The film is the story of a young prince who witnesses the murder of his father by his uncle forcing the young prince to flee as he later grows into a man seeking revenge as he is aided by a slave in reclaiming his throne. It is a film with a simple premise where it isn’t just about revenge but also a boy becoming a man and trying to find himself and the fate of his quest. The film’s screenplay by Robert Eggers and Sjon is largely straightforward in its narrative yet it is more about the journey that its protagonist Amleth (Alexander Skarsgard) takes from the time he witnesses his father in King Aurvandill (Ethan Hawke) be murdered by his uncle Fjornir (Claes Bang) when Amleth was a child (Oscar Novak) as its first act is about Amleth making an oath to get revenge on his uncle and save his mother in Queen Gudrun (Nicole Kidman) from his clutches. The first act also shows him becoming a Viking where he helps attack villages and such until an encounter with a Seeress (Bjork) who tells him that Fjornir has been exiled from Norway and is in Iceland with his mother, his eldest son Thorir (Gustav Lindh), and their youngest in Gunnar (Elliott Rose).
The second act revolves Amleth going to Iceland by posing as a slave where he meets another slave in Olga (Anya Taylor-Joy) who claims to be a sorceress as she would help Amleth in seeking revenge. Yet, things become complicated as Amleth learns about Gunnar and the new world that Fjornir and Gudrun live in as they kept a low profile while Amleth also learns that his father’s jester Heimir (Willem Dafoe) had also been killed by Fjornir where Amleth meets the He-Witch (Ingvar Eggert Sigurosson) who serves a medium for Heimir for Amleth. Amleth doesn’t reveal himself directly to his mother as he and Olga continue to work in secrecy as they would fall in love but things do get more troubling following some revelations leading into its third act. Notably as it does play into Amleth’s own devotion to his father and his father’s devotion to the spiritual world and nature itself.
Eggers’ direction definitely has elements of style but also this element of physicality into the world that these characters live in as it is intense and at times, unforgiving. Shot on various locations in parts of Great Britain as well as Ireland and Iceland, Eggers maintains this sense of physicality in these locations with the first twenty minutes set in this cold mountain forest where there are these gorgeous imagery with the daytime exteriors and interiors having this sense of the cold and the scenes at night were it is all about natural lighting that include this spiritual ceremony hosted by Heimir for the young Amleth and King Aurvandill. The usage of close-ups and medium shot in that ceremony also include these surrealistic images that play into this connection with the spiritual world as they would occur often in the film including a shot of a young Amleth on a horse running towards the light that is Valhalla.
Eggers also uses a lot of wide shots to get a scope of these locations but also these surroundings the characters are in as it also play into a moment in time that is brutal but also entrancing. Notably in shots where Eggers uses the wide shots in using these dolly-tracking shots to showcase the places that Amleth is in whether it is the palace building he’s in as a child or the place to retrieve a sword that he needs for his quest. The usage of the dolly-tracking shots would also play into the suspense including scenes late in the second act where Fjornir deals with these mysterious attacks where Eggers also maintains this air of brutality in the violence as it would intensify in the third act. Notably the climatic showdown between Amleth and Fjornir as it is told in a stylized manner that owes more to the prophecy that Amleth had to follow yet there are these surrealistic elements that bring a lot of power to this climax. Overall, Eggers crafts a mesmerizing yet unsettling film about a young Viking prince going on a quest for vengeance against his uncle.
Cinematographer Jarin Blaschke does amazing work with the film’s cinematography with its stylish usage of filters for a few surrealistic shots while much of it is natural in some of the interiors with its usage of fire as light as well as its emphasis on available light for some of the exterior scenes. Editor Louise Ford does excellent work with the editing as its emphasis on having shots play out while also emphasizing on jump-cuts and rhythmic cuts to help play into the suspense and action. Production designer Craig Lathrop, with set decorators Pancho Chamorro and Niamh Coulter plus art directors Robert Cowper and Paul Ghirardini, does incredible work with the film’s art direction in the design of the village and castle that the young Amleth lived in to the fortress that he would attack as a Viking and the home that Fjornir would live in with Gudrun. Costume designer Linda Muir does fantastic work with the costumes from the design of some of the gowns that Gudrun wear as well as the armor that Fjornir and King Aurvandill wore as well as some of the wool clothes the other characters wore.
Hair/makeup designer Maralyn Sherman, with special effects makeup designer David White, does brilliant work with the look of a few characters with the Seeress being a major example as well as the look of a few spiritual figures that Amleth meets. Special effects supervisor Sam Conway, along with visual effects supervisors Angela Barson, Colin McCusker, and David Scott, does terrific work with some of the visual effects that include some of the film’s surrealistic imagery as well as some of the animals the characters encounter. Sound editors James Harrison and Steve Little, along with sound designers Jimmy Boyle and David Volpe, do phenomenal work with the sound as it help play into the atmosphere of the locations as well as the usage of layered dialogue for some of the surrealistic moments as it is a highlight of the film. The film’s music by Robin Carolan and Sebastian Gainsborough is remarkable as it is a highlight of the film with its usage of percussions, discordant strings, and other sounds to help create an unsettling tone for the film.
The casting by Kharmel Cochrane is marvelous as it feature some notable small roles and appearances from Ralph Ineson as a ship captain Amleth and Olga meet late in the film, Magne Osnes as a berserker priest who had become a father figure for Amleth, Kate Dickie as a senior slave who sort of runs Fjornir’s farm, Olwen Fouere as Fjornir’s priestess, Hafpor Julius Bjornsson as a rival tribe champion that Amleth fights during a game of knattleikr, Eldar Skar and Phill Martin as a couple of Fjornir’s housecarls with the former who lost his nose from a fight with the young Amleth, and Ingvar Eggert Sigurosson as the He-Witch as a spiritual figure who would serve as a medium for Heimir. Oscar Novak and Elliott Rose are terrific in their respective roles as the young Amleth and his eventual half-brother Gunnar as two young boys who both adore their fathers with the former feeling the need to get revenge while the other is struggling to prove to himself as a prince. Gustav Lindh is superb as Fjornir’s eldest son Thorir the Proud as a prince who is eager to rule over the slaves as he takes a disliking towards Amleth unaware of his true identity.
Bjork is fantastic in her brief role as a Seeress as this mysterious spiritual figure who would guide and remind Amleth of his quest for revenge while Willem Dafoe’s brief role as King Aurvandill’s jester Heimir is excellent for its sense of energy and intrigue as someone who doesn’t just favor the spiritual world but also the physical world. Ethan Hawke is brilliant as King Aurvandill as a man of simple ideas as he has a close bond with his son while he is also a man who loves nature and the spiritual world. Nicole Kidman is amazing as Queen Gudrun as a woman who is Amleth’s mother but is unaware of his identity believing he had died where she is devoted to her son and stepson/nephew as she also brings a lot of ambiguity to her role. Claes Bang is incredible as Fjornir as King Aurvandill’s brother who would take the throne feeling that his brother is too much of a savage as he is also someone that wants to make his own mark following his own exile.
Anya Taylor-Joy is sensational as Olga as a slave who claims to be a sorceress as she befriends and later falls for Amleth where she doesn’t just help him in getting his revenge but is also someone who also has a connection with nature and the spiritual world in the hope that a better future would come. Finally, there’s Alexander Skarsgard in a phenomenal performance as Amleth as a young prince who goes on a quest for vengeance to avenge his father and save his mother where he deals with the complexities of his mission and the added stakes as it relates to his family as well as his uncle where Skarsgard brings in a lot of restraint but also an intensity into his performance where it is a major breakout performance for him.
The Northman is a tremendous film from Robert Eggers that features great performances from Alexander Skarsgard and Anya Taylor-Joy. Along with its ensemble cast, gorgeous yet grimy visuals, intense music score, eerie sound design, its study of revenge and fate, and its idea of myth and spirituality. It is a film that doesn’t play by the rules when it comes to revenge films while it is also a study of a man trying to do what is right while facing obstacles that would push him further into his quest. In the end, The Northman is a spectacular film from Robert Eggers.
