Directed by James Wan and screenplay by Chris Morgan from characters created by Gary Scott Thompson, Furious 7 is the story of Dominic Torretto, Brian O’Conner, and the rest of their family being hunted down by an assassin wanting vengeance while the team tries to recover a computer chip with the aid of the chip‘s designer. The film is a revenge film of sorts where it’s the good guys that are being hunted where they have to go after the hunter before he kills them all. Starring Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Jordana Brewster, Michelle Rodriguez, Dwayne Johnson, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Tyrese Gibson, Elsa Pataky, Djimon Hounsou, Kurt Russell, Nathalie Emmanuel, Ronda Rousey, Tony Jaa, Lucas Black, and Jason Statham as Deckard Shaw. Furious 7 is a wild and exhilarating film from James Han.
Picking up where the last film leaves off, it revolves around a group of drivers who consider themselves family where the events in the last mission have them being hunted by a former assassin in Deckard Shaw whose brother Owen (Luke Evans) was crippled and left in a coma by Dominic Torretto (Vin Diesel) and his team. For Torretto, the recent death of one of his friends and the attempt on the life of him and his family forces him to find Shaw and stop him as he is aided by a covert ops agent named Mr. Nobody (Kurt Russell) to stop Shaw and retrieve a computer software chip that has surveillance on everyone known as God’s Eye. With Brian O’Conner (Paul Walker), Letty Ortiz (Michelle Rodriguez), Roman Pierce (Tyrese Gibson), and Tej Parker (Chris “Ludacris” Bridges) on the team while Mia Torretto (Jordana Brewster) is at a safe house in the Dominican Republic and DSS agent Luke Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) recuperating from an attack from Shaw that nearly killed him. Torretto is forced to deal with someone that is dangerous.
While the script is very simple, there is a lot that is happening as it relates to the characters as Letty struggles to regain bits of her lost memories while O’Conner is also coping with being a father as he is unaware that Mia is pregnant again. It adds a lot to what is at stake where it’s not just Torretto needing to make sure that his family stays together following the loss of key members as well as those like O’Conner who has another life that is far more important. Adding to these elements of what is stake where the team has to retrieve the designer of this software named Ramsey (Nathalie Emmanuel) who has been captured by friends of Shaw that wants God’s Eye so they can use it for themselves. The chip is a MacGuffin but it does play into a lot of what needs to be done where it is a good plot device while screenwriter Chris Morgan also provides some laughs and dramatic moments that do give the film some depth but also not take itself so seriously.
James Wan’s direction is definitely stylish as he doesn’t really do anything new in terms of what is expected in compositions and action sequences. Yet, he does manage to do a lot more in the latter where it borders the line of ridiculous and insanity but all in a very fun way. Shot in various locations such as Los Angeles, Abu Dhabi, Tokyo, and some shots in Atlanta and mountains in Colorado, the film has a global feel that is massive where Wan does take advantage of the locations while maintaining something that plays into a world where everything is in danger. The usage of wide and medium shots are prevalent throughout while Wan also maintains an intimacy for the non-action scenes where he knows where to give the audience a break on the action and establish what is going on and what needs to be done. The action sequences are intense as it adds to a lot of what is at stake while it also play into moments that are just unbelievable. Yet, it is so fun where has this energy that is just potent where it’s not just about car chases and violence but also the thrill of it. While the film’s ending is poignant as it relates to a key character in the franchise, it at least gives that character a fitting send-off. Overall, Wan creates a fun and exciting film about a bunch of street racers fighting against some crazed assassin.
Cinematographers Stephen F. Windon and Marc Spicer do excellent work with the cinematography in not just giving the many different locations a distinct look in its lighting but also employ elements of heightened lighting for scenes in Abu Dhabi as well as the scenes at night for Los Angeles. Editors Christian Wagner, Dylan Highsmith, Kirk Morri, and Leigh Folsom Boyd do amazing work in the editing where it does rely on fast-cutting techniques but it doesn’t go overboard while managing to establish what is going on while knowing when to slow things down. Production designer Bill Brzeski, with set decorator Danielle Berman and supervising art director Desma Murphy, does fantastic work with the look of the house that Dominic has lived most of his life as well as the workshop that Mr. Nobody plans everything while the rooms inside the Abu Dhabi Etihad Towers has this air of richness. Costume designer Sanja Milkovic Hays does nice work with the costumes as it’s mostly casual with the exception of the scenes in Abu Dhabi where everyone looked sharp including the ladies.
