superb as there’s a wonderful ensemble created as it features small appearances from Gregory Itzin as Democratic National Party leader and Michael Mantell as Morris’ opponent though Jennifer Ehle in a small role as Morris’ wife is practically wasted as she only gets one scene of dialogue in the film. Other notable small performances include Max Minghella as Meyers’ associate Ben Harpen and Jeffrey Wright as the ambitious Senator Thompson. Marisa Tomei is very good as Ida Horowicz, a journalist trying to get a story while playing dirty in order to get Meyers to reveal things that she feels the country needs to know. Paul Giamatti is great as Tom Duffy, the rival campaign manager who makes an offer to Meyers while giving him insight about the dangerous world of politics. Philip Seymour Hoffman is excellent as Paul Zara, Meyers’ superior who shows him the ropes while revealing that loyalty is the key to making it in politics.

Evan Rachel Wood is wonderful as Molly, a young intern who shares the same ideals as Meyers only to find herself in a troubling situation which could threaten everything as Wood gives a very chilling performance. George Clooney is superb as Mike Morris, the man that Meyers is campaigning for as he tries to figure out what to do while being very complex about the ways he wants to win. Finally, there’s Ryan Gosling in an amazing performance as Stephen Meyers. While it’s a more showy performance than the one he previously did in Drive, Gosling does bring some charm and wit into a guy that does everything that is needed to be done while his world is shaken by the true ideology of politics as it’s a remarkable performance from the actor.

The Ides of March is an intelligent yet fascinating political drama from George Clooney that features a mesmerizing lead performance from Ryan Gosling. While it may not have the more entrancing and enthralling feel of Good Night, and Good Luck, it is still a strong film that does dwell into the dangerous world of politics. Particularly as it gives a point of view that idealism isn’t enough to win people over as Clooney creates something that seems very relevant with today’s current state of American politics. In the end, The Ides of March is a stellar film from George Clooney.

George Clooney Films: Confessions of a Dangerous Mind - Good Night, and Good Luck - (Leatherheads) - The Monuments Men

© thevoid99 2011

Contagion

Directed by Steven Soderbergh and written by Scott Z. Burns, Contagion is the story of a world threatened by a mysterious virus as panic ensues while doctors try to find the cure. The film is a harrowing thriller with multiple storylines as doctors race to create a cure while ordinary people are panicking as a blogger tries to create chaos through allegations of corruption. Starring Matt Damon, Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow, Marion Cotillard, Laurence Fishburne, Bryan Cranston, Jennifer Ehle, Sanaa Lathan, Elliot Gould, and Kate Winslet. Contagion is a chilling yet hypnotic thriller from Steven Soderbergh.

Beth Emhoff (Gwyneth Paltrow) returns to Minneapolis feeling ill from a business trip at Hong Kong. Suddenly feeling ill and having a seizure, her husband Mitch (Matt Damon) takes her to the hospital where something bad happens as she and her son (Griffin Kane) are hit with a deadly virus. While Mitch is revealed to be immune with his daughter Jory (Anna Jacoby-Heron) arriving, more news about the disease that Beth received has reached the CDC in Atlanta. CDC head Dr. Ellis Cheever (Laurence Fishburne) asks his colleague in Dr. Erin Mears (Kate Winslet) to investigate what happened in Minneapolis as news about mysterious deaths in Asia and Europe have emerged. Dr. Leonora Orantes (Marion Cotillard) is asked by the World Health Organization in Switzerland to investigate what happens as she goes to Hong Kong for answers.

Back in Atlanta, Dr. Cheever and Dr. Ally Hextal (Jennifer Ehle) try to figure out what does the disease do as Hextal goes to Dr. Ian Sussman (Elliott Gould) for some help. Yet, Dr. Sussman is dealing with the presence of a blogger named Alan Krumweide (Jude Law) who is demanding some answers while believing that there is something going on. When Rear Admiral Lyle Haggerty (Bryan Cranston) asks Cheever to not expose anything more, Hextal reluctantly asks Sussman to stop with his research only for him to find a breakthrough. Realizing that the virus is more complicated and a vaccine would take a lot of time, panic is starting to ensue. Dr. Mears meanwhile, continues to investigate as things start to go wrong while telling Mitch and Jory to stay home thinking that the disease could be much worse.