Robert Eggers Films: The VVitch - The Lighthouse (2019 film) - Nosferatu (2024 film) - (The Auteurs #75: Robert Eggers)
© thevoid99 2022
Set in the early to late 2000s, the film revolves around an 18-year old boy whose father is a Baptist preacher as he is sent to a gay conversion therapy center where he struggles with its teachings. It’s a film that explores a young man dealing with his own sexual identity as he is sent to this gay conversion therapy center where he would spend much of the day in classes and then stay at a nearby hotel with his mother at night. Joel Edgerton’s screenplay has a narrative that follows the trials and tribulation of Jared Eamons (Lucas Hedges) as the narrative moves back and forth on his time at the conversion therapy center as well as events that questioned about his homosexuality where Eamons tries to understand what got him into this place. Notably an incident in college where he was raped by a student named Henry (Joe Alwyn) who immediately regretted his actions yet would out Eamons to his parents.
For Eamons, the time at the center under the supervision of Victor Sykes (Joel Edgerton) proves to be challenging as a couple of the attendees give Eamons advice on what to do and what not to do to get through this. Though he is ordered to not share anything about what he has to do at the center, Eamons’ mother Nancy (Nicole Kidman) does become concerned as she gets a look into the program’s handbook. While Eamons’ father in Marshall (Russell Crowe) is someone with good intentions and does want to help his son. He is someone that is from another world and doesn’t understand how to really help him as it does create a discord in his relationship with his son while being unaware of what really goes on at the center.
Edgerton’s direction is straightforward in terms of the compositions he creates as he is concerned with the world that Eamons is in which is the American South in Arkansas as it also showcases this world of gay conversion therapy centers that really try to suppress homosexuality. Shot largely on location in Atlanta with additional shots in New York City for a scene late in the third act, Edgerton does maintain a lot of simplicity into his compositions while he uses the wide and medium shots not just to get a scope of a certain location or a room but also into some of the therapy sessions that Victor tries to instill upon his attendees. There are also some close-ups to play into some of the intimate moments as well as medium shots where Edgerton would play into Eamons’ relationship with his parents as they are concerned with his mother being the one trying to understand what is happening. There are also a few tracking shots in scenes at Marshall’s car dealership as well as areas in the therapy center where Edgerton does infuse a bit of style. Still, Edgerton maintains that sense of unease in the drama such as a confessions scene where an attendee has to do a speech about his or her feelings and why that person is at the center.
Edgerton also play into the sense of growing discomfort that also include some of Eamons’ flashbacks about his arrival in college where he met Henry as well as a time where he went to an art show and met an artist. These two flashbacks along with a scene in high school with his then-girlfriend Chloe (Madelyn Cline) do emphasize his growing sexual confusion while there is also a scene in the third act where Eamons watches uncomfortably when an attendee in Cameron (Britton Sear) is accosted for failing an exercise and is then humiliated in front of family, attendees, and others in a scene that is just terrifying. It is a key moment in the film that raises questions into these methods that Sykes and his group are doing with an even more troubling aftermath that would affect Eamons and his relationship with his father though its conclusion is more about the chance of understanding and reconciliation. Overall, Edgerton crafts a riveting yet heart-wrenching film about a young man’s experience at a gay conversion therapy center.
Cinematographer Eduard Grau does excellent work with the film’s cinematography as it has elements of style with its emphasis on low-key lights for some of the scenes at night as well as some interior scenes in the day. Editor Jay Rabinowitz does brilliant work with the editing as it features stylish usage of jump-cuts as well as a slow-motion sequence while. Production designer Chad Keith, with set decorators Mallorie Coleman and Adam Willis plus art director Jonathan Guggenheim, does amazing work with the look of the center including its main hall as well as the home where Eamons and his family live in. Costume designer Trish Summerville does fantastic work with the costumes that is mostly casual with the exception of the clothes that Nancy wears.
Makeup artist Kyra Panchenko does nice work with the look of Nancy from her hairstyle as it play into that world of the American South. Visual effects supervisors Eran Dinur and Chris LeDoux do terrific work with the film’s minimal visual effects as it is largely set dressing in some parts of the film’s location. Sound editor Glenfield Payne does superb work with the sound in capturing the sparse atmosphere of the center in its main hall as well as the way music is presented on the radio or at a concert. The film’s music by Danny Bensi and Saunder Jurrians is wonderful for orchestral score that help plays into the drama while music supervisor Linda Cohen assembles a soundtrack that features some Christian music and Christian rock but also music from MGMT, Fleet Foxes, Jonsi, Underworld, Tracy Lawrence, Seether, and Troye Sivan.
The casting by Carmen Cuba is incredible as it feature some notable small roles from Madelyn Cline as Eamons’ girlfriend early in the film Chloe, Jesse LaTourette as a female attendee at the center in Sarah, Theodore Pellerin as an artist Eamons met in Xavier, Britton Sear as a young center attendee in Cameron who is struggling with the methods of the program, Troye Sivan as an attendee in Gary who tells Eamons to stick with the program and not be noticed, and Cherry Jones as a doctor in a flashback who is concerned with Eamons’ decision to go to the center as she suggests that it’s best to not go. Xavier Dolan is superb as an attendee in Jon who is hell-bent on being fixed as he refuses to be touched while Michael “Flea” Balzary is fantastic as a tough-minded counselor in Brandon who emphasizes on masculinity to help out with the therapy through some extreme physical challenges. Joe Alwyn is excellent as Henry as a young college student Eamons meets where things don’t exactly go well as he would end up making things worse.
Joel Edgerton is brilliant as Victor Sykes as the director of the conversion therapy center who believes he is trying to help these young people as he is someone with good intentions but his methods end up being questionable and at times overwhelming to the point of abuse. Russell Crowe is amazing as Eamons’ father Marshall as a Baptist pastor who also runs an auto dealership who is concerned for his son yet is uncertain in what to do as Crowe does bring in this complexity into a man that does love his son but is also a man of God as he’s someone that is conflicted where Crowe plays him with great restraint as well as be someone that is full of fear though his heart is in the right place.
Nicole Kidman is radiant as Eamons’ mother Nancy as this air of warmth and understanding as a woman who does love her faith but she also loves her son as she accompanies him to the center while trying to figure out what they’re doing as Kidman just has this air of grace while knowing when to be the mama bear. Finally, there’s Lucas Hedges in a phenomenal performance as Jared Eamons as an 18-year old kid who is struggling with his sexual identity as well as his own experiences with homosexuality where he’s unsure if he’s done anything wrong while also dealing with the intense therapy sessions that has gotten him more confused as it is a career-defining performance from Hedges.
Boy Erased is an incredible film from Joel Edgerton that features great performances from Lucas Hedges, Russell Crowe, and Nicole Kidman. Along with its supporting cast, amazing visuals, and its themes about sexual identity and its conflicts with faith, the film is a unique character study of a young man trying to understand himself but also in the world that he’s raised in and their reluctance to accept who he is. In the end, Boy Erased is a phenomenal film from Joel Edgerton.
© thevoid99 2021
Based on the DC Comics series by Paul Norris and Mort Weisinger, Aquaman is the story of a half-human, half-Atlantean who reluctantly goes into the underwater world of Atlantis to stop his younger half-brother from uniting the seven kingdoms to wage war against the surface world. Directed by James Wan and screenplay by David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick and Will Beall from a story by Wan, Beall, and Geoff Johns, the film is a part-origin story and an adventure story where Arthur Curry deals with his mother’s disappearance and the destiny he has to take on to save the world from destruction as he is played by Jason Momoa. Also starring Amber Heard, Patrick Wilson, Willem Dafoe, Dolph Lundgren, Temeura Morrison, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, and Nicole Kidman as Atlanna. Aquaman is a grand and exhilarating film from James Wan.