Special effects supervisor Daniel Sudick and visual effects supervisors Mark Curtis, Martin Hill, Kelvin McIlwain, Karen Murphy, and Mike Wassel do brilliant work with some of the special effects in the action sequences as well as some unique visual effects for the O’Conner character thanks in part from the work of stand-ins in Walker’s brothers Caleb and Cody. Sound designers Peter Brown, Stephen P. Robinson, and Ann Scibelli, along with sound editor Joe Dzuban, do superb work with the sound in creating the power of the engines as well as the sounds of gunfire and planes. The film’s music by Brian Tyler is wonderful for its mixture of orchestral music, electronic, and hip-hop as it plays into the frenetic world of street racing as well as the parties the characters go to as it is bombastic but also has its somber moments.
The casting by Anne McCarthy and Kellie Roy is terrific as it features some notable small roles from Ali Fazal as a friend of Ramsey in Abu Dhabi, John Brotherton as Mr. Nobody’s aide, Luke Evans as the comatose Owen Shaw, Noel Gugliemi as the street-race organizer Hector, Lucas Black as Fast & Furious 3 protagonist Sean Boswell who gives Torreto some belongings of the character Han, Tony Jaa as a henchman friend of Shaw, Miller and Charlie Kimsey as Brian and Mia’s son Jack, and Eden Estrella as Hobbs’ young daughter who provides some funny moments. Other notable small roles include Elsa Pataky in a wonderful role as associate and Hobbs’ new partner Elena Neves who watches over the injured Hobbs while Ronda Rousey is superb as security head for a billionaire in Abu Dhabi who fets into a brawl with Letty. Nathalie Emmanuel is excellent as Ramsey as a computer software designer who is rescued by Torretto and his team as she helps them retrieve the program she designed. Djimon Hounsou is fantastic as Shaw’s friend in mercenary Mose Jakande as a man that wants the God’s Eye software.
Kurt Russell is great as Mr. Nobody as a government agent who fills in for the injured Hobbs as helps Torretto and the gang to try and capture Shaw while Dwayne Johnson is brilliant as Luke Hobbs as a DSS agent who is confronted by Shaw and is nearly killed only to get angry when he returns for its climax. Jordana Brewster is amazing as Mia Torretto as Dom’s sister and Brian’s partner who stays home from the action as she has news for Brian that would force him to make a big decision. Chris “Ludacris” Bridges and Tyrese Gibson are hilarious in their respective roles as Tej and Roman as the two comic reliefs with Tej as the tech guy and Roman as the man with the big mouth. Michelle Rodriguez is phenomenal as Letty as Dom’s lover who is trying to recover her memory from the past while helping out the team where she gets herself into a brawl with a mean security head.
Jason Statham is incredible as Deckard Shaw as this former assassin who is a total loose cannon that is extremely pissed off and is not afraid in whoever he meets as he is a true antagonist and possibly the one person that can match everyone toe-to-toe. In one of his final performance, Paul Walker is marvelous as Brian O’Conner as a former cop/agent who is trying to adjust to family life while doing what he can to help Dom while coming to terms that his life of adventure might be coming to an end as it’s a fitting send-off to the actor with the aid of his brothers Caleb and Cody as stand-ins. Finally, there’s Vin Diesel in a remarkable role as Dominic Torretto as a street racer trying to protect his family from Shaw as he deals with the loss of a few friends and trying to get Letty back on her feet.
Furious 7 is a sensational film from James Wan. Armed with a great cast, thrilling action sequences, and an engaging story. The film isn’t just another high watermark for the franchise but it’s also a film that gives the late Paul Walker a fitting send-off for himself and the Brian O’Conner character. In the end, Furious 7 is a phenomenal film from James Wan.