In Hong Kong, Dr. Orantes makes some discoveries about how Beth contracted the disease as she wants to report it to her superiors only for her associate Sun Feng (Chin Han) to stop her because his village is in trouble and he wants to help them. During a TV interview with Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Dr. Cheever tries to maintain calm only to go head-to-head with Krumweide who accuses Cheever of trying to prolong the vaccine for profit. With the world in chaos and the race to create a vaccine becoming more intense, panic spreads worldwide as millions of people start to die from this mysterious disease.

What happens when a world is thrown into chaos by an epidemic where doctors try to figure out what happened and how this disease is spread while trying to create a cure at the same time? Meanwhile, there’s ordinary people in a state of panic as they couldn’t touch each other in the risk of infection while the media tries to uncover all that is happening with a rogue blogger trying to maintain that there’s a conspiracy going on. This is what director Steven Soderbergh and screenwriter Scott Z. Burns create in this film where it’s about a world in panic through a strange epidemic where lives are at risks and a cure is unavailable for the time being though this rogue blogger claim that there is a cure and the government is preventing it for profit.

Burns’ multi-layered script is definitely filled with intrigue and character study as there’s a lot of stories that revolves around in this film that is all about panic. There’s the story of a man who lost his family through disease as he tries to protect his teenage daughter while a doctor from the CDC tries to help only to come head-to-head with the disease. There’s also the CDC head who is trying to do what is right as his wife (Sanaa Lathan) is in Chicago while trying to keep the world calm as he has to deal with this crazy, conspiracy-driven blogger. The Alan Krumweide character is a man trying to make it as a blogger while wanting to prove that there is a cure but what he ends up doing is cause trouble and questions about his own motives.

Other narratives such as a French doctor’s trip to Hong Kong to find the source of how the disease spread worldwide and a doctor trying to create a cure add to the sense of chaos that surrounds the film. Yet, many of these characters all go through some kind of personal change or have personal motivations to do what they do. Mitch Emhoff just wants to protect his daughter while Dr. Cheever wants to help all that he can including a janitor (John Hawkes) whom he often confers with every day at work. Burns’ script definitely plays up to the sense of fear and paranoia that surrounds the character as well as the fact that they could all die from something as drastic as this mysterious disease. Despite a few flaws for this multi-based narrative where some stories don‘t get revisited until later in the film, Burns does succeed with creating an exciting and chilling story.

Steven Soderbergh’s direction is definitely intense in terms of what he presents as it starts off calm until a montage of Beth, a Japanese businessman, a Hong Kong waiter (Tien You Chui), and an Ukranian model (Daria Strokous) starts to feel ill and succumb to the disease. The first five-ten minutes indicate that this won’t be a conventional epidemic thriller as Soderbergh chooses to play with the rhythms by maintaining a sense of dread throughout the film. Since the film takes place in various locations such as Hong Kong, Geneva, Tokyo, London, San Francisco, Minneapolis, and Atlanta. Soderbergh makes it aware that the epidemic is worldwide with various characters from around the world trying to make sense or investigate what has happened.

Throughout the film, Soderbergh does try to inject some calmer moments to give the audience a break such as the story that includes Mitch and his daughter as her boyfriend (Brian J. O’Donnell) wants to see her. Notably in the third act as the race to find a cure winds down as Soderbergh slowly tries to make things feel normal while the world remains a mess through images of trash lying on the street and empty cities being shown. The presentation of the film where Soderbergh also acts as cinematographer, in his Peter Andrews alias, has him giving the cities different looks to emphasize the state of paranoia in the world. Using some blue though darker looks for the winter scenes and yellow-sepia for some of the scenes inside like the Hong Kong and CDC interior scenes so the locations can have a different look and feel. While the overall presentation is solid despite a few flaws in the story and its multi-layered narrative, Soderbergh does create a compelling yet eerie film about the world of epidemics.