Set several months after a confrontation with an evil force where he is part of the Justice League, the film is about Arthur Curry/Aquaman dealing with his past but also a new threat in the former of his younger half-brother Orm (Patrick Wilson) who wants to wage war on the surface world and become king of Atlantis. It’s a film that has a simple premise that is expected with films about superheroes but it’s more of a study of a man reluctant to take on what is rightfully is as he also deals with the fact that he’s half-human and it lead to the disappearance and death of his mother Queen Atlanna. The film’s screenplay by David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick and Will Beall opens with how Atlanna met lighthouse keeper Thomas Curry (Temeura Morrison) in 1985 and fell in love that lead to the conception of Arthur as their tranquil life was disrupted by Atlantan forces who want Atlanna to return as she reluctantly leaves Thomas and Arthur to protect them.
The script would showcase some flashbacks of Arthur growing up to understand his powers to communicate with aquatic creatures but also be trained by Atlanna’s advisor Nuidis Vulko (Willem Dafoe) who would teach Arthur many things as he would later become Orm’s advisor only to get uneasy about Orm’s ambition as he chooses to help Arthur in secrecy. Also helping Curry with this growing conflict is Princess Mera of Xebel (Amber Heard) whose father King Nereus (Dolph Lundgren) had aligned himself with Orm after an attack from a Russian submarine. Yet, Orm has also made a secret alliance with a pirate in David Kane (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) to set-up the attack as he wants to find Arthur following a confrontation at a submarine that lead to the death of Kane’s father Jesse (Michael Beach) during an attempted hijack on that sub. Though the script does have a few clunky moments in the dialogue, it does succeed in establishing the characters and the stakes with the first act being about Orm’s desire to attack and Arthur reluctantly trying to stop him while its second act is about their first duel that nearly kills Arthur and his escape with Mera as they try to find an ancient artifact that relates to a trident that belonged to Atlantis’ true king in Atlan as the person who holds it is Atlantis’ true heir.
James Wan’s direction is definitely grand in terms of the visual scope he presents of the underwater world that is Atlantis but also ground it with some realism for some scenes on the surface. Shot largely in Australia and at Village Roadshow Studios on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia with additional locations shot in parts of Italy, Canada, and Morocco, Wan does create a world that is vast not just above the sea but also under the sea. Particularly on the latter as the world of Atlantis is enchanting as well as wondrous while it also feature an array of beings, creatures, and human-like figures known as Atlanteans who live and breathe underwater while they can converse underwater as they also have powers. Yet, Wan also showcases the sense of prejudice towards Arthur yet there are a few that are willing to give him a chance despite their issues with civilization at the surface. Wan’s usage of the wide shots in how he presents Atlantis as well as the film’s climatic battle scene definitely capture a lot of coverage and establishes it in what is going on.
Wan’s direction also knows when to break away from the action in favor of character development and interaction that include scenes of Arthur and Mera on Earth traveling through the Sahara and later going to Sicily to find clues of the trident’s whereabouts. Wan keeps things smooth and help bring some nuances to the story including Arthur and Mera’s growing relationship while they have to fight off Orm’s personal guards, sea creatures, and David Kane wearing a suit as he’s called Black Manta. Wan’s approach to action and suspense add to the stakes that occur including the sequence in the third act where Arthur and Mera face off against monsters in this wormhole known as the Trench that leads to a mysterious land where Atlan’s trident is located. Wan does allow shots to linger for a bit including a few fights including Atlanna’s fights against a royal guard early in the film as it is shot in one entire take with tracking shots and other camera effects. The film’s climatic battle sequence display an air of grandeur and importance where Wan does establish what is going on as well as what is at stake as it play into Arthur stepping into his role as King of Atlantis. Overall, Wan crafts an intoxicating yet exhilarating film about half-man, half-Atlantean who comes to term with who he is and his destiny.
Cinematographer Don Burgess does excellent work with the film’s cinematography with its colorful and vibrant look for many of the exterior scenes shot in the day in some of the film’s different locations along with the usage of low-key and blue-green colors for some of the scenes under the sea. Editor Kirk Morri does nice work with the editing as it does play into conventional fast-cutting with some of the action but does stray from chaotic editing to establish what is happening as it also include some stylish cuts for the humorous moments in the film. Production designer Bill Brezki, with set decorators Danielle Berman and Beverley Dunn plus supervising art director Richard Hobbs, does amazing work with the look of Atlantis as well as the home of Thomas Curry, the bar Arthur and Thomas go to, the palace in the Sahara, and other locations including some in Sicily. Costume designer Kym Barrett does fantastic work with the suit that Mera wears under the sea as well as the clothes that other Atlanteans wear along with the more casual look of Arthur and the eventual suit that he would wear in its third act.
Hair/makeup designer Lesley Vanderwalt and special makeup effects/creature designer Justin Raleigh do brilliant work with the look of some of the characters as well as how hair moves underwater as it’s a highlight of the film. Special effects supervisors Mark R. Byers and Brian Cox, plus visual effects supervisors Tim Alexander, Jay Barton, Bryan Hirota, Sebastian Moreau, David Nelson, Craig Wentworth, and Jeff White, do incredible work with the visual effects as it is a major highlight of the film with the design of Atlantis, the creatures of Atlantis, and some of the underwater effects as they’re top notch and they have this air of grandeur that the film needed. Sound designers Harry Cohen, Eliot Connors, Joe Dzuban, and Stephen P. Robinson, along with sound editor Peter Brown, do superb work with the sound as it help play into the atmosphere of the locations as well the sound effects of some of the Atlantean weapons that are used.
The film’s music by Rupert Gregson-Williams is wonderful for its mixture of bombastic orchestral score with some electronic flourishes as it help play into the massive scope of the film as well as some soaring pieces with lush string arrangements while music supervisor Michelle Silverman creates a fun soundtrack that features an original piece by Skylar Grey as well as some inspired usage of music from Roy Orbison and Depeche Mode though the track from Pitbull with Rhea is just dumb.
The casting by Anne McCarthy and Kellie Roy is marvelous as it feature some notable small roles and appearances from Andrew Crawford providing the motion capture performances of the Brine King and King Richou of the Fisherman with John Rhys-Davies and Djimon Hounsou respectively providing the voices, Leigh Whannell as a cargo pilot, Julie Andrews as the voice of a mysterious creature guarding King Atlan’s trident, Ludi Lin as Atlantis’ front-line army commander Captain Murk, Graham McTavish as King Atlan via flashbacks, and Randall Park in a small performance as the marine biologist Dr. Stephen Shin who is trying to prove to everyone that Atlantis is real. In the roles of the young Arthur, Tainu and Tamor Kirkwood as the three-year old Arthur, Kaan Guldur as the nine-year old Arthur, Otis Dhanji as the 13-year old Arthur, and Kekoa Kekumano as the 16-year old Arthur are terrific in displaying the character’s growth and understanding of his powers through Vulko’s guidance. Michael Beach is superb as David’s father Jesse Kane as a leader of pirates who would confront Arthur only to be bested and urge his son to avenge him.
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is fantastic as David Kane/Black Manta as a pirate who seeks to find and kill Arthur in an act of revenge while conspiring with Orm to help start a war with the surface people in exchange for weapons to hunt Arthur. Dolph Lundgren is excellent as King Nereus of the Xebel tribe who is Mera’s father as he also helps Orm with an upcoming war unaware of the truth of Orm’s intentions. Temeura Morrison is brilliant as Thomas Curry as a lighthouse keeper who meets and fall for Atlanna as he is also someone who is aware of his son’s gifts and powers but also knows about the danger that his son will face. Nicole Kidman is amazing in her small role as Queen Atlanna as a descendant of King Atlan who meets and falls for Thomas Curry as she reluctantly leaves Thomas and Arthur only to be punished for her actions leading to her possible execution. Willem Dafoe is remarkable as Nuidis Vulko as Atlanna’s former advisor who would teach Arthur about his powers while also being a reluctant advisor to Orm as he becomes suspicious of Orm’s intentions leading him to help Arthur.