Fast & Furious Films: (The Fast & the Furious) - (2 Fast 2 Furious) - (The Fast & the Furious: Tokyo Drift) - (Fast & Furious) - (Fast Five) - Fast & Furious 6 - (Fast & Furious 8)
© thevoid99 2016
Directed by Justin Lin and written by Chris Morgan, Fast & Furious 6 is the sixth film of the Fast & Furious franchise in which Dominic Toretto, Brian O’Conner, and the rest of the gang are asked by DSS agent Luke Hobbs to stop a mercenary organization that features Dominic’s lover Letty Ortiz who had been presumed dead. Set almost entirely in Europe, the film has many of the characters from the previous film come together to not only get back one of their own and regain their freedom but also stop a mercenary team who wants to cause trouble for their lives. With Vin Diesel and Paul Walker both reprising their respective roles in Dominic Toretto and Brian O’Conner while being joined by other franchise regulars in Jordana Brewster, Michelle Rodriguez, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Tyrese Gibson, Gal Gadot, Sung Kang, Elsa Pataky, and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as Luke Hobbs. The film also stars Gina Carano and Luke Evans as Owen Shaw. Fast & Furious 6 is a sensationally fun film from Justin Lin.
The film sort of picks up where the last film has ended where Dominic Toretto, Brian O’Conner, Dominic’s sister Mia (Jordana Brewster), and Elena (Elsa Pataky) all live quietly in Spain just as Mia has given birth to Brian’s new son Jack. While the Torettos and many of their friends live rich and comfortable lives, they’re still wanted fugitives to the U.S. government until Luke Hobbs gives Dominic some startling news that his old flame Letty Ortiz (Michelle Rodriguez) is actually alive as she is working for a mercenary racing team led by criminal mastermind Owen Shaw. Dominic decides to help Hobbs as he and Brian gather their team to help Hobbs and in return get a full pardon so they can return to the U.S. Yet, Dominic and the gang realize how much trouble Shaw and his team are with Letty also complicating matters prompting Dominic, Brian, and Hobbs to find answers.
Chris Morgan’s screenplay doesn’t just reinforce the theme of family as that is what Dominic, Brian, Mia, and Letty are along with Roman (Tyrese Gibson), Tej (Chris “Ludacris” Bridges), Han (Sung Kang), and Gisele (Gal Gadot). It’s a film that is about a family trying to get back one of their own once they realize that Letty is alive as she was presumed to be dead in the fourth film. For Brian, he feels guilty for putting Letty into that situation as he would seek answers to find out how she managed to stay alive while Dominic tries to reach out to her unaware that she has no memory of the life she had with Dominic. While the two and the rest of the gang were reluctant to work with Hobbs, they realize that Shaw is far more trouble as they help Hobbs nab him. Still, there is something about Shaw and his team that intrigues Dominic as there is a bit of mutual respect between the two as they both live by a code of honor.
Unfortunately, Shaw mocks Dominic’s idea of family as he tries to make his life and the life of his entire team troubling while being one step ahead of him as it prompts Dominic and the team to anticipate what Shaw will do. While Morgan’s script does balance the aspect of suspense and action into the story, there is also humor in the film as it relates to how each member of the team bring something to the table and how they get answers. Yet, it does play into a climax where the two teams collide as it isn’t just about survival but also about doing what is right.
Justin Lin’s direction is definitely stylish and slick where it does play into a lot of the conventions of mainstream action blockbusters. Yet, Lin does know how to balance action and suspense with some comedy while making sure that there is a story to tell and with characters that people care about. While there are a lot of moments where the camera is constantly moving as well as a wide second-unit shots of various locations such as Spain, Hong Kong, London, Costa Rica, and Los Angeles. Lin does manage to keep some things simple in terms of the compositions and scenes he creates where he injects a lot of light-hearted moments as well as scenes that reinforce the idea of family. The action sequences are definitely top-notch in not just some of the racing scenes where there’s cars driving through the traffic of London and Spain.
Since a lot of the racing scenes are fast, Lin knows how to establish exactly what is going on without getting too chaotic as well as play into the stakes of what is happening as it includes some very intense fight scenes. The fight scenes add to the action as it is very choreographed with such precision as it can be set in one location or something that involves a much more elaborate setting. It all plays to this sense of action and a gang trying to fight for what is right as well as proving that family is more important than a team who only works together for money. Overall, Lin crafts a very exhilarating yet thrilling film about a gang going against another racing gang to gain their freedom and bring back one of their own.