Editor Stephen Mirrone does an excellent job with the film‘s editing by creating wonderful rhythms for some of the film‘s suspenseful moments along with rhythmic cuts and smooth transitions for the audience to be aware of what story they‘re following. Production designer Howard Cummings and set decorator Cindy Carr do some great work with the art direction including the creation of empty stores and messy cities to emphasize the film‘s eerie tone. Costume designer Louise Frogley does some nice work with the costumes with a lot of the people dressing very casual while the protective suits that Dr. Hextal wears looks real to what doctors wear when handling diseases.

Sound editor Larry Blake does a fantastic job with the sound design to capture the chaos of the crowd scenes as well as the voices of reporters heard on TV to maintain the sense of fear that is prevalent in the film. The film’s score by Cliff Martinez is superb for its hypnotic yet throbbing electronic score with elements of somber piano melodies. Martinez’s score plays to the sense of dread that is played out along with the uncertainty as it helps enhance the drama without doing too much.

The casting by Carmen Cuba is brilliant for the large ensemble that is created for this film that includes small appearances from Griffin Kane as Mitch’s young stepson, Brian J. O’Donnell as Jory’s boyfriend, Tien You Chui as an ill-fated Hong Kong waiter, Josie Ho as the waiter’s sister, Daria Strokous as an Ukranian model hit with the disease, Armin Rohde as Dr. Orantes’ superior, Larry Clarke as Dr. Mears’ Minneapolis’ associate, Demerti Martin as Dr. Hexel’s associate, Enrico Colantoni as a CDC official, Monique Gabriela Curnen as a journalist friend of Krumweide, Sanaa Lathan as Dr. Cheever’s wife, Dr. Sanjay Gupta as himself, and John Hawkes as a CDC janitor whom Dr. Cheever confers with.

Other notable small performances include Chin Han as a Hong Kong medical specialist who kidnaps Dr. Orantes for his own personal reasons while Bryan Cranston is very good as Lyle Haggerty, a government official who tries to help smooth things for Dr. Cheever with the press. Elliott Gould is great in a small role as Dr. Sussman who uncovers some data about the virus while Gwyneth Paltrow is pretty good in a small but memorable performance as Beth Emhoff, the woman who contracts the deadly disease early in the film. Jennifer Ehle is superb as Dr. Hexel who tries hard to find a cure while finding out how does the disease work while newcomer Anna Jacoby-Heron is radiant as Mitch’s daughter Jory who tries to deal with her father’s protectiveness and her own isolation. Marion Cotillard is stellar as Dr. Orantes, a WHO doctor who tries to find the source of the disease only to be caught up by someone’s own personal world while Kate Winslet is wonderful as Dr. Mears who tries to deal with everything in Minneapolis as well as its outbreak in the city.

Jude Law is amazing as Alan Krumweide, a blogger who tries to uncover the conspiracy of CDC irregularities for his own gain as Law commands a fierce performance as a man causing trouble. Laurence Fishburne is excellent as Dr. Cheever, a CDC head who tries to calm things down while going through his own personal issues as well as being overwhelmed by the events that is happening. Matt Damon is fantastic as Mitch Emhoff, a man who loses his family while trying to protect his daughter from people with the disease as he tries to deal with everything around him.

Contagion is a haunting yet mesmerizing film from Steven Soderbergh led by a magnificent ensemble cast that includes Matt Damon, Laurence Fishburne, Kate Winslet, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law, Marion Cotillard, Bryan Cranston, and Jennifer Ehle. Fans of epidemic thrillers will definitely enjoy the film for its suspense and chaotic tone of the film. For fans of Soderbergh, it’s one of his more accessible but also edgy films where he allows himself to be unconventional but also play with the conventions of a thriller. In the end, Contagion is a masterful yet terrifying film from Steven Soderbergh and company.