Amber Heard is incredible as Mera as King Nereus’ daughter with telepathic and hydrokinetic powers that helps Arthur in his journey as she is also someone who knows a lot about the underwater world but not much about the surface as she does provide some funny moments. Patrick Wilson is great as Orm as Arthur’s younger half-brother who is the king of Atlantis who hopes to unite the seven kingdoms but also wants to start a war on the surface world as he’s not really an antagonist but someone who despises Arthur for what happened to their mother. Finally, there’s Jason Momoa in a phenomenal performance as Arthur Curry/Aquaman as a half-man, half-Atlantean who possesses some incredible powers to converse with sea creatures as well as being strong but he’s also someone that isn’t sure about ruling Atlantis knowing about its prejudices where Momoa displays some humor and charm but also a weariness as someone who is grounded and knows how to do the right thing as it’s a true breakout performance for Momoa.
Aquaman is a spectacular film from James Wan that features an incredible performance from Jason Momoa in the titular role. Along with its ensemble cast, dazzling visual effects, bombastic music score, and story of identity and family, it’s a blockbuster superhero film manages to be so much more as well as be adventurous and fun. Even as it explores a man coming to terms with who he is but also the role he chooses for an entire world. In the end, Aquaman is a sensational film from James Wan.
James Wan Films: (Saw) – (Dead Silence) – (Death Sentence) – (Insidious) – (The Conjuring) – (Insidious: Chapter 2) – (Furious 7) – (The Conjuring 2) - (Malignant) - (Fast & Furious 10)
DC Extended Universe: Man of Steel - Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice - Suicide Squad - Wonder Woman - Justice League - Shazam! – Birds of Prey – Wonder Woman 1984 - Zack Snyder's Justice League - The Suicide Squad (2021 film) - (Black Adam) – (Shazam! Fury of the Gods) – (Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom) – (The Flash) – (Blue Beetle) – (Batgirl)
© thevoid99 2019
Written and directed by Werner Herzog, Queen of the Desert is about the life of Gertrude Bell from her 20s to the final years of her life as she becomes a famed traveler, writer, archeologist, cartographer, and political officer. The film is a dramatic account of her life as she would also meet various figures who would be important to modern history as she is played by Nicole Kidman. Also starring James Franco, Damian Lewis, Jay Abdo, and Robert Pattinson. Queen of the Desert is a visually-entrancing yet underwritten film from Werner Herzog.
The film chronicles the life of Gertrud Bell from 1903 to 1916 though it begins in 1915 where various individuals are in the Middle East trying to figure out what to do with T.E. Lawrence (Robert Pattinson) suggesting Gertrud Bell to help negotiate matters. It’s a film that play into Bell’s desire to see the world where she would inhabit various roles in her life but also endure tragedy and adventures. Werner Herzog’s screenplay doesn’t do much to create a substantial narrative that play into Bell’s evolution from a lady of privilege into the famed traveler who would also be a writer, a cartographer, archeologist, and political officer who would befriend tribes and help bring brief peace to feuding tribes. It also play into her romantic dalliances with embassy employee Henry Cadogan (James Franco) and later on the military officer Lt. Col. Charles Doughty-Wylie (Damian Lewis). The romantic elements of the script never really fits in with the main story that revolves around Bell’s evolution into this woman who would travel throughout the Middle East and Northern Africa. Even as she would encounter different parts of the world and meet these unique individuals who live from the outside of conventional society.
Herzog’s direction is definitely entrancing for not just shooting on the Sahara desert but also to create a world that is vast and with a sense of the unknown. While much of the film is shot on location in Merzouga, Morocco along with shots in Marrakesh, Erfourd, and Ouarzazate in Morocco plus parts of London and establishing shots in Merzouga and Petra, Jordan. Herzog would capture the beauty of the deserts and locations through some intricate wide shots that gathers so much coverage as well as establish this depth of field that play into the vastness of the locations. Still, Herzog is focused on Bell’s travels and the things she encounter as he would create some nice intimate moments in the close-ups and medium shots upon her meeting with sheiks as she would understand them and they would be gracious in return. It’s among the moments that do make it interesting as well as scenes where Bell meets Lawrence and their views about the world itself.
While there are also some humorous moments in the film, the film unfortunately suffers from its shortcomings in the script where it would affect its pacing as it would plod from time to time including the romantic moments in the film. It’s where the film definitely loses interest as it also makes Bell seem like a homewrecker when it’s not exactly true considering that it was the men that were pursuing her. Herzog’s direction for those scenes do have some interesting compositions but it’s the script that doesn’t really flesh out the emotional aspect of those scenes. Overall, Herzog crafts a messy though fascinating film about the life and work of Gertrude Bell.
Cinematographer Peter Zeitlinger does excellent work with the film’s cinematography in emphasizing the natural lighting and look for many of the scenes set in the desert while emphasizing on a bluish look for the winter scenes in Britain. Editor Joe Bini does nice work with the editing as it has a few jump-cuts and some rhythmic cuts to play into some of the suspense and drama despite its shortcomings in the script. Production designer Ulrich Bergfelder, with art directors Rabiaa N’Gadi and Caroline Steiner, does brilliant work with the look of the homes that Bell would stay in as well as some of the old villages and such where the sheiks lived in. Costume designer Michele Clapton does fantastic work with the costumes from the lavish dresses that Bell and the women would wear at embassy galas and such to the more rugged look she would wear upon her travels through the desert.
Hair/makeup designer Alessandro Bertolazzi does terrific work with the look of the women hairstyles of the time as well as the messiness of Bell’s hair in the desert. Visual effects supervisors Kaspar Kallas and Olaf Przybyszewski do some fine work with some of the film’s visual effects as it largely minor work in bits of set-dressing. Sound designer Laurent Kossayan does superb work with the sound as it play into the atmosphere of the locations including the sounds of guns and cannons throughout the film. The film’s music by Klaus Badelt and Mark Yaeger is amazing for its somber orchestral score driven mainly by strings as it play into the mystique of the Sahara and its desolate locations as well as the world that Bell would encounter.
The casting by Salah Benchegra, Beth Charkham, and Shannon Makhanian is wonderful as it feature some notable small roles from Mark Lewis John as Bell’s uncle Frank Lascelles, Beth Goddard as Bell’s aunt, Holly Earl as her cousin Florence who has feelings for Cadogan, Assaad Bouab as a sheikh who invites Bell to his home as they share a love of poetry and literature, Sophie Linfield as Doughty-Wylie’s wife Judith, Younes Bouab as a young King Faisal I of Iraq, Christopher Fulford as a young Winston Churchill, David Calder as Bell’s father Hugh who disapproves her relationship with Cadogan, and Jenny Agutter as Bell’s mother Florence who is concerned about her daughter’s desire for adventure as she is reluctant to let her daughter seek it out. Jay Abdo is fantastic as Fattouh as a guide who would accompany Bell on her many journeys as well as be her most loyal companion who would help her trek through the land and be someone that Bell would really care for. Robert Pattinson is excellent as T.E. Lawrence as the famed archeologist, army officer, writer, and diplomat whom Bell would meet as he doesn’t care for any romantic interest in Bell but rather as a colleague and equal whom he shares his views on the world with.
Damian Lewis is terrific as Lt. Col. Charles Doughty-Wylie as a military official who becomes Bell’s second major love interest as someone who is fascinated by her views of the world where Lewis has his moments but he and Kidman don’t really radiate any kind of chemistry due in part to the script. James Franco’s performance as Henry Cadogan as this embassy employee isn’t very good due in part to the script’s shortcomings as well as the fact that Franco doesn’t do a good English accent as he and Kidman also don’t have any chemistry where it feels forced. Finally, there’s Nicole Kidman in an incredible performance as Gertrude Bell as the woman who do all sorts of things as she seeks adventure and challenges where Kidman displays a radiance to her character as well as some restraint in her facial reactions. Despite some of the drawbacks of the romantic aspects on Bell’s life, Kidman does display that anguish of a woman who had dealt with so much as she is also trying to move forward with her desire to explore the world.