Cinematographer Stephen F. Windon does excellent work with the film‘s stylish and colorful cinematography with its emphasis on stylish lights for the scenes at night while keeping things simple yet broad for the daytime scenes. Editors Leigh Folsom-Boyd, Greg D’Auria, Christian Wagner, Kelly Matsumoto, and Dylan Highsmith do fantastic work with the editing where it does play into fast-cutting styles for much of the film‘s action sequences while slowing things down a bit for the non-action scenes. Production designer Jan Roelfs, with set decorator Richard Roberts and supervising art director James Hambidge, does brilliant work with the base where Hobbs and the team work at as well as Shaw‘s own home base where he plans his missions.
Costume designers Roberto Craciunica and Sanja Milkovic Hays do nice work with the costumes as it‘s mostly casual and to the point to play with the film‘s look. Visual effects supervisors Eric D. Christensen, Kelvin McIlwain, and Sean Stranks do terrific work with some of the minimal visual effects which is served as set dressing in order to keep the special effects be as realistic as it can be. Sound designers Peter Brown, Harry Cohen, Stephen P. Robinson, Peter Staubli, and Jay Wilkinson is superb for the sound layering of all of the noises that goes on as well as how the engines sound in those cars to showcase how much power they have. The film’s music by Lucas Vidal is wonderful for its mixture of orchestral bombast with some electronic music as the soundtrack features some score pieces from Brian Tyler from previous films as well as a mix of hip-hop and electronic music from Ludacris, deadmau5, Peaches, the Crystal Method, 2 Chainz & Wiz Khalifa, and T.I. with Lil’ Wayne.
The casting by Lucinda Syson is amazing as it features some notable appearances from Shea Whigham as O’Conner’s old FBI Stasiak, John Ortiz as the drug lord Braga that O’Conner confronts, and Elsa Pataky in a terrific performance as Elena Neves who understand what Dominic is going through as she stays behind with Mia in Spain. In the roles of Shaw’s team, there’s Clara Paget as the blonde driver Vegh, Kim Kold as the muscle Klaus, Benjamin Davies as the driver/fighter Adolfson, and Joe Taslim as the martial artist Jah who gives Han and Roman a very hard time in a memorable fight scene. Gina Carano is wonderful as Hobbs’ partner Riley as she is a badass who helps the team while going toe-to-toe against Letty in a very memorable fight scene. Luke Evans is fantastic as the main antagonist Owen Shaw as this mercenary who believes in a code that is about precision and getting the job done as he aims to make things hard for Dominic and his team.
Tyrese Gibson and Chris “Ludacris” Bridges are superb in their respective roles as Roman and Tej with Gibson being the wise-cracking member of the gang and Bridges as the more technical-based gadgets man. Gal Gadot is excellent as Gisele as this woman who is good with weapons and cars while also using her sex appeal to get some answers. Sung Kang is brilliant as Han as the driver who knows how to get things done while being the chameleon who can blend in towards any situation. Jordana Brewster is very good as Mia Toretto who stays behind in Spain to take care of her newborn son while hoping that Brian and Dominic bring Letty home. Michelle Rodriguez is incredible as Letty Ortiz as Dominic’s former lover who has no memory of her old life as she becomes confused about what she’s doing for Shaw as well as what Dominic tries to tell her.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is marvelous as Luke Hobbs as a special agent who asks Dominic and Brian’s help to capture Shaw and his team while giving them something in return as Johnson brings some humor and some intensity as he proves to be a vital part of the film’s success. Paul Walker is great as Brian O’Conner as a former agent turned criminal who takes part in the job to find some answers as he takes some major risks for the team as Walker is the perfect straight man to his partner-in-crime in Vin Diesel. Vin Diesel is remarkable as Dominic Toretto as a man who learns that his lost live is alive as he tries to get her back while dealing with Shaw as he tries to regain his freedom and put together the family he had come to care for.
Fast & Furious 6 is a phenomenal film from Justin Lin that features top-notch performances from a great ensemble cast led by Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. Not only is it an action blockbuster that has a lot of elements that gets audiences excited but it’s also a film with substance as it has a very engaging story and characters that audiences can root for. It’s also a film that allows the franchise to be taken seriously as it is a film that is a whole lot of fun but also has some brains. In the end, Fast & Furious 6 is an exciting and enthralling film from Justin Lin that kicks a lot of ass and more.