Steven Soderbergh Films: sex, lies, & videotape - Kafka - King of the Hill - The Underneath - Gray’s Anatomy - Schizopolis - Out of Sight - The Limey - Erin Brockovich - Traffic - Ocean’s Eleven - Full Frontal - Solaris (2002 film) - Eros-Equilibrium - Ocean’s Twelve - Bubble - The Good German - Ocean’s Thirteen - Che - The Girlfriend Experience - The Informant! - And Everything is Going Fine - Haywire - Magic Mike - Side Effects - Behind the Candelabra - Logan Lucky - (Unsane) - (High Flying Bird)

The Auteurs #39: Steven Soderbergh Pt. 1 - Pt. 2

© thevoid99 2011

The King's Speech

Directed by Tom Hooper and written by David Seilder, The King’s Speech tells the story of how King George VI overcame his stammer with the help of an eccentric speech therapist.  The film is an historical drama about the time when King George VI, who was then known as Prince Albert, Duke of York where he gave a speech in 1925 that was a big ordeal to the moment he gave his big speech to his country as they were to enter World War II.  Playing the role of King George VI is Colin Firth while Geoffrey Rush plays the role of Lionel Logue, the eccentric speech therapist.  Also starring Helena Bohnam Carter, Jennifer Ehle, Michael Gambon, Timothy Spall, Derek Jacobi, Eve Best, and Guy Pearce.  The King’s Speech is a remarkable, inspiring historical drama from Tom Hooper.

It’s 1925 at the British Empire Exhibition in Wembley Stadium as Prince Albert Frederick Arthur George, Duke of York is to give a speech.  Accompanied by his wife Lady Elizabeth (Helena Bohnam Carter), Albert gives his speech where the whole British Empire listened as he stammered through his speech as it became a horrific ordeal.  Nine years later with no success to overcome his stammer and through various speech therapists, Albert has given up trying to deal with therapists as Elizabeth wants to find someone who can help.  After learning about Lionel Logue through a league of speech therapists, Elizabeth meets with the eccentric Logue who offers to help out though under his rules.

Albert reluctantly takes Logue’s ideas but after one day where Logue has him read some work while he listens to music.  Albert leaves upset only to realize that after listening to the recording that Logue’s methods were working.  More sessions with Logue managed to help Albert as he became more confident with public speaking.  Even as Logue tries not to tell his wife Myrtle (Jennifer Ehle) and his sons about the fact that he’s treating the Duke of York.  Following the death of Albert’s father King George V (Michael Gambon), Albert’s older brother Edward (Guy Pearce) becomes the king in early 1936.  Yet, Edward is more concerned about his new love Wallis Simpson (Eve Best) who he wants to marry. 

Albert turns to Logue about his own issues about his father and brother as he is already content with being a Duke as well as a father for his young daughters Elizabeth (Freya Wilson) and Margaret (Ramona Marquez).  Yet, when it becomes clear that Edward’s infatuation with Simpson was more important than is duties.  Parliament member Winston Churchill (Timothy Spall) realizes that Edward’s involvement with Simpson is a bad idea as he reveals to Albert about what is happening in Nazi Germany as its clear that Albert might have to become king.  With Edward deciding to abdicate the throne to marry Simpson, Albert turns to Logue who tries to assure Albert about what to do.

With Edward no longer deciding to be king and Albert to become King George VI, it becomes clear that he’s got entire United Kingdom and its empire all over his shoulders with Elizabeth aware of how overwhelmed he is.  Turning once again to Logue for help for the upcoming ceremony to be king.  Though some including the Archbishop of Canterbury (Derek Jacobi) question about Logue’s credentials.  Albert wants Logue there to help as they rehearsed his ceremony which becomes a success.  With Churchill’s warnings about Nazi Germany becoming true and the resignation of Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin (Anthony Andrews).  Albert needed Logue’s help once again following Germany’s invasion of Poland to give the speech of his lifetime as his country are to enter World War II.