Queen of the Desert is a stellar yet underwhelming film from Werner Herzog that features a great performance from Nicole Kidman. Along with its dazzling visuals, somber music score, and strong supporting performances from Jay Abdo and Robert Pattinson. It’s a film that does play into Bell’s life as an explorer though it fumbles into its exploration into aspects of her personal and romantic life which isn’t as interesting as what she does when she’s traveling. In the end, Queen of the Desert is a good but messy film from Werner Herzog.
Werner Herzog Films: Feature Films: (Signs of Life) - (Even the Dwarfs Started Small) - (Fatana Morgana) – Aguirre, the Wrath of God - (The Enigma of Kasper Hauer) - (Heart of Glass) – Stroszek - Nosferatu, the Vampyre - Woyzeck - Fitzcarraldo - (Where the Green Ants Dream) – Cobra Verde - (Scream of Stone) - (Lessons of Darkness) - (Invincible (2001 film)) - (The Wild Blue Yonder) – Rescue Dawn - (Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans) – (My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done?) – (Salt and Fire) – (Family Romance, LLC)
Documentaries: (The Flying Doctors of East Africa) - (Handicapped Future) - (Land of Silence and Darkness) - (The Great Ecstasy of Woodcarver Steiner) - (How Much Wood Would a Woodchuck Chuck) - (La Soufrière) - (Huie's Sermon) - (God's Angry Man) - (Ballad of the Little Soldier) - (The Dark Glow of the Mountains) - (Wodaabe) – Herdsmen of the Sun) - (Echoes from a Somber Empire) - (Jag Mandir) - (Bells from the Deep) - (The Transformation of the World into Music) - (Death for Five Voices) - (Little Dieter Needs to Fly) – My Best Fiend - (Wings of Hope) - (Pilgrimage) - (Ten Thousand Years Older) - (Wheel of Time) - (The White Diamond) – Grizzly Man - Encounters at the End of the World - Cave of Forgotten Dreams - (Into the Abyss) – (On Death Row) – From One Second to the Next - (Lo and Behold, Reveries of the Connected World) – (Into the Inferno) – (Meeting Gorbachev)
© thevoid99 2019
Based on the short story by Neil Gaiman, How to Talk to Girls at Parties is the story of a teenage boy in the late 1970s who goes to party where he befriends a mysterious young woman who is revealed to be an alien. Directed by John Cameron Mitchell and screenplay by Mitchell and Philippa Goslett, the film is a genre-bending film that explores first love as well as identity during the age of punk in Great Britain. Starring Elle Fanning, Alex Sharp, Matt Lucas, Ruth Wilson, and Nicole Kidman as Queen Boadicea. How to Talk to Girls at Parties is an exhilarating and whimsical film from John Cameron Mitchell.
Set in 1977 Britain during the age of punk, the film revolves around a young man who goes to a party where he meets a young woman unaware that she might be an alien as he introduces her to the world of punk and love. It’s a film that takes a simple premise of first love and identity as it is told in a stylistic manner that is set during the summer of 1977 where the Queen Elizabeth II’s jubilee is happening as a young teen in Enn (Alex Sharp) is a young artist trying to contribute to the world of punk by creating a fanzine with a couple of his friends in Vic (Abraham Lewis) and John (Ethan Lawrence). The film’s screenplay by John Cameron Mitchell and Philippa Goslett does play into the tropes of the coming-of-age storyline as well as the ideas of first line but there’s also some odd sci-fi moments as it relates to the young woman Enn meets in Zan (Elle Fanning) who is part of a colony of strange people as she is frustrated with their ideals until she meets Enn and his friends at the party that her leaders are hosting.
Zan’s encounter with humanity such as meeting Enn’s mother (Joanna Scanlan), dancing to soul music, eating pancakes, and other things do have elements of humor and curiosity. Notably as Zan also finds herself talking to her master PT Waldo (Tom Brooke) who would inhabit the body of someone near her in warning her about what she’s embarking. Still, Zan wants to learn about so many things as she turns to the punk leader Queen Boadicea as she is kind of this wild maternal figure for all of the young punks where she would encourage Zan to express her own feelings with Enn’s help. This would eventually lead to a conflict with the group of people Zan was with as well as those she met including Enn whom she has fallen for. It would play into the idea of individuality and humanity with Zan in the middle of this conflict as there are those that want to maintain this idea of perfection and being with these ideals also carrying some flaws in the same way that Enn’s own ideals have their own flaws.
Mitchell’s direction is stylish in the way he portrays 1977 Great Britain as well as setting it in the suburbs rather than the cities as much of it is shot on various locations in England in towns like Sheffield and suburban areas in London. While Mitchell would include some wide shots of the locations as well as some moments inside the clubs and the house where Zan and the people she’s with early in the film live in. The film opens with these strange visuals of six symbols that would represent a different colony of these mysterious visitors as Zan is part of a colony whose color is yellow and it then cuts to Enn waking up. Much of Mitchell’s direction is straightforward in terms of compositions in the way he frames the actors in a close-up or in a medium shot while he would infuse stylistic slanted shots in some scenes as well as stylistic shots that play into the frenzy of the punk rock scene.
While the meshing of sci-fi ideas and this grounded sense of drama in the punk rock world isn’t totally successful in some parts of the film. Mitchell does play into these ideals and their flaws as it relates to the third act where the punks and the aliens collide in this approach to absurd humor. Even as it would include a key musical moment in the film where Zan and Enn would sing during the second act as it play into not just the former finding aspects of herself but also the both of them connecting in ways that is indescribable in a surreal sequence. It would lead to moments in the third act as it would play into Enn’s future and how his encounter with Zan and the world of aliens and punk rock would inspire him. Overall, Mitchell creates a wild yet endearing film about a young punk who falls for a mysterious young girl in 1977 Britain.
Cinematographer Frank G. DeMarco does excellent work with the film’s cinematography from the usage of low-key and naturalistic colors for many of the daytime exteriors and interiors in the scenes at Enn’s home and in the many surroundings through a more stylish look in the lighting for the scenes in the punk club and at the home of the aliens. Editor Brian A. Kates does brilliant work with the usage of rhythmic cuts to play into the drama as well as some stylish slow-motion cuts for scenes to play into the sense of joy in some of the characters. Production designer Helen Scott, with set decorator Hannah Spice and art director Caroline Barclay, does fantastic work with the look of the punk club that Queen Boadicea lives and runs as well as the odd apartment and rooms where the aliens live at. Costume designer Sandy Powell does amazing work with the costumes from the clothes that the different aliens wear in their bright colors to the look of the punks to play into how outrageous both groups are.
Hair/makeup designer Sian Grigg does incredible work with the look of the aliens in their hairstyles and makeup as well as the look of Queen Boadicea and some of the punks as it’s a highlight of the film. Special effects supervisor Scott MacIntyre and visual effects supervisor John Bair do terrific work with the visual effects as it play into the film’s opening sequence as well as the musical performance that include this weird yet entrancing sequence that play into Enn and Zan’s love for each other. Sound editors Benjamin Cheah and Gregg Swiatlowski do superb work with the sound in the way music sounds live as well as the way objects sounds including some of the sparse moments in the film. The film’s music by Nico Muhly and Jamie Stewart is wonderful for its mixture of somber ambient music pieces along with low-key electric-folk music to play into some of the film’s dramatic moments while music supervisor Michael Hill provides a fun soundtrack of the music that was playing in the times from acts/artists such as the Damned, the Silvertones, Dub Specialist, the Dischords, A.C. Newman, the Velvet Underground, and Jamie Stewart as well as some original songs co-written by John Cameron Mitchell.