Fast & Furious Films: (The Fast & the Furious) - (2 Fast 2 Furious) - (The Fast & the Furious: Tokyo Drift) - (Fast & Furious) - (Fast Five) - Furious 7
© thevoid99 2014
Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 5/20/08 w/ Additional Edits & Revisions.
Written and directed by Richard Kelly, Southland Tales is a multi-narrative story set in post-apocalyptic Los Angeles on Fourth of July weekend 2008. The film follows the lives of various characters including an amnesiac action film star, an ex-porn star, and twin brothers as they deal with the bleakness of the world around them. With an all-star cast that includes Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Seann William Scott, Mandy Moore, Miranda Richardson, Nora Dunn, Justin Timberlake, Jon Lovitz, John Larroquette, Wallace Shawn, Kevin Smith, Lou Taylor Pucci, Beth Grant, Bai Ling, Will Sasso, Holmes Osborne, Cheri Oteri, Amy Poehler, Zelda Rubenstein, Janeane Garafalo, and Christopher Lambert. Southland Tales, despite its concept, is a messy, incoherent, and purely self-indulgent film from Richard Kelly.
It's Fourth of July weekend in 2008 which would mark the third anniversary of the nuclear bombing of a small Texas town that began World War III. With the Patriot Act in full power, gasoline and alternative fuel resources in decline, and America on the verge of chaos. An action film star named Boxer Santaros (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson) is in the desert with amnesia as he arrives in California. After being captured, he meets with a former porn star-turned reality TV show host Krysta Now (Sarah Michelle Gellar) as the two collaborate on a screenplay. Boxer learns that Krysta is part of a neo-Marxist movement led by her manager Cyndi Pinziki (Nora Dunn) who is trying to combat a Republican Presidential candidate Senator Bobby Frost (Holmes Osbourne) and his wife/head of US-IDent Nana Mae Frost (Miranda Richardson).
Meanwhile, the neo-Marxist movement learns that a scientist Baron Von Westphalen (Wallace Shawn) is trying to create a new source of alternative fuel as he is endorsing Senator Frost. With the war still waging on, Frost hopes to have a Republican victory in California as the neo-Marxists have taken a racist LAPD officer named Roland Tavener (Seann William Scott) hostage while using his twin brother Ronald to impersonate him. Ronald accompanies Boxer, who joins in to research his film role, as the two go into hijinks where a domestic dispute that was supposed to be routine went crazy thanks to a rogue cop named Bart Bookman (Jon Lovitz) who is also a neo-Marxist with his girlfriend Zora Carmichaels (Cheri Oteri). Boxer and Ronald run in fear as Boxer has an encounter with Baron and his cohorts that included his mother (Beth Grant), Dr. Soberin Exx (Curtis Armstrong), Katarina Kuntzler (Zelda Rubenstein), and Serpentine (Bai Ling).
With Pinziki and Frost's advisor Vaughn Smallhouse (John Larroquette) trying to negotiate over terms about the release of a possible sex tape between Boxer and Krysta Now, Boxer's wife Madeline Frost Santaros (Mandy Moore) wants the tape blocked. With Boxer returning to his home, he is now believing that he's Jericho as he's made contact with a woman named Starla Von Luft (Michele Durrett) about his screenplay. Santaros escapes the Frost home to meet with Von Luft as things get crazy when an Iraqi war veteran named Pilot Abilene (Justin Timberlake), high on a new drug, kills her. Ronald Taverner had just escape and learned something powerful is going on with his right hand as did his twin brother as the two try to find each other. Ronald seeks help with a secret arms dealer named Walter Mung (Christopher Lambert) while Roland gets help from a local drug dealer named Martin Kefauver (Lou Taylor Pucci). With Krysta now getting possession of a video tape that could incriminate her, she makes her own deal with Smallhouse as the night approaches for what could be the end of the world. It is there at a party for a new Zeppelin that the Taverner twins and Boxer learned what happened to them a few days ago.