While the story of how King George VI was able to overcome his stammer and be the voice of an empire fighting against Nazi Germany is an inspirational one.  Yet, the film is really about George’s friendship with Lionel Logue as well as the love and support of Queen Elizabeth.  While historical dramas and bio-pics do get to play around history and put scenes where not everything is exactly right or accurate to serious history buffs.  The film doesn’t take the historical contexts of the film seriously at all but rather explore the individuals involved with the story.  Notably about King George VI who is a man who knows his duties and place in the world while is content with being a husband and father.  Still, having to speak publicly is a nightmare while audiences get to have an idea of what could’ve caused his stammer.

David Seidler’s screenplay does a fascinating job in exploring Albert’s vulnerability as well as the fact that he’s got a bad temper and a smoking habit.  Yet, there’s also a side of Albert where he is a wonderful father who loves his daughters very much.  When his father had died and his brother abdicating the throne for love, all of the weight of the United Kingdom and its empire is so much for Albert to handle as he has to be the voice of an entire group of people.  There’s two people that he would go to for help in both Lionel Logue and Queen Elizabeth.  Logue is an eccentric, humorous man who isn’t a licensed therapist but his experience from World War I and helping traumatized soldiers is something that Albert discovers as he also knows about speech problems.

Logue’s unorthodox methods do add some humor to the film where there’s a scene where Albert gets to say some profanity in a comical manner.  In some ways, the scenes with Albert and Logue have the elements of a buddy film where the two become equals as Logue helps bring confidence to Albert.  Then there’s Queen Elizabeth as she is portrayed as a loving woman who is willing to help Albert and be by his side when he has to do his duties.  Yet, she is revealed to be a woman who was already content in being a wife and mother as well as the Lady of York.  When Edward abdicates the throne, she too is reluctant in being queen but is more concerned for her husband as there is great monologue to Albert about why she married him.

Seidler’s screenplay definitely plays well to the characters as well as the film’s historical context with an actual idea of when some of these events took place along with locations.  Yet, it’s Tom Hooper’s direction that really brings the movie together.  Hooper definitely recreates the look of early 20th Century England with little visual effects and little production design in the exteriors as mostly creates an intimate yet stylish approach to the film.  Even as he finds way to tell the story about the friendship between King George VI and Lionel Logue where there’s a great scene of Albert and Logue talking with not many edits while Albert is putting glue for a model plane.  There’s moments where Albert is trying to talk by singing where it could be comical but Hooper presents the scene in such a subtle manner.  Hooper’s direction is truly spectacular where he knows what the film is needed while not overplaying it or underplaying as he gets the audience to explore the man that is King George VI.

Cinematographer Danny Cohen does an excellent job with the film‘s colorful yet straightforward photography.  Notably on the exterior scenes with some foggy but lush shots of London that included a scene with a steadicam where Albert and Lionel were walking.  Editor Tariq Anwar does a great job with the film’s editing where he maintains a wonderful rhythm to the film’s comical and dramatic moments including the climatic scene for the king’s wartime speech while maintaining a leisurely pace for the film.

Production designer Eve Stewart, along with set decorator Judy Farr and art director Netty Chapman, does an amazing job with the film‘s art direction for many of the interiors in the palaces and sets  Notably Albert‘s coronation stage and Logue‘s office where he and Albert do all of their work.  The art direction of the film is really one the film’s technical highlights.  Costume designer Jenny Beavan does a fantastic job with the period costumes from the dresses that Helena Bohnam Carter wears as Elizabeth along with more tuxedos and suits that Colin Firth wears including a more casual suit for Geoffrey Rush‘s Logue character. 