The casting by Douglas Aibel, Henry Russell Bergstein, Emily Jacobs, and Karen Lindsay-Stewart is marvelous as it feature some notable small roles from Lara Peake as a six-fingered young girl named Wainswain, Jed Shardlow as a PT Stella male, Nansi Nsue as a member of the same colony that Zan is in, Jumayn Hunter as a DJ who plays music at Queen Boadicea’s home, Joey Ansah as PT named Bob, Stephen Campbell Moore as a record executive at a show early in the film, Alice Sanders as a pink-haired punk girl named Spinning Alice, and Edward Petherbridge as the alien cult leader PT First as this cult leader who is eager for all of his followers and other leaders to follow everything he believes in.
Joanna Scanlan is terrific as Enn’s mother as a kind woman who helps Zan out with the ideas of womanhood while Tom Brooke is superb as Zan’s mentor PT Waldo as an alien who is concerned about Zan’s departure and her encounter with humanity. Abraham Lewis and Ethan Lawrence are fantastic in their respective roles as Vic and John as Enn’s friends who both have different encounter with the aliens as the former becomes sexually confused while the latter is in awe of the music he hears. Matt Lucas is excellent as PT Wain as a colony leader who wants Zan out of the group believing she is a threat to what she has known as he tries to stir up trouble. Ruth Wilson is brilliant as PT Stella as a colony leader that is known for sexual stimulation as she is a being that wants to seduce humans to great pleasure.
Nicole Kidman is great in her role as Queen Boadicea as a punk leader who is trying to run a club and seek out the next big thing where she isn’t fond of a lot of people but is fascinated by Zan who she sees as someone unique as it’s Kidman at her best. Alex Sharp is remarkable as Enn as a young punk who aspires to be an artist as he befriends Zan and introduce her to punk while dealing with his own issues relating to his father and his own self-being. Finally, there’s Elle Fanning in an incredible performance as Zan as a young woman who arrives on Earth as an American teenager who would discover the world of punk and the ideas of humanity as it’s a performance filled with a sense of energy, natural comic timing, and being fierce once she starts to sing like a punk as it’s one of Fanning’s finest performances.
How to Talk to Girls at Parties is a marvelous film from John Cameron Mitchell that feature top-notch performances from Elle Fanning, Alex Sharp, and Nicole Kidman. Along with its offbeat premise, killer music soundtrack, and dazzling visuals, it’s a film that doesn’t play by the rules despite a few bumps in trying to mesh different genres. In the end, How to Talk to Girls at Parties is a remarkable film from John Cameron Mitchell.
John Cameron Mitchell Films: Hedwig & the Angry Inch - Shortbus - Rabbit Hole - The Auteurs #66: John Cameron Mitchell
© thevoid99 2018
Based on the book A Long Way Home by Saroo Brierley and Larry Buttrose, Lion is the true story of a man who was separated by his family as a young boy where he was adopted by an Australian couple as he would later go on a search to find his original family. Directed by Garth Davis and screenplay by Luke Davies, the film follows the path of a man who trying to find his family with the help of those who cared about him including his adoptive family. Starring Dev Patel, Sunny Pawar, David Wenham, Rooney Mara, Divian Ladwa, and Nicole Kidman. Lion is a rich and evocative film from Garth Davis.
Told largely in the span of more than 25 years, the film follows a young boy who is separated from his older brother where he accidentally boards a train and is suddenly lost where he’s later adopted by an Australian couple who would raise him. It’s a film that follows the journey of a boy searching for his family only to restart the search many years later as a man where he begins to raise questions about himself and what happened to his mother, his older brother, and younger sister. Luke Davies’ script doesn’t waste time early in the film where the young Saroo (Sunny Pawar) follows his older brother Guddu (Abhishek Bharate) who is trying to find work while Saroo naps at a bench on a train where he accidentally enters a train that leaves where he arrives in Calcutta several days later. Much of the first act has Saroo lost in Calcutta trying to find his way back home but has no idea where he’s at nor does he speak Bengali since he speaks a more rural Hindu-based language.
He would encounter people that might seem good but he immediately realizes that it’s not what it seems until he’s taken into an orphanage where he is later aided by a woman in the orphanage in finding his family but has gotten no response. Yet, she would tell him that an Australian couple in John Brierley (David Wenham) and his wife Sue (Nicole Kidman) are interested in adopting him. The second act largely takes place in Tasmania, Australia where Saroo finds a home and a family that loves him where they adopt another Indian child in Mantosh (Keshav Jadhav) who has a hard time adjusting to his new surroundings. 20 years later as the older Saroo (Dev Patel) is training to manage hotels while he dates an American student in Lucy (Rooney Mara), Saroo gets a reminder of his old home forcing him to go into a search to find his family through the usage of Google Earth. Though he is reluctant to tell his adopted parents on what he’s doing, it would become an obsession that nearly drives him apart from those who care about him.
Garth Davis’ direction is definitely mesmerizing for not just the way he captures a man caught between two different worlds but wanting to hold on to them as well as make peace with the world he was lost in when he was a child. Shot on various locations in India such as Kolkata and Melbourne, Australia along with Tasmania, the film does play into this journey that a boy would take as he would travel from Khandwa to Calcutta as Davis would use a lot of wide shots to establish the locations as well as the sense of wonderment that the young Saroo would endure. Much of Davis’ direction is intimate with its usage of hand-held cameras for the close-ups as well as the medium shots to capture Saroo’s family life with John and Sue. Though a lot of Davis’ compositions are straightforward, there are elements of style late in the second act where the older Saroo would see his older brother at a certain location as well as paralleling images to play into a location in Australia and matched with India. The usage of Google Earth is crucial to the story as it play into Saroo’s search and what he can remember about certain locations which leads to the film’s climax where he returns home to see if his family is still there. Overall, Davis crafts a riveting and touching film about a man’s journey to find his family with the support from the people who raised and cared for him.
Cinematographer Greig Fraser does brilliant work with the film’s cinematography with its usage of natural lights for many of the exterior scenes with some low-key lights for some of the interior/exterior scenes at night. Editors Alexandre de Franceschi does excellent work with the editing with its usage of jump-cuts, stylish match cuts, and other rhythmic cuts to play into the drama. Production designer Chris Kennedy, with set decorators Nicki Gardner and Seema Kashyap plus art directors Janie Parker and Ravi Srivastava, does fantastic work with the look of the home that John and Sue live in as well as Saroo’s home in Melbourne plus some of the places in India. Costume designer Cappi Ireland does nice work with the costumes from the ragged clothes of the young Saroo walking around in India to the more casual look of the older Saroo and the people in his life.
Visual effects supervisors Julian Dimsey and Sid Jayakar do terrific work with some of the film’s minimal visual effects that relate to Google Earth and a few moments of set dressing. Sound designer Robert Mackenzie does superb work with the sound as it play into the many locations as well as the array of sounds that Saroo remembers from his time as a child. The film’s music by Hauschka and Dustin O’Halloran is wonderful for its mixture of Indian string music with some ambient textures to play into the sense of wonderment that Saroo endures while music supervisor Jemma Burns provide a mixture of music ranging from Indian-pop to electronic music and pop from acts like Hercules and Love Affair, Sia, Enigma, and Mondo Rock.
The casting by Kirsty McGregor is marvelous as it feature some notable small roles from Riddi Sehn as a man in a café who would find the young Saroo and take him to the authorities in the hope his family would find him, Tannishtha Chatterjee as a young woman in Calcutta who finds Saroo and gives him shelter for a while, Nawazuddin Siddiqui as a friend of that woman who has ideas for Saroo that makes the boy uncomfortable, Keshev Jadhav as the young Mantosh, Abhishek Bharate as Saroo’s older brother Guddu, Divian Ladwa as the older Mantosh who remains a troubled soul, Priyanka Bose as Saroo’s biological mother, and Deepti Naval as Saroj Sood who is an outsider of the Indian orphanage system as she would be the one to make sure Saroo finds a good home and would get him adopted by the Brierleys. David Wenham is superb as Saroo’s adoptive father John Brierley as a kind man that is very patient with Saroo and Mantosh as he is also someone that is becoming concerned with the former’s growing distance from everyone. Rooney Mara is fantastic as Lucy as an American student who becomes Saroo’s girlfriend as she is concerned about his distance as she wants to help him find his family.