The concept of Southland Tales about the end of the world emerging on a Fourth of July weekend with intertwining storylines, multiple characters, and themes of social and environmental unrest is a very good concept. The problem is that it's a good idea on paper. On film and in script, it's a mess. A bloated mess that has too many characters, too many stories, too many situations, and nothing to gel on. It's clear that there's a conflict between two groups. The problem is that it gets confusing on who is working for the neo-Marxists and who is working for the U.S. government. Some characters start of as neo-Marxists and then become pawns for Frost and company. It becomes confusing.
The script doesn't have a sense of cohesiveness nor any characters with the exception of the Tavener twins and Boxer Santaros, that have any depth or development. Instead, Kelly brings out caricatures of individuals that looks like they've come out of films by David Lynch and Gregg Araki. Kelly's claim that the film is meant to be a satire but there's not much to satirize about except reality TV and pop stardom in the form of Krysta Now. The dialogue is stylized for some characters yet it sounds very ridiculous coming out of the mouths of the actors while what's even worse is the film's voice-over narration from Pilot Abilene. The narration brings nothing but a bunch of strange and inane philosophies while the reading by Justin Timberlake sounds very flat and lifeless. Then there's the story and plot. There's nothing clear in what it's trying to say and though things do clear a bit in the third act that involves time travel as well as motivation for two of its lead characters. There's no payoff even though something happens but what is the aftermath?
If Kelly's demands for the audience to be very attentive to the film in script, then the demand for the film in his direction is too overwhelming. Kelly had intended it to be a much bigger experience that is interactive with the audience that included a graphic novel that preceded the film. The problem is that Kelly is trying to create a film that is strange enough for an art-house film audience while using big stars for a mainstream audience and he succeeds in neither. The problem is that Kelly is too enamored with the film's concept and is convinced that the film should be seen more than once to understand the story. Kelly's demands for an audience is too much for a mainstream audience to handle while an art-house audience are smart enough to know when a film should be seen twice.
Kelly's demands for the audience are marred by his bad choices in the direction. The awkward framing, compositions, and no depth of field for the film's exterior and interior settings really create a film that is messy. Plus, Kelly's knack for bending genres, that worked in his previous film Donnie Darko, fails because he tries to do too much. He tries to make it into a comedy, action, drama, satire, sci-fi, and also, a musical. There's a couple of musical dance numbers where one of them is based on a drug trip where Pilot Abilene is lip-syncing to the Killers' All The Things That I've Done with back-up dancer and it's an extremely baffling scene that really confuses the audience into what they're seeing. While there's a couple of interesting moment in the directing including a tracking shot of the MegaZeppelin scene, the rest of the film falters with inane special effects, chaotic conflicts, and everything else where the result is a bloated mess that doesn't make any sense to its audience.
Cinematographer Steven B. Poster does have some nice coloring but due to Kelly's direction, he is given nothing to do as he's forced to emphasize on lighting style that doesn’t have any depth at all. Neither does Sam Bauer's editing that at the film's theatrical 144-minute running time, lags in pacing, tries to go for style, and doesn't add anything to the film other than the fact that more scenes should be cut while its approach in the intertwining stories makes it confusing. Production designer Alec Hammond and set decorator Tracey A. Doyle does an OK job in some of the film's set designs though it's most notable achievement is the pristine look of the MegaZeppelin. Costume designer April Ferry creates interesting costumes for the actresses involved yet the look at times is very cartoonish and lacks any real depth.
Sound designer/editor David Esparza also doesn't do anything brilliant that's expected in a film that bends genre as his work in some of the action sequences are average at best while a scene in a gun battle tends to be very muddled more in part due to the direction. The visual effects by Thomas Tannenberg does have nice touch for its mix of animation and computer graphics in some sequences but the rest of it isn't very good at all, notably the climatic scene along with the MegaZeppelin is poorly made. The film's music by renowned electronic-pop artist Moby is dull at best. Originally supposed to be a collaboration with Nine Inch Nails' Trent Reznor, Moby's score fits in the mood with his ambient setting though the addition of pulsating, techno beats create a sense of distraction and at times, doesn't fit in with the mood of the film.
The soundtrack is a tribute to classic alternative music of the 90s with bands like Radiohead, Jane's Addiction, the Pixies, Blur, Big Head Todd & the Monster, Elbow, and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club along with the Killers, Louis Armstrong, Beethoven, Muse, Waylon Jennings, and an original song for Sarah Michelle Gellar's character that's a bad impersonation of Britney Spears music.