Visual effects supervisors Derek Bird and Thomas M. Horton do a wonderful job with the minimal visual effects that is used for the film.  Notably the blimps that appear in the sky just before the climatic speech of King George VI.  Sound editor Lee Walpole does a very good job with the hollow sounds of the halls in the coronation rehearsal along with more intimate settings at Logue’s office.  Even in the scenes at the large homes including a raucous party scene where Albert is trying to talk to Edward about Simpson in a chaotic atmosphere as the sound is truly spectacular.

Alexandre Desplat’s score is marvelous with its array of chime-tingling arrangements, subtle melodies, and bombast for many of the film’s comic and dramatic scenes.  Desplat also brings soothing pieces to play to some of the film’s more heavy dramatic moments to convey the emotions of King George VI.  Other music in the film used are pieces from the 1930s as well as a few classical pieces.

The casting by Nina Gold is truly phenomenal as the film features some small but memorable performances from Anthony Andres as prime minister Stanley Baldwin, Roger Hammond as one of Albert’s early speech therapists, Jake Hathaway as one of Logue’s young patients, and Eve Best as the controversial Wallis Simpson.  Other notable small roles include Calum Gittins, Dominic Applewhite, and Ben Wimsett as the son of Lionel Logue, Claire Bloom as Queen Mary, Derek Jacobi as the Archbishop, Ramona Marquez as Princess Margaret, and Freya Wilson as Princess Elizabeth, who would later become Queen Elizabeth II.

Though they don’t appear very much in the film, Jennifer Ehle and Michael Gambon are very good in their respective roles as Myrtle Logue and King George V.  Ehle as the supportive wife who gets a big surprise about who her husband is treating while Gambon plays King George V with a great ferocity as someone who is often very controlling.  Guy Pearce is excellent as Edward, Albert’s older brother who is irresponsible and in love with American socialite as Pearce delivers his best scene when he gives his abdication speech.  Timothy Spall is in fine form as Winston Churchill though he doesn’t look or sound like the future prime minister.  Spall is able to convey the personality of the famed man who would help the UK win World War II.

Helena Bohnam Carter is radiant as Queen Elizabeth as a woman whose sensitivity and comical manner hits all the right notes needed to play this great personality.  Carter’s use of light comical dialogue along with great scene where she comforts Firth shows that she is definitely one of the great actresses to ever come out of the U.K.  Even in scenes where she and Firth have great chemistry whether its comical or dramatic along with some wonderful exchanges with Geoffrey Rush. Rush delivers an amazing performance as Lionel Logue as he brings the famed speech therapist to life with a lot of wit.  Even as he and Firth have great scenes where Rush plays the man who tries to get Firth’s character to relax and feel confident.  It’s definitely Geoffrey Rush at his finest.

Finally, there’s Colin Firth in what is definitely one of his greatest roles to date.  A great follow-up following the acclaimed he received in Tom Ford’s A Single Man as Firth embodies the bravery and vulnerability of King George VI.  Even when had to stammer and say “fuck” in order to get the words to come out of his mouth.  It’s a performance where he allows himself to be vulnerable and make Albert or “Bertie” become more human as he is struggling with his new role as a king.  The development of his character goes hand-in-hand with the way Firth makes Albert into a stronger figure while giving the character a lot of humor.  It’s definitely a performance that truly solidifies Colin Firth as one of cinema’s great actors.

The King’s Speech is a remarkable and uplifting film from Tom Hooper helmed by a magnificent performance by Colin Firth.  Along with some great supporting work from Geoffrey Rush and Helena Bohnam Carter, it’s a film that gives audience not just a great history lesson.  It’s also film that is inspiring without all of the trappings that are often drowned in sentimentality.  It’s a film that gives royal figures like King George VI a chance to feel equal with the average person who can overcome something like a stammer as he became the voice that helped the British Empire deal with the Axis in World War II.  In the end, The King’s Speech is a glorious film from Tom Hooper that gives its audience something to cheer about.

Tom Hooper Films: (Red Dust) - (The Damned United) - Les Miserables (2012 film)

© thevoid99 2010