Sunny Pawar is excellent as the young Saroo as this young boy who is trying to find his way back home as he endures poverty, different language and cultural barriers while eventually finding a home and a family that loves him. Dev Patel is brilliant as the older Saroo as a man who finds himself dealing with his identity as well as the need to find his family where his obsession nearly drives him away from those who care about him. Finally, there’s Nicole Kidman in a truly radiant and intoxicating supporting performance as Saroo’s adoptive mother Sue as she provides this air of warmth and gracefulness from the first scene she’s in as a woman that is full of love where it’s Kidman at her most restrained as well as one of her finest performances.
Lion is an incredible film from Garth Davis that features great performances from Sunny Pawar, Dev Patel, and Nicole Kidman. Along with its supporting cast, gorgeous locations, and a touching story of loss and the need to return home. It’s a film that captures the journey of a boy who becomes a man in his need to find his original family as well as bring together those who raised and cared for him. In the end, Lion is a sensational film from Garth Davis.
© thevoid99 2018
Based on the novel A Painted Devil by Thomas P. Cullinan, The Beguiled is the story of a wounded Union soldier who is taken in to an all-girl’s school in the American South where his presence would cause a disruption among the girls and women at the school. Written for the screen and directed by Sofia Coppola, the film is different take on novel as opposed to the 1971 film directed by Don Siegel as it is more about women giving into temptation and girls dealing with the presence of a man during the American Civil War. Starring Nicole Kidman, Colin Farrell, Kirsten Dunst, Elle Fanning, Angourie Rice, Oona Laurence, Emma Howard, and Addison Riecke. The Beguiled is a rich yet eerie film from Sofia Coppola.
Set in 1864 Virginia during the American Civil War at an all-girl’s school that is isolated from the battlefields and towns in the South, the film is a simple story in which a young girl from that school found a wounded Union soldier as she takes him in to the school where he’s to be healed from his wounds. Yet, his presence at the school would mark a change as the film is more about the life of these women at a school where they live in a very remote and isolated environment away from the battlefield while being aware of what is happening outside of the school. Even as there would be Confederate troops stopping by every once in a while to check up on the school as its headmistress Miss Martha Farnsworth (Nicole Kidman) is running the school as she knows the procedures of what to do when a Yankee is at her home while a couple of the students would be lookouts.
Sofia Coppola’s screenplay, which also feature bits of the 1971 screenplay by Albert Maltz and Irene Kamp that was directed by Don Siegel, definitely goes a different angle with the story though the plot does remain the same. Notably as Coppola chooses to focus more on Miss Farnsworth, the teacher Edwina Morrow (Kirsten Dunst), and the five remaining students at the school as many of them had fled while the slaves who had help run the house had fled as well. These seven women are just trying to live their lives and run the house as one of the young girls in Amy (Oona Laurence) is picking mushrooms where she would find Corporal John McBurney (Colin Farrell). Cpl. McBurney is an interesting character as an Irish immigrant who only served in the Union for money once he arrived as he hopes to go west as he intrigues both Miss Farnsworth and Morrow as there’s elements of temptation for those two women
Miss Farnsworth is definitely a maternal figure of sorts for all of the girls as she is just trying to do her job as she is trying not to give in and do what needs to be done. In Morrow, here’s a woman that is quite worldly but has a melancholia to her having been cooped up in the house for so long as she sees Cpl. McBurney as a way out of the school. Then there’s the teenage student Alicia (Elle Fanning) who is fascinated by Cpl. McBurney as she would try to seduce him as it would set things off at the house. Especially with the second half of the story as it’s tone as this calm and carefree story would become something much darker. Notably as it play into all of these elements of temptation and lust as well as the attempt to return things to normal as it involves a sense of danger and suspense. Another aspect of Coppola’s script is the attention to detail she has in some of the dialogue as it help play into some of the plot schematics as well as in the characters as a couple of them are suspicious of Cpl. McBurney’s presence.
Coppola’s direction is truly ravishing in not just creating a film that is filled with gorgeous imagery but also create something that is quite claustrophobic in its setting as well as in using the 1:66:1 aspect ratio which is an offbeat look for the film. Shot on location in Louisiana with many of the interiors of the house shot at the actual home of actress Jennifer Coolidge. Coppola uses the many exteriors to play into a world that is quite detached from the action of the American Civil War as Coppola’s usage of wide shots would help play into that world as well as knowing where to use the wide shots for scenes that are crucial to the plot. Many of the interior shots in the film would have Coppola use a lot of medium shots with some wide shots and close-ups as it aspect ratio help play into the film’s claustrophobic tone as well as show a world that is very orderly with everyone having a role to play.
Coppola would create moments that are intriguing such as the conversations Cpl. McBurney would have with Miss Farnsworth and Morrow as she knows where to frame them and play up the sense of temptation that looms throughout the film. By the time the film reaches that shift in tone to play into some of the suspense and heightened drama. Even as Coppola knows where to use a close-up or a medium shot in certain moments as create something that is very suspenseful without the need of a music score to build it up. Notably in a scene where everyone is having dinner as the dialogue would play into things that help add to the suspense as it is Coppola’s attention to detail that is so important which makes these little moments in the film so important. Overall, Coppola creates an evocative yet chilling film about a group of girls and women bringing in a wounded Union soldier during the American Civil War.
Cinematographer Philippe Le Sourd does incredible work with the cinematography as its emphasis on natural lighting doesn’t just play into much of the exteriors set in the day and night as well as some of the daytime interiors but also in the usage of candles as the source of light for many of the interior scenes at night as they’re just gorgeous to look at. Editor Sarah Flack does excellent work in the editing with its usage of jump-cuts in some scenes as well as allowing shots to continue for a bit rather than go into a straight fast-cut as it is one of the film’s highlights. Production designer Anne Ross, with set decorator Amy Beth Silver and art director Jennifer Dehghan, does amazing work with the look of some of the interiors at the Coolidge house as well as provide the right kind of furniture and props that were used in those times. Costume designer Stacey Battat does fantastic work with the look of the white dresses the girls and women wear as well as Cpl. Burney’s uniform as well as the formal gowns that the girls and women wear for the special dinners.
The makeup work of Stacy Kelly does terrific work with the makeup the girls would wear for the formal dinners while Elvis Jones would provide the look of Cpl. McBurney’s wounded leg. Visual effects supervisor Joseph Oberle does nice work with the film’s minimal visual effects as it relate to the Cpl. McBurney’s wounded leg as it would also serve as a key moment for the film’s third act. Sound designer Richard Beggs, along with co-sound editor Roy Waldspurger, does brilliant work with the sound from the way cannons and gunfire are heard from afar to the sparse moments at the house as well as some of the most chilling moments in the film. The film’s music mainly feature music that is performed on location whether it’s sung or performed in a music room as it’s mainly the traditional music of the time while the score is essentially a variation of Claudio Monteverdi’s Magnificat performed by Phoenix with arrangements by Laura Karpman as it only appears sparingly in moments that are very quiet.
The casting by Courtney Bright and Nicole Daniels is wonderful as it feature a few notable small roles and appearances from Wayne Pere as a Confederate captain, Matt Story as a Confederate soldier, and Joel Albin as a cavalry officer as they appear briefly to check on Miss Farnsworth and her school. Addison Riecke is superb as Marie as one of the young students who takes a liking to Cpl. McBurney as she would help him while Emma Howard is fantastic as Emily who is a bit suspicious of Cpl. McBurney as she is just trying to do her duties while lamenting the loneliness she and the girls are dealing with in their environment. Oona Laurence is brilliant as Amy as the girl who would find Cpl. McBurney as she would take a liking to him while raising concerns about what would happen to him. Angourie Rice is excellent as Jane as the prim student that is also suspicious of Cpl. McBurney as her own father is an officer for the Confederate while being a very talented musician.