The casting by Mary Vernieu and Venus Kanani though is an interesting ensemble. There's very few people to stand out as nearly every actor in this film has little to work on while it's clear that the film features cameos and character actors where sometimes, their appearance or presence tends to be a distraction. Cameos from Kevin Smith as a legless war veteran, singer Rebekah del Rio from Mulholland Dr.as a singer, Janeane Garafalo as a general in the final party scene, Christopher Lambert as an arms dealer in an ice cream truck, Eli Roth as a man killed in a toilet, and Sab Shimono as a Japanese prime minister don't really add anything since they're just cameos. Garafalo's appearance is only brief which suggests her appearance was supposed to be bigger but never made it into the final cut while Smith is barely recognizable in his own role. Comedians Will Sasso as Krysta's bodyguard, Amy Poehler as a poet, and Cheri Oteri as neo-Marxist are very bad with Poehler and Oteri not given anything funny to do with Oteri being way over the top in her role. Jon Lovitz also suffers in his role as rogue cop where he ends up being very silly.
Wood Harris as a famed rapper doesn't make much impression nor does Jill Ritchie as one of Krysta's girlfriends while Mike Nielsen as a government spy isn't memorable at all where he's in the film for one minute and then, he's gone. Michele Durrett also suffers the same fate just as her character was getting a bit interesting despite her own exaggerated performance. Famed character actors Curtis Armstrong, Zelda Rubenstein, and the always enjoyable Beth Grant as the Baron's cohorts are practically wasted since they just show up and say their lines while Bai Ling as Serpentine makes more of an impression that's really more of a distraction than a performance.
Nora Dunn is okay in her role as Cindy Pinziki but her character lacks any real sense of clear motivation while John Larroquette looks bored in his role as Vaughn Smallhouse. Lou Taylor Pucci is also okay in his role as drug dealer talking like a rapper though he does manage to make an impression in the film's climatic scene. Wallace Shawn, a great character actor, sadly doesn't really get to do anything but squirm and act slimy as if that's all he's given to do. Holmes Osbourne also doesn't get anything to do but act awkward and such while Miranda Richardson, sporting a Texan accent, is kind of annoying in the film and doesn't get anything to do than sit, talk in a Texan accent, and watch a lot of TV screens. Mandy Moore gives a flat, uninspiring performance where all she does is nag and be a glorified trophy wife which is sad considering that Moore is more talented than that.
Sarah Michelle Gellar is okay in her role as a former porn star turned entrepreneur though sadly, Gellar doesn't get to do anything but look pretty, act like a dumb blonde, and that's all which is sad considering she's far more talented than that through her work in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The film's most baffling and certainly, the worst performance is Justin Timberlake as a war veteran who likes to get high and shoot people while voicing some of the worst narration ever committed on film.
Seann William Scott, who is known as the obnoxious Stifler in the first three American Pie films, is good in his dual role as twin brothers who hold the key to the conspiracy that the American government is doing. While Scott does get to have a few, funny one-liners, he does manage to show his skills as a dramatic actor in the third act where he gets to do a lot despite what little depth and development his characters had to work with. His performance proves that he can do more than just being Stifler. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is also good as Boxer Santaros and his character alter-ego, Jericho Cane (a nod to both Chris Jericho and Kane) where he has this great presence that's expected from an action film star but also a sense of humor in how jittery he is when he's nervous. While the dialogue he's given doesn't work for him, Johnson at least does his best to his charisma and presence to give a good performance to prove that he's more than some big tough guy.
Southland Tales is a tremendously horrific film from Richard Kelly. Despite some of the visuals and the performances of Dwayen Johnson and Seann William Scott. The film doesn't do enough to create a very compelling story that would make sense in favor of style over substance that is unable to live up to the ambitions that Kelly wanted. It's also a film where it tries to hard to do so much and ask a lot from its audience only to either bore or frustrate them in the mess that it is. In the end, Southland Tales is a very shitty film from Richard Kelly who tries too hard and fail.
Richard Kelly Films: Donnie Darko - (The Box (2009 film))
© thevoid99 2014