Elle Fanning is amazing as Alicia as the teenage student who takes a great liking towards Cpl. McBurney as she sees him as an object of desire where she would vie with Miss Farnsworth and Morrow for his affections. Kirsten Dunst is incredible as Edwina Morrow as a teacher who lived in towns and know a lot about the world yet is someone that is quite melancholic who keep things to herself as she falls for Cpl. McBurney in the hopes she would get out of the school. Colin Farrell is remarkable as Corporal John McBurney as an Irish immigrant who joins the Union for money as he becomes wounded and later cared for by Miss Farnsworth, Morrow, and the students where he tries to return the favor only expressing his fear in returning to war but also would do things that play into his own desires. Finally, there’s Nicole Kidman in a phenomenal performance as Miss Martha Farnsworth as a school headmistress who is a deeply religious woman that is trying to maintain order as she copes with the temptation of Cpl. McBurney’s presence as well as make sense of the chaos that would come later as Kidman definitely sells that sense of conflict and torment that shows a woman who has been through a lot but is trying to maintain some sense and order in her school.
The Beguiled is a tremendous film from Sofia Coppola. Featuring a great ensemble cast, gorgeous visuals, intoxicating sound work, masterful editing, and a hypnotic music soundtrack. The film is definitely a very unusual yet entrancing suspense-drama that explore women dealing with temptation by a man’s presence as well as an exploration of innocence loss during one of the tumultuous periods in American history. In the end, The Beguiled is a spectacular film from Sofia Coppola.
Sofia Coppola Films: Lick the Star - The Virgin Suicides - Lost in Translation - Marie Antoinette - Somewhere - The Bling Ring - A Very Murray Christmas - On the Rocks - Priscilla (2023 film)
Sofia Coppola Soundtracks: Air-The Virgin Suicides OST - The Virgin Suicies OST - Lost in Translation OST - Marie Antoinette OST - (The Bling Ring OST) - (Priscilla OST)
Related: The Beguiled (1971 film) - The Video & Ads 1993-2008 - Favorite Films #1: Lost in Translation - The Auteurs #1: Sofia Coppola - Favorite Films #4: Somewhere - 10 Reasons Why Lost in Translation is the Best Film Ever...
© thevoid99 2017
Written, scored, and directed by Alejandro Amenabar, The Others is the story of a woman who lives in a remote home with her two children as they deal a series of odd events as it relates to the people coming into their home. The film is an unconventional haunted house film which relates to a woman and her children, who are sensitive to sunlight, as they ponder what is happening around them as well as those who had died in their home. Starring Nicole Kidman, Fionnula Flanagan, Christopher Eccleston, Elaine Cassidy, Eric Sykes, Alakina Mann, and James Bentley. The Others is a spellbinding yet eerie film from Alejandro Amenabar.
Set in the aftermath of World War II at a remote country estate in Jersey in Britain, the film revolves a devout Catholic woman who lives with her two photosensitive children as they hired a new staff at the home where they all deal with some strange things that are happening in the house. It’s a haunted house film that plays into a woman not just dealing with these strange events but doing whatever it takes to protect her children from sunlight. Still, it is no match for these strange events that are happening as the children claim that there’s ghosts in the house. Alejandro Amenabar’s screenplay not only explores the attempt by Grace Stewart (Nicole Kidman) to shield her children from the light as well as questions about the outside world. She also hopes to instill Roman Catholic faith into them so they can be protected from evil but it’s not enough to deal with the ghosts.
While Grace’s new maid Mrs. Bertha Mills (Fionnula Flanagan) knows something is up, she tries assure Grace that nothing serious is happening. Once the story progresses, it is clear that Mills along with the gardener Edmund Tuttle (Eric Sykes) and a young mute named Lydia (Elaine Cassidy) know something that Grace doesn’t know. Even as it alludes to why Grace’s husband Charles (Christopher Eccleston) hasn’t returned from the war. Amenabar’s script also play into the ideas of life after death where Grace’s children Anne (Alakina Mann) and Nicholas (James Bentley) wonder about their father as well as the surroundings around them. While Anne is convinced that something is haunting them, Grace doesn’t believe it at first until a key moment as it play to who are the people inhabiting the house.
Amenabar’s direction doesn’t play to a lot of the conventions that is often expected in horror or in suspense-dramas. Yet, it does maintain an atmosphere of what is going on in the way Amenabar builds up the suspense while creating something that is dramatic with bits of humor. Amenabar’s direction would infuse some gorgeous imagery into his compositions from his usage close-ups and medium shots to play up the intimacy of the home as well as some unique tracking shots and camera angles to play into the home itself. The way Amenabar would move the camera for certain scenes such as the sounds of children crying and other things which helps play into Grace’s own suspicions and need to tend to her children. Though much of the film is set in Britain, some of the exteriors is shot in Northern Spain as it help plays into the world of the unknown in a sequence where Grace tries to walk to the church miles away.
The direction would also have some eerie moments that blur the lines between what is real and what is not where adding to that air of suspense is Amenabar’s score. While it is largely an orchestral score with string arrangements and a few piano pieces, it help plays into the drama while knowing how to build up the suspense and sense of terror. By the time the film reaches its third act, the terror does reach its apex as well as an astonishing reveal that does add a new tone to the film. Especially as it relate to not just the theme of death but also the concept of the afterlife and eternity. Overall, Amenabar creates a mesmerizing yet intoxicating film about a woman trying to protect her children from ghosts in her home.
Cinematographer Javier Aguirresarobe does brilliant work with the film‘s cinematography for its usage of natural lighting as well as low-key lighting for many of the interior scenes to help play up the lack of sunlight as well as scenes with sunlight as it is one of the film‘s major highlights. Editor Nacho Ruiz Capillas does excellent work with the editing as a lot of it is straightforward with some stylish cuts to play up the drama as well as the suspenseful moments. Production designer Benjamin Fernandez, with set decorators Emilio Ardura and Elli Griff, do amazing work with the look of the sets from the hallways as well as the rooms in the house to play up something that feels like a world that is old as well as out of step with the times.
Costume designer Sonia Grande does fantastic work with the costumes as many of the clothes the characters wear don’t showcase much color as it plays to the look of the film. Visual effects supervisor Felix Berges does nice work with some of the film‘s minimal visual effects as it relates to some key moments in the film‘s third act. Sound designer Isabel Diaz Cassou does superb work with the sound to help create an atmosphere for what goes on at the house where it helps play into the suspense as well as some scenes that heighten up that sense of terror.
The casting by Shaheen Baig and Jina Jay is incredible as it features some notable small roles from Keith Allen, Michelle Fairley, Renee Asherson, and Alexander Vince as a group of people who could be the ghosts that are haunting the house. Elaine Cassidy is wonderful as the mute young maid Lydia who is always suspected of doing something while Grace wonders what made her mute in the first place. Eric Sykes is terrific as the gardener Edmund Tuttle as a man who always work outside while also helping Mills do some cover-up into what is really going on. Christopher Eccleston is excellent as Grace’s husband Charles who is missing from the family as he only appears briefly to serve as the one thing Grace is hoping for in her sheltered existence.
James Bentley and Alakina Mann are fantastic in their respective roles as Nicholas and Anne as the two children who deal with ghosts with Bentley as the younger of the two who is more scared over what is happening while Mann provides a showier role as someone who knows what is going on but is also just as scared. Fionnula Flanagan is amazing as Mrs. Bertha Mills as the new head maid of the house who knows a lot about the house as she also knows its secrets which she conceals from Grace. Finally, there’s Nicole Kidman in a remarkable performance as Grace Stewart as this very religious woman who is trying to protect her children at any cost as well as ponder the fate of her husband as it’s a performance of power but also terror where Kidman brings a lot of anguish into the performance which is one of her best.
The Others is a phenomenal film from Alejandro Amenabar that features a great performance from Nicole Kidman. Along with a brilliant ensemble cast as well as an engaging story, a fantastic score, and beautiful visuals. The film isn’t just a riveting haunted house film but also a fascinating study on the concepts of death and faith. In the end, The Others is a spectacular film from Alejandro Amenabar.
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© thevoid99 2015
